The night had fallen completely dark, and the mottled shadows of the trees obscured the hazy moonlight.The mountain path was not easy to traverse—bumpy and uneven, with stones and dead branches scattered about. Yinzhen's right leg had twisted his bone, and a wound as long as a palm had been slashed from his thigh to his knee by an iron rod.In the darkness, though one could not tell how severe the injury was, the faint scent of blood gradually grew stronger.Banxia turned sideways to size up this unfamiliar man.He was utterly cold and silent. When given a rope, he climbed up on his own. Despite his injured leg, he preferred to walk by himself rather than accept help, following behind with a tree branch in hand—his pace unhurried, yet he never fell behind.Only… she bit her lip and walked over to Ye Nanyuan, whispering, "Miss, are you really going to take him back with us?""This… it's the middle of the night, a lone man and a lone woman." Banxia turned her head to glance behind her, lowering her voice even further. "We don't know if he's a good man or a bad one. If you bring a strange man back like this, and Nanny sees…"The night was too quiet; every sound was amplified. And since Yinzhen was not far away, he had heard the little maid's muttering from her very first sentence.His brow furrowed slightly, and his gaze shifted toward Ye Nanyuan.Her figure was delicate and slender—even wrapped in a large black cloak, one could discern the waist that seemed small enough to encircle with a single hand. Under the moonlight, her eyes were lively and beautiful.This encounter, combined with a woman who had appeared out of nowhere…His hanging fingers curled slightly. Before he could speak, he saw the young woman up ahead turn her body away, avoiding his gaze. She held a lotus lantern in her hand, and as she lowered her head, her eyelashes drooped.A plain white gauze veil covered her palm-sized face, leaving only a pair of eyes as brilliant as pearls.Her dark lashes trembled as she muttered under her breath: "Let's bring him along for now. I'll find a way to distract Nanny later." The fingers holding the lantern were restless too, jade-like and fair, fidgeting back and forth on the lantern's handle.Having said that, she turned her back and muttered another line: "His face isn't bad to look at. I can't just let him get devoured by wild beasts, can I?"Yinzhen didn't snap back to his senses until she had already walked a couple of steps away. He reached up and touched his own face, finding it truly hard to believe. She had turned back for him—he had thought it was out of a change of heart, never imagining she had only taken a liking to his face.
Yinzhen stood at the door, listening to the young woman coquettishly pleading for some eight-treasure sweet soup."Alright, alright." Nanny Zhou looked at Ye Nanyuan as if she were her own daughter, her face full of doting affection: "Nanny will make it right now. The small kitchen isn't clean—Miss, go wait outside."Ye Nanyuan personally followed Nanny Zhou to the back kitchen, and Banxia seized this opportunity to quickly bring the Fourth Prince into the inner room. She half-supported him and settled him into a chair, then pointed a finger at him: "This… this is our Miss's boudoir. Don't you dare touch anything."This man was handsome, tall and imposing, with a face so cold and icy it was as if someone owed him silver and refused to pay it back. Banxia was somewhat afraid, and her words came out haltingly.After speaking, she didn't dare leave either, but stood off to the side, glaring at him with wide eyes.Yinzhen naturally wouldn't bother with this little maid; he didn't even let his gaze rest on her. He sat in the chair, surveying the room. It was not large, but the arrangement was elegant and intriguing.What first caught the eye was a pair of jade hooks with cloud-pattern lanterns, beside which stood a large boxwood screen inlaid with kingfisher feathers. At hand was a clear white jade cup and a glass pot with a lotus-leaf handle.Raising his eyes higher, on the rosewood desk with cloud patterns before him sat a white tiger paperweight made of bright jade, with three or four purple sable brushes tucked into a cloisonné brush pot.Elegant, simple—yet every single item in the room was anything but ordinary.Yinzhen lowered his head and smiled. Having grown up in the palace since childhood, he had seen countless treasures and thought little of these… but then again, in these deep mountains and wild forests, such a beautiful woman…His eyes flickered. Suddenly, a fragrance of pear blossoms drifted toward him—light and clean, with a hint of sweetness mixed in, most pleasant to the nose."Hey." The owner of the fragrance stepped forward and set the tray in her hands down, nudging it closer to him. Yinzhen was startled, then raised his hand to take the white jade bowl, stirring the golden spoon through the sweet soup.But he did not bring it to his lips."Miss is from the south?" He raised his eyes to ask."Our Miss grew up in Jiangnan since she was little." Before Ye Nanyuan could speak, Banxia behind her jumped in to answer, staring at the bowl in the Fourth Prince's hands with a face full of envy."Oh?" His long, bamboo-like fingers paused for a moment, and he asked again: "Then what brings Miss to the capital? Searching for relatives?""Sir truly has miraculous foresight."Ye Nanyuan stood right in front of him, her eyes smiling behind the veil: "This young woman did come to seek relatives, but after arriving in the capital, I learned that my kin had long since passed away. That is why I settled here."Yinzhen raised an eyebrow but said nothing—clearly unconvinced.Ye Nanyuan lowered her head, watching his hand stir the soup with a small red-gold spoon, then suddenly bent down and leaned close to his face."Sir." Her eyes curved upward at the corners, and now, facing the candlelight, they reflected a dazzling brilliance. Yinzhen, caught off guard by her sudden proximity, instinctively leaned back.A soft chuckle escaped her lips as she saw his reaction.She was extremely close, her glistening eyes bewitchingly alluring. She lowered her eyelids and whispered, "Rest assured, Sir, the sweet soup is not poisoned."Fourth Prince's hand holding the spoon paused. For a moment, the suspicion in his eyes couldn't be suppressed as he lifted his dark lashes to look at her.Those eyes were far too close. In the shimmering light, he finally noticed a small red mole beneath her eye, the thin veil unable to conceal her fair, tender skin. The red mole sat just below the corner of her eye.It made her even more striking.She probably had no idea how alluring she was, still wearing that lively, triumphant smile. Perhaps finding his lack of reaction dull, she shook her head with a laugh and straightened up.Fourth Prince let out a quiet scoff inwardly. The moment she straightened, his warm fingers shot out and snatched the veil from her face.The plain white veil fell away, revealing a disappointing face beneath. Her snow-white skin was covered in red spots—small, yet densely scattered."You!" The eyes that had just been so proud and lively filled with panic. The young girl hastily put the veil back on."My apologies, I was rude."Yinzhen rubbed his lowered fingers together, unsure whether he felt relieved—his suspicions somewhat dispelled—or disappointed that such beautiful, captivating eyes belonged to such a plain face."It's fine. It's only natural for you to be cautious, Sir."But the young girl seemed annoyed. Her expression cooled, and the cunning sparkle in her eyes faded. She spoke with a composed, indifferent tone: "Though Sir suffered because of capturing that Spirit Fox, the trap was ultimately dug on my orders.""Sir may lack honor, but I know propriety. I couldn't bear to see you harmed by a beast, so I saved you.""Judging by your bearing and attire, you must be someone of standing. Please, once your wounds heal, leave on your own. Do not speak of what happened here, lest you ruin my reputation."With that, she lowered her eyes, bent her knees in a slight bow, and turned to leave.Banxia, furious, mustered her courage and shot Fourth Prince a fierce glare before running after her mistress, muttering indignantly under her breath."Miss, why did you bother saving him? It's not like we made him fall in. We might as well have left him in that trap to die.""He's of unknown origin and has a wicked heart. The only decent thing about him is his face, and even that's wasted on someone his age.""He doesn't appreciate your kindness, and you even made him sweet soup with your own hands."Inside the room, Yinzhen froze, lowering his gaze to the table.The sweet soup in the white jade bowl had long gone cold. He picked up the red-gold spoon and brought it to his nose, catching a faint scent of pear blossoms—the same fragrance that clung to her.As if recalling something, he finally brought it to his lips and took a sip.