Shang Jieshi, the heir apparent of the Prince of Nan’an, was the only son of the prince and his princess. While his martial skills were passable, he was utterly illiterate, indulging in extravagance, debauchery, and a life of wanton dissipation.
Two months ago, they first met at Cuiyu Zhai. Upon seeing her beauty, Shang Jieshi was instantly captivated and made lewd and disrespectful remarks. Qu Yi retorted sharply, drawing a crowd of onlookers who pointed and criticized. Though she managed to escape unscathed, Shang Jieshi harbored deep resentment from that encounter.
Afterward, Shang Jieshi repeatedly sent people to sneak into Qu Fu under cover of darkness with ill intentions. However, due to the intricate Formations within the estate, they failed to breach its defenses. This only intensified Shang Jieshi’s fascination with Qu Yi, prompting him to station spies around Qu Fu, waiting for an opportunity.
One month ago, Qu Yi left home intending to visit Zhenbao Xuan. Upon receiving the news, Shang Jieshi colluded with the shop owner to lock the doors, trapping Qu Yi inside. Overjoyed, Shang Jieshi brought several matrons to Zhenbao Xuan to vent his anger. Qu Yi was forced to kneel on the ground, held by two matrons, as Shang Jieshi slapped her repeatedly, hurling insults and vulgarities. Qu Yi merely bowed her head and endured the beating without begging for mercy.
Even after venting his rage, Shang Jieshi remained unsatisfied and attempted to assault her right there in Zhenbao Xuan. Fortunately, before leaving home, Qu Yi had hidden some poison given to her by Qu Qing for self-defense under her fingernails. Pretending to comply, she caught him off guard and scratched his neck with her nail. Shang Jieshi immediately felt an unbearable itch all over his body, scratching himself until bloody marks appeared, rendering him incapable of proceeding. Qu Yi then threatened him with the antidote and finally managed to escape.
A few days later, Qu Yi disguised herself as a man and left the estate through a side gate, heading to another jewelry shop. After completing her purchases, she was on her way home when misfortune struck—Shang Jieshi, out strolling with a beauty, recognized her. Unaware, Qu Yi happily cradled her treasures and hurried back, only to be knocked unconscious in an alley just two streets away from the Qu Family, stuffed into a sack, and carried onto a carriage…
“Ah—!”
Qu Yi awoke screaming to find a gloomy-faced man sitting before her, holding her right index finger—the nail stained with blood. The pain of the torn nail, connected to the heart, made her sweat profusely, nearly causing her to faint again.
“Reporting to the heir apparent, only this fingernail contained poison. It has now been removed.”
“Strip her clothes and remove her hairpins. Leave only her undergarments. Search her thoroughly—this girl is cunning.”
“Yes.”
Following the order, the man began tearing off Qu Yi’s outer garments. Qu Yi struggled fiercely. “Shang Jieshi, no matter what, I am the legitimate daughter of the Qu Family. Though the Qu Family holds no power, my maternal grandfather is the Left Minister of the court. Do you truly fear no retribution under the laws of the Daxia Dynasty?”
“If I take you today, I will go to Qu Fu tomorrow to propose marriage. Mutual attraction between men and women is perfectly normal—who can stop me, and by what right? If you behave well today, I might consider taking you as a concubine. But if you dare play tricks again, you’ll only be fit to be a groveling mistress.” Shang Jieshi laughed wildly, thoroughly pleased.
He then turned to the man and said, “Go outside and keep watch.”
“Yes.” The man leaped out of the carriage.
Through the lifted curtain, Qu Yi saw that dusk had fallen. They were surrounded by dense forests—a place where it was almost impossible for anyone to pass by.
“Stop looking, no one is coming.” Shang Jieshi grew increasingly excited and lunged at Qu Yi, pinning her hands above their heads with one hand while tearing off her last layer of undergarment with the other, revealing skin as fair and smooth as jade beneath. Qu Yi struggled desperately, her nails torn and fingers bleeding profusely, staining the bedding beneath her.
Seeing the alluring female body, Shang Jieshi’s eyes turned bloodshot as he kissed and bit down from her neck. Qu Yi screamed in terror, but perhaps finding the sound grating, Shang Jieshi tightly choked her soft throat. Qu Yi could barely breathe, let alone scream. Her gaze gradually grew unfocused, tears streaming down like a breached dam.
As Shang Jieshi lifted his head to kiss Qu Yi’s red lips, she could endure no more. Turning her head away, her gaze gradually sharpened, her heart set on death as she prepared to bite her tongue and end her life.
Thump, thump, thump—
Just then, the sound of knocking on the window arose. At first, Shang Jieshi ignored it, but the knocking persisted, rhythmic and unceasing. Annoyed, he flung open the carriage window and roared, “Which bastard dares ruin my business!”
Pressed beneath Shang Jieshi, Qu Yi was completely shielded from view, unable to see the person outside the window. She could only observe Shang Jieshi’s face instantly turning pale.
“My master asks the heir apparent: if he wishes to protect this young lady today, can he or not?”
Shang Jieshi’s expression shifted dramatically, flushing red then paling white, over and over. He glanced down at Qu Yi beneath him, unwillingly giving her a few hard pinches before finally rising and jumping out of the carriage.
Afterward, Qu Yi only heard Shang Jieshi speaking politely outside, “Of course he can, of course he can.”
With the crisis averted, Qu Yi propped herself up on her elbows, struggling to sit up, wanting to see who had saved her. Unfortunately, she only saw a carriage driving farther and farther away. The carriage was utterly ordinary, with only a pair of orchids carved on its rear panel leaving any impression.
Shang Jieshi threw her clothes back inside, snarling viciously, “Hurry up and dress, then leave. You got lucky this time, running into that plague god. But I warn you, don’t ever fall into my hands again!”
Qu Yi smiled bitterly but did not respond. Wiping away her tears, she picked up her clothes piece by piece, first feeling inside the sleeves to confirm the items she had bought earlier, sighing slightly in relief. By the time she dressed and stepped out of the carriage, Shang Jieshi and his entourage had long vanished. Qu Yi groped her way back toward the city.
By the time she entered the city, night had fully fallen. Qu Yi first went to a medical clinic to bandage her injured fingers, then bought a few steamed buns along the way before staggering exhaustedly through a side gate into the estate, returning to her empty courtyard.
Qu Yi had no personal maids attending her. The maids who cleaned during the day had already returned to their quarters by this hour.
Because Du Youxia disliked it, Qu Yi almost never dined with her parents. Usually, she either called for someone or went to the kitchen herself to fetch meals. Today, having not requested food, naturally no one had delivered any. She removed her clothes, secretly washed away the bloodstains with clean water, then lay down on the bed utterly exhausted, nibbling on the long-cold steamed buns as she wept alone.
All these events, Qu Yi never told a soul, and thus truly no one knew.
“Shang Jieshi!” Qu Qing tightly clenched the letter in her hand, her gaze cold and sharp as ice.
Though she had long anticipated that the matter between Qu Yi and Shang Jieshi was far from something that could be dismissed with the simple word “harassment,” Qu Qing truly never expected him to push Qu Yi to such an extent!
If no one had intervened, what would have become of Qu Yi at this moment?
Such a significant matter—if she hadn’t investigated, Qu Yi wouldn’t have breathed a word about it to her. The letters delivered to her hands were filled with nothing but good news, not a single useful detail to be found.
As for the person who saved Qu Yi, the letter made no mention, but someone capable of making this heir apparent wary could be counted on one hand across all of Daxia. This person’s status must be exceedingly noble, most likely a true member of the imperial family.
Yet, why would this person save Qu Yi? And how did they know Qu Yi was in that remote, seldom-traveled dense forest?
At this thought, Qu Qing’s pupils suddenly widened, her hands trembling slightly.
“Shang”—the royal surname. “Jing”—the generational name for the current generation of princes. The words of that Jing San from yesterday echoed thunderously in her ears.
“I am surnamed Jing, a native of the capital. As I am the third in my family, others call me Jing San. My family runs a small business.”
Third in line—the third prince of the current generation, Crown Prince Shang Jingci.
No wonder she couldn’t recall where she had seen this man—she had never met him before. Yet, how could she not have seen the portrait of the Crown Prince?
Though Qu Qing had long expected the Crown Prince would not let her go, nor would he relinquish the support of Shumiao Pavilion, she never imagined it would come so swiftly, and in such a manner.
Qu Qing abruptly stood up, rushed out of the Secret Chamber, and then leaped onto the roof, gliding like a swallow as she sped toward Qu Fu.
In the teahouse directly opposite Chunjiang Lou, a handsome man sat by the window sipping tea. Seeing Qu Qing darting across the rooftops, he was momentarily stunned. Pointing at her, he exclaimed to the servant beside him, “Look, there’s a fairy in the sky!”
The servant glanced in the direction he pointed and replied with a hint of disdain, “It’s merely Qinggong. Our eldest young master is far more skilled than her. Even though you, Second Young Master, are disabled and cannot practice martial arts, there’s no need to make such a fuss and embarrass our Prince’s Mansion.”
“Oh, so it’s not a fairy,” the man seemed to take this in, resting his cheek on his hand as he sighed in disappointment.
The servant’s face was full of contempt, silently mouthing the word “idiot” before turning and leaving.
The man paid no mind to the servant’s mockery, his gaze following the direction Qu Qing had gone as he murmured to himself, “Indeed, that is clearly a femme fatale who takes lives…”
Qu Fu.
Qu Yi’s eyes were filled with disbelief. “What did you say? A marriage proposal? Who is proposing to whom?”
Tian An replied, “Reporting to the young lady, that Jing San Gongzi just now made a clamor at the mansion gate, beating gongs and drums while uttering many bold declarations of love, drawing a crowd of onlookers. Though the master is furious, he truly has no recourse. If the young lady does not go out to meet him, this man likely won’t leave.”
Qu Yi was shocked! Truly shocked! No wonder she had heard the commotion outside early in the morning—she thought it was someone else’s wedding celebration! Little did she know the celebration had arrived at her own doorstep!
Without time for further questions, Qu Yi hurried toward the side hall. The moment she stepped inside, a fierce gust of wind slammed the door shut behind her.
Startled, Qu Yi turned around and found herself staring directly into a pair of star-like eyes that seemed to grow larger by the moment.
Jing San suddenly drew close, and Qu Yi instinctively tried to retreat, but unexpectedly, Jing San took advantage of the moment to wrap his arm around her waist, preventing her from moving. Their gazes met, and Jing San’s starry eyes sparkled, brimming with tenderness. For a moment, Qu Yi was mesmerized, unable to look away.
The two remained locked in this ambiguous posture when suddenly, a clamorous sound of gongs and drums erupted from outside the door.
“Ouch, stop it, stop it! I’m leaving, I’m leaving, I won’t listen anymore.”
Qu Youyu had intended to eavesdrop by the door, but as soon as he pressed his ear against it, Jing San’s men unexpectedly started banging the drums again, startling him so much that he had to cover his ears and flee.
Only then did the two inside the room snap back to their senses. Jing San released his hold and took a step back, while Qu Yi blushed deeply, lowering her head as she walked toward the main seat in the hall.
Jing San, no longer standing on ceremony, found a seat near the front and sat down. He then picked up the teacup beside him and took a small sip. Seeing that Qu Yi remained silent with her head bowed, he impatiently said, “The eavesdropper has now been driven away. Does Miss Qu intend to keep pretending?”
Qu Yi, who had still been feeling somewhat bashful, looked up in disbelief upon hearing these words. Yet, she saw no trace of warmth in the eyes of the man opposite her—instead, they were as cold and piercing as the depths of winter.