Xiao Yunting inexplicably felt uncomfortable.
According to Qi Yuan’s description, Qi Wang was clearly a violent man, and he was undoubtedly Qi Yuan’s enemy.
So why was it that Qi Wang, of all people, couldn’t bring himself to kill Qi Yuan?
Setting aside the vague talk of past lives, just recently, Qi Yuan had helped Qi Zhen capture Han Yue’e, causing Qi Wang to lose face in a big way. Afterwards, she even forced Qi Wang to give up his princely title and cut off his financial resources.
If, even after all this, Qi Wang still couldn’t kill Qi Yuan, the implication was obvious.
But perhaps because it was so obvious, Xiao Yunting felt extremely uncomfortable seeing Qi Yuan’s calm certainty. “Since you’re so sure he won’t kill you, why did you ally with me?”
If Qi Yuan was so “special” towards Qi Wang, and Qi Yuan was this capable, she could’ve simply gone to Qi Wang’s side.
Outside, Babao smacked Liujin hard on the head.
Liujin, who had been obediently riding his horse and thinking about how to escort Miss Qi to Fujian in a way that was both high-profile and low-key, nearly fell off his horse from the sudden hit.
“What are you doing?” He glared at Babao in annoyance. “Don’t you know scaring people can kill them?”
He had no intention of ending up like Liu Mingzhu, half-dead from falling off a horse.
“I smell something sour!” Babao winked at him, signaling toward the carriage. “It’s the smell of jealousy!”
….
Liujin’s eyes immediately lit up. “Tell me!”
Inside the carriage, Qi Yuan completely ignored Xiao Yunting’s strange, sarcastic tone.
Of course she knew his attitude wasn’t quite right, but she never thought Xiao Yunting had feelings for her. She didn’t believe he was jealous.
People were like this—when something is beautiful and interesting, they naturally develop some possessiveness. That didn’t mean there were any deeper feelings.
Her past life had already taught her never to think too highly of herself.
Being delusional about someone’s affections was one of the most embarrassing things in the world, and she never wanted to feel that again.
So she raised her brows impatiently and glanced at Xiao Yunting. “Has Your Highness forgotten? I told you from the beginning—I only allied with you to save the Xie family.”
In other words, her alliance with Xiao Yunting was entirely for the sake of the Xie family, for Xie Ying’s sake.
She really didn’t understand where Xiao Yunting’s strange resistance was coming from.
Xiao Yunting stepped out of the carriage, his face dark.
Babao, who had been eavesdropping eagerly, immediately grabbed Liujin and pulled him aside. The two pretended to ride on, as if they had heard nothing.
It was only after getting out that Xiao Yunting finally calmed down.
He didn’t even know where this sudden anger came from, but for some reason, he was simply irritated.
When he saw Liujin and Babao whispering together, he sneered coldly. “What, you two have nothing better to do?”
Liujin nervously shook his head. “No, no, we were just discussing how to best protect Miss Qi!”
Protect?
Xiao Yunting took a deep breath, his teeth aching from frustration. Then he got back into the carriage and looked at Qi Yuan. “I’ll leave Liujin and Babao with you. Both of them are highly skilled and can command my shadow guards. At the very least, they can protect your safety.”
Qi Yuan’s heart suddenly felt complicated.
There was a reason why she had misinterpreted things in her past life.
Xiao Yunting really was a good man.
She lowered her eyes and softly thanked him.
Xiao Yunting stared at her deeply. “Think more about the Xie family. Since you care so much about them, keep yourself alive. When the time comes, you can reunite with them.”
Qi Yuan looked up at him and sincerely thanked him. “Thank you, Your Highness. Don’t worry, we will all get what we want.”
The carriage didn’t stop at Baiyun Mountain. Instead, it continued straight onto the main road toward Henan.
The two groups tailing the carriage immediately scattered.
In Qi Wang’s residence, Qi Wang was staring at the sleeve arrow in his hand, his gaze dark and unreadable.
Eunuch Xu carefully entered the room and bowed his head to report, “Your Highness, they’ve returned.”
Qi Wang gave a faint hum and gestured with a lift of his hand. “Let them in.”
Eunuch Xu brought in a guard, then quietly closed the door behind him.
The room instantly sank into darkness.
“Your Highness!” The guard knelt and knocked his head to the floor before speaking in a low voice. “Miss Qi did not go to Baiyun Mountain to accompany the Eldest Princess. Instead, she headed toward Henan.”
After a brief pause, he added, “And… today, Miss Qi shared a carriage with Jing Wang.”
There was a faint snap as the sleeve arrow in Qi Wang’s hand made a crisp sound.
The next moment, the arrow shot straight through the window, rattling it violently.
The guard trembled with fright.
Qi Wang merely let out a cold “Oh?” before asking, “Xiao Yunting?”
The guard quickly confirmed, “Yes.”
Qi Wang slammed the sleeve arrow heavily onto the table, startling the guard so much that he nearly jumped.
“Good!” Qi Wang gritted his teeth, supporting himself on the table as he stood, his face twisted in a ferocious sneer. “Very good! She’s doing very well!”
No wonder—no wonder even when he bared his heart to her, she was unmoved.
It was because of Xiao Yunting!
It had been the same in the previous life.
And now, in this life, it was still the same!
She was reborn, and the first thing she did was go help Xiao Yunting!
She just couldn’t wait!
The guard was already drenched in cold sweat, but he didn’t dare make a sound.
Qi Wang suddenly swept everything off the table and barked, “Go prepare! Find out which route she took—I’m going after her myself!”
The guard was horrified. “Your Highness! That’s not appropriate—you’re still under house arrest! If you’re discovered…”
It had already been a huge risk when Qi Wang insisted on going to Zhou Wang’s residence.
Now he actually planned to leave the capital altogether?
This was far too dangerous.
Qi Wang glanced at him coldly and said blandly, “What, I need to follow your orders now?”
The guard didn’t dare lift his head, trembling even more. “Your Highness, I wouldn’t dare!”
Qi Wang’s expression turned impatient. “Then why aren’t you moving?!”
The guard didn’t dare protest any further. He quickly agreed, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and hurried out to carry out the order.
The room sank into darkness once more. Qi Wang let out a low, cold laugh. “Qi Yuan, don’t dream—you’ll never escape my grasp in this lifetime!”
Since she had seduced him, she would never escape!
Even if she died, she would die by his hand!
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