“Do you have a team in mind?” Xiao Muchen asked, his gaze locked on Mingxi, each word deliberate.
Mingxi feigned surprise. “The teams haven’t even been announced this year. How would I know which one is good? From your tone, does Wangye already know?”
“I don’t know either.”
Duan Mingxi’s lips twitched, though she kept a look of astonishment on her face. Turning her gaze toward the lake, she asked, “Is Wangye planning to place a bet this year?”
“Do you want me to bet or not to bet?”
What did this have to do with her?
Duan Mingxi struggled to keep her smile intact as she looked at Xiao Muchen. “Wangye speaks as if my opinion determines your actions. Would you really bet if I said so, or refrain if I didn’t?”
“Since we will be husband and wife in the future, these mundane matters should naturally be decided by you.”
Duan Mingxi: …
Clearly, she should have checked the almanac before stepping out today!
“In that case, Wangye must be cautious with such words. If Duke Wei’s residence hears of it, it’s bound to stir up trouble again,” Duan Mingxi retorted with a cold laugh.
“Didn’t the duke’s household already handle the situation? Are you still dissatisfied?” Xiao Muchen asked, studying her face.
Mingxi maintained her smile. “What does Wangye think?”
Xiao Muchen paused, his gaze searching hers. “You’re unhappy?”
Mingxi’s smile remained fixed.
That was answer enough. Xiao Muchen sighed lightly.
“The young lady from the Feng family has already been sent back to her family. With her return, she won’t cause any further disturbances for us in the future.”
His words were logical, but Mingxi doubted he didn’t understand her true grievance.
Standing face-to-face, their eyes met, tension subtly brewing between them. Xiao Muchen, sensing Mingxi’s guarded and distant look, furrowed his brow slightly, his headache growing.
“I know you’re upset with my aunt for overstepping her bounds, but both my grandmother and uncle have expressed their disapproval. My aunt, as an elder, can’t be treated too harshly.”
“Oh, Wangye knows not to be overly harsh with the duchess. Yet she had no qualms about being excessively harsh with me.”
It’s easy to feel nothing when the knife isn’t cutting your own flesh.
“Then what do you want? Tell me, and I’ll make it happen.”
Perhaps it was Xiao Muchen’s sincere tone, but Duan Mingxi looked up at him, their eyes locking.
The air seemed to grow tense, a silent standoff building. Xiao Muchen gazed into Mingxi’s wary eyes, his brow creasing further, genuinely frustrated.
“If my aunt had asked me, I wouldn’t have agreed to this from the start. You don’t need to dwell on it.”
Duan Mingxi chuckled softly. “Wangye is truly a man of his word.”
Hearing the sarcasm, Xiao Muchen frowned, clearly displeased but unsure where he had gone wrong.
He had never needed to placate anyone before, let alone lower himself like this.
“I have other matters to attend to. I’ll take my leave.” His tone cooled as he turned to walk away, face darkened.
Duan Mingxi watched his retreating figure, her expression unreadable.
Yet after a few steps, Xiao Muchen stopped abruptly and glanced back. Seeing Duan Mingxi’s stoic face, he suddenly returned.
Duan Mingxi blinked at his approach. What now? Did he want to argue?
Reading the incredulity in her gaze, Xiao Muchen felt his anger rising but suppressed it. “Tell me. What exactly is upsetting you?”
Duan Mingxi sighed inwardly. Marrying this man would truly be the end of her peace.
“Let’s just pretend I’m not upset.”
She turned to leave but didn’t expect Xiao Muchen to grab her wrist, firmly locking it in his grasp. “Explain yourself.”
“There’s nothing to say to Wangye.”
“I’ll give you one last chance.”
Duan Mingxi: …
“You two, what are you doing?”
A sudden voice startled Mingxi, and she turned to see the Crown Prince and Gao Zhan standing nearby, their faces filled with surprise.
Duan Mingxi caught the mocking disdain in Gao Zhan’s gaze and the amused curiosity in the Crown Prince’s eyes, which only fueled her anger further.
So, Gao Zhan had still chosen to support the Crown Prince in this lifetime.
The Crown Prince surveyed the pair before him: Duan Mingxi radiant and beautiful, Xiao Muchen calm and poised. Duan Mingxi suddenly flipped her wrist, holding Xiao Muchen’s hand tightly. She turned her head with a dazzling smile. “Responding to Your Highness, I’m simply bonding with my fiancé.”
Xiao Muchen glanced sideways at her, his dark eyes inscrutable, like an endless abyss.
Just moments ago, she had wanted nothing more than to push him away.
Yet now, she clung to his hand like her life depended on it.
So this was because of the Crown Prince and Gao Zhan?
Considering Duan Mingxi’s previous enmity with Gao Zhan, Xiao Muchen’s expression grew colder.
When Xiao Muchen attempted to withdraw his hand, Duan Mingxi gripped it even tighter.
His face darkened further as his gaze swept over Gao Zhan’s stern profile. “As Xixi said, we are betrothed and naturally need to get along well.”
With that, Xiao Muchen flipped his wrist to clasp Mingxi’s hand securely.
Watching the two deliberately flaunt their intimacy, the Crown Prince’s face soured. Who were they putting on a show for?
Gao Zhan’s expression was equally unpleasant. He hadn’t expected Duan Mingxi, who once seemed so chaste and aloof, to act so shamelessly with Xiao Muchen.
What a joke.
“Miss Duan, in broad daylight, you should behave with propriety,” Gao Zhan said, unable to hold back.
“And what right does a man who’s been caught sneaking around with someone else have to lecture me? Ridiculous.” Mingxi shot back without hesitation.
“Miss Duan, why must you be so aggressive? I was simply acting out of goodwill.” Gao Zhan clenched his fists, his face cold. “If you don’t appreciate it, fine, but there’s no need to insult me.”
“Oh, how amusing. My relationship with Duan Wang is sanctioned by imperial decree, a proper and aboveboard engagement, unlike your clandestine and unmediated affair with someone.”
Gao Zhan’s temple throbbed in anger. He could no longer contain himself. “Enough! Bai Zhiwei and I have long been betrothed. I ask you, Miss Duan, to refrain from making baseless accusations.”
“Well, you truly are like a bat pretending to be a bird, forgetting what you really are. A dead soul trying to adorn itself with flowers—a shameless display. Why don’t you ride the wind and ascend to the heavens, rising to a height of ninety thousand miles?”
You’re so capable, why don’t you just go up to the skies?
Seeing Gao Zhan’s face, Duan Mingxi could immediately switch into combat mode. Every word he spoke seemed to fuel her fighting spirit.
“Shall I recount for you why you and Bai Zhiwei became engaged? I could narrate it right here. You’re truly full of ghostly tales, like the King of H*ll telling stories. You’re as persistent as an old monk banging a wooden fish—born to take a beating. What’s with your furrowed brows and murderous glare? Are you planning to silence me through murder?”
The Crown Prince: …
Duan Wang: …
Today, they’d truly seen something new. Was Duan Mingxi’s tongue blessed at a Buddhist altar?
