You Sanping couldn’t stop her, so he simply said, “Then I’ll keep watch for you.”
Mingxi chuckled, “Alright.”
When You Sanping met her slightly mischievous smile, he calmly averted his gaze.
He might not be skilled in martial arts, but he had a brain!
So he brought out the accounting books for the year, stacking them in front of Mingxi. “Young miss, since you have some time now, it’s a good chance to look over the accounts.”
The smile on Duan Mingxi’s face slowly disappeared. She suspected You Sanping was doing this on purpose.
Still, the accounts needed to be reviewed. She sighed, picked up a book, and began flipping through it.
You Sanping sat beside her, slightly leaning over now and then to explain things when she had questions.
When Xiao Muchen arrived, he saw the two of them sitting side by side in the stone pavilion from afar. Mingxi wore a light-colored dress, and You Sanping wore a dark robe. The evening sun spilled across them, making the scene look unusually harmonious.
Especially You Sanping—he was always cool and distant with others, but around Mingxi, he seemed different. The smile on his face was particularly irritating to Xiao Muchen.
At that moment, Mingxi was pointing something out in the ledger, saying something to You Sanping. He leaned closer, pointing to the book as he replied, and the two of them smiled together.
It was just a faint smile, but Xiao Muchen found it incredibly displeasing.
“Xixi.” Xiao Muchen raised his voice, cutting through their conversation.
Duan Mingxi was startled by his voice and looked up. Xiao Muchen stood in the courtyard with relaxed poise—tall and upright. The breeze stirred his robe lightly, like snow under moonlight, distant mountains under a bright moon.
She was momentarily dazzled. It hit her that Xiao Muchen was actually very handsome—but he always wore that stern expression and rarely smiled, so his good looks were often overshadowed by his cold demeanor.
“What brings Wangye here?” Mingxi asked as she stood.
Xiao Muchen wanted to say, Am I not allowed to come? But You Sanping was there—if he said that, he’d be laughed at.
He walked up to her calmly, softened his expression, and said gently, “I heard you went out alone and got worried, so I followed.”
Mingxi smiled. “Nothing to worry about. I just came to check on the estate.”
You Sanping stood nearby, watching Duan Wang coldly. After a pause, he looked down and gathered the ledgers from the table into his arms.
“Greetings to Wangye,” You Sanping said as he stepped forward and bowed.
“No need for formalities,” Xiao Muchen replied, trying to maintain a composed expression.
You Sanping suddenly smiled. “Thank you, Wangye.” Then he turned to Mingxi with a much gentler look. “Young Miss, I’ll put away the ledgers now. You can look through them another day when you have time.”
Mingxi sensed something odd in the atmosphere between the two men. Something seemed off, though everything appeared normal on the surface. She gave them both a suspicious look, then nodded. “Alright, you go ahead.”
You Sanping smiled as he left, but once he turned his back, the smile vanished.
Mingxi invited Xiao Muchen to sit. He naturally avoided the spot where You Sanping had been and sat down on the other side of Mingxi.
Once seated, he asked, “Why exactly did you come out of the city today?”
His gaze flicked to her outfit as he spoke.
Noticing his look, Mingxi’s expression stiffened. “Are you being a bit too nosy?”
“You’re my fiancée—keeping you safe is my responsibility.”
Mingxi gave him a sidelong glance. Is that so?
“Or,” he added, “have you already grown tired of me, Xixi?”
Mingxi: …
She gave him another look. This guy was acting strange today.
But since he clearly knew about Qiao Wan’s situation, there was no point hiding anything. She simply said, “I plan to sneak into the neighboring estate tonight. This afternoon, someone claiming to be a cousin from the Duke Gao household showed up there. It feels suspicious.”
That explains it.
The tied sleeves, the small boots—definitely not an outfit for casual strolling.
Then Mingxi suddenly realized something and turned to him. “Wait, how did you know I left the city? Did you have someone follow me?”
“How could you think that of me?” Xiao Muchen replied. “I sent someone to your family’s residence to look for you—only then did I learn you’d gone out.”
Mingxi, uncharacteristically flustered, coughed lightly. “I see. So what did you want me for?”
Watching how awkwardly Mingxi tried to change the subject, Xiao Muchen couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. She’d agreed to marry him, yes—but it seemed she still had no clue what it meant to be someone’s wife.
“Aren’t you looking into Qiao Wan’s matter? I got some news and wanted to tell you, so of course I came looking for you.”
As soon as Mingxi heard that, she perked up. “Wangyes, you’re amazing—already found something? What is it?”
The compliment was so half-hearted, so superficial.
Still, since she at least asked him for the intel and even gave him a token compliment, Xiao Muchen couldn’t bring himself to get upset.
Forget it.
“I found out that Qiao Wan has a younger brother who was brought to the capital about a month ago.”
Mingxi’s mind raced, then suddenly she froze. She looked at Xiao Muchen. “A younger brother? The cousin from the Duke Gao’s household? Do you think the two are connected?”
In her past life, she hadn’t seen any relatives from the Duke Gao’s household so close that they’d be sent to their estate to recover from illness.
And this estate had originally been gifted to Gao Zhan by the crown prince, and Gao Zhan had given it to Bai Zhiwei.
Now it was under Bai Zhiwei’s name.
Xiao Muchen looked at Mingxi, and Mingxi looked back at him.
He took the opportunity to wrap her hand in his.
Mingxi: …
She tried to pull her hand away, but Xiao Muchen wouldn’t let go—instead, he held it tighter.
“We’re outside—what would people think if they saw us?” Mingxi said with a straight face.
“So what if they did? We’re engaged to be married. We have nothing to hide.”
“You’re so shameless. Does your mother know?”
“If I were shy, how could I ever marry you? Actually, if being shameless helps, then I don’t mind.”
Mingxi: …
You’re really this kind of Xiao Muchen?!
He gently squeezed her fingertips. “I think you’re right. We should go check it out together.”
Mingxi frowned. He’d changed the topic so suddenly and bluntly again. It gave her a headache. This version of him felt so different from the one she knew in her past life, and even in this life, he seemed to have changed drastically over time.
“I was planning to go take a look anyway,” she huffed.
Xiao Muchen thought, I knew it. He gave her a glance and said, “Perfect. You take me along, and I’ll bring a blade.”
…What does that even mean?
It’s just a quick recon, not a battlefield!
With a blade?
Mingxi couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief.
Xiao Muchen looked at her and chuckled too. “See? You’re even cuter when you smile.”
Mingxi immediately wiped the smile off her face, thoroughly exasperated.
