To speak fairly, this Second Young Master Xue’s appearance was not ugly.

A little over twenty years old, his figure was thin and slender, and his brows and eyes could be considered proper and delicate.

However, the bruise beneath his eye carried a trace of weakness born of indulgence in wine and women. The gaze he now cast toward Lizhu was filled with covetous greed.

That foolish and stupid look— even a man who saw it would avoid him, not to mention Lizhu.

“Presumptuous!”

Xuan Ying protected Lizhu as if shielding a chick, and shouted in a deep, angry voice:

“What ‘young master’ or not—how dare you disturb the phoenix carriage of Princess Qinghe!”

Second Young Master Xue’s heart and eyes were still full of that fleeting glimpse just now; he did not even pay attention to what she said.

Only that Xuan Ying blocked his view, so Xue Er stared straight at Xuan Ying:

“Eh? This elder sister too has quite a unique charm…”

Lizhu: “Chang Jun! Beat him up for me!”

Chang Jun received the order, and with one kick sent that Second Young Master Xue flying a full zhang away.

Several of Xue Er’s attendants rode behind him and happened to witness this scene.

How could that be tolerated?

At once they dismounted, drew their swords, and began fighting with Chang Jun.

Though Chang Jun was not a fierce general like Pei Zhaoye or Lu Yu, he possessed agile skill enough to fight ten at once; none of these attendants or guards could match him.

Where had this group of people in Jiangzhou come from?

They even dared to provoke the young master of the Xue family—did they no longer wish to live?

“Second Young Master, this person’s martial skill is extraordinary, his origin unknown. Let us first regroup with Third Lady, then return to the residence to report to the master…”

Xue Er had just been kicked in the chest by Chang Jun, the pain so severe he nearly spat blood.

But when he heard this, he immediately flew into a rage:

“Return to the residence!? Then what about my little beauty! Useless trash—so many of you can’t beat just him! Do you know how much money the Xue family spends to keep you! I paid for you!”

The attendants could not voice their bitterness. They exchanged glances; after weighing the pros and cons, one of them stepped forward, hoisted Xue Er onto his back, and ran off.

Chang Jun moved forward to give chase.

But Lizhu stopped him.

“They dared to treat the Princess as some country woman and flirt at will! Why does the Princess not let Chang Jun capture them!”

Chang Jun’s pair of beautiful eyes glared at that group like fire.

Lizhu tugged his sleeve and said with a smile:

“Good Chang Jun, capturing him is no difficulty, but capturing the Xue family behind him is not easy. A single tug may move the whole body, how could we be so rash? This time, giving him one kick to teach him a lesson is enough.”

Fortunately, she had only been pounced upon and lost one shoe.

Lizhu lowered her head to look at her socks dirtied by mud and snow, frowning in some distress.

Aiya.

This must not be discovered by Pei Zhaoye.

On the other side, Pei Zhaoye was also filled with irritation.

“…Don’t speak of wild geese falling from the sky—even if a drop of rain were to fall in Jiangzhou, that would still be the Xue family’s rainwater. Whoever catches it must pay tax to the Xue family!”

At first, Third Lady Xue spoke righteously.

Yet as she walked closer and closer, her thoughts drifted farther and farther from the wild goose, completely occupied by the man before her.

So tall.

The Xue family had countless talented young men, and their household had long dealt with the learned Xie clan.

From childhood to adulthood, Xue Xiwen had seen no shortage of noble sons, yet for a moment she could not think of any face more handsome than the one before her.

Those eyes, like two black jade beads, set within a sharply contoured face.

He lowered his gaze—his cold, slanting look made whoever he glanced at seem like a dog.

“Go to hell, get out of the way.”

Pei Zhaoye couldn’t be bothered to pay attention, walking straight between them and mounting his horse.

…The man was handsome indeed, but once he opened his mouth, it felt as if he had never read a single book in his life.

Xue Xiwen instantly sobered up, pouting her lips.

The Xue family’s maid said, “Ignorant villager, this is the Third Lady of the Xue clan of Suinan, nobler than a princess. What kind of person are you, to dare shout at the Third Lady!”

Pei Zhaoye did not care much for her earlier words, but when he heard the phrase “nobler than a princess,” his gaze darkened.

That maid had blurted it out—not something she made up today, but clearly a phrase often on her lips.

Nobler than a princess?

What nonsense—daring to step on a princess just to gild one’s own face.

Pei Zhaoye exchanged a glance with Danzhu and the others. Having known each other for many years, their tacit understanding was perfect.

The guards on the Xue family’s side had yet to react when Danzhu had already loosed several arrows, startling their horses. The rest cleared a path, and Pei Zhaoye charged on horseback straight toward the master and servant pair.

What was he trying to do!

Xue Xiwen stared wide-eyed as the hooves seemed about to trample her face, a scream already lodged in her throat.

Yet the next moment, what fell upon her head and body was not iron hooves, but the splattering mud flung up by the raised front legs—flying everywhere, covering the two of them from head to toe!

A moment ago, the mistress and servant had been so arrogant and overbearing; now they stood there, faces smeared with mud, dumbstruck.

Pei Zhaoye gave a wicked little laugh.

“Hyah!”

Flicking his reins, he and his men, carrying the wild goose, rode off without looking back.

The Xue siblings had never suffered such humiliation in their lives; both were furious beyond measure.

Yet by evening, on their way back, when each heard what the other had gone through that day, they both sneered at one another.

Xue Xiwen said, “Serves you right, Brother. Who told you to be always flirting and fooling around with women? This time you’ve met your match, haven’t you.”

Xue Huaifang replied, “And you don’t deserve it? You can’t even tell your own family’s land boundaries clearly, and you were caught by a rustic bumpkin. You go around saying you’re nobler than a princess—I’ve heard that Princess Qinghe never forgets what she sees. Just that alone puts you a hundred thousand li beneath her!”

The two glared at each other in displeasure and began hurling dates back and forth inside the carriage.

A few dates flew out of the carriage, rolled several times in the muddy ground, and a few seven- or eight-year-old children chased after them to snatch them up.

“All right, enough quarreling.”

Their mother, Madam Xu, cut them off.

Lifting the curtain, she saw that many commoners had gathered near the city gate, and said to the coachman,

“Why are there so many people crowding around the gate? Go down and ask what’s happening.”

Xue Huaifang laughed with a grin:

“The Xue family carriage is here, of course the commoners are lining the road to welcome us.”

“Reporting to Madam.”

After asking around, the coachman returned to report:

“The commoners have heard that Princess Qinghe is leading her troops and will soon arrive in Jiangzhou—they’ve all come to welcome the Princess.”

“…Princess Qinghe?”

Xue Xiwen suddenly sat upright, instantly excited:

“She’s really coming to Jiangzhou? When will she arrive? No, we can’t go home yet, let’s go to Fuhuan Pavilion. Mother! Our family will surely hold a banquet to welcome the Princess, won’t we? I must buy new jewelry!”

Madam Xu perfunctorily patted the back of her hand.

As the carriage passed along the street, seeing the dense crowds of people on both sides, Madam Xu felt quite displeased.

There are only thousand-year noble clans, never thousand-year dynasties.

A princess, after all—how could she compare with their Xue clan of Suinan, with its deep roots and long foundation?

Instead of staying in Luoyang to enjoy days of fine clothes and rich food, she came all the way to Jiangzhou to flaunt power, even to raise some so-called refugee army, consorting with bandits, refugees, and rebels…

Madam Xu stroked her daughter’s black hair.

Even a princess has to do such things—clearly the Nanyong dynasty’s lifespan is nearing its end.

Her daughter, in the future, will be the most exalted princess under heaven, and will never endure such hardships.

The Xue family’s carriage, unnoticed by anyone, silently entered the city.

As dusk fell, the commoners who had waited in vain for Princess Qinghe dispersed, agreeing to return the next day.

The following morning, from atop the city gate, a red command flag finally came into view.

Lizhu also only learned of this matter when she was about to enter the city.

At first, she thought Pei Zhaoye was deceiving her—how could there be commoners waiting at the city gate just to welcome her?

Until she personally saw many of the elderly, women, and children carrying food and jugs of water, going out of the city to greet her.

“…These are Jiangzhou’s local oranges, Princess, please have a taste.”

Someone handed her a basket of oranges.

“Thanks to the Princess for opening the granaries and releasing grain, my little granddaughter was able to stay alive. Quick, kowtow to the Princess.”

The honest little girl knelt down and knocked her head on the ground several times, making loud sounds.

“Princess, these are oil cakes our family made—take a few with you…”

Falling into the crowd, Lizhu was soon surrounded so tightly that not even water could pass. It took quite a while before Pei Zhaoye fished her out again and stuffed her back into the carriage.

“…Just a few oranges and some cakes. What delicacies has the Princess not eaten before? Is this worth being so happy about?”

When the carriage reached a quieter place, Pei Zhaoye dismounted and entered the carriage, seeing her holding her face and smiling.

Lizhu said: “Now that the famine has only just eased, what could be more precious than food? They gave me the best things they had to offer—of course I’m happy. It’s like the wild goose you brought back yesterday, a gift is precious because of the heart behind it.”

Meeting her glimmering smiling eyes, Pei Zhaoye felt a dizzying jolt, as though struck.

He leaned down, tilted his head, and kissed her once.

Lizhu blinked.

The two were very close. He spoke in a calm, low voice: “Your words are so sweet, let me see if your mouth is sweet too.”

Smiling, Lizhu took the initiative to press her lips to his.

“Is it sweet?”

She asked.

“…I didn’t quite taste it yet, I’ll have to taste a bit more.”

Her head was held firmly in his palm as he rubbed against her lips, tasting every part inside and out before letting her go.

He nodded. “Indeed, it turns out that no matter where the Princess’s water comes from, it’s all sweet.”

“…”

Lizhu leaned against the carriage wall, looking at him in disbelief, his face calm and proper as ever.

How could he say such terrifying words with such composure?

Pei Zhaoye, as if not seeing her shocked expression, smoothly changed the subject:

“Unfortunately, the people of the Xue family aren’t as easily satisfied as the Princess. Jiangzhou’s famine left corpses across the land, nearly to the point of cannibalism. It wasn’t a natural disaster, but a man-made one—yesterday’s incident with that Third Lady Xue seizing the goose by force is probably only the tip of the Xue family’s arrogance.”

When Lizhu returned to camp yesterday, she had already heard Pei Zhaoye speak of what had happened in the mountains.