The Return of the Seventh Young Lady-Chapter 186 - 185

Chapter 185

A delicate, slender figure moved gracefully toward where Lu Jiu stood. Every step and movement exuded elegance and nobility, causing onlookers to hold their breath at her mesmerizing beauty. Even De Qianqing, who was considered the number one beauty, could not compare to this woman.

Not only the men, but even the women were astonished by her appearance, including the haughty Seventh Princess. She momentarily forgot her anger, mesmerized by the beauty of the woman who now stood beside the man she had her eyes on.

At that moment, the Seventh Princess regained her senses. She narrowed her eyes, glaring at the woman in front of her with hostility. Seeing Lu Jiu turn and smile warmly at this woman only fueled her anger further.

"Who are you!?"

"Apologies, Your Highness. I am Lu Jiu’s fiancée. Therefore, I must apologize that I cannot let my future husband serve you, as he is meant to take care of me until our wedding,"

Mu Yingying replied with a smile. Her large, innocent eyes sparkled like those of a naïve young woman. Her melodious voice was calm and emotionless. She then turned to smile at Lu Jiu, showing the affection of a loving couple, no different from mandarin ducks[1] in the vast forest.

Her simple words seemed innocuous, yet those who heard them immediately perceived the underlying message and were convinced by it. The Seventh Princess was using her royal authority to shamelessly take another’s fiancé in front of everyone, behaving no better than the courtesans of the capital’s red-light district.

Her words perfectly matched the current situation, leading the surrounding people to believe this interpretation...

The Seventh Princess, understanding the implication of the newcomer’s statement, felt an intense rage build up inside her. She glared at Mu Yingying with fury, gripping her whip tightly, ready to lash out at the woman who had dared to insult her.

However, before she could act, the Fifth Prince intervened.

"Seventh Sister, you must stop causing trouble. There are many people watching you, both inside and outside the restaurant. If the old courtiers report this to Father, you will surely be punished and confined again."

The rebuke from her brother helped calm the Seventh Princess, though she continued to glare at Mu Yingying with a look of deep-seated hatred. It was as if she held a grudge against this woman from a past life.

With the situation appearing to de-escalate, the Fifth Prince took the opportunity to clarify the misunderstanding to everyone, preserving the royal family’s reputation and image.

"Allow me to explain something to my friend Lu and this young miss. The earlier incident was a misunderstanding. My sister was merely looking for someone to work as a servant in her palace, with no other intentions. Please understand this."

A brother remained a brother; no matter how grave his sister’s mistakes, he always fixed the problems she created. Just as he did now, the Fifth Prince explained to both parties, even though a prince like him had no obligation to do so and despite his royal status not requiring him to justify anything to commoners.

To prevent people from thinking that his younger sister wanted to snatch someone else’s fiancé, he took the time to explain the situation to those around them.

"Oh...So that’s how it is, then? I had thought that the elegant Seventh Princess of Daliang would not do anything to diminish her own value just for a stranger she met over a few sips of tea,"

Mu Yingying feigned a relieved sigh. When she finished speaking, she gave a sweet smile to those around her, a smile as sweet as May honey. However, beneath that smile, her words were filled with sarcasm, causing the Seventh Princess, who had just calmed down, to become angrier than ever.

But before the Seventh Princess could unleash her anger as she wished, she was once again stopped by the Fifth Prince. Thus, she could only glare at Mu Yingying with vengeful eyes.

I would get you for this, you slut!

Of course, all of the Seventh Princess’s actions, especially her glares, were noticed by the Fifth Prince. However, he didn’t think to stop her because the Seventh Princess was his only sister and had been this way forever. As long as she didn’t cause trouble to the point of physical confrontation, it was enough.

"It has been a while now, and I’m afraid the food might have cooled. Therefore, my fiancé and I will take our leave first. We don’t want to trouble all you noble people any longer,"

Mu Yingying said, growing tired of the situation. She and Lu Jiu then prepared to return to the restaurant.

"Wait,"

De Chaikun, who had been silent for a while, quickly called out. Seeing the two figures pause briefly, he blurted out his curiosity without thinking.

"May I know your name? If we have the chance to meet again in the future, I...would like to formally apologize for...uh, what happened this time."

At De Chaikun’s words, the surroundings fell silent, especially the Seventh Princess, who looked at him in disbelief before exclaiming, "I didn’t do anything wrong. Why should you apologize to such a woman...?"

“...”

She couldn’t finish her sentence before closing her mouth almost immediately, silenced by her brother’s stern gaze, a clear signal to stop.

While the Seventh Princess was being restrained by the Fifth Prince, Mu Yingying glanced at De Chaikun briefly before curling her lips into a slight smile. Her big round eyes flashed with a strange light for a moment.

"Thank you for your kindness, sir, but that won’t be necessary,"

Mu Yingying said indifferently before taking Lu Jiu’s hand and leaving without any further farewell, not even a show of respect to the royal family. This left the eldest young master of the De family staring at Mu Yingying’s back alone. Deep down, he found himself intrigued by this woman, a level of interest he had never felt for anyone before...

Mu Yingying had already returned to her private room on the third floor of the Ma Feng Restaurant. Behind her was the man at the center of it all, Lu Jiu, whose face now bore a light, warm smile. This was a stark contrast to his usual cold demeanor, as if he were an icy statue from a thousand years past.

If no one had told her that he could be like this, she would have thought he was a walking block of ice!

Except for that woman who hadn’t noticed, everyone else who witnessed this transformation was both shocked and frightened. They all hurriedly stepped away, fearing they might disturb the ’happiness’ of this young couple.

Mu Yingying, having drunk several sips of tea to quench her thirst, couldn’t help but complain, "How shameless it is for a favored princess of the Emperor to try to snatch a man in broad daylight, in front of dozens of people. How could she do such a thing? Shameless. Truly shameless."

As she finished speaking, Mu Yingying turned to look at Lu Jiu, the man at the heart of it all, who was standing beside her with a broad smile. Seeing his cheerful demeanor only made her more annoyed, causing her to glare at him.

"What are you smiling at? Never mind. Just be careful from now on so you don’t get abducted by another crazy woman!"

Lu Jiu looked at the irritated woman in front of him, who was increasingly resembling a fierce tigress. This sight warmed his heart in a strangely pleasant way. Recalling the moment when she declared in front of everyone that he was her fiancé, his smile on the corners of his mouth of his handsome face grew even wider.

"Why did you tell everyone that I’m your fiancé? Won’t this ruin your reputation?"

Mu Yingying was momentarily shocked. She had completely forgotten about that!

Earlier, while watching the events unfold from her room, her heart felt an inexplicable agitation, especially when she saw the Seventh Princess openly showing interest in Lu Jiu. She was extremely displeased!

This was a new feeling she had never experienced...What was this sensation of something precious being taken away?

Driven by instinct and this strange feeling growing in her heart, she found herself standing among the crowd before she realized it. To destroy the Seventh Princess’s interest in the Crown Prince of Basui, she had boldly, as if possessed by the courage of a bear or a tiger, declared that she was Lu Jiu’s fiancée.

It was no different from announcing that he belonged to her.

Heavens! How did it come to this?!

Her smooth, white-jade-like skin flushed a light red, from her slender neck to her stunningly beautiful face. Being questioned by the one who stirred such odd feelings within her only made the young miss, Mu Yingying, even more flustered and at a loss.

The young woman sat silently for a moment, trying to find a reasonable explanation to give to the man at the center of it all, who was smiling broadly.

"I...I had to say that because it was the only way...to help you. So...I took the liberty to say it."

Her adorable demeanor, like a child caught doing something wrong and afraid of being scolded, made her even more endearing. Though she often tried to divert the conversation to unrelated topics, Lu Jiu didn’t expose her. He let her gradually learn about her own feelings.

"And you? Have you finished your business?" Mu Yingying changed the subject to ask about his matters instead.

"Yes, everything is done. The plans for the hunting day are perfectly arranged. All that’s left is to lure the prey into the trap. No one will know who is behind it," Lu Jiu replied candidly. Mu Yingying nodded and said,

"Good. A major storm is brewing soon. I hope this storm will be strong enough to shake the royal court of Daliang and cause chaos..."

Lu Jiu didn’t respond, just looked at the young woman with a smile. The warmth in his heart remained. He was more than willing to accept her possessive declaration about him today.

As for Mu Yingying, when she saw Lu Jiu looking at her with that warm smile, she suddenly felt flustered again. The heat that had faded from her cheeks returned.

She quickly turned away, not letting him continue to gaze at her, while internally lamenting her impulsiveness today. When she glanced back at him, he was still smiling warmly, his eyes gentle, causing her heart to flutter momentarily.

Mu Yingying looked away, pursing her lips slightly. She didn’t know what was happening to her, only that her heart was beating strangely out of rhythm.

Amidst this budding atmosphere, a breeze carried the strange feelings between them along with the falling flower petals outside the restaurant. From the Ma Feng Restaurant, they drifted towards the stream, winding their way into the verdant forest.

Half a month later.

Time passed in the blink of an eye, and soon the annual hunting festival organized by the royal court had arrived. Officials and their families all gathered for this event, as it featured a traditional hunting competition. The man who hunted the most game would receive a valuable prize from the Emperor.

This was why the male descendants of the officials, including royalty, were very eager to participate in this hunting event.

"I hereby declare the hunting festival officially open!"

With the resounding announcement from the Son of Heaven who reigned on the Dragon Throne, the princes, princesses, and titled ladies and lords from the renowned manor expressed their gratitude before dispersing to their respective tasks.

Some went to prepare for the hunt in their private tents. Among them were the princes who wanted to make a name for themselves, enhance the prestige of the royal family, and showcase their abilities to the guests.

"Seventh Princess, Seventh Princess. Shall we go hunting for rabbits in the park today?"

A high-born lady suggested while pouring tea into a cup in front of the Seventh Princess, who was leisurely enjoying some sweets. Hearing the invitation, the princess raised her eyebrows, showing interest in the proposal.

"Hunting rabbits?"

The lady, seeing the princess’s interest, quickly explained in detail. "Yes, Your Highness. Originally, the hunting grounds were not divided between small and large game. However, this year, it has been clearly separated. In the outer forest park, where we are now, there are non-poisonous animals like little rabbits and squirrels."

Hearing this, the Seventh Princess, who had been preoccupied for the past half month with thoughts of the incident at the Ma Feng Restaurant where she was humiliated, looked at her two close friends sitting nearby. It was as if she sought their opinion on whether to join the hunt. Usually, she would be the one inviting others to go hunting.

But this time, not only had she not invited anyone, but she also wasn’t even aware of the animal classifications this year, as she had been too busy investigating the mysterious woman who was engaged to the man she fancied.

Now she knew that the hunting grounds were divided into two sections: the inner forest and the outer forest. The outer forest, near the noblewomen’s tents, housed non-dangerous animals like wild rabbits and little squirrels.

The inner forest, however, was full of various wild animals like red foxes and wolves. If someone was skilled and lucky, they might encounter a tiger or a snow fox, and with even greater fortune, they might come across the rare golden eagle of the forest.

As for who was participating in the hunt today, it certainly included the Fifth Prince, the Emperor’s favorite, along with his close friend De Chaikun, and other princes who were hunting to present their game to the women they admired.

The noblewomen discussed for a while and eventually agreed to go hunting for small game in the outer forest to pass the time.

[1] The Chinese believe that mandarin ducks mate for life, so the pair of birds symbolize the love of devoted couples.

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