After all, she had learned the lesson from Yun Hai, Lord Xiaoyao. Qi Yuan was not as kind as Yun Hai. Once he found out the truth, he might not let her and Xuan Zhi get away with it. That was why they had to be careful.

Tossing about in bed at night, Wu Xin really couldn’t fall asleep. Since she didn’t want to waste time, Wu Xin got up and put on a white embroidered gauze dress and a thin white gauze veil, covering the scary spots and scars on her face. Wearing the pearl hairpin on her head, she only revealed those innocent and clean eyes. Outlining her curve without covering her pure temperament, the garment was a perfect combination of innocence and enchantment. Seeing Wu Xin in that dress, any man would be attracted right away.

Checking herself in the mirror again and again, Wu Xin finally confirmed that she looked gorgeous. Then she came to the courtyard to watch the moon. Under the moonlight, she seemed a fairy from behind.

Qi Yuan, who had always been alert, woke up when Wu Xin opened the door. After all, they basically lived next door. Randoms putting on a piece of clothes, Qi Yuan came to the courtyard, but he didn’t expect to see such a scene. The beautiful figure made his heart pound.

Qi Yuan walked to the stone stool next to Wu Xin and sat down. Looking at the pair of eyes above the veil, he started feeling something. No one actually had a preference for ugly looks in the world. Qi Yuan just couldn’t believe in those beautiful women. Because of what happened to his father, he kept his guard up, afraid that his pride would end up being trampled on by those girls like his father.

But Wu Xin was special because she reminded Qi Yuan of a lot in his life. Wu Xin had the aura of a well-educated lady like his mother. Like Qi Yuan, she became homeless due to a prostitute. Meanwhile, she was a harmless woman. After all, even her most important thing, her face, was ruined.

Owing to the uniqueness of Wu Xin, it didn’t come to Qi Yuan that he had to be on guard against her in the first place. Wu Xin’s experience resonated with him. Accompanied by her day after day, Qi Yuan had already had a crush on her. Sooner or later, he would fall in love. He used to be like an ice cube, indifferent about everyone. But once heated, the ice would soon be melted.

Approaching summer, it was not so cold anymore during the night. With the warm breeze blowing gently, they felt comfortable sitting together and having a chat.

“Why don’t you sleep?” Qi Yuan spoke softly. He didn’t notice how gentle he was when asking that question. Losing that indifferent disguise, Qi Yuan seemed way more easy-doing, even though his personality remained unchanged.

“Master, I just feel happy that I’ve finally avenged my mother and that you’ve also recovered. Finally, everything is settled. What about you? What brings you here?”

Wu Xin directly sat on the stone stool next to him, deliberately leaning very close to him.

“I couldn’t fall asleep.”

The fragrance of Wu Xin enveloped him. In the quiet night, Qi Yuan’s heart was throbbing and pounding. Fortunately, his face was still expressionless, not revealing any thought of his.

“Then we can talk.”

“Yeah.”

“Master, thank you!”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you for what you did for me.”

“It’s no big deal.”

“Thanks to you, I don’t have to deal with it myself. After all, he is my father.”

“Wu Xin, do you regret that you didn’t meet him before he left?”

“No, I didn’t want to see him again. Let him think that his unfilial daughter is dead,” while talking, Wu Xin deliberately turned her head away, acting like she was in great pain.

“Well, you don’t have to face it if you don’t want to!”

“Yeah.”

“I know the feeling of being hurt by a loved one.”

“Master, really?”

“Well, my father was just like yours.”

“How’s your father now?”

“He died.”

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t make you think of your sad memories.”

“It’s okay. His death was a relief for me.”

“I agree! The dead are free from all the sufferings, yet those who are still alive have to bear it.”

“You’re right.”

“Master, would you like to tell me your story?”

“Sure.”

As soon as Qi Yuan answered, Wu Xin straightened up and waited to hear the story. To her surprise, this cold-hearted man told her so much about his past.

“I was born in a happy family. My father was a general. Although my mother was not beautiful, she was a virtuous wife. But somehow, my father fell in love with a prostitute. Everything changed from that moment...” What Qi Yuan said tonight was more than what he said in more than a month!

Wu Xin knew about Qi Yuan’s life experience, of course. Before she approached him, she had investigated it thoroughly. Otherwise, how could she come up with such a method to occupy his heart! Qi Yuan didn’t say who the prostitute was, but Wu Xin knew that she was also one of Master Meng’s daughters, her aunt.

Nobody knew how Qi Yuan would feel if learning about Wu Xin’s true identity. From his father to him, neither of them could get rid of the fatal bond with girls of the Mengs!

“Master, don’t be sad. I will always be with you.”

“Wu Xin.”

“Yes?”

“I will protect you from now on.”

“Thank you! I really appreciate that,” as Wu Xin said, she glanced at Qi Yuan. The sentiment in her eyes was just on point, making Qi Yuan’s heartbeat even faster, “Master, you are different tonight.”

“What’s wrong?”

“You told me a lot about yourself. I thought you were a quiet person.”

Hearing what Wu Xin said, Qi Yuan was also a little embarrassed, “Since my mother died, I’ve had no interest to communicate with anyone.”

“Master, besides me, do you talk to anyone else?”

“Yes.”

“Who is it?”

“The current emperor.”

Wu Xin clenched her fist unconsciously. Fortunately, no one could see it in her sleeves. She closed her eyes and tried to suppress the hatred in her heart. Her tone remained normal, “Oh, it seems you two have a close relationship!”

“He is my master, and I owe him.”

“What kind of person is the emperor?”

“He is a very smart man. He could be the wisest emperor in history, but he usurped the throne for a woman called Princess Xi.”

“Master, you don’t like that princess.”

“I hate her.”

“I heard that Princess Xi was a poor woman.”

“Poor? All the beautiful women in the world are born monsters. The only thing they know is seducing men. The world would be so much better without them.”

“So women are to blame for everything men do, right? Is it a sin to be beautiful?” Qi Yuan’s words irritated Wu Xin. For a moment, she couldn’t hold back her anger, but she quickly reacted, “Master, I apologize. I’m also a woman, and I used to be one of the beautiful girls you hate.”

“Wu Xin, I didn’t mean it. You are different from them.”

Wu Xin couldn’t help but sneer in her heart. Was she different from them? Perhaps she was more of a monster than them. Without showing it on her face, she changed the subject directly.

“Master, I’m curious. Why do you talk so much to the emperor?”

Qi Yuan knew what he said was a bit too much, yet he thought that Wu Xin was only mad because the subject was about appearance. After all, which woman would not care about her face? Afraid that he might hurt her heart accidentally, he followed Wu Xin’s new topic, “I didn’t mean to, but every time I briefed the emperor about my work, he always kept asking until I reported sufficient details. That was how I had the habit of reporting to him in detail.”

“I see! You know what. You’re actually a cute guy!”

“Cute?”

“Yes, cute. Master, do you want to watch me singing and dancing?”

“What?”

“May I perform a song for you?”

“Yes, please.”

With the veil hiding her face, Wu Xin appeared pure and enchanting. Dressed in the white embroidered gauze dress, she was like a goddess visiting the mundane world but also a seductive elf tempting people’s hearts. Slowly, Wu Xin began to sing a song using her clear voice. Like a stream, her melodic singing soothed Qi Yuan, making him unwilling to leave the yard. With the lovely performance, the monotonous night suddenly became unforgettable.

Once a gorgeous lady, Wu Xin was then only considered ugly. Dressed in white, she sang and danced, touching Qi Yuan’s heart as she had planned. But nothing would stay unchanged, and a dream could turn out to be a trap. Someday, sometime, no one knew if Qi Yuan would regret it.

Qi Yuan was used to his mansion being cold as a freezer, especially in his yard. It felt like that mainly because he didn’t welcome visitors. For a long time, he had been accustomed to the loneliness, but it became a thing of the past. As the leader of imperial guards, people noticed that Qi Yuan began to behave differently. No longer was he so isolated. Although he was still a quiet man, he seemed more easy-going now.

That day, the moment his shift was over, Qi Yuan rushed back to his mansion. Being so impatient, he was not the workaholic he used to be!

Spring came and went, yet nothing affected the life in the mansion of Qi Yuan. When Qi Yuan returned to his yard, as usual, the first thing he did was to look for the woman in his heart, but he did not see Wu Xin today.

Felling kind of fidgety, Qi Yuan had to accept the consequence of relying on someone! Hurriedly walking out of his yard, he asked the servants at the door about Wu Xin’s whereabouts. At that time, he had already begun to be inseparable from Wu Xin, the warmth of his life. Her smile and her words had been engraved in his heart.

“Master, Miss Wu Xin had been in the kitchen for a long time. You...” Before the servant finished his words, Qi Yuan rushed away like a gust of wind.

The kitchen in the mansion of Qi Yuan looked like a battlefield now! From pots and pans to ingredients and sauces, everything was in a mess.

Wu Xin, the woman who was always well-dressed with a pearl hairpin on her head, now looked like a little beggar on the street. With all kinds of condiments and chopped vegetables over her body, Wu Xin seemed to have mistaken the kitchen for a dressing room.