Volume 1: Gathering Winds of Splendor Chapter 35: An Unexpected Encounter with an Acquaintance

  "What is your esteemed name?" An Xin opened her fan and fanned herself a couple of times, asking with a smile.

  "In the next life then." The man replied with a hint of a smile.

  "Why just enjoy it once? Why not two, three, four or five times?" An Xin asked with a pouty face, looking at him with disdain. His surname was Le, and his temperament was extraordinary, probably the young master of the Le royal family.

  Le Yi raised an eyebrow and smiled wryly at An Xin's absurd explanation, "It's the word for dusk, I was born in the late afternoon, so I took the character 'Xi'."

  An Xin let out a dry laugh, trying to cover up the awkwardness, and quickened her pace towards Yi Ruan Yuan. Le Yi Xi, who had been left behind, also hastened his steps to catch up with An Xin, who was now walking ahead with an air of urgency.

  "Two gentlemen, looking unfamiliar, is this your first time? " An Xin, the two had just entered, a turtle-like servant smiled obsequiously and came up to greet them.

  "I've booked a room with Young Master Ning, would you please show the way?" Various perfumes and cosmetics wafted through the air, Le Yishi's eyebrows furrowed slightly as he glanced at An Xin, who was peeking out from behind him.

  Is that Young Master Ning? Hearing this familiar name, An Xin's heart skipped a beat. Could it be Ling Yi Chen? He was done for; he must have recognized his appearance.

  "It turned out to be Le Shizi, and Young Master Ning had been waiting for you in the elegant room. He said that as soon as you arrived, he would have me hurry over to bring you to him." The turtle servant hadn't expected that the refined-looking young man in front of him was actually the rarely-seen Le Shizi, so the flattering smile on his face deepened a few degrees as he nodded and bowed.

  It's indeed the young master of the Yue Wang Fu, Ah Xin's eyes were rolling around, thinking of an excuse to slip away. It seems that today was not a good day to go out, first she ran into Xiaosan at the Jiang Jun Fu, then Yu Hua forced her to go to that broken temple tomorrow, and now she even ran into familiar faces while strolling in the Red Mansion! She's only been back in the capital for a few hours, how could everything be so unlucky and nothing going as planned? Did she step on dog poop when she went out?

  "What's on your mind, little brother? Shall we go?" Le Yi Xi asked with a smile, gazing at An Xin's rolling eyes.

  "It turns out that you are the son of a noble family, and I am just a humble commoner. It's not suitable for me to associate with someone of your esteemed status, so let's part ways here." Anxin took his fan and bowed slightly, forcing a strange smile, and bid farewell.

  "It's just the shade left by our ancestors' protection, there's no need to talk about nobility or not, Brother Wú doesn't need to worry, besides, Brother Wú is obviously a dragon and phoenix among men, why humiliate yourself unnecessarily?" Lè Yī Xī's warm and elegant smile, as well as his gentle words, immediately blocked ān Xīn's evasive excuses.

  As soon as the words fell, Le Yi Xi smiled and pulled An Xin's sleeve, following Gui Gong to the second floor.

  Anxious gaze sourly watching the beautiful woman with exposed clothes, slowly casting flirtatious glances at herself. If Le Yi was not by her side, she would have definitely gone forward to tease and joke around. But now An Xin is like an ant on a hot pot, anxiously spinning around in circles. What if Ling Yihong exposes the fact that she went to the brothel? Her mother's invincible iron sand palm will surely be waiting for her, and at her age, she would still get spanked, where would she put her face then?

  Le Yi suddenly looked down, his expression gloomy and anxious, a stark contrast to when he first entered. The corners of his mouth, which had been slightly curved upwards in a faint smile, now drooped downwards, and he still hadn't let go of the hand that was clutching her sleeve.

  "Le Shi Zi, you're here." Turtle Grandpa's oily smile made An Xin feel like vomiting.

  "Thank you." Yue Yixi smiled politely and pushed open the carved wooden door, relaxed his sleeves, and walked in.

  Take a deep breath, fill yourself with the spirit of generous sacrifice, take your first hesitant step into the door, thinking that in the worst case, you can just pay for Qinglian's night and give her to Ling Yihen as hush money.

  "Brother's sister." As expected, An Xin had just entered the sight of everyone in the room and hadn't even had time to look around when she heard Ling Yi Hen's astonished cry. An Xin's footsteps stumbled, almost falling to the ground. She had originally hoped that Ling Yi Hen would have some insight and notice her pleading gaze, pulling her out of this situation. But unexpectedly, not only did he not help mediate, but he directly exposed her disguise. Was his brain pinched by the door? Couldn't he see she was wearing men's clothes? It was clearly a disguise to conceal her identity.

  "Sister?" Just as An Xin was still taking deep breaths to calm her chaotic breathing, Le Yi Xi suddenly spoke up with a hint of a smile, "So the infamous Master Wuhuo is actually the Princess of Chang'an? I apologize for my ignorance, please forgive me, Your Highness." He emphasized the four words 'Master Wuhuo' heavily.

  A faint smile, telling herself that even if she wants to vomit blood, she must maintain a sly smile. But hearing Yue Yisi's sarcastic remarks, An Xin got angry. When did it happen? It was always her who mocked and ridiculed others, but now she was being despised by someone else? She regained her composure and said in a feminine tone, "What's wrong? Haven't you seen women visiting the red chamber and flirting with men? If this is your first time seeing it, I'll let you witness something today."

  "Are you really Ah Xin's sister?" Ling Yi's mouth was agape, unable to close it for half a day, staring at An Xin in incredulity.

  "Was it not you who just loudly shouted and yelled, did I expose myself?" An Xin slammed the door shut with a bang, stood with her hands on her hips, and scolded Ling Yihen, "In the imperial palace, I always thought your IQ was 250, but now it seems that I overestimated you. In fact, you're just a 213, and still a brainless 213! How embarrassing that you're even a young prince! A talented pillar of the country, why are you indulging in pleasure-seeking and drinking? Is it because the emperor's uncle raised you to indulge in luxury and oppress the people? Is it because he let you use silver to seduce girls and roll around in bed? You really are a parasite on the nation, a cultured degenerate among the people! From now on, don't say that I'm your cousin, lest I be looked down upon by others!"

  "So you're the Princess of Chang'an, indeed famous but even more so in person." The handsome man sitting next to Ling Yixue, wearing a moon-white long gown, smiled as he looked at An Xin and spoke, with a hint of light flashing across his eyes before hiding it deep within.

  "Xin'er, meimei, I've never been here before..." Ling Yihen was stunned by An Xin's rapid-fire scolding and only came back to his senses when he heard someone speak, weakly saying.

  An Xin let out a cold hum, walked to the front of several people, found a round stool and sat down, took over the teapot and poured herself a cup of tea, tilting her head back to drink it down. She had said too much earlier, her mouth was a bit dry, so she drank two cups in a row before putting down the teacup, wiping away the tea stains on her lips with the back of her hand. Her gaze quickly swept around the room, taking in the elegant decor that didn't lose its emotional tone, without any hint of vulgarity, all the furniture and tea sets were top-notch choices. An Xin couldn't help but mutter to herself, "Why decorate the Red Mansion so elegantly? After men are done venting their emotions, aren't they just going to pull up their pants and leave? Who has time to appreciate it?"