Chapter 248 Liu Zijun

"What did you write?" Huo Ran tried to peek, but Jiang Mi blocked her way.

Jiang Mi said mysteriously, "I can't tell you, or your wish won't come true if you tell it out loud."

Huo Ran had no choice but to give up and could only watch helplessly as Jiang Mi walked towards the lake. He was worried that the lake was wet and that Jiang Mi might slip and fall, so he followed behind her to protect her.

"Brother Huo Ran?"

Suddenly a sweet voice came from behind. Jiang Mi and Huo Ran both looked over and saw a girl in a pink dress running over. She was very cute and looked at Huo Ran with a surprised expression, her tone very excited.

"Brother Huo Ran, you're here too?"

Huo Ran's expression turned cold, and he responded with a lukewarm reply.

The girl wasn't angry at being ignored; instead, she looked shy and said, "Perhaps we're destined to meet. I even dreamt of Brother Huo Ran last night, and I never expected to run into him today."

Huo Ran didn't want to deal with her, and simply nodded and replied, "Miss Liu is too kind. If you have something to do, then I won't bother you any longer."

Liu Zijun quickly waved her hand: "No, no, I'm not busy. I'm just here to release lanterns, hoping for a happy marriage. Maybe the God of Marriage heard my prayers."

Upon hearing this, Huo Ran quickly glanced at Jiang Mi's expression, as if afraid she had misunderstood, and hurriedly took a step back.

"Then I wish Miss Liu all the best. I have other things to attend to, so please make yourself at home."

Before Liu Zijun could say anything more, she saw Huo Ran hurriedly walk to the lakeside, where a girl stood. She wore a light blue ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), her skin was as white as snow, and her features were exquisitely beautiful—even more beautiful than Princess Lin'an in the palace. But why was she walking so close to Huo Ran? Could it be…?

Thinking that Huo Ran might be taken away by this woman, Liu Zijun couldn't stand still any longer and hurriedly followed. As soon as she got there, she heard Huo Ran, who was usually indifferent, speaking to the woman very gently and cautiously.

"Be careful, the path by the lake is very slippery, be careful not to slip and fall."

Liu Zijun stared in shock, her mouth agape. Was this really the same cold-faced gentleman she knew? A surge of jealousy welled up inside her. She looked at the woman who was much prettier than herself and suddenly pushed Jiang Mi away with all her might.

Fortunately, Huo Ran was very skilled and quickly pulled Jiang Mi back, preventing her from falling into the icy lake. Jiang Mi couldn't swim either, and even if she had been rescued, she probably would have been half-dead.

"What are you doing?" Huo Ran suddenly realized what was happening and angrily roared at Liu Zijun. This woman was truly vicious; she actually wanted to kill Jiang Mi.

Jiang Mi was still in shock. Although she hadn't fallen in, her written wish had been pushed into the lake, gotten wet, and sank. It was such a pity.

"Are you crazy, you woman? Are you out of your mind?"

Being scolded by two people at the same time, Liu Zijun didn't dare to do anything to Huo Ran, but she was not polite at all to Jiang Mi.

"What are you, that you dare stand beside Brother Huo Ran?"

Jiang Mi was speechless. So she was Huo Ran's admirer. How crazy! She was willing to kill someone for a man. But judging from Liu Zijun's clothes, she should be a rich girl or an official's daughter.

"So what? What's it to you? Your brother Huo Ran is very happy, and you're just worrying about things that don't concern you."

"You...you...you speak so rudely, you must be some country bumpkin. Brother Huo Ran, you must not be fooled by this woman's appearance. She is not good enough for you at all. You should stay away from her."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Mi simply stared coldly at her, knowing that Huo Ran would naturally step in to help her.

"Enough, Liu Zijun. Who I'm with is none of your business. Who gives you the right to interfere? I advise you to go back and stop talking nonsense. It's better for you and for both of our families."

His words carried a veiled threat, and Liu Zijun's eyes welled with tears, feeling utterly wronged: "Brother Huo Ran, how could you do this to me? I've liked you since I was little, and now you've taken a fancy to some other woman. How can you treat both our families like this?"

"Are you done?"

Huo Ran didn't bother arguing with her further, simply saying, "My affairs are none of your business. No one is allowed to touch this woman, or don't blame me for turning my back on you!"

Liu Zijun looked shocked. She hadn't expected Huo Ran to value Jiang Mi so much, and she felt like tearing Jiang Mi to pieces.

Jiang Mi sneered, "Did you hear that? It has nothing to do with you, so don't meddle in other people's business. A girl like you is actually going out of your way to throw yourself at me. You're really something. You even pushed my lantern into the lake. Well, you can forget about making a wish then."

As she spoke, Jiang Mi snatched the lantern from Liu Zijun's hand and threw it far into the lake, where it sank as well.

Liu Zijun was completely stunned. The note contained her wish to be with Huo Ran, and now Jiang Mi had thrown it into the lake. Her wish had been shattered by this woman, and Huo Ran had been taken away from her. Thinking of this, she went up to grab Jiang Mi's clothes.

"You vixen! Not only did you seduce Brother Huo Ran, but you also ruined my lantern! How dare you ruin my wish! I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget!"

Before she could even touch Jiang Mi, Liu Min had already pulled her aside.

"Miss Liu, this is happening in public; it's quite unbecoming of you!"

The maid behind Liu Zijun also came to persuade her: "Miss, what you are doing is really improper. Why do you have to do it yourself to deal with a lowly commoner?"

After hearing this, Liu Zijun realized that her behavior was inappropriate. After all, she was the daughter of a prime minister, while this woman's identity was unknown. Judging from her clothes, she wasn't too bad, but at most she was the daughter of a vice minister. She couldn't compare to her.

“You’re right. I acted impulsively just now. Tie her up and take her to Liu Mansion Alley.”

Just as the maid was about to step forward, Huo Ran coldly said, "Let's see who dares."

Liu Zijun choked, and said indignantly, "Brother Huo Ran, why are you taking this woman's side? Didn't you see how she treated me just now?"

Huo Ran didn't take her seriously at all. Thinking about how she had just tried to push Jiang Mi into the icy lake, his tone became even colder.

"All I see is your desire to kill, Liu Zijun. Don't think that just because you have someone backing you up, you can do whatever you want. If you dare to lay a finger on her, I will make you regret it!"

Liu Zijun was stunned by him and couldn't help but take two steps back. She bit her lip, but was thinking of other ways to deal with Jiang Mi.