Ziyi jumped and shouted with joy, "Why are Eighth Master, Ninth Master, and Tenth Master here?"

Hearing this from behind, Nan Yi felt a little strange. Eighth Master, Ninth Master, Tenth Master—where had he heard these titles before? They sounded strangely familiar. So he asked, "Who are they? Why are you so excited?"

Ziyi raised her head at her, her tone carrying the unique vigor of a young girl, as well as the pride of a noble birth, "You may not know him, but you must have heard of the Eighth Prince Yinzhi, the Ninth Prince Yintang, and the Tenth Prince Yin'e."

Nan Yi stroked her cheek and took a deep breath. She had never heard of them, but she had played with them in person. She was a little at a loss and couldn't make up her mind.

Should she greet them or not? But she didn't seem prepared. These people turned out to be her temporary husband's brother-in-law. She was on the verge of tears.

In the Qing Dynasty, you couldn't just randomly run into a handsome man. Turns out he was a prince, or rather, her husband's brother! So frustrating!

It's unclear what Xiao Xi said to the dignified old man, but the old man looked over here, and Nan Yi finally backed down, quietly hiding behind the crowd.

The old man walked towards the girls and called out loudly, "Which one of you is Miss Nan Yi? Please come out and meet me." The girls' faces were covered in soot and they looked quite disheveled, making it impossible to tell who was who.

Xiao Xi walked over and shook his head at the old man. Nan Yi slipped away while they weren't paying attention.

The three young men who had come on horseback were stunned when they heard him call out "Nan Yi". The tenth prince was the first to call out, "Eighth brother, Nan Yi is here."

The three men quickly jumped off their horses and ran over, standing in front of the girls, calling out repeatedly, "Nan Yi, Nan Yi~" but no one answered.

Suddenly, three elegant and handsome young men ran over. The girls lowered their heads shyly, covering their faces, but couldn't help but steal glances at them cautiously.

The Ninth Prince lit a torch and carefully examined the area, but could not find her. He ran around to check and found only a dilapidated temple with no other shelter. She was indeed gone.

The Ninth Prince returned, shook his head at the Eighth Prince, and looked dejected. She was really angry and refused to see them even though she knew they were coming.

The Eighth Prince instructed the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture to send the kidnapped girl back to the city first, and then they would follow behind. Once everyone had gone far away, the Eighth Prince suddenly spoke up, "Nan Yi, stop hiding, come out."

"Eighth Brother..." Yinzhen was slightly taken aback, then overjoyed. Could it be...?

The Eighth Prince carefully surveyed the surroundings. There was only one way to go through this dilapidated temple, which was the way they had come from. Only when they went forward would the road fork. One way led into the city, one way led to the various imperial estates in the suburbs of the capital, and the other way led directly to the hunting grounds in the Western Hills. The way they came was blocked by soldiers, so she could not escape and could only hide in the same place.

"Nan Yi, there are snakes in this wilderness. If you don't come out soon, they might bite you," the Tenth Prince said, trying to scare her when she didn't come out for a long time.

Nan Yi was indeed hiding behind the dilapidated temple. Hearing their calls, he was determined not to come out, but who knew...

"Ah—" Nan Yi jumped out. Damn mollusk! She hated this guy. Didn't he know she was afraid of snakes?

She absolutely refused to come out, but he scared her out, so she had no choice but to take a few steps forward, but...

The three relaxed, and sure enough, the person hadn't left. The Tenth Prince stepped forward with a grin and reassured them, "I was just kidding. It's your fault for not coming out."

The Ninth Prince tapped Nan Yi's forehead, his eyes full of doting affection, "See if you're naughty again."

He was extremely worried, fearing he would never see her again. He had searched the entire capital for the past few days, but there was no sign of Nan Yi. He was filled with anxiety and disappointment for a long time.

"What's wrong? Say something, are you really angry?" The Ninth Prince grinned, revealing his shiny white teeth.

Nan Yi stammered, her lips trembling, "...Which guy jinxed me...? Help...I really have a snake!"

"Waaah—" Nan Yi howled desperately.

The Tenth Prince was overjoyed and chuckled, "Coward, I told you I was just kidding."

"...Waaah, there really is a snake, ah—help, get it away quickly." It seemed like she had stepped on the snake's head. The snake's tail was coiling around Nan Yi's leg, getting tighter and tighter. The cool, soft, and slippery touch was wrapped around her calf through her clothes. Nan Yi was afraid the snake would bite her, so she stomped on it heavily.

The Eighth Prince stood next to her and noticed that her expression was off. Although her face was covered in grime, the fear in her eyes seemed genuine, and her body was trembling. He was afraid there really was a snake, and his expression became tense as well.

They pulled the Ninth and Tenth Princes aside, snatched the torch from the Ninth Prince's hand, and shone it at Nan Yi's feet.

"Get your feet away... I'm scared, waah!" My feet are numb. That bastard Tenth Prince, I'll teach him a lesson later.

By the light of the torch, Ninth Prince gasped. The snake was quite large. Its head was being stepped on by Nan Yi. The snake's body was white and about two feet long, and its tail was already wrapped around Nan Yi's leg.

Hearing her piercing cries, her face streaked with tears and black ash, she looked terrifying in the night, so ugly, a far cry from the tearful pear blossoms. Yet, a pang of sorrow welled up in my heart, and I wished I could take her place.

"Eighth Brother, hurry! I can't stand her crying!" Ninth Prince cried out in distress. He had always hated women crying. Whenever his wives and concubines in the mansion shed tears and became infatuated, he would feel impatient and disgusted. But now he couldn't bear to see her cry at all, which made him feel inexplicably uncomfortable, as if his heart was being scratched by a cat.

The Eighth Prince was speechless. Of course he could handle it; wasn't he already trying to find a solution? "Tenth Brother, come here and take care of him."

The Eighth Prince glanced at the Tenth Prince, who was somewhat annoyed. He had spoken out of turn again. He slapped his own mouth, saying, "Serves you right for being so talkative," and quickly raised the torch to illuminate the ground.

"Ninth Brother, lend me your dagger," the Eighth Prince glanced at the Ninth Prince again, and seeing that he did not move, he growled, "Come here then."

"~Eighth Brother, I, I'm scared too~" Ninth Prince's scalp tingled, and he stammered, embarrassed. He had been bitten by a snake in the Imperial Garden when he was a child, and he still had a psychological trauma. Seeing the snake under Nan Yi's feet, which seemed to be stepping on by her, he mustered up his courage and moved over.

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