For a fleeting moment, Xu Yunci looked at his raised hand, which froze in mid-air.
Taking advantage of Li Shiyue's inattention, he withdrew his outstretched forearm and hid it behind his back. His fingertips rubbed together incessantly, and a fine sheen of sweat lingered on his thumb.
For some reason, he was very nervous.
He watched as Li Shiyue glanced with disgust in the direction Chang Shun had left, or more precisely, with disgust at the gold hairpin Chang Shun had taken.
“You really dislike the Prince of Yan.” Xu Yunci said this in a statement tone. He could tell from Li Shiyue’s undisguised expression that she disliked the Prince of Yan very much.
Li Shiyue made no attempt to hide her feelings from Xu Yunci, and the disgust in her eyes was still evident.
"Yes, I hate him, I hate anyone who looks at me with lecherous eyes."
This was her intuition over the years: a person wouldn't be nice to you for no reason; there must be something about you that they want or care about.
Her maternal grandmother was kind to her for her own peace of mind and for the well-being of her only daughter's bloodline for the rest of her life. But some people are kind to her only for her looks and for their own selfish desires, just like Meng Zhuo; that kind of feeling is disgusting.
It was as if she were an object, subject to being looked at and teased at as one pleased; this feeling was awful. Besides disgust, Li Shiyue couldn't think of a more fitting word to describe it.
She was a very good-tempered person, at least that's how Xu Yunci saw it. For her younger cousin to speak so frankly about someone, it's clear that she genuinely disliked them.
But deep down he felt a little happy, because Li Shiyue was so comfortable speaking her mind to him.
Does this mean that Li Shiyue trusts him a lot?
The thought popped into her head, and she didn't quite understand where that joy came from, but Xu Yunci's mood was clearly better than before. Even when she spoke, her tone was much gentler: "Next month is the first birthday banquet for the Crown Prince. His Majesty will set up the banquet in Yunguang Hall, which is like a palace garden. It's very large."
"Several of the sisters in the household will be going together. Stay close to Sixth Sister and don't get lost."
Li Shiyue nodded in agreement and looked up at him, "My cousin will be going too, right?"
Xu Yunci had known for a long time that she was beautiful, and he had also witnessed how attractive her beauty was to a young man.
But when she raised her eyes, her watery gaze was as clear as a mountain stream, and the bright moonlight shone through the treetops onto her cheeks.
Xu Yunci's clear, cold phoenix eyes had, without her noticing, softened with a tenderness. Under the moonlight, that tenderness seemed to envelop Li Shiyue, like a gentle breeze in the night, captivating all who beheld it.
Yes, I will always be here.
Li Shiyue's hand holding the handkerchief twitched almost imperceptibly. For some reason, Xu Yunci's single word "yes" was enough to stir her thoughts.
This feeling was very strange. Li Shiyue looked away and took a half step back.
In Xu Yunci's eyes, this was her usual posture of trying to escape. Xu Yunci's brows furrowed; she was about to run away again.
"And what happened that day, are you misunderstanding something?"
Just as the words of farewell were about to spill from her throat, Li Shiyue had to swallow them back. Recalling what happened that day, embarrassment and awkwardness appeared on her face, but she stubbornly said, "I don't know which day my cousin is referring to. Perhaps it's been too long, I don't remember."
"You don't remember what happened? I haven't even mentioned anything yet, how do you know it's been a long time?" Xu Yunci raised an eyebrow, looking at Li Shiyue with a hint of a smile.
He had only intended to tease her, and he even imagined his little cousin blushing with shyness.
Unexpectedly, Li Shiyue raised her eyes and met his gaze directly, showing no panic: "Cousin has been staying in the Jingzhao Prefecture these days and rarely comes back. Even my aunt doesn't see him often, let alone me. It must be something from before. Why are you teasing me, cousin?"
They're quite smart.
Xu Yunci chuckled, abandoning his teasing intentions, and said seriously, "I meant the flower hall that day."
Li Shiyue smiled knowingly, "It's that matter. My cousin is exceptionally handsome, and Miss Fu is elegant and beautiful. She must be my aunt's choice for my cousin's new wife."
"Although I haven't had much contact with Miss Fu, she is a very kind person, so it's understandable that my cousin likes her."
Li Shiyue hesitated, wondering if what she had said was enough, and whether she should add some words wishing them a long and happy life together.
"Who told you I was going to take a new wife? Besides, I don't like her." Xu Yunci's expression wasn't exactly pleasant, but he was deliberately holding back, so it wasn't particularly ugly or frightening.
“I wanted to tell you that I have no relation to her whatsoever, and I don’t know her. She came to apologize to you on behalf of Princess Chunhui that day. I had just returned when she started saying all sorts of nonsense, and then she found you.”
Xu Yunci glanced at Li Shiyue, whose expression was even more awkward, with a hint of helplessness in his eyes, and raised his chin.
He was always aloof rather than approachable, and he always disciplined his younger siblings with a strict attitude.
It is rare to see him reveal his true nature like this, as if he were not a cold and aloof young master, but simply the second son of the Xu family.
Li Shiyue glanced at it, then couldn't help but glance at it again. Ignoring her own embarrassment, she suddenly chuckled, trying to suppress it but her shoulders trembled with laughter.
"My cousin is just like my sixth cousin now, just like how she smugly stole my chestnut cake."
Xu Yunci was amused and exasperated. So, his little cousin only had eyes for Liu Niang. Even with him, a grown man, standing right in front of her, she still remembered his sister.
My sister is in both my palm and the back of my hand, but she's the apple of my eye.
Xu Yunci couldn't help but smile and raised his hand, scratching his forehead with his index finger. Seeing that Li Shiyue was suppressing a laugh, he was in a very good mood.
"Next month, at the Crown Prince's birthday banquet, you will accompany your mother to the palace. Don't trust outsiders too much. Unless it's someone from your elder sister's side, don't go to anyone else who wants to see you. If you can't refuse, then have your maid go to find me."
Xu Yunci stood with her hands behind her back and instructed, "The palace is not like home, and there were many people and things were chaotic that day. What if something happened? You are now the county princess, a cousin of the Xu family. If anyone dares to disrespect you, just bring up the Emperor."
“You are the Princess of Yichang, personally appointed by the Emperor. What are you afraid of them for?”
This feeling of being cared for is truly heartwarming. Li Shiyue smiled and replied, "If it were just some young women causing me trouble, would my cousin still help me?"
"I'm afraid it's a matter between the mother and daughter, and it would be even more difficult for my cousin to handle it if he were here."
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