Upon hearing this as soon as she stepped off the carriage, Xie Lingqin thought it was just her imagination. But when she touched the old tree, she felt her beating heart suddenly turn icy cold, as if someone had poured a bucket of bloody ice water over it.
"Miss, what's wrong?"
Sensing the sudden surge of sorrow and coldness emanating from Xie Lingqin, Zihe hurriedly stepped forward to inquire.
Xie Lingqin snapped out of her reverie upon hearing the sound, shook her head, and then, in the next instant, took Zihe's hand and said, "Touch this tree, how do you feel?"
Zihe placed her hand on the thick, old tree trunk and, at Xie Lingqin's prompting, carefully felt it. After a moment, she looked at Xie Lingqin with some shame and said, "Miss, I don't feel anything."
Xie Lingqin's eyes flickered, and she waved her hand dismissively, "It's nothing. I just feel that it's really remarkable that this tree has survived for hundreds of years. Let's go in and take a look."
"yes."
Xie Lingqin and Zihe entered the academy after Xie Lingqin told the coachman to stay with the carriage.
Upon entering, instead of hearing the expected sound of students reciting their lessons, one sees several young men in fine clothes pulling and tugging at each other under the eaves, clearly engaged in a fight.
Then, a figure was thrown by the group and flew straight towards Xie Lingqin.
"Miss, please be careful."
Zihe immediately stepped forward to block, and at the same time, raised her foot to kick the figure, but Xie Lingqin quickly pulled her away.
The figure spun in mid-air, then, though staggering slightly, regained his balance and looked at Xie Lingqin with a surprised expression, "You, how did you get here?"
Is Huangshan Academy holding a martial arts competition today?
Xie Lingqin looked at Xie Danling, but instead of answering, she looked around and asked a question.
The voice was neither too loud nor too soft. Not far ahead, several boys who were about the same age as Xie Danling naturally heard it as well. They exchanged glances, their expressions varying.
A moment later, one of the boys stepped forward. "Who are you?"
"Are you having a martial arts contest?"
Xie Lingqin kept asking.
The boy who stepped out was only about twelve years old, quite plump, with an air of spoiled extravagance about him. He looked at Xie Lingqin with an arrogant demeanor and asked, "Who are you?"
"And who are you?"
Xie Lingqin straightened her sleeves, a faint smile on her face.
She was dressed very plainly today; not only plain, but she didn't even wear a single hairpin or earrings.
"Hmph, I am the young master of the Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion." The young man patted his chest, walked over with his head held high, looking just like a proud rooster.
It's still a rather fat rooster.
Seeing this, several other young men followed behind the young master of the Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion.
The young master of the Marquis of Zhongyong looked at Xie Lingqin and said, "You are quite good-looking, but why don't you bow to me?"
"Oh." Xie Lingqin smiled gently. "Then, young master Xu, you are very courteous."
"Hmph, I know, you must be in love with our Teacher Xu, right? Look..." The boy raised his hand, lifting his eyelids, and pointed to a corridor under the eaves behind him. His chubby lips curled up, "Over there. However, there are too many girls who like our Teacher Xu. Although you are better looking than them, you don't look particularly special. If you get thrown out later, don't blame me for not warning you."
"Teacher Xu?"
Xie Lingqin paused for a moment, then softly said "Oh".
Seeing this, the boy wiped his nose, then, ignoring Xie Lingqin, beckoned to Xie Danling with his finger, "You, come here, let's fight again. You escaped before, but you definitely won't this time."
"Xu Shixun, I have to go to class." Xie Danling originally thought Xie Lingqin would help him. Although he didn't have much hope, seeing her being so polite to Xu Shixun made him feel a little embarrassed and angry. He waved his hand and made to leave.
"Want to leave? It's not that easy."
Immediately, with a single glance from Xu Shixun, several teenagers rushed forward and grabbed Xie Danling, preventing him from leaving.
"Let go of them."
"Hmph, let go! We weren't finished talking yet. Hey, didn't you go to that brothel? Come on, tell me..."
"Yes, I heard that he was made to kneel all night as punishment by his father."
"Haha... Xie Danling, last time I asked you to go to the arena, you were afraid of this and that. In the end, I still managed to provoke you into going. Do you know that because of this, I almost couldn't hold my head up in front of the Seventh Prince. I even said you were difficult to deal with. In the end, you surprised me by going to the brothel on your own. You always act so high and mighty."
Aloofness?
So, Xie Danling usually gives people this aloof impression at the academy?
and……
It turns out that Xie Danling went to the arena that day because he was provoked, and the Seventh Prince Yuwen Jie was involved.
This little brat, it seems she wasn't lenient with him last time.
"Exactly, what are you pretending to be so high and mighty for? Do you think your General's Mansion is still like it used to be, where everyone would be scared to death and have to fawn over you?"
Beside him, another boy smiled and chimed in.
"Even if your sister has gained the Emperor's favor, she's just a woman. She was even divorced by the Prince Xian before. What good is she?"
These boys, only eleven or twelve years old, chatted amongst themselves. There was no genuine friendship between them; their minds were filled with prejudices of social class and hierarchy, and a desire to crush and oppress each other.
hehe!
"Shut up!" Xie Danling finally couldn't bear it any longer and grabbed the clothes of the nearest boy. "If you keep talking nonsense..."
“I’m not talking nonsense. Your sister is just incompetent. She was divorced by the Prince Xian and she’ll die someday.”
"Oh?" Xie Lingqin stopped Xie Danling's fist in mid-air.
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