Chapter 21

The surrounding boats seemed to intentionally avoid that ship, but not all of them did so. Occasionally, one or two unruly boats would approach, hoping to invite the people on board for a meeting.

Unfortunately, they were all turned away by the ship’s servants before even seeing anyone.

“Hey,” Chu Yi elbowed the young girl beside her, looking in the direction of that ship with burning eyes: “Why don’t we also try to seek an audience?”

Shen Yao Xing was truly fed up with this woman. She hadn’t even settled things here and was already thinking about over there. Thankfully, their relationship was still good, otherwise she really wanted to kick her into the lake.

“If you want to go, go by yourself. I’m not going.” The deck below was clean, so Shen Yao Xing lazily rolled over, lying on her side and propping up her head, admiring the scenery on the other side.

“You’re really no fun.” Chu Yi’s gaze was deep.

“That’s just how uninteresting I am. Who told you to drag me here?”

“If you’re unwilling, so be it. Just wait for me on this boat later.”

Shen Yao Xing glanced back at her, watching as that ship turned away people wave after wave, not knowing where this person’s confidence came from: “Are you so sure they’ll let you board?”

The woman’s lips curled into a smile she considered dashing. She swiftly opened her jade fan, placing it in front of her chest and pretending to fan herself, her flirtatious phoenix eyes slightly curved: “It’s just a mere man after all. Even if he’s somewhat extraordinary, he can’t resist a woman’s sweet words, especially a woman like me with beauty, charm, and power.”

“……”

Although she knew this person was vain and narcissistic before, she never thought it had reached such a shameless level.

Shen Yao Xing wore an expression that said ‘you’re beyond help’, turning her face away, not wanting to deal with this thick-skinned person anymore.

That luxurious pleasure boat was getting closer. Chu Yi subconsciously tidied her clothes, the confident curve on her face never falling. Hearing light footsteps behind her, she didn’t pay attention, instead glancing at Shen Yao Xing who was playing with her hand in the water.

“Miss Chu, what are you doing here? Aren’t you going to sit inside the boat?” Si Tu Chang Qing, who had been waiting for a long time, finally couldn’t contain himself and asked with a shy look in his eyes.

Chu Yi had long lost interest in him. Without turning her head, she waved her hand: “Young Master Si Tu, sit slowly. I have something to attend to.”

Si Tu Chang Qing became anxious at once: “Miss Chu, didn’t we agree to go boating together today?”

The implication was that she shouldn’t abandon him to do other things.

Annoyance flashed in Chu Yi’s eyes, and her voice turned cold: “Young Master Si Tu can enjoy the boat ride by himself. When you’re done, I’ll send you back.”

The stark contrast in the woman’s attitude before and after made Si Tu Chang Qing’s eyes turn red. He didn’t know how the person who was polite and cultured just moments ago could change like this. He didn’t dare to argue further and could only tightly clutch his handkerchief, biting his lip and lowering his head slightly.

He looked quite pitiful.

Just as Shen Yao Xing was about to sigh for him, she suddenly caught an unusual scent in the air. A fierce look flashed in her eyes. She abruptly flipped over from the deck, grabbed the woman’s arm and pulled her away from her original spot, dodging the arrow that came whistling through the air.

The arrow grazed past the young man’s face and embedded itself in the wooden carved door behind.

Si Tu Chang Qing’s eyes widened, his face turning pale as he realized he had nearly lost his life just now. He collapsed softly to the ground.

“What’s going on…” Chu Yi sat up, looking at the arrow in the wooden carved door with lingering fear.

Shen Yao Xing didn’t speak, squinting as she looked into the distance. She saw several figures flying towards them, using the boats and floating objects on the lake. They were moving fast. Shen Yao Xing had no time to say more and grabbed the woman’s arm, intending to throw her onto the nearest boat.

She initially thought they were also after the deerskin map, but unexpectedly, when they got close, they ignored Shen Yao Xing and all surrounded Chu Yi, who hadn’t been thrown to another boat yet. Their moves were vicious, clearly intending to kill her.

There was chaos on the boat. Shen Yao Xing not only had to deal with the black-clothed men but also had to watch over the two people on the boat. Fortunately, Chu Yi had learned a few moves, and although she was struggling, she could at least dodge a few attacks.

Si Tu Chang Qing curled up in a corner, his whole body trembling slightly with fear. He nearly got chopped several times, only to be saved by Shen Yao Xing.

Seeing that the man was really in the way, Shen Yao Xing took advantage of a brief moment, grabbed his jade belt intending to throw him onto a nearby boat. Either her strength was too great or the quality of the jade belt was too poor, for as soon as she exerted force, the jade belt broke and slipped from his waist.

The long robe, no longer constrained, fell open, revealing the white undergarment inside.

Si Tu Chang Qing’s entire body froze, his eyes wide open in disbelief as he stared at the young girl: “You……”

Shen Yao Xing was also quite embarrassed for a moment, but the waves of killing intent from behind didn’t allow her to think much. After bending down to sweep away one person with a spinning kick, she ignored the man’s resistance, grabbed his arm, and in a shoulder-carry position, leaped onto the nearest boat, put him down, and jumped back.

By now, Chu Yi was already in a somewhat disheveled state. After leaning back to dodge a horizontal slash, she stumbled back a step, her knuckles white as she gripped her jade fan, her eyes dark and her breath slightly rapid.

In a flash, the young girl was standing in front of her. Though she looked like she needed more protection than those men, that petite frame seemed to hide an immense power. An innate sense of security made Chu Yi’s breath ease, her tense body relaxing.

“Can you jump onto the boat behind?” Shen Yao Xing stared at the few people in front, asking in a low voice.

Chu Yi looked at the pleasure boat behind her, about a few steps away: “I can, but you…”

“Jump over, you’ll be in my way here.”

“……” Chu Yi fell silent, no longer hesitating. She turned around, exerted force with her feet, and leaped, landing right on the edge of the boat.

Without the two burdens, Shen Yao Xing no longer needed to consider anything. Her whole person became more agile. She pulled back a black-clothed man who wanted to jump over, throwing him towards the others like a sandbag. Two people couldn’t dodge in time and were directly thrown into the lake. Two people were left on the boat, they looked at each other, unable to believe this young girl had such strength.

Seeing that they had no chance of winning, the remaining two were sensible enough to jump directly into the lake and escape.

“Teachable kids.”