Hei Sha covered Qing Shu’s constantly moving mouth with her hand and nodded seriously to indicate this was true.

Shen Yao Xing could tell the three were doing this on purpose. Just as she was about to speak, Jiang Ming Yue tugged at her sleeve. His eyes reflected her image as he said in a light but irrefutable tone, “In that case, let’s just go by ourselves.”

With no other choice, Shen Yao Xing could only nod.

Today, there seemed to be even more people on the streets of the capital than usual. Many could be seen gathering for the market fair, with people coming and going, inevitably making it somewhat crowded.

Shen Yao Xing didn’t mind, but the disgust between the brows of the person beside her was quite obvious.

He wore a veil over his face, so he wasn’t being stared at covetously. With his skills, he also wouldn’t let those passersby touch him, but the faint smell of sweat in the stuffy air disgusted him greatly.

Seeing this, Shen Yao Xing slowed her pace. In the past half year, she had grown taller quickly. Now the top of her head reached just below the man’s nose. She looked to the side and silently switched positions with him, letting him walk on the inside where there were fewer people.

Jiang Ming Yue saw her every move and turned slightly to look at her intently. His heart felt as if it was soaking in a pot of honey, and even his disgust for the sweaty smell in the air lessened a bit.

His eyes moved slightly, falling on the young woman’s hand hanging at her side. His gaze then swept around, seeing quite a few men and women holding hands. His deep eyes moved back to the young woman’s hand.

He also wanted… to hold hands with Zhao Zhao.

“Ha, look over there. What are they selling? Let’s go take a look!”

The young woman’s voice was as clear and pleasant as a lark’s. After speaking, she ran over by herself.

Shen Yao Xing came to a stall, which displayed all kinds of accessories. What attracted her was the bright colors and varied designs.

They were more appealing to her than the single-style accessories she had seen before.

Shen Yao Xing picked out a hair tie woven with yellow and red cords, tied it in her hair leaving a long section hanging by her ear, and randomly chose a jingling bracelet to put on her wrist.

The stall owner was saying a lot of nice things beside her, but she wasn’t listening. She turned back with a smile and asked, “How does it look?”

But when she turned around, she didn’t see the man at all. Shen Yao Xing was stunned for a moment, her gaze sweeping through the crowd, and she quickly spotted the man still standing in the original place, gazing at her from quite a distance away.

The street was becoming increasingly crowded. The man seemed lost in a sea of people, as if the two of them would be swept apart at any moment.

Shen Yao Xing stood dazed for a while, then instinctively raised her foot to walk over, but was stopped by the stall owner.

“Hey, young miss, you haven’t paid yet!”

Shen Yao Xing hurriedly took out some silver to give her, no longer paying attention to what the woman was saying, and quickly ran into the crowd towards where the man was.

At this moment, several women with covetous gazes had stopped beside Jiang Ming Yue. Jiang Ming Yue paid them no attention at all, his eyes full of the young woman running towards him, his heart beating faster and faster.

Shen Yao Xing stopped in front of him. “Why didn’t you follow?”

Jiang Ming Yue pursed his lips and turned his face away slightly, a trace of annoyance showing between his brows. “They blocked my way.”

Shen Yao Xing was truly afraid his next sentence would be “I want to eliminate them.” This road wasn’t his home, what could be done about there being many people?

“If you stay close to me, no one will touch you,” she said.

Jiang Ming Yue lowered his eyes without speaking, still standing motionless in place. His demeanor vaguely revealed his annoyance with her, but he was too reserved to speak plainly.

Shen Yao Xing scratched her face somewhat vexedly. The bracelet on her wrist made a pleasant jingling sound due to her movement. The corner of her mouth curved up as she extended her wrist in front of him and said brightly, “How is it? Does it look good?”

Jiang Ming Yue glanced at the bracelet. The bright colors made the young woman’s wrist appear even more slender and fair. The clear sound it made as it swayed made her seem even more vibrant and lively.

Generally, only men were interested in such small accessories, though there were also some young women who would be curious about wearing them as decoration. It looked especially good on her.

Though he thought this in his heart, his face remained expressionless. He just glanced at it once before looking away, not responding to her words.

Shen Yao Xing looked at him somewhat dejectedly for a while, realizing that coming out for a stroll today may not have been a wise decision.

The two remained at an impasse for quite some time. Suddenly, Shen Yao Xing reached out her hand to him. “Why don’t we hold hands while walking? I won’t let anyone touch you.”

I will protect you.

Jiang Ming Yue filtered the young woman’s words in his mind, simplifying them. He stared at the hand in front of him, lost in thought. His fingers trembled slightly before slowly raising to place on her hand, gripping it tightly.

Just like the couples coming and going on the street, their fingers intertwined.

Shen Yao Xing held his hand as they walked through the sea of people. Whenever someone approached him, she would reach out to block them, truly not letting a single person touch him.

Jiang Ming Yue’s heart had never been this soft before, feeling as if it was about to melt into a puddle of water.

His eyes flickered with waves of light. The impure air could no longer disturb him, as all his attention was on the person beside him.

Shen Yao Xing led him all the way to the most lively place, which was by the lake. At this moment, the lakeside was crowded with people, both men and women, with bustling sounds never ceasing.

Shen Yao Xing excitedly found a less crowded spot to look towards the center of the lake. She saw that a high platform had actually been set up on the calm lake surface. On top of the platform was a bird-shaped jade stone, with only a door-sized wooden board on the water’s surface to balance the high platform.

Seeing this, Shen Yao Xing immediately lost interest. She had thought there would be something lively to see.

“Hey, Little Xing Xing, why are you here?”

Chu Yi walked over with a smile, and upon seeing the man beside the young woman, her interest grew even more. “Young Master Ming Yue is here too.”

Jiang Ming Yue nodded slightly, as if in greeting.

There was also a man following beside Chu Yi, but it wasn’t Si Tu Chang Qing whom she had seen last time. Shen Yao Xing glanced at the two of them and said, “You really do show up wherever it’s lively, don’t you?”

“He wanted to come, I had no choice,” Chu Yi pretended to be helpless as she pointed at the person beside her.

That man gave her a coquettish look, twisting his handkerchief with a shy expression.

Shen Yao Xing felt goosebumps rising all over. A pain in her palm made her turn her head to see Jiang Ming Yue looking at her with a gloomy face.

“Little Xing Xing, I’d like to ask for your help with something.”

“No,” Shen Yao Xing refused without even thinking about it.

A trace of malice flashed through Jiang Ming Yue’s slightly narrowed eyes. He didn’t like anyone other than himself using such an intimate tone to call her.

He really didn’t like it.

Chu Yi’s smiling face stiffened slightly. The young man’s cold and biting gaze seemed to want to tear her into pieces. Even more terrifying was the excited crimson flashing in the depths of his eyes, as if he couldn’t wait to take action right now.

Excited about killing, Chu Yi had never seen such a person before, and it was even a man. In a daze, she seemed to smell the thick scent of blood wafting from him, making her feel nauseous.

A hand waved in front of her face, and Chu Yi woke from her illusion. Her slightly pale face twitched as she looked at the young woman, “I’m fine.”

Shen Yao Xing looked at her strangely, when suddenly loud applause and cheers erupted around them.

Everyone turned to look at the lake surface. Women could be seen rowing small boats alone or directly using their skills to walk on the water surface, quickly approaching the high platform from all sides. Along the way, they constantly sabotaged others trying to get close to the platform. Some even stood on the small boats and started fighting, with splashes constantly heard as people fell into the water.

Shen Yao Xing asked curiously, “What are they doing?”

“Naturally, they’re competing for the blue bird,” Chu Yi said leisurely, fanning herself. “Legend has it that the blue bird represents good fortune and happiness. Everyone is here just for this good omen.”

“Noble daughter~” The man who had been following beside Chu Yi suddenly started acting coquettishly.

“Sigh, you’ve seen it too. It’s not that I don’t want to help you get it, but that I’m unable to. Be good, I’ll buy you a better one next time,” Chu Yi carelessly comforted the man.

Jiang Ming Yue coldly watched the women fighting fiercely to seize the platform, a sneer curling at the corner of his lips.

If you want something, you have to fight for it yourself, even if it means using any means necessary. These people who only know how to pin their hopes on such emptiness are simply beyond foolish.

Just as he finished this thought, the young woman beside him darted out. Her brick-red clothes were like a blazing flame under the sun. Her toes lightly touched the lake surface as she avoided the fighting people, stepping on their shoulders to leap onto the central platform in the lake.

She was like a fire fox suddenly bursting into a wolf pack. After easily seizing the prize, she stepped on their shoulders and heads to return to shore.

The previously noisy surroundings fell into an eerie silence, with all gazes focused on the young woman.

Some people recognized her. “Isn’t that… the Shen family’s child?”

“Her qinggong is so impressive. Truly, the young are to be feared.”

“Isn’t that the Ming Yue gentleman beside her? Aren’t they already married? Why is he still wearing a veil?”

“Not wearing a veil is probably to prevent you old lechers from drooling at the sight of him.”

“I’ve long heard that Young Master Ming Yue has unparalleled beauty. Now I really want to tear off that veil and take a look, hehe…”

“I’ve also heard that although Young Master Ming Yue is exceptionally beautiful, he kills without blinking an eye. If you want to die, you can certainly go take a look.”

“……” That person swallowed, their restless thoughts dissipating.

Shen Yao Xing paid no attention to the surrounding discussion. She examined the blue bird jade in her hand, finding it to be about the size of a palm. The jade was translucent and didn’t seem to be of poor quality.

She secretly glanced at Jiang Ming Yue, somewhat awkwardly scratching her head with reddened ears. She held out the jade to him with one hand, “Here, for you.”

Jiang Ming Yue stared blankly at the offered blue bird jade for a good while before raising his hand to accept it.

His falling black hair concealed his expression, making it impossible to tell if he liked it or not.

Shen Yao Xing felt a bit nervous. “You don’t like it?”

Jiang Ming Yue finally looked up. The sunlight shone on his face, dispelling all gloom. His long, beautiful eyes were shrouded in a layer of joyful moisture, and the small patch of skin visible below his eyes was flushed as if rouge had been applied.

Through the veil, Shen Yao Xing seemed to see his wide, upturned smile.

Jiang Ming Yue suddenly closed his eyes and bent down to place a light kiss on her temple.

The clamor faded away, and it seemed as if only the two of them remained in the world.

“I like it… I like it very much.” His voice was like the first touch of spring breeze after winter, filled with the utmost tenderness and infatuation.

Shen Yao Xing dazedly touched her temple, her gaze lingering on his face for a moment before quickly looking away as if burned. She scratched her slightly heated face and suddenly let out a silly laugh, “…I’m glad you like it.”