Chapter 14: The Unlucky Mother and Daughter

“Does it hurt?”

Xie Yixing’s expression turned cold as he glanced at the pothole where Yao Yao had fallen, his jaw tightening so hard his molars ground together.

But when he looked at Yao Yao again, his face was filled with heartache.

Yao Yao shook her head, using her chubby little hands to clutch the edge of her coat. Her head dropped in embarrassment, and her once-cheerful voice fell low.
“Brother Persimmon, Yao Yao was wrong.”

She shouldn’t have been so distracted while walking. Not only did she fall herself, but she’d also made others worry.

Hearing her apology only made Xie Yixing angrier.

Tomorrow, he would have someone level this road.

It had almost gotten Yao Yao hurt.

At this time, Marquis Chengming, who was patrolling atop the city tower, had no idea what his son was thinking. His full attention was fixed on the fireworks, not daring to let anything go wrong.

As the sixth quarter of the Xu hour approached, the crowd at the city gate visibly grew.

Wei Yuhui noticed that Xie Yixing was still watching Yao Yao closely, leaving her no chance to make a move.

Her plan was about to fall apart, and panic began to rise.

But every time she approached Yao Yao, Xie Yixing would shoot her a warning look.

Soft tactics didn’t work, and force would only backfire.

Just as she was pacing like an ant on a hot pan, a shrill voice suddenly pierced the air:

“Make way! Princess Junhe is arriving—”

Before Xie Yixing could react, the armed guards immediately began clearing the way.

The mixed crowd scattered like a disturbed hive of wasps, scrambling to move aside.

Though Yao Yao was chubby from eating, she was still small in stature. She had just let go of Xie Yixing’s hand, attempting to sneakily reach into his pocket for the candied jujubes, when a strong force knocked her aside.

Yao Yao had to use all the strength she usually used to eat buns just to stay on her feet, avoiding a full fall or crashing into someone else.

But as she gathered herself, she realized she was surrounded by strangers—no familiar faces in sight.

A wave of fear washed over her. Her hands and feet went cold, and her eyes brimmed with tears. Her nose tingled with a growing ache.

“Persimmon… Brother Persimmon…”

In the noisy crowd, her tiny voice was no louder than the flapping of a mosquito’s wings—completely ignored.

Just as she was craning her neck to search for someone familiar, a voice called out:

“Miss Yao?”

Her drifting soul snapped back into her body—joy lit up her face. It was her nanny!

Yao Yao chased the sound, but was jostled east by passersby, then shoved west.

Meanwhile, the shadow guards of the Marquis’s household had just pulled Xie Yixing away from the surging crowd when one of them received a firm kick.

The guard was immediately glared at by his young master’s cold, black eyes. His scalp tingled with fear. After a pause, he finally realized—
The chubby little girl who’d been following behind was gone.

Xie Yixing was furious at the guard’s meddling. He had been this close to grabbing Yao Yao’s hand.

He didn’t even know what had distracted the little girl so badly.

He’d called her name three times, and she hadn’t looked back once.

Xie Yixing was a little gloomy.

His beautiful peach-blossom eyes darkened, like an abyss of ice, sharp enough to pierce.

He looked up at the lavishly decorated building behind him and said coolly,
“Take me up there.”

The guard, who’d been secretly rubbing his sore chest, looked up at his master’s order—and almost popped his eyes out of their sockets.
“Young Master! If the Marquis finds out I took you to a brothel, he’ll skin me alive!”

Hearing his refusal, Xie Yixing’s gaze darkened further. The icy coldness in his eyes seemed to solidify. He pressed his lips together and repeated:
“I want to go up.”

The guard clenched his buttocks in fright.

If he obeyed, the Marquis would definitely flog him.

If he didn’t, the Young Master’s punishments would be even worse than the Marquis’s.

Weighing his options, he chose to obey.

Half a stick of incense later—

Xie Yixing stood at the outer balcony on the third floor, peering down.

His gaze was sharp as an eagle’s, sweeping the crowd for even a trace of Yao Yao.

At this moment, Yao Yao was getting dizzy from all the pushing. The murky air filled her nostrils, making her sneeze three times.

But in those few sneezes, she had lost sight of her nanny.

Panicked, she looked left and right, seeing neither her nanny nor Xie Yixing.

Her soft, pale face was suddenly pinched by someone—leaving a red mark.

Just as Yao Yao was trying to squeeze through the crowd to find higher ground for a better view, Wei Yuhui—who had been watching her like a hawk—seized her opportunity. Ignoring her expensive robes, she pushed forward, grabbed Yao Yao’s chubby arm, and pinched it hard.

Her manicured red nails dug into the tender flesh of Yao Yao’s wrist as if wishing to tear it open.

Just as Yao Yao cried out “Ouch,” Wei Yuhui stuffed a handkerchief into her mouth and warned coldly:
“Don’t scream. Come with me.”

Yao Yao instantly sensed her hostility. Her doe-like eyes went wide as she struggled and protested,
“I want Brother Persimmon! Not you!”

Her words were muffled by the cloth, but Wei Yuhui understood them clearly. Her face turned red with rage, and as if her hand acted on its own, she raised it for a slap—

But before it landed, a whip lashed down from above, striking her back.

She flinched violently, releasing Yao Yao, who fled like a startled cat.

When Wei Yuhui looked up, she met a pair of teasing phoenix eyes from inside an approaching carriage.

With a playful smirk, the voice said:
“Block this princess’s way, and you’ll get whipped.”

Upon hearing her title, Princess, Wei Yuhui dared not show a hint of protest despite the pain and humiliation.

But Princess Junhe’s whip had carried real force. Wei Yuhui, pampered all her life, nearly fainted from the pain.

Yao Yao spat out the cloth and ran blindly forward.

She didn’t know how far she’d run or for how long—only when her short legs began to ache did she glance back.

Seeing no sign of Wei Yuhui, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Only then did she realize she’d somehow ended up near the countryside, on the edge of a farming estate. The ground was muddy, and her shoes were caked in dirt.

The next moment—

Her collar was suddenly yanked backward by brute force, almost choking her.

After coughing hard twice, a sharp, unfamiliar face came into view.

The woman wore fine silk and had an elaborate hairstyle, but her gaze toward Yao Yao was hostile.
“So you’re the little seductress trying to seduce my nephew?”

Fortunately, she had caught a glimpse of Yao Yao back at the marquis’s residence and remembered her round, pale face.

Plus, the spy she’d planted at the marquis’s house had given her a detailed description of Yao Yao’s clothes—so she had followed and caught this little fish that slipped the net.

Yao Yao shouted in protest, “I’m Yao Yao, not some seductress!”

“No difference.”

Lady Tian had no interest in arguing with a child, but she wasn’t letting her go either.

This girl was a threat to her daughter’s standing in the marquis household.

Yao Yao didn’t know who this woman was, but she could sense the malice in her eyes.

She might’ve stood a chance fighting against someone her own age like Wei Yuhui, but against a grown woman? There was nothing she could do.

She flailed her tiny fists, but couldn’t break free.

Just as Yao Yao screamed for help, Lady Tian reached to cover her mouth—but suddenly slipped.

Letting go of Yao Yao to steady herself, she grabbed the wooden fence nearby—but the railing wobbled.

Inside the pen, a group of hens clucked in panic.

Before she could regain her balance, another force slammed into her.

A large, heavyset woman had bumped her with her backside, sending her flying—along with the fence—into a pitch-black chicken coop.

Yao Yao stood safely nearby and watched as a rooster perched triumphantly on Lady Tian’s head.

Her carefully arranged hair instantly turned into a bird’s nest.

Just as she opened her mouth to scream, the rooster above let out a cry—and then something warm and wet landed on her head.

A gooey mix of white and yellow slid right down the middle of her forehead.

Yao Yao pinched her nose with her stubby fingers and couldn’t hold back a mutter:
“So smelly… even worse than my second brother’s feet.”