Xiao Man walked alone on the secluded palace path. Not long after, she saw Nangong Yu leaning against a osmanthus tree ahead, arms crossed, watching her quietly.
The osmanthus flowers were in full bloom. A gust of wind sent yellow petals falling, landing on Nangong Yu's head and body, also scattering a carpet of gold on the ground.
"Greetings, Your Highness the Prince of Qin." Xiao Man stepped forward and stopped three paces away from Nangong Yu, bowing respectfully. Her demeanor was impeccable, leaving no room for criticism.
Nangong Yu gritted his teeth. "Looking at you, you seem to have no idea you've done wrong?"
"No, I was wrong," Xiao Man replied affirmatively.
Nangong Yu's heart was filled with suspicion. Was Xiao Man the type of person to admit fault?
"Where were you wrong?"
"Making Your Highness unhappy is where I was wrong."
Nangong Yu choked. This was blatant sophistry. Having Wen Mohan already gave him a headache, and now she had gone to provoke the Thirteenth Prince.
Nangong Yu reached out, pulled Xiao Man closer, and pressed her against the osmanthus tree. "Are you satisfied only when you've angered me to death?"
Xiao Man looked at Nangong Yu with an innocent expression, her tone as if speaking for his own good. "Your Highness, excessive anger harms the body."
Nangong Yu laughed in exasperation. "It seems you really don't know where you went wrong?"
"I don't think I was wrong," Xiao Man said seriously. "Your Highness is being unreasonable."
"I'm being unreasonable!" Nangong Yu raised his voice. She had hugged Nangong Yi to sleep, and now she was calling him unreasonable!
"Would you be kind to everyone you meet?"
Xiao Man frowned, asking with some uncertainty, "Are you... jealous?"
"Yes, I am jealous. One Wen Mohan is enough of a headache for me. Why did you have to provoke the Thirteenth Prince?"
"When did I provoke him?" Xiao Man retorted.
"At the Prince of Qi's manor, you were hugging him!"
Xiao Man thought carefully. "I wasn't hugging him."
"You still say you weren't. Not only did I see it, but Miss Du also saw it."
"I really wasn't hugging him. He lost his child and was heartbroken, so he leaned on my shoulder for a moment. You know he's a crybaby. When he was little, he often cried and leaned on my shoulder like this."
"He can hug Xiao Man, I don't care. But he cannot hug you!" Nangong Yu roared.
Xiao Man was both amused and exasperated. "What nonsense are you spouting? Xiao Man is me."
"Xiao Man is Xiao Man, you are you, and you are mine." Nangong Yu pressed his forehead against Xiao Man's, saying in a low voice, "Xiao Man, I can let go. But you, I cannot and will not."
"The banquet hasn't even begun, and you're already drunk?" Xiao Man said irritably. He was angry for no reason. Nangong Yi was a friend, a brother to her. Yet this man loved to get jealous over nothing. Men were so troublesome.
Nangong Yu ignored Xiao Man and rambled on. "You said that the first time you saw me, you wanted to claim me as your own. Do you know what I thought the first time I saw you?"
Xiao Man felt that something was off with Nangong Yu. "Let me go first. If anyone sees us, they'll start spreading rumors again."
"Let them spread," Nangong Yu said carelessly. "Do you know that amidst a sea of soldiers, my eyes fell on you instantly? At that moment, I had only one thought: if I were to marry, it would be you."
Xiao Man's body stiffened slightly. She looked up at Nangong Yu in disbelief. He knew? He recognized her?
"When your sword pierced my chest, all I thought was, 'How wonderful. If I can't be your man, then dying by your hand is also good.'" Nangong Yu placed a gentle kiss on Xiao Man's lips. "It's a pity you couldn't bear to let me die. I know you like me, otherwise, you wouldn't have pulled me out of a pile of corpses, nor would you have kept me by your side, teaching me swordsmanship and military strategy hand-in-hand, helping me establish myself in the army."
Xiao Man's breathing quickened. He truly knew. When did he find out?
"I once thought that if I could be with you, I would give up everything and live in that secluded valley for a lifetime." Nangong Yu's eyes reddened slightly. "But you pushed me away. You pushed me away for the child you raised with your own hands. I envied him, I was jealous of him. Why could he so easily gain your protection and companionship? I even thought that one day, I would destroy Yun Qi, walk before you openly, and then, just as you did to me back then, keep you by my side. But before I could execute my plan, I heard the news of your death."
Hearing this, Xiao Man had calmed down. No wonder Nangong Yu never asked about her affairs; it turned out he had already guessed her identity.
"Do you know, at that moment, I felt like the sky had collapsed? My disturbed mind triggered the cold poison..." Speaking of which, Nangong Yu smiled, a gentle and lingering smile at the corner of his lips. "That night, the cold poison attacked fiercely. I even had thoughts of seeking death. But you came to my side. That night, my dreams were filled only with you. It was you who made me live again. Man'er, from beginning to end, you were the one who provoked me first. You stole my heart, and then you stole my body. If you dare not take responsibility, I will die for you to see!"
"What nerve!" Xiao Man pushed Nangong Yu away. "If you want to die, hurry up and go. If you die, I'll immediately take on ten or eight male consorts, changing one every day, no repeats!"
Nangong Yu chased after Xiao Man. "That won't do. I have to stay by your side. You take on one, I'll kill one. Your man can only be me."
Xiao Man rolled her eyes at him. "When did you discover my identity?"
"At first, it was just a suspicion. I truly confirmed your identity when I was curing the cold poison." Nangong Yu walked side-by-side with Xiao Man. "After all, this was truly too unbelievable."
"Did you never consider that I might not be the person you were looking for?"
"I believe my intuition," Nangong Yu said confidently. "And I believe my heart."
"Show-off." Xiao Man rolled her eyes at him. "Hurry to the imperial garden. The Mid-Autumn Festival banquet should be starting soon."
"Alright," Nangong Yu said softly. "Man'er, when Wen Mohan returns, reject him."
Xiao Man's steps paused, and she said hesitantly, "I have a three-year pact with him."
"If you don't love him, you should make it clear," Nangong Yu persuaded her. "Look, Wen Mohan is almost twenty now. If he waits another two years, he'll be twenty-two. The Wen family only has him as their sole heir. He should start expanding the Wen family's lineage sooner. If you love him, then by all means, honor the three-year pact. But if you don't love him, and still make him honor the pact, don't you think that's too cruel to him?"
Xiao Man thought carefully. "That makes sense. When Mo Han returns, I will find an opportunity to explain it to him clearly."
A gleam flashed in Nangong Yu's eyes. He had eliminated his biggest love rival without a fight. As for the Thirteenth Prince, who was getting married next month, he was not a threat.