Who else could you love besides me

Chapter 91

"Sigh..." Li Yu sighed softly, satisfied, then returned to her sorrowful mood, and continued in a low voice, "Little Rizi, you don't understand. A man can have many women, can marry many women, because he has never met the one he truly loves. A man may be confused and moved by a woman at some point, but that is not necessarily love. But once he falls in love, truly falls in love, he will disregard everything and spare no effort. Little Rizi, when you are willing to give everything for someone, even your life, you will understand."

I was speechless that day.

After a long while, as dawn was approaching, Xi Ri finally mustered the courage to ask hesitantly, "Cousin, you...you wouldn't...you also...is that right?"

"Little Rizi, you've finally grown up." Her third cousin stroked her head with teary eyes.

One day, I suddenly felt a chill on my head and thought it was raining. When I looked up, I saw that someone was crying.

"Stop pretending. You can forget about taking your medicine in front of me." Xi Ri said irritably. This guy always uses this trick.

"What a waste," Li Yu said with dissatisfaction.

"Good to know." Xi Ri had the urge to roll her eyes.

“I’m telling you, Xiao Rizi, you’re not going to reject him for this reason, are you? You’ve been exposed to men’s philandering since you were little, you can’t be unaware of it, can you?” Li Yu continued to persuade her.

silence……

Xi Ri looked at him with considerable suspicion, genuinely doubting her cousin's motives. Unexpectedly, perhaps stunned by her gaze, Li Yu suddenly said with self-satisfaction, "Little Ri, you don't actually like me, do you?"

"Wow..." Xi Ri narrowed her eyes, one corner of her mouth turning up, and said, "Really? Third Brother, you really dare to marry me?"

Seeing this, the third cousin immediately slumped, his previous impassioned speech turning into nothing but bubbles. "Hmm... forget it, let Minglu marry her then." Recalling another incident from five years ago, for the sake of his own happiness, he knew that no matter how beautiful this woman was, he could never marry her.

"Cousin, why did you suddenly come back?" Xi Ri asked.

Mentioning this, Li Yu seemed quite displeased, saying, "Someone called me back. Speaking of which, little one, how could Prince Xi have been poisoned by the 'Ten Miles of Spring Fragrance'?"

Xi Ri briefly recounted the whole story to her cousin, and Li Yu, upon hearing it, burst into laughter, concluding that Suo Ge deserved it. Xi Ri was quite satisfied with this conclusion.

By this time, the sky was already turning white. Li Yu was about to leave. Before departing, she picked out four different masks from Xi Ri, and took two more when Xi Ri wasn't looking. Without saying a word of farewell, she jumped out of the window and was about to leave.

Seeing her cousin leap out of the window, she hurriedly called out, "Cousin, are you leaving already?"

My third cousin, who was already outside the window, turned around and nodded. "Goodness, the men of the borderlands are tall, strong, and sturdy, hey, but unfortunately, they lack someone as dashing and debonair as me. So, the moment I appeared in the borderlands, I became a rare and priceless treasure, sigh." After indulging in self-admiration for a few minutes, he added, "The girls of the borderlands are tall and beautiful, oh dear, your third cousin here is itching to go back."

"Third Brother, save your energy!" Xi Ri called out to her third cousin's receding figure.

"Don't always confine yourself to this small world. Look further ahead; the world is vast." His figure disappeared into the boundless night.

Looking up at the sky that day, I didn't see how vast it was; I only saw a figure resembling a bat hopping and leaping from wall to wall. Sigh, Third Cousin, if Shuangzi knew you'd been here and I hadn't told her, if I hadn't let her see you, she'd be furious with me. How many women's hearts have you broken? Why can Shuangzi accept your womanizing ways, but I can't? Or is that just an excuse?

Just as I was about to close the window and go to sleep, I suddenly noticed a figure in the distance chasing after the direction my third brother had gone; it seemed to be the twins…

***************

Since her cousin's visit, she felt much better. Although she still didn't know how to face her third brother, at least one of her worries had been lifted. She told herself to face what needed to be faced with equanimity. With that thought, she felt much more relaxed.

Suddenly, she remembered something she had forgotten to ask her cousin: what grudge did her cousin hold against Long Ming? Could it be... could it be... that Long Ming was the one who made the bet with her cousin back then? Could it be that Long Ming was the one who brought her cousin back this time? What kind of bet did they make back then? Xi Ri thought about the two of them and secretly figured that the bet they made was definitely not a good one.

Daylight broke, and she finally rested. She didn't know when Tian Shuang returned. She understood Tian Shuang's feelings for her cousin, but there are many kinds of feelings, and love is one that cannot be forced. Her cousin's feelings for Tian Shuang were no different from his feelings for her—just a familial affection. She knew Tian Shuang understood, but she also knew Tian Shuang couldn't let go.

She sighed, thinking to herself: When it comes to matters of the heart, one often sees through others but not one's own. This was true for her, and it was also true for Tian Shuang.

In the afternoon, a stone wrapped in paper was suddenly thrown over the wall into the yard. When Tian Yong chased after it, the person had already disappeared.

Tian Shuang carefully opened the note and found that it was written by Young Master Long to Miss. Although she was suspicious and did not know if it was true or not, she still showed it to Xi Ri for a look.

This was the first time she had received news of Long Ming in so many days. Although she had several times been tempted to go into the city to find shops marked with wolf heads to inquire about Long Ming, she ultimately restrained herself. Her status did not allow her to do so.

The note was short, only saying that he would be arriving in the capital the day after tomorrow, and that she should dress up and wait for him in the outskirts of the capital, specifically reminding her to wear women's clothing. Xi Ri recognized him immediately upon seeing the last sentence—it really was him!

But why all the secrecy? She hadn't received any messages from him before. Was he breaking his promise, or was there something else going on?

The next day, two people came to visit. Tian Shuang opened the door and was greatly surprised to see them. He hurriedly ran into the house to inform Xi Ri. Upon hearing this, Xi Ri immediately got up and went out to greet them.

Seeing her dressed in women's clothing, simple clothes and hairpins, without any makeup, her eldest brother Xi'en's eyes flashed and a warm smile appeared, while her second brother Nalan Xuri nodded calmly and smiled back at her. (29)

Their visit, their smiles, and their calm demeanor greatly encouraged Xi Ri.

Xi Ri was both afraid and happy, and only called out softly, "Big Brother, Second Brother."

The two of them nodded.

They were ushered into the hall, where their attendants and horses were waiting outside.

After serving hot tea, Xi Ri bowed deeply and said, "Eldest brother, second brother, I have been hiding my true identity from you all all this time. I know I have failed you in your kindness and care over the past few days. I know I have been wrong and hope you will forgive me. Please accept my three bows first."

Xi Ri knelt down and bowed three times in succession. Neither Xi En nor Nalan Ju stopped her. After receiving the three bows, Xi En finally spoke: "Since you have acknowledged us two as your brothers, from now on, you will be our fifth sister."

Xi Ri was shocked to hear this, as if in a dream, and did not understand why.

Nalan stepped forward to help her up, saying, "Fifth Sister, please get up first."

At this moment, Xi Ri finally came to her senses and learned that her eldest and second brothers had forgiven her and recognized her as their fifth sister. Xi Ri was overjoyed.

Just then, a commotion broke out outside. Hearing the noise, the three of them looked out of the hall at the same time. They saw a man stagger into the hall. Upon seeing Tian Xiri in the center of the hall, he seemed to have suffered a great shock. His body swayed and staggered. With a little effort, someone kindly helped him up from behind, but he pushed him away violently. Pointing at Tian Xiri in the hall, he was shocked, fearful, panicked, terrified, joyful, and sad. His fingertips trembled as he stammered, "You...you...you..." He managed to utter three "you"s, but they were broken into incoherent sentences.

Xi Ri suddenly knelt down before him, bowing once and saying, "Fourth Brother." He bowed again and said, "Fourth Brother." He bowed a third time and said, "Fourth Brother." His body remained on the ground, without raising his head, and he choked out, "Fourth Brother, I'm sorry."

Just then, another voice suddenly rang out. It was unclear when he had arrived, but he said, "I'm here too."

Upon hearing the sound, Xi Ri trembled slightly, and vaguely raised her head to look at the doorway... Under the bright autumn sun, dazzling and radiant, stood Ming Lu, tall and imposing in a blue robe.

He bowed again and said, "Third Brother."

This house had never been so lively. The small space was packed with people; the masters sat inside, while servants and attendants waited outside. Nearby residents, seeing the four sword-wielding guards standing solemnly outside, speculated that either the family had been raided by the authorities or they had offended some important figure. They dared not walk through the alley and all chose to take a detour. Others thought some important person had arrived, and some, bored, waited anxiously at the door. This alley was unusually bustling today.