"She is my fiancée, and it is only natural for me to be close to her. As for other men, they are not allowed to lay a finger on her!" Dongfang Heng's words were sharp and his tone was cold.
Shen Lixue raised her eyebrows. Dongfang Heng wanted Ye Qianlong to be less clingy, so he could have just made up an excuse. There was no need to be so serious. Anyone who didn't know better would think that she and Ye Qianlong were very close.
"If she becomes my fiancée, does that mean no other man can hold her hand except me?" Ye Qianlong asked softly, her smile pure.
"Ye Qianlong!" Dongfang Heng's handsome face instantly turned as black as ink: "She is already my fiancée, and there is no way she can have anything to do with you anymore!"
Shen Lixue smiled faintly. Dongfang Heng, the cunning and scheming god of the Azure Flame, was always the one scheming against others, and no one could ever scheme against him. She never expected that he would be so angered by the innocent Ye Qianlong today.
If it weren't for Ye Qianlong's clear and innocent gaze and childlike innocence, Shen Lixue would have thought he was deliberately pretending to be stupid and teasing her.
"Why is she your fiancée, but not mine?" Ye Qianlong's clear eyes were filled with confusion.
"A woman can only marry one man!" Dongfang Heng's gaze was sharp.
"She's not married to you yet, so why can't she be intimate with other men?" Ye Qianlong asked again, puzzled.
Dongfang Heng's face darkened even more as he coldly stared at Ye Qianlong: "Don't ask these pointless questions anymore, or you can forget about ever staying at the Holy King's Mansion again!"
Ye Qianlong immediately shut his mouth. He wasn't afraid of Dongfang Heng, but he was afraid of not seeing Shen Lixue: "Lixue, will you really go to the Holy King's Mansion to see me tomorrow?"
"Of course, I won't lie to you!" Shen Lixue smiled gently. She was a person of her word. She hadn't gone to the inn to see Ye Qianlong because he was a stranger and she didn't want to have any interaction with him. Now that she and Ye Qianlong were friends, she would of course keep her promise and go to the Holy King's Mansion to see him.
Ye Qianlong's lips moved, but he didn't say anything. His gaze fell on a blue silk handkerchief peeking out from under Shen Lixue's torn sleeve. His eyes lit up, and he quickly reached out and snatched the handkerchief away.
"This silk handkerchief is something you like, isn't it? I'll keep it here for now, and return it to you when you come to see me tomorrow!"
Dongfang Heng's face darkened further as he stared at Ye Qianlong without uttering a word, his sharp eyes flashing with cold light.
Shen Lixue: "..." When did Ye Qianlong learn to hold hostages? No, he held material hostages, using a silk handkerchief as collateral to force her to come see him. His thinking is truly extraordinary.
The silk handkerchief in Ye Qianlong's hand was embroidered with only a few flowers, no names or poems, but Dongfang Heng's handsome face remained utterly dark.
Li Xue wore a hairpin in her hair, earrings in her ears, and a jade bracelet on her wrist. Ye Qianlong took nothing but snatched her silk handkerchief. In Qingyan, when a woman gives a man a silk handkerchief, it signifies a declaration of love. Did Ye Qianlong truly not understand this, or was he pretending not to know?
Ye Qianlong's pure heart caused Shen Lixue to stare at him for a moment in surprise. Ye Qianlong's handsome face flushed slightly. He reached into his sleeve, fumbled for a moment, took out something, and put it into Shen Lixue's hand: "Here you go!"
"What is this?" Shen Lixue opened her palm and saw a green jade pendant lying quietly in her hand. The green color was very pure, and it was carved with simple and ancient patterns. On the other side, a flowing character for "night" was carved. It was clear at a glance that this was no ordinary item.
"Why did you give me the jade pendant?" Shen Lixue looked at Ye Qianlong in confusion.
“I took your favorite silk handkerchief, so of course I have to give you something in exchange. We can exchange it back when you come to see me tomorrow.” Ye Qianlong smiled gently, her eyes clear and pure.
Shen Lixue: "..."
Exchanging a priceless jade pendant for an ordinary silk handkerchief—only Ye Qianlong would do something so unprofitable.
Dongfang Heng's handsome face was so dark it looked like ink was about to drip out. Ye Qianlong took Li Xue's silk handkerchief and gave her a jade pendant. Were they exchanging tokens of love?
"Take the jade pendant back. That silk handkerchief is worthless. This jade pendant of yours could buy several cabinets!" Shen Lixue handed the jade pendant to Ye Qianlong. She didn't like taking advantage of others. It was just a silk handkerchief, and she didn't care about it. Ye Qianlong didn't need to exchange such an expensive jade pendant for it.
Ye Qianlong shook his head, refusing to accept the jade pendant: "I took your silk handkerchief and gave you a jade pendant in return. It's fair. If you really want to return the jade pendant to me, just come to the Holy King's Mansion to see me tomorrow!"
Shen Lixue frowned slightly. Ye Qianlong thought that since he had taken her silk handkerchief and she had taken his jade pendant, she would definitely go to see him in exchange. What pure thoughts she had…
The jade pendant was crystal clear, radiating a soft glow in Shen Lixue's fair and delicate hands, making her hands appear even more exquisite and porcelain-like.
A large hand reached out out of thin air and took the jade pendant from Shen Lixue's hand. She looked up and met Dongfang Heng's unfathomable dark eyes. Deep within his pupils, a sharp, displeased light flashed.
Shen Lixue was taken aback: Dongfang Heng seemed very strange tonight.
"Dongfang Heng, why did you steal the jade pendant I gave to Li Xue?" Ye Qianlong protested, his tone extremely displeased.
"The night wind is strong, and her hands are freezing. I'll keep it for her for now, and return it to her when she returns to her residence!" Dongfang Heng said to Ye Qianlong perfunctorily, then whispered to Shen Lixue, "Once Ye Qianlong moves into the Holy King's residence, I will return the jade pendant to him!"
Shen Lixue thought for a moment, and since Ye Qianlong wouldn't accept the jade pendant, having Dongfang Heng give it to him was a good idea.
"It's late and the wind is strong, let's go back to the manor!" Dongfang Heng said softly, holding Shen Lixue's wrist as they walked forward.
Ye Qianlong stepped forward and reached out to grab Chen Lixue's other sleeve, but was repelled by Dongfang Heng's powerful internal force.
"Dongfang Heng, what are you doing?" Ye Qianlong glared angrily at Dongfang Heng. He had just snatched the Li Xue Jade Pendant and now he was using his internal energy to open his own. He was definitely up to no good.
"She is my fiancée. You are a man, and you must not get close to her!" Dongfang Heng replied coldly, his gaze sharp.
"I grabbed the sleeve..." Ye Qianlong muttered in dissatisfaction.
"Not even your sleeves..." Dongfang Heng said righteously, glancing at the small distance between Shen Lixue and Ye Qianlong, his gaze becoming even sharper: "When walking, keep a step away from her!"
"Li Xue!" Ye Qianlong lowered his head, his voice low, as if he had suffered a great injustice.
"It's late, let's go back and rest first. We can talk about it tomorrow. You can walk on my left!" Looking at Ye Qianlong's pitiful appearance, Shen Lixue was both annoyed and amused. Ye Qianlong was quite clever after all. Unable to protest against Dongfang Heng, he turned to her for help.
"Okay!" Walking on Li Xue's left, there was no distance between them at all. Ye Qianlong was very happy and grabbed Li Xue's sleeve to walk quickly forward.
Dongfang Heng's sharp gaze fell on Ye Qianlong's hand that was pulling Chen Lixue's sleeve. He stared at it for a moment, then withdrew it without saying a word. His obsidian-like eyes grew deeper and deeper.
As night deepened and the night wind grew cold, Dongfang Heng and Shen Lixue hurried on their way without speaking. Ye Qianlong walked beside them, curiously pulling Shen Lixue aside and asking her all sorts of questions.
"Li Xue, how old are you?"
"Li Xue, what's your favorite food?"
"Li Xue, do you like blue and light green clothes the most? I've seen you several times, and you almost always wear these colors..."
“Li Xue…”
Ye Qianlong bombarded her with a barrage of questions, which Shen Lixue patiently answered one by one. Dongfang Heng, however, frowned deeply and said, "Ye Qianlong, shut up! Many things need to be felt with your heart, not asked with your mouth."