Arc 2: Part 47
"Where are they drinking?" Xiao Lingchen asked impatiently.
The two men looked confused, "Who?"
Snapping back to reality a few moments later, they hastily answered, "At... at the river! They're at the river!"
Xiao Lingchen deeply inhaled. The thin winter chill filled his lungs, yet the anger within him didn’t subside. Instead, it seemed to grow, becoming more intense and increasingly fierce.
Drinking?
Drinking with Prince He Lian?
Just wonderful, just wonderful!
Xiao Lingchen didn't understand why he was angry. But he couldn't control the surge of fury within him. There was also an indescribable feeling, similar to a sense of grievance.
She had just kissed him and then immediately went drinking with Prince He Lian?
Hadn't she just been with him—
How wonderful!
How thoughtlessly wonderful!
Xiao Lingchen, his face as gloomy as the deep waters, charged towards the riverside, his body emitting an intimidating aura.
________________________
An hour earlier.
Within the camp, royal relatives and influential ministers along with young lords and ladies had all gone hunting. Tong Su, teeth gritted, rode her horse into the wilderness.
Prince He Lian was leisurely strolling through the camp, fluttering a fan in his hand. Most of the ladies were out participating in the hunt and he couldn't find anyone to flirt with. With a sigh, he decided to head back. Looking up, he saw Tong Su, her pretty face cold and aloof. His eyes lit up, and he hurriedly went to greet her.
"Miss Ji! Miss Ji, how are you? I'm delighted to meet you!" He greeted her properly, but before he even finished his greeting, he dropped all formalities, grinning as he approached, "Why the unhappy face? Don't be so cold; I have some fine wine here. Would you like to have a drink?"
Tong Su grunted softly. Dismounting her horse, she handed the reins to an attendant and asked, "Is the wine strong? I won't drink it if it's not."
Prince He Lian clapped his hands and burst into laughter, "Miss Ji, if you're looking for strong wine, you've come to the right person! We might not have much in the northwest, but we do have the finest strong wine. Plenty of it!"
Tong Su didn't want to cause a scene by getting drunk in the middle of the camp, so when Prince He Lian proposed moving to the riverside, she gave a curt nod of approval. Downing a shot of the fiery liquor, her face quickly reddened, her eyes becoming misty as she scoffed.
"He deserves to be single for two lifetimes! Such a blockhead!"
Prince He Lian was busily roasting a deer on a makeshift spit made of gathered firewood. Intrigued by her words, he asked, "Who could that be?"
Tong Su squinted at him while swirling her jug of wine, glancing at the roasting meat, she said, "Who do you think? And, do you even know how to roast meat? You are ruining a perfectly good piece of venison! Stand back; let me handle this."
"Could it be Brother Xiao?" Prince He Lian hurriedly made way, guessing with glee. "I'm right, aren't I? Among everyone here in the camp, he's the most clueless one: rigid, harsh, solemn, aloof – everybody talks behind his back and... Ow!"
Tong Su abruptly kicked him, sending him sprawling on the ground.
"Shut up!" She yelled. Her cheeks, flushed from the strong liquor, lit up as she brandished her stick used for stirring the fire. "How dare you badmouth him!"
Prince He Lian lay sprawling on the ground, nursing his injured dignity. "I was trying to side with you, and you kick me for that?"
But Tong Su's anger flared. "Only I can criticize him, you cannot! Anyone who dares to badmouth him will face my wrath!"
"Oh..."
Prince He Lian whimpered in response, scrambling to escape.
"Miss Ji, Miss Ji, I dare not again! Please spare me!"
When Xiao Lingchen arrived at the riverside, from afar he could see the two playing and laughing together, even saw Tong Su affectionately reaching out to tweak Prince He Lian's ear—
There was a buzzing sound in his head, as if the world in front of him was turning black. All the blood in his body seemed to rush to his brain, only to disappear in the blink of an eye, leaving his face as white as paper.
They...
They...
Suddenly, Prince He Lian around and saw him. His face lit up immediately and, filled with joy, he called out in an overly eager voice.
"Brother Xiao! Come and save me!"
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