Oops, the princess is surrounded by the male protagonists

When the carriage was about to arrive at the hunting ground for the autumn hunt, the soldiers guarding the periphery of the camp strictly asked the passengers in the carriage to show their credentials for participating in the autumn hunt.

After three rounds of inspection, Yun Qingchen and Bai Yue finally saw the general outline of the camp.

Several eunuchs dressed in gorgeous costumes acted like conductors on the stage, repeating in loud and rhythmic voices.

"First-rank officials and royal nobles, please follow this middle path and enter the camp with honor!"

"Second and third rank gentlemen, please take the path on the left and come to us!"

"Wise men of the fourth and fifth ranks, please follow the path on the right and join us in this grand undertaking!"

Bai Yue turned her head to look at Yun Qingchen and asked.

"Qingchen, what is the rank of our Hostage House?"

Yun Qingchen smiled lightly, with a hint of helplessness and self-mockery in that smile.

"We? Haha, we are beings beyond rank. It's not wrong to say we are 'rankless'."

Bai Yue nodded in understanding. Without waiting for Yun Qingchen to speak, she gave instructions to the coachman directly.

"Brother Coachman, let's go to the right!"

Yun Qingchen originally wanted to stop him, but then he changed his mind and realized that if he took the middle road, he would inevitably meet Chu Xingyu, so he swallowed back what he wanted to say.

When Bai Yue and Yun Qingchen got off the carriage, they saw a camp made up of countless tents. There was a registration desk at the entrance of the camp. A eunuch was leaning over the desk, and it was unclear whether he was busy or sleeping.

"Name? Rank? Who are the relatives you brought with you?"

After Bai Yue pushed Yun Qingchen closer, the eunuch didn't even raise his eyelids, but just spoke weakly.

"Yun Qingchen, titleless, this is my wife, Bai Yue!"

"Oh, a fifth-rank official, his wife is Bai."

The eunuch nodded and took note while placing a wooden sign on the table.

"You two will stay in the Wugui tent. Bring this wooden sign to the steward's office to collect the supplies you need."

"According to your official rank, you should be served by two servants, but we are currently short on manpower and cannot deploy them immediately. We will send them to you in the afternoon!"

After the eunuch finished speaking, he casually waved his hand, indicating that they could leave.

Yun Qingchen and Bai Yue did not show any dissatisfaction or displeasure. Bai Yue picked up the wooden sign on the table and pushed Yun Qingchen towards their tent with calm steps.

"Hey, Xiao Liuzi, who are those two people who just came in?"

A eunuch who looked like the chief steward walked out leisurely from under the shade of the tree, looking quite relaxed.

"Reporting to Eunuch Ye, the two people just now were a fifth-rank official and his wife."

As soon as Xiao Liuzi saw this person, he immediately reported to him respectfully.

"Fifth-rank official?"

The eunuch walked to the registration desk and casually glanced at the recorded names, then his eyes froze obviously.

"If you feel something is wrong, I can immediately send someone to bring them here for your detailed investigation."

Seeing Eunuch Ye's expression, Xiao Liuzi immediately spoke nervously.

"Never mind, it's nothing serious. Just go and do your thing."

Eunuch Ye waved his sleeves and turned to leave, leaving Xiao Liuzi confused, not knowing what this eunuch was up to.

"Qingchen, are we really here for the Autumn Hunt? Why do I feel like I've stumbled into the harem by mistake?"

As Bai Yue stepped into the camp, he was shocked by the sea of ​​beautiful women before him.

They either gather in groups of three or five, whispering to each other, or sit alone, lost in thought.

That sweet voice, like a spring breeze blowing across the lake, filled the entire camp with vitality and unique charm.

"Xiaoyue, are you regretting not wearing the dress Xiaoyi recommended?"

Yun Qingchen looked at Bai Yue looking around and couldn't help but joke.

"No, no, no, I'm here to hunt, not to participate in a beauty pageant. This one suits me perfectly!"

Bai Yue shook her head, indicating that she absolutely had no such thoughts.

"I guess these women are probably the daughters of fourth- and fifth-rank officials who are waiting to be married."

"Grand events like the Autumn Hunt are a rare opportunity for them to come into contact with the royal family and the children of high-ranking officials. These officials naturally hope that their daughters will be favored by a prominent family and rise to prominence."

Yun Qingchen looked at the girls and patiently explained to Bai Yue.

"Ah, so this Autumn Hunt is actually a large-scale matchmaking event!"

Bai Yue nodded in sudden realization.

"Blind date?"

Yun Qingchen was slightly stunned and looked at Bai Yue in confusion.

"Yes, it's an opportunity for men and women of marriageable age to get to know each other. If they're interested in each other, they can get engaged and become husband and wife."

"Marry? Xiaoyue, you are wrong. If these women can catch the eye of Emperor Wu Lie, they may have a chance to enter the palace and become concubines."

"But if she were to be noticed by ordinary royal nobles or court officials, I'm afraid she would only be able to become a concubine or successor."

Yun Qingchen shook his head and said.

"Huh? Why is this?"

Bai Yue asked in confusion.

"Marriages are based on equal status. Although the daughters of these fourth and fifth rank officials can be considered to come from prominent families, they are not the daughters of noble clans. Being able to become a concubine or successor of a nobleman is already a great honor for their families."

Yun Qingchen explained patiently, allowing Bai Yue to have a deeper understanding of the marriage system in this hierarchical world.

"Oh, so this is a large-scale job fair?"

Bai Yue thought about it and said thoughtfully.

"Job fair?"

A trace of confusion appeared on Yun Qingchen's face.

"That's right, it's the kind of person who relies on their looks and talents to win the favor of a big family, starts as a concubine, works hard, gives birth to a son, becomes a concubine, wins a rich and handsome man, is promoted to the main wife, and then embarks on the pinnacle of life!"

The plot of a popular modern TV drama flashed through Bai Yue's mind, and he described it in a vivid and passionate way.

“…Hahahahaha!”

After a brief moment of daze, Yun Qingchen suddenly burst into a hearty laugh. The laughter was like spring thunder, which startled the women who were peeping at them and made them look surprised.

"Oh, why is that young man who looks like a banished immortal suddenly smiling so happily? He looks even more charming like this!"

"Haha, look at the young man behind him, he's practically frozen in laughter. His silly and cute expression is so funny!"

"Never mind, forget it. Don't look at it anymore. All the people who come to our camp are fourth- and fifth-rank officials. Servants are assigned to fourth-rank officials first. These two don't even have servants. They must be just small fifth-rank officials!"

"Alas, what a pity for the looks of these two young masters. If they were from prominent families, they would surely stir up a storm!"

When these women saw that Yun Qingchen and Bai Yue were not from wealthy families, they just sighed and no longer paid much attention to them.

When Yun Qingchen's laughter finally stopped, he nodded slightly and said.

"Xiaoyue, I'm sorry, I just found your words quite interesting. In just a few words, you analyzed the complexity of this walled courtyard in great detail, which left me breathless."

After a pause, he suddenly changed the subject and his tone became stern.

"However, what these women and their families did was nothing more than a ploy to sell their bodies for fame and fortune. Don't you think their actions are a bit too despicable?"

After Yun Qingchen said these words, his thoughts drifted back to the days when he and Bai Ling participated in the autumn hunt in Wenqu Kingdom.

At that time, Bai Ling snuggled in his arms, pointing at the daughters of minor officials and sharply criticizing them for abandoning their dignity for wealth and glory.

She once said that if it were her, no matter what the identity of her beloved person was, as long as they loved each other, why would she care about those empty glory and status.

At that time, Yun Qingchen agreed with this and was happy to have a lover like Bai Ling who had a clear distinction between love and hate.

However, it is now the autumn hunting season, and he has left his hometown and is wandering outside. Thinking of the laughter and joy of that day, he can't help feeling an inexplicable loneliness and sadness.

"Qingchen, are you okay?"

Bai Yue, who was lost in thought, caught a glimpse of Yun Qingchen, who seemed to be shrouded in a layer of melancholy. She walked up to him involuntarily, with a hint of concern in her voice.

"It's okay, I just recalled some memories from the past. Oh, right, you haven't answered my question just now!"

Seeing Bai Yue's worry, Yun Qingchen quickly suppressed his emotions and tried to dispel the gloom with a smile.

Bai Yue smiled slightly, stared into Yun Qingchen's eyes, and asked seriously.

"Well, Qingchen, come and see who I am."

"Of course you are Xiaoyue, who else could it be?"

Yun Qingchen was confused by Bai Yue's actions and didn't understand why.

"No, I mean, what is my identity here?"

Yun Qingchen thought for a moment and replied.

"You are my Crown Princess, the noble Third Princess of the Hundred Flower Kingdom."

"That's right. From the moment I was born, I stood at the pinnacle that countless people dream of, enjoying the highest honor in the world. Because of this, I feel that I have no right to judge the behavior of ordinary women and their families."

Bai Yue smiled, but her eyes revealed deep thought.

"There are always people who like to stand on the moral high ground and criticize others' behavior as noble or despicable. But if they truly stand in their shoes, can they really empathize with them and truly guarantee that their own behavior will be more noble than theirs?"

After saying this, Bai Yue suddenly winked playfully, with a mischievous smile on the corner of her mouth.

"If one day, I became a concubine of a prince, or a prostitute in a brothel..."

"Concubine? You? Whose concubine do you want to be?"

Yun Qingchen's voice suddenly turned cold, his eyes filled with astonishment and confusion.

"Oh, Qingchen, don't misunderstand me, I was just making an analogy. I don't really intend to become anyone's concubine!"

Seeing Yun Qingchen's intense reaction, Bai Yue quickly waved her hands to explain, with an innocent smile on her face.

"Sorry, I just lost my composure!"

Yun Qingchen suddenly woke up as if from a dream, and with a hint of embarrassment, he hurriedly apologized to Bai Yue.

"Haha, it's okay. Everyone loses their composure sometimes! As long as you're not a pervert, that's fine!"

Bai Yue said jokingly, then pushed Yun Qingchen and continued towards their tent.

However, Yun Qingchen's thoughts were tangled like a tangled thread, because when Bai Yue just mentioned that if she was a concubine, the rumors about Bai Yue and Chu Xingyu whispered in his ears like ghosts.

"Hey, stop imagining things"

A gentle voice in his heart comforted him.

"Didn't Xiaoyi already say that Xiaoyue has already publicly declared that she has drawn a clear line between herself and Chu Xingyu?"

"Humph, but Xiaoyue was clearly with Chu Xingyu the night I stood up, yet she kept it a secret from me. If this isn't a private affair, what is it?"

Another voice roared in his heart, like an enraged beast, stirring up the originally calm lake of his heart into turbulent waves.

"But I love Ling'er. Who Xiaoyue is with is none of your business."

That gentle voice sounded again, with a hint of sadness.

"She is my wife, shouldn't she be loyal only to me?"

The beast-like voice roared, full of resentment and arrogance.

"Oh? Wife? Are you really husband and wife?"

The gentle voice suddenly became frivolous, as if mocking his self-deception.

"Yeah, we really haven't had that before, right? Then it seems reasonable for Xiaoyue to choose someone else."

The beast-like sound suddenly became strange, coinciding with the first sound.

"Alas, Yun Qingchen, for a useless person like you who says one thing and does another, it's only natural for Xiaoyue to leave you and look for someone better."

"That's right. Chu Xingyu is such a handsome and elegant young man from a noble family. How can a loser like you compare to him?"

"Xiaoyue, do you really not have any entanglement with that Chu Xingyu?"

Qing Chen turned around abruptly, a hint of anxiety flashing in his eyes, as if he wanted to dispel all the questions that were nagging at him like mosquitoes and flies.

"Ah? Chu Xingyu?"

Bai Yue was a little confused, not understanding why Yun Qingchen suddenly mentioned this young marquis.

However, when she caught a glimpse of Yun Qingchen's deep and slightly panicked eyes, she immediately understood the seriousness of the matter.

"Heaven and earth are my witnesses. Chu Xingyu and I are absolutely innocent and have never had any connection!"

Bai Yue made a swearing gesture and spoke firmly.

"Qingchen, you know that Chu Xingyu only has Su Mengqi in his heart. Other women are worthless in his eyes."

"I heard that Su Mengqi was recently punished by her father for refusing to enter the palace against his will. I'm sure Chu Xingyu must be heartbroken right now, running around trying to find a way to rescue his beloved!"

Bai Yue had a playful smile on her lips, trying to ease the tense atmosphere with a relaxed tone.

"Okay, now that Xiaoyue said that, I'm relieved!"

After hearing this, Yun Qingchen's tense nerves finally relaxed and a relieved smile appeared on his face.

"Haha, Yun Qingchen is still bothered by the rumors between Chu Xingyu and me. But doesn't he like my sister? Why would he care about this?"

Just when Bai Yue was puzzled, Xiao 1 suddenly said.

"Reporting to the player with the strange mindset, Yun Qingchen's favorability towards you has increased by 5 points. That's it, goodbye!"

Xiao 1's punctual report did not attract Bai Yue's attention. At the same time, in another camp, the princes and nobles who were entering the camp were talking about Chu Xingyu who was sitting at the registration office.