The Cold-Hearted Princess Who Transmigrated Here

After eating and drinking their fill, the group rested early, since cutting down trees to build a bridge was physically demanding work, and they would have to continue the next day.

Wang Xiyue took out the ointment the young man had given her from her personal sachet and looked at her inner thigh, which was bleeding again from the broken skin.

Now, she truly felt the excruciating pain, the consequence of her reckless horseback riding during the day.

After the wound was treated again, she stared blankly at the medicine bottle.

Did you do something wrong?

Did the guy leave because he was rejected?

Or was he just teasing himself and gave up halfway through because he got bored?

Wang Xiyue tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

Perhaps it was because I had stayed up too long, or perhaps it was because I was mentally exhausted, but I finally drifted off to sleep in a daze.

Just as Wang Xiyue drifted into a light sleep, Dongfang Yu slipped past the night guards of the Prime Minister's residence and slipped into her tent.

Looking at the haggard girl in front of him, Dongfang Yu felt a pang of sadness. He secretly pressed her pressure point to put her to sleep, then lay down on his side and gently embraced her, letting her rest her head on his shoulder to fall asleep.

Only when he could get close to her again, and hold her in his arms again, did his heart finally find peace. She was still his alone.

Only he can hold her, and she can only have him by her side. Now, he is content as long as he can be close to her for a little while each day.

Only by truly holding the person in front of him could he resist the urge to kill Wang Yu.

With the help of the hazy moonlight, Dongfang Yu admired Xiyue's peaceful sleeping face. If only she were his wife, he could have such happy moments every day.

He watched as she unconsciously wrapped her arms around his waist, and as she obediently snuggled into his embrace. His heart was filled with sweetness. At this moment, Xiyue was incredibly well-behaved.

Of course, such obedience was particularly torturous for Dongfang Yu, but he would not let go even under torture.

Sweet moments always pass in the blink of an eye. Judging that the time was about right, Dongfang Yu, feeling guilty, kissed the forehead of the person in his arms before quietly leaving and disappearing into the night.

Mo Yun and the others couldn't bear to watch the prince's illicit affair, but in order to avoid making things difficult for him, they had no choice but to obediently cooperate with his flower-picking behavior.

The night passed quickly.

Wang Xiyue was woken up by the noise. She was a little incredulous when she woke up. She had actually overslept, and she felt that she had slept very well last night. She did not have those chaotic and sad dreams.

She even dreamt yesterday that she forcibly hugged the young man, and he seemed to kiss her. Thinking of this, Wang Xiyue blushed instantly. How could she have such a shameful dream?

She shook her head, forcibly shaking off the dream that shouldn't exist. As soon as she stepped out of the tent, she saw her brother coming to greet her.

Wang Xijie asked anxiously, "Yueyue, are you alright?"

He had never seen his sister wake up so late before. He was worried that something might have happened to her if she didn't wake up soon, and he was about to disregard the traditional separation of men and women and go in to check on her.

Wang Xiyue hurriedly explained, "It's nothing, it's nothing. I was probably scared by that deep pit yesterday, so I didn't fall asleep until late last night."

Actually, she went to bed very early; she probably fell asleep before midnight.

Fearing her brother would press her further, she quickly changed the subject: "Brother, is the bridge repaired yet?"

Seeing that his sister looked normal and that her haggard and dejected appearance from yesterday had disappeared, Wang Xijie was finally relieved. "It's good that you're alright."

Although the bridge repair was spearheaded by the Prince Xian's residence, the Prime Minister's residence also contributed significantly, so he proudly gave himself a round of self-praise.

"Almost done. We're really good at this. Although we only have limited tools and can only build a simple wooden bridge, it's a very ingenious one."

"Come on, let me show you the fruits of our labor."

"At the bottom, there are three of the thickest and longest trees that span the pit for support. Brother Mo broke them with just his palm. We didn't have the tools to split them, so we could only tie some thinner, sturdier pieces of wood to the first layer of long trees. The third layer was made of tough grass and branches. The last layer was covered with soil mixed with small pebbles."

As Wang Xiyue listened to her brother's explanation, she observed carefully. Indeed, if her brother said the bridge was incredibly ingenious, she would definitely not have been able to understand its intricacies without a detailed explanation.

At first glance, she might mistake the bridge for a road. Ignoring the rough edges, the bridge appears to blend seamlessly with the road surface on both sides. The bridge deck doesn't protrude from the road surface but is level with the ground. Clearly, the wooden planks used to build the bridge are buried underground, and you wouldn't notice them unless you looked closely.

The person who came up with the idea was very clever. He made such a sturdy simple temporary wooden bridge. If he had enough tools, he could definitely have built an even more perfect bridge.

If it weren't for the need to cross the carriage, they could have crossed the narrow bridge, which is only wide enough for one person, yesterday at their speed.

Wang Xiyue was very curious about who came up with the idea. "Brother, whose idea was this?"

Wang Xijie, of course, would never say it was Dongfang Yu. He raised an eyebrow and said, "Brother Mo directed us to do this. How about that? Aren't we amazing?"

Wang Xiyue nodded, "Yes, everyone is very capable!"

Seeing his sister's silence, Wang Xijie indirectly or unintentionally revealed some information.

"Yueyue, I heard from Brother Mo that Dongfang Yu seems to have some urgent business, and he urgently summoned 'Dark Night' back last night."

"That brat was so annoying, it's great that he's gone."

"I'm so happy he's gone."

"He's gone, are you any happier now?"

When Wang Xiyue suddenly heard the news of her brother's departure, she felt a mix of emotions, both bitter and astringent.

Wasn't she hoping he would leave? Why does she now only feel bitterness in her mouth?

Looking at her brother's exaggeratedly smug expression, Wang Xiyue couldn't help but ask, "Brother, why do you hate him so much?"

Wang Xijie couldn't very well say it was because she was afraid he would take advantage of her, so she could only try to find an excuse, "Heh, isn't it because he has such an arrogant attitude that he deserves a beating! He always wears a mask and acts mysterious, I hate him as soon as I see him!"

Wang Xiyue was speechless at this reason, but she didn't want to continue discussing the matter.

She greeted them listlessly and then turned back to her tent to pack her things.

Wang Xijie looked at his sister, who was pretending to be nonchalant, and let out another deep breath.

The word "love" can be either intensely passionate or so deeply hurtful as to leave one utterly devastated.

He could only hope that his sister would come to her senses soon, and that Dongfang Yu would treat her with sincerity. Matters of love are something only the two of them can resolve; he, as an outsider, couldn't help.

After everyone had safely crossed the giant pit, they began their day's journey, but this time they traveled much slower, fearing they might encounter another accident.

5:00 PM (卯时).

Wangjia Village finally came into view.

Meanwhile, Dongfang Yu followed secretly from a distance with his bodyguards.

After seeing Xiyue enter her grandparents' courtyard, Dongfang Yu ordered his guards to set up camp in the mountains near the village. He put on the Shadow's human skin mask, while Shadow put on his silver mask.

Xiyue can only be his. His purpose in coming out to find her this time is to bring her back to the manor. The previous methods are not working, so he needs to change his strategy.

He could only use delaying tactics. He couldn't push her too hard now, lest he make things worse like last time. He had to be patient and give her enough time to accept him. The best outcome, of course, was for her to willingly follow him.

……

While her brother was knocking on the door, Wang Xiyue took the opportunity to admire the small village.

The joyful laughter of children echoed through the farmhouses, the unique aroma of food filled the air, and the calls of parents calling their children could be heard from time to time in different courtyards, creating a warm and cozy atmosphere.

The farmhouse courtyard in front of us, which occupies about half an acre, is the largest of the houses in this row.

The courtyard wall was built with sturdy bricks and stones, a building material rarely seen in the countryside. It must have been specially built by my father for security after he became prime minister, while the courtyard walls of the nearby neighbors were mostly made of bamboo fences or wood.

The walls of this courtyard are covered with a dense canopy of bean pods and other vines, their lush green leaves bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun, creating a serene and beautiful atmosphere.

Soon someone came to open the door.

Grandma Guo was overjoyed and incredulous to see that the visitors were her grandson and granddaughter whom she had met recently.

Overjoyed, he couldn't stop smiling. "Xiao Jie, Xiao Yue, it's you! Come, come, everyone, come in quickly!"

Then he shouted into the house, "Old man, come out quickly, your grandson and granddaughter are back!"

Thinking that there was only simple food at home, she couldn't help but feel guilty. "We didn't prepare anything good at home. You didn't even tell us you were coming."

Wang Xiyue gave her grandmother a proper curtsy, saying, "Grandmother, your granddaughter greets you!"

Wang Xijie also stepped forward, bowed, and greeted, "Greetings, Grandmother!"

Grandma Guo quickly stepped forward and pulled the two of them up, saying, "Get up! Get up! We country folk don't need to be so formal. We're family, so just be yourself."

Wang Xiyue straightened up and gently pulled her grandmother's arm with a smile to comfort her, "Grandmother, proper etiquette is essential. If we don't do it properly, Father and Mother will punish my brother and me."

"There's no need to prepare anything special. We're not picky eaters. As long as we have something to eat and a place to sleep, that's fine. On this trip, we'll often be eating in the wind and sleeping in the open, so please don't worry about it."

Wang Xijie also apologized, saying, "Grandmother, there are quite a few of us here this time, please bear with us."

Grandmother gently patted Wang Xijie's head, "What are you saying, child? I wish you would bother me every day!"

As soon as Wang Xijie stepped into the courtyard, he saw his grandfather leading a group of people to greet him.

Wang Xijie and his sister stood side by side and bowed, saying, "Grandson greets grandfather!"

"Uncle and Aunt, are you well?"

"Meet you all!"

Old Wang stepped forward and patted Wang Xijie on the shoulder forcefully. "You brat, you didn't even tell me you were coming. There's no good wine or meat at home."

While humbly admitting his mistake, Wang Xijie pretended to be obsequious, saying, "Grandfather, we only came on a whim, and we are in a hurry. We can only trouble you to take us in for a few days! Please bear with us."

Old Wang laughed heartily; his grandson's open and forthright personality suited him perfectly.

The grandfather led the way, holding his older brother's hand, while Wang Xiyue supported her grandmother as they followed closely behind.

There were other relatives and a group of guards behind them, a huge crowd. The originally spacious courtyard suddenly felt crowded and warm.

Grandma Guo was delighted to see so many young people gathered together, and she couldn't help but sigh, "It's been so many years since it's been this lively."

“We recently attended your coming-of-age ceremony, and after we came back, I was thinking that I didn’t know when we would see you again. I didn’t expect you to come to see us so soon.”

"It's so great that you could come!"

Wang Xiyue replied with a smile, "My brother and I are very happy to see our grandmother, grandfather and so many relatives."

On her way into the house, Wang Xiyue also took the time to carefully observe the interior of the courtyard.

Perhaps it was because of my father, but this courtyard was larger and more orderly than other people's houses, both in terms of area and layout.

Overall, the Wang family courtyard is very elegant. The main gate faces three bright rooms, all with tiled roofs.

Before she was nine years old, her father had brought her family back a few times, and she still had some recollection of it.

There are three rooms in a row in front. The middle room is the living room and dining room, and the two rooms on the left and right are the main rooms, which are the bedrooms of the grandparents and the eldest uncle and aunt, respectively.

There were also three rooms on the left side of the courtyard, and wisps of smoke were slowly rising from the roof of one of them, indicating that she and her brother had arrived at mealtime.

To the right of the courtyard is a rare two-story loft-style house, with three rooms on each floor, all of which are living rooms. These should be the rooms where my cousins ​​live, along with guest rooms.

On the side closest to the gate, next to the courtyard wall, there is a grape trellis, chicken and duck coops, and dog kennels. Along the wall, there are vine-like vegetables such as gourds, loofahs, and green beans.

My grandparents' family were all farmers, so they were naturally very good at growing vegetables. Therefore, unlike wealthy families who had flowers, trees and shrubs in their yard, they had divided the yard into square vegetable plots, which were filled with seasonal vegetables and fruits.

The entire courtyard was teeming with life.