In a moment of impulse, I forcibly kissed my brother's best friend.

Just then, a maid came in carrying a bowl of hangover soup: "Madam, my husband said you must drink this to relieve your headache."

Xie Yige looked at the bowl of dark, unappetizing stuff with disdain.

"Miss, please drink it quickly," Zhixia urged. "We've been out for a long time, we have to go soon."

"Oh, okay." Xie Yige pinched her nose and drank the bowl of hangover soup in one gulp.

The bitter taste of the medicine melted on her tongue. She frowned and shoved the empty bowl back into the maid's hands.

"Where is Cui Langjun?" she asked.

"My husband went to his study early this morning, saying he had important matters to attend to and asked his wife to have breakfast first."

Xie Yige nodded, but a strange feeling lingered in her heart. She looked down at her intact clothes and touched her slightly flushed cheeks. What exactly happened last night? She had absolutely no recollection of it.

Zhi Xia was packing her things, hesitating several times before finally saying, "Miss, please... don't do this again."

"how?"

Zhi Xia opened her mouth, then closed it again. She couldn't very well say, "You almost gave yourself away last night." She sighed, "It's nothing. You should get yourself ready; we should go back."

Xie Yige said "Oh" and obediently got up to wash and dress. She sat down in front of the dressing table, picked up the comb, but her gaze inadvertently swept over herself in the mirror—there was a small, faint red mark on her neck, and several more as she pulled down a little.

Her face turned bright red instantly.

Only then did she seem to feel that the raised area in front was still slightly swollen, and the very top was still a little sore. Was it from being pinched or bitten?

I've gone mad...

The thought of that scene made her feel hot all over.

"Let's go, let's go quickly, right now..."

Xie Yige panicked and grabbed Zhixia's hand, pulling her outside. Although Zhixia was a little confused, she quickly cooperated and followed her.

"My lady, aren't you going to have breakfast?" the maid asked anxiously.

"No need, just get the car ready for me right away."

"Yes, I will arrange it right away."

The maid was quick-witted; she responded while gesturing to someone to inform Cui Yutang. However, Xie Yige walked too fast, and by the time she reached the main gate, she saw Cui Yutang hurrying out after her.

"Yige, are you leaving?" His steps were a little unsteady, and he was only wearing a very thin shirt, as if he had rushed from the study.

Xie Yige felt a surge of panic when she thought about what happened last night, and she didn't even dare to look at him. She quickly lowered her head and curtsied, saying, "Thank you for your hospitality, Young Master Cui. I have urgent business at home, so I'll be leaving now."

Her voice was so soft that it was almost carried away by the morning breeze.

With that, she boarded the carriage with Zhixia's help. The moment the curtain fell, she couldn't help but secretly lift a corner and peek out—Cui Yutang stood there, the morning breeze ruffling his clothes, his face almost transparently pale.

The carriage started moving, and his figure grew smaller and smaller through the gap in the curtain corner until it finally disappeared around the corner.

Cui Yutang watched her carriage leave, his lips pressed tightly together, his whole body trembling slightly.

The things he did last night went too far.

Did she dislike or hate you...?

A wave of fear washed over him.

His hands, hanging at his sides, were clenched into fists, his knuckles turning white.

The carriage sped along, fast yet steady. Xie Yige sat in the carriage, dazed and confused, belatedly realizing that her actions the previous night had indeed been very inappropriate. Just seeing him made her dizzy; she was still a young lady confined to her home, and if her family found out, it would truly be…

The consequences could be disastrous.

But what can I do? Every time I see him, my body uncontrollably wants to be close to him and do some absurd things that are beyond my control.

Oh, Xie Yige, you're finished.

She leaned against the car wall, closed her eyes, and tried to calm herself down. But as soon as she closed her eyes, all she could see in her mind was his image from last night—his hot breath, his trembling eyelashes, his burning body as he buried his face in the crook of her neck…

She suddenly opened her eyes, her cheeks burning. No, she couldn't think about it anymore.

The carriage was forced to stop abruptly as it entered the bustling market. Amidst the noise and arguing ahead...

"Zhixia, what happened up ahead?"

"It seems like a woman who runs a stall was being bullied, and her road was being blocked."

Xie Yige peeked through the curtains and saw two menacing-looking men kick over a purse stall. The woman, with injuries on her face and body, was pleading with them not to dirty her things.

Her voice was hoarse and tearful, but it didn't earn her a shred of pity from those people.

Xie Yige noticed a purse rolling near her carriage. The stitching, the style of the floral pattern... it looked vaguely familiar.

Xie Yige was a little confused. She took out a purse from her body, compared it with the purse, and was shocked.

Isn't this the stuff from that stall owner in Donglin City? How did it end up in the capital?

"Zhixia, assess whether you can defeat these two?"

"Miss, who do you look down on?" Zhixia glanced at them, her tone indifferent. "These two pieces of trash can be dealt with in just a few moves."

"Go, rescue that woman."

She added, "You have a cloth covering your face."

"Yes, ma'am."

Xie Yige did not disembark from the carriage. She knew that the capital was not a place where she could act recklessly, and she would avoid showing her face if possible.

Although Zhixia couldn't defeat Baoyu, she was more than capable of dealing with these two thugs. With a swift movement, she appeared before them, executing a swift, sweeping kick and a controlled recovery in one fluid motion. Before the two bullies could react, they were sent flying several feet away, crashing to the ground and groaning in pain. Zhixia then stepped forward, ransacked their bodies of all their silver, and tossed the money in front of the woman.

"Compensation." She only said two words.

The woman stared at the scene before her for a long while before kneeling down in front of Zhixia, tears streaming down her face.

"My lady, you can't stay here any longer," Xie Yige's voice came from inside the carriage curtain. "Get in the carriage with me, I'll give you a ride."

"Okay, thank you, my benefactor."

Zhixia picked up the purses that had been kicked and scattered all over the stall, and helped the woman into the carriage. The carriage quickly disappeared at the end of the road.

"How should I address this lady?" Xie Yige asked.

"My benefactor, my name is Wang Zhiyun." She looked at the extremely beautiful young woman in front of her with some unease and replied respectfully. Her face was still injured, there was a bruise at the corner of her eye, and there was blood at the corner of her mouth, but her eyes were very clear, without resentment, only gratitude.

"Shouldn't you be in Donglin City? Why are you here?"

The woman was taken aback: "How did my benefactor know I came from Donglin City?"