He was holding a dark whip in his hands woven from eight strands of fine cowhide. It shimmered faintly under the sunlight.
When Gu Zezhi passed it over, Qin Gui accepted it smoothly.
Seeing this, a layer of sweat seeped out of Qin Zeyu’s forehead and he conceded. “Big Sister! I was wrong, really wrong!”
Qin Zeyu had no idea who Gu Zezhi was at all and thought in his heart, who on earth is this guy? Why does he seem so familiar with his sister?
Qin Gui grabbed the whip and waved happily to Gu Zezhi. “Goodbye, Big Brother!”
Gu Zezhi raised a brow and thought to himself, this girl really does turn faster than the pages of a book.*
On the contrary, however, the smile in Gu Zezhi’s eyes grew even stronger. He didn’t feel annoyed, nor did he ask for his whip back. Instead, he just left leisurely on his horse.
His tall and straight back looked as elegant as a cluster of green bamboo.
Qin Zeyu followed the carriage, looking curiously at Gu Zezhi’s back. A thought suddenly appeared in his mind. This can’t be the guy with his eyes glued shut, right?
“Whose eyes are glued shut?”
Qin Gui asked curiously. Only then did Qin Zeyu realize he had blurted out what he was thinking.
Qin Zeyu said casually and perfunctorily, “Nothing.”
After that, he spurred his horse and moved a little closer to her, asking in a whisper, “Third Sister, who was that?” He pointed his chin towards Gu Zezhi.
Qin Gui ignored him, but Du Ruo was kind enough to tell Qin Zeyu. “That’s the Third Prince from Duan Imperial Residence.”
Qin Zeyu almost slipped off from his horse.
Qin Zeyu suddenly felt very wronged. The teachers at the academy often said he lacked discipline and had no respect for the elders. But now, it seems he was the more “disciplined” one compared to his sister, okay?!
From time to time, Qin Zeyu would look strangely at Qin Gui, which annoyed Qin Gui eventually and she simply sent him away.
For a twelve-year-old kid, playing was a big thing in life, so he tossed Gu Zezhi to the back of his mind and happily went off to play with his buddies.
While watching his happy back, Qin Gui was just about to draw the curtains when she suddenly remembered something. “Oh!”
Du Ruo looked at her in confusion.
“I forgot to return the handkerchief. “Qin Gui took out a moon-white handkerchief from her sleeve and pursed her lips in annoyance.
She had already washed the handkerchief clean by herself, thinking that when she met Gu Zezhi again one day, she would return it to him.
Du Ruo had seen that handkerchief before as well. Since it was brought back during the day Qin Gui and Qin Zening went out shopping, she thought that Qin Gui had bought it from a store outside. But now, it seems like it wasn’t.
After a little thought, Du Ruo understood and asked in surprise, “Miss, this is Third Prince Gu’s?”
Qin Gui nodded honestly.
Du Ruo wanted to say something but she stopped herself. She thought, this girl was raised among the people, so maybe she doesn’t know?
But a girl can’t possibly not know of such customs, right?
She couldn’t just spit it out either.
After all, the black-hearted Li family couple did not treat her as a human being. They beat and scolded her. Certainly, nobody had properly taught her the rules, customs, and other common-sense knowledge.
After some thought, Du Ruo simply went out with it. “Miss, if a girl was to give her embroidered handkerchief to a boy, it represented love and admiration…”
Huh?! Qin Gui’s eyes widened slightly. She could just about guess what the end of Du Ruo’s sentence was.
Sure enough—
“The opposite is also true. If an unmarried girl accepts the handkerchief of a man, then it represented the approval of the other party’s feelings.” Du Ruo finished her words in one breath. When she saw Qin Gui shocked at her expression, she knew. This poor girl really didn’t know anything!
Qin Gui, “!!!”
Qin Gui’s mouth was slightly gaping, confused.
She…She…It wasn’t too late for her to return the handkerchief now, is it?!
Qin Gui looked out the carriage again, but more than two thousand people had set out on the hunting trip this time. She couldn’t find Gu Zezhi’s figure at all.
Even in the next few days, Gu Zezhi never popped up in front of her.
The divine convoy traveled for three days, and it wasn’t until the sun set on the third day did they arrive at Nanyuan Hunting Palace.
Nanyuan Hunting Palace was located at the foot of Daming Mountain. If you looked up, you could see the lush forestry of the mountain in the distance. The forbidden army guards riding at the front have already arrived and were trained to surround the hunting palace and the surroundings so that no one could enter.
Want to read ahead? Join Kittyjiu’s patreon for $3 to access 63 advanced chapters of various novels
