Ye Jingkun narrowed his brows, smiled playfully, and flicked his sleeve: "Or perhaps, third brother would like to have a cup of tea before departing."
Ye Jingyu drew his sword: "Then we have nothing more to discuss."
"This King also thinks so," Ye Jingkun said, stepping down the stairs.
A Jiu respectfully offered the sword with clasped hands.
Ye Jingkun took the sword.
The surrounding servants all retreated.
A cold wind swept past the two men, and the temperature in the courtyard seemed to drop a few more degrees.
They both lunged at each other simultaneously, their sword blades clashing with a 'crackling' sound.
A glint flashed in Ye Jingkun's eyes, and the veins on the back of his hand bulged: "Third brother's strength has indeed improved rapidly. To achieve such speed through poison, I'm tempted to try that medicine myself."
A murderous aura suddenly flashed in Ye Jingyu's eyes: "Then second brother would need to resurrect the Empress first, and then cling to her for a few more years of life."
The two men's gazes met, sparks flying.
No one noticed a figure, hidden in the shadows, sneak into the room.
"That's best forgotten. Such a life is more suited for third brother," Ye Jingkun sneered, his eyes flashing crimson and savage: "I prefer to slaughter others, not be slaughtered."
Ye Jingyu suddenly exerted force with his hand.
Both men were forced back a few steps by the surge of power.
They instinctively gripped their swords with both hands, their arms trembling slightly.
Ye Jingyu's gaze was dark and cold: "Over the years, I haven't seen second brother possess such capability. Compared to slaughtering, second brother is more like a rat from a gutter."
Holding their swords, they circled the courtyard for half a round, then stared at each other.
Ye Jingkun let out a scoff, unfazed by Ye Jingyu's contemptuous words, and admitted: "Though I was a rat, I have now seen the light. Since I've seen the light, how can I hand it over so readily?"
Whether in the palace or at the academy, no one had ever understood him, not even his mother.
Momo was the first person who could truly see him.
Ye Jingyu's gaze deepened, and he attacked swiftly.
Their swords clashed again, grinding out sparks.
This time, neither of them retreated.
'Crack, crack.'
Cracks appeared on the sword blades.
Then, they suddenly snapped.
The broken blades fell, simultaneously slashing both men's hands.
They gazed at each other, a sense of wariness rising in both of them.
The wind in the courtyard seemed to have stilled.
After a long moment, Ye Jingkun spoke first: "You should know, she is not ordinary. She deserves the best. There is only one such person in this world. And she is unique."
Ye Jingyu flicked the blood from his hand: "Whoever wins the world first will have the right to marry her. That's what second brother means, isn't it."
Ye Jingkun slowly licked the blood from his hand, a devilish smile playing on his lips: "Precisely."
Ye Jingyu sneered: "If second brother truly thought so, why would he arrange a marriage contract?"
"Heh~ Because of you, Your Highness Prince Yu," Ye Jingkun said with a mocking smile.
Momo's relationship with him was now closer than with himself. With this engagement, he still had a chance to get closer to her.
Without this engagement, if this veil of secrecy wasn't pierced, given the young girl's nature, he wouldn't be able to get her attention even in ten lifetimes.
"Don't worry, as long as you don't tell her about our conversation today, this engagement will ultimately be void. But if Prince Yu tries any tricks, don't blame me for pulling the rug out from under you."
Ye Jingyu didn't need him to say it; he had no intention of telling the little one anyway: "It's a deal."
The two men clapped palms.
The flowing blood mixed together.
A sudden noise came from inside the room.
Ye Jingkun's sharp ears caught it, and he frowned, giving a signal to a servant.
A Jiu quickly went to check inside. Upon entering, he exclaimed in shock: "The person is gone!"
Ye Jingkun's heart sank. He turned to Ye Jingyu: "When did you do it?"
Ye Jingyu's expression was even more grim than his. He strode into the room and kicked the door open.
The bed was empty.
Seeing Ye Jingyu's reaction, Ye Jingkun's heart leaped.
It wasn't this man who did it? Damn it, then who was it!
Both men were now in a panic and immediately dispatched their subordinates to search.
Meanwhile, in a carriage, Ye Ningyuan dangled medicine near Su Yunmo's nose.
The gas entered the little one's nostrils, and she furrowed her brows, her eyelashes fluttering.
Seeing this, Ye Ningyuan let out a long sigh, stood up, and patted her back: "My dear ancestor, you're going to wear me out."
Late at night, she had intended to go to the General's mansion to claim a bed for the night. But upon hearing from Linlang and the others that this little one was missing, she thought something had happened to her. A quick inquiry at the palace revealed that she had been abducted to Prince Kun's mansion.
"Others are fine, but can you stop getting involved with Ye Jingkun? That guy is difficult to deal with," Ye Ningyuan sighed.
"If you know he's difficult to deal with, why are you cooperating with him?" Su Yunmo's voice came from the soft seat.
Ye Ningyuan jumped in fright, then quickly went to help her: "You're awake? Are you alright? Do you feel unwell anywhere?"
Su Yunmo struggled to sit up, rubbing her temples with a frown: "What? Are you afraid I was assaulted by him?"
"That's not necessarily true," Ye Ningyuan plopped down beside her, crossing her arms and pouting: "That guy has ill intentions towards you."
Su Yunmo felt her headache lessen slightly, cursing her momentary carelessness. She glanced at the person beside her: "Why don't you share some of this burden with me?"
After all, Ye Jingkun just wanted someone who understood him to play with.
She felt that Ye Ningyuan understood him better than she did. Otherwise, why would she have been able to talk to him then and get him to do so many things?
"No, no, no, I can't handle that. You enjoy this fortune yourself."
Su Yunmo frowned and lifted the carriage curtain to look outside: "Where are we going?"
"It's so late, where else can we go but home to sleep?" Ye Ningyuan yawned, looking exhausted.
The road outside the carriage curtain looked increasingly unfamiliar.
Su Yunmo's eyelids twitched: "Are we going to your place or mine?"
"Of course, to your place. My grandfather is very talkative, and it's more reassuring to stay at your place since you don't have a father," Ye Ningyuan said. Seeing her constantly staring outside, she also looked out.
Upon seeing the unfamiliar road outside, Ye Ningyuan's mouth twitched: "This is bad."
'Bang!' A sound came from outside.
The two exchanged a look and simultaneously jumped out of the carriage: "Go!"
'Bang!'
Before the carriage exploded, they embraced and rolled onto the ground.
The coachman had disappeared from the street at some point.
Su Yunmo was the first to stand up, gathering her power in her hands, squinting as she scanned the surroundings, and gritting her teeth in annoyance: "Where did you find this coachman?"
Ye Ningyuan wasn't as agile as Su Yunmo and had fallen more severely. She was now struggling to get up from the ground: "I was in a hurry and just found someone on the road."
Su Yunmo wanted to kick her: "Doesn't the General's mansion provide you with a carriage?"
Ye Ningyuan finally got up, brushed the dirt off her clothes, and glared at her aggrievedly: "They don't! I'm not their master!"
Su Yunmo: "..."
That made sense.