Chapter 28 Two Unique Pearls

A carriage parked on the road. The scorching heat made the horses in front of the carriage kept snorting, which looked very interesting. Yun Zhi pulled Yun Xi by her sleeve. He didn't hold her hands when helping her get in the carriage. He had been a gentleman who would never take any advantage of her. The moment Yun Xi lifted the carriage curtain, she saw a man in white staring at her in the carriage. She was stunned. His features were delicate and handsome, not feminine at all. His mature and sharp eyes were smiling, and he looked so charming in white. He seemed to be a different person when his hair was neatly tied in a man’s style. The man looked at the girl who was dumbfounded. She was now only wearing the hairpin he had sent her. The man in white grabbed her hand and then held her in his arms. "What's the matter, silly? You can't recognize me?" "Yue." Seeing Kong Yue wearing men's clothing, Yun Xi’s face turned redder. She felt embarrassed and thus pushed him away. But Yun Xi sat on his side, and she was still close to him. Yun Zhi followed up. He glared at Kong Yue angrily and then sat on the other side of the girl. He had wanted to hang out alone with Yun Xi today. However, Kong Yue seemed to have read his mind. Early in the morning, Yue had been staying in Yun Zhi’s carriage and refused to get down. Yun Zhi had been trying to chase off Yue the whole morning. Eventually, he failed and could only let Kong Yue stay in the carriage. Now even Yun Zhi was here, Kong Yue was still acting so boldly. In such a big carriage, three people sat in one row of chairs while the other row was empty. The horses pulling the carriage outside might feel unsteady. Today, Yun Zhi was wearing a customized gold-rimmed black robe. His handsome and righteous temperament made it harder for people to take their eyes off his charming face with elegant and calm eyes. He wanted Yun Xi to see the best version of him and stare at him as long as she could. However, Yue in white was also extremely handsome. They were both pleasing to the eye and with their respective charm. Well, it was so sarcastic that he was the heroic Senior General, but now he wanted to attract a girl with his handsome face. The carriage was out of the palace gate slowly and then stopped at a crowded place. The horses were exhausted. Fortunately, the carriage was not overturned. Yun Zhi first got off the carriage. He reached out to help Yun Xi get down. However, Kong Yue was faster than him. He held the girl's hand and led her to get off on the other side of the carriage. Seeing Kong Yue wearing men's clothing for the first time, Yun Xi felt very shy. She didn't let him hold her small hands all the time. However, Kong Yue would still separate Yun Zhi and her intentionally. The street was full of young men and women. These three charming people had attracted so much attention. Hawkers cried their wares on the street, making the street very lively. Along the way, many women winked at Yun Zhi and Kong Yue. However, these two men stepped on the handkerchiefs deliberately thrown out by these women. They dodged women who “accidentally” ran into them. Besides, they swiftly stayed out of the way when some women fell on them “by accident”, ignoring their shocked looks. They were so indifferent because Yun Xi in front of them did not pay any attention to them. She sometimes stopped and then carried on her window shopping. The goods had attracted her so much. At the same time, Yun Xi’s beautiful and flawless face was also the focus of men along the way. It was rare that Kong Yue no longer competed with Yun Zhi. He cooperated with him to stop other men. They surrounded the girl and separated her from other men who wanted to hit on her. Yun Xi felt so happy. She was as pure and lively as a child. Along the way, she was not interested in gold and silver jewelry, rouge, and cosmetics which all ladies liked. She was attracted by all kinds of gadgets. Two handsome men bought whatever things she stared at immediately. They fought to pay for her. Fortunately, Yun Zhi had arranged his confidential guards to follow them. Otherwise, these two handsome men wouldn’t have enough hands to take the goods. The confidential guards were capable killers. However, now they were just pitiful porters who constantly traveled back and forth from Xiyan Palace to the street. On the road, someone was selling sugarcoated haws on sticks. Yun Zhi immediately bought one for Yun Xi. Yun Xi ate up the sugarcoat outside but she did not want to eat the haws inside. She wanted to throw them away somewhere. Kong Yue had known what the girl was trying to do, then he took the stick from her hand, chewing the haws in his mouth slowly and naturally. He didn't forget to talk nonsense, "Yinzhu, I do not like to eat the sugarcoat outside while the haws inside are my favorite." After he finished his sentence, he intentionally glanced at the man who bought it. Yun Zhi was so angry that he wanted to punch Yue. They ate and bought all kinds of goods along the street. Yun Zhi knew the girl's taste after he saw her eating all kinds of snacks. She liked to eat sweet snacks, instead of sour ones. Yun Xi liked snacks but not cakes. She liked to save her favorite food till the last moment. Kong Yue said his favorite snacks were things the girl didn't enjoy and then he ate them all. Things the girl ate at last had always been her favorite food. Yun Zhi felt his heart was softened when staring at the girl's expression and action even though Kong Yue was nearby. Three people continued to wander around. Yun Xi stopped again before a small stall. The hawker was an old man of wretched appearance. When he saw them, he immediately greeted them warmly. He sold various forgeries which were not delicate. However, the hawker said his goods were some rare treasures. The girl had rarely hung out on the street. The last time she went shopping was before she was nine years old. She believed in the hawker's words. The two men could tell good products from the bad ones. However, after seeing Yun Xi was so happy, they decided not to ruin her mood. Yun Xi picked up two identical pearls the hawker desperately recommended. She gazed at them and felt very satisfied. She asked the hawker again, "You mean there are only two identical pearls like this in the world?" "Yes, you are definitely a girl with good taste. These two pearls are peerless treasures! Girl, you can believe in me. There will never be another one." His words were mostly not true. However, the last sentence was real. The hawker didn't lie about the fact that there wouldn't be another pearl. These two pearls were the worst forgeries. Of course, no one would make the third one—he had to try so hard to fool others to sell these two pearls. "Ok, I'll take it. How much are they?" The hawker soon realized she was a rich lady who did not know much about the market. He was about to demand an exorbitant price. However, Kong Yue beside the girl glared at him. Originally, the hawker wanted to say “500 taels”. However, he was scared and said “50 taels”. He only uttered the syllable "fi..." when he saw Yun Zhi on the other side of the girl glaring at him. He was scared again and said, "5 taels". The hawker felt so helpless. Gosh... These two men's eyes looked so scary. However, he did not care about it because he would still earn a lot of money by selling them at "five taels". For Yun Zhi and Kong Yue, "five taels" were small money. As long as the girl felt happy, they would be willing to buy forgeries. However, this time Yun Xi insisted on paying for them herself. She had no idea about money and took out a jade earring. Yun Xi asked the hawker, "I don't have any taels. Is this earring enough to pay for them?" The earring was worth more than five taels, and it would be enough to pay for all the goods in the stall. The hawker took the earring immediately and hid it in his clothes. He was afraid that the two men would take it away from him. At the same time, he did not forget to thank the girl desperately. His attitude was so good—he looked so happy that he seemed to be willing to call Yun Xi mother. Yun Xi picked up the pearls with a happy smile. These two pearls were not very big. and she could hold them in her palms. Yun Xi gave one to Kong Yue while handed Yun Zhi the other one. Her smile was so sincere. It was the first and only time she gave them something. These two pearls became their special tokens. Two silly men held the pearls in their hands. It was obvious that they were just some inferior pearls, but they treated them as the world's most precious treasures. They kept touching and staring at them. Eventually, they hid them in their clothes carefully, as if the pearls were made of tofu and would be broken accidentally. The two men were smiling happily and felt very content. The hawker witnessed it and he was so shocked. Were they stupid? Or maybe he had made a mistake—those two pearls were not forgeries but wonderful treasures? They hanged out a whole afternoon and did not return to the palace. Yun Xi was a little tired, so Kong Yue found the nearest restaurant to rest. The three people also had dinner in this place. Knowing Yun Xi’s taste, this time Yun Zhi could order something the girl liked. Staring at the girl’s gentle smile, these two men also felt so happy. They had just stopped competing with each other secretly a few seconds ago. When they were looking at Yun Xi, they could not help fighting for serving food for her. They put fish, meat, green vegetables, cabbages, radishes, tofu, and some food in the girl’s bowl. Food had piled up like a tall pyramid, and the rice at the bottom was buried. However, the pyramid didn't collapse—it was really an amazing technical job! Yun Xi now didn't know how to eat. She felt the food would collapse the moment she touched it. She took a new empty bowl and ignored the food these two men had served her. She also asked them not to pick up food for her. Otherwise, she would get indigestion tonight. Their table was in a good position next to a window facing the street. In Yun Xi’s seat, she could see the activity of guessing lantern riddles on the street. After the girl finished eating, drinking, and had enough rest, she was attracted by the activity. The two men had been paying attention to the girl. They pulled the girl’s hands from different sides at the same time. Kong Yue held the girl's small hand while Yun Zhi was pulling her sleeve. They kept pulling the girl. Yun Xi broke free of two people's hands at the same time. She left them and went to appreciate lanterns on the opposite side of the restaurant. They could only follow her hastily. The girl in white enjoyed watching all kinds of colorful lanterns happily. She was as lovely as a child. It was the first time she had seen the lanterns. Now she looked so pure and flawless. This was also the purest and most beautiful moment the girl left for the two men. Many years later, Yun Zhi still remembered the girl at this moment. However, that moment had long gone.