Chapter 79: Wolf

Her teeth gleamed like melon seeds, her arched brows furrowed like emerald wings. Her rosy cheeks bloomed like lotus petals, her fair skin smooth as congealed cream.

Graceful and unrestrained, light as a feather yet poised with dignity. Once proud of her peerless beauty, now confident in her city-toppling allure.

Prince Ning gazed at the suddenly appearing peerless beauty before him, his eyes filled with astonishment.

In that moment, he felt as though something had struck his heart. Unconsciously, he offered Yun Qingxue a warm and radiant smile, nodding slightly in greeting, his every movement exuding the demeanor of a noble gentleman.

Yun Qingxue smiled faintly and slowly parted her vermilion lips: “What, has it been so short a time that Prince Ning no longer recognizes me?”

Her voice was crisp, like pearls falling onto a jade plate, carrying a hint of playful wit.

Prince Ning, however, wore an expression of disbelief. He asked, “You know me, my lady? May I ask what your relationship is with the Flower Goddess? Forgive my poor memory, but I truly don’t recall ever meeting you before.”

“Heh.” Yun Qingxue chuckled lightly, her brows arching slightly. “What, now that I’ve changed my appearance, Prince Ning no longer recognizes me? Or is it that you can’t believe the ugly Flower Queen could become beautiful?”

“This…” The shock on Prince Ning’s face seemed entirely genuine. He stared at Yun Qingxue wide-eyed, stammering, “You… you… are the Flower Goddess?”

“Yes, this is my original appearance,” Yun Qingxue admitted openly. “It seems my sudden restoration of my looks has startled Prince Ning.”

“No, no,” Prince Ning hastily waved his hands, his refined face tinged with a faint blush. Though his voice no longer faltered, it lacked its usual calm elegance, carrying instead a hint of nervousness.

“It’s just unexpected. I never imagined the Flower Goddess’s true beauty would be so breathtaking, truly worthy of the title Queen of Peonies.”

Chen Qing, standing beside Prince Ning, had been observing Yun Qingxue with an inscrutable gaze from the moment she revealed her true appearance. While Prince Ning looked at her with awe, Chen Qing remained utterly unmoved.

As Yun Qingxue engaged with Prince Ning, she subtly stole a few glances at Chen Qing.

At this moment, Chen Qing’s face lacked its usual amiable smile. His expression was calm, but beneath that calm facade, Yun Qingxue faintly detected a deeply concealed murderous intent. Perhaps it was due to the innate advantages of her body’s bloodline that allowed her to sense the hidden malice.

She curved her lips into a smile and gracefully addressed Prince Ning in a soft voice, “The weather is lovely now. May I trouble Prince Ning to guide me?”

“The Flower Goddess is too kind. You are an honored guest of our human race. It is my privilege to serve as your guide,” Prince Ning replied, the blush on his face not yet faded, though his voice had steadied somewhat.

Yun Qingxue nodded slightly, and Prince Ning led the way, with her and Xiao Xiao following closely behind. Behind them, Chen Qing’s complex gaze continued to linger on her intermittently.

Outside the post station, a carriage had already been prepared. Yun Qingxue and Xiao Xiao boarded, while Chen Qing and Prince Ning rode on horseback, accompanied by several guards and maids.

Once inside the carriage, Xiao Xiao grinned knowingly at Yun Qingxue, her round, adorable face brimming with mischief. She whispered, “Qingxue, I’ve figured it out—you’re planning to use your beauty on Prince Ning, aren’t you?”

Yun Qingxue smiled faintly without answering, her eyes glinting with amusement. Xiao Xiao then added, “You little enchantress!”

Yun Qingxue shot her a glare and whispered back, “Are you and that Chen Qing in cahoots?”

“Who’d team up with that old man?” Xiao Xiao rolled her eyes in displeasure. Though she was a bit scatterbrained, she was still someone who made a living in the underworld. Being absent-minded didn’t mean she was slow on the uptake!

That old man Chen Qing might always wear a kindly, smiling face, but after a few encounters, Xiao Xiao had summed up his smile in four words: “a dagger hidden in a smile!”

And when he wasn’t smiling—like just now, when he looked at Yun Qingxue—his expression might have been calm, but Xiao Xiao, who frequently traversed the realms of the living and the dead, had keenly detected a sinister aura emanating from him.

As a ghost official of the underworld, Xiao Xiao was essentially a ghost immortal herself, making her naturally more sensitive to such dark energies.

“Seriously, Qingxue, you need to be careful with that Chen Qing. The way he was looking at you just now was downright eerie!” Xiao Xiao leaned in close to Yun Qingxue’s ear and whispered a warning.

Yun Qingxue nodded.

Xiao Xiao glared. “I’m being dead serious!”

Yun Qingxue nodded again, meeting Xiao Xiao’s gaze. “I know. I saw it too.”

As their host, Prince Ning had chosen a boat tour as their activity. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to show Yun Qingxue other sights, but the town they were currently in simply didn’t have much else worth seeing.

The only thing remotely impressive was the scenery of the lake and mountains.

And because Yun Qingxue had restored her original appearance, Prince Ning’s mindset had undergone a significant shift.

Previously, he had chosen to take her boating merely to fulfill her request for entertainment, treating it as a task to be completed with the highest standards…

But now, with Yun Qingxue’s breathtaking beauty revealed, having such a beauty by his side—regardless of who was accompanying whom—naturally altered his mood entirely…

If the companion had been an unattractive woman, even the finest scenery would have lost its charm. But with a peerless beauty beside him, even something as mundane as staring at a well in the courtyard could be considered romantic and refined!

In contrast to Prince Ning’s shifting mindset, Yun Qingxue’s remained unchanged.

Sightseeing and leisurely activities were pursuits for those living in comfort. For someone like her—a vulnerable woman constantly under threat, with many coveting her life—no scenery, no matter how beautiful, could lift her spirits.

This so-called outing was merely a tactic to delay Chen Qing’s plans to escort her back to the capital!

The carriage door was opened by Xiao Xiao, and a gentle breeze carrying the faint scent of flowers brushed past them.

Yun Qingxue was in no hurry to disembark. Gazing at the lake in the distance, where lotus flowers bloomed in abundance, she took a deep breath and smiled faintly. “Endless green lotus leaves stretch to the sky, under the sun, the lotus blooms a unique red. The scenery here is truly exquisite.”

“I’m glad the Flower Goddess approves,” Prince Ning replied warmly.

“Of course I do. Thank you for your thoughtfulness, Prince Ning,” Yun Qingxue said politely, extending her hand to Xiao Xiao, who had already stepped out of the carriage.

Xiao Xiao helped Yun Qingxue alight. Not far away, a beautifully adorned pleasure boat was moored at the dock. Its carved beams and painted rafters were exquisite, and ethereal music drifted from the boat, as enchanting as celestial melodies.

Prince Ning led the way, guiding Yun Qingxue as they strolled leisurely toward the moored boat.

Chen Qing walked at the rear. Since leaving the post station, he had not uttered a word. Watching Prince Ning grow increasingly attentive toward Yun Qingxue, he could only frown repeatedly.

“Awooo—” Under the bright sky, a wolf’s howl echoed across the picturesque lakeside. Prince Ning and Yun Qingxue had just approached the boat and had yet to board.

The sudden howl made Prince Ning’s face pale instantly. Even Chen Qing’s expression shifted slightly.

“Protect the Flower Goddess!” Prince Ning barked, his face darkening. A surge of anger rose within him—how could the guards stationed by the lake allow a beast to disturb them?

Unlike Prince Ning, Chen Qing sensed something amiss.

Though this was a lakeside area, it was still within human territory, guarded by Prince Ning’s soldiers. Unless someone had deliberately orchestrated it, a dangerous creature like a wolf should never have appeared here.

“Protect Prince Ning!” Chen Qing also shouted to the guards.

“Awooo—” The wolf howled again, its sharp, penetrating eyes fixed in Yun Qingxue’s direction.