The room froze in tension; none of them had the nerve not to answer the door. Soon, the door was pushed open. Xie Heng stepped inside, still dressed in his crimson official robe. The wide belt accentuated his broad shoulders and narrow waist, making for an excellent sight.
Unfortunately, no one dared to admire him. Following Wu Zhixuan’s lead, everyone quickly bowed. “Greetings, Marquis.” Their voices were faint, and not one of them dared to lift their heads.
This made Mu Wan question whether the rumors of Wu Zhixuan’s infatuation with Xie Heng had been exaggerated.
Once the three men entered, the private room instantly felt cramped. This wasn’t just due to their height and long legs taking up space, but mostly because of the intimidating presence Xie Heng exuded, a quiet pressure that was hard to ignore.
Mu Wan pondered whether Xie Heng was there for her. She had deliberately entered through the east gate with Mushuang and made such great fanfare not only to confuse Wu Zhixuan and her group but also to test Xie Heng and gauge his bottom line. Seeing how he hadn’t shown up all afternoon, she had optimistically concluded that as long as she didn’t break any laws, she was free to do as she pleased.
‘But why is he here now?’ As Mu Wan was thinking this, she felt a sharp, almost tangible gaze fall on her. ‘No way, has he recognized me?’
Before she could dwell on it further, Xie Tian spoke up. “We’ve received a report that an important fugitive has infiltrated Qingfeng Pavilion. We’re conducting routine inquiries. This young lady and these two gentlemen seem unfamiliar. Who might you be?”
‘Ah, so he was here on official business.’ Mu Wan nodded silently. That made sense—when he had come to her house on the day of the proposal, it had also been for an official business.
However, Xie Tian’s words caused the room to grow even quieter. Everyone except Mu Wan instinctively moved farther away from her, sneaking occasional glances at Xie Heng.
Xie Tian, puzzled by the group’s strange behavior, began to scrutinize the woman and two men in front of him. Had they stumbled upon the fugitive by sheer coincidence?
Mu Wan nearly laughed out loud.
Xie Heng, lightly rubbing the prayer beads on his wrist, finally broke his silence. “Is it funny?”
Mu Wan immediately straightened her expression. “No, of course not.”
The moment she spoke, Xiao Liu seemed to finally recognize her. Hesitantly, he called out, “Eldest Miss Mu?” He then glanced at the shorter ‘man’ and finally understood why he had found ‘him’ somewhat familiar—wasn’t that Yunling?
Mu Wan offered a graceful bow. “Greetings, Lord Marquis and Sirs.”
‘This is really Mu Wan?! Isn’t she supposed to be plain-looking?’ Xie Tian’s eyes widened. ‘Wait, this isn’t the time to focus on that.’ His gaze quickly swept over the two ‘men’ standing beside her, then shifted toward Xie Heng.
Wu Zhixuan and the others instinctively took another step back.
Mu Wan, suppressing her amusement, called out, “Mushuang, Yunling.”
The two stepped forward and greeted Xie Heng and his two subordinates with a flawless curtsy belonging to a female. “Greetings, my lord.”
Their voices, unmistakably feminine, left the room in stunned silence. Wu Zhixuan and her group froze. Both of them were women?! No wonder Mu Wan had been so calm—her supposed ‘lovers’ were merely servant girls in disguise. At this point, they had long since forgotten about Mu Wan’s deception. Everyone collectively breathed a sigh of relief. At least they didn’t have to worry about Marquis Zhenbei’s retaliation!
Completely oblivious to how close she had come to breaking everyone’s sanity, Mu Wan turned to Xie Heng and explained calmly, “Hearing that the glass cup prize at Qingfeng Pavilion this time is exceptionally beautiful, I couldn’t resist coming to take a look. However, if I went to the west area, people might mistake me for being single, which could lead to inappropriate situations. After some thought, I decided to have Mushuang disguise herself as a man. I hope you’ll forgive me, my lord.”
Zhu Nanxi once again marveled at Mu Wan’s ability to twist logic. Clearly, she had been the one scheming against not only Wu Zhixuan and the others, but also Xie Heng. But according to her words, it was all Xie Heng’s fault for not accompanying her!
Even Xiao Liu and Xie Tian found her explanation quite reasonable and gave their lord a subtle glance.
Mu Wan magnanimously added, “Since you are here on official business, my lord, please don’t let me delay you. I’ll join the competition later with Mushuang.”
Xie Heng paused.
The rest of the room was equally stunned. ‘She’s planning to compete?!’
Whether she won or not, her striking appearance would undoubtedly leave an impression. While they now knew Mushuang was her servant girl, the rest of the audience wouldn’t. Later, if people spoke of Marchioness Zhenbei, the narrative might go something like this: “Her dowry? Oh, it was won by another man while the Marquis was too busy to show up.”
How utterly scandalous!
Outside the private room, the gong sounded again. “The Lotus Glass Cup competition will officially begin in a quarter of an hour! All participants, please prepare according to the registration order!”
Mu Wan smiled and nodded politely at Xie Heng, silently indicating that he could go about his business now.
Xiao Liu cleared his throat and suggested, “My lord, perhaps we shouldn’t be giving this fugitive too much credit by having you personally go after him. How about I go with Xie Tian instead, and you stay here to accompany Miss Mu?”
Mu Wan quickly waved her hands in a gesture of politeness. “Oh, no, there’s no need for that. Really, I have Mushuang with me, and that’s more than enough.”
‘More than enough?! That’s the whole problem!’
Xiao Liu met Mu Wan’s sincere gaze, unable to discern whether she was genuinely clueless or just playing dumb—this girl had a history of pretending to be pitiful to win sympathy. Either way, though, it was clear that their marquis had no choice but to stay and accompany her.
Xie Heng glanced at Mu Wan briefly before turning to leave the room.
The collective sigh of relief from everyone was almost audible. Even Mu Rou relaxed, her lips curling into a smirk. ‘Eldest Sister, you actually thought you could push the Marquis into competing for you, hmm? What a beautiful delusion! Soon, you won’t even have the chance to step onto the stage—the Marquis will certainly escort you away from the Qingfeng Pavilion!’
As Mu Rou predicted, Xie Heng paused at the doorway and turned his head to address Mu Wan. “Not going yet?”
Mu Wan immediately tensed up. “Going where? I’m fine staying here, having fun with Xuanniang and the others.”
Wu Zhixuan, meeting Xie Heng’s cold, emotionless gaze, frantically shook her head. “No, no, no! I’m going to compete with Qilang. A’Wan, you should go with the Marquis.”
Xie Heng shifted his attention back to Mu Wan. “Do you prefer to be escorted home now?”
Hearing his subtle meaning, Mu Wan froze. He was actually planning to stay and compete with her? Surprised, she quickly abandoned any mischievous ideas and nodded obediently. “I’m coming.”
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