Chapter 30 — The Exchanged Prince (2/2)

Out of nowhere, Long Qingxie’s strikingly attractive and bewitching face surfaced in her mind. Her eyes snapped open in shock.

Damn, why must he keep appearing in her thoughts?

All of a sudden, a drifting breeze carried the sound of soft footsteps to her ears. Her austere eyes flashed. Without delay, she flipped one of her hands over and steeply shot out two silver needles.

“Ah!” A yelp, and then a round, black ball-like thing could be seen tumbling down the small hillside. How embarrassing. The instant the “black ball” clambered up from the ground, Yun Wu realized it was actually a person dressed in black clothing.

The ice-cold edge of her dagger had already left a thin, red line on his throat.

“Who are you—” Abruptly, she paused. Why? Because the sight that greeted her was one liable of frightening an average person enough to make them scream. Having been thoroughly disfigured by flames, it was an absolutely hideous and terrifying face.

Seemingly to have just registered what had happened, he stammered, “Don’t, don’t look at me, don’t look at me…” as bewilderment and confusion clouded his eyes. Disregarding the burning pain at his neck, he suddenly covered his face and ducked his head. He dropped down to his hands and knees and grabbed his black face veil from the ground, where it had fallen.

With hasty hands, he adjusted it back around his head, covering up his countenance.

He was the one who had arrived with the crown prince and accompanied him in the main hall earlier, Prince Long. Yun Wu regained her composure at the same time he did. However, what had frightened her wasn’t his face, but his eyes; those bright, obsidian orbs shone in a way that inexplicably reminded her of that man.

Back then in the main hall, she had felt a familiar aura from him, but she hadn’t dwelled on it. Now that she was, she wondered, could he be…?

Narrowing her keen eyes, she unhesitantly struck out with lightning speed to take off his veil, then she pinched his hideous face between her fingers and pulled, trying to tear off that fake face mask, but…

“Ow, hurt, it hurts…” He cried out shakily in that peculiarly hoarse voice of his. Meanwhile, the elasticity of his cheeks told Yun Wu that his skin was definitely real. Moreover, his hair was black. Add on the way he looked at her, with self-inferiority flickering in his eyes, glistening teardrops gathering at his outer corners, and extreme grievance, Yun Wu wanted to —for the first time— burrow into a hole.

The situation… she felt like a lewd playboy who had ruthlessly deflowered and devastated this delicate flower.

So awkward.

Yun Wu cleared her throat and apologized, “Sorry, wrong person, excuse me.”

With a whisk, the veil in her hand was back over his face again. She sat up while simultaneously collecting her needles from both of his legs and tucked the needles into her robes.

As if nothing had happened at all, she laid back down and closed her eyes so she could enjoy the sunlight anew.

“Um, um…” A coarse voice stammered, but Yun Wu didn’t open her eyes. Even so, she knew that he had furtively took a seat beside her. Hearing no response from her prompted him to sneakily shift his butt closer, slowly drawing near.

“Um… Can I…”

“If you dare come any closer, I’ll cut you in half,” She threatened coldly as she opened her eyes to stare at the black-clothed man, who had already nestled his body next to hers.

Fright!

Evidently, she’d frightened him so much that he carelessly rolled down the narrow hilltop again.

Truth be told, Yun Wu’s disposition had always been chilly. Towards many things, she was calm and indifferent, but today, her mood was likely a bit uncontrollable due to the embarrassment from before.

“Umm…” Again, that “black ball” clambered up and started weakly. Finally, she couldn’t stand it anymore. Her eyes flew open, and she glared at him coldly, barking, “Um, um, um, um what?”

If it weren’t for her leaning forward and stealthily probing his meridians earlier when she was picking out her needles from his legs, confirming that his ruined meridians were without foundation, she wouldn’t have allowed him to inch closer, and closer again.

The man trembled for a moment, “I, I’m sorry.” Yun Wu really couldn’t understand him. How could a big ol’ man like him get scared just from that? Unsure herself whether it was due to annoyance or soft-heartedness, she said, “Alright, alright, stop trembling. Whatever you want to say, just say it.”

“I, I’m sorry, my face, scared you,” was the reply, making her knit her brows together.

Scared her? Did it? If all it took to scare her was a face, what was she still doing in this world? Plus, her own experiences were beyond anything anyone could ever imagine.

“It didn’t. To me, appearance, whether it be beautiful or ugly, is but a sheet of human skin.”

She shot him a glance and didn’t bother gauging his expression. After saying her part, she stuck another blade of grass between her lips and continued to absorb the warm sunlight.

Unbeknownst to her, the second she closed her eyes…

Beneath his black face veil, the man who had been fearfully trembling just moments ago silently curved the corners of his lips into a bewitching smile, and his black eyes twinkled brilliantly.