Chapter 19: The First Time

 

“Who’s sister-in-law?” Du Dunming rubbed his head, taking a moment to process.

 

“Liyan, take off your veil.”

 

Shen Yian smiled faintly and gently stroked the small hand with his big hand.

 

The room suddenly became quiet, and everyone looked at Ye Liyan and subconsciously held their breath.

 

Ye Liyan looked at the encouraging gaze of her highness, took a deep breath, raised her little hand and trembled slightly, then slowly took off her veil.

 

The white silk fell to her chest, revealing a breathtakingly beautiful face that stunned everyone. Her eyes, a distinctive blue, seemed to contain the stars and moon, and her beauty was truly unparalleled!

 

Gasps erupted from the crowd, as if they had never seen such a stunning beauty in their lives!

 

Some of the young ladies present couldn’t help but feel a little inferior.

 

It turned out that the rumors of the past few days were not unfounded, and the Duke of State’s Young Lady was indeed a heavenly beauty fallen to earth?

 

Ye Liyan sat upright, not avoiding the gazes that were either scrutinizing or admiring, but instead looked at each person seriously.

 

As the future queen, she couldn’t afford to show weakness, which would only invite ridicule and shame her lord…

 

The silly girl’s hand was already clenched white, but she didn’t show any fear, trying her best to overcome her inner panic.

 

She was very brave and sensible, which touched Shen Yian’s heart.

 

“Cough!”

 

Shen Yian’s cough broke the spell, and everyone returned to reality.

 

“Let me introduce you to my future queen, Ye Liyan, daughter of the Northern Garrison.”

 

“Nice to meet you all,” Ye Liyan said, bowing her head, her voice clear and cold, like a high mountain flower that was untouchable.

 

“Lord Lou’s son, Pang Mu, greets Lady Ye!”

 

“Nice to meet Lady Ye.”

 

“Hello, Sister Ye!”

 

As the greetings poured in, everyone quickly stood up to pay their respects.

 

“Are you…Sister Ye?”

 

Du Dunming’s hands grasped his head, his face filled with disbelief, making Du Chengzheng sigh and shake his head beside him.

 

Ye Liyan nodded, her tone slightly warmer than before: “Long time no see, Young Master Du.”

 

Since childhood, she hadn’t interacted with many people of the same age, and the memories of those she had met were very vivid. The Du brothers were naturally among them, and she was surprised by their changes, just like Shen Yian.

 

“Sister Ye, ah, no, sister-in-law, ah, Sister…”

 

Du Dunming stumbled over his words, unsure how to address her.

 

“Just call her sister-in-law,” This time it was Shen Yian who raised his hand and patted his back.

 

This sentence made Ye Liyan’s ears turn bright red, and she felt like punching Shen Yian with her small fist.

 

How could he let someone call her sister-in-law in front of so many people? She hadn’t even entered the palace yet, and it was so embarrassing…

 

“Ah? Ah! Greetings, Sister-in-law!”

 

Du Dunming laughed loudly and shouted.

 

“Greetings, Sister-in-law!” Du Chengzheng stood up and bowed.

 

“Young Master Du.”

 

“Sister-in-law is too polite, just call us Little Zheng and Little Ming.”

 

The gathering, which had become more subdued with the addition of Shen Yian and Ye Liyan, was now reduced to small groups chatting.

 

Some of the Young Masters, who had wanted to show off their talents, were now subdued.

 

The party was gradually turning into a casual gathering of three to five people.

 

The young ladies from prominent families were chatting and laughing, occasionally glancing at the main seat.

 

The Du brothers were pulling Shen Yian aside, asking him questions left and right.

 

They were eager to hear about the interesting things Shen Yian had encountered during his five-year journey.

 

Du Dunming was drinking heavily, boasting about how he had fought off barbarian soldiers.

 

His vivid storytelling was quite entertaining.

 

Some people couldn’t help but ask questions, like students raising their hands to ask Shen Yian.

 

Shen Yian was like a teacher, patiently satisfying the curiosity of these young masters and ladies who had grown up in luxury.

 

They were like birds raised in a warm greenhouse, enjoying treatment that ordinary people could only dream of, waiting for their parents to open the door and let them fly into the sky that had already been planned out for them.

 

The vast martial arts world was indeed more interesting than Tianwu City, but wasn’t Tianwu City also a martial arts world in its own right?

 

They yearned for the martial arts world, but didn’t know how many people had come to their feet, just to take a step closer to the temple that was within reach for them.

 

As the cups clinked and the gathering seemed to be coming to an end, Du Dunming’s dark face was flushed with wine, his large hand grasping Shen Yian’s arm: “Brother An, next time we go out to play, you have to bring me along, I also want to see the vast world.”

 

“Brother An, don’t look down on me, I have plenty of strength, whether it’s as a bodyguard or carrying things, I can do it all!”

 

“Okay! Don’t regret it later, the martial arts world isn’t easy to play in.” Shen Yian smiled.

 

“I won’t regret it! As long as Brother An doesn’t look down on me, haha!”

 

Du Chengzheng apologized, supporting his drunk brother: “Sorry, Brother An, my brother has been fond of drinking since he came back, and I’m afraid he’s made a fool of himself.”

 

“In the cold lands of the North, wine is a good thing to warm the body, and Dunming is in the military, so it’s understandable. I quite like Dunming’s current boldness,” Shen Yian said with a smile.

 

A gentle breeze blew over the Luo River, rippling the golden waves.

 

The large room was now left with only the remnants of the joyful gathering.

 

“Did you have fun today?”

 

Shen Yian asked softly.

 

Today was a day when the silly girl had brushed up her reputation, and also met many girls of the same age.

 

“I had a lot of fun,” Ye Liyan nodded, her small veil somehow ending up behind her back.

 

It was her first time meeting girls of the same age outside of Jinxiu and Jinlian.

 

Her first time hearing praise from other girls.

 

Her first time making plans with other girls to go out and stroll…

 

This half-day was like a dream, and thinking back on it felt like a fantasy.

 

“But since you’ve agreed to go shopping with me, you can’t let me down.”

 

“Can’t let you down?” Ye Liyan tilted her little head, looking a little silly and cute, and obviously didn’t understand the meaning of the word.

 

“Uh, it means breaking a promise.”

 

“Liyan understands now.”

 

“Liyan won’t back out on you.” A slight blush rose on Ye Liyan’s cheeks, and her voice was soft and gentle.

 

Shen Yian’s expression was somewhat unnatural, feeling like he had taught her something he shouldn’t have.

 

“It’s getting late, let’s head back.” As he said this, Shen Yian suddenly leaned forward and gently pecked Ye Liyan’s face.

 

Her already flushed face turned completely red.

 

“Your Highness…” Ye Liyan was taken aback, her voice laced with shyness, her face looking dizzy from the embarrassment.

 

Your Highness was too bad, always doing things like this, catching her off guard, and what if someone saw them…

 

The excitement in her heart was hard to conceal, but how should she respond to His Highness?

 

It was all so chaotic, her head was spinning, and it felt like it was going to burn up.

 

Ye Liyan’s countless thoughts condensed into a small fist, which fell weakly onto Shen Yian’s chest, her slender fingers lightly hooking onto the corner of his clothes. The air was quiet for two seconds, and then her small head suddenly lifted up and leaned in.

 

“Peck~”