The Slender Waist

The wind was strong on the mountain, and the melting snow made the mountain trails even more wet and slippery.

In the sky, the occasional piercing cries of birds made one feel an eerie chill.

Especially after entering the mountain, horses became impractical, and the pace of the group slowed down.

Feng Yun had prepared boots specifically for the mountain journey, yet even with them, she occasionally slipped on the forested trails.

Chunyu Yan frowned as he watched her. When they reached a sloping ditch, he jumped across and turned around, opening his hand towards Feng Yun.

Feng Yun stood still, unmoving.

Chunyu Yan’s hand remained stretched out, creating an awkward atmosphere.

"I can manage," Feng Yun said slowly, extending her hand toward Xiaoman.

Xiaoman loved it when ladies depended on her. Relying on her skills, she sprang forward energetically and nimbly crossed the ditch, then turned back to pull Feng Yun over with a strong tug.

Pleased with herself, she even flashed Chunyu Yan a smile.

Chunyu Yan, his hand left empty, watched Feng Yun with a glare sharp as a knife. Amid the forced smiles of the servants, he brushed off his cloak with a snort and turned his head, marching up the slippery path with ease, picking up pace until he vanished from sight.

Xiang Zhong, upon seeing this, stomped his foot and, along with a few guards, hurried after him.

Xiaoman stood, stunned for a moment.

"My lady, did I offend the Princely Heir?"

Feng Yun glanced at the bewildered Uncle Sun and the two old craftsmen left behind, slightly smiling.

"Why would the Princely Heir be angry with you? He must have gone ahead to scout the path. We just need to follow along slowly..."

The mountain wind howled, inflating the sleeves of their robes. Yet Feng Yun was drenched in sweat.

"Uncle Sun, what’s the name of this mountain?"

Uncle Sun turned around, pointing to a distant range: "Village Chief’s wife, you see, that farthest one is Jieqiu Mountain. Actually, this mountain is also a part of Jieqiu Mountain’s range; locals call it Little Jieqiu, but we mountain folk usually call it Tiger’s Mouth."

Feng Yun was slightly startled. "Why is it called Tiger’s Mouth?"

Uncle Sun explained: "From the view of Jieqiu Mountain, this mountain hollow looks like a tiger’s wide-open mouth. At night, with the wind howling through the hollow, it’s as if the king of the mountain is roaring..."

"Interesting."

Standing on the slope, she observed the mountain range following Uncle Sun’s direction and then asked Xiaoman to bring out pen and paper, which she placed on a stone to start sketching.

Uncle Sun watched in awe.

"Village Chief’s wife is truly talented."

Feng Yun chuckled, but did not respond.

Her mind was full of thoughts, and a good memory is less useful than a bad pen.

"My lady." Xing Bing suddenly approached from behind and whispered, "There are people climbing up the left slope, not just a few."

Feng Yun looked around at her surroundings, counting Uncle Sun, they were ten in total.

She stored the sketch of the mountain terrain in a box and gave Xing Bing a meaningful glance.

Understanding her signal, Xing Bing nodded and motioned for Ge Guang and Ge Yi to guard the path.

Today, Ye Chuang had also brought two guards with him, one named Xie Jin, another named Shi Jiu, both handpicked by Pei Jue from the Imperial Guard Camp for Feng Yun, accustomed to weathering great storms, their faces showed no panic, but their expressions grew solemn.

In this kind of weather, aside from hunters, ordinary people wouldn’t go to the mountains.

And hunters seldom traveled in such a large entourage.

"This cursed weather, running around in such desolate mountains, what kind of misfortune..."

A group of young noblemen, leading a retinue of servants, marched up the mountainside.

At the front was a young man, about eighteen or nineteen, with a lean face and a hooked nose. Likely because of his thin, meatless nasal bridge, the nose seemed particularly prominent, dominating his face and giving him a rather mean look.

They, too, had not expected to encounter anyone on the slope. Upon seeing Ge Guang and Ge Yi, they immediately stopped.

"Whose mongrel guards are these, so lacking in manners? Blocking the path and not making way!"

The tone was arrogant, the expression overbearing, looking down on others contemptuously.

Before the sound of his voice had died down, his eyes fell on Feng Yun in the mountain wind.

Today, to facilitate mountain travel, Feng Yun was dressed simply, her hair not done up in a lady’s style but rather tied back like a man’s. However, her radiant and beautiful face clearly revealed her gender. Especially in such a desolate hill, her snow-white complexion stood out like a lotus emerging from the gloom, impossible to ignore...

"Oh! I was wondering why someone was being so insolent, turns out the mistress here is blessed with such ravishing beauty," he exclaimed.

Ge Guang was about to speak when Feng Yun smiled and took over.

"The mountain road is wide enough, we can stand wherever we like. What business is it of yours?"

The noblemen were dressed extravagantly, clearly indicating their aristocratic background.

Yet Feng Yun could not recall any family in Andu that boasted such characters.

Without a clue, she made no hurry in her response, speaking lazily.

The group exchanged glances and chuckled, seeing Feng Yun’s demeanor, they added a subtle lecherous undertone.

"Which family’s young lady are you, to be so haughty?"

Before anyone else could speak, Feng Yun said,

"The He family of Andu."

The men looked at each other.

"He family of Andu, never heard of them."

One said, "It must be some minor branch, not worth mentioning."

Another said, "Perhaps it’s a family from the Governor’s estate? No, that can’t be right; the Governor’s house only has sons, no daughters."

An obscure family was of no concern to them.

Once they were certain she wasn’t a daughter of the He family, the young men laughed and their tone became more unrestrained.

"Why does the young lady lie? Could it be that she’s a bandit from some hilltop?"

"Looking at her charming eyes and demeanor, could she be someone’s bandit wife?"

This comment was indeed frivolous, and a group of men burst into raucous laughter.

The young man beside the man with the hooked nose frowned and said in a low voice, "Brother Kang, don’t make trouble. Let’s just move along."

The man addressed as Brother Kang, with the hooked nose, obviously wasn’t the type to listen to persuasion.

"The young lady is charming, and having met by chance, how could I not make acquaintance?"

Feng Yun indeed possessed an alluring charm, but that was when her expression was gentle. At this moment, her face was cold as frost, stern in appearance, clearly dignified and evidently a girl from a decent family.

His words were spoken solely because he had decided that Feng Yun came from a low background and had nothing to fear.

Seeing him step forward, Ye Chuang’s face darkened as he drew his sword to confront him.

Feng Yun stopped him.

The other party had many servants, around twenty in total, every one of them strong and armed with sharp weapons. If a fight broke out, even if they didn’t lose, they would probably suffer some disadvantages...

She didn’t want any of her people to be injured, not even with a minor wound.

When she hadn’t yet figured out the bottom line of the other party, she could endure and let it pass.

"Make way," she said calmly.

Upon hearing this, they thought the little girl was scared.

"A beauty with such understanding is even more distressing," he remarked.

People often take an inch and want a mile. With such thoughts in mind, their gaze turned lewd, except for the gentleman in purple beside the hooked-nosed man. Their presumptuous eyes fell on Feng Yun, as if they wished they could devour her alive.

"Young lady," as he approached Feng Yun, he raised his eyebrows teasingly, "Maybe someone has claimed you?"

Such impudent words were extremely rude.

Feng Yun’s eyebrows slightly creased, "What has it to do with you?"

The man chuckled lowly, with an air of casual grace that only highlighted his arrogance.

"The lady’s looks are exceptional, which man could be worthy of her? This gentleman is considering for you. Perhaps you should follow me..."

"The gentleman is overstepping bounds," Feng Yun’s face fell, "Given a passing acquaintance, I have stepped aside, why must the gentleman be aggressive and engage in flirtation?"

"Tch, so the young lady also understands the matter of flirtation? That’s splendid, as we appear to be of one mind..."

Feng Yun raised her eyebrows, "I wonder from which family such manners are taught, bringing up such frivolous individuals?"

"Frivolous?" The man with the hooked nose turned to look at his companions, "The beauty calls me frivolous; could it be that she has taken a fancy to me?"

Several companions laughed loudly and joined in the heckling.

"Brother Kang, why not take the lady home and be frivolous for a while?"

The man with the hooked nose was in high spirits, stroking his chin while eyeing Feng Yun.

"Having seen countless beauties, I’ve never encountered such peerless elegance. Who would have thought that in this insignificant place of Andu, such a rare beauty would be hidden..."

He mused to himself before inquiring Feng Yun with a smile.

"If you speak kindly to me, I will marry you as my principal wife, how about it?"

The more he spoke, the less appropriate it became.

These people were accustomed to harassing virtuous women as if it were nothing, and no one among them attempted to intervene.

Feng Yun let out a light chuckle, "Perhaps the gentleman should first introduce his own household, so that I may see if it’s too lofty for me to aspire to."

The man was elated upon hearing this.

"The Yuan Family of Pingcheng," he responded, and then he turned back to look at his companion, the tallest man dressed in purple.

"This is the Prince of Danyang. Have you heard of him?"

Feng Yun had a good idea of what was going on.

It turned out she had encountered a group of favored young nobles.

The Prince of Danyang was named Puyang Zong. Without coincidence, he was the second brother of Puyang Yi.

This self-proclaimed member of the Yuan Family from Pingcheng, with the hooked nose, was presumably also an imperial kinsman or noble.

Due to the conflagration set by Li Zongxun, the Central Capital had suffered significant damage, and many royal relatives, noble clans, and great families had left.

Some took the road to Xijing, some returned to their ancestral homes in Pingcheng, some relocated to other places temporarily, and those whose family members followed Li Zongxun to Yecheng were trying in every possible way to make their way there.

If they wanted to take a detour to Yecheng, Andu was indeed quite convenient.

About two hundred li away from Shiguan, one would reach the territories of the Yecheng Imperial Court. Xinyi County, having signed a peace treaty with Qi Country, was even more like an open exclave. Departing by boat was more convenient than from other places.

Feng Yun was unsure whether they intended to leave or had some other plans.

In the face of their hot stares, she looked back with a mocking smile.

"The noble household is indeed eminent, well beyond my reach. I would appreciate it if you would not make things difficult for me."

"No trouble at all, you might feel unworthy, but I am willing to lower my standards," he chuckled, his eyes nearly drooling over Feng Yun, his tone growing increasingly suggestive, "By following me, no matter if you are a pauper, you’ll have a powerful patron from then on. Isn’t that nice?"

Feng Yun’s eyebrows lifted, her eyes nearly unable to mask the cold amusement.

But clearly, someone was even less able to contain his anger.

"Where does this audacity come from, to speak such madness..."

The thick scornful voice came from the slope below.

It was Chunyu Yan, who had returned. But he had clearly gone uphill before, so why had he come up from below?

Before Feng Yun could ask, she saw Chunyu Yan leap up.

"Sang Jiao," Chunyu Yan’s robe flared slightly, clearly not in the best of moods, "throw these bastards down from here."