My elder brother patted me on the shoulder and said, "No need for words. You know what I mean!"
Xi Yao repeated, "The butterfly-shaped jade pendant! The butterfly-shaped jade pendant!"
Looking at Xi Yao's excited little face, I finally remembered the butterfly-shaped jade pendant she was talking about. It was the beautiful jade given to me by a handsome uncle, which I had used to get close to Qi Yuan. In the past, I would never have given this jade to Xi Yao, but now... it didn't matter anymore...
"Alright, I'll agree to all your requests. But I don't think I'll necessarily lose... If I win, each of you has to grant me one wish."
My elder brother squinted at me. "Why do you get three wishes all by yourself?"
I spread my hands. "Who asked the three of you to gang up on me..."
My elder brother was speechless. Finally, he agreed to this plan.
Rock, paper, scissors!
Haha, it was rare that I won for the first time today. Could it be that I was finally in luck now that someone had left?
Again, rock, paper, scissors!
Hahaha, my fourth brother also managed to escape the fate of being the seeker. We exchanged a smug look.
Just then, Xi Yao and my elder brother launched their third round. They got the same result four times in a row. Then Xi Yao said, "Elder brother, give up. You're definitely the seeker this round!"
My elder brother said, "That's not for sure!"
But just as he finished saying this, Xi Yao burst out laughing.
Then my elder brother shook his head vigorously. "No way! I'm so unlucky!"
I watched as my elder brother's slender fingers formed scissors, while Xi Yao's chubby little hand made a fist. I burst out laughing.
Then the three of us scattered under my elder brother's chasing shouts, leaving him, the one who had proposed the game, counting one, two, three, four, five dejectedly on the spot...
As soon as we ran away, Xi Yao said, "Don't follow me!"
My fourth brother looked at me, then at his third sister. Then he said bravely, "I definitely won't be the first one to be found this time!" Then he ran towards the west.
Xi Yao chose the north, and I chose the east.
I kept going right, right, and I didn't know where I was going.
As I was looking for a place to hide, I shook my head helplessly. Playing hide-and-seek was really such a simple game.
Finally, I found a small courtyard. Seeing that there was no one around, I barged in.
Entering the courtyard, looking at all the flowers and plants, I really felt that there was nothing to hide behind. So I pushed open the door and went into the house.
As soon as I entered the house, a fragrant smell assailed my nostrils. I looked around. Apart from three big boxes, there was no other place to hide. I was about to go out when I heard my elder brother's voice in the distance. "Hey, I'm coming to look for you!"
I was instantly startled. I wondered why he had chosen this direction. So I randomly picked a box and hid inside.
There seemed to be some collection wrapped in brocade inside the box. I carefully avoided pressing on it and closed the lid. I waited for my elder brother to come. But I heard his footsteps get closer and then farther away. No one came in for a long time.
I let out a sigh of relief and continued to hide, afraid that my elder brother was waiting for me just outside the door.
I didn't know how long I had been hiding. I was really getting tired of holding myself up. So I simply lay on top of it. I pushed aside the brocade and saw that it was a jade bottle. I thought it was okay, so I continued to lie there. The space in the box was really too small. Coupled with the lingering fragrance, it made me drowsy. Fortunately, there were two air holes on each side for ventilation, so I didn't have to worry about suffocating. I tried to stay awake. After waiting for my elder brother for a long time, I finally couldn't hold on and fell asleep.
When I woke up again, I felt the world spinning. I was really suffocating, so I didn't care about anything and pushed the box. As a result, I found that the box had been locked. I started beating on the box frantically. "Hey, is there anyone?"
Oh my god! Who would lock a box for no reason... Even the treasures in the palace wouldn't be locked. They could just lock the door...
"What's that sound..." Besides the creaking sound, there was actually a strange man's voice. I was startled.
Wasn't this in the palace? There were only eunuchs and maids. Where did this strong male voice come from? Could it be a guard? Oh, it would be okay if it was a guard!
"Let me out! Let me out quickly!" I shouted and beat on the box inside. Then a man's voice came from outside. "Damn it! Could the jade bottle in this box have turned into a spirit? How could there be a human voice!"
Another one said, "You must have heard wrong. How could there be someone hiding in the box..."
I was instantly furious. "You two outside listen up! Open the box for me right away, or I'll exterminate you, this princess!"
"Hey, did you hear that? There really is... Wait! What did she just call herself? Princess!"
"Damn it! No way! Could it be that naughty little princess from Dayong?"
As they were talking, they immediately shouted to the people in front. "Hey! Stop! Stop in front! Something's wrong!"
The creaking and shaking suddenly stopped. I was jolted forward and landed on the jade bottle. Then someone said sternly, "What are you shouting about? What's going on?"
Then the two who had been talking before said, "The box... can talk!"
"What?"
Another one said, "No, there's someone in the box!"
"What!"
Then I felt the box being carried from one place to another. Then there was the sound of clinking keys, then the sound of unlocking. Finally, the lid was finally lifted.
I straightened my back suddenly and glared at the man angrily. "Who told you to lock this princess in here!"
The man who had used the key to unlock the box was obviously stunned. Then he asked, "Who are you?"
I stared at him with wide eyes. Seeing that his clothes were different from the guards of Dayong, I asked, "Who are you?"
Just then, someone else came and asked, "What's going on?"
The man pointed at me and said, "There's a girl in the box."
I looked at the person who had come and was stunned. Who was this?
The two people beside me whispered, "She doesn't look like Princess Xi Yao..."
The man frowned and glanced at me. Then he muttered, "Send someone to report this."
I suddenly felt a little scared. I carefully looked around and found that I was beside a carriage. The surrounding area was a dark and desolate wilderness. It was already night. Several torches were shining brightly on me. Countless men's eyes were staring at me, as if I was the biggest joke in the world. I pursed my lips and didn't dare to be arrogant anymore. I asked in a small voice, "Who are you?"
The man who had come later looked at me seriously and then said, "I'm the right general of Beihan. Who are you, miss?"
"Princess Xi He."
All the people who had been looking at me were startled and quickly lowered their eyes. Only the right general stared at me and said calmly, "Your Highness must have been frightened. I've already sent someone to inform the king and the queen. Please get off the carriage and come with me to the town ahead. The caravan can't stay in the wild for long."
Oh, so the box I had hidden in was going to Beihan...
So... was I on my way to Beihan now?
"Wasn't your king supposed to leave this morning? Why are these things only leaving this afternoon?"
The man was stunned for a moment and then said, "It was originally scheduled for this morning, but due to some unexpected matters, it was changed to this afternoon. This box set off with the king's troops. But the king and the queen led the vanguard to rest in the town. These things need to be handled carefully, so they're moving more slowly."
After hearing this, I suddenly had the urge to cry. Who said that Yu Chi Cheng had left this morning and let me play hide-and-seek this afternoon? This was such a huge scam!
Of course, at this moment, I didn't know that while I was feeling indignant here, my father was going crazy with worry. He was truly the one who had been scammed...