——Why do all the young ladies in Nandu admire my Third Brother, you’ll understand once you see him.

Duan Jingyuan’s words were not wrong. The polo field was Duan Xu’s domain, where he moved like a fish in water, stirring hearts. As long as he was on the field, even when he wasn’t hitting the ball, no one could take their eyes off him. His purple figure on the white horse was like a streak of lightning.

After attracting the enemy’s siege and passing the ball to his teammate to secure the first point, in the second round, the opponent no longer dared to guard only him. This gave Duan Xu much more freedom, and before long, he scored the second point.

The sidelines erupted again with enthusiastic cheers, and He Simu joined the cheering crowd, applauding for him.

After being scored twice, the opposing team became impatient, wanting to suppress Duan Xu’s momentum. One young master swung his mallet forcefully to pass the ball, but it deviated from his intended path and hit his teammate’s horse on the head. The horse, suddenly struck with great force, was immediately startled and began to run wildly around the field, neighing uncontrollably.

For the sake of both speed and endurance, the horses on the polo field were without exception fierce steeds, difficult to subdue once frightened. Therefore, falls from horses causing serious injuries or even deaths were common on the polo field. It was evident that Master Gu on horseback was teetering on the edge of falling, half his body already off the horse while his foot was still caught in the stirrup, about to hit the ground and be dragged along.

Duan Xu rode toward him, extending his polo mallet to catch Master Gu’s back, while simultaneously drawing the dagger from his boot to cut the stirrup with one slash, then grabbed Master Gu by the collar and brought him onto his horse. Master Gu, saved from the fate of being dragged, clutched at the back of Duan Xu’s clothes, breathing rapidly with lingering fear.

The fierce horse, now without a rider, continued to charge wildly across the field, eventually breaking through the barrier at the edge and rushing straight toward the spectators. The audience immediately scattered in all directions. Duan Jingyuan’s clothes were too elaborate, and in her panic, she stepped on the hem of her dress and fell to the ground. Looking up, she saw the fierce horse charging toward her. Her face turned pale, and before she could react, a cyan-colored garment suddenly appeared before her, someone embraced her, protecting the back of her head. As she was in a daze, she also saw a flying corner of crimson-red clothing.

That crimson-red clothing belonged to He Simu.

What seemed like an eternity to Duan Jingyuan was just a brief moment. He Simu stood in front of the fierce horse.

The frightened, maddened horse suddenly stopped abruptly, barely coming to a halt three feet away from He Simu amidst the flying dust. It stared at He Simu’s eyes in terror, began to tremble all over, then suddenly retreated three steps and knelt.

Even though the Ghost King had lost her magical powers, the horse could still recognize her aura. In this aspect, animals were much more sensitive than humans.

The entire field was in an uproar as spectators stared at this scene in astonishment. Field attendants immediately rushed over to lead away the now-calm horse.

Duan Jingyuan, having escaped danger, slowly came to her senses. She looked up to see who had embraced her. In the strong sunlight, the backlighting made it difficult to discern the person’s features, but they felt very familiar. As that person released her and stepped back, she recognized his features—it was Fang Xian Ye, whom she had met that day while seeking shelter from the rain.

He was wearing a cyan round-collared robe, his features as serene as mist.

“Is your spine harder than a fierce horse’s hooves? You’re just a scholar, don’t try to act brave,” He Simu turned to Fang Xian Ye and said.

She walked past Fang Xian Ye and helped Duan Jingyuan up from the ground. Fang Xian Ye showed no reaction to He Simu’s words, merely glancing at her before turning his gaze toward Duan Jingyuan, calmly asking, “Are you alright?”

Duan Jingyuan nodded in a daze. She clutched He Simu’s sleeve and said, “Thank you for saving me, Master Fang.”

Fang Xian Ye shook his head. His expression remained calm as if nothing had happened, and he dusted himself off before walking away. As he patted the dust from his clothes, Duan Jingyuan noticed his wrist was red and swollen, likely from the urgent friction with the ground moments ago.

She realized she hadn’t even noticed that Fang Xian Ye was nearby. While everyone else was running away, he immediately rushed over to protect her, nearly getting seriously injured in the process.

Did they have such a deep connection?

The polo match was temporarily suspended due to this sudden incident. Duan Jingyuan was merely frightened without any significant injury, so her maid helped her return to her seat to rest. Wu Sheng Liu stroked Duan Jingyuan’s back, still feeling shaken as she said, “You frightened me to death. If anything had happened to you, how would I explain it to your father? From now on, you’re forbidden from going down to watch the game. Just sit here in our seat to watch!”

Duan Jingyuan, pressing her hand against her chest, weakly argued that this was just an accident. Before Wu Sheng Liu could continue her lecture, the bamboo screen at their seat was lifted, and Master Wang entered their seating area with a white porcelain bottle.

This Master Wang was Wang Su Yi’s brother Wang Qi, who was indulgent in sensual pleasures and neglected his proper duties. Duan Jingyuan was also a famous beauty in Nandu. After the Wang and Duan families became related through marriage, Wang Qi often used this connection to visit the Duan residence, showering Duan Jingyuan with attention, with the underlying implication of wanting to strengthen the family ties through marriage.

Naturally, Duan Jingyuan had no interest in such a good-for-nothing. However, at this moment, the visitor claimed to have brought calming pills for her to take to soothe her nerves, appearing completely well-intentioned. She could not rebuff his gesture and lose face.

Duan Jingyuan displayed a standard smile and accepted the medicine bottle. Wang Qi took the opportunity to touch the back of her hand, disgusting her so much that she shuddered.

“Thank you, Master Wang,” she said through gritted teeth.

Wang Qi seemed completely oblivious to the disgust hidden beneath Duan Jingyuan’s expression and lifted his robe to sit down in their seating area, beginning to make small talk with her in an attempt to get closer, seemingly believing himself to be witty.

Duan Jingyuan exchanged a glance with Wu Sheng Liu—they had never seen such a frivolous and shameless fellow.

But the Duan and Wang families were ultimately in-laws and had to maintain superficial harmony. Duan Jingyuan reluctantly responded appropriately to Wang Qi’s topics, feeling that as long as he stood before her, even if she swallowed a whole bottle of calming pills, she would not feel calm, only nauseated.

As she was dealing with him, from the corner of her eye, she glimpsed a cyan-colored figure on the viewing platform below. When she turned her gaze in that direction, her eyes met Fang Xian Ye’s.

The polo match had resumed, and everyone’s attention was focused on the field. He stood quietly in the excited crowd, looking back at her, his thoughts unknown.

“Miss Duan?” The noisy Master Wang opposite her called her, noticing her distraction. Duan Jingyuan had to withdraw her gaze and continued to deal with Wang Qi for a while. When she found another opportunity to look in that direction, she discovered Fang Xian Ye was no longer there.

Somehow, at that moment, she felt a bit of disappointment.

Just as Wang Qi’s chatter was becoming increasingly intolerable, a voice suddenly sounded from behind the bamboo screen, like a cool breeze blowing through Duan Jingyuan’s irritated heart.

“Miss Duan, it seems you dropped something when you were avoiding the fierce horse earlier. I picked it up and kept it in my seat. Please check if you’re missing anything, and if so, I’ll bring it to you.”

Fang Xian Ye, from behind the bamboo screen, bowed and said.

Duan Jingyuan immediately stood up, went over to lift the bamboo screen, and eagerly said, “How could I trouble you, sir? I’ll come get it myself.”

As long as it allowed her to escape from Wang Qi, even going to Fang Xian Ye’s side was preferable. After all, Fang Xian Ye was very handsome and spoke little. Moreover, this person… had just tried to save her.

Fang Xian Ye’s gaze swept across the face of Master Wang, who was glaring at him with a reddened face. He smiled faintly and said, “This way, Miss.”

Duan Jingyuan, accompanied by her maid, lifted her skirt and headed toward Fang Xian Ye’s seating area.

Wang Qi’s face stiffened. When his gaze fell on He Simu, his expression relaxed somewhat, and he said flirtatiously, “The Duan residence is truly filled with beauties. Who might this beautiful lady be?”

He Simu withdrew her gaze from the field, glanced at him once, and said curtly, “Get lost.”

“You!” “Miss He!”

The voices of Wang Qi and Wu Sheng Liu rang out simultaneously. Wang Qi rose angrily, and seeing that He Simu paid him no attention, he glared at Wu Sheng Liu, made some sarcastic remarks, and stormed off. Wu Sheng Liu had a headache and pressed her temples.

Meanwhile, Duan Jingyuan followed Fang Xian Ye to his seating area. His seat was arranged simply but elegantly. Though the location was naturally not as good as the Duan family’s, the view was still decent—after all, despite not having a prestigious family background, he held a high official position and was the top scholar of the imperial examinations.

Duan Jingyuan suddenly recalled that year when the examination results were announced. Because she had said she would only marry someone who was at least as good as her Third Brother, Duan Xu had pointed to the name list and said to her, “Not worse than your Third Brother? Then it can only be the top scholar. How about this Fang Xian Ye?”

That was the first time she had heard Fang Xian Ye’s name.

Duan Jingyuan inexplicably blushed a little. She cleared her throat, turned to face Fang Xian Ye, and asked, “Master Fang, what did I drop?”

Fang Xian Ye shook his head: “That was a lie I made up. I didn’t see you drop anything, but I noticed you were in distress over there and thought perhaps you needed an excuse to leave your seat.”

Duan Jingyuan’s heart stirred, but on the surface, she still put up a strong front and asked, “How did you see that I was in distress?”

Fang Xian Ye was quiet for a moment, then said, “Weren’t you about to cry?”

Seeing Duan Jingyuan’s confused expression, he pointed to the area under his own eyes and prompted, “Here.”

Duan Jingyuan was taken aback. She touched her eyes, and it took her quite a while to understand what he meant. She became angry and moved closer to Fang Xian Ye, pointing at her eyes and saying, “Look carefully, this is the most fashionable tearful makeup! It’s tearful makeup! I wasn’t about to cry!”

In this world, whoever questioned her makeup, attire, or fragrance would become her greatest enemy!

Only after saying this did she realize that she was too close to Fang Xian Ye. He was looking at her eyes seriously, and just as her earlobes began to turn red, Fang Xian Ye stepped back and smiled gently, “Why paint yourself to look as if you’re about to cry when all is well? Smiling is always so much better than crying.”

“What do you know? This kind of makeup conveys a sense of pitiful beauty,” Duan Jingyuan retorted.

Fang Xian Ye looked at her and said, “I truly don’t understand. I thought a dazzling young lady like Miss Duan from the Duan family would not need pity.”

Duan Jingyuan was choked by his words. She wanted to say that of course, she didn’t need pity, but saying so would seem self-contradictory, and she didn’t know what to say for a moment.

“Does Miss Duan wish to return now?” Fang Xian Ye lifted the hem of his robe and sat properly in his seat, changing the subject.

Duan Jingyuan stood on her tiptoes to look around and saw that Master Wang was no longer in their seating area. She hesitated for a moment, cleared her throat, and said, “I don’t know if he will return, so I’ll stay at your seat for a while.”

Fang Xian Ye calmly agreed.

Duan Jingyuan sat down beside him, and her maid He Zhi immediately poured tea for her. As she drank her tea, she noticed Fang Xian Ye’s gaze on her sachet. Recalling how Fang Xian Ye had risked his life to save her earlier on the field, she suddenly had an epiphany, thinking she had discovered a great secret—could it be that Fang Xian Ye was in love with her?

She cautiously said, “Master Fang, I am immensely grateful for your rescue on the field just now. But… you won’t get a sachet from me no matter how much you look at me.”

In Great Liang, a woman giving a sachet to a man was a way of expressing romantic interest.

Fang Xian Ye seemed to find this amusing and said, “No, I just thought the knot on the sachet was very beautiful.”

“It’s a six-petal flower knot, taught to me by my Third Brother,” Duan Jingyuan, pleased with the compliment, became proud again, always childish in this regard.

“Oh,” Fang Xian Ye shifted his gaze away and turned toward the field.

A few days ago, Duan Xu had come to find him, and after discussing important matters, had suddenly sighed and asked if he knew how to tie a six-petal flower knot.

——Jingyuan says I taught her before in Daizhou, but she has forgotten now and insists I teach her again.

——Fang Ji, how many things have you taught him?

Now she had learned it and learned it very well.

This somewhat flawed yet still splendid Summer Wild Game concluded after a fierce morning of competition. As expected, Duan Xu’s team was the first to secure five points and win the match. What was more surprising was that these five goals were scored by five different people, all of whom, except for Duan Xu, were participating in the Summer Wild Game for the first time. Those knowledgeable in the sport said that Duan Xu’s victory lay in his tactics—Third Young Master Duan’s ability to deploy troops and strategize could be seen from his arrangement on the polo field.

Not long after the Summer Wild Game ended, He Xiaoxiao bid farewell and left the Duan residence. Duan Jingyuan was surprised by her hasty departure and even more surprised by Duan Xu and Chen Ying’s nonchalance. It should be known that Duan Xu had previously seemed unable to be separated from He Xiaoxiao even for a moment, but now he showed no sign of missing her at all as if He Xiaoxiao had never left.

Not only that, her brother had begun frequenting the Jade Algae Tower again to visit his romantic interest, Miss Luo Xian. Duan Jingyuan sadly felt that perhaps there wasn’t a single good man in the world, not even her Third Brother.