The woman in the water was wearing a soft yellow dress, the most fashionable style in the capital, with layer upon layer resembling a yellow peony.

But the woman struggled so much that the yellow peony rose and fell in a rather embarrassing manner.

Xiao Xun knew this girl was extremely afraid of water; he had experienced it the last time. Previously, he had only been intent on saving her with no other thoughts, so he immediately lifted her. But this time, Xiao Xun was determined to teach this girl a lesson—to make her drink a few more mouthfuls of water.

After all, she wouldn’t thank him for saving her life.

It had been so the last time, and it would surely be the same this time. Xiao Xun was quite clear about this.

It didn’t matter. He hadn’t expected her gratitude the last time, nor did he expect it now.

He only wanted everyone to see that he had saved her, that’s all.

He sat in the spot Chu Lan had arranged for him, closest to where the fall would occur, and watched with his own eyes as that girl walked over with another girl—the steward beside him said it was their family’s eldest young lady.

“Miss A-Tang is most reliable,” the steward said with some pride. “She has coaxed Miss A-Zhao into obediently following her.”

Obedient? Xiao Xun felt that this word probably didn’t exist in that girl’s mind.

However, no matter how bad one’s temper is, everyone likes to be coaxed. As long as one puts their heart into it, anyone can be coaxed.

The two girls walked past, chatting and laughing. Not long after, there was a scream, followed by someone falling into the water—

It had begun.

Xiao Xun rose at the same moment. Tie Ying grabbed his arm, carrying him as he jumped down from the high pavilion, then with a swing, Xiao Xun used the momentum to fly into the lake.

At this point, Chu Lan’s steward was still standing in the pavilion, not having reacted yet.

The yellow peony had already sunk. Xiao Xun then dived into the water and reached out to catch the sinking girl—

Just like before, suddenly grabbing at a lifeline, the girl coiled around him like a water snake.

Xiao Xun raised his hand and struck with a fist. The girl’s head jerked backward, her hair flying, revealing her face.

In the water, Xiao Xun’s eyes widened instantly.

Her!

……

……

Chu Tang’s eyes were wide open, her face flushed from suffocation.

She couldn’t make a sound; her mouth was tightly covered by a hand. She couldn’t move either, as another hand pressed her into a crevice in the artificial mountain.

Chu Tang heard a splash outside, heard A-Le’s sharp scream, heard the noisy voices of people, followed by another splash.

Everything was as she had imagined.

What was different was that in her imagination, she should have been in the water now, not being held by Chu Zhao in a crevice of the artificial mountain.

She hadn’t even understood what was happening.

She had discussed with her parents that she would lead Chu Zhao over so that she could know the location of the fall that her parents had arranged.

After the Prince of Zhongshan arrived and she received the hint, she would call Chu Zhao over to trip near the falling spot, then she would walk to the falling spot, and instead of Chu Zhao, she would fall in.

To be certain, she had deliberately worn the same inner dress as Chu Zhao.

But after handing the account book to Chu Zhao to look at here, and then making an excuse to get something, she had no idea that as soon as she turned around, she would be caught by Chu Zhao, dragged under the artificial mountain, and stuffed into a crevice.

Though shocked, Chu Tang wasn’t confused. In an instant, she understood that Chu Zhao knew everything.

I was wrong! She shook her head, making muffled sounds.

Chu Zhao seemed to understand, smiled at her, and removed the hand covering her mouth.

Chu Tang took deep breaths, but apart from breathing, she didn’t shout, call out, or speak, listening to A-Le’s shrill cry from outside.

“Young miss—”

……

……

A-Le, standing by the lake, stamped her feet in panic. After the first cry of “young miss,” all that followed were calls for help and screams of “ah, ah,” until the woman in the water was lifted to the surface by someone.

Crowds surged from all directions of the garden, everyone’s gaze concerned and anxious. Seeing this scene, they all cheered.

A-Le called out “young miss” again, but this time, she wasn’t looking at the water but behind her.

“Young miss—” she called, “Sister Linglong has been rescued—”

The onlookers were stunned. Linglong?

Who was Linglong?

Wasn’t it Chu Zhao who had fallen in?

Everyone’s gaze followed A-Le’s to look behind, where they saw Chu Zhao walking out from behind a nearby artificial mountain, holding a roll of account books, looking shocked.

“What happened?” she shouted. “A-Tang and I were checking accounts. Didn’t I tell you to watch the scene first?”

“We were just about to go,” A-Le shouted. “Because we were in such a hurry, afraid of being late, we walked especially fast, and Sister Linglong accidentally stepped wrong and fell into the lake.”

Chu Zhao had already rushed over and stood by the lake, looking at the fallen person who had been brought to the shore, as well as the rescuer.

“Fortunately, someone saved Sister Linglong,” A-Le shouted again from behind. “I don’t know who this hero is!”

Since it wasn’t Chu Zhao who had fallen in, the spectators all relaxed a lot. And since the fallen maid had already been rescued, everyone’s gaze turned to the rescuer.

Who was it?

Such a quick reaction.

Such a decisive entry into the water.

Very good at swimming, bringing the person up in no time.

It was a young gentleman, his brocade white clothes floating like clouds in the water, his black hair floating behind him, revealing a clean forehead and high, straight nose. His lips were pressed together, with two deep dimples appearing on his cheeks, like an immortal from the Luo River.

There had been so many people coming and going in Chu Garden, and all those of outstanding talent and appearance had already been remembered by everyone, but this young man was seen for the first time.

Which talented young master’s family did he belong to?

Chu Zhao stood on the shore, looking down at the person in the water, with a surprised expression: “Young Master!”

Young Master?

The people around were stunned when they heard this.

The Emperor of Da Xia’s lineage had always been thin with descendants. Those who could be called Young Master were few, and even rarer in the capital. Could it be—

“Prince of Zhongshan!” A-Le immediately shouted after Chu Zhao, her voice so loud that everyone in Chu Garden could hear, “It’s you!”

The Prince of Zhongshan! It was the Prince of Zhongshan!

The Prince of Zhongshan had come to Chu Garden!

Chu Garden was in an uproar.

……

……

The noise flew over walls and buildings into Chu Lan’s study. Chu Lan, who had already retreated to the doorway, took another step back.

The steward was anxious, and Madam Jiang was also at a loss.

“Master, please go over quickly,” they urged.

“At this moment, what’s the point of going?” Chu Lan murmured.

Events had unfolded as arranged, but were completely different. It wasn’t Chu Zhao who had fallen in, and Xiao Xun, who was supposed to be a bystander, had gone to save the person.

“Regardless, the Young Master saved someone, and as the hosts, we should go and express our gratitude,” Madam Jiang said. “Honor him as our distinguished guest.”

Although Chu Lan hadn’t figured out exactly what had gone wrong, he had also guessed that the whole thing was problematic. He flung his sleeve: “I know nothing. Say that I’m sick and cannot see anyone!”

……

……

But even without the appearance of the Chu Lan couple, Chu Garden could handle the situation properly.

After identifying the rescuer, Chu Zhao had servants immediately pull Xiao Xun out of the lake, then send him indoors, while also having a physician examine and check him.

Chu Garden had invited a physician on the first day of the literary gathering to handle fighting, self-harm due to losing, or going crazy from winning—these situations never occurred, but finally, the physician was put to use.

Chu Zhao then had A-Le “invite” the steward—Chu Lan could hide, but the steward couldn’t escape.

After the steward arrived, he was forced to admit that “the Young Master came to see the literary gathering, not to arrest anyone or assign blame. He has already met the master, and the master knows about it,” thus reassuring everyone.

Yes, everyone calmed down. If the Prince of Zhongshan had come on orders to arrest someone, why would he care about someone from Chu Garden falling into the water? They could drown for all he cared.

No one in Chu Garden fled, nor was there any more panic. People curiously and excitedly discussed, looking toward where Xiao Xun was, waiting for another glimpse of him.