flstandardbreds Chapter 171: Standoff at the Lotus Pond
Chapter 171: Standoff at the Lotus Pond
Chapter 171: Confrontation at the Lotus Pond
It was late autumn, and the lotus leaves in the pond had long since withered, leaving only some bare, yellow lotus stems standing in the water. Occasionally, a fish would rise to the surface to breathe, creating ripples on the water, which was another kind of charming scene.
Because of her past life experiences, after Ye Pianran was reborn, she instructed the servants in Lanxin Courtyard to forbid Ye Yankang from approaching this lotus pond. Ye Yankang had not been here for more than half a year. Therefore, when Ye Yingrou brought him here, his stupidity did not frighten him. On the contrary, he was a little excited and twisted his body, shouting that he wanted to get down.
Ye Yingrou's smile was full of meaning as she let go of his hand, allowing him to stagger along the edge of the lotus pond. Just then, a koi carp swam by, wagging its tail. Ye Yankang pointed at the water and babbled:
"Swimming fish!"
Ye Yingrou placed her hand on his back and said softly with a smile, "Little brother, is it fun? Do you like it here?"
Ye Yankang raised his head and gave her an innocent smile that made Ye Yingrou, who harbored evil intentions, momentarily lose her composure.
"Fish~" Ye Yankang called out again, tugging at Ye Yingrou's clothes and pointing to the water, as if he wanted to share it with her.
Ye Yingrou came to her senses and looked at Ye Yankang with undisguised ferocity in her eyes.
Hmph, if this child weren't Gongsun Yuan's, she would actually find him quite adorable. What a pity, if anyone's to blame, it's that he was born into the wrong family and recognized the wrong mother.
Ye Yingrou gritted her teeth, about to exert force with her hand, when suddenly she heard a scream from behind her:
"Ye Yingrou, you dare to hurt him! I'll make you pay with your life right now!"
Ye Yingrou's pupils contracted, and she immediately turned around, only to find that Ye Pianran had somehow caught up with her and was running towards her at full speed.
How could this be! No one noticed her on her way here, so why did Ye Pianran arrive so quickly!
Upon hearing Ye Pianran's voice, Ye Yankang turned around, grinning foolishly, and opened his arms, ready to pounce on her: "Sister~ Fish~"
Seeing this, Ye Yingrou quickly grabbed Ye Yankang and held him down tightly, even taking a step back, pulling him into a position where he could fall into the lotus pond at any moment.
Seeing this, Ye Pianran immediately realized that Ye Yingrou was threatening her with Ye Yankang's life. Fearing that Ye Yingrou might push Ye Yankang into the lotus pond at any moment, she was forced to stop, clench her fists, and said hatefully:
"Ye Yingrou, if you have a problem, come at me! What kind of skill is it to make things difficult for a child! Let's settle our score here, it's none of anyone else's business! Let him go!"
"What are you saying, sister? I don't understand. I saw that the child was bored by himself, so I took him to the pond to see the fish. Look how happy he was just now, he almost wanted to jump into the water and catch the fish himself."
Ye Yingrou smiled innocently, but her hands dug her nails, which were covered in poison powder, into Ye Yankang's flesh. Ye Yankang's face contorted in pain, and he kept making "ah ah" sounds, twisting his body trying to break free from her grip.
As he moved, he stepped back a few more feet, with one foot already off the edge of the lotus pond.
"Kang'er!" Ye Pianran's expression changed, and her voice became distorted. "Stand there and don't move!"
Taking the opportunity, Ye Yingrou looked down at Ye Yankang, but still saw no signs of poisoning on his face. Her brows furrowed tightly. Why was her poison completely ineffective against this brat? Could it be that this brat is immune to all poisons?
Ye Pianran took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm her wildly beating heart, and gritted her teeth as she asked, "Ye Yingrou, what exactly do you want?"
"What I want, don't you understand, sister?" Ye Yingrou dropped her pretense and retorted with a cold laugh. Her gaze swept over Ye Pianran's veil twice before she said mockingly:
"Sister, you are truly lucky. Born as the legitimate daughter of a marquis, and possessing a face that could launch a thousand ships... Oh, no, you are no longer the 'most beautiful woman in the capital.' Your most prized asset is gone. How does it feel to have your beauty ruined? Do you think that by begging His Majesty to cancel your marriage with Ouyang Shaoyu, you can cover up the fact that he despises you? Do you think that having gained a reputation for 'obedience and filial piety' will ensure your safety forever? Your ordeal has only just begun."
"Yes, I am indeed lucky. In comparison, you are truly pathetic," Ye Pianran said coldly. "You always pretend to be harmless, but your heart is full of scheming, insidious, and vicious. You are hypocritical to the extreme. A person like you will never gain the trust of others. One day, you will be abandoned by everyone and die despised by all!"
Anyone can engage in verbal sparring. Did they really think Ye Pianran was a pushover? Little did Ye Pianran know that her words had truly pierced Ye Yingrou's heart.
Ye Yingrou had recently received a series of messages that An Shihou, Ji Hongbo, and Ye Yanxun's favorability ratings had decreased, which had already made her very angry. Now that Ye Pianran had exposed her, she felt as if the last piece of clothing covering her body had been torn off, leaving her naked and exposed to everyone's gaze!
She hated it so much that her face was contorted with rage, wishing there was a boiling pot of oil in front of her to tear Ye Pianran apart and melt her into ashes!
"So what if I'm like this? I'll show you with facts that I'll be the one laughing last!" Ye Yingrou said sinisterly. "Like right now, you're watching this idiot in my hands, you must be very anxious, right? But what's the use? I'm in control, you can't stop me at all—"
After saying that, she pushed with both hands, trying to forcefully push Ye Yankang, who was trapped beside her, into the lotus pond!
"Kang'er!!" Ye Pianran's heart felt like it was being gripped tightly by a large hand. She endured the pain in her chest and used all her strength to lunge forward, trying to reach out and pull Ye Yankang, who had fallen into the lotus pond.
Perhaps it was because of her daily morning exercises with Chunyu Yang at Xiling Mountain these past few days that, in this critical moment, the grief and anxiety in her heart unleashed an unprecedented power within her. At this moment, in her eyes, although Ye Yankang was indeed falling into the lotus pond, his falling speed was extremely slow, as if someone had deliberately slowed down time.
There's a chance we can save Kang'er!
Only this belief remained in her heart, and her outstretched hand drew closer and closer to Ye Yankang, until—
caught!
Ye Pianran firmly grasped Ye Yankang's wrist, stopping his fall in time. However, she didn't realize that she had also leaned over the shore. She had intended to save Ye Yankang, but instead, Ye Yankang pulled her down with him!
No, if this continues, they will both fall into the water!
With her other free hand, she tried to grab at the shore and managed to grab onto a dense vine growing on the bank, which stopped them from falling in time. But by then, Ye Yankang's entire lower body was already submerged in the water!
As he entered the water, Ye Yankang finally sensed the danger and burst into tears of fear: "Waaah—waaah—"
"Kang'er, don't be afraid, your older sister will take you up!" Ye Pianran said through gritted teeth. But after she finished speaking, she felt that the vine she was holding was loosening.
What to do? This vine can't support the weight of two people. How can we get Kang'er ashore? She really shouldn't have sent Ye Lingyue out of the manor to buy medicinal herbs at this time. If Ye Lingyue were here, she wouldn't be in such a sorry state!
Seeing that she couldn't get Ye Pianran and Ye Yankang to fall into the water together, Ye Yingrou on the shore suddenly had a wicked idea. She pulled out a dagger from her bosom, squatted down, and grinned as she slashed at Ye Pianran's wrist!