The Eldest Daughter is Delicate and Pretty, How Can She Be a Malicious Supporting Character - Chapter 98

Chapter 98: Caught in the Act

For an ordinary person, climbing over the high walls of a mansion would be a challenge, but for him, it was just a light leap.

“Heir! You’ve gone in, what about me?” Xiao Wu was only fourteen or fifteen years old and had never encountered such a situation.

If they were discovered lurking around someone’s back gate, they might be chased away with a broom, which would be the least of their worries.

Hearing Xiao Wu’s words, Xiao Yan stopped in his tracks and whispered, “You can go back to the mansion. You don’t need to wait for me. I’ll return on my own.”

Xiao Wu was anxious, hearing his master’s words, and tears almost welled up in his eyes. But he couldn’t run fast enough to keep up with the heir. He reluctantly drove the carriage away from the Pei mansion’s back gate.

“What is the Heir thinking today? He actually climbed over someone’s wall. Could it be…?”

He muttered to himself, but the distant fireworks startled him, and he quickly drove the carriage away without daring to say another word.

He was afraid that people from the Pei mansion would soon appear and chase him away.

On the other side, Xiao Yan cautiously entered the Pei mansion. It was a family reunion night, and Madam Pei was kind enough to let the maids go out to watch the fireworks, so the mansion was relatively quiet.

However, there were still guards patrolling, but they had found places to drink and enjoy themselves.

“You said the Miss is really generous. The people working in her courtyard got extra rewards tonight.”

“Yes, if we could serve as the Miss’s guards, not only would we get rewards, but our treatment would be top-notch.”

Two guards sat under the eaves, snacking on peanuts and drinking wine, enjoying themselves.

Xiao Yan’s martial arts skills were excellent, and with the mansion being relatively empty tonight, it was easy for him to hide.

“Hey, did you see the Miss just now? I think I saw her return to her room.”

“I think she just came back from the ancestral hall.” One of the guards said in a drunken tone, “Did you see the lanterns hanging under the eaves of Lanyue Pavilion? They were exquisite, shining brightly in the night.”

“I saw it, I saw it. From a distance, it really is beautiful. I heard that Layan girl say it’s a gift from the County Lord, a tribute from the palace!”

“The Miss and the County Lord are really close…” The two guards were discussing in a daze, unaware that they were providing valuable information to a sneaky night visitor.

Lanyue Pavilion? Lanterns? Xiao Yan quickly grasped the key points from their conversation.

Although he could move freely in the Pei mansion and find Pei Lingyi’s courtyard without difficulty, it would be troublesome if he ran into Pei Qingyan, who had just returned from the frontier.

Now that he had this hint about the lanterns, it was like heaven was helping him.

In an instant, the person who was hiding behind the pillar had already jumped onto the roof.

The guards who were drinking seemed to sense something was off and asked, “Did you hear any noise just now?”

The other guard looked at him with a flushed face and burst out laughing. “You must have drunk too much. It’s freezing cold outside. What noise could there be?”

“Even Snow Ball in the miss’s courtyard wouldn’t dare to meow tonight.”

“Yeah, my ears must have been playing tricks on me.” The guard scratched his head, looking embarrassed, and then clinked his cup with his companion.

Meanwhile, Xiao Yan, the thief on the beam, was stepping lightly on the tiles, moving silently like a cat.

No one knew that an uninvited guest had appeared on the roof.

He narrowed his eyes, gazing at a lantern in the distance that shone brightly.

It was indeed a tribute from the palace.

The man hid behind a flowering tree in the courtyard.

The darkness concealed his figure, and the plum blossom tree in front of him emitted a faint fragrance.

But he just stared blankly at the lit-up room upstairs.

He… Didn’t know what to do.

His mind was tangled with conflicting thoughts, and he was a person who acted on impulse.

As he passed by the bustling streets and looked at the plum blossom hairpin in his hand, a vague image of a woman with tears in her eyes appeared in his mind.

That day, she had already escaped, but why did she come back?
And why did she look at him with such sadness?

Xiao Yan felt like there were two people arguing in his head, making him feel restless and unable to calm down even with the fragrance of flowers.

One voice said, “She’s a woman with deep thoughts. You experienced it four years ago. When you were attacked in the plum forest, she probably just wanted to gain your sympathy because you know what kind of person she is.”

But another voice refuted, “Nonsense! That day in the plum forest was extremely dangerous. Besides, she couldn’t predict the future. But she had already escaped and came back to save me, which shows that she’s kind-hearted.”

“Maybe I was too harsh on her in the past. Moreover, she’s a delicate woman who hasn’t seen much bloodshed. She must have been scared and tearful, not knowing what to do.”

Xiao Yan was getting a headache from the arguments in his head. He really didn’t know how to deal with Pei Lingyi.

Coming here today was a mistake.

Looking at the warmly lit room, he finally decided to return the way he came.

After all, sneaking into someone’s courtyard at night was already against the principles of a gentleman. He couldn’t become the kind of person Prince An described as lacking propriety and morality.

But things always seemed to work out in unexpected ways.

“Heir Xiao?” A soft, questioning voice came from behind him.

The man’s body stiffened slightly, and he didn’t dare to turn around.

He had come to the Pei mansion today because of some inexplicable impulse. Watching from the shadows was one thing, but being caught by the person involved was another.

The woman seemed to give him no chance to escape. In just a moment, she had reached his back.

Her footsteps on the snow made a rustling sound, and Xiao Yan could clearly hear her approaching him step by step.

Even though he was facing away from her, he could sense the fragrance in the air…

“Heir Xiao, what brings you here at such a late hour?” The woman slightly raised her head, and even though he was facing away, she could sense his body stiffening, not daring to move.

Pei Lingyi’s beautiful eyes flashed with a hint of surprise, but when she blinked again, it was gone, and no one could detect it.

She pulled on the man’s sleeve, pretending to be innocent. “Heir Xiao, why don’t you speak? It’s New Year’s Eve. Why are you here instead of spending time with your family?”

She was always hard to deal with.

Xiao Yan thought to himself, her words coming one after another, like they were trying to crush his dignity.

“Enough, stop talking…” He finally turned around, his fingers pressing against her lips to silence her.

The man slightly lowered his head, looking a bit disheveled, with strands of hair falling over his forehead, making it hard to see the expression in his eyes.

But Pei Lingyi suddenly smiled and pulled hard on his sleeve, dragging him forward.

The man was caught off guard and was pulled close, feeling a warm touch on his cheek.

His pupils suddenly widened.