Rebirth: After Becoming the Villainess-Chapter 326: She Admits It, She’s Just the Competitive Type

Chapter 326: Chapter 326: She Admits It, She’s Just the Competitive Type

Just then, a guard passed by. Gu Ha grabbed him and snatched the steamed bun from his hand.

"Brother Gu, that’s mine..."

"Scram."

"Right away!"

Gu Ha tossed the steamed bun to Song Lianhe.

Song Lianhe glanced at it and pouted. "Steamed buns again? I’m craving some meat."

Gu Ha glared at her. "Hey! We’re out in the wilderness, roughing it. You should be glad to have food at all, and you’re being picky?! If you won’t eat it, give it back!"

He moved to snatch it, but Song Lianhe quickly clutched it to her chest. "I’ll eat it, I’ll eat it!" Then she glared at Gu Ha. "So testy, Brother Gu. You ought to find a woman and get married!"

"You..."

Hearing this, the surrounding guards immediately started laughing and jeering. "Ah, so our Brother Gu wants a wife!"

Gu Ha was so mad he practically jumped up and down. "All of you, shut up! Scram, scram, scram!"

At that moment, Zhou Junlin and Song Xilan also disembarked from their carriage.

The moment Zhou Junlin looked up, he saw Gu Ha and Song Lianhe chatting and laughing, and his eyes gradually grew cold.

"Gu Ha."

"Ah, present!"

Gu Ha shot a glare at Song Lianhe before immediately running over. "Prince."

"Take some men and scout ahead."

"My Prince, your subordinate has already scouted ahead..."

"Then go again!"

"...Yes."

Gu Ha had no choice but to turn and rally his men once more.

Song Lianhe took a bite of the steamed bun and couldn’t help but sigh. ’It truly is hard to go from extravagance to austerity!’

And for her, it was doubly so!

Back then, Zhou Cangyan had provided her with the very best of everything—food, clothing, and all living expenses. Plus, she was good at earning money herself, so she was never short on silver. What delicacy was beyond her reach?

Yet now, all she could do was gnaw on a steamed bun...

She glanced over at Song Xilan’s group, where Kong Qing had already set a table with a spread of dishes. The food wasn’t just abundant; it was beautifully plated!

One look at the steamed bun in her hand, and it suddenly seemed a lot less appetizing.

’Fine,’ she admitted to herself, ’I’m just a petty person who loves to compare!!’

Song Lianhe got up. The midday rest was one hour long, so she decided to wander around and see if she might get lucky and find some rare herbs.

She stuck to the main road, not daring to stray too far. She hadn’t gone far when it suddenly started to rain.

Just as she was about to run back, something hit her on the head. She turned to see it was a pinecone.

As she looked up, she spotted a dilapidated pavilion in the distance.

The rain intensified. Without a second thought, she ran through the downpour and into the pavilion to take temporary shelter.

But to her surprise, there was already someone inside the pavilion!

Song Lianhe froze.

"Prince Qing?"

Zhou Cangyan sat ramrod straight at the stone table, clad entirely in black. Enveloped by the swirling rain and mist, with the distant mountains shrouded in haze, the man’s ethereal presence made the simple pavilion feel like an otherworldly, celestial palace.

"Y-You, what are you doing here?"

Suspecting she was dreaming, Song Lianhe even rubbed her eyes.

Zhou Cangyan glanced at her. "Traveling."

Only then did she realize that Zhou Cangyan must also be rushing back to Ling’an.

"Milord."

A man who looked like a scholar entered the pavilion holding an oil-paper umbrella. He walked past Song Lianhe as if she were invisible, placed a food container on the table, unpacked the meal, and then withdrew in silence.

Song Lianhe’s eyes were practically glued to the table.

Cherry Pork, Crystal Pork Terrine, Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe, Hibiscus Shrimp...

Zhou Cangyan looked up at Xuan Qi. "This is far too much. How am I supposed to eat all of this?"

Without being either deferential or arrogant, Xuan Qi bowed with his hands clasped. "This subordinate has been negligent."

Song Lianhe’s eyes were shining. "If Your Highness is troubled by this, why don’t I help you take care of it! The ancients said: Do not forget the farmer’s toil, for every grain of food is precious as gold!"

She had already plopped herself down across from Zhou Cangyan, chopsticks in hand, ready to go. She stared at him with wide, hopeful eyes, and her stomach chimed in with a happy RUMBLE.

Zhou Cangyan paused for a moment. He picked up his chopsticks, then set them down again. "I have no appetite."

With that, he rose, and Xuan Qi stepped forward with an open umbrella.

"Hey, Zhou Cangyan, don’t go..."

Song Lianhe wanted to talk to him, but she couldn’t bear to leave the table full of delicious food. By the time she looked back, Zhou Cangyan’s figure had already vanished.

She sighed, turned, and sat back down, preparing not to let his kindness go to waste.

She took a bite of the Cherry Pork. The sweet and sour flavor instantly awakened her taste buds! She squeezed her eyes shut in bliss; the exhaustion from the past several days melted away!

As she continued to eat, she lowered her head and smiled to herself.

’It couldn’t have been easy to find all this food out here in the wilderness, could it?’

’And he claimed to have no appetite...’

’If you wanted to treat me, you could have just said so. It’s not like I’d laugh at you.’

Taking a bite of a crab roe meatball, she sighed again.

’Just when I’m ready to give up on him, he always quietly dangles a bit of bait, hooking me so I can never break free.’

’Men are truly a menace!’

’Especially the handsome ones—they’re the most devilish of all!’

There wasn’t much food, just the right amount for one person. By the time she had eaten her fill, the rain had stopped.

Her mood much improved, Song Lianhe stood up in the pavilion and stretched lazily.

’Delicious food truly is the best cure for what ails you!’

Full of renewed energy, she left the pavilion.

On a small path in the rain-washed woods, a jet-black carriage stood waiting.

The man inside the carriage sat with his eyes closed, resting.

"Milord, Miss Song is on her way back."

The man opened a pair of light brown eyes. "Let’s go."

"Yes."

On the way back, Song Lianhe picked some *Lysimachia clethroides* and *Lysimachia christinae*, planning to dry them to make tea for reducing internal heat and lowering blood pressure.

The moment she returned to the campsite, she froze at the scene before her.

The camp was in utter chaos. A carriage was overturned, the coachman was injured, and a few timid maids were crying. Zhou Junlin and his guards were gone.

"What happened here?"

Before she could react, Kong Qing lunged forward, slapping the herbs out of her hand. "Where were you just now?!" she demanded. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

"I... I went..."

Song Lianhe quickly composed herself. ’Of course I can’t tell them I saw Zhou Cangyan.’

So she calmly bent down to pick up her things. "I went to gather some wild herbs for tea."

Kong Qing seized her wrist. "What a coincidence! The bandits came right after you left!"

All eyes turned toward them.

Song Xilan, looking pale and frightened herself, glanced over but remained silent.

Song Lianhe found the accusation ridiculous. She shook off Kong Qing’s hand. "If you’re sick in the head, you should ask me for a diagnosis instead of spouting baseless accusations! Are you blaming me for the bandits? Why not blame the sky for raining and bringing them out?"

Kong Qing wouldn’t let it go. "Song Lianhe! That’s a guilty conscience talking! Don’t you dare leave!"

She grabbed Song Lianhe’s sleeve. A crafty look flashed in her eyes, and she gritted her teeth. With a hard tug and a loud RIP, Song Lianhe’s sleeve was torn away, exposing her shoulder and arm, along with a glimpse of a pink undergarment...

Startled, Song Lianhe instinctively wrapped her arms around herself and crouched down.

Gasps came from all around, and she could feel several greedy stares fixed on her.

It was as if she were standing there completely naked for all to see.

Song Xilan had been watching coldly the entire time. At this, she simply looked away as if it had nothing to do with her, letting her personal maid fabricate accusations at will.

Kong Qing snorted. "What’s there to hide? If you have nothing to feel guilty about, then get up and explain yourself!" She tried to pull Song Lianhe up, then turned and yelled to the coachman and the others, "What are you all gawking at? Get over here and help!"

Master Chen sneered and shot to his feet. "If you ask me, we should search her! She’s probably hiding proof of her collusion with the bandits on her!"