The little black horse had no idea it now had a new name and continued lazily chewing hay with its tongue. Qian Jiaoniang stroked its back—it was slick and fresh-feeling. She’d been watching Xing Pingchun ride all morning and had long been itching to try. “Chou’er, let’s make a deal. Your little… Ant—can Mother ride it for a bit?”
Xing Pingchun was clearly reluctant, but since it was his own mother asking, he could only grit his teeth and part with it. “Alright then!” he said, but added a condition, “But Mother can only ride for half an hour—no more!”
“Got it, got it! Thank you, my son!”
Wang Yong came over with his own horse and asked, upon hearing that Qian Jiaoniang wanted to ride, “Madam, do you know how to ride?”
“Nope,” Qian Jiaoniang answered crisply. “But I’m smarter than Chou’er, so I should learn faster.”
Xing Pingchun wasn’t annoyed at all. Instead, he chimed in, “That’s right! My mother is the smartest in the world!”
Mother and son both straightened their backs proudly. Qingya couldn’t hold in her laughter and covered her mouth with a handkerchief. She lightly scraped her face with a finger. “This is the first time I’ve seen such a shameless mother and son.”
“That’s just because you haven’t seen much of the world.” Qian Jiaoniang huffed. “Master Wang Yong, I’ll trouble you then.”
Wang Yong glanced at Xing Muzheng not far away and lowered his voice, “Madam, if you want to learn to ride, perhaps you should ask the Commander…” He trailed off mid-sentence, realizing it probably wasn’t a good idea. He worried it might embarrass Qian Jiaoniang, so he changed his tune and smiled, “Madam, how about I lead the horse for you to try first?”
“Alright! Thank you,” Qian Jiaoniang replied cheerfully, acting like she hadn’t heard his earlier suggestion.
Wang Yong dusted off his sleeves, took the horse’s reins in one hand, and held out his arm with the other for Qian Jiaoniang to use as support. Qian Jiaoniang smilingly extended her delicate fingers—but before she could touch him, a sharp crack of a whip sliced through the air.
Wang Yong gave a muffled cry of pain, clutching his arm. He turned and saw his master atop Lightning, whip in hand, face dark as thunder, eyes fixed on him. Wang Yong didn’t know what he’d done wrong. He knelt on one knee, facing Xing Muzheng.
Qian Jiaoniang was startled and turned to shout, “What are you going crazy for?!”
The sudden commotion drew everyone’s attention. Liu Ying had just been secretly giving Tian Linwen a massage inside the carriage. At the sound of Qian Jiaoniang’s voice, she immediately lifted the curtain to peek outside. She saw Qian Jiaoniang glaring furiously at Xing Muzheng, who looked even grimmer atop his horse.
Were they about to fall out in public? Liu Ying was thrilled. She reached backward, slapping hard without care for where her hand landed. Tian Linwen let out two yelps of pain.
Liu Ying said, “Husband, get up and look! Our dear nephew is about to put Qian Jiaoniang in her place!”
Tian Linwen, sore and aching from horseback riding, still scrambled up and craned his neck to look outside with Liu Ying.
Xing Muzheng swung off his horse, the tension in his brows thick with murderous intent. Ah Da came running over and saw Wang Yong clutching his arm on the ground but didn’t know what offense he’d committed to provoke the Commander. In his anxiety, he dared not act rashly.
Just moments earlier, Xing Pingchun had seen a black shadow whip past his eyes. In a blink, his father’s cold and fierce face had appeared. Without knowing why, his legs started trembling.
The air froze.
Xing Muzheng stepped off the stirrup and slowly walked toward Qian Jiaoniang—each step like it landed directly on everyone’s hearts. Qian Jiaoniang clenched her fists, staring at the whip in his hand. It looked like it might lash down on her any second.
Suddenly, Xing Muzheng stepped forward, and an arm wrapped around her waist. Her body was lifted into the air. The world spun around her, and before she knew what had happened, she was sitting atop the big black horse.
Everyone had been holding their breath and were now completely stunned. Weren’t they just moments from an all-out showdown? How had it turned into him lifting her onto his horse?
Ah Da, Wang Yong, and the others who had followed Xing Muzheng closely were especially shocked. Lightning was the Commander’s treasured steed, personally tamed by him. It was always guarded, and no one else was allowed to touch it. The last time he had forcibly lifted Qian Jiaoniang onto it to stop her wedding could be excused as a desperate move—but today? Why was he doing it again?
Qian Jiaoniang’s eyes were practically spitting fire. This was the second time! The second time she’d been thrown onto this horse—and in front of everyone! Did Xing Muzheng have some deep-seated grudge against her? Was he trying to torment her to death?
“What the h*ll are you doing!” Qian Jiaoniang shouted. Looking down made her dizzy. She swung her legs from side to side, but they weren’t as long as Xing Muzheng’s—she couldn’t even reach the stirrups. She could only crouch on the horse and growl.
“You want to learn to ride. Don’t take Chou’er’s little horse.” Xing Muzheng’s face remained emotionless, though he was inwardly trying to calm his temper. Just now, when he saw her smiling as she reached out to Wang Yong, a wave of rage surged through him. Without thinking, he’d lashed out with the whip.
She wanted to learn to ride? Fine. He could teach her. Why go to someone else? And why get so close with them?
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