This time I didn't take off the grass ring. After all, it's more enjoyable to keep such a little gift all to myself.
When Yu Chi Cheng saw that I had stopped moving, he asked, "Xi He, do you have some misunderstandings about me and Ao Qing? I only see her as a younger sister. She means nothing special to me."
I nodded in understanding and then said, "I'm your younger sister too. So your attitude towards me..." Is it the same as towards her?
I was about to say that, but before I could finish, Yu Chi Cheng interrupted me. He said anxiously, "My feelings for you are different." The look in his eyes suddenly became extremely bright, so bright that I didn't dare to look him in the eye directly. My heart suddenly started pounding, even more exciting than the horse - riding just now. What was wrong with me?
I forced a smile to cover my embarrassment and said, "Brother Yu Chi, shall we... go back first? I'm a bit hungry." After saying that, I stood up and patted my skirt.
Yu Chi Cheng also stood up. Then, as if nothing had happened just now, he said with a smile, "Then let's go back now."
So I rode on the same horse with him again and we started to head back. However, on the way back, we were both lost in our own thoughts, so there was much more silence on the road.
...
After we got back, everyone was exhausted from the journey, so there was no grand banquet as the legends said. I just had some food with my aunt and uncle casually and then went to the room prepared for me.
The palace of Bei Han was different from that of Da Yong. The palace in Da Yong had a strong sense of design everywhere. The palace walls, corners and eaves showed great ingenuity, while the palace in Bei Han had a casual and unique ethnic style.
I moved into a delicate waterside pavilion. Through the low - set courtyard windows, looking at the ripples on the pond, the secluded lotuses and the mountains reflected in the water, I couldn't help but relax my tense mind. The maid who brought me here said that this was the place where my mother used to live. When I entered the room and saw the bow hanging on the wall, I really couldn't imagine how my slender mother could hold such a big bow. Suddenly, I felt that time had buried many secrets.
The next day, Yu Chi Cheng had something to do and couldn't come to accompany me. Instead, he sent several graceful young women in tight - fitting clothes to accompany me horse - riding.
I stared at their chests for a long time and felt very discouraged. But I still cheered myself up and asked, "Do all the maids in Bei Han dress like this?"
Those women laughed. They glanced at each other and replied in unison, "We are from the female archery team."
"Female archery team?" I suddenly remembered what my mother had said about the customs in Bei Han. She said it was a cavalry - archery unit composed of women. So I pouted and said, "Okay, take me to choose a horse."
Regarding choosing a horse, my mother said it was like choosing a man. The horse should have strong hooves, a strong body and of course, not be too temperamental, otherwise, the one who would suffer would be oneself. Whenever she said this, I could always see a hint of shyness in her eyes. I felt that when she said this, she must have been thinking of something else. I had long been aware of my mother's boldness and impure thoughts, so I didn't expose her. I just listened calmly.
However, I didn't expect that the horse they chose for me was a mare. Looking at the not - very - tall piebald horse in front of me, I felt a bit helpless, but still let someone help me mount it.
My mother had told me some horse - riding skills, so horse - riding wasn't very difficult for me. The female archers accompanied me to get familiar with the horse. After walking around for a few circles, they opened the side door and led me out.
At first, I was a bit unaccustomed to being with a group of strangers. But later, thinking that I knew nothing about the roads in Bei Han, I decided not to be too out of line.
It was a pity that being law - abiding didn't work. Sometimes, I didn't go looking for trouble, but it didn't mean trouble wouldn't come looking for me. Just like today, I just wanted to have a good horse - riding session, but on the way, I met someone I shouldn't have.
"Yo, is this the princess from Da Yong that Prince Cheng brought back? She doesn't look that good in figure!" As I was riding my horse, a group of young women in red female - archery uniforms were riding towards me. In the lead were Princess Ao Qing and an elder sister with a red headband on her forehead, who seemed to be the captain of the female archery team. And it was this elder sister who had just spoken.
Princess Ao Qing smiled and said, "Yeah, I met her in a hurry yesterday. I really thought she was a stunning beauty who could bewitch Brother Yu Chi. But looking closely today, she's just so - so. No wonder Brother Yu Chi didn't even want to come and accompany her today."
Such childish provocation. I couldn't help but snort softly and said, "Please make way. We still want to continue horse - riding."
The confident elder sister on the opposite side sized me up from head to toe and then sneered, "Yu Er, Ying Han, are you two in charge of protecting her safety today? Come here right now."
The female archers behind me hesitated. "This..."
Seeing that the situation was bad, with so many of them coming over with sneers on their faces, it was obvious that they wanted to devour me. Immediately, I turned my horse around and ran. My mother had said that on someone else's territory, never act tough, otherwise, the one who would suffer would be oneself.
Who would have thought that even though I had given up on arguing with them, they still wouldn't let me go. They whipped their horses and chased after me one after another. "Come on, surround this bitch for me!"
Riding in the wild, I was all alone. How could I fight against the well - trained female archery team? So it didn't take long for me to be surrounded. At this time, the two who had said they would protect me stood up and said, "Princess Xi He is at least the guest of the eldest prince. If you attack her like this, it will be really hard for Ying Han and me to explain."
The team - captain elder sister said, "We didn't even say we were going to beat her. Is it wrong for us to just ask her to apologize to the princess?"
I steadied my horse in the crowd, scanned the people around me and couldn't help but smile faintly. "Apologize? Why should I apologize?"
Princess Ao Qing also smiled. "Don't think that just because you're a princess from Da Yong, I'm afraid of you. Let me tell you, this is the territory of Bei Han. The female archery team is here to maintain the order of the palace. Even if I tell them to beat you up today, I can say that you accidentally entered a restricted area and they didn't know your identity. Don't think that just because your aunt is the current queen, we can't do anything to you. Let me tell you, if I tell my father that you bullied me, even the king will be a bit afraid when he gets angry!"
" Oh..." After listening for so long, I finally understood. So they were just bullying others by relying on their power. But unfortunately, who am I? How could I really be afraid of her? So I sneered contemptuously, shook my head and said nothing more, just waiting to see what she would do to me.
Seeing that I wasn't afraid after listening to her for so long, she was a bit surprised. But hearing that contemptuous sneer, she couldn't hold back any longer. She directly said, "Come on, beat her to death for me. I don't believe I can't deal with this fox spirit from Da Yong. All the women from Da Yong are fox spirits. They not only snatched our king, but also came to snatch my Brother Yu Chi!"
Seeing this, Yu Er and Ying Han tried to stop them, but unfortunately, they were pushed out of the crowd. With just the two of them, how could they fight against the whole female archery team? I watched as those almost crazy women tightened the circle on their horses and couldn't help but sneer. Just as they were about to surround me with their bodies, I flipped my palm slightly and a circle of golden light spread out...