The passers - by in the tea shed saw the horse charging towards them and screamed, dropping their bundles and cups as they scurried to the sides.
In an instant, the tea shed was in chaos.
Up ahead, the young girl's body was jolted violently on the horse, looking as if she was about to be thrown off at any moment.
Cang Xuan's face changed. He gathered his qi and used his light - footed skills to rush towards the charging horse. Amid the girl's panicked screams, he flipped onto the horse's back, encircled the girl in his arms, covered her hands holding the reins, and gave a hard tug.
A man's strength is much greater than a woman's. The horse, in pain, immediately stopped its headlong charge. It reared up its hooves high, trying to throw the two riders off.
Cang Xuan tightly wrapped one arm around the girl's waist, pulling her close to his chest. With the other hand, he held onto the reins firmly. His legs clamped tightly around the horse's belly as he let out a loud horse whistle.
The horse was gradually soothed by him and finally stopped just outside the tea shed. The common people resting and drinking tea inside the shed let out a long sigh of relief.
"Y - Yun Jian, thank you," came the girl's trembling voice from his arms. Cang Xuan looked down and met the girl's still - frightened face.
Only then did Cang Xuan realize how intimate their position was. The girl was practically locked in his arms, and his hand was still around her waist...
His Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily. He forced himself to ignore the strange feeling in his heart and asked, "Are you okay?"
The girl shook her head and said to him, "Please let me down."
He carried the girl off the horse. Just as he was about to let go, the girl grabbed his robe in a flurry and clung to him desperately, crying,
"Help me. My legs are weak."
With her tearful and pitiful face, Cang Xuan instinctively put his arm around her waist again to help her stand steady.
Su Huaiyuan and Su Huaisheng caught up from behind. They had seen Su Yuanyuan swaying on the horse from afar and heard her screams, so they knew something was wrong.
The two rushed forward to save their sister. To their surprise, they saw the man named "Yun Jian" get on their precious sister's horse. Although the horse was under control and no major incident occurred.
However, they both saw it! That "Yun Jian" had held their precious sister in his arms!
If it was an unavoidable move in an emergency, that would be one thing. But why didn't he let go even after they got off the horse? It was simply outrageous!
After the two brothers rushed forward to stop the horse, they rolled up their sleeves, jumped off their horses, and walked menacingly towards the two close - standing figures.
"Hey, Yun! Let go of my sister. How long do you plan to hold her? Don't you know the propriety between men and women?!"
Su Huaisheng was even angrier. "You scoundrel! I've always thought your looks at my sister were off. So you've had this in mind all along. Let go of her now!"
It was an emergency, and he had no choice. Just as Cang Xuan was about to defend himself, the girl in his arms said,
"No, Second Brother, Third Brother. It's because Yuanbao's legs are too weak to stand, so Brother Yun is just helping me."
Cang Xuan felt somewhat relieved. He thought the little girl was quite loyal and knew how to speak for him. He let go of his hand and said to the two brothers, "That's right."
Su Yuanyuan stepped away from his embrace. She dragged her weak legs forward a couple of steps and smiled at her two brothers. "Don't misunderstand Brother Yun. He's a good person."
It was obvious that she really seemed to have weak legs. Presumably, it was because it was her first time riding a horse and she had been scared just now. The two brothers were then relieved.
However, Su Huaisheng still harbored hostility towards Cang Xuan. As he reached out to support Su Yuanyuan, he said to Cang Xuan,
"Although you saved our sister this time, this is a one - time thing. Don't let it happen again. If I see you getting too close to my sister again, I'll chop your hands off!"
Unexpectedly, before his hand could touch Su Yuanyuan, the girl showed a sly smile. She ducked under his hand, rushed into the tea shed, jumped up, and grabbed the flag hanging on the pillar. Then she turned around and waved it at the people behind her.
"I got the flag first, so I win this competition!"
The girl's smile was so proud. There was no trace of the panic she had shown before. Moreover, the way she ran just now was extremely light - footed. It didn't seem like there was anything wrong with her at all. How could the others not understand?
"Oh! I get it. So all this was Yuanbao's plan!" Su Huaiyuan's eyes lit up and he clapped his hands with a laugh.
"Our Yuanbao is so smart," Su Huaisheng said with a smile. "We're convinced to lose to Yuanbao."
Cang Xuan looked at the brightly - smiling girl. He felt as if something was blocking his chest, making it hard for him to catch his breath.
So, was everything just now fake?
Did she pretend all that just to stop his steps and prevent him from getting the flag?
How was she so sure that he would turn back to help her? How was she so sure that nothing bad would happen to her?
What if even he couldn't control the runaway horse?
Su Yuanyuan was originally happy to have won against her two brothers and Cang Xuan. But when she met Cang Xuan's gaze, she was stunned. The smile on her face faded, and she felt uneasy.
Was he angry?
Since they had reached the tea shed, everyone decided to take a break there before returning to the villa. They ordered a pot of hot tea and the four of them sat down in the tea shed. Su Yuanyuan sat opposite Cang Xuan. Her two brothers were enthusiastically discussing the scenery they had seen along the way, and Cang Xuan also chimed in from time to time with a beaming smile on his face.
But Su Yuanyuan just felt that something was off about him.
After drinking the tea, everyone prepared to head back. As she held onto the saddle and got on the horse, Su Yuanyuan stole a few cautious glances at Cang Xuan, but he didn't look her way. She couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed.
On the way back, they no longer urged their horses to gallop. Instead, they let the horses walk at their own pace.
Su Yuanyuan wanted to talk to Cang Xuan. She steered her horse towards him, but when her two brothers saw this, they deliberately rode in between them, separating the two.
After several attempts like this, Su Yuanyuan gave up. She lowered her head dejectedly and patted the horse beneath her.
As they walked, she gradually fell behind. Up ahead, her two brothers seemed to have said something. They slapped their horses' rumps and galloped forward.
Seeing this, Su Yuanyuan clamped her horse's belly and tried to catch up. But suddenly, a weight fell on her back. Her back was pressed against a warm body, and her hands holding the reins were covered by someone.
Su Yuanyuan turned around in surprise. "Yun Jian?"
Cang Xuan didn't look at her. He pulled the reins and drove the horse in another direction.
The girl's down - cast mood immediately brightened. She said with a smile, "I thought you were angry with me and would never talk to me again."
The man behind her remained silent and just urged the horse on.
Looking at the scenery on both sides, which was completely different from the way they came, Su Yuanyuan asked curiously, "Where are you taking me?"
The horse climbed up the mountain along the mountain path, entered the towering pine forest, and leaped onto a high platform. Seeing a cliff below the high platform, Su Yuanyuan turned as white as a sheet.
What was he going to do?