Riding Together
In the pit, the youth was leaning against the stone wall. Half of his body was shrunk under the corpse of a bloody wild wolf. Although he looked scared and a little embarrassed, he was still in a jolly mood.
He looked at his pair of crystal clear and astonishing eyes without a trace of emotion.
He Yan blurted out, “General…Xiao, why are you here?”
At this time, she thought no one would come. If fact, after thinking about it carefully, the possibility of Zheng Xuan finding someone to rescue her was extremely slim. Shen Hong was so timid that he probably did not dare say anything if threatened a little. The others could not be counted on. She could only rely on herself.
He Yan wanted to stay here until dawn. She wanted to wait for the blood on her body to dry up and her strength to return before trying to climb up the pit. She did not expect anyone to rescue her, let alone Xiao Jue.
Xiao Jue disregarded her question and only asked, “Can you come up by yourself?”
“No.”
The pit was made roughly but it was too deep. Her legs were weak and she could not move.
Xiao Jue glanced at her, turned around and left. He Yan was confused.
What does that mean? Why did he leave just like that?
A moment later, he came back with a long object in his hand. He Yan glanced at it intently. Isn’t this the bamboo stick that was broken by her? Although it was broken into two pieces, it was long enough for He Yan to grab hold of it.
Xiao Jue knelt down beside the pit and lowered the bamboo stick, “Grab hold of it.”
He Yan was speechless but had to resign her fate to hold it. Did she expect Xiao Jue to jump down and carry herself out? She shuddered in chills with that single train of thought.
This person looked as beautiful as jade. With great strength, He Yan grabbed hold of the bamboo stick. Xiao Jue pulled her out single-handedly. He stretched out his hand towards He Yan when she was close to the top, signalling He Yan to grab onto him.
He Yan stretched her arm halfway, but her hand froze in the air. Her arm was stained with blood from her fight with the wolf. She did not know whether the blood belonged to her or the wolf. Her hands were sticky.
The combination of her blood-stained hand and Xiao Jue’s jade white hand was really ugly.
Xiao Jue favoured cleanliness the most, so He Yan felt hesitant. The man seemed impatient, but before she could think, he leaned forward and gripped her wrist, pulling her up.
The suffocating smell of blood no longer lingered now that she was out of the pit. The sky had become much larger as well. The stars were spread all over across her eyes, with the ones on her peripheral vision sinking to the ground. Countless bright ones merged together, illuminating the world.
She looked at Xiao Jue again.
The young man stood up, dropped the bamboo stick and stared at her.
“Did you kill the wolf?”
He Yan did not understand what the problem was.
The smile still graced her lips, “Yes, I almost died. It was stoned to death because I didn’t have a weapon, and I was bitten twice from the fight.”
Bloodstains leaked from the teenager’s sleeves, dyeing the original red clothing darker. She looked as normal and asked nonchalantly, “Why did the General come in person? What about the others?”
“It’s too late. I came up alone.”
He clicked his tongue and only then did He Yan see that there was a horse not far away. The horse was not tied with a rope. The horse heard Xiao Jue’s signal, so it obediently ran next to Xiao Jue’s side itself.
He Yan saw its ears turn green from the moonlight’s illumination. Her heart moved. Everyone knows that General Feng Yun has a favourite horse. It could travel thousands of miles a day, chasing both wind and lighting. She did not expect to see Lu Er today.
“Then…Are we going back now?” He Yan asked hesitantly.
Xiao Jue looked at her in disbelief, “Do you want to spend the night here?”
“No, I don’t,” He yan explained, “I mean, there’s no one else here but a horse.”
Does Xiao Jue want her to trek the entire way back to camp? Would that not be too cruel and miserable for her?
He patted Lu Er’s head and the steed lowered his head docilely.
Xiao Jue commanded, “Get up here.”
Did she hear it right? Was Xiao Jue really letting her ride this peerless horse?
“Huh…me?” He Yan was shocked.
Xiao Jue’s mouth twitched, “You can walk back if you want.”
“No, no, I can’t!” He Yan replied, “I’m just very honoured!”
What a great day. She could actually ride the legendary Lu Er. He Yan just wanted to laugh out loud.
She limped towards Lu Er. This horse was extremely tall and powerful. The movement of the horse turning should have been very dashing, but now, she was hurt all over. She couldn’t be cool even if she wanted to. She could only grab the saddle with one hand and attempt to climb up.
He Yan’s leg was injured and her arm was bitten by the wolf. When she exerted force, the dried out blood immediately oozed out, soaking half of her sleeve. Even then, her expression remained steady. Her pale face still had a large grin and drops of sweat rolled on her forehead, damping her hair.
This person did not even know how messed up he looked. Xiao Jue raised his eyebrows slightly at this notion.
He Yan was still climbing up with her hands and feet together. The voice above her spoke, “Are you not hurt?”
He Yan was taken aback by the question. Before she knew, he hoisted her up from her waist. She was already sitting in front of Xiao Jue before she had time to exclaim. The moon lily fragrance wafted across her senses, disrupting her thoughts.
“Sit still.” Xiao Jue commanded.
He Yan could not explain how she felt at this moment.
She did not explain Xiao Jue would actually hug her from behind on horseback….Could this be considered a back hug? She could not comprehend the situation quick enough. It happened too fast.
However, right now, he was indeed sitting behind her. He Yan was petite, her head just reached his chest. This was as if….As if she was snuggling in his arms.
She was horrified by this idea herself. In her mind, she did not feel ashamed, but rather, frightened. Xiao Jue was not a romantic person and she had the identity of a man.
Today, all kinds of things happened. Was she dreaming?
“What’s wrong?” He asked.
“Look at the wolf,” He Yan pointed at the wolf corpse in the pit, “I had a hard time killing it, so it’ll be a pity to just leave it here.”
The man responded, annoyed, “What do you want?”
“Can I bring it along?” He Yan asked tentatively.
After a long pause, the young man sneered, “Sure.”
“Really?” He Yan looked back in surprise, “General, you’re such a nice person!” She really did not expect much.
The corners of his lips curved upwards, his gaze remained indifferent, “If it comes up, you go down.”
He Yan was speechless for a moment, “Forget I said that.”
The horse started to walk a couple of steps. She turned her head back and almost bumped into Xiao Jue’s arms, “Or, I could go down and peel the wolf skin before leaving. It’s going to be autumn soon and it’ll be cold in no time. How nice would it be to make wolf leather boots?”
The answer to her comment was two heartless words.
“Shut up.”
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