"Your Highness!"
Wei Hong chuckled softly: "It's alright, there's no one around here."
He specifically chose a sparsely populated place, had someone scout it out beforehand, and after confirming that no one was around, he surrounded the area and brought Yao Youqing there specifically to ride horses.
Zhou's mother and Qiongyu were left in the carriage. Now, besides him and Yao Youqing, the only other people nearby were Cui Hao, who was following them at a distance, and the guards hidden in the shadows.
The guards' duty was to protect their safety, and to make sure no one approached, they kept a wary eye on the perimeter, not even glancing in their direction.
Yao Youqing, a woman with absolutely no martial arts skills, was completely unaware of their presence.
"Lord Cui is still behind!"
Yao Youqing said.
He can't see.
Wei Hong replied.
Not to mention that Cui Hao was behind them and couldn't see what he did to Yao Youqing.
Even if he actually saw it, he would pretend he didn't.
Knowing when to be blind and when to be deaf is a skill Cui Hao developed over many years of training with Wei Hong.
Are you cold?
Wei Hong pulled his cloak over himself and wrapped it around the girl.
Now is not a good time to learn to ride a horse. It's too cold, and when the horse runs, the cold wind feels like knives scraping your face.
If he hadn't impulsively agreed, and if the girl hadn't been so enthusiastic about not being afraid of the cold, he wouldn't have planned to come at all; he would have waited until spring.
Yao Youqing shook her head and shook her head.
“Mother Zhou found me the thickest clothes to wear, and the prince somehow got me a fur hat, so I’m not cold at all.”
This hat was made from the finest fur that Liancheng had sent back then. Wei Hong rarely wore it himself, but this time it was perfect for Yao Youqing to use.
However, the girl's head was small, so the hat was a bit too big. She had to wear another hat inside to make it fit properly.
Wei Hong watched her shaking her head and swaying, then smiled and reached out to pull her hand that was holding the reins. Her little hands were indeed freezing cold.
"I'll hold the reins. You pull your hands back and warm them up before you continue learning."
Yao Youqing wanted to say no, but Wei Hong had already taken the reins without giving her a chance to say anything. He held the rope in one hand and wrapped the other arm around her, pulling her arms into his embrace.
She turned around, smiled with narrowed eyes, and said, "Thank you, Your Highness."
Looking at her smiling face, Wei Hong couldn't help but lean down and kiss her cheek again. Before the girl could speak, he said, "We'll learn for half an hour today. Once we've learned enough, we'll go back."
"Half an hour? That's so short?"
Yao Youqing frowned.
“It’s not a short time for you,” Wei Hong said. “If it takes too long, your legs will hurt when you get back.”
But half an hour later, Yao Youqing didn't feel any pain in her legs at all, and kept pestering Wei Hong to let her study a little longer.
Wei Hong would usually agree to such small things, but this time he didn't. He whispered in her ear, "You don't feel any pain now, but you'll know when we get back."
Yao Youqing didn't understand at the time, until she dismounted, took a carriage back to the city, and got out of the carriage at the Prince's Mansion, she realized that Wei Hong was right.
Her legs, which hadn't hurt before, started to ache, especially the inner thighs, which felt sore and weak. She almost twisted her ankle when she got off the bus.
Fortunately, Wei Hong had the foresight to pull her into his arms as he helped her out of the car, preventing her from falling to the ground.
"Why did this happen...?"
Yao Youqing said while rubbing her sore legs.
Wei Hong smirked: "Who was it that kept pestering me to learn a little more?"
He then picked the girl up and carried her towards the inner courtyard.
Yao Youqing was startled and quickly struggled to get up.
"Your Highness, put me down! I can walk!"
Wei Hong not only didn't let go, but instead hugged her even tighter.
"There are no outsiders in the mansion, what are you afraid of? Don't move around, or you'll fall."
Seeing that the girl was still struggling, he lowered his voice and said, "If you move again, I'll kiss you."
The girl in his arms quieted down and stopped making a sound. She buried her head in his chest out of shyness, as if that would hide her from everyone else.
Wei Hong laughed loudly, carried her into the room, placed her on the bed, and casually took off her shoes.
This action alerted the girl, who quickly raised her foot, and Wei Hong, who was bending down to get closer, had his chest pressed against her toes.
"Your Highness, what are you going to do? I... my leg hurts."
The implication is that she doesn't want to do those things right now.
Wei Hong chuckled: "What did you think I was going to do?"
The girl blushed and remained silent. Wei Hong held her ankle and moved her leg away, then leaned closer and said, "It's because your leg hurts that I need to take a look. If it gets chafed, you can't go tomorrow. We'll talk about it when it's healed."
Yao Youqing was taken aback: "I don't think so?"
She only felt soreness, not stinging pain, so it must mean that the skin wasn't chafed.
How will you know if you don't look?
As Wei Hong spoke, he went to untie her belt.
Although he had already had thick padding added to the saddle, this girl has delicate skin, so who knows if it will work?
Yao Youqing quickly reached out to stop her: "I...I'll take a look myself, Your Highness..."
"It's not like I haven't seen it before."
Wei Hong pushed her small hand away and quickly pulled her pants down to her knees.
Yao Youqing's face flushed red, but she couldn't refuse him, so she could only take a quick look and then hurriedly put her legs together: "It's not chafed."
Wei Hong naturally saw it too, nodded, stood up and went to find some medicated oil to massage her, hoping it would make her feel more comfortable.
But when they returned with the medicated oil, the girl had put her pants back on.
He stood by the bed, both amused and exasperated: "You're pretty quick, aren't you? Take it off."
Yao Youqing shook her head: "I can do it myself, or... or you can have Aunt Zhou or the others come, Your Highness doesn't need to..."
"Will you take it off yourself, or should I take it off for you?"
Wei Hong sat down and interrupted.
The girl puffed out her cheeks and didn't move for a long time. When she saw him about to reach out again, she reluctantly hummed and half-pulled down her pants.
Wei Hong poured the medicated oil into his hand and gently rubbed it on the inside of her legs, just like he had rubbed her bruised calves before.
This medicated oil is a standard medicine in the army and one of Li Tai's proudest creations. It can not only treat sprains and bruises, but also effectively relieve muscle soreness.
He had only applied the ointment to make the girl feel better, but as he applied it, his mind began to waver, and his palm unconsciously moved upwards.
Yao Youqing sensed something was wrong and quickly stopped her: "Your Highness, it doesn't hurt here...it doesn't hurt here."
Wei Hong snapped out of his daze and moved his hand back.
After finally finishing applying the medicated oil, Yao Youqing breathed a sigh of relief and was about to put her pants back on.
The man casually tossed the medicated oil aside, then leaned down and pressed himself against her, sealing her lips with a passionate kiss.
Yao Youqing was silenced by the gag, and when he finally managed to move his lips away and speak, he gasped, "Your Highness, didn't you just say... you wouldn't do these things?"
Wei Hong breathed heavily, and his large hands expertly tore open her clothes.
When did I say that?
He only said he would apply the medicated oil to her, but he didn't say he wouldn't do anything after applying the oil.
Yao Youqing thought carefully, but had no answer. She could only look at him with a pitiful expression and say, "But my legs hurt..."
Wei Hong paused slightly, panting heavily as he lay on top of her.
He had been away from Cangcheng for a long time and only returned yesterday. Although he had already been intimate with the girl last night, it was clearly not enough.
These days of longing and the uncontrollable fantasies he had at night made him wish he could hold the girl in his arms all the time.
However, her legs hurt, so it wasn't really appropriate to torture her like before.
Wei Hong swallowed, kissed her lips, and said in a hoarse voice, "How about using my hand?"
Yao Youqing hated touching that ugly thing with her hands the most, and she frowned and shook her head repeatedly.
Wei Hong couldn't hold back any longer and half-coaxed and half-forced her to help him relieve himself.
Afterwards, seeing that it was still early and there was still some time before lunch, he patted her back and said, "I'll have someone turn on the water, let's go soak in the pool."
Yao Youqing's clothes had been completely undressed by him. His body was covered in his sweat and the marks left by his kisses, and his hands and legs were sticky and dirty.
She felt uncomfortable being asked to just wipe herself down and have lunch, so she nodded in agreement.
The hot water was poured in shortly, and steam rose from the pool.
Wei Hong led Yao Youqing inside, and as before, he held the girl in front of him, washed away the marks on her body, and then held her lazily without moving, only resting his chin on the top of her head, occasionally rubbing it lightly.
Yao Youqing was also a little tired. She twisted her body a few times in his arms, trying to find a comfortable angle to lean against. However, she accidentally stepped on his foot while moving. When she was about to lift it up, she stepped on it again for some reason. It was very light. She just put her foot on his broad instep. Then, as if she had discovered something new and interesting, she opened her round eyes and exclaimed in surprise, "Your Highness, your feet are so big!"
She could step her entire foot on the back of his foot!
Wei Hong raised an eyebrow, lifted his leg to expose his foot above the water: "Is it big?"
“It’s huge,” Yao Youqing said, lifting her leg up as well, “much bigger than mine!”
With their legs pressed together, the difference between men and women is immediately apparent.
If Wei Hong's legs are like a sturdy, thick tree trunk, then Yao Youqing's legs are probably the most delicate and tender branches.
Not to mention the size of those two feet.
Looking at it this way, Wei Hong also felt that the difference was indeed very obvious, and laughed, "Why are your feet so small?"
As he spoke, he touched her fair and tender feet with his own.
Yao Youqing retorted, "It's clearly because the prince's feet are too big!"