Reborn Daughter: The Young Lady Wants to Make a Trouble

Li Xueyue was unable to react for a moment. She remained quiet until the only thing she could hear was his heartbeat, wild and without rhythm. She had never expected to hear such a sound.

"Shall we go?" Yu Zhen asked, deliberately contradicting his previous words. He thought she might not have heard him holding her so tightly, but the surprise written on her face showed otherwise.

"Yes, by the way, the merchant is in the city." Li Xueyue stammered, avoiding eye contact with him.

Li Xueyue knew that she needed to sort out her feelings first before responding with silly words. It had already driven a person away. Was she impatient? Was she greedy for the purest love and devotion?

"It is said that most of them are Han people. My father allowed Wuyi to trade with us." Yu Zhen told her that he had never mentioned the pendant he left behind. It was very important to him and allowed him to visit almost any place he liked. He hoped that she would cherish it and keep it properly.

“And vice versa,” Li Xueyue concluded for him as she followed him out of her house. She was surprised that he had learned the complex layout of the house so quickly. How many times had he been here? Once? Twice? She didn’t know.

"Hey, why did you come to the manor yesterday?" Li Xueyue asked while looking around.

"You remember." Yu Zhen lowered his head and smiled at her. His body blocked her view. The dazzling sunlight shone on his body, emitting a brilliant light.

"I thought it was a dream..." Li Xueyue's voice gradually faded. "You accidentally left something behind."

She cleared her throat awkwardly. "I'll give it back to you when you come back," she stammered.

"Wuyi has a tradition, doesn't it? Even though I think it's silly, I thought you might like to follow it," Yu Zhen said, pulling her along the long path towards the bustling center of the capital.

"Aren't we taking a carriage?" Li Xueyue asked, her eyes fixed on the two people's interlocked hands.

Li Xueyue didn't realize that they had been holding hands as they walked from her room to the door. Immediately, she looked around and saw that the people accompanying him were all familiar yet unfamiliar faces. His servants and guards were wearing different clothes and had weapons clearly displayed, which easily attracted people's attention. She had no doubt that there was something more hidden under their dark clothes.

"I can give you something else to ride."

"Serious!" she hissed, her eyes widening at his shameless insinuation.

Yu Zhen smiled at her cheekily, then put two fingers together and whistled. Her brows knitted together in confusion, and a minute later she heard it—the thunder of horse hooves, swift and steady, galloping toward her. She had expected a crowd of horses, but there was only one. It was the lovely color of roasted chestnuts.

"We're riding my horse. What are you thinking about?" he asked her seriously.

She opened and closed her mouth like a fish out of water. “I thought we wouldn’t be riding anything to town, but walking there. That’s why, uh, I said, take your plan seriously.”

"Correct." Yu Zhen nodded with a puzzled look on his face.

"Let's, let's jump on it."

Yu Zhen’s eyes sparkled when she heard the pun in her words. She looked at him steadily, waiting for him to point out. But literally, he was the bigger man here, and wanted to irritate her more. “You first.”

Li Xueyue rolled her eyes and walked to the giant beast in front of her.

"Wait, I forgot. The ladies need stools to help." Yu Zhen waved his hand, signaling the servants to go and find them.

"No need." Li Xueyue let go of her hand and stood beside the horse's head. She gently patted its cheek, and when it hummed in relief, she took it as an invitation.

"Are you sure? She's tall, and I need help the first time—"

Li Xueyue jumped onto the horse with smooth, confident movements, as if she had been riding it longer than he had.

Yu Zhen blinked in surprise. "Little Lizi, you traitor!" He cursed in his heart, remembering the first time he met this wild horse. Little Lizi was a nasty horse, and she wouldn't let him ride her for weeks until she gained his trust. After some training, begging, and even bribery, Little Lizi finally let Yu Zhen ride on her back.

"She, she's not usually this nice, you know. You just got lucky. Be careful, she won't let you up next time." Yu Zhen warned her and approached his horse, but the horse snorted and backed away.

"Little Lizi, you are so sexist!" He groaned and reached out to grab his horse, but was rejected again.

"Or maybe it doesn't like two people riding on it." Li Xueyue sneered. "Or maybe it doesn't like its incompetent master."

"I'll have you know that she is undeniably loyal to me and loves me to the core." Yu Zhen snorted and was about to flatter her, but she stamped her feet in protest.

"Of course she knows." Li Xueyue chuckled and reached out to touch the horse. "Good girl."

"That's my job." He frowned and crossed his arms like a sore loser.

"It doesn't look like it," she countered.

"Well, today's just your lucky day," he muttered.

"Of course," she said.

"That's enough discussion," he deadpanned.

"Ok."

“That’s great,” he said.

“Amazing.”

"Excellent." She rolled her eyes.

“Wonderful.”

“Excellent!”

"You know, I could do this all day," Yu-Jen commented, keeping his eyes on his horse, who simply snorted in response and flicked his tail.

"Wow, poor you." Li Xueyue sneered and jumped off the horse without hesitation. He squinted at her and stroked Xiao Lizi's face affectionately.

“Your nickname is so cute,” she told Ma.

Yu Zhen smiled with satisfaction, raising his chin proudly. "I know-"

"Too bad your incompetent owner had no creativity and named you after the nut your fur coating looks like[1]."

"I'm very capable." Yu Zhen gritted his teeth, his eyes sharpened by her sarcasm.

“And he likes to talk to himself. Poor guy, you suffer.” Li Xueyue put her hands on her chest sympathetically and nodded, as if she understood Xiao Lizi’s humming.

Li Xueyue screamed as a pair of muscular arms wrapped around her waist and lifted her into the air.

"What are you doing?" Very mindful of their public reputation!

Yu Zhen placed her a few feet away from the horse.

Li Xueyue blinked when she saw the slightly pouty mouth and the sullen expression of a loser on his face. She chuckled and leaned over to pinch his cheek.

"Oh, you finally lost to me. Is someone angry?"

"At least you had the decency to say 'finally'," he muttered, causing her to giggle a little.

He could have sworn his heart was beating strangely. There was a strange, sick feeling in his stomach, the likes of which he had never experienced before.

"I only said that to save your wounded ego."

"Nothing hurts," he murmured, his arms loosely wrapped around her back. "I was only pitying you with my teasing."

"Does this please you?" she mused.

"Does your victory make you successful?" he retorted.

"So you admit this is a victory." Li Xueyue smiled at him. This was the first time she showed him such an expression.

Yu Zhen was stunned for a moment, his eyes widened as the sudden attack hit him directly in the heart. In response, he grabbed her cheek and pulled hard, kicking her calf hard.

He grunted in protest. "I have a cat that kicks harder than you do."

"I don't want to break your legs, Commander."

"Oh, Princess, don't be so complacent."

"If that's true, it's not flattery."

Yu Zhen rolled his eyes, his lips twitching. "If it makes you happy, then of course."

"Indeed."

"That doesn't matter," he grumbled.

Li Xueyue wanted to wipe the smile off her face, but she couldn't. She was either crazy enough to allow this to happen, or she was just in the first stage of...optimistic thinking.

And when Li Xueyue saw his smile, his gentleness towards her and others, she immediately knew that she didn't mind the outcome of this matter.