Chapter 136 The Abandoned Orphan
However, Chen Yanqing ran a full mile behind Li Yuanzhao's horse before finally giving up.
He bent over, holding his knees and panting heavily, and shouted at the man and horse that were gradually pulling away from each other.
"Your Highness! Wait for me!"
Upon hearing this, Li Yuanzhao reined in his horse and turned to look at Chen Yanqing.
His forehead was soaked with sweat and clung tightly to his skin, making him look utterly disheveled.
Chen Yanqing hurriedly approached, unable to help but complain in a low voice, "You don't really want me to run all the way to Weizhou with you, do you? Even if I had that kind of stamina, two legs can't keep up with a horse's four legs!"
When he gave the horse to Xiao Cui, he was filled with excitement and admiration for Li Yuanzhao, and didn't think about how he should travel.
Only now is he belatedly realizing that after the passion fades, he is the only one who suffers.
Li Yuanzhao raised an eyebrow, pondered for a moment, and then stretched out a hand, "Come up."
His tone carried a clear hint of impatience.
Chen Yanqing's eyes lit up, and he immediately forgot about his sore legs. He quickly stepped forward, used Li Yuanzhao's strength to flip himself onto the horse, and sat steadily behind her.
The horse's back was not wide to begin with, and the two of them were pressed tightly together.
He could even smell the dust in her hair, mixed with a faint scent of her usual ink.
After settling in, Chen Yanqing's hands froze in mid-air, unsure of where to put them.
Just then, a picture suddenly flashed through my mind.
During the hunt in the first half of the year, Li Yuanzhao also rode the same horse as Lin Xuean.
At that moment, Lin Xuean's arm was naturally wrapped around Li Yuanzhao's waist, in a very intimate manner...
That memory had resurfaced countless times in his midnight dreams, each time bringing a pang of sadness to his heart.
And now, the person sitting behind her is him!
The moment this thought crossed Chen Yanqing's mind, her heart began to race.
He took a deep breath, tentatively reached out, and gently wrapped his arms around Li Yuanzhao's waist.
As his fingertips touched the fabric around her waist, he could even vaguely feel her warm body temperature and the heat emanating from her.
The sensation made his heart almost leap out of his chest, and even his ears felt a little hot.
The moment Li Yuanzhao was embraced, his brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.
She remained silent for a moment, but ultimately did not push him away. Instead, she tightened her grip on the horse's flanks and headed towards Weizhou.
Chen Yanqing sat behind Li Yuanzhao, his arm gently around her waist. The steady breathing from her, accompanied by the rhythmic swaying of the horse, gave him a sense of peace he had never felt before.
This sense of security has nothing to do with her noble status as a princess, but rather stems from her as a person.
Just like when she made the promise to Xiao Cui that "there will definitely be white flour cakes to eat in the future," there was a strange sense of reassurance in her.
It was as if anything she said would come true.
Chen Yanqing stared at the black hair in front of her, her mind racing.
Those memories, hidden deep in my heart for many years, surged up uncontrollably on this bumpy horseback ride.
"Your Highness, do you know? I actually have no father or mother. I was an abandoned orphan at birth. I barely survived by relying on the food from the neighbors in the village."
The wind blew past my ears, carrying a cool sensation.
Li Yuanzhao held the reins firmly, his gaze still fixed on the official road ahead. He neither turned around nor responded, as if he were listening, yet also as if he hadn't heard a thing.
Chen Yanqing, however, seemed to have opened a floodgate of words and continued, "When I was little, I looked forward to rain the most, not because it was cool, but because wild mushrooms would grow in the ground after the rain. I was most afraid of winter, when I was so cold that I couldn't sleep, so I would huddle in the haystack in the dilapidated temple. When there was no food, I would dig up the unripe radishes in other people's fields and swallow them while chewing on the raw skin."
"You might not believe it, but I once snatched leftovers from the old yellow dog's bowl at the alley entrance. It chased me over several hills, and I still have the scar on my leg. Back then, I felt that being able to eat my fill every day was the happiest thing in the world."
His voice was soft, with a hint of teasing about the past, yet it also concealed a subtle bitterness.
“Actually, I didn’t have a proper name before I met my master when I was twelve. Everyone in the village called me Little Lu Zai. Later, when I met my master, he said that everyone has to have a name, so he named me Yan Qing using his surname Chen, saying that he hoped I could withstand the polishing like an inkstone and that my heart could be as pure as clear water.”
For some reason, the words "twelve years old" reminded Li Yuanzhao of Liu Jinzhang.
She met him when she was twelve years old.
For the next six years, Liu Jinzhang taught her to read, write, understand military strategy, and discern people's hearts, imparting all his knowledge to her, which gave her the insight she has today.
The Grand Tutor was, after all, the person closest to her in this world. Now that he was gone, her path had indeed become more difficult.
However, she never regretted killing him.
They both knew what kind of person the other was.
If he knew that his closest person would one day betray him and make the same choice as him.
Chen Yanqing, unaware of her slight change in expression, continued to murmur, "So when I learned by chance a few days ago that your nickname was Que Nu, I was actually a little envious. Que Nu sounds so affectionate, it must be that His Majesty truly loves you very much to give you such a nickname."
He said with some envy, "I grew up without parents and never knew... what it feels like to have a father."
Upon hearing this, Li Yuanzhao coldly asked, "Why are you telling me these things?"
Chen Yanqing was taken aback by the question, his hand unconsciously tightened a little, then he quickly relaxed it.
He didn't actually know why he suddenly said these things.
Perhaps it was the quiet atmosphere on horseback, or perhaps the warmth in front of me made me want to lean on it.
Or perhaps, subconsciously, he wanted her to see his wretched yet vivid past, and wanted her to feel sorry for him.
But faced with her cold tone, all his thoughts seemed to have been doused with cold water, and he could only manage to say, "It's nothing... I was just being nosy."
"Then shut up."
Li Yuanzhao replied without turning his head, his voice devoid of any warmth.
Chen Yanqing obediently shut her mouth, feeling somewhat wronged.
But he didn't see the murderous intent surging in Li Yuanzhao's eyes.
When she heard Chen Yanqing mention her father, she couldn't help but think of the name "Li Chengji".
His father is about to give him the entire empire; how can this not be considered love?
However, Chen Yanqing is destined never to experience what it's like to have a father.
She's keeping him around only because he's still useful.
After dealing with Li Yuanyou, her next target will be him...
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