Chapter 75: Do I need a reason to be nice to her?
In the evening, the team arrived at a village, and Qin Huo ordered everyone to stop and rest and set off again tomorrow.
General Fu was speechless. Before, he had marched at a speed of a thousand miles a day, and conquering the wilderness took only a day and a night. But now, returning to Daqi was like sightseeing, moving at a snail's pace.
"Young Prince, some of the young generals below may have objections." Everyone has wives, concubines, children and a warm bed at home, so who wouldn't be eager to go home?
Qin Huo, on horseback, looked down at him, the right corner of his mouth raised slightly, and he smiled so hard that General Fu's hair stood on end. "I've been riding all day and I'm tired. What's the matter? Do they have any complaints? If they are unhappy, come and tell me in person."
The burly General Fu shuddered and nodded reluctantly.
Everyone knows that this young prince has all kinds of tricks up his sleeve. Who would dare to come to him and offer suggestions?
He was just an eleven-year-old kid, but that smile was even creepier than a tyrant's.
He stole a glance at Qin Huo and saw him nimbly jump off the horse and walk briskly towards the carriage behind. He couldn't help feeling ashamed.
You don't look tired at all, can't you just pretend?
"Tianbao, are you hungry?" Before Qin Huo reached the carriage, a cheerful voice ran over.
In the spacious carriage with thick cushions, Tianbao touched his round belly and burped.
She had thought being a hostage would be miserable, but she had not expected to be treated so well today. Fruits, cakes, snacks, everything was available, and she was so greedy that she couldn't stop eating all afternoon.
So she shook her head honestly: "I'm not hungry, thank you brother."
Xu Laiqing looked at Tianbao unhappily, his eyes full of helplessness.
He had already told her in the afternoon many things about the intimacy between men and women, such as not smiling at boys casually or calling other boys "brother" affectionately. But it was obvious that Tianbao had ignored him again.
Qin Huo had never felt that the word "brother" could be so pleasant to the ear, so he looked at Xu Laiqing with a smile: "Then you go eat, I'll accompany Tianbao."
Xu Laiqing shook his head: "Thank you, Your Highness. I'm not hungry either."
How could he leave Tianbao alone? Ridiculous.
Qin Huo glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and ignored this troublemaker.
He asked someone to bring a half-grown pony and personally pulled the reins: "Tianbao, do you want to ride a horse?"
Tianbao's eyes suddenly lit up: "Is it okay?"
"Of course you can." Qin Huo smiled dotingly and wanted to rub the little ball of fluff on her head, but under Xu Laiqing's fierce gaze, he held back.
He remembered the letters Tianbao had written back to him. In one of them, she said she loved riding horses, but she was lucky to be able to ride them secretly twice a year because the tyrant emperor and Prince Jing would not allow her to ride. She could only ride around Wang Tianyu's yard a few times when she went out of the palace to play.
Tianbao turned his eager eyes to look at Xu Laiqing: "Third brother, can I ride?"
Xu Laiqing bowed to Qin Huo and said, neither servile nor arrogant, "My sister is young, and I am worried. Please allow me to ride with her."
Qin Huo raised his eyebrows. Are you serious?
Seeing that he didn't say anything, Xu Laiqing thought for a while and realized that they now had a hostage, a man and a woman. A normal person would not let both of them ride horses. What if one of them ran away?
As expected, Qin Huo smiled and said, "Don't worry, my riding skills are quite good. I will protect her. Prince Nanqiao can rest here."
Xu Laiqing looked at Tianbao and shook his head slightly.
Tian Bao glanced at the beautiful bay horse and said with a forced smile, "My Lord, since my third brother can't ride, then I won't ride either. We should all share the happiness. I can't just focus on playing by myself and leave my third brother here all alone."
As she spoke, she lowered her head and looked up at Qin Huo pitifully, her eyes soft and wet as she tried to suppress the longing in her heart. Although she looked at the chestnut horse with such reluctance, she forced her face away and said insincerely, "Actually, I don't really want to ride a horse either."
There was a faint sobbing tone, as if he was about to cry.
"You ride it!"
"Your third brother can ride along!"
Xu Laiqing and Qin Huo couldn't stand it anymore and changed their words almost at the same time.
The two looked at each other in silence.
Qin Huo's brows were furrowed, not understanding why he suddenly lost his temper; Xu Laiqing also bit his tongue in annoyance. He was really possessed by the devil, and actually agreed to let Tianbao go horseback riding with Qin Huo alone.
Tianbao lowered his head, chuckled for a moment, and then looked up again and returned to his pitiful look.
A pure and innocent look like a little rabbit fell on Qin Huo's face: "Third brother, can we really go horseback riding together?"
Qin Huo raised his chin slightly: "Okay."
Tianbao and Xulaiqing didn't think about escaping. After all, the monk can run away but the temple cannot. It would be of no benefit for Nanqiao to escape at the moment.
So Tianbao lifted her skirt without any burden and was about to stuff it into the sash. Seeing this, Xu Laiqing quickly blocked Qin Huo's sight and said, "Tianbao, you can't do this."
Tianbao blinked blankly. She was still wearing pants, so why couldn't he flirt with her?
She always rode like this at Wang Tianyu's house, and no one said anything wrong.
"I've prepared riding clothes for Tianbao, just go and change into them." Just as Qin Huo finished speaking, someone came over holding a box.
While Tianbao was changing clothes, Xu Laiqing bowed to Qin Huo and said, "My sister was young and ignorant before. I hope that the young prince will forgive me if I have offended you."
Qin Huo had a bad feeling in his heart. Smart people always speak to the point.
The smile on his face broke slightly, and he blinked and played with the reins in his hand: "Before? I didn't know her before, so how could I have offended her? From now on, I will naturally tolerate her in everything."
Xu Laiqing slowly withdrew his gaze, and a hint of knowing sneer appeared in his eyes.
No one really wants to spread the negative news about someone wearing women's clothes and pretending to be a girl.
He bowed again and said, "I misremembered it. May I ask, Your Majesty, why are you so kind to my sister? She is still a child."
Qin Huo tilted his head slightly, a trace of confusion flashing in his eyes: "Do I need a reason to be nice to her? Isn't she a lucky star? It's only natural to want to play with her."
Having said that, Xu Laiqing didn't know how to ask next.
I couldn't just ask him directly, "Was he harboring any inappropriate thoughts about his little sister?" He was still a child himself, and it was strangely difficult for him to broach such a mature topic.
Qin Huo wasn't stupid. He shook his head, revealing a rare hint of childishness: "I heard you're two years older than me? Old men have dirty thoughts."
He just treated Tianbao as his sister. After all, she had saved his life before. During the days he stayed in Prince Jing's Mansion, Tianbao treated him sincerely. He had never encountered such pure kindness since he returned to Daqi.
The purer it is, the more we want to protect and cherish it. Isn't this human nature?
The "old man" Xu Laiqing's face turned pale.
He's still a thirteen-year-old child, dirty?!
He opened his thin lips and was about to say something when a clear and soft voice came: "Brother Prince, Third Brother, I'm done!"
The two looked over at the same time, their eyes shining with amazement.
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