Chapter 146: Repairing the Plank Road in the Open Air and Crossing Chencang in Secret
PS: Thanks to Xianxian Patcher for the reward:)
…………………………
Luo Jiaxing chuckled and told Zhong Min to change into men's clothes. Zhong Min thought that made perfect sense. It was certainly more convenient to wear men's clothes to the horse ranch than women's. Of course, riding clothes would be even better. However, there was no time to prepare any riding clothes, so she had to make do with them for now.
I must find time to customize two sets of riding clothes someday. As the saying goes, clothes make the man, and saddles make the horse. If I go to the horse farm to work, I naturally have to look a bit like that.
She nodded repeatedly and said to Luo Jiaxing cheerfully, "Wait outside for a while. I'll go change my clothes and be there in no time."
"Remember to change your hair as well, otherwise it will look weird." Luo Jiaxing reminded with a smile, then turned around and waited outside.
He was looking forward to seeing Zhong Min wearing men's clothes. This girl has always had a masculine temperament, and he thought she must be very heroic.
Zhong Min was incredibly quick and changed his clothes in no time. With Xier's skillful hands, he quickly fixed his hair. He stood up and turned around. At first glance, he looked quite handsome and heroic like a man.
After teasing Xi'er and Ziyan for a while, Zhong Min happily walked out the door. When he saw Luo Jiaxing, he immediately clasped his fists and said, "Brother Luo, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. I'm honored to meet you!"
Seeing this, Xi'er and Ziyan were both delighted. Luo Jiaxing, on the other hand, looked completely delighted. This look was not much different from what he had imagined. He took a step forward and, imitating Zhong Min's manner, politely said, "You're welcome!"
Seeing that it was getting late, Zhong Min did not delay any longer and ran out of the yard with light steps. Xier and others were still following behind. It seemed that she wanted to send her to the gate of the palace. Now she would naturally let them go back and there was no need to follow her. It was just a job at the horse farm. Why did she make it look like she was sending a warrior? She had no intention of never coming back for the time being.
After sending Xier and Ziyan away, Zhong Min and Luo Jiaxing walked towards the palace gate, chatting and laughing. When they were almost there, they saw Jiang Xiyan and her maidservant strolling in the garden. They wanted to take a detour, but this was the only way to go there, so they happened to catch up with them.
"Oh, it's Sister Min. Why are you dressed like this? I almost didn't recognize you. I thought there were guests in the mansion again and I didn't know." Jiang Xiyan smiled lightly, her eyes kept moving back and forth between Zhong Min and Luo Jiaxing. Although she didn't say anything else, her eyes were really ambiguous, as if she was almost asking directly whether Zhong Min and Luo Jiaxing were having an affair.
"My apologies for making you laugh, Princess. We're going to the stables today, but I don't have time to equip myself with riding gear, so I had to find some men's clothes. It will be more convenient for riding horses later." Zhong Min explained briefly, "It's getting late, so I have to go first. Please make your own way, Princess."
This time, in front of Luo Jiaxing, Jiang Xiyan naturally did not say or do anything inappropriate. Instead, she smiled and told Zhong Min to be careful and not to get too tired. She also thoughtfully asked Luo Jiaxing to take good care of Zhong Min.
Luo Jiaxing seemed to have noticed something, but he didn't say much. He smiled and replied before leaving with Zhong Min. After they left the palace gate, he said to Zhong Min, "It seems you don't like her very much."
"Would you like someone who's always looking for trouble?" Zhong Min glanced at Luo Jiaxing and said angrily, "Don't just look at her pretty face. She's got a lot of tricks up her sleeve. If you're not careful, she might just eat you whole."
"Is it because she always causes you trouble that you dislike her?" Luo Jiaxing said suggestively, "Or is there some other reason?"
Upon hearing this, Zhong Min couldn't help but roll her eyes at Luo Jiaxing and said unhappily, "What do you mean? Do you think I dislike her because I'm jealous that she's prettier than me?"
"That's not the case. Is she prettier than you? Why wouldn't I think so?" Luo Jiaxing looked at Zhong Min seriously for a few seconds before continuing, "I look left and right and I still think you're the prettiest."
Hearing this and seeing Luo Jiaxing's deliberate expression, Zhong Min couldn't help but laugh. She nodded with appreciation and said, "That's pleasant to hear. Although it might seem like flattery, you have good taste. I value inner beauty, and only someone as cultured and insightful as you can discern that!"
As soon as these words were spoken, Luo Jiaxing couldn't help laughing and echoed them a few more times. Seeing Zhong Min smiling was really a good thing.
"Okay, stop joking. Is the stable far away? Are we going to walk there?" Zhong Min stopped joking and looked around. Seeing nothing at the palace gate, she was puzzled for a moment. This stable must be quite large, so it couldn't be in the city. It must be at least outside the city. But there was no transportation at the moment. Could it be that she needed to train her stamina before training the horses?
Of course, she knew that horse training was just an excuse. With her skill level, she was lucky enough not to have the horse train her. But she still had to put on a good show. She couldn't let Luo Jiaxing take her on a stroll around the streets all day. It was okay today, tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow, but it couldn't happen every day. She didn't mind. Luo Jiaxing didn't have that much free time.
When Luo Jiaxing heard this, he did not rush to explain, but put his hand into his mouth. Immediately, a crisp whistle sounded, and soon, two tall horses came running from somewhere and stopped directly in front of them.
"Pick one. If I remember correctly, your riding skills are pretty good." Luo Jiaxing said, and suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Of course, training the horse may be a bit troublesome."
Zhong Min ignored Luo Jiaxing's teasing and walked forward to examine the two horses. He quickly selected the slightly smaller one. "This one will do. I'm not a horse trainer, so I don't know how to train horses. I don't know what's wrong with the prince, asking me to train horses. But it doesn't matter. He doesn't really expect me to train a good horse for him anyway."
"That's not necessarily true. I think the prince has high expectations of you this time." Luo Jiaxing smiled mysteriously, and then said no more: "Get on the horse, you will understand when you get there."
With that, he walked over to the other horse and swiftly jumped onto its back. Seeing this, Zhong Min didn't have time to ask any more questions and quickly followed suit. Soon, the two horses, one in front and one behind, headed straight for the city gate, leaving only a trail of dust in their wake.
After exiting the city gate, the two headed west. At first, Zhong Min didn't think anything was wrong, but gradually, she began to notice something was amiss. If she remembered correctly, she had taken this road before, back to Prince Mu's mansion after escaping the ambush. Following this direction, they should be heading towards Xiao Mingzheng's military camp.
Could it be that the horse farm was near the military camp? Or maybe it wasn't a horse farm at all, but just a place to hang out? Zhong Min suddenly remembered what Xie Feng had told her about the new recruits' camp. Suddenly, she had some idea. She thought it must be related to this matter. Otherwise, Luo Jiaxing wouldn't have specifically reminded her to change into men's clothes. After all, the military camp was a restricted area, and women were generally not allowed to enter or leave at will.
Thinking of this, she suddenly became even more excited. She rode her horse at full speed, eager to quickly confirm her idea. In less than an hour, the two arrived at their destination. As expected, this was not a horse farm, but a new military camp recently built by Xiao Mingzheng. It was still some distance away from the real military camp, but judging by its size, it was not too small, which showed that Xiao Danzheng attached great importance to this place.
After entering the military camp, as soon as he dismounted, a soldier came over and took the horse away to feed. Luo Jiaxing did not rush to explain to Zhong Min, but just made a look to follow him, and then walked straight towards the tent.
The two of them soon entered a tent. Seeing Luo Jiaxing's familiarity with the place, it was undoubtedly his temporary office and rest area. After inviting Zhong Min to sit down, he poured her a glass of water and handed it to her. Then he said, "You don't seem surprised at all. Could it be that you knew all along that we were going to a military camp instead of a horse ranch?"
Zhong Min felt a little thirsty, so he picked up the glass of water and drank it in a few gulps. "I didn't know it at first, but then I saw some clues on the road, and I had some suspicions in my heart. Later, I saw that I was right."
"You're quite clever, but I don't seem to have revealed any flaws. How did you figure that out?" Luo Jiaxing also drank a glass, then poured another for Zhong Min and said, "The conditions in the army are limited, so you'll have to make do."
"I'm not a proud and noble person. Besides, I prefer water to tea even in Prince Mu's mansion." Zhong Min naturally didn't care about these things. He then explained, "Originally, I didn't know how to train horses, but the prince asked me to take care of the stables in front of Jiang Xiyan. This in itself made me a little suspicious. Then, before leaving, you specifically asked me to change into men's clothes and even carefully instructed me to change my hair into a men's hairstyle. This also counts for something. But the most important thing is that I have walked this road to the military camp once before. Unless it is a military stable, otherwise, the normal stables are unlikely to be too close to the military camp."
"A military horse ranch naturally has dedicated horse trainers to take care of it. Why would someone like me, who knows nothing about the business, be needed? Besides brothels, the only places women wouldn't be allowed to enter are military camps." Zhong Min said playfully, "By the way, I've never been to a brothel. How about taking me in one day when you're free?"
"What nonsense are you talking about? How can a girl be so outspoken?" Luo Jiaxing was a little amused. He secretly admired Zhong Min's intelligence, but this girl was really an anomaly. She actually wanted to go to the brothel to experience the world. "Okay, don't interrupt. Let's get down to business. Then guess why the prince asked you to come here?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com