All Hail Cousin Brother

Chapter 811: Riding Together

Translator: Atlas Studios    Editor: Atlas Studios

As soon as Yu Youyao finished breakfast, Yin Huaixi came over to pick her up.

Old Madam Xie had to give him a few words of warning.

Yin Huaixi also felt very obedient and promised her, “Old Madam, don’t worry. I’ll definitely send your granddaughter back to you before it gets dark.”

Old Madam Xie finally understood.

Yin Huaixi was used to taking advantage of others. He clearly had a vicious and cunning personality, but he was used to seeking favor and pretending to be obedient in front of his elders. He was really shameless.

She suddenly felt that it was funny. She suddenly remembered that Yin Huaixi seemed to be on born in January. He was only five years older than Yu Youyao and had just turned 19 this year. He had yet to take the crown.

Tai Mo Shan was rather steep. The carriage had traveled for a while, but it was too bumpy. Yin Huaixi directly ordered someone to stop the carriage and lift the curtain. Indeed, he saw Yu Youyao frowning slightly and not looking too good.

He held out his hand directly. “The back roads aren’t easy. I’ll ride a horse with you.”

Yu Youyao suddenly recalled the scene of Yin Shi leading her on a horse the night they left Quanzhou. At that time, she was sitting in the front, and the cold wind pierced her face. Her vision was blurry, and her ears were filled with the whistling cold wind. As she breathed, there was a chill that poured into her mouth and nose. The sound of the horse’s hooves smashing down seemed to hit her heart heavily, making her heart skip a beat.

She was a little afraid, but she still handed her hand to Yin Huaixi.

Yin Huaixi pulled her out of the carriage.

When her feet landed on the ground, Yu Youyao felt much more relaxed. Her eyes were filled with greenery, making her feel refreshed. She couldn’t help but smile.

In order to make it easier to go out, Yu Youyao was wearing a dress with a hint of the style found in Hu clothes and a short shirt with narrow sleeves. Considering that it was early spring and the wind was strong on the mountain, she had put on an apricot-colored top with half-arm sleeves and a wide green pleated skirt. There were splits in the front, back and the sides of the skirt, revealing a pair of short sheep felt boots with silk pants.

Hu clothes was not allowed in the Great Zhou Dynasty, but no matter which dynasty it was, women’s pursuit of beauty had never stopped.

When the Hu clothes were combined with the Han clothes, they mixed and produced another kind of generous and handsome beauty. It perfectly fused with the tenacity and beauty of a Han woman.

Yin Huaixi suddenly picked her up. Yu Youyao was shocked. Before she could react, she was already sitting on the horse.

The horse snorted and circled on the spot, scaring Yu Youyao so much that she hurriedly tightened her grip on the saddle and said in a trembling voice, “Nineteenth Brother, I’m afraid…”

Yin Huaixi squatted down, raised Yu Youyao’s feet, and placed them into the horse pedal. “If you step hard on the pedal, you’ll be able to stabilize yourself and won’t fall off the horse.”

Yu Youyao quickly did as she was told. When her feet stepped on something, she immediately felt like her feet were on solid ground. Her body was still swaying, but she felt much more at ease.

Yin Huaixi got on the horse and sat at the back. He held the reins in one hand and wrapped his arms around Yu Youyao’s small waist. Naturally, he wrapped her in his arms. “Relax a little. Don’t straighten your back so much. Lean forward a little and put pressure in your legs.”

The man’s smiling voice was right beside her ear. It was not as cold as before, but there was a hint of clarity, like the warmth of a spring river.

She wasn’t sure if it was an illusion, but his breath was right by her ear. When he spoke, his voice was accompanied by a faint moist warmth, stirring the loose hair by her ear. There was a faint itch and a slight numbness, making her tremble and panic.

Yu Youyao subconsciously obeyed Yin Huaixi’s words. She leaned forward slightly to avoid the flustered intimacy.

However, before she could heave a sigh of relief!

Immediately, Yin Huaixi’s broad chest caught up. It was as firm and strict as a barrier. He pressed against her thin back and the arm around her waist suddenly tightened, pulling her thin body into his arms.

Yu Youyao felt a little uncomfortable.

Yin Huaixi’s voice immediately sounded in her ears. “Don’t move.”

His voice revealed a rare hint of toughness. Yu Youyao panicked and did not dare to move anymore. Yin Huaixi stepped on the horse’s pedal hard. The horse raised its head and neighed as it followed the mountain path up the mountain.

Chun Xiao planned to follow.

However, Yin Shi took a step forward and reached out to block her. “The mountain in front is steep. The carriage won’t be able to go far. There’s a canyon to the west of Tai Mo Shan. Miss Chun Xiao will take a detour to the canyon from the south and settle down first. At that time, His Highness will bring the princess there to take a nap.”

Chun Xiao was in a difficult position. “Young Miss…”

Yin Shi said, “His Highness will take care of the princess.”

Chun Xiao was speechless. Of course, she knew that His Highness would take good care of Young Miss, but it was inevitable that it would be a little inappropriate for a man and woman to be alone. When they went out, the Old Madam specially asked Young Miss to bring more people along. Before they left, the Old Madam even called her to her side. She repeatedly instructed her to follow Young Miss at all times and not leave too far.

However, before they could even go up the mountain, His Highness had already “abducted” Young Miss onto a horse and ran away first. The maidservants, mothers, and old maids could only stare.

Chun Xiao waited for a while. Seeing that the horse on the mountain was getting further and further away and that Young Miss did not have any other instructions, she could only listen to Yin Shi’s arrangements.

The horse moved slowly, picking its way up the steps along a natural path of flagstones and spars.

Yu Youyao quickly adapted to the bumpy ride on the horse and relaxed. She admired the surrounding scenery, including strange stones of all shapes and sizes, a cluster of flowers, or an old tree…

Her thin clothes could not block the chill of early spring. The higher they went, the stronger the chill became. Yu Youyao subconsciously leaned into Yin Huaixi’s arms. The firm and warm chest on her back even dissipated the chill on her body.

After traveling for a while, they finally arrived at a flat and open area. Yu Youyao felt like she was walking on clouds. Looking into the distance, she saw the mountains that were far away. There were springs and waterfalls, and they were majestic. There was a river that was like a silver belt that circled the mountains and valleys. It fell to the west, and there was a kind of galaxy reflected in it.

Yin Huaixi said, “That’s the Fuzhou River. A portion of the farmland that’s suitable for farming in Liancheng is gathered in that area. Most of the commoners use farming as their base. There’s a large area of trees naturally growing around it. The million acres of forest under your name is in that area, including Lianzhen and Fuzhen. There are more than ten towns nearby that can accommodate the refugees.”

Lianzhen and Fuzhen were considered relatively big. A town was comparable to an ordinary small county.

Yu Youyao frowned. “How many people are there in the city?”

Yin Huaixi said, “There are many wars in the Liaodong area. Since ancient times, there have been few people there. Even the cities have little farmland and insufficient food production, and there are even fewer people living there. There are about two million people.”

It was indeed sparsely populated. Yu Youyao asked again, “How many people are there in the more than ten towns along the Fuzhou River? Will accepting so many refugees at once cause a certain burden to the local area?”