Location: Capital City, Racetrack.
A sharp whistle cut through the air. Buoyed by the young girl’s warm encouragement, a confident, effortless smile broke across Su Yu’s face. Overjoyed, she raised her right hand and snapped her whip, letting out a crisp, delightful crack in midair: “Lingmiao, let’s fly!”
With her slender waist securely embraced and her back pressed tightly against Su Yu’s soft chest, the girl’s delicate earlobes flushed as red as blood-jade under the sunlight. Her heart fluttered uncontrollably, racing alongside the white horse’s thundering hooves.
Her fiancée took advantage of the moment to teased her, prompting a soft protest: “Ayu, I’m not a horse.”
Noticeably amused that the sensitive girl picked up on the harmless joke, Su Yu replied in a clear, spirited voice, her eyes brimming with laughter: “I’m just teasing you, don’t take it seriously.”
The girl curved her lips. Boldly reaching out to pat the horse’s head, she coaxed it in a gentle voice: “Good horse, don’t listen to her—just focus on running.”
Catching her subtle jab, Su Yu let out an amused click of her tongue: “Look at you, getting bold! Calling me a dumb horse in a roundabout way, are we?”
“Ah! You noticed?” The girl’s mock-surprised tone left Su Yu torn between exasperation and laughter.
What was that saying again? It was spot on—girls really needed to be pampered. Look at her now; after just a few days, she acted as if she had swallowed a whole dose of courage. Recalling how timid Lingmiao had been before bringing her home, Su Yu let out a defiant, playful huff: “Try that next time, and see if I keep spoiling you.”
“Of course,” the girl replied with a smile sweeter than preserved fruit. “Of course, it’ll be me begging Ayu to keep spoiling me.”
“Hmph.” Su Yu maintained a proud, aloof front, scolding her for being cheeky. Yet, how much she secretly enjoyed it was something only she knew.
Ning Xi understood Su Yu’s temperament far better than anyone else. Ayu was naturally rebellious—she yielded to soft words, not force. Everything had to be coaxed gently out of her, and even words of advice had to be given in moderation, lest hearing too much make her recoil in annoyance.
Yet, the person Ning Xi had adored since childhood was now being claimed by a blind girl of unknown origin. Human hearts were naturally biased; she couldn’t bring herself to resent her childhood friend for flirting on horseback, so her intense distaste for the girl condensed into a dark glare.
Yun Que, whose attention remained fixed on Ning Xi, tightened his grip on his reins and eagerly tried to curry favor: “Sister Ning, if you dislike that blind girl, leave her to me.”
“You?” Young Lady Ning shot him a cold glance, giving neither approval nor rejection.
She actually admired Yun Que’s sheer nerve. Ignorance truly bred fearlessness—Su Yu had just broken into the General’s Manor in the dead of night for that blind girl, yet Yun Que dared to target Su Yu’s precious kitten right here on the racetrack. He really didn’t know what was good for him.
Under the clear sky, seeing her beloved chatting and laughing with another woman sent waves of fury and jealousy crashing through Ning Xi’s chest. She spurred her horse forward, her tone icy: “Ayu claims to be unmatched on the racetrack, but today, I’m afraid you’re going to lose.”
Choking on her own pent-up anger, she couldn’t bear to look at Su Yu’s striking, captivating face a second longer. She brought her whip down hard, and her horse shot forward like an arrow released from a drawn bow.
As soon as she moved, Yun Que held back his impatience, casting a dark, scheming smile at the girl held in Su Yu’s arms.
Meanwhile, the Four Masters, who intentionally lagged behind, exchanged subtle glances. They raised their whips and urged their horses forward, intending to settle their earlier score with the arrogant youth.
Yun Yi, being older and wiser, worried his younger brother might suffer a loss. His gaze hardened, and he no longer hid his skills.
In an instant, everyone unleashed their true capabilities, each driven by their own motives.
Su Yu trailed behind the crowd in an unhurried, leisure manner. She withdrew her gaze and looked down at the young girl. “Are you really not scared?”
“Not scared.” Lingmiao rubbed her burning ears shyly, her soft, delicate voice carrying a tone akin to acting coquettishly: “I wasn’t even afraid traveling all the way from Jiangnan to the Xiushui City. With you here for a mere horse race, why should I be afraid?”
Being trusted like this felt like receiving a cup of warm wine on a freezing night—intoxicating and comforting. Flattered into a state of blissful euphoria, Su Yu leaned down and lightly inhaled the scent of the girl’s cascading dark hair: “If you’re scared, you can scream as loud as you like—I won’t mind the noise. You can hold onto me tight, too—I’m not afraid of pain.”
“I’m not—”
Before the word scared could leave her throat, a sudden burst of acceleration caught Lingmiao off guard. She hurriedly grabbed the arm wrapped around her waist. Su Yu burst into laughter: “Scream if you’re scared! Don’t worry, I won’t make fun of you!”
Won’t make fun of me? Then why are you laughing so provokingly? Still, even when she’s being teasing, she’s adorable.
The rushing wind tussled the strands of hair by her ears, but the blind girl just sat there, giggled happily to herself. She knew that no matter how fast the horse ran, Ayu’s arm would remain an immovable anchor around her waist. The palm resting against her waist through her thin spring garment gave her a sense of security that even her own father couldn’t provide.
She knew this was different—this was the timid, sweet affection that only a fiancée could give.
With her nerves completely dispelled, Lingmiao genuinely wanted to make Ayu happy. In this moment, with her clothes fluttering in the wind, she suddenly felt the urge to pump her fist and shout: “Ayu, charge forward!”
She thought it, and she did it.
The girl’s sweet, spirited cheer made Su Yu’s heart skip a beat. Recovering herself, she playfully pinched Lingmiao’s slender waist: “Oh, you! How many times are you going to call me a horse before you’re satisfied?”
“I didn’t mean it like that,” the girl’s voice scattered into the wind, reaching Su Yu’s ears. “I just think Ayu is so adorable. The way you pretend to be angry must be even more charming than how I look in your eyes. Whenever I think about how adorable you are, I can’t stop feeling happy. And when I’m happy, I can’t bottle it up—I have to express it.”
For a moment, Su Yu couldn’t tell if the girl was praising herself or simply teasing her again.
When it came to teasing, Su Yu couldn’t help but entertain a slightly wicked thought: A delicate girl like her would turn as soft as warm spring water with just a little pressure from my hands, completely losing all her bold confidence.
Except, she’s so soft. Who could bear to be rough with her?
Su Yu considered herself reasonable enough not to pick on a naive, innocent blind girl. Regulating her breathing, she finally adopted a serious competitive stance.
Just as Su Yu began to take the race seriously, the youth who had been cornered by the Four Masters was wobbling precariously on his horse. Furious at these playboys for ruining his plan, Yun Que’s face flushed red: “Third Brother! Help me!”
Having no choice, Yun Yi pulled a bow and arrows from his back. The arrow tips were specially modified so they wouldn’t inflict real harm. He fired four arrows in rapid succession toward the Four Masters!
Taking advantage of their sudden maneuver to dodge the incoming arrows, Yun Que boasted boastfully: “Thanks, Third Brother! I’ll go on ahead!”
“Trying to run?” The leader of the Four Masters taunted Yun Yi, annoyed by his protective nature over his foolish brother: “Brother Yun can hit a willow leaf from a hundred paces—why not try again?”
As he spoke, he aimed an arrow straight at the speeding youth. The arrow flew through the air, only to be struck down mid-flight by another arrow following right behind it.
The Four Masters were slightly startled. Yun Yi cupped his hands in respect: “My younger brother’s foolish words offended you all. I apologize on his behalf.”
“So this is how Brother Yun apologizes?” The Four Masters didn’t buy it and instead turned their efforts toward competing directly with Yun Yi.
The Xiushui City valued strength above all. It wouldn’t be too late to teach Yun Que a lesson after beating Yun Yi first. Besides, if four of them couldn’t beat Yun Yi together, granting Yun Que a pass out of respect for his brother wasn’t out of the question.
On the racetrack, speed and technique were paramount. To win, one not only had to reach the finish line first, but also remain untouched by incoming arrows. As arrows flew from all directions to block contestants, the course quickly devolved into utter chaos.
Su Yu, possessing sharp agility and superb marksmanship, surged forward directly toward Ning Xi.
Yun Que, eager to score points in front of his beloved, set his sights on the blind girl riding in Su Yu’s arms.
Whether using arrows or hidden weapons, both sides needed to maintain a certain distance. To close the gap between himself and Su Yu, Yun Que whipped his black horse frantically, causing quite a commotion.
Plenty of people disliked him, but since the Four Masters and Yun Yi hadn’t settled their match yet, it wasn’t convenient for anyone to make a move against Yun Que just yet.
Unfortunately for Yun Que, his luck was dreadful. Incensed by the severe whipping, the black horse went completely wild. Instead of harming others, his scheme backfired, leaving Yun Que pale with terror: “Th-Third Brother! Save me!”
Yun Yi couldn’t reach him in time and could only watch helplessly as the maddened horse dragged his younger brother toward the distance. Su Yu glanced back, her teeth grinding in frustration at Yun Que’s stupidity. If your riding skills are this terrible, why come to the racetrack? You’re just making a mess!
“Ayu, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” Su Yu pursed her lips. There was a guard detail on the field responsible for everyone’s safety—even if Yun Que had one foot in the grave, it wasn’t her job to rescue him.
“Stop, stop! Don’t hurt Sister Ning! No, no, no, go over there—go over there! Go after Su Yu! If you’re going to crash, crash into Su Yu! Hit that little blind girl, don’t drag Sister Ning into this.” Panic-stricken, the youth sat frozen on the horse, pulling hard on the reins to force the animal to change direction.
By the time the wretched Yun Que came charging toward her on the runaway horse, Su Yu, who was riding right at the front, was so infuriated she wanted to punch his lights out!
“Ayu, it’s dangerous! Get out of the way!” At the critical moment, Ning Xi launched herself off her horse into the air.
Unbeknownst to her, Su Yu’s control over her steed was far faster than she anticipated, cleanly dodging the mad horse Yun Que was trying to steer into them.
Before anyone could recover from the shock, Yun Que was about to fall off his horse without the guards arriving in time. Falling at such speed meant severe disability at best, and death on the spot at worst.
Yun Yi immediately dismounted and fell to his knees in Su Yu’s direction from afar, his voice booming with inner energy: “Zibi! Save my brother!”
The plea echoed across the field. Su Yu possessed extraordinary eyesight; seeing Yun Yi kneel and beg, she grit her teeth. Yun Que harbored malicious intent—had she not dodged in time, she and Lingmiao would have been the ones trampled!
Bringing the young girl to the racetrack for the first time only to run into this nonsense left a knot of frustration in her chest. Su Yu grumbled irritably: “A-Xi, take care of my cat!”
Lingmiao’s ears twitched slightly. Cat?
The next instant, Su Yu leapt into the air.
Being casually dumped with the task of “cat-sitting,” Ning Xi was distinctly reluctant. Ayu knew full well she disliked the girl, yet handed her over anyway—clearly testing her sincerity in repenting for past behavior.
With a dark expression, Ning Xi spoke coldly to the girl: “Stay put and don’t move around.”
The young girl didn’t care for her romantic rival any more than her rival cared for her, nor did she bother pretending otherwise. Her mind was entirely consumed by the unique title her fiancée had used for her in front of an outsider.
Cat? That’s so embarrassing. A quiet blush crept up her neck.
Su Yu’s lightness skill was breathtaking enough to make General Ning envious. With a swift grab, she yanked Yun Que by the collar and dragged him off the wild horse. The rescued youth sat on the ground, terrified out of his mind.
Leaving the runaway horse for the late-arriving guards to subdue, Su Yu waited until a frantic Yun Yi rushed over. She lazily toyed with the jade pendant at her waist, uttering words that left both Yun brothers pale with shock:
“Saving him was out of respect for my friendship with you, Brother Yun. But with me, friendship and grudges are two separate matters—they must be settled independently. Yun Que intentionally tried to sabotage me on the racetrack. Even though he failed, I, Su Yu, am not someone who lets people offend me lightly. Shall I do it myself, or will you do it, Brother Yun?”
If she were to do it herself, one only needed to look at Ning Zhou’s current condition to guess the outcome.
Yun Yi clenched his fists tightly, sending a wave of fear through Yun Que: “Third Brother, Third Brother wouldn’t have the heart to beat me, right? What, what did I do wrong? That horse went crazy for no reason! I’m the victim here—I almost got thrown to death by that beast!”
“Alright then, it seems Brother Yun prefers—”
“There’s no need for Zibi to act. I’ll do it!” Interrupting Su Yu, Yun Yi turned and knocked his younger brother to the ground with a single punch, bringing his foot down heavily onto his ribs.
Seeing that the hit was superficial and lacked real force, Su Yu frowned: “Brother Yun’s soft heart will spoil this boy sooner or later. Why don’t I discipline him on your behalf!”
Before her words even settled, she stepped forward and delivered a swift kick to the youth groaning on the ground! The force was so immense that he slid a whole rod away across the dirt.
“Fourth Brother! Fourth Brother?”
Having dealt the blow and vented her anger, Su Yu didn’t bother watching their display of brotherly devotion. She turned back to reclaim her little kitten from Ning Xi. Seeing that the girl’s clothes were neat and she was entirely unharmed, Su Yu’s mood instantly brightened, her red lips curving upward: “Thanks, A-Xi.”
“Why be so polite with me? Given our relationship, why should Ayu say thanks?”
Seeing her rival blatantly trying to draw closer to her fiancée, the young girl pursed her lips and gently tugged on Su Yu’s sleeve.
Su Yu tilted her head: “Want to go home?”
“Mhm.”
Seeing that she seemed disheartened and worried that the startled horse incident had frightened the fragile girl, Su Yu decided not to stay at the racetrack any longer. As soon as she left, Ning Xi departed carrying a heart full of bitter jealousy, and the remaining playboys scattered like birds.
Such outings were always driven by spontaneous desire; they could gather again whenever the mood struck. However, to ensure future fun, the Four Masters decided never to invite Yun Yi again. While Yun Yi was decent, his younger brother was reckless, brainless, and downright malicious.
The white horse trotted smoothly down the long street as a light sprinkle of rain began to fall from the sky.
Since the outing had been ruined by that Yun Que fellow, leaving her unable to let the girl enjoy herself to the fullest, Su Yu felt apologetic. Wrapping both arms around Lingmiao’s waist from behind, she asked softly: “Why aren’t you talking?”
“Hmm? Talk about what? I’m thinking about a very important question.” The girl tapped her cheek thoughtfully with a finger.
Seeing her adorable gesture, Su Yu instinctively wanted to lean closer. Her curiosity piqued, she leaned in and asked: “What question? Tell me about it.”
“It’s about the cat. You called me a cat in front of Ning Xi.”
“Ah.” Su Yu’s cheeks flushed slightly. “I suppose I did. Did I say something wrong? Even real cats aren’t as soft, sweet, and fickle as you.”
“Fickle? How am I fickle?”
Su Yu felt too embarrassed to explain that Lingmiao was teasing one moment and completely innocent the next, behaving in ways that defied all common logic. Just when you thought she was entirely pure-minded, she would throw a direct fastball that left your head spinning with wild thoughts, making it impossible to decide how to tease her back.
After letting her thoughts wander without coming to a conclusion, Lingmiao turned her head to “look” at her: “I still want to know.”
“Know what?”
“About the cat.” Feeling thoroughly shy, she untangled her tongue and asked in a cautious, gentle whisper: “Ayu called me a cat, so ‘cat’, is that a term of endearment?”