Chapter 399: Chapter 375, Current_1
In the carriage, Su Shiyu leaned against the window, giggling as she watched Dong Yuanyao gracefully mount the horse. When her gaze shifted toward Daohua, her eyes paused slightly.
She finally understood why Yuanyao said the Little Prince treated Yiyi differently.
From the bits and pieces her brother had mentioned when he came home, as well as from several encounters, she could tell that the Little Prince was undeniably dignified and proud. Yet at this moment, not only was he personally helping Yiyi onto the horse, but he was also leading the horse for her, his speech and demeanor quite accommodating.
This kindness, it really wasn’t just any ordinary kindness!
Just as Su Shiyu was pondering these thoughts, suddenly, a shadow appeared in her field of vision. She looked up and saw that it was Yan Wenkai riding over on a horse.
“Sister Su, both my older sister and sister Dong have come down to ride horses, why aren’t you coming down?” he asked.
Su Shiyu, who was somewhat unwilling to engage with this Yan Fourth Brother who didn’t seem to know what subtlety was, replied with a light smile, “I can’t ride a horse.”
Yan Wenkai immediately responded, “It’s okay if you can’t ride, just sit on the horseback, and someone can lead you around.” He pointed at Daohua, “See, just like the Little Prince leading my sister.”
Appearing to be tempted, Su Shiyu found it quite dull to sit alone in the carriage; the scenery around was nice, and a leisurely horse ride had its own charm.
Only… her brother, who occupied himself with his own fun, was not here at the moment.
Yan Wenkai also noticed Su Hongxin was nowhere to be found and said, “Come down, I’ll lead you myself.”
Su Shiyu looked at Yan Wenkai but remained seated without moving.
Yan Wenkai frowned, “Hurry down, will you? Why dawdle? Isn’t it better to be decisive?”
Upon hearing this, Su Shiyu was even less inclined to move and simply let down the carriage curtain, ignoring Yan Wenkai.
Seeing this, Yan Wenkai was utterly baffled. After a moment, he dismounted, ordered the carriage to stop, then pushed open the carriage door, and urged the seated Su Shiyu, “Sister Su, what’s the fun in sitting by yourself in the carriage? Come down, I’ll lead you, and we can talk.”
Su Shiyu looked at him, speechless, “Who wants to talk with you?”
Yan Wenkai felt that Sister Su truly liked to drag things out, but seeing her delicate and frail appearance, he refrained from speaking harshly and patiently said, “If you don’t want to talk to me, you can talk to my older sister and the others. It was I who brought the three of you out, there’s no reason to leave one to play outside while leaving you alone in the carriage. Be good, listen, and come down quickly.”
Amused by Yan Wenkai’s child-coaxing tone, Su Shiyu hesitated for a moment but eventually stepped down from the carriage.
As a lady of a respected family, Su Shiyu’s demeanor was always composed and measured, which in the eyes of others, was undoubtedly the epitome of proper manners and etiquette. However, for someone as impatient as Yan Wenkai, it was somewhat slow.
Seeing Su Shiyu disembark the carriage, calling for a stool, then requiring the maid’s assistance, and still lingering atop the carriage after a long delay, Yan Wenkai quickly stepped forward, grasped Su Shiyu’s wrist, “Come, I’ll help you down. It’s just this high, what do you need a stool for?”
Don’t blame Yan Wenkai for acting this way, he had limited interactions with girls since childhood, the most contact was with Daohua.
Daohua getting off the carriage was all about hopping and skipping, brisk and straightforward.
So, in his subconscious, all girls should be like that.
Facing Su Shiyu’s manner, he felt the need to correct her.
Su Shiyu, startled by Yan Wenkai’s sudden grip, tried to withdraw her hand, but how could her little strength match up to Yan Wenkai’s?
Instead, Yan Wenkai used the tug to pull her straight off the carriage.
“Ah~”
Frightened, Su Shiyu flusteredly wrapped her arms around Yan Wenkai.
“You’re standing on the ground now, you can let go of me!”
Looking at Su Shiyu clinging to him, Yan Wenkai felt somewhat repulsed.
Sister Su is too timid!
It’s just getting down from a carriage, look how frightened she got.
Hearing Yan Wenkai’s words, Su Shiyu quickly released her grip, her head lowered and her cheeks slightly reddened.
Daohua, who was walking ahead, heard the commotion and immediately turned around to ask, “Sister Su, what happened?”
Yan Wenkai waved his hand, “It’s nothing, Sister Su just scared herself.”
Su Shiyu was at her wits’ end, glaring fiercely at Yan Wenkai.
If it wasn’t for him pulling her, would she have been scared?
Yan Wenkai just happened to turn around and caught that glare, immediately laughing, “Sister Su, you look really pretty when you’re angry.”
At his words, Su Shiyu’s cheeks flushed with a ‘swoosh’, and just as she was about to say something, she saw Yan Wenkai turn away to tend to the horses.
“Alright, don’t just stand there, hurry up and mount. Take a look for yourself, my sister and Miss Dong have already gone far ahead.”
While speaking, he helped Su Shiyu onto the horse without waiting for a response.
Su Shiyu, worried that the horse would be spooked, didn’t dare to struggle and let Yan Wenkai help her mount.
Yan Wenkai, strong as he was, easily lifted Su Shiyu onto the horse, “Hold onto the saddle tightly, don’t be afraid, I’m leading the horse!” he said, as he started walking forward holding the reins.
Sitting on horseback, Su Shiyu noticed the horse’s smooth gait and let out a slight sigh of relief. Feeling her cheeks still burning, she couldn’t help but touch them, then glanced at Yan Wenkai, who was leading the horse, her heart racing. She inwardly cursed, what a brute he is!
It wasn’t long before Yan Wenkai caught up with Daohua and the others.
By this time, Su Shiyu had regained her composure, and was chatting and laughing with Daohua and Dong Yuanyao as they walked toward the lotus pond.
Some time later, a sea of lush green lotus leaves appeared in everyone’s view, dotted with blossoming pink flowers; from a distance, it looked like a colorful ink wash painting.
Yan Wentao and Su Hongxin, who had arrived earlier on horseback, saw the group and came up to them with smiles.
Yan Wenkai called out loudly, “Su Hongxin, you’re really not acting like an older brother, only caring about yourself and forgetting your own sister.”
Embarrassed, Su Hongxin hurried over to Su Shiyu, personally helping her off the horse, “It’s my fault, I thought you were going to come by carriage.”
Seeing his eager apologies, everyone couldn’t help but laugh.
“It would have been better if Miss Zhou had come too, she loves to play as well.”
Daohua was about to dismount when she suddenly heard her third brother’s voice tinged with regret and sorrow; missing her step on the stirrup, she fell straight off the horse.
“Careful!”
Xiao Yeyang immediately let go of the reins in his hands and strode forward, catching her in his arms.
“What’s wrong with you? Even getting off a horse you manage to fall.”
Xiao Yeyang held Daohua tightly, a face full of blame.
Daohua, also startled, was about to explain when she noticed a sudden silence around them; turning her head, she saw everyone staring at them intently.
Seeing this, Daohua’s expression stiffened slightly, and she felt as if she were caught red-handed doing something wrong, a mix of awkwardness and panic settling in. She quietly tugged at Xiao Yeyang’s sleeve and whispered, “Xiao Yeyang, please put me down.”
Xiao Yeyang, noticing the onlookers’ gazes, felt a bit embarrassed, but his face remained composed as he calmly set Daohua down.
“How did you end up falling off the horse?”
In the midst of an awkward atmosphere, Yan Wenkai suddenly asked.
Inside, Daohua gave her fourth brother a mental thumbs-up and quickly explained, “I lost my footing on the stirrup when I was dismounting. Luckily, Xiao Yeyang caught me; otherwise, I would have had a close encounter with the ground.”
Su Shiyu chuckled and joined in, “I thought Yiyi was quite good at horse riding. It seems I was mistaken; you might need more practice.”
Daohua replied, “Of course, I need to practice. I’ve only been learning for a few years.”
Dong Yuanyao also said with a laugh, “You really should practice more. Once you get better, we can have a competition.”
Yan Wenkai interjected, “Miss Dong, if you want to compete in horse riding, you should compete with me. Only by constantly competing with those who are better than yourself can you improve.”
Dong Yuanyao retorted somewhat irritably, “Yan Wenkai, I’ve noticed that your face is getting thicker by the day.”
Yan Wenkai wasn’t bothered at all, laughing, “That’s because I eat well.” His tone shifted as he turned towards Su Shiyu, “Sister Su, you should learn from me in that regard; you’re too skinny.”
Off to the side, Daohua, seeing that the subject had been diverted, breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing her reaction, Xiao Yeyang chuckled, “Next time you ride, try not to be so jittery.”
Daohua gave him a look and walked over to Dong Yuanyao and Su Shiyu, choosing not to stand next to him.
Dong Yuanxuan watched the interaction between the two, a flicker in his eyes.