The carriage moved steadily, and Wei Rao actually slept until the sun set in the west.
Alone in the carriage, Wei Rao sat up, rubbing her sore shoulders. She lifted a corner of the curtain and saw Lu Zhuo riding on horseback. He wore a sky-blue brocade robe, his posture on the saddle both upright and natural—unlike some of the frivolous young nobles in the capital who affected a dashing air while riding but were either hunched or awkward in their movements, looking utterly graceless.
The Young Lord stood out like a dragon among men, and his horse was equally remarkable: its coat was glossy black without a single blemish, its smooth mane flowing with the wind.
Wei Rao’s gaze traveled from the horse’s head to its tail and back again, her eyes filled with envy.
Lu Zhuo kept his eyes forward, but his peripheral vision had already detected Wei Rao’s peeking.
She had been stealing glances at him for so long—what was she looking at?
Lu Zhuo subtly tightened his grip on the reins. Flying Ink seemed to sense his master’s mood and lifted its head.
Wei Rao promptly lowered the curtain. Envy was useless—Lu Zhuo’s horse was priceless and beyond the reach of ordinary buyers.
Under the brilliant sunset, the party entered the gates of a county town.
The town was far livelier than the small villages, its streets lined with bustling shops. Having been cooped up in the carriage all day, Wei Rao could no longer sit still amid such vibrancy. She lifted the curtain slightly and shot Lu Zhuo a meaningful glance.
Lu Zhuo approached the carriage.
Wei Rao negotiated with him, "I’d like to stroll around and have dinner outside. Why don’t you all go ahead to the inn?"
With guards both ahead and behind, Lu Zhuo smiled, but his words were a refusal: "The Old Matriarch instructed that on this journey, all arrangements are to be made by me."
Wei Rao countered with a smile, "Grandmother also told you to treat me well. Have you fulfilled that?"
Lu Zhuo pressed his lips together. Seeing that invoking the Old Matriarch was ineffective, he resorted to reason: "If you wander off on your own, how will you know which inn we’ve booked?"
Wei Rao had already considered this: "Just book the largest inn on this street. I’ll recognize it at a glance."
Lu Zhuo realized she was determined to go out tonight.
"Go to the inn first, change into men’s clothing, and then you may go out," he conceded.
Wei Rao glanced at her silk dress and considered how walking the streets in such attire would inevitably draw stares and gossip. She agreed.
Though Lu Zhuo came from a noble family, he had trained on the frontier for eight years and even experienced the battlefield, enduring many hardships. Without Wei Rao, he and his men could have rough it for a night in a dilapidated temple. But out of consideration for Wei Rao’s refined upbringing and fastidious tastes, Lu Zhuo chose the finest inn in the city for the night.
The inn had three floors: the ground level housed the main dining hall, while the upper two floors were guest rooms. The second-floor rooms were ordinary, while the third floor offered better accommodations.
Zhao Song gathered the details and came to inquire how the Young Lord and his lady would like the rooms arranged.
Lu Zhuo looked at Wei Rao.
Wei Rao, veiled, softly instructed, "Book two rooms on the third floor and five on the second."
Zhao Song understood.
He went to book the rooms while Zhao Bai followed Bitao to carry their masters’ belongings to the third floor.
Anticipating that Wei Rao needed to change clothes, Lu Zhuo dismissed the eight guards to settle in and waited in the main hall.
On the third floor, after Zhao Bai left, Wei Rao instructed Bitao to secure the doors and windows. She quickly shed her dress and changed into men’s attire.
Bitao styled her hair.
Wei Rao explained, "Stay in this room later. When the Young Lord comes up, tell him to go next door—he can have his own room."
Bitao exclaimed in surprise, "Are you going out alone, Miss?"Wei Rao: "I can still lie down in the carriage, but you’ve been sitting in the sun all day. Go to bed early tonight so you’ll be refreshed tomorrow."
Bitao was still uneasy.
Wei Rao teased her: "Would you really feel better if I took you along? If something happened, I’d have to split my attention to protect you."
That made sense, but Bitao couldn’t help worrying.
However, Wei Rao had already made up her mind to explore alone. With her purse in hand, she ordered Bitao to stay seated and not follow. Feeling refreshed, she walked to the end of the corridor and descended the wooden stairs with brisk, echoing steps. Reaching the main hall, her casual glance fell upon Lu Zhuo sitting alone near the entrance. Noticing her, he stood up.
Wei Rao headed toward the door.
Lu Zhuo watched her and followed her out as she stepped over the threshold.
Wei Rao frowned. "Are you coming too?"
Lu Zhuo: "I promised the Old Madam I would ensure your safe return without a scratch. Now that we’re traveling, if anything were to happen to you due to my negligence, I wouldn’t be able to face her."
He was putting on his gentlemanly act again. Disdainful of further argument, Wei Rao strode directly into the street.
The sunset had not yet fully faded, and affluent townsfolk drifted in and out of various shops in small groups. Having eaten little at noon, Wei Rao was now ravenous. After scanning several eateries, she finally spotted a grand-looking restaurant.
"Are you two together, honored guests?"
A young waiter greeted them with a smile, his gaze shifting between Wei Rao and Lu Zhuo before settling on Wei Rao, who had entered first.
Wei Rao’s eyes flickered thoughtfully. Remembering that she still needed Lu Zhuo to guide her to the imperial retreat and present his Duke of Yingguo heir’s token to the guards, she smiled. "Yes, together. Do you have a private room?"
Since it wasn’t a festival period, private rooms were still available. The waiter led them to one.
Wei Rao ordered three signature dishes, and Lu Zhuo added one more.
After the waiter left, Wei Rao smiled at Lu Zhuo. "I’ve caused you quite a bit of trouble on this journey. Let this meal be my treat."
Lu Zhuo keenly noticed the shift in her attitude—earlier she had been displeased by his presence, yet now she was smiling so amiably.
"Merely traveling together is no trouble. Moreover, since I proposed this trip to Brocade City, the expenses along the way naturally shouldn’t fall to you," Lu Zhuo replied, taking a silver ingot from his sleeve and setting it aside in advance for the meal.
It was just a meal’s cost; Wei Rao didn’t argue with him.
The four dishes arrived one after another. Of the three Wei Rao had ordered, only one suited her taste—the other two she merely sampled.
Since she wasn’t eating them, Lu Zhuo finished more than half of each dish.
Anyone who had experienced the battlefield and known the pangs of irregular meals disliked wasting food.
After settling the bill and leaving the restaurant, Wei Rao headed west.
Lu Zhuo called her back, pointing east—the direction they had come from.
Wei Rao smiled. "It’s still early. I wanted to see if there are any horses for sale around here."
Lu Zhuo: "You want to buy a horse?"
Wei Rao nodded. "Riding in the carriage is too exhausting. I’d like the freedom to ride and get some fresh air whenever I want."
Lu Zhuo thought of their eight companions and the Zhao Song and Zhao Bai brothers. Lowering his voice, he said, "The area around Cloud Mist Mountain sees few travelers, making it suitable for riding. But with carriages coming and going on the main road, you..."Wei Rao had long grown accustomed to his disapproval, so another instance hardly fazed her. She merely smiled faintly. "I don't even care myself, so why should the heir worry? The passersby on the road have nothing to do with me—why should I care if they look at me? As for Zhao Song and the others, they are your trusted aides and subordinates. By the time we married, they should have already heard that I am not one of those prim and proper noble ladies. If I ride a horse, would they really make a fuss?"
Lu Zhuo was left speechless.
They were neither relatives nor close, and their marriage was only in name. He truly had no right to restrain Wei Rao.
Other noble ladies feared gossip and strove for dignity in every action, but Wei Rao deliberately went against the grain. Accustomed to following her own path, her reputation had long been tarnished, so she could continue acting willfully without any concerns.
Watching Wei Rao's figure disappear into the crowd, a trace of unease suddenly surfaced in Lu Zhuo's heart.
If he and Wei Rao were to truly become husband and wife, and if they had a son in the future, it might be manageable. But if they had a daughter, and she learned to be as unrestrained as Wei Rao, what should he do then?
Nightfall descended quietly.
Wei Rao indeed found a horse stable that was about to close. Suddenly, two elegant young gentlemen of remarkable appearance arrived, and the stable owner welcomed them with a smile.
Wei Rao had a particular fondness for white horses, which the stable owner noticed, enthusiastically recommending a white horse to her.
Lu Zhuo strolled around the stables himself and then paused in front of a bay horse's stall, signaling for Wei Rao to come over.
"Young master has a discerning eye. This is a Ferghana horse, just brought in this evening. If you two gentlemen had come a day later, this Ferghana horse would have been sold," the stable owner said, stroking his beard with a smile.
Wei Rao studied the bay horse intently, while Lu Zhuo leaned closer and said, "It's not a Ferghana horse, but it is a fine steed. You could buy it."
Wei Rao could see the bay horse's robust build, but...
She hesitated, glancing toward the white horse.
Not wanting her to waste her silver, Lu Zhuo subtly reminded her, "This horse runs fast. If you choose that one instead, a half-day's journey might take a few moments longer."
Hearing this, Wei Rao immediately made up her mind and took out silver to buy the bay horse.
The stable gifted her a set of saddle gear. After leaving the stable, Wei Rao skillfully mounted the horse, eager to give it a try.
With the curfew approaching, the streets were nearly empty of other pedestrians. Wei Rao patted the horse's head, and the bay horse broke into a gallop, leaving Lu Zhuo behind in the blink of an eye.
Lu Zhuo's gaze followed the girl on horseback, his steps unhurried.
Wei Rao galloped a distance away, then turned the horse around and rode back.
She wore a cap, her cloud-like black hair completely hidden beneath it, revealing only her fair and delicate face. As she rode toward him, the glow from the lanterns hanging in front of the shops along the street shimmered across her face. Lu Zhuo felt as if he were seeing a beauty flying out from a revolving lantern, drawing closer and closer in his direction.
Before she noticed, Lu Zhuo discreetly averted his gaze.
Wei Rao reined in the horse, looking down at him from the saddle. "Since the heir picked this horse, would you like to try it?"
Surprised by her enthusiasm and remembering his grandmother's advice, he nodded. "Very well."
Wei Rao smiled, leaped off the horse, and handed him the reins.
Lu Zhuo rode back and forth just as she had.
When he dismounted, Wei Rao asked expectantly, "What does the heir think?"
Lu Zhuo replied, "Not bad. It could be sent to the military camp as a warhorse."Soldiers must be meticulously selected, and the same principle applies to warhorses. If the chestnut horse could understand the evaluation given by the deputy general of the Divine Martial Army, it would surely neigh joyfully.
Lu Zhuo stroked the horse’s neck and prepared to return the reins to Wei Rao.
Wei Rao did not take them. Instead, she gifted Lu Zhuo an exceptionally charming smile: "Since the heir also thinks this horse is excellent, I’ll give it to you in exchange for borrowing your Flying Ink for a few days. How about it?"
Before Wei Rao spoke, Lu Zhuo’s heartbeat had indeed been unsettled by her rare smile. However, upon realizing that Wei Rao actually coveted his steed, his gaze instantly regained clarity. As he stuffed the chestnut horse’s reins into Wei Rao’s hand, he replied indifferently with two words: "Not possible."
Watching his retreating figure, Wei Rao felt disappointed but also impressed.
She had only proposed swapping horses temporarily. Any other man would have agreed, yet Lu Zhuo truly cherished his horse as if it were his life.
Of course, there was another possibility—that her face, which others called fox-like and enchanting, had no effect on Lu Zhuo whatsoever.
Returning to the inn, the chestnut horse was handed over to Zhao Song to be led to the stables, while Wei Rao and Lu Zhuo ascended the stairs to the third floor.
The corridor was quiet. Lu Zhuo, holding a lantern, glanced sideways at Wei Rao beside him.
To maintain the act of an affectionate couple in public, he and Wei Rao would share a guest room tonight.
Lu Zhuo expected her to make him sleep on the floor, but being alone in a room with a woman...
Wei Rao stopped in front of her room.
"Young Madam?" Bitao, who had been waiting inside for some time, called out.
Wei Rao replied, "It’s me."
Bitao breathed a sigh of relief and quickly opened the door.
Wei Rao asked her, "The key to the neighboring room?"
Bitao had been holding it all along.
Wei Rao took the key, turned, and handed it to Lu Zhuo. Without a word, she made a gesture indicating that he should sleep in the adjacent room.
Lu Zhuo glanced at Bitao inside the room, took the key, and left.
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