Reincarnated as the daughter of my mortal enemy, all I want is to ascend the throne.

Upon seeing Yan Xu, Li Qingyan immediately pouted, looking aggrieved, "It insulted me."

Yan Xu stroked Wuhen's fur. It was already a miracle that this horse had survived, and the fact that it was being taken such good care of now showed how much effort had been put into it.

Wuhen nuzzled Yan Xu's face, chirped at him, and then looked in the direction of Li Qingyan and Li Yan, clearly intending to complain.

Yan Xu touched Wuhen's head.

Wuhen turned his head away, his face saying, "You're useless too."

Suddenly its ears twitched, and it headed into the woods.

"Li Yan, Yan Xu, let's go and take a look."

Li Qingyan hugged Li Yan's neck, somewhat curious about what the horse wanted to do. Wuhen was different from other horses since it was a child. The imperial palace's horse farm was full of rare and top-quality horses, but none of them could keep up with Wuhen's speed.

In particular, most horses do not show respect to Wuhen, but rather feel a deep-seated fear of him.

From afar, you could see Wuhen nudging something with his nose.

Li Qingyan slid off Li Yan's arms and hurriedly ran over. Together with Wuhen, they dug into the ground.

A straw mat appeared in front of her in no time. Li Qingyan's eyes widened, and she quickly continued to dig.

"Li Yan, Yan Xu, there are people here... there are people here."

Li Qingyan touched the man's neck and quickly covered him with her own coat.

Just as Li Yan and Yan Xu were about to approach, Li Qingyan shouted, "Don't come any closer! Don't come any closer!"

Inside the straw mat was a disfigured girl, completely naked. Li Qingyan quickly wrapped the mat tightly around her.

"Yanxu, go and call Cuiping over here, and have her bring a set of women's clothes."

Yan Xu glanced at Li Yan, and seeing Li Yan nod, he instantly mounted his horse. The other guards also came over, but Li Yan stopped them at the outer perimeter.

Li Yan had his back to Li Qingyan, so it wasn't appropriate for him to get close.

Seeing the girl open her eyes, Li Qingyan took out a hemostatic pill from her pocket and said softly, "Don't be afraid, I'm not a bad person."

The girl had a smile on her lips. What was she afraid of? Could a little child possibly harm someone as half-dead as her?

Cuiping arrived with several palace maids, carrying a cloth for enclosure. The maids quickly used the cloth to surround the person.

Cuiping led a few others to help the girl change her clothes before a strong palace maid carried her on her back.

Before the girl lost consciousness, she said to Li Qingyan, "Hide...hide me."

The girl fainted after she finished speaking.

Li Qingyan frowned and took Li Yan's hand. "Li Yan's body is frostbitten, and his leg might not survive. It would be best to send him to Doctor Liu's medicine hut to save his life."

Li Yan picked her up and said, "Just give them orders to do whatever you want."

That little brat of his either picks up horses or people.

Is being so kind a good thing or a bad thing?

Li Qingyan hugged his neck and nodded. "Okay~"

Actually, Li Qingyan didn't seem to be seriously injured, but she was still somewhat frightened. After getting into the carriage, she kept looking in the direction of Yan Xu, and would lift the curtain every now and then to check on him.

This left Li Yan, who was sitting next to her reading, somewhat helpless, and she had no choice but to let Yan Xu get into the carriage.

Li Qingyan wrapped her small hands around Yan Xu's neck, and soon fell asleep swaying in his arms.

Li Yan tossed a cloak over Li Qingyan and said coldly, "Who did this?"

When Yan Xu retrieved Li Qingyan's cloak, he discovered it had been drugged. Li Yan also noticed it; this drug was common on the border and was a common remedy used in the north to drive horses mad.

"The interrogation has already been conducted. Those closest to the young prince are the Second Princess, the First Prince, the Second Prince, the Empress, Consort Jian, and Consort Han."

Upon hearing this long list of names, Li Yan narrowed his eyes. He glanced at Li Qingyan in Yan Xu's arms and said, "Tell the little brat to investigate herself."

Yan Xu nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty."

The carriage fell silent, save for the sounds of brewing tea and turning pages.

-----------------

The banquet was held to escort Li Qingyan back to the Hall of Diligent Governance.

Even while asleep, Li Qingyan's grip was unusually strong, and she wouldn't loosen her hold on to Yan Xu no matter what she did.

"Your Majesty... the young prince won't let go of the general."

Lai Fu was covered in sweat and didn't dare to pull Li Qingyan too hard, because her little arms and legs would hurt wherever he touched her.

Yan Xu was at a loss for what to do. The great general who used to be a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield was now hesitant and timid.

Li Yan rubbed his forehead. "Then let's stay here."

He couldn't very well let Yan Xu carry Li Qingyan back.

Yan Xu was taken aback.

Lai Fu exclaimed, "Oh dear!" "This old servant will go and prepare clothes for the general."

Su Xue and her men quickly prepared the chaise lounge nearby. Yan Xu, of course, could not sleep on the dragon bed, so he held Li Qingyan and slept on the soft couch.

He leaned back in his chair, and Li Qingyan nestled against him like a little frog. The tiny girl smacked her lips and continued sleeping.

Li Yan sat at a table not far away, working on some things. He would occasionally glance up at Li Qingyan and Yan Xu.

The tiny thing reminded him of when Li Qingyan was just born, and for a period of time she was frightened and couldn't sleep well, no matter who tried to soothe her.

The physician, Zhao, told him to place the baby on his stomach so that she could sleep more soundly while listening to her parents' heartbeats.

For a long time afterward, Li Yan slept on that soft couch, just like Yan Xu, with Li Qingyan nestled in his arms.

That tiny little dumpling has grown so big.

A smile appeared on Li Yan's lips.

He changed into his nightgown and tied his dry hair up with the hairband Li Qingyan had given him.

The candlelight cast a gentle glow on his face.

Yan Xu patted Li Qingyan's back, but he didn't have much experience in coaxing children, and he fell asleep while patting her.

-----------------

The first thing Li Qingyan did after class was rush to the horse farm to see Wuhen. She wanted to see just how many swear words this horse could spew.

"Can't the flying fork really translate horse language?"

Feicha took a sip of iced cola.

[No, host. That thing costs points, what's the point of it?]

And you don't even need to understand what it's saying to know it's insulting you.

Li Qingyan rolled her eyes dramatically.

"Flying Fork, you're getting more and more stingy."

【hey-hey……】

Li Qingyan held the grass to Wuhen's lips, while the female official in charge of raising horses stood beside her.

"Your Highness, please be careful."

The female official who tended the horses had just finished speaking.

All I saw was Wuhen opening his mouth and heading towards the ball of fur on Li Qingyan's head, then picking it up, throwing it on the ground, and stomping on it.

Li Qingyan suddenly remembered that Fei Cha had done the same thing that day, and quickly asked the female official beside her, "Do you know of any medicine that can drive horses mad?"

Without hesitation, the female official nodded. "There's a medicine from the North. Horses go mad when they smell it. It's something the Northerners use specifically to deal with our army."

Li Qingyan narrowed her eyes and patted Wuhen's head again.

Thank you.

He said those two words through gritted teeth.