Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Just as Jia Lian was drinking tea, Aqi heard the commotion and came out of her tent. Seeing Jia Lian riding away, she didn't think twice, quickly went to Ma Peng, untied her horse, and chased after him.

Seeing this, Xie Jun and the others felt much more at ease. Then, they saw another fast horse emerge from the direction the veiled woman had come from, also ridden by a young woman.

"Who goes there?" Xie Jun hurriedly stepped forward to intercept him and ask.

The woman in the tight-fitting clothes watched Aqi ride away, seemingly guessing what was going on, and asked in a cold voice, "Did you see a veiled palace maid pass by here just now?"

"A veiled woman just passed by here. It seems her horse went out of control. Our commander has already caught up with her. Who are you? Without the Crown Prince's decree, you are not permitted to pass through this area!"

The woman only heard half a sentence before she whipped the reins to speed up. Seeing that Jie Jun and the others intended to stop her, she urged her horse forward and shouted, "I am Zhao Yang, those who stop me shall die!"

The woman possessed an extraordinary air about her, and Xie Jun and the others had already guessed that she was a noble lady attending the event. Upon hearing the name Zhaoyang, they dared not forcibly stop her. They could only barely dodge the whip that was swung at them and watch helplessly as she sped away.

……

On the other side of the mountain path, Jia Lian embraced the beautiful woman's delicate body and tumbled to the ground.

In the midst of the dizzying spin, I don't even know how many times I was hit by rocks and branches.

After finally coming to a stop, Jia Lian quickly looked down into his arms.

When he fell off his horse, he tried his best to hold the beauty in his arms, but after rolling around on the ground a few times, Jia Lian was still worried that the delicate beauty would get hurt.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Jia Lian shrugged and nudged the person in his arms to see if she had been knocked unconscious.

However, no, the beauty in his arms, seeing that she was safe, looked up at Jia Lian.

That one glance left Jia Lian completely stunned.

Originally, this beauty was dressed in a palace maid's corset. Although Jia Lian judged from her figure that she was a rare beauty, he could not be sure because she was wearing a veil.

At this moment, however, no one knows where her veil has flown to...

A stunningly beautiful face appeared in his arms.

Her cool and aloof face, in terms of temperament and beauty, was comparable to Miaoyu, yet she seemed to have a natural air of indifference and composure, an aura of superiority, as if no one dared to infringe upon her sacred aura.

This was the only time, after seeing Qin Keqing, that Jia Lian felt conquered the moment he saw a woman.

Moreover, the figure in my arms felt similar to my nephew's wife—soft, graceful, and very pleasant to hold.

Such a stunning beauty, possessing both striking looks and a perfect figure, surely couldn't have been just a palace maid.

If it wasn't a palace maid, could it be Princess Zhaoyang herself?

However, Princess Zhaoyang is only eighteen years old, but this beauty does not look like the immaturity that an eighteen-year-old should have. Instead, she has a mature and graceful charm!

Could it be that Princess Zhaoyang was more mature than her peers, which is why she remained unmarried?

Jia Lian was so captivated by the beauty that he momentarily forgot what he was doing.

The beauty stared at Jia Lian for a moment, her gaze lingering on his face where a branch had slightly scratched him, drawing tiny beads of blood. After a long pause, she spoke in a clear voice, "Help me up."

Although the voice was pleasant, the tone was not gentle, and it had a somewhat commanding quality.

Royal women are not to be trifled with. Jia Lian quickly composed himself, helped the beauty up, then stepped back, clasped his hands, and said, "This humble servant, Jia Lian, Commander of the Western City Garrison, pays respects to Her Highness Princess Zhaoyang."

"The situation was urgent just now, and I offended Your Highness in many ways. Please forgive me."

When Jia Lian mistook her for Zhao Yang, the beauty only frowned slightly before letting it go, seemingly even feeling a little inexplicably pleased.

She nodded, then looked ahead at the horse that had fallen by the side of the mountain road.

Jia Lian followed her gaze, and then, as if he had discovered something, he strode over.

The horse was a fine horse, robust in build, but now it lay on the ground, unable to get up at all, its limbs twitching, and foam appearing from its mouth...

Jia Lian's expression changed slightly. He quickly squatted down to examine the horse, then looked at the beauty and exclaimed in surprise, "This horse isn't out of control, it's been poisoned?"

The beauty's brows furrowed slightly, but she offered no explanation, simply looking at Jia Lian:

"I accompanied the Crown Prince and others on a hunt, but due to my poor horsemanship, I was mistakenly brought here. Please send me back as soon as possible, so that the Crown Prince and others will not worry."

Jia Lian had no intention of getting involved with any princesses or noblewomen. Now that he had saved her, yet she remained indifferent and cold, without even offering a word of thanks, he lost interest in the beauty.

The fact that a princess's mount was poisoned is unusual. Therefore, it's best to handle this officially and have the scene secured. It's better to stay out of it.

Therefore, he led his white horse over.

The horse I often ride has become somewhat human-like after many years of companionship.

Although it was abandoned by Jia Lian just now, it turned back to find its master not far away.

"Your Highness, please."

Jia Lian thought the beauty was delicate and might not be able to mount a horse on her own, but to his surprise, she was very light and agile. With one foot on the stirrup, she gracefully flipped herself onto the horse, with a beauty that resembled a dance.

With only two people and one horse, Jia Lian had no choice but to take on the responsibility of leading the horse.

He noticed the veil hanging on a tree branch by the roadside and went over to help retrieve it.

Suddenly, he heard the loud sound of horses' hooves. Jia Lian turned around and saw two riders rushing out from the other side of the mountain road.

The rider in front was Aqi, and the rider behind was also a woman.

She was beautiful and dashing, and her horse was close behind Aqi's. When she arrived, she saw the mature beauty on the white horse and seemed very excited. She immediately sped up and rushed over.

"Whoa!"

The horse beneath the woman reared up on its forelegs and stopped precisely in front of her, demonstrating superb horsemanship.

"Your Majesty... are you alright?"

The beauty knew the woman would reveal her identity, so she shook her head beforehand, causing the woman to change her mind. Then, facing the woman's concern, the beauty said gently, "I'm fine. It was General Jia who saved me."

The woman glanced at Jia Lian casually, no longer paying attention to his good looks. She said with deep regret and self-reproach, "It's all my fault for not protecting you properly and causing you such a fright... Thank goodness you're alright, otherwise I really wouldn't know what to do..."

The beauty shook her head at her again, "This is not the place to talk. We can discuss it when we get back."

"Okay, I'll take you back now!"

As the woman spoke, she immediately turned her horse around, intending to escort the mature beauty back.

From beginning to end, she didn't glance at Jia Lian even once.

This is normal. To them, Jia Lian and the others were just subjects, so it was fine to be polite to them normally.

With such a major event happening today, there's no time to worry about anything else.

Even if we were to reward Jia Lian, we should wait until they have safely returned to their villa.

Jia Lian saving people was simply his duty, and he didn't intend to show off. So when he was ignored, he naturally wouldn't stoop to speaking or currying favor.

The beauty she had rescued glanced back at Jia Lian as she rode away, and then the two of them quickly departed on horseback.

"grown ups……"

Aqi walked up to Jia Lian and looked at him with concern when she saw the bruises on his face.

"It's nothing to me."

Jia Lian quietly tucked the veil in his hand into his sleeve, glanced back at the horse lying half-dead on the ground, and then, without lingering, rode back to the camp with Aqi on the same horse.