Chapter 20: Another Pair

At noon, the sky was blue with white clouds and the spring scenery was brilliant.

Behind the Imperial Academy, in the martial arts training ground.

The area was vast and the view was unobstructed. Outside the field, green trees provided shade. Inside, the regions were clearly demarcated. The martial arts training ground was fully equipped, and all martial arts classes, including horseback archery training, were completed here.

This martial arts field was originally a place for the city’s troops to train and practice martial arts. Later, in order to fully cultivate talents proficient in both literary and martial arts, the Emperor specially built a new martial arts field for students to practice.

At this time, the class had already ended, and most had gone to the dining hall. Only a few diligent female students and martial arts instructors remained in the training ground.

In the past, this martial arts field would hold student martial arts competitions, which all male and female students in the academy would watch. Therefore, Sheng Qingzi easily entered the outer area of the martial arts field and looked towards the east side horse arena.

A group of horses galloped freely and unrestrainedly. The martial arts instructors and students raced at high speeds in the arena. When these fine horses ran, their hooves left the ground, swift as the wind and lightning.

“Silver saddles shining on white horses, galloping like meteors,” [1] Sheng Qingzi muttered to himself, his eager gaze tinged with a touch of loss. He knew that as a man, he would never be able to experience this kind of free and unrestrained feeling of riding and galloping in this lifetime.

Just then, he suddenly heard the loud sound of horse hooves behind him. A precious horse, white as frost with strong legs, galloped past.

“Whoa—” Liu Lan skillfully pulled the reins, controlling the horse’s speed to gradually slow down. She intentionally reduced the dust kicked up. Then, with a leisurely demeanor, she laughed, “Isn’t this Scholar Sheng? Why have you come to the martial arts field today?”

Sheng Qingzi turned around and looked at the person who had arrived. Dressed in a well-fitted black outfit that shone brilliantly under the spring sun, her posture was graceful. Her hair was tied up high in a ponytail, with black strands dancing in the wind, fully displaying her heroic demeanor.

Compared to before, today her flawless and beautiful face had an air of elegance and nimbleness. Especially those cold and proud beautiful eyes that had a particularly captivating aloofness, making it hard to look directly at them.

But now, riding on a white horse with a dazzling smile on her face, it made Sheng Qingzi’s heart skip a beat. He subconsciously averted his eyes.

Meanwhile, Liu Lan raised her eyebrows slightly and looked at him closely for a few moments. Her complexion was crystal clear like jade, her skin whiter than snow, and her appearance charming. Then, only a trace of a playful smile could be seen at the corner of her mouth, with a hint of mischief.

In the next second, she nimbly leaned to the side and bent over, grabbing him and pulling him onto the horse’s back. She positioned him facing forward. Then, with force, she squeezed the horse’s belly and called out loudly, “Little cutie, go!”

Hearing the command, the horse immediately took off, galloping with its hooves generating wind. In a flash, dust was kicked up all around.

“Ah!” Sheng Qingzi obviously had no preparation. He subconsciously let out a startled cry. Although he wanted to ride a horse, he had never done so before. The intense bumping and shaking from sitting on a horse’s back for the first time made him scared out of his wits. His fearful tone carried a hint of gentle anger as he quickly said loudly, “What are you doing? Let me down quickly. This is the Imperial Academy!”

In the Imperial Academy, a man and woman riding one horse together could easily lead to misunderstandings if seen by others. Moreover, it would have a bad influence on the students’ hearts.

Liu Lan could see his panic and worry. She slightly reduced the speed of the horse and laughed, “Scholar Sheng can rest assured. This young general has followed her mother out of the pass since childhood, galloping and fighting enemies on the battlefield for many years. My horse riding skills won’t let you fall. Besides, so what if it’s the Imperial Academy? As long as it’s something on horseback, I’m the one who calls the shots!”

The second half of her words carried a particularly unrestrained and free-spirited tone, displaying the vigor and boldness of hot-blooded youth, fearless and undaunted.

Sheng Qingzi’s eyelashes trembled slightly. This was the first time he had seen General Liu like this. Everyone, including him, knew that the young master Su had a romantic nature. To put it more bluntly, he was a lustful person who left his affections everywhere in the capital.

But they all overlooked her other identity. She was General Liu, one of the soldiers who protected the northern border of Huabei from foreign invasion, guarding the country with their flesh and blood. Today, the Great Yuan Dynasty enjoyed peace and prosperity, and the mountains and rivers were unharmed. They deserved much credit for this.

So should he change his opinion of her?

Liu Lan tightened her grip on the reins with both hands, embracing the person in front of her. She deliberately lowered her voice and laughed by his ear, “If you’re scared, I’m still behind you!”

Sheng Qingzi instantly came back to his senses. His ears suddenly turned red. Seeing that she suddenly got close, still incorrigible in her ways, he couldn’t get off the horse at the moment. Embarrassed and angry, he leaned his body forward to keep a distance from her.

Seeing this, the smirking Liu Lan was surprised that he was so sensitive! Her eyes suddenly flashed with a strange light. So once again, she forcefully squeezed the horse’s belly. “Hiyah—”

The galloping fine horse immediately picked up speed. Sheng Qingzi heard the howling wind by his ears. His body shrank back out of fear from the shaking, and as a result, he steadily fell into Liu Lan’s embrace. She smiled smugly. “How does it feel to ride a horse?”

“You…” Sheng Qingzi knew she did this on purpose. Choked with anger, he was suddenly at a loss for words. Then, remembering the purpose of this trip, he anxiously said, “Stop quickly! General Liu, I have something to discuss with you.”

Hearing there was a matter to discuss, Liu Lan tightened the reins to slow down the speed, but she had no intention of letting him off the horse. She leaned by his ear again and asked in an extremely ambiguous tone, “What is the matter?”

As she spoke, she swallowed deeply. Her eyes grew increasingly deep and her burning gaze fell on his flushed, reddening ear, tempting her to want to gently bite it.

The sound of her voice by his ear, accompanied by her breath, spread to his neck. Sheng Qingzi subconsciously avoided it. Her face turned from pale to gradually flushed as she continued, “Scholar Lu was taken to the Punishment Hall by the Chief Proctor.”

“So… you came to find me for Scholar Lu’s sake!” Liu Lan narrowed her eyes slightly, her tone meaningful as she dragged out the end of the sentence.

Sheng Qingzi felt a little guilty for some reason and said in a dejected manner, “General Liu, as Scholar Lu’s good friend, I’m sure you would help her.”

Liu Lan raised her eyebrows slightly and lowered her voice, “You care so much about Scholar Lu? Coming to find me specifically for her?” Seeing his embarrassed silence, she deliberately said, “Then do you know why she went to the Punishment Hall?”

Sheng Qingzi’s long eyelashes trembled slightly upon hearing this. He really didn’t know why she would go to the Punishment Hall. He immediately went to find Liu Lan after seeing Scholar Lu being taken there.

“Because of young master Su!” Liu Lan said with a rising corner of her mouth, her tone profound.

The four words “young master Su” seemed to touch upon a certain train of thought for Sheng Qingzi. His body became motionless.

Seeing him obviously stunned for a moment, Liu Lan inconspicuously withdrew her gaze and continued, “She was running through the academy while holding young master Su. There were many male and female students coming and going along the way. Tell me, who else would the Chief Proctor look for if not her! Besides, Scholar Sheng should be more familiar with the rules of the Imperial Academy than me. Moreover, as a teacher, I don’t need to mention the impact, right?”

This was something she indeed witnessed with her own eyes. Just as she came out of the martial arts hall, she happened to see Lu Yuner running towards the medical hut while holding young master Su.

However, what she didn’t expect was that these two were fine last night, but today young master Su fell ill. It always gave her a strange feeling. She always felt that something happened between the two of them last night. She was also planning to probe Lu Yuner for information.

Liu Lan: “You don’t understand what kind of person she is. Based on my understanding of Lu Yuner, if she truly made a mistake, she would be willing to accept punishment. So even if I go, it would be futile.”

Sheng Qingzi lowered his eyelashes and didn’t respond to her anymore. Although the Imperial Academy had separate male and female divisions, the management system was extremely strict and had always emphasized the separation between men and women. Male and female students could not have any inappropriate behavior, let alone between teachers and students.

So what exactly was the relationship between Scholar Lu and young master Su? Teacher and student? Or…