It was a quick flash down memory lane and vanished fast as it appeared.
She had sneaked out that evening and was rescued by him when her horse was agitated by the drumming of a gong sound coming from the night market nearby.
At that time, she was still arrogant, but she knew deep down that her heart yearned for him. But, she must stay away from him because she was the cursed child whose life was forever to be alone, serving and holding the country's peace. She concealed the despair and sorrow eating her alive as she avoided his touch and spun away to leave.
But Jun hastened his steps and pulled her back. He was afraid he would regret this moment forever if he did not stop her.
"I miss you so much."
His voice was almost inaudible from the unbearable and miserable days he had spent without seeing her.
He caressed her back as he buried his face and breathed a longing breath into the crevice of her soft neck, sending chills down her back, and then repeated painfully: "I miss you so much that my heart felt like it was going to burst into pieces if I didn't see you for one day!"
His repressed longing was shown to her by the tightening strength of his eager hug.
"I know you miss me too. Don't lie to yourself, Lucianne."
Lucianna could hear the man's heart beating like a drum leaning in his warm and sturdy chest.
And yes, he was right.
His heartbeat made her realize that she was crazy. She didn't want to admit the truth.
She missed him like the moon missed the sun. She wanted some validation that she was not crazy and that she could push on without him. But when she saw him, she forgot about all the curses that she had whispered about him along the way and wished instead to be in his embrace once more, even if she had to betray the world for it!
She wanted to lie on that broad chest on the library floor full of fallen books as her finger traced the battle scars all over his body.
And him, he loved her hawk-like hair because he would sniff and kiss it repeatedly like worshipping a goddess all meanwhile whispering and chanting her name over and over along with love words like the rhythm to a hymn. And a pink haze would come over her, and she noticed nothing else but him.
He was like magic but also like a curse. She could never have had enough of him.
Remembering the past events made Yanyue shiver as if her whole body did not belong to her but to another person who no longer existed. Jun was never loyal to her, and so was Beichen. It did not matter what identity he carried because he was never hers, and she hated that she kept coming back to him even if Lucianna from back then was dead.
An uncomfortable sour feeling rumbled in her stomach, making her want to throw up being in his embrace. Yanyue jerked her body and violently pushed Beichen away.
The man saw the change in Yanyue's expression from relief to disgust and frowned when she pushed him away as if he was a plague.
"Take the princess consort to the resting station," Beichen held his anger and commanded harshly. He had saved her, but she did not seem to be thankful, making him angry and irritated for some unexplainable reason. His anger doubled when he saw that Yanfeng and Jason, who had appeared from where and when he did not remember, had rushed to the woman's aid.
"Ah Chen, are you alright?!" Wanyue exclaimed, out of breath and looking anxious and concerned.
She came running like a damsel in distress after she saw what had happened on the race tracks, especially the moment when Beichen saved Yanyue and held her in his embrace for some brief seconds. No one saw the look on Beichen's face, but she witnessed his always stern face panicking and his body moving without a second's thought towards the woman who was about to fall off of the horse. She gritted her teeth in displeasure. Once again, her plan failed.
Yanyue's eyes from earlier appeared in Beichen's mind when he looked down at Wanyue. He remember that Yanyue's gaze was full of disgust, and it was starkly different from Wanyue's worried ones. And again, that picture made him crazy, and his irritation only seemed to increase.
So, instead of reassuring the woman clamoring all over him, he got down from Angel and stormed off, pretentiously hiding his temper as he entered the resting station where the two men, who were also eyesores, surrounded Yanyue congregated.
"What happened out there? Sebastian suddenly almost threw you off!" Jason questioned Yanyue warily, to which the woman could not find a response and had the same worried and suspicious look on her face.
"Something must be wrong here," Yanfeng commented. "Sebastian was doing good, and there was nothing that could have scared him in the way."
Yanyue shook her head in agreement. Even though Sebastian was not her horse, he had never purposely harmed her in the past four years when she used him. Sebastian had been more than careful with her as if someone had ordered him to protect her safety.
"I want to see Sebastian," Yanyue requested and prepared to get up but was interrupted by Beichen's voice.
"He was taken to the stable to calm down."
Beichen scanned Yanyue with almost slick and unnoticeable glimpses, and to his surprise, he was relieved that she didn't appear injured from the incident. He continued to say, "As the princess consort, you need to stay by my side and fulfill-"
"Ah Chen!" Wanyue emphasized softly from behind everyone. She walked over and snuggled into one of Beichen's arms like a loving wife, and the action caused the people on the side to almost barf out the sour tingly sensation they felt rising in their stomach from the un-sightly scene in front of them.
Wanyue looked at Yanyue with artificial concerns and said meaningfully, "Elder sister, you are lucky that nothing happened to you or my baby nephew. I would be so sad if something happened to you both."
Yanyue smirked and caressed her protruding stomach. "It is all thanks to my caring and loving husband, your brother-in-law, for being so attentive to our mother and son's safety," she said almost as if to mock the other woman.
Wanyue's eyebrow twitched. Yanyue said that on purpose to irritate her, and it worked wonderfully. It reminded her once again that Beichen did not belong to her legally. She bit her lips to contain her anger and said in defeat, "After all, you are Ah Chen's wife, and you carry his heir, so it was only natural for him to be worried about you."
Wanyue's words pulled a trigger in Yanyue's heart. Beichen's threats were still as clear as the bath water from that day when he told her that he was only using her to birth a baby for his mistress.
Indeed, saving her was only because of the baby inside of her.
"You don't have to worry. There's me here to take care of Yueyue," Yanfeng commented.
Jason nodded and rephrased: "That is right. Even if my brother is not there, I would have been the one to save Yueyue."
The two young masters supporting Yanyue made Wanyue jealous. She did not understand why they would be so willing to protect Yanyue as if she was a queen and they were her knights.
But this was great because Beichen would only belong to her alone if Yanfeng and Jason could take Yanyue away.
Wanyue smiled and said, "Ah Chen, sister truly knows how to get people to care about her."
Beichen caught Yanyue's calm face with Jason and Yanfeng by her side, so he ignored them and sat with Wanyue. But, instead of paying attention to the horse race going on the racing tracks, he was unconsciously taking glimpses of Yanyue from time to time. It was needless to say that he was not in the brightest mood looking at the three people in the seats next to him betting on which horse would win, and then laughed and joked with each other when the ones they picked did not win bronze or gold.
Once the horse race was over and the winners crowned and got their pictures taken, event-goers could partake in some noncompetitive horseback riding of their own along the riverside, across the prairie, or on the mountain trails.
Jason had already gotten a horse from the horse keeper and walked over to Yanyue, eager to offer her to ride with him. Yanfeng came over at the same time with a horse of his own.
"Yueyue, go on a ride with me!" Jason shouted enthusiastically.
Yanfeng looked at Yanyue with a gentle smile and said, "Go with me instead."
Yanyue was experiencing a dilemma. If she chose Jason, there would be rumors that she was seducing her brother-in-law, and worst, she would get harassed by his obsessive fans. On the other hand, if she chose to go with Yanfeng, there would also be rumors that she was having an affair with the young master of the Yang Enterprise. She was not in the mood to deal with these baseless rumors just yet.
Then, she looked over and saw Beichen helping Wanyue get on Angel. After assisting her up onto the horse, he followed suit and sat in front to guide the horse. Sitting sideways, Wanyue leaned her cheeks onto Beichen's back and wrapped her arms around his stomach to hold on as Angel began moving.
"Would you care to join me, princess consort?"
Yanyue turned to the gentle voice, and her eyes widened in surprise.
It was him again.
Yanyue smiled at the man and extended her hand to his. She sat sideways behind him and held onto the saddle for support.
"Yueyue, who is he?" Jason asked with a broken heart because Yanyue had rejected riding with him. Yanfeng showed no discomfort of being rejected compared to him.
Yanyue hesitated, but said, "Don't worry. I'll be fine."
The gentleman then signaled the horse to tread slowly towards the prairie. Jason and Yanfeng guided their horses as well. They all rode side by side, enjoying a simple horseback ride along the stretch of wildflowers and grass.
Soon, there were other people, mainly girls riding along with them. The young ladies were there to take their chances with the two famous young masters of Yilongguo.
The two men blocked by the excited women was the perfect opportunity for the other horse to disappear into the quiet mountain trail.
Once they were alone, Yanyue sighed in relief.
"Are you who I think you are?" Yanyue asked warily, looking at the man's back. "Are you Sile?" she asked again cautiously.
The man did not respond and continued to guide the horse as leaves crunched beneath them, and the horse paced slowly through the trail.
After a while, the man finally said something.
"I am..."