Chapter 18: Horseback Ridingâ”Do You Want to Touch It?”
After Meng Liang finished talking about his childhood matters with Yu Xi, several more exclamations of surprise came from his side.
“Then heâs also very familiar with Zhang Xingkuo and those people from the Sheng family? How did they meet? Do you know?”
Meng Liangâs expression flattened as he said perfunctorily, “Just average.”
“Hey, hey, hey, Xiao Xi saw us!” The blonde duo both smiled and waved in that direction.
Meng Liang still stood with his arms crossed and didn’t move, turning his head to look at his own horse.
“Heâs coming over!”
Meng Liang thought to himself: If Yu Xi runs over to show goodwill to him, then heâll be the bigger man and not hold it against him for not recognizing him at the banquet yesterday.
Pei Wang also came over with Yu Xi, as the blonde and the other person were both Pei Wangâs friends.
Pei Wang greeted them first, and Yu Xi followed by calling out to them. They had all met that day. Everyone present was slightly older than him, so they were coaxed into calling him “Gege” or “Jiejie,” and he didn’t forget.
” I just came over to say a simple hello; there are people waiting over there,” Pei Wang said.
The blonde hooked his arm around Pei Wangâs neck and asked in a low voice, “When did you get mixed up with them? You didn’t even bring your bros.”
Pei Wang pushed him away. “I don’t have that kind of ability; Iâm piggybacking on Yu Xiâs light. Letâs talk next time. Go on, you guys play.”
In just a few words, Pei Wang took Yu Xi back to their original group.
The blonde saw them off as they left, suddenly remembering something.
“Hey, Meng Liang, didn’t you say you knew Xiao Xi? Why didn’t you even say a word just now?”
“Yeah, he ignored you. Whatâs going on?”
“How should I know!” Meng Liang tossed the riding crop in his hand, ignored his own horse, and left the arena in a huff with a foul face.
The blonde duo looked at each other on the spot.
“Why did he suddenly get angry?”
The blonde shrugged. “Inexplicable. Forget it, he always has this foul temper. If my mom didn’t want me to get on good terms with his family, I wouldn’t bother with him. Iâm going to continue practicing. If you want to coax him, go ahead yourself.”
“If youâre not going, then Iâm not going either. I still want to wait for Xiao Xi to come out and ride with him.”
Yu Xi didn’t know his deliberate ignoring had caused such a scene.
When he ran back to Meng Shenâs side, he stood on tiptoe to get a bit closer and whispered, “Don’t worry, I just ignored him. Same as yesterday, I acted like I didn’t know him.”
Meng Shen gazed at him, his voice also becoming very small. “Mhm.”
Zhang Xingkuo trailed a few steps behind and walked to Yu Xiâs other side. “Are you very familiar with those other two? You even went over specifically to say hello.”
Yu Xi said matter-of-factly, “Pei Wang is more familiar with them, but they waved at me. Itâs more polite to go and say hello.”
“Youâre just too polite. You smile at everyone you see; thatâs why itâs easy to be bullied.” Zhang Xingkuo said this with a bit of gritted teeth, stretching out an index finger and grinding it against the cheek where Yu Xi had a mole. It immediately ground out a red mark.
Yu Xi blinked uncomprehendingly. Being poked in the face, he had no reaction of anger at all, rubbing it himself with his hand.
Sheng Yunzhuan, who was walking ahead, turned her head. “Stop using excuses to be handsy with our Xiao Xi. With us watching, would they have that kind of guts? Just be a bit more cautious, thatâs all.”
Sheng Yunzhuan said the last sentence looking at Pei Wang, with a bit more of a warning tone on her usually carefree-looking face.
She didn’t want to care about Pei Wangâs social circles, but if it involved Yu Xi, that was another matter.
Meeting Sheng Yunzhuanâs gaze, Pei Wangâs jaw tightened slightly as he said, “I understand them. Being with Meng Liang is just to deal with family orders; there won’t be any problems.”
“Mhm, thatâs for the best.” Sheng Yunzhuan acted as if she had just spoken casually. She turned her head and continued walking with light steps, pushing her own sister. “Oh, stop looking! Weâve finally come out to play; can’t you put the manga in your hand down for a while? Later, when our Xiao Xi puts on his equestrian outfit, heâll look much better than this.”
Sheng Yunshu, who was usually very good at blocking out her talkative sisterâs voice, heard this and unhesitatingly closed the E-ink reader that could stay lit for sixteen hours a day. “We can walk faster.”
The equestrian club had an equipment room reserved for their exclusive use. When the reservation was made, the equipment and equestrian outfits they had stored there previously were already sent to the room, and tea and snacks were fully provided.
Yu Xi was pushed into the changing room and put on the equestrian outfit Sheng Yunshu had picked for him.
It was a pure white suit, made of elastic form-fitting fabric. The stand-collar short-sleeved top had accordion pleats on the chest. This small design gave this simple outfit a sense of exquisite elegance.
Without too many bells and whistles, Yu Xi originally thought he wouldn’t be used to it, but he found it was okay and also very comfortable after putting it on.
After pulling on the long black riding boots, he pushed open the door and found that the others had already finished changing in other changing rooms and come out.
Sheng Yunzhuan was the first to rush in front of him and praise him for looking good, circling him several times.
“Youâre going to make me dizzy.” Yu Xi laughed helplessly and pulled her still. “Everyone looks good.”
Except for Meng Shen and Sheng Yunshu, who didn’t like riding, the other three had put on different styles of equestrian outfits, looking more capable and handsome than usual.
Because Yu Xi was a novice, a body protector vest was added, and other safety equipment had to be worn properly.
Zhang Xingkuo, taking advantage of being taller, snatched the chance to put the helmet on Yu Xi from Sheng Yunzhuan. But because of this, Yu Xi had to work hard to tilt his chin up to cooperate with him.
Yu Xiâs gaze inevitably fell on the spot where Zhang Xingkuo had his buttons open. His well-trained, firm, and full pectoral muscles were partially exposed, and the rest were also clearly displayed under the elastic fabric.
When he saw the other person coming out of the bathroom naked last night, Yu Xi was thinking that it seemed these friends had all grown up to be taller and stronger than him.
If he had always had enough food to eat, maybe he could have such a good figure too.
“Done.” Zhang Xingkuo adjusted the buckle and pinched the meat on Yu Xiâs chin in passing. “Do you want to touch it?”
“Ah?” Yu Xi was stunned. Meeting Zhang Xingkuoâs half-smiling eyes, he realized and shook his head. “No.”
“Then why are you staring? If you want to touch, would I be polite with you? Whatever you want.”
Zhang Xingkuo grabbed Yu Xiâs hand and was about to press it against his own chest, but was intercepted in time by Sheng Yunzhuan.
“What are you doing, what are you doing! Stop defiling my Xiao Xiâs hand. Try emitting this kind of sleazy air again? Believe it or not, Iâll vomit on you.”
Sheng Yunzhuan protected Yu Xi, sticking out her tongue and making a vomiting gesture.
Zhang Xingkuoâs face darkened as he said word by word, “Sheng Yunzhuan!”
Sheng Yunzhuan pulled Yu Xi away. “Heâs sick; letâs stay far away from him.”
Yu Xi didn’t understand how these two started arguing, finding it funny.
The five left the equipment room. To avoid running into Meng Liang again, they went to another outdoor arena.
Sheng Yunshu handed her horse over to Yu Xi. “Itâs very gentle; you can be at ease.”
Sheng Yunzhuan added: “My sisterâs horse is just like herâit has very stable emotions. Itâs just a bit lazy and doesn’t like high-intensity training. If it doesn’t want to, itâll sit on the ground and won’t get up no matter how you call it.”
It was Yu Xiâs first time in close contact with a horse. He looked at it curiously, his eyes shining with light, and said gratefully, “Thank you, Yunshu.”
“No need to be polite with me.” Sheng Yunshu gave a shallow smile. “Practice hard. A-Shen and I will sit outside the arena and watch you, taking photos for you.”
“Mhm, mhm.”
Yu Xi was inevitably nervous about his first time on a horse, but the coach Zhang Xingkuo had hired for him was professional and patient.
The coach first took him to understand the horse, letting him interact with it to get to know each other.
“This is a process of building trust. Horses are animals with a lot of human nature; your attitude determines its attitude toward you.”
Under the coachâs guidance, Yu Xi slowly moved his hand closer to the horseâs mouth and nose, letting it sniff his scent.
“Itâs ticklish.” Yu Xi felt the horseâs breath hitting his palm.
Just as he started laughing, his palm warmedâhe was nudged by the horseâs nose.
The coach said, “It likes you very much.”
“Maybe itâs because Iâm carrying its ownerâs scent.”
After understanding the horse and the equipment on it, Yu Xi got on the horse. The coach taught him the correct posture and how to control the reins.
Sitting on a horse is very high and lacks a sense of security. Yu Xiâs body had difficulty relaxing, and before long he broke into a sweat.
the other three people riding would come to see him occasionally, telling him a bit of personal experience. But for professionalism, it still depended on the coach. They also didn’t want to give him too much pressure, so they still gave more space for him to try on his own.
After about an hour and a half, Yu Xi felt a bit tired. “I want to rest for a bit, is that okay?”
“Of course.”
Thus Yu Xi walked outside the arena and was greeted by Sheng Yunshu and Meng Shen.
Meng Shen handed him water and a towel, and Sheng Yunshu helped him take off his gloves.
“Tired?”
“A bit, but itâs very interesting.”
Yu Xi couldn’t wait to share his feelings of being on a horse with the two of them, unknowingly saying a lot. Sheng Yunshu and Meng Shen both listened quietly, always looking at him with soft eyes.
“Xingxing is also very impressive at riding; he runs so fast.” Yu Xi watched Zhang Xingkuo riding his horse over obstacles without blinking.
“He developed his athletic cells at the expense of this place.” Sheng Yunshu pointed at her head. “Shuhuai Ge said that.”
Yu Xi asked amusingly, “Did he? I think Xingxing is very smart.”
Sheng Yunshu shook her head. “When he acts stupid, heâs truly stupid. Um… Shuhuai Ge said that too.”
But clearly Sheng Yunshu also agreed; otherwise, she wouldn’t have borrowed Lin Shuhuaiâs words to give a comment.
Yu Xi thought about it carefully; such words were indeed Lin Shuhuaiâs style.
In childhood, his interaction with Lin Shuhuai wasn’t as much as with the other children, because Lin Shuhuai was the oldest among their group, a year older than even Gu Chuanzhou.
When he was at the age of primary school, Lin Shuhuai was already in junior high school. During summer and winter vacations, he also had to balance both schoolwork and music, being so busy he rarely had time to meet.
At that time, Yu Xi always had to tilt his head high to look at Lin Shuhuai, calling him “Big Brother,” and Lin Shuhuai would pull him onto his lap to play piano for him.
He was a very gentle older brother, but occasionally Lin Shuhuai would tell him some secrets.
For example, the school principal was bald, and every time he went on stage to speak, he was like a lightbulb that would shine, making it hard to ignore and particularly glaring.
For example, the cakes Lin Shuhuaiâs mother made tasted as bad as cheese that had been fermenting in a sewer for three days and nights with rats crawling all over it. His mother also couldn’t bear to hear ugly words; after he spoke the truth once, he was rewarded with a sound beating.
For another example, he hated studying, hated classes, hated sports, hated the “Music Prince” title which was both tacky and clichĂŠ. He said in interviews that he loved music, but that was all fake. His true dream was to be a useless person who didn’t have to do anything except eat and sleep.
Lin Shuhuai poured out these things to Yu Xi while playing the piano.
What was even more worth mentioning was that what Lin Shuhuai played weren’t romantic or beautiful movements, but various terrifying dark nursery rhymes.
After a piece was finished, his heartâs troubles were also voiced. Lin Shuhuai rubbed the top of Yu Xiâs head with satisfaction. “Youâre still the best, Xiao Xi. Only you won’t be afraid when hearing these pieces.”
Yes, although little Yu Xi had no musical cells, his strong point was that he wasn’t afraid of ghosts or other ethereal existences at all.
This point was even stronger than Zhang XingkuoâLin Shuhuai had tried it, locking Zhang Xingkuo in the piano room and forcing him to listen once. As a result, he went back and had nightmares and a fever, which became the shame of Zhang Xingkuoâs life.
All in all, these things displayed a side of Lin Shuhuai unknown to others.
Yu Xi still liked this older brother very much and asked Sheng Yunshu, “Do you know when heâs coming back?”
“Soon.” Sheng Yunshu gave a vague answer.
“I see…”
Yu Xi wanted to ask more, but in his peripheral vision, a familiar figure suddenly appeared.
It was Gu Chuanzhou riding a horse.
He was riding a black horse with a long wavy mane. He wasn’t wearing an ordinary equestrian outfit focused on convenience; the double-breasted black tailcoat and the same-colored bowtie at his shirt collar made him look like a knight who had stepped out of the last century, full of British gentlemanly elegance and nobility.
Exceptionally unique.
Recommended Reads
