Female martial arts fanatics only love to fight, while men fight for their lives.

73

The two brothers were warning each other, and Lou Xiao had already met with the Queen and was ready to put what needed to be done on the agenda.

Later, when Xiao Zhengze and Xiao Zhengdu heard that Lou Xiao suddenly went to Wanqiu Garden, they were a little surprised. They just thought that Lou Xiao liked to play and seemed to be enjoying the garden newly granted by Her Majesty the Queen.

It is said that the empress gave her the white horse that she rode for patrolling the streets, but she refused and instead gave it to the Wu'an Marquis's Mansion and gave it to Lu Huan.

When Xiao Zhengze heard this, he became alert. Why did Lou Xiao give the horse to Lu Huan? Did they know each other well?

Not to mention that Xiao Zhengze asked someone to find out if there was anything wrong with Lou Xiao and Lu Huan. Lou Xiao stayed in Wanqiu Garden for many days and did not return. Xiao Zhengze wanted to pack up and follow her, but was stopped by the Queen.

He was somewhat unwilling, but it was indeed inappropriate for him to follow, so in the end he could only stay in the palace and recuperate.

When Lu Huan received the horse, he was completely stunned.

"Sent by the Duke of Zhenguo?"

Most of the people in Wu'an Marquis's mansion were disabled veterans who had retired from the army. Naturally, they had sharp eyes and could tell at a glance that this horse was a real treasure.

"Sir! Is it the Duke of Zhenguo? Did she give it to you?"

"Wow! Nice horse! My lord! When did you become so close to the Duke of Zhenguo?"

"Could it be..."

The more these gossipy guys think, the more they get distorted.

Lu Huan reached out to stroke the unruly white horse, but it shook its head away and snorted, its four hooves eager to move, as if it was dissatisfied with its new owner.

"Hey! You have such a bad temper!" The old man beside Lu Huan was jealous but didn't dare to reach out and touch him.

The better the horse, the more character it has. If you make it angry, it will kick you with its hoof and you will be half crippled if not killed.

Lu Huan smiled slightly and said, "When she was riding on you, you were so obedient. Does that mean you look down on me?"

He was talking to the white horse, and the white horse bared its teeth as if it understood, as if saying, give my master back to me!

"She feels that keeping you in the capital is unfair to you." Lu Huan inexplicably understood her thoughts. "I will take you to the Northern Desert to see the vast world. This is also what she wants."

This time, Lu Huan touched its neck and head. The white horse reluctantly did not refuse. It seemed that it also did not like the restraints in the capital.

I long to run freely and happily in the grasslands and wilderness.

Lou Xiao, who had given the horse, lived with Jiu Bai in Wanqiu Garden.

In some years, the garden almost covers the entire mountain. The nearby orchard is in bloom, with butterflies and bees of various colors flying around, and the air is filled with fragrance.

Although the houses in the garden are a bit old, they are spacious and quiet.

Lou Xiao walked around the garden on the first day and found that except for the lack of people, everything about the garden was to her liking.

She could finally practice without any restraint.

At night, Lou Xiao, dressed in plain clothes, stood alone on the top of the mountain, closed her eyes to feel the direction of the wind, and listened to the rustling of leaves.

Every tiny movement was heard, and even if she couldn't see, the subtle details of the surrounding environment were all in her mind.

The night wind brought petals that had fallen from somewhere. Lou Xiao stretched out her hand and held them, moving her body at will.

The footsteps follow the direction of the wind, fluttering and dancing like flowers, as light as a fairy, making one forget the worldly affairs.

Jiubai looked at his young lady from afar at the foot of the mountain, slowly cleaning the clothes that he had brought with him.

She didn't know how long her young lady would stay in Wanqiu Garden. It seemed as if she had returned to the days of a small landlord in the mountain village, leisurely and free.

She actually likes it very much.

Everything in the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion is luxurious, but there are also many rules. As an outsider servant, it is not easy for her to integrate into the family. It would be nice to live here in the future...

As she thought about it, her hands became more and more skillful.

The young lady had said before that there would be guests coming and asked her to be more careful, but who would come to visit so late at night? And when they came, they didn't bring any good things from the Zhenguo Mansion.

What should I use to entertain the guests?

Jiubai didn't understand, but obeyed the lady's orders.

She pricked up her ears to listen for knocks on the door outside the garden, but her thoughts were too far away, and she had already regarded the person who would appear as a monster in a picture book.

When she heard the knock on the door as she wished, she was startled.

Jiubai stopped and wanted to listen carefully to see if there was really a guest.

But Lou Xiao had already jumped down from the top of the mountain without anyone noticing, and landed silently in front of her.

"Miss... who are you? How can there be visitors in the middle of the night..." Jiubai hid behind her in fear, "Is it really not some demon or ghost?"

Wanqiu Garden is remote and sparsely populated, so it is normal for monsters to appear there.

Lou Xiao turned around and said, "I don't know who it could be. Let him be a monster. Let's open the door and take a look. Are you afraid that I can't defeat him?"

The Queen agreed to her request, but also said that she was worried about her traveling alone, so she called someone reliable to accompany her.

Reliable? Who could it be?

Lou Xiao guessed that it was Xiao Zhengdu, or Lu Huan,

But on second thought, Lu Huan is a general guarding the border and will have to return to Beimo in a few days. How could he have the time to go out with her?

Then it could be another confidant of the Queen - could it be the secret guards around her? But she doesn't need protection, so what's the point of having secret guards follow her?

After thinking about it for a long time, she still couldn't figure out who the queen was talking about, so she gave up thinking about it and just basked in the sun and ate delicious food every day.

At night, he wore loose clothes, and like he had done in the village before, he would look for a place with lively energy, practice his mind and martial arts seriously.

Today was the day they were going to meet. Lou Xiao went to open the door by herself, and Jiu Bai followed behind to help.

There was a creaking sound of the thick wooden door, and Lou Xiao saw clearly the "reliable person" that His Majesty mentioned in the dim candlelight.

——Li Huaiqing.

Perhaps the shock on her face was too obvious, when Li Huaiqing lowered his hood to reveal his entire face and greeted her, there was a hint of smile in his voice.

"Duke Zhenguo, nice to meet you."

"Ah," Lou Xiao looked at the tall man with a blurry face standing not far behind him and asked in confusion, "Li Huaiqing...you?"

Did the Queen ask him to come?

"Your Majesty asked me to accompany you for a while," Li Huaiqing gathered his sleeves and looked around, "There is another person..."

Lou Xiao quickly found the person who habitually hid, "Come out, it's really you."

He was a small secret guard of medium height beside Her Majesty the Queen, so Li Huaiqing was indeed not lying.

"Duke Zhenguo, are you disappointed to see me? Don't worry, I have brought guards with me and I won't hold you back."

Li Huaiqing stepped aside to let Lou Xiao see Ai Ying more closely.

Ai Ying suppressed the trembling of excitement in her body. She didn't know how much willpower it took to make her voice sound calm. She clasped her fists and saluted her.

"I am Ai Ying, a commoner. I am honored to meet the Duke of Zhenguo."

His eyes looked at Lou Xiao excitedly, full of expectation and fear, waiting for her reaction.

Lou Xiao simply nodded and said "OK", without saying anything else, and made way for them to enter Wanqiu Garden.

"Come in and see for yourselves where you will stay. We will set off again in a day or two."

Li Huaiqing's eyes swept across the disappointed Ai Ying calmly, and he replied "Sorry to bother you, Duke Zhenguo" as he stepped into the Wanqiu Garden specially given to her by the Queen.

She...didn't recognize him.