Transmigrated as the Villain Boss's Mother

"Are you being sent to the polo banquet?" Li Qian asked Xu Zhu.

"Yes, it's the post I submitted yesterday." Xu Zhu quickly handed over the post.

She thought about it yesterday and felt it was necessary to tell Li Qian about the polo banquet, since this was the first time the Li family had received an invitation, marking their first step into the upper echelons of the capital. So, after Li Qian finished his court session, she went to his study.

Li Qian frowned as he looked at the post, and after a long while, said, "If you don't want to go, just cancel."

He prided himself on knowing Xu Zhu very well; she was always reserved and rarely interacted with others, so it was understandable that she wouldn't go.

"Go, why wouldn't you go?" Xu Zhu looked puzzled. So Li Qian didn't take the polo banquet seriously? She had already decided to go there to see what was going on.

Li Qian looked up, surprised that Xu Zhu had taken the initiative to suggest going today: "Alright, you sit here and wait for me to finish what I'm doing, then I'll take you to the polo field to practice."

"now go?"

"Is there a problem?" Li Qian looked up from his desk, his expression seemingly puzzled as to why Xu Zhu was asking such a question.

Haha, Xu Zhu is ashamed. That speed is incredibly efficient!

Judging from Xu Zhu's boredom, Li Qian quickened his pace. When Xu Zhu counted to the 499th line on the chair, Li Qian stood up and told her she could leave.

Upon arriving at the polo field, Xu Zhu couldn't help but marvel at its beauty. The field was approximately 1,500 feet long and nearly 1,000 feet wide. It was paved with a mixture of soil, pebbles, fine sand, and straw ash, and even more extravagantly, the area around the field was paved with brocade!

Xu Zhu: "..." Forgive me for being such a country bumpkin, the sports field is covered in brocade...

Li Qian mounted his horse first, then extended his hand to Xu Zhu, gesturing for her to join him. Xu Zhu hesitated for a moment, then deftly used his strength to mount the horse. Li Qian was momentarily stunned; her soft, supple hand made him reluctant to let go. He pressed his temple with one hand, wondering what was wrong with him lately, why he felt something was off about his feelings for Xu Zhu.

"What are they splashing?" Xu Zhu asked curiously as he saw three or five servants orderly splashing something onto the ground.

"Butter," Li Qian said calmly.

Xu Zhu's lips twitched. Spilling butter on the ground—was it because he was rich and arrogant?

"Firstly, to prevent dust from rising and to make the land more compact; secondly, so that when torches are lit at night, the ground will reflect light." Li Qian noticed Xu Zhu's surprise at such extravagance. In fact, he was also surprised when he first arrived here and was even mocked by Wang Yu. Later, he learned that it was commonplace for scions of noble families. But why couldn't such a large sum of money be used for the common people?

Xu Zhu is just a complete novice right now; he can't even ride a horse, let alone play polo.

"Hold the reins tight"

"Gently squeeze the horse's belly, no, you should gently rub against the horse's belly."

"Yes, very good. Relax, that's good."

Li Qian was unusually patient at this moment, even his tone was much gentler. Xu Zhu thought to herself that he wasn't teasing her as much as usual.

"Li..." Xu Zhu was about to turn around to speak when her lips brushed against Li Qian's stubble-covered chin, causing both of them to freeze in surprise. Xu Zhu's face flushed slightly, like a startled rabbit. To ease her embarrassment, Xu Zhu preemptively asked, "Why did you suddenly look down?"

"How can I tell if you're right or wrong if you don't bow your head?" Li Qian asked innocently.

Xu Zhu was speechless, as if what he said made some sense.

"I didn't even know you suddenly turned around!" Li Qian pressed his advantage.

Xu Zhu: "..." Okay, what you said makes sense, but something's not quite right.

On the other side of the polo field, Zhao Ying, the young lady of the Grand Commandant's mansion, looked at Xu Zhu and Li Qian being intimate on the field in the distance. She couldn't help but point at the two in surprise and asked the groom on the field, "Who are those two people?"

“In response to Miss Zhao, those are General Li Qian and his wife,” the servant replied respectfully.

Zhao Ying had recently heard that Lin Ruxue had invited General Li's wife to the polo banquet. All the young ladies in the capital knew that General Li's wife was a genuine peasant woman, and they were all waiting to see Xu Zhu make a fool of himself. Some even placed bets, guessing how long it would take for Li Qian to divorce his wife. But today, she never expected to see General Li personally teaching his wife how to play polo.

"Miss, General Li doesn't seem to be the one people say he doesn't like his wife," the maid asked, puzzled.

"Who knows?" Zhao Ying shrugged.

"Miss, should we tell Miss Lin? What if we fail to humiliate Madam Li at the polo banquet?" The maid was worried. They had been so eager to teach this woman a lesson!

"Why tell them? If you want to embarrass others, you have to be prepared to be humiliated," Zhao Ying said calmly, glancing at her polo mallet. "Don't you want to see the other ladies lose face?"

The maidservant suddenly realized that her young mistress was indeed clever. If her attempt to trick the country bumpkin failed and she ended up getting humiliated, then they could enjoy watching the noble ladies make a fool of themselves. After all, these young ladies were all very proud, and seeing them get their comeuppance would be incredibly satisfying. If the noble ladies succeeded in their trickery, then they would get to watch a show for free, so it wouldn't be a loss either way.

"Then, Miss, let's not side with each other or scheme against each other. Let's just quietly watch the show!" the maid said excitedly.

Zhao Ying deftly mounted her horse, ready to see who would win between Lin Ruxue and Xu Zhu. Most scions of aristocratic families were extremely prejudiced against those outside their social class, so when Lin Ruxue proposed hosting a banquet for Xu Zhu, she received the support of the vast majority of young ladies.

Xu Zhu had spent the whole day practicing horseback riding with Li Qian, and now she didn't want to move an inch, leaning lazily against the carriage. The carriage was bumping around, and her back and waist were really sore. But with Li Qian sitting in the carriage, how could she possibly move around? Li Qian had long arms and legs, and she could easily bump into him if she wasn't careful. Besides, he took up more than half the space in the carriage.

Seeing Xu Zhu constantly radiating a resentful aura, Li Qian felt a chill run down his spine: "What...did I do to her?!"

"Cough cough, what's wrong?" Li Qian couldn't stand Xu Zhu's gaze any longer, so he coughed twice, half-clenching his fist to cover his mouth, and asked.

"I'm tired." Xu Zhu was too embarrassed to say that she was both tired and uncomfortable from being squeezed in too much space.

Li Qian moved closer to Xu Zhu: "I'll reluctantly lend you my shoulder to lean on."

Xu Zhu: "…………" Have I brought this upon myself?

"No need." Xu Zhu pursed her lips, inwardly frustrated. She then lifted her buttocks and squeezed to the side.

Li Qian's eyes were deep and unfathomable. Was Xu Zhu distancing herself from him? He felt a little uncomfortable. So, without making a sound, Li Qian moved closer to Xu Zhu, bringing his face closer to hers.

Xu Zhu was startled when he saw the large face that suddenly appeared in front of him.