The Princess and Her Rough-Rider Khan

Li Xianyun said, "Actually, I wasn't interested in making weapons at the beginning, I just liked to play with my younger brother. Afterward..."

She suddenly paused, then continued, "Afterward, I became interested in weapon-making."

Yelu Yan's deep tiger-like eyes stared intently at her; she suddenly stopped talking, which surely hid some secret.

Yelu Yan lightly tapped his hand resting on the table and did not speak again, instead looking out the window.

Li Xianyun pursed her lips and looked out as well.

From their position, they could clearly see the neatly arranged shops in the night market and the endless stream of people. It was not yet dark, but the number of people in the night market had already increased.

There were adults and children, their hands filled with their purchases, their faces brimming with happy smiles.

The evening breeze passed through the bamboo groves and the brooks, bringing with it a fresh chill that felt refreshing and comfortable on the skin.

Li Xianyun couldn't help but slightly lift the corners of her mouth; life was good when it was this peaceful.

When Yelu Yan turned his head, he caught Li Xianyun's tender and serene smile. This woman loved to smile, and it was not unpleasant to behold.

Just at that moment, a knocking sound came from outside the door.

"Dear guests, may I bring in the dishes?"

"Come in," Yelu Yan said in an indifferent tone.

The door creaked open, and the innkeeper, accompanied by two waiters, brought in the dishes.

As Li Xianyun had anticipated, these dishes were all related to meat; there were roasted, fried, and boiled selections including beef and mutton with very few vegetables.

Li Xianyun couldn't help but sigh; no wonder the Khitan were so sturdy – eating meat all the time, at every meal, how could they not be robust?

Yelu Yan skillfully picked up a knife, sliced the meat off a roasted leg of lamb, cut it into small pieces, and said to Li Xianyun, "Eat."

"Mhm."

Li Xianyun picked up a piece of meat with her chopsticks, dipped it in the sauce, sesame, and chili, and put it in her mouth to chew lightly. The meat was not as greasy as she had imagined because of the dipping sauce; it was crispy on the outside and tender inside, and quite delicious.

Yelu Yan took a chopstick full of meat, put it in his mouth, and while eating, asked, "How's the taste?"

Li Xianyun nodded and smiled, "Very tasty."

"Then eat more," he said.

"Mhm."

Li Xianyun took a sip of the milk tea to find, to her surprise, it was sweet. But these past few days, she had been drinking salty ones.

"Isn't milk tea supposed to be salty?" Li Xianyun asked Yelu Yan, unable to help herself.

"There are sweet ones too," Yelu Yan replied while eating.

It seemed she was uninformed. Li Xianyun cupped the bowl of milk tea in her small hands and took another sip; it really was delicious.

By the end of the meal, Li Xianyun was full. The food of the Khitan was indeed delicious; she would have to inquire properly with the kitchen maid when she returned to the palace.

After eating, Yelu Yan and Li Xianyun got back into the carriage to continue their journey.

The sky gradually darkened.

They say that after a full meal, one tends to think of sleep, and indeed, it was the case.

Sitting in the swaying carriage, Li Xianyun soon felt sleepy. As drowsiness deepened, her mind relaxed too, and just then, the carriage jolted violently when it ran over a somewhat large stone.

Li Xianyun, not sitting securely, lurched forward.

"Be careful!" Yelu Yan exclaimed as he saw her about to fall and spread his arms out.

But Li Xianyun couldn't control her body, and the next moment she found herself in a pair of wide and solid arms.

Her little face buried deep into Yelu Yan's neck, her warm breath brushed against him, and her lips heavily pressed against his neck.

She... she had actually kissed Yelu Yan.

Yelu Yan's hands encircled Li Xianyun's slender waist and he froze, having never been this close to a woman before. The place where Li Xianyun had kissed him tingled, his blood almost boiling over, clamoring fiercely.

Li Xianyun came to her senses, her hands pushing against his firm chest, struggling to stand up. His chest was like a slab of muscle, as hard as stone.

Li Xianyun's little face was already burning hot, and now it turned even redder, a complete mess. She really hadn't meant to cop a feel.

As she tried to get up, her face inevitably brushed against Yelu Yan's handsome and cool cheek, feeling his warm breath, making her head roar even louder.

How did she seem like a shameless woman taking advantage of others, not only had she kissed him but also grabbed him, and ended with face pressed against his?

She really wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

Li Xianyun moved back to her seat in an embarrassingly awkward manner, lifting her eyes to glance at Yelu Yan with shy difficulty.

Yelu Yan watched her with deep tiger-like eyes, his expression unchanged, seemingly unruffled by the event.

His calm and composed demeanor was in stark contrast to Li Xianyun's.

Jinwu spoke from outside the carriage, "Reporting to the Khan, the wheel just hit a stone and the carriage jolted. Are you and the princess unharmed?"

Yelu Yan cleared his throat and said in a calm voice, "It's nothing."

Hearing Yelu Yan's deep voice, Jinwu's heart instantly panicked. Had the Khan become angry, otherwise why would his voice sound so different?

Had he been doomed to guard the city gate that night?

Li Xianyun, looking at Yelu Yan and feeling guilty, said, "Khan, it was not intentional earlier. This concubine was just too tired, which is why I fell into your arms, not to take advantage of you."

Yelu Yan opened his mouth and said, "Just hold on a little longer, we are almost there."

As he spoke, he lifted the curtain to look outside.

Li Xianyun bit her lip, her eyes tightly closed, her heart thudding wildly. He didn't follow up on her remarks, did he think she was just a woman taking advantage of the situation?

How should she explain herself to him?

Li Xianyun was so immersed in her own chagrin that she didn't notice the corners of Yelu Yan's mouth slightly turning upwards.

Li Xianyun's face was burning, her body hot, as if suddenly trapped in a steamer, suffocating her. She lifted her hand to pull back the curtain to look outside, forcing herself to focus on the surrounding scenery.

The carriage clearly had left the bustling area, now traveling on a wide official road. Low houses could occasionally be seen on both sides of the road, stripped of urban splendor, lying quietly upon the fields.

The soft evening breeze gently brushed her face, Li Xianyun's hair fluttering before her forehead, making her feel much better.

Not daring to look at Yelu Yan again, she could only continue to gaze out of the window.

The carriage soon arrived at a complex of buildings. Unlike the low houses they had passed, these structures stood tall and imposing.

Around the complex was a high wall guarded by soldiers, suggesting that this was likely a military base.

Indeed, as they proceeded further, Li Xianyun saw many patrolling soldiers in tidy rows, each carrying weapons that coldly reflected the light.

The soldiers, seeing Yelu Yan's carriage, stopped respectfully to salute and only resumed patrolling after the carriage had passed.

The deeper they went, the brighter the lights shone, the more numerous the soldiers, the stricter the security.

Li Xianyun looked at Yelu Yan with puzzlement and asked, "Khan, where is this?"