Chapter 24

"Prince Qin, could you please help me one more time?" Gu Qiancheng hesitated but still spoke up.

She was not good at asking for help, but she didn't know who else to turn to besides Qin Jiyu. The person she knew best in this place was not her parents, but Qin Jiyu. It was truly laughable.

"Help you one more time?" Qin Jiyu was taken aback by her words, then said sarcastically, "Why should I? Why should I help you again and again? Who are you to me? Do I have an obligation to help you?"

In modern times, Gu Qiancheng could have come up with a lot of reasons, like chivalry or gentlemanly conduct, but now...

Gu Qiancheng felt embarrassed and said self-deprecatingly, "Apart from Your Highness, I don't know who else to ask for help. I won't dare to promise that I will repay you in the future; I know Prince Qin wouldn't value such a small return."

"Since you know you can't repay me, why ask for my help? I'm not a god without desires. Helping you comes at a price." Qin Jiyu was deliberately making things difficult for Gu Qiancheng. Of course, the main reason was that he didn't want to get involved with the Gu family.

The situation was different from last night. In public, if he helped Gu Qiancheng again, she might cling to him, which would be troublesome for him.

Gu Qiancheng could clearly hear his refusal. Though disappointed, she wasn't overly angry. She took a step back, maintaining a distance between them. "I was too greedy. I apologize for disturbing Your Highness. Please forgive me."

Since he wouldn't help, Gu Qiancheng wouldn't beg. Qin Jiyu indeed had no obligation to help her, and it was pointless to keep asking.

Without Qin Jiyu's support, Gu Qiancheng swayed slightly but gritted her teeth and held on. Qin Jiyu frowned involuntarily, wanting to reach out to help her but ultimately held back.

Behind him, Feng Yuqian and Jiao Xiangdi also watched Gu Qiancheng with wide eyes.

This girl gave up so quickly?

At this moment, shouldn't she be kneeling down, crying and begging Prince Qin to help her, to take responsibility?

"Xiaoxianxian, there's actually a woman who doesn't want Prince Qin's help. Who is this woman?" Jiao Xiangdi was extremely curious about Gu Qiancheng's identity and tried to find out indirectly, but unfortunately, Feng Yuqian didn't know either.

However, this didn't affect Feng Yuqian's admiration for Gu Qiancheng: a resilient, wise, and tactful woman—no one could dislike her.

Seeing Gu Qiancheng steady herself, Qin Jiyu turned and walked toward his horse. Since he wasn't going to help, there was no point in wasting time.

Jiao Xiangdi and Feng Yuqian thought they would see a good show, but it ended so quickly. Jiao Xiangdi said regretfully, "Are you leaving already? What about this girl?"

"She can take care of herself." Qin Jiyu said coldly, mounting his horse just as he saw Gu Qiancheng staggering toward the carriage horse.

Qin Jiyu couldn't help but stop to see what she would do.

The horse had fallen to the ground, frightened and thrashing wildly, kicking its legs and snorting hot breath at anyone who approached. Its eyes were as big as copper bells, looking ready to attack.

Gu Qiancheng remained calm, standing three steps away from the horse, facing it calmly. Her bright black eyes shone, focused solely on the horse, as if the world consisted only of her and the horse.

"Does this girl think the horse can understand her gaze?" Jiao Xiangdi had planned to leave but couldn't move his legs.

He wanted to see what she would do.

She couldn't possibly think that her aura of authority would make the horse obey her—that would be ridiculous!

But soon, Jiao Xiangdi couldn't laugh anymore. The horse gradually calmed down, stopped kicking, and lowered its proud head, snorting more gently, much more docile than before.

"Is this horse training? Prince Qin, who is this girl? How did you meet such an amazing person?" Jiao Xiangdi's eyes sparkled, wanting to rush forward and ask Gu Qiancheng how she did it.

Qin Jiyu ignored Jiao Xiangdi, watching Gu Qiancheng intently, his eyes gleaming with a newfound admiration.

Gu Qiancheng took two more steps, crouched beside the horse, and gently stroked its head. The horse was initially resistant but soon became as docile as a puppy, snorting contentedly, enjoying the attention.

"You're blinding me." Jiao Xiangdi stepped back in shock. Though a scholar, he knew how difficult it was to calm a frightened horse. Gu Qiancheng's skill truly amazed him.

Jiao Xiangdi and Feng Yuqian were stunned by Gu Qiancheng's horse training, but Qin Jiyu's attention soon shifted to her physical condition.

He noticed that after calming the horse, Gu Qiancheng seemed even weaker. Her already pale face was now as white as paper, and her lips were a sickly white.

"Why didn't you ask me for help again?" Qin Jiyu was displeased, but he was always reserved, keeping his dissatisfaction to himself.

Gu Qiancheng knew that using such a strange method to calm the horse would raise suspicions, but she had no other choice. Since Qin Jiyu wouldn't take her back, she had to go back herself, and riding the horse was the best option.

After calming the horse, Gu Qiancheng wobbled to her feet, holding her forehead, looking like she might faint at any moment. In fact, her condition was indeed very bad.

This body was too weak. Not only was she injured, but the mental effort to calm the horse had severely drained her. She was too weak to free the horse herself and needed help.

Qin Jiyu's refusal made Gu Qiancheng realize that asking for help wasn't easy, so she chose to offer money.

Taking out the last two taels of silver from her money bag, Gu Qiancheng turned to the onlookers and said, "Who will help me untie the ropes on this horse? These two taels of silver are yours."

Instead of begging, she offered a fair transaction. Gu Qiancheng preferred this approach. Soon, a burly man stepped forward boldly. "Are you serious?"

"It's just two taels of silver; there's no need to lie. Just untie the ropes on the horse." Gu Qiancheng spoke confidently, but in reality, these two taels were all she had. As for the gold leaves in the wooden box?

They seemed to have fallen into the water, along with the few pages of paper, and were now who knows where.

"Alright, I'll untie the ropes for you." The man looked excited and moved quickly. Gu Qiancheng stood calmly, but she felt a huge relief inside.

The onlookers, seeing how easy it was to earn two taels of silver, regretted not acting sooner but could only watch as the man took the silver.

"Only two taels of silver, how stingy." Jiao Xiangdi looked disappointed that Gu Qiancheng was about to escape.

He had wanted to see Prince Qin save the day, but that wouldn't happen now.

"Money shouldn't be shown openly. Throwing silver in a crowd is asking for trouble." Feng Yuqian couldn't help but give a lesson.

As they spoke, the man had already untied the ropes. The horse neighed and got up, stepping confidently on the spot.

"Good horse." Feng Yuqian's eyes lit up.

"Which nouveau riche actually uses a fine warhorse to pull a carriage? What a waste of a good horse." Jiao Xiangdi was blunt and sarcastic.

Gu Qiancheng, hearing their comments, seemed not to notice. She gave the man the silver and walked toward the horse, silently praying that this frail body could hold up. Once on the horse, everything would be fine!

To the readers: That's it for today's four updates!

Page flip AD starts

Page flip AD ends