"I agree to everything you say."
To be able to go out, Feng Jin was willing to go all out, verbally agreeing to everything Ling Mohan said, for fear that the man would go back on his word and not take her out.
"I'll go change my clothes right now. Wait here for me, I'll be back momentarily."
As soon as she finished speaking, Feng Jin lifted her skirt and trotted indoors. In just a moment, a handsome young gentleman appeared before Ling Mohan.
"What do you think? Dressed like this, no one will be able to recognize me as a woman."
Feng Jin felt very fortunate that she had altered Ling Mohan's clothes to her own size in the past, and now they could be put to use.
Dressed as a man was much more convenient for her to move around than as a woman. She didn't have to worry about gossip. Ancient times indeed favored men so much.
"Not bad. Don't forget what we talked about earlier, you absolutely mustn't..."
Ling Mohan was about to reiterate when Feng Jin covered his mouth with her hand: "Stop nagging. I can recite everything you said backward now. Nothing will go wrong, you can rest assured."
All she wanted now was to go out quickly. She grabbed Ling Mohan's hand and walked out.
Upon reaching the main gate, she noticed there were only two horses and no carriage.
"Where's the carriage? How are we supposed to get there without a carriage?"
They always had a carriage for outings. Now Ling Mohan was truly stingy, not even providing a carriage for her. This was too much.
"Since you're disguised as a man now, you shouldn't ride in a carriage. We'll ride horses."
"Ride horses?" Feng Jin glanced up at the horse, which was a head taller than her, and immediately felt intimidated.
If this horse were to lose control and go mad, she, sitting on its back, would be the first to die.
"I don't know how to ride a horse. Perhaps I should still take the carriage."
Although riding a horse and passing by looked quite imposing, Feng Jin chose life over bravado.
It was much more sensible to sit in a carriage. There wasn't any rule stating that men couldn't ride in carriages.
As Feng Jin's mind wandered, her wrist was suddenly grabbed, and she was lifted into the air. In an instant, she was sitting securely on horseback. This feeling of her feet not touching the ground made Feng Jin panic. She tightly gripped the saddle, afraid of falling off.
"Ling Mohan, you... figure out a way to get me down. I... I'm scared up here..."
Feng Jin stammered, her lips trembling slightly, clearly showing her fear.
Ling Mohan shook his head helplessly, grabbed the saddle, and mounted the horse. He then pulled Feng Jin's slender body into his embrace: "We'll share one horse. I'll be here if anything happens, so don't worry."
As he spoke, the man gently applied pressure with his legs to the horse's belly. Immediately, the horse galloped forward like lightning. Feng Jin, terrified, clung tightly to Ling Mohan's arm.
"We've arrived." Ling Mohan dismounted and reached out to help the stunned Feng Jin.
Feng Jin nodded blankly and slowly placed her hand in Ling Mohan's, allowing him to help her down.
"With your abilities, you still want to go out alone? That's a pipe dream."
The man's mocking voice sounded above Feng Jin's head. Feng Jin glared at Ling Mohan with resentment.
"Say less. No one thinks you're mute. Besides, I won't choose to ride a horse when I go out. I have hands and feet, can't I walk myself?"
Who stipulated that one must ride a horse to go out? Couldn't she just walk?
"That's sophistry."
"And you're being unreasonable."
Feng Jin snorted and stopped paying attention to the man behind her, walking straight ahead.
The nightlife in Dongchu was indeed well-deserved of its reputation. Look at this place, it was so vibrant and exciting.
"Let's go listen to stories."
Feng Jin turned and said to the man behind her, then ran towards their destination. Not forgetting to find a good spot, she even waved for Ling Mohan to come over.
When the exciting part of the story came, Feng Jin couldn't help but stand up and applaud.
Ling Mohan deeply regretted agreeing to bring Feng Jin out. Couldn't she be more composed and elegant? Why did she have to create such a commotion?
After listening to the story, Feng Jin looked around, searching for more fun places.
"There are so many people over there. What are they doing?"
As soon as Feng Jin finished speaking, she had already run over.
Ling Mohan shook his head helplessly and sighed, resigned to following her.
"Brother, may I ask what's happening here, to gather so many people?"
"Little brother, this is the daughter of Minister Li, throwing embroidered balls to choose a husband. These people are just here to join the fun. Little brother, you look quite talented. If you move forward a bit, perhaps Miss Li will take a liking to you."
"Thank you, brother, for informing me." Feng Jin cupped her hands in thanks. She searched for the man's figure and was just about to move forward when she was pushed out by the surging crowd.
Her body suddenly lost its balance. Feng Jin's eyes widened as she looked at the ground, preparing for an intimate encounter with Mother Earth. She simply closed her eyes, looking resigned to her fate.
However, she fell into a warm and strong embrace. A familiar scent wafted to Feng Jin's nostrils. Opening her eyes and seeing a familiar face, Feng Jin quickly got up and hugged Ling Mohan.
"Don't run around. If you do this again, you're going home with me." Ling Mohan's warning voice clearly reached Feng Jin's ears.
Feng Jin nodded hurriedly and replied in a low voice: "I know. It's not my fault you ran off carelessly, that's why I..."
Ling Mohan's perceptive eyes fixed on Feng Jin: "Your ability to shift blame is truly impressive!"
"I'm telling the truth. It's clearly because you weren't diligently following me."
Feng Jin grumbled discontentedly again, then quickly changed the subject: "The daughter of Minister Li is throwing embroidered balls to choose a husband up ahead. Shall we go take a look?"
"No." Ling Mohan said firmly, pulling Feng Jin away.
"Let's go take a look, please. Okay?" Feng Jin tugged on Ling Mohan's hand, almost pleading.
"Absolutely not!"
The man directly refused and quickly left with Feng Jin, giving her no chance to go back.
"How about we go listen to some music?"
"No!"
"Shall we go see what's over there?"
"No!"
"Let's..."
"No!"
No matter what Feng Jin suggested, Ling Mohan's answer was always "No."
"If nothing is allowed, then why did I even come out!"
"Then fine, let's go home."
Ling Mohan agreed readily and directly, pulling Feng Jin to turn back.
"I'm not leaving. I haven't had enough fun yet."
Even just wandering outside was much better than going home. After saying that, Feng Jin pulled Ling Mohan forward.