Transmigrated as a Stepmother: Time to Bring the Family to Prosper!-Chapter 85 - 84: Horseback Riding

Chapter 85: Chapter 84: Horseback Riding
Qin Yao raised an eyebrow and pointed to four more books. Miss Ding snorted, "You’re so greedy!" but immediately said, "Deal!"
"Just don’t ruin them, copy them and send them back to me. These are ones my father has read and annotated, and I wouldn’t sell them for gold. She proudly instructed.
"Also!" she added, "Don’t lend them to anyone else. You must swear, or face a cruel fate by lightning strike if you fail!"
Amused, Qin Yao raised a hand and solemnly swore an oath, then crossed her arms and asked:
"Any other requests?"
Miss Ding said boldly, "Yes!"
Qin Yao responded patiently, "Please say it."
The young girl lowered her voice, "Don’t let my father know."
"That’s no problem." Qin Yao lifted her hand, taking her small hand, and said, "Give me five!"
Miss Ding asked blankly, "What meal?"
"Miss, it’s time for lunch!" Aunt Qiao called from outside the study.
Qin Yao couldn’t wait to leave the study, saying, "Eat rice."
"Huh?" Miss Ding was puzzled, it obviously wasn’t ’eating rice,’ the tone was missing a beat.
She followed persistently behind Qin Yao, asking, "What meal did you just say?"
Qin Yao took the large ocean-blue bowl handed by Cao’er, tapped the edge with chopsticks, making two crisp sounds, speaking nonsense in all seriousness:
"I just meant to eat, nothing else. Miss, go have lunch, eat well so you can train well in the afternoon."
Hearing the word ’training,’ Miss Ding didn’t pursue more questions and hurried inside to eat.
At this time, unaware of the training content, she naively anticipated the afternoon’s training.
The Ding Mansion had horses, which were typically used for pulling carts, but that didn’t matter.
There was also a saddle, it was Young Master Ding’s saddle. Qin Yao had Zhang Ba fit the horse with it, and she led the horse, accompanied by Miss Ding, in fitted narrow-sleeved shirts and long pants, out of the stable onto the road.
In front of the Ding Family’s entrance was a more than two-meter-wide yellow dirt road, stretching east to west, a straight path for about two or three hundred meters.
This road led from the town to the Ding Clan’s village, and usually, few people walked here.
It had just rained in the morning, the sun shone brightly by noon, and the road surface had dried completely.
Watching Qin Yao mount the horse, she pulled Miss Ding up with her, whispering excitedly, as Aunt Qiao and Housekeeper Yu exchanged a glance, their hearts in their throats.
Fortunately, Qin Yao’s horse control seemed decent, along with the horse’s natural gentleness, it ran along the road, Miss Ding’s joyful cries echoing along the path.
Housekeeper Yu looked towards Aunt Qiao with some worry, "If the master comes back and finds the miss can ride and shoot, he should be pleasantly surprised, right?"
Aunt Qiao wore a pained expression, "I suppose..."
After all, the master deeply adored Miss Ding, so he should, maybe, won’t mind her learning things typically meant for boys.
Both felt uneasy, but watching the girl laugh freely on horseback, they thought this was indeed beautiful.
The two sat by the stone lion at the entrance, watching the horse carry Qin Yao and Ding Xiang back and forth on the road, as if their hearts soared along with them.
However, the silver-bell-like laughter on horseback gradually changed tone as the horse ran faster, jostling her.
Miss Ding couldn’t laugh anymore, fearfully clinging to the horse’s substantial neck, burying her head in its mane, shutting her eyes tightly, shouting, "Make it stop, stop!"
Yet, to no avail, a hand reached from behind, righting her head.
"Look ahead, at the road. I’m right behind you, don’t be scared."
Qin Yao’s calm, steady voice sounded in her ear, prompting Ding Xiang to take a deep breath and slowly open her eyes.
"Whoosh"—a dust storm startled her, making her want to close her eyes again.
"Keep them open!"
The sharp command scared the girl into opening her eyes wide.
Quickly, her body was pressed down, the two leaned slightly on the left side of the horse’s back, using the horse’s body to shield against the dust storm, finally seeing the road clearly.
Qin Yao spoke in a low tone, "We don’t have time for you and the horse to gradually bond and adapt, so remember every word I say now."
"First, riding isn’t about sitting on it letting it run, but dominating it, controlling the reins, syncing it with your rhythm."
Ding Xiang thought, shouldn’t the person sync with the horse’s running rhythm? She recalled that when her brother learned to ride, the riding tutor had said so.
But whatever, she can only listen to Qin Yao now, hesitation will lead her to fall.
"Overcome your inner fear, there’s nothing frightening here, as long as you control the reins, you won’t fall."
Really? Ding Xiang doubted in her heart.
But obediently took the reins Qin Yao handed her.
Then, the horse noticeably slowed down, since the person holding the reins wasn’t Qin Yao anymore.
Ding Xiang slightly sighed in relief, listening to the techniques whispered in her ear, adjusting her seat, gripping the reins to try controlling the horse.
With someone behind her assuredly guarding her safety, she gradually felt less afraid.
Without fear, everything seemed to turn gentle.
The horse, under her control, slowed more, eventually maintaining a walking rhythm, stepping slowly along the avenue.
"It’s so obedient," Ding Xiang turned to give Qin Yao a surprised smile, beginning to find some enjoyment in control.
Qin Yao gave a sly smile, "Try speeding up."
"Okay!"
Ding Xiang shook the reins, and upon receiving the command, the horse trotted.
The horse wasn’t too obedient, so Qin Yao taught the girl before her to kick the horse’s stomach and told her:
"You must remember, you are a Beast Tamer. When the horse listens, give it some grass. If it misbehaves, warn it. Remember, you must tame it!"
Suddenly hearing this, Housekeeper Yu’s heart skipped a beat, feeling something amiss in Qin Yao’s horse-riding lesson, yet unable to pinpoint what.
Whatever, the girl seemed to learn fine, it should be alright.
The pair on horseback ran back and forth on the mansion’s road countless times until the sun set, clouds gathered, and rain threatened, only then returning, drenched in sweat, leading the horse back.
Qin Yao said, "I need a bath."
Ding Xiang nodded wearily, instructing Cao’er to heat up Qin Yao’s bathwater, and the two went inside separately, enjoying refreshing showers.
Having exhausted herself, Ding Xiang gobbled up three bowls of rice, astonishing Aunt Qiao.
After eating, with excitement subsided, Ding Xiang felt uncomfortable all over.
Qin Yao came in, sat opposite her, putting the girl’s legs on her knee, giving her a muscle massage to relax.