Landlord in the Arctic

"Hey, wake up!!"

Feng Shan suppressed his anxiety, trying to keep his voice calm as he gently raised a hand and tapped Natasha on her radiant cheek.

However, Natasha’s eyes remained tightly shut. She lay quietly across his lap like a sleeping beauty, showing no sign of waking.

Gazing at the unconscious Natasha, Feng Shan’s face was etched with anxiety, his brows furrowed deeply.

’Don’t tell me this woman actually fainted from anger!’

’What do I do?’

’If I just go back like this, how will I explain this to everyone?’

In his panic, a thought suddenly popped into Feng Shan’s head. With a shift of his eyes, he pushed away Ashes, who had nudged up beside him with an innocent look, and began to shift the blame with a straight face.

"See what you did? You ran so hard you made her faint."

NEIGH!!

Ashes shook its head discontentedly, snorting loudly. A puff of hot air instantly turned into a white cloud in the cold.

Its large eyes were filled with grievance, clearly refusing to admit it was at fault.

’You were the one who hit her. How can you blame me?’

"Still talking back? It was you. Just wait and see how I deal with you when we get back." Feng Shan ignored Ashes’s protest, bending down to pick up the unconscious Natasha.

Then, he unceremoniously threw Natasha facedown across Ashes’s back.

He would have Ashes carry her back to the camp.

After doing all this, Feng Shan didn’t forget to add a word of instruction for Ashes.

"Make up for your mistake. Go slowly."

However, because of the awkward position, Natasha’s arms and her long hair, like a golden waterfall, were so long they dangled down to the grass, swaying gently with every step Ashes took.

Feng Shan then mounted his black horse, gently squeezed his legs against its belly, and expertly grabbed its mane with his right hand. He led Ashes and the herd of horses, slowly heading back toward the camp.

After a while, the surroundings were still quiet, with only the soft sound of hooves on the grass.

Suddenly, a faint moan came from Ashes’s back.

Natasha slowly stirred, her consciousness gradually returning.

The first thing she saw was the grass receding from her view. With every step Ashes took, her own arms and long golden hair swayed along.

In a daze, Natasha’s mind slowly cleared, and she realized she was currently slung over a horse’s back like a piece of livestock.

Natasha instantly understood. A powerful tide of grief, indignation, and shame surged through her heart.

She instinctively tried to sit up and escape this humiliating and awkward position, but her body couldn’t move. She could only struggle in vain for a few moments.

Just then, Feng Shan’s pleasantly surprised voice rang out at the perfect moment.

"Great, you’re awake."

"I already scolded Ashes. I told it not to run so fast, that it would jostle you into a faint."

Feng Shan continued, embellishing the story with a straight face and pushing all the blame onto Ashes. Then he dismounted and squatted down in front of Natasha.

"Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"

However, Feng Shan’s string of solicitous questions was met only with Natasha’s cold expression.

She strained to lift her head, her beautiful, sapphire-blue eyes staring daggers at the bastard before her. Her gaze seemed sharp enough to pierce him through.

Enunciating every word, she said coldly,

"Put. Me. Down."

Her voice was quiet but held an undeniable resolve, as if warning Feng Shan that he would face dire consequences if he didn’t comply.

"Okay. Be careful."

Seeing that Natasha had spoken, Feng Shan didn’t dare delay. He reached out and, as gently as possible, lifted her from the horse’s back and set her down on the grass.

But when his gaze met Natasha’s murderous eyes, his heart skipped a beat. A wave of guilt washed over him, and he could only steel himself to explain.

"Well, the temperature outside the mossy border is very low. Forty degrees below zero could injure Ashes. If it ran that fast and fell, you could have gotten hurt. So I was a bit angry at the time and... just tapped you a few times."

"Heh!"

Natasha let out a cold laugh, rolling her beautiful eyes with utter disdain.

Just then, a stinging pain from her rear end made her shift her legs involuntarily. To ease the pain, she had no choice but to lean her body forward as much as possible. With a trace of annoyance in her eyes, she asked coldly,

"’Tapped me a few times’? And then threw me over a horse’s back like livestock?"

Hearing this, Feng Shan’s face twisted into an awkward smile as he cursed himself internally.

’I really did get carried away. I acted on impulse and didn’t hold back.’

’With my strength now, I’m afraid those few slaps really did injure her.’

But Feng Shan didn’t want to admit it, so he decided to play dumb and deliberately change the subject.

"The Bear Tribe’s camp is just up ahead. Why don’t we go there and rest for a bit?"

As he spoke, he pointed ahead, trying to divert Natasha’s attention and defuse the awkward situation.

"Fine!"

Natasha bit her lip. Although she was seething with anger, she also knew that they were in the middle of nowhere, without another soul in sight, and her bodyguards were nowhere to be found.

’If Feng Shan gets any funny ideas right now and tries to do something to me...’

’...there’s no way I could fight him off on my own.’

Silently weighing the pros and cons, she knew there was no better option at the moment, so she could only nod in helpless agreement.

At this thought, a wave of grievance and anger washed over her, but she had no choice but to suppress it.

Meanwhile, the searing pain in her rear hadn’t subsided. It felt as if countless needles were pricking her, and every movement sent a sharp, piercing pain through her.

’If I go back in this embarrassing state and let everyone see me like this, how could I ever hold my head up in public again? Where would my dignity be?’

Thinking of this,

Natasha shot a furtive, angry glare at Feng Shan.