Incense is lit, and wisps of smoke rise as the hunting competition begins. The time limit is one incense stick's time; whoever hunts the most prey wins.

In truth, everyone already knew who would win and who would lose; they just wanted to watch the spectacle.

Hu Pin seemed to value this competition very much; as soon as the gongs and drums sounded, he rode his horse into the forest.

The onlookers couldn't help but sigh: Does this kid really think he has a chance of winning?

Unable to disobey the imperial decree, Meng Yuxiu could only absentmindedly ride his horse into the forest.

Even after reaching the woods, he still felt uneasy, frequently glancing in the direction where Xiao Shu'er and Chang Lili had disappeared.

Unexpectedly, a rabbit appeared in his field of vision, so he slowly picked up his bow and arrow. But as soon as he nocked the arrow, it shot through the air and hit the rabbit.

Hu Pin dismounted with a grin, picked up the rabbit, and said insincerely, "Sorry, General Meng, first come, first served."

Meng Yuxiu glanced at him indifferently, without any anger. At this moment, his anxiety was even greater, and he had no intention of continuing the competition. He dared not imagine what might happen in this vast forest.

He reined in his horse, intending to head in the direction where Chang Lili and Xiao Shuer had disappeared, but before he had taken more than a few steps, a man and a horse blocked his way.

"General Meng, don't be discouraged. Your archery and horsemanship skills are beyond my reach. Giving me a rabbit is just a piece of cake for you." Hu Ping smiled in a way that was quite irritating.

Meng Yuxiu understood now; Hu Pin was probably trying to obstruct him. He frowned and said sternly, "Get out of the way."

"General Meng, why are you angry? You gave me a rabbit, and I'm not one to forget to repay kindness. Please don't go that way; there's not much prey there. I'll take you to the other side of the forest, where there's much more prey." Hu Ping pointed in the opposite direction from where Chang Lili disappeared and said this with great seriousness.

Meng Yuxiu clenched his fists, suppressing his anger, and said, "Get out of my way. This competition is over."

Hu Ping dragged him into a competition, keeping him busy, which probably meant he had already conspired with Xiao Shu'er to make a move against Chang Lili.

"What? It's just a rabbit. I saw the prey first and shot it first. This doesn't count as stealing from you, does it? How can a general like you be so narrow-minded?" Hu Pin got angry and started to argue unreasonably.

Meng Yuxiu turned his horse around, and Hu Pin followed suit, trying his best to stop Meng Yuxiu from leaving.

He shouted, "General Meng, this competition was approved by His Majesty, and you agreed to it yourself. Yet you want to leave after only a short while. It's one thing if you look down on me, Hu Ping, but you don't even respect His Majesty!"

He spoke with great conviction, but Meng Yuxiu completely ignored him. When he could no longer stop Meng Yuxiu, he finally couldn't help but resort to violence.

Hu Pin was no match for Meng Yuxiu. He had previously managed to fight Meng Yuxiu to a draw because he had a weapon, but now he couldn't even last a few moves against Meng Yuxiu.

However, he wasn't trying to win; he just wanted to stall Meng Yuxiu for as long as possible. At this moment, in order to keep Meng Yuxiu occupied, he resorted to all sorts of methods, wrestling, biting, and clinging to Meng Yuxiu, refusing to let go.

The scene was breathtaking.

The two made such a racket that Meng Yuxiu dragged Hu Pin a distance, finally attracting the attention of the emperor's guards.

Upon hearing that the two were fighting in the forest, the Emperor ordered them to be brought back.

When they appeared before the emperor, the two well-dressed young men who had entered the woods were now covered in dust and dirt.

"You... what kind of behavior is this!" the Emperor said, flicking his sleeves.

Meng Yuxiu was still anxious. He didn't know how Chang Lili was doing. So much time had passed, enough for many things to happen, and he dared not think about it too much.

A sorrowful voice rang out, and Meng Yuxiu turned around abruptly to see Chang Lili's thin figure rushing towards him. She was in a sorry state, covered in mud, with her hair disheveled. As she got closer, bruises could be seen on her face and her fair neck.

Meng Yuxiu's gaze sharpened, and disregarding all etiquette, he got up to help Chang Lili.

She cried out for help as she rushed to Meng Yuxiu, grabbing his arms tightly and crying out in panic, "Help me, General!" Then she turned to the Emperor, "Help me, Your Majesty!"

She had run incredibly fast, but now, leaning against Meng Yuxiu, she felt weak and listless, her voice feeble: "Quick... Princess... the princess is in trouble..."

After saying that, her head lolled to the side and she fainted.

"Chang Lili!" Meng Yuxiu hugged her and called out in a panic.

"Shu'er... What happened to Shu'er? What happened to Shu'er?" The Emperor cherished his younger sister Xiao Shu'er like a precious pearl. Hearing that she was in trouble, even the Emperor was thrown into disarray.

But Chang Lili fainted, and they couldn't get anything more out of her.

Meng Yuxiu picked Chang Lili up in his arms, but looking at her like this, he was still anxious.

"Your Majesty, please allow me to leave and take Miss Chang down to find someone to treat her." Meng Yuxiu's brows were furrowed, and his worry was evident in his words.

"Quickly! Go find the princess and bring her back!" the emperor said urgently to the guards. He turned to Meng Yuxiu, but had no time to say anything more to him, and waved his hand to signal him to leave.

Chang Lili's wounds were still a bit painful, and the sticky mud all over her body was really uncomfortable. However, she had to keep up the act. If she couldn't hide it properly and exposed that she was teasing Xiao Shu'er, then it would be more than just a crime of deceiving the emperor.

Imagine that while Chang Lili felt thoroughly satisfied, she also felt a little scared afterward.

Deep in the woods, Xiao Shu'er was still hanging alone on a tree, the places where she had been beaten were still throbbing, her head was throbbing from being upside down, and her face was red.

She already felt a little dizzy when Chang Lili shouted at her, and now she even has difficulty breathing.

She felt a chill run down her spine when she thought of the man who had called himself a messenger of hell.

Hidden in the dark path were several restless figures, who were getting impatient after waiting for so long without any prey coming.

The group grew anxious and decided to go out and take a look, so they headed to the other side of the path.

They tiptoed to the end of the path, peered out, and saw a person hanging from a tree.

Although the person's head was covered by a sack, the exquisite hem of her clothes and her slender figure clearly indicated that she was a young woman.

One of them, with a lewd look on his face, pointed at the girl, and the others understood immediately.

They rushed out of the alley, put Xiao Shu'er down, and asked in bewilderment, "We agreed to take her into the alley, so why did we leave her here?"

Xiao Shu'er had been hanging in the tree for a long time and was almost out of breath. Now that she had been rescued, she had no idea who these people were or what they were saying.