"Don't rush, let's see what Father Emperor has to say."

"Great! Seventh Sister-in-law, are you coming too? It looks like so much fun!"

Zhong Muyu smiled and said, "Of course we'll go together, I also like hunting."

Lu Ziyuan said worriedly, "This place is different from other hunting grounds; there are many high-ranking officials and nobles here. You..."

"What's there to be afraid of? Aren't there several daughters of military families here?"

Zhong Muyu gently pointed to a few women not far away.

Many of the women in Yuanqi are also quite heroic and spirited.

"Alright, you must be careful not to get hurt."

As they talked, they arrived inside the palace.

There were far fewer women present at today's hunt. Yin Rui thought to herself that she wasn't good at these kinds of occasions, so Lu Ziyuan allowed her not to come. As for the others, some had caught a cold, while others were pregnant and couldn't come.

Although the main hall was spacious, a roaring fire was burning inside, and with so many people, it wasn't cold at all. Everyone rested and chatted for a while until the Emperor arrived and led them outside.

All the princes were eager to win the competition, and Lu Ziyuan also changed his clothes and picked up his most handy bow and arrow.

Zhong Muyu handed him the packed quiver: "Good luck! The roads are slippery in the snow, so be careful."

Lu Ziyuan laughed and said, "Don't worry, I'll get good results. When we hunt deer, we can roast the deer while watching the snow. That would be quite a unique experience."

"Then I'll wait for your good news!"

Just as they finished speaking, Lu Ziqing, who was not far away, waved and said, "Seventh Brother! Let's go!"

Lu Ziyuan shook his head helplessly. Lu Ziqing was always so enthusiastic during every hunt.

Zhong Muyu took his seat in the audience and saw that the princes were already ready. At a command, they rode their horses deep into the forest and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Waiting is always agonizing, and soon everyone started eating and chatting in small groups. Zhong Muyu had some connection with the Princess Consort of Fu, and since she was a straightforward person, they quickly struck up a conversation.

Princess Fu looked regretful: "It's a pity that my fourth sister-in-law is pregnant and couldn't come. Otherwise, given her personality, the three of us could have easily teamed up and gone hunting. Now we're just sitting here waiting, which is really boring."

Zhong Muyu asked, "Does Your Majesty also enjoy hunting?"

"Of course. Before I got married, I often went hunting. Unfortunately, now I can only enjoy hunting in winter. Unlike me, the prince doesn't like these things at all. He doesn't care. Every year at this time, he always comes in last, saying that it's all about participation."

When the Prince of Fu is mentioned, the Princess Consort feels a sense of disappointment and frustration.

This was someone else's family matter, so Zhong Muyu didn't say much. Instead, she comforted them, saying, "Anyway, there are many days of winter hunting. We can go hunting together when we have time."

Princess Fu's eyes immediately lit up: "That's good, I also want to see Seventh Sister-in-law's hunting skills."

She had heard about Zhong Muyu when she was at the Prince's mansion and had always wanted to spend more time with her. Now that she could go hunting with Zhong Muyu, she was naturally very happy.

Subconsciously, she thought Zhong Muyu was a good hunter, unlike the Fourth Princess, who, although she also loved hunting, had poor eyesight and was the kind of person who was both bad at it and loved to play.

Zhong Muyu laughed and said, "I don't have any hunting skills. I did go hunting with Lu Ziyuan before, but he did most of the work. I'm not good at riding horses either."

"You don't need to be modest. I'll see for myself when the time comes."

...

The two talked for a while, and when the time came, the princes who had gone out hunting returned one after another, each with their horses carrying prey. Among the first few to return was Prince Fu, Lu Zihan.

When Princess Fu saw the few pitiful rabbits he had caught, she stormed over and said angrily, "How can you be so shameless? Last year there was at least one fox, but this year there are only three rabbits!"

Prince Fu shifted his obese body and muttered under his breath, "Didn't we all say that participation is the most important thing?"

"You! I just can't stand you like this!"

"Oh, madam, this rabbit is quite good, isn't it? It's delicious cooked as rabbit meat, and you love my rabbit meat, don't you?"

Prince Fu coaxed Princess Fu with a smile, and Princess Fu was very receptive to this, and her anger soon dissipated.

Zhong Muyu was about to go and see if Lu Ziyuan had returned when Prince Fu saw her. His eyes widened for a moment, then he lowered his eyes slightly, looking somewhat ashamed.

"Seventh brother's wife has come out too. I think the seventh prince will be out in a while. He and the crown prince have run far away."

Princess Fu said, "That's not true. The real prey are all in the forest. What prey could there be outside?"

Zhong Muyu smiled slightly and said, "It's alright. It's boring sitting inside anyway, so I came out for a stroll."

Prince Fu said, "That's good, that's good. Go and wander around more. If you don't mind, Seventh Brother's wife and Seventh Prince can have lunch with us at noon."

At noon, people usually cook the game they hunt. Zhong Muyu had heard that Prince Fu was a good cook, so his chefs were always excellent, and he himself was also a good cook.

Princess Fu chimed in, "Yes, don't let your third brother's appearance fool you, his greatest talent is his cooking."

Zhong Muyu looked at the two of them. She knew that Prince Fu was still bothered by the incident of Ji Xin'er drugging him. If Zhong Muyu hadn't noticed in advance and escaped the disaster, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

He felt ashamed and said that having dinner together was a way to make amends and avoid them holding a grudge.

But Zhong Muyu didn't care anymore. She politely declined their invitation and went straight outside. Just then, she saw Lu Ziqing return, followed by the Crown Prince and Lu Ziyuan rushing back one after the other.

Lu Ziqing saw Zhong Muyu first, and he couldn't help but speed up. After dismounting, he unloaded a full load of prey.

"Father, these are the prey I hunted. Please take a look!"

The Emperor nodded in satisfaction: "Not bad, Twelfth has also had a very fruitful year."

"I'm still no match for my brothers, but I'll beat them one day!"

Lu Ziqing was still excited and looked radiant. After he led his prey down, the Crown Prince and Lu Ziyuan came up.

The Emperor and Empress clearly cared more about Crown Prince Lu Ziying. After all, he was the Crown Prince, and if he didn't perform well, wouldn't he become a laughing stock?

As in previous years, Lu Ziying brought back a lot of prey, as did Lu Ziyuan. After the palace servants counted them, it turned out that Lu Ziyuan had five fewer prey than the Crown Prince.

This surprised many people, and everyone came to see.

After all, Lu Ziyuan had won first place more often in the past, and even when he lost, he was only one or two places behind.

The Empress was very pleased: "Thank you for your hard work. You all performed well. Your Majesty, isn't it obvious that we've secured first place?"

At this moment, a palace maid added, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Empress, but Prince Keling's prey..."