It is the autumnal equinox and the weather is getting cooler, but the grass at Mulan Paddock, located on the outskirts of Beijing, is still half green. Birds and beasts are out looking for food in preparation for winter, so this is a good time for hunting.
The Li Dynasty has always had the custom of autumn hunting. Yuan Shizong, who founded the dynasty, established the rules of autumn hunting so that future generations would not forget that their ancestral foundation was built on horseback.
Every year around the autumnal equinox, Emperor Shao Yuan would lead his ministers and palace relatives to the hunting ground to hold the autumn hunting ceremony.
Ning Xihua sat in the carriage on the way to Mulan Paddock, but she seemed a little absent-minded.
As the original book of a Marie Sue novel, it only focuses on the love between the male and female protagonists during the Autumn Hunt, and only briefly mentions the assassination of the prince. After the Autumn Hunt, the result of the prince's death is explained, and then the career line of the male protagonist is unfolded.
The book does not mention the details of the prince's assassination or death.
She couldn't stop Su Bi from participating in the autumn hunt.
Not to mention that as the crown prince, Su Bi had just hosted a banquet on behalf of the emperor to bid farewell to envoys, exercising his duties as a successor to the throne and entering the sight of the ministers. If he claimed to be ill and did not attend such an occasion, it would obviously destroy the impression that the ministers had just reversed.
If the other party is determined to assassinate you, you will definitely not be able to avoid it. It is easier to avoid such risks knowing when and where you will be in danger.
Ning Xihua pulled her hair irritably. It was really frustrating to only know the result but not the process.
She couldn't just say to Su Bi, hey, you're going to be assassinated and die soon, so you better be careful.
She could only gently remind Su Bi to be more cautious. When the boss asked her why, she could only smile and reply, "Because of my intuition..."
I don't know whether he listened to her words.
Ning Xihua sighed. Without knowing the details, she could only adopt a stupid method. That is, once the hunt started, she would stay with Su Bi closely to prevent any accidents.
But she is just an average horse rider and doesn't know any martial arts, so how can she protect the boss? It's really worrying.
As Ning Xihua was scratching her ears and frowning, the carriage followed the convoy and soon arrived at the hunting ground. Under the command of the palace servants, everyone got off the carriage and set up camp.
After settling down, Ning Xihua also changed into riding clothes with the help of Song Yi.
"Princess, the young masters and young ladies are all out, why don't you go out and ride your horse and get familiar with the environment."
Ning Xihua was actually a little reluctant to move, but when she thought about the unresolved matter of Su Bi, she felt upset and couldn't stay.
"All right."
She took the whip and left the tent.
Lin Mengli had just settled down and came to look for Su Xu. Since the last time the prince held a banquet, Su Xu had been much colder towards her.
Lin Mengli knew that Su Xu was still blaming her for setting up a scheme to slander Ning Xihua, but Su Xu was soft-hearted and couldn't bear to leave her alone.
As a result, as soon as she cried and begged, Su Xu helped her to settle her funeral affairs, even saving the maid who delivered the handkerchief.
Therefore, during this period, Lin Mengli was even more gentle and considerate to him. In addition, she had a practical connection with him because of the drowning incident, so she spoke softly to him.
“Your Highness…”
Seeing Su Xu, Lin Mengli immediately went up to him, her eyes full of affection and she seemed to be hesitant to speak.
Su Xu also looked gentle when he saw her. He thought that she was just thinking wrongly for a moment, and after being cold to her for a while, she should realize her mistake.
Before the two of them could express their love to each other any further, a burst of praise came from not far away.
Su Xu looked up and saw a young girl in a blood-red dress, with a golden crown on her head, riding a white horse, galloping towards her from a distant grassland.
The wind blew up the hem of her riding costume, and the golden crown shone in the sunset, casting an orange-red hue on her bright and delicate face. The girl rode her horse and whipped it, looking heroic and dashing.
Behind him was a vast grassland, and below him was a snow-white horse. The red coat and white horse formed a sharp contrast, firmly catching people's attention.
Seeing Su Xu staring at Ning Xihua foolishly, Lin Mengli became angry and spoke harshly.
"I wonder how many men will be seduced by Princess Yuexi's appearance."
"Humph, you used to pretend to be obsessed with my Third Brother, but now you are still just using this trick to seduce other men to look at her with new eyes? You are nothing but a fool!"
The fourth princess also mocked.
She had just returned to the palace from Yuanlu Temple and had suffered a lot there. After hearing her mother's warning, she was afraid and hated Ning Xihua.
She had originally planned to use the autumn hunt to relax, but when she came back she saw that Ning Xihua had overshadowed her again, and she was naturally unwilling to accept that.
Su Xu listened to what Lin Mengli and Su Yue said, and looked at the admiring and adoring gazes of the princes and sons of noble families around him. Somehow, a surge of anger rose in his heart.
She had been saying that she liked him, but her attitude suddenly changed. Now she was attracting many men. What did she think of him?
He raised the bow in his hand, took aim at the dazzling girl running freely in the orange light, and shot an arrow.
Lin Mengli and Su Yue were not expecting Su Xu to do this and their eyes widened.
When the people around saw Su Xu's actions, they also exclaimed in surprise.
The third prince is crazy!
Ning Xihua originally wanted to try out the horse. When she was running smoothly, she suddenly heard a chaotic shouting coming from the front, mixed with the voices of "Princess, be careful" and "Get out of the way".
She looked closely and saw an arrow flying towards her. As she leaned down to avoid it, the arrow shot off the golden crown on her head and her hair fell to one shoulder.
Ning Xihuayang stood still and touched her scattered hair, still a little frightened.
Wasn’t it said that it was Su Bi who was assassinated? How come it became her?
She looked up again and saw that Su Xu had not put down his bow and arrow yet, staring at her with gloomy eyes.
grass!
Ning Xihua uttered a rare curse word and rode towards Su Xu.
Su Bi heard the commotion outside and when she came out of the tent, she saw Ning Xihua at first sight.
She was seen riding a horse with her hair loose, running wildly towards the crowd. The wind blew her long hair, making her angry face more lively, and her eyes were imprinted with the afterglow of the setting sun, as if two flames were burning inside.
Ning Xihua ran to Su Xu and stopped in front of him. The white horse under him raised its hooves and galloped high. Then he swung the whip in his hand and lashed Su Xu hard.
Su Xu didn't expect her to dare to do this, and he didn't react for a moment, only raising his hand to block it. The whip hit his elbow hard, causing a burning pain.
Ning Xihua was happy, Su Bi smiled, and Su Xu was stunned.
The people around were even more shocked. Princess Yue Xi was so brave!
"You're crazy!" Su Xu said angrily. He covered his arm, which looked to be seriously injured.
Ning Xihua shouted back without showing any weakness, "I think you are the one who is crazy!"
"Do you know what it is to whip the royal family?"
Su Xu was extremely angry and was whipped by a woman. He had never been treated like this since he was a child!
Ning Xihua raised her eyebrows, not afraid at all, "Then do you know what crime it is to shoot and kill the princess of the current dynasty?"
Su Xu was speechless.
He did not want to hurt her, but he was so angry that he just wanted to teach her a lesson. In a fit of rage, he shot the golden crown off her head, hoping to embarrass her.
Lin Mengli looked at the hand that Su Xu was covering with heartache. The skin was torn and the sleeve was soaked with blood.
"Your Highness is wrong! The Third Prince just made a mistake and didn't mean to hurt you. You were not hurt at all. But you whipped the Third Prince on purpose!"