Chapter 64 Turbulence Begins
Banquets on the grasslands are quite different from those in the capital; they are always lively and bustling, with delicious food, beautiful women, and stunning scenery complementing each other perfectly.
A roaring bonfire illuminated the entire grassland. The grassland people, dressed in their finest attire, sat hand-in-hand around the fire, singing and dancing. Even the most robust-looking men possessed the loudest voices and the most joyful dances.
At this moment, Emperor Kangxi and his entourage, along with all the Mongol tribes, seemed like one true family. Everyone was unrestrained and freely moved among the crowd. Every now and then, cheers would erupt from a corner. Upon closer inspection, it turned out that someone was drinking contests, dancing competitions, wrestling... with no taboos, just joy and indulgence.
Yinzhi was the most dazzling presence at the banquet, surrounded by a group of people wherever he went. At this moment, he was drinking with Amuguleng, the two rivals who had competed three times in a row, and now they were competing again. However, the atmosphere was much better than before; there was no tension, only mutual respect.
"You could say this is a case of becoming friends after a fight?" Yin munched on his lamb leg, watching the two drinking contest in the distance, and couldn't help but sigh.
“Big brother…tsk…” Yin Tang looked at Yin Zhi, who had a hearty smile and was extremely dazzling even when drinking heavily, and couldn’t help but shake his head.
"What's wrong, brother?" Yin tilted his head, somewhat puzzled.
"You don't understand..." Yinzhen, with an air of profound mystery, glanced at Yinzhen and saw him arguing with the lamb leg, and immediately lost all interest in saying anything more. "You don't need to understand either. It's none of our business. Go eat your food..."
"Okay, the lamb leg is really good. Ninth Brother, would you like some?" Yin didn't ask any further questions, but stared longingly at the untouched lamb leg in front of Yin Tang.
"Here you go, eat up." Helpless, Yinzhen pushed the plate with the lamb leg in front of him directly in front of Yinzhen.
"Thank you, Ninth Brother." Yin smiled, his eyes crinkling, and took another bite of lamb leg amidst the lively scene. Ninth Brother was right. What did all this festivities have to do with them? It would never benefit them anyway. A lamb leg was much better; at least they could eat to their heart's content.
...
"Fourth brother, let me toast you." Yinzhi, whose face was flushed, held up a wine cup to Yinzhen, having finished drinking with Amuguleng sometime earlier.
"Brother, you're too kind." Yinzhen raised his cup, his expression not changing much, and calmly clinked glasses with Yinzhi.
After finishing his drink, Yinzhi didn't leave. He plopped down next to Yinzhen, his eyes somewhat unfocused. Looking at him, he suddenly said, "Fourth Prince, your personality... tsk... not that I'm criticizing you, but you're too easily taken advantage of..."
"Thank you for your concern, elder brother." Yinzhen had a faint smile on his face, and it seemed that he and Yinzhi got along well. Yinzhi suddenly put his hand on Yinzhen's shoulder, and Yinzhen did not refuse.
“We’re all brothers… A gentleman deceives others with proper methods, I understand, I understand… Fourth brother… it’s not easy for you to be under the second brother, is it? Why don’t you go with the eldest brother…”
"Brother, you're drunk." Yinzhen interrupted Yinzhi, who was drunk and dared to say anything.
“I’m not drunk,” Yinzhi waved his hand, sat up slightly, looked at Yinzhen, seemingly drunk but not quite, “I know, I won’t say anything, just watch, just watch…”
The two stared at each other silently, and the atmosphere suddenly became heavy. But the stalemate didn't last long before it was broken by the sudden appearance of the boisterous Fourteen.
"Big brother, fourth brother, what are you talking about?" Yinzhen pulled Yinxiang closer. The two of them seemed to have come from nowhere and were covered in the smell of alcohol.
"How much did you drink? You reek of alcohol."
Yinzhen frowned, which startled Yinzhen, who quickly explained, "I didn't drink much. Someone knocked over a wine jar, and I got some on my hands. You can ask Thirteen if you don't believe me."
Pulled aside by Yinzhen, Yinxiang walked up in a good-natured manner, first greeting his two older brothers, and then explaining on Yinzhen's behalf: "It's true, Fourth Brother, we didn't drink much, we were just looking around at the commotion."
"Hahaha, thirteen and fourteen," before Yinzhen could speak, Yinzhi seemed to suddenly sober up from his drunkenness, stood up and patted the two on the shoulders, "Not bad, not bad, you two did not disgrace your father, you have learned riding and archery well, come to your elder brother's tent when you have time, your elder brother will teach you a couple more moves."
"Really? Then, elder brother... can I take a look at the Lingbao Bow?" Upon hearing this, Yinzhen's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he boldly asked Yinzhi.
"Yinzhen!"
"Oh, it's alright, it's alright," Yinzhi waved his hand generously, stopping Yinzhen's scolding. He looked at Yinzhen with a smile and said magnanimously, "Alright, since Fourteenth Prince wants to see, then let him see. When you come, your elder brother will not only show you, but also teach you how to use it."
"Really? Thank you, brother!" Yinzhen was incredibly excited; that was the Spirit Treasure Bow! Its significance and usefulness were irresistible.
"No need to be polite. Just study hard in the future. The same goes for Yinxiang. You two have a lot of talent in riding and archery, so don't give up."
"Yes, thank you, elder brother." Yinxiang also thanked him with a smile.
A short while later, Yinzhi saw someone and swayed away into the distance. Yinxiang looked over and saw his elder brother walking away with a familiar Mongolian man, arm in arm. The man seemed to be Ochir, the heir of the Khalkha Prince Chewangzabu.
"Brother is truly generous." Yinzhen couldn't help but sigh after receiving Yinzhi's promise. He hadn't had much contact with this older brother who was so much older than him before, but he didn't expect him to be such a nice person.
“Yes, they pay attention to us, just like the Emperor…” Yinxiang sighed softly, and he and Yinzhen exchanged a glance unintentionally.
"My elder brother is straightforward, don't cause him any trouble." Yinzhen reminded him calmly, his gaze meeting Yinxiang's again, and Yinxiang nodded seriously.
"Thirteen understands."
"Then... can I still go see the bow?" Yinzhen was lively, not stupid. Although he didn't quite understand what it meant, he had learned his lesson and was now smart enough. Not understanding, he cautiously looked at Yinzhen.
"If it's an invitation from your elder brother, you can go. Thirteenth Prince will go with you." Yinzhen looked up and down at the anxious Yinzhen and couldn't help but say a few more words.
"I know, I'm just that unreliable..." Yinzhen couldn't help but mutter a few words. He always felt that his fourth brother trusted Yinxiang more than him, and he couldn't help but feel awkward.
Fortunately, Yinxiang knew him well enough to prevent him from getting angry, so he tried to change the subject: "Yinzhen, I saw the tenth brother."
"Where? Where?" Yinzhen immediately forgot his inner turmoil and tensed up, looking left and right. He darted forward two steps, afraid of being caught by Yin and forced to "spar" with him. "Fourth Brother, we're leaving now. Tenth Brother is here and said he hasn't seen us before... What are we waiting for? Let's go..."
Before he could take two steps forward, Yinzhen remembered Yinxiang. He knew that the Tenth Prince was afraid of the Fourth Prince and wouldn't dare to do anything to him. But the Thirteenth Prince was different. What if the Tenth Prince beat up Yinxiang? So, in a panic, Yinzhen turned around, grabbed Yinxiang, and squeezed into the crowd.
Yinxiang smiled and followed him away, precisely because the Fourteenth Prince was always thinking of him. That's why he was willing to go around with the Fourteenth Prince to join in the fun and clean up his messes, not just because of his fourth brother.
Seeing the two young men disappear into the crowd in an instant, Yinzhen didn't say much. He picked up his wine cup, took a sip, looked at the dark corner behind him where the campfire couldn't reach, and asked indifferently, "Lord Suo'etu, have you seen enough?"
From the shadows, a slightly hunched and thin figure slowly emerged. "Prince Yong, are you living comfortably?"
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