Tong Wanyan was not intimidated by Princess Hugh's imposing presence at all.
Such composure rendered Princess Hughes' earlier attempt to have someone deliberately praise her outstanding military achievements in order to discourage Tong Wanyan from making a move.
"Princess Consort of the Crown Prince, be careful," Princess Whitt said meaningfully.
Tong Wanyan raised an eyebrow, looking straight ahead, not even glancing at her.
"You! I was just trying to be helpful, and you don't appreciate it, so don't blame me," Princess Whitt said angrily.
She was completely ignored by a naive young girl; how could she save face?
Tong Wanyan said, "Do more and talk less."
Actually, what she really wanted to say was: villains die from talking too much.
The racetrack is shaped like a loop, with ropes of varying heights serving as obstacles in the middle. Simply comparing horse speed is not difficult and doesn't test the rider's skill. It's only with obstacles like these that the race becomes dangerous and exciting, testing not only the rider's mental fortitude but also their ability to control the horse.
Tong Wanyan smiled faintly and patted the head of the imperial horse beneath her, looking confident.
The two of them were ready and poised to go.
Standing at the starting line, Prince Chahar became the referee, issuing commands. Holding a gong in one hand, he struck it with a clang, and Tong Wanyan and Princess Huit shot out like arrows released from a bow.
Undeniably, Princess Whitworth has every reason to be proud; her equestrian skills are truly exceptional. To onlookers, watching her soar or tumble in rhythm with her horse is an aesthetic masterpiece.
She exudes a dazzling, radiant confidence that is mesmerizing.
Even someone as outstanding as her couldn't compare to Tong Wanyan's performance.
For no other reason than that Tong Wanyan's horsemanship was no worse than hers, and the imperial horse sponsored by Emperor Kangxi was superior to the horse owned by Princess Hutt. When two people's horsemanship skills are roughly equal, it comes down to luck and the quality of the horse.
Tong Wanyan was almost never unlucky. She sped along without slowing down for even a moment, always racing at top speed.
Even when leaping over obstacles, she didn't panic and pull on the reins.
When the race was more than halfway through, Tong Wanyan gradually pulled away from Princess Whitworth.
Princess Whitworth panicked. She had made a provocative remark, but now she was about to lose to a junior. How could she possibly accept that?
Despite trying to calm herself down, she still made a mistake.
Princess Whitworth's horse nearly tripped over the third-to-last obstacle.
If you fall at this moment, you will definitely be seriously injured, or even trampled to death by horses.
Amidst the tension of the Whit tribe's retinue, Queen Whit, relying on her seasoned experience, managed to firmly rein in the horse.
At this point, there was nothing left to compete in; the outcome was obvious.
Tong Wanyan easily steered her horse across the last obstacle and won the victory flag.
Princess Whitworth was rushing as fast as she could, still crossing the penultimate obstacle.
"Excellent! The Crown Prince's Consort is indeed worthy of being a woman of the Aisin Gioro clan. I am proud of you!" Kangxi clapped and cheered, ignoring the embarrassed expressions of the Mongol princes.
No one among the Mongolians wanted to believe the outcome before them.
Yinreng came down from the stands and personally led Tong Wanyan's horse.
"My little Yan has always made me proud." Yinreng, beaming, led Tong Wanyan back in triumph.
Unlike Emperor Kangxi, the princes like Yinti didn't have to restrain their joy. They clapped their hands with obvious delight, giving the warmest applause to Tong Wanyan.
While the Qing Dynasty was filled with celebrations, Princess Whitworth's boastful pride felt like a series of heavy slaps to her own face.
She has lost both face and dignity; how will she gain the respect of the Huit tribe in the future?
"Princess Huite, don't forget my prize. I've heard that Mongolian roasted meat is absolutely delicious. I'll bring Mongolian cattle and sheep back to the capital, so we'll have plenty of fresh food to enjoy from now on." Tong Wanyan boasted with unrestrained pride, displaying her victor's smugness.
Self-deprecation and such can be left to Emperor Kangxi; she, a mere woman, can be quite pleased with herself.
After a long silence, the Mongolian side all offered their congratulations to Kangxi, Yinreng, and Tong Wanyan.
Princess Khoshut was shielded behind them to prevent her from facing Tong Wanyan directly; this was the last protection the Mongols offered to Princess Khoshut.
They knew that once Kangxi returned to Beijing, the Hui Te tribe would undergo a major upheaval.
As the former Queen of the Huit tribe, losing power and prestige will inevitably lead to a difficult life. The new king will not allow her to be as smug and arrogant as she is now.
Princess Quixote offered a considerable sum, including gold and silver jewelry, but a thousand cattle and sheep each, which was a huge financial blow to the Quixote tribe, whose livestock industry was struggling this year.
The attendants who accompanied Princess Whit to the banquet wanted to ask Emperor Kangxi to waive the cattle and sheep, but Princess Whit stopped them.
Although she lost, she had her dignity. She was a woman of her word, not a coward who broke her promise, and she could afford to lose.
Princess Whitworth's action did earn her some respect from Tong Wanyan. However, that was all.
"Go back and rest for a while?" Yinreng noticed that Tong Wanyan was a little out of breath after being excited for a while.
Upon hearing this, Kangxi said, "Baocheng, take Yuanbao back to rest. There's nothing else to do, so get some rest. There's a hunting trip tomorrow. Yuanbao has really made me proud this time, so I'll reward you handsomely when we get back."
Tong Wanyan smiled and said, "Thank you, Father Emperor. Father Emperor, your daughter-in-law can choose the best things when the time comes, you can't give me inferior ones."
As she spoke, her eyes kept drifting towards the direction of Emperor Kangxi's imperial horse.
Kangxi's heart tightened: "I cannot give you my imperial horse. However, if you wish to ride it in the future, I will allow you to ride it a few times."
Tong Wanyan sighed in disappointment: "Then let Father Emperor reward me whatever he wants. In any case, Father Emperor won't mistreat me."
She even wanted to lead the imperial horse back to Yuqing Palace. What a magnificent horse it was! She had never seen a more beautiful horse.
Fortunately, Emperor Kangxi allowed her to ride occasionally, which was a small treat.
Emperor Kangxi was deeply satisfied with Tong Wanyan's lack of desire for power and wealth.
Actually, if you think about it carefully, the Tong family is thriving, and there's no one who needs Tong Wanyan's support to advance their career. The Tong family and Yuqing Palace are so wealthy that they can play marbles with luminous pearls, let alone dream of gold ingots or rubies.
Having everything, Tong Wanyan wanted to ask for a reward, but she didn't know what to ask for.
Living such a life is truly enviable.
Kangxi didn't think too much about it at the time. He only felt that his little cousin was kind-hearted, regarded money as dirt, and would not bow down to power. She was an extremely good person.
That's precisely why his reward couldn't be lacking. Otherwise, he would be letting down his little cousin who had brought victory for the Qing Dynasty and for him.
Tong Wanyan happily returned with Yinreng. The two looked harmonious from behind, clearly showing their close relationship.
The Mongol princes, having run out of words to praise him, quickly found new things to compliment and began to shower Kangxi with flattering words in various ways.
They hoped that Emperor Kangxi would smile at them more often and then reward them with more gifts.
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