The next day.
The autumn hunt was drawing to a close, and everyone was giving it their all that day.
Wei Huaixu rode his black-maned horse in the dense forest, searching for prey. He spotted a wild rabbit in the distance, drew his bow, aimed, and was just about to shoot when a blue arrow shot from the other side, piercing straight into the rabbit's body. The rabbit immediately stopped moving.
He looked in the direction and saw Wei Dongchen walking over, picking up the rabbit from the ground, and smiling at him, revealing a set of white teeth. "Ah, I'm sorry, Crown Prince, I shot the arrow before you and took your prey. You shouldn't mind, right?"
Wei Huaixu pursed his lips, put the arrow away and back into the quiver, and said indifferently, "It's nothing, just a wild rabbit. You can keep it if you shoot it first."
Wei Dongchen tossed the rabbit to a servant and then returned to his horse.
Wei Huaixu put away his bow and arrows, tightened the reins, turned around, and was about to leave when Liu Chengfeng suddenly emerged from the other side of the dense forest and blocked his way.
His gentle features gradually hardened, and he glanced sideways at Wei Dongchen, who had walked to his side, and asked coldly, "What is the meaning of this?"
Liu Chengfeng bowed respectfully from his horse and said, "It was not an intentional offense to Your Highness, but a last resort."
"Oh? Tell me how helpless you are that it's worth your insubordination?"
Wei Dongchen sighed and said, "It's because of Liu Qingying."
"What's wrong with her?"
Liu Chengfeng said, "The other day, His Highness the Crown Prince suddenly climbed into my sister's carriage in full view of everyone. There were too many people at the time, so I couldn't say anything. But now rumors are flying, and His Highness knows that a woman's reputation is especially important. If this matter is not resolved, it may delay my sister's life."
"Please forgive my ignorance, but what delay will it cause?"
Wei Dongchen said, "Of course it will delay her from finding a good match in the future."
Wei Huaixu tilted her head slightly, chuckled, and said, "Then why does Young Master Liu think that I won't take full responsibility?"
"But you are the Crown Prince..."
"What? You think my status is unworthy of your Liu family's prestige?"
"No, no, I wouldn't dare." Upon hearing this, Liu Chengfeng was so frightened that he almost fell off his horse.
Wei Huaixu sneered, "I think you guys are pretty bold."
Seeing this, Wei Dongchen quickly stepped in to defuse the situation: "Brother Crown Prince, please don't misunderstand. Chengfeng was just trying to protect his sister and didn't mean to offend her. As for his second daughter, you know she's very simple-minded and might not be able to adapt to the power struggles in the harem in the future."
"She doesn't need to adapt. I can promise her that I will be with her for life."
The other two were stunned, exchanging bewildered glances. After a long while, Liu Chengfeng finally reacted and asked suspiciously, "Your Highness means... even if you ascend the throne in the future..."
As he spoke, his voice grew softer and softer.
Wei Huaixu nodded firmly, "My wife only recognizes Qingying."
Liu Chengfeng clicked his tongue in amazement.
Wei Dongchen's eyes widened.
They all understood how enormous this promise was, since emperors throughout history had mostly had three palaces and six courtyards. Even if there were precedents of emperors loving only one woman, they were extremely rare.
The fact that Wei Huaixu went to such lengths for Liu Qingying shows that his sincerity was genuine.
Even Liu Chengfeng was convinced.
He then gave all the prey he had just hunted to Wei Huaixu, saying, "Your Highness, use these things to exchange with the Emperor for an imperial decree to grant you a marriage."
Wei Huaixu did not accept this, saying, "What I want, I will naturally obtain through my own abilities."
Then the prey was returned to him.
He refused to accept it, and Liu Chengfeng did not force him. However, after the three of them parted ways, he was no longer as focused on hunting as he had been in the previous two days.
Seeing his listless expression during the autumn hunt, Wei Dongchen sneered, "Are you planning to just hand over the championship to him like this?"
"No, I just suddenly felt bored."
"You're so stubborn."
Liu Chengfeng sighed softly and said, "Sometimes I feel quite guilty towards Qingying. My mother has always raised her as a substitute for Shushu. When the real Shushu comes back in the future, I'm afraid there will be no place for her in the manor. Now that I know that His Highness the Crown Prince treats her sincerely, I feel much more at ease. If His Highness supports her in the future, her life will not be too difficult."
Wei Dongchen frowned, glanced at him, and said, "To be honest, although I agreed to help you find Liu Shushu, I have never agreed with your family's approach."
"But it's not hard to understand, is it? Ye caused my parents' relationship to break down and indirectly caused Shushu's disappearance. My mother was already very kind to be able to raise her daughter safely."
"This is ultimately your family matter, and I shouldn't presume to comment," Wei Dongchen said, urging his horse forward. "Since you're not going hunting, I'll go by myself."
Having said that, without waiting for Liu Chengfeng to say anything, he rode off on his horse and disappeared in a flash.
...
As the sun gradually set, people began to gather in the center of the hunting grounds.
Before long, as one bell rang after another, the young noblemen and ladies who were hunting in the dense forest gradually gathered in the center of the hunting ground.
They took what they had hunted and handed it over to the servant in charge of recording it.
About half an hour later, the final result was delivered to the emperor.
After the Emperor had read it, the chief eunuch read it aloud.
However, the final results surprised everyone.
Wei Huaixu won the championship on the men's side, while Ayan won the championship on the women's side.
Wei Huaixu was alright, after all, he had been in the top three for the past three days, and given his status, no one dared to question him easily.
But Ayan is different.
The crowd erupted in an uproar.
"Who is this Ayan?"
"Yeah, how come I've never heard of it before?"
"I heard she was a maid in the General's mansion."
"What? A lowly maidservant is qualified to participate in the royal autumn hunt, and even won first place? Isn't that a joke?"
"Yes, she even defeated General Chu, which is absolutely ridiculous."
...
Standing in the crowd, Chu Lingyu naturally heard these discussions and frowned. Then she said coldly, "There is no explicit rule in the Autumn Hunt that maids cannot participate. She hunted the most, so the champion should be her. With His Majesty here, are you questioning His Majesty?"
The murmurs immediately subsided.
Upon hearing this, the emperor at the head of the table nodded and said, "Indeed, there has never been an explicit rule that maids cannot participate in the autumn hunt. When Emperor Taizu was in power, he established the ninth day of the ninth lunar month as the day of the royal autumn hunt. His original intention was to let the sons and daughters of our dynasty display their martial arts skills and not forget that our ancestors conquered our country on horseback. Therefore, on the hunting ground, only the winners and losers are considered, regardless of rank."
The crowd knelt down and shouted, "Your Majesty is wise!"
From then on, no one dared to criticize it anymore.
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