Wei Huaixu's letter was actually an invitation for her to watch a polo match. In order to cover up the truth, the title of organizing the polo match fell to Princess Yu, so in addition to her, there would also be young masters and noble ladies from various families going.
Since that's the case, she has no more worries.
The Eastern Lin Kingdom is a country that reveres martial arts. Military generals are always more favored by the emperor than civil officials. Moreover, women are allowed to serve as officials and commanders. People of all genders can learn riding and archery, so most noble ladies and gentlemen in the capital are skilled in horsemanship.
If Qingying hadn't been born weak, she must have learned martial arts and archery from a young age.
She sighed softly, folded the letter, and put it into the wooden box.
...
Qianyue Pavilion is located on the southern edge of the capital and is the largest polo field.
Although she wasn't participating in the competition, Qingying still came dressed in a simple and neat outfit.
As soon as Xie Jiaoying saw her, she waved to her from a distance.
She had no choice but to walk over, and sure enough, she saw Lu Xingli there as well.
This was their first meeting since their parting at the Duke of Lu's residence.
Qingying greeted them calmly, but Lu Xingli seemed a little awkward, as she was rather shy.
Qingying didn't have many close female friends, but she had met Xie Jiaoying a few times and had a good impression of her, so she sat down with her at her invitation.
At this moment, three pieces of paper were spread out on the table, labeled "One, Two, Three" respectively. In front of Xie Jiaoying was a bulging purse filled with silver.
She asked excitedly, "Which team are you betting on to win today, Sister Liu?"
In the capital, whenever there is a polo match, there will be betting, starting with a minimum of one or two taels of silver, with no upper limit. The more you bet, the bigger the corresponding wager.
"Which team are you betting on?" Qingying asked her.
Xie Jiaoying pointed to the number three and said, "Prince Yu's polo skills are unmatched in the capital. I think betting on him has a better chance of winning."
"What about you, Sister Lu?"
"I..." Lu Xingli hesitated, clutching the purse.
Xie Jiaoying teased, "She's been agonizing over this for half an hour. One team is Lu Jingyan, and the other is His Highness the Crown Prince. On one side is her own brother, and on the other is her sweetheart. She must be so worried."
Qingying frowned. "Isn't His Highness the Crown Prince on the same team as Prince Yu's son?"
"They were originally one team, but Princess Yu said it wouldn't be interesting that way, so she forcibly split them into two teams." At this point, Xie Jiaoying looked around to make sure no outsiders were nearby before leaning closer and lowering her voice to say, "His Highness the Crown Prince and the Seventh Prince are on the same team. Anyone with eyes can see that these two don't get along. This polo match is going to be quite a show."
Qingying suddenly became a little excited, "This is not a polo field, this is clearly a battlefield!"
At this moment, Lu Xingli poured out the silver from his purse, divided it in two, and said, "I will bet on both teams equally."
Xie Jiaoying raised an eyebrow, then looked at Qingying: "What about you, Sister Liu? Do you want to join the third team with me? After all, your brother, General Liu, is in there."
Qingying thought for a moment, then reached out her hand. Yu Yue placed the purse in her palm, and then she poured out all the silver coins onto the paper with the number "two" written on it.
Xie Jiaoying couldn't help but click her tongue: "His Highness the Crown Prince has never participated in a polo match before, so his skill level is still undetermined. How dare you bet everything on him?"
Qingying recalled Wei Huaixu's letter, in which he said he would win, and she decided to believe him this time.
So she smiled and said, "I go by intuition."
But after thinking for a moment, she took out another silver ingot and placed it on the third team's side, saying, "Brother also needs encouragement."
When Liu Chengfeng learned that his younger sister had bet all her money on the Second Team, he clutched his chest in deep sorrow, exclaiming, "Shushu doesn't even trust me!"
Wei Dongchen patted him on the shoulder and comforted him, "There's still a silver ingot left."
Liu Chengfeng seemed not to hear him. "Why did she choose Team Two? Do you think it's possible she didn't realize which team I was on?"
Why don't you just go and ask her yourself?
"Yes, I'll go ask!"
Liu Chengfeng hurriedly walked to the pavilion where the women were sitting and ordered his servants to call Qingying aside for questioning.
Qingying was very puzzled, but said frankly, "Big brother, I didn't make a mistake. It was Team Two."
"But...but I'm in Team Three!"
"I know."
"You know? You know why you still entrusted him to Team Two?!"
Qingying remained silent for a moment, but still couldn't come up with a decent reason, so she had to tell the truth: "I just think Team Two has a better chance of winning. Big brother, we bet to win, right? I can't just bet on whichever team you're on, that would be favoritism."
"Pah! How did this become about favoritism? How can you be so sure we'll lose?"
"I can't be sure. Betting is gambling, and whether I win or lose isn't up to me."
Liu Chengfeng was so angry that he blew his beard and glared at me, "Don't come crying to me when you lose everything!"
Qingying quickly coaxed, "Brother, don't be angry. It's just a bet. You'll always be the best in my heart."
However, Liu Chengfeng wasn't buying it at all. He just said, "You'd better watch out for me later," and stormed off.
Qingying wasn't annoyed at all; instead, she shouted encouragement at his retreating figure.
Having just seen off the great Buddha statue, he turned around and was blocked by a little eunuch.
"Miss Liu, His Highness the Crown Prince requests your presence."
She touched her nose, instantly reverting to the demure demeanor of a well-bred young lady, and smiled gently: "Please lead the way, sir."
She was led to a pavilion, and the young eunuch stopped at the door and bowed to her, gesturing for her to enter.
She then walked inside on her own.
The pavilion was spacious, but the inside was empty. She climbed the wooden stairs and saw the tall, straight back of a man standing by the open window.
"Greetings, Your Highness." She stepped forward and bowed.
Wei Huaixu turned around and helped her up, a smile on his gentle face: "There's no one else here, so there's no need for formalities."
She looked up and met his gaze, her eyes crinkling into a smile. "It's been so long, have you missed me, Ah Xu?"
"Yes." He answered quickly, reaching out to pinch her cheek, his eyes softening with tenderness. "I heard you pawned all your money to me."
“Your information network is quite impressive.” She winked and said slyly, “I bet on Team Two, how do you know I didn’t bet on someone else?”
"No one else is as good at polo as I am."
"Your Highness has never participated in a match before, so how can you be so confident? I've heard that no one in the capital can beat Prince Yu in polo."
"Then why don't you bet on him?" His tone was tinged with jealousy.
"I've already placed my bet of one silver ingot."
"Really? Then you're probably not going to get that silver ingot back." He pinched her cheek again, this time with much more force.
Qingying frowned. "You're hurting me."
"Serves you right for saying all that nonsense to annoy me."
Qingying was truly amused by him. "It was just a joke, why are you being so petty, Ah Xu?"
"I am petty and cannot stand hearing you mention other men."
"Your son, Prince Yu, is actually a cousin of yours."
"That won't work either."
"Not even my older brother?"
"Well... my brother-in-law is another matter."
Qingying blushed at the way he addressed her and quickly covered his mouth, saying, "Don't call me that!"
He watched as her porcelain-white skin flushed pink, like peach blossoms blooming on branches in spring. Her soft little hand covering her lips warmed his heart, and he even felt a little restless.
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