"Come here, put this on!!" Lan Qin walked up to Fu Weiting and looked at the slightly fair-skinned boy: Fu Weiting had delicate features, but his height was no less than that of Da and A, so he must often practice riding and archery at home.
With Lan Qin's help, Fu Weiting obediently put on the exquisitely crafted "finger guards." He examined them from both sides: on his middle and index fingers were two rings made of bamboo, like thumb rings, each with a groove in the center, presumably for holding the arrow string. The palm area was also made of bamboo, connecting to the rings. The rest of the gloves were made of fine brocade, not as smooth and precious as gold or jade, but exceptionally comfortable to wear. The coolness emanating from the bamboo perfectly alleviated the summer heat of June.
"Hmph, stop dawdling, are you going to have the competition or not!" Da Yu said impatiently, not expecting Fu Weiting to embarrass him to his face.
Amidst the watchful eyes of the crowd, each with their own thoughts, Da and A and Fu Weiting walked to the middle of the training ground. They each stood fifty meters away from the target, each facing a target, ready to begin the competition.
"Brother Fu, keep it up!" Zhang Rongyuan called out cautiously to Fu Weiting, but under the glances of Da and A, he immediately dared not say anything more.
Tong Jia Fei Yang Gu did not take sides, but simply stood quietly to the side watching the competition. The Third Prince Hong Jun did not care much, as he stood next to Xi Cha and was drinking the lemon iced tea she had poured for him.
Honghui gave a few instructions to the eunuchs around him, and then called several eunuchs to serve the competition.
The counters counted, the arrows were pulled out, and everyone was arranged. The competition officially began.
Dalai Lama and Ara were both archers. Their movements were quite fluid, and every arrow hit the bullseye or the area around it.
Fu Weiting was not as nimble as Da Yu and A, but his arrows were still very accurate, hitting the red bullseye in the center or not far away.
For a moment, the two were evenly matched. However, Da and A were a little faster, but gradually, due to the pain in their arms and fingertips, their brows furrowed and their speed gradually slowed down. On the other hand, Fu Weiting maintained a steady pace, calmly and methodically drawing his bow and shooting arrows.
Lanqin observed this and silently shook her head at Da and A: This child is precocious, arrogant, and prone to fighting; he'll inevitably suffer a loss to learn his lesson. Fu Weiting, on the other hand, is mature for his age and possesses commendable courage. His willingness to stand up and challenge Da and A shows he's a capable and daring child. Fourth Master's choice is good, but Da and A are perhaps a bit...
Thinking of this, Lanqin suddenly snapped out of her reverie. She glanced at the two boys, then at the children standing around her, all of whom were feeling quite hot from the setting sun. Beads of sweat began to appear on their foreheads, and it was clear that the lemon tea Lanqin had brought was almost finished. She turned and whispered a few words to Xicha, who then pulled Li Shubao along, hurrying towards the side gate and leaving the training ground.
A short while later, Li Shubao and Zhao Quan carried in a vat of herbal tea, followed by several eunuchs, each carrying a large plate of sliced watermelon; Xicha and several palace maids behind them each carried several paper umbrellas.
"Alright, let's take a break. Come and eat some watermelon and rest a bit, otherwise you'll get heatstroke." Lanqin called out to the two children in the field, and the others quickly gathered around.
Da and A were already drenched in sweat and were so tired they could hardly contain themselves. Although they disliked Lanqin, upon hearing her words, they immediately put down their bows and arrows, walked over to the servant carrying the watermelon, picked it up, and began to eat. The eldest prince also ordered the servant to pour him some cool tea, and everyone else followed suit, eating and drinking as they pleased.
Lanqin walked up to Fu Weiting and asked gently, "How is it? Does it work well?"
At this moment, Zhang Rongyuan was handing Fu Weiting a slice of watermelon. When he saw Lan Qin coming over, he bowed and respectfully replied, "Thank you, Princess Niu. This finger guard is very useful; I don't feel any pain when drawing the bow."
Upon hearing this, the group immediately became interested in Lanqin's finger guards and gathered around.
When Fu Weiting saw that the eldest prince had also come over, he took the item from his hand and handed it to Honghui.
Seeing this, Da and A turned away in anger. Lanqin walked up to him, suddenly grabbed his hand, and was surprised to see that his index and middle fingers were slightly red.
"What are you doing?" Da and A were completely taken aback when Lanqin suddenly grabbed their hands. Their faces flushed red with surprise, and they immediately pulled their hands away from hers.
"Your finger has been hurting for a while, why did you insist on being stubborn?" Lanqin said with concern. Although she also disliked Da and A's arrogance and rudeness, they were still just eleven-year-old children. She herself was over thirty, how could she hold a grudge against this little brat? It was so petty. (In her heart, Lanqin already felt like a woman over 30.)
"Whether my finger hurts or not is none of your business! Mind your own business." Da Yu glared at Lan Qin, then turned his back and refused to look at her at all.
“Cousin, these finger guards are really nice, you should take a look. Weiting doesn’t have any red marks on his hands.” Honghui, who had already put on the finger guards, said to Da and A.
When Da and A heard Honghui shout, they had no choice but to go over. They saw that Honghui was wearing the finger guard, and when they looked at Fu Weiting's hands, they saw that they did not have the same red marks as their own.
"Try it on. We often draw bows and shoot arrows; protecting your fingers and extending the time you can draw the bow is quite good!" Honghui said honestly. Although he was also shocked by Lanqin's appearance, from his perspective, Lanqin's identity displeased him.
He, as the eldest son of the Fujin (Prince Consort), disliked any woman in the household who drew away his father's favor, because their children might also garner the Fourth Prince's attention. This was something his mother had told him long ago. From a young age, his mother taught him to be disciplined, because the Fourth Prince favored those who followed the rules. To win the Fourth Prince's favor, Honghui worked doubly hard in riding, archery, and his studies. If others read something once, he would read it three times; he always had to put in more effort than others. He had to occupy a special place and hold a place of honor in the Fourth Prince's heart, with his other brothers merely playing a supporting role; he had to be number one. However, dislike didn't mean avoiding contact; on the contrary, he needed to interact with them as much as possible to understand them and win every battle. This was also something his mother taught him.
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