Royal Stadium.
Since the last Royal Games, Cuju (蹴鞠) has become incredibly popular and is one of the most beloved sports.
Over the past few years, Cuju (ancient Chinese football) has become increasingly mature, and various prefectures and counties in the Han Dynasty have successively established their own Cuju teams, which frequently hold various competitive matches.
This competition is the largest event in the entire Han Dynasty, hosted by the Ministry of Rites and co-organized by the Royal Merchant Guild. The final winner will not only receive a high reward, but will also be awarded the honorary title of "Number One Team of the Han Dynasty" by the imperial court.
Teams from various prefectures and counties were determined to win the title of "Number One in the Han Dynasty" and put in all their efforts to compete for it.
Now, after more than two months of fierce competition, a total of six teams have advanced to the final round.
Today's match is between the Dunhuang team from Liangzhou and the Jiuyuan team from Bingzhou.
Both of these prefectures are major border prefectures, and the local people are known for their fierce and tough nature. The members of both teams are also tall and imposing men.
This clash between two strong teams attracted countless spectators.
When Liu Hong and his group arrived at the stadium, the Royal Stadium, which can hold more than 60,000 people, was already packed.
Guided by the stadium manager, Liu Hong and his entourage walked along the VIP passage toward the private box area.
The existence of privileged classes is an unchangeable phenomenon in any era.
Where there are social classes, there will be disparities in treatment. Whether it's a VIP box at a stadium or a VIP area in other entertainment venues, these are direct manifestations of privileged treatment.
People with power and money would never squeeze in with a bunch of ordinary people.
Even Liu Hong was powerless to change this, after all, he was one of the most privileged people at the very top.
Therefore, all Liu Hong could do was to ensure that the lower classes suffered less oppression as much as possible.
This area of private boxes is also divided into three levels. The first level is the top-level private box for civil and military officials of the court. In addition to having the best viewing position, the furniture and facilities in the box are also very complete.
The second tier consists of the mid-level private rooms owned by various small and medium-sized aristocratic families and some members of the imperial clan.
The third tier consists of the third-class private rooms for merchants and workshop owners.
Because Dian Wei is a close advisor to the current emperor and has made numerous military achievements, he holds the title of a second-class marquis and naturally has his own private quarters.
Before long, Liu Hong and his group arrived at Dian Wei's private room.
The floor of the private room was covered with a thick layer of cashmere carpet, and in the center of the room were tables and chairs made of mahogany, with exquisite carvings.
Further ahead, a huge floor-to-ceiling window made the private room even brighter and more spacious.
Most importantly, several wooden shelves were placed in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, on which were mounted the latest telescopes developed by the Research and Development Division.
With the continuous advancement of glassmaking technology in recent years, artisans have been able to produce lenses suitable for manufacturing convex lenses.
Although these telescopes were not as sophisticated as those of later generations, consisting only of bamboo tubes and polished lenses, they were still sufficient to allow people to see things several miles away.
I believe that in a few years, we will be able to develop better telescopes and even the microscope that Liu Hong has always longed for.
"Sister Zhaoji, come and see!"
As soon as they entered the private room, Lü Zhen happily pulled Cai Yan and Dong Zhen to the binoculars, then grinned and pressed her face against the binoculars with one eye open and the other closed.
Cai Yan was clearly seeing such a novel object as a telescope for the first time, and she approached it with a look of curiosity.
Unlike Lü Zhen's grimacing, Cai Yan stretched out her delicate hand, covered her left eye, and then looked down through the binoculars.
Cai Yan's actions had a subtle, veiled quality, revealing the elegance and charm of a well-bred lady.
Even Liu Hong, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but be a little lost in thought.
Previously, because Cai Yan was still young, and because of Lü Zhen, Liu Hong, although he often met with her, did not think much of it.
Now, Cai Yan is fourteen years old and has grown even more beautiful. In particular, the faint scholarly air about her makes people want to get close to her.
"Oh my... this..."
Just as Liu Hong was lost in thought, Cai Yan's soft exclamation brought him back to reality.
Cai Yan covered her mouth with her right hand, staring at the telescope in front of her with a look of surprise.
"What's wrong, Miss Cai?"
Seeing this, Liu Hong stepped forward and asked with concern.
"N-nothing..."
Sensing the concern in Liu Hong's words, Cai Yan blushed and said weakly, "It's just that the scene in the distance suddenly came right in front of me, and I was a little..."
Liu Hong said with a smile, "It's understandable that this is Miss Cai's first time using this telescope. It was recently developed by Mo Yanghou and his team. It can magnify distant objects, giving people a sense of closeness."
This is just the simplest version; some can see thousands of miles away, even clearly seeing the stars in the sky…
"Can you still see the stars in the sky?"
Upon hearing Liu Hong's description, Cai Yan's mouth gaped open, and her eyes shone with anticipation.
"Of course!" Liu Hong smiled, and then, as if possessed, said, "Miss Cai can enter the palace then and admire the stars together..."
"Enter the palace...?"
Upon hearing the words "enter the palace," Cai Yan felt her cheeks flush, her face turning red all the way to the roots of her neck.
"Miss Cai, please don't misunderstand, I just..."
Seeing Cai Yan's appearance, Liu Hong realized that he had said the wrong thing.
Dian Wei and Zhao Yun stood aside, eyes downcast, counting the wool on the carpet.
"Oh dear~, brother, Zhen'er wants to go see the stars too, you must take me with you!!"
Just as Liu Hong was wondering how to explain, Lü Zhen ran over and started to act coquettishly, which broke the awkwardness between the two.
"Haha~, good, good, of course Zhen'er will be included!"
Liu Hong felt relieved and laughed heartily. He reached out and rubbed Lü Zhen's head. Such a sensible little sister, it wasn't a waste of his love.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door, and several maids came in carrying tea, fruit and snacks, which they placed on the table. They then stood in a row, waiting to serve them at any time.
Liu Hong waved to the maids: "Alright, you may all leave now. We'll call you if we need anything!"
"Here you go!!"
The maids bowed and then walked gracefully out.
After the maids had all left, a gong sounded in the private room, and amidst the cheers of tens of thousands of spectators, the competition officially began.
Liu Hong, Dian Wei, Zhao Yun, and the others also came to the French windows, held up binoculars, and looked into the arena.
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