The Emperor said, "Speak your mind, why are you beating around the bush?"
"Your Majesty, although Prince Ling's prey is few, none of it is ordinary prey."
Upon hearing this, Crown Prince Lu Ziying tensed up instantly.
Although they returned together, Lu Ziyuan always carried a large cloth bag to make it easier to transport his prey, so he didn't know what Lu Ziyuan had caught until the very end.
At this moment, Lu Ziyuan stepped forward and said, "Father, Mother, I have indeed found quite a few interesting things today. Please come and take a look."
Intrigued by Lu Ziyuan's words, the Emperor and Empress left their seats, and the others followed them to the snowy field outside.
On the snow, the two portions of prey were laid out neatly, clearly visible.
Lu Ziying's pupils suddenly contracted.
No wonder Lu Ziyuan didn't fight as many as usual this time.
Lu Ziyuan's prey included not a single rabbit, but deer, sheep, wolves, foxes, and most importantly, a very large tiger!
Looking around, Lu Ziyuan was the only one who could hunt tigers, especially since this was a huge adult male tiger.
Compared to his, everyone else's prey looked rather pathetic, and the people around couldn't help but exclaim, "It's actually a tiger! The Prince of Ling is truly remarkable!"
"This is the first time I've ever seen such a big tiger. No wonder he's the valiant and skilled seventh prince!"
The praise around him made Lu Ziying's face darken. He secretly glanced to the side and saw that the Empress also looked solemn, while the Emperor was grinning from ear to ear.
"Good! Good! You truly are my son!"
The Empress spoke up at the opportune moment: "Your Majesty, what about this championship..."
At this moment, a minister said, "Winter hunting has always been decided by the number of prey hunted, and the champion should naturally be His Highness the Crown Prince!"
“But even ordinary people can’t hunt tigers, so His Highness Prince Ling is quite extraordinary.”
Although some people spoke up for Lu Ziyuan, they dared not offend the Crown Prince, so they spoke very tactfully.
No matter what others say, the final decision rests with the Emperor. Whoever the Emperor decrees as number one, is number one.
After everyone had finished arguing, the Emperor finally spoke: "The Crown Prince has hunted more animals this year than last year, which is a good result. The Seventh Prince even hunted a tiger, which is unique. I think the championship should still belong to the Seventh Prince. This is also to encourage everyone to train more and dare to take on challenges in the future."
"Your Majesty is wise!"
After the results were announced, everyone was overjoyed and discussed at length how to deal with the tiger, while Lu Ziyuan went to collect his first-place reward—a brand-new divine bow.
The bow was of excellent quality and very heavy. Lu Ziyuan pulled it and was very satisfied.
Such rewards don't need to be particularly exquisite; the key is the emperor's attitude. Besides, Lu Ziyuan quite likes this bow.
The palace servants took all the game away to be processed, and Lu Ziyuan went to find Zhong Muyu first.
"Yu'er, have you seen my prey?"
Zhong Muyu laughed and said, "I saw it too. It's the first time I've ever seen such a big tiger. At first, I thought you wouldn't be number one, but I didn't expect you to win in the end. Congratulations."
Lu Ziyuan asked happily, "Hunting is no problem for me. Would you like to eat roasted venison or the rare tiger meat later?"
Zhong Muyu thought for a moment, realizing she still didn't want to eat tigers, so she said, "Let's have roasted venison, I brought some seasoning."
Lu Ziyuan nodded and had someone pick out the best piece of venison. After cleaning it, they set up a barbecue grill.
The warmth of the charcoal fire dispelled the chill, and Zhong Muyu sat there warming herself while grilling meat. Before long, snow began to fall heavily outside.
"Eating barbecue while enjoying the snow scenery, there's nothing more carefree than this!"
Zhong Muyu said cheerfully as she put the grilled meat into her mouth, but she was too hasty and burned herself.
"Hiss~"
"Be careful, eat slowly."
Lu Ziyuan smiled and wiped the condiments from her lips. Just then, Prince Fu and his wife happened to pass by and witnessed this scene.
"Oh my, you two are so loving, it's so enviable!"
"It's my third brother and his wife!"
Zhong Muyu waved to them.
Prince Fu stared at the roasted venison and couldn't help but ask, "What are these roasted? They smell so good; I could smell them from outside."
"It's roasted venison! You should all join us!"
Zhong Muyu enthusiastically had a chair brought over, but Lu Ziyuan was slightly displeased. Why should his and Zhong Muyu's time together be disturbed by other people?
Moreover, his third brother could eat so much that this piece of venison was simply not enough!
Princess Fu declined, saying, "I can't possibly accept this!"
"It's alright! I'll go get someone to get another piece of meat to roast. We hunted so much game today, rabbit, mutton, venison—eat as much as you like!"
Lu Ziyuan said, "That's true. Then I'll go and have someone prepare some more. I plan to leave the tiger for Father Emperor; we can eat these."
"Okay! Go quickly!"
Lu Ziyuan had no choice but to go to the kitchen to get more meat, but when he returned, there were even more people at the barbecue grill.
Lu Ziqing also came because of the smell of the barbecue, and insisted on staying for a free meal. He and his other brothers, along with their wives, surrounded the barbecue grill.
"Hey! Seventh Brother, you're back!"
Lu Ziqing spotted him first and greeted him. Seeing his displeasure, Lu Ziqing quickly added, "Seventh Sister-in-law's food smelled so good that I couldn't resist coming to freeload. Please forgive me, Seventh Brother. By the way, I didn't come for nothing; I brought some ingredients too!"
Just then, Lu Ziqing's guard, Ah Xun, arrived with cleaned venison and deer legs.
Seeing him say that, the others also indicated that they hadn't come for nothing, and that they had all brought their own prey.
Zhong Muyu was enjoying herself: "Lu Ziyuan, hurry up and sit down, or you won't have room if someone else comes. Sigh, I should have set up a bigger barbecue grill from the beginning."
"This is enough. If anyone else comes, we can bring another one."
"right!"
...
Everyone was chatting enthusiastically. Although Lu Ziyuan was helpless, he didn't say anything when he saw Zhong Muyu so happy.
Fortunately, no one else came after that. Everyone enjoyed the meal, and a sip of strong liquor warmed them up.
In contrast to the harmonious atmosphere here, the Crown Prince's side appeared much more tense.
Inside the room, the Empress was sitting in the main seat, while Lu Ziying stood below her.
"Mother, you wanted to see me?"
"Your mother has summoned you here because she has something to say. Your mother is getting old and there are many things she can't help you with. You must also strive to be more capable. You are the crown prince, so don't let others always put you in a superior position. That's not a good thing."
Lu Ziying lowered his head: "Your Majesty is right, but... Lu Ziyuan and his princess are really difficult to deal with, and I don't know what to do for the time being."
A ruthless glint flashed in the Empress's eyes: "If they're too difficult to deal with, then we don't need to deal with them. We'll just find a way to get rid of them."
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