Chapter 118 was looked down upon.
Behind a yurt on a hillside not far away, Yinzhen stood with his hands behind his back, using the shadow of the tent to conceal his figure. He was inevitably tired from days of traveling, but his eyes were fixed straight down, and his face was filled with a relaxed and carefree smile. Standing beside him was none other than his thirteenth uncle, whom Hongzhao had been searching for everywhere.
Prince Yi, arms crossed, couldn't suppress the upward curve of his lips. The fact that his elder brother, the Emperor, was here proved that the matter of Prince Dun had been resolved. This matter should have caused quite a stir, but before the news even reached the hunting grounds, the Emperor himself had arrived. It was obvious who he was here for.
"Your Majesty, what did you think of the Crown Prince's display of skill just now?"
Indeed, Yinzhen happened to witness the entire blindfolded archery competition when he arrived. The distance between them was not far, and their conversation could even be faintly heard by Yinzhen. Naturally, he also heard Hongzhao's words of "bringing glory to his father," and his heart was filled with pride that had long since flown away.
"It's just a trivial skill, much simpler than what happened in the palace." Although he said this, the smile in his words went straight to people's ears, making his humble words sound like he was showing off.
Prince Yi raised an eyebrow and deliberately glanced at the surrounding scenery, his tone quite deliberate—"In my opinion, this place offers a great view from a high vantage point, so why don't we... take a closer look from here?"
Yinzhen knew he was teasing him, so he glanced at him but didn't say anything, thus tacitly acknowledging the fact that he was peeping.
"Your Highness, let's move on to the next item. Please choose a horse first."
Looking at the several tall, white or black steeds led over by the waiter, each one incredibly robust, their dark eyes gleaming with fighting spirit, even an outsider could tell they were all top-quality. Hongzhao merely glanced at them before waving his hand and asking, "The competition doesn't stipulate that your horses must be used, does it?"
The waiter was taken aback and turned to look at the Prince of Khorchin. The prince stepped forward and explained, "Of course not. It's just that the horses from the grasslands are used to galloping in this vast area, and they have greater endurance and drive. As the saying goes, an old horse knows the way, so it can naturally avoid some dangerous places while running. If the Crown Prince wants to ride his own horse, there is naturally no problem with that."
This is a veiled statement, but roughly translated, it means: if you insist on using your own horse and lose, don't blame me.
Hongzhao glanced at the subtle sneers around him and curled his lips in response. The Khorchin prince's words were veiled, but he was not one to take words lying down. He waved his hand and laid his cards on the table: "It's alright. I am not an unreasonable person. If I lose, I will not blame heaven, earth, or the horse. Your Highness can rest assured."
"I had no such intention!"
Hongzhao gestured with his chin toward Xiaodezi, who understood and trotted to the stables next to the Crown Prince's tent, where he led out a tall, brown horse with a glossy coat that was almost reflective.
The crowd, who were waiting to see what would happen, thought that the Crown Prince was so confident because he had some special skill, but they never expected that he was just a horse pulling a carriage. They immediately looked at him with some disdain.
I really don't know what this young prince is thinking. Has he really gone mad after winning just one game? Instead of using all the fine horses he has prepared, he uses a mere carriage horse. No matter how tall or beautiful it is, it's just a fancy trick.
No one recognized the horse, but Prince Yi, who was not far away, found it extremely familiar... However, he inadvertently turned his head to look at the person next to him for certainty.
If he wasn't mistaken... the most agile and swift horse in the Hundred Horses Garden, the Jade-Beared Steed that gallops like the wind? The Emperor's imperial horse? Gone to pull the Crown Prince's carriage?
Horse racing cannot be divided into groups. Fortunately, the grassland is vast, and the thirty-odd horses can be arranged in a row. The starting point is also the finish line. The first to complete a lap wins. Hongzhao grabbed the saddle and pushed off with his feet. He was as light as a swallow as he leaped onto the horse. After settling in, he patted Yu Le's neck familiarly. After receiving a snort in response, he smiled with relief.
Seeing that everyone was ready, the waiter slowly raised the small red and green flags in his hand, silently counted to three, and then waved them sharply. A cloud of dust that made it hard to open one's eyes was immediately raised on the grassland, and a group of fast horses galloped off almost the instant the order was given.
Everyone silently reached a consensus: keep your distance from the Crown Prince while running. There's no need to shoot arrows while riding; unless the arrows are deliberately aimed at someone, they certainly won't cause injury. But if you trip over a horse and fall off, not only will you be at risk, but you'll also be seriously injured by the hooves of a horse following closely behind. There's no such thing as a minor injury then.
However, if everyone tacitly keeps their distance, a problem arises: if they really run away, no one will be able to find where the Crown Prince is.
Bala remembered his father's words and ran while glancing back at the prince's position, but found nothing. Just as he was about to turn around, he caught a glimpse of someone getting closer and closer to him from the side... closer and closer...
Brown horse, apricot-yellow outer garment... No way.
Bala looked up in surprise, only to meet the gaze of the Crown Prince.
Hongzhao naturally knew who he wanted to find when he turned around. He put on a smile and nodded slightly to Bala, leaving him with only his horse's rump in his sight.
Seeing this, Bala jerked off his horse and whipped it twice. But even though they were so close, he could only watch as the prince rode away faster and faster into the distance. For the first time in his life, Bala understood what it meant to want to cry but have no tears.
Father, you lied to me again. It's one thing to lose, but the Crown Prince just passed by me and seemed to give me a disdainful look.
Unsurprisingly, Hongzhao won the race. The expressions on the faces of the princes and nobles who saw Hongzhao arrive first were almost blank. Who would have thought that a carriage horse brought out from the palace could so easily outrun so many grassland horses! Looking at the horse now that it has reached the finish line and is still strolling leisurely, it seems that it has not exerted its full strength at all.
Once everyone had reached the finish line, Hongzhao dismounted and bowed, saying, "Gentlemen, you flatter me again. Running on horseback on this grassland is truly exhilarating; I feel my heart and mind have suddenly broadened considerably."
The others echoed the compliments, secretly thinking, "You've broadened your horizons, while we're about to become withdrawn."
Hongzhao stared at the bright 36% on the system panel, secretly calculating in his mind—"If one project increases by 18%, then four projects would be... 72! This is practically exceeding the target!"
The first two events have already reached this point. Unless someone can stand out and overpower the Crown Prince in wrestling and hunting, even if they do, it will only be a draw. Now, no one is thinking about how to "narrowly win". They have realized that even if they use all their skills, they may not be able to win. So why are they still cowering?
This kind of momentum is fully displayed when wrestling.
One by one, the princes, tall or short but incredibly strong, rolled around in a heap on the already fenced-off grass, none of them giving way to the other. Even when they were thrown heavily to the ground, they scrambled to their feet and, without stopping, charged upwards with their eyes closed, twisting and turning together again.
Of the three, this one took the longest, and in the end, only three people remained on the field.
Bala from the Khorchin tribe, Hairi from the Jarut tribe, and Balin Baiyin from the Balin tribe were randomly divided into groups by throwing sheep bones. Hongzhao looked at himself and Balin Baiyin and saw that they held the same number of points. He nodded slightly to him.
He had clearly seen through him from the moment he arrived that this Balin Baiyin seemed to be a very honest and straightforward person. He wondered what instructions his father had given him, as this person was truly putting in a lot of effort to compete with him in every matter. Now that he had encountered him here, he knew things wouldn't be too easy for him later.
Even if it's not an easy match, he's certain he won't lose. It's not that he's particularly confident in his wrestling skills, but rather that he truly trusts the system. One of the previous rewards was to improve various physical attributes. At his current level, unless his opponent is a naturally gifted genius with superhuman strength, virtually no one his age can rival him once his overall attributes are up to par.
He wasn't too worried about himself, but Yinzhen, who was watching from above, didn't think so. The previous two competitions were about technique, but wrestling was different.
Yinzhen was no longer as calm as before. Ever since the fight, his brows had been furrowed. Hongzhao naturally had many martial arts teachers, but even as the crown prince in the palace, no matter how much martial arts he was taught, he had never experienced such a brutal and realistic combat.
He looked at the young man opposite him, who was already quite tall, and saw that he looked like a small mountain in front of Hongzhao. His worry was beyond words.
——
(Why haven't I gotten to that part yet...? Please stay tuned for the next chapter to see the lonely old father fiercely protecting his son!)
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