Chapter 254 Little Fox
The three-day spring hunt was coming to its last day in a blink of an eye.
During the spring hunt, many generals became famous, either by hunting auspicious signs or by hunting birds of prey and ferocious beasts.
But the ones who stole the most attention were Yuan Caiwei and Su Zhizhi.
Their tiger hunting that day became known to everyone.
Now everyone knows that the two female students recruited by the martial arts school this year are little tiger-fighting heroes.
One is ten years old and the other is eleven years old, but they were able to work together to hunt a tiger. They are truly brave and admirable.
Su Zhizhi and Yuan Caiwei kept a low profile and didn't tell anyone about it; but Yuan Chi, Zhou Jijiu and Instructor Lin told everyone they met.
When Yuan Chi and his men were on patrol and met someone, he said:
"There are many wild beasts in the mountains this year. A tiger even escaped from the northern slopes. My daughter Caiwei and my classmate Su Zhizhi from the martial arts school went tiger hunting together..."
"The deer General Zhou hunted is so big it's almost as big as a tiger. Speaking of tigers, the other day my daughter was picking wild vegetables..."
"Master Qin's belt is brightly colored, just like tiger skin. It really looks like the tiger that my daughter Caiwei and my classmates hunted..."
Zhou Jijiu and Instructor Lin were even more high-profile than Yuan Chi. They praised the students recruited by the martial arts school this year to everyone they met.
Su Zhizhi and Yuan Caiwei were busy hunting and would never waste the precious opportunity in the royal hunting ground.
Su Zhizhi hunted two deer, three foxes, ten rabbits, a nest of pheasants, and the tiger he had caught before.
Classmates asked Su Zhizhi how she did it and what her secret was.
Su Zhizhi said: "I just draw my bow when I see an animal. After I hunt one, another one appears. Before I know it, I've hunted so many. I guess it's because I'm lucky."
Zhou Jijiu was very pleased and his eyes were filled with admiration.
Look! This is the student he's always dreamed of. How humble! It's clearly his ability, yet he still blames it on luck.
Qi Fang looked at the pile of prey that his junior sister had caught, rubbed his forehead, and fell into an awkward silence.
He couldn't lift it even if he had four hands.
At the end of the spring hunt, the emperor would reward his subjects in public.
Murong Yu summoned those who performed well in hunting to his tent and rewarded them with fine horses and good bows.
Su Zhizhi and Yuan Caiwei, as little tiger-fighting heroes whose heroic deeds spread throughout the mountain, were naturally among those who received rewards.
The ministers who were rewarded eagerly presented the prey they had hunted, most of which were fierce and powerful prey.
When it was Su Zhizhi and Yuan Caiwei's turn, they were holding a little fox and a pheasant in their hands respectively.
"Greetings, Your Majesty." The two children said in clear voices.
Murong Yu laughed. "Are you two the two new female students at the martial arts academy this year? You're so young, yet you can hunt tigers. Zhou Gan was right. What are your names?"
Yuan Caiwei: "Your Majesty, my name is Yuan Caiwei."
Murong Yu nodded and looked towards Yuan Chi who was on duty not far away: "As expected, a tiger father will have a dog daughter."
Yuan Chi grinned, and instead of saying "thank you" like others, he happily replied:
"Your Majesty is absolutely right!"
Murong Yu: ...
Su Zhizhi replied without any hesitation, "Your Majesty, my name is Su Zhizhi."
Murong Yu knew that this was Hao Ren's daughter, but this was the first time he saw her.
Hao Ren was plain-looking, and Murong Yu had heard that Su Zhizhi was as strong as a calf, so he thought Su Zhizhi would be a rough-looking girl.
But when I saw her today, I found that she was actually a pretty and lively girl, not shy at all.
Not only Murong Yu, but other ministers were also surprised.
Murong Yu asked, "You two hunted a tiger, but why didn't you offer it as a sacrifice? Why did you only bring foxes and pheasants?"
Su Zhizhi and Yuan Caiwei had already agreed that the tiger meat would be divided equally and the tiger skin would be displayed in the martial arts hall.
Zhou Jijiu said that he wanted to let the students who would enroll later know about their glorious deeds of hunting tigers when they were young.
Yuan Caiwei wasn't as blunt as her father. She simply said, "We saw others offering tigers, so we wanted to offer something different."
The pheasant tail in Yuan Caiwei's hand is brightly colored and really pleasing to the eye.
The little fox in Su Zhizhi's hand is a snow-white fox, which is rare.
Murong Yu looked lovingly at Pei Shu, who was sitting beside him without saying a word:
"Whatever Shu'er likes, if there's anything that catches your eye, feel free to pick it."
Pei Shu looked at Su Zhizhi from the moment the two little girls came in.
I want to see more, but I dare not see more.
But even if you only look at him a few times, you can feel that this child is smart, cute and courageous.
When asked by Murong Yu at this time, Pei Shu's gaze naturally fell on the fox in Su Zhizhi's arms.
The young fox is so white without a single color, smart and cute.
It looked very much like the fox that had rampaged through her yard and knocked over wine jars many years ago.
Pei Shu smiled faintly: "I am afraid of those tigers and leopards, but I think this little fox that Miss Su brought is quite cute."
Murong Yu called Su Zhizhi to come a few steps forward.
Su Zhizhi looked at Pei Shu with a pair of clear eyes.
Pei Shu gently stroked the dried fruit bracelet on her wrist and smiled gently:
"Why do you keep looking at me?"
Su Zhizhi's eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings: "Because you are beautiful."
Wang, the eunuch beside him, gently scolded: "This is Concubine Hui, you can't say 'you'."
Su Zhizhi changed her words: "Because the queen is beautiful, and she looks even prettier when she smiles."
Pei Shu seemed to be delighted by the compliment and asked her name again:
"What did you say your name was?"
"My name is Su Zhizhi."
"Nice name. If I take your fox away, will you feel bad?"
Su Zhizhi shook her head: "Your Majesty, you can take the fox away, but the Emperor will reward me with a Thousand Mile Horse. I think it's a good deal."
Murong Yu laughed when he heard this:
"Hahahaha... As expected of Hao Ren's daughter, she always keeps profits and losses in mind."
Su Zhizhi handed the fox to Pei Shu without hesitation.
Dong Yue, who was standing beside Pei Shu, bent down and took it:
"Miss Su, just leave it to me."
Dongyue looked at Su Zhizhi with a smile on her face.
Murong Yu felt better when he saw Pei Shu smile.
With a wave of his hand, he gave Su Zhizhi and Yuan Caiwei a set of saddles each in addition to a thousand-mile horse and a good bow.
On the way back to Beijing from Phoenix Mountain, Su Zhizhi and Yuan Caiwei were overjoyed.
They rode on large chestnut horses, sat on brand new gold and jade saddles, carried bows and arrows, and towed a small cart full of prey behind them.
It’s really a fruitful return.
At the front of the marching team, several large flags fluttered in the wind.
The curtains of the carriage were also blown away.
The spring breeze rushed into the carriage, bending the corners of Pei Shu's lips.
Pei Shu recalled the way Su Zhizhi held the little fox, and remembered her saying "The Queen is pretty", and couldn't help laughing:
"It's really the same as Xuan'er."
He is active and noisy, but speaks sweetly.
Dongyue touched the little fox's head and asked softly:
"Was benefactor like this when he was little? I only remember that benefactor was very majestic and chivalrous."
Pei Shu smiled for a while, then looked at the little white fox moving in Dongyue's hands, and her brows darkened a little:
"Dongyue, find a chance to release it before entering the palace."
Dong Yue was surprised and whispered anxiously, "My Lady, this is a gift from Miss Su, don't you want it?"
Dong Yue was a little reluctant and whispered, "Holding this little guy, I can feel like I'm meeting my benefactor's daughter."
Pei Shu stretched out her slender index finger and tapped Dong Yue's head lightly:
"It ran away, so we had a chance to meet each other."
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