Hongzhao is very competitive at his age. Coincidentally, Naritai is only one year younger than him and is also at an age where he is very competitive.
Ever since she had a falling out with Hongzhao at the Buku competition, Naritai sent people to inquire about his background upon returning home, preparing to have another horseback archery and hunting competition with him the next day.
So when Hongzhao was riding along with his older brother and sister, he saw an arrow shoot straight into a tree trunk not far in front of him, blocking his way.
Hongzhao turned around and saw Naritai, dressed in a red riding outfit, looking dashing and riding a chestnut Mongolian horse, galloping towards him into the light.
“Na Ritai? It’s you again.” Hongzhao recognized her at a glance.
"Whoa!" Nari Taylor reined in the reins, her whole being radiating youthful vigor like the rising sun, overflowing with pride.
"It's me, Hongzhao. Didn't we agree yesterday that we'd have another match?"
Hongzhao hadn't expected her to be so persistent, and his competitive spirit was also aroused: "Fine, you tell me, what do you want to compete in? We've agreed beforehand, it's not a fight with Buku, I don't fight with girls."
Naritai scoffed, "Coward. How about a mounted archery contest? Let's see who hunts the most prey!"
"Alright!" Hongzhao gripped the bow stance behind him. "Let's compete in this."
"The loser has to be a puppy! Lie on the ground and bark!"
Naritai persisted, her voice clear and crisp.
Hongzhao pursed his lips: "Alright, I'm leaving!"
He turned and ran off as soon as he finished speaking, hurry up! He didn't want to lose to this little brat!
If you lose, you have to behave like a puppy!
I don't care about saving face!
"Hey! Why are you running so fast!" Before Naritai could finish speaking, she saw Hongzhao riding his horse at full gallop. She immediately became angry, tightened the reins, and rode into the woods as well.
"call out!"
Hongzhao's accuracy is quite good, and his archery is very steady. Unlike his usual mischievous and naughty self, he is very reliable.
In no time, he had shot two rabbits.
Seeing him searching for prey with great enthusiasm, Hongyan wondered, "Hongzhao, what's your hurry?"
"We have to hurry, bro! Did you spot any more prey?"
Hongyan pointed ahead: "There seems to be a nest of baby foxes over there."
"Alright, I'll head over there first!" Hongzhao spurred his horse and headed off in that direction; time was of the essence!
Hong Yan was still confused when Chen Zhihuai, on horseback, said with a smile, "It must be Naritai who has arrived."
“Sigh, those two.” Hong Yan shook his head and turned to Chen Zhihuai, saying, “Let’s go for a run. My sister said she wants a fox fur coat and wants to make a hat.”
"Okay, let's go then."
After a while...
"Hehe!" Hongzhao had just shot an arrow when it hit the neck of a rabbit that was foraging for food, instantly immobilizing it.
As he dismounted to retrieve the rabbit, he muttered, "Why didn't I see that den of foxes?"
He had just hung the rabbit on his horse when he heard the whooshing sound of arrows and the scurrying of animals not far away. He knew immediately that it must be the fox den.
Without saying a word, Hongzhao quickly mounted his horse and followed the sound.
The more they ran, the more uneasy they felt. This den of foxes was rather cunning, and they kept scattering everywhere.
As Hongzhao was aiming, he suddenly noticed something unusual in the bushes not far away. He immediately let go of the arrow, and it flew straight towards it.
But instead of the fox that I had imagined being shot through, it was a familiar, spoiled female voice.
"Ouch! Who's blind? They shot right into my hat!"
Hongzhao was stunned for a moment. He thought, "Oh no!" and immediately wanted to run away, but after thinking about it, he still went over.
As expected, Naritai, with the arrow feathers sticking out of her hat, looked furious: "Hongzhao! It's you again!"
Hongzhao blushed deeply. Luckily, he hadn't hit anyone, or things would have gone wrong.
However, his mother said that a real man can bend and stretch, and he should admit his mistakes. So he patted his chest and raised his voice, saying, "I didn't see clearly, I was wrong!"
Naritai's beautiful eyes widened, her long eyelashes framing an incredulous look: "You did something wrong and you're still so self-righteous?!"
Seeing that she had misunderstood, Hongzhao quickly waved his hand: "No, no, it was indeed my fault. Tell me, what do you want me to do to apologize?"
Naritai stomped her foot angrily, forcefully pulled the arrow from her hat, and threw it at his feet: "You're lucky you hit me. If you had hurt someone else, you would have been wolf food!"
Hongzhao bent down and picked up the arrow, feeling around on his body. He found a jade begonia ring with a jade tree and branches that his mother had given him on his birthday last year in his purse. He especially liked it. It had a warm and lustrous sheen on it, which showed that he often played with it.
"Here, this is for you as an apology."
Despite his heartache, Hongzhao reached out and handed it over.
Naritai craned her neck to take a look, then took it without hesitation and held it up to the sun, saying, "This isn't green enough! It's not as pretty as our turquoise."
Hearing her disdainful tone, Hongzhao immediately exploded: "Naritai! Don't talk nonsense if you don't understand! This is tribute! Do you understand what tribute is? It's presented to the palace from all over the country, for my imperial grandfather! For the emperor's use!"
Naritai was skeptical. "The Emperor used that? It must be quite valuable. This brat is thoughtful."
However, seeing Hongzhao's pained expression, Naritai felt a little embarrassed. Since she wasn't injured, she stepped back and said, "Never mind, you can take it back. I'm fine anyway, so you don't need to apologize."
Hongzhao immediately dodged: "That won't do! If my sister and mother find out, they'll definitely not let me off the hook!"
"Alright, then I'll reluctantly accept it." Naritai put it into her pocket and took off a string of nine-treasure beads from her hand, throwing it over, which landed right in Hongzhao's arms.
"This is a nine-treasure bracelet from Mongolia, symbolizing good fortune, prosperity, and peace. My abu spent several years choosing it for me. Don't say I'm taking advantage of you!"
After saying that, Naritai mounted her horse, counted their prey, and said triumphantly, "You only have three rabbits, I have five! You lost, you little dog. I have something to do, you can bark like a dog again next time!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Naritai brandished her whip and galloped away, leaving a trail of dust in her wake.
During their stay in Mongolia, the children went out to ride horses and hunt during the day and returned with a string of spoils every night.
Changning is getting tired of eating roasted rabbit meat these past two days, and he's also been collecting fox pelts until his hands are sore.
The spring hunt was finally coming to an end, and the princes of the various Mongol tribes had all retreated and were packing their belongings.
That night, Yinzhen was holding her and telling the child stories. Compared to the stories Changning herself told, such as "Returning Zhu Gege" and "Shallow Love in the Drizzling Rain," Yinzhen preferred to tell stories about military strategy and Confucian and Legalist principles.
The results are obvious.
Changning slept very soundly.
Just as Yinzhen was about to fall asleep while holding her, he suddenly heard a commotion nearby.
"Fire! Fire! Run!"
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