Chapter 96: Horseback Archery Ceremony, Female General's Style
The horseback archery ceremony officially began.
There are two days in total for the competition, and the first one is hunting.
The crowd galloped on horseback through the mountains and forests, shooting birds of prey and wild animals, and the winner was determined by the number of prey caught.
The scoring methods for different prey such as rabbits, pheasants, falcons, deer, wild boars, tigers and leopards are different, but the jackpot with a higher score goes to the wild beasts with special marks that are released from time to time.
Women do not have as many rules as men. They can form teams freely with no more than ten people.
Mrs. Qiao gave her a few instructions: "Don't rush to the front when something happens, and don't think about being the first. You should come back in the same way you left. Do you understand?"
Ji Qingwu smiled and responded: "I know, mother, I am old enough, I will be careful."
Mrs. Qiao grumbled anxiously, "Yes, you have grown up, but you are also a mother. Think about it, Jiji, and don't do anything rash."
Ji Qingwu repeatedly assured that he would not be hurt, and only then did Qiao release him.
She picked up the custom-made bow and crossbow, supported herself on the side railing with one hand, exerted a little force on her waist and abdomen, and landed beautifully after a sideways flip.
The unrestrained and chic posture caused several people nearby to exclaim in amazement.
Ji Qingwu could feel the eyes on the podium focused on her.
She gripped the saddle tightly, took a deep breath and jumped up. Her slender legs crossed the saddle in the air and she jumped onto the horse cleanly and neatly, her posture light and powerful.
Ji Qingwu did not look back at the platform, but looked down at his crimson riding clothes.
This riding suit fits me as if it were tailor-made.
After putting it on, the body lines are smooth, the back is thin and the waist is thin, and the waist is very well tightened. If it is tightened an inch more, it will be tight, and if it is loosened an inch more, there will be some surplus.
Ji Qingwu's straight long legs were in the stirrups, her long hair standing high, looking heroic. Unlike her usual delicate appearance, she had a bit of the demeanor of a female general on the battlefield.
At this time, someone came over on horseback and ordered, "Be with me."
Ji Qingwu, who was holding the horse reins, turned his head to look.
Princess Qingyun came over on her red pony at some point and asked in a commanding manner, "Fifth cousin, I see you are alone, do you have a team?"
There were several ladies from aristocratic families accompanying the princess. Ji Qingwu thought their faces were familiar and she must have seen them before, but she couldn't tell which families they were from.
Besides, most of these noble ladies looked down on her, so there was no need for her to approach them and talk to them, which would only make her look awkward.
Princess Qingyun raised her chin and said as if to show some favor, "I remember that you are good at archery, so come to my camp."
Ji Qingwu didn't want to be tied down and restricted by them, besides, they had a conflict before and he might have to endure the consequences.
So she made an excuse: "Your Highness, I am good at archery, but I am not good at riding. Besides, I am used to being free and undisciplined. I just wanted to take a walk in the woods."
The woman in bright blue snorted, "She doesn't know what's good for her! Princess, let's go and leave her alone."
They just thought that Ji Qingwu was good at archery, so they wanted to bring her in to hunt more prey and save face for the princess.
This time, Concubine Wei and the ladies in the harem also teamed up to fight. The Queen Mother and Wei Liru were not on good terms, and Princess Qingyun also wanted to save face for her mother.
If it weren't for the last resort, Princess Qingyun would not have condescended to come and show her goodwill to Ji Qingwu.
Unexpectedly, Ji Qingwu flatly rejected her. She held her head high, let out a soft cry, and rode away on her horse.
Ji Qingwu watched them go away and smiled.
After she saw the horse riding and archery uniform that day, she made up her mind to participate and even practiced hard for a while.
She touched the blisters on her palms that had not yet healed and the newly formed thin calluses. Why should she make wedding dresses for others?
She just had fun, that's all.
With the guidance of the supervising guards along the way, Ji Qingwu successfully found the hunting enclosure.
The hunting areas for men and women are separate, and the ferocity of the animals there varies. This time the hunt was divided into eight directions. Ji Qingwu thought about it and decided to head to the southeast direction which no one had chosen.
After all, she was alone, so she didn't plan to hunt large animals. Catching rabbits, pheasants, deer and the like would be enough.
In an hour and a half, she hunted six hares, three pheasants, and a deer. There were marks on the arrows, and guards would pick them up later to count the points.
Ji Qingwu had no intention of competing for a ranking, so she decided to quit while she was ahead. She rode her horse leisurely into the woods.
The sun shone through the gaps between the leaves, and the horse's hooves made a squeaking sound as they stepped on the fallen leaves and soil. She felt particularly refreshed. This was the first time she had found a place where she could breathe freely in the world.
But this comfort did not last long.
Unfortunately, we met a group of people coming from another direction.
Ji Qingwu looked carefully and found that it was an old acquaintance.
Princess Qingyun still looked down upon people with that expression, and asked, "Fifth cousin, did you shoot any prey?"
In fact, there was no need to ask. She squinted her eyes and found that Ji Qingwu's quiver was almost empty. He must have hunted a lot, and they together hunted two pheasants.
Just now they also met Concubine Wei. She had caught a lot of prey and asked with a smile if they wanted to share some with her.
Princess Qingyun refused ambitiously. She wanted to hunt the prey herself and overshadow Wei Liru.
But Ji Qingwu stared at the ground in the southwest direction and did not answer her.
"The princess asked you a question, why didn't you answer!" the woman in bright blue clothes scolded.
Ji Qingwu put his index finger on his lips and hushed, "Don't talk for now."
She made a new discovery on the ground, which should be footprints and feces of animals.
Ji Qingwu was the first to dismount and approached the mark to examine it carefully. She guessed that it must be a large carnivorous beast that had just left not long ago.
It is very likely that it is the beast with special markings that the supervising guards mentioned, which is released from time to time.
But why would a wild beast appear in a restricted area for women to hunt for no reason...
Ji Qingwu straightened up and said, "Judging from the depth of the footprints, the animal was relatively large. Judging from the smell and color of the feces, it should be a young male. We should leave quickly."
When these words were spoken, several women looked strange.
The woman in bright blue clothes said disdainfully, "You're just going to get so close to look at it? Don't you mind that it's dirty?"
Princess Qingyun even covered her nose and mouth with her sleeves, looking unhappy, and felt that her fifth cousin, who grew up in the countryside, was extremely vulgar.
Ji Qingwu just remembered that the noble ladies in the capital were very disgusted with things like animal feces.
But as a doctor, she was no longer surprised.
Precious Chinese medicinal materials such as silkworm sand, night-shining sand, aconite and moon-gazing sand are all derived from animal feces. Perhaps these women have eaten, used, and applied them.
After a brief period of discomfort, Princess Qingyun became more motivated after hearing Ji Qingwu's analysis about the ferocious beast.
He said excitedly, "Let's follow the footprints and meet the beast!"
I heard that she wanted to go deep into the woods to hunt for the "jackpot".
Ji Qingwu seemed to want to say something but stopped himself.
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