Chapter 9, Chapter 9: Heartache
Not to mention that they were already itching to play a few rounds from down below, just to satisfy their craving.
Moreover, this is under the very nose of the Sage. If they perform well, they will be noticed by the Sage. Even if they perform poorly, they will still receive a reward. Those who perform even better, like that commoner polo player surnamed Shang, will be promoted to the rank of Eighth Grade Imperial Guard by the Sage out of favor.
He rose from a commoner to the official class, and even became a guard protecting the emperor.
Everyone was eager to try their hand at it and started volunteering.
"Your Majesty, since you're going to play polo, how can you leave out your subject?"
"Haha, that's right! Young man, go down to the field and let me see if your polo skills have improved!"
However, when Lin Erlang was the first to step forward and volunteer, the sage happily agreed, while many of the polo players, whose skills were mediocre, hesitated.
If they competed against Lin Er, they would have almost no chance of winning and would only become supporting characters.
Thinking about the humiliating consequences of working themselves to the bone, they had no choice but to back down.
However, some skilled young men thought that since this was a mixed-gender tournament, even if Lin Er was a good player, he could still have a match if he encountered a teammate who was like a pig.
At least I can get a chance to show my face and make a name for myself. Even if the emperor doesn't care, there are still so many young ladies around, so it's worth it!
Thinking of this, several young men stepped forward to volunteer.
Many of the girls are also skilled at polo. They don't have many reservations and just want to play a game to satisfy their craving.
But in the end, there were fewer women than men, five for the former and ten for the latter.
However, it was not easy to divide the fifteen people into two teams. Emperor Yongxi looked at his youngest daughter with a loving yet coaxing expression.
"Chang Le can fight too, why doesn't she go?"
Huiyi was also eager to try, especially when she saw that there were only an odd number of girls on the other side, which made her even more excited.
However, she was not used to playing with these people, so she hesitated.
But her grandfather's words touched her heart.
Just as she was about to speak, she heard Lin Lanting's annoying words from the side.
"Princess, you're a precious princess. The golf course is dirty and messy, and your clubs are unpredictable. It would be bad if you got injured."
Lin Lanting could easily see that this unruly princess wanted to hit him. Although he didn't know what she was struggling with, Lin Lanting decided to provoke her.
Do what you want to do, say what you want to say, what's there to hesitate about?
Wouldn't it be a pity to miss out?
Just as he had anticipated, his clumsy but provocative tactic immediately stirred up the tempers of the people.
"Grandpa, I want to go too!"
From then on, the number of girls was also even, and they were divided into two teams, Red and Black, with three girls and five boys in each team, and the teams were determined by drawing lots.
It depends on both ability and luck.
"Your Excellency, please draw lots."
The eunuch presented the wooden divination sticks with a respectful demeanor.
He took the moon staff from Biqing. The wooden staff was painted red and painted with colorful designs. It was not only plated with gold, but also inlaid with jade and diamonds. It was hard not to attract attention when it swayed in the sunlight.
Many people noticed the golf club and took a second look, marveling at the extravagance of the pampered young master.
Huiyi took out a black-headed token from the tube. Huiyi was already somewhat dissatisfied because most of her riding clothes were red. When she saw that Lin Lanting also had a black-headed token, Huiyi became even more dissatisfied.
She didn't want to be teammates with Lin Er; she'd rather be his rival.
Let her see if this polo champion title is genuine or not.
Meanwhile, Princess Li Xiuyun of Anning County was also troubled as she looked at the red-headed slip in her hand.
She will turn eighteen this June, and her father is currently looking for a husband for her.
Her father was a man of great vision and had high standards for choosing a son-in-law. He once hinted that he would marry her into a powerful family of civil and military officials.
Coincidentally, the young man she admired most in Chang'an was Lin Er. She had hoped to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get closer to him and say a few words, but she didn't expect to fail so badly and even drew the wrong lot.
Just as she was getting annoyed, she saw Li Huiyi about to switch teams with someone, and she quickly seized the opportunity to join her.
“Why don’t you trade with me, Sister Chang Le? I also have a red token.”
Since Li Xiuyun had ulterior motives, she could only temporarily put aside past grievances and put on a smiling face.
Something was definitely amiss. Huiyi asked suspiciously, "Why did my cousin want to switch places with me?"
Seeing the suspicion on Huiyi's face, Li Xiuyun sensed something was wrong. Fortunately, she reacted quickly enough and immediately adopted an arrogant attitude.
"Of course I want to have a friendly match with my sister."
Huiyi thought it made sense; she probably still remembered how Huiyi had defeated Li Xiuyun on the court last year.
If she went to the Red Team, she would be teammates with Li Xiuyun. If she wanted to avenge her previous defeat, she would need to go to the Black Team.
It would be easier for the two of them to switch.
Although it was a bit tiring for Lin Er and Li Xiuyun, she wasn't fighting alone.
Especially considering the Red Team, the commoner player Shang Ziyu, and Lu San Niang from the Lu family, all of them have superb skills.
It's acceptable.
They reluctantly agreed, exchanged wooden sticks, and were both satisfied.
Li Xiuyun breathed a sigh of relief upon receiving the black-headed slip, her gaze drifting towards the young man in black robes leaning against the horse not far away.
He was truly a prodigy, exuding a heroic and dashing air. His tall and slender figure stood out among the crowd, making him instantly captivating.
Just then, Lin Lanting seemed to suddenly sense something and glanced in her direction.
His sharp features, coupled with a wild and murderous air unlike any other young man, made Li Xiuyun's legs go weak at the mere sight of him.
You should always try to leave a good impression on others.
Thinking of this, Li Xiuyun was about to put on a gentle and beautiful smile, but before she could even move her lips, she turned her head away.
Not only that, but he also turned his head to talk to Li Huiyi who was passing by, smiling as if he was saying something nice.
Li Huiyi, on the other hand, gave the other person a fierce look, as if she had cursed at them, showing no respect whatsoever.
Li Xiuyun's face immediately darkened, feeling utterly humiliated. Her face turned pale, clearly enraged.
Li Xiuyun wasn't the only one angered; Emperor Yongxi, sitting at the head of the table, was also furious.
Seeing that his carefully planned situation had been ruined by his youngest daughter, Emperor Yongxi sighed for a long time, at a loss for words.
Chao En knew everything. He could only offer a few words of comfort from the side, and he couldn't help but sigh in his heart that the father and daughter were not of one mind!
On the other side, Huiyi ran into Lin Lanting.
But things didn't turn out the way Li Xiuyun thought.
Huiyi was about to change into her riding clothes with the red token in her hand when she passed by Lin Er. Perhaps he saw the red token in her hand, because he spoke up.
"If the princess continues like this, she will almost certainly lose."
He exuded confidence and certainty, and was still smiling, but in Huiyi's eyes, he was incredibly arrogant.
Huiyi paused, glanced at him, and said bluntly, "Arrogant crab, let's see how long you can act so arrogantly!"
"We'll see who's the best on the court later."
Although Lin Er is the champion of polo, she is not bad either, and she has many teammates with excellent skills. Why can't they compete?
Are we destined to lose?
Huiyi couldn't stand Lin Er's frivolous manner, and her competitive spirit ignited instantly.
After uttering a harsh remark, Huiyi turned and left, leaving Lin Lanting shaking his head and sighing.
"Respectfully seeing off the princess."
He still had that arrogant demeanor, showing no sign of worry, as if Huiyi's harsh words had no effect on him whatsoever.
After changing into riding attire and her hair into neat double buns, Huiyi mounted her horse, carrying her beloved polo mallet.
Her Fuxue was a pure white Ferghana horse, which she personally selected when she first came to Chang'an to learn how to ride.
The two rows of soldiers were arranged in two lines. Huiyi was in the center, with her third brother Li Ling on the left and Shang Ziyu on the right. Then came the fourth daughter of the Wang family, the third daughter of the Yunhui General, the two brothers of the Vice Minister of War, and so on.
There was a girl named Huiyi who looked unfamiliar and whose ball skills were unknown, but it all came down to luck, and maybe Lin Er's luck was worse than hers.
Just as eye-catching as Huiyi's white horse, Lin Er rode a pure black Turkic horse, so black and shiny it even reflected the sunlight.
Huiyi suddenly had a whimsical thought: if the two of them were both in the Xuan Team, they might become the Black and White Duo.
In his ear, a Shence Army officer was reading out the rules of polo, and then a painted seven-jeweled ball was forcefully thrown into the air.
In an instant, dust billowed up across the stadium.
The thunderous sound of hooves made the onlookers feel the earth tremble beneath their feet.
Huiyi was an excellent horseman, and Fuxue was also a Ferghana horse known as the Heavenly Horse. She approached the polo ball at top speed.
But Lin Er was just as fast as her.
Fearing that Lin Er would seize the initiative, Huiyi immediately swung her club to retrieve the ball, attempting to block it and bring it to her side.
However, Lin Er was not slow either. With a swing of her long arm, she managed to grab the ball first, thanks to the fact that her arm was longer than Lin Er's.
The polo robes are designed to be lightweight and form-fitting. When Lin Er exerts his strength and swings his polo shirt, his muscles tense up, which is revealed under the black fabric, showing smooth and firm lines.
But Huiyi had no time to appreciate it at that moment. She saw that Lin Er's strike on the ball was so powerful that the colorful ball shot out like a meteor and flew towards their Red Team's goal.
Everything happened so fast that even Shang Ziyu couldn't stop it, and Team Xuan gained the upper hand right from the start.
"Lin Erlang scores, Xuan team gains a point!"
The officer struck a gong and shouted.
Huiyi was closest and saw Lin Lanting give her a provocative smile, seemingly mocking her overestimation of her abilities.
Huiyi was furious and wished she could smash his head with a baseball bat.
But this is on the court, and they can't afford to lose again.
She glared angrily at Lin Er; that was all Huiyi could do now.
Fortunately, it was only a loss at the beginning. The Red Team does have many skilled players, while the Black Team is different. They even have a player who always makes things worse.
The ninth son of the Grand Tutor's family is usually said to be quite good at ball games, but this time, for some reason, he has been losing repeatedly.
There was even a time when the ball went into their own net. Huiyi saw it clearly, and Lin Er's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot. He looked like he wanted to get off his horse and beat that person up.
"Sorry, my touch wasn't right today. Don't be angry, everyone, it's all Jiulang's fault!"
Seeing that she was almost crying, coupled with Lin Er's dark and gloomy face, Huiyi couldn't help but laugh.
But Lin Er fought even more fiercely.
The match entered its most exciting phase, with the two teams neck and neck, but Xuan team had a slight lead more often.
This made Huiyi extremely anxious.
Once again, Huiyi rushed to the galloping polo ball, just as she was about to hit it, Li Xiuyun arrived as well.
Seeing that Huiyi was about to intercept the ball and the Red Team was about to catch up, she desperately tried to do something rash, and in the chaos, she indiscriminately struck Huiyi's left arm with a golf club.
This meant that if Huiyi wanted to avoid the polo ball, she would have to dodge it, but then she wouldn't be able to intercept it.
Lin Er truly deserves his title as the champion polo player; his polo skills are superb.
Driven east and west, surging and swirling with wind and lightning, they advance without hesitation.
If they can't intercept this ball, the Red Team will be two points behind.
This polo match did not follow the rule that whoever scored three points first would win. The match was nearing its end, and it would be very difficult to win if one was two points behind.
Huiyi gritted her teeth and made her choice.
As the bat forcefully struck the oncoming ball towards the Xuan team's goal, a sharp pain shot through his left arm.
That bitch Li Xiuyun, she really went all out!
It hurt her terribly.
Fortunately, the score was caught up.
Lin Lanting was the first to notice her unusual behavior. He glanced coldly at Princess Anning before turning his gaze back to Huiyi's left arm.
After thinking for a moment, he said, "Princess, you are not feeling well. Why don't you go down and see the physician?"
That blow might not have been a big deal for him, but it was certainly not pleasant for a delicate young lady.
Lin Lanting felt that he had only said those words out of kindness, but judging from the princess's reaction, it seemed that he had said something wrong again.
"No need, I'm fine, just keep fighting."
Huiyi pressed the spot on her left arm where she had been hit, and felt that Lin Er was up to no good in trying to get her out of this mess.
That means their team, Xuan, is guaranteed to win.
That's impossible; she can still tolerate it.
He then rode away, giving Li Xiuyun a look that said "wait a moment," which sent a chill down her spine.
Lin Lanting watched helplessly as the slender woman struggled to hit the ball with her injured left arm, her movements somewhat strained.
This made Lin Lanting very upset.
Because he was never the type to take advantage of others, let alone a young woman.
After thinking for a moment, he slowed down his movements.
However, an unexpected incident occurred: Princess Anning was struck on the left arm by Princess Changle's polo mallet. The pain caused Princess Anning to immediately throw down the mallet and be taken away for treatment.
Lin Lanting knew she would definitely retaliate, but she didn't expect it to be so soon, and was momentarily surprised.
What's even more surprising is how resilient Li Huiyi was despite the same pain.
With one less player, Team Xuan was at a slight disadvantage, but it didn't make much difference to Lin Lanting.
He doesn't care about winning or losing, as long as he wants.
With the last cup of tea, the score was tied, and it was time to decide the winner.
Lin Lanting watched as the unruly princess came running back, wounded, and sighed inwardly, deliberately slowing down his movements for a moment.
Huiyi smoothly intercepted the painted wooden ball, passed it to her third brother, and then it went into her own goal.
With sixteen against fifteen, the Red Team ultimately had the upper hand.
The cheers around the stadium were deafening, echoing through the sky.
Great, they won!
At this moment, Huiyi even forgot the pain in her left arm, her face covered in sweat and her expression was one of elation.
A note from the author:
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Update [heart emoji]
The rankings are about to drop, so I need to reduce the word count. Updates will be scheduled for Friday, Sunday, and Tuesday.
My next novel is "Marrying a Demon," a fantasy demon-hunting road trip story with pure love and a Chinese-style non-human theme. If you like it, feel free to add it to your favorites! [kiss]
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