Chapter 308 Shall I Beat the Drum for You? (4200 words)
"Xiao Mo."
The little girl kept repeating Xiao Mo's name, her big eyes blinking gently.
"Xiao Mo, would you be willing to be my guard?" the little girl asked expectantly after repeating it several times.
"If Your Highness doesn't mind," Xiao Mo replied.
"Of course I don't mind."
As soon as she finished speaking, Qin Siyao grabbed Xiao Mo's sleeve and ran to her father.
"Father, Mother, Siyao has made her choice. I want Xiao Mo to be my bodyguard."
"Xiao Mo," Empress Shi looked at the little boy in front of her and asked, "Are you a descendant of the Xiao family?"
"Yes, Your Majesty," Xiao Mo replied, clasping his hands in a fist salute.
"What realm are you at?" Empress Shi asked again.
"Your Majesty, I am at the ninth level of the Qi Refining Realm," Xiao Mo replied truthfully.
Upon hearing that the other party was at the ninth level of Qi Refining, a hint of surprise flashed in Empress Shi's eyes.
To reach the ninth level of Qi Refining at such a young age is truly remarkable.
"Alright, since it's your choice, Siyao, I won't say anything more." The King of Qin agreed to his daughter's choice and said earnestly to Xiao Mo, "Xiao Mo, you must protect my daughter well. If you do well, I will reward you."
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty and Empress, I will do my utmost," Xiao Mo replied.
"Alright." The King of Qin waved his hand. "You two prepare yourselves and depart when the time comes."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"It's Father Emperor."
Hearing that her father and mother had agreed, Qin Siyao happily pulled Xiao Mo's sleeve aside and asked him if there were any fun or delicious things to do outside the palace.
"If I remember correctly, Xiao Mo, at this age, should be the illegitimate son of the Xiao family?" After her daughter and Xiao Mo left, Empress Shi looked at the Emperor beside her.
"That's right." The King of Qin nodded and said with a smile, "Now the eldest and second young masters of the Xiao family have gone out to learn martial arts. There are only a few illegitimate sons in the Xiao family. Xiao Mo is the oldest one."
"I see." Empress Shi nodded. "But I didn't expect Xia Qingke to send a son born of a concubine."
Although Xiao Mo was only serving as a guard, this was a good opportunity to get closer to the royal family and even appear before the emperor.
Generally, the children born to concubines are the ones with the lowest social status.
Very rarely were sons born to concubines allowed to come.
The King of Qin simply smiled and said, "This was not agreed to by Xia Qingke. Xiao Mo was able to appear here because of that Senior Huang."
Empress Shi was taken aback for a moment when she heard "Senior Huang," but she quickly realized who the Emperor was referring to. "Xiao Mo is that Senior Huang's..."
"His disciple." The King of Qin stroked his beard, a smile playing on his lips. "I invited Senior Huang here, but he didn't give me face and sent his disciple instead. I am indeed quite curious as to why this Xiao Mo was accepted as a disciple by Senior Huang."
The King of Qin glanced at Xiao Mo one last time, then looked at his two sons.
The King of Qin didn't really care much about his eight-year-old daughter and Xiao Mo. For them, this hunting ceremony was just a fun event.
However, the situation is different for the eldest prince Qin Jingsu and the second prince Qin Jingyuan.
The Qin ruler has not yet appointed a crown prince. The two brothers appear to be on good terms, but in reality, they are constantly vying for power.
The guards they chose had been decided long ago; they were all military generals who supported them.
After the time it takes for two incense sticks to burn, the auspicious time has arrived.
The three children of the King of Qin, along with all the royal relatives, entered the Imperial Hunting Forest.
Xiao Mo also carried two longbows, two quivers, and a spear, following behind the Third Princess Qin Siyao.
Qin Siyao walked ahead of Xiao Mo with a happy and expectant air, as if she were on a picnic, her single ponytail swaying back and forth.
Xiao Mo was looking around warily, watching for any wild animals.
Suddenly, Xiao Mo took the bow and arrow from his back, drew back the bowstring, and shot an arrow.
"call out!"
A whooshing sound was heard.
Not far away, a wild rabbit was shot through by an arrow and pinned to a tree.
Qin Siyao rushed over, a hint of sadness flashing in her eyes: "Poor bunny."
“.”
Xiao Mo explained.
“Your Highness, we are here to hunt. In this chaotic world, if we don’t hunt others, others will hunt us. Furthermore, the prey we hunt will help some poor people live better lives.”
Qin Siyao turned her head and blinked at Xiao Mo.
"What's wrong with Your Highness?" Xiao Mo asked.
"It's nothing." Qin Siyao shook her head vigorously. "It's just that what you said, Xiao Mo, sounds just like what my father said. He said the same thing."
"Yeah?"
"Yes," Qin Siyao replied.
"But Xiao Mo, why are the prey we hunt able to help poor people live better lives?" Qin Siyao asked.
"Because my mother told me that, according to custom, these game animals are given to some poor people. Although it's not much, it's enough to feed some people a few times," Xiao Mo said.
"I see."
Qin Siyao lowered her head, as if she was hesitating about something.
After a while, Qin Siyao raised her head and stretched out her fair little hand.
"What's wrong, Your Highness?" Xiao Mo asked, puzzled.
"I want to hunt too." Qin Siyao seemed to have made up her mind. "I can't rely on Xiao Mo to help me hunt alone."
Xiao Mo paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Okay."
Xiao Mo handed a bow and arrow from his back to Qin Siyao. As for the rabbit that had been shot dead, someone would come to the Hunting Forest to take inventory.
The color of the arrow fletching can indicate who shot the target.
Qin Siyao was walking through the Imperial Hunting Forest, and she was starting to get into the zone.
Once she sees an animal like a rabbit or a deer, she will draw her bow and shoot an arrow.
Qin Siyao's bowstring was equipped with a magic array, so even an eight-year-old girl like her could draw it smoothly.
However, the magic array could only help Qin Siyao open up, but it didn't include aiming.
So Qin Siyao shot arrow after arrow, but none of them hit the target.
Xiao Mo was collecting the arrow feathers for Qin Siyao.
The closest Qin Siyao came was when she plucked a tuft of fur off the rabbit with a single arrow. The rabbit was so frightened that it peed a few drops and then ran away as fast as it could.
"Ugh! Hunting is no fun at all!"
Qin Siyao pouted her chubby little face and stomped her little feet.
“Actually, Your Highness has made rapid progress and is already very impressive,” Xiao Mo said.
"Really?" Qin Siyao looked at Xiao Mo, her big eyes filled with joy. "Am I really that amazing?"
"Really?" Xiao Mo coaxed the little girl, "It's just that Your Highness lacks a little skill."
"What technique?"
“Every time you draw the bow, the string must be in the same position, such as the tip of your nose or the corner of your mouth. This is the lifeline of precision. And each time, the anchor point of your hand on your face must be exactly the same.”
When releasing the bowstring, it's not as simple as just loosening your fingers. Instead, you use the continuous force of your back muscles to let your fingers slip off naturally, avoiding twisting the bowstring.
besides"
"I don't understand, I don't understand at all." Qin Siyao shook her head, then held out the longbow in her hand. "Teach me."
"This..." Xiao Mo hesitated for a moment, "This subordinate dares not be disrespectful to Her Highness the Princess."
"Oh, it's alright." Qin Siyao took Xiao Mo's hand and said, "Teach me quickly."
"Then I have been rude."
Seeing the other party's insistence, Xiao Mo had no choice but to agree.
Just then, a pheasant was pacing back and forth about ten feet away. Xiao Mo, close to Qin Siyao, held her small hand and slowly drew back the bowstring: "Your Highness, remember this feeling. Your fingers should move smoothly, and your eyes shouldn't just be on the prey, but also on the arrowhead. Wait until there's no wind."
As he spoke the last word, Xiao Mo loosened his grip on Qin Siyao's small hand, and the arrow flew out, piercing the pheasant and causing it to fall.
"I won! I won!" Qin Siyao jumped up happily, her high ponytail swinging back and forth. "Xiao Mo, you're amazing!"
"It's because Her Highness is clever," Xiao Mo continued to reassure the little girl.
"Quickly, let's continue hunting, I'm starting to feel it."
Qin Siyao pulled Xiao Mo's hand and ran forward.
It really was just as Qin Siyao said.
Although Xiao Mo only taught her once, she remembered the feeling perfectly and managed to wound wild rabbits and pheasants several times, and even hit a rabbit in the end.
She learns things really quickly.
Just when Xiao Mo thought everything was normal.
Suddenly, Xiao Mo stopped in his tracks, his eyes narrowed, and he looked ahead warily, shielding Qin Siyao behind him.
"Xiao Mo, what's wrong?" Qin Siyao peeked her head out from Xiao Mo's shoulder and asked curiously.
"run!"
"Huh?"
Before Qin Siyao could react, Xiao Mo pulled her back.
"Roar!"
A silver-white crescent wolf leaped out of the bushes and chased after Xiao Mo and Qin Siyao.
The palace attendant who was secretly protecting the princess frowned.
Although it seems that this Azure Moon Wolf was kicked out of the pack because of its old age.
However, this is a ninth-grade magical beast, which these two little guys cannot handle.
As Qin Siyao watched the seven-foot-long wolf draw ever closer, her face turned deathly pale, and she sensed something was terribly wrong.
"ah!"
As she ran, Qin Siyao tripped over a tree branch and fell to the ground.
Just as the Azure Moon Wolf was no more than five zhang away from the two children, the palace attendant was about to make a move when he suddenly stopped, exclaiming "Eh!"
Qin Siyao only saw Xiao Mo rushing forward towards her, heading straight for the Azure Moon Wolf.
After dodging the Azure Moon Wolf's pounce, Xiao Mo punched the Azure Moon Wolf in the stomach.
The Azure Moon Wolf spat out a mouthful of bitter water, quickly stood up from the ground, and pounced on Xiao Mo again.
While dodging the attacks of the Azure Moon Wolf, Xiao Mo looked for an opportunity to punch the Azure Moon Wolf.
Finding an opportunity, Xiao Mo grabbed its fur, leaped up, and flipped onto its back, then rained down punches, accompanied by thunderous roars.
Xiao Mo, like a ferocious little beast, smashed his bare hands against the head of the Azure Moon Wolf.
Blood blurred Xiao Mo's fist, making it impossible to distinguish whether it was human blood or beast blood.
Xiao Mo didn't know how many punches he threw until the Azure Moon Wolf was completely still, its head flattened, before he slowly stopped.
"The Heaven-Opening Fist? Senior Huang's disciple?" The palace attendant stroked his beard, looking at the little boy in surprise. "This vitality, this courage, Senior Huang has indeed taken on a fine disciple."
Xiao Mo took a deep breath to calm his pounding heart and then quickly walked over to Qin Siyao: "Your Highness, are you alright?"
"It's nothing." Qin Siyao realized what was happening and shook her head.
Looking at Xiao Mo's fist, the little girl's eyes showed worry: "Xiao Mo, your hand."
"It's nothing, just a small matter." Xiao Mo took out a cloth and casually wiped his hands. "May Your Highness get up?"
"I'll try."
Qin Siyao tried to stand up, but felt a sharp pain in her ankle and was about to fall to the side.
Fortunately, Xiao Mo quickly helped her up.
"Xiao Mo, my feet hurt so much." Qin Siyao frowned.
Xiao Mo looked down and saw that Qin Siyao's ankle was swollen and looked dislocated.
"Your Highness, my apologies."
Xiao Mo squatted down, took off her shoes, and revealed her small feet.
Before Qin Siyao could react, Xiao Mo pushed her hard, and Qin Siyao cried out "Ah!" Xiao Mo put her bones back in place, then applied ointment and bandaged her with a clean cloth.
"I've taken care of Her Highness for now, but she needs to rest for a while. I'll take Her Highness back with me."
Xiao Mo looked up and saw Qin Siyao's pair of watery eyes.
"Mmm"
The little girl nodded, tears welling in her eyes from the pain.
But the little girl kept sniffling, bravely refusing to let her tears fall.
"I will carry Your Highness on my back."
Xiao Mo took off his quiver, turned around, and faced away from Qin Siyao.
Qin Siyao lay on Xiao Mo's back, and the two retraced their steps.
With each step Xiao Mo took, the fallen leaves beneath his feet crunched and echoed slowly through the woods.
"Xiao Mo, you're amazing!" Qin Siyao, who had calmed down, couldn't help but praise Xiao Mo as she recalled his earlier performance.
"Your Highness is too kind."
"No, I really think you're amazing, and you saved my life. Do you want any reward?" Qin Siyao asked.
Xiao Mo shook his head: "I am Her Highness's bodyguard, and it is my duty to protect Her Highness's safety."
"No, no," Qin Siyao said firmly. "You saved me, and that's what it means to save me. Father Emperor said that we must be fair in rewarding and punishing. Just tell me what you want, and I'll give it to you. Father Emperor loves me very much."
“I don’t want anything right now,” Xiao Mo replied calmly. “If Your Highness really feels bad, just accept whatever reward you receive.”
"Okay." Qin Siyao lowered her head and thought about it seriously.
Soon, as if she had just remembered something, the little girl looked up and said happily, "I know what I'm giving you."
"What?" Xiao Mo was also curious about what strange ideas this little girl might have.
"I want to beat the drum for you!" the little girl said happily.
"Drumming?"
"Yeah yeah."
The little girl nodded repeatedly.
"My father once told me that the best gift he had ever received in his life was on his birthday when he charged into battle and my mother beat the drum for him."
My father said it was the best gift, so it was the best.
And since you're so capable now, you'll definitely become a great general someday.
Therefore, I also want to give you this best gift!
Xiao Mo: "."
"Xiao Mo, why aren't you saying anything?"
The little girl's feet kept dangling back and forth.
"Say something, and I'll beat the drum for you, okay? Please?"
Hearing the little girl's innocent words, Xiao Mo smiled slightly and nodded:
"good."
(End of this chapter)
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