Dongfang Yi was dozing off with her arm propped on the table. She was startled awake by the noise. When she saw that it was Helian Qi, she pouted angrily and said, "You're so late. I was about to fall asleep."
Helian Qi looked at the woman in front of him, who was being so coy. Clearly, she had been waiting for him but still spoke so toughly. His heart was filled with joy.
He then gently ruffled her hair and said, "You're so tired. Go to sleep quickly."
After saying that, he hooked his lips into a smile and said that he still had some official documents to review before leaving. Dongfang Yi, having waited for him, lay back on the bed with peace of mind and fell into a deep sleep.
The next day, the winter hunting competition kicked off in full swing. Coincidentally, the weather was extremely clear and there was hardly any wind. Such a day could even be considered warm in winter.
Helian Qi and Dongfang Yi were sitting at the highest point. There were curtains above their heads to block the sunlight. Below them were the concubines, ministers, and their wives.
After Helian Qi said a few words, he began to explain the rules of this winter hunting competition.
In this winter hunting competition, all participants could choose to be in a team alone or in pairs. The final result would be calculated based on the prey with their arrow markings. The winner could make a request to the emperor at will.
Among the participants were Prince Nanping, Helian Rong, and the sons of the ministers. Among them, Zhang Shiyin, the son of Dr. Zhang in the Shanglin Garden, and Lian Cheng, the son of General Lian, were the most popular in the capital.
There were also women participating in the competition, and Dongfang Yi was one of them. Although Helian Qi was reluctant to let her participate, he had no choice but to agree because she was so eager. However, the emperor was not allowed to participate in this competition. He could only take a stroll in the forest at the end of the competition to select the final prey.
The other women participating in the competition included Yaoji, Concubine Chu, and Concubine Lian. There was also Lian Chanjuan, the daughter of General Lian. She was the only daughter of a minister participating in the competition.
Speaking of Lian Chanjuan, everyone in the capital knew about her. It was said that as the daughter of General Lian, her martial arts skills were even higher than those of her elder brother, Lian Cheng. Her courage was also praised as being a true inheritance of General Lian. From this, one could tell what a heroic woman she was.
Some of the men formed pairs, but Helian Rong was alone. Zhang Shiyin and General Lian's son were also the same. In the women's group, except for Concubine Chu and Concubine Lian who formed a pair, the rest were all alone.
After everything was ready, at Helian Qi's signal, they rode their horses into the forest.
Helian Qi waved his hand at Ru Yi behind him and ordered him to protect Dongfang Yi at all costs. Ru Yi took the order and entered the forest.
Since the emperor had to stay outside the forest, he couldn't protect her personally. He could only do everything in his power to send people to protect her. Now, she had both Donghua and Ru Yi secretly protecting her, and there were his men all around the forest. He believed that there wouldn't be any danger.
In the forest, as soon as they entered, they scattered. Helian Rong gave Dongfang Yi a deep look as he passed by and said, "Sister-in-law, the forest is full of uncertainties. You must be careful."
Dongfang Yi gave him a grateful smile, and then they separated.
She chose a path in the far east of the forest. Lian Chanjuan was also with her. She whispered to Donghua behind her, "Who is this woman?"
Before she could hear an answer, she saw Lian Chanjuan raise her bow and shoot an arrow, hitting a grayish-white wild rabbit. The technique was extremely beautiful.
Dongfang Yi couldn't help but let out an exclamation. Then Donghua behind her began to tell her about this woman's identity.
After hearing this, she nodded slightly. Now she understood. No wonder she looked so heroic in every gesture.
Just then, she heard a noise beside her. She turned around and saw a small sika deer. She drew an arrow from behind and aimed at it. But just as she was about to shoot, the little deer was shot dead by another arrow.
She turned around and saw Concubine Chu looking smug, with Concubine Lian behind her.
Donghua was a bit angry and wanted to scold them, but was stopped by Dongfang Yi with a wave of her hand. After all, this was a public occasion. As the queen, if she made a scene, she would lose her dignity.
"Oh, the queen also came to participate in the competition!" Concubine Chu said in a domineering tone.
She had never heard that Dongfang Yi could shoot arrows. Back then, their father had hired a riding teacher for them all, but only Concubine Chu had learned. So how did Dongfang Yi suddenly learn how to shoot?
Dongfang Yi didn't say a word. She raised her bow and arrow at Concubine Chu and aimed sharply.
"What do you want to do?! This is the royal hunting ground. If you hurt me..." Concubine Chu said in a panic. She didn't expect this woman in front of her to suddenly do this.
But Dongfang Yi ignored her. Instead, she loosened her hand, and the taut arrow flew out. It passed by Concubine Chu's ear and hit a small deer not far behind her.
After shooting, she hooked her lips into a smile. Looking at the woman in front of her who was scared out of her wits, she let out a cold snort in her heart and then said, "Concubine Chu, you'd better take care of yourself. The arrows in the forest have no eyes. Don't hurt yourself."
After saying that, she turned her horse around and left.
Concubine Chu, who was still standing there, gritted her teeth hard. Looking at the back of the woman in the distance, her eyes were filled with killing intent.
It was that woman who had taken away everything that should have been hers. Now she was still threatening her constantly. How could she swallow this humiliation?
After thinking about it, she whipped the horse's buttocks a few times and walked in the other direction. Concubine Lian behind her followed closely.
Sooner or later, she would make Dongfang Yi kneel at her feet forever.
About an hour later, almost all the people who had entered the forest had caught some prey. Among them, Helian Rong had caught the most, a total of six prey, including a black hawk. You know, the black hawk was the king of the sky. It flew extremely fast and was very difficult to hunt. This showed how excellent his archery skills were.
Right behind him were General Lian's son and daughter, each having shot five prey. Dongfang Yi had shot four.
The others had only caught one or two sporadically.
On the other side of the forest, Concubine Chu had given up hunting for prey. Instead, she began to think about how to create a perfect trap to lure Concubine Lian into it.
She would never forget what had happened last night. The best way was to kill all the people who knew the inside story. So she had told Concubine Lian that they should hunt the animals separately, and she herself had hidden here to prepare the trap.
Only when Concubine Lian was dead could her hanging heart be completely at ease, and she could continue her plan in the harem.