The atmosphere of the conversation in the front was harmonious. Those who were far away couldn't hear what they were saying, so they could only focus on the ongoing women's horse - riding competition.
In the Dongling Kingdom, there were quite a few noble ladies who learned horse - riding. They had participated in such horse - racing competitions several times. Those who dared to participate in such an important competition must have confidence in themselves.
There were eight participants in this group, and Shen Li knew quite a few of them. Wu Qihuan, needless to say, would surely be present on such an occasion. But what Shen Li didn't expect was that He Yimeng had also signed up. She was on the right side of Wu Qihuan.
Although it wasn't explicitly stated, the ministers from official families all knew that the highlight of the emperor's event this time was the horse - racing competition.
Some even speculated that the emperor wanted to select women with excellent riding skills to be the principal wives of the princes. After all, Concubine Chen had been an outstanding horse - rider back then. She always came first in every competition and won a lot of the emperor's favor.
So those who signed up for this horse - riding competition all had the intention of vying for the position of the princess consort, and they all came from noble families.
Princess Heyuan, Wu Qihuan, Duan Chuchu, He Yimeng, and several daughters of princes and ministers were all of noble status. Princess Heyuan and Wu Qihuan, needless to say, were both aiming for the position of the Fourth Prince's wife. Duan Chuchu probably had the same thought.
But who was He Yimeng aiming for? The Seventh Prince or the Tenth Prince? Shen Li didn't even bother to guess about Xiao Hanzhi. After all, in the previous life, He Yimeng had even dared to become a nun to escape from Xiao Hanzhi.
After the gong sounded, Wu Qihuan took the lead and rushed to the front. Princess Heyuan and He Yimeng closely followed behind. After half a lap, Wu Qihuan still held a complete lead, but Princess Heyuan was also very capable. She had managed to ride neck - and - neck with Wu Qihuan several times.
After one lap, the distance between Wu Qihuan and Princess Heyuan was less than half a horse's length. He Yimeng closely followed behind them, and then came Duan Chuchu who was a bit behind.
Seeing Princess Heyuan closely following her, Wu Qihuan gritted her teeth and whipped her horse hard on the belly. "Giddyap!"
Even though her horse ran a bit faster, she was overtaken by Princess Heyuan at the start of the first turn. In her anxiety, she almost fell off the horse when jumping over the obstacle.
Just as He Yimeng was about to catch up with her, Wu Qihuan looked at He Yimeng diagonally behind her and grew even more annoyed. She wasn't worried about Princess Heyuan, but this suddenly - emerged He Yimeng had disturbed her mind. Anyway, she must be the winner of today's competition, and the position of the Fourth Prince's wife must be hers.
Wu Qihuan secretly made up her mind and tightened her grip on the reins. She deliberately rode her horse left and right, blocking He Yimeng's way and preventing her from overtaking.
Although it was allowed to compete and block others during a horse - racing competition, and Wu Qihuan's behavior would have been acceptable in previous races, doing it openly in front of the emperor would surely leave a bad impression on people in terms of her conduct.
He Yimeng was now firmly blocked behind Wu Qihuan. Meanwhile, Princess Heyuan had already passed the first bend and left them behind for a certain distance.
Looking at the racetrack that was only half a lap away from the finish line, Wu Qihuan gritted her teeth. She made her horse get as close as possible to He Yimeng's, and at the same time, she deliberately whipped the face of He Yimeng's horse with her whip.
Then she spurred her horse on and chased after Princess Heyuan.
What happened just now was so fast that no one suspected her deliberate approach to He Yimeng. Now seeing her suddenly leave, people just thought she had given up on blocking He Yimeng.
Wu Qihuan had whipped the horse hard. The horse's face wasn't as thick - skinned as its back, and the whip left a long mark on the horse's face.
After being whipped by Wu Qihuan, the horse let out a painful neigh, tossed its head, and reared up on its hind legs, almost standing upright.
On the horseback, He Yimeng could only hold tightly to the reins to prevent herself from falling off the high horse. But it didn't end there. After the horse put down its front hooves, it shook its head and rushed forward recklessly like a mad horse.
The whipped horse ran past Wu Qihuan, bouncing and jumping all the way and crashing into many obstacles. He Yimeng on the horseback still held the reins, trying to control the horse and make it calm down.
But it was not easy to subdue a mad horse, especially for a woman with limited strength. She could only maintain her posture and barely avoid being jolted off the horse.
No one had expected things to turn out like this. After Wu Qihuan rode away, He Yimeng's horse seemed to be frightened and went crazy, almost throwing He Yimeng off.
Seeing this situation, the imperial guards immediately rushed to the racetrack to try to calm the horse down. But unexpectedly, the horse became even more frightened when it saw more people and ran forward desperately.
He Yimeng's face had turned pale with fear. Seeing Princess Heyuan getting closer, she could only shout loudly, "Get out of the way! It's dangerous! Get out of the way!"
Princess Heyuan also heard the commotion behind her. Although she didn't know why He Yimeng's horse was frightened, she still instinctively tried to ride her horse to the side to avoid it. But it was already too late.
He Yimeng's horse reared up its front hooves and then landed heavily on the rump of Princess Heyuan's bay horse. Then her horse tilted, and she couldn't control herself from leaning forward, about to fall onto Princess Heyuan.
Princess Heyuan's horse was also frightened and let out a neigh, trying to run forward. Princess Heyuan also tightened the reins and clamped her horse's belly. Fortunately, her bay horse had been raised by her since it was young and was very obedient. After neighing twice and running forward a few steps, it was stopped by its owner.
But Princess Heyuan was greatly shocked when she saw He Yimeng falling towards her. If He Yimeng and her horse fell on her, she might be crushed to death by the horse.
Similarly, He Yimeng also thought of this. At the critical moment, she quickly turned her body, crossed the horseback, and leaned against the outer side of the horse. At the same time, she grabbed the reins tightly and used all her strength to drag the horse towards herself to prevent it from falling on Princess Heyuan.
At this time, He Yimeng's whole body was leaning on one side of the horse, and her feet had been dragged forward for three or four meters by the horse. Princess Heyuan was stunned on the spot by this sudden change.
"Thud!"
He Yimeng's horse fell to the ground. She had let go of the reins earlier and fell to the ground, rolling to the side to avoid being crushed under the horse.