Unparalleled Beauty

Chapter C078 pt2

Mei Wuxia looked at Wushuang, a trace of bewilderment in her slightly haggard eyes.

When had the usually timid and weak Mei Wushuang become like this? It seemed that status and position truly gave a person confidence.

"I did not come to thank you. I only wish to say that I have not forgotten what I once promised." She said, pursing her lips, and then walked past Wushuang. As they passed, a slip of paper was pressed into her hand.

By this time, she had already reached the outside of the tent. It was not appropriate to turn back and find a place to read the note. Wushuang could only return to the tent and endure until it was almost wu hour (11am-1pm), when everyone would return for their midday meal. Only then did she manage to read the note.

The paper seemed to have been written on a long time ago. The creases were deep, and it was somewhat crumpled, as if the person who wrote it had hesitated many times about whether to hand it over, having held it in their hand repeatedly.

Only two lines were written on it. One line read "vicious dogs," and the other read "ambush in three days."

Wushuang began to wonder if Prince Qin was planning to use vicious dogs to ambush Prince Wei in three days. However, the line about vicious dogs had been crossed out, while the line about an ambush in three days had not.

The vicious dogs were crossed out because that matter had already occurred yesterday. Then what did the ambush in three days mean?

Wushuang was somewhat confused. She would have to ask Mei Wuxia about this, but it was not convenient for her to contact Mei Wuxia. So, she called for Fusheng and instructed him to find someone who could contact Mei Wuxia and ask what the meaning of "three days later" was.

Fusheng had not gone hunting with Prince Wei today. Upon receiving the instructions, he quickly went to carry them out, but this matter would not yield results in a short time.

After finishing her midday meal, Wushuang had intended to fight off her drowsiness and go to the tent, but Granny Gong told her that there was no need to go so early. The morning visit was just a formality. She only needed to go back before shen hour (3-5pm), when the hunters would return. This was the custom in previous years.

This meant that Wushuang could take a midday nap, which made her breathe a sigh of relief.

The so-called Mount Xiang did not refer solely to the small peak where the villa was located, but rather to the nearly thousand-qing (approx. 15,000 acres) of mountains and forests surrounding it.

This place had been managed by the imperial family for many years and had long since become a natural hunting ground.

The entire Mount Xiang hunting ground was boundless, but everyone knew that the deeper one went, the more ferocious the beasts became. The outer areas were mostly filled with harmless pheasants and hares. To hunt large game, one had to venture deep into the heart of the area.

If one wished to gain recognition on the first day of the hunt, merely hunting pheasants and rabbits would not suffice. According to past customs, several dozen pheasants and rabbits were not worth a single deer. Besides wild deer and boars, it was best to hunt jackals, wolves, and leopards. As for foxes and badgers, only the fox's fur was valuable; the others were just extras. Bears and tigers were rare and not easily found.

In the beginning, most people circled around the outer edges of the forest. These people were clearly inexperienced or lacked sufficient martial prowess. They relied on hunting small game to make up the numbers, hoping to win by quantity. In reality, those who had some confidence in their martial skills had already gone deeper inside.

The more confident one was, the deeper one went.

However, confidence alone was not enough. These nobles, despite their high status, were subject to many restrictions during this hunt. Each person could only bring ten guards, and the number of arrows they could carry was also limited, only enough to protect them in case of emergencies. Anything more was beyond their capabilities.

If one overestimated oneself and went too deep, and then encountered a pack of wolves or something similar, the situation would become quite amusing.

Of course, this only applied to ordinary noble sons. For the princes, even if they only brought ten guards, they were all chosen from among the best. Some even brought experienced hunters who were skilled at tracking animals by their footprints. Princes Qin, Jin, and Zhao, among others, did not linger in the outer areas of the forest but went straight into the heart of the hunting grounds.

The prey in the heart of the hunting grounds was indeed more plentiful than in the outer areas, but the situation was also much more dangerous.

Before each winter hunt, these beasts would be driven by teams into a forest where food was scarce and penned up. They would then be released just before the winter hunt. At this time, the beasts were both hungry and starving. Due to the cold weather, food was also scarce, and their eyes would turn green when they saw people.

Even teams of ten or more dared to pounce on people. Just now, Prince Qin's group had encountered a pack of hungry wolves. There were not many, only about twenty, but they caused Prince Qin to frown. Some of his men were injured, but they managed to kill over twenty wolves.

Gather all the arrows. As for the injured horses, they are beyond saving, just leave them where they are.

The guards busied themselves with clearing the aftermath. Prince Qin, astride his horse, wiped his blade. These spoils did not bring him joy; rather, the loss of a horse and the minor injuries of two guards had left him displeased.

"I did not expect these beasts to be so ferocious. It is also because we brought a limited number of arrows, that we were not very successful. I imagine Prince Zhao and Prince Han are not faring much better. The further in we go, the more ferocious the beasts become. To encounter so many wolves this far in, it seems this year's wolf population is much larger than in previous years," said Yang Dong, the head guard.

"I wonder where Prince Wei has gotten to?" Prince Qin inquired.

Yang Dong hesitated for a moment. If it were before, he would have confidently said that Prince Wei was definitely not as far in as they were. However, after witnessing Prince Wei shatter a hunting dog's skull with a single kick that day, he knew the ferocity of those dogs. Clearly, Prince Wei's martial prowess was astonishing, befitting someone who had spent years on the battlefield. Now, he could not confidently say that Prince Wei was inferior to them.

After a moment's thought, he changed his approach, "Your Highness, our speed is already quite fast. Even if Prince Wei has gone deeper than us, he would not have gone much further. Your Highness, think about it, even if one hunts a great number of prey, they still have to bring it back. Eleven men and eleven horses have limited carrying capacity. To bring back more prey, one would have to abandon their horses and walk, but if one abandons their horses, they may not be able to return before shen hour."

In other words, no matter how strong one's martial prowess, the number of prey one could obtain was limited. At this point, what mattered was the quality of the prey. This was also why those who prided themselves on their martial prowess were unwilling to waste time in the peripheral areas.

Prince Qin clearly understood this principle, saying, "Tell them to speed up and not waste time on other prey. It would be best if they could find a tiger or a bear. Also, if we encounter other teams, find a horse for those who have lost theirs, so they do not become a hindrance."

"Yes."

Prince Qin's party quickly departed from the area, leaving behind the carcass of a horse with its abdomen torn open by hungry wolves. Before long, over a dozen hungry wolves silently appeared from all directions, swarming the carcass. More beasts, drawn by the scent of blood, continued to approach.

The problems that Prince Qin and his men could see, Prince Wei could naturally see as well.

This hunt not only had restrictions on the number of guards one could bring, but also on the number of arrows. A quiver could only hold twenty arrows, and each person could only carry one quiver.

If one encountered too many beasts, or if one's archery skills were poor and arrows were not recovered in time, then one would have to resort to hand-to-hand combat.

Fortunately, the men Prince Wei brought were all veterans of the battlefield, and they were not afraid of these mere beasts. The only slightly troublesome issue was how to bring back the hunted prey.

Moreover, it was pointless to hunt only small game. To win the top prize, one had to hunt large prey, but the number of people limited the search area. Whether one could encounter large prey depended entirely on luck.

[This is our first time participating in the winter hunt since returning to the capital. To make us lose face, they might join forces.]

[Prince Han is arrogant, and Prince Zhao is unwilling to be outshone by Prince Qin. The only one who might help Prince Qin is Prince Jin.]

Prince Jin would likely give his prey to Prince Qin. After all, Prince Jin was weak and known for his literary talents. He would not stand out in a winter hunt, which was a place for martial prowess.

In other words, if Prince Wei wanted to surpass Prince Qin's spoils, he would have to at least double them. Doubling might not even be enough, because besides Prince Jin, Prince Qin might have other helpers.

Not might, but definitely would.

[I will go out and take a look around on my own.]

Once decided, Prince Wei ordered his guards to continue deeper according to the original plan. They would hunt their own prey, while he would move freely. After all, 'he' was alone, and his martial prowess was high, allowing him to come and go as he pleased.

Soon, Ji Yang changed into slightly lighter clothing, and with a specially made satchel on his back, he departed.

He did not ride a horse. In this kind of forest with many old trees, not riding a horse was faster than riding one. The reason he brought a horse was for carrying weight and for the journey back.

At the same time, behind Prince Wei's party were several other teams, all encountering similar problems. They each had different ways of solving them, but they all had the same goal: to win the top prize or to prevent others from winning it.

***

Wushuang did not actually wait until shen hour to go; she went earlier.

When she arrived, the open space in the center had already undergone a great change. There were more Imperial Guards on watch, and many piles of prey had been accumulated on the ground.

The women were all timid, standing on the high platform and looking towards that area. Some had already returned with news. Wushuang learned from Wan Chun'er that the prey had been transported back by those who had gone out hunting.

Besides the princes, there were also some prey from the sons of other imperial relatives and nobles. However, none of them had as much as the princes. That was Prince Han's, that was Prince Zhao's, that was Prince Qin's, that was the Eighth Prince's...

To help Wushuang understand the situation, Wan Chun'er specifically pointed them out to her. Wushuang could only see the size of the piles from afar. She could not see what kind of prey they were. However, it seemed that no prey had been transported back for Prince Jin and Prince Wei.

Wan Chun'er, fearing Wushuang would worry, hastily said, "It's not certain that they would transport the game back immediately. It's said they went deep into the mountains, and the round trip would take quite some time. Perhaps Third Brother simply hasn't sent it back yet."

But her thinking did not represent the thoughts of others.

Consider this: only when there was a large amount of game would they transport it back. If they caught nothing, or too little, they would naturally be too embarrassed to send it back.

In truth, even as Wushuang spoke with Wan Chun'er, there were those who were glancing in her direction. Once the group had all entered the tents, someone said to Noble Consort Sun, "His Highness Prince Qin is truly exceptionally brave and martial. The pile of game belonging to His Highness Prince Qin is the largest. It seems His Highness Prince Qin will surely have a great harvest this time."

The speaker was a titled lady, whom Wushuang did not recognize. However, Noble Consort Sun wore a smile, a smile that all but declared that it seemed her son would be the one to take the lead in today's first hunt.

Some praised Prince Qin, and naturally, there were those who praised Prince Zhao, Prince Han, and the Eighth Prince. Each of the princes was lauded in turn, and Consort Wu, Consort Li, and the others also changed their expressions, all wearing smiles.

Just then, someone suddenly said, "Why have we not seen Prince Wei and Prince Jin send back any game?"

Prince Jin was one thing, but Prince Wei had fought at the border for many years. Could it be that his so-called martial prowess was all for show, or were those military achievements all false?

These women, no matter how noble their status or how high their position, were inevitably limited by their perspectives. They did not consider that in such a large court, there was the Ministry of War, and in the localities, there were so many officials, generals, and censors. Everything else could be faked, but military merit was impossible to fabricate.

Perhaps it was not that their perspectives were limited, but rather that as long as they could slander others, they would not let go of the opportunity, even if it meant feigning ignorance.

In an instant, many gazes, both overt and covert, were cast toward Wushuang.

Pure Consort Zhou looked at Wan Chun'er and said, "Come here, I have something to say to you."

Wan Chun'er hesitated for a moment, but could only go over.

Thus, only Wushuang was left surrounded by various gazes. Wushuang did not find these gazes piercing, but rather felt somewhat helpless. These people always used the same routine, and the key was that countless people would applaud the same routine.

However, this time she could not say anything. She was not familiar with the circumstances of the hunt, and whether she said too much or too little, she would be seized upon and attacked. It was better to play dumb and remain silent.

But her silence did not mean that others would let her off.

Prince Han's Princess Consort, still harboring resentment from having lost face to Wushuang before, smiled and said, "Third Sister-in-law, you mustn't worry too much. Let me say, how could Third Brother be inferior to these younger brothers? He has been at the border for many years. Could it be that hunting is easier than fighting battles? What do you say?"

Wushuang pursed her lips and smiled, saying, "Fifth Sister-in-law speaks most reasonably."

Prince Han's Princess Consort did not believe that she did not understand her meaning, but it was as if her fist had struck cotton. The other party appeared unaffected, and she did not know if she did not understand, or was pretending not to understand.

Just as she was about to say something more, a shout came from outside. It turned out that the people who had gone hunting had returned.