As soon as everyone was seated, the Emperor arrived with his retinue. Ulan Na, clad in riding attire, looked exceptionally heroic and spirited. "Your Majesty," she addressed the Emperor, "will the ladies from your esteemed country not be participating in this hunt?"
"The wives, I believe, will not be participating. As for the young ladies, some will, and besides, hunting is primarily a man's affair," the old Emperor replied with a smile. "A woman's role is to manage the household and raise children, to be gentle and virtuous."
"Your Majesty, you are mistaken. In our Wuyue Kingdom, if a woman cannot ride and shoot, it is difficult for her to find a suitable marriage," Ulan Na's gaze swept across the assembled noblewomen, her master was among them, but which one?
"This is Yusheng," the Emperor said gently. "The women of Yusheng do not need to ride or shoot, nor engage in battle. They only need to manage the inner courtyard and care for their children."
Ulan Na listened and let out an unconvinced smile, yet her smile held a hint of mockery. "The young men of Yusheng appear rather frail. I wonder if they will be able to distinguish themselves in this hunt."
"We shall know soon enough when the hunt begins," the old Emperor said with a smile. He did not take the small Wuyue Kingdom seriously. Even though they now controlled the trade routes of the four kingdoms, to him, they were insignificant. His leniency towards Wuyue was simply to avoid any additional trouble from them while he was engaged in conflict with Yunqi.
"I hope to witness the grace of Yusheng's men."
"Princess Ulan Na, rest assured, you most certainly will."
Those participating in the hunt began to make their way to the arena. They could hunt individually or in teams, with victory awarded to the individual or team that captured the most prey.
Ulan Na's gaze swept over the participating women of Yusheng: two imperial princesses, the daughters of two powerful officials, and one whose identity was unknown. Which of these five was her master?
"The competition begins. The time limit is two hours. The side that captures the most prey wins. During the hunt, one may not snatch prey already killed by another, nor injure another participant. Violators will be disqualified. The hunt commences!"
As the sound of the competition gongs and drums echoed, Ulan Na, with her entourage, swiftly entered the hunting grounds. Xiao Man, however, lagged behind, as did Bai Yanran.
Bai Yanran was the daughter of General Bai and also Xue Meng's betrothed. Since General Bai was a trusted general under Xiao Zhen, their relationship was quite close.
"Sister Xiao, are we going to be so leisurely?" Bai Yanran asked, looking ahead. They could no longer see any trace of the others, with only the two of them trailing behind.
"We're just here to make up the numbers. What's the rush?" Xiao Man replied with a smile. "By the way, Sister Bai, have you set a date for your wedding with Xue Meng?"
"Not yet. Xue Meng is currently in Yunzhong City. If we are to get married, it will likely be after he returns from Yunzhong City, probably by the end of the year," Bai Yanran said frankly. They were already engaged, and marriage was a natural progression.
"Indeed," Xiao Man said, flicking the reins of her horse. "Let's catch up. Otherwise, if we don't catch anything, my father and Uncle Bai will lose face."
Bai Yanran smiled and urged her horse forward. Xiao Man followed closely behind, but Bai Yanran was so fast that by the time Xiao Man caught up, Bai Yanran had already disappeared from sight.
"She's running that fast?" Xiao Man was a little bewildered. Looking around, there were only trees and herself. At that moment, a sika deer darted past. Xiao Man drew her bow and nocked an arrow, but before she could release it, the deer had vanished. Xiao Man immediately spurred her horse in pursuit.
She had initially thought that by staying behind, she would only manage to pick off some easy prey like rabbits or pheasants. To her surprise, she had managed to hunt quite a few animals along the way!
Xiao Man was chasing a wild boar, venturing deeper into the woods, when the prey unexpectedly fell into a trap. When Xiao Man rode up, she discovered that the trap contained not only the wild boar that had stumbled in, but also a person.
"Miss Pei!"
"Princess Yongning." Pei Qianyun was pale, her leg bleeding profusely, having been pierced by the barbs in the trap. Her clothes were also torn.
"Wait a moment, I'll get you out immediately." Seeing no suitable material for a rope nearby, Xiao Man directly cut down a small tree, about the thickness of a bowl, removed its branches, and carved out footholds in the ground. She then propped the trunk into the pit, creating a way for Pei Qianyun to climb out.
However, Pei Qianyun's injured leg made it impossible for her to climb using the tree trunk. Xiao Man had no choice but to descend into the trap herself and pull Pei Qianyun out.
Pei Qianyun looked at Xiao Man with deep apologies as she tended to her wounds. "Fortunately, I met you. Otherwise, I don't know what I would have done."
"How did you fall into the trap?"
"I was chasing prey and tripped over a hobble rope, then fell into the trap. Fortunately, I reacted quickly, or it would have been more than just an injured leg." A cold glint flashed in Pei Qianyun's eyes. "You should be careful. There are many traps in this forest."
Xiao Man finished bandaging Pei Qianyun's wound. Seeing that her clothes were also torn, she immediately took off her own cloak and draped it over Pei Qianyun. "You can't continue participating in the hunt in this condition. Ride my horse back to the camp."
"What about you?"
"Naturally, I'll continue hunting." Xiao Man took her bow and arrows, slung them over her back, and helped Pei Qianyun onto the horse. "When you get back, have the imperial physician re-examine your wound."
"Thank you, Princess Yongning."
Xiao Man watched Pei Qianyun ride away on her horse and then continued deeper into the woods. There were traps and hobble ropes in the hunting grounds. It seemed some people were resorting to any means necessary to win. She wondered how Sister Bai and Nangong Wu were doing.
As she ventured further, Xiao Man noticed that traps had been triggered all along the way. Were these traps set to hunt animals, or to hunt people?
Xiao Man felt a growing unease. Every year, accidents happened during the hunt. Ulan Na was participating this year, and if anything were to happen to her, the hard-won stability would once again be thrown into turmoil.
Xiao Man had to quicken her pace. She had to ensure Ulan Na's safety!
Just then, a voice sounded from nearby. Xiao Man stopped immediately, drew her bow and nocked an arrow, ready to strike. However, Luo Bingqing emerged from the bushes and was quite surprised to see Xiao Man.
"Xiao Man!"
"Luo Bingqing."
"You shameless woman, are you chasing after my senior brother again?"
Xiao Man, too lazy to deal with a spoiled child, oriented herself and resumed her pursuit. Seeing that Xiao Man was ignoring her, Luo Bingqing followed.
"Xiao Man, don't run away! I'm telling you, I won't let you go find my senior brother."
Xiao Man's movements became even faster, leaving behind mere afterimages. Luo Bingqing stared in disbelief as the blurs disappeared. Moments later, she called out, chasing after her, "Wait for me! I don't know the way."