Her guards

Chapter 158 Miss Yang's Refusal to Meet
“What’s so strange about that? It was inevitable. I guessed it long ago.”

After hearing Wei Jiao's words, Mo Zheng sat up from the bed, but did not angrily rush out to demand an explanation.

Instead, he let out a soft sigh.

"Although I am grateful to my senior brother for his kindness in allowing me to come to the martial arts banquet, in this royal banquet, I am nothing more than a caged bird. They can do whatever they want to me."

"Don't even mention burning my articles, what's so strange about burning me to death here?"

"They wanted me dead."

She covered her face and sobbed as she spoke.

Wei Jiao shivered, caught off guard.

That bastard's feigned crying is scarier than his feigned laughter.

He was about to say something when Mo Zheng lowered her hand and looked at him again.

"Senior brother, if I were burned to death by the princess, would you come to save me?"

Her eyes were brimming with tears, and the corners of her mouth curved in a way that was both crying and laughing, making her look quite eerie in the hazy night.

Wei Jiao couldn't help but chuckle: "Junior Sister, of course not! How could I possibly disobey the princess for your sake!"

Mo Zheng cried out indignantly, "Senior brother, I'm a princess too!"

Wei Jiao laughed and said, "Then you should hurry up and get His Majesty to acknowledge you!"

“Okay.” Mo Zheng got off the bed, rushed to him, and grabbed his sleeve. “Senior brother, please take me there. Teacher and Senior Brother Ling are weak scholars and can’t help me. Senior brother, you are skilled in both literature and martial arts, and can climb walls and leap across rooftops. Only you can help me.”

Wei Jiao cried out in anguish once again, "Junior sister, I'm just crazy, not stupid! How could I possibly do something like this for you!"

Mo Zheng loosened his sleeve and sighed, "It's a dead end anyway, I'll just wait to die in peace."

He yawned as he spoke.

"However, before you die, you should get a good night's sleep."

"Captain, thank you for reminding me. I'm going back to sleep."

After saying that, he went to bed and lay down.

This bastard always speaks in half-truths. The truth is that she did know the princess would stop her and didn't take it seriously. The lie is that she didn't really ask him for help, and she certainly wouldn't be content to wait for death. Wei Jiao sneered as he looked at the woman lying down.

She will definitely do something.

Let's see what crazy things she'll do next.

……

.......
The night passed, and the sun shone brightly, but the mountain winds of January were bitterly cold.

As Yang Hui rode on her horse, she felt her face was about to freeze, and the next moment she heard the shouts of the women around her.

"Catch the ball!"

"Stop her—"

At the same time, the sound of horses' hooves and a stronger wind surged in from all directions.

Yang Hui snapped out of her daze and saw the polo ball coming towards her. She hurriedly raised her wooden stick to strike it, but whether it was from panic or her hands being frozen, the polo ball grazed past her. Suddenly, Jiang Rui galloped over, bent down and scooped it up, sending the polo ball flying like a meteor towards the other goal.

As several women swung their mallets, the polo ball finally went into the goal, and the women with blue ribbons tied to their arms excitedly raised their mallets.

"Yang Hui, what's wrong with you?!"

"It's all because of you that the princess lost the game!"

The young ladies with red ribbons tied around their arms complained about Yang Hui.

Yang Hui blushed as she looked at Princess Heisei riding over.

Princess Heisei was dressed in a red hunting outfit with red ribbons tied around her arms.

Today, during the polo match, Yang Hui naturally wanted to be on Princess Heisei's team, but she never expected...

It's all the fault of those maids who were supposed to be at the princess's beck and call; they just had to win!

Especially that ginger stamen!
“Princess, I…” Yang Hui murmured, wanting to apologize.

Princess Heisei smiled and waved her hand: "It's because Miss Jiang and the others have superb ball skills that we lost convincingly."

A smile appeared on Jiang Rui's usually aloof face: "Your Highness is too kind."

"Ah Rui is indeed from a military family; her horsemanship is so good."

“Ah Rui doesn’t usually play around; it turns out she’s a real hidden talent.”

"If I had known, the princess should have chosen Miss Jiang's team."

Praising Jiang Rui was one thing, but hearing the words that belittled her, Yang Hui looked over and saw that it was "Yang Luo" sitting to the side who was speaking, and she immediately flew into a rage.

"Yang Luo, you can't play ball, so why are you making sarcastic remarks?" she shouted. "If you could play, the princess wouldn't have had to go on the court herself. The princess lost the game for you."

Since it was a martial arts banquet, Princess Heicheng had summoned her companions. They couldn't all stay in the princess's garden writing and studying, so while the emperor and others rode horses and practiced archery in the hunting grounds, Princess Heicheng led her companions to the other side of the polo field to play polo. However, when dividing into teams, "Yang Luo" said she didn't know how to play polo, and since the two teams had unequal numbers, Princess Heicheng took to the field herself.

Upon hearing Yang Hui's words, Mo Zheng bowed to Princess Heisei and said sincerely, "Princess, I will learn to play polo as soon as possible and then help you win the game."

Princess Heisei laughed heartily.

Yang Hui was even angrier, forgetting that this guy was the best at pleasing the princess.

Just as I was about to say something, a cheer was carried by the mountain breeze, mostly by men.

"it is good--"

"Excellent archery!"

The young ladies accompanying the emperor couldn't help but look over there. On the other side of the undulating hillside was the imperial hunting grounds, where the emperor and everyone else were gathered to compete in horseback riding and archery...

The cheers could be heard even from this far away, which shows how lively the scene was.

These dozen or so women were truly all alone.

The young ladies who accompanied the students dared not say anything, but Princess Wuyang, who was sitting on the side seat, could no longer hold back.

“What’s the point of us playing by ourselves? It’s more fun with more people,” she said.

This domineering Princess Heisei insisted on hosting her own banquet, dragging her into this mess. She was furious, but dared not refuse to come, which made her even angrier.

Princess Heisei looked at her and said, "Over there we can only watch the show and cheer for others, but here we can go on stage and cheer for ourselves. Isn't that better?"

What's wrong with cheering for others? They are princesses, and cheering is an honor bestowed upon the participants. What's wrong with that? Princess Wuyang looked unconvinced and was about to say something when Princess Heisei spoke up again.

“That’s a piece of calligraphy bestowed by my father,” she said, pointing with her golf club.

Among the palace maids standing outside the stadium, one was carrying a tray with a scroll on it. Upon hearing the princess's words, two of the maids opened the scroll.

It bears the inscription "As beautiful as jade, possessing both virtue and talent," and is stamped with the emperor's seal.

"Today we also had a horseback riding and archery competition. My father ordered me to bestow a prize upon the winner, something even the men over there don't have..."

Before Princess Heisei could finish speaking, the ladies-in-waiting cheered.

This gift, hung in the home, can be passed down as a family heirloom or used as a dowry. With this calligraphy by their side, no one will dare to bully them for the rest of their lives.

Only a princess could secure this reward for them; receiving it was far more worthwhile than watching the men ride horses and shoot arrows.

"The princess is wonderful!"

"Princess, let the competition begin!"

Princess Heisei was immediately surrounded by women, and none of them felt the slightest bit of regret.

Princess Wuyang angrily wrapped her cloak tighter and remained silent.

The sound of horses' hooves came from not far away, and a dozen women rode over.

The one in the lead, dressed in vibrant red, was none other than Chai Wan'er.

“Princess!” she called out, “I’ve heard that the prizes here include treasures bestowed by His Majesty. We’d like to join in the fun.”

Princess Heisei smiled slightly and gestured to the guards outside the polo field to let them pass.

……

.......
Because of the calligraphy bestowed by the emperor, and the arrival of Chai Wan'er and more than a dozen other women, the once quiet polo field became lively.

The goal was removed, and the guards brought over a cage of pheasants and rabbits.

A dozen or so women put down their polo mallets, grabbed the bows and arrows they had been given, and mounted their horses with a mixture of excitement and nervousness.

Because it was a martial arts banquet, and the emperor was also going hunting, the horseback archery here was no longer done on grass targets, but on the prey.

Princess Heisei had already returned to her seat. Now that the rewards had been given, she would no longer participate, but would only act as a judge.

Her gaze swept over the women waiting outside the boundary, and she saw Chai Wan'er, who was dressed in a dazzling manner, and "Miss Yang" next to Chai Wan'er, whose figure, appearance and clothing were inconspicuous.

It wasn't her who asked Ms. Yang to participate.

Miss Yang doesn't even know how to play polo.

However, when Chai Wan'er asked her if she dared to compete in hunting, "Miss Yang" stood up and said she dared.

"Didn't you say you couldn't ride a horse or play ball?" Yang Hui asked angrily from the side.

“But I can shoot arrows, one of the six arts of a gentleman,” Miss Yang said with a smile. “I can get first-class grades in reading and writing, and I am also first-class in the other five arts.”

Princess Heisei looked away and smiled faintly.

Let's see if this Miss Yang can really get another top grade.

Horseback archery is very dangerous, unlike writing with a pen.

　Two chapters were used in one night. The daytime part of this martial arts banquet will require three chapters. You can save them up and come back in three days to see the scene you want to see.

　　(End of this chapter)