The thing fell to the ground with a dull thud, and Zheng Hanyuan couldn't help but look over. The moment she saw what it was, her pupils shrank.
It is a feathered arrow with a sharp tip and clear feathers.
She took a step back, unable to believe she could still see the arrow: "This is..."
"I went back and found it." Chang Ning closed his eyes. "If I hadn't startled her horse and dodged it that day, the arrow would have hit her leg. Are you crazy or stupid? How dare you shoot someone with this kind of arrow? Your name is engraved on this arrow!"
Growing up, except for Chang Ning at this moment, no one dared to speak in such an accusatory tone. Zheng Hanyuan wanted to get angry, but facing Chang Ning, she felt a little guilty, always thinking that Chang Ning would do anything when she got mad. A son of a wealthy family cannot sit still in the hall, she forced herself to swallow her anger and squeezed out an apologetic expression towards Chang Ning: "My arm strength is not enough, this arrow can't hurt anyone... I just want to scare her."
"To scare?" Chang Ning couldn't believe it. "This is an arrow, something used to shoot prey. You said you used it to scare people? Do you believe it yourself?"
Zheng Hanyuan certainly didn't believe it. She didn't have enough arm strength, but she wasn't far away at the time. She deliberately told the noble lady next to her that she wanted to hunt rabbits, but when she shot the arrow, she aimed at Xie Wangzhi. She didn't expect that she could hit the target with one arrow. After all, if she had this ability, she would have been famous in the hunting grounds long ago, and she wouldn't have been outshined by Changning, who was really good at riding and shooting, for so many years.
That arrow was different. It was good that it didn't hit her. If it had just brushed past Xie Wangzhi, it would have scared her half to death. If it had hit her leg, it would have made her lame for a while, which would have been good.
But she couldn't say this in front of Chang Ning. Zheng Hanyuan's eyes wandered, and she suddenly raised her chin. Her slightly embarrassed expression disappeared, and she showed her noble lady's pride again: "It was just a joke, so I'll just say it was my fault. But since nothing happened, is it reasonable for the princess to slap me? Or do you not take the Zheng family of Xingyang seriously?"
Chang Ning glanced at Zheng Hanyuan. That look was extremely complicated. Zheng Hanyuan couldn't understand it, and perhaps Chang Ning herself didn't understand it either. She was silent for a long time and sighed.
"Why are you sighing, Princess? Are you thinking about what to do?" Zheng Hanyuan thought Changning was afraid or regretful. "My Zheng family has been glorious for a hundred years. Although I am not as good as my ancestors, I am also a legitimate daughter. I have learned since I was young..."
"No." Chang Ning interrupted her, "I was wondering, why did a century-old family teach you something like this?"
"You..." Zheng Hanyuan was angry, his voice was sharp, "What do you mean? You hit me first, and then insulted me. Do you want to break up with the Zheng family?!"
"I once went out of the city with one of your half-sisters. At that time, I accidentally frightened the horse. If it weren't for her, I would have fallen to my death on the spot." Changning seemed not to hear her words and talked about other things.
Zheng Hanyuan was puzzled. She didn't know Changning, nor did she care about the illegitimate sisters in the house. In her opinion, these concubines were not even worthy of standing in front of her. She looked up and down at Changning with disgust: "I don't know which one it is. It has nothing to do with me."
"I thought that I saved your life for her sake. I didn't give the arrow to the lady of the Xie family and lied for you. Since it has come to this, I will teach you a lesson today." Chang Ning exhaled and looked at Zheng Hanyuan, "Listen carefully. Times have changed. The aristocratic families have declined. It is no longer the time when 'the king and the horse share the world'. The aristocratic families can fight with each other, but they still look at the will of the Daming Palace and the face of the Longxi Li family! The Xingyang Zheng family is an aristocratic family, and many of them have married into the palace throughout the dynasties, but you might as well go back and ask your father how Emperor Zhaoxuan attacked the Fanyang Lu family."
Zheng Hanyuan didn't know about this. She never liked to study history. She only liked to drink wine and talk about metaphysics. She always felt that talking about politics was dirty and would tarnish her status. But she knew that the Fanyang Lu family was indeed in decline now. They barely had the status of a noble family. In fact, few of them could climb into the front row of the Xuanzheng Hall when they went in and out of the banquet.
Her heart tightened, and she looked at Changning, trembling slightly, as if something was torn apart by Changning, and the bloody truth was right in front of her.
Zheng Hanyuan breathed rapidly, holding on for a breath: "What does this have to do with them? Even if I really hurt her, it's Zheng and Xie's..."
"Yes, the Zheng family and the Xie family are what I call the fight between the aristocratic families. The aristocratic families are like wild beasts. In times of chaos, they follow the emperor to fight and have plenty of prey to eat. But the empire has been stable for so many years, and the land is so small. After all the prey has been eaten, it's time for them to devour each other."
“… What are you talking about?”
"If this arrow hits, you can just wait for Xie to attack Zheng. When the incident comes to your father, what do you think? Will your father protect you? No, you are proud of your status as a legitimate daughter, but do your father and Zheng need a legitimate daughter?" Chang Ning continued cruelly, "You must pay tenfold for the injuries on Madam Xie. By that time, death will be the most comfortable thing. Even if you are lucky enough to save your life, do you have the ability to continue to be your noble lady?"
She paused for a moment and pointed out the bloodiest thing. "In order to settle this matter, Zheng must pay compensation in the form of silk, gold, silver, and even land. Of these three, which one do you think is more valuable than you?"
"... Of course I am more valuable!" Zheng Hanyuan was filled with such unprecedented remarks that he grabbed Chang Ning's collar like a madman and stared at the cold-looking girl, "I am a human being. I am my father's daughter!"
They were of similar age and strength, and Zheng Hanyuan was very excited, so he used a lot more strength, and he pulled Changning so hard that she staggered. But she didn't get angry, she just looked at Zheng Hanyuan deeply, with a hint of pity: "There is a severe drought in the south of the Yangtze River, and many people have sold their daughters just to get a bite of millet."
"Hide this arrow. I won't tell anyone about this." Chang Ning pushed Zheng Hanyuan away and slapped him again. This time it was harder than the last time, causing Zheng Hanyuan's face to swell up quickly, with bright red fingerprints. "Before, I was doing it for Madam Xie, this time I'm doing it for your parents."
After the fight, Changning didn't want to look at him any more and turned around and left.
Zheng Hanyuan had put all his strength on Changning, and was pushed back a few steps. His legs went limp, and he fell to the ground. When he lowered his head, he could just see the arrow. After hearing what Changning said, and letting her hit him twice in the face, Zheng Hanyuan couldn't think of Li Qishen anymore. He felt wronged and angry, and suddenly slapped the ground hard. The next moment, he raised his hands to cover his face, and tears flowed from his fingers.
**
After going through so much trouble to get to the hunting grounds at Mount Li, they naturally couldn't just leave in a hurry. The emperor and Concubine Xiao stayed in Huaqing Palace for nearly a month before they set off to return to Chang'an. During this period, they hunted and offered sacrifices to the heavens as usual, and nothing major happened. If you have to say, it was just to please Concubine Xiao, and they built a horse racing field, which seemed to have caused dissatisfaction among the farmers at the foot of Mount Li, but no one cared or managed it.
There was also a minor incident in the other courtyard. Xie Wangzhi heard that someone seemed to have tampered with the medicinal wine prepared by Cui Shi, so the servant with many tricks and the attendants involved were all driven out.
Apart from that, the weather was calm and peaceful. If one could pretend to be blind and deaf, and pretend like Li Chengjin that he was unaware of the disaster caused by the drought in the south of the Yangtze River, then the autumn hunt would be no different from previous years.
When returning to Chang'an, the emperor went first, followed by the royal family, and the officials and those who followed him came last. When the carriage entered Mingde Gate, Xie Wangzhi specifically asked about the date, which was exactly October 16.
Once they entered the city gate, they no longer had to follow the team and could go home individually. Xie Wangzhi asked the driver to take a less crowded road so that they could have some peace and quiet. However, just after turning past Jinchangfang and arriving near Ci'en Temple, the road was blocked and the carriage could not move forward. There was a lot of noise outside the carriage, so noisy that Xie Wangzhi could not help but slightly lift the curtain.
This road was neither wide nor narrow, not as wide as Suzaku Street, but it was wide enough for two carriages to go side by side. However, the carriages were blocked and had nowhere to go. People were everywhere in front of the carriages. The outermost circle was obviously for spectators, from middle-aged men with hand warmers to women holding children, and even toddlers who were only knee-high and chewing on candied haws.
The source of the noise was inside. Several young and strong men were cursing in words that Xie Wangzhi could not understand, while punching and kicking a person who was half lying on the ground.
"What are they talking about?" This was a gang attack. Xie Wangzhi couldn't imagine that no one cared. However, the situation was unclear and she couldn't just get off the car. After thinking about it, she decided to ask the driver.
"This..." The driver looked embarrassed. Of course he understood these swear words, but he couldn't tell his wife, and he couldn't find a more elegant way to say them. After a long pause, he said, "Anyway, these are just swear words said by rough people. My lady, don't listen to them. It's not good for your ears."
Just as he finished speaking, another sound came from the other side. This time it was the sound of horse hooves, which was urgent and heavy, drowning out the noise of the crowd. Then someone shouted, "The patrol guards are coming!" After that, everyone scattered like birds and beasts. Before the patrol guards arrived, the street was empty.
There was only a man whose age could not be determined lying on the ground, wearing a dirty Taoist robe, with a hairpin dropped to the ground, his gray hair disheveled, and some blood stains under his body. He was obviously unable to get up, but his hands and feet could still twitch occasionally, looking like he was still alive, but also like he was about to die at any time.
Horses were not allowed to run freely in Chang'an City. The only exceptions were the patrolling city guards. According to the rules, the patrolling city guards were required to maintain the stability of the city, punish those who committed crimes, and rescue the injured and sick. However, this time, the team passed by the injured lying on the ground, but did not stop. Instead, they turned their horses and returned along the same route.
Xie Wang was stunned. The driver didn't know what was going on. He looked at the girl in the car stupidly: "Madam, this... shall we continue to go?"
“… No.” Xie Wangzhi thought for a moment, “Anyway, nothing to do, let’s stop for a while. Is there a clinic nearby? Go get a doctor and see if he can be saved.”
The author has something to say: I forgot to update tt