GBP Chapter 341 Is she too incompetent?
Chapter 341 Is she too incompetent?
Wu Ziyan, however, brazenly walked up to Chu Qiu in front of Situ Hongyu, grabbed his hand, and said, "I'll borrow your luck and wish me good luck!"
Situ Hongyu didn't stop her. She was the kind of person who would say sarcastically, "How about you shake my hand too? Kobe and those little brats are much better."
Even Wu Ziyan laughed.
The horse was led out of the stable. Judging from its appearance, it seemed to have a temper, with an arrogant and unyielding look. When Situ Hongyu whistled at it, it neighed.
“Your Highness, my horse is named Gale, it’s very fast, you can ride it.”
She said, "So this horse has taken after its owner, with a haughty face. Is it really okay for her to ride it?"
"Can I choose my own horse? I feel like this Gale doesn't seem to like me."
"If he doesn't know what's good for him, then let this little devil choose for himself. I want to see what kind of good horse he'll pick."
She walked to the front of the stable, and without exaggeration, she felt that these horses were several heads taller than her; if they were to step on her, she would surely break her bones.
After looking around, she settled on a horse that was entirely black with snow-white hooves. It truly lived up to the description: sharp and lean, with bamboo-like ears and hooves that moved lightly in the wind.
"I want this horse."
"Your Highness, this horse is fiercer than a gale. No one has tamed it yet. General Chu Qiu almost broke his hand while trying to ride it."
"what!"
But she felt an instant connection with the horse. When she reached out her hand, it nuzzled her with its head. And at that moment, she was holding a piece of candy, and the horse licked its tongue and put the candy into its mouth. She had heard that horses liked to eat salt, but she didn't expect them to like candy as well. Didn't this mean that the horse liked her?
There was no other way but to try anything, even if it seemed hopeless. It was better than dealing with Situ Hongyu's fierce wind. The groom led the horse out. It looked arrogant at everyone else, but its eyes were genuinely friendly when it looked at Wu Ziyan.
Just as they were saddled it, it kicked up. Situ Hongyu rubbed his forehead. Fortunately, she could control her Liefeng horse and ensure that Wu Ziyan would not have any accidents. But she insisted on choosing this horse that no one else was allowed to ride. What if something went wrong?
Although she gritted her teeth and insisted on choosing this horse, she couldn't simply cancel the riding and archery event. She wanted to see what methods Wu Ziyan had to make the horse submit to her.
"You, do you even have a name?"
General Chu Qiu once named it Dark Cloud.
"Okay, that's suitable, but I'm going to rename it now. Let's call it 'Dark Clouds Treading on Snow'. Just nod in agreement."
As if it truly understood, Wuyun Taxue nodded, a scene that astonished everyone outside, who hadn't expected the horse to be so gentle with her.
But this Black Cloud Snow Treader is taller than a regular horse. Even the horse she used to ride could still climb up by stepping on the stirrups.
But with the horse, she put one foot on the stirrup and the other foot on tiptoe. Her face was burning hot; she was so embarrassed!
Situ Hongyu scoffed: "Little rascal!"
The coachman next to her didn't know whether he should go over to help her or what to do. In the end, he decided to bring her a stool.
Wu Ziyan successfully mounted the horse, squeezing its belly with his feet. Surprisingly, Ta Xue did not resist. He stood on his tiptoes, his four hooves treading on the snow. The horse's tail was braided and moved swiftly like the wind. Wu Ziyan felt the wind hitting his face like a knife scraping.
"Walking in the snow, okay, but slow down, slow down!"
She tightened the reins, and Ta Xue really slowed down. The soldiers were all amazed, because it was indeed a fine horse. It seemed to be a cross between a Wu Dynasty horse and a small Rong horse. Its skin was very thin when it ran, and it looked like blood and sweat were flowing out in the sunlight. It was a real fine horse!
Chu Yu slowly moved next to Chu Xiu and nudged him with her elbow: "I didn't expect the Fourth Prince to know how to train horses. Do you remember how miserable you looked riding this horse? Was it because he didn't like the name you gave it?"
Chu Qiu's gaze remained fixed on Wu Ziyan, his fists clenched tightly, his palms sweating, for fear that she would be thrown off the horse!
But watching her ride the Snowplow, swift as the wind, carefree and joyful, it seemed as if the horse truly loved her, constantly matching her rhythm and pace.
After running a couple of laps, Wu Ziyan finally stopped in front of them. She felt a little more confident, but she knew she couldn't shoot arrows with both hands off the reins. So, she pulled out her small crossbow again: "General Hongyu, may I use this?"
She had never seen such exquisite crossbow bolts before. They were probably made in Xiao Rong's territory. She thought to herself, "They are arrows after all." She nodded in agreement.
The person she was competing against was indeed a child, who looked rather immature, with baby fat still lingering on his face.
"How old are you, little girl?"
"Your Highness, I am 13 years old and have been in the army for one year."
"Oh, please take care of me."
Situ Hongyu hadn't asked her to go easy on him, so she wouldn't hold back. Her eyes were full of determination, as if she had to win.
The two of them stood on the starting line of the racecourse. At the command, they both squeezed the horses' bellies and shouted "Giddy up!" The speed of the horses was no joke; they ran with the wind in their wake. Wu Ziyan glanced at the lens on the small crossbow bolt with one eye. "Thank you, system! Thank you, technology!"
With one hand holding the reins, afraid of falling off, an arrow shot out as the trigger was pulled. Because she was in motion, she had to anticipate the movement.
Everyone watched as she picked up the crossbow with one hand while on horseback. Although she wasn't as dashing as other women, she still had a unique charm.
Just then, the man holding the arm heard, "Fourth Prince, ten rings!"
Everyone was shocked. They never expected that he could actually hit the target. It seemed that he wasn't as bad as the rumors said. Situ Hongyu raised his eyelids, but didn't say anything.
The child heard "10 rings," but her arrow missed the target. She then shot another arrow, which hit eight, then seven, and then another eight.
Wu Ziyan got ten rings, ten rings, nine rings, seven rings, eight rings, and the total score still won.
However, when Wu Ziyan dismounted, her legs were trembling, and she walked slowly. Now her face was numb and devoid of feeling.
Moreover, the soldier who lost to her immediately looked dejected and knelt down in front of Situ Hongyu, saying, "General, please punish me."
"Why punish you? It's just a game. Go on, do what you're supposed to do."
"Your Highness, I never expected you could tame that horse. Amazing!"
Wu Ziyan walked ahead, while Taxue followed behind, nudging her with its head. However, the candy she carried attracted it. At first, she didn't believe it, but when she took out another piece of candy and gave it to Taxue, she seemed to see a smile on its face.
It seems this horse is an anomaly among horses; it loves sweets. No wonder it was willing to let her ride it—what a snob horse!
"General Hongyu, what's next?"
She felt dizzy when she asked that question. She had drunk so much alcohol and had just been exposed to the cold wind at such a fast pace. The alcohol was starting to take effect, but her mind was still strong, and she managed to stand there steadily.
"Would you dare walk on a fire carpet?!"
Surprisingly, Situ Hongyu would say such a thing. Fire carpets are a method used to punish criminals, and it's unexpected that he would use them on Wu Wu Ziyan. Wu Ziyan didn't know what a fire carpet was, and was just wondering, "What is a fire carpet?"
Just by observing the strange expressions on the faces of the onlookers, I knew that it probably wasn't anything good.
Chu Feng and Chu Yu both spoke up to stop him: "Mother, are you sure you want His Highness to walk on the fire carpet!"
"What makes you want to marry my daughter? You don't even have that much awareness. You haven't even climbed a mountain of knives, yet you don't dare to cross a fire carpet? But I can make an exception and let her wear shoes."
Wu Ziyan now had a better idea of what the fire blanket looked like. It was probably a row of charcoal fires laid out to form a road, allowing her to walk from one end to the other.
Then she realized he needed a pair of platform shoes to walk through the scorching heat. Normally, she would have given up long ago. Even if his feet weren't burned, the heat from the surrounding area would definitely burn his skin.
"Mother, do you really have to do this? I'll just walk this fire blanket in her place!"
Chu Qiu panicked! He panicked!
Situ Hongyu was shocked to see her usually obedient fourth son say such a thing. She had always thought her fourth son was rather dull. When did he suddenly become so insightful?
"Did I give you permission to speak? She wouldn't dare go through fire and water to marry you, so why should she marry you? Why should she protect you? Because she's a little rascal?"
Wu Ziyan felt like she had been hurt by a hundred million points, but she still forced herself to stay upright. She rolled her eyes, her head was throbbing, but she still said, "Come on!"
Everyone was frowning. Who could walk across such a long fire carpet? Was this some kind of torture?
But in the end, they were overthinking it. The fire blanket was only about two meters long. If they jumped around quickly, their feet might not even get scalded. Besides, a lot of the charcoal was already soaked in snow and wasn't burning brightly at all.
Everyone could see that she was holding back. She had made all those terrifying statements at the beginning to scare her, but seeing how resolute Wu Ziyan's answer was, they were gradually starting to accept this little devil.
"You can walk there wearing shoes, or you can run."
"it is good."
Looking at the fiery heat emanating from her, one could feel the heat even just getting close, let alone walking inside. In her current state, she gritted her teeth and tried to get closer, but it felt like the steam on her face evaporated.
But no one said she couldn't wear a face towel. She wet the water from the manger next to her thick cotton face towel and tied it to her face. She couldn't let her face get burned; her face was the only thing that looked presentable.
She's always thinking of these petty tricks, but that's cleverness in itself! As she walked onto the fire carpet, Chu Yu stared intently at Chu Qiu, shaking her head at him, which proved her determination to like him.
Wu Ziyan could almost smell the burnt smell of her hair. Luckily, it was styled into a big bun, not loose, otherwise it would have turned her hair into curly hair.
Two meters doesn't seem very long, but the shoes underneath are constantly emitting smoke. It's as if the years of coldness have been cured, and the body is also emitting smoke, which is the moisture produced by the wind and snow.
She walked out from the fire blanket, her vision filled with flowers. The soles of her shoes were almost carbonized, but they were cloth shoes, more reliable than rubber shoes.
When she came out from the other end, Chu Qiu quickly went forward to support her. She only felt herself fall into someone's arms and didn't see who it was.
"Hmph, with her small, squash-like frame, she doesn't know how to back down. She's actually to my liking, so I'll admit she's right."
Wu Ziyan seemed to be hallucinating when she heard Situ Hongyu say he acknowledged her. She struggled to open her eyelids, her eyes showing some joy: "So you've accepted me?"
Seeing that no one spoke, he thought he was dreaming, his eyelids rolled back, and he fainted.
"Send her back to my tent and take good care of her."
Only then did she begin to ask what those large trucks outside were carrying. Wu Ziyan tried to bribe the people around him, but failed.
Chu Yu then explained in detail that although Wu Ziyan had mentioned the meat and cashmere before they arrived, she hadn't listened.
"She's not up to the task of using any clever tricks; she needs to work out more! Distribute these things to the soldiers, and have the medic take a look at that little rascal!"
Her mother started to show her sharp tongue but kind heart again, which also meant she accepted her.
Inside the tent, Chu Qiu removed Wu Ziyan's coat. She was burning up with fever and sweating profusely, likely having caught a cold.
However, he was not a doctor and could not make a conclusion on his own. After a while, the tent flap was lifted and the military doctor came in carrying a medicine box.
"Young Master Chu Qiu".
"Go quickly and let His Highness take a look."
Taking the pulse, the pulse was strong and steady, without any sudden changes in speed or rhythm. It didn't seem like an illness at all. The conclusion was that the alternating hot and cold sensations had triggered the alcohol in the body, causing the person to become dizzy. So, this was the body expelling the alcohol.
In Wu Ziyan's words, this was alcohol poisoning. He felt a splitting headache while he was in a daze, but after a while, he felt a cold sensation on his forehead, which also smelled of alcohol.
So you're trying to cool down with alcohol, huh?
Wu Ziyan's eyes darted around, but she couldn't open them. She wanted to say that she didn't need to wipe them, that she just needed to lie down for a while.
But Chu Qiu only wiped her face with alcohol once, and then switched to warm water to carefully wipe away the sweat on her head.
There was no smell, and she felt her brain relax a bit. She closed her eyes and rested for a while. When she opened her eyes again, it felt like an eternity had passed.
Chu Qiu's hand was still on her forehead. It seemed that only a few minutes had passed. Chu Qiu said with concern, "Your Highness, you are awake. Please do not blame my mother. If you must blame her, please punish me instead."
"I just woke up, don't talk to me so much, my head hurts. Besides, why should I blame her or punish you? Get me some water, I feel a little thirsty."
After drinking a glass of water, she felt a chill run from her neck to her stomach. After shivering, she became much clearer-headed.
"Your mother won't think I'm too incompetent and then disagree with me, will she?"
Just then, Situ Hongyu walked outside the tent to see if the little pumpkin had woken up, and just then he heard her ask this question.
Chu Qiu laughed, surprised that this was what she was worried about. He thought she would definitely be furious after suffering such injustice.