The hunt was scheduled for the thirteenth of August. After hunting, the civil and military officials accompanying the Emperor could enjoy three days of Mid-Autumn Festival holiday.

On the evening of the ninth, after lying down, Zhao Sui said to the princess consort: “Tomorrow morning, I’ve arranged to go riding with eldest brother. We’ll leave at the hour of the rabbit and return by the hour of the snake. You can have the eldest princess and the others accompany you to tour the gardens first.”

Yao Huang, pillowing on Prince Hui’s shoulder, looked up in surprise. The feeling was like hearing her martial-arts-loving brother suddenly tell her one day: he was going to compose poetry with some scholar from the neighborhood.

“Did you invite the eldest prince, or did he invite you?”

Yao Huang really couldn’t imagine Prince Hui would take the initiative to invite Prince Kang to go riding. If Prince Kang had invited him, that eldest brother was being too tactless—on Prince Hui’s rare rest day when he could accompany her, Prince Kang still came to spirit him away.

Zhao Sui said, “…I invited him. Eldest brother often comes to see me, so I should reciprocate as courtesy demands.”

Yao Huang nodded, then went to bite Prince Hui’s shoulder: “You’ve never taken the initiative to invite me riding. Now that I’m pregnant, you go talk about reciprocating courtesy with the eldest prince. Could it be you don’t want to keep me company?”

Zhao Sui couldn’t tell whether the princess consort was deliberately saying this or genuinely feeling sour. He turned to hold her and said: “No, I’ll return by the hour of the snake and can still accompany you almost the entire day.”

Yao Huang laughed in his embrace: “I was just saying it casually. Why did you take it seriously again?”

Zhao Sui: “…”

Yao Huang took Prince Hui’s Adam’s apple in her mouth, kissed it twice and said: “If eldest prince spirits you away, I’ll spirit away eldest sister-in-law. You can ride horses without worry, no need to think about me.”

Prince Hui had long since closed his eyes.

With such a princess consort, when she wasn’t by his side he would wonder what she was doing. When he could truly see her, he didn’t need to wonder anymore, but his body suffered torment.

The next morning, while the princess consort was still sleeping soundly, Prince Hui ate breakfast alone and was pushed out of Cloud Mountain Hall by Qing Ai.

Prince Kang was already waiting outside Qinghui Hall in front. Seeing his second brother, he strode over and took over the wheelchair.

Since they were going riding, there was no need for small talk on the way. Prince Kang walked very quickly, and before long they reached outside the traveling palace. Palace servants had already led over the two princes’ fine horses.

Seeing its master, Startling Mist knelt down on its own initiative.

Qing Ai and Fei Quan skillfully assisted Prince Hui in mounting the horse.

This was Prince Kang’s first time personally watching his second brother mount a horse. Recalling the young second brother’s green excitement when first learning to ride, the eighteen-year-old second brother’s fearless bearing as he mounted in armor and headed to the southern border—while Startling Mist hadn’t yet stood up and second brother was paying him no mind, Prince Kang tilted his head slightly back and walked to his own mount, taking the longbow and quiver handed over by his attendant.

Here, Zhao Sui also put on his longbow and quiver. With a simple tug on the reins, Startling Mist steadily rose to its feet.

For riding and hunting, attendants like Qing Ai and Fei Quan couldn’t conveniently follow along. They were replaced by Zhang Yue, Wang Dong, and two of Prince Kang’s guards.

A group of fine horses galloped across the grassland. Coming near a low hill far from the traveling palace, Zhao Sui was first to slow down, changing to a slow walk.

Prince Kang didn’t dare speak, only silently accompanying his second brother who was taking the initiative to invite him along for the first time in all these years.

Zhao Sui guided his horse to Prince Kang’s side, glanced at him, and asked: “Does eldest brother know why I came to hunt?”

Prince Kang’s heart ached. While pretending to survey the surroundings for possible game, he smiled and said: “It’s for the hunting competition on the thirteenth, isn’t it? I heard from the Emperor that you’ll also participate.”

Zhao Sui replied, “Since I followed along, if I avoid appearing at such a grand event, it might worry the Emperor.”

Hearing this, Prince Kang’s eyes also began to sting. The Emperor didn’t summon second brother for fear of hurting him, yet second brother was participating to avoid worrying the Emperor!

Zhao Sui continued, “I told the princess consort that I’m just joining for the fun of it and won’t compete for game…”

Prince Kang interrupted: “If you can compete, then compete! Eldest brother knows your archery is excellent—you don’t need to yield to anyone!”

Zhao Sui said, “Good archery doesn’t mean good mounted archery. Now, even if I spot game, I can only stop to draw an arrow and pull the bow. By the time I’m ready, the game will have long since run away. So it’s not that I’m being modest and not competing—I truly can’t compete.”

Prince Kang: “…”

He tilted his head, and two lines of tears suddenly rolled down his upright, proper face. Why did second brother invite him out to say these things? Was he deliberately trying to make him feel bad?

Zhao Sui said, “I asked eldest brother to accompany me because I want to practice in advance. Not competing is one thing, but I still want to rely on myself to hunt one or two animals to take out and make the princess consort happy.”

Prince Kang replied, “Good, I’ll go ahead and look around. If there’s game, I’ll drive it your way. You act as the situation allows!”

Apart from the hunting ground, there were no fierce beasts in the North Garden, only small animals like wild chickens and wild rabbits that hid at the sight of people.

Zhao Sui indeed wanted to practice shooting arrows from horseback in advance. He called Prince Kang over to make things clear to him, to prevent Prince Kang from misunderstanding that he could still compete for glory at the hunting competition.

When the practice hunt ended and the brothers returned, they put away their bows and arrows in advance, treating it as just a riding excursion.

On the eleventh of August, Prince Kang came to pay respects to Consort Xian according to custom.

Consort Xian asked, “Yesterday morning, you went riding with Prince Hui?”

Prince Kang nodded.

Consort Xian asked curiously, “Who suggested it first?”

Prince Kang knew his mother consort was prone to overthinking. He directly explained the cause and effect simply. The more he spoke, the lower his mood became. He had searched in the woods for a full hour without finding any game, only startling a few small birds. Second brother had shot six or seven arrows in total and only hit one palm-sized mountain sparrow.

Consort Xian looked at her son’s honest face showing heartache for others and sighed: “It’s a fact that Prince Hui’s riding and archery are far inferior to before, but think carefully—if he only wanted to practice, he could have just brought along his attendant guards. Why did he specifically need you to help? To let you see the awkwardness of him mounting and dismounting?”

Even the most open-minded person would try to avoid exposing their wounds before others.

Prince Kang froze.

After deep thought, he speculated: “Because he never rides alone, and doesn’t want the princess consort to know he’s secretly practicing, so he asked me as a cover?”

No matter how cold-hearted second brother was, he was still a man, and men all wanted to maintain dignity before their wives.

Consort Xian said, “That’s one reason, but not the most important one.”

Prince Kang couldn’t figure it out and said helplessly: “Mother, just tell me directly. I still have to go on duty later.”

Consort Xian closed her eyes, then glared at him: “Like how you previously didn’t know his riding and archery had deteriorated—if you suddenly heard he went to practice archery on the eve of the hunting competition, wouldn’t you think he was wildly ambitious, wanting to continue winning the championship at this year’s hunt?”

After Prince Hui achieved success in martial arts, at age fifteen he won the championship at the North Garden hunting ground in one stroke, thoroughly becoming the Emperor’s first choice among princes.

Now Prince Hui’s legs were crippled, but if Prince Hui still had ambitions to win the hunting championship, Consort Xian would guard against him, as would Consort Shen, the princess imperial, and Prince Qing’s side.

Prince Qing was being punished with closed-door reflection. If he could move freely, Consort Xian believed Prince Hui would have invited Prince Qing along yesterday as well.

Prince Kang: “…”

He lowered his head, avoiding his mother’s sharp gaze.

Consort Xian said, “I’ve told you before—although Prince Hui makes no sound, his scheming runs deepest. In earlier years when he could compete, he seized opportunities to occupy the Emperor’s heart. Now that he can’t compete anymore, he actively shows weakness before you all to prevent your suspicions of him.”

Prince Kang asked, “…Mother’s meaning is that second brother’s show of weakness is also fake?” Were those tears deliberately meant to deceive him?

Consort Xian replied, “Whether truly weak or falsely weak will depend on how much game he actually brings back from the hunting ground. In any case, you should still give your all. Don’t deliberately yield to him because of his show of weakness. If you truly let him win the championship, your father’s heart to establish him as heir might revive.”

With Prince Qing absent from this hunt, Consort Xian was determined to help her son stand out this time. Both young masters from Duke Zhenguo’s residence would participate and would assist her son in pursuing game. As long as there were no accidents on Prince Hui’s side and the other young military officials were sensible, her son’s chances of winning the championship were quite good.

In the blink of an eye, it was the thirteenth of August.

Emperor Yongchang would take his sons and military officials onto the hunting field, while the consorts and accompanying female relatives would eat, drink, and chat outside the hunting ground while waiting.

Yao Huang sat in a carriage, with the eldest princess and second princess riding horses alongside her carriage.

Yao Huang asked, “Are you two also going onto the field?”

Both princesses shook their heads. They only knew how to ride horses, not shoot arrows.

Yao Huang said regretfully, “I know how, but unfortunately the timing isn’t right this year. After returning to the capital, you should practice well. After I give birth, I’ll take you hunting in the mountains in the suburbs of the capital.”

Next year when both princesses married, she would have two more playmates outside the palace. Previously the second princess had a sharp tongue, but now she’d reformed and was fun—Yao Huang didn’t mind including her. If someday the second princess’s tongue turned sharp again, Yao Huang would just continue ignoring her.

The carriage traveled six or seven li, and ahead was the hunting ground.

The lower part of the hunting ground had many trees, with a low mountain in the middle that horses could charge up.

Outside the hunting ground, felt mats, tables, chairs, and canopies had been set up. Melons, fruits, tea, and refreshments were all prepared in advance. Young eunuchs and palace maids stood by, ready at any time to serve the noble persons.

Chen Ying, Yao Huang, Zheng Yuanzhen, and the two princesses sat on the felt mat to Empress Zhou’s right, while Consort Xian, Consort Shen, and Princess Imperial Fucheng sat on the left.

The couple had set out separately this morning, so only now did Yao Huang see Prince Hui mounted on horseback. Python robes were common enough, but with Prince Hui carrying a bow and arrows on his shoulder, he suddenly had even more heroic bearing than when he was just riding.

Yao Huang was looking when suddenly someone among the young military officials waved at her. Yao Huang turned her head and saw her own brother.

Yao Lin was in the Imperial Guard and had also accompanied the Emperor on this trip. Usually he followed the Imperial Guard in garrison duty at the city walls—he wasn’t the type to run in looking for his princess consort younger sister to slack off viewing scenery.

For this hunt organized by Emperor Yongchang, aside from a few dukes and marquises who were too old and needed to stay by his side, the requirement for young military officials was between twenty and thirty years old. Only then could Yao Lin, with his sixth-rank military official status, get this opportunity.

Yao Huang smiled at her brother.

Just after smiling, she saw Emperor Yongchang call her brother over. After saying something unknown, her brother went to Prince Hui’s side.

When the hour arrived, fine horses carrying their masters charged into the hunting ground.

The second princess spoke enthusiastically about this hunt’s game: “I heard they released one red fox, two white foxes, ten wolves, twenty deer. One deer counts for ten points, one wolf for twenty points, one white fox for fifty points, the red fox for one hundred points. Rabbits, wild chickens, and such all count as one point each. To win, you have to target those big-ticket items.”

“In the past ten years, the Emperor has only come to the North Garden twice, with two hunting competitions. Once second brother hunted the red fox, once third brother did. This year third brother isn’t here, so the red fox will definitely be hunted by second brother again.”

The second princess had been playing well with Yao Huang recently, so she thought Yao Huang would be happy to hear this, completely forgetting that eldest sister-in-law Chen Ying was sitting beside them.

Yao Huang didn’t look to see whether Chen Ying felt embarrassed for Prince Kang. She only said to the second princess: “Your second brother said he can’t conveniently run up the mountain, so he’ll just casually look around in the outer woods. Whatever he can hunt depends entirely on luck.”

Last night before bed, Prince Hui had specifically told her not to expect good game.

Yao Huang wasn’t counting on red foxes or white foxes. Being able to see Prince Hui’s heroic bearing carrying arrows made this excitement worth joining.