Jun Beiyue sat high in the seat of honor, dressed in black riding gear, his devastatingly handsome face wearing its usual cold, composed expression. One hand rested on his knee, his body leaning slightly forward, his lean, powerful frame like a leopard poised to spring at any moment. His unfathomably deep eyes were fixed intently on the cavalry drilling ahead, like a hunter watching his prey.

Ouyang Xun, usually arrogant and condescending, had already lowered his proud head, standing respectfully at the Prince’s side, murmuring a report.

Ziqing approached from a distance, leading her horse, and upon seeing the scene, she found herself stopping without meaning to, feeling as though this man exuded an unfeeling, iron-blooded aura from every inch of his being. Perhaps it was because like attracted like—Ziqing suddenly felt an inexplicable urge to draw closer, to understand this man.

“Master…”

Hongyi’s soft reminder brought her back to herself. Still wearing her obedient expression, she walked over, bowing slightly in greeting. “Your Highness, you’ve returned.”

“You want to use him as the standard?” Jun Beiyue asked, raising an eyebrow. He had just heard Hongyi’s report on the results of the five days of training—this woman actually wanted to use Ouyang Xun’s equestrian and archery skills as the benchmark. Did she have any idea that Ouyang Xun was the very best among his Eighteen Riders of Shadow Night?

Ouyang Xun glanced at her with disdain. His respect and obedience were reserved for Jun Beiyue alone—even with the Prince present, he wasn’t about to show Han Ziqing any particular courtesy.

“Yes, Your Highness. On my first day at the training grounds, Commander Ouyang stated that women have no business being on the training field. Since Ziqing has already spent five days here, I could hardly just return without addressing it—it would leave people talking and bring shame upon Your Highness,” Ziqing said calmly, her tone gentle.

She had never liked reporting people behind their backs, which was why she was raising the matter openly now. She hadn’t originally intended to clash with the training grounds, but Ouyang Xun had touched upon her deepest sore spot—as a mercenary, nothing enraged her more than being looked down upon by a soldier, especially a man.

Of course, though she’d shown no outward reaction to his contempt, she had remembered every word of it. The impulse had taken root in her heart from that very moment—this competition was something she’d decided on the day it happened! She would make this man pay publicly for his arrogance!

“A woman… has no business on the training field?” Jun Beiyue’s brow furrowed slightly as he looked toward Ouyang Xun. To his credit, Ouyang Xun immediately dropped to one knee. “Reporting to my lord, this one did indeed say that, and this one genuinely believes it to be true!”

Jun Beiyue immediately smiled. “Very well. We’ll use your skill as the standard. Two contests—riding and archery. If the consort defeats you, she passes the examination!”

“Yes, this one will give it everything he has!” Ouyang Xun answered loudly, seeming to deliberately intimidate Ziqing.

Ziqing simply returned his gaze with a gracious smile, saying modestly, “Then I look forward to Commander Ouyang’s guidance.”

The two contests were simple in concept, yet they demanded true skill.

The first was a horse race—regardless of taming technique or handling obstacles along the way, in the end it all came down to speed. Ten li ahead lay a set of bow and arrows; whoever retrieved it first would win.

Ziqing and Ouyang Xun mounted their horses together. Ouyang Xun held his reins with calm composure, glancing at Ziqing out of the corner of his eye with arrogant disdain.

Ziqing’s face remained calm and composed, one hand on the reins, the other holding her whip, ready to go.

Jun Beiyue glanced at the two of them, then abruptly raised the flag in his hand. “Begin!”

In an instant, Ziqing’s horse shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow. Ouyang Xun, unhurried, watched her retreating figure and thought to himself, She does have some skill after all.

He stroked his horse’s mane, gave his whip a casual flick, bowed briefly toward Jun Beiyue, and then finally spurred his horse forward, also like an arrow in flight—but clearly moving at nearly twice Ziqing’s speed!

Seeing this, Hongyi and Shiliang both grew anxious. Jun Beiyue rubbed his chin, seeming somewhat concerned as well—it had been months since his last inspection, and Ouyang Xun’s riding and archery skills seemed to have improved considerably, nearly matching his own!

By now, out on the grassland, they had reached the five-li mark, and Ouyang Xun was on the verge of catching up to Ziqing. He snorted coldly, suddenly exerting more force, snapping his whip sharply—and in an instant he’d caught up and overtaken her!

He glanced back at Ziqing and sneered, “A woman is a woman after all. I’ve let you lead this whole time and you still can’t beat me!”

With that, he held nothing back, kicking his horse’s flanks and cracking his whip, galloping forward and immediately leaving Ziqing far behind.

A disdainful smile curved at the corner of Ziqing’s lips, and her whip suddenly picked up pace. Before anyone could quite register it, she shot past Ouyang Xun like a whirlwind!

Ouyang Xun froze for a moment, and by the time he’d collected himself, Ziqing already had her bow drawn and was racing back!

“You… you actually…” Ouyang Xun was so shocked he couldn’t finish his sentence, while Ziqing smiled brilliantly. “Commander Ouyang, you were most gracious.”

With that, she sped right past him!

Seeing Ziqing return first, Hongyi and Shiliang jumped with joy, shouting excitedly, “Her Highness has won! Well done, Your Highness!”

The many soldiers present momentarily forgot all military discipline, breaking into an uproar—how could their proudest commander possibly have lost?

A gleam lit Jun Beiyue’s eyes—clearly one of genuine delight. This woman had surprised him yet again. Just how many secrets, how many surprises did she hold within her?

Ziqing presented the bow and arrows to Jun Beiyue with both hands, saying demurely, “Your Highness, with Commander Ouyang’s acknowledgment, I was fortunate enough to win the first round.”

By then, Ouyang Xun had made his way back, staring at Ziqing in astonishment, still unable to quite believe it.

“Commander Ouyang, don’t you accept the result?” Jun Beiyue asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ouyang Xun gave a start and immediately dismounted, bowing respectfully to Ziqing. “Your Highness, this humble one failed to recognize a person of true worth. My apologies—please forgive this one’s disrespect.”

This woman was no ordinary person! Never mind the countless obstacles along the way—just that speed alone was beyond what any ordinary person could achieve. At such a young age, to possess such exquisite, masterful riding skill—she would surely amount to something extraordinary in the future!

The woman his lord had personally chosen wasn’t simply a matter of spiting the Emperor, as everyone had assumed.

And yet, he still couldn’t understand—if she truly wasn’t simple, why had his lord given no further instructions at all when he’d first sent her here, only offhandedly saying, “find someone to teach her”?

“Since Commander Ouyang has acknowledged the result, Ziqing feels she won undeservedly. I hope Commander Ouyang will go easy on me in the second round.”

Ziqing was the picture of modesty, her head bowed with a hint of shyness, but she stole a mischievous wink toward Hongyi and Shiliang, who were still jumping with excitement off to the side, her eyes crinkling with a smile that was unmistakably cunning and triumphant—the look of someone who had just gotten her revenge.

Jun Beiyue took in every bit of this, and for a moment he simply stared, utterly captivated. He had never imagined this woman could have such a mischievous, adorable side to her. His heart inexplicably began pounding faster, and for the first time in his life, he felt a sudden urge to pull a woman into his arms and dote on her.

Though Ouyang Xun was proud and headstrong, he was also an honest, straightforward man at heart. Hearing the words “second round,” he immediately dropped to one knee. “Your Highness, this one willingly concedes the second round as well. This one is thoroughly convinced and impressed by Your Highness’s skill, and takes back every disrespectful word spoken earlier. The Imperial Hunting Grounds welcome Your Highness anytime!”

With riding skills so exceptional, her archery would certainly be no less impressive. If he continued the competition, he would only be inviting further humiliation. Han Ziqing had never once used her status to pressure him—she had won him over through sheer skill alone. Since his ability fell short of hers, there was nothing more to say.

“Commander Ouyang, please rise. It was merely luck on my part. Whether the second round proceeds isn’t something either of us can decide—that’s for the Prince to determine,” Ziqing said, turning to look at Jun Beiyue.

Only then did Jun Beiyue seem to come back to himself, breaking into a rare laugh. “Ha, since Commander Ouyang has already conceded, there’s no need!”

With that, right in front of all the assembled soldiers, he swept Ziqing up into his arms, hoisting her onto his horse with commanding ease. “Come, accompany this prince for a ride!”

At these words, Ziqing seemed to realize what was happening and instantly went rigid, allowing him to hold her tightly from behind, his large hand resting possessively at her waist, taking full advantage of the moment.

Leaving everyone present staring in stunned silence, he rode off in high spirits, whip cracking, galloping away…