Chapter 145: Cuju
A Cuju ball fell diagonally from mid-air.
Xiao Yi neither dodged nor retreated. He flicked his right foot, the outside of his foot precisely deflecting the force, and steadily stopped the Cuju ball, as if it were stuck.
Spotting the strategic opening, he gently tossed it up and kicked the Cuju ball over.
“Didn’t you say you couldn’t?” Li Chongjin asked.
“When you know one thing, you know them all, I suppose.”
Xiao Yi indeed wasn’t very skilled at Cuju, but he always excelled at showing off.
Li Chongjin, however, said, “Don’t just kick it randomly. After the match starts, give the ball to Zhang Yongde and let him play.”
“Why?”
“That’s the rule. Only the Ball Head can score,” Li Chongjin whispered, “It’s because he’s the Imperial Son-in-law, and we’re not.”
Over there, Gao Huaide caught the ball. He performed a flashy display, executing beautiful moves before kicking the ball back.
In the stands, a beautiful woman holding a little girl entered, cheering in a childish voice.
“Daddy’s amazing!”
As Xiao Yi spoke, he hooked the Cuju ball with his left foot, juggled it twice, and kicked it to Zhang Yongde, thinking, what fun could there be in such rules.
“Gao Huaide has children who are already three or four years old?”
“Yes, he’s the son-in-law of Liu Ci, the Military Governor of An Guo,” Li Chongjin spat, “But look, at least my wife is prettier than his.”
“Congratulations.”
Xiao Yi casually glanced around. Besides the few people he recognized, he didn’t see anyone else noteworthy among the women. He thought Zhang Wan was still the prettiest.
After a brief warm-up, the Cuju match began.
Their Ball Head was Zhang Yongde, their Swift Player was Li Chongjin, their Main Attacker was Guo Shouwen, and Xiao Yi was the Head Attacker, responsible for positioning, receiving passes, creating opportunities for the Ball Head, intercepting passes, and preventing the opponent from passing, essentially playing midfield.
Xiao Yi found this strategy of arranging players based on status very uncomfortable and restrictive.
He could only adapt to the rules and engage in physical confrontations with the opponents.
The opposing Head Attacker was a young man about his age, somewhat pudgy, with far less stamina than him, but experienced. He frequently tried to tackle Xiao Yi around the waist.
“Aren’t you fouling?”
“How is this a foul? I know you, Xiao Yi, who took down Murong Yanchao. My name is Mi Fude. Remember it, I will also shine brightly sooner or later.”
Xiao Yi found it difficult to move with Mi Fude clinging to him. He almost lifted Mi Fude’s entire weight as he jumped, then used his head to headbutt the Cuju ball, intercepting it and passing it to Li Chongjin.
He decided to treat it as weighted training, dragging Mi Fude around the field to exhaust the opponent’s stamina.
In less than half an hour, Mi Fude was panting, saying, “So tiring… but you’re going to lose…”
Xiao Yi glanced at the scoreboard. The opponent had five points, while they had only three. He then looked at Gao Huaide’s condition, still looking relaxed, while Zhang Yongde’s eyes were glazed over with fatigue.
With these terrible rules and a poor formation, they were definitely not going to win.
Before long, both sides took a break. Xiao Yi happened to intercept the Cuju ball and casually kicked it through the strategic opening, then turned to grab a water skin.
Gao Huaide walked past and casually remarked, “Good footwork.”
Xiao Yi wasn’t very interested in Cuju but was curious about Gao Huaide’s martial arts. He said, “If I have free time, I’d like to ask Brother Cang Yong for some martial arts guidance.”
“No need. I don’t spar with people.”
Gao Huaide shook his finger, his demeanor not arrogant, but possessing a detached, transcendent air.
Then, he even smiled slightly.
“If you want to beat me, today is your only chance.”
Xiao Yi had initially not intended to comment on Zhang Yongde and Li Chongjin’s tactics, but he couldn’t help himself. He walked over and whispered, “We need to change formations.”
Li Chongjin’s face turned even darker with anxiety, “How do we change?”
“Brother Bao Yi is skilled at observing the overall situation and advancing and retreating calmly. He should be the Swift Player, handling passes and coordinating attacks; Brother Chongjin is strong and fierce in style, he should be the Main Attacker, running and intercepting, holding his position to win; Guo Shouwen is agile and fast, he should be the Scattered Player. Then, pick someone with good technique to be the Ball Head.”
“You be the Ball Head.”
Zhang Yongde surprisingly had great strategic awareness, whether it was due to a broad mind or a lack of personality.
As he spoke, he unfastened his red brocade outer robe and said, “Let’s switch clothes.”
Over there, Mi Fude yelled, “It’s starting, why aren’t you coming? Are you scared?”
Seeing that time was short, Xiao Yi unhesitatingly swapped clothes with Zhang Yongde and returned to the field.
The opponents didn’t have time to change formations, and Mi Fude was still defending him, sneering, “You can be the Ball Head too?”
Saying this, he spread his arms and lunged to hug Xiao Yi.
Xiao Yi instantly moved back.
“Bao Yi!”
Zhang Yongde’s skills were actually very good, but he lacked a fierce drive, making his shots too indecisive. However, his passing was quick and accurate.
Before Xiao Yi finished speaking, the ball arrived.
He didn’t rush to receive it. Seeing Mi Fude charging to intercept, he kicked the Cuju ball high into the air while spinning his body, faking to get past Mi Fude, then calmly received the ball, hooked his foot, and decisively shot.
The Cuju ball “swished” through the strategic opening.
“Good!”
Li Chongjin was overjoyed and shouted praises.
Four points to five.
Before long, Gao Huaide, with a series of dazzling moves, bypassed Zhang Yongde and scored another point.
Xiao Yi ran incredibly fast on the field, like cavalry charging through enemy lines. He dodged Mi Fude, signaled Guo Shouwen to pass, and with an inside cut and shot, he leveled the score.
The next time he got an opportunity, the opponent had an extra player defending him. He hooked the ball with his left foot, turned his body with the momentum, pulled the ball, and changed direction.
“Whoosh.”
Six points to six.
Mi Fude was already too tired to run.
Xiao Yi still had some fancy moves, a Marseille turn, and an aerial volley.
As the game progressed, he gradually became familiar with the ways of Cuju and developed a competitive spirit with Gao Huaide.
Suddenly, the ball dropped from above.
Xiao Yi, with his back to the strategic opening, judged the landing spot, pressed his left foot on the ground, slightly bent his right knee, and tensed his waist and back, like a drawn bowstring.
As the ball arrived, the opponents also closed in to defend.
He suddenly pushed off the ground, his body like an arrow shot from a bow. He leaped, flipped backward, raised his legs, straightened his right leg, and precisely kicked the Cuju ball with the inside of his instep.
A bicycle kick.
“Thump.”
A dull, soft sound.
His robes fluttered. Xiao Yi landed, his hands touching the ground for a moment to cushion the impact. He pushed off with his core, landing with crossed feet, standing steady, and brushed off his disheveled clothes.
The movement was easy for him; the difficulty lay in the accuracy. He hadn’t played for a long time, and he wasn’t sure if he had scored.
“Good!”
“Good!”
After a moment of delay, the field suddenly erupted in cheers.
Xiao Yi turned to see nine points to eight… In the next moment, Li Chongjin and the others surrounded him, lifting him high.
“We won! Hahaha, we won!”
Tossed a few times in the air, Xiao Yi also felt exhilarated, as if he had returned to his youthful days in a past life.
Once he was finally put down, he saw Gao Huaide, Zhang Yongde, Li Chongjin, and others heading towards the stands to find their wives.
He also had something he wanted to say to Zhang Wan, so he walked in that direction.
He saw Zhang Wan holding up the hem of her robe, following Guo Xin to the edge of the stands.
Guo Xin jumped down, looking quite pretty, while Zhang Wan, being a lady, dared not jump.
“Be careful.”
“You were quite dashing just now.”
Hearing this, Xiao Yi paused slightly, then remembered that the last time he used this phrase with Guo Xin, Guo Xin had been eavesdropping outside the door.
“Here you go.”
Guo Xin tossed a water skin over and said, “That little fatty was always hanging on you, you must have been exhausted, right?”
Xiao Yi took it and took a sip. It was warm water.
This scene reminded him of the night Liu Zhu was killed.
“It’s alright. How did you tell Brother Chongjin I could play Cuju?”
“I just wanted you to come too… to make a fool of yourself. I didn’t expect you to actually have some skills. Your footwork is different from others.”
“You can tell?”
“Don’t underestimate me. Give me the Cuju ball.”
Xiao Yi waved to a palace servant in the distance, and a Cuju ball was tossed over. Just as he was about to receive it with his foot, a foot in a small deerskin boot snatched the ball and even stepped on his instep.
Guo Xin gave a mischievous smile, juggled it a few times, her hem fluttering. She was indeed very beautiful.
Suddenly, she hooked her foot, and the ball flew towards Xiao Yi’s face, but gently. He stopped the ball with his shoulder, shook it off, and kicked it through the strategic opening.
Guo Xin, a little proud, asked, “How was my kick?”
“I’m impressed.”
“Cuju, backgammon, arrow throwing, polo; I’m good at all of them.”
Xiao Yi looked at her smiling face, which seemed innocent and playful, but upon closer inspection, her eyes seemed to hold girlish affection.
“What are you looking at me for?”
“I admire you.”
“Tomorrow is the Lantern Festival. Will you escort us to the Imperial Street to see the lanterns?”
“Tomorrow is the Lantern Festival?”
Mentioning this, Xiao Yi remembered he hadn’t taken Li Zhaoning to see An Yuanzhen yet. If he had time today, he still had to take care of it.
Guo Xin waved her hand in front of his eyes and pouted, “Don’t play dumb. If you come tomorrow night, I’ll allow Sister Zhang Wan to leave the palace.”
As they spoke, Zhang Yongde and Li Chongjin arrived with their wives.
Guo Siniang asked, “Fifth Sister, what are you two chatting about? You’re gesticulating so much.”
“Sister, I was praising his Cuju skills and asking him to accompany us to the Lantern Fair tomorrow night.”
“Alright, alright. Let your Brother-in-law invite Brother Xiao along then.”
Xiao Yi felt Guo Siniang’s gaze scrutinizing him but remained composed.
After chatting and exchanging pleasantries for a while, he noticed Zhang Wan standing aside, looking expectantly. He found an opportunity to go over.
The two of them moved to a secluded spot to talk in whispers.
“My Lord.”
“Are you adjusting well?”
“My Lord, please don’t worry. I haven’t said anything… I just… hope my Lord can take me out of the palace.”
“Soon, just wait a little longer.”
Zhang Wan took a step forward and whispered, “My Lord, isn’t it possible that Fifth Young Lady Guo has feelings for you?”
“Why do you say that?”
“She asked me how I became paired with my Lord. I didn’t know how to answer, so I imagined myself as the Empress Dowager and said that the palace is lonely, and it’s rare to meet a man like you, with exceptional will and shared hearts. But Fifth Young Lady Guo said she was asking how I gained my Lord’s favor. So I had to say I proactively initiated conversations with you.”
“You’re overthinking it. Given her status, if she truly had such intentions, would she tolerate you being by my side?”
Zhang Wan faltered and lowered her head, “Yes. Before Fifth Young Lady Guo entered the palace, she didn’t have any maids, so she asked me to help select palace maids and arrange for lanterns and candle wicks.”
“No, she will need to get married in the future. Our people must remain in the palace. Select a few who can be loyal to her.”
“Yes. I want to give this to my Lord.”
Saying this, Zhang Wan handed a small cloth bag with both hands.
Xiao Yi opened it and saw gold and silver jewelry. He exclaimed, “What is this?”
“These are the dowry items I’ve saved over the years… for my Lord’s expenses.”
“How can I use your money?”
“I heard my Lord was granted a grand residence. I should have been the one managing everything, but I cannot leave. Please accept this, my Lord, and buy some servants to arrange it,” Zhang Wan lowered her head and whispered, “Once I leave the palace, we can live together.”
“Alright.”
Xiao Yi didn’t stand on ceremony and accepted it, feeling the warmth and faint scent of her on the cloth bag.
He realized that if he didn’t engage in business, he wouldn’t lack money.
He had planned to take Li Zhaoning to see An Yuanzhen that afternoon, but Zhang Yongde wanted to host a banquet, so he had to go. He decided to postpone the visit until tomorrow during the day.
Everyone headed straight for Lin Que Tower. Upon arrival, they looked up and were all taken aback.
“What’s going on?”
“Did we come to the wrong place?”
Xiao Yi distinctly saw that the plaque on the archway had been changed. He could almost be certain that the owner of this tower was Yan Jinqing, and that he was showing him great respect.
Because the two characters written in a flamboyant calligraphy were precisely—Fan Lou.
