Chapter 268: A Lively Hunt
Prince Zhao’s mood was excellent. Those captured by Prince Chu had all been rescued and were now hidden in Prince Zhao’s Mansion.
Even if Prince Chu still held the account books, he couldn’t claim to have both human and material evidence.
Of course, they had also taken a lot of banknotes and silver, so that debt could be settled slowly.
As he returned to his mansion from outside, a maid from the Princess Consort’s side saw him and quickly said, “Your Highness, the Princess Consort has an urgent matter to see you about.”
Prince Zhao had originally intended to go to his concubine’s room, but upon hearing that Princess Consort Zhao needed to see him, he had no choice but to come here.
Princess Consort Zhao was too anxious to sit still, pacing back and forth on the floor. Seeing Prince Zhao enter, she waved for the servants to leave.
“What’s wrong? What happened now?” Prince Zhao couldn’t help but twitch his brow, sensing something was amiss.
“It was a mistake!” Princess Consort Zhao sighed. “Eunuch Xia just came out of the palace and told me that Ying Bai didn’t eat his dinner last night; instead, he gave it to the people below him. Now, those palace maids and eunuchs have fallen ill, and the Imperial Hospital has already discovered something is wrong. If it were just one person, it would be one thing, but so many falling ill at once clearly indicates foul play. Oh, honestly! How could that little brat be so lucky to survive?!”
“How could this happen? Was the poisoner an idiot? They should have only poisoned one of his favorite dishes. Besides, the master’s leftover meals are always distributed to those below. Didn’t they consider this?” Prince Zhao was so angry his eyes were about to pop out.
“I don’t know either; I didn’t go into the palace to ask for details,” Princess Consort Zhao said. “I heard Princess Consort Chu has already gone to the palace. What should we do?”
“What should we do? How many people know about this?” Prince Zhao asked. “If there are many, tell them to keep their mouths shut. If there are few, silence them if necessary!”
“Perhaps… perhaps I should go and tell the Empress!” Princess Consort Zhao was at a loss for what to do. She spoke of silencing witnesses, but what if it backfired?
“Then let’s remain inactive for now. I doubt they would, or rather, dare to, implicate you,” Prince Zhao calmed down at this point. “We’ll respond to change with constancy and pretend we know nothing. We still have to go hunting with His Majesty and the King of Fenye tomorrow morning, so we’ll do what we need to do.”
Meanwhile, at Prince Chu’s Mansion.
Prince Chu and Princess Consort Chu were also discussing what to do about this matter. It was clear that Prince Zhao and his faction were responsible.
“The Grand Princess said that only Su Qingyun has confirmed that someone poisoned Bai’er; the other Imperial Physicians are unwilling to commit. I suppose they know the water here is too deep. Let’s wait until those poisoned palace servants die. Several lives cannot possibly pass without causing a stir. When that happens, we can report it to the Emperor, and justice will be served,” Princess Consort Chu knew that the Empress and her faction were too powerful, and sometimes even when something was obvious, it was incredibly difficult to get them to admit guilt.
The next day, everyone went out of the city for a hunt, and Princess Duanmin and others also accompanied them.
Ying Bai rode the Ershi Horse, and Ying Tong rode a black imperial horse.
Before leaving the palace, the King of Fenye said, “Your Majesty, today’s hunt is so lively, I wish to add some joy. I have a golden belt here, obtained from conquering the Wusun Khan. Whoever catches the most prey today, I will give this golden belt to.”
“Very good, I will also reward the one who catches the most prey today,” the Emperor said. “May everyone strive bravely and make this trip worthwhile!”
This was not to say that the King of Fenye was deliberately causing trouble, but rather that there were always rewards during hunts, and it was to encourage hunters to compete.
Ying Bai’s complexion was rather gloomy today. Who could be in a good mood after learning that they had almost been poisoned?
In just two or three days, Chun Bao and a few others had been tortured to the point of being unrecognizable. Imperial Physician Su said that they could only try to prolong their lives, but they probably wouldn’t last more than a few days.
Thinking of the arrogance of Prince Zhao’s family, Ying Tong’s constant bullying, and this time their attempt to take his life, Ying Bai truly hated them.
If Gong Changan hadn’t called him to eat wontons that day, he would be the one lying there on the verge of death now.
His gaze filled with hatred naturally did not escape Ying Tong’s notice, but Ying Tong did not know about the poisoning, and his mother certainly wouldn’t tell him.
He met Ying Bai’s gaze and asked with an unfriendly tone, “What? Are you all that great just because you’re riding the Ershi Horse? Don’t go easy on the archery later!”
He believed that Ying Bai was no match for him in archery and horsemanship. Even if he didn’t win the golden belt, he would definitely surpass Ying Bai.
Upon reaching the mountain, everyone dispersed.
Prince Chu, worried about his son, ordered him to be well protected and stayed close by.
Prince Zhao saw through his thoughts, smiled, and spurred his horse forward. “Prince Chu, don’t mingle with the children. How about we have a competition?”
“Indeed! No matter how bad someone is, they shouldn’t target children,” Prince Chu sneered. “It’s truly chilling.”
“Some people just like to play dirty, stealing other people’s things and keeping them in their own homes,” Prince Zhao immediately retorted. “Such thieving behavior is truly laughable!”
“Your Highnesses, His Majesty requests your presence,” a guard from the Emperor’s side came to deliver the message. The two had no choice but to stop their bickering and go.
Ying Bai’s horse, cooped up in the palace, was eager to run in the wilderness and galloped forward.
Ying Tong also spurred his horse to search for prey, with many followers by his side.
Ying Bai’s horse was faster. He galloped ahead for a long time and then turned back to tell his followers, “Go over there and set up some tethering ropes.”
He estimated that Ying Tong would come from that direction soon, and he would make him pay.
Children don’t think too much when they act; they just want to make the other person suffer.
Although it had snowed, there were still many dead branches and fallen leaves, making it easy to set up tethering ropes.
“Young Master! A rabbit ran past!” a gray shadow flashed by, seen by a follower.
Ying Bai took out his bow and arrow and chased after it.
Ying Tong disdained small prey like rabbits and pheasants. He had only been in the mountains for a short while when he discovered a half-grown deer.
“You two flank it from the sides, and I’ll go through the middle!” Ying Tong instructed his followers. “Keep your eyes sharp and don’t let it escape!”
The deer’s hearing was very acute. Realizing the danger, it spread its hooves and began to run wildly.
Ying Tong pursued closely from behind, bow and arrow in hand. His first shot missed, and his second hit the deer but didn’t wound a vital spot. The deer continued to run forward with the arrow.
He nocked a third arrow and, as he was getting closer to the deer and about to shoot, he didn’t expect the horse beneath him to suddenly fall forward.
Due to inertia, he rolled off the horse. The arrow he hadn’t shot lodged in his own calf, and he cried out in pain.
Ying Bai, not far away, heard his scream and laughed triumphantly. Then, feeling it wasn’t satisfying enough, he let out a whistle.
