Chapter 7: Spring Hunt (1)

Chapter 7: Spring Hunt (1)

Qin Zhonglian strolled in casually from the back door.

"Ugh, what a waste."

"Yeah, seriously a waste. I really thought it was real."

???

What's a waste? Did he miss something?

The two of them walked over with their arms around each other's shoulders, gave Qin Zhonglian a heavy pat on the chest, their faces complicated, like they wanted to say something but held back—just sighing.

Huh? Directed at me?

Qin Zhonglian was totally lost, scratching his head in confusion.

Chen Shuoan, seeing that Qin Zhonglian—the other main character—still had no clue what was going on, couldn't help but sigh with tears, thinking ignorance is bliss.

Little Qin, there's no such thing as peaceful times—I'm the one carrying the weight for you.

"Brother Shuo'an! What's your plan for tomorrow's spring hunt? When we get to the hunting grounds, we've gotta pick out a good horse first." Zheng Yuanzhi reached out from behind and slung an arm around Chen Shuoan's shoulder, leaning in like they were best buds.

Chen Shuoan replied sheepishly, "No plan, really. Just hoping I don't die."

Zheng Yuanzhi was speechless.

"The hunt's a real spectacle—the young lords compete to see who bags the most game, and the winner gets to ask the Emperor for a reward. Aren't you excited?"

Excited about what? Excited to meet the Grim Reaper?

Chen Shuoan shook his head calmly, voicing his concern: "I'm a little worried."

Zheng Yuanzhi took a deep breath and gave a dry reassurance: "Don't worry."

"I'm also a little scared."

"Don't be scared."

Chen Shuoan turned to look at Zheng Yuanzhi's slightly clueless face, smiled, and said, "Get lost." Dense straight guy.

————

The next morning.

Yuan Rang looked at the dazed figure shuffling out of the side room, long used to the sight.

Chen Shuoan stumbled over to Yuan Rang and mumbled, "You've secretly gotten more handsome again, bro."

"..." Yuan Rang pressed his lips together, not really wanting to respond.

To be fair, you couldn't really blame Chen Shuoan for saying that.

His Highness the Sixth Prince was dressed today in a black brocade robe with gold-embroidered cuffs, making him look tall and striking. His face was still somewhat youthful, but his features were already sharpening—sword-like brows and starry eyes, undeniably handsome!

Chen Shuoan chuckled to himself, feeling like his everyday meals were practically a royal feast.

Without warning, a eunuch appeared at the corner of the hallway and, passing by Chen Shuoan, greeted him.

Chen Shuoan gave the man a thorough once-over.

This one's unfamiliar, he thought.

But he didn't think much of it—he'd only been here a few days; there was no way he'd met everyone in the palace.

The eunuch hurried over to Yuan Rang's side, bowed at a right angle, and spoke with utmost deference: "Your Highness, the Empress has some matters to discuss. Please accompany me to Xianfang Hall."

Though he didn't explicitly urge haste, his words carried an unmistakable note of urgency.

But this was exactly the time they were supposed to leave. Chen Shuoan looked toward Yuan Rang in surprise.

Yuan Rang, of course, remained expressionless. He took a long stride forward, moving ahead of the eunuch.

"Take Young Master Chen to Shenyin Mountain. The road is long," Yuan Rang said, pausing briefly before adding, "Assign some people. Don't let him get too tired."

"Yes."

Once Jili acknowledged the order, Yuan Rang turned and strode quickly toward Xianfang Hall.

As he passed Chen Shuoan, the gust from his robes sent the messy hair on top of the young man's head swaying.

And the owner of that messy hair felt his mood swaying too.

What does this mean? He's been assigned?

Jili stepped forward to lead the way, reminding him, "Young Master Chen, please follow me to the hunting grounds."

Chen Shuoan snapped back to reality and asked groggily, "And what about the Sixth Prince?"

The sky wasn't fully light yet as Chen Shuoan trailed behind Jili, following step by step.

His figure faded into the shadows as a thin, reedy voice came from ahead: "No need to worry about His Highness."

————

By the time Chen Shuoan arrived at the foot of Shenyin Mountain, he spotted Zheng Yuanzhi and the others arriving at the same time.

Zheng Yuanzhi was naturally overjoyed and enthusiastically invited his classmates to hike up the mountain together.

Chen Shuoan had no objections—staying with Jili would leave him dying to talk.

So the whole group set off in high spirits.

The weather was clear, and after the start of spring, temperatures had risen. The wildflowers on the mountain were blooming profusely.

The birds in the woods didn't seem afraid of people, flying low and sometimes even landing on shoulders to peck at clothes.

Chen Shuoan was in a great mood.

After two hours of climbing, his mood started to sour.

"Where are we now?" Chen Shuoan asked, exhausted, parched, and about to collapse.

"About halfway up," Zheng Yuanzhi panted, taking a moment to rest and drink water.

Chen Shuoan's vision went dark at that, wishing he could just pass out right there.

"Brother Chen! Brother Zheng! Brother Li!"

Just then, a shout full of youthful vigor came from not far away.

Before they could turn around to see who it was, a carriage sped past the three of them, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"That's Zhang Chenggong." Li Wei said through clenched teeth, watching the carriage grow distant.

Chen Shuoan stared, dumbfounded: "Wait, why? He's riding in a carriage?"

Zheng Yuanzhi shook his head and explained, "His elder sister is probably in that carriage. That guy's probably just tagging along thanks to the women in his family."

"..."

The three of them fell silent.

Li Wei suddenly spoke up: "Would you slap Zhang Chenggong in the face for a thousand gold coins?"

Zheng Yuanzhi chuckled slyly: "Forget the thousand gold—slapping him ten times would be a piece of cake."

Chen Shuoan lowered his head in thought, feeling Zheng Yuanzhi was wrong, and corrected him: "You can't just set that aside."

"..." Another awkward silence.

Chen Shuoan thought numbly to himself, his own failure was certainly dreadful, but his friend's success was even more agonizing.

Zhang Chenggong is no real man.