kvmb Chapter 147 Easy Success
Chapter 147 Easy Success
Inside the tent at the Gu residence, Gu Chang'an was handling official business under the illumination of a night-shining pearl, while Shen Li was holding a book beside him, claiming to be reading but unable to concentrate on a single word.
She was furious. Li Heng, that despicable scoundrel, had actually set his sights on her sister. He was truly a vile creature.
At that moment, Lian Qiao lifted the tent flap and came in, handing Gu Chang'an a note: "My lord, this was sent by a Flying Fish Guard."
"Okay, let's go down."
Gu Chang'an put down his pen and took the note. It was in Zhao Jing's handwriting and read: 'As you predicted, sir.'
He smiled, took out a tinderbox, and burned the note.
Shen Li wasn't curious about the contents, since Gu Chang'an always had some information secretly leaked in.
"Ah Li." Gu Chang'an walked to the bedding that was temporarily laid on the ground.
Shen Li's expression softened when she saw him approaching, and she asked, "Have you finished your official duties?"
"I'm waiting for news." Gu Chang'an sat down beside her and whispered in her ear, "Li Heng doesn't have a chance for now, A-Li, don't worry."
"You laid a hand on him?" Shen Li paused for a moment, then remembered that he had spent half an hour alone with Emperor Cheng that afternoon.
He probably said something.
Gu Chang'an then explained the whole story.
What the emperor feared most was not the crown prince's incompetence, but the division of power; the crown prince's excessive ambition was a major taboo.
Li Heng was too eager to turn the tide, which backfired.
“His comings and goings to the Shen family are not for those students, but for my sister.” After analyzing, Shen Li even laughed: “My husband is indeed a judicial officer, he can get her with ease.”
"You laughed?" Gu Chang'an breathed a sigh of relief. "You haven't laughed all afternoon, which really left me at a loss."
He spent the entire afternoon reviewing official documents at a much slower pace, constantly concerned about Ah Li's condition. He knew that saying more would be pointless, but silently staying by her side also required composure.
However, he had absolutely no self-control in front of Ah Li, and the afternoon seemed to pass extremely slowly.
"I'm sorry to have worried you, my husband." Shen Li reassured him, "I'm much better now, let's rest."
"Wait a minute." Gu Chang'an quickly stopped her when he saw her undressing.
"What's wrong?" Shen Li asked, puzzled.
"It's a bit chilly, let me warm the blankets before you sleep." Gu Chang'an took off his clothes.
Shen Li rolled her eyes and said, "Then I'll help my husband take it off."
"Uh, okay... thank you, A-Li..." Gu Chang'an swallowed.
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
The next afternoon, they arrived at the hunting grounds, which consisted of several large mountains that had been fenced off as a royal garden. A section of the area where the mountains met had been cordoned off, and non-pregnant animals had already been captured and placed there, awaiting the opening ceremony the following day.
Shen Li took Shen Yue for a walk by the river and found that the child was a little sullen.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Yesterday, Her Majesty the Empress said that women will eventually end up in the inner quarters, even someone like Sister Wan'er who has made great achievements." Shen Yue's voice was also muffled, clearly indicating that she had given it a lot of thought.
Shen Li didn't know how to answer for a moment.
"She's wrong, I won't." A cold voice sounded from behind them. The two turned around and saw Lin Wan'er leading a group of Shenji Battalion soldiers.
She told the soldiers to stay put, and then walked over to look at the flowing river: "If there is no road, I will make one. Even if I die of old age in the backyard, it will be after I can no longer hold a gun."
"Miss Lin." Shen Li and Shen Yue addressed each other with a rather distant tone.
There were people around.
"Madam Gu, Sister Shen, how have you been?" Lin Wan'er approached and greeted them casually.
Shen Yue felt inspired by Lin Wan'er's words and her spirits immediately lifted.
After exchanging a few casual words, Shen Li lowered her voice and said, "I need your help."
Lin Wan'er rarely heard her say something like that, and agreed without even hearing the content.
The two exchanged a few more words before parting ways, seemingly just a chance encounter and a casual chat.
Little did they know that Lin Wan'er had deliberately gone around to see Shen Li.
The next morning, everyone, including the emperor, changed into military attire. Emperor Cheng even went hunting with them for the first two days, catching a rabbit and a deer, which drew praise from all the officials.
After the two matches, Emperor Cheng was exhausted. His body had been overdrawn by years of taking elixirs. With the help of Consort Zheng, he sat on the dragon throne.
"I will not participate in the third round, but I have prepared a prize for you all. There is an unusual deer here. Whoever can shoot it will be allowed to make one request. As long as it is not too unreasonable, I will definitely fulfill it," Emperor Cheng said loudly.
After the princes and ministers expressed their gratitude, they mounted their horses. However, seeing the Crown Prince and Prince Yi joining them, they dared not shoot down even if they encountered them.
"Madam Gu, it's a rare opportunity to compete with you in riding and archery. Would you like to have a contest with me?" Lin Wan'er said to Shen Li after mounting her horse.
Shen Li was truly unwilling to admit defeat, so she raised her head and said, "Okay."
Although the sound wasn't loud, everyone present could hear it clearly, and it was something they were used to.
The two beauties of Kyoto are better at everything they do, except that Shen Li is stronger in poetry and literature, while Lin Wan'er is definitely stronger in archery and horsemanship.
The gap is obvious.
With a command from Emperor Cheng, the flag was waved, and the men spurred their horses and charged into the woods in front of them.
It didn't say which direction the deer was in; it just depended on who was lucky enough to encounter it and shoot it, so there was a lot of gambling involved.
However, after entering the forest, the Crown Prince and Prince Yi turned their horses around and headed west. Their Imperial Guards had many spies, and the approximate location of the deer had been determined long ago.
Shen Li and Lin Wan'er continued northwards. Their horses were faster and their riding skills were better, so they quickly left the others traveling north behind.
Along the way, Lin Wan'er drew her bow and shot down any small animal that ran fast.
The arrows were engraved with names, and someone would come later to count the spoils.
Shen Li also drew her bow and nocked an arrow, pulling the bowstring taut. The arrow was much faster than Lin Wan'er's, but her accuracy was poor, and she didn't hit a single target.
She wasn't surprised, after all, she hadn't hit the target in the previous two rounds, and she couldn't even hit the target at home, let alone the target that was moving so fast.
"Come with me." After having her fill of pleasure, Lin Wan'er turned her horse around and headed west.
Shen Li followed, her target being the unusual deer.
She couldn't let Prince Yi, especially the Crown Prince, get the girl. If the Crown Prince proposed in public, the situation would be difficult to manage.
Moreover, she had already figured out how to use this wish.
The nobles and royalty who came did not venture so deep into the mountains and forests, so later on there were hardly any people to be seen, only animals running around.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh." Whenever she had the chance, Lin Wan'er would shoot out some arrows and bring down a batch of prey. She was truly unerring in her arrows.
Shen Li shot a few arrows at first, but later she stopped moving around because she couldn't hit anything.
After running for a while, Shen Li still hadn't seen the special deer. She even started to worry about Shen Yue, whom she had left behind. Could that girl manage on her own? Would she listen to Lian Qiao?
"Don't worry, I'm sure it's on this side. Last night I secretly gave that deer some medicine to make it lethargic, so it won't go far," Lin Wan'er reassured her after seeing her turn around twice.
"Oooooooo-"
Before Shen Li could speak, she suddenly heard the sound of a horse neighing, followed by many people calling out, "Your Highness, Your Highness."
The voices behind them were drowned out by the sound of horses' hooves passing by in the distance, and Lin Wan'er couldn't hear what they were shouting.
"The horse suddenly went berserk, and King Yi fell off." Shen Li said.