Chapter 48

Ji Weiqiu thought for a moment, then ordered: "Send more men into the forest to keep an eye on things. Don't let anything happen."

The Qingxuan Guard had come to report to Ji Weiqiu, seeking precisely this order, and immediately acknowledged it. Not long after the Qingxuan Guard left, Ji Weiqiu saw Zhang Er sauntering over. Ji Weiqiu couldn't help but laugh at the sight, calling out from afar, "You sure know how to enjoy life more than I do!"

From a distance, he could see an old, shiny black donkey. A servant boy held a fishing rod, dangling a bright, plump apple to lure the old donkey forward, which was pulling a cart. It was unclear where the donkey cart came from; it looked quite dilapidated, but it was covered with a fine silk cloak from Suzhou. Zhang Er was lying on his side on the flatbed cart with his legs crossed, holding a birdcage in one hand, whistling to tease the myna inside.

Zhang Er heard him and called back from the distance, "Yo—!"

Ji Weiqiu was about to stand up, but his body stiffened slightly, and he silently sat back down. 'Forget it, my leg hurts.' Just now, it hadn't seemed like much. Just a scraped leg, what could it do? Now he knew better. It wasn't just a scrape; it hurt so much that cold sweat broke out on his back.

He remembered scraping his leg when he learned to ride as a child. Why didn't it seem to hurt this much back then?

Zhang Er finally reached the front of the tent, hopped off the donkey cart, and pointed at Ji Weiqiu, starting in a sarcastic tone: "This commoner pays his respects to the Prince of Rui! For a personage as noble as Your Highness to deign to meet with a commoner like me is truly a blessing I've cultivated for ten thousand lifetimes!"

Ji Weiqiu leaned against a small table and raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. "Then why aren't you bowing? Did Prime Minister Gu not teach you any manners?"

"He really didn't." Zhang Er plopped down next to Ji Weiqiu, pointing at him and scolding with a laugh, "Do you have any idea how scared we were back then? We thought we had boarded some pirate ship!"

Ji Weiqiu laughed as well. "It was sudden."

He waved a hand, dismissing the attendants, and then lowered his voice. "Don't spread this around... I was knocked unconscious and taken away. I was their target. My Imperial Elder Brother was keeping me in the palace to recuperate."

The news Zhang Er had originally heard from his older brother was that there was an urgent matter in the capital, so Ji Weiqiu had returned to Yanjing overnight. As for what urgent matter, his brother had just rolled his eyes at him, implying he shouldn't pry into royal affairs. Now, hearing Ji Weiqiu's words, he was flabbergasted. "What the hell? You were injured?"

"Yeah, I was unconscious for five or six days." After Ji Weiqiu said this, he saw Zhang Er's eyes well up with emotion. He grabbed Ji Weiqiu and patted his shoulder hard. "Good brother! For the sake of our safety, you actually suffered such a huge loss! Brother! From now on, you're my real older brother!"

"Don't. The seniority would be complicated," Ji Weiqiu said, pushing him away coldly.

Zhang Er: "What's so complicated about it! I'll call you Big Brother, and I'll have my older brother call you brother too!"

"Alright," Ji Weiqiu sneered. "Don't you run off later. When my Imperial Elder Brother arrives, I'll take you to him and have my Imperial Elder Brother call you younger brother too."

"..." Zhang Er said meekly, "Let's just forget it then."

He wouldn't dare face the Emperor!

"You useless thing," Ji Weiqiu said, and a strange feeling arose in him—no wonder Ji Su was always scolding him like this, it actually felt pretty good!

Zhang Er laughed awkwardly and lifted his chin. "Why did you guys suddenly decide to go hunting today?"

"My Imperial Elder Brother and the Duke of Ying suddenly said they wanted to get some fresh air. How would I know?" Ji Weiqiu glanced at him, then suddenly realized something. "What, did we disturb your plans?"

Zhang Er nodded. "Of course you did. There was supposed to be a polo match today. I hadn't even left the house early this morning when someone reported that the match was canceled."

"Then why did you still come?"

Zhang Er rubbed his nose and said, "I figured I'd be coming to the hunting grounds today, so I stayed outside the city last night."

Ji Weiqiu already felt bad for his buddies, so he said, "Since you're already here, why not join me for a hunt in the forest?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Er shot Ji Weiqiu a disdainful look. "You?"

Zhang Er was the type who was clueless about the four arts of zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting, but proficient in archery and horsemanship. It was said that when he was young, Prime Minister Gu had arranged for his younger brother to follow the path of a civil official, which drove Zhang Er to the point of wanting to hang himself. Fortunately, archery was one of the Six Arts of a gentleman. Zhang Er seized this opportunity to play to his heart's content. In the end, he didn't learn the other things well, but he became exceptionally skilled in this area.

Ji Weiqiu glared at him irritably. "Are you coming or not?"

If it weren't for Zhang Er's sake, would he be riding and hunting in his condition? It wasn't an empty boast, but if Ji Su were here right now demanding he get on a horse and hunt, he would roll his eyes at Ji Su (in his mind).

Ji Su was in the forest today. If Zhang Er wasn't with him, how could he possibly go hunting in the forest? In his dreams! The hunting grounds were sealed off today; even going up the mountain was forbidden, let alone entering the forest. If Zhang Er could take a single step into the woods today, it would be a miracle!

Zhang Er knew this was the case and was just talking big. Ji Weiqiu strapped on his leg guards, only to be mocked by Zhang Er again. Ji Weiqiu looked at him with narrowed eyes, "If you're so tough, don't wear any!"

Zhang Er immediately lifted the hem of his robe, stepped onto the table, and slapped his own leg twice with a thud. "I'm not wearing any!"

Ji Weiqiu rolled his eyes at him. 'Everyone has their own strengths. One shouldn't compare their weaknesses to others' strengths, or they're just asking for trouble!'

That's what he told himself, but it didn't stop Ji Weiqiu from grimacing in pain as he mounted his horse. Zhang Er saw it and knew what was going on. He let out another round of heartless laughter and galloped away.

Ji Weiqiu could only grit his teeth and follow. While enduring the immense pain, he said to the Qingxuan Guard beside him, "How about we just bury this stinking brat Zhang Er here?"

Without a second thought, the Qingxuan Guard replied, "Yes!"

"Yes what! Come back!" Ji Weiqiu was starting to get a headache. "Can't you tell I'm joking!"

The Qingxuan Guard: "..."

They sent a signal before entering the forest, so the other guards inside knew Ji Weiqiu had entered. His procession of men, horses, and a few dogs was conspicuous enough to avoid accidental injury. Before long, several hounds running alongside the horses began to bark furiously. They changed direction and darted into the dense woods. Zhang Er reined in his horse, took out an arrow, and nocked his bow as fast as lightning, his eyes fixed on the vegetation.

The sound of barking faded into the distance, then grew closer again. A few faint sounds were heard, like footsteps on snow. Zhang Er's ears twitched. He drew his bow into a full moon. With a sudden whoosh, the arrow shot like a bolt of lightning into the bushes. A flash of yellow appeared from behind a tree, struck by the arrow. The deer's cry was cut off halfway, and then there was silence. The hounds followed close behind, sinking their teeth into the arrow-stricken deer and dragging it towards Zhang Er.

Zhang Er gently flicked the reins, and his steed galloped forward. He bent down, grabbed the deer by its ears, and with a powerful heave, threw the small deer onto the horse's back. Only then did everyone see clearly that the arrow had pierced straight through the base of the deer's ear. It was a single, fatal shot!

Even among the Qingxuan Guard, few possessed such archery skills. The men on either side couldn't help but shout, "Excellent archery—!"

"Young Master Zhang Er has great arm strength!"

Zhang Er rode back, raising an eyebrow at Ji Weiqiu with a smug look on his face. "You should know who you're dealing with!"

Ji Weiqiu said weakly, "Alright, alright, you're amazing. Don't just stand there, hurry up. What we eat tonight depends on you."

"Leave it to me!" Zhang Er declared with a loud laugh before galloping off again. Ji Weiqiu was truly just there to keep him company. However, there was a limit to how fast one could ride in the forest. After enduring the initial wave of pain, Ji Weiqiu felt his wound hurt less. Watching Zhang Er dominate the hunt up ahead was rather amusing.

He himself was too lazy to hunt; there would be too much game to eat anyway—it was definitely not because he couldn't compete with Zhang Er!

The group rode through the forest for nearly an hour, and somehow never ran into Ji Su and his party, though they weren't too far apart, occasionally hearing the faint sound of dogs barking. Perhaps they had gone too deep into the woods, so Zhang Er called for a guide to lead them to the nearest water source. There was no need to hunt anymore. The pheasants and wild rabbits Zhang Er had caught were cleaned on the spot. They started a bonfire by the lake to roast a few and satisfy their cravings first.

There were people in the retinue responsible for cooking, so the two of them just had to wait to eat.

"Refreshing!" Zhang Er gulped down half a waterskin in one go, then clapped his hands and laughed. "I told them to come, but they all said they were busy. See, they missed out, right? Wow, look, the rabbits and chickens are so plump! They're dripping with fat!—You over there, slaughter another deer, slice it thin, and roast it! Let's all eat together, brothers!"

The group all thanked Zhang Er. Zhang Er turned his head and saw that Ji Weiqiu's face was a little pale, so he couldn't help asking, "Not feeling well?"

"No, just hungry." Ji Weiqiu yawned. It was almost time for his afternoon nap, and he hadn't eaten yet, so of course he was hungry. He, like Ji Su, had learned to live a very healthy lifestyle, eating his three meals at fixed times. Suddenly being hungry today made him feel a little flustered.

Zhang Er patted his shoulder with a look of pity. "Brother, you need to take good care of yourself. It's not good to be failing at such a young age!"

"Get lost!" Ji Weiqiu scolded with a laugh.

A streak of red appeared in the clear stream, then grew thicker. Ji Weiqiu rested his chin on his hand, watched the water, and asked, "Just like that? Won't it attract some ferocious beasts?"

"Ferocious beasts? What ferocious beasts?" Zhang Er didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "With so many of us, even if a bear came, it would be a one-way trip! What normal wild animal would dare approach a group this large? Besides, isn't there food over there? Why hunt for themselves when there's a ready-made meal?"

Zhang Er lifted his chin. Conditions were simple out here. They let the stream carry away the less desirable parts of the carcasses. If any ferocious beast was really out there, it just had to wait downstream for a full meal.

The smell of blood rose, becoming thick and pungent. Ji Weiqiu stood up. "I'm going to relieve myself."

Hearing this, Zhang Er also got up. "Together, together, I need to take a leak too!"

Someone had already set up a tent-like enclosure with linen cloth to the side, with a pit dug underneath. Zhang Er followed Ji Weiqiu inside. After relieving themselves, he casually kicked some dirt over it. The moment they stepped out of the enclosure, Zhang Er abruptly looked up towards the treetops.

Ji Weiqiu looked up too, but saw nothing. He asked puzzledly, "What are you looking at?"

Zhang Er pointed upwards. "Why do I see a small black cat up there?"

As he spoke, Ji Weiqiu also heard meowing. He looked up and indeed saw a small black cat amidst a cluster of leaves.

"Looks like it can't get down," Zhang Er said. "You wait here, I'll go up and get it."

Ji Weiqiu gestured for him to go ahead. Zhang Er scrambled up the tree in a flash. The little black cat was quite agile, leaping and bounding about, making it impossible for Zhang Er to catch it. When he finally managed to grab the kitten and was about to show it off to Ji Weiqiu, he saw Ji Weiqiu staring fixedly to the side.

"What are you looking at?"

Ji Weiqiu said slowly, "Didn't you say... the ferocious beasts wouldn't dare come over?"

Then what the hell was that black panther standing face-to-face with him?! Huh?