Chapter 74 Imperial Shooting
The day of piano and music verification ended with everyone sighing.

No matter what, Jiang Li's "Eighteen Hujia Beats" that day became a hot topic among the people of Yanjing City. The suspicion about the upper three gates was dissipated for a while. And the piano skills displayed by Jiang Li also made many people begin to re-examine the bet between Miss Jiang Er and the daughter of the Meng family. In the gambling house, some people even began to choose to bet on Jiang Li to win.

These changes were gradual, yet pervasive. It seemed that everyone had reached a consensus overnight: Jiang Li was no worse than other noble ladies in Yanjing.

This is a good change for Jiang Li, but not for some people. Not to mention the other female students of Mingyi Hall who were stepped on by Jiang Li, even the other owner of the bet, Meng Hongjin, was also feeling uneasy at the moment.

At the Meng family, Meng Youde had not returned yet, and Meng's mother was also sitting in the hall sighing. Meng Hongjin locked herself in her boudoir, upset and knocked over all the paper and pens on the table, her face showing annoyance, but if you look closely, there is a hint of panic in that annoyance.

Unconsciously, things have come to this point. Meng Hongjin still feels like a dream when she thinks about it now. She can't understand why something that was originally a done deal has become what it is now. She has heard from the servants' private gossip about her bet with Jiang Li. Now people in major gambling houses have started to buy Jiang Li. What does this mean? This means that, at least in the eyes of outsiders, she may lose to Jiang Li.

In fact, it was not only outsiders who thought so, but also Meng Hongjin herself, whose initial confidence had long since disappeared. Meng Hongjin understood that she was probably deceived by Jiang Li. The so-called "knowing nothing" and "knowing nothing" were just lies made up by Jiang Li to deceive her. Jiang Li probably had the intention of making her look bad from the beginning, so she dug a trap and used provocation to force her into the game. In fact, Jiang Li knew everything.

But the words had already been spoken, and the entire Yanjing City knew about the bet between him and Jiang Li. It was too late to withdraw the bet now.

The maidservant beside her advised: "Miss, don't worry too much. Tomorrow you will compete in the two events of imperial archery, which you are best at. As long as you win first place in these two events, Miss Jiang will not be the first."

"If I'm not first, I lose too." Meng Hongjin said coldly. In Jiang Li's bet, if she was not last in Mingyi Hall, he would kneel down and apologize to her. If Jiang Li was better than him, he would kneel down and apologize to her at the gate of the Imperial College. If she was not only better than him, but also the first in the entire school exam, he would take off his outer clothes at the gate of the Imperial College to apologize to her!
Three bets, one more vicious than the other. Now Jiang Li is the champion in the first four items, so she is definitely not the last one, and she is better than herself. Even if she wins the first place in the two items of imperial archery, at most Jiang Li will not win the championship. According to the bet, Meng Hongjin will have to kneel down at the gate of the Imperial College to apologize to Jiang Li.

Meng Hongjin could not accept the situation she had ended up in.

If he didn't want to lose his reputation, he would have to find a reason to break the bet, but if he did that, wouldn't he become the laughing stock of the entire Yanjing City?
I must never let that happen!

Suddenly, a cold thought came into Meng Hongjin's mind again.

In the imperial archery field, swords and arrows are blind. There were also women who were thrown off their horses in the inspection field, but their injuries were not too serious. They were just frightened and recovered after a few days at home. But if Jiang Li was unlucky and was thrown off her horse in the inspection field, not to mention breaking her neck and dying, even if she broke her legs and was unable to walk for the rest of her life, or was scratched on the face by a sharp stone on the ground and disfigured? There is also archery. If someone "misses", Jiang Li herself will be injured by someone else's arrow in the chaos, which is also a good thing.

In this way, Jiang Li will not be able to appear in front of everyone for a short time, and no one will mention the bet again. Now that the person is useless, who will care about the bet?
The more Meng Hongjin thought about it, the more excited she became. She seemed to have seen Jiang Li's miserable appearance, and she couldn't help laughing. She was very skilled in the imperial shooting, so it was easy for her to do something.

The maid in the room looked at Meng Hongjin's somewhat ferocious smile and felt inexplicably frightened. She lowered her head involuntarily and dared not look at her master again.

……

Like Meng Hongjin, there was also Jiang Youyao who was unhappy because Jiang Liqin won the first place.

In Yaoguang Pavilion, the maids knelt on the ground. Miss Jiang San was unhappy, so she found a random excuse to punish all the servants in the room.

As soon as Ji Shuran entered the room, she saw Jiang Youyao overturning a celadon vase.

The vase was broken all over the floor. Ji Shuran frowned, stepped carefully over the broken pieces, and told a nearby maid to clean it up quickly. Jiang Youyao turned around and found Ji Shuran's arrival.

Ji Shuran didn't say anything, just stared at Jiang Youyao. This beautiful woman who always looked kind was very powerful when she got angry. Jiang Youyao shrank and called out, "Mom."

"What are you doing?" Ji Shuran pressed her forehead, walked to the couch in the room and sat down, shaking her head and said, "Your father will be unhappy if he sees you like this."

"Dad has disliked me for a long time," Jiang Youyao bit her lip and said, "He has been bewitched by that little bitch Jiang Li for a long time now, and he listens to Jiang Li in everything!"

"I've told you so many times that girls should be careful about their words and deeds," Ji Shuran said sternly, "If someone else heard you saying this, I don't know how much trouble it would cause."

"I know, mother, I was just saying it in front of you." Jiang Youyao said angrily, "I was really angry. You saw it today. Jiang Li was clearly against me. I have always been good at playing the zither, but today she surpassed me. Now the whole city of Yanjing knows that this Second Miss Jiang is much better at playing the zither than me. What should I do in the future?"

"Don't worry..."

"Now her piano skills are better than mine, but who knows what will surpass me in the future? She just wants me to be her stepping stone. Mother, you didn't see it today, but Prince Zhou was staring at her. This bitch, she wanted to seduce Prince Zhou, and she still won't give up!" She gritted her teeth at the end, making people suspect that if Jiang Li was in front of her, Jiang Youyao would tear her to pieces.

Ji Shuran was slightly startled, and at this moment she didn't care about Jiang Youyao's words and actions, so she just asked, "Are you telling the truth?"

"Really." Jiang Youyao said aggrievedly: "She wants to replace me and become the legitimate daughter of the Jiang family's eldest house again. Mother, didn't you say that there is only one legitimate daughter of the eldest house, and that is me? No one can take away my things, but now my fiancé is about to be taken away by Jiang Li, mother, how can I not care?"

Ji Shuran was shocked. Jiang Youyao's words, "No one can take away my things," pierced her heart.

Looking back, she saw that Jiang Youyao was indeed very sad, with red eyes. Ji Shuran couldn't help but feel soft in her heart, and then she sighed and said, "Nonsense, how could the Ningyuan Marquis's son be snatched away by someone? Let alone other things, the Zhou family has changed the engagement once before, and the engagement is no joke, how could it be changed again and again? Besides, how can Jiang Li's reputation compare to yours? I have met the Ningyuan Marquis's wife, and their family also likes you. If the engagement is changed again, where will our Jiang family be placed, and your father will not allow it. Youyao, don't worry, no one can snatch Zhou Yanbang away."

"But Prince Zhou has been bewitched by Jiang Li..." Jiang Youyao was still unwilling to accept it.

"How can she be worth even a hair of yours? You are overthinking." Ji Shuran said with a smile, "If he had Jiang Li in his heart, he wouldn't have never mentioned Jiang Li in the past eight years. Does he look like someone who has a crush on her?"

Jiang Youyao felt better after hearing this.

Ji Shuran was thinking in her heart, she said this to comfort Jiang Youyao, but if what Jiang Youyao said was true, and Zhou Yanbang really had feelings for Jiang Li, then she needed to be alert. Although it was common for a man to have three wives and four concubines, Ji Shuran felt a lump in her throat just thinking about Zhou Yanbang marrying his daughter with Jiang Li in mind.

"But you are right. Jiang Li really cannot stay." Ji Shuran said, "I originally thought that if she was obedient, she could be of use to us in the future. But now it seems that she is not content. She has just returned to the mansion and has caused chaos. If she stays, she will be a disaster."

"Mom, are we going to deal with her?" Jiang Youyao's eyes lit up when she heard that and she asked immediately.

"I told you," Ji Shuran stroked Jiang Youyao's hair with a smile, "Jiang Li is too ostentatious, which makes her more jealous. Don't worry, she has offended people by being so prominent this time. Some people want her to disappear more than we do. You just wait and see tomorrow's shooting."

Jiang Youyao was puzzled: "Is there anyone who wants to deal with Jiang Li too?"

"Youyao, you have to remember this." Ji Shuran did not answer Jiang Youyao's words, but only said: "The best way is to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight without bloodshed."

Jiang Youyao nodded, not quite understanding.

……

In the Jiang Mansion, Jiang Youyao was unhappy, but in Fangfei Garden, everyone was happy.

Jiang Jingrui had become a regular at Fangfei Garden. Even Bai Xue knew that he liked to drink tea that was not bitter, so she poured a large spoonful of honey into the teacup.

"I say, my uncle and aunt are so unkind," Jiang Jingrui said, "You won first place in the piano competition, but you didn't even get any gifts." He spread his hands, "Every year when Jiang Youyao won first place, she received all the rewards." He stared at Jiang Li carefully, "They are all my uncle's daughters, why is there such a big difference? Could it be that... you are not actually a member of the Jiang family?"

This person's words were really unpleasant to hear, as if they were deliberately coming to stab someone in the heart. Tong'er was so angry that she almost cursed, and Bai Xue also frowned.

Jiang Li looked at him quietly and said, "Maybe."

"Huh?" Jiang Jingrui was surprised, "Why aren't you angry?"

"There's nothing to be angry about." She was not a member of the Jiang family.

"You are really well-mannered." Jiang Jingrui shrugged, and suddenly thought of something, and laughed unceremoniously, "When I think of Jiang Youyao's expression today, I want to laugh--"

Jiang Li almost suspected that Jiang Youyao had seriously offended Jiang Jingrui, otherwise why would Jiang Jingrui not wish her well.

"By the way, what are you going to do tomorrow?" Jiang Jingrui asked, "Tomorrow is Archery, you..." He looked Jiang Li up and down and shook his head, "You can't win this, right?"

Jiang Jingrui was surprised that Jiang Li won first place in the music competition, surpassing Jiang Youyao, but it was not unbelievable. Because Jiang Jingrui himself knew nothing about music, he did not understand what it meant for Jiang Li to play a complete and wonderful "Eighteen Beats of the Hujia". But Jiang Jingrui had also gone to horse racing and archery with a group of his friends. Because he learned it so-so, he knew how difficult it was, so he came to advise Jiang Li.

"When you get on the horse, take a few steps, then pretend to be exhausted and admit defeat, or don't compare yourself with others. I see many of the young ladies in Mingyi Hall every year do this. Sometimes they don't run at all in the end, and just walk slowly all the way to the finish line. That's not good enough." He shook his head, "You girls shouldn't try too hard. Protecting yourself is the most important thing. The inspection field is so big. If you fall and get hurt, it will not be worth it."

After listening to his words, Jiang Li knew that Jiang Jingrui also meant well, and thought to herself that Jiang Jingrui and Xue Zhao were different after all.

If it were Xue Zhao, he would definitely say: "Since you are going to compete with others, of course you have to learn well. If you fall and get hurt, it will be no joke. So you must practice riding and archery to the best of your ability, so that if anything happens, you will be able to cope with it. What's wrong with a girl? A girl has to fight too!"

Jiang Li couldn't help but laugh.

"What are you laughing at?" Jiang Jingrui asked curiously, "Is what I said funny? Did you hear what I just said? Jiang Li, I am here to give you some advice because we are relatives. If you are so stubborn, don't come to me and cry."

"Don't worry, I definitely won't look for you." Jiang Li said.

"You!" Jiang Jingrui flicked his sleeves, "I can't argue with you, so do whatever you want!" He stood up angrily and walked out, but stopped halfway and said, "My equestrian master is in the mansion. If you want to find him later, just go directly. I have already greeted him. At least you won't be thrown off the horse after you get on." After saying this, Jiang Jingrui really left.

"Miss," Tong'er said worriedly, "Is archery really that dangerous? Or don't go." She and Jiang Li had been in the nunnery for eight years, so she knew that Jiang Li had never learned any archery skills. Although Jiang Li had never learned music, books, or rituals, those things wouldn't be dangerous, so she just competed. Once it came to danger, Tong'er would always be worried.

"It's okay." Jiang Li said, "I have my own ideas." She vaguely guessed why Ji Shuran's attitude towards her was uncharacteristically bad during the day. Since the inspection field was full of dangers and danger could occur at any time, the danger that occurred at that time was just an accident.

"Accidents" can happen at any time.

But she is not afraid of accidents because she can handle them well.

This is the confidence.

……

In the west of Yanjing City, in the residence of Duke Su, it was also quiet at this moment.

Duke Su liked colorful things, so his mansion was complex and magnificent, and was renovated in an extremely exquisite and luxurious way. In front of the gate was the Anding River, and there were countless gorgeous buildings beside the river, but these small buildings with upturned corners and flying eaves were not as conspicuous as the vermilion mansion.

Today, there was no familiar opera singing coming from the Duke's Mansion, and it was so quiet that it was somewhat unbelievable.

The old general, the grandfather of Duke Su, Ji Heng, Ji Dachuan, was squatting in the yard practicing with his sword. The yard was very spacious, surrounded by fragrant flowers and plants, many of which were rare species. However, the wind from Ji Dachuan's sword chopped off many of them, and they fell to the ground, so fragile that it made people feel sad.

The guards hiding on the eaves immediately cried out in pains. This batch of cosmos chrysanthemums were imported products that the Duke had bought from sea merchants at a huge price. After carefully caring for them for several months, they finally produced a few flower buds. However, they were ruined by the old general. When the Duke saw this, he had to "forgive" them.

It's really terrible.

Ji Dachuan is now over sixty, but his body is still strong and powerful. He has white hair and a youthful face, and you can vaguely see that he was a handsome man in his past. Therefore, although he is old, he is still an old handsome man. There are wrinkles on his face, but his eyes are still bright. In summer, he is shirtless, with a piece of red brocade tied on his wrist, holding a knife in each hand, and practicing double swords.

If this continues, all of the Persian chrysanthemums in the Duke's army will be killed. A seemingly honest guard could no longer bear it and finally stood up to stop Ji Dachuan's behavior. He said, "General, it's already late. Let's go eat first."

Ji Dachuan paused for a moment after hearing this, then quickly retracted the two scimitars in his hands and asked, "Where's that bastard Ji Heng?"

The guard said: "...My lord has just returned home."

"Didn't he go to listen to someone playing the piano today? Who played it well?" Ji Dachuan's voice was loud, but his words sounded as if Ji Heng went to a brothel to listen to some folk songs today, and came back to talk about which girl sang well and was pretty.

The guard held back and said, "The second daughter of the Prime Minister Jiang family won the first place."

"Second Miss?" Ji Dachuan said as he put on his clothes and walked out, "I don't know her. She's from the Prime Minister's family, Jiang Oogway..."

The guard looked at the fallen flowers on the ground and sighed helplessly.

In the room, Ji Heng leaned on the couch, playing with the fan nonchalantly.

If anyone could enter Ji Heng's room, they would be shocked. The study room of this Duke Su, who likes extravagance and splendor, is surprisingly plain, even solemn. The entire study room is spacious to the point of being almost empty, all made of black and white pear wood, without any extra decorations, making people feel empty.

However, when my eyes fell on his handsome face, I suddenly felt that the empty house became full of contentment.

The lamp gave off a subtle glow, and there was someone sitting in the room.

Lu Ji was still wearing a green shirt and had a goatee. He smiled and said, "Your Excellency went to the inspection field today. How about watching the piano music?"

"It's very boring." Ji Heng said lazily.

"But you still have to watch the imperial archery tomorrow. Thank you very much."

Ji Heng raised his eyelids, seeming a little impatient.

He is not only an examiner for the zither music, but also an examiner for the imperial archery. Therefore, he has to go to the calibration site for the imperial archery tomorrow.

"Why does Your Majesty want me to be the examiner?" Lu Ji wondered.

Ji Heng said: "Lu Ji, I didn't recruit you to ask you questions."

Lu Ji's heart trembled, and he heard the person in front of him answer casually: "Because the emperor wants me to keep an eye on King Cheng."

King Cheng? Lu Ji was stunned, then suddenly realized. Although Emperor Hong Xiao is now the emperor, the crown prince is still young, and King Cheng is always a thorn in the eyes of Emperor Hong Xiao. But King Cheng has the support of Concubine Liu behind him, and Emperor Hong Xiao is a "benevolent ruler". He can't find any handle on King Cheng, so he can only let King Cheng live for the time being. But it is difficult for a monarch to rest assured. Since King Cheng came to watch the inspection, Emperor Hong Xiao simply let Ji Heng come as well.

However, Lu Ji could not help but glance at the young man in front of him. Emperor Hong Xiao probably didn't know that the power of King Cheng today was all supported by Ji Heng.

Let Ji Heng keep an eye on King Cheng? It would be better if Ji Heng did not take the opportunity to help King Cheng expand his power.

"The Right Prime Minister and King Cheng are very good," Ji Heng said nonchalantly, "I think the Secretary of the Central Secretariat will be appointed soon."

"Shen Yurong?" Lu Ji said, "It seems that he and Princess Yongning..." Lu Ji was shocked when he thought about the inside story. After all, she was a princess of a country, and it was unbelievable that she did such a shameful thing.

"This is a good show, but I've seen it too much and I'm a little tired. Let them be." Ji Heng unfolded the folding fan in her hand. On the fan were hand-painted large, rich and elegant peonies with curled petals. They were lifelike and sparkling because of the gold wire material.

"Then tomorrow..."

"Prince Cheng will not be stupid enough to take action in the inspection field. The emperor is too worried." Ji Heng said, "It's okay for me to go, but," he said, "you should pay more attention to Ye Shijie's movements."

"What's the problem with Ye Shijie?" Lu Ji said, "He is now the top student in the Imperial College and will soon be an official. He may be very useful in the future."

"No matter what the future holds, he suddenly distanced himself from Li Lian," Ji Heng said with a playful smile, "I also want to know who is reminding him behind the scenes."

Lu Ji was stunned and stopped talking.

……

Jiang Li slept soundly that night.

She even had a dream in which Xue Zhao and she were riding horses, running through the woods. Xue Zhao's quiver was running low on arrows, so he asked her for a few more. The bag on her horse's back was full of prey.

Just as the two of them were about to go back, a tiger suddenly jumped out of the woods. In order to protect her, Xue Zhao rode his horse to lead the tiger away. Jiang Li couldn't catch up and could only watch Xue Zhao's back gradually disappear from her sight.

When she woke up, she was sweating all over, which surprised Tong'er. She hurriedly fiddled with the ice in the copper bull and complained, "The kitchen gave us too little ice in the yard..."

The kitchen was full of Ji Shuran's people, and it was common for them to trip up Jiang Li in these small matters. Jiang Li didn't care much, but just thought about the dream last night, and vaguely felt that it was a sign of something. It is said that deceased relatives will appear in dreams to their family members. Could it be that Xue Zhao wanted to tell her something in the dream?

Is there danger today?
Jiang Li pondered over it, but was not surprised. Since she came to Yanjing City, countless people secretly regarded Miss Jiang Er as a thorn in their side. If she wanted to achieve her goal, she would have to stand in the way of many people. It was expected that she would be removed as a roadblock.

Bai Xue came over with a brand new riding suit in her hand and said, "Girl, the clothes are ready."

Jiang Li glanced at the clothes in Bai Xue's hands and said, "Okay, just put them on the table."

Since archery requires riding a horse, one must wear riding clothes. Jiang Li didn't have any, so this was newly made by Madam Jiang. To be fair, all four daughters in the mansion had them all, and they all chose the fabric themselves. Of course, the one for Jiang Youyao was the best.

Tong'er thought that it would take a lot of effort for Jiang Li to put on her riding clothes for the first time, but she was very skilled and didn't even need help. She put them on in a few seconds. Tong'er tied her hair into a bun for her, which was energetic and neat, showing a bit of heroic spirit that she didn't usually have, which made several maids in the yard praise her for being very beautiful.

Because the imperial shooting started early, Jiang Li also got up early and went to Wanfeng Hall to join everyone. She found a good time, and the other people had just arrived, so Jiang Yu'e and Jiang Youyao looked at Jiang Li.

Jiang Youyao was wearing a pink riding suit. She was naturally pretty and lively, like a lively girl in Yanjing. Jiang Yu'e was wearing a light blue riding suit, with delicate features and a sweet smile. Jiang Yuyan was wearing light yellow. Her skin was not white, so the light yellow made her look even darker. She would be invisible in the crowd.

Jiang Li's riding uniform is light blue. She likes blue very much, so she even chose this color for her riding uniform. Jiang Li's facial features are delicate and clear, and she looks plain and simple, which doesn't seem to be suitable for such a warm outfit as riding uniform. But for some reason, she stands here, with neat sleeves and a faint smile, like a straight green bamboo, with branches and leaves still covered with dewdrops from the morning sun, full of vigor and vitality.

Even Old Madam Jiang couldn't help but look admiring.

Jiang Youyao was upset again, but thinking of what Ji Shuran said to her yesterday, she looked at Jiang Li and said with a smile, "Second sister looks different today than usual. She is really beautiful. I wonder if her archery skills will amaze everyone again."

Jiang Li smiled lightly: "Third sister is too famous."

Jiang Youyao hated Jiang Li's smile. Jiang Li's smile was too sincere. Knowing Jiang Li's insidiousness, Jiang Youyao felt that Jiang Li was even more disgusting. She turned her head away and stopped looking at Jiang Li. She turned to Ji Shuran and said, "Mother, let's go."

Jiang Yuanbo fell behind, paused, and then said to Jiang Li: "If you don't know how, don't force yourself." Then he left.

Jiang Li was slightly startled, shook her head, and without thinking much, got on the carriage and walked towards the inspection field.

Today, the streets of Yanjing City are almost deserted, and there are huge crowds of people outside the inspection field. It is probably because the piano music event yesterday attracted a lot of people, and as a result, the number of people watching today's archery is twice as many as yesterday.

Jiang Li got off the carriage and walked towards the end of the inspection table.

When Liu Xu saw her coming, he greeted her happily and said, "You seem to be in a good mood today. Should there be any problem?" There was a hint of tentativeness in his words.

Jiang Li said: "It's okay."

Liu Xu was satisfied and saw Meng Hongjin again. In the crowd, Meng Hongjin was particularly conspicuous today. She was wearing a narrow red riding suit, which made her look as hot as fire. Seeing Jiang Li coming, Meng Hongjin glanced at her and quickly looked away.

Jiang Li was a little puzzled.

Today, there were not as many people laughing at Jiang Li as yesterday. Perhaps it was because Jiang Li's outstanding performance yesterday shocked the whole audience. Even the female students of Mingyi Hall just gathered aside, quietly looking at Jiang Li, and did not even dare to discuss in front of Jiang Li.

Liu Xu snorted softly: "Now I feel scared."

Jiang Li saw Liu Xu like this for the first time, and it was a bit strange. She said, "What's there to be afraid of?"

"You are no longer the last one in Mingyi Hall. You can't lose the bet between Meng Hongjin and you. Do you know how many people in the taverns in Yanjing City went out to buy wine and got drunk yesterday? They just bet a lot of money on Meng Hongjin, and now they have lost everything. It's painful." At this point, Liu Xu gloated, "I heard that the Meng family also bet a lot of money, but this time they lost miserably. If my father hadn't stopped me from gambling, I should have bought a bet. I don't know how many times I have earned now."

Jiang Li laughed: "I'm not a bargaining chip."

"Besides, you better take it easy today." Liu Xu added seriously, "This art of archery has always been Meng Hongjin's strong point. If you can't beat her, don't force yourself. If you fall or get hurt, it won't be worth it. Anyway, we're already sure to win, so there's no need to worry too much about these details."

I don't know how many people have reminded her of this, but Jiang Li still replied sincerely: "I know, thank you for reminding me."

This year's imperial archery was combined, and unlike the qin music, it was divided into groups. A total of 30 people were divided into five groups, and the five people in each group were determined by drawing lots. The five groups were checked according to the number of rows drawn.

The drawing of lots went smoothly. Jiang Li took the wooden stick from the stick tube and handed it to the little boy. Liu Xu looked at it and said, "I am in the second group and you are in the fifth group. We are not together." She seemed a little regretful.

Jiang Li didn't really care about this. She just heard someone arguing on Meng Hongjin's end. It should be someone who was good friends with Meng Hongjin. He said, "Hongjin, you are in the last group."

I was actually assigned to the same group as Meng Hongjin. This is really a narrow road for enemies. Jiang Lifang thought so, and then she saw Jiang Youyao approaching her and said, "Second sister, I didn't expect you to be in the fifth group. My fifth sister and I are also in the fifth group."

Jiang Li almost sighed in her heart, what kind of bad fate is this, there are six people in a group, and Meng Hongjin, Jiang Youyao, Jiang Yu'e and she are all in the same group. Not to mention who the remaining two are, even in the same group, there are three people who regard her as a thorn in their eyes. It is a miracle that they don't trip her up when they are in the same group.

Liu Xu also thought of this and her face turned slightly pale.

Just as he was thinking, he saw the crowd not far away starting to stir. Liu Xu looked back and said, "Today's examiner is here."

Today's examiners were not as many as yesterday's, only three. One was a soldier in armor, about 27 or 28 years old, walking like a dragon or a tiger, and very heroic. He was the current Senior Light Carriage Commander Kong Wei, and because he was the sixth child in the family, he was called Kong Liu.

One of them was a former martial arts champion and the current commander of the cavalry. His name was Zheng Huchen. He was about the same age as Jiang Yuanbo, had dark skin, a strong physique, and was intimidating without even getting angry.

At first glance, these two men were martial artists with extraordinary spirit. Just standing there made people feel afraid. But the last one was really unexpected.

Dressed in red, holding a gold folding fan, with a faint smile and bright eyes, Duke Suguo Ji Heng stood here. He did not look weak against the heroic figures of Kong Liu and Zheng Huchen. On the contrary, he was so handsome that Kong Liu and Zheng Huchen seemed like his bodyguards.

But it always seems out of place here.

Jiang Li was also a little surprised. What was Ji Heng doing here? It was already surprising that he was the examiner of the Qin Le yesterday. Could it be that he was going to get involved today as well?

Jiang Li was obviously not the only one who was puzzled. In the audience, King Cheng also frowned and asked, "What does your Royal Brother mean? Why did you ask Duke Su to come here today?"

King Cheng was very wary of Duke Suguo. Everyone knew that the current Emperor Hong Xiao trusted Ji Heng the most. King Cheng had also tried to win over Ji Heng, but Ji Heng was a stubborn person with great means. After hitting a snag several times, King Cheng stopped provoking Ji Heng, but he would always keep an eye on Ji Heng in secret to prevent Ji Heng from working for Emperor Hong Xiao and then dying in obscurity.

Princess Yongning did not answer King Cheng's words. Her thoughts had already flown to Shen Yurong who was not far away. Yesterday afternoon, Shen Yurong had originally made an appointment with her to meet after the piano music was checked, but Shen Yurong declined. Princess Yongning could see his evasion. She knew that Shen Yurong listened to the piano music of the female students yesterday and thought of the dead Xue Fangfei, and her heart was complicated. Thinking of this, Princess Yongning was even more angry. Xue Fangfei was already dead. Could she not be better than a dead person? She must marry Shen Yurong as soon as possible. Shen Yurong had to be infatuated and mourn for Xue Fangfei for three years. She couldn't wait that long.

I will mention this matter to my mother, Concubine Liu, after the verification, Princess Yongning thought secretly.

On this side, Jiang Li was staring at the note in her hand in a daze.

There were six people in total. In addition to Meng Hongjin, Jiang Yu'e, and Jiang Youyao, there were also two noble ladies from Mingyi Hall, Nie Xiaoshuang and Zhu Xiner.

The two looked like spoiled daughters of officials, and their tempers didn't seem easy to get along with. Compared with Jiang Li, they had a much better relationship with Jiang Youyao. Jiang Li was not surprised, because most of the noble ladies in Yanjing City liked Jiang Youyao better than her.

It just happened to be the last group... Jiang Li pondered.

No one noticed that Meng Hongjin, who was standing in the corner, glanced at Jiang Li again, with a look of pride and resentment that was hard to conceal, which made her expression look a little distorted. When the people passed by, Meng Hongjin retracted her gaze, but secretly clenched the lottery tube.

Even God was helping her by putting her and Jiang Li together. What's more, there were also Jiang Youyao and Jiang Yu'e, who were not on good terms with Jiang Li. This way, it was easy to make Jiang Li suffer.

Meng Hongjin's palms were shaking. It was the first time she did this. It was very strange. Although she was afraid, Meng Hongjin's attitude was very firm. She knew that if she didn't do this, she would have to kneel in front of Jiang Li tomorrow and apologize to Jiang Li in front of everyone in the Imperial College. If she did that, her reputation would be ruined!

It's either you die or I die. This is a competition that is more brutal than the Mingyi Hall test, and she is destined to be the final winner.

The school examination has begun.

The test field is very large. Each group of five students will mount their horses at the same time and start running to the finish line. It is not whoever reaches the finish line first that wins first. It also depends on the students' ability to control the horse. After all, the key to control is "controlling" rather than "speed". When you are about to reach the finish line, there will be a row of targets. Everyone shoots arrows. Each person's arrow has his own mark, so there will be no mistake. The arrow on the last target is used to distinguish them. This is "shooting".

Because people are swaying and running on horseback, it is even more difficult to hit the target. In this year's Mingyi Hall school examination, even if a few girls can hit the target without falling outside, it is a very good result.

The first group started.

Jiang Li watched carefully. As for the examination rules of Mingyi Hall, she knew something about them due to their past friendship. But she was not familiar with them. Today she was on stage, and it was different from the previous times. Jiang Li planned to see it more clearly so that she would not make any mistakes after going on stage.

Thinking of Xiao Deyin, Jiang Li did not see her today, but this was a royal archery test, so there was really no need for Xiao Deyin to come.

Jiang Yuyan and Liu Xu were in the second group. The first group started the competition very quickly. Although the test field was large, the female students in the first group were probably not very good at archery. They just mounted their horses and trotted and shot arrows. The arrows were shot randomly and not a single one hit the target. Their horse riding skills were even more mediocre. However, these students were not disappointed. It seemed that as long as they could mount and dismount the horse well, they were satisfied.

The women of Northern Yan did not really admire swordplay. Although being a daughter of a military family was admirable, they could not bear the pain of it when it came to themselves.

Jiang Li saw this and began to think about Ming Yitang's archery level.

The second group, where Liu Xu and Jiang Yuyan were, was better than the first group. At least the horse riders really "ran" and tried to be the first to reach the finish line. Liu Xu was actually the best archer in the group, because the arrows she shot did not fall outside the target, but instead slanted on the edge of the target.

But it is also the best in this group.

After Liu Xu finished the competition, he was still panting slightly, and seemed a little tired, but he looked very excited. He said to Jiang Li: "It is really difficult to combine the imperial archery and the archery this year. It is hard to imagine how the cavalry in the army are trained. It is not something that ordinary people can do to hit the bull's eye on horseback..."

"You are the best in this group." Jiang Li congratulated her with a smile.

"I've never been good at archery, and I was just lucky today, but I didn't expect to be very good," Liu Xu said, "But you, you're in a group with Meng Hongjin this time, there must be a lot of people waiting to see your performance, you better take it easy, don't be impatient."

"I'm not in a hurry." Jiang Li smiled.

Liu Xu thought about it and realized that it was true. Ever since she first met Jiang Li, she had never seen Jiang Li get anxious. Jiang Li's personality was so gentle and soft, never hurried or slow. Perhaps Jiang Li didn't take this competition that seriously.

She felt relieved.

Jiang Li was still watching the next competition seriously. Maybe the first two groups happened to group the students who were not good at archery together, so the next two groups were not that bad. Some girls even performed some beautiful horseback movements, which were very eye-catching. The target placed in the field was gradually covered with arrows, some of which fell outside the target, and some fell close to the center of the target.

The competition gradually became intense.

Soon, an hour later, it was the last group's turn.

It's Jiang Li's turn.

　Thank you all for your flowers and diamonds. There is a word limit for off-topic comments, so I won’t thank you one by one.
　　Regarding the issue that everyone said that the Duke and Ali have no way of talking to each other, the Duke is still in the stage of watching the play, observing secretly.jpg, when you unconsciously get into the play, there will be more emotional scenes between the two. Cha Cha herself doesn't like the setting of love at first sight. She still likes this kind of love-hate relationship, happy enemies dislike each other and turn enemies into friends hahahahahaha

　　So, be patient~\（≧▽≦）/~Little Pink is coming soon~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)