I thought Situ Yao was taking me back for dinner. To my surprise, after dismissing Princess Ji Lan, he took a backpack down from his horse.
First, he spread out a cloth, then took out a pile of food.
"A Chun, let's make do with something simple. After we eat, I'll take you hunting."
"Just the two of us?"
"Yes."
"But didn't the Emperor say there's a hunting competition this afternoon? Aren't you participating?"
Situ Yao glanced at me. "The hunting competition is for Princess Ji Lan. I'm not planning to become the Northern Frontier's consort, so why would I join the fun? It's fortunate that Father specially kept all the good-looking new scholars in the capital this year. I didn't expect Princess Ji Lan to be so fond of martial arts."
A black line formed on my forehead.
"What is the rank of a new scholar? How can they be worthy of a princess of a nation?" Especially those from the Northern Frontier. They traveled thousands of miles to marry into the royal family. Even if they couldn't marry the Crown Prince and blur the royal bloodline, their husband's official rank shouldn't be too low, otherwise, it would be too disrespectful.
"Whomever Princess Ji Lan fancies, they can just be promoted. Just like the women who marry into the Northern Frontier, aren't they all conferred titles of princess?"
As expected, my thinking was too narrow.
If Ji Lan liked those with good martial arts skills, then she had quite a wide range of choices. Although women in the Great Yin dynasty didn't practice martial arts much, and the borders had been peaceful in recent years, there were fewer generals. However, the Emperor himself came from a military background. He naturally had a greater liking for men with good skills and found scholars who couldn't even lift a chicken to be displeasing.
Therefore, over the years, anyone who wanted to enter officialdom learned a few moves.
Not to the extent of martial prowess being able to pacify the nation, but at least they shouldn't appear like weaklings to the Emperor.
It's just that not many learned them well.
Take my elder brother, for instance.
After all these years, he still occasionally lamented when he saw my elder brother, regretting that he hadn't inherited my mother's true teachings.
My elder brother and Situ Yao and I happily traversed the forest for the entire afternoon. When we returned, we saw that the camp had already lit bonfires, and the banquet had begun.
"Your Highness the Crown Prince, we are late."
"It's alright. I've already spoken to Father and Mother. We can slip in later. Come, let's go to the river first to clean off the bloodstains." There was a river in the hunting grounds where men could swim. However, at this time, everyone was there having fun, so we shouldn't encounter anything we shouldn't see.
So we walked towards the river.
Before we arrived, we heard a burst of cheerful voices from the other side. Princess Ji Lan splashed water and said, "Miss Wang, why are you bathing here too? Fortunately, this princess has good eyesight, otherwise, you would have been shot blind by my men with an arrow."
"Hey, why aren't you speaking? Are you shy? Don't worry, the people I brought are all women, so it won't harm your reputation. Come over quickly! This princess has prepared fine wine, and we can get drunk together."
The princess enthusiastically beckoned, accompanied by the faint sound of water.
Situ Yao looked at me. "She's only been here for a day, how does she know so many Miss Wangs?"
How would I know?
Just as I was wondering which family's daughter present was named Wang, I heard a lowered voice from the other side: "I, I've already finished washing."
"Soak a bit longer. You're good at martial arts and archery, you should be a straightforward girl. Why are you being so hesitant while bathing? Come over quickly, or this princess will come to fetch you herself."
Situ Yao and I exchanged glances.
So, she thought the Miss Wang in the river was me.
Wait, besides my elder brother, who else could have been mistaken for me?
This time, it's over.
I couldn't bother with anything else and rushed towards that direction. After a few steps, several figures darted out from the shadows. They were women in fitted attire, likely Princess Ji Lan's personal guards. "Please stop, both of you. My princess is bathing. Please wait and come back later to avoid disturbing the princess's mood."
Just as I was about to speak, Ji Lan's scream came from over there: "Ah, why is it a man? Guards..."
Then, with a splash and a plop, a large object was lifted from the water and thrown back in. I couldn't bother with anything else, handed the female guards to Situ Yao, and flew towards that direction.
The moonlight illuminated the shimmering water. My elder brother clutched his chest and managed to get up, only to stumble and fall again.
Princess Ji Lan had already donned her clothes and was attacking my elder brother again.
I quickly rushed forward to shield my brother, grasping the fist she swung at him. "Princess, please spare him. My elder brother has always been a man of integrity and would never peek at women bathing. This, this is likely a misunderstanding."
Joking aside, although Princess Ji Lan's martial arts were average in my eyes, my elder brother was clearly worse.
And Ji Lan was furious. I didn't know how he was after that blow he just received. Another one, and who knows if he'd be bedridden?
Ji Lan's gaze fell on my face. "Your elder brother? This is your elder brother?"
"My twin brother, so we look a bit alike."
"Even if he's your brother, he can't peek at this princess bathing."
My elder brother grabbed my arm and got up, saying helplessly, "Princess Ji Lan, I arrived first."
Ji Lan: ...