Chapter 139

 

Emperor Yuanyou led everyone down the high platform and came to the side of the bay-red horse.

This horse was indeed very fierce, but it had been captured by the Tatars for several months, and its wildness had somewhat restrained. It still refused to be ridden, but it was fine to touch it a few times.

Emperor Yuanyou became more and more satisfied as he looked at it.

The Tatar envoy also wanted to try to persuade Emperor Yuanyou to ride it, but Emperor Yuanyou held his ground. He smiled and said “respect the wise” and blocked the other person’s mouth.

After admiring this peerless horse that could not be ridden for the time being, Emperor Yuanyou asked someone to bring over the ten best horses.

These ten best horses symbolize the face of Tatar, and each one was worth thousands of golds.

Emperor Yuanyou looked around and said to Hua Yang who was walking beside him: “Does Sister like one?”

Hua Yang said modestly: “A treasure horse is worthy of a hero. If it fell into my hand, it’s equivalent to waste of talent.”

Emperor Yuanyou joked: “If Sister is worried about this, just reward good horse to the heroe around you.”

As he spoke, he glanced at Chen Jingzong, who was standing among the military attaches, with a smile.

Chen Jingzong:…

Some good-natured laughter sounded around him, and Chen Jingzong looked at Hua Yang.

Hua Yang pretended not to hear the low commotion over there, thanked her brother for his kindness, and started choosing carefully.

These ten horses were actually indistinguishable. They were about the same height, about the same strength, only there were some differences in their hair and faces.

Hua Yang took a fancy to a spirited horse that was completely black but had a tuft of snow-white hair on its forehead. The white tuft resembled a round ball, with wavy edges resembling ocean waves, like a white peony that had not fully bloomed.

Just because of this “peony”, Hua Yang really liked it.

Touching the horse’s forehead with her slender white fingers, Hua Yang turned back and smiled at Emperor Yuanyou: “This one, I have affinity with this one.”

Of course Emperor Yuanyou agreed.

The imperial court also held a banquet to entertain the Tatar envoys. After seeing the horses, Emperor Yuanyou took all the officials and left.

Hua Yang took her mother empress’s arm, and the two of them walked back to Qianqing Palace.

Empress Dowager Qi: “How did Panpan come up with such reasoning?”

Hua Yang: “I just afraid that if the imperial guards couldn’t subdue the horse, it would be too dangerous for Brother to try it himself. But if he doesn’t try, he would be laughed at by the Tatar envoys. So I thought of it in a hurry.”

Empress Dowager Qi patted her daughter’s hand happily: “Mom underestimated you before. I didn’t expect you to have such eloquence.”

Hua Yang smiled and said: “It’s just a moment of cleverness, you are the real wisdom.”

Empress Dowager Qi was in a good mood.

All parents hope that their children would succeed. Of her two children, one was the emperor and the other was the grand princess. The merits and demerits of the emperor would be determined by future generations based on the records of historians. As for her daughter, with her contribution to the army last year, and today’s theory of benevolence on the horse field was enough to leave a virtuous name in the history. With her daughter’s virtuous reputation set to be passed down through generations, she, as a mother, couldn’t help but feel proud.

After having lunch with her mother, Hua Yang returned to the Grand Princess Mansion with her precious imperial horse.

Hua Yang really liked this horse, so she asked someone to take it to Qifeng Hall and look at it again and again. Then she stayed in the study, drawing and painting, thinking about customizing a set of saddles for it that could match its heroic appearance.

If Hua Yang rode it herself, she would definitely have some gems inlaid on the saddle, but the horse would be given to Chen Jingzong, who probably wouldn’t appreciate these flashy stuffs.

After revising and revising it, before sunset, Hua Yang handed the finally finished drawing to Wu Run and asked him to arrange for craftsmen to make it.

She had just come out of the bath and sat in the yard to let the cool autumn wind dry her hair, when she saw Chen Jingzong coming from the corridor. He was wearing a crimson robe and his hair was slightly damp, obviously had just taken a bath in Liuyun Hall.

She asked: “Why are you back so early today?”

Chen Jingzong said: “I accompanied His Majesty to entertain the Tatar envoys in the palace at noon. After the banquet, the envoys insisted on dragging us military attaches to compete in archery and wrestling, so I didn’t go to the guard station in the afternoon.”

Hua Yang looked at his shoulders: “Did you wrestle with them?”

Chen Jingzong nodded.

Hua Yang knew that he was excellent in martial arts and had a tall figure that was rare in the Central Plains. However, compared with those Tatar envoys, he was still a little inferior in strength, like comparing a long sword to a broadsword.

“Did you lose?”

Chen Jingzong: “I might not match their strength alone; my arms bear several handprint bruises from their grip. But I used some skill and won two rounds.”

Hua Yang tried to squeeze his arm.

Chen Jingzong looked at her silently, only frowning slightly and winced when Hua Yang’s hand moved to his upper arm.

Hua Yang took him to the inner room and asked him to take off his shirt.

Chen Jingzong did as he was told. His arms were quite white, which made the purple fingerprints more obvious.

Hua Yang told Chao Yue to bring some ointment to remove blood stasis.

Chen Jingzong gathered up his robe, and after Chao Yue left, he exposed his shoulders again, looked at Hua Yang, and then at the porcelain bottle that Chao Yue put aside.

Hua Yang: “Wipe it yourself, it’s not like you can’t move.”

Chen Jingzong opened the porcelain bottle resignedly and stared at her while picking out the medicine: “Now when I think about you in the camp last year, it’s like a dream.”

Hua Yang: “It’s better than nothing, not to mention I don’t like the smell of ointment.”

Chen Jingzong was about to apply the ointment on his arm, but he paused when he heard this: “Then I won’t use it. I’m not that delicate anyway, and it’s not worth bothering you with the smell at night.”

Hua Yang: “If you don’t use it, you won’t even have the chance to bother me with the smell at night.”

Chen Jingzong smiled and applied the medicine obediently.

Hua Yang asked him curiously: “If you were asked to tame the horse that the Tatar presented to His Majesty, are you sure you can do it?”

Chen Jingzong: “You have to try it to know. But it’s a hard job for anyone to try. Fortunately, you’re smart and saved His Majesty and us military attachés from a lot of trouble.”

The Tatars have a sinister intention, but they were good at talking, saying that horse could only be subdued by the son of the dragon from the Central Plains.

With these words, if the military attache could not subdue the horse, he was incompetent and would lose the face of the court. But if he could subdue it, wouldn’t he become the “Son of the Heavenly Dragon”, then how about the emperor?

Unless forced by circumstances, Chen Jingzong would not rush to grab this hard task. If he really had to, he would have to sacrifice half his life to tame the fierce horse, in order to prove that he was not the son of a dragon.

Hua Yang snorted: “I also hate to see the Tatar envoys being arrogant and proud. If want to offer the horses then just offer them, why you have to cause trouble.”

Chen Jingzong showed a flattering look: “Now that they know how powerful our Grand Princess is, and they will definitely be honest in the future.”

Hua Yang glanced at him.

Chen Jingzong continued to flatter: “His Majesty also recognized that you have made great contributions. He didn’t give any horse to civil and military officials in the court, but only rewarded you.”

Hua Yang smiled and said: “That horse is indeed a good horse.”

Chen Jingzong’s expression changed slightly: “Have you tried it?”

Although this black horse should not be as hot-tempered as the bay-red horse, but it’s unknown whether the one sent from the grassland was completely tamed. If it not, then Hua Yang’s delicate body was really thrown off…

Hua Yang: “Not yet, let Zhou Ji try it first later.”

Chen Jingzong: “There’s me, why let him try?”

Hua Yang: “You are my Prince Consort, you’re also half the master of the Grand Princess Mansion. How can I let you do the errand of testing a horse?”

Chen Jingzong: “To share the worries the ancestor, this minister will go through fire and water without hesitation.”

He looked so serious, Hua Yang couldn’t stand it anymore, got up and walked out.

Chen Jingzong caught up with her, hugged her from behind, lowered his head and kissed the side of her neck and earlobes. When Hua Yang leaned weakly into his arms, Chen Jingzong asked into her ear: “Didn’t you choose it so you send it to me?”

Hua Yang: “Isn’t your horse still in its prime? And it’s also a gift from your Eldest Brother. How can you casually replace it?”

Chen Jingzong: “Can what he gives compare to what you send? I don’t want you to spend hundreds of taels of silver in vain, but this horse is free. As long as you give it to me, I dare to accept it.”

Hua Yang wanted to laugh. Chen Jingzong was usually so arrogant, and unless it’s a matter of sleeping together, he rarely gave in. But now he bluntly begged for the horse from her.

“Go and try it first. Maybe it doesn’t like you and won’t let you ride it.”

Chen Jingzong didn’t say anything, he just turned her around and kissed her hard.

Half an hour later, the couple arrived at the horse field of the Grand Princess Mansion.

The horse field was right behind the stables. If the masters wanted to ride horses, they could come here. But if the masters were not interested, the eunuchs who raised the horses have to walk the horses often, otherwise the horses would get sick if they were kept in the stables all the time.

The little eunuch temporarily equipped the newly arrived black horse with a set of saddles.

Hua Yang stood aside and watched Chen Jingzong touch the horse from head to butt, and finally hugged the horse’s neck and pressed his face against it, seeming to mutter something.

“I’ll try it first. If it’s obedient, I’ll take you with me later.”

After getting acquainted with the treasure horse, Chen Jingzong stood up, informed Hua Yang, and galloped away.

The horse was strong and vigorous, it ran fast like a black wind, and soon returned from the other side of the horse field.

The golden sunset completely enveloped Chen Jingzong on horseback. It wasn’t until he reined in his horse and stopped a few steps away that Hua Yang could clearly see the radiant spirit on his handsome face.

He reached out toward her.

Hua Yang didn’t move.

Chen Jingzong moved the horse to her side and stretched out his hand again.

Only then did Hua Yang put her hand into his broad palm.

Chen Jingzong leaned over, held her hand with one hand, and held her armpit with the other. The next moment, the grand princess’s complicated skirt fluttered in the air like petals, and immediately fell into his arms.

Hua Yang, who was sitting sideways, instinctively hugged his thin waist.

Chen Jingzong kissed the tip of her hair, and when she got used to it, he urged the horse to jog.

When the setting sun was behind her, Hua Yang felt the wind and saw the blue sky in the distance.

When the horse had run half a circle, the golden sunset made her lower her eyes and saw him holding her slender arm.

“All the civil and military officials know that this is the horse that His Majesty has rewarded you. If you let me ride it out, I will be proud of it, but I’m worried they might gossip that you’re favoring me too much.”

When her back was turned to the sunset again, Chen Jingzong kissed her face.

Hua Yang: “Let them gossip then. This is your and my private matter. It has nothing to do with them.”

Chen Jingzong: “Okay, then you accompany me back my home tomorrow morning and tell my parent clearly that you gave me the horse, lest they think I stole your horse.”

Hua Yang sneered: “The fox fur cloak last time wasn’t enough for you to show off?”

Chen Jingzong: “As long as it’s something you gave, I will always show it off.”

Hua Yang didn’t bother to pay attention to him.

After riding enough, Chen Jingzong carried her off the horse.

Hua Yang also touched the horse’s neck and said to Chen Jingzong: “Such a good horse, give it a name.”

Chen Jingzong thought for a while and said, “How about ‘Blackie’? It sounds affectionate, like a companion who fights side by side with you through thick and thin.”

Hua Yang:……

Her disgust was written clearly on her face, so Chen Jingzong asked her to help him make one.

Hua Yang looked at the snow-white mass on the horse’s forehead and said, “Snow Tower.”

“Peony” was too delicate, so he may not be able to say it out loud. Although Snow Tower was also a peony name, it sounded like the solemnity of flying snow.

Chen Jingzong savored it for a moment, and when he looked at her again, his expression became more profound.

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