Surrounding the arena to hunt tigers

  The next morning, the weather was fine and sunny, a good day for hunting. As Long Hui drew his bow and shot out the first arrow, this hunt officially began.

  However, Long Yintian had already spoken before, this time the hunt was mainly to judge the performance of those younger generations. Those who performed exceptionally would be heavily rewarded, while those who performed poorly would also be punished. Anyone who was found to have acted unfairly or corruptly would be severely punished without pardon.

  Long Yitian's words not only stirred up the competitive spirit of those young people, but also set off some small waves in the hearts of the imperial relatives and ministers.

  The emperor obviously wants to take this opportunity to test the younger generation, and it's possible that those who perform well will gain the emperor's favor and may be entrusted with important tasks in the future. Moreover, this time is a rare occasion without the participation of the emperor and his brothers, so the results of the competition will naturally be more authentic.

  In order to let the younger generation perform well, Long Yitian did not arrange for A Ge and Chen Zi to travel together this time. Instead, he let several children follow these uncles and kings, and only San A Ge Yongzhang was brought by him personally.

  The lively and playful Yongyao was directly thrown to He Qianwang Hongxu, who was originally a person who knew how to have fun and was unrestrained. Yongyao's temperament was quite suitable for him, and with the addition of Yongbi, that mischievous little boy, it seemed that there would be no problem with them playing together.

  As for Yongqi, he was arranged to be in the team of Duke Huosheng. Originally, this Qing Dynasty had very few kings of different surnames, and Duke Huosheng was the only king with a different surname who followed the emperor on this trip. In order to show imperial favor and impartiality to anyone, Long Huitian would make such arrangements, in other words, deliberately making a gesture for those Manchu and Han officials and Mongolian kings to see.

  As each team proceeded to the depths of the arena, Long Yintian also led Yongzhang and a group of carefully selected imperial guards on horseback towards the forest, after all, if it was hunting, there would be more prey in the forest, and who knows, they might even encounter some big ones.

  Because of concern for the weak Yongzhang, Long Yintian soon let Yongzhang ride together with himself after departure, so as not to affect the speed of the hunting team's progress too much, and also allow Yongzhang to save most of his physical strength, fully experience the fun of hunting in the forest, it is a good method that kills two birds with one stone.

  Yongzhang didn't think he would have the chance to ride with Huang Ama again, and his heart was racing with excitement as he leaned against that broad chest once more. His weak body trembled slightly as the warmth emanating from beneath the layers of clothing seeped into his bones, stirring up a hint of desire that had been dormant deep within him.

  Long Hui was wholeheartedly enjoying this rare autumn excursion, thoroughly putting aside all those annoying government affairs for the time being. The fresh and humid air in the forest made him feel extremely comfortable, not at all inferior to the snow-covered landscape. Being surrounded by nature was far better than being stuck in that dazzling palace.

  Apart from the guards who were protecting the emperor, everyone else gradually dispersed and skillfully drove out small animals such as deer, rabbits, and foxes that were hiding behind trees, so that the emperor could easily shoot them with arrows. After all, the emperor came to Mulan Weiyang for hunting just for fun, and those exhausting tasks naturally fell on these slaves.

  Long Yitian's horse had two bows hanging on the side, the brown one was barely lent to Yongzhang, because with his help, Yongzhang could at least pull open this bow independently. The other one wrapped in bright yellow cloth was naturally the bow he used himself, and this bow also had a great origin.

  At the end of Kangxi's reign, the Mongolian kings somehow obtained this rare good bow in the world. They knew that Emperor Kangxi liked to hunt, so they jointly offered it up. However, at that time, Emperor Kangxi's body was no longer as good as before, and the surrounding hunting activities were naturally cancelled along with it.

  After Emperor Yongzheng ascended to the throne, due to busy government affairs and numerous tasks waiting to be accomplished, he had no time to visit Mulan's archery range. This bow was naturally put away in a high cabinet, until before this trip to Mulan, Gao Wuyong casually mentioned this excellent bow that had gone through three dynasties yet still hadn't been used.

  Long Hanyue also had a sudden interest, so he let Gao Wuyong bring the bow over to take a look. As a result, after taking a look, he liked the kind of heroic spirit hidden in the bow from the bottom of his heart, so this time he brought out this bow.

  Under the help and guidance of Long Yintian, Yongzhang also gradually made some gains, but they were all small animals. Although he saw a few small deer along the way, he unfortunately didn't catch up to them and could only watch as his prey slipped away.

  Yongzhang understood in his heart that the emperor was doing this to accommodate him, so he would let those agile prey escape without chasing them. Although there was some regret, he felt more of an indescribable sweetness and warmth in his heart.

  Another arrow shot out with a "whoosh" sound, and Yongzhao's arrow finally hit a small deer that had been driven to this place. The deer was in pain and began to run around frantically, and the other guards immediately drew their bows, preparing to shoot it dead before it could escape.

  Just as everyone's attention was focused on the injured little deer, Long Yintian, whose five senses were much sharper than ordinary people, heard an abnormal movement from a distance on the other side. The tiny tremors caused by unintentional friction with grass and tree trunks were absolutely not emitted by humans or horses. If his guess was correct, there should be a larger prey over there.

  The dragon's eyes were about to decide to give up the injured little deer, quickly tightening the flying electric under his seat, motionless and carefully distinguishing the specific direction and trajectory of the sound, and then a faintly discernible cold smile rose from the corner of his mouth.

  The old saying goes, "Mantis catches cicada, oriole is behind." Who would have thought that today they, the hunters, became the mantis instead? If not for Long Hanyan's keen senses, they almost fell into the hands of that oriole.

  The guards in front of the emperor saw that the emperor did not urge his horse to chase after the deer, but instead stopped on the spot. They also pulled tight the reins and waited quietly for the emperor's orders.

  Yongzhang was puzzled at this moment, the deer could obviously be caught, but in the end, Huang Ama still let it go. Was it that Huang Ama had a change of heart?

  But Yongzhao immediately erased this absurd speculation from his mind, and for a while he couldn't guess the meaning of Huang Ama either, so he could only wait and see what would happen.

  Long Yintian soon determined the general direction, and then raised his whip to instruct: "Yelü Qi, take a few people to take a look over there. Be careful with your movements, I feel that there should be a big one over there."

  "Yes." Irachi didn't care whether the Emperor's words were well-founded or just a wild guess, as long as it was an order from the Emperor, all he could do was think of ways to perfectly complete the task.

  He picked out a few of the attendants who were good hands at hunting and had experience, but instead of going straight on, he rode round to the other side, and when he came upon some fresh tracks on the road, he made the attendants dismount and follow them cautiously, while he himself hastened back to report the news to the Emperor.

  "Reporting to Your Majesty, we have discovered signs of a tigress roaming in the not-too-distant northwest. I have ordered several others to continue tracking it; please instruct us on how to proceed."

  Yongzhao's eyes widened instantly, and he was extremely shocked in his heart. He never expected to encounter a tiger on the first day of hunting.

  It is said that tigers and bears are the least common animals in Mulan's surroundings. Firstly, the environment here is not suitable for the survival of such large animals. Secondly, it is because this place is still relatively close to human settlements, so those animals will try their best to avoid them, even hiding deep in the mountains and forests to multiply and live.

  Long Hiding Heaven would not let go of such a big guy, because he had never seen the world's tiger with his own eyes. From the memory in his mind, it should be a kind of ferocious large wild beast, and its lethality was very strong, making it an object worth challenging.

  Order some people to find a way to drive the tiger from the rear to the nearby cliff, and Long Yintian took another group of people to explore the situation at the cliff first, and also let the guards who were familiar with hunting set up some simple traps, so as to catch the fierce tiger at the smallest cost.

  Yongzhang also wanted to observe the tiger's appearance at close range, but he also understood how dangerous a living tiger was. So he obediently followed Longyintian's arrangement and stayed far behind a large rock under Irachi's protection, still riding the flying thunder horse that originally belonged to the emperor.

  After waiting for about an incense stick, the tiger's roar began to get closer and closer from afar, and it was about to enter the range of the trap. Long Yintian had already hidden with the guards and covered the horses under the trees, just waiting for the old tiger to fall into the trap.

  A black and yellow striped shadow suddenly darted out from the woods, Long Hanyan had already removed the yellow cloth to reveal the original face of the bow tightly grasped in his hand, an arrow was quietly placed on the string, aiming at the constantly swaying shadow a hundred paces away.

  At this time, Yongzhang's heart was also lifted to his throat. On the one hand, it was because of his exceptionally excited mood, and on the other hand, he was worried about the safety of Emperor Ama, after all, that was a living tiger, if something went wrong, the trouble would be big.

  That old tiger was also a clever guy, avoiding several traps that had been set up early on, but after all, it was just a beast, no matter how clever it was, it couldn't be more clever than humans. Despite being extremely careful, it finally stepped into a rope trap, and with a few "whooshing" sounds, the rope tightly wrapped around one of its hind legs.

  Just as the tiger was about to turn around and bite off the rope, the guards who had been waiting on the side all shot out the arrows in their hands. Although the tiger was agile and dodged back and forth, making it difficult to aim, several arrows still hit the tiger's body, but none of them were fatal.

  Under the pain, the tiger thoroughly became enraged and started to pull the rope with brute force, wanting to drill back into the forest. The rope was sturdy, but the trap was temporarily built, so it wasn't very sturdy.

  After several pulls, the tiger finally broke free from the rope, but instead of retreating back into the forest, it turned around and let out a low growl before pouncing towards where the guards were hiding.

  Long Yitian, who had been waiting for an opportunity, was very calm and quietly observed the situation. Through this observation, he had already seen that if the tiger could not be killed with one blow, it would inevitably cause casualties, which was a situation he absolutely did not want to see. Moreover, he also wanted to take this opportunity to see how much potential his soul and body had after fusion.

  Yongzhao, who was hiding behind, saw the tiger rushing towards Huang Ama in desperation and suddenly changed direction. His expression changed instantly, and he shouted loudly, "Huang Ama, be careful!"

  At this moment, Long Yintian's mental strength was highly concentrated, and he couldn't hear anything else. In the instant when the tiger pounced on him, a hint of killing intent flashed in his eyes, and the long-awaited opportunity had finally arrived.

  As the bowstring vibrated with a "hum", the arrow shot out in a straight line like a meteor, and before the guards who were eager to protect their master could react to what had happened, they saw that the tiger had already crashed heavily to the ground, twitching a few times before it stopped moving.

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