Dingjiangshan

Because of Ah Che, Ning Yan seldom went to the woods for the rest of the day.

He is not crazy about hunting. Rather than blowing the cold wind in the woods, he would rather lie in the tent, drink tea and eat snacks, and tease Xiao Diao and Ning Huaijin intermittently.

It's just that it's unrealistic not to go out at all, so Ning Yan will go there every two or three days, draw a few bows, and come back with whatever he wants.However, he usually only stays for half a day, and returns to the camp in the afternoon to deal with the papers delivered in the morning.

Although the queen mother sent two letters in Beijing to urge Ning Yan to go back, Ning Yan pressed them down both times. After playing in the hunting ground for enough time, she let go and said she wanted to go back.

In the past half a month, under the intentional or unintentional release of "elders" like Xie Jue and Ning Huaijin who don't need to show their faces, the first name of Dongshou this time came out of the aristocratic family as expected.

But to Ning Yan's surprise, the young man who won the first place was only in the middle of the court, and he didn't stand out on weekdays, so Ning Yan didn't have a deep impression of him, and He Wenting reminded him.

"Is it... the eldest son of Zheng Xuehai, Yushi Zhongcheng?" Ning Yan asked.

"Yes, his family also has a second son with outstanding literary talents. He was ranked 23rd in the imperial examination last year. You have seen it before, Your Majesty." Flip it over, and pin it with an inconspicuous gold pin: "Speaking of which, Mr. Zheng's three generations of civil servants all relied on a single pen. Somehow in this life, he has developed such a good riding and archery skill." Eldest son."

"I remember his family's second son, Zheng Shaojun." Ning Yan opened his hands and let the two little maids around him straighten his robe sleeves.He thought for a moment, then hesitated: "This eldest son is called...what is his name Zheng?"

"Zheng Shaohui." He Wenting said, "Brilliant Hui."

Ning Yan nodded and hummed.

He Wenting tucked up his clothes for him, then retreated consciously, Linglong, who was waiting at the side, took his place, and hung the sachet and other accessories on Ning Yan's belt.

Ning Yan wore a jujube-colored shirt today, Linglong hesitated for a moment between the white and blue jade pendants, chose the water-blue one, and hung it up for Ning Yan.

Today is the last day of winter hunting, and it is reasonable for the monarch and his ministers to have a feast together. The open space in the hunting ground has been cleaned up, and the bonfire as high as one person has been burning for most of the day, making the place warm.

It's just getting dark now, and it's almost time for the banquet ahead.Ning Yan took the stove from Linglong, told her not to be on duty in the future, and took He Wenting to the front.

When he got out of the tent, Ning Yan whispered to He Wenting: "Go and check Zheng Shaohui."

He Wenting tentatively asked, "Your Majesty means...?"

"There is no reason for the two sons in the family to hide the eldest son at home." Ning Yan touched the stove in his hand with lowered eyes, and said, "Go and check, if you can't find it outside..."

"How?" He Wenting asked.

——If you can't find it outside, you have to ask Qin Liu to reach out to the Zheng family's furniture.

But for a king, it doesn't sound good to go to the courtier's back house to check these secret furniture after all, and if it gets out, it's hard to guarantee that his reputation will be damaged.

What's more, this method is not on the table, and Ning Yan doesn't want to do it unless it is absolutely necessary.

So he shook his head and said, "Let's check first."

He Wenting had an idea in his mind, he responded in a low voice, and called a servant from the side to accompany Ning Yan, and he took his leave first.

The bonfire on the other side of the hunting ground did not stop, but moved to the gate of the hunting ground far away from the banquet. From a distance, the flames were soaring into the sky, and most of the sky above the hunting ground was burnt red.

The banquet was held at the beginning of the You hour, and it was almost dark. When Ning Yan arrived, there was only one vacant seat left for him when the banquet was full.

Since it was hunting, the civil servants and military generals were not so clearly divided, but divided into two rows according to the size of the official position.Ning Huaijin and Jing Zhan sat on his left and right sides as usual, Xie Jue blatantly took his family members to sit in the second row on Ning Huaijin's side, and behind the table directly opposite sat a face-to-face young man, looking at him in his early twenties, Just reached the appearance of the crown.

Ning Yan understood clearly, knowing that these eight achievements belonged to the young master Zheng who had won the title of hunting leader.

Zheng Shaohui doesn't really live up to his name. He doesn't look brilliant or stand out. He is very low-key even in appearance and temperament.

While thinking about it, Ning Yan took a sip of tea, put down the stove, and took a small silver knife from the waiter without thinking too much.

In the open space between the two rows of seats, there is a wooden shelf as high as one person. On it is a skinned and deboned stag. Yan Lai made the first cut at the banquet.

Several servants followed Ning Yan with silver plates, waiting for the food to be served.

Ning Yan gave the first dish to Ning Huaijin as usual, and the rest cut a few more dishes and gave them to Jing Zhan and Xie Jue.Just when he was about to put down the knife, when he turned to one side, he saw Zheng Shaohui staring at him eagerly from behind.

So Ning Yan thought for a moment, then cut a plate of meat with his own hands and rewarded him.

After all, it's the first name, so I have to show some face, Ning Yan thought.

After finishing all this, Ning Yan sat back on the high platform, wiped his hands, and signaled the servants around him to come out and talk——Ning Yan had to honor his prize on the last day of winter hunting.

So the servant in charge of the hunting ground took out the note and read out the numbers of the top three.

But as soon as the servant opened his mouth, Ning Yan almost choked on the half mouthful of tea.

There is no other reason - then Zheng Shaohui's grades are too outstanding, more than double the difference from No.2, as if he has been working day and night for half a month, desperately, just to gain a name in front of him.

Ning Yan couldn't help but look at Zheng Shaohui more, and saw him sitting peacefully behind the table with his head bowed, his eyes only focused on the dishes on the table, as if he was not what he said above.

Of course, Xie Jue noticed Ning Yan's gaze, so he smiled and handed him a thoughtful message: "This Mr. Zheng is a bit strange, and he doesn't come out to socialize very much after all—if it were me, I would be so nice. Archery skills, I can't wait to find acquaintances to go hunting every day."

"Zhaoming doesn't need to be overly modest." Ning Yan said with a smile, "Zhaoming's archery skill is one hundred steps, who can compare with you."

As he spoke, his painting style changed, and he said to Zheng Shaohui: "But what Zhaoming said is true. I rarely see Zheng Xuehai mentioning you on weekdays. I never thought of such a good skill. There were two wolves among the prey I knocked on. I don't know where you came from - such a good son, Zheng Xuehai can hide it so well."

Zheng Shaohui stood up quickly, bowed to Ning Yan, and said: "Thanks to the praise from the Holy One, it's just that Shaohui's fortune is poor, and he is not as important as his brother's father at home."

He spoke in a low voice, but enough to be heard in the first few rows.

The dozen or so people who were still talking and laughing fell silent at the same time, even Xie Jue, who was whispering to Cheng Yuan, looked at him.

Whether it is a civil servant or a military commander, as long as he is a son of a family, he should take the character of filial piety first-not to mention that the family is intertwined, and the sons of the family are all dependent on the family life, so how can they say anything about their father in public.Although Zheng Shaohui's words were tactful, it was clear that Zheng Xuehai was biased.

That is to say, Zheng Xuehai is a civil servant who has never participated in hunting, otherwise he would probably have slapped him at this time.

Ning Yan's thoughts moved slightly, he swallowed back the rewards he had prepared earlier, and changed into a new set just before the battle.

Ning Huaijin subconsciously looked at Ning Yan, wanting to see his face, but Ning Yan's expression didn't change, he just smiled, and lightly revealed this sentence: "Zheng Qing has always been stingy, and I didn't even think about it." The son wants to hide. The imperial army was short of people the year before last, and he didn’t even know to take out your treasure. It’s just right, I saw it today, so I don’t want to snatch it——Qin Liu.”

Qin Liu behind him came out from the shadows, cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty."

"I think this Mr. Zheng is not bad." Ning Yan said: "You still have a vacancy in the Excalibur Battalion, so ask him to practice for a while."

Zheng Shaohui was also stunned. He really wanted to make a name for himself in front of Ning Yan, but he didn't expect to earn a way out directly. He was overjoyed for a while, and quickly thanked him.

Others didn't think there was anything wrong. First, Ning Yan only said it was for experience and did not promise an official position. Secondly, Dongshou was originally a place for the emperor to test the school for the sons of the family. , there is really no need to make a fuss.

Zheng Shaohui's matter did not cause any splashes, and the banquet continued as usual.

Because of the reason of being in the hunting ground, there is no silk and bamboo orchestral singing and dancing performances. The monarch and his ministers just drink wine and eat meat blindly, occasionally joking. Being so restrained, even more people brought a toast.

Ning Yan didn't know why today, but he was in good spirits, and drank most of the toast wine, so that halfway through the banquet, people were a little smug.

Ning Huaijin looked worried, the banquet was not in the house today, it was cold at night, and the hunting ground was very windy, Ning Huaijin was afraid that he would have a headache after drinking and catching cold, so she persuaded: "Your Majesty, if you are tired, why don't you Go back and rest."

Ning Yan himself felt that it was almost done, so he responded smoothly and left the table first.

This little wine would not make Ning Yan really drunk, but as soon as he left the table, the heat from the stove around him lost.The hot air from the hand stove was useless in the cold wind. Ning Yan's face was hot from drinking, but when the cold wind blows, he also became dizzy.

Fortunately, his tent was close, but after a while, someone helped him back to the tent.

Linglong got off duty, and He Wenting hadn't come back yet, the little servant helped Ning Yan to the couch and was about to help him undress and wash, when he waved his hand impatiently.

"...Go down first." Ning Yan frowned uncomfortably: "Bring me a cup of tea."

Ning Yan was dizzy for a while, and his sanity was half a beat behind, and after a while, he said: "... Make it stronger."

The little servant was not used to serving him, and he didn't know Ning Yan's habits. Seeing his cold face, he felt scared in his heart, and didn't dare to delay for a moment, so he hurriedly responded.

On the other side, Ning Huaijin at the banquet felt a little uneasy, he sat down for a while, but he couldn't sit still, so he stopped forcing himself and stood up.

"By the way..." Ning Huaijin was about to leave the table when she suddenly remembered something, turned her head and said to Cheng Yuan, "If Dr. Cheng is free, can you send the sober soup to His Majesty's tent later?"

Cheng Yuan was hugged by Xie Jue, and couldn't stand up for a while, so he could only slap Xie Jue's hand away, and replied in a leisurely way: "It should be, my lord, don't worry."

Ning Huaijin nodded slightly, and left the table first, ready to see how Ning Yan was doing.

When he came to Ning Yan's tent, apart from the two servants outside who were guarding the door and waiting for orders, there was not even a waiter in the tent.Ning Huaijin frowned in displeasure, but she couldn't find anyone to challenge her for a while, so she could only go around the screen and walk inside first.

Ning Yan still hadn't taken off his cloak, he was lying on the couch half-reclined, half-closed his eyes, wondering if he had fallen asleep.

Ning Huaijin lightened her steps a little, walked to him and bent down, and was about to take off his clothes for him to make him lie down more comfortably, but Ning Yan seemed to be alarmed, and he grabbed his wrist.

"Your Majesty—" Ning Huaijin was about to whisper a few words of comfort when she saw Ning Yan opened her eyes and glanced at him, then let go of her hand.

"...Why did you suddenly call me Your Majesty?" Ning Yan seemed to be dizzy, so she closed her eyes again and complained softly.

Ning Huaijin didn't hear what he said clearly, but saw that he was awake, so she couldn't help scolding a few words in distress: "Why do you drink so much wine, Your Majesty?"

"Drink?" Ning Yan said in a strange tone, "Didn't you tell me to drink?"

Ning Huaijin didn't know if he was drunk and confused, and said, "Since when did I persuade Your Majesty to drink?"

Ning Yan was half asleep and half awake, and his mind was in a mess, and he couldn't tell the difference. Anyway, he was used to Ning Huaijin coming to his dream from time to time, so he wasn't too surprised now.

Drunkenness evoked Ning Yan's previous dream that had penetrated into his bones. Ning Yan was drifting in that dream, when he suddenly opened his eyes, he saw that the distance between Ning Huaijin and him was only a few inches.

The candlelight in the tent outlined Ning Huaijin's figure into a warm and illusory shadow, which looked extremely unreal.

At this time, dreams and reality were mixed together, making a mess. Ning Yan was dizzy again by Ning Huaijin. Jin boldly kissed his lips "in a dream".

"...Ning Huaijin, when did you dare to do this?" Ning Yan smiled lowly, and said, "Didn't you insist that you made good wine and you must let me taste it?"