Under the spacious canopy, people were seated in a colorful and lively manner. Mei Li followed behind the eunuch with her head lowered, knowing that everyone was looking at her without even needing to see it for herself. Wasnt she feeling uncomfortable? Wasnt she nervous? It was all fake... As for what she would face next, she smiled faintly, taking it as her own punishment.

  "Meili, what took you so long?" Empress Dowager Ci Xi waved her hand to dismiss Meilis curtsy and pointed to the chair beside her, indicating for Meili to come sit.

  "Ha! Youre actually out?!" a voice said with great impertinence, cold and cutting, without the slightest regard for the Dowager Empresss presence.

  Because she had expected to encounter such embarrassment, Mei Li was calm and composed. She couldnt help but look up at the person speaking, also because she didnt dare confirm if it was really Jing Xian.

  "Hmm, its out now." Meri smiled a little.

  "Didnt you say that the land of your manor was going to be returned? How come youre dressed even more shabbily than before? Could it be that in these two years when the master is not around, all the wealth has been swindled away by those treacherous slaves?" Jing Xian said with a few snickers.

  "Alright! Dont be so hysterical!" Xiaozhuang, with a cold face, couldnt help but rebuke her in a low voice, frowning and suppressing her anger for a moment. The other women present also seemed to have not heard Jingxians words, chatting and laughing with each other.

  Jing Xian... Mei Li didnt want to provoke her, so she lowered her eyes and avoided meeting her provocative gaze. The incident at the Taihe Temple that year had spread far and wide, and Jing Xian, who was proud and arrogant, had suffered a great blow. She hadnt expected things to turn out this way, becoming so sharp-tongued. In the past, she was at least well-behaved in front of her ancestors. Her ancestors were very patient with her, probably because they felt that what happened back then was not her fault and that they owed her an apology.

  "Todays weather is just right," Xiaozhuang forced a smile and chatted with the nearby noblewomen, diverting attention from the earlier awkwardness. "Look at them, its only been a few days since we last saw each other, and those children have grown into young men! Time really flies! In the blink of an eye, the kids grew up, and weve all gotten old."

  Time flies? Her two years... were as long as a lifetime.

  "Our ancestor hasnt aged a bit!" A woman with beautiful glass-like skin, whom Meili didnt recognize, chimed in with a smile, "Ive followed my master out of the capital for nine years, and when I came back to take a look, our ancestor still looks just like he did back then!"

  Xiangzhuang couldnt help but laugh, "Youre still as good at making me happy as you were back then when you were by my side. I heard from the Emperor that your son has also returned with you, and I havent seen him yet."

  Meili took a close look at the woman, she had heard of her before, it was Xiang Ru, one of the palace maids who entered the palace with Yunans older sister to serve the emperor. The emperor liked her and arranged a good marriage for her, later her husband became the governor of Chahar, and she became a first-rank lady by imperial decree. Hai Shu had always used Xiang Ru as an example to warn Meili how important it was to gain the emperors favor.

  "Where is he?" As soon as the lady saw her elderly ancestor mention her son, she felt grateful and surprised, and hastily ordered her personal maid: "Quickly go and call Yonghe over!"

  The few ladies and young misses present obviously showed great interest in the soon-to-appear Young Master Yonghe, all of them shifting their gaze away from Meili.

  Looks like... Mei Li lowered her head, this Chahar Generals return to the capital is a promotion, his wife is also very popular with the ancestors, and shes in high spirits.

  Following the maid was a young man in his early twenties. Mei Li silently drank her tea and didnt take a closer look. The surrounding voices of approval also didnt spark her interest, as long as the old ancestor said he was good, even if he was missing an arm or leg, they would say he was a rare talent.

  "......Alright, alright. The Emperors arrangement is quite in line with my intentions. In the past, when Zhen Yu was the captain of the guards, it was very reassuring for me. Now that Yong He has taken over, its even better!"

  When she heard the name of Azusa, Meryl finally looked up at Eiko standing below, who was clean and handsome with a hint of childishness. Azusa had already become the emperors confidant, so he must have had a great use for him. Entrusting the task of guarding the imperial city to a young man like Eiko, who had connections, was indeed apt.

  "Look, the archery contest has begun." Xiaozhuang looked excitedly at the not-too-distant venue, where men were all standing in front of the drawn lines to inspect their bows and arrows and targets. The drumbeats also became rhythmic one by one.

  "You all go too! Also give me a first place to come out, the old ancestor will be heavily rewarded!" Xiang Zhuang said with a smile to the girls, and the girls were also eager to try. "Yong He, tell the eunuchs, Su Yans bow should be especially light, she is weak in body, if injured its not a joke!"

  "Thanks to the ancestors kindness." The sweet and soft voice was lively and beautiful, and the person looked lovely and pretty. Mei Li followed the sound and couldnt help but admire, no wonder the ancestors were extra fond of her, she...was really too beautiful and delicate.

  "Yatou, you go too!" Xiaozhuang gently patted her shoulder, and Meili nodded in response.

  The targets for the girls are bigger and closer than those for the men. The emperor is not in a hurry to have the men compete, but instead watches from afar with a smile as the girls emerge from the pavilion.

  Meilis target was at the farthest end of the mens archery field, next to her was Jingxian. Meili didnt want to talk to her and took the bow from the small eunuch to try it out. In the past, she had been busy running around Jingxuan and hadnt really tried it before. It turned out that each person had six arrows.

  "Virtue! Shes so spoiled!" Jing Xian coldly snorted.

  Meili originally thought she was scolding her, but when she turned around, she found that Jingxian was staring at Suoying with disdain. Suoying frowned and her delicate face looked even more pitiful, carefully wearing gloves to avoid scratching her tender hands.

  Jing Xian cursed again and pulled out an arrow from her quiver, amidst the mens distant cheers of approval.

  Su Ying wore a pair of gloves, her posture of drawing the bow and shooting the arrow was beautiful and elegant, stunningly charming. The weak girl surprisingly shot an arrow into the bullseye, even the emperor applauded for her, the mens cheers filled the air, Jing Xians expression became even more disdainful.

  "As expected of Salt Supervisors daughter, even her phlegm is fragrant."

  Meili smiled and pulled open her bow, with a "pa" sound, the light bow specially prepared for the girls was actually broken by her. Meili was startled, and felt a sharp pain behind her ear, she couldnt help but reach out to touch, and found a thread of blood, it was just that when the bowstring broke, it had scratched her slightly.

  "Ah!" The girls all stopped and looked at her with different expressions. "She broke the bow!"

  "How can you be so energetic? Is the food in the Cold Palace very good?" Someone bluntly and sarcastically asked, which brought a few snickers.

  Meili apologized with a smile, she had forgotten that her strength was no longer comparable to what it used to be, which is why she accidentally broke the bow. When she first entered the Anning Temple, she couldnt even lift half a bucket of water with all her might, but later on, she could continuously lift several full buckets.

  "Are you alright?" Yonghe, who was about to head to the mens training grounds, walked over with his bow on his back and looked at her neck wound with concern.

  "Its nothing, its nothing." Meri didnt think he would come over to ask and felt a bit embarrassed.

  The little eunuch hastily handed over a new bow. Mei Lis heart still had lingering fears, she pulled it again but didnt dare to use force.

  "Use mine!" Yonghe laughed and handed over his own bow, handing it over with a big smile. Mei Li didnt dare to refuse, so she could only awkwardly smile and take the strong bow.

  This time, shes not afraid of breaking it. She picks up the bow and arrow. "No, no!" Yonghe exclaims from the side, feeling embarrassed to correct her, getting anxious and scratching his ears, like a child, which makes Mei Lin smile.

  "Dont catch the feather."

  Dont grasp at feathers...

  This sentence was said by Jingxuan to her a long time ago, with an impatient tone that seemed to echo in her ears. Her hand relaxed, and the arrow flew out aimlessly, grazing the edge of the target and falling onto the grass behind.

  "Alas..." Yong He sighed regretfully, "Youre too impatient, just aim for the point."

  "Thank you." She returned the bow to him and said a word to the little eunuch, pretending that she was going to apply medicine to her wound, and left the archery field.

  This book is first published on 17K, read the genuine content at the first time!