Blossom

Song Mo turned toward the voice and saw Dong Qi, the heir of the Earl of Guang'en.

Tall and handsome, he wore a phoenix-winged helmet and a blue silk brocade armor adorned with golden cloud patterns and fish-scale plates, fully armed and looking quite imposing.

The Crown Prince eyed his armor curiously. "You're..."

Dong Qi lowered his head slightly and replied respectfully, "Your Highness, I will also be participating in the riding and archery events at this year's Autumn Hunt."

Dong Qi held a nominal post in the Golden Guard.

The Crown Prince nodded.

Shen Qing circled Dong Qi with a grin. "This armor of yours is impressive."

Empress Shen came from humble origins, and the Shen family had been ennobled due to their imperial connections. The young nobles of the Capital looked down on Shen Qing, so he rarely mingled with them. However, there were two exceptions. One was Song Mo—aloof and indifferent to everyone, so Shen Qing had no reason to resent him. The other was Dong Qi—charming and sociable with all, making him much closer to Shen Qing than others.

"This was custom-made for me in Tianzhou," Dong Qi said with a smile. "If you like it, I can arrange one for you as well."

Armor from Tianzhou in Guangxi was typically reserved for military use, making it difficult for Shen Qing to acquire. But for Dong Qi, whose father served as the Right Army Commander-in-chief in the Five Armies Commandery overseeing Guangxi's military garrisons, it was effortless.

Shen Qing brightened and replied without hesitation, "Then I’ll gladly accept your kindness!"

The Crown Prince’s brow furrowed slightly.

Dong Qi, still chatting and laughing with Shen Qing as if oblivious to the Crown Prince, added, "I had this made secretly under my father’s name—just don’t let it slip later."

Hearing this, the Crown Prince’s expression visibly softened.

Gu Yu scoffed silently.

Song Mo shot him a glance.

Gu Yu immediately resumed his previous respectful demeanor.

Only Shen Qing, still unaware, fretted over the armor he hadn’t even received yet. "Then what should I say?"

Gu Yu rolled his eyes skyward.

Dong Qi teased, "Just say you took it from Song Da."

The Crown Prince, Shen Qing, and Gu Yu all froze in surprise.

But Song Mo merely replied indifferently, "Fine."

His deadpan tone drained all humor from the moment, making it unbearably serious.

Shen Qing groaned. "Tianci, can’t you loosen up a little? No wonder everyone calls you Song Da."

The Crown Prince chuckled.

A group of elegantly dressed young nobles passed through the ranks of patrolling soldiers and approached.

All scions of noble houses, they were less restrained than usual due to the Autumn Hunt.

They bowed to the Crown Prince one after another.

The Crown Prince greeted them warmly, inquiring about each person—"I heard your grandmother injured her leg. Has she recovered?" "How are you adjusting to your post in the Golden Guard?" "Have you set a wedding date yet?"—each recipient of his attention looking thoroughly delighted.

Song Mo glanced at Gu Yu.

Gu Yu grinned back at him.

The group then escorted the Crown Prince to his tent.

Only Song Mo, Gu Yu, and Dong Qi remained outside Song Mo’s tent.

The three stood in a triangular formation.Seven or eight young soldiers, clad in padded jackets and chainmail with broadswords at their waists, approached. "Is this the tent of the Young Lord of the Duke of England's Mansion?" one of them asked. "We're from the left and right divisions of the Five Armies Battalion, summoned this year for the Autumn Hunt's mounted archery. We've come to pay our respects to the Young Lord." The speaker's gaze swept over the three men before settling on Dong Qi. "We've long heard that the Young Lord of the Duke of England's Mansion is a youthful hero. Seeing you today, the reputation is well-deserved..."

Dong Qi's face flushed and paled alternately. Just as he was about to speak, someone loudly called out "Young Lord Song," drowning his voice, and strode forward. "You seem to have grown taller since last year. Old Yin here isn't qualified for the Autumn Hunt's mounted archery this year, so I've brought a few juniors to greet you. Be careful—don't let the Emperor's Golden Guard Deputy Commander lose face!"

The man stood eight feet tall, his burly frame rippling with muscle as he walked, resembling a bear. His booming laughter echoed as he spoke, followed by five or six young men brimming with confidence and vigor.

This man was Ma Youming, son of Xuan-Tong Commander Ma Yichao, serving in the Divine Pivot Camp. Four years ago, he had won first place in the Autumn Hunt, yet the nine-year-old Song Mo had stolen the spotlight, leaving him, the champion, ignored. The following year, he lost to Song Mo by a single arrow and was overlooked again. The third year, he remained second.

Now promoted to Deputy General of the Divine Pivot Camp, how could he still compete for rankings with these young men holding no official posts?

Spotting Gu Yu, Ma Youming chuckled. "Little girl, tagging along with the Young Lord to watch the fun again?"

Gu Yu's face twisted in anger as he leapt up, spewing a torrent of curses that left even these battle-hardened soldiers stunned.

Ma Youming ignored him, stepping forward to bow to Song Mo. He pulled out a young man of seventeen or eighteen from behind him. "Young Lord, this lad is Jiang Yi, son of the Dengzhou Guard Commander. With his family's legacy, our Divine Pivot Camp is counting on him to challenge you!"

Ma Youming's men surged forward to bow to Song Mo.

Song Mo returned the courtesy, nodding at Jiang Yi with a smile.

The man who had earlier spoken to Dong Qi froze momentarily before widening his eyes at Song Mo. "You... you're the Young Lord of the Duke of England's Mansion?"

Song Mo nodded.

Ma Youming slung an arm over Song Mo's shoulders. "We rarely meet—let's drink in your tent." He strode past Dong Qi without a glance.

The Five Armies Battalion men erupted in chatter.

"How can he be so young?"

"Is this real? Look at him—soft skin, delicate features. He probably hasn't done a day of hard labor. How could he have won first place?"

"Heroes emerge young since ancient times!"

Dong Qi's face darkened like an impending storm as he quietly slipped away from Song Mo's tent.

※※※※※

For the next two days of hunting, Song Mo merely observed from the sidelines. It wasn't until the mounted archery competition on the third day that he donned his military attire and appeared on the field.

Song Mo's steed, Feidu, was a thousand-mile horse, giving him an innate advantage. He won the horsemanship competition without dispute or suspense, finishing three horse-lengths ahead of the second-place rider.

When the archery contest began, as last year's champion, he was scheduled to shoot in the final round.Unexpectedly, the one standing at the other end was Dong Qi.

He nodded calmly at Song Mo with a smile, yet his gaze was as sharp as frost.

Song Mo returned the smile briefly before focusing his attention on archery.

Soon, the eunuch blew the ox horn, signaling the start of the competition.

At first, Song Mo was steady, hitting the target with every arrow. But as the contest progressed, his mistakes increased. One arrow barely grazed the target, teetering on the edge of missing entirely.

A murmur of surprise rippled through the spectators on the viewing platform, who sat up straighter, their expressions tense as they watched the field. Among them were the Emperor, the Duke of Yingguo, and the Earl of Guang'en.

Song Mo seemed to sense his poor performance. Instead of continuing, he closed his eyes and took several deep breaths before drawing his bow again.

The subsequent arrows were all well-placed.

Despite this, when the scores from both events were tallied, Song Mo only ranked second.

First place went to Dong Qi.

He was the second noble scion in many years to claim the top spot in the Autumn Hunt's mounted archery competition, following Song Mo.

Jiang Yi came in third.

Jiang Yi looked at Song Mo with sympathy—Song Mo had lost to Dong Qi by just one arrow.

Meanwhile, Dong Qi stood tall and proud, his triumphant spirit evident in his demeanor. His father's words echoed in his ears: "...I never allowed you to participate in the Autumn Hunt's mounted archery before because you lacked the confidence to defeat Song Mo. Rather than adding to Song Mo's glory, it was better to bide your time. Now, with the Jiang Family's troubles, Song Mo cannot remain unaffected. Whether you can seize victory and defeat him in one stroke depends entirely on you!"

Now, he had finally surpassed Song Mo.

But from the viewing platform came the Emperor's furious roar: "Drag that little brat Song Mo in here! What kind of performance was that? I could shoot better with my eyes closed!"

Song Mo was summoned inside.

"You brat, what have you been doing all this time at home?" The Emperor's voice thundered across the field. "Do you realize you've lost my Golden Guard's deputy commander position?" He continued, "And I hear you've taken up gambling? With the Autumn Hunt approaching, instead of preparing properly, you've been fooling around with a bunch of riffraff? If you don't start taking things seriously, I'll break your legs and throw you into the Standard Bearer Guard to lead my horses. No—I'll toss you into the Fengtai Military Camp instead..."

Silence fell over the field, inside and out.

The Emperor would scold the Crown Prince, Liao Wang, or even Wang Yuan, and occasionally the Empress, but he never berated Grand Secretariat officials or noble lords. Yet this time, he had reprimanded Song Mo.

All eyes turned to Song Mo with envy.

Dong Qi's mind was in turmoil, unsure of what to feel.

If Song Mo had truly erred and the Emperor wanted to punish him, why not send him to the Northwest Military Camp?

The Fengtai Military Camp was a place countless noble scions desperately sought to enter but couldn't.

Was this punishment or favor?

What use was his first-place victory?

Even now, the Emperor's concern and the attention of the noble ministers remained fixed on Song Mo.

※※※※※

On the way back, Song Yichun rode in the same carriage as his son.“Such a major matter, why didn’t you discuss it with me first?” He was both anxious and furious, his face flushed red. “If the Emperor thought I had instigated you to test his intentions, could we father and son have left Huailai today? You’re already thirteen this year, yet you still act like a three-year-old child, utterly thoughtless!”

Didn’t he know his own son? Was Song Mo the type to be easily swayed by a few words from others?

Song Mo could only offer his father an apologetic smile.

He considered himself an adult, but who knew that in the Emperor’s eyes, he was still just a child.

Song Yichun sighed and said, “Never do this again, understand? Your uncles are in trouble, and it’s only right that we help, but we can’t risk our own family in the process. There must be limits to everything. Fortunately, the Emperor wasn’t angry. If an imperial decree had been issued, securing a solid position in the Fengtai Military Camp would have been a case of losing the east but gaining the west…” He rambled on all the way back to the Duke of England's Mansion.

As soon as they stepped into the main chamber, they heard the muffled sobs of Jiang Shi.

Jiang Shi had always been strong in the face of adversity.

Song Yichun and Song Mo both tensed and hurried into the main chamber.

Jiang Shi lay collapsed on the daybed, weeping so faintly she seemed breathless, while her personal maids and attendants also wept inconsolably.

Hearing the commotion, she lifted her head, tears falling even faster: “Third Brother… he has passed away from illness!”

Like a bolt from the blue, the news struck Song Mo’s ears with a deafening buzz, and it took him a long moment to register the sounds around him.

His third uncle, renowned as the family’s strategist, was gone. Without someone to carry on his legacy, and with only the fifth uncle—who knew nothing but indulgence—left, what would become of the Jiang Family? And what of the younger relatives who had been exiled to Tieling Guard alongside the third uncle?

In his daze, he heard his father’s hesitant voice: “Do you think… we should send Tianci to Liaodong? Under the pretext of mourning, he could meet with Liao Wang and ask him to look after Fifth Brother?”

All male members of the Jiang Family over five years old had been exiled to Tieling Guard, while the rest had returned to their hometown with Madam Mei. Who knew if anyone would pay respects…

Jiang Shi gazed at her husband with gratitude and nodded firmly.