The Golden Hairpin

Zhou Ziqin was momentarily stunned. The others hadn't expected Wang Yun to suddenly make such an unpleasant remark, and they all exchanged bewildered glances.

Seeing their reactions, Wang Yun revealed a faint smile and said, "I don't mean to make things difficult for this brother here. But as you all know, I'm about to be transferred to the Imperial Guards. Before I leave, I want to set a standard for the Defense Bureau—one that can test the quality of new recruits without causing any hard feelings. I just haven't had the chance to discuss it with everyone yet."

Wang Yun's transfer to the Imperial Guards was technically a lateral move. While the Imperial Guards offered broader prospects, there were multiple superiors above him, making it far less comfortable than his current position where he single-handedly oversaw the capital's defense.

Some members of the capital's Defense Bureau had indeed only joined to ride horses and gain a few years of experience through connections. Hearing that Wang Yun had a way to filter out the unqualified without causing conflict, they eagerly pressed him for details.

Wang Yun's gaze swept over Zhang Xingying, lingering on his hands. "The marks from the reins are still visible—you must be skilled at riding. Surely you can play polo as well?"

Polo, known as "jiju," was a sport popular among the Tang imperial family. Naturally, Zhang Xingying could play and nodded in affirmation.

"Those who excel at polo undoubtedly possess excellent equestrian skills and superb control over their horses. How about this: tomorrow, you gather a team, and we'll assemble some skilled polo players from the Defense Bureau. We'll have a match—no hard feelings, just a way to assess Brother Zhang's abilities. What do you say?"

As soon as Wang Yun made this suggestion, everyone applauded in approval. Of course—who would dare not cheer for their superior's idea? Praises like "Commander Wang is brilliant," "far-sighted," and "solving the Defense Bureau's future concerns" shamelessly poured out.

Wang Yun's smile remained as warm as a spring breeze as he glanced at Zhang Xingying and Huang Ziguang. "Since everyone agrees, we'll meet at mao hour (5-7 AM) tomorrow."

"Outrageous! That scoundrel Wang Yun—always acting like a brother, but at the critical moment, he stabs us in the back!"

On their way back, Zhou Ziqin took them to see the Defense Bureau's polo field. Standing at the edge with his hands on his hips, he stared at the flat sandy ground, visibly frustrated.

"Everyone knows he's being transferred to the Imperial Guards. Would it kill him to go easy on us before leaving? Instead, he comes up with this ridiculous idea!"

Zhang Xingying hesitated. "But... I think Commander Wang has a point. The capital's Defense Bureau has significant responsibilities, so strict vetting is only right..."

"Don't side with Commander Wang before you've even joined the Defense Bureau!" Zhou Ziqin fumed. "Do you even know that the Defense Bureau's cavalry team is the best in the capital at polo? Every year, in inter-agency polo competitions, the Defense Bureau wins without fail. Tell me—where is an ordinary civilian like you supposed to find people to help you win this match? It's a guaranteed loss!"

A guaranteed loss?

Zhang Xingying looked somewhat dazed.

"It's not like they'll reject you outright if you lose, but if we can't put up a decent match, the chances of them blocking you increase," Zhou Ziqin said, counting on his fingers. "A polo team needs at least five players. Chonggu, can you play polo?"

Huang Ziguang nodded. "I've played before."

"Xingying, what about you?"

Zhang Xingying nodded. "I've played too.""We're still two people short..." Zhou Ziqin squatted under the willow tree by the polo field, counting on his fingers with a pained expression. "Who should we call... Let me think about the most famous polo players in the capital..."

"Prince Zhao," Huang Zixia suddenly said.

Zhou Ziqin nodded. "True, Prince Zhao is indeed excellent at polo, but who could possibly invite him? Forget inviting him—he's hardly ever at his residence, just getting an audience with him is difficult..."

Before he could finish, Huang Zixia had already pressed her hand against the nearby railing and vaulted into the polo field ahead.

A match had just ended on the field, and the dust hadn't yet settled, still floating in the air. She ignored it completely, charging straight through the haze toward the resting area on the opposite side.

Hearing her approach, the two men selecting polo sticks turned around.

Zhou Ziqin's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Prince Zhao? How... what a coincidence, he's here with Prince E?"

He watched as Huang Zixia bowed to Prince Zhao Li Rui. Though he couldn't hear their conversation, he saw Prince Zhao nod with a smile and hand her his polo stick.

Huang Zixia took the stick in one hand, grabbed the reins of a nearby horse with the other, and swung herself onto its back in one fluid motion. Prince Zhao mounted another horse, and the two exchanged a glance before simultaneously spurring their horses toward a lone ball placed in the center of the field.

Zhou Ziqin hurried along the sidelines, approaching Prince E Li Run, who stood watching with an amused smile. "Your Highness, what... what are they doing?"

Li Run chuckled. "Eunuch Yang is challenging Prince Zhao to a match—seeing who can score first."

Why on earth would Yang Chonggu suddenly challenge Prince Zhao to a match? Zhou Ziqin was utterly baffled. "And the wager?"

"Nothing yet. Just that if she wins, Prince Zhao has to grant her one request."

Zhou Ziqin laughed. "How does he know he'll win?"

"If he hadn't been so audacious, Prince Zhao wouldn't have agreed so readily. You know how Prince Zhao can't resist a challenge."

As they spoke, the two horses reached the ball at nearly the same time, their riders equally swift.

Both sticks swung simultaneously. Prince Zhao aimed for the lower half of the ball, but Huang Zixia's stick abruptly changed course mid-swing, striking his instead.

With a sharp crack, the two sticks collided. Huang Zixia couldn't completely stop Prince Zhao's swing, but she managed to weaken the force behind the strike. As Prince Zhao's gaze followed the ball's trajectory, she was already urging her horse toward where it would land.

The ball dropped not far from the goal. Zhou Ziqin inwardly gasped—that had been dangerously close to an instant score for Prince Zhao.

The spectators waited to see her dribble the ball toward Prince Zhao's goal, while the prince himself reined in his horse on his side of the field, raising his stick and calling out with a grin, "Eunuch Yang, bring it on! Let's see if you can—"

Before he could finish, he saw her smile at him from horseback before leaning forward and swinging her stick.

With a crisp smack, the ball flew straight into the goal—her own goal.

The onlookers stared in stunned silence, baffled by her scoring on herself.

But Huang Zixia only laughed as she rode toward Prince Zhao. "Your Highness, we only agreed that whoever scored first would win. Did anyone specify which goal belonged to whom?"Prince Zhao was momentarily speechless. "Eunuch Yang, does scoring into our own goal count as a goal?"

"First, we never said the goal behind me was ours. Second, since my skills are no match for yours, I had to resort to this trick to get Your Highness to help me," she replied with a playful smile, her cheekiness so endearing that Prince Zhao couldn't help but feel both amused and satisfied. He raised his mallet and lightly tapped the horse beneath her, laughing heartily. "Utterly shameless, daring to scheme against me."

With the match decided and Prince Zhao in high spirits, they rode back to the sidelines to rest.

"Zi Qin is here too? And who's that young man?" Prince Zhao pointed at Zhang Xingying.

Zhou Ziqin quickly explained, "He's a friend of ours. He was supposed to join the Capital Defense Bureau, but unfortunately ran into some minor trouble."

Prince Zhao turned to Huang Zixia with a knowing smile. "So, this bet was for his sake?"

"Please forgive my impertinence, Your Highness!" Huang Zixia hurriedly recounted the whole story.

Upon hearing it involved a polo match against the Capital Defense Bureau, Prince Zhao's interest was immediately piqued. "This is right up my alley! I'll make sure we crush their team and show them who truly reigns supreme in the capital's polo scene! By the way, who's on our side?"

Huang Zixia pointed to herself, Zhang Xingying, and Zhou Ziqin.

"Only four, including me?" Prince Zhao's gaze landed on Prince E, Li Run.

Li Run gave a wry smile. "Well..."

"No 'well' about it! We're just one short—yes or no?"

"Fine, I'll join."

The next morning, just as dawn broke, Huang Zixia was awakened by the chirping of birds outside her window.

Realizing the importance of the day ahead, she sprang out of bed. First, she tightly bound her chest with cloth strips, then chose a narrow-sleeved outfit and dashed into the courtyard to stretch.

The summer morning in Prince Kui's residence was adorned with blooming privet flowers, their white petals carpeting the ground, their faint, fresh fragrance lingering in the air.

Passing the stables, she suddenly remembered something and hurried over to Old Wang, the stablemaster. "Uncle Wang, may I borrow Nafusha today?"

"Of course. His Highness said the horse is yours now—you can ride her whenever you like."

"Wonderful! Thank you, Uncle Wang!" She jumped for joy, only to hear the loud snort of Di’e beside her as the horse nudged its head toward her.

Afraid of getting sprayed with snot, Huang Zixia quickly raised a hand to block its nose—then froze. Reflected in Di’e’s large, dark eyes were the clear skies and white clouds behind her, as well as the tall, straight figure of a man standing just a few steps away.

She turned around nervously. "Your Highness."

Li Shubai stood three paces behind her, his expression calm. "Where are you off to so early?"

"To... to play a polo match against the Capital Defense Bureau." She didn’t dare lie to him. Once the match was over, Li Shubai would undoubtedly find out anyway. She still needed him to take her to Shu—keeping secrets from him would do her no good.

"The Capital Defense Bureau... Wang Yun?" He raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Yes. Zhou Ziqin roped in Princes Zhao and E. We’re forming a team to play against Wang Yun." As for Zhang Xingying, she decided to keep that detail to herself for now.Li Shubai had been extremely busy lately. Juggling multiple official duties and court affairs, he hardly had time to spare for her. So with just a noncommittal "Hmm," he took hold of Die E and mounted his horse in one fluid motion.

Huang Zixia breathed a sigh of relief and was about to untie Fei Sha when Li Shubai suddenly turned his horse around. Looking down at her from his elevated position, he said, "That group of young men from the Capital Defense Department are notoriously reckless. Their polo games are infamous throughout the capital for being particularly rough."

Huang Zixia nodded, still trying to decipher his meaning, when she heard him add in a low, hurried voice, "You... be careful. Don't get hurt."

"Oh," she replied, looking up at him with a slightly guilty expression.

"Wouldn't want your injuries to delay our journey," he tossed out as an explanation before turning his horse and riding away.

Left standing there, Huang Zixia slowly led Fei Sha along the brick path lined with privet blossoms, suddenly feeling an inexplicable sense of guilt.

When she finally arrived at the polo field on Fei Sha, she found Zhang Xingying standing alone by the sidelines.

"Brother Zhang," she called as she dismounted, suddenly realizing something. "You don't have a familiar horse, do you?"

"How could my family ever afford a horse?" Zhang Xingying replied sheepishly. "Truth be told, I haven't played much polo either. My skills are quite rusty."

"No matter. This time we've brought along Prince Zhao and Prince E. No matter what, the Capital Defense Department will have to show some restraint. Our chances aren't bad," Huang Zixia reassured him.

"Well, in any case, thank you—and Brother Ziqin," Zhang Xingying said, gazing at her intently.

Huang Zixia waved it off. "It's nothing. We won't let you go back to Duan Rui Tang and suffer humiliation."

"Exactly! Today we're getting you into the Defense Department, then we'll go back to Duan Rui Tang and give that old man a heart attack," came Zhou Ziqin's voice from behind. Leading his own horse, he patted its neck and said, "Say hello, Xiao Xia."

The horse obediently nodded in greeting.

Hearing the name, Huang Zixia immediately had a bad feeling. "Xiao Xia?"

"Right, 'Xia' as in Huang Zixia," Zhou Ziqin said affectionately, stroking the horse's head.

Huang Zixia and Zhang Xingying exchanged silent glances, both seeing the same speechless expression on each other's faces.