Wei Ni

Chapter 21

White clouds rise to Yuanxiu, swaying into the clear sky.

Beimang Mountain, which has just entered mid-autumn and August, is still verdant and verdant, and there is no sign of withered and yellow ruins everywhere in the bleak autumn wind.

However, if you enter the valley at the foot of the mountain, you will find the broken walls, broken tiles and burnt wood in the cemetery of the princes and nobles of the former dynasty, telling the desolation.Going up along the stone steps that have not been covered by wild grass, a tomb that was opened by Faqiu is a pit, full of stars, as if the earth has been scalded with many scars, and the rain has already accumulated, and a large number of residual leaves and flies are mixed. Inside, there was a faint smell of rot and filth.

Holding a bow and arrow, Xia Houhui hid behind an excavated tomb with a short cat waist, staring straight ahead.

Over there, a small deer about the size of a clay dog ​​was looking around.

Its fur is brown, hornless, short tail, slender limbs, long and straight ears, and a pair of long and pointed fangs protruding from the mouth—obviously, this is a male forest musk deer.

Yes, he is hunting.

For some reason, Emperor Cao Rui suddenly became interested in hunting today.

After finishing the administration in the East Hall early, he brought many close ministers with great interest to the valley at the foot of Beiman Mountain.

Naturally, it was just a temporary idea, not the field hunting of the emperors and princes in autumn and winter, and one of the five ceremonies of the country, so everyone can do what they want.

For example, Wang Su, Liu Shao and other people who do not regard martial arts as capable can be regarded as traveling in mid-autumn to enjoy the scenery.

For example, Qin Lang, Cao Zhao, Xia Houxian, etc., should have inspired their fathers' admiration for martial arts. After being encouraged by the emperor, they set the number of prey as rewards and punishments, and then took the bows and arrows from the guards and fled into the forest.

It's Xia Houhui~
Emperor Cao Rui took special care of him.

Gein still remembered Xia Houhui's first day in the East Hall when he was in charge of politics, boasting that he had a little courage and had a lot of experience in archery.

Therefore, the emperor claimed that if he could hunt prey equal to his own weight within two hours, he would be rewarded; but if it was less, he would be punished, and he would serve wine for everyone at the next banquet.

In this regard, Xia Houhui gladly accepted the order.

Thanks to his experience of ranger and winter hunting in his early years, he still has confidence in hunting some animals in the mountains and forests.Especially in today's Beiman Mountain, where there are few people and funerals have not yet flourished, many wild beasts can thrive comfortably.

However, when he took the stone bow handed over by the imperial guards and drew it in a full circle with both his left and right hands at will, the emperor felt that the conditions just promised were too generous.

Immediately added a new one: common wild animals such as hares and wild deer are not allowed to make up the number!

It is necessary to hunt wild animals such as wild hogs, jackals, tigers and leopards, as well as birds and some wild animals of high value.

Among them, considering that the weight of the birds is very light, it can be calculated by multiplying the weight.

This made Xia Houhui a little embarrassed.

This is just Beiman Mountain, not a hunting ground in Wancheng, Nanyang County.

Prey that demonstrate prowess are rare.

Not to mention tigers, even larger wild boars are rarely found; as for nocturnal species such as leopards, leopard cats, and foxes, it is even more difficult to find them.

Moreover, although there are many birds in the Wanluo area, such as wild geese, black storks, gray cranes, and white spoonbills are commonly seen.

However, here are mountains, not water!

How can it be so easy to find it?

Originally, Xia Houhui thought that he would be able to complete the emperor's test by hunting just a forest deer and a few hares, but he expected that the conditions would be so harsh.Moreover, he has practiced bowing and horses all the year round and has an excellent appetite, so his body is quite majestic and his weight is not light.

Of course, complaining won't solve the problem.

He thought about it, and asked someone where there were more pine trees in the valley at the foot of Beiman Mountain, and then went deep into the forest alone.

Because the end of autumn and the beginning of winter are the breeding seasons of wild hogs.

But now in mid-autumn and August, many male wild hogs will run to the pine forest to rub the trunks, sticking pine oil resin to their bodies to form a layer of armor to avoid serious injuries in the battle for mating rights and territory.

He was lucky.

It took less than half an hour to reach the pine forest, and after several twists and turns, I finally found several low-lying mud pits with stagnant water.

That's where wild hogs often roll around.

But he was not so lucky.

Kong waited for more than half an hour, only to see a group of squirrels and wild pheasants.

Finally, a wild hog arrived, but it was very small, only about two hundred (Chinese) catties.

But even so, he struggled a lot when hunting.

The first arrow he shot was aimed at the wild boar's eyes. The wild boar who happened to be nibbling on the pine cone suddenly looked up alertly and landed directly in the jaw.

The stone bow was very powerful, and the arrow pierced through the wild boar's jaw, but this was not a fatal injury.
It was suddenly wounded, which aroused its ferocity, screaming and running towards Xia Houhui, who was exposed by the sound of the bowstring, even the arrow that pierced its jaw broke when it was running, and burst into a ball again. The blood flower can't even care about it.

Xia Houhui is not afraid.

Immediately, he threw aside the bow and arrow in his hand, drew out the short blade attached to his waist, stretched his neck and let out a provocative roar, then turned around and ran back.

Well, he's not running away.

In the absence of long soldiers in hand, it is a fool's thing to fight head-on with the wild boar.

Even if the wild boar was small, he was confident enough to kill it without being seriously injured.

He just didn't want to hug the wild boar.

Just like the previous Cao Zhang with extraordinary physical strength and strong hands, he would not choose to hug the wild boar and roll on the ground.

Without him, there is no need to embarrass yourself too much.

When he entered the pine forest and found the mud pit where wild hogs often rolled, he sharpened a few logs and laid a trap just in case.

It's too late, it's too soon.

I saw a man and a beast chasing wildly. Xia Houhui, who was in front of him, looked back from time to time, and controlled his speed with the distance between himself and the wild boar. , Stepping on the tree trunk in front of him, he did a backflip with the strength of his waist, and stabbed down suddenly while holding the short blade tightly with both hands.

On the other hand, the red-eyed wild hog first noticed Xia Houhui's body soaring into the air, and an old pine suddenly appeared in front of him. He instinctively stopped, but the huge inertia made his body slide forward, slightly soft His belly directly bumped into a few sharp woods hidden in the dead branches and leaves, and he was deeply penetrated, bleeding everywhere.

It also made a loud scream.

But soon, it was quiet.

Gein flipped back and Xia Houhui, who was holding a short blade, fell down and stabbed the short blade towards its neck and shoulders.

The huge force made the six-inch-long blade sink into its body, and smashed it directly into the rotten soil formed by dead branches and leaves, and also made its screams stop abruptly——under the effect of uneven force , its long head and body are bent at a weird angle, so it is naturally dead and cannot die anymore.

But its inhuman treatment has not yet ended.

Xia Houhui, who despised it for being too smelly and dirty, sharpened a straight log, barreled it from its mouth into its abdominal cavity, and carried it out of the pine forest.
Alas, iniquity.

It was this kind of dislike that made Xia Houhui feel that it was not easy to hunt wild hogs. After handing over the prey to the guards at the edge of the forest, he turned to the other side of the low hill near the water lake to find forest musk deer and chaffinches to hunt.

These two kinds of prey can be multiplied.

With about two hundred (han) catties of wild hogs at the bottom, he didn't need to hunt much in half an hour to complete the share agreed with the emperor.

However, what he didn't know was that when the guards brought the wild hog back to the camp, the emperor Cao Rui, Wang Su and other close officials who did not participate in the hunting saw it, and they were all deeply moved.

It's not about Xia Houhui's bravery in hunting wild hogs alone.

Instead, I feel that the death of this wild hog with a pierced jaw, a broken neck, several holes in the abdomen, and a deep puncture in the neck and shoulder is terrible, and it is really pitiful.

The only advantage is that when decomposing and grilling, it saves a lot of effort for the accompanying cooking orders.

"It seems that it will be difficult for Zhiquan to serve wine and banquets."

The emperor Cao Rui, who has no awareness of a gentleman far away from the kitchen, took Wang Su to stare at Pao Ling. When he was busy breaking down the wild pigs and distributing them to the entourage to roast and eat them, he asked with a smile on his face, "Wang Qing, in your opinion, what reward should I give to Juvenile Quanxie?"

"Return to Your Majesty, the rewards are not determined by the ministers."

Hearing this, Wang Su bowed and answered, "However, I secretly think that this place is the pleasure of the monarch and his ministers in their leisure time. Your Majesty's rewards are enough to add to the fun, and it should not be too expensive."

"Well, what Wang Qing said makes sense."

Tilting his head slightly, the Son of Heaven somehow remembered something, and nodded softly in response.

He didn't reply on this matter, seeing that the attendants brought back the prey of Qin Lang, Xia Houxian and others one after another, he dragged Wang Su together to judge the superiority of the hunting methods.

Time passed in each busy.

Soon, Xia Houhui returned with a longbow on his back.

Judging from the number of forest musk deer and sparrows in the hands of the attendants walking behind him step by step, he has overfulfilled the emperor's play promise.

In this regard, the emperor Cao Rui was also very straightforward.

He waved his hand to beckon him, and after a few words of praise and encouragement according to the usual practice, he claimed that after returning to the palace, he would give him a collection of two stone bows as a reward.

But Xia Houhui flatly refused.

The speech said: "Your Majesty, Hui Wu has the courage to open two stone bows. It is a waste of money to receive this precious gift. And when Mr. Huixian was guarding Chang'an, he occasionally got a bow. The strength of the bow is more than one stone and two stones are not enough. Abandoning the bow is very much in line with Hui, so I ask your Majesty to allow Hui to resign. If Your Majesty insists on favoring Your Majesty, and Hui is bold, please allow Your Majesty to return the good horse that he had the audacity to ask for earlier, so that Hui can make up for his rudeness, and he will take care of himself. You can sleep and eat with peace of mind.”

It's just the cost of a good horse, so you can't afford it?

Furthermore, after being the founder of Qiao Pei, Xia Hou's family, you are so desperate for this little salary?
Hearing this, the Son of Heaven couldn't help but feel amused, and made a stern face on purpose, and said sternly, "No! The two stone bows can be resigned, and the good horse can't be returned! Since I have given them, there is no reason to ask for them back! Look at your respect today. You are humble and courteous, I am very relieved, and I will allow you to ask for rewards, what rewards you want, think about it."

I said it!

I just want my salary back!

Xia Houhui, who roared angrily in his heart, thought for a while, and suddenly remembered something, and immediately thanked him with gratitude, "Your Majesty Enlong, I have made Hui feel frightened, and I have nothing to think about for a while, please forgive me Calm down a bit, and report back later." After saying this, he was afraid that the emperor would refuse, so he added another sentence, "Hui Ban drove for several months, and after a long time to soak up His Majesty's holiness, he has no longer behaved in a rough way. Dare to ask for a reward."

"Never mind."

In this regard, the emperor waved his hand, didn't take it seriously, and went straight to have a banquet with other people for fun.

As for Xia Houhui's request, he waited until the emperor returned to the palace and many close officials left on their own accord, before he stepped forward and saluted, "Your Majesty, if you want to be rewarded, please let your majesty solve the problem." .”

"Why are you confused?"

"Hui dares to ask Your Majesty, do you still remember Emperor Wu's wishful thinking?"

(End of this chapter)