A pure heart in a jade pot

Chapter 129

The Liao man selling furs entered the town's only inn, asked for a room, but didn't rush up. Instead, he sat in the lobby, ordered more wine and meat, and began to eat and drink heartily.

After finishing the entire plate of beef, the man wiped the grease from his mouth, loudly ordered another plate, and poured himself a bowl of wine. Most Liaodong people are fond of drinking, so such scenes are commonplace and not surprising at all.

As Madam Fang entered, the waiter was serving beef to the Liao man. Upon seeing her, he quickly wiped his greasy hands on his clothes and greeted her with a smile: "Madam Fang, the top-class room is available. Would you like to go up and rest first, or have your meal first?"

Madam Fang would come here several times a year. Because she was refined and elegant, and extremely polite to the waiters, she would tip them more than ordinary customers. Therefore, the waiters had a very good impression of her.

"I would like a room to rest. I would also like to trouble the waiter to bring me food and hot water."

"Alright! Please follow me, and watch your step... be careful of the steps."

The waiter busied himself leading Madam Fang upstairs, even reaching out to take the bundle from her hands. Unfortunately, this was a bit too overtly attentive, and Madam Fang slightly turned aside to avoid him, still holding the bundle tightly in her hands. The waiter smiled awkwardly and had no choice but to continue walking forward.

Below, the Liao people, who were eating large chunks of meat, had a cold glint in their eyes as they took in the whole scene.

Chapter Sixty-One

After resting for two or three days, the group that had settled in Fuhu Forest began to go into the mountains to hunt.

Although Yelü Zongzhen was the emperor of Liao, he was extremely interested in hunting and couldn't wait to be the first to enter the mountains. Yelü Hongji not only looked very similar to his father, but also shared similar temperament and interests. Seeing his father enter the mountains, he also prepared to go into the mountains the next day.

Of all the people in the camp, Zhao Yu was probably the least interested in hunting.

If she had a choice, Zhao Yu wouldn't want to go anywhere; she just wanted to stay in the tent and rest. Unfortunately, Yelü Hongji had already sent people to invite her into the mountains, and Xiao Xin had also come several times. Knowing she couldn't refuse, she had no choice but to agree to go with them early the next morning.

Hunting in the mountains is unlike any other activity. Not only are the personal belongings limited, but the number of people Zhao Yu can bring is also restricted. After all, her status is not like Yelü Hongji's. Yelü Hongji can have over a hundred attendants, all of whom are skilled hunters, while Zhao Yu can only bring a few people besides the ten Liao people. None of the maids she brought from the Song Dynasty can ride or shoot, so they were all left behind. Only Mo Yan can accompany her, along with a few Song Dynasty guards. When it was time to set off, she subtly glanced at the group and, not seeing Yelü Pusa Nu, secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Then, looking into the distance, she suddenly saw that person just coming out of the tent. She quickly looked away, composed herself, and followed the group.

Yelü Zongzhen went hunting in the north, so Yelü Hongji decided to go southeast.

The day before, some people had entered the mountain early, knowing that His Highness was coming. They beat drums and gongs in the mountain to drive out the deer. As soon as the group turned the corner of the mountain pass, they saw a large herd of deer rushing down from afar, weaving through the dense forest. At a rough glance, there were at least a thousand of them.

Mo Yan was seeing so many deer for the first time and was extremely excited, wishing she could immediately approach the herd and begin hunting. Zhao Yu, who was next to her, was also seeing such a spectacular sight for the first time, so he reined in his horse and watched with bated breath.

Yelü Hongji seemed quite dissatisfied, frowning as he asked the guard beside him, "Why is it always the same old routine? What's the point of hunting deer? Go and tell them to leave, don't let them cause trouble."

The guards spurred their horses and galloped away. Soon after, the drumming stopped, and the deer herd gradually slowed down.

Xiao Xin lightly spurred the reins and strolled to Yelü Hongji's side, laughing, "Hunting with His Highness is still the most fun. I hate it when they come and cause trouble. Last time, I finally found a tiger with piercing eyes and a white forehead, followed it for most of the day, and just when I was about to catch it, they scared it away. Can you believe it?"

Yelü Hongji smiled faintly and tugged on the reins: "This time, we'll hunt a tiger and bring it back!"

Xiao Xin's face lit up with joy: "Your Highness is in a good mood. Then we should go deeper into the area. With them making such a fuss, I bet these beasts are all hiding."

"Walk!"

Yelü Hongji was clearly in high spirits and rode off first, heading towards the deep mountains. Although his men knew that it was really inappropriate for a prince to venture into the mountains and risk danger, everyone knew that he loved hunting, and their advice was useless. They could only brace themselves and be extra careful.

Xiao Guanyin glared at her brother's retreating figure, secretly blaming him for stirring up trouble and making her brother Cha Ci want to go deep into the mountains. She herself did not enjoy hunting; although she pretended to be very interested, it was only to accompany Yelü Hongji. If she were to actually go deep into the mountains to hunt tigers and bears, she would be quite apprehensive.

"Princess, it's tiger hunting! We're going tiger hunting!" Mo Yan's voice trembled with excitement. She was quite playful and was naturally thrilled to hear about the tiger hunt. Seeing Zhao Yu's indifferent expression, she thought for a moment and felt a little disappointed: "It's a pity my brother isn't here, otherwise he would definitely like it too."

Zhao Yu remained indifferent throughout, because she didn't care about the matter at all.

Since she was already out, it made no difference to her whether she hunted deer or tigers, as she would have to wait until Yelü Hongji had had his fill of wandering before she could go back, so it didn't matter where she went.

The group, lightly equipped, rode their horses into the depths of the dense forest.

Xiao Guanyin naturally followed Yelü Hongji. Zhao Yu had no intention of competing with her, and at this moment she naturally wouldn't care. She just walked silently at the end of the group with Mo Yan.

When Xiao Xin turned around, he saw Zhao Yu and the others lagging behind. He assumed that Zhao Yu was afraid, so he turned his horse around and rode to her side: "Princess, you don't need to be afraid. I come to the mountains often and know them very well. Besides tigers and bears, there are only wolves. There are so many of us, so there's nothing to be afraid of."

Hearing this, Zhao Yu smiled, but couldn't help feeling a little worried. She had never seen any of these three kinds of animals alive before.

"There are bears too?!" Mo Yan exclaimed excitedly. "Are there many? Are we likely to encounter them this time?"

“Bears certainly exist, but they are not easy to encounter. I have only encountered one in all the many times I have gone into the mountains. They are very cunning and ferocious by nature. Even four or five people might not be able to handle them.”

Zhao Yu sighed inwardly: It's good that we don't run into each other. It would be best if we didn't run into anything at all, just go back as soon as possible after a quick trip.

The deeper they went into the dense forest, the cooler it became. The wind blowing in their faces carried a chilling dampness. As they walked through it, they spoke less and less, as if they felt that any sound would disturb something.

Birds chirped, cicadas sang, and occasionally a horse snorted.

Yelü Hongji seemed to have discovered something. He dismounted, and the people behind him, not knowing what was happening, also dismounted. He took two steps to the left, squatted down, and intently examined the trunk of a birch tree…

"Xiao Xin, come and see." He lowered his voice and beckoned to Xiao Xin.

Xiao Xin quickly stepped forward, squatted down to examine the footprints closely, then stood up and looked around. He took a few steps toward the northwest, leaned down and said with a smile, "Your Highness, that's right. These footprints are still fresh. This tiger must have passed through here in the last two days and headed northwest."

Upon hearing this, Mo Yan understood that they had discovered the tiger's tracks. She went forward and examined the tiger's footprints and claw marks. She was skilled in tracking, and although she had never seen a tiger before, she could roughly guess its size from the footprints and claw marks.

"This is a big one, catching it would be a huge deal," she whispered to Zhao Yu.

Zhao Yu gasped, finally feeling a little scared: "Is it really a tiger?"

"It looks like a cat's foot, but much bigger than a cat, so it must be a tiger. Besides, everyone says so, so it must be." Mo Yan shook her head, twirling a small tuft of fur she had picked up from somewhere. "Princess, look at this, doesn't it look like tiger fur?"

Zhao Yu dodged away in disgust: "Take it away, it's so dirty."

"This tiger is shedding so much fur, it must be quite old." Mo Yan withdrew her hand, brought the tuft of fur close to her eyes to examine it, shook her head and sighed.

"What does its age have to do with us?"

"Older animals walk slower and are also lazier, making it easier for us to catch them."

"As long as it's easy..." Zhao Yu was only thinking about getting back as soon as possible.

Mo Yan then added, "But that's not necessarily true. The older it gets, the more cunning it becomes. It might be very clever and difficult to hunt."