Chapter 3 — Article Phu Dinh Duyen

The female relatives in the stands shouted in alarm and stood up to avoid it. Before I could react, the horse rushed past the front of the stands. At the moment of passing, the teenager on horseback suddenly sat up straight, drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and shot out an arrow. The arrow grazed my sideburns, carrying a gust of wind. A dull sound rang out behind me. I suddenly turned my head and saw a panicked deer pinned to death by an arrow on the grass, less than three steps away from me. The horse ran around in front and then turned back. The young man reined in and stopped in front of me. He looked down from above, his forehead was covered in sweat, but his eyes were very bright. "Are you hurt?" He asked. "No." He looked at me, his eyes stopped on my face for a moment: "You are not afraid." "His Royal Highness's archery technique, what do I have to be afraid of?" He was surprised: "You know her?" "Who else could be someone who can ride a horse in the hunting range and dare to shoot an arrow in front of the stands, besides His Highness the Crown Prince?" He looked at me for two seconds and suddenly burst into laughter. That smile was extremely generous. He put the bow on his shoulder and said: "What's your name?" "Quan Minh Le." He read the name again, as if enjoying something, then said: "I remember you." After saying that, he nudged the horse's belly, and the black horse jumped on its hooves and rushed away. I stood there, watching him disappear into the forest of red leaves. That evening, the camp lit a campfire, and the smell of grilled meat spread throughout the mountain. I was sitting in the tent reading a book, when Thuy Nhi suddenly ran in, carrying a piece of grilled meat wrapped in oil paper in her hand. "Miss! His Highness the Crown Prince sent someone to deliver it!" I was stunned: "Bring it?" Thuy Nhi opened the oil paper package. Inside is a piece of deer meat grilled to a golden golden color, still sizzling and dripping with fat. Next to the oil paper was placed an elongated object — a brooch made from deer horn. It was polished very smoothly, and under the firelight it radiated a warm light. Thuy Nhi said: "The person who came here said that this is a deer that His Highness hunted himself, the deer meat was shared with the palaces to taste. This deer horn brooch was specially left for him by His Highness. He said that today he scared the lady, as penance." I picked up the brooch, turned it over, and saw a word engraved on the back: "Le." I held the brooch in the palm of my hand. The deer's horns were originally cool, but were quickly warmed by our body temperature.07The autumn festival was held in the royal garden. When I arrived, many people had gathered in the garden. Almost all the famous ladies in the capital had arrived. They gathered in groups of three and three to stand next to the flower garden or in the pond, waiting for the competition to begin. To Ngam Suong took the identity of Miss Ta and sat in the front row, next to a group of people fawning over her. I found a corner to sit down, not wanting to attract attention. The rules of the contest are very simple. Set a topic on the spot, write a poem on the spot. Commented by the Crown Prince and several great scholars. The questions were written on Tuyen Thanh paper, and the eunuchs distributed them one by one. I bowed my head and looked at the topic. The ladies around took turns holding pens. Some people concentrate on thinking, some people use their pen to write. To Ngam Suong also picked up the pen, but after writing for a long time, she could only write two or three sentences. Then she put the pen down, frowned at Tuyen Thanh's paper, and couldn't continue writing anyway. She bit her lip, crumpled the paper into a ball, and stuffed it into her sleeve. The Crown Prince sat in the upper position, his eyes indifferently scanning the entire arena. When he saw me, his eyes stopped slightly. When it was my turn, I walked up to the table, picked up the pen and dipped ink. The pen nib fell onto Tuyen Thanh's paper, making a soft rustling sound. I write very fluently, almost without stopping. After finishing writing, we put down the pen and take a step back. A great scholar stepped forward and picked up the card. He watched for a long time, from beginning to end, reading every word. Then he looked up

Looking at the crown prince, his voice trembled: "Your Highness, I... I have never seen such a good poem in decades." "As for this small letter like a flower brooch, it has both bones and a natural style. Even if placed in the Han Lam Academy, there are not many people who can compare." The Crown Prince received the poem and bowed his head to look at it. His eyes slowly moved across the paper. He watched very slowly. The garden was extremely quiet. Then, he raised his head to look at me. His eyes were different from the time we met them at the hunting range. That time it was curiosity, this time it was observation. He looked at me for a long time, then said: "Quan Minh Le." He remembered my name. "Goddess is present." "This article of yours is very well written." When saying those eight words, his eyes were always on me, never moving away. To Ngam Suong sat to the side, her face no longer able to describe the ugly words. 08 Three days after the competition, the crown prince arrived at the palace. When the doorman came in to report, we still didn't know who was coming to find us. He didn't come to find my father. He stood in front of the door, holding the card in his hand, and said: "This card of yours has a few things I want to ask for advice on." I was stunned. He stood in the autumn sunlight, wearing a black civilian outfit, with a piece of jade tied around his waist. He did not bring any entourage, he came alone.