Do you know: I am Qi Heng

"My grandmother once told me that while horsemanship is important in polo, hand skills are also very important."

Unless it is a horse that is frequently ridden, it is better to choose a mare.

Although mares do not have the same explosive power as stallions, the polo field has limited space and cannot allow horses to run at full speed.

"A mare is gentle, so it's better to choose a mare for your first time playing polo," Minglan said with a smile.

Zhang Guifen pondered Minglan's words carefully, and the more she thought about it, the more she felt that Minglan's words made perfect sense.

The polo field is only so big, and people often turn around on the field. There are also other people and horses involved, so even a thoroughbred horse can hardly perform to its full potential.

Moreover, playing polo is not just about watching the horses; the most important thing is the cooperation between the player and the horse.

The first time riding a horse, there was a lack of understanding between the rider and the horse. The stallion was more spirited and the pairing was not as good as with the mare.

"What your grandfather said makes perfect sense!" Zhang Guifen praised.

…………

"Your Majesty, I have made all the arrangements. When would you like to begin?" Madam Wu asked as she entered the tent and bowed.

Empress Cao glanced at Qi Heng, who was playing with Zhao Shou, and smiled, "Since everything is ready, let's begin!"

"yes!"

Lady Wu bowed and said, "This humble woman will inform them immediately."

Empress Cao looked at Princess Pingning and asked, "Pingning, how often do you usually come to the polo matches?"

"Your Majesty, I'm not particularly interested in these things. I only come to take a look when I'm bored," Princess Pingning replied.

"You all have it so easy. This is the first time I've left the city since I entered the palace," Empress Cao sighed.

It is said that entering the gates of a noble family is like entering a deep sea, but entering the palace gates is even deeper than the sea.

In all the years she's been in the palace, the most she's ever left has been to visit the Daxiangguo Temple to burn incense or to go back to the Cao family home, but she's never left the city.

I hadn't thought about these things before, but it was only when I left the palace this time that I suddenly realized that I hadn't left Bianjing City for about twenty years.

"Brother Heng, it's your turn."

Seeing that Qi Heng hadn't made a move, Zhao Shou tugged at his sleeve and urged him on.

"oh…"

Qi Heng snapped out of his reverie and casually placed a piece on the chessboard.

Zhao Shoucai was just over two years old, so naturally he didn't know how to play chess; they were playing Gomoku (Five in a Row).

Qi Heng taught him this game, and Zhao Shou enjoyed playing it because the rules were simple.

"Haha, Brother Heng lost!"

Seeing Qi Heng make a move, Zhao Shou quickly placed his own piece, turning what was originally a line of three pieces into four, with no pieces at either end.

At this point, no matter what Qi Heng gambles, he can always make a five-stone combo in the next step, unless Qi Heng already has four stones in a line and one end is not blocked.

Qi Heng became somewhat distracted after hearing Empress Cao ask Madam Wu to find women to play polo.

Empress Cao's sudden announcement of her attendance at the polo match, coupled with the unexpected invitation to the Sheng family, and Empress Cao's unusual behavior, all contributed to the situation.

All of this indicates that there are some problems, but Qi Heng really can't figure out the specific reasons.

He had been lost in thought, but Zhao Shou's cheers brought him back to his senses. He glanced at the chessboard and smiled, "Your Highness is truly amazing, I have lost!"

"Heng-ge'er, don't always give in to him," Empress Cao said with a smile.

"I was distracted just now, but a loss is a loss. I did not give Your Highness a handicap in that round," Qi Heng said.

"That's good."

Empress Cao called Zhao Shou over and personally fed him water.

The reason she liked Qi Heng so much was because she had no children before.

Although it is said that she and the Emperor raised Princess Pingning as their daughter, in reality she was not much older than Princess Pingning.

Princess Pingning was already seven or eight years old when she entered the palace, and she was already quite sensible.

At that time, Empress Cao had just entered the palace and was not in a hurry to have a child.

It was only later, when he had no children, that he became closer to Princess Pingning.

That kind of closeness includes not only having no children, but also pouring one's maternal love into others, and providing companionship during times of loneliness and sadness.

Her fondness for Qi Heng was definitely not a case of loving someone because of them.

Qi Heng was often taken to the palace when he was just learning to speak, so she could say she watched him grow up.

She even used Qi Heng as a training tool to learn how to hold and comfort children.

It can be said that Empress Cao once fantasized about how she would raise her child after becoming a mother, and Qi Heng was the object of her fantasy.

Over time, Empress Cao came to regard Qi Heng as almost like a son.

Now that she has Zhao Shou, who has filled that void, that feeling has faded considerably.

But she still admired Qi Heng's intelligence.

Take Gomoku for example. Although it was invented by Qi Heng for Zhao Shou to play, it is not the kind of game that would lead to the loss of one's ambition.

Gomoku (Five in a Row) may seem simple, but it's not that simple.

Secondly, although Qi Heng would occasionally deliberately let Zhao Shou win, he would not let Zhao Shou win easily.

Each time, the betting would go on for a long time before suddenly letting up, and Qi Heng always won more than he lost.

Unlike the palace maids and eunuchs who served Zhao Shou and were forced to play with him, they dared not win against him.

"Knock knock knock!"

Just then, the drums on both sides of the polo field were struck, and the dull drumbeats drew the attention of those chatting in the various tents to the field.

"drive!"

Four girls rode into the arena.

Madam Wu personally served as the archer, stepped forward to explain the rules and the prize money, and then announced the official start of the polo match.

At every polo match, Madam Wu would bring out some valuable items as prizes.

Although those items were precious, their value was only around one hundred taels.

It is valuable to ordinary families, but it is nothing to these powerful and wealthy families.

But this time the prize was different. Regardless of victory or defeat, everyone would receive a reward from Empress Cao, and the winner would even be able to pay their respects to Empress Cao.

Zhang Guifen, Yu Yanhong, and the eldest daughter of the Jiang family were known to many wealthy women.

Even if you don't know them personally, the servants around you will, and they can find out with just a question.

But Minglan and the others had never seen it, and when they asked the servants around them, they didn't know either.

After Madam Wu left the field, a young man took the ball, went to the center of the field, threw it into the air, and then jogged away from the field.

"drive!"

The four women were divided into two groups, each occupying one side of the field and holding a polo mallet.

Seeing the ball being thrown up, he spurred the horse on with a sudden squeeze of his legs, urging it to gallop.

On Yu Yanhong's side, the two players sprinted towards the ball's landing point.

Minglan rode alongside Zhang Guifen for a while, but seeing that Zhang Guifen's horse was slightly faster than hers, she looked at Yu Yanhong and the other two opposite her, calculated the distance, and immediately controlled her horse to slow down.

When Zhang Guifen sprinted to the landing point, the ball had just landed. Without thinking, she swung her cue stick and forcefully struck the ball towards her own goal.

As she lowered the pole, Yu Yanhong and Miss Jiang arrived.

One of the two players raised their cue to block Zhang Guifen's swing, while the other hit the ball towards the opponent's goal.

"drive!"

Minglan, who deliberately lagged behind, waited patiently. When the ball came flying towards her, she immediately stepped forward, stretched out her cue stick to intercept the ball, and then dribbled the ball towards the opposite goal.

Yu Yanhong had noticed that Minglan was lagging behind, but she only thought that Minglan was slow and was secretly laughing at her.

He was so focused on the ball that he didn't pay any attention to Minglan's movements.

They realized what was happening and tried to intercept them, but Zhang Guifen didn't give them the chance.

Although Zhang Guifen couldn't stop the two of them for long, in that brief moment of obstruction, Minglan had already dribbled the ball past them from the side.

If the two men wanted to intercept them, they would have to turn their horses around, but it would be too late.