Chapter 657
Ball Game
Chapter 657 Ball Game
Upon hearing this, Gu Baozhu threw her head back and burst into laughter.
Yuan Da, stirring things up from the side, said, "Brother Qi, what are you still laughing about? Revealing your family name will scare these bastards to death."
Having spent many days getting to know Gu Baozhu, I still couldn't figure out the boy's background. Now was the perfect opportunity to get him to introduce himself.
Gu Baozhu finally finished laughing, then wiped away the tears of laughter from the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand, and scoffed, "He's just the son of a commander, not worthy of me introducing myself. Let me tell you the truth."
Pointing to Qin Heng, who was running on the field, he said, "His father is the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy. If it weren't for some other reason, that kid wouldn't be worthy of being my follower."
As for you, hahaha! I'll only deal with you this once. You're simply not worthy to know who I am. I don't even bother knowing the surnames of officials below the third rank.
“Anyone can talk big, I bet you just don’t dare to say it,” the tattooed man shouted.
Fu Yanei was initially intimidated. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that Gu Baozhu was dressed in the finery of a wealthy family. He felt uneasy, but unwilling to lose face in public, he nudged the woman with the tattooed arm next to him and whispered, "Think carefully, is there any nobleman in the capital with the surname Qi?"
“…Hiss…It seems not…” the tattooed man thought for a moment and said.
Fu Yanei's arrogance instantly soared: "You think I'm afraid of you when you're bragging to the heavens? You'll see how powerful I am when we play polo later. Even if you kowtow to me on the field, it won't do you any good then."
The tattooed man said, "That's right. It's not too late to be scared now. You might as well kneel down and kowtow now. It doesn't look good to kowtow when there are many people around."
When Qin Heng saw Gu Baozhu being surrounded by her rivals, he quickly ran over, pushed his tattooed arm outwards, and scolded, "We'll see what happens on the polo field. Today is the Empress Dowager's birthday, and all the nobles are here to watch the game. I advise you to keep quiet and not cause any trouble."
He then looked up and advised Gu Baozhu, "Young Master Qi, you must not fall for their tricks. If you get angry and hit them, the referee will punish you and prevent you from playing."
Gu Baozhu, who had been clenching her fists, nodded upon hearing this: "Good heavens, they're really cunning. It's a good thing you were here, otherwise I would have given them a good beating."
Fu Yanei secretly resolved to make this brat suffer on the field and see just how many eyes Master Ma really had.
After a few gong sounds, the referees and others went up to the observation platform.
Qin Heng shouted, "Quick, quick, quick, it's about to start. Let's hurry up and line up to get ready to start the game."
Chaos broke out in the stands as the imperial guards and eunuchs began to drive away bystanders to make room for the emperor, his officials, and their families.
Gu Baozhu also went down from the stands to meet up with Hei Pi Xiao Hong and the others.
In a short time, people had already secured the best spots, setting up tall scaffolds, chairs, ladders, and curtains at the edge of the field.
"Wow, that's fast!" Gu Baozhu exclaimed.
Qin Heng disagreed: "It's this lively every year. If it weren't for the Imperial Guards driving us away so fiercely, there would be many vendors selling fermented vegetable soup, roasted meat, and flatbread here."
Someone on a high place waved a silk handkerchief and shouted, "Young Master Ximen, my sister is here watching you play polo."
Brother Ximen turned around and looked up, just in time to catch the handkerchief that had been thrown down, with a small sachet tied to it.
Gu Baozhu looked over as well, and good heavens, Li Xingshou, dressed in a red dress and green skirt, was looking down at Brother Ximen with a bright smile.
Brother Ximen, his eyes filled with affection, held the handkerchief to his nose and sniffed it lightly before carefully tucking it into his bosom.
These two are truly in love.
They'll hook up sooner or later.
I wonder what the Emperor will think when he sees this.
Gu Baozhu was still lost in thought when Qin Heng shouted from the side, "Why?"
"What's wrong now?" Gu Baozhu turned around in surprise. Qin Heng stamped his foot indignantly: "Brother Ximen is one thing, I know I can't compare, but why are so many young ladies calling your name? Look at the way they're throwing their handkerchiefs around, humph!"
Gu Baozhu glanced at Qin Heng with disdain. Although she didn't say anything, she made it clear to Qin Heng what contempt meant.
The area outside the venue was now in an uproar.
More and more onlookers were shouting their support for the members of the sports club, competing to see who could shout the loudest.
Gu Baozhu was unique in the Hong Society. Most of the spectators on the Hong Society's side called out to her, especially the young women in their prime, who would throw sachets, flowers, handkerchiefs and other items while calling out to her.
Fu Yanei was so angry that his stomach swelled up: "These people are just short-sighted and have never seen the world. Who in our team is any better than that kid?"
The woman with the tattooed arms, showing off her tattoos, elicited screams from the crowd.
Fu Yanei also struck a few poses that he thought were incredibly dashing, but his reaction was lukewarm, far less enthusiastic than the cheers that Gu Baozhu received for her casual walking, running, and jumping.
Fu Yanei said angrily, "Let's kick him hard later and teach that kid a lesson."
Someone said, "If things get dangerous today while the Emperor is watching the game, I'm afraid..."
The tattooed man said worriedly, "That kid mentioned Xu Tang, so he must have some connections."
"What about Xu Tang?"
"Xu Tang is the brother-in-law of the Prince of Jin. He was recommended to the palace by the Prince of Qi and his son-in-law. He is deeply favored by the Emperor and is kept in the palace to play polo with him. He has quite a bit of face. If it weren't for his broken leg that he had to take care of, he probably wouldn't have had a chance to play today."
Fu Yanei thought for a moment and said, "It's alright. The Emperor is just watching the game for fun. As long as the referee is on our side, that's fine. If we don't teach this kid a lesson, he might just take advantage of the situation and win the Emperor's favor."
The tattooed men all said, "Young Master has a long-term vision and is very thoughtful."
That young man is handsome and has a free and easy manner. He might actually catch the eye of some important person. If he gains power, I'll definitely be in trouble.
A chorus of sheng and xiao instruments filled the air, followed by the sound of gongs and drums clearing the way.
"The Empress Dowager has arrived! The Emperor has arrived! The Empress has arrived!"
Everyone knelt on the ground, and only dared to stand up after the emperor was settled in the stands.
Qin Yuan and Madam Gu sat comfortably to the right and behind the Empress, while Gu Jinghui attended to the Emperor.
While looking around haphazardly, Madam Gu asked, "Did you see that monkey?"
Qin Yuan smiled and pointed it out to her.
"Mother, isn't that right? He really does look dashing and debonair."
Madam Gu smiled, pursing her lips.
The competition on the field was fierce, with cheers rising and falling. The two teams were neck and neck, but those in the stands could see the tricks of the trade.
The Emperor said, "Captain Hong relies on these two young men. They are incredibly fast, both on their feet and in their movements."
Empress Lin smiled and said, "Your Majesty is wise. The rest of the Hong team are not very useful, but they do shout quite loudly."
The emperor was a little smug: "I played quite well too, how could that escape my eyes?"
Gu Baozhu was heavily targeted on the field. Fu Yanei was determined to finish her off quickly and used all sorts of dirty tricks. But Gu Baozhu seemed to have eyes and could dart left and right through the crowd as if she were in an empty field.