The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

After she and Bai Yi got married, for some reason, Liu'er developed an interest in archery and insisted on learning to shoot. She and Bai Yi couldn't persuade her otherwise, so they had to give in to her wishes and found a guard who was good at riding and shooting to teach her. They thought that such a little girl would not be able to endure the hardship and that she would give up if she found it too difficult. But to everyone's surprise, she liked it more and more and even made some progress.

His archery skills were swift and accurate; at such a young age, he hit the target nine out of ten times, and his interest in learning archery grew ever stronger.

A few months ago, during a visit to the palace, she accidentally shot an arrow in front of the emperor, which amused Emperor Mingde greatly. He specially ordered a bow and arrow to be made and bestowed it upon Liu'er. After that, Liu'er would even hold the bow and arrow while sleeping.

Liu'er was extremely excited to be able to personally experience the joy of hunting and show off her skills at the hunting grounds.

“But you’re still young. There are many ferocious beasts in that hunting ground. If you go there and something happens to you, do you want your mother to be heartbroken?” An Mi frowned slightly, looking at Liu’er with difficulty.

What Liu'er couldn't stand the most was An Mi frowning. She bit her lip, glanced at the bow in her hand, and no matter how reluctant she was, she had to put the bow on the table next to her. "Alright, then Liu'er won't go."

As he spoke, he walked towards Anmi and raised his hand to smooth her furrowed brow.

"That's more like it." Anmi held her little hand in hers and let her sit on her lap. The two, one big and one small, looked just like a mother and daughter.

Relieved by her mother's joy, Liu'er shook off her disappointment at not being able to personally demonstrate her skills at the hunting grounds, and a bright smile bloomed on her face. Hearing footsteps outside the tent, Liu'er's face lit up with even more delight, "Uncle is back!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the curtain was lifted, and in their eyes, the handsome and tall man was none other than Bai Yi.

However, when Bai Yi saw An Mi and Liu'er, his brows furrowed, and he immediately strode forward, "I told you not to sit on your mother's lap anymore, why can't you remember?"

Their aura was so powerful, it seemed as if they wanted to capture Liu'er.

Liu'er also froze, all her smiles turning to blankness. As if remembering something, she quickly got off An Mi and stood obediently to the side before Bai Yi could approach. She pursed her lips and hurriedly said, "Uncle, please calm down. Liu'er was wrong. Liu'er will definitely remember this in the future."

Bai Yi doted on Liu'er, so how could he possibly scold her when he saw her like this?

An Mi noticed the two of them, stood up, and took Bai Yi's arm, saying, "She's just a child, what's wrong with her sitting down for a bit?"

Before she could finish speaking, Bai Yi glared at her fiercely. "She's being immature, but aren't you being immature too? She's all grown up now. What if she accidentally hurts the child?"

As she spoke, she stroked Anmi's lower abdomen, her tone softening slightly, "Our child cannot be harmed in the slightest. I think bringing you to this hunting ground was a mistake."

Bai Yi's brows were furrowed, his eyes full of concern. This indecisive look made Liu'er chuckle.

When did my uncle become so nagging?

Upon reflection, she realized that her uncle had become like this since he learned that her mother was pregnant more than ten days ago.

Even if his mother moves a little, he will nag for ages.

Liu'er glanced at An Mi, who was trapped in her uncle's "clutches," and couldn't help but make a face. She quickly said, "Uncle, Mother, Liu'er won't bother you anymore."

With that, she took her bow and left the tent.

An Mi, however, was still in Bai Yi's "clutches," and being stared at by him made her feel a little uneasy.

"How could anything go wrong so easily? Our child, I am his mother, I will take good care of him. Besides, with Liuguang and Yifei by his side, nothing will go wrong." Anmi said softly. How could she not know how much Bai Yi cared for her and the child?

The Empress Dowager covered his large hand, which was pressed against her lower abdomen, and felt a warm current spreading from her lower abdomen.

Neither of them expected that, two years after their marriage, she would be carrying his child!

"We need to be absolutely sure. By the way, you and Liu'er should stay at the encampment tomorrow. I'll go with Father and the others... never mind, I won't go hunting tomorrow either." Bai Yi said, still seemingly uneasy. He needed Mi'er within his sight at all times to feel at ease!

Anmi glanced at him, then leaned gently against his chest. "How can this be? Tomorrow is the hunt, and the Emperor has appointed you to protect him. You probably won't be able to refuse. I have Liuguang and Yifei to take care of you, so you can go without worry."

Bai Yi frowned, put his arm around An Mi, and said nothing more.

The next morning, the autumn hunting party assembled. Outside the vast forest, on the boundless open grassland, the princes and important officials of the court, fully prepared for the hunt, sat on their horses under the leadership of Emperor Mingde, exuding a magnificent aura.

On the other side, Empress Feng, accompanied by her female relatives, sat under a specially erected tent, watching a group of men on horseback, their gazes fixed on the men.

"Eldest brother, second brother, third brother, today, you must show me your skills!" Emperor Mingde said loudly, and judging from the smile on his face, he was in a very good mood today.

The people whose names were called exchanged glances. Bai Yi, however, looked at An Mi, one of the women not far ahead. When he saw her smile at him, he couldn't help but feel a warmth in his heart. He had originally been unwilling to participate in this hunt, but what Mi'er said made sense. In the past, he could act as he pleased, but since he had Mi'er and since he learned that Mi'er was pregnant, he had become more and more cautious.

All he wanted now was to get rid of this hunt as soon as possible and be with the mother and child!

The second prince, however, had a strange glint in his eyes. He glanced at the other two and said loudly, "Father, how about this? The three of us will have a competition to see who can hunt the most."

Emperor Mingde's eyes lit up. Wouldn't it be even better if it were a competition? "Haha, that's excellent! Whoever wins, this bow in my hand will belong to him!"

"Haha, that's wonderful! Your subject will do his utmost!" The Second Prince was filled with excitement, and the other officials present were also taken aback. The bow and arrow in the Emperor's hand were probably more than just bow and arrow to these three brothers!

The second prince was even more determined that he would definitely win the first prize today!

He glanced provocatively at Bai Yi and Qing Lan, but found that Bai Yi's mind was not on the hunt at all. He couldn't help but sneer inwardly. The current third brother is just a man who has fallen into the trap of gentle pleasures. Why should he compete with him? The trap of gentle pleasures is also a hero's grave!

He no longer needed to pay attention to him, and as for Qinglan... The Second Prince looked over and raised an eyebrow. In the past two years, his eldest brother had been behaving himself and had made far fewer moves. He probably didn't have the mind to compete with him!