Female Supremacy and Rise to Power: Lin Shu's Imperial Examination Adventures

As soon as this statement came out, everyone in the audience was shocked.

Since the start of the four-nation tournament, no country has conceded defeat in the first round.

Feng Han didn't know what the other party intended, but in this way, Fengming Kingdom would definitely not be at the bottom this year, but she still felt a little uneasy...

Sure enough, her hunch was right.

Just as the announcement of advancing to the next round was made, Nauribu stood up and suggested:

"Your Majesty, the annual competition consists of only the Five Archery and Five Imperial Maneuvers, which is rather monotonous. Why not add something else today?"

[Five Arrows: White Arrow, Continuous Arrow, Sharp Arrow, Flowing Arrow, Well-shaped Arrow. Five Imperial Horses: Harmonious Phoenix, Flowing Water, Passing the Ruler's Marker, Dancing at the Crossroads, Chasing Birds on the Left]

"Oh? What are the thoughts of the Crown Princess of the Northern Wilderness?" Feng Han sighed inwardly, knowing that the Northern Wilderness would not let this go so easily.

"Why not combine archery and horsemanship into one, and change it to mounted archery, so as to determine the rankings in this competition?"

Then, our two nations will each choose a talented woman for a martial arts contest. My Northern Wilderness is willing to wager five thousand warhorses, but if Fengming loses, she must cede 'Shuomen Pass,' how about it?"

After Naoribu finished speaking, the officials of Fengming began to denounce him:

"For the Northern Wilderness to want Shuomen Pass is nothing short of a pipe dream!"

"Those bandits from the Northern Wilderness, they truly harbor wolves' ambitions..."

"..."

"Trading five thousand warhorses for a pass, the Great Princess of the Northern Wilderness has truly made a shrewd deal!" Feng Han said with a sneer.

This is utterly delusional for the Northern Wilderness. While warhorses are rare, Shuomen Pass is the largest border defense between Fengming and the Northern Wilderness, a strategically important and easily defensible location, and also the residence of the King of Dingbei. If it were ceded so easily, wouldn't the King of Dingbei and his soldiers be disheartened?

Upon hearing this, Nauribu looked up defiantly at the composed Lin Shu, his expression one of self-inflicted pain, and said:

"Empress Fengming, you are mistaken. This deal is sure to be a win for you! After all, your talented woman from Fengming Kingdom just said that my warriors from the Northern Wilderness are 'vulnerable'!"

Feng Han frowned. Naoribu was using Lin Shu's words as an excuse. If she refused again, wouldn't that be admitting that Fengming was inferior to them in the Northern Wilderness? But if she agreed, she would become a sinner for all time after losing the territory!

Moreover, this bet is only against Fengming Kingdom. Seeing the other two countries standing by and watching, Feng Han is really in a dilemma!

"Prince Dingbei, what do you think?" Finally, with no other option, Feng Han turned to look at Ling Huanan. She thought to herself: Your daughter has made a boast, and you're guarding this pass; this problem is now yours to solve!

Ling Huanan, who had been standing aside, looked up and met Feng Han's gaze. Feng Han was surprised to see a hint of mockery in his calm eyes, which made her feel a little embarrassed.

Ling Huanan didn't want to embarrass her. He turned back to look at Naoribu and said in a deep voice, "Alright! But the stakes are too low. Add 'Snowhoof City' as well."

"No!" A woman beside Nauribu quickly objected.

The Northern Wilderness prospered by selling warhorses to various countries. Snowhoof City, as the largest warhorse breeding ground on its border, is adjacent to Shuomen Pass. If it were to be ceded, it would be extremely disadvantageous to the Northern Wilderness!

Seeing that there was opposition from people in the Northern Wilderness, Feng Han sighed inwardly. Ling Huanan was truly brilliant. Five thousand warhorses plus a city—no one of sound mind would agree to that.

Thinking of this, she was about to say that the matter should be dropped.

Ling Huanan's flat, yet sarcastic voice rang out again:

"If you dare not, present the warhorse, and the matter will be dropped."

Feng Han was stunned. Was Ling Huanan really serious about taking the gamble? She had thought she was just trying to make Beihuang back down.

"Let's gamble then! Once Shuomen Pass is ceded, your title of King of Dingbei will be meaningless!"

Ignoring the objections of the envoys beside him, Nauribu resolutely agreed, as if the Shuomen Pass was already in his grasp!

"Ha! Clown." Ling Huanan sneered, not even sparing the other party a glance.

“You…” Nauribu suppressed his anger, thinking to himself: I hope you can still be so confident after the competition.

Seeing that the two sides had reached an agreement, Feng Han had no choice but to order the Ministry of Rites to draft the agreement.

"Fists and kicks are merciless. If there are any injuries or deaths, my Northern Wilderness will not be responsible!" After both parties signed the agreement, Naoribu still arrogantly spoke rudely to Lin Shu and the other two.

……

Jize Academy, Racecourse.

The spectators were all seated on the high platform, while the talented female contestants from various countries waited below.

Due to the change in the competition format, the rules have also been adjusted accordingly:

The original method of shooting at a fixed target from a stationary position was changed to shooting sparrows from horseback.

Each country has ten arrows, which can be freely distributed. The arrow fletchings are distinguished by color: white for Phoenix Cry Country, black for Northern Wilderness Country, red for Southern Desolation Country, and brown for Western Gate Country.

Once the match begins, the grooms will open the iron cages and release twenty sparrows at once, which will then be chased and shot by the opposing countries on horseback.

In a relay format, only one person can participate at a time until all ten arrows are fired. The person who hits the most sparrows wins (if two arrows hit the same sparrow, the arrow is counted as missing).

The losing nation will be the first to compete, in order to determine the third and fourth place winners.

Nanli Kingdom versus Ximen Kingdom.

The result was no surprise. After all, Ximen Kingdom suffered from drought all year round and was the poorest of the four kingdoms. Therefore, the warhorses purchased each year were carefully raised as if they were treasures.

If it were a fixed target shooting contest, few in the four kingdoms could rival him. However, this is a contest on horseback, so he is no match for Nanli.

"Seven arrows were hit by red fletchings, and two by brown fletchings!"

In the end, Nanli Kingdom won third place in this competition with a score of 7:2, while Ximen Kingdom ranked fourth.

Next up was the duel between Fengming Kingdom and Beihuang Kingdom. The first person from Beihuang to step up was the shortest among them, and judging from his confident demeanor, he seemed to have victory in his grasp.

The order of appearance for Lin Shu is Feng Zhao, Xu Jingyun, and Lin Shu.

Feng Zhao's archery skills were decent, but her horsemanship was lacking, and her fourth arrow missed. Meanwhile, in the Northern Wilderness, every arrow hit its mark.

Xu Jingyun quickly mounted her horse, caught up with the arrow, and heard a series of "whoosh whoosh whoosh" sounds as sparrows fell to the ground.

In the end, only three sparrows remained circling in the air, and both sides had only one arrow left. However, Fengming's side had one less sparrow than the other side.

Xu Jingyun pondered for a few seconds, calculated the angle, and drew her bow and arrow.

Unexpectedly, a sharp, bone-whistling sound suddenly rang in her ears, and the horse beneath her reared up wildly. Caught off guard, Xu Jingyun dropped her bow and arrows to the ground, but she had no time to care. The horse beneath her seemed to be going mad, trying to throw her off...

"Insolence!" Feng Han slammed her hand on the table and stood up, glaring angrily at Naoribu.

The Northern Wilderness is so despicable, actually using bone whistles. These bone whistles can tame horses, although they are useless against warhorses like Ling Huanan's, which are clad in iron armor, but they can affect the foals raised by this family...

At this moment, Nangong Jin's thin lips were also tightly pursed, his brows were furrowed under the pear blossom mask, and his hands were clenched tightly in his sleeves.

"On the archery field, it's all about skill!" Nauribu said smugly.

"Quick...quick, save them!"

Feng Han had no energy left to deal with him, because in just a few words, the horse beneath Xu Jingyun had already reared up high, and it looked like she was about to fall off. At that angle, she would probably be crippled if not killed...

At this moment, the imperial attendant beside her exclaimed in surprise: "Your Majesty, look! That person... that person is Miss Lin!"

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and witnessed a scene they would never forget...

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