Xiao Yun'an braced himself, stepped forward, and replied, "To answer Imperial Grandfather, yes."
The Emperor nodded with a gratified expression, "Not bad! Not bad!"
With the Emperor's arrival, everyone knelt on the ground.
"Rise!" the Emperor said. With his hands clasped behind his back, he walked into the Imperial Academy.
The teachers and students of the Imperial Academy were kneeling all over the ground.
"Everyone, rise!"
The Emperor said as he reached out and helped the Grand Tutor up.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The Grand Tutor stood up.
"Your Majesty, please come this way!" The Grand Tutor already knew that the Emperor was here to observe the archery and equestrian class.
The Emperor nodded and followed the Grand Tutor to the archery and equestrian grounds.
The other students who had not chosen the archery and equestrian course immediately beat their chests and stamped their feet in regret.
Because their ancestors had conquered the empire on horseback, archery and equestrianism were absolutely essential among the Six Arts taught at the Imperial Academy.
In the backyard of the Imperial Academy, a large open space had been specially built for the students of the archery and equestrian course.
Here, they could ride horses and practice martial arts.
Today, the students who had chosen the archery and equestrian course stood in a row, their heads held high and chests puffed out.
Most of the students who chose the archery and equestrian course did so because they were active and loved to play.
However, they never expected that the Emperor would personally come to watch their class.
What a tremendous honor this was!
When they returned home, their parents would surely look at them with newfound respect!
Therefore, an expression of excitement was revealed on everyone's face.
Xiao Yunchuan was even more so.
Because Duoduo was small in stature, the teacher worried she wouldn't be able to learn it, so he had her stand at the very end of the line.
Meanwhile, Xiao Yunchuan took it upon himself to stand at the very front.
Xiao Yun'an was positioned towards the middle-back of the line.
If it hadn't been for Duoduo being at the very end, he definitely would have stood at the very back.
Because Xiao Yun'an had fallen off a horse when he was young, he was very afraid of horses.
This was also the reason why he had not chosen the archery and equestrian course.
However, because of his Imperial Grandfather today, he had to choose it.
Looking at the tall, sturdy horse in front of him, Xiao Yun'an felt a chill in his heart.
The teacher of the archery and equestrian course, bearing the pressure of being watched by the Emperor, began to explain the safety precautions to the students.
Because the Emperor was present today, the teacher decided to teach these students archery first.
Archery simply resulted in either hitting the target or missing it; the danger was almost zero.
But horseback riding was a different story.
Hearing the teacher's arrangement, Xiao Yun'an felt incredibly grateful, almost to the point of tears.
The students who could enter the Imperial Academy were either princes or the children of high-ranking ministers.
Therefore, they all had some foundational skills in archery.
Xiao Yunchuan had played with bows and arrows since he was a child. He rubbed his hands together eagerly, just waiting for the teacher to let him show off.
After the teacher finished explaining the precautions, he had them step forward to try in groups of three.
From the very beginning of gripping the bow and drawing it, to finally shooting the arrow, the teacher explained everything in great detail.
Ordinarily, the teacher definitely wouldn't be this long-winded.
Xiao Yunchuan immediately took his bow and arrow and stood firmly at the marked line.
"Shoot!"
At the teacher's command, three arrows flew out.
Xiao Yunchuan's arrow hit the bullseye dead center, and a satisfied look appeared on his face.
As for the other two, one arrow flew completely off target, and the other hit the edge of the target.
Xiao Yunchuan quickly glanced at the Emperor and saw a smile on his face.
Imperial Grandfather must be very proud of him!
Xiao Yunchuan retreated to the back and handed the bow and arrow in his hands to the next person.
Duoduo stood at the very back. As she watched her classmates shoot their arrows, she was deep in thought.
Her father had told her to hide her true abilities. So, when it came to archery, should she hide her skills? Or should she hide her skills?
Duoduo's introduction to archery and equestrianism was taught by Lingfeng.
Later, her instructor was changed to Li Jin.
She still wasn't very good at horseback riding.
However, when it came to archery, Li Jin had once praised her.
Standing at the back, Duoduo could clearly see Xiao Yunchuan's every move, as well as the Emperor's expression.
She also noticed Xiao Yun'an's uneasiness.
Suddenly, Duoduo decided that she did not want to hide her skills in archery.
After all, a person should have at least one skill they can proudly show off!
Just like how she hid her skills in calligraphy but didn't hide them when it came to recitation.
While Duoduo was thinking, it was already Xiao Yun'an's turn to take the field.
Xiao Yun'an drew his bow and arrow according to the teacher's instructions. Because he was a bit nervous, his arrow did not hit the bullseye.
Xiao Yun'an was full of regret.
He had neglected his practice recently, and his archery had actually regressed.
Xiao Yun'an didn't even dare to look at the Emperor; he was afraid of seeing a look of disappointment on his Imperial Grandfather's face.
Xiao Yun'an stepped back, and it was time for Duoduo's group to take the field.
Duoduo took the large bow and arrow, which was almost as tall as she was, from her classmate's hands.
The teacher, worried that Duoduo might hurt herself, specifically walked over to her side.
Duoduo turned her body sideways and looked at the straw target in the distance.
She pulled an arrow from the quiver and nocked it on the bow.
A look of worry appeared on the teacher's face.
He was afraid that the Princess would cry if she couldn't draw the bow in a moment.
This was the first time a girl had chosen the archery and equestrian course.
The teacher was under a lot of pressure.
Especially with the Emperor present today.
"Princess, take a deep breath, hold the arrow steady, and then slowly draw the bow."
"Once the bow is fully drawn, then you release your grip."
"It doesn't matter if you don't hit the target..." the teacher tried his best to soften his tone to comfort Duoduo.
Duoduo flashed the teacher a sweet, obedient smile.
"Okay!"
After Duoduo spoke, she took a deep breath and began to draw the bow.
The teacher beside her tensed his entire body as if helping Duoduo exert force, his face full of nervousness.
The other students also turned to look at Duoduo one after another.
When Duoduo began to draw the bow, the smile on her face vanished.
She pressed her lips tightly together, her small face filled with seriousness.
The bow was drawn open bit by bit, and soon, it was drawn to a full moon.
Everyone was a bit astonished; Duoduo actually drew the bow better than any of them.
"Shoot!"
The teacher gave the command with great excitement.
Duoduo released her hand, and the arrow flew out like a shooting star.
Everyone's eyes followed the direction of the arrow, looking forward together.
Duoduo was also a little nervous.
The straw targets she practiced with at home were a bit closer than this one.
Moreover, her bow and arrow weren't this large.
She didn't know if her arrow would be able to hit the bullseye.
"Swish!"
Carrying everyone's gaze, the arrow embedded itself right into the bullseye, not disappointing anyone's expectations.
The field was dead silent. After a moment, someone finally spoke up.
"Bravo!"
Duoduo turned her head and saw that the person cheering was actually the classmate who sat to her left.
At this moment, he was smiling broadly and clapping his hands at her.
"Bravo!"
The others also joined in the fun and started cheering.
The teacher looked at Duoduo, his expression full of excitement.
This Princess, despite looking so small, was actually so talented!
In the teacher's mind, he believed that this must be Duoduo's first time drawing a bow and shooting an arrow.
Being cheered on by so many people at once, Duoduo blushed a little.
She handed the bow and arrow in her hands to the teacher and stepped back into the line.
The teacher suppressed his excited emotions and summarized everyone's shortcomings for the group.
"Next, everyone continue practicing..."
"Teacher, archery and equestrianism, shouldn't we be riding on horseback?" Xiao Yunchuan raised an objection.
