Mistakenly Treated The Princess As A Concubine - Chapter 56

The sound of drums echoed as the crimson-gold and aqua-green teams charged toward each other from opposite directions, vying for the brightly colored ball placed in the center of the field.

As Wen Zhuojin gripped her polo mallet, ready to block the opposing team according to their prearranged strategy, she noticed something unusual as they drew closer. The wind carried not only the scent of the opposing players and their horses but also a peculiar fragrance.

This scent, likely a blended fragrance, didn’t immediately cause discomfort, but it made Wen Zhuojin feel uneasy.

The smell wasn’t pleasant. Who would use such a fragrance?

The slightly bitter and pungent aroma reminded her of a type of fragrance poison described in her notes on toxic fragrances.

As the two teams closed in, Wen Zhuojin remained vigilant, intercepting two opponents to allow County Mistress Yunshu and another teammate to seize the ball.

Among the opposing team was a tall, robust woman with red and black paint on her face. Her horse was noticeably larger than the others, and she charged forward, swinging her mallet to snatch the ball.

The sheer size difference allowed her to easily push aside the two players trying to block her.

Wen Zhuojin recalled County Mistress Yunshu’s earlier warning.

This woman was indeed formidable.

Her only weakness might be her weight, which slowed her down slightly, but only by a fraction.

Once the ball was taken, everyone chased after it.

The towering woman from the Northern Qiang team proved to be unstoppable, scoring the first goal with ease.

The strange scent grew stronger as the teams drew closer.

At the same time, Wen Zhuojin noticed her horse’s movements becoming sluggish.

She had spent a long time training with this horse, which was usually obedient and easy to control.

This sudden sluggishness made her suspect it was related to the unusual scent.

Her notes on fragrance poisons mentioned that northern nomadic tribes used certain toxic fragrances to agitate and slow down wild horses during hunts.

The opposing team’s horses were all fitted with light armor engraved with the Northern Qiang sheep totem, matching their overall style. But it was odd—why would anyone cover their horses’ faces for a polo match?

If the scent was indeed targeting the horses, it would explain the strange setup.

“County Mistress, do you feel like your horse is acting strange? It’s slower than usual and harder to control.” Wen Zhuojin asked as she rode alongside County Mistress Yunshu.

“A little. Maybe it’s nervous? The opponents are too strong, and their horses are faster!” County Mistress Yunshu panted, too focused to say more as she charged ahead.

“County Mistress, call for a timeout, quickly!” Wen Zhuojin urged, catching up. County Mistress Yunshu’s horse was a fine steed, fast and well-trained, with excellent rapport with its rider. If even she noticed something was off, Wen Zhuojin couldn’t ignore it.

This was just the beginning. If their horses continued to be exposed to the scent, they would likely lose badly.

“Are you sure?” County Mistress Yunshu turned to look at Wen Zhuojin.

“Absolutely!” Wen Zhuojin nodded.

Seeing Wen Zhuojin’s expression, County Mistress Yunshu raised her mallet and called for the eunuch referee.

“Why are you calling a timeout so soon? Are you scared?” someone from the Northern Qiang team sneered.

The Northern Jin team was also puzzled.

County Mistress Yunshu didn’t explain but gathered everyone together.

“What’s going on? You’d better have a good reason.” County Mistress Yunshu asked Wen Zhuojin as the team huddled.

“I noticed a strange scent on the opponents. It’s a fragrance that agitates and slows down horses. It must be a Northern Qiang specialty, specifically targeting horses, with no effect on humans. That’s why their horses’ faces are covered—it might block the scent or contain an antidote. If we continue, our horses will be too affected, and we’ll lose no matter what.” Wen Zhuojin explained.

“How dare the Northern Qiang be so bold! What should we do? Should we report this to His Majesty and demand they remove the fragrance?” County Mistress Yunshu was furious but unsure how to proceed.

“That fragrance is unique to Northern Qiang. Northern Jin doesn’t have it, and our horses don’t show obvious symptoms yet. Reporting it to His Majesty would be hard to prove. Instead, let’s inform the eunuch referee and have him prepare cloth to cover our horses’ faces. I have a fragrance formula that can counteract this poison, but it will take some time. Once I’ve prepared it, we can continue!” Wen Zhuojin said quickly.

She had the formula, but whether the necessary ingredients were available was a gamble. Still, the vast Northern Jin palace likely had some rare materials in storage.

“Alright, we’ll follow A’Zhuo’s plan! Don’t lose heart, everyone. If they’re using this poison, it means they fear us. That woman we saw earlier is a bit slow. We still have a chance.” County Mistress Yunshu said quickly.

After a quick pep talk, County Mistress Yunshu and Wen Zhuojin hurried to the eunuch referee.

Wen Zhuojin’s reputation in fragrance-making, especially after her success in the fragrance competition, earned her immediate respect. The eunuch didn’t dare delay and quickly arranged for the cloth. He then took Wen Zhuojin directly to meet Emperor Yan Ji.

Wen Zhuojin took a deep breath.

She had never encountered this type of horse-targeting fragrance poison before and was only making an educated guess.

Now that this matter had reached the emperor, she felt a bit nervous.

As she followed the eunuch, she steadied herself. Whether her guess was right or wrong, she had already stepped forward, and there was no turning back. Nervousness wouldn’t help.

At the foot of the steps, the eunuch went ahead to deliver the message.

Emperor Yan Ji was displeased that the noblewomen’s team had called a timeout before even scoring. But upon hearing the eunuch’s report, his expression turned serious.

“Is Northern Qiang challenging Northern Jin’s capabilities? Ask her what fragrances she needs. Assign ten palace maids to assist her and prepare the fragrance as quickly as possible! If she can neutralize the poison, she will be rewarded!” Yan Ji ordered.

With the emperor’s command, the eunuch quickly returned to Wen Zhuojin.

Time was tight, and Wen Zhuojin didn’t get a chance to speak directly with Yan Ji, which somewhat relieved her.

She immediately wrote down the fragrance formula and listed the tools and materials needed. With so many assistants, Wen Zhuojin prepared the antidote in the time it took to finish a cup of tea.

Since the fragrance didn’t need to be stored or formed into pills or incense sticks, the preparation was simplified. The powdered fragrance was placed in a burner, which Wen Zhuojin carried to the field and lit on the sidelines.

By this point, County Mistress Yunshu’s team had already lost three goals without scoring any.

After Wen Zhuojin lit the fragrance, County Mistress Yunshu called for another timeout.

“You must be right. Even with the cloth covering their faces, our horses are getting slower. Will this fragrance really work?” County Mistress Yunshu grabbed Wen Zhuojin and asked urgently, breathing heavily.

“It should work. Remove the cloth from the horses’ faces.” Wen Zhuojin nodded.

The notes on fragrance poisons given to her by Zheng Qianqin had never been wrong.

Whoever wrote those notes must have been incredibly knowledgeable to include information about Northern Qiang.

County Mistress Yunshu and the others removed the cloth from their horses’ faces, allowing them to inhale the fragrance Wen Zhuojin had prepared during the break.

Wen Zhuojin’s fragrance not only neutralized the poison but also included ingredients to excite the horses. She hadn’t tested this before and was improvising.

During the break, Wen Zhuojin and County Mistress Yunshu discussed their strategy.

When the break ended, the team mounted their horses and returned to the field.

This time, the feeling was completely different.

Earlier, pulling the reins had been strenuous, and even whipping the horse didn’t seem to help. The horses’ speed had been frustratingly slow.

Now, everything felt smooth, and the horses’ speed noticeably increased.

The Northern Qiang team’s main player’s weakness was her slowness. Once Wen Zhuojin’s team gained speed and avoided direct confrontations, it became much harder for the opponents to score.

What had seemed like a certain loss suddenly turned into a potential victory.

When Yan Qinglan arrived at Zhonghe Hall, she heard the commotion and cheers, and faintly caught a familiar name.

It was Wen Zhuojin!!