Presumably knowing that those participating in and watching the archery competition were all of noble status, the archery range was extremely large. It was fully four times the size of an ordinary archery range, almost as big as the drill ground of a military camp with 100,000 troops.
It would have no problem accommodating a small military unit for training.
Zhuo Yi and Zhuo Lingxiao quickly exchanged a glance, and both saw the unhidden surprise in each other's eyes.
Everyone was somewhat amazed.
In Yongding City, it was rare to find a mansion with such a large backyard.
Feng Jingye's eyes darkened. Remembering what Bai Zheng had told him before about Feng Jingxuan privately raising troops, he clenched his hands slightly.
But on the surface, there was no sign of it.
After Feng Linche and his entourage were seated, the legendary Divine Arm Bow was presented and placed in front of the seats.
Taking a closer look, the shape of the bow was no different from an ordinary bow and arrow, except that the bow body was huge. Standing upright on the ground, it was almost as tall as a ten - year - old child.
The bow handle made of mulberry wood was thick and large, carved with delicate auspicious cloud patterns. The bowstring was tightly stretched, and it looked very difficult to pull.
Zhuo Lingxiao stood on one side of the Divine Arm Bow and introduced arrogantly, "Your Majesty, this is the Divine Arm Bow that every warrior of Western Liang dreams of. It weighs 300 jin. An ordinary person can't even lift it. Its power is so great that it can penetrate a one - foot - thick wall from 300 steps away!"
Hearing this introduction, some of the people present were in awe, while others secretly doubted. Their expressions varied, making it quite a spectacle.
"Isn't it just a bow that looks a bit bigger? Saying it's so amazing, the heir apparent might be boasting, right?"
Amidst the whispers, a clearly mocking voice rang out.
It was Chen Jianzhi from the Duke Chen's Mansion.
At this moment, he wore a wanton smile on his face, with a lazy and contemptuous look in his eyes.
Judging from his state, it was obvious that Bai Di's death had not brought him any grief.
The old Duke Chen quickly glared at him reproachfully. In public, his status did not allow him to scold his son as recklessly as Zhuo Yi could.
Chen Jianzhi pretended not to see.
During this period, because of Bai Di's matter, he had been very unhappy in the Duke Chen's Mansion. He had been beaten and scolded by the old Duke Chen countless times.
With new and old grudges, Chen Jianzhi was extremely aggrieved.
Now that he finally had an occasion where his father couldn't hold him back, of course, he would try his best to annoy his father.
Hearing the ridicule in Chen Jianzhi's words, Zhuo Lingxiao squinted his eyes slightly and looked at Chen Jianzhi, saying, "Oh, isn't this the lover... Oh, no! Now the proper husband of Miss Bai the Second, Young Master Chen?"
Both Chen Jianzhi and the Duke Chen blushed and turned a bit purple.
Then they saw Zhuo Lingxiao smiling and reaching out his hand to him. "Young Master Chen thinks this heir apparent is boasting? Then, why not invite Young Master Chen to come and try this bow in person?"
Chen Jianzhi's eyes flickered slightly. He wasn't blind. He didn't know whether the bow was powerful or not, but it looked very heavy and must be difficult to pull, which was obvious at a glance.
Chen Jianzhi knew his own capabilities better than anyone else. He looked around and quickly had an idea.
He raised his head and waved his hand at Zhuo Lingxiao without any guilt, refusing, "I'm useless. I'm not good at these things usually. Let my younger brother Yanzhi do it for me. He is proficient in both literature and martial arts and is capable of testing the quality of this bow."
Chen Yanzhi never expected that his elder brother would suddenly shift the focus to him. He instinctively wanted to shake his head, but then saw Zhuo Lingxiao smiling at him. "That's fine. Please, Young Master Chen!"
Chen Yanzhi was always calm and far - sighted. He knew very well that if he really became the first one to step forward in this situation, he would surely form a feud with Western Liang in the future.
He frowned deeply and exchanged a glance with the old Duke Chen.
The old Duke Chen sighed, got up with Chen Yanzhi, and bowed deeply to Feng Linche. "Your Majesty, this old minister has failed to teach his sons well. Please forgive this old minister.
Jianzhi's wild words are not to be trusted. Yanzhi has always been in poor health. This old minister has only taught him some clever strategies since childhood.
He can wield a sword, but if you ask him to pull that seemingly very heavy Divine Arm Bow, Yanzhi may be powerless."
Feng Linche's face darkened, and his eyes were cold.
One after another said they were not capable. Losing before the contest was even more embarrassing than actually losing the competition.
Zhuo Lingxiao threw his head back and laughed. "Your Majesty just said that you should not let the men of the Great Zhou lose the competition. Now what's going on? You all have sharp tongues, but when it comes to showing real skills, you're all useless?"
Zhuo Lingxiao's words were like a slap in Feng Linche's face. The veins on Feng Linche's forehead suddenly popped up.
Wang Lin, the commander of the Right Thousand - Bull Guards, who had been silently standing behind Feng Linche, casually glanced at Feng Linche and had an idea.
He took a step forward, saluted Feng Linche, and said calmly, "Your Majesty, why not let this minister try? This divine weapon, this minister used to think it was just a legend. Today, I'm lucky to see it and can't help but be itching to try. I hope Your Majesty will grant my wish."
Finally, someone came out to clean up the mess. Feng Linche nodded eagerly.
At this moment, winning or losing was no longer important. What mattered was that someone was willing to step forward to respond. Otherwise, Zhuo Lingxiao would surely laugh even more wantonly at the lack of capable people in the Great Zhou.
But in this situation, having a high - ranking person clean up Chen Jianzhi's mess would only lower their own status. Unfortunately, there was no one else on the scene who was confident enough to step forward.
At this time, it was just right for Wang Lin, the commander of the Right Thousand - Bull Guards who served as Feng Linche's bodyguard, to step forward.
Feng Linche looked up at Wang Lin with a hint of admiration in his eyes.
Zhuo Lingxiao made a gesture of invitation to Wang Lin, with nothing but contempt in his eyes.
The target was set 50 meters away. Now that night had fallen, the moonlight was dim.
Although the entire residence of the Third Prince was brightly lit, the backyard was so large that the torches provided very limited illumination in the open space. And because of the wind at night, the flames flickered, making the vision even worse.
In this situation, just aiming at the bullseye was a very difficult task.
Wang Lin walked up to the Divine Arm Bow, took a horse - riding stance, held the bow handle with one hand, hooked the bowstring with an arrow between his fingers in the other hand, took a deep breath, and tried his best to pull the bow.
Just as he pulled it a little, his right hand began to tremble violently due to the excessive force.
He never expected the bow to be so heavy!
Wang Lin's face gradually turned red. Before he could even aim at the bullseye, he ran out of strength, and the arrow left the bow. The arrow didn't go far and fell weakly in front of the target.
A look of embarrassment flashed across Wang Lin's face. He scratched his head and said shamefully, "Sure enough, it's a divine bow! This minister is unworthy. I've made you all laugh."