Before the Qing army entered the passes, the Manchu people commonly used deer bone thumb rings, which were yellow and turned light brown with age; those with holes in them were considered most valuable.

Yu Feibai understood this principle, so he directly selected a deer bone thumb ring that had a hole. He tried it on, and found the size just right and the feel quite excellent.

“Now I have a thumb ring for protection,” Yu Feibai remarked.

At the same time, Wang Guan laughed, “Do you want to keep trying the bow?”

“Forget it.”

Just then, Yu Feibai said somewhat sullenly, “If you have the guts, you try it. I bet it would be a real struggle for you too.”

“Brother Wang, you try it too.” Murong Guang also showed a hint of expectation. He had a strong feeling about Wang Guan’s inherent strength, which was why he brought out this bow, wondering if Wang Guan could actually draw it.

“Alright.”

Feeling that the longbow was quite good, Wang Guan didn't mind giving it a try. He promptly picked up a bone thumb ring, slipped it on, took the longbow from Yu Feibai’s hands, and then began to apply force little by little. The process was admittedly a bit strenuous, but in the end, he managed to draw the bowstring back more than halfway, forming a crescent that wasn't perfectly round but was definitely established.

“No way, he actually pulled it back.”

For a moment, Yu Feibai and Murong Guang were utterly astonished.

“I pulled it back, yes, but it was still somewhat difficult,” Wang Guan admitted.

At this, Wang Guan lightly released his hand, and the bowstring vibrated with a whoosh at a speed almost invisible to the naked eye. The sound of the air tearing was enough to imagine that if an arrow had been nocked, the resulting power would have been immense.

“That’s normal. Fang Kai came over last time and used this bow to hunt. After just one morning, he started complaining about being tired,” Lai Rongguang chuckled. “But I must admit, the power of this bow is formidable. Fang Kai tested it once: standing seventy or eighty meters away, he pierced a mountain goat clean through with a single shot.”

“Big Brother Yu’s physical condition is certainly far superior to mine,” Wang Wang Guan joked, which was the truth; after all, the man exercised daily in the barracks, and his overall fitness level absolutely crushed his own.

“It doesn’t matter. Let’s take this bow along. Maybe I’ll need to use it too. I refuse to believe I can’t draw this bow or loose an arrow even when exerting all my strength.”

As he spoke, Yu Feibai added, “If you find it too hard, we can just grab a lighter bow as a backup.”

“That sounds fair.”

Wang Guan nodded, then smiled, “Big Brother Mu, you must have a place for archery practice around here, right? We’re heading out to hunt tomorrow; at least give us a chance to cram a little bit beforehand.”

“Exactly! Sharpening the spear before battle, even if it doesn’t make it faster, it won’t make it dull,” Yu Feibai agreed wholeheartedly, adding shamelessly, “Besides, with my natural intelligence, I pick up anything quickly. I bet I’ll be an expert marksman after just a little practice.”

Hearing this, Wang Guan and Murong Guang merely chuckled, offering no comment.

“Right next to the ranch, there is a dedicated archery field.”

At the same time, Murong Guang reminded them, “But just practice a little; don't overdo it, or your arms will be sore tomorrow, and you won’t be able to join the hunt.”

“Understood. We know the principle of ‘too much is as bad as too little’…”

A little while later, upon arriving at the archery range, the two men indeed shot only a single quiver of arrows with great restraint before stopping. Murong Guang, being more experienced, guided them, and they showed considerable improvement, looking quite competent.

Of course, practice was merely the appetizer; the real test of their skills would come in tomorrow’s live hunt.

A day passed. On the morning of the second day, the three men had completely changed their attire. Their cuffs and trouser legs were tightly fastened, they wore hats, sturdy hiking boots, held longbows, and had quivers slung across their backs, their entire bearing radiating vigor and martial spirit.

“Let’s go, set off.”

With a command, the three mounted their horses and galloped, experiencing the thrill of racing through the wilderness. After a long ride, under Murong Guang’s guidance, they arrived at the foot of a series of rolling hills.

“This is part of the Qilian Mountain range,” Murong Guang explained with a smile. “We leased the area spanning dozens of li around this range and hired dedicated staff to manage it. It started as just something for us to enjoy, but unexpectedly, it developed into a whole new venture…”

At first, Wang Guan didn't fully grasp Murong Guang’s meaning. But when they reached a settlement nearby that resembled a mountain village, he noticed quite a number of people had already gathered there.

At a glance, there were at least a hundred people, all dressed similarly, armed with bows and arrows, chatting animatedly in groups of three or five.

“Are all these people here for the hunt?” Wang Guan asked, slightly surprised.

“That’s right.”

Murong Guang looked somewhat resigned, yet pleased. “Originally, it was just a few of us friends playing around, but one day we felt it wasn't lively enough, so we invited more friends to join the fun. Unexpectedly, those people got hooked and invited their friends, too. It just kept cycling like that, and gradually, more and more people learned there was a place for wild hunting.”

“In this part of the Northwest, there are quite a few people who enjoy big game hunting. Once the number of participants grew, you can imagine what happened next—someone suggested scaling up the operation and running it as a proper business, establishing a membership system.”

Murong Guang gestured with his hands and chuckled, “And that’s how it became like this. Whenever a hunting event is held, it’s incredibly bustling. This year, the number of registered participants has exceeded a hundred.”

“Then we didn’t register; can we still participate?” Wang Guan asked casually. “No worries, as one of the shareholders, I still have the authority to sneak two people in…”

As they spoke, Murong Guang led the two men over. Quite a few people greeted them with nods, clearly indicating that he wasn't lying; as one of the organizers, he was something of a local celebrity here.

“Boss Mu!”

“Mr. Mu!”

“Brother Rongguang!”

Amidst the chorus of greetings, Murong Guang nodded in return, looking quite pleased with himself. Just then, someone suddenly called out loudly, “Brother Rongguang, is your goal this year still to be the Hunting King?”

“Aren’t you just bringing up a sore spot? Brother Rongguang has been the runner-up three years in a row; this year he’s surely determined to finally win…”

Hearing their exchange, the smile on Murong Guang’s face froze instantly. He turned back immediately and retorted irritably, “You two, stop dampening my spirits! This year, I’ll show you who the Hunting King is.”

“Then we’ll just wait and see,” others replied, many of them smiling. In reality, with so many people participating, there could only be one Hunting King, meaning ninety-nine percent of them would not achieve that honorary title.

However, Murong Guang, the first Hunting King, had suffered successive defeats in the next three events. It wasn't that his performance was poor; in fact, his haul was always among the top tier. But alas, he missed out by the smallest margin, failing to defend his title.

Knowing this situation, people often teased him about it, though it was meant in good fun, not mockery. After all, his results were consistently excellent, and he had something to show for his efforts every year, which was certainly better than those who came back empty-handed every time.

It could be said that while over a hundred people attended, at least more than half were purely there for the atmosphere—just to join the fun, not necessarily expecting any significant results. Yet, even knowing this outcome, they were tireless in their participation; if they weren't allowed to come, they would surely raise a fuss.

As Ouyang Xiu famously said, the drunkard’s intent is not the wine; these people were here for enjoyment, savoring the process. Having a good haul was great, but no gain was acceptable too. The key was their own happiness, and that made the effort worthwhile.

Amidst the general laughter, Murong Guang introduced his partners to Wang Guan and Yu Feibai. After only a few minutes of conversation, the hunting meet officially began.

After three or four years of refinement and management, the hunting meet had become quite formalized, complete with judges and referees. As the judges announced the start, several employees immediately opened the cages, and with a sudden burst of gongs and drums, one or two hundred pheasants and wild rabbits immediately scattered into the mountains, vanishing without a trace in an instant.

This bore a resemblance to ancient royal hunts, where game was prepared beforehand, and only then were the emperor and nobles allowed to hunt. Sometimes guards would deliberately cripple the prey halfway before letting the emperor deliver the finishing blow, ensuring the trophy counted for the sovereign. That was how a certain emperor throughout history managed to hunt so many ferocious animals like bears, tigers, and leopards in his lifetime.

Of course, the participants now did not enjoy such preferential treatment. Although a new batch of game had been released, the mountains stretched endlessly, offering plenty of hiding spots. Therefore, whether one could locate the prey and successfully take it down depended entirely on one’s own skill and luck.

After the game was released, they waited another twenty minutes before allowing the crowd to head into the hills to begin the hunt.

On the way up the mountain, Murong Guang explained the scoring rules to Wang Guan and Yu Feibai: a mountain goat was worth ten points, a wild rabbit twenty, a pheasant thirty… in essence, the larger the animal, the fewer points it was worth.

“Of course, if you have the skill and manage to shoot a bird directly, that counts for fifty points.”

Murong Guang sighed, “The year before last, some lucky idiot who was aiming for a squirrel accidentally shot down a flock of small birds with one arrow. Even though everyone knew it was pure luck, they still had to watch him take the title of Hunting King. He certainly got away with it easily.”

“Indeed…”

Wang Guan and Yu Feibai nodded in agreement. In modern society, the bow and arrow had long since exited the historical stage. It wasn't that society had discarded it, but rather that it lacked the conditions for large-scale application. It appeared either in sports or, like in Murong Guang’s circle, among enthusiasts.

For the vast majority of people, the bow and arrow remained a niche item—both familiar and strange. Hunting pheasants and rabbits was a combination of skill and luck, but shooting flying birds was absolutely down to sheer luck.

It wasn't that such expert marksmen didn't exist in the real world, but anyone with that level of skill would surely be competing for Olympic gold medals instead of participating in this amateur hunting event.

As for cheating, that was even more impossible. This activity was primarily centered on recreation, and titles like Hunting King were mere jokes, carrying absolutely no tangible benefit.

Furthermore, those who could afford to participate in this event generally possessed some level of status or standing; they wouldn't stoop to cheating for a title that was essentially a jest. Probably only those utterly bored to death would bother creating trouble for themselves for no reason… (To be continued)