“Jack, the 'jiu' of drinking, the 'zhi' of ambition!”

“Jack is over here!” called out another examiner nearby.

“Excuse me, everyone, let me through!” Jack squeezed his way forward desperately.

At this moment, Brian Thompson finished registering. The examiner pointed to the main gate, “Go on in! You’ll choose a bow and arrows in the first tent, the blue one. Don’t go to the wrong place.”

“Thank you!”

Brian Thompson entered the training ground first. The field was already set up, with ten targets placed about fifty paces away. Ten people shot at the same time, each required to shoot five arrows within the allotted time. Hitting three targets counted as passing. To qualify for mounted archery, all five arrows had to hit the target.

Five tents stood to the side, where candidates could select bows and arrows and wait for their turn. The first tent was the blue one.

“Old Li!”

Jack caught up from behind. “That’s odd. We signed up together, but I got put in the eighth group and you’re in the first.”

“Who knows, maybe it’s random! Old Fatty, which tent are you in?”

“The third one, the red tent.”

Jack then pulled Brian Thompson aside and whispered, “I heard the rules changed this year. Only fifty people can qualify for mounted archery, selected based on their foot archery scores. Be careful, don’t let your guard down and lose out.”

Brian Thompson nodded. He understood the rule—since Richard Martin was present, they had to ensure the quality of the candidates, to avoid the uneven standards of last year.

Last year, out of a hundred mounted archery candidates, sixty missed the target entirely and shot their arrows off course. If that happened again this year in front of Richard Martin, it would be a disgrace to Shazhou.

“I’ll be careful. See you at the main gate later—I have something to discuss with you!”

“Alright!”

Jack dashed off, while Brian Thompson entered the first tent. Over twenty people were already inside. Three rows of bow racks lined one side, and two examiners were present—one handling official registration, the other helping with bow selection.

The so-called examiners were actually local militia temporarily assigned to the task, and they were quite rough. If a candidate moved even a bit slowly, the examiners would shout at them, pointing right at their noses.

But they seemed to recognize Brian Thompson and treated him fairly politely. Brian Thompson walked up to the bow rack—all the bows were foot bows.

They were larger and more crudely made than the mounted bow Brian Thompson usually used, nowhere near as good. His own bow had taken his master three years to craft and was comparable to those made by famous artisans.

The foot bows ranged from five-dou to one-shi in draw weight, and candidates could choose according to their own strength. Brian Thompson was picky about bows and tried three or four in a row, but none satisfied him—they were all too light.

At that moment, the examiner helping with bow selection strolled over and smiled, “Is it not to your liking, Young Master Brian?”

This examiner had a patch of bristly yellow whiskers that stood out. Seeing that he recognized him, Brian Thompson smiled back, “They’re all too light. Is there a heavier one?”

“I think there’s one that’s a bit heavier.”

The examiner led him to the third row, picked up the bow at the end, and said, “This one’s the heaviest. No one’s chosen it yet. Why don’t you give it a try?”

Brian Thompson drew the bow slowly. It turned out to be a two-shi bow, just right for his strength. Brian Thompson was delighted. “This is the one.”

The yellow-whiskered examiner smiled slightly. “Go on, the test is about to start.”

‘Dong! Dong! Dong!’

The drum sounded. Dawn was just breaking. The first group of ten candidates began the foot archery test. Each had a quiver with five arrows. All arrows had to be shot before the drumbeat ended. Everyone was nervous, their hearts pounding in time with the drum.

Brian Thompson, however, was at ease. This kind of foot archery test was a breeze for him. He easily hit the bullseye with all five arrows—a perfect score.

“Congratulations, Young Master Brian, you’ve passed the test!”

The examiner with the yellow whiskers appeared in front of Brian Thompson, beaming. “Your score has been confirmed. You’re currently ranked first. The chief examiner asked me to tell you to go to the main field to prepare for mounted archery. It will be held there.”

“Thank you!”

Brian Thompson handed him the bow and strode outside. For him, this kind of foot archery meant nothing; what he cared about was the mounted archery.

He was in great form today. As long as he performed normally, the spot to go to the capital was his for sure.

Brian Thompson left the training ground and spotted Sarah Cooper from afar. She saw Brian Thompson too and jumped up with joy. “Over here, Brother Sam!”

Her voice was sweet and affectionate, and she called out so intimately that many people nearby turned to look at her. She didn’t care at all, running up and affectionately taking Brian Thompson’s arm. “Brother Sam, I’ve been waiting for you forever.”

Looking at the rosy dimples on Sarah’s cheeks, Brian Thompson felt a wave of warmth in his heart and couldn’t help but smile.

“Sarah, where’s your second brother?”

“He went to the main field to save us a spot. Big Sister Edward is here too—I just saw her. She probably went to the main field as well. She asked me to tell you to put down your bag and go in light.”

So Big Sister was here too. Just then, he remembered something and said apologetically to Sarah, “I have to go away for a few days tomorrow. I promised to watch your dance competition last time, but I might not make it.”

Sarah looked downcast. “I heard from Big Sister Edward. If you can’t make it, there’s nothing you can do.”

Seeing her upset, Brian Thompson smiled and said, “Why don’t you come with us on the trip? Your second brother is going too!”