Chapter 39 Sinking the Black Ball

Seeing this, Lin Wanyue beamed from ear to ear, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons. Lady Bai also let out a breath of relief.

However, the mood on the Zhao family's side was far from pleasant.

Zhao Wuyan's original thought was that since his younger sister disliked the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Qingyuan's Estate, and he himself usually idled away his time—though his polo skills were passable at best—he could easily trounce the opponent. Word would then spread about how formidable the Marquis of State's Estate was, effortlessly crushing the Marquis of Qingyuan's Estate.

Who could have anticipated that a mere child like Lin Qingzhi would play polo so brilliantly, leaving Zhao Wuyan on the receiving end of a humiliating defeat?

"Elder brother, what do we do now? Will I really have to apologize to this person later? You know how ruined Lin Wanyue's reputation is these days. If I apologize to someone like that and word gets out, how am I supposed to face anyone?" Zhao Ruyan asked in a low voice, riddled with anxiety.

Zhao Wuyan doted on his sister, so upon hearing this, he quickly reassured her, "Impossible! Brother will never let you be humiliated!"

Yet, given the current situation, he anxiously cursed the teenage boys under his grandfather's command who formed his team, then rubbed his face in frustration. "I'll say this one last time: block Lin Qingzhi. If one person can't guard him, two of you guard him together! His aim is too accurate; you cannot let their polo ball get anywhere near him, do you hear me?"

That group of teenagers wiped the sweat from their bodies and lowered their heads.

"Young master, it's not that we aren't trying to block him. The problem is that this Lin Qingzhi clearly plays polo all the time. His playing style is exceptionally aggressive and bizarre; not only is his grip immensely strong, but his accuracy is also terrifyingly high. He's on a hot streak now—whenever the ball reaches his hands, it's a guaranteed score!"

"And that boy assisting him is also extremely agile; we simply can't stop him!"

"Young Lord Zhao, this match is not going to be easy to play!"

The atmosphere among the Zhao family retinue was deeply gloomy.

From a great distance, they could see Lin Wanyue and the others speaking to Lin Qingzhi with smug expressions.

"We absolutely cannot lose this polo match."

Barking like a dog in public!

Which young master of a noble house could possibly lower himself to getting down on the ground and barking like a dog? If that got out, how could he ever show his face again?

After pondering for a moment, Zhao Wuyan said, "I've observed their team, and the only one who truly plays well is Lin Qingzhi alone. He's small in stature, which makes his body very nimble—he can just bend down to dodge people and control the ball, while the rest of them are quite mediocre."

"Figure out a way to make the opposing side substitute Lin Qingzhi out."

Standard polo matches allowed for the substitution of players onto the field.

Therefore, player substitutions were not uncommon.

For instance, if a player taking the field this time was in poor form, or committed multiple fouls, or perhaps...

...if someone sustained a severe injury on the field and was unable to continue the match.

He reminded those beneath him, "Some things are not convenient for me to do, but you can. Make sure he gets substituted out, by any means necessary. Do you understand?"

*

The halftime break was not particularly long.

Lin Wanyue was beside herself with excitement. "I thought they were being so boastful about how good they could be, but it turns out they can't even compare to you, Qingzhi! They'll definitely be targeting you in the second half, but as long as you maintain your performance from the first half, winning this match is as good as sealed!"

Lin Zhaozhao chimed in, "...I don't know whether to call you innocent or foolish."

Lin Wanyue snapped, "? What do you mean by that!"

"I mean that when you're close to me, your scheming mind is more intricate than a beehive, yet the moment you leave me, you're utterly sincere toward everyone else—claiming it's a guaranteed win when I can't see an ounce of security."

"So are you cursing my younger brother to meet with disaster?"

Seeing that the two of them were about to start bickering, Lin Qingzhi hurriedly intervened, "Oh, alright, that's enough, everything's fine! Once this quarter finishes, I'll just secure the victory quickly in the next one and be done with it! There won't be any accidents!"

He noted that the opposing side hadn't resorted to any underhanded tactics in the first half either. Furthermore, to prevent them from tampering with his horse, he had specifically arranged for a servant from his own estate to watch over his mount during the break.

"You can't save a ghost determined to die."

Lin Zhaozhao had nothing more to say. "Go smash your head against a load-bearing wall!"

Lin Qingzhi, "..."

Wait, why on earth was he suddenly doomed to die?

Before he could figure it out, the referee signaled for both teams to ride their horses back onto the field in turn.

Zhao Wuyan exchanged a meaningful glance with his subordinates.

As soon as the polo match resumed, the young man by Lin Qingzhi's side seized the ball. Only one person was marking him, while Zhao Wuyan and another tall, thin youth silently maneuvered into positions right beside Lin Qingzhi.

The teammate swung his mallet and passed the ball directly to the tall, thin boy. The recipient spun around swiftly, pulling on his horse's reins as if to gallop forward, but in a feint, he knocked the polo ball right back to the side of Lin Qingzhi's mount.

The distance to the goalposts was roughly fifteen or sixteen meters. Lin Qingzhi seized the opportunity and swung his mallet directly, while Zhao Wuyan and the other youth closed in from the flanks to intercept him.

The instant the three of them crossed paths, Zhao Wuyan smiled, lowered his voice, and said, "You are quite formidable, and I truly admire you. What a pity—your sister is an absolute idiot who insists on loving someone she has no business loving. So don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Ruthless in what way?

At this position, the opponents couldn't possibly snatch the ball away either!

As Lin Qingzhi thought this, his movements paused for a fraction of a second, but an ominous premonition suddenly welled up in his heart.

Taking advantage of this exact opening, the teammate beside Zhao Wuyan shielded himself from the view of the spectator stands, sidled close, and violently jammed the end of his polo mallet straight into Lin Qingzhi's stomach.

With that single blow, the polo mallet slipped from Lin Qingzhi's grasp, and his complexion instantly turned as pale as paper.

The teammates riding directly behind him saw everything clearly. Just as they let out a simultaneous curse—"Fuck"—and surged forward to intervene, Zhao Wuyan decided to go all the way. He abruptly jerked his own horse's reins, driving its hooves forward to deliver a fierce kick directly against the legs of Lin Qingzhi's large, date-red steed.

In that fraction of a second, the entire crowd witnessed the horrifying sight. The normally gentle date-red horse let out a cry of pain and suddenly bolted into a wild, frantic gallop.

Lin Qingzhi was suffering from agonizing pain in his stomach—or perhaps his core; frankly, there wasn't a single inch of him that didn't hurt. His internal organs felt as though they were being churned together. No matter how desperately he tried to haul back on the reins, he couldn't get a grip on anything.

Compounded by the horse's crazed charging and violent bucking, even though the boys on his team attempted to ride alongside and pull him down, they simply couldn't get close enough to the date-red steed.

This terrified Lady Bai to the point where she nearly fainted on the spot. "Qingzhi—!"

No sooner had that cry left her lips than Lin Qingzhi was violently flung off the horse and onto the ground.

Truth be told, Lin Qingzhi had never suffered such agony in all his life. Not only had he been deliberately bludgeoned in the torso with a polo mallet, but he had also been thrown from his mount.

His own beloved horse, which he had raised since it was a foal, had raised its hoof and kicked him squarely in the leg.

A crisp, distinct "crack" echoed clearly across the polo grounds.

Lady Bai clutched Lin Zhaozhao's hand and sprinted down from the spectator stands.

Meanwhile, just as everyone rushed frantically to Lin Qingzhi's side, Zhao Wuyan seized the opportunity to score three consecutive goals.

The score was instantly leveled.

"What the hell?" The boys on Lin Qingzhi's team were dumbfounded. "Can those even count as points?!"

Lin Wanyue was practically shaking with rage. She glared at the referee and shouted, "Are you blind?! They were clearly playing dirty out there, beating my younger brother into such a state, and not only do you refuse to penalize them off the field, but you're actually awarding them points?!"

"Do you even know how to referee a match?!"