After a suffocating few seconds of waiting, Charlotte waved the command flag, and almost at the moment when the flag reached its lowest point, Duke Hill and his "hurricane" had rushed out like an arrow from a string, outpacing the young lads by more than half a head, which was the ultimate expression of experience and skill. Pen ~ Fun ~ Pavilion www.biquge.info through the previous warm-up and garland arrangement, Natsuki also has the most basic understanding of the state and habits of "gravel" - as long as the rider's instructions are not problematic, the mature horse can fully keep up with the beat of the companions around them, this young and old horse combination is not surprisingly at the end, but at least not too much in the starting stage.

In the first 200 meters down the gentle slope, the riders accelerated very quickly, and they all galloped like the wind at a glance. Duke Hill was only one or two positions ahead of the others, and Natsuki was only one and a half positions away from the previous rider, but when he reached the flat ground, the horse's own ability began to appear, and Duke Hill, who was like a shrimp, gradually pulled his eldest son away by more than ten meters, although "Gravel" was very devoted, but its "advantage" with Natsuki's penultimate place was still increasing, if it was just a race for speed, they had no chance of turning the tables at all.

On the verdant meadows, the petals of the small wild flowers on the wreaths swayed in the wind, and the petals and even the wreaths began to tremble to the rhythm of the horses' hooves as the fierce horses galloped towards their riders. In the sun, the knights took the reins with one hand and drew their swords out of their sheaths, while the leader was already leaning over the horse's back, his long arms reaching forward with his sword, his thick eyebrows furrowed slightly, his eyes narrowed slightly, and the focus of his attention was already focused on the small wreath in front of him. The moment the sharp tip of the sword touched the garland, he flicked his wrist, expecting that the light garland would obediently put on the blade of the sword, but it only fell backwards, dropping a few delicate petals.

Looking at the smooth and empty body of the sword, Duke Hill looked behind him with an incredulous gaze, the wreath lying quietly on the grass suddenly became extremely dazzling, and then looked at the other riders, who did not want to slow down before reaching the small flag, either the tip of the sword poked the grass crumbs in vain, or just slashed the air, his eldest son Robert. Hill, who is Charlotte's father, even lost his balance and fell off his horse due to improper force, but fortunately he was not trampled on by his own mount, and quickly got up after landing, and it seemed that he should be fine. The riders behind had no choice but to change their tactics, slowing down in order to pick up the garland in a safe position - taking advantage of this opportunity, the Prussian prince, who had been at the bottom, caught up with him, and he neither slowed down nor changed his riding position until the wreath was close at hand, and then he used his waist to balance it with stirrups, and pressed his upper body to the horse's shoulder, and the sword in his right hand reached out, and the tip of the sword pierced into the garland like a snake spitting out a letter. When he turned around and raised his sword, the wreath had slid steadily to the sword!

Since the rules do not limit the timing and number of attempts a rider can make with his sword to pick up a garland with his sword, Duke Hill can also try again when he returns from bypassing the flag. With the previous lesson, most of them chose to slow down, that is, in addition to the deceleration and acceleration necessary when turning around at the small flag, they also needed to decelerate a second time, and those riders who chose to slow down at the beginning also had two decelerations. No matter how strong the short-range explosiveness of the thoroughbreds is, it is very fatal to lose a few seconds in just over 1,000 meters, not to mention that Natsuki weighs at least 15 kilograms lighter than the burly men of the Hill family, and after suddenly surpassing those ostentatious thoroughbreds, "Gravel" also seems to be rejuvenated, spreading his hooves and running wildly, and the weakest "Natsuki & Gravel" combination has achieved a remarkable counterattack, and finally won the victory with a narrow advantage of less than one position.

At the finish line, Natsuki triumphantly raised his sword and bathed the wreath of victory in brilliant sunlight, but he didn't get the credit Charlotte deserved. At the moment, she was obviously more concerned about her father, Commodore of the Royal Navy and the current commander of the armored cruiser "Hogg", Robert. Hill. In fact, a rider falling from a horse is just as common as a crew falling overboard, sometimes they are just innocuous accidents, and sometimes they are enough to kill people. Previously, Natsuki saw that Brigadier Hill quickly stood up and was able to take the initiative to avoid the riders behind him, so he did not stop the race, and many riders, including Duke Hill, did not quit halfway. At this point, Brigadier Hill was back on horseback, but instead of riding on his own, he was watched by another rider, and judging by the way he drooped his head, he did not seem to be in good condition.

Charlotte had already hurried to her father's side, looking at the slender back of the red rose, Natsuki's joy of outwitting the victory suddenly fell, and he turned his head to look at Louise, and all he got was a comforting expression with an element of helplessness.

Duke Hill rode up to Xia Shu's side and said angrily, "Your Highness, you have won this game!" ”

From the duke's eyes, Natsuki saw an indescribable indifference, his attitude towards this defeat was obviously not convinced, perhaps in his opinion, only the humble people would use their cleverness to win, and the real king should speak with strength - this is also the mentality of the British Empire when dealing with foreign affairs. According to their way of thinking, Natsuki would have to work hard to bring his ace mount from Germany in order to win the prize in a race of horses, and Germany would only be eligible to compete with the British Navy if it built a fleet comparable in numbers to the British Navy.

The old-fashioned English are sometimes choking!

"I said that as long as you win, you can pick a horse from my stable and bring it back to Germany. You can pick it, even if you pick my 'hurricane', I promise to offer it with both hands. ”

Natsuki looked up at Duke Hill, this guy is very old and spicy in some aspects, and very mediocre in some aspects, I don't know if this girl really can't see her mind or pretends not to know. He didn't answer, but subconsciously turned his head to look at Charlotte in the distance, it was this action that made Duke Hill's snort suddenly become heavy, Natsuki didn't need to face it to feel the fierce momentum of not being angry, but he was no longer the fart who used to be weak as a lamb. In the Second German Empire, a coalition of kingdoms, principalities, pro-kingdoms, and free cities, the complexity of national politics is far beyond ordinary people's imagination. The backlash of self-esteem swept away Natsuki's hesitation for a few seconds, and he firmly chose Charlotte's favorite foal, Tulip.

"What?" Hearing Natsuki announce the name of the horse, Duke Hill's eyes widened.

Natsuki looked at him without flinching: "I just want 'tulips'." ”

Duke Hill frowned, if he put aside his identity, age and other scruples, he would probably pounce on Xia Shu at this time.

Natsuki was equally furious when he remembered the extremely unpleasant episode in last year's joint exercise on the Kiel Military Port Festival, and remembered Crown Prince George's "exhortation" that he did not speak out to face, and this emotion was reflected on his face with a contemptuous expression.

After a moment of confrontation, the more sophisticated and more scheming side made concessions. He said, "I have given Charlotte the horse, and since His Royal Highness the Prince has taken a fancy to her, I will give her another one if she is willing to give it away." ”

Natsuki's answer was neat: "Good." ”

Tulip is not the jujube horse that Charlotte is riding, but a combination of her and another thoroughbred. The beautiful foal is only four months old and not yet ready for riding training. Natsuki learns from the young groom in the stable that Charlotte has a soft spot for the foal, and that Tulip is the name she gave it.

Because of Robert. Hill's horse crash, this "international" horse race, finally ended abruptly, and Charlotte accompanied her father directly back to the castle. The Duke of Hill gave second son Notting. Hill accompanied the Prussian prince and princess on a tour of the castle and went away on the pretext of something important. Before lunch, Natsuki and Louise went to visit Brigadier General Hill, and after the doctor's diagnosis, the unfortunate egg pelvic bone fell and needed to recuperate for a while, and it was not sure if there would be any after-effects. Although this accident was to blame for his own poor riding skills and momentary negligence, Natsuki could still sense that the attitude of the Hill family towards him had changed from cautious flattery to respectful and distant, and even bred a hostile mentality.

What other people think, Natsuki doesn't really care, if Charlotte is like her family, he will rationally and decisively give up this relationship that makes people feel good at the beginning, and "Tulip" will definitely not take it away. However, this pure, intelligent, and playful English girl is surprisingly strong, she is neither crying nor full of resentment, her expression returns to the frosty cold, and there is a kind of lost tolerance in Natsuki's eyes. Touched by this look, Natsuki temporarily let go of his overly strong self-esteem, and he solemnly expressed regret and apologies to Brigadier General Hill, the middle-aged man was very generous in language, but the indifference in his eyes was completely different from that of his daughter.

Unsurprisingly, the lunch was very dull that day, but Natsuki still had a lot to gain - Duke Hill consulted Charlotte in person, who looked and built like "Hermione, a fourth-year student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." Simple. The British girl, who resembles Granger, thought about it carefully and decided to give the "tulip" to Natsuki as a prize for the winner.

The parting came quickly, and although there were no romantic hugs or kisses, Natsuki was content with the hazy and subtle feeling, and he promised Charlotte that he would take good care of the "Tulip" and send back pictures of it regularly. Of course, these photos inevitably bring with them the handsome little prince who is growing up, Joachim. Feng. Prussia.

(End of chapter)