I woke up as the Villainous Empress

No wonder she suddenly disappeared after getting out of the carriage.

As a former archery athlete herself, how could Yang Ning resist the opportunity to go to the training grounds and refrain from practicing archery? Until now, she only got to pick up the bow and arrow whenever her life was in danger or emergency. However, every day her hands were itching to practice archery, the game that she has been playing since a young age.

Now she had gotten the chance to relive her passion; how could she miss it?

After digging for more information, Yang Ning found out from Xiaowei that today Gu Lan had arranged a proper training session for Xiaowei in the late afternoon, which was supposed to be Yang Ning\'s resting time, ensuring that Xiaowei wouldn\'t be away from her duties to accompany the Crown Princess for an extended period.

During those hours, Zheng Liang instructed all the guards to empty the training grounds to avoid making Xiaowei feel conscious of others\' presence. He ordered them to rest in their quarters and continue their training at night.

However, when Yang Ning found out about it, she decided to go to the training grounds with Xiaowei an hour before the arranged training time. She also wanted to see what the training grounds looked like, observe the guards\' routines, and understand their usual training methods.

Even as the Crown Princess, she had never gotten the chance to visit the training grounds before. Now, with this opportunity, how could she miss it?

Since the Royal Estate was a vast property with numerous quarters, pavilions, and halls designated for various functions, it was not practical to walk from one place to another in a short time. The training grounds were quite a distance from the Dragon Pavilion, so Yang Ning and Xiaowei took a carriage to reach there.

However, following Yang Ning\'s orders, they got down at some distance from the entrance gate of the training grounds. She didn\'t want to attract attention by alighting right in front of the training grounds and causing a chaotic situation.

To appear as natural as possible, she had draped one of Zheng Liang\'s training robes around her, fully prepared to engage in training. As his wife, she also had the autonomy over her clothes. So, she gladly took one of the black robes, altered it according to her size, and wore it to the training grounds.

In Zheng Liang\'s training robes, she resembled a female guard, boosting her confidence in her styling skills.

While Yang Ning was content in the comfortable clothes, Xiaowei, on the other hand, who wore the training uniform given by Gu Lan yesterday, couldn\'t help but feel embarrassed in the man-like attire. She feared that someone might see her and Her Highness in such manly clothes, and rumors would spread around the palace.

\'They\'re women and dressed like men. How embarrassing!\' she wondered, feeling self-conscious.

After getting off the carriage, while walking towards the training grounds, Xiaowei looked at Yang Ning who was walking ahead, and said worriedly, "Your Highness, no woman is allowed to enter the training grounds. I don\'t think it is appropriate for you to go there. What if His Highness finds out about it?"

Walking ahead with a bright smile, Yang Ning retorted, "Aren\'t you also a woman? When you can go, then why not me? Also, I am the Crown Princess. Who can stop me from entering?"

Xiaowei sighed and explained hurriedly, "But I was ordered to go and train there on His Highness\' orders. It is my duty to protect you with my life. However, if you go there, numerous rumors might spread around the palace.

It is not appropriate for you to go there in the area where so many men train." She said embarrassedly, remembering the scene from yesterday where the men were training with their exposed upper bodies.

"What if someone tries to tarnish your reputation using it as an example? I think you should consider this decision once again," Xiaowei advised, expressing her concern that this action might put Yang Ning in a complicated situation with baseless rumors spreading around. Yang Ning is always under the keen scrutiny of others looking for faults to exploit.

It is best to be careful than dealing with political mess later on.

Yang Ning didn\'t pay attention to Xiaowei\'s words and snickered, "If your duty is to protect me, then as the Crown Princess, it is also my duty to protect myself. What if an enemy attacked me when I am alone?"

"What should I do in that situation? Should I just die just because I am a woman and don\'t know how to protect myself? Also, if your Crown Prince says something, I will deal with him. Don\'t worry!" Yang Ning waved at her nonchalantly and said, "Now hurry up and be careful while walking. Don\'t let the food fall from your hands."

Xiaowei could only sigh and follow Yang Ning closely while carefully carrying two large baskets of food in her hands. "Yes, Your Highness."

___

In the training grounds, Gu Lan was instructing the new guards on how to use weapons for attack and defense. After completing their physical training, they moved on to learning about weapons. Today, they were particularly focusing on using bows and arrows, polishing their archery skills for emergency situations.

The guards stood in position next to the stand of bows and arrows, their arrows pointed toward the target. Gu Lan walked back and forth behind them, keeping a close eye on their stances. He shouted loud enough for everyone to hear, "Before firing your arrows, always keep in mind that one arrow can save or take someone\'s life. Think before shooting."

"If you\'re on a battlefield and facing the enemy, after receiving orders from the commander, do not hesitate to eliminate them. However, if you encounter an enemy outside the battlefield, analyze whether that enemy could provide useful information. In such cases, target areas that render them helpless but do not kill them.

Do you understand?" Gu Lan asked loudly, teaching them archery tactics against the enemy.

"Yes, Sir!" The guards replied with enthusiasm, shouting in unison.

"Fix your targets and now, shoot!" Gu Lan shouted, and everyone released their arrows simultaneously, creating a magnificent scene.

After the guards shot their arrows, Gu Lan was content with their archery skills and was about to praise them when he heard the sound of clapping behind him. He frowned, turned around to see who was bold enough to disrupt their training session, and was left bewildered in disbelief to see two women, dressed in manly outfits, walking towards him.

However, he was speechless to see the woman in front walking towards him with a bright smile, "Her Highness?"