Chapter 102: The Battle of Dragons and Tigers (Part 2)

At dawn the next day, Chang’an City erupted into chaos. Countless men abandoned their bowls and rushed toward Chongye Fang. The polo match between the Anxi Team and the Fanyang Team was scheduled for near noon. Although there was still half a day left, Chongye Fang was already packed with crowds from early in the morning—tens of thousands of people gathered there, an unprecedented spectacle since the Tianbao era. Teams of cavalry patrolled the area to prevent overcrowding.

Chongye Fang’s polo field was one of the largest in Chang’an, with the other being the Eastern Inner Garden Polo Field. Both were open-style, lacking walls and stands. If the surrounding areas were fully occupied, over ten thousand people could fit in. But today, the eastern side of the field had been reserved for four-tiered stands reserved for the elite. Rumors even suggested that the emperor himself would attend the match.

It was impossible for all tens of thousands of people to see the game. Walls and trees near the fields were also crowded with spectators. The most spectacular sight was at the Xuandu Temple nearby—not only were the walls filled with fans, but people had even climbed onto the rooftops of its tallest halls.

Polo was the national sport of the martial Tang Dynasty. From commoners to nobles, men to women, and old to young, everyone was utterly obsessed with polo. Even when Emperor Zhaozong of Tang was forced to relocate the capital to Luoyang and his army fled, he still kept a dozen polo players with him, unwilling to part with them.

In the Tang Dynasty, not only warriors who fought on horseback loved polo, but scholars were equally enthusiastic. After each imperial examination, as part of the celebrations for those who passed, polo matches were held at the Moon Lantern Pavilion.

Since women could not participate in the intense form of horseback polo, as women’s polo became popular, a smaller, slower version played on donkeys—donkey polo—emerged among women and became a unique women’s sport of the Tang Dynasty.

By the Song Dynasty, due to the loss of horse breeding grounds and the decline of martial spirit, polo became more of an entertainment. Cuju replaced polo as the favorite sport of the people. Yet in the Tang Dynasty, polo remained a major military spectacle—intense battles and fierce fights, reminiscent of actual warfare, making it the favorite of the martial Tang people.

At that moment, there was simultaneous commotion in the northwest and southeast corners as the two teams entered the field. Fans quickly moved aside to create two paths. Today’s polo teams entered under strict security; the Jinwu Wei and Wanqi Ying each carried large shields to protect the teams as they entered. In a match three years earlier, a player from the Hedong polo team was killed by a fan wielding a sword, so ensuring the safety of polo players had become a top priority for the Jinwu Wei and Wanqi Ying.

The Anxi team and the Fanyang team rushed onto the field almost at the same time, instantly filling the polo field with excitement. Cheers and applause rang out continuously as twenty polo players rode their horses across the field. Dressed in military uniforms and helmets, they were all tall and imposing.

From time to time, they waved at the fans on the sidelines, who screamed and cheered, pushing forward eagerly. Soldiers maintaining order tried their best to hold them back, turning the atmosphere on the field extremely frenzied.

Then, three officials from the Taipusi Temple stepped forward to inspect the horses and equipment of both teams. Starting this edition, the rules for the polo tournament had become very strict, with an additional rule prohibiting the use of hidden weapons to harm people or horses. This was because in the previous tournament, Cai Xide had injured an Anxi army horse with the blade of his boot. Thus, this tournament specifically stipulated that anyone who used a sharp object other than a polo mallet to injure an opponent would be immediately expelled from the field, and their team would also be declared losers.

Despite the strict rules, today’s match was truly unusual. The officials from the Taipusi Temple still had to inspect each item, mainly the boots and mallets of both teams.

On the stands, An Lushan frowned and whispered to his aide, Yan Zhuang, “What strategy have you used? They all seem so energetic.”

Yan Zhuang stroked his mustache gently and smiled softly, “General, don’t worry. I’ve already made arrangements. They may have seen through my first plan, but my second and third plans will catch them off guard.”

An Lushan looked around the field in confusion, unable to see where Yan Zhuang’s plans might lie. Yan Zhuang whispered a few words in his ear, and only then did An Lushan understand, nodding silently.

On the field, the two polo teams had mounted their horses. Next was the exchange of mallets, a mere ritual—since the mallets were provided uniformly by the Taipusi Temple, and players were not allowed to bring their own.

In the chilly early spring wind, the two teams stood face to face. Coincidentally, Li Qing’an’s opponent was Shi Siming. Li Qing’an stared at him intently and smiled slightly, while Shi Siming avoided his gaze, his facial muscles twitching involuntarily.

“The two teams exchange the ball sticks!” shouted Zhu Hongyuan, the deputy minister of the Imperial Stables.
The warhorses were spurred forward, and the two teams slowly approached each other. The ball sticks touched in the air before being handed over to the opponent. At the moment the horses crossed paths, Li Qing’an turned to the side and said in a low voice, “General Shi, you’ll lose this battle just like you did last time.”
Shi Siming trembled all over. His eyes were fixed ahead, his lips almost bitten through in frustration. “I will never lose!” he gritted out.
“General Shi doesn’t believe it? Then just wait and see!” Li Qing’an smiled slightly before spurring his horse away.
Shi Siming stood there in a daze, forgetting to return to his team.
“Siming, stop daydreaming! It’s about to start,” Cai Xide urged loudly.
Shi Siming sighed, slowly lowered his head, and followed his team to their side.
…
The match was about to begin. The VIP seats were filled with powerful families from Chang’an, but Emperor Li Longji of the Tang Dynasty was not present.
Both teams returned to their respective goalposts and waited. Duan Xiushi shouted, “We’ve waited for three years. Today is the day we take revenge. Show them our strength and make those Fanyang scoundrels taste the power of our Anxi Army!”
Ten ball sticks were swung as the players lined up. Li Qing’an and Bai Yuanguang served as the attackers at the forefront, while the tall He Lou Yurun and two other burly players formed the rear guard. In the center, Duan Xiushi, Li Fei Shouyu, and four others commanded the main force.
The Fanyang Army’s formation was the same as before—Cai Xide and Yin Ziqi led the vanguard, with Shi Siming in command of the center. Their formation differed slightly from that of the Anxi Army, with three in the vanguard and four in the center, emphasizing offense. At that moment, Cai Xide whispered to everyone, “Let me tell you one thing—Mr. Yan Zhuang has made arrangements. Something unusual will happen in Anxi. We just need to be prepared; there’s no need for panic.”
Hearing this, everyone eagerly looked toward the Anxi Army.
The two armies stared at each other from afar, filled with hostility. The atmosphere outside the field grew increasingly intense, with thunderous shouts, drumming, and many people’s voices hoarse from shouting.
At that moment, the timing incense was lit. With a bell’s chime, a shuttle ball was shot into the center of the field. Almost simultaneously, both teams moved forward—warhorses galloping, ball sticks swung—as they rushed toward the shuttle ball in the middle.

Bai Yuanguang arrived first. With a swing of his mace, he sent the shuttleball flying toward Li Qing’an on the left. Cai Xide roared and swung his mace at both Li Qing’an and the ball. Li Qing’an dodged his fierce strike by turning sideways; the ball grazed past and was passed to Duan Xiushi in the center. Before Duan Xiushi could pass it, Shi Siming and two other players attacked from both sides, snatching the shuttleball. Shi Siming then swung his mace forcefully, sending the shuttleball far ahead…

The players on both sides rode their horses at lightning speed across the field, with the shuttleball flying through the air. At times, the Anxi army took the lead, and at other times, the Fanyang team was ahead. As the first timing incense was about to burn out, neither side had managed to score.

At that moment, the Anxi army executed a brilliant coordinated move. Bai Yuanguang and Duan Xiushi moved back-to-front, breaking through the Fanyang army’s blockade and reaching the left side of the goal hole. Li Fei Shouyu on the right also rushed to support them. The Fanyang army was shocked and seven of their players scattered to both sides. Shi Siming, who was ahead, suddenly noticed that there was no one blocking Li Qing’an in the center, creating an opening. Panicked, he shouted, “This is a trick to lure us away! Return to the center quickly!”

After shouting this, Shi Siming spurred his horse forward at full speed. At the same time, Bai Yuanguang delivered a perfectly timed backswing, sending the shuttleball flying through the gap and landing right in front of Li Qing’an. The ball was still about ten feet away from Li Qing’an, and Shi Siming had also arrived, only five feet away.

“General Shi, can you stop me?” Li Qing’an asked with a light laugh. Shi Siming hesitated for a moment and instinctively pulled on the reins. In that split second, Li Qing’an swung his mace in a decisive strike. The ball whizzed past Shi Siming, and fifty steps away, it flew into the net—Anxi scored first.

The field erupted in cheers as countless people jumped up in excitement. On the VIP stand, Yang Huahua screamed excitedly, “Li Qilang, great play!”

Gao Lishi also came to watch the match. Seeing Li Qing’an score, he laughed heartily and asked Pei Kuan, who was also a horse racing enthusiast, “What do you think of this boy, Minister Pei?”

Pei Kuan smiled and said, “He’s confident he can defeat Shi Siming.”

He then sighed, “What a pity!”

Gao Lishi was puzzled. “What do you mean, Minister Pei?”

Pei Kuan smiled faintly and said, “An eagle truly shows its true nature only in high mountains and deep valleys. If kept in a cage, it’s no different from pigs and dogs.”

Gao Lishi nodded slightly and then whispered a few words to him. Pei Kuan was stunned and asked incredulously, “Grandpa Gao, is that really possible?”

“Minister Pei, just pay close attention.”

Pei Kuan stared doubtfully at the Fanyang army’s horse racers. Then, a bell rang, signaling the end of the first match. Both sides would take a short break before continuing.

An intense match left players from both sides drenched in sweat, prompting them to go to the sidelines for water to quench their thirst. The water was provided by the Imperial Stables—boiled hot tea. In the Tang Dynasty, tea was always made by boiling water with various seasonings; large bowls were filled with it, already prepared by servants, with two full tables set aside—dozens of bowls of tea. In addition, porcelain plates contained various kinds of snacks.

Everyone stepped forward to get tea. At that moment, An Lushan watched the Anxi Army nervously. Unexpectedly, instead of drinking the tea prepared by the Imperial Stables, Li Siye and others at the sidelines threw in dozens of leather bags of clean water. The soldiers of the Anxi Army took the bags and drank greedily, also giving water to their warhorses.

“Generals, why don’t you drink the tea we prepared?” asked an official from the Imperial Stables, rushing over.

Duan Xiushi smiled and said, “Thank you, Governor Liu. But we never drink tea during matches; we only drink clean water, so we prepared our own.”

The governor was stunned for a moment before saying, “If that’s the case, we can prepare clean water for you.”

“No need. We already have what we need.”

Duan Xiushi glanced at the Fanyang Army and smiled, “Let’s give this tea to the Fanyang Army! It seems they don’t have enough.”

On the stands, An Lushan grunted heavily and said unhappily to Yan Zhuang, “It seems someone has seen through your strategy. They’re already prepared. What can we do?”

Yan Zhuang still smiled and said, “Commander, don’t panic. These two tactics were just feints to divert the Anxi Army’s attention. My real trump card is something they can’t even imagine.”

“Dang!” Another bell rang in the distance, and the match resumed.

……

The second half was the most crucial stage in determining the winner. Currently, the Anxi Army led by one goal. In this second half, the brutal side of polo began to emerge.

In the fierce confrontation, both sides scored two goals each, bringing the score to 3-2. As the intensity of the match increased, the hatred between the two armies from three years ago flared up. Their movements became more brutal—yellow dust rose from the hooves of their warhorses as they collided fiercely. When the game stalled, fists and feet were used, and the mallets turned into weapons. Duan Xiushi’s warhorse was hit in the eye by a mallet and fell, neighing in pain. Yin Ziqi was also punched by He Lou Yurun, leaving his head bleeding, forcing the match to be interrupted.

The emotions of the spectators outside the field gradually escalated as well. Some started shouting insults, while others threw stones into the field. In the northwest corner, fans from both sides even engaged in violent fights. Cavalry rushed in and dragged the fighters away.

The match resumed after a brief pause. On the stands, Pei Kuan kept his eyes fixed on Li Qing’an. He gradually realized that what Gao Lishi had told him was about to happen. With a sharp “bang,” the polo ball flew toward Li Qing’an from about thirty feet away. Li Qing’an spurred his horse forward and swung his bat at the ball. At that moment, Cai Xide rushed forward on his horse, getting very close to Li Qing’an. In that instant, Li Qing’an swung his bat and sent the ball flying. Suddenly, Cai Xide let out a scream as he fell off his horse. The entire crowd was in shock and stood up. A dagger was stuck in Cai Xide’s right shoulder, and he writhed in pain as blood flowed profusely. The sudden incident stunned the officials from the Imperial Stables Department. Shi Siming rushed over and shouted, “Won’t you do anything? The Anxi Army is using hidden weapons to hurt people!” The match was halted. The Fanyang Army charged at Li Qing’an angrily, while the Anxi Army stood their ground, protecting Li Qing’an closely. Tension mounted, and it seemed the same scene from three years ago was about to repeat itself. Just then, An Lushan roared, “Stop all of this at once!” He rushed down from the stands, slapped Shi Siming, and cursed, “They’re all Tang soldiers. Who dares to fight among themselves?” The Fanyang Army quietly retreated. An Lushan stepped forward to check on Cai Xide’s injuries. Sighing, he said to Li Qing’an, “General Li, it was just a polo match. Why go to such extreme measures?” The polo field fell silent. Zhu Hongyuan, the deputy head of the Imperial Stables Department in charge of the match, was sweating profusely. He never expected the same scenario from three years ago to happen again, only this time with roles reversed—now the Fanyang Army was the victim. The problem was there were new rules this year: those who used deadly weapons would be immediately expelled from the field. His team had declared defeat. Would the Anxi Army become the first to be punished under these new rules? Zhu Hongyuan was in a dilemma. He knew that if he enforced the rules fairly, he would offend the Anxi Army, but the governor of Fanyang was right there! What should he do? “General Li, how do you explain this?” Zhu Hongyuan reluctantly questioned Li Qing’an. Li Qing’an smiled and said, “Deputy Minister Zhu, I believe everyone saw that I was holding the bat with both hands the whole time. How could I have used a knife?” Zhu Hongyuan was stunned. He realized something and glanced at An Lushan. At that moment, An Lushan snapped, “Li Qing’an, even if you really did do it, I could still tolerate it. Harmony is important, but you dare to slander Cai General, claiming he hurt himself. You’re being too cruel. I’ll complain to the emperor about you.”

Li Qing’an bowed slightly and said with a smile, “Commander An, when did I say General Cai hurt himself? You’re overthinking things.”
“Hmph! You may not have said it outright, but that’s exactly what you mean.”
“General Li is absolutely right!”
Pei Kuan slowly stepped forward and sneered, “Commander An might have poor eyesight, but I saw it clearly—General Li never pulled out any dagger at all. As for how a dagger ended up on Cai Xide’s shoulder, the truth is obvious to both of us.”
Although Pei Kuan had once been the military governor of Fanyang, he was a mortal enemy of An Lushan. All the generals he had promoted were demoted after An Lushan came to power, and even one of his most trusted subordinates was killed by An Lushan through the Khitans, causing Pei Kuan immense grief. Now, An Lushan tried to use despicable tactics to frame the Anxi Army. Pei Kuan would never allow the Fanyang Army he once led to become a band of scoundrels.
An Lushan crossed his arms and snorted heavily, “This matter should be decided by the Imperial Stables Department. What does it have to do with Minister Pei?”
At that moment, Zhu Hongyuan, the deputy head of the Imperial Stables Department, was drenched in sweat. There was no evidence for such a matter—it happened in an instant, and no one could see clearly. Unlike later times when videos could be replayed, everything relied on human judgment. It was possible to claim Li Qing’an had used violence or that Cai Xide had hurt himself—everything depended on who had stronger backing.
This was the brilliance of Yan Zhuang’s plan. First, he drugged the water to confuse the Anxi Army, making them focus on their food, while he took advantage of loopholes in the new rules to arrange for Cai Xide to hurt himself. With the Fanyang Army having a military governor and the Anxi Army isolated, with Gao Xianzhi far away in Anxi, the final verdict would surely favor the Fanyang Army. Li Qing’an would be expelled and disgraced, while the Fanyang Army would achieve victory. This was exactly revenge for what he had done earlier when he set fire to the Memorial Hall—hadn’t he done the same thing?
Unexpectedly, Pei Kuan appeared and publicly supported the Anxi Army, tearing a crack in Yan Zhuang’s otherwise flawless plan.
Zhu Hongyuan was in a terrible dilemma. On one side was the military governor of Fanyang, a high-ranking official, and on the other was the Minister of Rites and the new prime minister—neither of whom he could afford to offend. At that moment, Liu, the local official, quietly nudged Zhu Hongyuan’s back and whispered, “Sir, look to the left.”
Zhu Hongyuan turned his head to the left and was shocked to see Gao Lishi standing not far away, smiling and with his arms crossed. He immediately realized that Gao Lishi was Li Qing’an’s backer—someone he absolutely could not provoke.

He immediately made up his mind and said with a smile, “General An is right. We’re all part of the Tang army—why fight among ourselves? I think this is just a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding! Haha, it won’t affect the match; we can continue.” He waved his hand to have Cai Xide carried away, ignoring the dagger on his shoulder. An Lushan also saw Gao Lishi and nodded at him obsequiously, but inwardly he was extremely frustrated. With Gao Lishi involved, the matter could only be dropped, but the problem was that his best scorer, Cai Xide, could no longer participate. … The match continued. Without the fierce warrior Cai Xide, the Fanyang army’s attacks weakened immediately. Gradually, control of the match shifted to the Anxi army, which dominated the pace of the game. The Anxi army fought more and more bravely, showcasing both tactical coordination and individual skill. In contrast, the Fanyang army’s morale was severely affected by their own mistakes; they dared not be reckless anymore and played cautiously. Li Qing’an rode swiftly, with the shuttlecock flying diagonally toward him. There was no one blocking his path ahead, while Shi Siming and the other central team players had retreated to their own goal areas. Without hesitation, Li Qing’an swung his bat, sending the shuttlecock flying toward the goal, with Shi Siming standing by the goal area. “General Shi, can you stop this twentieth shot?” Li Qing’an laughed loudly. Sweat dripped from Shi Siming’s forehead. He took a deep breath, staring intently at the approaching shuttlecock. But in his eyes, it had changed—into an arrow shot at him in a perfect trajectory. His heart pounded wildly, like the rhythm of drums—eighteenth time, nineteenth time… It was time to act! Time to act! Yet his bat felt incredibly heavy; he couldn’t lift it. Shi Siming roared, but stopped mid-roar. The atmosphere around him was strange; everyone stared at him blankly. One player whispered, “General Shi, the ball has already gone in.” “Ah!” Shi Siming’s bat fell to the ground. … With Shi Siming’s reaction, the Fanyang army’s morale completely collapsed. In the decisive third match, they lost six goals in a row to the Anxi team. Li Qing’an alone scored four goals, giving them a huge 9-2 lead. It was a one-sided rout. By the end, the Fanyang army had completely lost their fighting spirit and even the confidence to chase or block, watching helplessly as the Anxi army attacked and scored goals like the wind and lightning.

With a loud “ding,” the match came to an end. The racetrack turned into a roaring sea of excitement. An Lushan, his face pale with anger, turned and slapped Yan Zhuang hard.