"So you think it would be inappropriate to hold events other than boat racing and archery in June?" The blazing sun burned like fire. Liu Cheng sat in the reception hall, intently gnawing on a plum, and looked up to ask.
"Yes." Yuan Hong was visibly uneasy.
"What's your reasoning? Is it because it's too hot?"
"Yes." Yuan Hong seemed to summon his courage to answer. "In this weather, boat racing is the most suitable event-playing in the water on a summer day. Besides, with troops campaigning in the Huai River region, transport by boat is essential, so it makes sense. As for archery, the grounds are small; thatched shelters and shade trees would suffice. Even so, spectators would find the scorching heat unbearable. As for wrestling..."
"You're right." Liu Cheng agreed before he had finished. "So what do you intend to do?"
It was not merely a question of whether the reasoning was sound. Since he had entrusted the work to someone else without lifting a finger himself, any suggestions that person raised deserved a measure of respect, provided they made sense in principle, before further discussion.
"Then we should cut all the other events from the Willow-Shooting Gathering and retain only boat racing and archery," Yuan Hong promptly replied.
"No." Liu Cheng shook his head. "We've already given our word. Besides, the remaining events ought to be held anyway. They can simply wait until after the autumn harvest."
"That was what I meant. We can tell the soldiers that Willow-Shooting has now been divided into two gatherings, with the remaining events postponed..."
"Don't call it a postponement, either, or the soldiers will be disappointed. Just act as though everything is proceeding as usual. Hold the boat races first, and expand their scale somewhat." Liu Cheng tossed away the