Outside the Imperial City, at the West Suburban Hunting Ground.
It was very close to the Imperial City, and one could get here in less than half an hour by fast carriage or on horseback. Yet it covered an enormous area, nearly seventy li in circumference, with many wild beasts roaming free inside — a place where the Royal Family came to amuse themselves most often.
But June was obviously not the right time for a hunt; many of the wild beasts were raising their young now, and it went against custom.
If a condemned woman was pregnant, even her execution would be postponed until after childbirth; what about these beasts? You had to let them raise their young, so there would be game for next year.
Yet things were strange this year. On a whim, the Emperor not only chose this unsuitable season for a hunt, but invited virtually all the main officials in the Imperial City along.
