“Two impressive figures from one family—”
“A few days ago, some official blocked this Ninth Master Xie’s path in the street, and Ninth Master Xie just struck him with his hand—”
The gatekeepers stood by their doors, feeling the ground tremble beneath their feet, their ears seeming to catch the whispered conversations in the night. They exchanged glances with helpless expressions. The Xie clan, whether in Dongyang or the capital, had never displayed such an arrogant attitude.
This Xie Yanlai—
But there was no help for it. The Third Young Master Xie had ordered that Xie Yanlai could act as he pleased, and no one was permitted to question or obstruct him.
So be it. Let him go. As long as the Third Young Master Xie was there, everything was under control.
The gatekeepers closed the door. Inside and out, the Xie estate fell silent.
……
……
Outside the city at the capital military camp, torches burned bright as flames, pushing back the night. Here people moved about and horses neighed, no different from daytime.
A group of military officers passed by. The soldiers they encountered all saluted. “General Zhang.”
Zhang Gu, wearing an officer’s armor, maintained a calm expression and kept his gaze straight ahead, walking directly into a barracks surrounded by his soldiers.
The barracks was spacious, brightly lit with lamps, furnished with desks and hung with maps. To one side were even food tables, cushions, and soft couches—truly heaven and earth compared to their courier soldiers’ huts.
The attendants who had been standing quietly and solemnly at the back seemed to unload a thousand pounds of burden as the door curtain dropped. They surged toward various parts of the room, touching this, examining that. Xin Ding even sat down at the food table, looking at what was on it in disbelief—
“In the middle of the night, there’s even roast pig’s head!”
A soldier squeezed over beside him, reaching out to take a knife and cut off a piece of meat, stuffing it in his mouth and wolfing it down. His voice was muffled. “Country bumpkin, showing your ignorance. As a general, forget having meat to eat at night—once the national mourning is over, there’ll even be wine to drink. When that time comes, as one of General Zhang’s personal attendants, you little rascal will get to have a sip too.”
Xin Ding was so excited he sat frozen, forgetting to eat the meat. What wonderful days these were! He clearly remembered that not long ago, he’d thought he was going to lose his head. Who would have imagined he’d be promoted instead—though he was still a soldier.
But as a personal guard to the Commander of the Courier Soldier Battalion, his status was completely different!
Zhang Gu watched all these people looking around and making a commotion throughout the room, clearing his throat lightly. “Everyone, be more composed.”
The soldiers all quieted down, though they weren’t afraid. They chuckled. “Boss, you’re really composed. All the way here, such an impressive bearing—more steady than the previous commander.”
Zhang Gu’s face reddened slightly. Of course it was an act. Under his armor, his legs had been shaking a bit. Sigh, he’d lived half his life already, originally thinking he’d continue this way until old age. When he could no longer run, he’d go to some mountain village or rural courier station to be a courier soldier. Who would have imagined he’d be promoted, taking charge of the capital’s courier soldier battalion?
This was all because—
“This is all because we had good luck meeting A Fu on the road—”
“Shh, don’t call her that. You have to address her as the Empress—”
“Keep your voice down. Don’t mention what happened before. It’s disrespectful to the Empress—”
The others had already started chattering away in a jumble of voices.
Zhang Gu came back to himself, smiled, then grew solemn again. Though they’d met by chance, A Fu valued them so highly—he would never let her down! Especially since this child had again—
“She’s acted willfully again. Last time she climbed over the wall from home. This time, even in the Imperial Palace, she still climbed over the wall and ran off.”
Earlier, A Jiu had stood before him, saying coldly.
“But unlike before, no need for trickery and deception. She has troops protecting her. No need to worry.”
No need to worry? Zhang Gu thought. Then A Jiu made him a commander.
“The courier soldier battalion is in your hands. You must personally control the flow of news about her along this route.”
A Jiu mounted his horse and turned it around, but the horse pawed the ground in the night as if unwilling to go, so the youth on horseback tossed down one more line.
“—If anything seems wrong, tell me immediately.”
Having said this, the youth spurred his horse and departed, disappearing into the night.
Zhang Gu sighed softly. A Fu had once again fled the capital and set out on the road to the border commandery. But this time, A Fu was no longer just A Fu, and A Jiu was no longer a courier soldier. Even with their worries, they could no longer accompany each other.
These two had met and formed a bond on the road, but they could no longer travel the road together. How pitiful.
He would certainly guard A Fu well, so that these two who cared for each other—even if they couldn’t end up together, would both live well in this world, able to see each other, able to remain connected.
Zhang Gu’s heart surged with emotion. He took a deep breath and called out solemnly, “Everyone, stay alert! This is a critical time. The courier dispatches cannot have the slightest error!”
Sure enough, with promotion came a different bearing. The attendants scattered throughout the room straightened their bodies and responded in unison.
The night reached its deepest point. Standing on the capital’s city wall, looking out into the distance revealed pitch darkness, heaven and earth seeming to merge into one, murky and indistinct.
Wind stirred the cloak, making it billow behind, occasionally striking against the person, as if trying to wake the youth who had stood motionless for so long.
Xie Yanlai gazed at the dense night in the distance, unmoving.
Would it work?
Before, when she was nothing, she’d been pursued and intercepted on all sides.
Now she’d become Empress, made an enemy of Prince Zhongshan, and played clever games maneuvering between Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang—instead of staying obediently in the Imperial Palace, she’d run out again. Wasn’t this giving people an opportunity?
Didn’t she know her luck had always been bad?
Otherwise she wouldn’t have met him at that time, recognized at a single glance, all her efforts wasted.
Otherwise, she would already be at her father’s side now, with no need to maneuver and worry, free and happy.