Chapter 58

After a few days of sunshine, the snow on the eaves of thousands of households in Liucheng finally began to melt slowly.

Fan Hui sent his followers to Liucheng to deliver food and medicine to Lu Huaying. Afu repeatedly questioned the followers, but they all shook their heads and said they had no news of Wei Mingsu.

Afu was very disappointed.

The attendant brought another piece of news.

During a heavy snowfall, the Khan of the Turks personally led his troops to invade the border of the Great Zhou Dynasty, plundering extensively and inciting all the surrendered Turkic tribes to rebel. He claimed that the Turks had received great kindness from the Li family of the Tang Dynasty, which they could not repay. Now that Wu Zhou had replaced the Tang Dynasty, and the Li family had been exterminated by the Empress, the Khan decided to attack the Great Zhou Dynasty and restore the Tang Dynasty in order to repay the kindness of the Li family!

The Khan also claimed that they had saved Xu Jingye's descendants and rescued the son of the deposed Crown Prince Li Xian.

The Khan's instigation of the Turkic tribes to rebel and his inflammatory words were exactly what Wei Mingsu had expected. He had warned the governor of Xizhou before leaving the prefecture.

The governor of Xizhou was prepared, but he was still quite frightened. He couldn't help but feel fortunate that the Xu family had been captured by Wei Mingsu. Otherwise, if the Xu family had gone to the Turks and been used by the Turkic Khan, the Turkic tribes in Xizhou would have colluded with them from within, and the consequences would have been unimaginable.

The imperial court has already dispatched a large army to suppress the rebellion.

The front line is far from Xizhou, and Xizhou has not been affected by this war. However, Xiliang, which has occupied the four towns, has been restless and may launch a surprise attack when the Turks invade. The Grand Protectorate must guard against Xiliang. The tense atmosphere of impending war hangs over Xizhou.

The ward official then went door to door, knocking on each household's doors to notify the men in each family to repair the city wall.

Lu Huaying saved up money this year and paid for Lu Hongbi and Chen Er's expenses. Fang Zheng then crossed out their names.

Xiao E sent a carriage to Liucheng, and his servants relayed his message, urging Xiao Suniang to return to Xizhou and go back to Luoyang with him.

Xiao Suniang didn't want to leave.

Lu Huaying advised Xiao Suniang to return with her brother: "Suniang, Xiliang has repeatedly invaded the border in recent years, the situation is turbulent and the border threat is severe. If you stay in Liucheng, how can your brother feel at ease? If you don't leave, and he leaves alone, how will he explain it to his family when he goes back?"

Xiao Suniang's eyes were slightly red as she said, "Third Sister, I want to stay with you."

Lu Huaying smiled and said, "I'm fine now, and Brother Fan is in Xizhou, he'll take care of me, so you don't need to worry. Your family must be very worried about you coming to Xizhou secretly. Listen to me, go home with your brother. Write to me if you miss me."

Xiao Suniang sighed, went back to her room to pack her luggage, sat for a while, pursed her lips, picked up a bronze mirror to fix her hair, applied rouge to her cheeks, wiped it off with a handkerchief, took a deep breath, stood up, opened the door, and walked towards Lu Hongbi's courtyard.

Lu Hongbi sat in the courtyard pounding red beans. The weather was sunny, and the winter sun shone on him, making his face pale.

Xiao Suniang blushed as she walked up to him, picked up the basket to help pick out the beans, and said softly, "Second Young Master..."

“I am no longer the young master of the Duke’s mansion.” Lu Hongbi said, holding the iron pestle. “Fourth Sister, please change your form of address.”

Xiao Suniang was a little flustered and nodded, saying, "Okay."

In her heart, Lu Hongbi will always be the same as when she first met him: the elegant, refined, and noble second young master of the Lu family.

"I...I need to go back to Shendu."

She whispered.

Lu Hongbi pounded the red beans, his face expressionless, and said, "I wish you a safe journey."

Xiao Suniang looked at him and smiled, but couldn't help feeling disappointed.

She took a purse from her sleeve, quietly placed it in the corridor, and turned to leave.

Wang Yu and Lu Huaying bought a sheep to send Xiao Suniang off. Xiao Suniang was reluctant to part with Lu Huaying. After eating the roasted meat, she hugged Lu Huaying and cried. With Lu Huaying and Wang Yu's words of comfort, she got into the carriage.

Xiao Su

After Mother and her servants left, the Lu family's courtyard became much quieter.

Lu Huaying is even busier now that she has one less helper.

Seeing that she was busy until dark every day before she could rest, Afu suggested that she buy a shop and hire more people.

Lu Huaying kept track of the numbers in her mind every day. Only the ladies and young women of wealthy families could afford to buy medicine. Liucheng was not a big city, so she was not considering opening a shop for the time being.

That day, Chen Er went out to deliver medicine, but he didn't return until it got dark.

Lu Huaying was worried, so she took Ayu out to look for someone. Just as they walked out of the alley, they ran into Chen Er, who was returning.

"Why are you only getting back now?"

Chen Er clenched his fists and said angrily, "I ran into Zhou Wei again today! I went to deliver medicine, and he and his men blocked me in the alley. I only made deliveries to two places today! It's getting dark, so I had to come back."

Lu Huaying frowned.

Back home, Lu Huaying first told Chen Er to eat, saying, "Tomorrow, Big Ears will stay home, and I'll go deliver the medicine."

Wang Yu and Lu Hongbi both frowned and objected.

After being beaten by Lu Huaying, Zhou Wei harbored a deep grudge against her and always wanted revenge. When she was imprisoned by Zhou Qin, Zhou Wei went to the government office to kick her while she was down. Later, Liucheng got a new magistrate, but Lu Huaying was released. Zhou Wei failed in his attempt and lost a powerful patron, which made him hate her even more.

Wang Yu looked solemn.

Lu Huaying shook her head and said, "Sister-in-law, don't worry, I'll take Ayu with me tomorrow."

...

The north wind howled across the desolate plains beyond the Great Wall, whipping up sand and dust that blew into the Jade Gate Pass.

Within the pass, it was a vast expanse of flying jade and frozen ice.

In the depths of winter, snowflakes dance in the air, and the mountains, rivers, and pavilions of Luoyang are covered in a blanket of silver. A gilded iron phoenix stands atop the highest point of the palace, its golden light gleaming even in the darkness of the night.

On a snowy winter night, several fast horses galloped from the northwest, crossing the Tianjin Bridge over the Luo River, heading towards the imperial city.

The next day, the eunuch Guanliang came to Shangyang Palace in Shendu Garden, holding a box. He stood outside the gate of Xianju Hall, and the faint sound of a woman reciting an article could be heard from inside.

The emperor held the morning court session in the Xuanzheng Hall. After listening to the government's decisions, he returned to the Xianju Hall, where the female official Shangguan Wan'er was reading an article to the empress.

As Guan Liang listened to Shangguan Wan'er's clear and fluent voice from behind the curtain, a sense of admiration rose in his heart.

Footsteps echoed down the palace path, and several female officials approached Guan Liang. Guan Liang quickly bowed to them and handed them the box.

The female officials carried the box into the hall, took out the official documents inside, and placed them on a desk.

In the afternoon, the emperor took a short rest.

Shangguan Wan'er, who had been reading the articles to the emperor, took her leave and sat down at her desk. She reviewed the official documents sent from various places, and after reading them once, she picked out the unimportant ones and put them aside. She wrote down summaries of the important ones and put them aside on the other side. After organizing them, the emperor personally reviewed them.

The curtains hung low inside the hall, and it was quiet except for the sound of Shangguan Wan'er writing furiously.

Shangguan Wan'er picked up a memorial, opened it, glanced at it, and her face showed surprise: "Lu San Niang is still alive?"

People in Chang'an and Luoyang all thought that Lu Jia San Niang had died in Qianzhou.

After reading the memorial, Shangguan Wan'er's expression calmed down. She asked, "When were this congratulatory memorial and the 'Dan Jing' sent from Xizhou?"

The lady-in-waiting beside the desk replied, "They were sent from the capital this morning. Lady, is there anything wrong with this congratulatory letter and the 'Alchemy Classic'?"

Shangguan Wan'er smiled and said, "This congratulatory letter is very well written. It's surprising that Xizhou has such talent. It's a pity that it was presented in the name of the Governor of Xizhou. I wonder what its true purpose is."

From whose hands? And there's the *Dan Jing* (Alchemy Classic), a family heirloom of alchemy from the Lu family. He's a disciple of the Little Immortal, truly living up to his reputation.

Her face suddenly darkened, and she changed the subject: "However, since Lu Sanniang was banished to slavery, how could her 'Alchemy Classic' have been successfully delivered to Shangyang Palace without someone secretly helping her? And how could it have even reached me, allowing me to learn her identity..."

None of the female officials dared to utter a sound.

When she was Empress to Emperor Li Zhi, she assisted him in killing Changsun Wuji and defeating the powerful Guanlong aristocratic clans. After that, she participated in the decision-making of the court and gradually gained political power.

Gradually, all matters of state, large and small, were decided by the Empress, who wielded immense power.

Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi) realized that the Empress's power was too great and had considered deposing her. However, he could not easily take back the power. In addition, he was suffering from a stroke and could not handle state affairs. He could only entrust the important affairs of the country to Empress Wu, who began to rule from behind the curtain.

That year, Chancellor Shangguan Yi, who advised Emperor Gaozong to depose the empress and drafted the edict to do so, died in prison.

He was Shangguan Wan'er's grandfather.

Shangguan Wan'er's father was implicated and killed, and she and her mother, Zheng, were sent to the Yeting Palace as slaves as infants. She grew up in the Yeting Palace, studying under the palace scholars and her mother, Zheng. She was well-versed in poetry and literature, intelligent, and had outstanding calligraphy skills.

During Empress Wu's regency, she heard that Shangguan Wan'er was very talented, so she summoned her and tested her knowledge.

Shangguan Wan'er was quick-witted and had a brilliant writing style. Empress Wu admired her talent and ordered her to leave the inner palace to serve by her side, putting her in charge of imperial edicts.

After leaving the inner palace, Shangguan Wan'er shed her status as a maid and began handling daily affairs for Empress Wu, including drafting imperial edicts and decrees.

More than a decade has passed in the blink of an eye.

When the Wu Zhou dynasty replaced the Tang dynasty and Empress Wu became the empress, Shangguan Wan'er continued to serve the empress, and almost all of the empress's edicts came from her hand.

Under the tense gaze of the female officials, Shangguan Wan'er put down the congratulatory letter and the "Dan Jing" (a classic text on alchemy), smiled slightly, and instructed the female officials, "Tomorrow, present them to His Majesty along with other auspicious omens."

The expert who helped Lu San Niang understand Shangyang Palace and also understand her.

She was forced into slavery in the imperial harem because her grandfather was convicted of a crime, and Lu San Niang was reduced to a lowly status because of her father and brother's crimes. Both were descendants of noble families who had suffered great changes, and they felt sorry for each other. Moreover, the Lu family was on good terms with her mother Zheng's family. Whether out of sympathy for Lu San Niang or out of the friendship between the two families, she saw the "Dan Jing" presented by Lu San Niang and ended up doing her a favor.

Shangguan Wan'er was very curious about who was helping Lu San Niang.

It was normal for her to receive alchemical texts and congratulatory messages while she was handling memorials for the Empress. However, after living in the palace for more than twenty years, she pondered for a moment and became convinced that the arrival of the alchemical texts was not a coincidence, but a well-thought-out plan.

After the Empress ascended the throne, officials and members of the royal family went to great lengths to collect auspicious omens to present to her. The Empress was overjoyed and held several ceremonies of worship and thanksgiving. The officials who presented the auspicious omens were all rewarded.

Shangguan Wan'er had served the Empress since she was fourteen years old. She knew that this was the Empress's way of appeasing the people, winning their hearts, and consolidating her position.

At this moment, Lu Huaying presented the "Dan Jing" (Classic of Alchemy) and a congratulatory letter from Xizhou, wishing the Empress a long life and the Great Zhou Dynasty a prosperous future, which was exactly what the Empress wanted.

...

After delivering the congratulatory letter and the "Dan Jing" (a classic text on alchemy) to the imperial capital, the people from Xizhou left the city immediately without resting.

He braved the snow to come to Wangchuan and headed straight for the Deer Garden Temple in the mountains.

The guest monk at Rokuon-ji Temple recognized him and invited him to his quarters for tea, asking him the purpose of his visit.

The attendant said, "There was a mistake with the memorial tablet that was previously enshrined in your temple. Lady Lu is still alive, and my husband ordered me to come back and handle it."

The monk in charge of receiving guests led his attendants to the place where the memorial tablets were enshrined.

The attendant picked up the memorial tablet, drew his knife, and dug out the words "Third Sister Lu" from it.