Chapter 7: An Old Friend's Old Covenant and a New Marriage (4) But you still miss...

In May, Xie Yun and Yan Huinan's wedding date arrived as scheduled, but none of the proper ceremonies for marrying a wife were performed.

She had no home in the capital, and neither she nor Yan Huinan had a father. They were married without the permission of their parents or the words of a matchmaker. Although the marriage was arranged by the emperor, he would have wanted her dead, and there would have been no blessing. There was no wedding procession, no banquet for guests.

On the day of her wedding, just like when she and Yan Huinan reunited, the rain here was not like the drizzle in the south of the Yangtze River. When it fell, it was as if a corner of the sky had collapsed, and the rain poured down.

Xie Yun wore her newly made wedding dress and walked from Shuangxue Garden to Quchuan Garden, getting soaked all over. Then, she waited from dawn to dusk in the damp and cold bright red wedding dress.

Everyone in the house was laughing at her, the head wife.

Among those in the court who wanted to marry Yan Huinan, the powerful general who defended the country, the news spread quickly. Everyone knew that Yan Huinan had rejected the princess and married the daughter of his enemy.

Word of mouth spread, and the news spread to every official in the court. Countless people submitted memorials opposing the marriage, and some even petitioned for Xie Yun's immediate execution.

Everyone thought she would be the next traitor to the country.

Yan Huinan, however, turned a blind eye to all the criticisms, rumors and ridicules.

On the day of the wedding, Yan Huinan attended court as usual. The court erupted in a furious debate, and even the emperor found it difficult to silence the clamor.

Han Ji, the Imperial Counselor, was over seventy years old and a veteran of three dynasties. He was furious at Yan Huinan's rebellious behavior: "General Yan, don't think you can do whatever you want just because you have made great military achievements! Your Majesty, Xie Qingyun sold out his country for personal gain and nearly brought about the downfall of the Great Zhou. He is a sinner for generations, and so is his daughter! The frequent wars and suffering of the people today are all the fault of the Xie family. They deserve a thousand deaths. If anyone knew that the renowned General Yan had married the daughter of a traitor, wouldn't the world laugh at him and curse him? In my opinion, Xie Yun should be executed immediately. Humph! To prevent her from further seducing General Yan."

Han Ji had always looked down on Yan Huinan, believing him to be a dandy, unruly, and unruly, relying on his noble status. He had also heard that Yan Huinan had been obsessed with Xie Yun since childhood, and he scoffed at this, but since it was a family matter between Marquis Yan and the eldest princess, he could not speak up.

Moreover, Yan Huinan later turned the tide and risked his life to save the Great Zhou from disaster. He only then looked up to Yan Huinan, but he didn't expect that in the end he would still be unable to avoid the fate of Xie Yun.

Han Ji firmly believed that Xie Yun was a witch and must have put a spell on Yan Huinan.

Someone from the Censorate echoed, "General Yan, how can you be worthy of your parents' spirits in heaven? Lord Yan lived a life of integrity, and the Princess was benevolent and caring. If they knew their own son had cast aside his parents' blood feud and married the daughter of his enemy, they would surely not rest in peace in their graves."

They knew that the old marquis and the eldest princess were taboos for Yan Huinan, and that they couldn't mention them lightly at this moment. But this group of people had no taboos. It was just because Yan Huinan's father had recently died in battle at the border, and the Yan family had been executed. After the eldest princess died with hatred in her heart, they also cursed Yan Huinan, who was still alive.

Yan Huinan has been fighting desperately to protect the Great Zhou in the past few years. On the surface, he seems to be in great glory, but behind the scenes, all of these people are treating him as a fighting machine.

In short: both.

Without Yan Huinan, they were like a group of stray dogs. While they were reluctant to give up Yan Huinan, they also had to use all kinds of dirty means to break his wings and completely tame him into a loyal dog of the Great Zhou.

Yan Huinan had long been disgusted with the ugly faces of this group of people, but Da Zhou was the land that his parents swore to defend with their lives, and it was also the place where his mother was born and raised.

Yan Huinan interrupted the group in a displeased voice, "Sir, how do you know my parents are resting in peace in the underworld? Have you ever been there to see them?"

"Of course not." The man had only dared to criticize Yan Huinan when everyone else was denouncing him, but he was stared at by Yan Huinan, a demon. He didn't even dare to look into Yan Huinan's eyes, which had turned extremely dark. Those eyes had stared directly at death countless times, as if they could kill people directly.

But at this moment, the entire court, both civil and military, was on his side. What was there for him to fear? He then continued, "Then you are being unbridled and violating filial piety. This is obvious to all! If the princess were still alive, she would definitely not allow you to marry Xie Yun!"

Yan Huinan sneered, "Really? But before my mother died, she went to court alone to clear my father's name. Where were you then?"

Yan Huinan: "Did you also say to my mother with such righteous words at that time that Lord Yan's crimes were unforgivable and his death was well deserved?"

He knew that the young official was not yet an official at the time, but his words were a reminder to all those in the hall who had witnessed the demise of the Yan family and remained indifferent. This naturally included the emperor, who had ordered the extermination of the entire family.

Yan Huinan used to be a bad and lawless person. He fought bloody battles for the Great Zhou for many years, but that doesn't mean he has completely changed his character, nor does it mean he has forgotten the past.

He remembered clearly who was guilty and who was innocent.

After these words were spoken, some people who did not know the truth still wanted to criticize, but a bolt of thunder seemed to fall on the golden roof of the hall.

Prince Yu Song Hechang, who had been absent from court for a long time, suddenly spoke today. He was Yan Huinan's uncle and the emperor's fifth uncle. However, due to a serious illness in childhood, his legs were disabled and he would be a disabled person for the rest of his life.

But he was gifted and intelligent, having assisted the previous emperor for many years and served as the imperial tutor. The current emperor was taught by Song Hechang in his childhood. He was now the most prestigious prince in the court. Unless it was an extremely urgent matter, he did not need to attend court.

He had heard that Yan Huinan was going to get married, and as an uncle, he naturally supported his nephew's wishes. Moreover, he was a fair and just person, and he would not simply blame Xie Yun for Xie Qingyun's mistakes, as others did.

"I once heard that in the previous dynasty, there was a corrupt official who embezzled enough disaster relief funds from the imperial court to equal the entire annual revenue of the treasury. The Mingde Emperor of the previous dynasty punished him, but spared his young daughter. This was because his daughter had been the princess's schoolmate since childhood and had grown up with her. Furthermore, during her exile, the girl learned astrology from a hermit. Later, the emperor pardoned her and allowed her to accompany the army on campaigns. Her divinations were always accurate, helping the royal army to achieve unstoppable success. It's clear that if the simple fault of the father affected the children, the previous dynasty would have lost a distinguished and accomplished Grand Historian. While Xie Qingyun's crime was unforgivable, his daughter's wasn't. I also believe Ziyou had his reasons for doing things."

After saying this, he looked firmly at Yan Huinan, a reassuring smile on his face. The latter looked at his uncle gratefully.

He guessed that Yan Huinan would be questioned today, so he dragged his disabled body into the rain to support him.

A moment later, the eunuch waiting outside the palace suddenly ran in with a panicked look on his face and reported, "Your Majesty, a thunderbolt just struck down the dragon-shaped ridge beast on the palace roof! The falling stone beast injured Xin Ze, the commander of the Imperial Guard."

Everyone hadn't recovered from the shock of the thunder when they heard the tragic news and fell to their knees. It happened at this very moment, a truly ominous sign!

The emperor's expression changed drastically. "Hurry up and get someone to fix it! Imperial Observatory, what's going on?!"

The Imperial Astronomical Observatory couldn't explain it in such a hurry, but they could only bite the bullet and say, "This, this is the rain of stones from the sky, which is an ominous sign. When the rulers are untrustworthy and unfaithful, and the kings are uncaring about their relatives and their nine clans, then the sky will rain stones."

The emperor was so frightened that he froze in his tracks. Yan Huinan couldn't help but laugh when he heard this: "Your Majesty, you're talking about the emperor? You know that a king never jokes."

The emperor had already arranged a marriage for him and Xie Yun, but if he broke his promise just because of a petition from someone in the court, it would be an ominous sign. And disregarding kinship and the nine clans was exactly the same as what they had just been arguing about.

When the ministers in the court heard what the Imperial Observatory said, they all thought it was the eldest princess appearing in spirit and were suddenly speechless.

The Imperial Astronomical Observatory immediately knelt on the ground and said, "I dare not!"

The emperor was also frightened. If he really stopped Yan Huinan from marrying Xie Yun, something unexpected might happen. Now, even if he wanted to kill Xie Yun, he couldn't.

"I'm not feeling well today. I've made up my mind about the general's marriage and I won't change it. There's no need to discuss it further. I'm dismissing the court!"

After dismissing the court, the court officials walked out of the palace in disappointment. As soon as they walked out of the palace gate, they were blocked by two rows of soldiers and horses lined up at the gate. The leaders were none other than the Siwen and Siwu officials.

At this time, the rain showed no sign of stopping, falling heavily on the oil-paper umbrella, as if it was going to smash holes in the umbrella.

"General." Si Wen and Si Wu called out respectfully when they saw Yan Huinan coming out.

Even the Prime Minister was stopped today. He did not take sides today and remained silent from beginning to end. The Prime Minister asked: "General Yan, what do you mean by this?"

The one who came today had been with Yan Huinan for years, trained by him personally and took orders directly from Yan Huinan. He could be deployed directly without the need for a tiger talisman.

Yan Huinan knew that the emperor had received numerous petitions to execute Xie Yun, so he had the civil and military officials waiting outside with their troops. He wanted to let the court officials know that no matter what the reason for his marrying Xie Yun was, it was not their business.

And he wanted to let them know that Yan Huinan had the ability to do whatever he wanted. They had no choice but to rely on him.

"Yan Huinan! Are you trying to rebel?! This is the Song Dynasty's empire, how can you act recklessly!!" Han Ji, who was almost forced onto his horse by the soldiers, said angrily.

His expression was indifferent. He casually raised his hand, and someone herded the remaining people onto the carriage like ducks. Each lord had a corresponding person following him. "It's raining heavily today. I'm afraid that you lords may encounter accidents on the road. I'm sending someone to escort you. I hope you don't misunderstand me."

Yan Huinan's words were pleasant to the ears, but the spectacle was filled with threats. Given Yan Huinan's temperament, he would chop off anyone's head if they expressed any dissent.

Han Ji snorted indignantly, but in his heart, he still wanted to return to the south. He was already old enough to retire and return home, but his righteousness alone wasn't enough to keep him there. Judging the situation was the key to his survival. If he really got in trouble with this troublemaker, no one in the court would be able to protect him.

He can only protect himself.

Prince Yu doted on Yan Huinan since he was born, and he respected his uncle since he was young.

Today he even came specially to support Yan Huinan, which made Yan Huinan's recent haze in his heart disappear completely.

Yan Huinan personally sent his uncle back home, and on the way his uncle asked the same question as the emperor.

"Are you still thinking about her in your heart?" asked my uncle.

Yan Huinan flatly denied it, his expression solemn: "This is the only way to make her kneel down to her father and mother and atone for her sins in this life."

The uncle laughed dumbly, "I thought my beloved nephew finally had a soft spot."

"She's not worthy." Yan Huinan carried his uncle on his back and walked into the palace step by step. The princess had been waiting at the door long ago, and when she saw someone coming, she trotted over to greet them.

The palace in front of him was brightly lit, and servants were walking slowly and steadily in the corridors.

The princess walked aside holding an oil-paper umbrella and asked Yan Huinan kindly if her uncle could help her today.

The prince smiled helplessly and said, "Is your husband such a useless person? Protecting Ziyou is something he must be able to do."

The princess said, "Your uncle, after hearing that all the ministers in the court have impeached you, can't sit still for a moment at home. He asked me to change his clothes before dawn. He said that Ziyou carried a sword to defend the territory, and he also wants to carry a sword for Ziyou so that you don't have to worry about anything."

A warm feeling flowed through Yan Huinan's heart, "Thank you, uncle and aunt."

"We are one family, why are you talking so differently? I've saved some dinner for you, Ziyou, eat it before you leave." In Yan Huinan's eyes, his uncle was a rare one, born in an imperial family, but a person who was particularly concerned about family affection.

Yan Huinan sent his uncle off and left without staying in the palace for dinner as he had important things to do.

As he emerged, he noticed the palace was teeming with lush greenery, with forsythia and magnolia blossoming in vibrant colors. This scene, something he had never noticed before, was now something he longed for.

Everything in the palace was exceptionally warm and orderly. He hadn't stopped to savor this simple beauty for a long time.

Afterwards, Yan Huinan rode back to the mansion in the rain. It was already late, and when he returned to Quchuan Garden, the candles were still on in the house. He knew Xie Yun was waiting for him.

The flames danced like his violently trembling and burning heart.