Chapter 121 Childhood Sweethearts Can't Resist a Sudden Arrival

Song Yiqiu followed Fu Yunjian through several courtyards and headed toward his main house.

Fu Langxing, oblivious to everything, followed behind and couldn't help but speak:

“My grandfather’s study and this inner room have always been off-limits to outsiders. When I was a child, I was naughty and sneaked in once. When my grandfather found out, I got a severe beating and couldn’t get out of bed for half a month. It’s really strange that he brought us here today!”

He shared his memories, glancing cautiously at Song Yiqiu. Seeing that she remained calm and composed, as if she hadn't heard him, he could only reluctantly shut his mouth.

Walking all the way to the innermost part of the room, a mahogany door with peeling paint came into view.

Fu Yunjian took out a rusty gold brass key from his pocket, his hand trembling slightly, and inserted it into the keyhole.

Song Yiqiu stepped inside, and Fu Langxing, curious, also wanted to follow, but Fu Yunjian blocked them at the door with his arm.

"Xing'er, you stay here and keep watch."

Fu Yunjian used a commanding tone, not a tone of consultation.

"If anyone approaches, immediately warn them."

Fu Langxing looked puzzled and said with a wronged expression:

"Grandfather! Why can't you just have the other servants guard the place? Why won't you let me in? You're just trying to get rid of me."

Fu Yunjian glanced at him indifferently, and Fu Langxing shrank back, not daring to argue anymore. He nodded obediently and stood guard at the door.

From a young age, he was forced by his strict grandfather to study and understand principles, and deep down he both respected and feared his grandfather.

Seeing this, Song Yiqiu became even more wary and spoke:

"Thank you for your trouble, Prince Fu. My two maids are still on their way. Please inform them when they arrive."

She discreetly removed the white jade hairpin from her hair, tucked it into her sleeve, and held it tightly in her palm, just in case.

Following Fu Yunjian through the small door, one finds not a room, but a narrow, dark corridor filled with the smell of moth-repellent herbs.

As you walk through the corridor, the view suddenly opens up, revealing a glass dome covered with lit candles whose flickering light illuminates the surroundings as bright as day.

The walls are covered with paintings of all sizes. Although the paper has yellowed, most of them are in excellent condition.

The most eye-catching feature is the huge scroll painting in the very center.

The painting depicts a young girl dressed in bright red, riding a magnificent black horse. She is urging her horse on, galloping across the battlefield.

The wind whipped her long hair wildly, and behind her lay mountains of enemy corpses.

A drop of crimson blood splattered on her fair cheek, which, far from appearing ferocious, only accentuated her beautiful and alluring features.

Her cheeks had smooth, gentle contours, but her upturned eyes revealed a confident and arrogant air of looking down on the world.

Fu Yunjian stopped in front of the painting, gazing at the figure in it with a look of infatuation and sorrow.

He didn't turn around, and slowly began to speak:

“Child, put the hairpin away. Don’t be afraid of me. You are Zhaohua’s granddaughter, I… will never hurt you.”

Song Yiqiu was slightly startled. When did he notice?

Having been exposed, she could only quietly slip the hairpin back into her hair, her gaze following him as he moved to the painting:

"This painting...is it a painting of my grandmother, Shen Zhaohua?"

It's her.

"That year, bandits invaded the border, and I was ordered to escort grain supplies. Unexpectedly, we were ambushed by the enemy's elite troops. My guards were almost all killed or wounded, and I was also surrounded. I thought I was going to die..."

"It was her, like a goddess descending from the heavens, single-handedly, fighting her way through the enemy's encirclement and rescued me."

He choked up, his cloudy eyes filling with tears.

"It was just that one glance... amidst the endless yellow sand, mountains of corpses and seas of blood, she rode in on horseback, her red robes stained with blood... I could never escape that memory for the rest of my life."

Upon hearing this, Song Yiqiu was deeply shaken.

Fu Yunjian's words... clearly expressed admiration. Could it be that between him and his grandmother...?

Fu Yunjian ignored Song Yiqiu's changing expressions and continued to recall:

"Your grandmother Zhaohua... she was truly an extraordinary woman. She preferred military attire to makeup, and possessed profound wisdom and a wealth of knowledge. Her parents died on the battlefield when she was young, and she was raised in the Fu family compound in my Yongkangfang."

"She is stubborn and always strives to do her best in everything. She won't complain even if she's wronged, and she's not good at explaining herself. She always bears it all alone... Only when she's with me will her brow relax and she occasionally shows a genuine smile."

He gazed at the figure in the painting and sighed.

“We were childhood sweethearts, studying and practicing martial arts together. Later, we even joined hands to assist His Majesty, who was then a prince, in ascending the throne. Based on her outstanding military achievements, she was appointed as the Grand General of the State and granted the title of ‘Marquis Yongjia’, becoming the only female marquis in the Great Jin Dynasty.”

"And I was personally selected by His Majesty as the top scholar, entered the Hanlin Academy, and later rose to the position of Right Chancellor... At that time, we both thought that we could walk side by side like this forever..."

Song Yiqiu frowned as she listened. Was she stubborn? In her eyes, she had almost never seen her grandmother get angry. In her memory, her grandmother was an extremely gentle person.

If what Fu Yunjian said is true, why would such a woman ultimately marry...?

She thought of her grandfather, Zhao Wusi, whom she had heard from others. He was said to be a weak and incompetent son-in-law who favored his concubine over his wife and later died under mysterious circumstances.

As she pondered this, she unconsciously voiced her question:

"But...why would a woman like my grandmother end up marrying someone like my grandfather...Zhao Wusi?"

As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized she had misspoke.

Sure enough, the moment Zhao Wusi's name was mentioned, Fu Yunjian's face turned ashen, his eyes filled with undisguised disgust.

"Don't mention that bastard!"

He said through gritted teeth, coughing angrily.

"A hypocrite who has obtained a rare treasure by chance, yet does not cherish it and even wants to smash it with his own hands, deserves to die!"

He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down:

"I don't understand... I really don't understand... His Majesty... also had feelings for her, we could all see that clearly. So why did she ultimately choose to marry Zhao Wusi?"

"Perhaps... she really fell in love with that hypocrite? But how could such a cowardly and mediocre person be worthy of her brilliance?"

He reached out and lightly brushed his hand across the face of the person in the painting, his movements gentle, as if afraid of hurting him.

Having said all that, Song Yiqiu decided to stop hiding her intentions and spoke solemnly:

“Grandfather Fu, to be honest, I suspect there’s more to the story than meets the eye when my grandmother was killed by bandits.”

Fu Yunjian froze, withdrew his finger, and slowly turned his head back.

Song Yiqiu continued:

“I spent seven years on the frontier and I know the habits, activity patterns, and even equipment of the bandits very well.”

"Everyone thought I was too young to remember things back then, but I clearly remember that the style of the swords used by those so-called bandits and some of the decorative details on their bodies were not the kind of things that border bandits usually used."

"It's more like... someone deliberately impersonated someone to frame the border bandits."