Chapter 51
When the Emperor of Wulun was chained by the Central Plains Army and taken to the Central Plains Prison, he was still struggling, roaring and cursing, but the jailers seemed to be deaf to his words and slammed the heavy iron door shut with a clang, completely isolating his roars in the darkness.
Without its emperor, the Wulun Kingdom instantly became a group of mindless flies. Several princes could not wait to start fighting for power, each leading their own troops to fight each other, causing each other to be bloody. The country was in chaos and even the originally stockpiled food and grass were looted. The previous plan to annex the Yuezhi Kingdom and unify the Western Regions instantly came to nothing.
After the battle, the first thing General Zhenxi did was to lead his troops to raid the Yaochen Sect.
This sect used to rely on the support of the Wulun Kingdom to bully others in the Western Regions. Not only did it influence the ministers and leaders of the Western Regions, it also secretly passed the defense map of the Yuezhi Kingdom to the Wulun Kingdom. What's even more hateful is that over the years, it secretly stole hundreds of children from various countries in the Western Regions and locked them up in a secret room in the back mountain of the sect to be used as "medicine men" for refining.
As a result, many of the children's relatives either died in depression after failing to find their children, or were tortured to death for resisting them.
Now that they have no backing, the people in the clan want to escape, but they are blocked by the Central Plains Army.
When the soldiers broke open the mountain gate, they saw that the little medicine men in the secret room were all skin and bones, with wounds on their wrists and ankles caused by the chains. The soldiers carried them out one by one and detoxified them.
The news quickly spread throughout the Western Regions.
Families who had lost their children, as well as the people whose relatives had been killed by the Yaochen Sect, rushed to the Yaochen Sect with hoes and sickles, cursing and smashing things, smashing the alchemy furnaces and plaques in the sect to pieces.
Even when the evil elders were pinned to the ground by the Central Plains Army, many people rushed forward to spit on them, crying and shouting, "Avenge my children," "Give me back my relatives," and "You beasts shall not die well."
The riot was not stopped until General Zhenxi sent people to maintain order.
In the end, those elders were taken to the border as soldiers, and the remaining disciples scattered like monkeys when the tree fell. The gate of the Yaochen Sect was demolished and only broken walls and ruins remained. From then on, it could no longer cause any trouble in the Western Regions.
After dealing with the Yaochen Sect, General Zhenxi led his troops to the small countries in the Western Regions.
Those monarchs who had previously cheered for the Wulun Kingdom were so frightened when they saw that the Wulun Emperor had become a prisoner and the Yaochen Sect had been razed to the ground that they sent ministers to ask for peace overnight and submit to the Kingdom.
Emperor Jianye did not make it difficult for them and only asked the General Zhenxi to leave only a team of soldiers to garrison. Within half a month, those small countries became as obedient as cats and no one dared to mention the word "union" anymore.
This time, the Western Regions finally calmed down completely.
The city walls of the Yuezhi Kingdom began to be rebuilt, and caravans from the Western Regions and the Central Plains began to travel again. The sound of camel bells was jingling, and it was more lively than before the war.
Many of the rescued little medicine men were taken home by their families. Occasionally, they could be seen at the city gate buying sweets and cakes with their parents, and their originally numb faces finally had the smiles that children should have.
Early that morning, a messenger from the Central Plains arrived on a fast horse, handing over a bright yellow imperial edict.
Ashina Lan opened it and took a look. He raised his eyebrows at first, then couldn't help laughing. He handed the decree to Qiao Wanqing and said, "Look, Emperor Jianye is really thoughtful."
Qiao Wanqing reached out to take it, glanced at the end, and smiled, looking up at Shen Aheng, her eyes full of teasing: "This letter said that Emperor Jianye not only wants to meet our Crown Prince, but also specifically mentioned that 'the Crown Princess and the Crown Prince come together'."
"What Crown Princess?"
Shen Aheng was standing next to Ashina Yu, looking around curiously. When he heard these three words, his face flushed red. He quickly took a half step back, waving his hands in panic: "I, I'm not... This must be... This must be the wrong decree. Ah Yu and I are just..."
Master-disciple relationship!
The more she spoke, the more confused she became. Her eyes were evasive, and she didn't dare look at the people next to her. In the end, she just stared at the corner of Ashina Yu's clothes, and her voice was as thin as a mosquito's whimper.
Ashina Lan laughed heartily, "No doubt about it! Since Emperor Jianye wrote this, he must have considered you the Crown Princess of our Yuezhi Kingdom."
Qiao Wanqing also smiled and took Shen Aheng's hand, patting it gently: "Aheng, we have long regarded you as a family, what is there to be shy about?"
Upon hearing this, Shen Ahheng's pretty face turned even redder, and the tips of her ears were pink. She held her breath for a moment, and glanced around. Seeing the caravan passing by outside, she quickly changed the subject: "Look, there seem to be a lot more caravans nearby. It seems that there are also silk merchants from the Central Plains, right?"
As he said this, he wanted to walk towards the door, but was gently pulled back by Qiao Wanqing.
Ashina Yu on the side looked at her embarrassed appearance quietly, with a faint smile in his eyes, but when he heard her hurriedly denying the title of "Crown Princess", his slightly pale fingertips quietly clenched together, and a trace of imperceptible grievance passed through his heart.
He thought that they had been through so much together, from the sect's punishment to the city wall of Yuezhi Kingdom, and had experienced life and death together, so she was willing to stay with him.
Ashina Yu lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes hiding the emotions within. Ultimately, she only sighed softly, then walked forward and said to Shen Aheng, "The decree is the will of Emperor Jianye. Let's not discuss it now. It won't be too late to explain it once we reach the capital."
When Shen Ah Heng heard this, he nodded quickly as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw and said, “Yes, yes! Let’s talk about it when we get to the capital!”
After saying that, he didn't dare to look into A Yu's parents' eyes anymore, and instead stared at the ground, his ears still red and hot.
Seeing the two of them like this, Ashina Lan and Qiao Wanqing looked at each other, smiled and shook their heads, and stopped teasing them. They were busy ordering people to pack their bags and prepare to set off.
A few days later, they boarded a carriage with their simple luggage and headed for the Central Plains.
Outside the car window, the Gobi Desert in the Western Regions gradually transformed into the green fields of the Central Plains. Qiao Wanqing lifted the car curtain to look at the scenery and suddenly sighed, "When Ah Yue was lost, I thought I would never have the chance to set foot in the Central Plains again in this lifetime. I didn't expect that now..."
Ashina Lan held her hand and continued with a smile, "Not only can we go now, but we can also have Emperor Jianye treat us to a drink. More importantly, we no longer have to worry about children from the Western Regions being snatched away. Life is much more stable now than before."
The wheels of the carriage rolled as it headed towards the capital. The Yuezhi Kingdom behind it had returned to its former tranquility.
A few days later, the carriage arrived in the capital.
Emperor Jianye held a grand banquet, with princes and ministers sitting on both sides. Ashina Lan and Qiao Wanqing were invited to the main seats and exchanged greetings with Emperor Jianye. During the meal, they talked about defending the city, the trade routes between the Western Regions and the Central Plains, and occasionally mentioned the thrills of wartime, which aroused amazement from everyone present and created a very warm atmosphere.
Shen Aheng sat beside Ashina Yu, listening to the court affairs discussed in the hall without any interest. Seeing the jade plates full of delicacies on the table, his mouth was watering, so he grabbed the silver chopsticks and concentrated on tasting a dish of crystal shrimp dumplings.
The shrimp dumplings are fresh and tender, covered with sweet juice, a flavor rarely seen in the Western Regions.
Shen Aheng's eyes lit up quietly, and seeing that no one was paying attention, he secretly ate bite by bite.
After eating the seventh or eighth mouthful, Shen Aheng looked up and noticed Ashina Yu beside him.
Today he wore a moon-white brocade robe with dark patterns. The collar was embroidered with cloud patterns in silver thread, which made the lines of his neck look even more slender. His profile was as white as the finest mutton-fat jade. His long eyelashes drooped, casting light shadows under his eyes. Even the fingers holding the celadon wine glass were slender and beautiful, with distinct joints.
But he didn't pick up his chopsticks, just sipped sake one cup after another. The wine wet his pale pink lips, but he seemed not to notice. His eyes fell on the delicacies in front of him, hiding a bit of imperceptible melancholy.
It makes people feel depressed.
He had been like this all the way, talking much less than usual. When he occasionally looked at her, his eyes were indifferent, like the moon covered by a layer of fog, making it difficult to understand.
Just as Shen Aheng was about to ask if he was too bored, he heard the Jianye Emperor above him suddenly laugh and look at Ashina Lan: "Brother Lan, I'm a little curious, when do the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess of your Yuezhi Kingdom plan to get married? As an elder, I have to give them a generous gift and have a glass of wedding wine."
The hall instantly fell silent, and the eyes of the princes and ministers all fell on the two of them, with smiles and jokes.
Ashina Lan and Qiao Wanqing exchanged a glance, then smiled and waved their hands, "Your Majesty, you're joking. The children should make their own decisions. As their parents, we won't push them."
Seeing this, Shen Aheng's face flushed red with a "swish", his fingertips clenched the hem of his clothes, and he didn't know where to put his embarrassed hands.
She was about to explain, "He and I are not like that," but she caught a glimpse of the person next to her not even looking at her, but slightly tightening his hand holding the wine glass, as if waiting for her response.
Thinking of his depression these days, Shen Ah Heng didn't have the heart to speak after all, so he had to lower his head and pretend to tidy up his clothes. The tips of his ears were so red that blood could drip out, and even his breathing became lighter.
Ashina Yu took in her embarrassment, and the glimmer of light in his eyes gradually dimmed, like the moon covered by clouds.
He squeezed the wine glass with a little force, his knuckles turning slightly white, but he said nothing, just raised his head and drank another glass.
The spicy taste of sake spreads into my throat, but it cannot dispel the depression in my heart.
Ashina Yu lowered her eyes again, her long eyelashes hiding the loneliness in her eyes. Her originally beautiful and cold eyes were now mixed with a bit of unconscious alienation.
Emperor Jianye didn't notice anything unusual about the two men. He looked at them again, his tone full of appreciation: "You two are so young, yet you have made it all the way from the Western Regions to the Central Plains, and even helped the Yuezhi Kingdom defend the city gates. You are truly a rare example of youthful heroism. If this marriage is settled, I will personally officiate the wedding for you. How about that?"
As soon as the words fell, the hall was filled with echoes. Shen Ah Heng looked even more panicked, so he had to force a smile and thanked his uncle and aunt together.
After sitting down, he hurriedly picked up the wine and gulped it down, which made her cough repeatedly. She tried hard to suppress it and did not dare to look in the direction of Ashina Yu again.
After the banquet, Ashina Lan and Qiao Wanqing were invited by Emperor Jianye to the imperial study. A eunuch, holding a palace lantern, led Shen Aheng and Ashina Yu to the palace gate first.
As the night deepened, the palace lanterns cast mottled shadows on the blue bricks, stretching the shadows of the two people very long.
Shen Ah Heng had no idea how many glasses of sake he had drunk. At this moment, his steps were weak, his cheeks were burning, and even his eyes were drifting.
She followed behind Ashina Yu, looking at his back in the moon-white brocade robe. His back was still thin, but it exuded a coldness that kept strangers away.
I felt an inexplicable sense of grievance in my heart.
He was like this all the way, not speaking, not looking at her, treating her like some kind of monster.
The eunuch leading the way turned around and said respectfully, "We're almost at the palace gate." Shen Ahheng didn't hear clearly. He was so distracted by the back of the man in front of him that he didn't see the steps under his feet. Suddenly, he stumbled and was about to fall on the blue bricks when his wrist was suddenly grabbed by a warm hand.
It is Ashina jade.
He turned around at some point and supported her in time.
Shen Ah Heng took advantage of the situation and grabbed his sleeve, and the faint scent of medicine on his body wafted into his nose.
That was the scent of medicine she often made three years ago. She liked to use strong prescriptions when treating patients in the hope that the illness would be cured. Therefore, during that period, she forced him to drink a lot of newly developed prescriptions. In addition, he often helped her dry the medicine, so over time, he had this lingering unique medicinal scent on his body.
The medicinal smell was originally strong and strange, but somehow, when it soaked into his body, it seemed to be purified.
A familiar smell drifted past my nose, and an inexplicable sense of grievance suddenly surged up.
Shen Aheng stood there, lowering his head, clutching his sleeve tightly, his knuckles turned white, and his eyes slowly turned red.
A cold voice came from above my head, a little lower than usual, with a hint of subtle concern: "What's wrong?"
Shen Ah Heng blinked hard, trying to suppress the heat in his eyes, but the alcohol made his emotions uncontrollable. When he opened his mouth, he couldn't help crying: "You... why are you ignoring me? You ignored me all the way..."
Ashina Yu's hand paused, and the strength of his grip on her wrist loosened a little, but he didn't let go. His voice was mixed with a bit of grievance and self-mockery: "Isn't this what you want?"
He lowered his eyes to look at her red eyes, his eyes darkening: "If you don't want to acknowledge me as the 'Crown Princess' and marry me, then I will do as you wish, stay away from you, and not bother you."
"I didn't!"
Shen Ah Heng stamped his feet anxiously, and his feet swayed again, but he was held firmly by him.
She looked up at him, her eyes misty, her head groggy, and she couldn't even speak clearly: "I don't want you to stay away... No, I don't want to... It's just... I just..."
She couldn't explain what it was, but she felt extremely panicked, afraid that he would really let go of her hand, afraid that he would really leave and never talk to her again.
Ashina Yu was silent for a moment, his Adam's apple rolled, and he suddenly leaned over and moved closer to her.
The light from the palace lantern fell on his cool and beautiful face. The corners of his eyes were slightly raised, with a charming arc. His voice was like a feather brushing past: "Then tell me slowly, do you not want me to stay away, or do you not want to marry me?"
Shen Ah Heng looked up at him, the alcohol made her brain work very slowly, she only felt that his face was very close, even the length of his eyelashes was clearly visible, so beautiful that it made her heart beat faster.
Shen Ah Heng shook his head a little slowly, then nodded quickly, muttering: "I don't want... I don't want you to leave... I don't... I don't want... I don't want..."
Ashina Yu's eyes lit up slightly, like a dusty moon that was suddenly polished.
He pretended to let go of her hand, and his tone was deliberately very soft: "I didn't hear you clearly. If you don't want to, then I..."
"don't want!"
Shen Ah Heng grabbed his hand fiercely, his fingertips tightly clasping his wrist. The fear that he would really leave overcame everything, and she even spoke in a panic: "I...I will marry! I will marry! You...you don't leave..."
She didn't want to be separated from him for another three years.
As soon as he finished speaking, the corners of Ashina Yu's mouth finally curled up slightly, and his cold eyebrows completely melted away, like spring snow melting.
He reached out and gently wiped the sweat from her forehead. His fingertips carried the scent of medicine from his body, and he was as gentle as ever, as if they were meeting for the first time. "Okay, then let's get married."
He leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, slightly drunk from sake and with a tenderness that was unique to him.
Palace lanterns swayed, tree shadows danced, and a dim halo of light spread across the blue brick ground, illuminating a pair of people hugging each other. Their figures overlapped, and even the shadows of the trees on both sides of the long street appeared particularly gentle.
Palace music could be heard faintly from afar, the sound of stringed instruments was melodious and continuous.
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