18. Gradually, the sound faded away.
◎Winter of the third year of Hongxi◎
More than a month has passed in the blink of an eye.
Gu Chi's camp was still set up in the wilderness thirty miles away, but he did not move forward even half a step.
Inside the council hall of the official residence, Fu Changqing, who had arrived with grain, frowned deeply. "Gu Chi has remained inactive; I'm afraid he's brewing some kind of conspiracy."
Cui Xun's gaze was deep and his voice was calm, "It's not that I'm not moving, it's that I can't move."
Everyone was taken aback.
He said slowly, "The previous loss of three cities only emboldened his arrogance." He raised his hand and pointed to the location marked "Supply Camp" on the sand table. "I predicted that he would send someone to launch a sneak attack, so I set up ambushes in those three places long ago. I not only intercepted his supplies, but also turned one of his deputy generals against him. Now he is short of food in his camp, and his army's morale is low. Where does he have the confidence to attack the city?"
"Pass down the order to immediately allocate manpower to repair the collapsed houses, clear the streets and alleys, and set up soup kitchens to provide relief to the displaced people."
As expected, Ning Zhao withdrew his troops five days later.
Hua Yao led people to clean up the traces of the epidemic, while Cui Xun reorganized defenses and distributed grain seeds.
--
The day I set off to return to Beijing was a bright and sunny day.
People gathered inside and outside the city gate.
The old woman carrying a basket stuffed the still-warm cakes into Hua Yao's hands, while the rescued child looked up at Cui Xun riding on horseback.
A dark-skinned man rubbed his hands together, awkwardly cupping his hands in a gesture of respect. He suddenly exclaimed, "I'm just a wine seller, I don't know how to say anything fancy." He looked around and said, "Fellow villagers, the Duke and Doctor Hua are our great benefactors. We wish them a safe journey and a long and happy marriage!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a chorus of cheers and jeers erupted.
Hua Yao didn't consider herself a shy person, but in this situation, her cheeks couldn't help but flush slightly.
Cui Xun glanced at her, a gentle smile softening his usually quiet eyes. His voice pierced through the crowd, reaching everyone's ears clearly.
"Thank you all for your kind words."
--
The team was supposed to be led by the commander, but Cui Xun arranged a carriage for Hua Yao, so he accompanied her.
Inside the carriage, the two sat side by side, close to each other.
Cui Xun gently took Hua Yao's hand and said, "Tell him that there is a mother who cares about him, but what about you?"
He still remembers the disappointment that flashed in her eyes when she said the word "Mom" that day.
Hua Yao was taken aback when she heard this. She sighed softly and spoke in a very flat tone, as if she were talking about someone else's business.
“My parents…that is, my father and mother, passed away when I was very young. I have seen pictures of my father,” she paused, “I grew up in an orphanage, where there were many children without homes.”
Cui Xun looked at her quietly. There was no sorrow on her face, only a calm, still expression, like a tranquil autumn lake. But this calmness made his heart clench more than any tears.
He recalled what he had investigated. Her initial awkwardness upon arrival, her obsession with "going back," and how he had even exploited her desires...
Noticing his silence, Hua Yao looked up at him and asked, "And you, were you searching for that old scroll for your mother?"
Her grandmother had mentioned to her that the Duchess of Rui died during childbirth, so what did his actions have to do with that?
After a long silence, Cui Xun's voice was hoarse, "My mother was the former empress."
Hua Yao, who had been leaning on his shoulder, stiffened upon hearing this and sat up straight. She looked up at him, her eyes filled with shock.
Cui Xun's gaze was unfocused as he continued speaking slowly.
“Back then, Li Juan was still the Crown Prince. He used the lives of his entire clan to force her into the palace.” Cui Xun’s fingertips clenched until they turned white and his knuckles turned blue. “At that time, he truly cared for her. The phoenix tree in the palace was planted for her by his own hands.”
He paused, a metallic taste rising in his throat, which he forced down.
"Later she discovered that he had seized the throne by murdering his brothers. Upon learning this, he was tempted to kill her, but ultimately couldn't bring himself to do it and spared her life."
“Until I was born,” Cui Xun’s voice deepened, “she held me and tried to escape the palace overnight, but the palace gates were heavily guarded, and she couldn’t get away.”
"She knew he wouldn't let her go, so she pretended to be crazy, spending her days babbling incoherently while holding her infant..."
--
In the third year of the Kōki era of Ōze, winter.
This year's snowfall was extremely heavy, like goose feathers, covering the entire palace in a stark white.
No matter how brightly the charcoal fire burned in the Empress's bedchamber, it couldn't dispel the chill that seeped into her bones.
A woman held a swaddled baby, her hair disheveled, her face expressionless, as she stroked the infant's cheeks again and again.
The moment the palace doors were pushed open, a cold wind carrying snowflakes rushed in. A eunuch carried a tray, the aroma of medicine mingled with a cloying, fishy smell.
"Your Majesty, it's time to take your medicine." The eunuch's voice was high-pitched, and his head was bowed very low.
The woman didn't speak, but simply hugged the swaddled baby tighter and retreated to the corner of the wall.
Only when the eunuch stepped forward did she suddenly laugh, a crazy laugh, holding the swaddled baby high in the air, "This is my son, a true dragon, you can't touch him!"
The eunuch dared not act forcefully, and during the stalemate, a cold snort came from outside the hall.
Standing in the wind and snow in his bright yellow dragon robe, he didn't speak, but simply raised his hand.
Upon receiving the order, the eunuch stepped forward to snatch the swaddling clothes from the baby. The woman struggled frantically, her fingernails scratching the eunuch's hand, leaving several bloody marks...
The medicine was eventually forced down his throat.
The woman lay on the ground, her body curled up in a ball, her hands gripping the corner of the swaddling clothes tightly until her last breath, her fingertips not letting go.
Li Juan stood beside her, looked at her for a long time, and suddenly spoke, "The Empress defiled the palace, and the Empress, ashamed, drank poison and committed suicide."
The eunuch responded, quickly tearing the woman's clothes and finding a guard's garment, which he then threw in a corner of the hall.
Before leaving, Li Juan glanced at the crying baby on the ground. "It's cold and the night is freezing. The child is weak and will freeze to death."
The baby in the swaddling clothes had a face that was purple from the cold, and its cries were so faint they sounded like a cat's meow before gradually fading away.
The heavy snow, white and beautiful, covered all the filth...
...
The emperor's decree was issued quickly.
"The Empress was virtuous, gentle, and obedient, but she made a mistake in a moment of confusion and died of shame and remorse. I am heartbroken and hereby posthumously grant her the title of Empress Xiaochun and bury her with the honors due to an Empress. My son died young, and I am deeply saddened. I hereby order him to be buried in the Imperial Mausoleum to accompany the Empress."
Just as the palace servants were about to take the swaddling clothes away and bury them in the imperial mausoleum, a wandering scholar arrived, walking through the snow.
His hair and beard were half gray, and he held a whisk in his hand. "Recently, the Purple Star in the capital has been acting strangely. This child's fate is ominous. If he enters the imperial mausoleum, he will surely bring disaster to the dragon vein. He must be taken out of the palace to ensure the stability of the dynasty."
Li Juan was skeptical, but ultimately he was afraid.
Bai Wuchen carried the swaddled baby out of the palace, looked at the dying infant in his arms, and sighed.
Saving the child was already an extra step for him. After several days of searching, he placed the swaddling clothes in front of the Duke's mansion and left only a note.
Duke Rui opened the swaddling clothes, looked at the emaciated baby inside, and then clenched the note that read, "With this child alive, the world is at peace," remaining silent for a long time.
The next day, white banners were hung in the Duke's mansion, and the servants cried out, "The madam didn't make it through this ordeal, but thankfully the young master survived!"
--
The carriage swayed slightly.
Cui Xun's eyes were bloodshot, churning with an unyielding hatred and pain.
Hua Yao looked at him, her eyes slightly red. She raised her hand and gently stroked his furrowed brows, trying to soothe his gloom.
Cui Xun raised his hand, covered her wrist, and slowly removed her hand from between her eyebrows.
His palm was warm, and his fingertips caressed the back of her hand, with a soothing tone, "It's been so long, everything is fine."
He paused, a cold glint in his eyes, "What he owes, I will take back one day."
Hua Yao couldn't help but sob. Even at a time like this, he was still comforting her.
Seeing that she was about to cry, he softened his voice and changed the subject, "You just said that you grew up in an orphanage. In the future, let's build one in Kyoto too, so that Yao'er won't be a child without a home."
Upon hearing this, Hua Yao finally couldn't hold back her tears. She gripped his hand tightly, her shoulders heaving uncontrollably, and suppressed sobs escaped from her throat.
Cui Xun panicked instantly, feeling extremely helpless.
His hand hovered over her back for a long time, unsure whether to pat her or hug her. In the end, he could only stiffly lower it and gently pat her back. "Don't cry..."
He couldn't think of anything nice to say, so he could only repeat it over and over, his tone clumsy yet sincere, "I'm here, Yao'er, don't cry. If you cry yourself sick, who will take care of the clinic?"
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