Chapter 66 Meeting "I've finally found you."
Everything proceeded as Xie Lanzhou had planned. The Qi army breached the city gates, and the Lu army fought valiantly to resist. The two armies were locked in a stalemate for half a day. The Lu army suffered heavy casualties and was routed, fleeing back to the capital. Another city had fallen.
But there was no smile on his face, as if covered by a layer of frost.
He sent people to search the entire city but couldn't find Su Panyue. They only found a Qi soldier's uniform that was a bit too small in a courtyard, which seemed to be the one Su Panyue wore on the day she left.
Xie Lanzhou arrived immediately.
But as soon as he stepped into the courtyard, he was dazzled by the large red lanterns that could be seen everywhere in the courtyard.
Xie Lanzhou's face darkened further. He reached out and tore off the "double happiness" character pasted on the door, then strode inside.
Walking into a secluded courtyard deep in the backyard, this place was clearly different from the others.
Everything was exquisitely arranged, from the chaise lounge in the courtyard to the light apricot-colored curtain with strings of pearls hanging from it, swaying in the wind.
Xie Lanzhou remained silent for a moment before entering the inner room.
On the table in the inner room were some jewelry pieces scattered haphazardly. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that none of them were ordinary. Xie Lanzhou casually picked up a jade pendant, squeezed it hard, and the jade pendant turned into powder between his fingers.
He looked around the inner room, his gaze settling on the potted begonia on the windowsill.
Winter had arrived, and the flowerpots were bare and not very attractive, but Xie Lanzhou still walked over.
He reached out and touched the leaves, and as he looked down, he suddenly saw a corner of white peeking out from under the flowerpot.
Moving the flowerpot was like taking a note.
Xie Lanzhou unfolded it, and there were two words written on it: "I miss you".
Seeing the familiar handwriting, Xie Lanzhou's cold mask seemed to crack, letting in a flood of longing.
*
The royal palace of the State of Lu.
After Su Panyue followed Shan Mingyuan back to the palace at breakneck speed, she was imprisoned again.
The palace maids and servants suddenly became respectful towards her, but no longer obeyed her in everything.
Shan Mingyuan's attitude was also strange. He visited Su Panyue twice, but never mentioned their marriage again.
Every time he came, he would just sit there and stare at Su Panyue, occasionally mentioning the funny things that had happened between the two of them before.
Although he was smiling, Su Panyue could tell that the smile didn't reach his eyes.
But in the following days, Su Panyue did not see him.
She was confined alone in a huge palace, completely isolated from the world and unaware of any news from the outside.
The palace maids and eunuchs continued to serve her with utmost respect, but Su Panyue tried every means to get even a single piece of information out of them.
Su Panyue was anxious, but not panicked.
Only now did she realize that she and Xie Lanzhou had been cursed, and that their fates were intertwined. The fact that she was still alive meant that Xie Lanzhou was also safe.
However, on the evening of the seventh day, Shan Mingyuan suddenly came to see her, and his usually gentle and humble face showed a more complicated expression.
"Moon, are you the tyrant's concubine?"
Su Panyue pursed her lips. So he had already figured it out. No wonder he hadn't brought up the matter of marriage again.
She rolled her eyes and said dismissively, "I had no choice."
"I heard that you are the only one in his harem?" Shan Mingyuan continued, his eyes fixed on her reaction.
Su Panyue was startled; it seemed her worst fears were about to come true. She forced herself to remain calm and said:
"Since ancient times, which emperor didn't have three palaces and six courtyards? How do you think that tyrant would only have me?"
Shan Mingyuan was speechless for a moment before slowly saying, "I'm sorry, this is all I can do."
Su Panyue frowned. "What do you mean by this?"
“He’s already at the city gates. For the sake of the people of this city, I had no choice but to do this.” Shan Mingyuan’s eyes were deep.
Su Panyue understood; he was going to use her to blackmail Xie Lanzhou. This was the last thing she wanted to see, and she couldn't just sit and wait to die.
After Shan Mingyuan left, Su Panyue sighed, ate a big meal, and then went to bed for a nap.
As night fell, she sat up, changed into clothes that were easy to move in, and went out.
Unsurprisingly, they were stopped by the guards outside the door.
“I want to see Shan Mingyuan,” Su Panyue said directly.
The guard did not reply and remained firmly blocking the door.
"Take me to see him. I have something important to tell him. If this delays military intelligence, can you take responsibility?" Su Panyue shouted sternly.
Seeing her serious expression, the guards hesitated.
“You can easily escort me to Shanmingyuan’s palace. How could I possibly have a chance to escape? But you must be aware of the current situation. If we miss this important matter, none of us will survive.”
The guards looked at each other in bewilderment, and finally led her to Huaqing Palace, which was Shan Mingyuan's bedroom.
"I wish to meet with Shan Mingyuan."
The head eunuch at the door saw it was her, hesitated, and went in to announce her arrival.
Not long after, Su Panyue was let in.
She thought Shan Mingyuan would be asleep by this time, but he was sitting at the table looking at something, showing no sign of wanting to sleep.
"Yue'er, what brings you here?" He asked, his gaze falling on Su Panyue.
"I can't sleep, so I wanted to talk to you," Su Panyue said softly.
Shan Mingyuan pointed to the seat next to him: "Sit down."
Su Panyue lowered her head and twisted her fingers, her cheeks flushed, seemingly a little embarrassed, and said, "I know that you have no choice but to send me back to that tyrant."
"I've thought it through, and I don't blame you. It's all my fate."
"But, could I spend a little more time with you?"
"After all, we may become strangers in the future, and never have the chance to meet again in this life."
As Su Panyue spoke, a single tear fell perfectly, landing on the hem of her light apricot-colored skirt.
Shan Mingyuan seemed somewhat moved, but only said softly, "I'm sorry, Yue'er, I'm sorry."
"Why don't we become a pair of fugitive lovers? The world is vast, and we'll always find a place to stay." Su Panyue looked up at him with tear-filled eyes, her watery pupils sparkling like stars.
Shan Mingyuan was momentarily stunned.
"What do I care about the country and its people? Wouldn't it be better to just stay with me forever?" Su Panyue coaxed gently, like a bewitching fox spirit from the mountains.
Shan Mingyuan still didn't respond. She continued, "I understand. In the end, I'm no more important than your supreme throne, am I?"
As soon as she finished speaking, tears welled up in her eyes. "I lost my composure. I'm going to the bathroom to calm down."
After saying this, she covered her face with her sleeve, turned around and quickly went into the bathroom at the back, leaving Shan Mingyuan sitting silently in place.
After a quarter of an hour, he finally slowly got up and stood at the door of the bathhouse, saying, "Yue'er, don't cry anymore. I will always keep the Empress's position for you. When I rise again, I will never let you down again."
He said he waited for a long time, but there was no response from inside the bathroom.
"Yue'er? Are you alright, Yue'er?"
He asked twice more, but still received no response. Finally, his expression changed, and he pushed the door open. The bathroom was empty; Su Panyue was nowhere to be seen.
She had already left through the secret passage and was now running wildly, not daring to stop for a moment.
There is a secret passage in the bathhouse of Huaqing Palace that leads outside the palace. It was Prince Chang Le who told Su Panyue about this so that she could escape smoothly after seducing Shan Mingyuan.
After faking her death to escape, she thought she would never need to use it again, but unexpectedly it came in handy in the end. She really didn't know whether she should thank Prince Chang Le.
As she walked, she wiped the tears from her face, thinking it wasn't worth shedding tears for that hypocritical man.
From the moment Shan Mingyuan tried to use her to threaten Xie Lanzhou, Su Panyue realized that this man, who claimed to love her, could turn around and use her as a pawn for power, status, and the so-called country.
What she hated most in her life was being anyone's pawn.
So she took advantage of this and let this hypocrite taste what it's like to be deceived.
In the pitch-black passage, she ran desperately toward the exit, determined that this time no one would use her as a bargaining chip.
The dark passage seemed to have no end, and Su Panyue ran until her legs were weak but still couldn't see a single ray of light.
But she couldn't stop. She wasn't sure if Shan Mingyuan knew about the secret passage. If he did, he probably would have already sent people to hunt her down.
She stopped to catch her breath, gritted her teeth, and continued walking, thankful that she had eaten a lot that night, otherwise she would have been too weak to continue.
I don't know how long I ran, but then a glimmer of light appeared before my eyes, and then everything suddenly became clear.
Su Panyue then realized that it was already daylight outside, and at the end of the secret passage was an abandoned old temple.
Inside the temple stands a statue of a Bodhisattva, covered in cobwebs, yet still looking down upon all living beings with undiminished compassion.
Su Panyue walked around the dilapidated temple and finally stopped in front of the statue.
She whispered, "I'm sorry, Bodhisattva." Then she crawled into the hole in the Bodhisattva statue.
The statue was hollow, with a hole on the back, just big enough for her to crawl into.
Ignoring whether it was clean or not, she went in, found a comfortable position, and then let out a long sigh of relief.
Shan Mingyuan's men might come after her, but she didn't know where she was, and she didn't have the strength to run any further, so she could only hide here for the time being.
Her heartbeat gradually calmed down. At first, she was still listening intently to the sounds outside, but she fell asleep without realizing it.
When I woke up again, it was already noon.
There was still no sound outside. Su Panyue crawled out of the hole, tidied her messy hair, and stretched.
She finally escaped; she's free!
After leaving the dilapidated temple, she wandered around the neighborhood and found a stream where she drank her fill.
Following my intuition, I walked out, resting occasionally, and after about fifteen minutes I finally saw a decent road.
Su Panyue sighed, rubbed her sore legs, and glanced at the sky.
I chose to walk south and continued forward.
As she walked, she heard the clatter of hooves. Her previously exhausted strength seemed to return somewhat, and she rallied her spirits to continue approaching the sound of hooves.
The sound grew closer, and she saw the familiar uniforms of the Qi army in the distance.
It turned out that Xie Lanzhou had already broken in. She couldn't help but smile, and her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.
She stood there, panting, and waved happily.
The soldiers in the distance spotted her and rode towards her.
But an even faster figure rushed over like an arrow released from a bow, bringing with it a gust of wind.
Su Panyue stood still, staring at the person who had just arrived.
The man, holding a long spear and dressed in full armor, sat anxiously atop a tall horse; it was Xie Lanzhou.
In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of her. Without even having time to rein in his horse, the man leaped off and pulled Su Panyue into his arms.
"finally found you."
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Author's Note: We finally meet! I don't like the classic hero-saves-the-damsel-in-distress trope, so Yueyue comes out on her own. She can be a spoiled, lazy bum, but she also has the ability to save herself.
The comments section is still giving away red envelopes; please share the nutrient solution evenly! [Pleading face]
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