Old Memories
“I read it, but I just didn’t reply,” Zhao Youyi said, giving him a reproachful look. “I’m just curious who’s been so diligent in writing to me all this time.”
Chu Chanyin grasped her hand: "Just curious?"
"Oh dear," Zhao Youyi was annoyed by his words. She naturally knew who sent the letter, but she didn't remember anything about Chu Huai Cong. It wasn't that she was illiterate; she could have asked her brother about him from the signature and found out that he was the second son of the King of Chu.
Zhao Youyi recalled that afternoon when she went to find her brother with the letter in her hand.
"If you're so eager to know who this person is, why don't you write a letter and ask?" Zhao Youli said while flipping through his military books. He dared not provoke Zhao Youyi now. The little girl had forgotten about her mother's death after being traumatized. At first, he was immersed in the grief of losing his mother and did not notice his sister's abnormality. When he discovered that Zhao Youyi had almost forgotten about Yongliu Manor and only had scattered memories, he dared not bring it up again. It was better that she didn't remember. After all, Zhao Youyi had watched her mother die right before her eyes. How could a little girl like her bear such a scene?
However, he couldn't bear to let Chu Huai Cong's hopes be dashed time and time again. After all, the three of them had grown up together, and Chu Huai Cong was almost like a younger brother to him. Now that the three of them were separated, and he was about to join the army, if his sister could communicate with Huai Cong, it might alleviate her loneliness.
Zhao Youyi pouted unhappily upon hearing this: "Brother, all you do is bully me. Be careful, or I'll tell Father and Mother."
Zhao Youli's smile froze, but he said nonchalantly, "What else can this little brat do besides tattle? If you want to know who it is, just ask."
“But…” Zhao Youyi hesitated, “I read the letter he wrote, it seems like we knew each other before… something about a little white horse and a little wooden sword.”
"Ah!" Zhao Youyi suddenly clutched her head. Zhao Youli panicked and immediately dropped the military book, rushing to her side. "Niao Niao, what's wrong? Does your head hurt?"
"I think... I saw a young man I don't recognize, and my head hurts so much!" Zhao Youyi's small face was full of pain. Zhao Youli hugged her tightly and shouted outside, "Physician! Go find the physician!"
"It's alright, it's alright, Niao Niao, if you have a headache, don't think about it." Zhao Youli comforted her softly, glancing at the letter that had fallen to the ground before discreetly picking it up.
The physician took Zhao Youyi's pulse, and carrying his medicine box, said earnestly, "Young master, the young lady's illness cannot be agitated. In the future, you must remember to stay away from people or things that agitate her."
Zhao Youli held the letter hidden in his bosom, looking at the familiar handwriting on it. Every word was filled with concern and guilt for his sister.
Zhao Youli returned to the room. Zhao Youyi had calmed down and looked at Zhao Youli, asking, "Huai Cong... is that the young man? Is his surname Chu?"
Zhao Youli smiled and shook his head: "Huai Cong is your cousin. You only met a few times when you were young, and you're not very close. You're not thinking about him, Niao Niao. Promise me that you won't read these letters anymore, and you won't think about the past anymore."
Zhao Youyi is his only sister, and he wants to protect her, so... Huai Cong, I can only apologize.
"A-Wan? A-Wan?" Chu Chanyin called Zhao Youyi several times, but she didn't respond, so he became worried: "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Zhao Youyi snapped out of her reverie and smiled slightly at him: "Brother Huai Cong, when I have some free time, I'll reply to your letters one by one, okay?"
Chu Chanyin was surprised and delighted that she would bring this up: "Why did you suddenly decide to reply to me? You wrote a lot of sarcastic things back then, so you'd better not read them."
The more he said this, the more guilty Zhao Youyi felt, especially now that the two of them had confessed their feelings for each other, she felt even more pity and love for him.
“I will read them.” Zhao Youyi held his hand. “I will reply to every single one, Brother Huai Cong, wait for me.”
Wait for me, let me have enough love to walk side by side with you.
After resting in Guazhou for a few days, the two set off together for Qingzhou. Qingzhou is easy to defend and difficult to attack, and has always been a strategic location fought over by military strategists. If the two did not cooperate, it would be difficult to take this prize.
Upon learning of the fall of Guazhou and Yuanzhou, the emperor was so enraged that he had several palace servants beaten to death. Panic gripped the palace, and the emperor rushed to Cixi Palace, where the Empress Dowager was imprisoned.
"Song Fuyu!" The Emperor burst into Cining Palace, grabbed the Empress Dowager, and called her by her name. "Did you do this on purpose? You deliberately delegated power to make me lower my guard, you scheming woman!"
Empress Dowager Song was thrown to the ground with great force. She stood up, wiping the blood from her lips, and smiled charmingly: "Chu Huai! You good-for-nothing! It's already a great blessing that the child of a lowly palace maid was adopted into my family! How dare you even think of controlling me? Wishful thinking!"
Empress Dowager Song laughed loudly, stepped forward and grabbed the emperor's collar tightly: "If it weren't for my father's greed for power, I wouldn't have had to enter the palace to serve the late emperor who was over fifty years old. Since I'm not having an easy time, then no one else should! I will destroy the Great Jin Dynasty! I will make all of you into stray dogs!"
If it weren't for the Song family, she could have married a young man of equal social standing and lived a peaceful and smooth life. Over the years, she allowed the emperor's ambition to grow, watching the Song family rise to power and fall step by step, and watching the dynasty that the late emperor had so painstakingly maintained decay little by little. She couldn't have felt more pleased!
Since we're going to sacrifice her and make her a pawn, we should be prepared for her to fight to the death!
The emperor was stunned by her words: "You crazy woman! Do you think that just because the Jin Dynasty is gone, you, the former empress dowager, will have an easier time?"
Empress Dowager Song slapped him across the face, saying, "You don't need to worry about that. You should worry about yourself instead."
The emperor covered his face and glared at her: "What about Fu'an? She's your only daughter. You don't even care about her?"
Empress Dowager Song turned her back, her slender figure resilient and upright. She was only in her thirties, yet her hair had already turned white. In this life—for the Song family, for her father, for her brother, and later for Fu'an—had she ever lived for herself for a single moment? She was a pawn, and also a discarded piece.
"I can disregard even my father and brothers, let alone a daughter who carries the blood of your Chu family?" Empress Dowager Song said coldly.
The emperor stared at the woman before him in disbelief. He had loved her and hated her, but he thought he knew her well enough. He never expected her to be so cold-blooded and ruthless, even disregarding her own child.
"Who says a woman's life is only for her family, husband, and children? I, Song Fuyu, refuse to believe that! I live only for myself!" Song Fuyu said with her eyes closed.
The emperor bit his lip hard, looking at this cold-blooded woman and nodding repeatedly: "Good! You're very good! Then don't blame me for disregarding our past relationship and taking action against Fu'an, my mother."
The word "Mother" haunted her like a demon, constantly appearing in her midnight dreams. But she didn't want to be anyone's daughter, wife, or mother; she just wanted to be herself.
Seeing that Song Fuyu remained unmoved after hearing this, the emperor angrily turned and left.
The hall remained quiet for a long time. Song Fuyu opened the window and saw the men in black outside. They were her last remaining force and her last means of survival.
"Go to the borderlands and find Fu'an. Tell her to divorce Liu Shizi, and then... tell her that her mother is sorry for her. From now on, she will have to make her own way. Don't let her return to the capital. Take her as far away as possible, understand?" Song Fuyu finally shed a tear, but only one tear.
Upon hearing this, the man in black knelt down and kowtowed three times to her, then flew away.
Song Fuyu looked up at the square sky, returned to the palace, overturned the candlestick, and sparks spread. In the firelight, she sang freely, singing the ballad she loved most in her youth. As she sang, her voice became hoarse, and her figure was gradually swallowed by the firelight.
In the eleventh year of Chongde's reign, the Empress Dowager died due to a fire at Cixi Palace.
Upon hearing this news, members of the imperial family learned that the emperor had visited Cixi Palace before the fire, and they couldn't help but wonder if the emperor had killed the empress dowager.
Such rumors circulated widely among the people and were even turned into folk songs, implying that the emperor was incompetent and lustful, and attempted to coerce the empress dowager. When he failed, he killed the empress dowager and used the fire at Cixi Palace to cover up the truth.
"That crazy woman, Song Fuyu!" Upon hearing the news, the emperor was so angry that he swept the memorial to the ground. "It must be one of her people spreading rumors in the capital to ruin my reputation!"
The eunuch Gao knelt on the ground and shouted for His Majesty to calm down, but he couldn't help but think to himself, "Your reputation is already bad enough, and the Empress Dowager is just adding fuel to the fire."
"Your Majesty! Urgent report from Qingzhou!" A disheveled soldier stumbled in. "Qingzhou City is now surrounded by the Chu army and the Zhao family army! The governor of Qingzhou requests the court to send troops to support us!"
"What?!" Upon hearing this, the emperor took a few steps forward and grabbed the soldier by the collar. The soldier had no choice but to repeat what he had just said. The emperor was so angry that he threw the man to the ground: "Zhao Youyi, Chu Chanyin! Well done! Taking Guazhou and Yuanzhou in one fell swoop is not enough. You have quite the appetite! Men! Send troops to support Qingzhou!"
There is a large river outside Qingzhou City, which can usually only be crossed by a stone bridge. Now, the governor of Qingzhou has sent people to destroy the stone bridge, and a stalemate has been reached. Both armies are locked in a stalemate. The Chu army and the Zhao family army are stationed outside the city, while the Qingzhou imperial army is on high alert inside the city.
Seeing this, Zhao Youyi waved his hand and ordered the army to start cooking, determined to fight the people in the city to the death.
General Li Lian looked down on Zhao Youyi after seeing this scene. She really was just a pampered girl. Didn't she know that Qingzhou City was easy to defend and difficult to attack, and that they had plenty of supplies in the city? It was simply foolish to wear them down!
Zhou Yaqing was also genuinely puzzled: "My lord, we don't have much food with us. I'm afraid we can't afford to drag out this war with the army in Qingzhou City!"
Zhao Youyi raised an eyebrow, while Chu Chanyin waved his fan and said calmly, "Your lord doesn't intend to fight them to the death, but rather to outsmart them."
Zhou Yaqing scratched his head in confusion: "Your Highness, what are you talking about? What do you mean by outsmarting them?"
"It seems I really should send you to school after this is all over." Zhao Youyi sighed, looking at her with a disappointed expression.
Chu Chanyin stood to the side, covering his lips with a fan and lowering his head to hide his laughter.
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