◇ Chapter 101 (101) Former Lovers Become Enemies (Part 1)
Within days, a force marched southward, under the banner of "purging treacherous officials and upholding orthodoxy," targeting the capital. Surprisingly, the army was led by the Princess of Jinyang and her husband. The Princess claimed to possess the Emperor Ren's will, having anticipated his final plans before his death. The Crown Prince had died young, and the other princes had been killed or injured in the struggle for the throne, leaving only the Sixteenth Prince, Chen Fenglian, whom the Emperor loathed the most.
Chen Fenglian hadn't been trained in the art of ruling since childhood. While benevolent, she lacked the ability to maintain the status quo, making it difficult for her to succeed. Therefore, Emperor Ren entrusted his beloved youngest son to Princess Jinyang, ensuring that if the Daning Empire fell into the hands of thieves, Princess Jinyang could intervene and restore legitimacy.
When this will was released, the world was in an uproar.
Putting aside the authenticity of this will, who doesn't know that the imperial edict states that Chen Fenglian is the youngest of Emperor Ren's sons? Princess Jinyang's claim that this "little prince" is only ten years old confirms this is nonsense. How could Emperor Ren have such a young son? Princess Jinyang must have forged the will to seize the throne!
Under the banner of upholding orthodoxy, what they did was actually disrupting the government!
In response, Princess Jinyang only said that she could hand over the will and let the clan office verify its authenticity, or she could let the little prince and the clan members do a blood test to prove their kinship.
This statement dispelled many opposing voices. However, given the current situation, no one dared to invite the princess and the young prince to the capital, nor did anyone dare to travel all the way to Fancheng. For a time, the two sides were at a stalemate.
It wasn't until three days later that the Zongzheng offered to go to Fancheng to inspect the will. He had already acknowledged the new emperor's identity and was practically considered a member of his faction, so naturally no one doubted him.
On the second day after arriving in Fan City, a letter was sent back to the palace.
The Zongzheng said that the will was real.
"Does Emperor Ren really have a little prince who hasn't been made public?"
The capital was in chaos. The eldest princess and her husband, General Shuofang, led their troops into the capital with unstoppable force. However, the capital had just experienced a fierce battle a month earlier, and the new emperor's rebels and imperial guards were severely weakened and unable to resist. Despite their superior numbers, they were still at a disadvantage.
The capital was now in turmoil, with many wealthy merchants fleeing south. Even officials who wanted to resign and return home were scolded and confronted by the imperial censors. The palace officials urged the new emperor to flee quickly, hoping he might still have a chance of survival.
It was a perfect opportunity. He could sit back and watch the fight unfold, waiting for both the new emperor and the Jianguang emperor to be defeated, and then use the princess's men. It was just unknown whether the princess was unaware of this, or if she was also Lianzhi's accomplice.
Bai Kang leaned against the window, looking out absentmindedly. Chang Yuzhu called him twice, but he only responded with two "hmms", obviously not listening carefully.
Seeing this, Chang Yuzhu sighed deeply.
"How should I know something that even you in the Chang Mansion don't know?" Bai Kang finally came back to his senses and looked at him in confusion.
He also felt that the edict was not genuine. While the Zongzheng was not a bad person, he was also a man who could judge the situation. If forced by the eldest princess, it was not impossible for him to defect to that side. He felt that the most likely scenario was that the edict was false and that the emperor had an undisclosed prince.
What would Lianzhi think?
Back then, he was thrown into the cold palace to fend for himself, and was only taken out when he was a teenager. But there was another prince who had been protected by his father since birth. Would Lianzhi feel resentment in her heart?
He thought so, muttered to himself, and said it out loud. When Chang Yuzhu heard the faint "what would he think", she felt a little toothache again: "Bai Kang, Bai Kang, you are still comforting me, but now you are also trapped by love."
Bo Kang glanced at him.
"We're so miserable." Chang Yuzhu roasted two oranges for herself. "Looking around Daning, can you find a third man whose wife ran away?"
"Miss Yan hasn't married you yet." Bo Kang rolled his eyes. "Besides, my wife will come back."
"But he ran away twice." Chang Yuzhu said while eating.
It was already early March when we arrived in Rongcheng.
Along the way, the north will only be more chaotic than the area south of the capital. The fact that the young prince of the Helan tribe is with the Jinyang Princess has long been no secret. With the support of the Helan tribe, the Princess's power has greatly increased, and many officials have gone to join the Princess.
Only Rongcheng remained as peaceful as before. Many refugees from the surrounding areas flocked to Rongcheng seeking asylum. Although it was more crowded than before, it was still well-organized. Yu Yao looked at him and said regretfully, "Master Bai, are you really not going back with us? Daning is in turmoil right now. It's too dangerous. If you go back with us, you can go find Xiaozhu later."
The princess had truly been in Daning for so long she could even pronounce idioms. Bo Kang shook his head and smiled wryly, "He probably won't be going back."
If nothing unexpected happens, Lianzhi will be the next new emperor. Yuyao and Beihaijing can continue their friendship with Daning for generations to come.
As for him...
Bai Kang said nothing more. This time, only two doctors from the Ministry of Rites were traveling with them. Minister Du had taken leave since the day of the riot in the capital.
After settling Yuyao and the messengers she brought with her, he waited until tomorrow to send them off from Daning. He asked Chang Yuzhu to go back to Bai Mansion with him. The servants of Bai Mansion were shocked when they saw him.
"Don't announce it yet. Go tell the Third Young Master that I'm back." Bai Kang instructed. Upon hearing this, the servants quickly went to invite Bai Kang's third brother, Bai Fu. The moment he saw his eldest brother, in addition to surprise, Bai Fu's eyes were filled with shock and anger: "Brother! You... why are you like this!"
It was nothing special. Bo Kang sat in a wooden wheelchair, his legs wrapped in thick gauze, his right hand also bandaged and secured to his chest with a wooden board. His official robes were wrinkled, his hair tied up in a simple bun, and he looked sickly.
"I got a minor injury." Bai Kang instructed Chang Yuzhu to push him forward and patted Bai Fu's face with one hand. "It's okay, don't worry about me. Your eldest brother is in good health. Where are father and mother? No one else saw me come back, right?"
"Father is away, and Mother is praying to the Buddha." Bai Fu said cautiously, "Don't worry, I've already told the concierge."
My mother is timid. If she saw my eldest brother like this, she would definitely be scared... Bai Fu wiped his eyes and asked someone to clean up the room for Bai Kang and the others. But Bai Kang said, "Don't bother. I just came back to see you. I'll be leaving soon."
This sounded strange. Bo Kang patted his head again and said, "I still have some business to attend to. Don't worry, I will definitely come home when I recover from my injury."
After giving Bai Fu some instructions, Bai Kang asked Chang Yuzhu to push him to the ancestral hall. The people in the hall had already been sent away, so he slowly pushed his wheelchair inside and lit three incense sticks in front of the coffin.
Although I promised Xiaofu, I don’t know if I can go home again.
Let’s come and see mom again.
The last time I came back, I brought lotus branches with me. Realizing that he was thinking about lotus branches again, Bo Kang laughed at himself. After the worship, as he was about to leave, he suddenly heard a faint, sobbing voice coming from next door.
"Don't blame me, sister. I...I'm afraid I'll have to follow you soon."
It was the voice of his mother, Mrs. Bai!
There's a Buddhist temple next door. My sister followed him there... With such obvious references, it's probably about worshipping his mother. So why not the ancestral hall, but the Buddhist temple next door? Don't blame her, what else did she say?
As far as he knew, his mother and his mother had always had a good relationship, so how could she say such a thing?
Bai Kang listened for a while longer, but all he could hear was Mrs. Bai repeating these two sentences over and over again, sobbing. He wanted to push his wheelchair over to the wall to listen closer, but the creaking sound of the wooden wheels was a little too loud.
The person next door suddenly stopped crying, apparently having heard him. Silence fell all around him. Bai Kang waited for a moment. He heard no footsteps from the other side, but he also didn't hear her speak again. Holding onto the wall, he slowly inched toward the Buddhist temple next door and opened the door.
It was empty inside, no one was there.
wrong.
Although he had never seen a ghost, he was certain that it was his mother next door. Besides his disbelief in ghosts, the breath and sound of a person crying were different from those of a ghost. Bai Kang waited at the door for a while, until Chang Yuzhu felt it was about time and came over to push him, and then he left the ancestral hall.
"You were outside. Has anyone else been out?"
After they left, Bai Kang asked. Chang Yuzhu scratched his head: "I didn't see it. What? Did the servants find out? Why don't you just give them a few words?"
Bai Kang didn't answer. That meant his mother was still in the temple. She must have known he was back, so she'd probably let him know.
After waiting for a long time, Mrs. Bai did not call him over, as if the incident had never happened. Bai Kang only stayed in the mansion for half a day, and in the afternoon he went to the posthouse with Chang Yuzhu.
Downstairs was bustling with activity. It was early spring again, colder in the north than in Beijing. The withered branches hadn't even sprouted yet, and outside it was gloomy and overcast, the sky a yellowish hue. The climate seemed no different from that of Liangzhou.
Another year has passed.
A year ago, he and Lianzhi met. Lianzhi pestered him and tried every trick to get him back. But just a year later, Lianzhi abandoned him and hurt him so badly.
Rongcheng was located in the northernmost part of Daning State, bordering the Beihai Territory. For any tribe in the Beihai Territory, the easiest route to invade Daning was through Rongcheng.
The Helan army bypassed Rongcheng and took a longer and more dangerous route.
Bai Kang wondered, was it because of him?
Is he just wishful thinking?
Early the next morning, they sent Yuyao out of the city.
For safety's sake, they set out before dawn. Bo Kang couldn't ride, so he had to travel in a carriage. It was barely dawn when they returned to the city, and the guards were still dozing. Bo Kang removed his badge and was about to send another messenger when he heard the sound of horse hooves behind him, a rumble like thunder.
It is the sound of cavalry passing through the border.
"Sir!" The doctor from the Ministry of Rites quickly returned, "There are...there are troops from the North Sea!"
Bai Kang's pupils shrank, and he said sternly, "What? Go back to the city and pass on the message!"
The Beihai army seemed to have no intention of attacking Rongcheng. Only the shadows of the army could be seen. Until dusk, there was no sign of advancing further.
"Light cavalry has been deployed north of Rongcheng. If the Helan tribe attacks tonight, a signal will be lit on the northern mountain." King Mu drew a few circles on the sand table with a red pen, deduced the formation, and dismissed his men. He turned and looked at Bai Kang with concern. "Are you okay? There are soldiers guarding the city now. You should go and rest. Thank you for your timely message today."
"How can I thank you so much? It's so formal." Bai Kang tilted his head, and without standing up, he raised his hand and saluted, "Thank you very much, Your Highness. I'd also like Your Highness to ask someone to come in and push me."
King Mu smiled faintly.
The moon was bright and the stars were sparse; it was clearly a fine night. Yet, Bo Kang felt gloomy, even in his heart. He had his servant push him into the carriage and headed back to the inn. Just as they reached the gate, another carriage stopped behind them.
"Sir," the doctor of the Ministry of Rites said in surprise, "that looks like your carriage."
Bai Kang leaned out. Mrs. Bai got out of the carriage. When she saw Bai Kang's face and the wound on his head, she trembled and said tremblingly: "Bao Kang, I... Mother has something to tell you."
"My mother has given me instructions to go back. It's late at night, why bother coming here in person?" Bai Kang got out of the car in a hurry.
When Mrs. Bai saw the injuries on his legs, she trembled even more violently. Bai Kang felt even more puzzled. Even if his mother was a coward, she couldn't be frightened like this by him, right?
Coming now must be related to what happened yesterday. He instinctively knew it was something important that couldn't be shared with anyone else. He quickly found an excuse to ask the doctor from the Ministry of Rites to leave first, and he pushed the wheelchair and said, "Mother, please come with me."
Mrs. Bai looked at him hesitantly, as if she wanted to push the wooden wheelchair for him, but in the end she didn't extend her hand. When they got to the room, Bai Kang closed the door tightly. Before she could say anything, Mrs. Bai suddenly bent her knees and was about to kneel before him: "Bai Kang, I'm sorry for you and your mother..."
"What is mother doing?" Bai Kang was startled and hurried to help her. His knee hurt and he almost fell down. Mrs. Bai took out a pendant with tears in her eyes and held it in front of Bai Kang: "This, this is what your mother left for you. I never gave it to you. It's my fault. I am sorry for you..."
Bai Kang supported himself on the ground and stood up, and helped Mrs. Bai up as well. When he saw the pendant, he was completely stunned, and the blood drained from his face.
That is half a white jade plate.
Half a white jade plaque, very similar to the one Lianzhi wore, was the Helan tribe's token. Yuyao also had something similar. She had heard her mention during a conversation with Lianzhi that the royal tokens of the various tribes in the North Sea were all white jade plaques, only the designs on them varied.
The other half was in Bo Kang's hands. Not long ago, Yan Xi Niang had given him the other half. At that time, he was still confused as to why the jade token was only half.
"That little pearl is a child of the North Sea royal family, right?" Madam Bai couldn't stop crying. "If I had given this to you earlier, you wouldn't have gotten involved with the people of the North Sea. It's my fault. I let Sister Yang down..."
Bai Kang's hand remained frozen in mid-air, its movements unchanged. He opened his mouth, his lips trembling. "What do you know? How could my mother know someone from the North Sea?"
Judging from Mrs. Bai's tone, she had already realized that Lianzhi, or Helian Zhulan, was from the royal family of the North Sea!
"Bao Kang, good boy." Mrs. Bai raised her hand hard, wanting to touch the wound on Bai Kang's head, but she couldn't touch it.
The child in front of her had grown up. When she first became his stepmother, he was even shorter than her. In the blink of an eye, he had grown into a big boy. Back then, she and Sister Yang had left the palace and returned home. Sister Yang was a senior maid serving the concubines. She married a wealthy family, while she was just a small maid. Sister Yang was her only best friend, so she worked as her maid.
Before her death, Sister Yang asked her to take good care of her husband and her children, and she thought she had done so. However, after Bai Kang arrived in the capital, he gradually stopped writing to her. Later, he inexplicably became a high-ranking official, lived in fear, and never dared to get married. He also brought back a child from the North Sea.
That child looks exactly like the former Concubine Li!
"It's my fault. I thought if I didn't tell you, you wouldn't have anything to do with them." Mrs. Bai finally stopped crying, not caring at all that she looked like an unfaithful elder in front of her adopted son. She gritted her teeth and said, "Sister Yang and I... and your mother, we used to be maids in the imperial palace."
Bai Kang hummed in a deep voice. He had heard his mother talk about this when he was a child. He had heard his mother and his mother work as palace maids for several years. Later, the concubine they served died of illness. Before her death, the concubine showed mercy and released them from the palace.
Madam Bai twisted her handkerchief and continued, "We serve Concubine Li. Concubine Li was a tribute girl presented to Emperor Ren by the Northern Sea Territory. She is also the biological mother of Emperor Ling..."
Did his mother and his mother serve Chen Fenglian's biological mother in the past?
Bai Kang couldn't control his expression a little bit, and suddenly felt that what Mrs. Bai said next was something he might not be able to accept. Mrs. Bai kept her head down, not looking at his expression, "Back then, it was said that Concubine Li died of illness. But, but the Empress was executed by His Majesty Emperor Ren! The Empress's death was unjust! She secretly came to Daning and fell in love with Emperor Ren at first sight. At that time, the relationship between Beihai Territory and Daning was extremely bad. In order to conceal her identity in order to enter the palace, she lied that she was a dancer and gave birth to a child. But this matter was known to His Majesty Emperor Ren. His Majesty thought that the Empress was a spy sent by Beihai Territory, so he secretly executed her and only said to the outside world that she died of illness. Sister Yang and I were not released from the palace because of the Empress's mercy! His Majesty felt that we knew too many secrets, so he released all the palace people at that time!"
"His Majesty Emperor Ren only said to the public that he missed Concubine Li and couldn't bear to see her child, so he sent her to the cold palace. His Majesty must have been afraid of her child. Our Empress died unjustly!"
Mrs. Bai spoke with tears in her eyes. Bai Kang wanted to comfort him, but he didn't know what to say. He was not good at speaking and was afraid that if he said anything, it would make Mrs. Bai even more sad. Mrs. Bai suddenly sat up and stroked Bai Kang's face.
"Bai Kang, good boy! Of all the children Sister Yang left behind, I like you best," Madam Bai sighed. "You and Sister Yang look the most alike. If Her Majesty saw you, she would surely agree. The people of the North Sea Territory would surely know too. Back then, Sister Yang and I accompanied her to receive the envoys from the North Sea Territory."
Is that so?
So that's how it is.
He suddenly understood why Lianzhi had said, "I'll transfer him to my side the first time I see him." Indeed, how could he, an ordinary guard from a humble family, be so highly regarded by His Majesty so soon after taking office?
Lianzhi must have noticed it.
Seeing his appearance, I thought he knew what had happened in the past.
【Author’s words】
It's almost finished. I'm still revising the previous chapter recently. I'll combine the two chapters into one and update them later. The number of words per week will remain the same ('`)
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