Chapter 169 Divorce Agreement
The news that Dai Li was going back to the North spread like wildfire throughout the manor, and the manor was bustling with activity as people packed up and made preparations.
Dai Li listened to the sounds of loading carts back and forth outside, glancing several times at the writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone on the table. After a while, she finally closed the door and sat down at the table to grind the ink.
Prepare the black ink and spread out the mulberry paper.
Dai Li picked up her pen and wrote a letter to Qin Qinian in one go. Then she took out a new sheet of paper and wrote the three characters "Letter of Divorce" stroke by stroke.
She spent a considerable amount of time writing this short letter, even wasting a whole sheet of paper in the process.
After writing the last word, Dai Li put down her pen and waited for the ink to dry on the paper. Her gaze fell on the paper, but there was no focus; she was simply lost in thought.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
"Madam?" It was Bibo. She wanted to go inside to get something, but found that the door was not only closed, but also locked.
Dai Li was startled awake. After saying "wait a moment" to the outside, she carefully folded the letter paper, the ink of which had dried.
The door opened.
Bibo glanced quickly inside and saw that everything seemed normal. She suppressed her doubts and didn't dare ask why her master had locked the door earlier, only asking what her orders were. After receiving a negative reply, Bibo continued tidying up.
She muttered to herself, "Why are both my master and Nianxia acting so strangely lately?" She decided to leave her master aside for now; after all, important people are busy and have many things to do, so it wasn't surprising that they encountered some tricky situations.
But Nianxia, the other woman was also a servant, and their daily tasks were almost identical. Logically, Nianxia shouldn't be acting this way. Could something unusual have happened without her knowledge?
Nianxia wouldn't say before, humph, she'll have to find a time to ask her properly.
Bibo thought about it casually.
This wait lasted until all the luggage was packed and the team was ready to set off.
"Madam, Qin San will also be returning to Yuyang with you," Qin Shaozong said as soon as he entered the room.
Dai Li was surprised. "Why? Qinian can help you if he stays in Chang'an. There's no need to send him back to Yuyang."
Qin Shaozong didn't care at all. "That kid flies around all day, it's good enough if he doesn't cause trouble. We don't need him here, so it's better to let him come back with you."
Dai Li frowned almost imperceptibly, "Then what about Qinian's class..."
"Since he has no merit and remains in Chang'an, Qin Er has also missed classes," Qin Shaozong interrupted her.
Hearing the firmness in his tone, Dai Li knew there wasn't much room for negotiation. "Alright," she agreed, then asked, "What are Qinian's own thoughts? Is he willing to go back to Yuyang with me?"
Qin Shaozong chuckled softly, "For the next period of time, he won't have to attend court sessions. That kid is so happy he'll forget his own surname."
Dai Li: "..."
Qin Shaozong looked around and saw that the main room was much emptier because the luggage had been loaded onto the carriage.
This spaciousness had been his daily companion before his marriage, and he had lived like this for more than a decade. Returning to the past after only a year made him feel very uncomfortable, even uneasy.
He frowned, but said nothing.
Dai Li glanced at a box belonging to Qin Shaozong and thought to herself that if Qin Nian were to travel with her, she would need to retrieve the letter she had given him.
No, perhaps not.
The moon rises and sets, and a day passes in the blink of an eye, bringing us to the day of departure.
Today, Qin Shaozong personally escorted Dai Li out of the city. He did not ride a horse but rode in a carriage with her. "Although the entire route from Yuyang to Chang'an has fallen to our northern territory and all the major forces have been wiped out, there may still be some petty thieves roaming around. Anyway, there is no rush, so Madam should not travel at night."
“The Xuanxiao Cavalry can take on ten men each, not to mention that there are four hundred men who are with me on this trip to Yuyang. These petty thieves are blocking the road to make a living, not to die. Which petty thief would dare to run into them?” Dai Li then changed the subject and brought up another matter: “Time is not tight. If I want to go sightseeing in the middle route, Qin Changgeng, you can’t let Commander Bai stop me.”
Four hundred guards—more than when she and Qin Shaozong went south. And this time, escorting her back to Yuyang was Bai Jianping, the commander of the Xuanxiao Cavalry's Southern Garrison.
"Of course." Qin Shaozong didn't think much of it at the moment. It was normal to stop and enjoy the scenery or majestic peaks along the way.
“Then you should tell Commander Bai in person.” Dai Li lifted the curtain and then called Bai Jianping over.
Bai Jianping, puzzled, spurred his horse over and asked, "Mistress?"
Dai Li nudged Qin Shaozong beside her with her elbow, and the latter said, "On the way back, follow Madam's instructions. If she wants to go sightseeing, there's no need to stop her."
Bai Jianping responded.
Dai Li let go and the curtain fell.
"Are you satisfied now?" Qin Shaozong thought that Dai Li had been bored lately, which was why she was in such a playful mood, so he added, "Once the world is at peace and the four seas are at peace, my wife and I will go out and have a good time."
Dai Li smiled but didn't say anything.
Qin Shaozong held one of her hands and played with it. "Madam, you can have someone send me a letter on the way, and I will reply to you."
Dai Li agreed.
As their parting was imminent, he spoke more than usual and gave many instructions. After the carriage had driven twenty miles out of Chang'an, Qin Shaozong said, "I will definitely return to Yuyang before the beginning of spring next year. My lady has had her fun on the road. From now on, she should stay in Yuyang and not wander off."
Dai Li simply hummed in agreement, without saying whether it was good or bad.
He raised his hand and placed it on the back of her neck, pulling her close to him until their foreheads were almost touching, face to face. "'Hmm' means 'okay,' 'I'll do whatever my husband says.'"
His long, narrow, and restrained brown eyes were set beneath his sharp, prominent brow bone. Inside the carriage with its curtains drawn, his pupils appeared even darker, and when he stared at someone intently, they resembled a deep pool filled with swirling eddies.
Dai Li subconsciously tried to turn her head away, but he held her back.
"What are you hiding for? Is Madam feeling guilty?" Qin Shaozong clicked his tongue lightly.
Even though she knew he might have just said it casually, Dai Li's heart was still pounding. She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, feigning helplessness, "Okay, I'll listen to my husband."
He was satisfied.
"We've already gone twenty li, let's stop here." Dai Li looked at him, her voice softening. "Since that matter must be handled gradually, I hope Your Excellency will eat well, be careful not to go against the natural order, balance work and rest, and take good care of yourself."
With each sentence she uttered, his gaze deepened, until finally it seemed he was back to last night. A dark fire burned in his eyes, its flames blazing as if to engulf her entirely. "My lady is truly stingy, only allowing this gentle breeze of care to brush past her at the moment of parting."
Dai Li looked away. "You need to remember what I just said."
"I will definitely remember."
Qin Shaozong dismounted from the carriage, and only after the army had completely disappeared from sight did he mount the Crimson Dragon. "Let's go back."
*
After leaving Chang'an, Dai Li headed north as planned. After traveling for several days and passing through three small counties, they entered a small town called Tianchi.
As with the previous three times, after entering the city, we first found a post station and booked the entire station to rest.
As evening approached, Dai Li said to Bai Jianping, "Commander Bai, the local customs and people here are quite nice. Let's not rush on our way. I plan to stroll around the city tomorrow."
Bai Jianping responded to every request.
The next morning, Dai Li told the others that she and Qin Yanzhou were going to the city's pleasure quarters and asked Qin Qinian and Shi Rongyue if they wanted to go with them.
Qin Qinian replied with great interest, "Of course! I'll go with you."
Shi Rongyue glanced to the side and whispered that she wanted to go too.
Dai Li nodded and left with a group of younger members. Bai Jianping naturally accompanied them, along with several soldiers in addition to himself.
This small county can't compare to Chang'an, except for one relatively bustling cross street. The area is small, so it's only roughly divided into sections: vegetable and meat vendors are located at one end, while vendors selling daily necessities like fabrics are at the other.
After casually browsing through two shops, Dai Li gave Qin Yanzhou a wink, who then said to Qin Qinian, "There's a pottery shop over there; they have some really interesting designs. Want to come take a look?"
Qin Qinian subconsciously said yes, but after answering, he looked at Dai Li and said, "But..."
Noticing his gaze, Dai Li smiled and said, "You guys go ahead, take Rongrong with you too. The shop is just around the corner, not far away. I'll look around here and come find you."
After speaking with the younger generation, Dai Li sent Bai Jianping over. Bai Jianping did not disobey the order. Although he went along, he was not alone with Dai Li, so he was not worried.
After the group left, Dai Li glanced at the two guards who were still standing guard without making a sound. She called one of them over and asked him to go shopping at a nearby shop. After he left, Dai Li bought a large quantity of items, intending to have the shopkeeper deliver them to her door for free.
but……
"Madam, are you sure your post station is here? I don't recall there being a post station here," the shopkeeper asked, puzzled.
"Is that so?" Dai Li hesitated, then turned and called over the remaining soldiers. "You tell the manager the address of our post station in detail. I'll go next door to find Zhouzhou and the others."
After saying this, Dai Li took a step outside. The soldier had only followed her two steps when he heard Dai Li say at the door, "Don't worry about him here, he seems to be coming back."
The "he" here refers to the person who was just sent out.
The soldiers stopped upon hearing this.
As Dai Li reached the door, she glanced back at what was behind her, then at her left. One soldier was talking to the shopkeeper and exchanging addresses, while another was paying.
Nobody was paying attention to this side.
Dai Li smiled and took an envelope out of her sleeve.
After the soldiers finished negotiating with the shopkeeper and turned around, they saw the mistress who had said she was going to look for her son standing on the street opposite the shop, holding a letter in her hand.
"Madam?" The soldier stepped forward in two quick steps.
Dai Li waved the letter at him, "A letter just arrived from the North."
The soldiers were stunned.
A letter from the North? Where is the messenger?
Just as his doubts arose, he heard Dai Li say, "The messenger has been traveling for a long time and must have been rushing here day and night. I'll let him find a place to rest first."
The soldier nodded, but his gaze inadvertently fell on his comrades who were still buying things not far away, and a strange feeling suddenly arose in his heart.
However, this subtle doubt vanished as quickly as a pebble thrown into a river when he saw Dai Li's calm face.
The mistress is perfectly normal, and besides, the letter is sealed with their northern sealing wax, so what could possibly go wrong?
Not long after, Qin Yanzhou and the others returned.
Dai Li waved the letter in her hand. "Rongrong, Commandant Yan wrote to say that something seems to have happened at your home and suggests that you return to Yuyang as soon as possible."
Shi Rongyue was stunned, and when she came to her senses, she hurriedly asked what was wrong.
“Commander Yan didn’t talk about the Shi family’s affairs in his letter. Most of it involved crops and fertilizer. He didn’t go into detail about your family’s affairs.” Dai Li showed her the letter.
Shi Rongyue took the letter and read it. The letter started by reporting some information about composting, and only at the end did it mention the Shi family.
It was a very brief sentence, as Dai Li had said, vague, with no clear reason. And this ambiguity only made people more anxious.
Qin Qinian stood next to her and read the letter as well, but he seemed not to have read it at all. Seeing that Shi Rongyue looked anxious, he simply said, "Since there are things to do at home, then go back as soon as possible."
Dai Li: "This is not the place to discuss matters. Let's go back to the post station and talk about it again."
*
Upon returning to the post station, Dai Li dismissed Bai Jianping, leaving only the juniors behind. "Qinian, I would like to ask you for a favor."
This was the first time Qin Qinian had been entrusted with such a pleading tone by an elder, especially his mother whom he greatly admired. A surge of emotion rushed to his head, "Please tell me, I promise I can do it!"
Dai Li slowly lowered her eyes, "I'll give you half of my troops. I want to ask you to escort Rongrong back to Yuyang."
Qin Qinian stood there, stunned. "What...what do you mean by that? Aren't you coming back to Yuyang with us?"
“It’s not that I don’t want to go back, it’s that I want to go back later.” Dai Li sighed softly. “It’s not easy to get out and have some fun. The thought of being busy again after autumn makes me reluctant to go back so early. Besides, you are Rongrong’s cousin and have a close relationship with the Shi family. After you send Rongrong back, you can visit the Shi family. If they need any help, please do your best.”
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Author's Note: I saw that many people had questions about the previous chapter, or felt it was far-fetched, thinking that Dai Li shouldn't have run away, or that she shouldn't have kept it from Zhou Zhou, etc. (...)
Although the article has covered quite a bit, since some questions remain, I'll just briefly touch upon it.
From Dai Li's perspective: if she doesn't run away, her future wealth and honor are guaranteed. But for Zhou Zhou, it's hard to say; the struggle for the throne, in the end, is basically a life-or-death battle.
Therefore, this leads to the prerequisite that Dai Li can live a peaceful and prosperous life regardless of whether the state wins or loses.
If Zhou Zhou finds out about this, he'll definitely stay. Because from another perspective, it's only he who's gambling.
He was the only one who participated in this contest where there was a 50% chance of death, while his mother was 100% safe and guaranteed a wealthy life in her later years. So why did he leave?
Dai Li had anticipated her son's decision, which is why she didn't tell him anything.
Dai Li and Qin Shaozong are a couple who married later in life, having been married for less than a year. They are still missing something to make their relationship truly complete.
I'm not an author who likes to frequently explain characters' behavior outside of the story. It feels abrupt, and I'm also lazy, but the story isn't far from completion, and I'm afraid you'll think I've given it a bad ending or ruined it, so I'm posting this here to say something.
Ah, Kakasa is coming! We've been preparing for the typhoon these past few days (the helplessness of coastal residents). I'll stop here for now.
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