Danqing's words made Li Chaoyun feel a dull pain in his heart again, especially the word "coffin". It was like a sharp blade piercing his whole body, and there was no place that didn't hurt.
She gathered herself and asked, "Didn't they say the snow on the road was thick and we were blocked from getting through?"
Danqing replied, "It is said that General Chen and the Crown Prince's personal guards who were guarding the coffin shoveled snow all night."
"The news has been passed back to the Prince's Mansion. I think the Prince and Princess should leave the city."
Li Chaoyun's eyes instantly turned red. "Change clothes, and we'll leave the city right away."
She was a married woman, so she could not wear mourning for Li Yunsi.
She was already wearing plain clothes, so she only needed to change into something more formal. She wore a white fox fur cloak over it and wore no jewelry at all.
Afterwards, Li Chaoyun left the Shen family in a carriage and headed towards the west gate of the capital.
Outside the west gate of the capital, Li Yunsi's five thousand personal guards were lined up waiting.
In front, a large flag with the word "Li" was held high. Looking back, through the gaps between the soldiers' formations, five coffins of different sizes could be seen.
When Li Chaoyun got off the car, the people from Prince Shan's Mansion had not arrived yet.
She stood in front of the carriage in a daze, looking forward.
"elder brother……"
With a whisper, Li Chaoyun burst into tears.
After saying that, he knelt down in the direction of the coffin and shouted with a hoarse voice.
"Brother, sister-in-law, Chaoyun...will take you home."
He banged his head hard on the ground and couldn't lift it up again.
Li Yunsi's deputy general, Chen Ping, shouted loudly the moment Li Chaoyun knelt, "Retreat."
All the soldiers stepped aside to avoid Li Chaoyun's kneeling.
With this hide, the five coffins were completely exposed to everyone's sight.
Li Chaoyun kept kneeling without looking up, his forehead buried in the snow.
Chen Ping was in his twenties, his face showing the weathering that comes with years of garrisoning at the border town. His features were etched with weariness from days of shoveling snow on the road.
He walked to Li Chaoyun's side, stretched out his hand to help her up, but his hand stopped just a fist away from her shoulder.
Given his status, it is not proper for him to do such a thing.
Chen Ping's lowered eyes were filled with heartache, his lips twitched, but he couldn't say a word.
Seeing Li Chaoyun's shoulders trembling and still crying on the ground, Chen Ping no longer cared about the rules.
He leaned over, put his arm around Li Chaoyun's shoulders, and helped him up.
"My princess, please accept my condolences. I was incompetent and failed to protect the prince."
Li Chaoyun stood up straight and could see the coffin in front of him clearly.
She covered her mouth with one hand and looked at the coffin again, her eyes were blurry.
Chen Ping wanted to persuade him again, but the carriage from Prince Shan's mansion arrived.
He had no choice but to let Li Chaoyun cry and stepped forward to pay his respects to Prince Shan and Princess Yongjia.
Chen Ping was Li Yunsi's deputy general and a retainer of the Li family. His father had been a general who had fought on the battlefield with Li Jingchuan, and he had grown up with Li Yunsi.
Therefore, Chen Ping's loyalty was not to the Great Zhou, nor to the emperor, but to the Li family, or more precisely, to Li Yunsi.
He walked up to Li Jingchuan and Princess Yongjia and knelt on his knees.
"Your Highness, Princess, it was my incompetence that failed to protect the Crown Prince. Please punish me, Your Highness, Princess. I will not hesitate."
Thinking of Li Yunsi's death, Chen Ping unconsciously clenched his hands lying on the ground. The back of his hand, bruised purple by the cold wind, was now covered with blue veins.
Li Jingchuan sighed and said, "Get up. To die fighting for the Great Zhou is his honor, and it is also the honor of the Li family."
Officials from the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Rites also came with him, and this was all Li Jingchuan could say.
Princess Yongjia looked at the coffin, her body swayed, and Li Jingchuan held her shoulders.
The couple snuggled together, which was both support and comfort.
After a long while, Princess Yongjia took one step at a time and moved closer to the coffin.
Li Chaoyun was worried about his mother, so he followed her forward.
The mother and daughter hugged the coffin and cried bitterly, crying for Li Yunsi who was separated from them at such a young age, and also crying for the Crown Prince's wife Xie and several children.
Officials from the Ministry of Rites were responsible for handling the subsequent funeral, cooperating with the Ministry of War, and also had to arrange for Li Yunsi's 5,000 personal guards.
So after Princess Yongjia cried for two quarters of an hour, Huang Zhong, the Minister of Rites, could not help but step forward to persuade Prince Shan, "Your Highness, please accept my condolences. The Emperor ordered me to handle the funeral rites for General Zhongyong, as he values you and the Li family."
Li Jingchuan had to suppress the grief in his heart, stepped forward to persuade Princess Yongjia, and signaled Li Chaoyun to help her mother up.
Afterwards, the coffins of Li Yunsi's family were brought back to the Li family, and the Ministry of Rites began to organize the funeral ceremonies.
Chen Ping had been guarding Li Yunsi's coffin. Even after the mourning hall was set up, Chen Ping insisted on staying to keep vigil.
In the evening, Li Jingchuan and the Minister of War Yang Wenshi discussed the placement of the 5,000 personal guards.
Princess Yongjia and Li Chaoyun went to the mourning hall to light a perpetual lamp for Li Yunsi.
Seeing that they were alone, Chen Ping suddenly walked over to Princess Yongjia and whispered, "Princess, I have something important to report. It's the truth about the Crown Prince's death."
Princess Yongjia's expression froze. What was the truth behind Li Yunsi's death?
The battle report said that Li Yunsi died at the hands of the Tartars.
Is there some hidden secret here?
"Let's find a place to talk." Princess Yongjia made a prompt decision and took Li Chaoyun and Chen Ping to her own study.
Outside the study, Princess Yongjia's confidants were guarding the place. Even Li Jingchuan couldn't get close.
After entering, the three of them took seats according to their seniority.
Princess Yongjia looked at Chen Ping and asked, "What happened? Tell me clearly, wasn't Yun Si killed by the Tartar leader Antu?"
Chen Ping shook his head and said, "No, I was on the battlefield at the time. The Crown Prince was killed by the Fourth Young Master. I am not mistaken."
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
