It snowed on the day they left Dingzhou. Zhang You and Chunhua were sitting in a carriage. She lifted the curtain and looked back. The past scenes seemed to be still before her eyes, but those people were no longer there...
For some reason, tears welled up in her eyes. She lowered the curtain and didn't look again.
There are some things that she wants to get back for them together with them.
It took over a month to reach the capital from Dingzhou by official road. They had settled in Dingzhou for many years and had a lot of things to move. Now that the princess was gone, all this fell on Qiao Er and Qiao Si.
During this time, Qiao Si only rested for two hours a day, constantly busy with everything. Qiao Er was afraid that if she continued to endure, her body would collapse, so even though she didn't want to, he still gave her a calming tea she had prepared so that she could sleep well on the way.
The further south you go, the more different the scenery along the way becomes.
At this time, it has started snowing in Dingzhou, welcoming winter, but here, it is still autumn, and the trees are still hanging with dark green or yellow leaves, waiting for a gust of autumn wind to cause them to fall.
Qiao Si became more and more taciturn. Zhang You and the others didn't dare to speak loudly in front of her or mention those names, for fear that she would be sad if she remembered them again.
She just let them wash and dress her as usual, as if everything was still the same as before. But they all knew in their hearts that some things had changed, just like they would never have the quirky, lively and talkative Hongmei again...
However, as they got closer to the capital, they all restrained their emotions and no longer showed any emotion. The capital was not like Dingzhou, and they had to be cautious with every step.
In front of the city gate, the rumored emperor sent a eunuch to take them into the city. The prince and Qiao Si were directly brought into the palace. According to palace rules, Zhang You and the others could not follow them. Only Jing Zhu and Cui Liu followed Qiao Si.
They followed Qiao Er to Prince Qiao's Mansion in the capital.
Prince Qiao's Mansion was in the west of the city. When they arrived at the gate, it was closed. The lantern hanging on the door had faded, and it must have been hanging there for a long time. It looked very desolate.
The servant went forward and knocked on the door. It was for an elderly man. When he opened the door and saw the visitor, tears immediately filled his eyes. He was about to kneel down and salute, but was supported by Qiao Er's men and stopped.
Qiao Er was talking to him as he led his men in one after another. Zhang You and the others followed the carriage into the palace from the side door. The furnishings inside the palace were very familiar, the same specifications as the palace of the king in Dingzhou. Zhang You, carrying her bag, walked on this familiar path, feeling a dense pain in her heart, so suppressed that she felt as if she could not breathe.
They walked to Qiao Si's yard, which was still Songxue Yard, but the furnishings inside were slightly different from what Zhang You remembered. There was no small pond here, and the plants planted in the yard were all the flowers and plants that were popular in the capital.
After Zhang You and the others instructed the servants to put Qiao Si's things in the yard, they opened the door and started cleaning.
It was a sunny day today, so after sweeping and dusting, they could finish the job quickly. After they packed up Qiao Si's things, an hour had passed, and Qiao Si and his friends still hadn't returned.
Zhang You and the others cleaned up their room and waited for Qiao Si to come back.
At night, the capital city was particularly noisy. Looking outside, you could see lights in the distance. After dinner, Zhang You and the others sat on small stools in the yard, waiting for Qiao Si to come back.
It was not until the evening that a maid came to announce that the princess had returned.
This was Zhang You's first encounter with the Third Young Master Qiao, Qiao Duzhou, as they were calling him. He looked a lot like the Fourth Young Master Qiao, or rather, they both resembled the late princess. One could even see the princess's once gentle and peaceful gaze in Qiao Third's features.
Zhang You felt a pang of pain in his heart and stopped looking. He just followed behind Qiao Si like Chunhua and the others, waiting for her instructions.
"Is my mother's tablet... already in the ancestral hall?" Qiao San's voice was low and hoarse, as if he had hidden a lot of things. He could only endure it in secret, not daring to let anyone find out.
Qiao Er, with a look of sadness on his face, looked into his eyes and nodded. "Third brother, we're all here." After years of separation, he had a thousand words to say, but at this moment, he could only say this.
When the war was at a stalemate, the princess moved the palace there, just to live and die with Prince Qiao. But the court official, fearing that his subordinates would betray the country, insisted on leaving their son behind as a hostage.
When they parted, Qiao San was only a twelve-year-old boy, alone. He hid his strength, pretended to be stupid, and hoped that one day, their family would be reunited.
But six years passed in a flash, and he lost his mother, his two younger sisters, and his cynical older brother...
In the end, their family was never reunited.
Qiao San choked out a painful sob and was embraced by Prince Qiao, who had been standing there listening to their conversation. Qiao San cried silently in his father's arms. If it weren't for Prince Qiao's wet collar, Zhang You wouldn't have noticed that he was crying silently.
She looked up at Qiao Si in front of her. She was also a little moved, but most of her emotions were hidden.
Zhang You felt a great sense of oppression in his heart when he saw this.
They had done nothing wrong, but their families were broken up and their loved ones died because of the tyrant. They went through so many twists and turns, but there was no day for them to be reunited.
Qiao San quickly got over his sadness. After years of hiding, he had learned to conceal his true emotions. Even though he was in Prince Qiao's mansion now, he was still acting diligently. Only in this way could he deceive the person in the palace and avoid being suspected because of a small mistake.
After Qiao San came back, he went to the ancestral hall, where there were several new tablets. Qiao Si and the others followed him.
Jingzhu knew that they had something to say, so she stopped Zhang You and the others outside the ancestral hall and kept the whole family to reminisce about the past.
It wasn't until midnight that they began to emerge. Qiao San, now a sinecure in the palace, had to go on duty the next day, but Qiao Si had forced him to go back and rest.
In this family, she was probably the only one who could discipline him. Although he was a year older than her, Qiao Si was much more mature and stable than him. She was now the one managing the palace.
Prince Qiao, now without official duties, was a mere idle prince in name only. He had suffered from many health problems during his years of military service. Now that he was free, Qiao Er took good care of him, always advising him to worry less and rest more.
Qiao Si is now in charge of the mansion. As soon as he returned home today, the housekeeper brought him the account books of the palace in the past few years. Qiao Si was busy reviewing them without any rest.
Jingzhu and the others tried to persuade her for a long time, but she just said, "I can't sleep, so I might as well look at the account book." Fortunately, Qiao Er was prepared and rushed over to urge her to go back to bed and rest. He also lit some calming incense to help her sleep. Only then did Qiao Si finally fall asleep.
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