War broke out
Wei Qiao stood up and said to A Gui, "Pack all the treasures in my storeroom into boxes and send them to Yunhe Hall."
"Your Highness, what is this?" A-Gui looked at him in confusion. The treasures in the prince's two private treasuries were worth at least several hundred thousand taels of silver. Why would he suddenly think of giving them all to the princess?
Wei Qiao placed the brush he was holding on the brush holder and said, "It's time for the Princess and I to settle things. Just do as I say."
Upon hearing his words, A-Gui had a vague sense of unease. Seeing the prince's solemn expression, he dared not ask any further questions, accepted the order to leave, and went to instruct the men to pack the items into boxes.
The next morning, A-Gui came in to report: "Your Highness, as you instructed, the contents of both storerooms have been packed, totaling one hundred and eighty-six boxes. Shall we send them to Yunhe Hall now?"
"Let's go now," Wei Qiao said. After saying that, he got up, took out the things he had prepared in advance from the brocade box on the bookshelf, and headed towards Yunhe Hall.
"Your Highness, the Prince has ordered Steward A-Gui to send you a lot of things. This servant thinks there are dozens of loads." The maid Cai Lan came in and reported.
Inside the bedroom, Ming Chuqing was having her hair styled by Cuiju when she heard about this. A smile appeared on her lips. It seemed the prince hadn't forgotten his principal wife and was now thinking of making amends to her.
"Your Highness, shall we go out and take a look?" Cuiju asked with a smile.
Ming Chuqing looked at her neatly combed hair in the bronze mirror, then casually picked out a peony hairpin from her makeup box and put it on. She smiled and said, "Let's go, come with me to take a look."
"His Highness has arrived!"
As soon as Ming Chuqing stepped out of her bedroom, she heard the servants in the courtyard welcoming the prince. She looked up at the courtyard gate and saw Wei Qiao, dressed in a moon-white robe with dark patterns, walking quickly toward her. Because of the matter of the concubine, Wei Qiao rarely smiled; most of the time, he had a cold face, like the snow that never melts on a high mountain, making people feel chilled.
Ming Chuqing was not afraid. She and Wei Qiao did not have much of a marital bond. Moreover, Wei Qiao respected her very much and never shortchanged her in terms of money. She had been married into the Zhao Prince's mansion for less than a year, and her current private savings far exceeded those of her twenty-odd years in her maiden home.
Now that there are no more concubines, she feels it's time to reconcile with the prince. Even if it takes a long time, as long as she can secure her position as Princess Zhao, it's worth it.
Ming Chuqing lifted the hem of her skirt, walked down the steps, and bowed to Wei Qiao with a smile: "This concubine greets Your Highness."
"Please rise, Your Highness," Wei Qiao said gently.
Ming Chuqing walked up to Wei Qiao, looked at the boxes that filled her courtyard, and smiled at him, saying, "Your Highness, are these all gifts for me? This is far too much."
Wei Qiao lowered his eyes and looked at Ming Chuqing, saying, "Princess, please come with me to the inner room to talk."
In the small flower hall, Wei Qiao and Ming Chuqing sat facing each other. After Cuiju came over and served tea, Wei Qiao waved his hand to dismiss everyone else in the room.
Ming Chuqing noticed the seriousness in Wei Qiao's eyes and suddenly realized that she had misunderstood him earlier; Wei Qiao clearly came with ill intentions today. She smiled and said, "It seems that Your Highness has something to say to me?"
Wei Qiao handed the envelope he had placed in his sleeve pocket to Ming Chuqing and said, "The box outside contains all the things from our private treasury. I believe it will be enough for you to live a good life from now on. Our dynasty is not so strict about the second wife marrying into another family. I was the one who delayed you before, and I hope you can find a good match in the future."
Ming Chuqing quickly read the short letter, then looked up at Wei Qiao in surprise upon hearing his words, and asked, "Your Highness... are you going to divorce me?"
“It’s a divorce,” Wei Qiao said.
"Isn't it still me who has to leave?" Ming Chuqing frowned.
"Chu Qing, I have no feelings for you as husband and wife, and I don't want to waste the rest of your life. Take these valuables and go back to the Ming family. You can choose a better husband, have children, and live a good life."
"Hmph." Ming Chuqing pouted and said, "Your Highness didn't have such thoughts before, but now you insist on sending me away. It's because you have someone you want to marry. I thought Your Highness was still deeply in love with your concubine."
Ming Chuqing's sarcastic words made Wei Qiao feel somewhat unfamiliar. Wei Qiao looked at her seriously and said, "I will never marry anyone else. I only now realize that there is only Xichun in my heart. I want to correct this mistake between us. Chuqing, we are not suitable."
Ming Chuqing looked down at the divorce papers in her hand. Wei Qiao's handwriting was just as good as the one he had written on the betrothal gift list, but one was asking for marriage while the other was asking for divorce. If it had been before, she might have agreed to divorce him if she had been in a good mood looking at these hundred-plus boxes of treasures. But just two days ago, she learned the truth: this concubine, Jiang Xichun, was the wife that Wei Kang had longed to marry all those years ago.
Jiang Xichun not only took Wei Kang for herself, but now she wants to take her husband Wei Qiao too. She will not allow it; no one can take away her position as the Princess Consort of Zhao.
Ming Chuqing glanced at Wei Qiao's sharply defined face, tore the divorce papers in her hand into pieces, and sneered, "Your Highness wants to marry your sister-in-law, but I will never allow it. If Your Highness is determined to divorce me, then kill me."
"Do you really have to do this? You won't find happiness by my side. Why waste the rest of your life on this?" Wei Qiao couldn't bring himself to say anything harsh to her; he was the one who had wronged her.
Ming Chuqing gave him her signature smile and said, word by word, "I do."
"Then go ahead as you please." Wei Qiao coldly uttered these words and strode out of the small flower hall.
Seeing his lord's ashen face, A-Gui knew that he and the princess had not reached an agreement. He caught up with Wei Qiao and asked, "Your Highness, should we... move those things back?"
Wei Qiao turned around and glanced at the roof of Yunhe Hall, then said coldly, "No need."
When Cuiju entered, she saw her princess sitting on the ground, crying without any decorum. She quickly went forward to help her up and asked with concern, "Your Highness, what happened?"
She initially thought the prince was there to appease her princess when he brought so much treasure, but she never expected the two to part on bad terms, and even her strong-willed princess shed tears because of it.
“He wants a divorce,” Ming Chuqing said, choking back tears.
"What?" Cuiju's eyes widened in disbelief. Although the prince and princess had never shared a bed, the prince's rewards to Yunhe Hall had never been lacking, so she thought that the prince had some affection for the princess.
Cuiju wiped away her tears and asked, "What should we do?"
Ming Chuqing picked up the hot tea on the table, took a sip, narrowed her eyes, and said, "I disagree. I won't let her have her way."
July arrived in the blink of an eye. The capital was experiencing a sweltering summer, with cicadas chirping incessantly.
On the eighth day of the seventh month, Wei Qiao was handling official documents in the Ministry of War as usual when Li Cong came to summon him to the palace.
The emperor showed him the secret letter on his desk and said with concern, "The crown prince of Xihai Kingdom, Posala, has usurped the throne. Posala's faction has always advocated war, and I'm afraid war will break out on the border again. The people of our Great Zhou have only had a few days of peace, but we never expected to face the calamity of war again."
After reading the letter, Wei Qiao stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that preparations should be made for this matter as soon as possible. I am willing to volunteer to serve the country and pacify the borders. Please grant my request."
The emperor was very pleased that Wei Qiao had volunteered for the country, but he was also worried that the battlefield was dangerous and that if anything happened to him, he would really lose his nephew forever. He said with concern, "Ren'er, I know you are full of enthusiasm for serving the country, but you have never been on the battlefield before, and I am worried about you."
“Uncle, you didn’t go to the battlefield when you volunteered, yet you still fought valiantly and killed countless enemies. Please trust me and give me this opportunity,” Wei Qiao said firmly.
The emperor patted his shoulder and laughed, "Alright, alright. Since you have the heart to serve the country, I will appoint you as the General Who Subdues the West, and appoint Shi Shou and Wu Jin as your deputies. Based on my experience dealing with that Posala over the years, I estimate that he will lead his troops to invade the northwestern border of our Great Zhou in no more than half a month. I order you to lead 200,000 soldiers to the northwest to defend our border in a few days."
On July 15th, the emperor indeed received a secret military intelligence report that the Xihai Kingdom had invaded the Shanshan and Kuiyang areas.
On July 17th, Wei Qiao, dressed in golden armor and wearing a phoenix-winged helmet, bowed to the emperor outside the Taihe Hall and asked for permission: "Your Majesty, 200,000 soldiers have been assembled. Please give the order to march to the Northwest."
"Your Majesty, please give the order!" The resounding voices of over ten thousand soldiers echoed throughout the Taihe Hall.
The emperor raised the wine offered by Li Cong to toast Wei Qiao and the troops, and declared in a resounding voice: "Drive out the Tartars and protect my people. March on!"
"Drive out the barbarians and protect my people!"
"Drive out the barbarians and protect my people!"
The ministers, soldiers, and civilians outside the imperial city were all excited and raised their arms in celebration.
Wei Qiao mounted his horse amidst resounding slogans and left the capital as the people watched him go.
When Xi Chun learned that the son of a family in Tangli Lane had enlisted in the army, Xi Chun realized that the Great Zhou and Xi Hai had resumed their war.
Seeing Xichun's stunned expression upon hearing about the war, Sister-in-law Wang comforted her, "Don't be afraid, they won't reach us. We're still hundreds of miles from the Northwest. I heard from Constable He that this time it's the Emperor's adopted son, Prince Zhao, leading the troops to fight. Although everyone says the soldiers of Xihai Kingdom are fierce, our Great Zhou soldiers are no less formidable. Besides, we've sent a full 200,000 troops. This battle will surely be a great victory for our Great Zhou."
“Sister-in-law is right,” Xichun said with a smile.
Sister-in-law Wang handed two pomelos from the basket to Xichun and said with a smile, "Try these. My brother from my mother's side asked someone to send them to me. You and Chuwei should try them. These pomelos have red flesh and are very sweet. I have something to do at home, so I'll head back first."
After Sister-in-law Wang left, Xichun put down the pomelo and went to check on Jiangjiao, who was sleeping in the cradle. Jiangjiao loved to eat and sleep, and had grown a lot in just three months. Jiangjiao's eyebrows and eyes resembled Wei Qiao's somewhat, and sometimes when Xichun saw the child, she felt like she was seeing his shadow. However, her daughter was clearly more lively and adorable.
Knowing he had gone to the Northwest and wouldn't come looking for her again, Xichun became much bolder. She even carried ginger and peppers with her during the day. When Wang Dasao had time, she would bring her daughter along and explain the local customs and traditions of Yanzhou to her. Within a few months, Xichun had integrated into the local community of Yanzhou.
In early September, Chu Wei resigned from her job at Qiweilou to stay with Xichun and help take care of the child.
"Didn't you really enjoy being a waitress? Why did you quit?" Xichun asked her.
Chu Wei frowned and said, "The owner of Qiweilou is crazy. He accidentally fell from the third floor and I saved him. Now he keeps an eye on me every day when I go to work, afraid that I'll slack off. I was so scared by him that I almost spilled the Buddha Jumps Over the Wall soup on a customer. I'm living in fear every day. I'm never going there again."
Xichun watched as she fiddled with the cloth dolls hanging on the cradle to amuse her daughter, and she laughed, "If you're not happy doing this, then don't go. Don't you like steamed buns? Let's open a steamed bun shop."
"Really?" Chu Wei asked in surprise.
Xi Chun nodded. She and Chu Wei should also have a proper business. "I think Ma Liu Street near the ferry is a good place. There are many people coming and going there, so business must be good."
Chu Wei jumped up and hugged Xi Chun, crying, "Xi Chun, you have no idea how much I wanted to open a steamed bun shop. Thank you, I'm so happy."
Hearing her sobs, Xichun took out a handkerchief to wipe her tears, saying, "Don't cry, look, Tuantuan is watching you."
Jiang Jiao didn't understand why her aunt Chu Wei was suddenly crying, but when she saw Chu Wei and her mother looking at her, she grinned at them and gave them a sweet smile.
Chu Wei was amused by Jiang Jiao and stopped crying. She asked Xi Chun, "Then let's go look for a shop tomorrow."
"I want to go back to Fuping before opening the shop," Xichun said.
Previously, she had always been unable to return to her hometown for various reasons. Now that Li Gao was dead, Wei Qiao was far away in the Northwest, and her child had been born, she finally had the opportunity to return to her hometown for a visit.
Chu Wei saw the faint glimmer of tears in Xi Chun's eyes. She took Xi Chun's hand and said softly, "Okay, I'll go back to Fuping with you."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
