The snow falls silently, the past is unbearable to look back on
The Seventh Prince, Li Yuanfeng, rebelled; the Eighth Princess, Li Yangyang, was murdered; the Louhuang Kingdom's palace was burned; the Crown Princess of another kingdom and a prostitute were taken as concubines. The numerous events, coupled with internal and external troubles, were overwhelming. Now, in the winter, despite the ornate dragon carvings and architecture of the Daming Palace in Qiankun Kingdom, the atmosphere was increasingly tense. Emperor Xuanyuan Wudi of Yanyou Kingdom and Empress Xiao Hong of Louhuang Kingdom were finding it difficult to breathe.
The ministers, the emperors of the two countries, Crown Prince Fang, and Li Lie'ao were engaged in a verbal battle that even Chen Yun could hardly withstand.
Among all the officials, the Imperial Censor even held up a scroll of yellow silk with a joint petition written in blood. He even tore open the front of his official robe, revealing the three bloodstains on his chest that read "Purge the Court of Imperial Concubines". He forced Li Lieo to depose the crown prince and sentence Chen Yun to death to thank the world!
All the civil and military officials below echoed the sentiment, causing Chen Yun and Li Lin to look at each other, but they could not think of a better response method for a while.
Li Lieo was unable to refute and was about to raise his hand when the ninth princess Li Xuelu saved Li Lin and Chen Yan with the golden medal of immunity from death and the Iron Blood Book.
In order to calm the relationship between the two countries and prove his own value, Yan Ruoxi brought the governor and Xuanyuan Wudi back to Yanyou Country to solve the problem of Yue Zuoren in Dongyang Country.
Wei Ningshuang arranged to notify Buddhist Master Jiang Liu to accompany her to Louhuang Kingdom to resolve the engagement issue.
The civil and military officials were still unwilling to shut up, and finally Li Lin demoted himself to the Ministry of Works before they stopped.
Only after walking out of the hall did Li Lin and Chen Yin breathe a sigh of relief.
While they were talking with Li Xuelu, Nalan Si took Yan Ruoxi to a secluded corner. His eyes were filled with mixed emotions, a mixture of admiration and worry.
"Ruoxi, you performed very well today, but you should know that there are many dangers on the way to Yanyou Kingdom and Louhuang Kingdom." Nalan Si's voice was low and powerful.
Yan Ruoxi smiled slightly, "Lord Nalan, I know this journey is not easy, but I must do my part for the future of Qiankun Country. Although I come from a humble background, I have a heart for the world and will never back down."
Nalan Si was silent for a moment. What made him silent was that the person who had promised him eternity actually called him "Lord Nalan". He finally nodded helplessly, "Okay, I will fully support you. But you must be careful. The Yanyou Kingdom and the Louhuang Kingdom are not easy targets. Their envoys have been active in the Qiankun Kingdom with ulterior motives."
Yan Ruoxi's heart moved, and she whispered, "Master Nalan, you are the Fifth Princess's consort, and it's over between us. It's inappropriate to be so ambiguous."
It can be heard that there is some resentment in Yan Ruoxi's words. She blames her man for marrying someone else.
However, Nalan Si retorted, "Aren't you just greedy and vain? You despise the bad reputation of making quick money in a brothel, and yet you approach the Crown Prince to become his concubine. Don't you know who's betraying whom?"
Faced with the words that pierced her heart like a needle, Yan Ruoxi raised her hand to slap him, but stopped in mid-air. She felt that everything was meaningless.
She fought back her tears, her voice choking with sobs, "You're such a stranger, Nalan Si. I waited for you to come back from high school to marry me, but you left for a year. You're not as good as Da Huang in my doghouse. At least he knows how to go home and who he's close to!"
Yan Ruoxi's voice was choked with sobs. She tried to appear calm, but tears glistened in her eyes. She turned to leave, but Nalan Si grabbed her wrist.
"Ruoxi, don't go." There was a hint of urgency in Nalan Si's voice. He looked at Yan Ruoxi with complicated eyes, "I haven't married yet, but I'm giving you the invitation now. I will be getting married at the end of the month. I hope you and the prince can come." Then he stuffed the invitation into Yan Ruoxi's hand.
Yan Ruoxi gently broke free from his hand, her eyes trembling with laughter, but she turned her back to Nalan Si with a cold tone: "We each have our own lives, let's not get entangled anymore."
Yan Ruoxi fought back tears and hurried away from the heartbreaking corner. The torn invitation in her hands, like her shattered love, could never be put back together again. Her heart was filled with mixed emotions. The vows they had made to each other had now turned into such sharp accusations and hurt.
At this time, snowflakes fell and landed on the sad people.
Reminiscing about the past, on a spring afternoon, sunlight filtered through the mottled leaves, spilling onto the town's bluestone pavement. Yan Ruoxi and Nalan Si, hand in hand, strolled through the peach grove outside the town. A gentle breeze blew, sending pink petals fluttering down like a shower of flowers.
Nalan Si gently plucked a peach blossom and pinned it in Yan Ruoxi's hair, smiling and saying, "Xixi, you are so beautiful, even more charming than the peach blossoms all over the mountain."
Yan Ruoxi's cheeks flushed, and she patted his hand coquettishly, "You only know how to say sweet words."
They found a patch of grass and sat down. Yan Ruoxi leaned on Nalan Si's shoulder, looked at the blue sky, and listened to him talk about his vision for the future.
"When I return from high school, I will marry you in a grand ceremony. We will build a small courtyard of our own in this place where peach blossoms are in full bloom."
Yan Ruoxi smiled and nodded, her eyes full of anticipation for the future. At that moment, it seemed as if the world only contained the two of them, and sweetness and happiness filled the air.
And now, Yan Ruoxi murmured to herself: "If...if I fail, can't His Majesty abolish my position as concubine and let me marry Brother Si? Si..."
She had hoped to change the current situation, but when she turned around and reached out to keep Nalan Si, she found that the fifth princess Li Changyan held Nalan Si's hand intimately, kissed her and moved her away from her.
At that moment, the snow fell on Yan Ruoxi's hands. For the first time, she felt how cold the snow was.
Upon learning that the Crown Prince and his wife had been demoted to commoners, Concubine Sun Shu was secretly delighted, believing this was the perfect opportunity to overthrow the Crown Prince. She conspired to use her son, Li Tianxiang, to achieve her goal, forcing him to appear in court and impeach the Crown Prince, attempting to stir up trouble.
"Xiang'er, your chance has come. You must find a way to make father value your ability, and then ask mother to pull Li Lin down." Concubine Sun Shu said in a stern tone.
"Mother, I want to..."
"No, you don't want to. Only if you ascend the throne can the fate of my mother and me in the palace be changed. Your father will then notice my existence. To achieve this, my mother will spare no effort."
Li Tianxiang felt helpless. He didn't like managing government affairs by nature and was only interested in small inventions, but his mother's pressure made him unable to resist.
Since the day of the court meeting, Yan Ruoxi and a convoy of civil and military officials set out to the Kingdom of Louhuang to handle the matter. Meanwhile, Bai Gaoer went to Linchi Township to investigate the truth behind the treason.
Under the manipulation of Concubine Sun Shufei, Li Tianxiang was forced to repeatedly advise the prince in the court for various reasons, claiming that the prince had been corrupt and accepted bribes while serving in the Ministry of Works.
While working with Chen Ying in the Ministry of Industry, Li Lin told Chen Ying about this matter. However, she keenly noticed Li Tianxiang's dilemma and decided to talk to him in private.
"It's obvious that this was ordered by Concubine Sun Shu."
Cheng Yifeng, as a supervisor, always brought flowers to give to Chen Yun. This time, he covered his face with the flowers and then slowly let them fall.
Chen Yun immediately picked up the flowers and said, "Isn't this baby's breath? This is a variety not found in Qiankun Country!"
Li Lin couldn't stand this behavior of seemingly supervising but actually flattering Chen Ying.
Li Lin pulled Cheng Yifeng away, "You've crossed the line."
"Prince, we haven't crossed the line. We were just exchanging ideas. Don't be so surprised."
"I am not surprised at all. How can you stick together like this?" After saying that, Li Lin pulled Chen Yan to his side with one hand.
Cheng Yifeng pulled Chen Yun back and said, "Prince, I am only following the orders of Your Majesty. The Crown Princess is a delicate and precious woman, and as a man, you don't know how to be gentle with her."
Li Lin grabbed Cheng Yifeng by the collar and asked, "Say it again, please?"
Cheng Yifeng pretended to be pushed down and fell beside Chen Yan.
Chen Yun supported Cheng Yifeng, and Li Lin quickly said, "Pretending? I didn't push you!"
Cheng Yifeng said: "I am a humble official and my words are of little importance. I dare not speak without thinking. It is right for the prince to hurt me."
Li Lin was so angry at the little green tea in front of him that he took a breath and pointed to say something, but Chen Yun slapped his finger down with one hand, "You hurt someone and still point fingers at me. How rude. Master Cheng, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, it's just a minor fall." Then he walked a few steps, covered his foot with his hands in pain and sneered.
Chen Yun supported Cheng Yifeng and said, "Let's go inside and apply some medicine."
"It's alright, Princess. I just need to rest for a while."
Chen Ying saw a man running out looking around.
"Are all the people in the Ministry of Industry so sneaky? That guy just ran away as soon as he saw us."
Chen Yifeng took a look and said, "He's a new member of the Ministry of Works. But recently there have been many officials like him who like to curry favor with others but are rarely seen."
"So strange?" Chen Yan murmured to himself, feeling that something big had happened, but he couldn't think of it.
At this time, Li Tianxiang angrily came to the Ministry of Works and threw the wooden stick on the ground: "Look at what you did? Fortunately, you didn't take it to the troops, otherwise it would have hurt a lot of generals and soldiers! This time you must take responsibility! Go and tell the emperor about this!"
Cheng Yifeng frowned, then walked over and said, "Sixth Prince, from what I have seen, both Your Highnesses have been following the standards. Why did something go wrong suddenly?"
Li Lin and Chen Yun saw Cheng Yifeng's feet walking over as if nothing had happened, and they could only stop talking.
Li Tianxiang ignored it, "I don't care, you can do it yourself, or I will report it to you!"
Cheng Yifeng was about to say something when Li Lin stopped him. Li Lin walked over to Li Tianxiang and patted him on the shoulder. "When you have time, ask your sister-in-law for advice. What she makes is quite interesting and she can come up with a lot of new things. It's the same with life. Only by constantly trying can you find your own way."
Li Tianxiang nodded thoughtfully. He hadn't expected Li Lin to say such a thing. Although he had always held ordinary feelings for Li Lin and had no intention of competing for the position of Crown Prince, he had always thought that the Crown Prince was a person who was obsessed with power.
Chen Yun walked over and took Li Tianxiang away. Li Lin and Cheng Yifeng looked at each other in confusion, unsure of Chen Yun's intentions. But they knew Chen Yun also wanted to persuade Li Tianxiang.
"Sixth brother, you hurt your brother during the morning court recently, right?"
Li Tianxiang pushed Chen Yan away: "This has nothing to do with you."
"That's not necessarily true. Do you know that a cornered dog will jump over the wall? If you hurt my husband, I will hurt you and your family. Just like when your sister rebelled, we had no intention of hurting her, but we had to strike a fatal blow."
Li Tianxiang ignored him and prepared to leave. Then Chen Yan took out the ring he had given to Li Yangyang and took a few steps forward to shove it into Li Tianxiang's hand. "This ring is a treasure. I gave it to your sister as a wedding present. Now I'm giving you the other one."
Li Tianxiang picked it up and pointed it towards the sky. At that moment, his eyes widened. He could recognize the treasure in his hand.
"In the hands of others, it's nothing but trash. In reality, it can be used in battle or for ornamental purposes. Its value is worth more than a thousand ounces of gold. It's better to value what's important to you than to contend with those who don't value your wishes. A seed can also grow into a tree that provides shade for others. It's time for you to grow up."
After Chen Yan finished speaking, he smiled slightly and left.
Li Tianxiang covered his face. No one had ever encouraged him to do his own thing. Chen Ying was the first.
"Thank you, sister-in-law. No one has ever said such encouraging words to me."
Chen Yun smiled slightly and then planned to go back to work.
At this time, Yangyang ran in holding the child and said, "Crown Prince! Crown Princess! Something happened! Concubine Sun Shu has been imprisoned in the Dali Temple! They say she colluded with the Seventh Prince and collaborated with another country!"
At this time, Li Tianxiang sighed and left the Ministry of Industry.
Li Tianxiang, Li Lin, and Chen Yun arrived at the gate of the Dali Temple. Censor Song slammed the case in shock and shouted angrily, "Concubine Sun Shu, the evidence is irrefutable! What else do you have to say?"
Concubine Sun Shu knelt down and said, "I am innocent! I will not admit that the handwriting on the letter was written by me! I did not collaborate with the enemy!"
Li Tianxiang pushed everyone away, came to the front and knelt down.
"This prince has evidence... proving Concubine Sun Shu's guilt."
Concubine Sun Shu couldn't believe that her child would betray her: "Xiang'er! You..."
Li Tianxiang looked at his mother and thought of what Chen Yun had said. He knew that his controlled life was not the life he wanted. If he continued like this, he would only make more mistakes. Thinking of this, Li Tianxiang smiled at Concubine Sun Shu and took a deep breath.
"Mother! I don't want to see any more fratricide! I don't want to be the crown prince!"
"Shut up!"
"Your son must speak! Your son's greatest wish is to create something that does not exist in this world! Your son wants to take the emperor's sister-in-law as his teacher! Have you ever thought about what your son wants and what he doesn't want?"
Li Tianxiang shouted loudly, as if he was spitting out all the misery of the first half of his life.
"But...if you don't become number one, you will be bullied and killed. Emperors are inherently ruthless. How can we, mother and son, survive without power?"
Li Tianxiang hugged Concubine Sun Shu and murmured in a tearful voice: "You don't want power, nor do you want wealth, but you want love. You complain to me every day, complaining that your father hasn't entered your bedroom for twenty years. Mother has placed everything on me, but I am in great pain..."
A complex emotion flashed in Concubine Sun Shu's eyes. She gently patted Li Tianxiang on the back: "Xiang'er, I know you are in pain, but I can't do anything about it. I just want you to have a better future..."
Li Lie'ao, who was sitting beside him, took a deep breath. He knew that he had let down a woman who loved him so much. The harem was very strict, and he had to rely on his strength to prevent being framed by villains.
"I have grown up to be a remarkable man, and it was all under your guidance, Mother. So... please allow me to be independent!"
Concubine Sun Shu started crying. This was the first time she cried so freely since she married into the palace.
Li Tianxiang took out a token and said, "This is the entrance token from Louhuang. Mother originally planned to occupy the land and become king, withdraw from the palace, and let me govern as a vassal king. That's why she colluded with the Eastern Ocean countries. That's why Louhuang gave us the entrance token. All of this was forced upon Mother by Li Yangyang! It wasn't Mother's true intention!"
Censor Song sighed, and after reviewing it, he gently asked again, "Concubine Sun Shu, the evidence is irrefutable. Do you plead guilty?"
Concubine Sun Shu gently pushed Li Tianxiang away, lowered her head and said, "Your servant, Sun Jiawen, pleads guilty."
Li Lie'ao said calmly, "Concubine Sun Shu has colluded with the enemy and deserves to be executed along with her entire family for treason. In view of her forced actions, I have decided to strip Concubine Sun Shu's family of their titles and exile them three thousand miles away. They are forbidden to return to the capital for life. Sun Jiawen will be punished with fifty strokes of the cane. Li Tianxiang, for his meritorious service in sacrificing his own family for the sake of justice, will be granted the title of Prince of the Northwest Murcha Ren, with the title of Prince Xiang."
Concubine Sun Shu bowed deeply to Li Lie'ao, "Your Majesty... Thank you for not killing me. Wen'er will no longer be by your side in this life. May... Your Majesty be in good health."
Chen Yun asked in a low voice: "Why does this evidence seem..."
Li Lin covered Chen Yun's mouth and whispered, "This token is real, but the claim that Li Yangyang persecuted Concubine Shu is fake. My father feels guilty towards Concubine Sun Shu. He mistakenly killed her father, so he hasn't dared to enter her bedroom for twenty years. Now that this has happened, we know that the misunderstanding has deepened to an irreversible level. Censor Song is also aware of this. That's why everyone knows it but keeps it to themselves. Besides, bestowing the title of Prince on the Sixth Prince is enough of a response to Concubine Sun Shu."
Chen Yun sighed and said, "I think it's because I don't like you. No matter how much a person's status, appearance, wealth, or power changes, there are a million reasons to like you, but there are endless reasons to hate you. I won't change my attitude towards you just because you change."
Li Lin held Chen Yun's hand and said, "Let's go. This is the best ending for them."
Chen Yun smiled and nodded, and then they went back together, walking on the snowy road in winter.
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