The next morning, the army assembled outside the city. Qi Jingxuan looked at the huge crowd and, just like when he went to the northern frontier five years ago, looked forward to their victorious return.
General Xu, a veteran of countless battles, is a household name in the northern borderlands. When the nation faced threats from foreign enemies, he once again donned his armor, ready to embark on a journey to the northern frontier to fight the enemy.
"Your Majesty, the army has been assembled. Please make your decision!"
Before departing, General Xu returned home and bid a brief farewell to his family. His wife and children, though filled with reluctance, understood that General Xu bore the heavy responsibility of defending the country. Their blessings and tears became the strongest source of strength for General Xu.
Looking at the elderly General Xu in front of him, Qi Jingxuan felt a pang of pity and said, "General Xu, you must take good care of yourself on your journey to the northern frontier. You must not personally go into battle. With your wisdom and battlefield experience, you should offer more advice!"
General Xu knelt on the ground, weeping. If his son hadn't committed the crime of implicating nine generations of his family, why would he have volunteered for the war?
"Your Majesty, I thank you for your concern. Rest assured, I am in excellent health! I have been training in the military camp without any problems. For the sake of the territory of my Great Qi Kingdom, I will return victorious!"
Qi Yuandong, standing to the side, couldn't understand why someone would go to serve the Qi Kingdom so openly when their son was missing. However, with the army at hand, she, as a member of the royal family, could only keep her mouth shut.
"Soldiers, most of you are soldiers of the Qi family army who fought alongside me, Qi Jingxuan. Now, our Qi state has not waged war against the north for several years, and it is time to need you again. I hope you will return victorious!"
Qi Jingxuan delivered a long, impassioned speech, then picked up the wine beside him, took a large gulp, smashed the bowl on the ground, and shouted, "Let's go to war!!!"
"kill!"
"kill!"
"kill!"
The army set off, and the once peaceful Kyoto was instantly filled with dust as countless horses galloped through the air.
"I hope everything goes well on this journey." Qi Jingxuan looked at the departing army and couldn't help but feel sad. In the past, she had sent her husband to the battlefield time and time again in this way, but now everything had changed.
"Your Majesty, it's very windy and dusty outside, let's go back to the palace!" A eunuch came out to remind him.
Qi Jingxuan nodded.
The civil and military officials also returned, and then Lord Geng approached at an inopportune moment. "Your Majesty, I wish to enter the palace to see my daughter. Would Your Majesty grant me permission?"
"Oh? Minister Geng, how old are you this year? You must be fifty-eight, right?"
Lord Geng quickly straightened himself and said, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your concern. I am indeed fifty-eight years old! Your Majesty is thinking of me."
Qi Jingxuan raised his hand and smiled slightly, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated. He turned around and took a few steps, then looked back at him and said, "Since you are already so old, why don't you retire and return to your hometown?"
"This? Your Majesty, how can this humble subject be considered old? The Grand Tutor is already in his seventies. That would be quite the opposite..."
Qi Jingxuan suddenly gave Lord Geng a fierce look. "Lord Geng, you don't need to return to the palace for now. Think it over carefully. Don't think that I don't know what you and your son Geng Yuluo did!"
Upon hearing this, Lord Geng finally stopped and knelt on the ground. "Yes, Your Majesty, I thank you for your compassion."
After the Emperor had walked away, Lord Geng looked at his son, Geng Yuluo, and gave him a wretched tap on the head. "I told you to be careful when buying and selling official positions. Look at you now, you've ruined your father! Humph!"
After saying this, Lord Geng turned and left.
In fact, Qi Jingxuan had no idea what had happened between them. He was just making inferences based on the personalities of the father and son. He felt that the two of them were usually so unreasonable and domineering, so they must have left a lot of messes behind.
It was just a casual remark. After all, the current Lady Geng Yulin is dead. If we were to press her for answers in public, it would be awkward, even if it wasn't polite.
How could a powerful empress, who held authority over the six palaces, suddenly die like that?
"Have they all gone?" Yelü Yanyun knew that Qi Jingxuan would not consider her reasons at all, and now he wanted to crush her motherland.
Yunxiu looked at the worried Yelü Yanyun and didn't know what to say. This was no longer the princess she used to be!
"Your Majesty, none of the concubines from the inner palace went; only the ministers and imperial relatives from the previous dynasty did."
Yelü Yanyun nodded, indicating that he already knew.
"Your Majesty, don't be so worried. In other words, your husband is now the king of the Great Qi Kingdom, so let's not think about things there. Your brother is no good person; he forced your father to abdicate!"
Yelü Yanyun showed no interest, calmly stroking her belly while looking out the window at the swallows flying around.
She envied the freedom of the swallows; as winter turned to spring, they could fly to wherever they wanted, according to their own preferences.
"Yunxiu, the swallows outside are chirping loudly. Why don't you send some palace maids to deal with them? It'll only annoy me!" Out of sight, out of mind. I don't want these free-spirited swallows flitting around in front of me anymore.
Yelü Yanyun propped himself up and walked outside the courtyard.
The people of Lihuatai began to drive away the swallows.
Qiao Siyu, who was passing by, saw this and began to mock, "This Noble Consort probably knows that her motherland is about to suffer. Even the swallows in the Qi Kingdom's harem are making her so upset! She actually has a group of palace servants chasing away the swallows so irrationally. How ridiculous!"
"Your Highness, please wait! This servant thinks I smell a strange odor, and it seems to be coming from Lihua Terrace. Your Highness, please leave this place of trouble. This Consort is pregnant! If anything happens to her, we will be held responsible. Please leave quickly!" Dixiang advised from the side.
She is always very sensitive to many scents, which may be because she has been working with Qiao Siyu in perfumery since she was a child.
Now that you mention it, it does seem to be true. There's a smell of rotting animal carcass, but it's not too strong! Let's go.
Qiao Siyu frowned. Rumor had it that there was a kind of witchcraft in the Northern Frontier that could bring the dead back to life, which required the use of animal corpses. Could Yelü Yanyun be praying for her motherland? In any case, she had better stay away to avoid being implicated in such a scandal.
Yunxiu followed the maid and drove Yanzi northward. The Jiayu Palace was deathly quiet. Yunxiu glanced at it from the palace road. Many guards were stationed at the gate, but she and several maids smelled an unpleasant odor.
"Alas, Consort Shuyuan has done a great service in saving the emperor, and so many people are taking care of her while she recuperates. Our consort is truly unfortunate!" A young palace maid beside her sighed, feeling hopeless about her future career.
Yunxiu glared at her, signaling her to stop talking. At this moment, what Consort Gui needed most was care and attention; she must not be hurt.
The palace maid reluctantly answered yes, bowed to Yunxiu, and ran away.
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