Chapter 5 "Go well, go as fast as you can..."
The Dingbei Prince's Mansion was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. In the main hall and the entire courtyard, only the three members of the Dingbei Prince's family stood facing each other.
As soon as the sound of galloping hooves from the Baili Xunzhou boat reached the gatehouse, the maids and servants of the Prince's Mansion found excuses to rush to the backyard as if fleeing a disaster. A pot of flowers was carried by four people crammed together, running faster than rabbits.
Shan Yi didn't dare enter the courtyard. He huddled timidly in the gatehouse, leading his horse, peeking out cautiously. As soon as the Prince of Dingbei drew his sword, he quickly pulled his head back and covered his ears in terror.
What the young master said was truly outrageous; he dared to say it, but he dared not listen to it!
“I said I would defy the imperial decree and refuse the marriage,” Baili Xunzhou said, word by word. “If Father insists on this marriage, he can adopt a new son from a collateral branch to marry me. I am willing to give up my position as heir apparent.”
The Prince of Dingbei was nearly knocked over with rage, his face as black as the bottom of a pot: "What nonsense are you spouting! I will have to punish you with family law today!"
In ordinary families, family discipline usually involves bamboo sticks, rulers, or copying family rules and imposing monthly fines. However, the family discipline of the Prince of Dingbei's mansion is a long sword bestowed upon him by the late emperor.
A woman's soft cough rang out, and the Prince of Dingbei, who was sheathing his sword and preparing to deliver a powerful blow to Baili Xunzhou, slammed on the brakes and nearly twisted his back.
Princess Dingbei, sitting to the side, cleared her throat to stop the farce from unfolding. She wore a light purple brocade satin robe with wide sleeves, over which was an apricot-white inner garment. The collar and cuffs were trimmed with a thin velvet, and her gentle and elegant demeanor was evident even when she was sitting upright.
"In this house, do people only speak when it involves knives and guns?"
After being glanced at by her beautiful eyes, the father and son stiffened their necks and looked away.
"My lady, you are wise! This brat doesn't even acknowledge us as his parents anymore, how can we let him go unpunished!" Prince Dingbei quickly interjected.
Baili Xunzhou retorted to his father, "How dare you, as a father, spread rumors to my face! If you don't acknowledge me as your son, don't try to discipline me!"
After yelling at her father, Baili Xunzhou met her mother's gaze, and her tone softened, but remained firm: "In short, I will not do this arranged marriage."
The Prince of Dingbei snorted coldly: "If you are unwilling to marry her, I doubt the girl will be willing to marry you either! A perfectly good princess would travel thousands of miles to marry such an unreliable man as you, and she would probably be crying her eyes out!"
"She was unwilling and I was unwilling, so wouldn't it be perfect if we broke off the engagement and everyone was happy?"
"Do you think the Emperor's decree of marriage is like going to the market to buy vegetables? Do you think you have the right to be picky?"
"Say less, both of you." The princess had a headache. One of the father and son had an openly explosive temper, while the other had a hidden temper. When they clashed, it was like a needle against a wheat awn. If she hadn't been at the manor today, the two of them would probably have already started fighting in the front yard.
"Azhuo, you and I both know this marriage is not simple. Don't act like a child." The princess called out Baili Xunzhou's childhood name softly, her tone unhurried, with an elegant and gentle tone of reassurance, yet leaving no room for doubt. "The military budget is tight right now, and those small towns on the border are not peaceful. If we want to prevent chaos in the northern frontier, the most important thing is to ensure that His Majesty does not doubt us."
Bai Lixun's brows furrowed, suppressing a hint of irritation. He understood the logic, of course, but said, "This is my marriage; must it be treated like a business transaction?"
The princess took a sip of tea to calm herself, and without answering, directly ordered: "Have people prepare the wedding ceremony. This marriage must not be neglected under any circumstances. A-Zhuo, you are especially not allowed to cause trouble."
The princess casually placed the teacup on the table, and the bottom of the cup touched the sandalwood table with a soft "click," which made Baili Xunzhou hang his head in dejection and feel depressed.
Without a word, he turned and walked away, the hem of his robe fluttering in the wind.
Shanyi, who was guarding the gatehouse, followed with his horse.
"Young Master, where are we going? Are we going to keep the young marquis company?" Shanyi led the horse and hurried after them. When he mentioned the young marquis, his brows furrowed into a bitter expression.
"Go to the Jiyu Camp and transfer five hundred men to come with me out of the city."
Why leave the city? Shan Yi was taken aback, recalling the argument in the manor earlier, and her expression changed several times: "Isn't this a bad idea? What if they hijacked the princess's carriage..."
Baili Xunzhou looked at him with a puzzled expression: "Why are you kidnapping a princess?"
"You're both mobilizing troops and leaving the city; are you planning to abduct the princess halfway and ruin this marriage?"
Baili Xunzhou: "..."
Shan Yi felt a sharp pain on the back of his head as Baili Xunzhou slapped him hard.
Baili Xunzhou angrily retorted, "Do you take me for some kind of heartless bandit? You think you can kidnap a princess? You'll kidnap your dog's head!"
Shanyi howled and hid behind the horse, "I was wrong, I was wrong, so what exactly are you going to do, Your Highness?"
"Are you brainless?" Baili Xunzhou gritted his teeth in anger, reminding him, "Little River Bend!"
Shan Yi suddenly realized, but said, "Qing Yi must have already made arrangements since she received the news. She certainly doesn't need another prince. At this juncture, you've run off to such a far place. Won't the prince suspect that you've run away from your marriage?"
Baili Xunzhou mounted his horse, giving him a cold glare: "This young master is in a foul mood, and my spear is thirsting for blood. You want to..."
"Your subordinate will go now!" Shan Yi spurred his horse and galloped away, his voice fading into the distance.
*
As the moon turned a full inch and the peonies bloomed in all their glory, it was time for him to retire from the palace and depart for his final rest.
Emperor Jiayu left court early in the morning and took Feng Mian to open the door of the small shrine in the inner court. The plaque for Feng Mian's birth mother, Princess Anle, was placed there.
An ever-burning lamp burned in the side room, and the air was filled with the scent of sandalwood and the cool, damp smell of the blue bricks.
Feng Mian knelt on the soft cushion, in front of her was an ebony memorial tablet inscribed with the words "Memorial Tablet of the Late Princess Anle, Chu Qingli".
The name in gold lacquer has clearly been frequently touched up, and it still looks as if it were newly made.
With incense burning in his hand, Feng Mian stared blankly at the portrait hanging above the memorial tablet through wisps of straight, thin smoke.
She had never met her mother.
When she was little, she quarreled with Zhao Ning. Consort Rou took Zhao Ning's side, and she was furious. She found an opportunity to scare Zhao Ning into tears. Consort Rou pulled Zhao Ning into her arms and coaxed her softly. The little girl was very envious of Zhao Ning for having a mother's love, so she took a few steps over, wanting to get a sweet and soft hug too, but Zhao Ning pushed her away.
Zhao Ning cautiously clung to Consort Renrou's arm, her tender voice blaring that Feng Mian had caused her own mother's death and that she was not allowed to approach her mother!
Xiao Fengmian only learned later that her birth mother had died during childbirth, and many people were secretly spreading rumors that she had caused Princess Anle's death. It is said that in the first day or two after her birth, even Emperor Jiayu, out of anger, never looked at her once.
Upon learning of this, the little girl cried herself to illness. Emperor Jiayu was furious and forbade any further discussion of Princess Anle's death in the palace. Emperor Jiayu said that Fengmian was born carrying her mother's love and was a treasure that Princess Anle was willing to protect with her life. She should live on in Princess Anle's place, which finally comforted little Fengmian.
Emperor Jiayu watched as Fengmian offered incense and paid her respects, his expression complex and filled with emotion. He sighed, "Sister, Xiaoman has grown up safely. I took the liberty of arranging a marriage for her, hoping to continue to protect her health and well-being. If you have a spirit in heaven, you can rest in peace now."
Feng Mian bowed three times. Feeling embarrassed to speak to her mother's memorial tablet in front of Emperor Jiayu, she kept her thoughts to herself.
She secretly calculated that if her mother had been reincarnated after her death, she would now be a young woman of marriageable age. She wished her mother good health and happiness in this life, that she would marry a suitable husband who could accompany her for a long time, and that she would be free from illness and disaster, and live a carefree life, so that her mother would no longer have to worry about her daughter.
After paying respects to Princess Anle, Emperor Jiayu personally escorted Fengmian out of the palace gate and secretly gave her a brocade pouch, instructing her to open it only when she encountered difficulties.
Feng Mian laughed at him for actually trying to learn the strategist's clever schemes.
Emperor Jiayu didn't say much, but in truth, he had been worried about Fengmian's marriage to the northern frontier. He had several sleepless nights and almost considered breaking off the engagement. However, remembering the preciousness of the Baili Prince's birth chart and the fact that an emperor's word was worth a thousand pieces of gold, he managed to hold back.
Just before boarding the carriage, Consort Rou gave Feng Mian a gentle hug with a complicated expression. Marriage is never easy for a woman, and for her daughter's happiness, she had orchestrated a mix-up. Now, she could only hope that Feng Mian could truly enjoy a few years of good life.
After a long farewell, the carriage carrying Fengmian finally slowly drove out of the tall palace gate.
At that moment, in the Summer Moon Palace, a figure sneakily climbed over the wall and fell down.
Chu Jinglian cried out in pain and was helped up by Bitao, a maid who climbed over the wall.
"Princess, are you alright?"
"Something's wrong! This princess has something important to report! What kind of dilapidated wall is this in the Shuyue Palace? I'll have Father Emperor tear it down tomorrow!" Chu Jinglian kicked the wall in a fit of rage, then turned around and found the entire Shuyue Palace completely empty. She froze, "Where is everyone?"
Hearing the commotion, a palace servant ran over, bowed respectfully to Chu Jinglian, and replied, "Your Highness, the Princess should have already left the palace by now."
Like a bolt from the blue, Chu Jinglian couldn't believe it: "You left? Then why are you still here? Aren't you a palace servant of the Summer Moon Palace?"
When this matter was mentioned, the palace maid said with a mixture of gratitude and embarrassment, "The princess is so kind as to ask if any of us are reluctant to leave our homeland. Therefore, we do not need to go to the northern frontier with the princess. We can stay in the Summer Moon Palace to sweep and clean, and we can leave the palace when we reach the age of 18."
Chu Jinglian's chest heaved several times, filled with anger, frustration, and disappointment. She was still serving her punishment, and remembered that Feng Mian was leaving the palace today. That's why she secretly slipped out, hoping to see Feng Mian one last time, to mock her for getting such a good marriage, and to see her rarely embarrassed expression. And now, how could she already be gone…?
"Good riddance, the faster the better, no one will compete with me for Father's favor anymore!" Chu Jinglian's feelings were extremely complicated. The person she had hated since childhood was finally gone. She should be celebrating with firecrackers, but instead, she felt a bitter taste in her mouth.
But she kept saying, "She'd better really change her name, and not die in the northern frontier. People who freeze or die of disease are all incredibly ugly. She doesn't want to be laughed at as an ugly monster after she dies, does she?"
The horse-drawn carriage rumbled on the bluestone road, and the sounds of bustling people from the market could be faintly heard on both sides of the road.
Just as Feng Mian was about to lift the carriage window to take a look at the scenery of Shengjing Street, she sneezed, startling Liu Ying who quickly brought over a porcelain bowl bigger than Feng Mian's face to feed her medicine.
"Princess, please drink your medicine first before looking at the scenery."
She gulped down a large bowl of medicine, her face contorted in a more bitter expression than Feng Mian's. "The illness is slowly healing, and the poor princess is about to leave the palace before she's fully recovered."
Feng Mian, wrapped in a rose-red cloak adorned with butterflies and peonies, sat back in the cushioned car seat. Her face was rosy from the treatment, indicating that she was actually fine. However, she was about to embark on a long journey, so she needed to continue taking her tonics.
She took the candied fruit that Wu Liu offered her and eagerly lifted the curtain to look outside.
Having lived in Shengjing for so many years, she had almost never been out on the streets to see the bustling city life, and she rarely even visited the imperial palace. Therefore, everything she saw was new and exciting, and she couldn't bear to blink. It was just a pity that she would probably never see this scene of Shengjing again in the future.
"Hey, look! That looks like the top scholar of this year's imperial examination!" Liu Ying peeked out from beside Feng Mian, her eyes sparkling as she stared at a spot. "He really is as handsome as in the portrait!"
She loved looking at beautiful women more than anything in her life. When she was on duty in the palace, she was like a mouse that had fallen into a rice jar. With just a glance, she could tell that seven or eight out of ten men were good-looking. If a talented young man was not found outside the palace, she would search for his portrait to look at. That's how she was able to recognize the top scholar in the imperial examination.
Upon hearing this, Feng Mian followed Liu Ying's gaze and met the eyes of the person looking at him from the teahouse.
The young man, whose face was as blue as clouds, leaned against the window frame, looking down, and remained gazing silently for an unknown period of time.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
