0121 The Sorrowful Lord (Part Six)
Zhan Yaoguang followed him into the inner room. Zhan Qing looked around and wanted to drag a stool over to sit with him, but she saw the boy lean against the window by himself, raising his eyebrows at her with a very lively expression.
"Sister Zhanqing, please speak your mind."
Zhan Qing thought for a moment, unsure of how to begin, so he tentatively asked, "I came to Chang'an and learned that they love to eat qingtuan cake tea here. It's smooth and doesn't taste bitter like the ones we have back home. Would you like to try some?"
"...Sister, I don't drink tea."
An awkward expression appeared on Zhan Qing's face. He glanced at Zhan Yaoguang's expression and saw that although he was standing in the room, his eyes kept glancing at the door, and his heart seemed to have wandered off somewhere else.
She was a little annoyed and couldn't help but say, "Thirteen!"
"I'm sorry, elder sister." Zhan Yaoguang finally looked away and looked at her seriously.
"You should know in your heart why we chased you all the way here."
Zhan Yaoguang paused for a moment, then spoke without hesitation: "I'm not going back."
Zhan Qing jumped up from the chair, glaring at him and demanding, "What did you say?"
Zhan Yaoguang neither dodged nor avoided her gaze, but looked straight back at her.
He has fair skin and bright eyes. When he smiles, his eyes are soft and beautiful, but when he is still or not smiling, he has a more cold and aloof air about him.
“Sister, I love her very much and want to be with her for the rest of my life. I’m sorry to trouble you, my brother, Shiwulang, and Shiqiniang, to come north to find me this time, but I really can’t go with you this time.”
He paused, then added, "Sister, you'd better not try to force me to leave. Even if all of you combined, you might not be able to beat me."
Zhan Qing swallowed hard, and seeing that his attitude was still unyielding, he couldn't help but let out a long sigh.
"Fifteen, do you still resent the clan chief's idea of making you a groom for a political marriage?"
The boy's eyes darkened, his eyelashes drooping low. Behind him, the leaves rustled, and occasionally a few sparrows flitted by. Zhan Yaoguang tilted his head, staring blankly at the azure sky for a moment, before finally saying:
"I don't."
Zhan Qing was certain that he cared about this, and was secretly delighted. She quickly continued, "Don't blame the clan chief, she has her own reasons." She sighed, "We have a long-standing feud with the Gan people. This time they have provoked the Dali people. We finally waited for the Dali army to arrive. If we want to take advantage of this situation to suppress their arrogance, then this battle is the one to decide."
"But the Dali Kingdom has always preferred to use marriage as a means of alliance when forming alliances. As soon as their Minister of Rites, Shu, arrived, he repeatedly hinted at the matter of a marriage alliance. However, the Dali Kingdom is powerful and prosperous, and it is impossible for them to send people to us. So we have to send people north."
“Our clan has always been different from others. Your sister Yuheng will be the clan leader in the future, so it is impossible to let her go. In this way, only you, the thirteenth, are left.”
Zhan Yaoguang's expression remained unchanged, her gaze still fixed on the window, where the sunlight lingered on the eaves, creating a clear and bright scene.
"It's none of my business. If that's all Sister Aqing wanted to say to me, then I'll be leaving now."
He pursed his lips, turned around, and prepared to walk out.
"Wait—" Zhan Qing quickly called out to him, and seeing that he had no intention of stopping, she couldn't help but shout loudly, "Even if the clan is in danger right now, you still won't leave?"
The boy paused for a moment, then finally stopped by the door.
Zhan Qing breathed a sigh of relief and continued, "The Gan people came prepared this time, and their strength should not be underestimated. Although previous dynasties sent some troops, they ultimately regarded us as a small, insignificant country in the south and did not take us very seriously. However, our two tribes share the same origin and are well aware of each other's fighting styles, so the battle was fierce and evenly matched. My grandmother is getting old, and it is only through Yu Heng's coordination of various places and negotiations with the generals of Dali that things have become somewhat beyond her capabilities..."
Zhan Yaoguang turned back, stared at her for a moment, and then a smile suddenly appeared in his eyes.
“Sister Aqing, don’t lie to me,” he said. “If it were really as you say, and the situation in the tribe was so critical, given the Gan people’s tendency to kill the innocent rather than let the guilty go free, they would have guarded the surrounding mountain passes so tightly that not even a bird could fly out.”
"But you not only came out easily, but also in groups of five, and even brought along Little Fifteen, who's a drag on the group."
Zhan Qing pursed her lips, having been easily exposed by Zhan Yaoguang, and had nothing more to say.
After waiting a while and confirming that she had nothing more to say, Zhan Yaoguang suppressed her smile and said seriously, "If there's nothing else, I'm really leaving this time. Sisters and brothers, please don't stop me anymore."
"...Wait a minute!"
Just as Zhan Yaoguang placed his hand on the door panel, about to push it open, Zhan Qing called out to him again.
"One last thing: if you still leave after hearing this, I have nothing more to say."
"If it were about your marriage to Miss Shu, would you still be so indifferent?"
Zhan Yaoguang paused, then turned around and stared at her intently.
Zhan Qing: "If you follow her like this without any status or identity, how will you face yourself if she marries someone else in the future?"
“I don’t care! If she doesn’t want to get married, I’ll take her with me. I’ll go wherever she wants, through the Five Sacred Mountains and the Yangtze River; even if she wants to marry someone else, I’m still willing to follow her!”
He truly was a well-behaved young man raised in their tribe. (The last line appears to be a nonsensical string of characters and doesn't translate directly.)
Zhan Qing gritted his teeth.
She cracked her knuckles, braced herself for a moment, and then said, "Don't be so pessimistic. Perhaps things will turn around. I heard you sent a letter to the clan chief?"
Zhan Yaoguang frowned: "Little Fifteen even told you this?"
Zhan Qing nodded: "The clan chief's reply arrived a couple of days ago. Would you like to take a look?"
As she spoke, she turned and walked to the bedside, pulled out a wax-sealed bamboo tube from under the pillow, and handed it to him.
The boy's fingers trembled, and he hesitated for a long time before slowly opening the bamboo tube and taking out the paper inside.
The above statement is simple, consisting of only three sentences.
The first line condemns his unauthorized escape, the second line hopes he takes care of himself, and the last line, written with vigorous strokes and a few drops of ink, clearly shows his inner turmoil and indecision, yet he still writes in the end—
This is no easy task, but it is what Fei Fei desires, and I am willing to give it my best.
"Although their empress and emperor have a daughter to please them, the little princess is only eleven or twelve years old and is not a good match for you. Therefore, they can only choose someone from the imperial family."
"Although Miss Shu is not a member of the imperial family, Vice Minister Shu is a pillar of the court and may become a prime minister in the future. If the emperor approves and bestows upon Miss Shu the title of county princess or township lady, you may well be able to achieve it."
"But there is no precedent for this, so Grandmother has to write to the Emperor of Dali in person to explain, and perhaps we can set a precedent."
Zhan Qing spoke gently, secretly observing his expression. Seeing that the other party seemed to be softening, but his attitude was not firm, he decided to take drastic measures. "By the way, it seems that Miss Shu has a troublesome marriage. Her father is in the village right now. Since you care about her so much, why don't you take this opportunity to go back and convey Miss Shu's feelings to Minister Shu? That way, your trip will not be in vain."
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhan Yaoguang suddenly raised his eyes.
These words struck a chord with him. Afu had clearly sent a letter a long time ago, so why hadn't Vice Minister Shu replied yet?
Was something delayed, or was the vice minister simply a pedantic person?
If it's the latter, he wouldn't mind using some underhanded methods, and he would make sure Afu gets what she wants.
He clenched his fist several times, then finally released it completely, his fingertips turning white, but his gaze became firm and steady: "Okay, I'll go back with you."
When Zhan Qing heard him agree, her anxious heart finally settled down, and she couldn't help but smile from the bottom of her heart.
"Thirteen, don't worry. Since your elder sister is taking you back, she will definitely keep her promise to you. She will also put in a good word for you with the clan elder!"
"When shall we set off?" Zhan Qing stood up abruptly and couldn't help pacing around the room. "I've been wanting to say this for a long time. During the time I've been in the Central Plains, my taste buds are practically dry. I just wish I could fly back immediately to have some food and wine to satisfy my cravings."
She rubbed her hands together, turned around, and started packing her things.
Zhan Yaoguang watched her bowing and packing her bags, her eyelashes drooping. Turning back, he remembered the people waiting for him outside, and lowered his voice: "Don't rush, let's talk about it tonight... at least let me take her home first."
"..."
———
Okay, that concludes this subheading.
Next chapter, a post before we part ways (pure post)
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