Chapter 88 There Will Be a Day When We See the Sun Again
Liu Yuan had a carefree, street-smart air about him, not at all like a young man from an aristocratic family. "Hey, you kid actually recognized me."
"I've seen your portrait on my father's imperial desk." Xihe smiled at Liu Yuan.
Emperor Jingyuan once asked Xihe to carefully identify the portraits of his ministers and write down their age, relationship with their spouses, abilities, etc.
Although Liu Yuan's appearance was damaged, Xihe still recognized him at a glance.
Liu Yuan's expression changed slightly. His nonchalant aura gradually dissipated, and he looked more inquisitive. "Imperial case? Are you one of His Majesty's princesses?"
Xihe didn't respond, but glanced at Xiao Mingxuan, seeking his advice.
Xiao Mingxuan lowered his eyelids slightly and asked a different question, "Why does General Liu ask this? Is her identity important to you?"
"Of course it's important!" Liu Yuan stared at Xihe with his bright eyes. "You are...Princess Zhaoyuan, am I right?"
Although he had been far away from the border for many years, he still knew a little about the affairs of the imperial city.
Emperor Jingyuan had only two princesses. One was the fourth princess, Zhao Siyuan, who was about ten years old. He had met her once when he returned to the capital to report on his work. Although a woman's appearance would change over the years, she could still be recognized by some of her features. The one before him showed no trace of the fourth princess.
Then the only one left was the sixth princess, Princess Zhaoyuan, who was in the emperor's favor.
Liu Yuan's gaze was too intense. Xiao Mingxuan frowned and hid the little girl behind him again. "General Liu, if you have time to guess my identity here, why don't you tell me why you appeared in the secret room of the Jiang family in Jiangnan when you should have been in the Imperial City Prison?"
The one who went to the border to change guard was Princess Zhao Wanyu, and the ones escorting him were Emperor Jingyuan's men. Neither side would allow Liu Yuan any chance to escape.
Even if we take a step back and say that Liu Yuan really escaped, he could have gone anywhere, so why was he imprisoned in Jiangnan?
What happened in the meantime was something they didn't know about.
"The Imperial City Prison?" Liu Yuan suddenly smiled, smoothed down his straw-stained black hair, and revealed his entire face. "You're right, there is indeed someone in the Imperial City Prison."
Xiao Mingxuan asked calmly, "Who is imprisoned in the Imperial City?"
"It's Liu Yuan, the guilty minister Liu Yuan." Liu Yuan still looked nonchalant. He walked to the table beside him, got a cup of tea, and drank it all in one gulp. "Tsk, this Jiang Zhongguo is really stingy. The tea leaves have no taste. He didn't even think to change it for me. He's so stingy."
If Liu Yuan changed his clothes, as he looked like he was strolling leisurely in the garden, some people might really think he came to the iron prison to drink tea.
"Two Liu Yuans?" Xihe asked in disbelief.
"Why not?" Liu Yuan finished his drink and leaned against the wall, his eyes hidden under his black hair showing a hint of loneliness. "Whoever they say is Liu Yuan is Liu Yuan. The one inside is Liu Yuan, and so is the one in front of you."
"No, there's only one Liu Yuan." Xiao Mingxuan suddenly spoke up, saying firmly, "General Liu has been imprisoned here for two or three years, right?"
As soon as he entered, Xiao Mingxuan observed his surroundings. This iron cage was severely worn out. It was definitely not a one-year thing. It must be at least two or three years old.
In addition, the wounds on Liu Yuan's body were a combination of old and new wounds, and they had been there for some time.
Liu Yuan paused, then sneered, "I recognize you, Xiao Mingxuan, that little bastard from Beili."
Xiao Mingxuan's expression remained unchanged. "I remember General Liu, too. It was you who escorted me to Tianshuo. You were the only one who treated me like a human being and gave me food."
When Beili was defeated and sent a hostage here, everyone hated him and wanted to starve him to death on the way. They beat him up whenever they got the chance.
Only Liu Yuan would give him food and protect him all the way to Tianshuo.
"It's just a matter of the past. Please remember it, Ninth Prince." Liu Yuan seemed to be lost in memories, but then he woke up with a trick and couldn't help but laugh bitterly. "Time has passed, and our situations have been reversed."
"I have always had doubts about what happened on New Year's Eve, but now it seems that most of my doubts have been resolved." Xiao Mingxuan stepped forward and waved at Liu Yuan. Although Liu Yuan didn't know what the other party wanted to do, he walked over subconsciously. Unexpectedly, Xiao Mingxuan directly handed him a steamed bun.
Liu Yuan was stunned for a moment, then smiled calmly, took it, and gobbled it up, finishing the steamed bun in two bites.
"Aren't you afraid it's poisonous?" Xiao Mingxuan asked in surprise.
Unexpectedly, Liu Yuan waved his hand nonchalantly, "I'm starving to death, so who cares if it's poisonous or not. Besides, if you poison me to death, I'll definitely drag you down with me!"
Xiao Mingxuan smiled softly and said nothing more.
Xihe hurried over and gave all the snacks in his purse to Liu Yuan, "General Liu, eat~"
Liu Yuan took it without hesitation and poured it all into his mouth.
That bastard Jiang Zhongguo only gave him water to drink and only one meal every few days. He was already starving.
After filling his stomach a little, Liu Yuan asked, "Did you ever think that I would really do that?"
Although he was trapped in Jiangnan, the bastard Jiang Zhongguo told him vividly what happened on New Year's Eve.
"You wouldn't," Xiao Mingxuan said calmly. "I've heard about you. You became famous at a young age, abandoning literature for a military career. A young man from an aristocratic family gave up the privileges bestowed upon him by his ancestors to fight in the military. I was just a four-year-old hostage back then. You could have turned a blind eye. Even if I died, you wouldn't have been guilty. But you didn't. You still saved me and brought me safely to Tianshuo."
Liu Yuan looked at Xiao Mingxuan and thought of the little brat who rolled in the dust back then. He said, "I don't need to get angry with a child."
"Yes, you have a kind heart towards me, a prince of an enemy country, let alone your own soldiers." Xiao Mingxuan rolled up his sleeves and wiped the dust off his face. "You would never embezzle food and wages, nor would you shoot soldiers, and certainly not kill the garrison commanders."
From the first moment he recognized the other person, Xiao Mingxuan knew that his guess had come true.
So many years have passed, even he has changed, but Liu Yuan has not changed at all.
"General Liu wouldn't do it. Who is that Guan over there?" Xihe was confused. Two Liu Yuans appeared at once. The younger brother said that General Liu wouldn't do those things. Then who did it?
"If my guess is correct, the imprisoned 'Liu Yuan' in the imperial city must have the same appearance as you. You were imprisoned here for many years, and that person impersonated you and stayed at the border. The identical appearance aroused no suspicion." Xiao Mingxuan unraveled the mystery and quickly came to a conclusion. "If Chen Wangshi hadn't filed a complaint with the emperor in Beijing, that person would likely have remained undiscovered."
Liu Yuan's expression remained unchanged. After a moment, he laughed out loud. His laughter was wild and arrogant, but there was obvious pain in his arrogant laughter. "You little bastard, you are really powerful."
He laughed for a long time, until the wound on his chest burst open, causing a dull pain, and then he slowly stopped. "I thought I was going to take this secret to the grave, but then you two unexpectedly barged in. I really don't know if it's God's mercy or the world's kindness that allowed this secret, which has been silent for many years, to see the light of day again."
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