Chapter 1 Chapter 1 Spring March, Shangsi Day
In the third month of spring, it is the last day of the month.
On the reunion festival, people pick willow branches, dip them in the dew, and perform purification rituals to ward off disasters.
The city of Chang'an was bustling with activity, with red dates floating on the water and wine cups flowing along the winding stream.
When men and women meet, they give each other peonies to show their deep love.
The young emperor and empress were a perfect match, and under the watchful eyes of all the people, they boarded the boat hand in hand and headed for the water.
By the Qujiang Lake, the lights are just coming on and the people are filled with cheers, just waiting for the Emperor and Empress to hold hands and sprinkle the dew together to benefit all directions.
However, the moon was bright and the stars were sparse. It was a clear night, but fog suddenly rose on the river, and everything was white. The human voice seemed to be blocked out, and the world suddenly became quiet.
In the vast silence, Shangguan Xu, who was standing on the boat in the middle of the river, also became a little confused. She couldn't help but turn her head, trying to look for the figure beside her, but somehow, even though the two were so close, she couldn't see his face clearly in the haze.
Holding hands, the temperature of the fingertips gradually cooled down.
"The cabin is leaking! The bottom of the boat is broken!"
The sudden loud shouting broke all the silence, and the surroundings began to become chaotic and noisy, as if being pulled back to the earth.
The hull tilted and plunged into Qujiang River in an instant.
“Brother Jing!”
With a "buzzing" sound, the water around him pressed towards his whole body. The pressure and coldness quickly attacked every inch of his skin, and the suffocation brought fear.
Shangguan Xu tried hard to control everything and opened his eyes despite the cold and stinging river water.
She heard the noisy and chaotic sounds of the crowd outside, discarded all distracting thoughts, tried her best to hold her breath, and thought of one thing -
Reach out and grab the person next to you.
The dragon robe is luxurious, and its large sleeves are as smooth as silk when immersed in the water. Swaying with the dark waves, the golden threads between the sleeves reflect a suppressed light.
The person in front of him also stretched out his hands, with his sleeves blocking his body. Patches of blood spread in the water, and Shangguan Xu still couldn't see his face clearly.
But compared to all this, she wanted to hold him, hold his hand, and stop him from being swept away by the undercurrent.
However, no matter how hard she tried, his hand floated before her eyes, motionless, and she could only barely hook the red rope around his wrist.
The shadows on the water were all around her. She could clearly feel that he was leaving her. His fingertips were hooked on the red rope, and she could not go down no matter what. Even though she was extremely devastated and begged in her heart, "Don't go" countless times, in the end, all she could keep was this tiny thing on her wrist.
The red rope was hooked on the fingertips, gradually encircling the figure.
Watching him sink to the bottom and go away, Shangguan Xu sobbed and was unable to speak, his tears squeezed into his eyes by the river water, and he was in great pain.
Why!
Once again, I didn’t hold you back…
——
It was already unclear how many or how many times this had happened, but Shangguan Xu was once again awakened by the sourness in the corners of his eyes, and the hair by his ears was wet.
Qing He, the personal maid who had been guarding the front hall, brought in a basin of warm water, threw in a handkerchief, wrung it out, and held it up to her: "Your Majesty, are you having a nightmare again?"
It must be that Shangguan Xu shouted a few words in his dream just now, and the sound was heard by people in the outer hall.
However, Shangguan Xu did not speak. He just lowered his eyes, breathed lightly, raised his hand, wiped away the tears in the corners of his eyes with his fingertips, and then gently pressed his thumb against them.
Her eyes were indifferent and numb as she watched the tears being pinched by her fingertips and crushed along her fingertips to her palms. A cool breeze blew and a chill came over her.
Shangguan Xu's eyelashes flickered, and then he said softly, "He still refuses to see me."
——
Emperor Zhao of Zhou Jingzhi was the sixth son of Emperor Zhuang and also his second legitimate son.
Prince Huai died early, and Emperor Zhao was the youngest prince born to Emperor Zhuang in his middle age, so he was placed with high hopes since he was young.
Emperor Zhao was named the crown prince at the age of four and began to govern at the age of ten. Although he was only thirteen years old when he ascended the throne, he quelled the rebellion of Prince Liang during his reign, safeguarded the peace of the Jin Dynasty, attached importance to the administration of officials, reduced taxes and levies, and the national strength continued to grow.
Emperor Zhao's journey was legendary, and people all said that he had the potential to be a wise ruler.
However, all this came to an abrupt end on the night of Shangsi in the seventh year of Xining, the year when he was about to take power.
"Brother Jing, on the Shangsi day, the willow trees are covered with dew, and the purification ceremony is to ward off disasters."
Clear water drops sprinkled on his face. The young emperor subconsciously closed one eye, smiled and turned his head to avoid it.
The sunlight shines through the water droplets, becoming even warmer and yellower, softly reflected on the young man's face, highlighting his unique gentle temperament.
This was her childhood sweetheart, and now also her husband, her Majesty.
Shangguan Xu couldn't help but smile even more and handed the willow branch to him horizontally.
He was always gentle and didn't care about the water droplets remaining on his face. He just smiled with doting and gently took the willow branch from her hand.
Shangguan Xu saw him raise Yang Liu's hand, close his eyes, and a sweet and graceful smile hung on his face, waiting for his action.
Feeling the dewdrops hanging from the willow branches gently touch her forehead, the young emperor in front of her said to her in a gentle voice: "Purify yourself from disasters and enjoy happiness forever."
On the Shangsi day of March, spring is in full bloom, people bathe in orchid soup, enjoy the spring night, and pray for good health.
However, the next moment, a gust of wind suddenly blew over Qujiang River, and the hull suddenly tilted. In an instant, the entire cruise ship turned upside down.
The emperor and empress fell into the water at the same time, and there was an immediate cry of surprise on the shore. The surrounding imperial guards jumped into the water like arrows to rescue them.
On the third day of the third month of the seventh year of the Xining reign, the emperor and empress were traveling in their royal boat on the Qujiang River when it capsized and they fell into the water. The empress was rescued by imperial guards and survived, but the emperor's whereabouts were unknown. Seven days later, the emperor's body was found downstream, clad in his dragon robes, but his face was unrecognizable from being submerged in the river for so long.
…
Shangguan Xu took out the red rope that was treasured in the brocade box. The rope was too old and its color had become a little dark.
In the side room of the front hall, the fragrance of orchids is faint and elegant. The incense burner is placed on the long table, and the incense mist curls up and lingers on the portrait hanging high in front.
Shangguan Xu stood in front of the long desk, stroking the red string in his hand, looking out, and vaguely recalled many things...
This red rope was not hooked from his wrist in the water as she had just dreamed.
It was taken from his body.
To be honest, she didn't even see him for the last time.
The day he was found caused a sensation in the court and the country, but everyone who went to see him couldn't help but feel nauseous the first time they saw him.
After soaking in Qujiang for seven days, not only his face was ruined, but every part of his body became unsightly.
For him like this, even if she leaned over the coffin, her eyes swollen from crying, and looked at him again and again, how could it be considered the last time they saw each other?
In fact, she didn't believe that it was him, even if the person wearing it was his dragon robe, she still didn't believe it.
He is the king of a country, and in her heart, he is Brother Jing who can always take care of everything.
How could he die like this? How could she be willing to believe it?
Until she felt the red string she had woven herself among the flesh of the corpse's wrist...
He said he would always wear it.
She believed it.
"Why don't you want me to see you?"
Shangguan Xu sighed slightly, and after thinking enough about those things, he came to his senses and looked at the portrait in front of him with tears in his eyes.
It is the appearance of a tall and graceful young man.
"Is it because you're angry about my plan?" she asked sadly, "But you never saw me before."
I don't see her anymore, but she keeps coming. It's really...
Shangguan Xu smiled, his emotion unclear. "Well, I'll just stop seeing you. I'm used to it. The painters at Zuo Shangshu are quite skilled and can probably draw you about 70% of the way there."
As she spoke, her expression suddenly darkened again. "But it's only about 70%..." She raised her eyes and looked at the painting again. "If you don't come to see me again, I'll really forget what you look like."
"Empress." Qinghe called her softly when she reached the door of the side room.
Shangguan Xu turned his head away.
Qing He lowered his eyes and said, "Master Xu from the Censorate is here."
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