Chapter 136 Victorious Return to Court: Chen Junbo sacrificed half his fortune for you…
Two days later, Zhuang Rong mustered his troops and set off.
Li Yang and Linglong were both taken back to the Prime Minister's residence to be raised together, and their mother also had the opportunity to visit her maternal home.
What Li Yang never expected was that the Crown Prince came to find her, saying that he had volunteered to go with the army.
Li Yang seemed somewhat puzzled, but the Crown Prince only told her to wait for his news in the capital.
Li Zhen: "Zhaozhao, when I return, it will be the day we fulfill our promise."
Li Yang was puzzled and wanted to ask again, but before she could speak, Li Zhen stepped on the stirrup and rode away.
The Linglong sisters stood beside her, watching their father leave. Zhuang Jielong, as usual, forced herself to speak, "Flying to a higher branch..."
Before she could finish speaking, her older sister stopped her, saying, "Sister Zhao Zhao, if you have nothing to do today, would you like to go boating on the lake with me?"
Li Yang politely declined this unexpected kindness, but Zhuang Jieling was unusually enthusiastic today, and he couldn't refuse her hospitality.
Life went on like still waters running deep. After being taken back by the Zhuang family, Li Yang continued to sleep whenever he had nothing to do, or he would be dragged out for walks by his mother or Zhuang Jieling.
They were only counting down the days until the army returned to the capital, but unexpectedly, they were greeted by Chen Junbo first.
Upon seeing him, Li Yang wasn't particularly surprised. "Haven't you returned to Songshan Town yet?"
Chen Junbo: "Bi Fang and the others went back first."
Li Yang: "Oh."
In September, the daytime heat subsided, and the two stood facing each other in the courtyard.
It was neither hot nor windy today. The green leaves on the trees were still, with only a couple occasionally falling and splashing into the pond, creating ripples that quickly disappeared before the water returned to stillness.
Li Yang: "Then what about today?"
Chen Junbo: "Zhaozhao, why did you mention the divorce papers to His Majesty that day?"
Hearing this, Li Yang raised his eyebrows and looked at the other person, his eyes like still water, with a glimmer of light flashing across them.
"Do you know about His Majesty's bestowed marriage?" Chen Junbo paused for a moment.
After a moment, he seemed to have organized his thoughts, “This betrothal is a warning to you and me, and even to the Crown Prince. The blood ties between you and the Prime Minister’s family, and the marriage ties between you and me, cannot be severed so easily.”
"Zhaozhao, if you are unwilling, then I will..."
"So what?" Li Yang looked up at him. "What do you intend to do? Disobey the imperial decree?"
Chen Junbo's words forced her to retort with a question.
Seeing this, Li Yang stared at him and took a step forward, "Chen Junbo, I know everything you're saying."
"You know all that?" the man opposite murmured in disbelief.
Li Yang: "Yes, I know all of that."
I also know that our marriage, from beginning to end, was a game orchestrated by you.
Chen Junbo: "No..."
Li Yang: "You gave me a contract and told me not to have any unrealistic fantasies."
Later, you yourself tore up the contract, saying you wanted to live a good life with me.
Later, you wrote the divorce papers yourself and even handed them directly to my grandfather, who then used the burden of the family to force me to let go.
Chen Junbo, I want to ask you, what exactly does this marriage mean to you?
What am I in your eyes?!
The man was taken aback by her series of questions. "Zhaozhao, I love you, you know that."
“I know,” Li Yang said. “But Chen Junbo, your feelings are too shallow. I don’t want them anymore.”
Chen Junbo: "You think you can just say you don't want it anymore? How can our past relationship be considered shallow?"
Li Yang: "I'm just a plaything you keep at home. When you, Mr. Chen, are happy, you pamper me; when you're not, you have to do things your way."
You use the guise of doing it for my own good to unilaterally decide our relationship.
Have you ever shown me even a shred of respect?
No, not when they asked me to close the teahouse.
There was none when the divorce agreement was written.
Chen Junbo, I just want to ask you, what were you feeling when you wrote the letter of divorce? Did you not trust me, or did you not trust yourself?
"I just don't want you to get involved!" Chen Junbo shouted angrily. "I just don't want you to be implicated because of me."
"Fine!" Li Yang roared, "Then don't provoke me again, lest you drag me into danger next time! Isn't that exactly what you want?"
She shouted out her resentment with all her might, sniffed, forced back her tears, and stared fiercely at the man in front of her.
When they first met, the man stood on a high building in a white robe, like an immortal descended to earth. Now, tears streamed down his face, yet they could not conceal his serene and ethereal aura, as if he had been stripped of the mortal world.
Li Yang silently thought to himself, 'That's it, Chen Junbo. Go live your own life. There are too many past events between us. Don't let me drag you into hell.'
The argument between the two quickly attracted Zhuang Shutong's attention. Seeing her daughter's red eyes, clenched fists, and trembling shoulders, Zhuang Shutong felt a surge of emotion and stepped forward, saying, "Mr. Chen, it's inconvenient to receive you today. Please leave."
When Chen Junbo saw her, he let out a sigh of relief. "Zhaozhao, I'll be waiting for you."
As the man's figure left the courtyard, tears welled up in Li Yang's eyes and rolled down her cheeks. Her small face remained taut, refusing to let out a single sob.
In the days that followed, Li Yang never saw anyone from the teahouse at the Zhuang family's residence again. She heard that Zi Yan and Xiao Bai had gone back to the Bai family together, and no more news about Chen Junbai reached her.
Zhuang Jieling told her about the amazing plan that day, and then acted as if nothing had happened, never mentioning it again.
Li Yang thought that such a bold plan was bound to fail.
The only information the Zhuang family could obtain was that the war in the southern border was progressing smoothly, the army had won a victory, and would return to the capital soon.
Li Yang felt more and more exhausted each day, spending his days either lounging in his room or having someone bring him a chair to lie on in the campus and daydream.
If no one seeks her out to speak, she can remain silent all day. But if someone makes a special trip to find her, she will dismiss them within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.
That day, she heard from the servants that her uncle had returned and seemed to have come to the mansion with the second prince. He was sensible enough not to bother her.
That's good. She doesn't care about things on the battlefield, but she really wants to see the Second Prince and ask when her father's revenge will be achieved.
The Crown Prince seems to be very busy these days; he can't invite her to the residence, and even when he does, he doesn't see her.
Li Yang thought that perhaps he would only avenge his father's death after he got married. Oh well, it doesn't matter if it's a day earlier or a day later, it's all the same anyway.
Gradually, the servants from the mansion began to come and go more frequently in her small room, making it impossible for her to pretend not to see them. Boxes of jewelry and clothes were piled up in the courtyard, whether they were betrothal gifts or her dowry, she didn't know.
These past few days, she hasn't even gone to the main hall to eat. She just had her maid set up a small table in the courtyard and set out meals at set times. When she was hungry, she would eat a little more; when she wasn't hungry, she would just eat a little something, just to make sure the servants had something to report.
Anyway, they'll divide up the rest of the food.
On the eve of her wedding, the Crown Prince sent a letter inviting her to meet by the lake.
"What's there to talk about?" Li Yang thought impatiently, but she still packed up, adopting an attitude of needing someone's help.
Li Yang: "Your Highness the Crown Prince."
Li Zhen: "Zhaozhao, you've arrived."
Li Yang slightly bent and stretched his luggage.
Li Zhen said, "Tomorrow is the wedding day. Is there anything inappropriate? I will have them make changes."
"No." Li Yang turned his head to look at the shimmering water on the lake.
Li Zhen said, "On the day I returned to the city, Chen Junbo came to see me."
Li Yang suddenly turned around, looking at the other person with some fear, wondering what he meant.
Li Zhen smiled and said, "Zhaozhao, I asked you if you would marry me."
Li Yang smiled but didn't reply, instead focusing on the grass beneath his feet.
The other person continued, "Today, I will ask you one more time: are you truly willing to marry me?"
This person's words today were going in circles with her, and Li Yang was getting a little impatient. She looked up at the Crown Prince in front of her and asked, "What does Chen Junbo want with you?"
But then the other person let out a chuckle from his chest.
"Why did Your Highness summon me here today? Is there any progress on Father's matter?" Li Yang didn't dwell on the matter and instead asked the question that concerned him most.
Li Zhen only talked about the war, saying, "The reason why we were able to return to the capital so quickly after our mission to the southern border was largely due to the thorough preparations we made in terms of military supplies."
He looked at Li Yang and continued, "Not only are the food supplies plentiful, but the medicine to control the miasma is also extremely well prepared."
This battle cost one million taels of silver.
Li Yang didn't understand why he was saying these things to him today.
“Zhaozhao, Father is right. By marrying you, I have gained the salt industry of Lianghuai and the Zhuang family lineage.”
As the Crown Prince, these are resources I absolutely need.” Li Zhen’s calm tone revealed the truth that Li Yang least wanted to hear. She had already figured these things out during her time at the Zhuang residence.
Li Yang: "If there's nothing else, I'll head back to my residence now."
Li Zhen: "Zhao Zhao, aren't you curious about where all this money came from?"
Li Yang didn't want to listen anymore and just kept walking. He heard from behind, "Chen Junbo sacrificed half of his fortune for you."
A flash of lightning seemed to strike my mind.
Li Yang's steps were forced to stop by these words, and he could hear the person behind him still saying, "On the way back to the capital, I hesitated about whether or not I should let you go to live with him."
Li Yang couldn't listen to anything else; her mind was filled with what the Crown Prince had just said: one million taels of silver, Chen Junbai. Salt merchants were wealthy, but she had seen the account books. In the current situation, it was impossible for the Chen family to escape with one million taels of silver without suffering heavy losses.
What did Li Zhen mean by "half of his fortune"? Did he sell his assets?
She simply couldn't understand why Li Zhen wanted to tell her all this today. After hesitating for a moment, she turned around and said, "Your Highness, these things are no longer my concern. As you know, my father's death is inextricably linked to the Chen and Zhang families."
"Your Highness, instead of constantly testing me, I'd like to ask if there's been any progress with the Fourth Prince."
Seeing that she was angry, Li Zhen then told her that he had captured a spy in the southern border region. Under severe torture, he learned from the spy that someone in the capital was colluding with foreign tribes, which was why they had suffered repeated defeats in the previous battles.
With Chen Junbo's financial support, the army was fully equipped and had plenty of weapons. They marched straight to the enemy's stronghold and seized a large number of letters.
It turned out that Li Zhao knew he might not be able to compete with his elder brother, the emperor, in the court. Knowing that Li Zhen would personally lead the troops to the southern border, he left a contingency plan, hoping to eliminate his rivals through the hands of foreign tribes.
Unfortunately, he was too foolish. He wrote the letter in his own hand and attached his personal keepsake, leaving him with no way to argue his case.
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