Chapter 256 Xiao Zilan
The queen was instructing the cook to bring down the steamer. When she heard the emperor calling for a letter, the handkerchief in her hand fell to the ground.
She didn't bother to hold Xia Miaoyuan in her arms, and walked out with her skirt lifted.
The war in the northern border had been going on for several months, and her son, father, brothers, and nephews were all on the battlefield.
She was always concerned about their safety.
"Mother! Wait for me!" Xia Miaoyuan ran out with all his strength on his short legs.
When the family of three came to the main hall, the queen quickly unfolded the letter and read it carefully.
She read the letter from the second prince first, and her expression relaxed after reading it, and then she unfolded the letter from Xiao Tiehan.
But before she could look, Xia Zhengqi held her hand and whispered, "Forget it, I'll tell you first!"
"You have to be prepared, there is bad news."
The queen's body stiffened: "Did something happen to my brother or nephew?"
Xia Zhengqi shook his head: "No. Something happened to your little sister Xiao Zilan."
The queen felt as if her heart was being tightly grasped by someone.
Queen Xiao Ruoyu has a sister from the same mother, named Xiao Zilan, who is eight years younger than her.
Because the two sisters have a big age difference, Xiao Zilan was almost raised by Xiao Ruoyu when she was young.
Xiao Zilan simply regards her second sister Xiao Ruoyu as half a mother.
The two sisters have a deep relationship.
"What happened to Zilan? Is she dead or sick?" The queen asked in a hoarse voice.
Seeing the queen so anxious, Xia Zhengqi held her hand distressedly.
"No, Ruoyu, she should not be dead, she just disappeared."
However, this sentence did not reduce the anxiety on the queen's face at all. She shouted out of control: "What do you mean she should not be dead?! What happened to her?"
After a short pause, the queen unfolded the letter, staring at it, searching for the information she wanted to know.
Xia Miaoyuan was also shocked by her mother's inappropriate words and deeds, and stood at the door in a daze.
The queen usually attaches great importance to etiquette. Even when encountering major events, she will suppress her emotions and show a calm and dignified side. However, this time, as calm as she is, she still lost her composure.
[Xiao Zilan? Isn't that my aunt? ]
[I remember that she married a tribal leader in the northern border as a concubine. ]
[At that time, the Xiaolin tribe was very jealous of several powerful tribes in the northern border because of its lack of strength. ]
[A warlike leader took a fancy to my aunt and came to propose marriage. Although my aunt, who was beautiful, was unwilling in her heart, she still married for the peace of the tribe. ]
[Later, my mother and two brothers were all killed. Soon, the Xiaolin tribe was also wiped out by the Great Xia Army on the charge of treason. ]
[My aunt's life as a concubine was already difficult. After her natal family support was completely gone, her husband and other wives and concubines treated her even more wantonly and cruelly. ]
[I can't remember her final outcome, but it was tragic anyway. 】
【Alas, could it be that in this new life, she still cannot escape the bad fate? 】
Xia Miaoyuan looked at the letter in the empress's hand with worry.
While reading the letter, the empress listened to her daughter's voice, and her heart became even more upset.
No, no, no! Even if Xiao Zilan was as her daughter said in the last life, in this life, she and Emperor Mingxi are trying their best to turn the situation around, and the results are very good.
Then, Xiao Zilan's fate should also change.
She will be fine.
The empress tried to calm down and read the letter.
Xiao Tiehan said in the letter that before the war, she had sent someone to pick up Xiao Zilan back to her parents' home, but her aunt interfered and failed to go.
At the beginning of the war, Xiao Tiehan sent people to rescue Xiao Zilan, but was chased by the aunt.
Xiao Zilan fell off his horse in the chaos, and at this time, a sandstorm suddenly hit, and the yellow wind blew wildly, covering the sky and the sun.
After the sandstorm, everyone looked for Xiao Zilan, but they couldn't find him.
Now he is gone, and his body is gone.
"My Zilan!" The queen cried out in pain, and sat paralyzed on the chair, holding the pages of the letter tightly in her hands.
Xia Zhengqi hugged the empress's shoulders with heartache, and said softly: "Ruoyu, you must cheer up."
"I will send people to continue to help my father-in-law and others search for Zi Lan's whereabouts."
"However, you must also be mentally prepared. In such a situation, it is difficult to survive. You must be mentally prepared that she is no longer here."
"Even if you can't find her, you must take care of yourself."
The empress was not a brainless woman. She had already thought of what Xia Zhengqi said.
But when she heard Xia Zhengqi say it, she felt even more depressed and couldn't help sobbing.
She and Zi Lan had a deep relationship. When she married to Da Xia, Zi Lan was only a nine-year-old girl.
On the day she left home, Zi Lan burst into tears and ran after the carriage for four or five miles. No matter how people persuaded her, she refused to stop. She didn't stop
until she couldn't run anymore, then she collapsed on the ground and cried.
After that, the sisters could only see each other once in a long time.
The last time she saw her was five years ago. She
didn't expect that the farewell five years ago would be a farewell forever.
She really couldn't believe it, and didn't want to believe that Zi Lan, who was only in her twenties, left her like this.
Thinking of this, the queen was already crying.
"Mother..." Xia Miaoyuan stood on the other side of the queen and hugged the queen's shoulder tightly.
[Well, that's not right, my aunt should not be dead yet.] Xia Miaoyuan tried hard to recall.
The queen was startled and her crying suddenly subsided.
[I remember that my aunt in the book, although she suffered a terrible fate, she didn't die so quickly.]
[In the book, after the war in Northern Xinjiang, she seemed to have escaped from her husband's home during the chaos, but her situation after escaping was very bad.]
Recalling all this, Xia Miaoyuan coaxed in a baby voice: "Don't cry, mother, my aunt is still alive."
The empress's crying stopped abruptly. She looked at her daughter suddenly, clasped her daughter's shoulders with both hands and asked: "What did you say? My aunt is still alive?"
"Then where is she, do you know?!"
The empress's expression was a little scary. She was so concerned that she forgot to pretend in front of her daughter.
"Ruoyu, what are you doing? You are talking nonsense." Xia Zhengqi hurriedly covered for the empress.
"Miao'er was just talking casually to comfort you. How could she know where Zi Lan is? We just need to investigate carefully."
The empress came to her senses, let go of her hands, and murmured: "I hope Zi Lan is still alive."
Because Xiao Zi Lan was not an ordinary citizen, the emperor and empress wanted to find her, but they didn't dare to make a big fuss.
Worried that her disappearance would be discovered by other countries or enemies, and they would take the opportunity to do something.
Xia Zhengqi secretly sent people with Xiao Zilan's portrait to investigate.
However, two years passed in a flash, and Xiao Zilan seemed to have disappeared. From Northern Xinjiang to Daxia, there was no news of her.
On the other hand, the war between Daxia and the Xiao Lin tribe to unify the Northern Xinjiang has been going on for more than two years.
Xiao Lin's tribe has annexed most of the tribes, and the war is nearing its end.
...
Kunning Palace.
Xia Miaoyuan had just finished school and ran back to Kunning Palace.
Seeing that the queen was looking sad at the portrait of her aunt again, she hurried over and threw herself into the queen's arms.
"Mother, my aunt will definitely come back."