In front of the main hall, there was a gorgeous felt tent, a golden carpet spread on the ground, curtains fluttering, and snow-white flags with golden patterns fluttering in the wind.

The civil and military officials were dressed in their best clothes, standing at the steps, watching the armored Mobito riding into the palace. Behind him, the princes of the Northern Rong, led by Jinbo, came into the tent to meet Tanmaraga, holding letters of surrender, treasures and imperial maps.

After the ceremony and music, Jin Bo presented a letter of surrender. The ceremonial officer accepted the gift and read out the imperial edict ennobling them as kings.

There were laughter and joy in the front hall, and loud drums and music.

The ministers were chatting and laughing around the general who came from a noble family. Mobido did not get along with them, so he drank a few glasses of wine and walked towards the inner hall under the guidance of his personal guards.

Agarwood was burning in the inner hall, with wisps of green smoke floating in the air.

Bisha and Yuanjue stood in front of the hall.

Mobhido chatted with them for a few words, walked into the inner hall, and knelt on one knee to pay his respects.

Tanmarajiva sat in front of the hall without looking up, writing an imperial edict with a pen. He was wearing a monk's robe and looked dignified.

Mobito held his breath and dared not utter a word.

Bisha and Yuanjue, who entered the hall later, stood still and did not dare to speak.

There was a slight sound, and Tanmarajiva put down his pen, raised his eyes, and indicated his fate with his eyes.

Yuanjue hurried forward, picked up the edict he had just written, and handed it to Mobito.

After reading the contents of the edict, Mobidu's eyes widened and he could not hide his surprise.

Tanmaraka looked at him and asked: "Can you take on this important task?"

Mobido puffed out his chest and said loudly, "Yes!"

"Okay." Tanmo Luojia nodded slightly, looking down at him with his deep blue eyes, "From today on, you will be promoted to the general of the Jiedu Ya, and will be in charge of Sazhou."

Mobito's blood boiled, and he kowtowed, saying, "I will do my duty faithfully and will not let down the king's trust!"

He was from the Wujili tribe, not from a noble family, and did not believe in Buddhism. According to the rules, he could not enter the Jiedu Ya, nor could he stay in the Holy City for a long time. He was always just a prince of a foreign tribe. He led his army to victory, and the noble generals who accompanied him were flattered by officials along the way, but he was ignored. Now the king has promoted him as an exception, and he can stay in the Holy City in the future!

Bhisatta and Yuanjue smiled at each other and congratulated Mobitha. He stood up, smiled brightly, and his eyes sparkled.

Tanmarajiva lowered his eyes and continued to look through the memorial.

After several people left, Mobiduo suddenly scratched his head, turned back and walked into the hall, whispering, "Your Majesty, I have a private matter to report."

"say."

Mo Biduo said: "I have previously proposed to marry Princess Wen Zhao, and I beg the king to grant your permission...Princess Wen Zhao has already rejected me."

Tanmarajiva’s eye veil was lifted.

Mopiduo continued, "On the second day after I proposed marriage, Princess Wen Zhao wrote a letter to reject my proposal. I did not receive the letter at that time. On the second day after I went to Gaochang, the princess explained the reason to me in person. She already had someone in her heart and could not accept my intention."

Tanmarajiva held the memorial tightly.

When she left the holy city with Li Zhongqian, she also rejected Mo Biduo.

After saying this, Mobhido retreated.

Tanmarajiva sat there in a trance for a while.

After a while, Bisha entered the palace and said, "The king's appointment of Mobito as the general of Jiedu Ya may cause criticism."

Tanmaraka said calmly: "There is no construction without destruction. Mobito is not from a noble family, nor is he a descendant of an aristocratic family. The military needs people like him. You are the grandson of a princess, and you have too many ties to aristocratic families. Mobito will join the military, and you will lead the imperial guards, one light and one dark, one inside and one outside."

"In troubled times, use the methods of troubled times. That was a different time, this is a different time. The Northern Rong have been destroyed, and only Haidu Aling is left. It's time to make plans for the future."

Bisa felt sad and responded respectfully.

At first, Tanmarajiva was young and imprisoned by the aristocratic family, and the Northern Rong were watching covetously from the side. He had to use his identity as a Buddhist to suppress the aristocratic family, and then use the ruthless methods of Sultan Gu to shock the ministers. Now that the Northern Rong have surrendered, the biggest threat has been eliminated, and he must indeed make plans for the future.

After all, no one knew how many years Tanmarajiva could live... He had already made secret preparations to ensure that power could be smoothly transferred after his death so as not to cause unrest and allow foreign enemies to take advantage of the situation.

There was the sound of footsteps in front of the hall, and Yuanjue ran into the hall.

"Your Majesty, Princess Wen Zhao's personal guard came to say that the princess had something to do today and would not be coming back."

Tanmaraka asked, "Where did the princess go?"

"The princess went to the inn. The guards said that the princess and Duke Wei wanted to discuss something. If she doesn't return to the courtyard tonight, she may not be able to return tomorrow."

Tanmarajika frowned.

…

In the posthouse, Li Zhongqian was so anxious that he couldn't sit still.

The doctor applied medicine to Yaoying's eyes, wrapped them with cloth, and reminded her, "Change the medicine every two hours. Do not eat greasy or smelly food for a month."

Li Zhongqian sent the doctor out, turned around, and looked at Yao Ying, whose eyes were covered with a cloth, his face as gloomy as water.

Yao Ying couldn't see anything and felt a little uneasy. She reached out and touched the edge of the couch: "Brother?"

Li Zhongqian clenched his fist, took a deep breath, suppressed his anger, and held her hand, "Do your eyes still hurt?"

Yao Ying said: "I applied the medicine and it feels better..."

Li Zhongqian raised his voice: "Do you know that if Li Xuanzhen and I had stopped a little slower, you might have lost your life? What are you doing barging in here?"

Yao Ying raised her head and whispered, "Brother, Li Xuanzhen is the crown prince, you can't kill him in the royal court..."

"He has no regard for human ethics and has such dirty thoughts towards you!"

Li Zhongqian could no longer bear it and roared, "I can't let him live in this world!"

Whenever he thought about what Li Xuanzhen was thinking every time he looked at Yaoying, he was so angry that his hair stood on end, and he wished he could cut Li Xuanzhen into pieces. Li Xuanzhen actually had the nerve to chase him to the royal court!

Yao Ying breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that Li Xuanzhen would rather be misunderstood by Li Zhongqian than reveal her life story.

Her letter probably hadn't reached Du Sinan yet. She didn't want Li Zhongqian to know about it before she received Du Sinan's reply and confirmed her background.

"Brother, he wouldn't dare to do anything to me, and neither would Li De. Let's send him back first, and the better off not seeing it."

Li Zhongqian clenched a corner of the desk, his face became darker and darker, and his eyes turned red, as if they were burning.

Yao Ying couldn't see the expression on his face, so she grabbed his arm and shook it: "Brother... if you kill him, the risk is too great. Li De is the one we should be wary of... There are many conflicts between Li De and Li Xuanzhen. It's not a bad thing for us if Li Xuanzhen is alive..."

Li Zhongqian came back to his senses, looked at the cloth covering her face, and closed his eyes, "Okay, I won't kill him now."

Yao Ying breathed a sigh of relief.

She couldn't tell Li Zhongqian the whole truth now. Li Zhongqian had originally wanted to die with Li De and his son. If he knew the entanglement between her and Li Xuanzhen, he would sacrifice himself without hesitation.

After comforting Li Zhongqian, Yao Ying asked the guards, "How is the prince's injury?"

The guard replied, "The doctor has just bandaged the prince, and the external injuries have almost healed. Ah Lang beat the prince today, causing some new injuries, but none of them are vital."

Yao Ying nodded, "Bring him here."

After a while, there were footsteps in the house, and the personal soldiers led Li Xuanzhen into the house.

Yao Ying raised her hand and asked her personal guards to retreat to a corner. She asked, "What did you do? How did my brother know what you were thinking?"

Li Xuanzhen was silent for a while.

"Do your eyes hurt?"

His face was so swollen and bruised that his facial features could not be seen. He limped over to her, looked at the cloth on her face, and asked.

Yao Ying couldn't see anyone, so she sat still and said coldly, "It's none of your business."

Li Xuanzhen smiled bitterly. How could it be none of his business? He and Li Zhongqian had an argument, and she rushed to stop them, which was why her eyes were injured.

He leaned over and took her hand.

Yao Ying shook her hand subconsciously, and Li Xuanzhen's face twitched in pain. He felt bitter in his heart, but he endured the pain and held her hand tightly, "Don't move, I'll show you something."

He took something out of his sleeve and put it into Yaoying's hand.

Yao Ying frowned and fumbled for something in her hand. After a long time, she still couldn't guess what it was: "What is this?"

Li Xuanzhen didn't say anything for a long time.

All kinds of events from the past emerged in his mind one by one. He had tried hard to forget that past, but that memory was always firmly entangled in his heart. Even if he dug his heart out with a knife until it bled, he could not erase the memory of his acquaintance with her. He could only bury it deep in his heart and fill the void with hatred.

Later he discovered that he actually remembered everything.

"It's a clay figurine..." Li Xuanzhen said softly, "Your clay figurine."

He was locked up to recover from his injuries and made several clay figurines in her image. When Li Zhongqian saw the clay figurines that looked exactly like her, he understood everything.

Yao Ying's face was calm as she casually placed the clay figurine on a carpet and said, "I will send someone to take you back to Gaochang immediately. Your subordinates should have come looking for you by now. You can take care of yourself."

Li Xuanzhen closed his eyes for a moment.

She doesn't remember the clay figurine.

Or maybe she remembered, but she didn't care at all.

He had exhausted all her expectations, and now she didn't care no matter what he did.

"Why..." He clenched his hands into fists. The pain in his body was far less than the pain in his chest. "Qiniang, why did you stop Li Zhongqian from killing me?"

Yao Ying said calmly: "Because I don't want anything to happen to my brother."

Li Xuanzhen raised the corners of his lips and laughed at himself.

He had expected the answer, but he still asked it. He knew that he was asking for trouble, but he still held out a little hope, hoping that she would not be able to bear with him at all.

Just a hint is enough.

"Qiniang, you don't have to worry about Li Zhongqian finding out about your background..." Li Xuanzhen turned around and limped out, "I won't reveal the truth until you decide to tell him."

His voice sounded calm, even a little cheerful.

Even if Li Zhongqian and her personal soldiers misunderstood me, even if I was laughed at by the whole world, what could I do?

He doesn't care.

Yao Ying was worried that the night would be long and she would have many troubles, so she urged her personal guards to set off quickly. That evening, the personal guards escorted Li Xuanzhen out of the holy city.

She stayed at the post house to watch over Li Zhongqian and asked him to change her medicine personally to prevent him from sneaking out of the city to hunt down and kill Li Xuanzhen.

As soon as he saw her blindfolded, Li Zhongqian's anger disappeared and he no longer mentioned killing Li Xuanzhen immediately.

Yaoying sent her personal soldiers to the Wangsi to see Bisu, "If there is any emergency at the Wangsi, you must report it."

The guards came back and reported: "General Ashina said everything is fine, Princess, don't worry. If he has any problems, he will come to ask for Princess."

Yaoying felt relieved and tidied up to go to bed.

In the middle of the night, Yaoying had a nightmare and her body was shaking uncontrollably.

A hand gently stroked her forehead, the fingertips feeling slightly cool.

Yao Ying was half asleep and half awake. She smelled a familiar scent, hugged the hand and rubbed it, murmuring: "Master..."

The voice was long, delicate and soft.

The figure beside the couch stiffened slightly.

Yao Ying turned sideways, curled up into a ball, and leaned closely against the figure.

The sound of chanting scriptures came to my ears, the tone was melodious and cold.

Yao Ying held on to her sleeve tightly and was about to fall asleep when she suddenly woke up and grabbed it with both hands.

I feel empty and have nothing to hold on to.

She sat up. There was no sound in the room, it was very quiet. The sound of chanting just now seemed to be her illusion.

Yao Ying's face was still covered with cloth, so she couldn't see anything. She reached out and touched the edge of the couch. There was not a single wrinkle on the edge of the brocade carpet.

The corners of her mouth curled up slightly: "Mage?"

No response.

"I know you're here." Yao Ying said firmly, "How did you get here? Are you feeling better?"

She waited for a while, and then there was a slight rustling sound beside the couch.

A figure sat down beside her, and his slender fingers brushed her cheeks and untied the cloth on her face.

Yaoying sat there obediently, not moving a muscle, completely trusting.

Tanmarajiva moved closer and looked into her eyes, her brows furrowed.

Yaoying whispered, "Master, don't worry. I just can't see clearly for the time being. It will be fine in a few days. I pretended to be in pain today to scare my brother and calm him down."

She also deliberately fell to the ground so that the doctors would exaggerate her injuries.

Tanmaraka said nothing.

She asked her personal soldiers to keep the news secret. He sent his personal guards to investigate and found out that her eyes were injured, so she couldn't go back.

She lied to him.

The moment he knew she was injured, he could hardly control himself and wanted to come over and take her back himself... The obsession in his heart grew stronger and stronger.

Tanmo Luojia picked up the strip of cloth and tied it on Yaoying again, saying gently, "Don't hide it from me in the future."

The tone sounded particularly severe.

Yao Ying nodded: "I'm fine, but I have to stay in the inn for the next two days so that my brother can rest assured... Master, you should go back quickly and don't delay the important business."

As she spoke, her brows furrowed.

"You didn't practice?"

The new prescription brought by Mundadeva was effective. He had to keep taking the medicine and could no longer practice qigong.

Tanmarajika lowered his eyes and helped her lie down. "I don't have any energy. Go to sleep. I'll leave soon."

He had a lot of things to do, but she didn't know that those things were his responsibilities. He didn't ask for anything, and she was the only selfish desire he had besides his responsibilities.

And he could only visit her quietly late at night.

Yaoying lay back on the pillow.

Tanmaraka sat beside the couch. She tugged at his sleeve and said, "Master, what scripture did you just recite?"

"The Hundred Buddhas Sutra"...by reciting the name of this Buddha, one will often have good dreams, stay away from all difficulties, and attain the supreme Bodhi..."

He had just been reading in Sanskrit, but knowing that she couldn't understand, he changed it to Chinese. His tone was still clear and cool, like a piece of jade, noble and elegant.

Yaoying couldn't see his face, but listening to him reciting the scriptures word by word, she felt extremely peaceful and relaxed, and slowly fell asleep.

The silvery moonlight streamed into the room from the stained glass window. She was sleeping on her side, her face bathed in the dim light, her eyes covered with a cloth, her lips moist, her petals red and newly blossoming, as if waiting for someone to taste her character.

Tanmaraka leaned over, brushed away her hair with his fingers, and moved closer to her little by little, his fingertips gently brushing her face.

A creaking sound.

A dark shadow flashed past the window.

Tanmarajiva came to his senses, covered Yaoying with a brocade quilt, and got up and walked out of the house.

A tall figure stood in the depths of the courtyard, turned around and glanced at him, his eyes reflecting the cold moonlight, his gaze gloomy.

"What is your relationship with Mingyuenu?"

Li Zhongqian asked.

He was worried about Yaoying at night and came to see her. When he saw a man sitting beside her couch, he immediately drew his knife, but she smiled and talked to the man in a gentle tone, obviously very close to the man.

Tanmaraka remained silent and untied his veil. Under the moonlight, he revealed a face covered with scars.

Li Zhongqian frowned, "Sultan Gu?"

This person is good in every other way except for his scarred face... Yaoying herself is beautiful and doesn't care about other people's appearance, but she shouldn't have found someone so ugly... How can she bring him out to meet people after they get married?

Moreover, each of Sultan Gu's enemies is crazier than the other. Yao Ying has to live in fear every day when she is with him.

Thinking of this, Li Zhongqian snorted coldly: "Showing up in my daughter's room in the middle of the night is sneaky and inappropriate. Who do you think my sister is? She is the leader of the Western Army, and there is no shortage of people who love her."

Tanmo Luojia said in a deep voice: "Duke Wei is right... My identity is sensitive and the princess has been wronged."

"I come late at night so she can rest in peace."

Li Zhongqian narrowed his eyes and felt that the tone of the person in front of him was somewhat familiar.

Tanmo Luojia raised his hand and said, "Duke Wei, my people are outside the posthouse. Please follow them to a place."

Li Zhongqian raised his eyelids and glanced at the place he pointed. In the distance, he saw twinkling stars of fire.

"Where are you going?"

Tanmo Luojia said: "Go catch up with Li Xuanzhen."

A flame flashed in Li Zhongqian's eyes as he looked at Tanmarajiva with admiration.

"And you?"

"I am injured and cannot travel." Tanmo Luojia stood in front of the corridor, looking solemn. "Don't worry, Duke Wei. My people should catch up with Li Xuanzhen soon. This was done by me alone and has nothing to do with Duke Wei."

Li Zhongqian looked at him deeply, smiled, sheathed his sword, turned around and walked out of the corridor.

A group of personal guards wearing narrow-sleeved shirts and carrying longbows on their shoulders were waiting outside the inn with torches in their hands, leading his horses.

The wind howled, and more than an hour later, Li Zhongqian and his entourage quietly left the city from the back mountain and caught up with Li Xuanzhen who was blocked in the valley. Several guards who had gone ahead blocked their way.

Li Zhongqian put on a mask and stopped his horse on the hillside.

The personal guards drew their bows and arrows, and there were several whizzing sounds in the dark night, and all the arrows were shot towards Li Xuanzhen under the cover of rain. Li Xuanzhen's personal guards hurriedly helped to block them with their swords.

Yao Ying's personal soldiers were confused and didn't understand why they were stopped. They rode forward and took out the bronze talisman: "We have a secret order from General Ashina."

"We have a warrant from the Regent King. Please ask the Crown Prince of Wei to pass on a message to the Emperor of Wei! Please don't blame me."

The bodyguard answered loudly.

Several bodyguards looked at each other.

After the bodyguards finished speaking, they drew their swords and kicked their horses hard in the belly. A dozen or so riders rushed towards Li Xuanzhen with the sound of hooves like thunder. They arrived in front of Li Xuanzhen and raised their long swords.

Under the moonlight, the flashes of swords gleamed, and a dozen riders marched forward in neat steps with murderous momentum. Li Xuanzhen's personal guards were horrified and rode their horses to surround Li Xuanzhen. Wang Ting's personal guards laughed wildly and swung their long swords.

Horses neighed loudly, screams were heard everywhere, and several people fell off their horses.

Several long swords chopped at Li Xuanzhen from different directions.

“Your Highness!”

The bodyguards were furious.

The next moment, the hair on Li Xuanzhen's temples fell down.

The royal guards picked up his hair, put it in a brocade box, and handed it to Li Xuanzhen's guards: "Please present it to the Emperor of Wei on behalf of the Regent King. Princess Wen Zhao is a distinguished guest of the royal court. As long as Princess Wen Zhao lives, the covenant will last. People in the Central Plains say that the hair on the body is inherited from parents. These locks of hair belong to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and should be handed over to the Emperor of Wei."

Li Xuanzhen's personal guards were terrified and sweating profusely as they took the golden box.

They were in the royal court. If those knives had really chopped down on the prince's neck...

The royal guard looked at Li Xuanzhen and smiled, "Your Highness, Princess Wen Zhao doesn't want to see you again. For the sake of friendship between the two countries, it is better for you not to set foot in the royal court again. The royal court is thousands of miles away from the Central Plains, and there should be peace between us."

Li Xuanzhen's nose and face were bruised and swollen, and no expression could be seen. He turned his head to look in the direction of the Holy City with a cold gaze.

She came to the royal court for Sultan Gu. Sultan Gu caught Li De's weakness. He had never been to the Central Plains, but he knew so much about the Wei Dynasty.

The bodyguards climbed onto the horse tremblingly, grabbed the reins of his mount, and surrounded him and left.

Not far away, Li Zhongqian watched Li Xuanzhen and his group disappear into the night and patted the sword at his waist.

Sultan Ku is at least better than Du Sinan and Zheng Jing.

The author has something to say: Thank you for your concern~ Sanitary pants are really useful and solved a problem of irritability