Chapter 23 I found you, took you away, and married you…
Her father.
While in Yangyi County of Shangjun, Su Dan accidentally discovered an old item that Su Chan treasured.
He initially thought they were just children's toys, so he put on a stern face and scolded her, saying, "You spend your days eating and drinking to your heart's content, and you have no interest in anything." As the daughter of the Grand Tutor and the Princess, she is not as gentle and virtuous as the daughter of the "short-sighted" Grand Marshal and the "vulgar woman."
Qu Yang initially entered officialdom through family connections, rising through the ranks from Gentleman of the Palace to Commandant of the Imperial Carriage, Minister of the Imperial Household, and finally Grand Marshal and General-in-Chief—all military positions.
His wife, Qu Yan, did not come from a distinguished family. Ever since she had a fight with the Princess, she had earned a reputation as a shrew in the whispers and gossip of Chang'an.
When Su Dan saw that the character "思" was engraved on one ear of the pitch-pot and the character "齐" was engraved on the other ear, he immediately flew into a rage.
"What traitorous item?"
He was furious and picked up the pitch-pot and smashed it on the ground.
"Father, no! No!"
Su Chan screamed and ran over, picking up the arrow-throwing game.
The bronze pitch-pot hit the rough stone steps, chipping off a lot of the paint.
The ear with the character "齐" written on it was rickety and mottled.
"You're hiding the possessions of a traitor! Are you jealous that your father still holds a nominal marquisate? Are you jealous that your mother wasn't convicted of treason and didn't end up in prison and die like the Prince of Yan?"
Su Dan strode up to her, snatched the bronze pitch-pot from her hand, threw it to the ground, and kicked it away angrily.
"No, no, Father, Father, they, they did not commit treason, they are not sinners..."
Su Chan hugged Su Dan's leg and cried uncontrollably.
"Don't talk nonsense!"
Seeing that the situation was not good, the maid Huilan invited the Grand Princess of Yangyi.
The Grand Princess helped her daughter up and comforted her gently.
Su Chan sobbed, her voice trembling. She tugged at her mother's sleeve and choked out, "Mother, when Xun grows up and is no longer held back by the Grand Marshal and the General, he will surely clear the names of my cousin the Crown Prince, my cousin the Crown Princess, and A-Yu, won't he?"
Princess Yangyi tenderly wiped away her daughter's tears and said softly, "Justice will prevail, and the truth will always come out."
Su Dan sneered, "If the former Crown Prince and the Imperial Grandson hadn't died, how could Xiao Xun have ascended the throne? Exonerating them is just a way of proclaiming to the world that his own throne was illegitimate."
"It was the late emperor! It was the late emperor who gave Ah Xun the throne, how could it be illegitimate?"
Su Chan's eyes were bloodshot. She picked up the pitch-pot, dusted off the dirt, and hugged it tightly to her chest.
Su Dan's lips twitched: "So, you want him to offer sacrifices at the ancestral temple, saying that the late emperor, in his later years, was incompetent, tyrannical, and suspicious, and wrongly killed his own sons, grandsons, and brothers, and wrongly killed 30,000 people in Chang'an?!"
Su Chan cried and argued, "Ah Xun, he, he told me that he didn't believe the late Crown Prince and the others would plot a rebellion."
Su Dan said coldly, "So what if you don't believe me? He won't exonerate them. Impossible, never. As long as he remains in that position, Xiao Xun, Xiao Xun's son, Xiao Xun's grandson, and all his descendants will never do such a thing."
He looked at the pitch-pot in Su Chan's arms, stared at the character "思" (si), and gritted his teeth, saying, "Xiao Heng and Xiao Yu, they will be forever and ever, generation after generation, traitors, sinners, and villains."
Thinking of this, Su Chan bit her lip and told the maids Huilan, Zhilan, and others not to pack anything else, including some clothes and cosmetics, and to leave them in the Moon Chamber. Then she said softly, "Let's go."
On the Su family's carriage, she gazed at the palace gardens receding into the distance outside the window, recalling the end of the third year of the Tian Shou era.
In the empty, dark North Palace, she and Xiao Xun talked all night, laughing and crying.
As dawn broke, Xiao Xun tugged at her hand and said, "Sister, Weiyang Palace is my home, and it's your home too. Let's not leave from now on, okay?"
*
At her own table, Xiao Jin felt like she was sitting on pins and needles.
Seeing that Xiao Xun and Xiao Cheng had disappeared into the distance, he left the table, citing an upset stomach.
The princess looked worried, yet also somewhat relieved, for the emperor ate very little.
Xiao Jin hurried to Tingquan Courtyard.
He recognized that the bronze pitch-pot was an old item from Siqi Garden.
Xiao Xun's arrival was sudden. He had originally asked Chang Gui to inform the guests at Tingquan Academy that His Majesty had come to the Prince of Huaiyang's residence, so that Lin Yu and the others could prepare in advance.
Unexpectedly, when Chang Gui rushed there, he encountered the Princess Consort visiting her young female friend at Tingquan Courtyard.
Seeing his flustered expression, the princess stopped him, asked what had happened, coughed twice, and cursed Xiao Jin in her heart for not knowing what was important.
Since His Majesty is traveling incognito, he certainly does not want anyone to know his identity.
Such a large-scale mobilization, making the whole household aware of it, what crime should be committed?
She was angry and stopped talking.
It should be noted that the people in the Prince's mansion, being lax and negligent, at most received a reprimand.
However, if everyone is meticulously prepared and orderly, leaving no room for error, making the Prince of Huaiyang's residence appear impregnable and thus sowing suspicion, then that would be a serious matter.
When Chang Gui arrived at Tingquan Courtyard, he simply informed everyone that the Prince's Mansion would be hosting a banquet tonight for distinguished guests, including the Minister of the Imperial Household, the Vice Minister of the Imperial Stud, and the General of the Imperial Guard. He asked the guests in the courtyard to enjoy the banquet on their own, as the Prince was unable to accompany them and apologized for any shortcomings in hospitality.
As the sounds of silk and bamboo instruments drifted leisurely towards the azure sky from the Yuhua Hall waterside pavilion, steam rose gently from the cooking pots in the Tingquan Courtyard.
Li Ao and Wang Ao ate until their faces were flushed, arguing with each other about what Chang Gui meant by "Guanglu Guan" and "Yu Mao Lang".
They argued from inside the house to the porch, and then all the way to the courtyard, trying to get the truth from Lin Yu and He Ji.
The stars were very bright that night, so Lin Yu moved the pot to a sheltered spot under the eaves.
He Ji, eager to grab some mutton and pork from a soup pot from Lin Yu, piled it into Lin Yuan's already overflowing bowl, and casually replied:
"These people are all close advisors to the emperor, and they all possess supernatural abilities; they are incredibly powerful."
Across the snow-covered lake, Li and Wang gazed into the distance. They could see pavilions and winding corridors in the water, and tree lights illuminating the shadows of people passing by.
Ten branches, a hundred branches, a thousand branches.
Grandma Wang murmured, "She really has supernatural powers."
Li Ao remained silent, maintaining her composure, watching the moving black shadow. She sighed inwardly; she was now a close advisor to the emperor, someone who had seen all sorts of people, including the "Guanglu Official."
Oh, and there's also the "Feathered Boy".
When the lights came on, Li Ao saw that many people were constantly shaking off pure white feathers, just like cranes.
Although she felt that since cranes had become immortals, they shouldn't be shedding feathers.
However, compared to Wang Ao, who was poor in vocabulary and limited in knowledge, and who stared blankly at the scene before her, it was just like the molting of the goose she raised at home. She chuckled softly, "You're the silly goose." Then she turned and walked away, her waist lighter than when she came.
As Lin Yu passed the three women, she greeted them, "Grandma, you seem to be having a really good day."
Aunt Li blushed slightly and smiled kindly: "Master Lin, and A-Yuan, eat more! The more you eat, the happier I will be!"
"Why doesn't Aunt Li tell me to eat more?" He Ji exclaimed.
Li Ao said reproachfully, "Oh dear, I see Master He is already carrying a pot, and it's still not enough to eat?"
Lin Yuan smiled and said, "It's because the pot that Grandma prepared was too delicious."
He Jizheng got up and scooped the freshly cooked fish slices into the pot.
Just then, Aunt Li walked past from behind. Upon hearing Lin Yuan's words, she was overjoyed, covered her mouth and laughed, and accidentally elbowed He Ji in the back.
He Ji lost his balance and almost fell headfirst into the pot.
He Ji, watching Li Ao's suddenly nimble back, complained loudly, "Not enough to eat, not enough to eat! Otherwise, why would I have cooked myself?"
Lin Yuan smiled and obediently pushed the plate of meat that Lin Yu had just picked up in front of He Ji.
"You didn't even eat much yourself, and you let this kid have it all by saying a few words?"
“There’s plenty of grain in the book,” she said to Lin Yu. “I’ve been listening to you talk about etiquette for so long during the day, I’m so full.”
He Ji chuckled and said, "I think so too. If you learn too much etiquette, you won't even enjoy your meals."
"When have you ever not enjoyed your food?" Lin Yu pointed out his weakness.
“That depends on whether you eat well or eat even better.” He Ji turned to Lin Yuan. “Ah Yuan, another day, you’ll have to listen to me recite some poems. As you read, you’ll get hungry. For example, something like, ‘In June, we eat plums and grapes; in July, we cook mallows and beans,’ and—”
His eyes suddenly lit up, and he scooped a snow-white carp out of the pot, saying happily, "In the south there are fine fish, steaming in abundance."
"And there's also the saying, 'The fruit of pepper grows abundantly and rises in abundance.'"
When he wasn't looking, Lin Yu dropped a few peppercorns into his bowl.
He Ji swallowed a mouthful of spicy and numbing food, jumped three feet off the table, and chased after Lin Yu, shouting and yelling.
The two were playfully bickering, which Lin Yuan found amusing. After a while, she saw them both disappear into the artificial hills and rock formations, vanishing without a trace.
Their voices faded into the distance, carried away by the wind.
The sounds of string and wind instruments lingered in my ears, along with the loud snores of two elderly women.
Lin Yuan wrapped her clothes tighter and followed the sounds, slowly making her way to the lakeside.
There was no wind that day.
When Lin Yu first suggested having hot pot under the starry night in the courtyard, she said, "Don't you like looking at the stars?"
Lin Yuan nodded, looked up, but couldn't see anything.
Lin Yu pulled a sheepskin coat over Lin Yuan's head, wrapping her up completely without leaving a single gap, leaving only her eyes exposed.
Looking at herself through Lin Yu's eyes, Lin Yuan said, "What do you mean I'm wearing a fur coat? I look like a ball."
Seeing that Lin Yu remained unmoved, she slowly continued, "I'm wearing a lot of clothes and moving slowly. When we eat hot pot later, I definitely won't be able to scoop up even the minced meat. Is my brother plotting against me?"
He Ji patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, with me here, I guarantee no one will try to take the meat from you."
Lin Yu glanced at him and chuckled, "With you here, A Yuan has nothing to worry about not getting any meat to eat."
"Besides, who can get their hands on the minced meat?" He reached out and gently patted Lin Yuan's forehead. "Trying to fool your brother?"
The brim of the hood was pulled down another inch.
The sounds of string and wind instruments from the waterside pavilions and terraces drifted away on the wind.
Gradually, only the soft patter of snow underfoot remained.
The sound of footsteps in the snow gradually became two distinct sounds.
...
"Your Majesty, look, there are real stars tonight."
After the steam from the copper pot in the Zichen Pavilion of the Jiaofang Palace dissipated, the starry sky and a pair of clear eyes emerged as the doors and windows opened.
At the end of the third year of Jinghe, the water clock ticked down until midnight.
Xiao Xun and Lin Yuan walked through the snow to the starry sky.
Xiao Xun, with his hands behind his back, asked her, "What did you wish for this year? Is it the same as last year—to eat and drink well, and to always be smiling?"
Lin Yuan said embarrassedly, "I made an extra one."
"Tell me about it?"
She said, slowly and deliberately, "May all your wishes come true."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Xun chuckled: "Did your previous wish not come true? Perhaps Heaven has made a mistake? Do I have to say 'May your wish come true' again?"
“Spiritual.”
Lin Yuan looked up at the sky, afraid that her disrespectful words would be heard by the gods, so she raised her voice slightly and said with her head tilted back, "Very effective, very effective."
Her face flushed slightly as she explained, "But what if I think of something else? Wouldn't 'wishing things would come true' encompass everything?"
Xiao Xun laughed so hard he could hardly move, saying, "Isn't this like a snake trying to swallow an elephant?"
Lin Yuan disagreed.
Looking at Xiao Xun's smiling face, she remembered that on New Year's Eve last year, she had asked, "What wish did Your Majesty make?"
Xiao Xun shook his head: "I never make wishes."
Lin Yuan was surprised.
As he gazed at the distant mountains and rivers illuminated by the snow, he said, "I don't believe in fate. I can do anything I want to do."
Then, your wishes will come true.
She looked at him.
I hope you do everything you want to do.
Xiao Xun emerged from a side hall of Yuhua Hall and strolled leisurely through the gardens of the Prince's Mansion.
Xiao Cheng was unwilling to let His Majesty travel alone, but Xiao Xun casually asked, "Could it be that there are assassins in the Prince's residence?"
Xiao Cheng's body trembled, then he heard Xiao Xun suddenly laugh, "Or perhaps, there's a ferocious beast?"
Xiao Cheng wiped the sweat from his forehead and followed up on his words, saying, "That's probably because His Majesty's arrival brings glory to the Prince's Palace. Even the rabbits, raccoons, earthworms, and worms in the garden feel the imperial aura and turn into bears and snakes."
The sounds of people and instruments were all left behind.
Another sound of footsteps in the snow gradually approached from afar.
Xiao Xun looked up and saw that the plum grove in front of him had branched off into two winding paths along the stream. On one of the paths, the snow-covered light revealed a swaying black shadow that was coming towards him.
Neither bear nor brown bear.
He was just a person wrapped up like a ball, walking very slowly, looking at the mountains and the water.
He paused in his tracks.
They chose another deserted path.
They avoided people.
He prefers to walk alone and dislikes being disturbed by anyone.
Especially when thinking or missing someone.
He recalled what Xiao Cheng had just said.
A side hall of Yuhua Hall.
"If, brother, you anger the lady, what will you do?"
Xiao Cheng nervously took a sip of tea to cover up his embarrassment, but the tea sprayed out as soon as it entered his mouth.
He didn't even have time to wipe it off: "Your Majesty, why do you ask this?"
Xiao Xun blushed slightly: "Oh, it's Ling Feng. He has a fiancée, but the two had a fight, and the fiancée, unhappy, ran away from home. But he doesn't understand why and doesn't know what to do."
Xiao Cheng had just toasted Ling Feng and learned that he did indeed have a fiancée. His surprise remained undiminished.
"Your Majesty is busy with countless affairs of state, yet you still have to deal with your subjects' private matters?"
Xiao Xun turned his face away, paced back and forth, and slowly said, "The Minister of the Imperial Household is troubled by this and cannot do his job well. Seeing that my brother and the Princess have a very deep relationship, he is quite envious, but he is still young and embarrassed to speak up. I saw this and came to ask on his behalf if my brother has any solutions?"
Although the young Minister of the Imperial Household spoke of his unmarried bride with great enthusiasm and radiance, showing no signs of being troubled by her, Xiao Cheng still nodded hesitantly.
He pondered for a moment and said, "I have three plans."
Xiao Xun frowned: "We should avoid the worst option and the middle option as well."
Xiao Cheng waved his hand: "How could that be? Since Your Majesty has come to ask me, you must know that I am not one of those useless strategists. These three strategies are the best strategies, the best of the best strategies." He paused slightly and narrowed his eyes, "There is also a strategy to defeat the enemy."
Xiao Xun's brows relaxed slightly: "It seems I really did ask the right person. What is the best course of action?"
"The best course of action is, of course, to apologize."
“Apologize? That’s not appropriate.” Xiao Xun pondered for a moment, then smiled and added, “Ling Feng is the kind of person who can’t stand losing face. Besides, the two of them are of very different statuses. Although he doesn’t come from a prominent family, he has now made great contributions to the rise of the new emperor and is one of the Nine Ministers. His fiancée, although she is the one he loves, is not from a high-ranking family.”
"An apology is all about the gift itself. Gold, jade, jewels, silks, and satins—there's always something that can please a woman. If the gift touches her heart and makes her happy, then the mistake is forgiven."
Across the two-zhang-wide stream, Lin Yuan saw Xiao Xun and thought she was blinded by the snow.
In the blink of an eye, those deep, dark eyes were seen looking up at us.
My mind was blank, and I subconsciously lifted my foot.
She tried to quicken her pace, but her feet seemed to trudge along. Beneath the snow lay mud and puddles, making it difficult to walk quickly; each step she took resulted in sinking into the snow.
Fortunately, only his eyes were visible.
She pulled her hat brim tighter.
One pair of eyes is enough.
No other pair of eyes can hold more starlight.
Even in the deepest of nights, he could still recognize it.
"Ah Yuan?"
The man seemed not to hear, keeping his head down and only looking forward.
Xiao Xun clenched his fist involuntarily.
"Lin Yuan, stop right there."
Their steps faltered, slowed down.
Xiao Xun had felt a tightness in his chest for several days, and only now did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.
He let out a long sigh: "What are you doing here? Who told you to write those things? I gave you a blank edict, only allowing you to write with pen, ink, and paper, and to possess gold, jade, jewels, silk, satin, and..."
In the stillness, Lin Yuan's hood was loosened by the wind.
The wind, along with Xiao Xun's words, came crashing down on him, whistling into his ears.
It was very, very cold.
Lin Yuan interrupted him, raising her face and saying, "I don't want to."
Xiao Xun choked, suddenly feeling a little regretful. Why didn't he put the sentence "Palaces, positions, anything is fine" at the beginning?
He had been racking his brains trying to figure out what she liked, and then he remembered that she liked reading.
For this reason, he practically turned Zichen Pavilion into another library for himself.
“Your Majesty, it is late, you should rest. I shall take my leave.” Lin Yuan curtsied to him and took several steps back.
"Aren't you staying up all night?" he couldn't help but ask. "I'll stay up all night with you."
Lin Yuan paused for a moment, then frowned: "Doesn't His Majesty never believe in these things?"
“Who says I don’t believe it?” Xiao Xun blurted out.
He looked into Lin Yuan's eyes and walked towards her step by step:
“You told me that wishes made while staying up late on New Year’s Eve are very likely to come true.”
The snow crunched softly underfoot.
"Tonight, I made a wish."
"My wish is to find you."
As he drew closer, he saw that her eyes were brimming with tears, and the stars before him seemed to multiply.
"I'll take you away."
The stream beneath the ice gurgled and murmured, making a sobbing sound.
"I'll marry you."
...
"Gold, jade, jewels, fine silks and satins." The soft sound of Xiao Xun pacing back and forth echoed in the side hall of Yuhua Hall. He asked, "What if these apologies aren't enough?"
"Huh?" Xiao Cheng was taken aback.
Xiao Xun snapped out of his daze: "Oh, Ling Feng's fiancée doesn't like these things."
"Your Majesty has truly gone to great lengths for the wives of your subjects," Xiao Cheng remarked. "Surely this new bride must have something she likes or desires?"
"Uh," Xiao Xun said, perplexed.
Seeing him frowning in deep thought, Xiao Cheng continued to offer a suggestion: "Your Majesty, why don't you let the Minister of Ceremonies think about it himself?"
Xiao Xun glanced at him.
Xiao Cheng quickly smiled and said, "If you're unsure, then we'll use the best strategy—an even more generous gift."
"What kind of gift?"
Xiao Cheng straightened up and solemnly uttered a few words:
"Indeed, the three letters and six rites, the three matchmakers and six betrothal gifts. As a woman, how could I refuse?"
"Brother, do you mean to simply force her into marriage? Directly issue a betrothal decree and bring that unmarried woman into the family?" Xiao Xun nodded thoughtfully.
...
"I'll marry you."
These three words were not uttered yet.
Xiao Xun saw a white figure leap down from the rocks.
The resulting strong winds whipped up the snow on the ground.
People and snow both rushed onto Lin Yuan.
-----------------------
Author's Note: Xiao Cheng (sighs): This younger brother of mine is utterly unteachable.
Xiao Xun: I've found you, I'll take you away. (I'll marry you (censored))
Lin Yuan: Oh no, he's going to take me back to be punished!
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