In Nanjin Capital. On both sides of the street stood rows of heavily armed guards. Behind the guards were crowds of Shangxia people who had come to watch the bustle. On the towering palace wall, Emperor Han Yao and Empress Murong Ruoyu of Shangxia, dressed in intricate ceremonial costumes, were anxiously waiting to welcome their long-lost daughter.
Murong Ruoyu was urgent as she looked to the main road in the distance. Han Yao held her hands and gently comforted, "Very soon, our Ning"er will be home."
Murong Ruoyu"s almond eyes brimmed with unshed tears.
Tuoba Zhi, Tuoba Lan, and Lian Kun were standing on the steps inside the palace. They were present at the invitation of General Huyan to the princess" welcoming ceremony. Chiyun Yuexuan was also invited, but he turned it down.
Chiyun Yuexuan originally planned to return to Huayan right away. However, he couldn"t fight back his desire to take one last look at Murong Zhining. He thought to himself, since they would never meet again, he must look closely at her and imprint her image in his heart. So, he blended into the crowds on the street.
When the procession appeared at the corner of the street, the crowd began to boil. Everyone tried to push their ways forth so as to see more clearly.
Standing among those at the back, Chiyun Yuexuan"s towering figure stood out, but he actually hoped that Murong Zhining would not spot him.
An armed squad was opening up the road for the procession. Behind them was a line of eunuchs holding horsetail whisks, followed by a line of palace maids in red, each was well-portioned with a pleasant-looking face. Behind the maids, the phoenix carriage carrying Murong Zhining moved, slowly and steadily. The crowd exclaimed and burst into cheers. Inside the carriage, Murong Zhining was smiling as she nodded to the crowd, a smile that made people feel like they were bathing in the spring breezes.
Chiyun Yuexuan fixed his gaze on the figure in the phoenix carriage. She was gorgeous. Wide forehead and curved brows, bright eyes and vivid expression, pure despite being amidst all the mortal dust, and as fine as the loveliest jade. Clad in the crimson-violet Jiaolong attire with her born royal presence, she looked like a queen who reigned over this entire world.
For a moment there, Chiyun Yuexuan felt as if time and s.p.a.ce had been reversed, as if he had never known the girl in the carriage. Just as he was in a trance, Murong Zhining cast a glance in his direction. Those limpid, shining eyes of hers had looked at him with a look that could take away the heart and soul of anyone.
As the carriage went far away, the crowd also dispersed. Only Chiyun Yuexuan was still standing there, knowing that he had lost the most precious fate of his entire life.
From the wall, Han Yao and Murong Ruoyu couldn"t wait as they eagerly descended the stairs. Right now, they couldn"t care less about rules and etiquettes, they just wanted to embrace tightly the beloved daughter who they had lost for fourteen years.
Murong Zhining got off the carriage and walked slowly to the palace entrance. The tails of her costumes dragged a long trail behind, making her look n.o.ble and mysterious. Stopping before Han Yao and Murong Ruoyu, she knelt. "Your child Fengyi greets Imperial Father, Imperial Mother!"
Han Yao hastily held her up. He then reached out and took both his daughter and wife into an embrace. Everyone could hear the empress" mournful cry, as well as the emperor"s choked voice, "Thank you, Heavens, for bringing my Ning"er back to me."
Everyone present was moved beyond belief.
Inside Zaide Hall of Yigan Palace, Murong Ruoyu cradled Murong Zhining"s delicate face and looked carefully. "They all say my Ning"er grew up exactly like me. Indeed you have. No wonder your father"s agents could recognize you at a glance."
Han Yao happily nodded. "The Heavens had mercy and returned our Ning"er to us. I and your mother will definitely make up for your lack of love and warmth during all those years."
Murong Zhining"s eyes brimmed with tears. "Father, mother, you don"t need to feel guilty. It wasn"t your fault, you don"t owe me anything. In the future, it"s me who should stay by your side and take care of you."
"By the way, nanny pa.s.sed this to me before she died. I suspect that it has something to do with my kidnapping that year." Suddenly remembering something, Murong Zhining took out the old sheet music from her chest and gave it to Murong Ruoyu.
With trembling hands, Murong Ruoyu received the sheet music. "Actually, your nanny was my direct maid-in-waiting. Her name was Yin Rui. She had attended to me since young and followed me when I entered the palace. Before, someone… someone wanted this sheet music, so they took you away and threatened me. I gave this sheet music to Yin Rui so she could go exchange it for you, but in the end, you both mysteriously disappeared with it."
Murong Zhining explained with a choked voice, "Nanny was very clever. She must have tricked the enemy and got me back from their hands without giving out the sheet music. She brought me to escape, waiting for a chance for us to return to the palace."
Murong Ruoyu nodded. "I have never once doubted her loyalty, I knew she must have had unspeakable difficulties. I would never have thought… that you two were under constant pursuit by those people."
Han Yao held both their hands gently, providing them with comfort.
Ever since little, Murong Zhining never got to enjoy any form of parental love. Right now, she was deeply immersed in the warmth of their affection.
At this moment, a senior palace nurse brought a four to five-year-old boy into the hall. Murong Ruoyu pulled Murong Zhining"s hand and introduced, "This is your imperial brother, Han Yi."
Murong Zhining carefully and gently looked at him. Thick brows and big eyes, he highly resembled their father. Murong Zhining squatted down and stiffly greeted, "h.e.l.lo, I am your older sister."
Han Yi was a considerate young boy. He softly replied, "h.e.l.lo, big sister."
Han Yao exclaimed in high spirits, "At last, our family has reunited, hahaha!"
Back to the previous topic, Murong Zhining asked tentatively, "Why are these people so crazy about a piece of sheet music?"
Han Yao looked heavy. "This relates to a secret of your mother"s ancestor, the king of Beiyan. Even though he was only a puppet emperor, he acc.u.mulated a huge amount of wealth, among which the most valuable wasn"t the money or jewelry, but a book. According to legends, this book written by Qin Shi Huang himself is called "Secrets of Emperor Qin." It records the secrets that allowed Qin Country to reign over the world. No one knows what"s written inside, there"s only a spreading rumor that: whoever gets the book wins the world. Before your mother"s ancestors could carry out their domination, though, Beiyan had already fallen to Beiwei, and your ancestors hid all their wealth away somewhere during their escape. This sheet music is one of the clues to the treasure."
Murong Ruoyu grasped Murong Zhining"s hands. "I was also displaced when I was little because of this sheet music. Fortunately, I met your father and could finally settle down. However, our clan members still haven"t given up on this secret. They have never stopped coveting this paper. Regarding this secret, another clue had also disappeared for many years. It was a phoenix tree leaf sculpted from green jade. Your grandmother pa.s.sed it to me, but it was taken away from me when I was young. In any case, your father and I don"t care about the treasure, we are satisfied as long as you are safe."
Murong Zhining fell into a long, long contemplation. The love from Murong Ruoyu"s sincere words touched her deeply. And what made her sigh in pity was how small this world actually was. Her fate once got her so close, just one step away from the secret. However, just when everything was about to be revealed, Chiyun Yuexuan had already left with Biwu. Perhaps this was the mandate of heavens, Murong Zhining thought.
Chiyun Yuexuan raced his horse like mad on the way back to Huayan. His heart hurt like it was burned in blazing fire, but not only was the oncoming cold wind unable to put it out, it even added more to his despair. He only wanted to return to Huayan as quickly as possible and receive Yan Feng"s punishment. Chiyun Yuexuan hoped that Yan Feng would behead him, because even he had condemned himself to death, feeling that his sin must not be forgiven.
A few days later in the Imperial Study, Yan Feng met Chiyun Yuexuan. The latter knelt on both knees. "I, sinned subject Chiyun Yuexuan, have repeatedly defied the edict. Please grant me death, Your Majesty."
Yan Feng glared eyes wide in his fury. "You also know you deserve death? Even if you don"t consider me your friend, you should have at least treated me as your emperor, you… I am terribly disappointed in you. Although you disregarded our past relationship, as a general, you are a rare talent, and the contribution your Chiyun family have rendered for Huayan is there for all to see. Since you did a meritorious service by saving Princess Fengyi, I won"t severely punish you. You will be demoted one rank, do you accept?"
Chiyun Yuexuan deliberately angered Yan Feng, "I saved Murong Zhining not because of you, but for the fact that she is my beloved wife.
Yan Feng flung the paperweight on the table to the ground. "You still have the face to say this to me? Such a charming and lovely girl was tortured beyond recognition by you! Did you forget all the things you did to her? You think you still have the right to call her your "beloved wife"!?"
Chiyun Yuexuan gave t.i.t for tat, "You just resent me for taking her from you, don"t you? She should have belonged to me in the first place. You forcefully kept her by your side, but it only changed the order in which fate should appear. And yet, you blame me for taking her away? I only admit to committing an unforgivable sin. The only one I, Chiyun Yuexuan, ever owe in this life is Murong Zhining. And as for you, Your Majesty, I can only say: I, your sinned subject, deserve a thousand deaths for defying the imperial order, and I"m willing to accept the death penalty."
Yan Feng was extremely furious, but unable to find any point to refute Chiyun Yuexuan"s words. He could only say, "You encountered failure, and you want to use my hand to punish you so as to make me bear the infamy of jealousy. I refuse to fulfill your wish. You can leave. I understand that you are in a bad mood today, so I forgive your incoherence. Come back to reason with me again after you"ve calmed down."
In a soulless body, Chiyun Yuexuan returned to the General Estate. Cai Sang and Luo Siyao instantly ran out to ask about Murong Zhining"s situation. Sitting in the lobby with a cup of wine in his hand, Chiyun Yuexuan said, "You two don"t need to worry about your master, she"s now the princess of Shangxia. Soon enough, she"ll forget about you and me, completely."
Cai Sang was caught between happiness and sorrow. "If it hadn"t been for General Wu saying something about Princess had encountered a mishap, I would have remained in Shangxia to wait for her. Anyway, I"m relieved to know she"s fine. I"ll make plans later."
Chiyun Yuexuan roared, "Scram! Stop disturbing me from drinking."
Cai Sang wrinkled her brows and dragged Luo Siyao out of the lobby. Luo Siyao turned around to look at Chiyun Yuexuan, her eyes full of pity.