Chapter Nine (Part 1)
The citizens of the Northern Empire applauded General Chen’s wife’s wisdom.
The Chen Household received a second good news. Their young mistress Mo Lan was pregnant with General Chen’s child.
After Chen Quan Ran heard the good news he was even more affectionate and protective toward his precious wife.
While everyone at the Chen Manor were rejoicing, the palace released portraits of a Southern Yue spy suspect.
Xiao Ha returned from the palace and he showed Chen Quan Ran the strange portrait. Instead of a suspect’s face, the portrait showed a side profile of the suspect wearing a vintage earring.
‘Why does the earring look familiar to me?’ Chen Quan Ran asked.
‘General Chen the timing is strange,’ Xiao Ha said. ‘Recently the Southern Yue Prince Jing Qi and General Fang visited the imperial city and now the emperor wants to capture a suspected Southern Yue spy.’
Mo Lan brought two bowls of soup into the calligraphy room.
‘Lieutenant Xiao, you’re here too,’ Mo Lan said. ‘It’s good I brought two bowls of soup. You should eat with Quan Ran too.’
‘Thank you young mistress,’ Xiao Ha said.
Chen Quan Ran frowned. ‘Xiao Lan you’re pregnant. You should let the maids and servants carry heavy objects. If something happens to our child then grandma won’t spare me.’
‘It’s not heavy,’ Mo Lan said. ‘Besides it’s good for our child for me to be active while pregnant.’
Mo Lan put the bowls of soup on the table and she noticed the portrait on the table looked familiar.
Chen Quan Ran received a shock after he looked carefully at Mo Lan’s side profile. He knew Mo Lan’s cheeks and red lips were soft. But it was her earrings that shocked him. His heart was beating fast. Her earrings were identical to the portrait of the spy suspect.
Xiao Ha knew something catastrophic happened because it was rare General Chen would show any signs of shock.
Mo Lan’s heart was beating fast too.
‘Spy?’ Mo Lan asked. ‘Me?’
Chen Quan Ran’s complexion paled. He grabbed the portrait and teared it to pieces.
‘What fool dare to accuse my wife being a spy?’ Chen Quan Ran asked. ‘After I catch the fool, I’ll skin the fool!’
Mo Lan touched her earrings and she didn’t know why there was a portrait of her earrings.
Xiao Ha recovered faster. ‘Young mistress, who gave you the earrings?’
‘For as long as I can remember I’ve always worn these earrings,’ Mo Lan said.
No one had talked about the ident.i.ty of Mo Lan’s parents. The Chen Household adopted her since she was a child. They told her that her parents died and they didn’t know her parents’ family name. She lived inside the Chen Manor for many years and it was an unspoken understanding between her and the Chen elders that they didn’t want to talk about her parents’ ident.i.ty. But they gave her these earrings to wear and they told her that it was her mother’s family heirloom pa.s.sed onto her. That was why her mother’s earrings were like an extension of herself and she didn’t part with them even though she was given many more beautiful earrings to wear. It shocked her that her mother’s earrings made her a spy suspect.
‘It’s a misunderstanding,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘I’ll go to the palace and I’ll ask the emperor to clear this misunderstanding.’
Suddenly imperial guards appeared. They surrounded the room and prevented Chen Quan Ran from leaving.
‘What are you all doing here?’ Chen Quan Ran asked. ‘Do you want to rebel? Why do you dare to inspect the Chen Manor that’s under the emperor’s protection?’
The head imperial guard disregarded General Chen’s status and contributions to protecting the Northern Empire. The head imperial guard ordered the imperial guards to arrest General Chen’s wife.
Chen Quan Ran was prepared to strike everyone who dared to arrest Mo Lan.
‘Someone reported General Chen’s wife is the spy suspect and we’re here to arrest General Chen’s wife,’ the head imperial guard.
The head imperial guard pa.s.sed Chen Quan Ran the same portrait that Chen Quan Ran teared.
‘General Chen your wife’s earrings matches the Southern Yue spy suspect,’ the head imperial guard said. ‘I hope General Chen will cooperate and hand over your wife for interrogation. I promise after the interrogation I’ll return your wife to the Chen Manor.’
Chen Quan Ran laughed coldly. He wasn’t going to let anyone take Mo Lan away from him.
‘What will you do if I’m not going to let you take my wife away?’ Chen Quan Ran asked.
‘General Chen this is the emperor’s edict,’ the head imperial guard said. ‘The emperor gave us permission to use force to arrest the spy suspect.’
***
Chapter Nine (Part 2)
Chen Quan Ran and the imperial guards were at a standstill.
‘I want to see who dares to take my granddaughter-in-law away from here!’ Madam said and struck her staff on the floor.
The imperial guards’ head ached enough to explode after they heard Madam’s angry tone. Especially the head imperial guard who was scared to offend General Chen and General Chen’s grandma. But the imperial guards’ master was the emperor and they were forced to follow the emperor’s orders.
The head imperial guard formally greeted Madam.
‘Save the pleasantries!’ Madam said. ‘Didn’t you say you wanted to take my good granddaughter-in-law away? What crime did my Xiao Lan commit for you to dare arrest her?’
‘Someone reported General Chen’s wife’s ident.i.ty is suspicious,’ the head imperial guard said. ‘We’re here to arrest General Chen’s wife for interrogation.’
‘Dog s.h.i.t!’ Madam cursed.
Madam held up her staff and she didn’t let any of the imperial guards near Mo Lan.
‘Xiao Lan married into the Chen Household since she was nine years old,’ Madam said. ‘She had followed me for ten years. How can she be a Southern Yue spy? Everyone in the Chen Household are loyal to the Northern Empire. My husband and son sacrificed their lives to protect the Northern Empire! I’m old but it doesn’t mean my head is muddled. Everyone here knows clearly about Xiao Lan’s contribution to the Northern Empire. Without Xiao Lan the Northern Empire would have lost Cai Ning to Southern Yue.’
Madam glared scornfully at the imperial guards.
‘Because of a vague painting you little dog s.h.i.ts lost your heads and dared to accuse my Xiao Lan being a spy!’ Madam cursed.
The head imperial guard was intimidated by Madam’s glare.
‘Did you know that inside Xiao Lan’s stomach is my great-grandchild?’ Madam asked. ‘If anything happens to my great-grandchild then who will be held responsible?’
The imperial guards looked at each other. They didn’t know what to do in a complicated situation.
‘Madam everything you said is right,’ the head imperial guard said. ‘But Madam knows we’re merely the emperor’s servants and we need to follow the emperor’s orders.’
Xiao Ha saw General Chen’s eyes narrowed and he knew General Chen was enraged enough to flip the kingdom over.
Indeed Chen Quan Ran was enraged and his dangerous cold tone frightened the imperial guards.
‘Today you people have two choices,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘You people can choose to stay here and prepare to die or you people can take a step toward me and see if I can be forced to step aside.’
The imperial guards looked at each other. They knew General Chen’s threat was real and if they stepped forward then they would all lose their lives.
The head imperial guard knew it was safer for him and the imperial guards to retreat and think of an effective way to deal with the situation.
The imperial guards left the room and Chen Quan Ran kicked a nearby flower pot. Chen Quan Ran was enraged the emperor wanted to arrest his Mo Lan.
Madam empathised her grandson’s feelings.
Chen Quan Ran composed himself after he noticed Mo Lan’s frightened expression. He took a step toward her and hugged her.
‘Xiao Lan, you don’t need to be scared,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘I promise I won’t let anyone take you away from me and I’ll clear this misunderstanding soon.’
Although Chen Quan Ran held Mo Lan protectively against his chest, she was still worried she was a burden to the Chen Household because they were a.s.sociated with her.
Later Chen Quan Ran visited the palace but the eunuchs informed him that the emperor was unwell and the emperor didn’t want to see anyone.
The emperor’s refusal to see Chen Quan Ran made him want to kill all the imperial guards.
The eunuchs feared for their lives. They ran to report to the emperor.
‘What is it?’ the emperor asked.
‘It’s General Chen…’ a young eunuch said.
The emperor gave the young eunuch a piece of paper to give to Chen Quan Ran.
The young eunuch reluctantly pa.s.sed the piece of paper to Chen Quan Ran.
‘General Chan, the emperor asked me to give this you,’ the young eunuch said. ‘The emperor said you’ll understand clearly after you see this.’
The eunuch was too scared to wait for Chen Quan Ran’s reply so the eunuch ran away.
Chen Quan Ran didn’t have the patience to read. But he grudgingly read what the emperor wanted to say. Then he was angry enough to make everyone in the palace faint.
After Chen Quan Ran returned to the Chen Manor, Madam and Mo Lan knew from his dark expression that nothing went smoothly in the palace.
‘Quan Ran did you see the emperor?’ Madam asked.
‘What emperor?’ Chen Quan Ran asked. ‘The emperor hid in his chamber. He rather die than see me. I know he’s in a difficult situation but this time he made me extremely angry.’
Chen Quan Ran pa.s.sed the piece of paper to his grandma. Mo Lan was sitting next to his grandma and she saw the content of the piece of paper too.
‘During the Southern Yue’s Prince Jing Qi and General Fang’s visit, Tu Qing Mu asked General Fang about his unique jade pendant. General Fang said it was his most precious jade pendant. He gave the woman he loved a pair of earrings that matched the design of his jade pendant. Tu Qing Mu asked a painter to replicate the design of General Fang’s unique jade pendant and took the painting home. Chen Luo Yu was a guest at General Fang’s home and he showed her the painting. Chen Luo Yu told General Fang the jade pendant design matched General Chen’s wife’s earrings. Tu Qing Min didn’t hesitate and he asked the painter to paint the earrings Chen Luo Yu described. Tu Qing Min used the painting to investigate General Chen’s wife’s ident.i.ty. Fang Mu Chu was older than forty years old and in his life he only loved one woman. He didn’t know what happened to the woman he loved after they separated but apart from her, he didn’t want to marry anyone else. Mo Lan who married into the Chen Household at the age of nine was Fang Mu Chu’s blood daughter because her mother’s family heirloom was the love token Feng Mu Chu gave her mother.’
Everyone in the Chen Household understood Tu Qing Min used Mo Lan’s birth ident.i.ty as a way to step on Chen Quan Ran’s head. Tu Qing Min couldn’t behead Chen Quan Ran to avenge his nephew’s death but he could cause tension between Chen Quan Ran and the emperor. Of course the emperor couldn’t let an enemy general’s blood daughter stay in the imperial city.
Mo Lan appeared calm after receiving the shocking news. How could her father be Fang Mu Chu? She knew the tension between the Northern Empire and Southern Yue was big enough for a small smoke to inflame both kingdoms to go to war with each other.
Mo Lan knew if her birth ident.i.ty was made public then she couldn’t stay in the Chen Household. Because one day when the Northern Empire and Southern Yue are at war with each other, her father would be her husband’s enemy on the battlefield. How could she choose between her father and her husband?
Madam was worried to see Mo Lan’s white complexion. She hated seeing anyone upset Mo Lan.
‘Xiao Lan, you don’t need to worry about this,’ Madam said. She gently patted Mo Lan’s hand to rea.s.sure Mo Lan. ‘As long as Quan Ran and I are here, we won’t let anyone harm you.’
***
Chapter Nine (Part 3 of 3)
Madam signalled Mo Lan to leave.
After Mo Lan left Madam’s chamber, Chen Quan Ran looked sadly at Madam.
‘Grandma, Xiao Lan followed you since she married me,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘You would know the most about her ident.i.ty.’
‘Quan Ran do you know who Xiao Lan’s mother is?’ Madam asked.
Chen Quan Ran shook his head and he listened attentively to his grandma talk about Mo Lan’s mother. His heart sunk. How could it be true?
Later Chen Quan Ran returned to his chamber. His heartbroken wife was sitting on a chair.
Chen Quan Ran stood behind his wife and hugged her.
‘Xiao Lan are you still worried about your earrings?’ Chen Quan Ran asked.
Mo Lan turned around and she hugged Chen Quan Ran tighter.
‘My father… is he truly Fang Mu Chu?’ Mo Lan asked.
‘Little fool it doesn’t matter if he’s your father because you’ll always be my wife,’ Chen Quan Ran said.
Mo Lan was deeply moved by Chen Quan Ran’s words. Her hands gripped his hands that were holding onto her waist tightly. Her heart was in unbearable pain and tears flowed uncontrollably down her cheeks.
Chen Quan Ran was surprised Mo Lan didn’t say anything. Instead she pushed him back and she gave him a letter.
‘What is this?’ Chen Quan Ran asked.
Chen Quan Ran read the letter and his gentleness disappeared.
‘A divorce letter?’ Chen Quan Ran asked.
Chen Quan Ran didn’t understand why Mo Lan would ask him to divorce her.
‘The divorce letter is clear,’ Mo Lan said in a choked voice. ‘A man has the right to divorce his wife for shameful misconduct, mistreating her husband, disrespectful toward elders and doesn’t take good care of her husband’s family… you only need to sign at the bottom of the letter and from this day onward I have no a.s.sociation with the Chen Household.’
Chen Quan Ran’s shaky hands held the letter.
‘What are you saying?’ Chen Quan Ran asked.
‘You can divorce me,’ Mo Lan said softly. ‘If you divorce me then it wouldn’t matter who my father is and no one can use me to soil the Chen Household’s reputation.’
Mo Lan thought thoroughly about what she must do to protect the Chen Household. It would be hard for her to leave Chen Quan Ran and Madam. But she didn’t want them to be forced to choose between her and their loyalty toward the Northern Empire. She didn’t want them to oppose the emperor and be accused of treason because of her. So if Chen Quan divorced her then he and Madam’s lives would be spared. She owed Madam a lot for raising her and loving her for ten years.
‘Divorce you?’ Chen Quan Ran asked angrily. He almost vomited blood. ‘Xiao Lan is your head muddled? Do you think if I divorce you then it’ll resolve everything? Do you think if I divorce you the court officials who want my head will beg the emperor to spare everyone at the Chen Manor? Do you think if I divorce you there’ll be world peace?’
It was the first time Chen Quan Ran raised his voice while speaking to Mo Lan.
Chen Quan Ran shook the letter in front of Mo Lan.
‘Xiao Lan if one day I’m accused of committing a crime, would you also ask me to divorce you?’ Chen Quan Ran asked. ‘That way you can end any a.s.sociation with the Chen Household and escape punishment.’
Chen Quan Ran was angrily raising his voice at Mo Lan and made her sob loudly.
Chen Quan Ran forced himself not to immediately comfort Mo Lan after he heard her pitiful sob.
‘If you’re capable of doing something foolish like this because you care about the Chen Household then I don’t know what other foolish things you’re capable of,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘What kind of person do you see me as?’
‘I…’ Mo Lan said.
‘What I?’ Chen Quan Ran asked.
Mo Lan’s foolishness made Chen Quan Ran angry to death.
‘Next time if you dare wave a divorce letter in front of me,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘I don’t care if you’ll regret it and want to stay with me. I won’t keep a wife who is scared of being a.s.sociated with the Chen Household since she doesn’t want to be implicate herself. Because a coward isn’t suited to be my wife.’
Chen Quan Ran’s cruel words made Mo Lan sob uncontrollably. It was obvious she had good intentions but he heartlessly cursed and scolded her.
Chen Quan Ran had trouble scolding Mo Lan. Her tears melted his heart. He wiped tears off her face and hugged her.
‘Don’t cry anymore,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘Earlier I raised my voice a little but you were wrong too. Aren’t we husband and wife? Even if I must die, I’ll still die with you.’
Mo Lan’s body didn’t stop trembling against Chen Quan Ran’s chest.
‘Besides I won’t let anyone kill you or me,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘Whatever trouble you face, I’ll always be here to help you overcome them.’
That evening Chen Quan Ran stayed in bed and comforted his wife until she stopped crying and fell asleep. Then he carefully got out of bed and put on his clothes.
Chen Quan Ran flew over many roofs and he landed on a bridge where Chen Luo Yu waited a long time for him.
‘General…’ Chen Luo Yu said.
Under the moonlight, Chen Quan Ran smiled coldly at Chen Luo Yu’s beautiful face.
‘What is it you need to say to me?’ Chen Quan Ran asked coldly.
‘I’m truly sorry… I didn’t know the situation would escalate to this,’ Chen Luo Yu said.
Chen Luo Yu easily recognised the familiar painting design Tu Fang Su showed her. She only wanted to harm Mo Lan. She didn’t expect the Chen Household would be accused of treason. When she went to the Chen Manor to explain, the guards prevented her from entering the Chen Manor. She could only beg Xiao Ha to ask Chen Quan Ran to see her on the bridge closest to the Chen Manor. She waited for Chen Quan Ran most of the night.
After Chen Quan Ran knew Chen Luo Yu betrayed him and his wife, he regretted letting a wolf like Chen Luo Yu into his family’s home. If it wasn’t Chen Luo Yu who told Tu Qing Min about Mo Lan’s earrings then others wouldn’t find out about Mo Lan’s ident.i.ty.
‘I don’t care if you purposely or accidently betrayed my family,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘From today onward I never want to see you again.’
‘General-’ Chen Luo Yu said.
‘I only came here because I considered our sworn brother bond in the past,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘Although I don’t want to blame you for everything that happened but it was your carelessness that put my family in danger. I didn’t expect someone who I saw as a sworn brother was a jinx to the Chen Household.’
Chen Luo Yu’s heart bled, Chen Quan Ran’s words were deadly cold.
‘I won’t take revenge on you but I’ll never forgive you,’ Chen Quan Ran said. ‘From today onward we have no relation to each other and we’ll never meet again.’
Chen Quan Ran leapt off the bridge and flew home to his wife.
Chen Luo Yu stayed behind on the bridge and she cried the rest of the night.