Chapter 129: Bitter Wine Down the Throat

The fourteenth day of the tenth month.

Suimian Street, Lin Residence’s Ji Pavilion.

Night, zi hour.

Perhaps knowing that Young Master was leaving tomorrow, Lin Hansu specifically returned to the residence today.

But even after trying her best, she was still the first to give in.

And this time, she lost particularly badly.

Like, completely routed.

First time ever~

“Sister, where should I put this Heartless Lotus?”

“Mm.”

Lin Hansu’s Phoenix eyes were half-closed, she mumbled a response, unwilling to move a single finger.

Ding Suian, on his own, tied the threaded Heartless Lotus, processed by Zhao Yan, onto her fair wrist.

After development, the Lotus Heart Curse now had a function similar to text messaging; when separated, they could use it to keep in touch and foster their relationship.

“Can Sister get up?”

“Get up for what?”

“I’m going to change the bedsheet.”

“.”

They were old comrades who had shared a bed, but hearing this, her cheeks still flushed. She forced herself to sit up, “I’ll change it.”

This disturbance completely chased away any remaining sleepiness.

The two snuggled together and talked. Most of the time, Lin Hansu spoke, and Ding Suian listened.

She started from their first meeting at Prince Lanyangs Estate and continued to talk about how things were for her now at the Princesss Residence. Although she didn’t explicitly say it, Ding Suian could tell that Lin Hansu was trying to encourage herself and him.

The gist was: Look, we made it through when we had no one to rely on and dangers lurked everywhere. Now things are getting better and better. Just wait a little longer, and perhaps the time when we can openly be together won’t be far off.

Lin Hansu wasn’t a chatterbox like Ruan Ruan, but she talked until the eastern sky revealed the white belly of a fish.

Around the mao hour, Ding Suian got up. Lin Hansu didn’t get up to help him dress like she did last time he left for battle; she just lay on her side, quietly watching.

This time, she really couldn’t get up.

“Sister, I’m leaving.”

After Ding Suian had packed, Lin Hansu softly said, “Go, be careful with everything. Remember, Sister is still waiting for you at home~”

“Mm.”

Ding Suian flipped out of the window, a light leap, and his figure instantly vanished into the morning light.

Silence fell upon the boudoir.

For the past few months, no matter how busy she was, there was always a faint anticipation in her heart each day that if they could just find a moment, they could meet.

Amidst her busy work, squeezing in time had become the greatest joy in her life.

The quilt beside her still held the Young Master’s body heat.

This departure would last at least two months, or perhaps three to four months.

Now, her body felt empty, and her heart felt empty too.

Lin Hansu turned her head to look at the green gauze window, and suddenly her mouth flattened. Like a weak little girl, two lines of clear tears rolled down her cheeks.

At the first quarter of the chen hour.

The sky was bright. Yi Huan, seeing that the usually diligent Princess had not yet risen, came to Ji Pavilion.

As she tiptoed up to the second floor, she saw a pile of crumpled bedding and sheets on the floor. Yi Huan went to pick them up, intending to take them downstairs, but realized something was wrong as she touched them.

She turned her head again and saw… the Princess lying on her side on the bed, her face covered in tears, her eyes swollen from crying.

“.”

Yi Huan was greatly startled.

In her mind, the Princess was omnipotent; even when she was almost martyred at Prince Lanyangs Estate, she had never seen the Princess shed a tear.

She was at a loss, so she tiptoed downstairs.

As she walked out of Ji Pavilion, she bumped into Granny Zhang. Yi Huan’s mouth twisted, and she almost cried too.

“What’s wrong so early in the morning?”

Granny Zhang asked, but Yi Huan looked left and right, then leaned close to Granny Zhang’s ear and whispered something.

“Cried?”

Granny Zhang was surprised. Yi Huan nodded and whispered, “Granny, please comfort the Princess. Actually, wetting the bed isn’t such a big deal…”

“.”

Granny Zhang looked up at the second floor of Ji Pavilion, understanding perfectly. She thought to herself: Parting is hard. Even for someone like the Princess, once she has someone in her heart, she can’t help but show a young girl’s emotions.

Granny Zhang reached out to take the sheets and bedding. “I’ll take these to wash. You tell Old Li to hitch the carriage and take you to the Princesss Residence to apologize, saying that the Princess is unwell today and requests a day off.”

At the second quarter of the mao hour, Ding Suian picked up Zhao Yan and Zhisheng, then met up with Xia Tieying and the master and disciple Ruan Ruan, and headed to the Prince of Nanshuns Residence in Honglu Temple Ward.

After picking up their family and meeting Li Qiushi, they would depart discreetly.

Zhao Yan was brought along because she was familiar with Southern Zhao and even more familiar with Chongyin Mountain. She also had fellow disciples from the Jile Sect in Southern Zhao, who might be able to help significantly.

Zhisheng was brought along because he was a doorkeeper. Wherever Young Master Ding was, there was the Ding Family’s door.

As for Xia Tieying, it was naturally because of her incredible archery skills displayed during the last extermination of Qin Shou.

Ding Suian only used one sentence to invite her to accompany them: “Find a way to bring back the bodies of Duke of Zhenguo and Miss Xia’s brothers!”

Outside the Military Patrol Post in Honglu Temple Ward, fifty Elite Cavalry Soldiers, brightly armored, were ready to depart.

Ding Suian, as the Commander of the Imperial Guards, naturally wanted to use subordinates he was familiar with.

However, when the two countries discussed the peace talks beforehand, Southern Zhao limited the number of Great Wu’s guards to fifty.

With all personnel and horses ready, they headed towards the Prince of Nanshuns Residence.

Outside the residence, more than twenty carriages stretched out, and servants inside were continuously moving large boxes and small cages onto the carriages.

Everyone had joyful expressions.

Presumably because they knew they were returning to their home country.

Ding Suian saw this and felt a headache. He immediately grabbed Steward Yi and said, “There’s too much stuff! With so few guards, if we encounter an emergency, we won’t even be able to escape!”

Steward Yi opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but didn’t.

It seemed he had probably already tried to persuade them.

Seeing this, Ding Suian strode into the residence.

The residence was in a flurry, and no one stopped him. He went directly to the back courtyard.

There, he saw groups of concubines instructing their respective servants to pack their cosmetic boxes and clothes. Some even wanted to pack porcelain and bedding.

Ding Suian couldn’t help but get angry. He immediately found Prince of Nanshun, “Prince, didn’t we say a few days ago, a maximum of six carriages!”

“Oh! They… they have a lot of things. One carriage per person isn’t even enough.”

“If it doesn’t fit, don’t bring it!”

Ding Suian couldn’t help but raise his voice.

The back courtyard fell silent for a short moment. The concubines looked up, saw it was a minor Dutou, and then resumed their busy work. “Come, come, also carry this Jing porcelain flower vase onto the carriage.”

Just then, Yi Yiyi, dressed in a moon-white men’s gown, walked in quickly. Her gaze swept around, and she crisply announced, “I have ordered all the items on the carriages outside to be unloaded! You have fifteen minutes; each person is only allowed one bundle! No exceptions after the time is up!”

“.”

Yi Yiyi finished speaking and left.

The concubines immediately stopped, looked at each other, and then rushed to Prince of Nanshun, pulling his arms and wiping their tears. “Prince! How can one bundle be enough! Please manage the Princess!”

Prince of Nanshun glanced at his daughter’s decisively departing back and softly coaxed, “Ah, listen to her, listen to her. When we return to Yunzhou, this prince will get you more.”

With that, the convoy instantly slimmed down by nearly seventy percent. Except for Yi Yiyi and her father riding in a separate carriage, all the remaining concubines and maids were packed into the other five carriages.

Complaints of hardship and quiet grumbling were endless.

Yet, no one dared to openly criticize Yi Yiyi.

At the chen hour, Ding Suian and Prince of Nanshun walked out of the Prince of Nanshuns Residence together.

Seeing the scene outside, Ding Suian was startled.

On the long street in front of the post, people stood densely packed.

There were white-haired elders, young women, and children held in their mothers’ arms.

But without exception, everyone stared uniformly at Ding Suian, who stood on the stone steps in front of the residence.

After a few breaths, an old man, holding a bowl of cooked red-skinned eggs, tottered forward, supported by two young children of about ten years old. “Dutou, the journey to Southern Zhao is long. My family doesn’t have any rare treasures, so I just boiled some eggs. Please take them to eat on the way.”

After saying that, he turned his head to look at the two children, then looked back at Ding Suian. Before he could speak, two lines of murky old tears streamed down his face. “Dutou, both of my sons went missing during the southern campaign at the beginning of the year. One of their wives remarried, and the other cried herself blind. I’m dragging these two grandsons along to survive. I don’t ask for anything else, Dutou, just that on your trip to Southern Zhao, you help this old man inquire about their whereabouts. Their names are Zhang Dengbao and Zhang Denggao.”

With his words, the shouts from below immediately rose in a chorus.

“Dutou, my son is Wang Lianjiang. Please, Dutou, help me inquire about him.”

This was an old voice.

“Dutou, my husband is Xu Jizu.”

This was a woman’s voice.

“Lord Dutou, my father is Old Zhou. My mother died missing him, and Second Sister and I have no food. Lord Dutou, please say some good words to Southern Zhao and let Father come back, okay?”

This was a… tender child’s voice.

Among the Elite Cavalry, the honest and simple Hu Jiangjiu secretly lowered his head, large tears splashing onto the bluestone slab.

As fellow Soldiers, it was inevitable to feel sympathy for their kind.

Ding Suian was at a loss for words. Then, he saw Old Man Zhang, standing at the very front, slowly kneel down with his two grandsons. He held the bowl of eggs above his head with both hands, choking out, “Dutou, this old man doesn’t ask you to bring my sons back. I only ask that you trouble yourself to help inquire, to get a definite answer, whether they are dead or alive.”

Old Man Zhang’s kneeling led to the crowd surging like a tide, all bending their knees to the ground, their prostrate figures gradually spreading into the distance along the long street.

A low, suppressed weeping sound rose in unison.

At the end of the chen hour, Ding Suian and his group met up with Li Qiushi and other officials from the Ministry of Rites, then exited the city from the Southern Gate of Central Heaven.

Upon reaching Wuli Pavilion, the Second Imperial Grandson, Prince Anping, was already waiting there.

It was also a farewell, but the atmosphere was now vastly different from before.

Prince Anping personally offered a cup of farewell wine, which Li Qiushi received with both hands.

“Minister Li, regarding the southern campaign, it’s meaningless to discuss right or wrong now. But your journey represents our entire Great Wu.”

Prince Anping raised his hand to gently stop Li Qiushi from speaking and continued, “Even though the situation is not what it once was, the national prestige of Great Wu must not fall. Although Southern Zhao won, it is ultimately a small border state; though our dynasty has suffered a temporary setback, we are still the legitimate orthodox power of the Central Plains. The most important thing in these peace talks is to negotiate a dignified outcome.”

Li Qiushi’s fingers tightened slightly around the wine cup. “What the Prince means by ‘dignified’ is…”

“The tribute system must not be abolished. If Southern Zhao demands some gold, silver, or valuables, it can be granted, but the old custom must be continued, acknowledging Great Wu as their suzerain. This status must not change.”

Isn’t this just purely making things difficult for others?

They won a great victory, and you still expect them to acknowledge you as their father?

“Prince, Southern Zhao has just won and its arrogance is rampant. Forcing them to continue paying tribute might not be easy. If this leads to a stalemate and delays the return of the prisoners of war…”

“Minister Li~” Prince Anping’s expression slightly hardened. “The prisoners of war must be welcomed back, but the national prestige must be preserved even more! This is the greater picture. If Southern Zhao insists on refusing, then it shows their insincerity, and peace talks are unnecessary. As for the captured Soldiers… dying for the country is also their duty. The imperial court will provide pensions. Should Great Wu bow to a tiny country just because they are trapped in enemy hands?”

Behind him, Ding Suian stood with his hand on his saber, gazing at the vast fertile plains, muttering as if to himself, “What the f*ck!”

In front, Li Qiushi was silent for a moment, then finally raised his head and drank the cup of farewell wine.

Judging by his expression, that wine must have been quite bitter.