It was an evening. At the border of Yunmeng and Fuzhou, in front of the river mouth that leads from the Yangtze River to Dongting Lake, several black boats carrying the setting sun were rowing slowly in the middle of the river.
A man stood on the bank of the river estuary for a long time. The afterglow of the setting sun cast his figure on the ground behind him, a thin and long shadow. His eyes seemed to be looking at the shadows of the black boats on the river in front of him, and seemed to pass through the black boats, deeply immersed in a world that only he knew.
Mu Fulan naturally knew that this tributary from the Yangtze River would lead to Dongting Lake if it went down along the river mouth.
What she couldn't understand was why Xie Changgeng was here.
She stopped and looked quietly at the figure in front of her that she hadn't seen for several years. After a moment, she said, "I received your letter. What's the matter?"
The wind was very strong at the river mouth, and her voice was like a light feather. As soon as she spoke, it was blown away by the oncoming wind and scattered into the river.
Mu Fulan suspected that he might not have heard her. He remained motionless, without any reaction, still standing there with his back to her.
Mu Fulan waited for a moment, and just when she was about to call him again, she saw the man slowly turn his head and look at her.
The two people's eyes met from afar, more than three years after their last meeting in Junshan that night.
Reeds rustled on the riverbank, and a few egrets were circling at the river mouth behind him, chirping.
He turned around and looked at her, his eyes fixed and unmoving.
Mu Fulan was also looking at him.
The man's face actually looked the same as before. But the moment her eyes met his, Mu Fulan actually felt a sense of vicissitudes in him.
This person was completely different from what she had originally imagined.
In her imagination, he should be full of vigor and look down upon the world, not like the man in front of her who was looking back at her. He seemed to have gone through the vicissitudes of life and now he has just returned to his original point.
But she quickly dispelled the inappropriate illusion in her heart.
It was because too much time had passed, and the distance between them was a little far. It was just an illusion, she told herself.
She stood where she was, not moving forward, and watched him finally turn around and walk towards her, getting closer and closer, until he finally stopped, leaving a distance of one person between them.
This made her relax slowly.
This distance made her feel safe.
"I'm here, what's the matter?" she asked him again.
Xie Changgeng stared at the woman opposite him who was bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun.
He felt that he was about to die, but the woman in front of him still looked so young, with bright eyes and unparalleled beauty.
He used to be deeply resentful of his unrequited love and hated her for being so heartless. Now he understands everything.
The beauty remained the same, but she no longer belonged to him, and would never belong to him again. He knew it.
He was silent for a moment, nodded at her, opened his mouth, and said his first words.
"I need to appoint a crown prince. Xier is that person. I asked you to come here to discuss this matter with you," he said.
Even though Mu Fulan had thought of all kinds of possibilities before coming here, she had never thought that he would say such a thing.
She was stunned for a moment, and after making sure she had heard correctly, she immediately said, "Xie Changgeng, you can be the emperor, Changsha will not hinder your unification. I'm telling you the truth, I have already decided to return Changsha to the court, and my Mu family will leave Dongting. From now on, Changsha will have no king. I don't know why you have such an idea, it's too absurd!"
Xie Changgeng said: "I will take the throne, but I will never have any children in this life, so I need to appoint a crown prince. Xi'er and I are destined to be together, and he is the one I want. Moreover, due to some strange coincidences in the past, my subordinates have also determined that he is my son. So I came to discuss this matter with you."
His tone was calm, but Mu Fulan was extremely shocked.
"You said you will never have children in this life. What do you mean?"
He remained silent and did not answer.
She looked at his expressionless face and hesitated for a moment, suddenly remembering that he had fought on the front lines for many years and had been injured from time to time.
She immediately thought of a possibility and was shocked again. Thinking about the first impression he gave her just now, it was even more confirmed.
"Have you not… "
She paused, but could not speak.
"This is my business and has nothing to do with you." He spoke, his expression calm as always.
"I will not have any more children, so I need to appoint a crown prince. It is enough for you to know this."
Mu Fulan looked at the man, a complex and indescribable emotion welled up in her heart, and she suddenly felt that fate was playing tricks on her.
She also remained silent.
Xie Changgeng continued: "Everyone in the world will know that you and I separated in the past because of external forces. You and I are still husband and wife..."
He paused.
"Don't worry, I won't force you to do anything. Once the situation is settled, you can leave at any time in the future. Dongting Lake will always be yours, and this is my reward to you. The country will never be abolished, and the subjects will remain the same. If you want anything else, just ask, and as long as I can do it, I will agree."
"If you have someone you like, you can be with him/her. I won't interfere with anything you do."
He looked at her and said slowly, his hands under his sleeves clenched with five fingers.
Mu Fulan looked at the man in front of her, dumbfounded, with only one thought left in her mind.
This man did everything he could to become the emperor. He was simply insane.
She calmed herself down and shook her head: "Xie Changgeng, no matter what you say, I will not agree to this! Besides, Xier doesn't want to be a crown prince!"
Xie Changgeng stared at her.
"What if he wants to?"
Mu Fulan was stunned.
"Why don't you go back and ask him? If he says no, I will take back my words and won't force you."
Mu Fulan looked at him for a moment and nodded: "Remember your words."
After she finished speaking, she turned and left in a hurry.
As dusk fell, Xie Changgeng watched her go away, her figure looking bleak.
No matter how much pain she felt in her heart, she never mentioned the past to him. I guess she didn't want to hear his confession anymore.
Repentance is useless.
Nothing happened. The child wanted to be a king, so let him have his wish. Let her also be the most noble woman in the world.
This was what he owed in the past, and it was the only thing he could think of and afford to make up for it in this life.
Mu Fulan did not stay and left by car that night, returning to Yuecheng.
In the streets and alleys of Yuecheng, people were still discussing the current situation. Officials from Changsha State also gathered together, guessing the princess's intentions and feeling uneasy about their future fate.
During these days, only the young boy in the palace, who had gone out secretly a few months ago and was brought back by Yuan Handing, got up early every day to study and practice martial arts as usual, as if nothing had happened.
It was time for studying classics. He sat behind his desk, listening to the doctor who taught him classics, "Filial piety is the principle of heaven, the righteousness of earth, and the conduct of the people," with concentration and a calm look in his eyes.
The doctor finished his lecture for the day. As usual, he held the old doctor's arm and personally escorted him out.
The old doctor was also very worried about the various rumors that had been spreading day by day. After coming out, he couldn't help but ask his favorite disciple, "Young Master, there is a lot of discussion about the current situation in Changsha and abroad. Young Master, do you know what the princess is planning?"
The young boy smiled and said, "My mother never told me about this. I don't know."
The old doctor sighed and walked away with his hands behind his back.
The young boy watched the old doctor leave, and the smile on his face gradually disappeared.
He came back and continued to sit behind the desk for a while, then stood up and took out from a box the sword that his mother had sternly warned him not to draw that day.
He grasped the hilt of the sword with one hand and drew the sword out of the sheath.
The sword was pulled out of the sheath inch by inch, flashing with cold light, and the green blade was like a mirror.
He drew out the sword completely, slowly raised it up, and held it horizontally in front of him, staring at the pair of dark and cold eyes reflected on the sword edge, which seemed not to belong to him. His gaze was motionless. While he was lost in thought, he suddenly heard a noise coming from outside the door.
A burst of talking voices then reached my ears.
His mother came back.
He lowered his eyes, sheathed the sword silently, turned around, and saw his mother pushing the door open.
He went to meet him.
"Mom, you're back? You must have had a hard journey." He helped Mu Fulan and let her sit down.
Mu Fulan glanced at his desk and realized that he was reading again. She asked a few questions and ordered the maids to leave. Only mother and son were left in the room.
"Mom, you suddenly went to Yunmeng. What happened?" the young boy asked her.
Mu Fulan pondered for a moment, looked at him and said, "Xi'er, mother once asked you if you blame mother for not being able to make you the king of Changsha. You said no at that time. Today mother will ask you again. Tell me honestly, do you blame mother?"
The young boy said, "Mother, I naturally won't blame you. I know you are doing this for my own good."
Mu Fulan sighed slightly, but then he said, "But mother, if you ask me if I want to be king, I will answer you that I do. Not only that, I also want to be the most powerful king in the world."
Mu Fulan looked at the bright eyes of the child in front of her that did not avoid her gaze, and suddenly remembered the boy in her previous life who regarded the position of crown prince, which he could have fought for, as nothing, and finally committed suicide in front of his father. She was stunned.
After the young boy finished speaking, he looked at her silently. Seeing that she didn't speak for a long time, he said softly, "Mom, did I make you angry by talking like this?"
Mu Fulan came back to her senses and shook her head hurriedly.
She felt a little uneasy. After hesitating for a moment, she asked again, "Xi'er, why do you think so?"
"Mother, if this is not a good thing, why are there so many people in this world who are willing to give up everything and fight for the title of emperor?"
The young boy knelt on his knees and looked up at her.
"Mother, I am not a child anymore. I know what being a king can bring, and I also know the price and responsibility of being a king. There is one thing I have not told you. When I went to look for Master Xie before, he told me that he could help me. If there is such an opportunity, please help me."
Mu Fulan was stunned.
She felt as if something was wrong, but when she thought about it again, everything seemed to be in order.
Only she was the same person as before. That man didn't know the past, and Xi'er was no longer the Xi'er of the previous life. In this life, he had different experiences and different aspirations.
She felt mixed emotions at this moment. The huge feeling of loneliness, as if she was cut off from the world, swept over her again.
She was stunned for a moment, then came to her senses, helped the young boy who was still kneeling at her feet up, gently touched his head, smiled at him, and slowly walked away.
The things that man has decided always happen so fast that people are caught off guard.
Before long, the news spread all over the country. In Yuecheng, the capital of Changsha, it was a hot topic in the streets and alleys.
However, the atmosphere today is completely different from that not long ago.
Great news came one after another, and everyone was smiling.
Astrologers observed the sky and found that the rare five planets were in a perfect conjunction, which meant that a new emperor should be appointed to rule the world. The old emperor followed the sky and abdicated, and the King of Qin rose up. All the people in the world submitted to him, and he chose an auspicious day to ascend the throne as emperor.
On this day, officials from the Ministry of Rites who came from the capital led a huge entourage and traveled a long distance to welcome the princess and her son from Changsha to the capital to attend the ceremony.