The further south you go, the warmer the weather becomes and the more spring feels like. When you get near Nanzhao, the temperature is as warm as early summer, birds are singing and flowers are blooming everywhere, the girls are wearing light clothes, and the unique charm of the South is overwhelming.
That evening, the team stopped in a small town called Luoxia. The post station was right on the edge of the town, surrounded by mountains and rivers, with beautiful scenery. At first glance, it did not look like a post station, but rather like a summer resort for wealthy people.
The guy at the post station said that the reason why the town is called Luoxia is because the sunset here is particularly beautiful. If you climb up the Luoxia Peak behind the post station at sunset, you can see the most beautiful sunset in the world.
So, Xie Nanjia was eager to go there and suggested taking some wine and food to the top of the mountain to watch the sunset.
Without saying a word, Xie Nanfeng ordered ten guards to accompany her to the top of the mountain.
Influenced by Xie Nanfeng along the way, Zhao Jingyu has gradually figured out the trick to please Xie Nanjia, which is to be obedient, indulgent, and pamper her unconditionally.
Therefore, although he was very tired after riding a horse for a whole day, he still followed without hesitation.
Watching the sunset from the top of the mountain is indeed a different kind of mood, especially when sitting on the soft grass, feeling the breeze, drinking peach blossom wine, listening to the singing of returning birds, and watching the sunset glow burning half the sky like fire. This feeling is simply amazing.
Perhaps it was the intoxicating beauty that Xie Nanfeng for the first time put aside his hostility towards Zhao Jingyu and even clinked glasses with him.
Zhao Jingyu was flattered, as if he had received a reward from the emperor. He almost kowtowed and shouted "Long live the emperor".
Xie Nanjia looked at the two men with interest. They were both wearing white shirts that they had bought temporarily from the market. One was heroic and dashing, while the other was seductive and charming. They were two completely different sights.
"You haven't worn red for a long time." Xie Nanjia bumped Zhao Jingyu's glass with the glass in her hand, "I almost forgot what you looked like in red."
"Really?" Zhao Jingyu curled the corners of his lips, took a sip of wine, and fell silent as he looked at the blood-red setting sun.
"What's wrong?" Xie Nanjia asked.
"It's nothing, I just suddenly remembered my childhood." Zhao Jingyu said, his voice a little lonely.
Xie Nanjia was stunned for a moment: "Did I mention the red dress and make you think of your mother?"
Zhao Jingyu pursed her lips and said nothing.
"What is the relationship between Hongyi and his mother?" Xie Nanfeng asked curiously.
"Because..." Xie Nanjia glanced at Zhao Jingyu and explained to her brother in a low voice, "Don't say anything. The second young master's mother is Mu Hongyi."
"Mu Hongyi?" Xie Nanfeng suddenly raised his voice and looked at Zhao Jingyu in disbelief, "Are you Mu Hongyi's son?"
Xie Nanjia was startled and raised her hand to slap him: "Keep your voice down, you are so startled, do you know her?"
"I don't know him, but I've heard of him, if he's really the same person." Xie Nanfeng said.
Xie Nanjia's curiosity was aroused. She wanted to listen, but she was afraid that Zhao Jingyu would be unhappy. After hesitating for a moment, she couldn't help but ask, "What kind of person are you hearing about?"
"She is the seventh princess of Yuze Kingdom in Mobei." Xie Nanfeng said, "I heard about it when I went to Northern Xinjiang last time. It is said that she fell in love with a general of a foreign race and not only got pregnant, but also colluded with foreign countries and helped her lover attack her own royal city. King Yuze removed her from the royal family and sentenced her to death. From then on, no one was allowed to mention her name again. Later, people gradually forgot about her. Young people didn't even know that King Yuze had a seventh princess."
"..." Xie Nanjia held his breath unconsciously, and looked at Zhao Jingyu hesitantly.
She had a hunch that the Seventh Princess mentioned by Xie Nanfeng was most likely Zhao Jingyu's mother, but this was Zhao Jingyu's secret, and even as his fiancée, she should not pry into it.
Zhao Jingyu's face was hazy and lonely in the ever-changing sky, and his eyes seemed to see a very far place through the afterglow of the setting sun.
In his childhood memories, his mother's favorite thing to do was to sit side by side with him on the sand dunes and watch the sunset after a busy day. When the red clouds covered the sky and the sun sank into the end of the vast desert, his mother would say, "It's great, another day has passed."
Everyone else complains that time goes by too fast, but she complains that time goes by too slow.
She said that the world was full of sadness and there was nothing worth lingering on. The only thing she was worried about was him.
But he didn't think he was the only one, because he often heard his mother calling for the general in her dreams.
He didn't know who the general was, but he knew that the general, like him, was someone his mother couldn't let go of.
When his mother passed away, he was still young and didn't understand what death was. When Marquis Dingyuan came hurriedly and buried his mother under the sand with his own hands, he realized that he had lost his mother forever.
At that time, he thought that Marquis Dingyuan was the general in his mother's dream. He questioned him why he didn't come earlier, causing his mother to cry in her dreams every night.
Marquis Dingyuan said that people in this world have no control over their own destiny and everyone has his or her own difficulties, the common people are like this, as is the emperor.
Could the emperor also have his own difficulties? He was a little skeptical.
It was not until he followed Marquis Dingyuan to the capital that he met the emperor, who was in a meditation room in Fanyin Temple.
He held him in his arms and burst into tears. He said that he had originally planned to pick him and his mother up after he had secured his throne, but he did not expect that his mother passed away before he could go.
He said, "Don't be afraid. I will be your backer from now on. You can do whatever you want. This capital is yours, and the entire Great Zhou is yours."
At that time he didn't understand what it meant, he said, I don't want these, I just want my mother.
But he could give him everything, but he could never give him a mother.
"Let's go back. It's getting dark and I'm a little drunk..." When the last bit of the setting sun was swallowed up by the mountains, Zhao Jingyu stood up and staggered down the mountain.
The mountain wind blew up his white clothes, making him look like a lonely white crane, as if he was ready to fly away at any time.
Xie Nanjia took two quick steps to catch up with him, silently grabbed his hand, and interlocked their fingers.
"The road down the mountain is dangerous, let's go together."
Zhao Jingyu glanced at her with a drunken look on his face: "Okay, you have to hold me tight."
Xie Nanfeng followed behind, not feeling drunk, but just feeling jealous.
The news that Zhao Jingyu was the son of Prince Yuze's seventh princess, Mu Hongyi, was spread quickly throughout the capital from the emperor's mouth, shocking the whole government and the public.
Although Yuze Kingdom is now a vassal state of Da Zhou and Mu Hongyi was removed from the royal family by the old king, the royal blood flowing in her body cannot be changed.
A notorious illegitimate child suddenly turned into a prince with noble bloodlines from two countries. Such a drastic role change was not only unacceptable to those who were familiar with him, but even those who had never seen him found it incredible.
Among them, the one who found it most difficult to accept was the old lady of Dingyuan Marquis Mansion.
The grandson whom she had cherished for more than ten years in her arms inexplicably became someone else's child. Even if he would become a prince, a crown prince, or even an emperor in the future, she couldn't bear to let him go.
The old lady was sad for several days because of this. Whenever she thought of it, she called Marquis Dingyuan over and scolded him while crying, saying that he even lied to his own mother and was not a human being at all.
Marquis Dingyuan felt very aggrieved and said that it was the emperor's order and he had no choice but to do it, and asked the old lady to understand him.
"Yu'er and you have a deep relationship. Even if he becomes the emperor in the future, he will still recognize you as his grandmother. By then, you will be the most honorable old lady in the Great Zhou."
"I don't care about those false names, I just want my grandson." The old lady wiped her tears and said, "You can let me forgive you, but you must tell me where Yu'er is now. It has been so many days, and there is no trace of him alive or dead. Have you found him?"
Dingyuan Hou said: "You asked this question. He is the emperor's only son now. If something happens to him, can the emperor be so calm? The emperor has already arranged his affairs. When the court is settled and everything is in order, the emperor will naturally take him back. Don't worry!"
"You've said so much, but you still haven't told me where he is." The old lady was dissatisfied. "You all know the answer, but can't you let me know too? I worry about him day and night, and I can't sleep well."
Marquis Dingyuan had no choice but to tell her quietly that Zhao Jingyu had followed the King of Nanzhao to Nanzhao.
"Nanzhao, isn't that a barbarian land? Why did you send the child there?" Instead of feeling relieved, the old lady became even more anxious.
"It used to be a barbarian land, but it has been governed well by the King of Nanzhao over the years. The people live and work in peace and contentment, and border trade is prosperous. It is no longer what people imagined it to be." Dingyuan Hou said, "The reason why the emperor asked Yu'er to go there this time is to let him check it out for him and learn from the King of Nanzhao. There are still many barbaric lands in the Great Zhou that need to be governed, and these will be Yu'er's responsibility in the future."
"Oh, so that's how it is!" The old lady nodded as if she understood, and stopped making a fuss. However, she began to worry about Zhao Jingyu's hard work. "He does nothing at home, and even wants to be fed. If you give him such heavy work all of a sudden, won't the child be exhausted?"
"..." Marquis Dingyuan didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "He's not doing hard labor. It's just a matter of using his brain and mouth. How can it be tiring? Besides, he has Xiu'er following him!"
"What did you say?" The old lady's eyes lit up. "Xiu'er is gone too. That's great. I feel relieved to have Xiu'er around."
Dingyuan Hou: “…”
You are not at ease following King Nanzhao, but you will feel at ease with Xiu'er. Is Xiu'er more useful than the entire palace
I don't know where this inexplicable trust comes from.
Okay, no matter what, as long as she feels at ease.
Just as Dingyuan Hou was about to say goodbye, the old lady remembered something and called him back: "Wait a minute!"
"Mother, do you have any other instructions?" asked Marquis Dingyuan.
The old lady beckoned him to lean over and said worriedly, "Prince Wei usually keeps silent, but secretly covets the throne of the emperor. What if Prince Nanzhao is the same as him? Wouldn't Yu'er be sending a sheep into the tiger's mouth?"
Dingyuan Hou: "... Then what do you think we should do? Otherwise, I will take people to bring him back now?"
"Hey, that's exactly what I mean." The old lady clapped her hands and said, "Go and discuss this with the emperor. He is the only son of yours, so don't let him do this or that. It's better to keep him under your eyes and keep an eye on him. What's the point of the court keeping so many ministers? Can't they just do whatever they want?"
Dingyuan Hou: “…”
Marquis Dingyuan, who was about to be driven crazy by his old mother, did not know that Xie Nanjia was also discussing the same issue with Zhao Jingyu at this time.
"As far as I know, the emperor is a very suspicious person. How can the Prince of Nanzhao be so worthy of the emperor's trust in entrusting you to him?"
After traveling all the way to the Nanzhao Palace and settling down in Song Huai's Fengming Pavilion, Xie Nanjia suddenly felt that this trip was a bit ill-considered and the decision was made too hastily.
"Why, are you afraid that King Nanzhao has some ulterior motives?" Zhao Jingyu took the most comfortable bath he had in days, sat on a chair in a loose robe, and asked Xie Nanjia to help him wipe his hair.
"I didn't say that. I just wonder why the emperor trusts Prince Nanzhao so much." Xie Nanjia said.
"Never mind him. King Nanzhao won't arrive until tomorrow anyway. Let's get a good night's sleep first. It's more important than anything else." Zhao Jingyu said.
"Aren't you worried at all?" Xie Nanjia expressed doubt.
"If it's a blessing, it's not a disaster. If it's a disaster, you can't avoid it. What's the point of worrying?" Zhao Jingyu looked indifferent and asked her again, "Then were you worried when you asked Song Huai for help?"
"No, I believe him." Xie Nanjia answered without hesitation.
"..." Zhao Jingyu said with a sour look, blinking, "Did you notice that the maid who helped me prepare the bath water just now was very beautiful."
"..." Xie Nanjia threw the handkerchief at his face, "Then ask her to help you wipe it!"
Zhao Jingyu laughed: "Why, you feel bad, I just want you to have a taste of jealousy."
The next day, after breakfast, Madam Ning, the concubine of Prince Nanzhao who stayed behind in the palace, was enthusiastically chatting with Xie Nanjia and Zhao Jingyu about family matters when a servant came to report that the prince and princess had returned.
Madam Ning hurriedly led the other two ladies and servants of the palace to go out to greet them.
Zhao Jingyu and Xie Nanjia were guests, and Madam Ning asked them to stay in the flower hall to drink tea and there was no need to greet them.
Madam Ning is Song Huai's mother. She is young, beautiful, well-educated and sensible. Although she is a concubine, she has a very special status in the mansion because she gave birth to a good son. When the Prince of Nanzhao and the Princess came to Beijing, all matters in the mansion were left to her to take care of.
The guard who drove the carriage for Zhao Jingyu and the others was a confidant of King Nanzhao. After arriving at the palace yesterday and conveying King Nanzhao's order, Madam Ning immediately arranged them to stay in Song Huai's Fengming Pavilion without saying a word, and was very warm and considerate.
The flower hall became quiet as the two sat and drank tea. Not long after, it became lively outside as the Prince of Nanzhao and the Princess came in surrounded by a large group of people.
Zhao Jingyu and Xie Nanjia put down their teacups and went to the door to greet them symbolically. However, before they could do the greeting, they were stopped by King Nanzhao.
If everything goes as expected, these two will be the future crown prince and crown princess, as well as the future emperor and empress. He is not worthy of such a gift.
"Hey, isn't this the wanted Zhao Jingyu? How did he come to Nanzhao? Come on, catch him quickly!" The eldest prince Song Zhan who came in later recognized Zhao Jingyu and shouted without thinking.
(End of this chapter)