Nalan Chun was not a man who would stay at peace. He had been a tyrant in the capital for many years, so how could he plant trees in the back hills? Once, in order to shake off the guards who came out of the palace to follow him, he ran away from the back hills with a hoe on his shoulder. I don't know where he got the courage from, but he actually waded through the turbulent river and ran all the way to Changshan Ridge.
Of course, he was eventually caught.
But he successfully blazed a trail that no one had ever taken before or since, so much so that when Rong Xuan heard the news, he didn't know how to react for a long time.
Nalan Chun was anxious when he saw this: "You don't believe me?!"
Rong Xuan came back to his senses a little late: "I didn't say I don't believe it."
But in his heart, he thought that he should let Ji Fan send someone to scout the way in advance tomorrow. What if Nalan Chun is a person with poor sense of direction? He would be in big trouble then.
The matter of leaving the city still needs to be discussed carefully. Rong Xuan got Nalan Chun's promise, and told him not to go out in the next two days, stay at home and wait for news, and then he left in a hurry under the cover of night.
It was already very late, but Ji Fan did not sleep, and had been quietly waiting for Rong Xuan to come back. Two red candles had been replaced on the corner of the table, and the third one had burned halfway, with the wax dripping down and forming a winding shape.
When Rong Xuan entered the room, he saw Ji Fan waiting for him with a light on. His heart softened for a moment. He walked to the bed and sat down. He raised his hand and touched Ji Fan's face. It was probably because of the heavy dew, so it was a little cold. "Why don't you go to bed earlier? It's already late at night."
Ji Fan asked, "Where did you go just now?"
Rong Xuan seemed to be more anxious than Ji Fan about Li Zhou's affairs, and he was busy all day long. Ji Fan didn't know what he was doing behind the scenes, but he was worried for no reason, afraid that he would be involved.
Rong Xuan solved a big problem, and his tense nerves finally relaxed a little. He held Ji Fan's hand and whispered, "The three hundred people have a place to go. When we leave the city the day after tomorrow, I will ask Nalan Chun to find a way to take them out."
Ji Fan frowned and narrowed his eyes when he heard this: "Nalan Chun? Isn't he Zhao Su's man? How could he help us?"
Zhao Su didn't trust Ji Fan, and Ji Fan naturally didn't trust Zhao Su either. Rong Xuan was caught in the middle, and couldn't help feeling like Zhu Bajie looking in the mirror, "Although he is Zhao Su's man, it doesn't hurt to use him at a critical moment. Nalan Chun has always been rampant in the capital, and I really can't find a more suitable person than him. When the time comes, he will pretend to take people to hunt outside the capital, and the gatekeepers will definitely not dare to stop him. Three hundred people are not more or less, and taking them out of the city will not arouse suspicion."
Ji Fan did not say anything after hearing this, he lowered his eyes and wondered what he was thinking. The flickering candlelight cast a shadow on his tall nose, and his expression was a little hard to understand. But it was easy to guess that he did not trust Nalan Chun, but he did not say anything for Rong Xuan's sake.
Rong Xuan knew what he was thinking, and sighed, "Do you really think Nalan Chun helped me for nothing? In addition to repaying my life-saving grace, he also wanted to leave a good relationship with Zhao Su."
"Even a dandy like Nalan Chun dares to take a gamble, so why shouldn't we dare?"
Ji Fan finally looked at Rong Xuan and asked, "What if Nalan Chun is cheating?"
Rong Xuan smiled and said, "We have no other options now. The worst that can happen is that we have to fight our way out of the city. We might as well take a gamble. Besides, Nalan Chun doesn't know about the funeral. The day after tomorrow, when the queen's coffin leaves the city, let the 2,700 people leave first, and then let Nalan Chun lead the 300 people to leave. Even if something goes wrong, the loss will be limited."
He then told Ji Fan about the shortcut to Beishan Mountain that Nalan Chun had mentioned: "I don't know if the Beishan road is true. Tomorrow, when the delegation leaves Beijing, you can ask Yue Yuanting to send someone to investigate in advance and then send a pigeon to inform us. If you can really reach Changshan Ridge directly, you can not only avoid the pursuers, but also save a few hours of walking."
Ji Fan still had doubts about Nalan Chun's help, so he was not happy. But when he heard about the shortcut to Beishan, a dark light flashed in his eyes. He immediately thought about the topographic map in his mind and frowned slightly, saying: "If there is really a road behind Beishan, it will pass through and connect to Changshanling. But I heard that the waterway over there is extremely dangerous and it is difficult to cross by bamboo rafts. I'm afraid it's not safe."
Rong Xuan: "The world has changed so much. How can we know that the rivers, lakes and seas of the past will not dry up and become fields? The waterway was extremely dangerous a few years ago. Nalan Chun said that he had crossed the river himself, and the water was only up to the waist, so it would not drown people. Anyway, we will send someone to investigate tomorrow to find out whether it is true or not."
Ji Fan did not refute, and it was unknown whether he agreed to this method or not: "I will find someone to secretly watch him tomorrow. If he makes any unusual moves, this chess piece will be useless. Let's try it. If it doesn't work, I have a backup plan."
Rong Xuan became interested: "What's the back-up plan?"
Ji Fan glanced at him but did not elaborate: "The latter move is a desperate move. It should not be used lightly unless it is a last resort."
After he finished speaking, he raised his hand and grasped Rong Xuan's collar, and suddenly pulled Rong Xuan towards him. With some unknown emotion, his voice slowly lowered: "Rong Xuan, you finally got some time alone with me, just to say this?"
Rong Xuan thought, what else can I say if not this? However, before he could ask, he suddenly saw a trace of extremely subtle sadness in Ji Fan's eyes through the dim candlelight. It was like a shallow ripple hidden in the abyss of black pool, which disappeared without a trace in a moment.
There was a crackling sound of candlelight, and the last red candle burned out. The light in the inner room suddenly dimmed, and everything in front of Rong Xuan was blurry, but Rong Xuan could clearly see the faint light in Ji Fan's eyes.
He was silent and didn't speak.
"Rong Xuan..."
Ji Fan's voice fell silent, and he took the initiative to untie the black belt around Rong Xuan's waist, then gently reached out and hugged him. At first it was just an ordinary hug, but for some reason it got tighter and tighter, and the force even made people feel a little painful.
Ji Fan said: "Rong Xuan, kiss me..."
He said: "Kiss me, please..."
I don't know if it was an illusion, but there was a bit of trembling under his calm voice, and even a bit of suppressed pain. It wasn't the injuries on his body, but the suffocation and numbness of his heart being torn apart bit by bit, and being forced to separate.
Rong Xuan lowered his head and planted dense kisses on Ji Fan's face. When his kisses touched the corners of his eyes, he suddenly tasted some salty tears and his movements paused slightly.
Jifan cried...
Rong Xuan had never seen him cry before, and it wasn't in the original novel either, so he felt as if his heart was stabbed by something, causing a sharp gasp of pain. He couldn't see Ji Fan's appearance, so he had to try hard to kiss him, with increasing force, and he kept kissing until death.
Ji Fan seemed to be crying, and his hot tears fell into the back of Rong Xuan's neck, burning him so much that he felt uneasy. He was talking nonsense, and he didn't know what he was saying. He closed his eyes and said in a hoarse voice in the dark night: "Rong Xuan, I really want to take you back to Beiyan..."
He was powerless to raise his head to meet Rong Xuan's kiss, his Adam's apple exposed to the air, fragile and helpless, his eyes red, his words concealing long-suppressed madness: "You and I will go back to Beiyan together... You and I will go back to Beiyan together... Okay..."
He even sounded a little pleading, as if this was the only thing in his life that mattered to him.
When Rong Xuan heard this, he was about to speak, but Ji Fan suddenly pressed him tightly in his arms. The meaning of stopping him from speaking was so obvious that he had to swallow back the words.
Rong Xuan buried his head in Ji Fan's neck, and only felt that the other party's body seemed to tremble for a moment, and he was forcibly enduring something. After a long period of silence, he finally uttered a sentence with difficulty: "Rong Xuan, I can't take you..."
Ji Fan said: "I can't take you with me..."
He spoke each word with great determination. He clenched his teeth and could smell the blood. Hot tears rolled down his temples and he said hoarsely:
"I can't take you..."
He hugged Rong Xuan tightly, with such force that he seemed to embed him into his bones and blood, hoping that their souls could merge together. This way, when he left for Beiyan, he could take him with him without worrying about him.
Rong Xuan paused after hearing this. He raised his hand and groped it to the side of Ji Fan's face. Then he used his sleeve to gently wipe away the tears from the corners of his eyes, and whispered, "Don't cry..."
His eyes were extremely gentle in the darkness: "I have come to save you, you don't have to cry anymore."
He came to save Ji Fan. He must see him leave Zhou Kingdom safely and then ascend to the position that everyone looks up to.
It doesn’t matter if Ji Fan doesn’t take him with him.
Rong Xuan didn't want to be a worry for him: "Just do what you want to do. Mom, dad and I will be waiting for you here..."
Rong Xuan kissed Ji Fan's eyes at last. His warm breath mixed with low words was like a gentle hand, trying his best to heal the pain he had suffered for many years. "If you let me send you away from Beijing safely, I will wait for you to come back in Zhou Kingdom and won't go anywhere else, okay?"
This was his final concession.
Hearing this, Ji Fan finally loosened his grip on Rong Xuan's neck. His fingertips trembled, and he closed his eyes. He seemed to have a thousand words to say, but in the end, they all turned into one sentence: "Rong Xuan, how good it would be if I couldn't remember anything at the beginning..."
"I won't fight for the throne, I won't gamble my life, I will just stay in Taohua Village and be your wife for the rest of my life..."
He used to think that the throne was very important, and his lifelong wish was to reach a high place, so that he would never be trampled on by others again. After living for more than 20 years, there were many things that were beyond his control, and Ji Fan just wanted to be the master of his own life.
Take the right path, protect the right people...
Rong Xuan didn't want to make him sad, so he slowly exhaled, and his five fingers slowly shuttled through his hair, leaving delicate kisses, and finally smiled: "That won't work, it's not enough to just stay in Taohua Village. I'm still waiting for you to become the emperor and come back to take me as your royal husband."
Probably knowing that they were about to part, he and Ji Fan seemed to be connected together, and could not be separated. He had to hold her in his arms to feel at ease. Tighter, tighter.
The night passed quietly. When the sun rose, the weather was inexplicably gloomy, with a hint of a storm coming.
The next morning, Yue Yuanting went to the palace to ask for an audience and asked the Emperor of Zhou to allow him to leave the capital. He was a slick and smart man, and he knew that if he did nothing and left without hesitation, it would arouse the Emperor of Zhou's suspicion, so he mentioned in front of the palace that he wanted to take Ji Fan back to Yan: "The Queen Mother has raised your Highness for many years. Since he left the country, she has been worried about him every day. Recently, his health has been getting worse, and she always hopes that your Highness can return to the country as soon as possible to enjoy the happiness of family. In the Battle of Changling, the two countries of Yan and Zhou had signed an alliance to let the crown prince be a hostage for seven years. Now the deadline is coming, and I sincerely ask Your Majesty to show your grace and allow me to return to the country with the crown prince."
The Emperor Zhou was naturally not so easy to fool. He knew that the situation in Yan State was unstable and Ji Fan was urgently needed to stabilize the government. He gave a pile of gold and silver as a return gift and said to comfort him: "The Crown Prince of Yan is very intelligent. I have always treated him as my son or nephew. For seven years, we have a deep affection for each other. I am reluctant to send him back to Yan State now. Why don't you go back first and let the Crown Prince of Yan stay in the capital for a few more days, at least a few months. I will definitely send someone to send him back to Yan State safely."
Yue Yuanting pretended to be anxious and hesitated: "But Your Majesty..."
Emperor Zhou had no patience to listen, and waved his hand, saying, "No need to say buts. I am weak today and I really don't have the heart to deal with state affairs. I will send an official to escort you out of the capital, and Prime Minister Yue may leave first."
He made up an excuse to avoid the matter and went straight back to his bedroom.
Yue Yuanting knew that there were eunuchs secretly watching him, so he sighed and left the palace with a sad face. After leaving the palace, he did not leave the city immediately, but hurried to the Prince of Yan's mansion.
The people who were watching from afar couldn't see the situation inside the mansion clearly. They only saw Yue Yuanting walked in dejectedly. They didn't know what he said to Ji Fan. In less than half an hour, he was driven out by the guards inside.
There were people watching on the roadside. They saw Yue Yuanting in tears. He knelt in front of the Prince of Yan's mansion on the street and kowtowed three times respectfully. He cried bitterly, "I am useless, I am useless!"
Everyone around him was confused and didn't know why he acted like this. The official sent by Emperor Zhou guessed something and thought that Yue Yuanting might have failed to successfully bring the Crown Prince of Yan back to the country, and he had come to the palace to apologize and was disliked
He looked up at the sky and saw that it was getting late. He stepped forward to help Yue Yuanting up from the ground and said, "Prime Minister Yue, it's getting late now. Let me escort you out of the capital. If we travel after dark, it will be inconvenient."
Yue Yuanting did not speak, but shook his head and sighed, looking ashamed, as if he still had not recovered from his shock. He was supported by the officer and staggered into the carriage. When leaving the city gate, the guards checked them very strictly. The Emperor Zhou's handwritten order was not enough, and they even counted the number of people one by one. After finding that there was no increase or decrease, they let them leave Beijing.
When the news reached Ji Fan, it was already night time.
"Your Highness, Prime Minister Yue and the envoys have pretended to leave the capital, and after nightfall, they returned with their troops and ambushed in the suburbs. The people sent to explore the North Mountain have already reported back that as long as they wade through the river behind and walk for a few more hours, they can indeed reach Changshan Ridge."
Ji Fan waved his hand and signaled the messenger to leave. Hearing that Beishan was feasible, his frown relaxed a little. He looked up at Rong Xuan who was sitting across the table and said thoughtfully, "Now that Prime Minister Yue has left the capital, the rest will depend on tomorrow."
Rong Xuan was actually most worried about one thing: "Those 2,700 people have quietly replaced you in the funeral procession, but the people sent by the palace must be keeping a close eye on you. It may not be easy to get rid of them."
"No problem," Ji Fan seemed to have made plans in advance, "You will go to the princess's mansion with me tomorrow."