When the news that Xiao Ling was going to the capital to pay tribute reached Chang'an, no one, from the emperor to the ministers, knew what she was up to.
Heshuo was called a vassal state, and its relationship with the imperial court was not very close. Traditionally, officials were sent to attend the New Year's Day celebrations. When Xiao Ling's father, Xiao Yan, was in power, he went to the capital to pay homage to the emperor twice, but that was because his mother and wife were in Chang'an. Since Xiao Yan's death, Xiao Ling took over the military power of the three towns, and she never went to the court to meet him.
Something must be wrong when things are out of the ordinary. The emperor and his ministers were on high alert. However, upon closer consideration, they realized that it had only been a year since she took back the military power of the three towns. The three towns had been seriously injured in the civil strife and it was time for them to rest with the people. How could they not rebel? They were even more puzzled.
When Huan Xuan heard the news, he didn't know why Xiao Ling wanted to go to the capital, but he vaguely felt that it must have something to do with his elder brother.
He knew that his elder brother and Xiao Ling were in love, and he once envied them secretly - at that time his elder brother was still alive, and he thought that he and Ruan Yuewei would be together for the rest of their lives. In theory, he should not envy others. Now, looking back, perhaps he had already realized that his one-sided and self-deceiving feelings could not be compared with their understanding and love.
But now he doesn't have to envy anyone, he has his own Sui Sui.
…
Even though Xiao Ling didn't seem to have any ill intentions, the emperor still decided to make full preparations.
He entrusted the defense of the capital during the New Year's Day court session to his third son, and the King of Qi was ordered to mobilize 20,000 Divine Wing Army troops from the northwest so that they could immediately respond to the capital in case of any changes.
The imperial court was on guard against General Xiao, and General Xiao did not dare to take it lightly. He was accompanied by 300 personal guards into the capital, and another 10,000 elite soldiers were stationed outside Tongcheng. The three armies of Hebei temporarily obeyed the orders of General Ye. If the imperial court acted rashly, fighting would be inevitable. However, this year a group of officials were implicated in the counterfeiting case in Jiangnan, including those from Beijing and other places. Jiangnan was the main source of tax revenue for Dayong, and the harvest was poor due to locust plagues. The emperor and his ministers were in a state of panic. To attack Hebei at this time, the emperor and his ministers would have to be crazy.
Sui Sui set out in early October and arrived in Chang'an at the end of December.
Huan Xuan, in compliance with the imperial order, led the ceremonial guards to welcome the governors of the three towns of Hebei Province at Changle Posthouse, seven miles outside Chang'an.
Changle Inn is located on Changle Slope, facing the Chan River to the east. The buildings are magnificent and beautiful. Court officials often come here to see off and greet their ancestors. When a vassal general comes to Beijing, the court will hold a banquet in Changle Inn to welcome him. He will stay overnight in the Inn and go to the palace to meet the emperor the next day. Xiao Ling is no exception.
The weather in Chang'an City was gentle and pleasant the other day, but on this day, a strong wind blew and heavy snow fell.
The big locust trees on both sides of the official road swayed left and right in the devastating wind, and the dead branches that looked like skeletons rustled. The snow and mud on the trees and beside the road were turned into black whirlpools by the epileptic seizure.
It was dusk when Xiao Ling arrived in the capital. Huan Xuan had received a message from a post station in advance, so he rode out of the city on horseback. With him were the emperor's eunuchs, officials from the ceremonial and military departments, and military officers from the twelve guards.
As dusk falls, the pale sky fades into purple, carrying with it the last trace of warmth.
The wind and snow grew stronger and stronger, and the cold wind blew directly into people's arms, chilling their hearts.
The Minister of Etiquette, who was riding beside him, held the reins in one hand and his hat in the other. He could not open his eyes due to the wind and snow, and his carefully braided hair with gray beard was blown loose. He glanced at the King of Qi who was sitting upright on his horse. His fox fur coat rustled in the wind, but he was still as handsome as jade, without a trace of embarrassment. However, his face was extremely pale, and he looked like he was carved out of ice and snow, as if he was born to be in the wind and snow.
He said jokingly, "The God of Killing is the God of Killing. He must be very evil. Once he enters the capital, even Chang'an will be in chaos."
Huan Xuan didn't say anything, but just nodded slightly.
The Minister of Rites suddenly remembered that the man in front of him was also a killing god, and a trace of embarrassment appeared on his face.
Fortunately, I heard the sound of carriages and horses, coming from far away, like muffled thunder rolling from afar.
After a while, dark shadows emerged from the dim snow curtain, like black clouds or mountain shadows, pressing towards them.
Minister Li was refreshed and breathed a sigh of relief. He rubbed his dim eyes and said, "Finally you're here. If you hadn't waited, your bones would have been blown away by the wind."
The sound of hooves became louder and louder, the earth seemed to be shaking, and the dark shadows were getting closer and closer, as if the mountain was about to collapse.
The horses and men were getting closer, and the sound of their hooves was getting slower. The ceremonial guards holding flags and spears led the way to the side of the road. A figure in light armor rode a black horse and slowly reined in towards them.
At this time, the wind was strong and the snow was heavy, and the sky was dark. It was difficult to distinguish faces from each other, not to mention that they were more than ten steps away.
Huan Xuan couldn't even see the figure of the person on the horse, but his heart tightened for no reason, as if there was a hand threading a needle, sewing his heart up stitch by stitch, and his heart was slowly tightening.
A man and a horse walked out from the snow, and their outlines became clearer and clearer.
When he finally saw her features clearly, his heart shrank to its limit and suddenly stopped beating.
The whistling wind seemed to stop suddenly, the sound of horse hooves disappeared without a trace, and even time seemed to have stopped, and the world became chaos.
Then, his heart seemed to explode again. In an instant, the clouds parted and the sky opened. Winter turned into spring, the ice and snow melted and turned into blooming flowers. He forgot who the person in front of him was. He fell into a gorgeous and beautiful Utopia. His mind was filled with only one thought: she was alive, and his Sui Sui was still alive.
She really didn't, she came back alive.
In the gloomy and foggy winter, in the dark and snowy Chang'an, she shone into his eyes like sunshine.
He recalled the first time he saw her riding a horse in the parade ground. She was already stunning at that time, but it was not until now that he realized that what he saw was not just a glimpse of the whole picture. What he saw before his eyes was the real her, so dazzling that it seemed as if his eyes would be burned if he looked at her for one more moment.
His lips moved, and the corners of his mouth seemed to be about to form a smile.
At this moment, he suddenly remembered where he was and who the person in front of him was.
The name Xiao Ling suddenly hit his heart.
She is Xiao Ling, Xiao Ling is Lu Suisui, and Lu Suisui is Xiao Ling.
His Sui Sui was fake, there was only Xiao Ling on this place.
Why did she approach him? Why did she, as the governor of three towns, willing to hide her identity and become his concubine
Why did she look at him with such an obsessed look after they had only met a few times
Huan Xuan didn't dare to think further. As soon as this thought came to his mind, he felt like he was falling into a bottomless abyss.
The raging fire of hell rushed up, burning all the bright and beautiful spring light in his heart into ashes. They flew away like dead butterflies and gray snowflakes all over the sky, covering the sky as if to bury him alive - it turned out that all this was made of paper.
It turned out that all the beautiful things he treasured were made of paper, and what he thought was true love was also made of paper. They were all offerings to the deceased.
Everything was burned to ashes, but the fire in his heart did not diminish. It gradually turned into a blaze, burning his internal organs and trying to turn him into ashes.
Huan Xuan's already pale face lost all color, and even his lips turned pale.
Sui Sui was only a few feet away from Huan Xuan, and he almost watched him go from astonished and ecstatic to bewildered, and then his anger burned like fire.
She just stared at him quietly, without looking away, with a calm expression, and no trace of disturbance in her amber eyes.
The two men sat upright on their horses, looking at each other, but no one spoke, and no one saluted according to the custom.
The officials behind Huan Xuan looked at each other in bewilderment, not knowing what was going on. They were secretly marveling at how the legendary Yaksha the fierce god was so beautiful that she could embarrass the moon and shame the flowers. Seeing the King of Qi like this, they couldn't help but wonder, could it be that the King of Qi had been alone for a long time and was speechless when he first saw such a beauty
But the Prince of Qi is not the Prince of Yuzhang, so he wouldn't be speechless and unable to speak when seeing a beautiful woman.
The attendants who followed Sui knew about the past between their great general and the King of Qi, and they all watched with their eyes and noses.
For a moment, there was only the howling of wind and snow, mixed with one or two horse neighs.
Huan Xuan stared at her for a long time, and finally opened his lips, his voice hoarse: "General Xiao, how are you?"
Sui Sui said calmly: "I have not been to the capital for many years and have never met Your Highness. I think Your Highness has recognized the wrong person."
Huan Xuan stared at her face with a burning gaze: "Maybe you saw me in a dream."
Sui Sui looked straight into his eyes without flinching, her amber eyes still clear: "Dreams always have to end."
Fortunately, the north wind was howling and the ministers fell behind, so they could not hear what they were saying, but they felt that there was something strange between the two men.
Neither of them had any intention of dismounting to greet them, and the Minister of Rites did not dare to say much. He could only comfort himself that he was probably used to this vassal general's arrogance and carelessness, and that His Royal Highness the Prince of Qi did not care anyway.
Huan Xuan retracted his gaze and said, "I have prepared some light wine in the hall. I hope General Xiao will honor you with his presence."
Sui Sui said: "Thank you for the banquet, Your Highness. I am very grateful."
Huan Xuan turned his horse's head and said, "General Xiao, please come in."