LF Chapter 31

Chapter 31: A Traveler Returns from the Road

Da-da, da-da-da…

Jiang Yinghua, her mind muddled, felt a subtle swaying in her body in her half-awake state. A rhythmic sound of horses’ hooves echoed in her ears.

In her hazy consciousness, she pried open her sleepy eyes, blinked, and through a layer of mist, she saw a luxuriously decorated carriage.

She woke with a start, abruptly sitting up and startling the little maid beside her, “Your Highness, did you have a nightmare?”

Jiang Yinghua frowned, raised her hand to her forehead. Hmm, no fever. What on earth was going on? She tried to recall, only remembering Yan Wanzhi’s visit the night before. After that, everything was a blank.

She lifted the carriage curtain. Outside, the day was bright. No, to be precise, the sun was already setting in the west. The surrounding scenery was also unfamiliar. The carriage was surrounded by guards.

“Have I been exiled?”

Jiang Yinghua muttered to herself, but looking at the luxurious furnishings inside the carriage, and the brocade robe she had been changed into, it didn’t seem like exile came with this kind of treatment.

She focused on the two small maids with double buns in the carriage, confirmed that she had never seen them before, and asked with confusion, “What’s going on? Someone explain?”

The two little maids looked at each other. “Your Highness, what are you referring to?”

Great, they were two silly girls.

Jiang Yinghua calmed herself, trying to remain patient, and said softly, “Where did you two come from? Where are you taking me?”

“We were recently selected by the Inner Palace Department. As for where we’re going, we don’t know. The supervising nanny only ordered us to take good care of you,” the two little maids timidly replied.

They were new to the palace; no wonder they looked so young and weren’t quick-witted enough.

“Stop the carriage!” Jiang Yinghua shouted sternly. Knowing she couldn’t get any information from the maids, she could only ask the people outside.

Hearing the order, the coachman pulled the reins tight with a “whoa~”, and the carriage gradually stopped. Before Jiang Yinghua could get out, a guard rode forward, cupping his fist. “Does Your Highness have any orders?”

“Can someone tell me where this is heading?” Jiang Yinghua was too lazy to move, so she stayed in the carriage and raised her voice to ask.

“Your Highness should have Your Majesty’s decree on you. You’ll know once you read it. We are under orders to escort you and cannot say more,” the leading guard dismissed the others around him and replied in a low voice.

Hearing this, Jiang Yinghua lifted the brocade blanket covering her and looked around. Her ornate clothes were neat and tidy, nothing unusual. She sent the two silly maids, who were curiously approaching, out of the carriage and reached into her bosom and waist. Soon, she found the brocade pouch she both loved and hated.

Besides that, there was also a silk scroll in her bosom, a decree with Your Majesty’s seal on it.

After reading it, Jiang Yinghua put it back as it was. Clutching the hard, cold object in the pouch, she closed her eyes wearily and whispered, “It’s nothing. Let’s go.”

The carriage swayed again, and the group of riders kicked up clouds of dust.

——

Two years later.

Shaozheng, third year, mid-winter. Banners fluttered in the wind at the Zhenwei Army garrison in the Great Chu’s northern territory. Not far from the military camp stood an extravagant mansion, occupying a vast area. The stone lions in front of the gate had solemn expressions, indicating the nobility and authority of the person within.

On the vast northern grasslands covered in snow, a spirited woman dressed in a black brocade robe and a snow-white fox fur cloak had her dark hair tied high on her head. She rode a snow-white steed swiftly, leaving a long string of hoof prints on the bright snow.

That dazzling white figure headed straight for the majestic mansion, riding the horse over the steps in front of the gate and directly into the inner courtyard before dismounting. She casually tossed the whip to the page beside her and strode towards the house, her every move exuding freedom and unrestraint.

An old steward hurried after her. “Your Highness, we have guests, from the capital. They’re in the front hall. Do you want to see them?”

“No time.” Jiang Yinghua coldly spat out the words, entered the house, and slammed the door, shutting the steward out.

Unbeknownst to her, a person in vermilion official robes by the old tree beside the winding stone path watched this scene carefully and chuckled. “As she gets older, her temper gets bigger.”

Vermilion robes stood out too much in the snow. The old steward, having been rebuffed, turned to walk back and immediately saw the person. He hurriedly greeted him. “Lord, would you like to leave a calling card so that I may announce you again?”

“No need to trouble yourself. I will come to pay my respects another day.” He nodded slightly and walked toward the gate, leaving directly.

Two days later, inside the Zhenwei Army’s main camp tent, a junior officer hurriedly entered and saluted the person sitting in the main seat. “Commander, the capital has sent people to reward the soldiers. The Attendant is outside the camp. Should we summon him?”

“Summon him.” Jiang Yinghua leaned back in her seat, wiping a precious sword in her hand with a silk cloth.

The junior officer received the order and hurriedly invited the official waiting outside into the tent.

Jiang Yinghua lazily raised her eyelids slightly and swept her gaze over, only to see Yan Wanzhi walking forward with spirited strides, dressed in neat official robes.

It had been a long time since they parted ways at the Zongzheng Temple.

“Your subject Yan Wanzhi pays respects to Your Highness, wishing Your Highness a thousand autumns of golden peace.” Yan Wanzhi stood in the tent and gave Jiang Yinghua a grand salute.

It had been more than two years, and he still had the same old habits. Jiang Yinghua was already laughing in her heart, but her face remained composed. “Rise. It hasn’t been easy traveling all the way here. Someone, give the Inner Counselor wine to relieve his fatigue.”

As soon as she finished speaking, a soldier picked up a jar of wine, poured a large bowl full of it into a brown porcelain bowl, and stepped forward, holding it out. “Lord, please!”

Yan Wanzhi was so frightened by this unexpected gesture that he instinctively took a step back, unsure whether to accept it or not.

Jiang Yinghua smiled, her eyes crinkling. “Scholar Yan intends to reject this Prince’s kindness?”

Hearing this, Yan Wanzhi braced himself and took it. He gulped it down for a long time, finally emptying the large bowl of fiery liquor into his stomach. His tongue was so spicy that he kept twisting it in his mouth, unable to say a word.

Jiang Yinghua came down with her sword. She had polished the long sword until it gleamed. She casually made a sword flourish, and in an instant, the returning sword tip went straight for Yan Wanzhi’s neck.

Yan Wanzhi gasped in shock and closed his eyes tightly in fright.

“Everyone out. This Prince will catch up with Scholar Yan.” Jiang Yinghua looked at the frightened Yan Wanzhi with a playful expression and sent the others out.

Holding the long sword in her hand, she guided the edge around his neck. “Was it your idea to send this Prince here?”

“Your Highness misunderstands. It was because Your Majesty was worried about your safety back then and had no choice but to do so,” Yan Wanzhi replied tremulously, his eyes half-closed.

In Yan Wanzhi’s eyes, the Jiang Yinghua before him had blossomed. She was very different from before, with more arrogance and coldness between her brows. She looked like Your Majesty when she was young. No, to be exact, she was even more daunting than that person.

Moreover, since she came here, she had never returned to the capital. Yan Wanzhi wasn’t sure how much her personality had changed in the past two years.

The reports sent back to the capital didn’t say anything good about this little princess.

Jiang Yinghua didn’t ask further. With a long sword resting on his neck, Yan Wanzhi’s heart was in his throat.

Suddenly, Jiang Yinghua withdrew the long sword, returned it to its sheath, and said with a smile, “Still so cowardly. Your Majesty was willing to send you here, not just for the sake of rewarding the army, right?”

“Your Highness is right. Your Majesty ordered your subject to escort you back to the capital. The New Year is approaching, and you should go back for a reunion,” Yan Wanzhi replied casually, lowering his guard.

At this moment, Jiang Yinghua, who was facing away from Yan Wanzhi, suddenly turned cold.

When she first arrived here, Your Majesty had added many rewards. She even used the Imperial Treasury to build a mansion for her here. Every festival, letters and gifts never stopped.

But Jiang Yinghua was still resentful. Your Majesty had quietly changed her fiefdom, erased all her contributions in the suppression of the rebellion, and made her bear the blame for more than a year. It was only two months ago that she announced to the world that she would rightfully control the two military governorates and the Zhenwei Border Army Camp in the northern territory.

In these two years, Jiang Yinghua silently swallowed her grievances, endured the harsh winds of the northern territory, and worried about internal and external troubles every day, without a single day of ease.

Jiang Yinghua suppressed her emotions and turned back, still smiling. “Hmm, there’s no rush. How is the war in the south?”

“General Wu has won three battles in a row. Prince Yun’an is at the end of his rope. The campaign will likely be over by autumn at the latest,” Yan Wanzhi replied respectfully, not noticing anything unusual about Jiang Yinghua.

“Very good.” Jiang Yinghua walked to her seat. “In that case, Scholar Yan isn’t in a hurry to return to the capital? Is your accommodation arranged? If it’s inconvenient, you can stay at this Prince’s manor.”

“Reporting to Your Highness, that is exactly what I wanted to discuss with you,” Yan Wanzhi said, a gleam flashed in his eyes as he raised his head to meet Jiang Yinghua’s gaze.

“Oh? How so?” Jiang Yinghua asked, staring at him.

“Your Majesty intends to appoint your subject as your Chief Secretary. The decree will be issued after the New Year. From then on, I will no longer leave,” Yan Wanzhi nodded slightly, unable to hide the joy in his eyes.

Jiang Yinghua narrowed her phoenix eyes. Although she was always smiling, the smile became more and more inscrutable.

“It is this Prince’s honor to have Scholar Yan’s assistance, but in doing so, Scholar Yan is afraid of losing out. Although both are fourth-rank officials, the officials in front of the Emperor and the subordinates of this Prince are ultimately incomparable. I am afraid that it will delay your career.”

Jiang Yinghua thought, “His informants aren’t enough. He won’t be satisfied until he has a poisonous snake coiled in front of him.”

“It is my blessing to serve Your Highness. I am not familiar with the military affairs, so I still need Your Highness to take care of me and teach me, and do not dislike my talent. Moreover, Your Majesty clearly stated that the Chief Secretary of the Prince Zhao Manor is a third-rank official,” Yan Wanzhi respectfully replied.

Jiang Yinghua chuckled. “Fool, why are you being so polite? Are you and I only meeting today? In that case, move into the manor sooner rather than later. It’s not so easy to work under this Prince. You should adapt to it.”

“Your subject respectfully obeys Your Highness’s orders,” Yan Wanzhi said with a slight bow, smiling as he met Jiang Yinghua’s gaze, adding a touch of playfulness to his tone.

At this moment, both of them had their own little plans in their hearts, but the difference in their thinking was wider than the Milky Way.