LF Chapter 52
by VolareThe anxiety of waiting for news was unbearable, like the ever-increasing summer heat. Jiang Yinghua’s mood was no different from the dry, hot summer wind.
That night, she was restless, knowing she wouldn’t be able to sleep. After dismissing her attendants, she cautiously slipped out of the window.
It was really difficult for her to act like a thief in her own manor.
It was almost midnight, and in the silent night, everyone in the manor was sound asleep except for the guards on duty. Jiang Yinghua tiptoed to Yan Wanzhi’s courtyard. Seeing that there were no lights inside, she figured the person must have fallen asleep.
Jiang Yinghua was unwilling to leave just like that and tried to push the door, but it seemed to be bolted from the inside. Helpless, she had to try the window, but unexpectedly, that fellow had secured the window tightly as well. Jiang Yinghua was so angry that she put her hands on her hips. Hearing the approaching sound of patrolling guards in the distance, she had a flash of inspiration and flew up to grab the courtyard wall, hiding on top of it.
After the guards moved away, Jiang Yinghua groped her way to the window of the sleeping quarters and rhythmically tapped on the window frame with her index finger, hoping that the person inside would hear and let her in.
“Who’s there?” A sudden question from behind startled Jiang Yinghua. Fortunately, it was Yan Wanzhi’s voice. Regaining her composure, she raised her hand, patted her chest, turned around, waved to her, and made a gesture to be quiet.
Jiang Yinghua cursed inwardly. Did Yan Wanzhi walk without making a sound? Scaring her to death.
Just as she was thinking this, the patrolling guards in the distance, hearing the noise, returned. Jiang Yinghua had no choice but to climb onto the wall again.
“Scholar Yan, is there anything unusual in the courtyard?” The guard ran over quickly, holding a torch, and asked solemnly.
Yan Wanzhi cleared her throat and said, “Nothing, just a wild cat darted past. I have poor eyesight at night, so I mistook it.”
Jiang Yinghua, who was squatting on the wall, thought to herself, “You are the wild cat, your whole family are wild cats.”
It was a false alarm. The guard didn’t linger and left with a bow. Seeing the guard leave, Yan Wanzhi quickly stepped forward. Jiang Yinghua jumped down and asked her in a low voice, “Why aren’t you sleeping in the middle of the night? Where did you go? The doors and windows are all closed, how did you get out?”
“You aren’t sleeping either, and you’re being so silly, don’t you know how to use the back door?” Yan Wanzhi rolled her eyes at her, grabbed her hand and quickly led her around to the back. With a gentle push, the door opened.
Entering and closing the door was done in one smooth motion. Yan Wanzhi deftly latched the door, then pushed Jiang Yinghua against it, smiling and asking, “You ran out here so boldly to find me, didn’t you even bother to listen for any sounds? What’s on your mind?”
“What could I be thinking? Thinking about your sweet, soft, warm jade den, your graceful, supple, watery snake waist, is that okay? I have to be sneaky even in my own house, so don’t bully me. Let’s go, let’s talk in bed.” Jiang Yinghua’s pair of black grape-like eyes were particularly bright in the dim room. She blinked her long eyelashes, coquettishly, and reached out to push Yan Wanzhi’s arm.
Yan Wanzhi was indeed a little surprised. It had been a long time since this person had been so proactive. Today, she actually delivered herself to her door at midnight, which was rare. Mainly because the situation in the court had been unclear recently, Yan Wanzhi was afraid of upsetting her, so she hadn’t dared to bother her with personal matters.
Hearing Jiang Yinghua’s words, Yan Wanzhi readily pulled her. Jiang Yinghua, in a daze, followed the force and slid to the ground. Yan Wanzhi knelt on one knee, her warm lips gently covering Jiang Yinghua’s lips, only touching them lightly before moving away. Her tongue lightly traced the corner of her mouth, and she smiled wickedly, “It’s rare for the little wild cat to take the initiative to come. Talking isn’t urgent. How about I give you what you want first?”
Jiang Yinghua touched her warm lips with her fingertip, grinning and showing a row of neat little teeth, looking at Yan Wanzhi playfully, “You said it, sister, don’t regret it.” With that, Jiang Yinghua slipped her hand under Yan Wanzhi’s robe, lifted her up horizontally, took two quick steps, and threw her onto the bed.
Calming her slight breathing, Jiang Yinghua took off the clothes that had gotten dirty from climbing the wall, turned around and let down her black hair, and the crimson lips slowly touched, two nimble water snakes entangled endlessly. The rustling breeze outside gently stirred the willow branches, like the graceful dancing of a dancer; the leaves on the tips of the branches made a very comfortable rustling sound, like the lingering spring rain.
“Mmm…” The girl beneath her couldn’t help but make a slight sound. Jiang Yinghua raised her hand to cover her eyes, which were as blurry and shimmering as distant mountain clouds, and whispered, “Shh, don’t let anyone hear.”
Half an hour later, Jiang Yinghua rolled over and lay beside her. Yan Wanzhi pointed at her brow with her finger, wearily dragging out her words, “Hua’er, are you sleeping here? I’ll wake you up tomorrow at dawn.”
“Can you chat with me? I don’t dare to sleep, I’m afraid I’ll wake up late and cause big trouble.” Jiang Yinghua turned her head away, her cheeks still faintly flushed.
“What do you want to talk about? I’ll keep you company.” Yan Wanzhi pulled her over, and they could feel each other’s warm breath and heartbeat.
Jiang Yinghua pondered for a long time. She wanted to talk to someone about her troubles, but tonight was joyous, and she didn’t want to disturb the atmosphere. After thinking it over, she still suppressed it in her heart. She just smiled and said, “Can you think of a way to find me some more ways to get money?”
“You’ve already deducted my salary, I don’t care,” Yan Wanzhi retorted grumpily. She knew that there was a struggle in Jiang Yinghua’s eyes, and what she wanted to say was definitely not this.
“You are mine, your salary is naturally mine, how can you say it’s a deduction? I’m trying to earn money for your dowry, you ungrateful thing, hmph!” Jiang Yinghua directly crawled out of her arms, turned her head away, and pretended to be angry.
“You’re preparing a dowry for me, that makes no sense, silly girl, you’re simply being ridiculous,” Yan Wanzhi said, propping herself up halfway, reaching over her shoulder, and looking down at her.
Seeing a furry head hanging above her, Jiang Yinghua reached out and rubbed it, and said, “Could it be that you have your own dowry? How much money could you possibly have? If it’s too shabby, wouldn’t it be a disgrace to this Prince?” The way she said it, it was as if she really had the courage to openly marry someone into her household.
“Anyway, my dowry is also yours, as you just said, so in the end you’re just earning money to spend on yourself. I don’t care, you can struggle on your own,” Yan Wanzhi pretended to be indifferent, then lay down again, closing her eyes tightly.
Jiang Yinghua scolded, “You’re so cunning, always quibbling, unwilling to coax me even a little.” With that, she got up and was about to leave.
Hearing this, Yan Wanzhi grabbed Jiang Yinghua and hugged her tightly, “I won’t coax you, but as long as you need me, I’ll always be by your side, never leaving. Hua’er, you have me by your side, you always have. If you’re tired, you don’t have to force yourself, you can try leaning on me.”
Jiang Yinghua’s eyes were a little misty, and she buried her head in her arms, taking a few deep breaths of the comforting, familiar, fragrant scent, and murmured a soft “hmm,” reluctantly getting up and saying, “I have to go back, you should get some sleep.” With that, she pressed her down and lightly kissed her forehead, “Don’t get up, be careful not to catch a cold.”
The night grew deeper, Jiang Yinghua tidied her clothes herself, and while Yan Wanzhi wasn’t paying attention, she slipped back to her bedroom through the window. After tossing and turning for half the night, she was very tired, and Jiang Yinghua finally fell asleep contentedly.
The next day, it was only around Chen Shi [7-9 AM] when Jiang Yinghua had just gotten up, letting her attendants do her hair and makeup. Outside in the corridor, Cao Song stood with his hands at his sides, waiting for her instructions. Yan Wanzhi ran over urgently with an urgent memorial. Perhaps because of the tossing and turning last night, her legs were not strong enough, and she staged a stumble on flat ground.
Seeing this, Cao Song quickly stepped forward to help her, “Oh, Scholar Yan, be careful of your feet, you must not have rested well last night?”
Yan Wanzhi didn’t bother with pleasantries, she stabilized her body and asked, “Steward, is Your Highness in? I have an urgent report.”
Cao Song understood seven-tenths of the doubts in his heart, only thinking that Yan Wanzhi was flustered because of the urgent report, which almost caused her to trip on the flat ground and lose her balance. Therefore, he hurriedly passed the message inside, “Your Highness, Scholar Yan is outside requesting an audience, saying that she has an urgent report.”
“Let her in!” Jiang Yinghua waved the maid away from the inner room, didn’t bother with her hair and makeup, just casually tidied her clothes, and hurriedly walked to the desk. Seeing her come in, she waved her hand to indicate that she didn’t need to salute, and casually took the memorial over.
Jiang Yinghua’s eyes quickly scanned the words on the memorial, reading it once and then going back to read it again. The fingers holding the memorial were trembling slightly, and she reprimanded, “Nonsense! Simply courting death, is he crazy?” With that, the memorial in her hand was crumpled into a ball.
“Your Highness, calm down.” Yan Wanzhi had already expected her to be excited, but this reaction was a bit too much.
The memorial stated the movements of Prince Yong. This person was leading two thousand of his personal troops towards the capital, and was now almost at Bingzhou. Calculating the time, it was definitely not after receiving the memorial sent by Your Majesty that he had set off. Even disregarding the timing, a prince’s personal troops would not exceed two thousand, yet he had brought them all out and was even bringing them into the capital. This act was enough to be considered treason.
Jiang Yinghua and Prince Yong were ostensibly the same, both commanding princes guarding important border areas. But in fact, Jiang Yinghua’s authority to mobilize the border army was specially granted by Your Majesty. She held the Military Seal, so mobilizing troops was legitimate. And few people knew about this. As for Prince Yong, unless a foreign enemy invaded, he had no right to mobilize the border army. The various prefectures restricted his power, and the two thousand personal troops were the only force he could control without restraint.
Jiang Yinghua suppressed her anger, calmed down for a long time, and after thinking it over, she felt that something was wrong. She had a bad feeling and quickly ordered, “Quickly order people to scout again. All the personal troops have been dispatched, yet no one from the Prince’s manor has followed. Who is protecting the Prince’s manor? Also, a full two thousand people, why has no one along the way stopped them? Everything is strange. Scholar Yan, go check the movements of the Northwest Border Army.”
Hearing this, Yan Wanzhi realized the crux of the problem, accepted the order and quickly retreated. Seeing her walk away, Jiang Yinghua slumped into the chair, her eyes blank. How did things get to this point?
She was extremely flustered, and after being stunned, she couldn’t sit still. By the afternoon, she summoned her trusted generals and convened a meeting, issuing an order for the Bingzhou garrison to advance fifty miles west to intercept Prince Yong’s personal troops and persuade them to return.
The Bingzhou garrison had seven thousand soldiers, and the westward advance would not have a major impact. And this was the only way Jiang Yinghua could think of to prevent Prince Yong from making further mistakes and to find out the truth about him.
A prince bringing troops back to the capital was no different from rebelling. Prince Yong had already reached the pinnacle of power, why would he do this, betting his life and fortune on a single throw of the dice?
That night, Jiang Yinghua sent someone to fetch two jars of apricot blossom wine. She sat alone on a stone stool in the courtyard, raising her glass to the moon. If the Bingzhou army couldn’t stop Prince Yong, then sooner or later, she and her sister would have to face each other with weapons, which was the cruel reality that Jiang Yinghua feared and was most unwilling to face.
Yan Wanzhi, after finishing her official duties, returned and, feeling uneasy, detoured to the main courtyard. As expected, Jiang Yinghua was again drowning her sorrows in alcohol, knowing it was useless, yet doing it every time.
“Your Highness, worry hurts the body.” Yan Wanzhi stepped forward and offered words of comfort.
“You’re here, sit down, have a drink with me?” Jiang Yinghua, hearing the voice, didn’t even look up, just pushed a pot of wine over, waiting for her to sit down.
Not far away, Cao Song, with a group of people, was guarding with a worried expression. He didn’t understand Jiang Yinghua’s nature of being fond of alcohol, only thinking that the master was worried and afraid that something would happen, unwilling to leave.
Yan Wanzhi didn’t sit down, not because Cao Song was nearby, but for the sake of her own clear mind, “This subject won’t drink, calculating the time, Prince Yong’s troops are estimated to arrive outside Bingzhou City at midnight. If there’s any news, this subject has to keep an eye on it.”
“Well, this time I really have to rely on you.” Jiang Yinghua raised her eyes and looked at the willow leaves that were blown down by the wind and swirling around, and reached out to catch one, “Look, these leaves have the same roots, but when they fall, they don’t care about each other anymore, they are all lonely and helpless.”
“Your Highness, people and trees are different. People have hearts, trees don’t. People live a lifetime, and what they choose is in their state of mind; trees live a lifetime, and the rain and wind are commonplace.” Yan Wanzhi stood by her side, unable to bear to see her so lonely, so she offered words of comfort.
“You say it lightly. If I could be as effortless as you, or like these fallen leaves, withering alone, then there would be nothing to worry about. I haven’t been drunk for a long time, tonight I want to get drunk and fall into a deep sleep. It’s all the steward’s fault, he bought too little wine.” Jiang Yinghua chuckled and turned her eyes to look at Yan Wanzhi.
“If Your Highness wants to get drunk, one pot is enough. It’s okay even after drinking a lot, which means that your heart has chosen to be sober.” Yan Wanzhi smiled, why bother deceiving herself? Whether it was worry or anger, Jiang Yinghua ultimately didn’t make a scene and acted properly. In terms of emotion and reason, although she valued emotion, she still stood on the side of the law. In the end, she just couldn’t get over the hurdle in her own heart.
Jiang Yinghua smiled bitterly, looked up at the bright moon, and said in a low voice, “Royal descendants are born into high positions, which makes everyone envious. But all people have the desire to look up. But I know very well that standing in the imperial court, one step up is to be pointed at by thousands of people. Falling from a height is not as simple as a bone fracture. How could Third Brother not understand this principle?”
“Your Highness, be careful what you say.” Yan Wanzhi was startled by the sound. What did she mean by everyone having the desire to look up? These words must not be spoken carelessly. With Prince Zhao’s status, looking up again would be a dead end.
“I’m just chatting with you, don’t take it seriously, don’t be afraid. I’m very content, I just don’t understand Third Brother’s plan.” Looking at Yan Wanzhi’s vigilant and cautious appearance, Jiang Yinghua seemed to dream back to six years ago, when she first met this person, she had always had this expression, as if it was painted on her face and would not change.
“News of the Western Frontier will probably be available the day after tomorrow. News of Prince Yong will definitely be available tomorrow morning. Your Highness doesn’t need to think anymore, why not rest early and recharge your energy.” Yan Wanzhi bowed and softly advised.
Seeing that she didn’t get up, Jiang Yinghua was a little helpless. When this person pretended to be an old court official, she was really helpless. “Alright, I’ll listen to you, don’t pretend to be a shrimp here, there’s no water for you to swim in.” Jiang Yinghua put down her wine cup, got up and joked, and then walked back to her room.
Seeing her go inside, Cao Song hurried over to Yan Wanzhi’s side and said worriedly, “Scholar Yan, Your Highness this…?”
“Steward doesn’t need to worry, Your Highness is not drunk.” Yan Wanzhi responded softly and left the courtyard.