The secret passage of the Xiao Teahouse was packed with a large amount of explosives. After the explosion, the teahouse collapsed in an instant, leaving behind ruins, broken walls, and scattered fire heaps—a scene of utter desolation.
The ruins burnt by fire had once been Huo Xian’s nightmare.
After the changes in the Eastern Palace, he often dreamt of the palace after the great fire. It was already unrecognizable, with small clusters of fire still burning on the ground. When the palace attendants sifted through the fire heaps, they found charred corpses underneath, their faces unrecognizable.
That night, he had searched through the debris as well. He didn’t find Lou Panshun, nor did he find the Crown Prince, or the young prince.
These people later became frequent visitors in Huo Xian’s countless nights. They would always linger for a while in his dreams.
In his dreams, Crown Prince Huaijin was gentle and elegant. When they met in the Eastern Palace, he would occasionally give lectures, teaching the kind of knowledge that other scholars couldn’t convey.
But Huo Xian didn’t like to listen.
However, the Crown Prince never let Huo Xian’s disinterest deter him. He often said, “You’ll understand in the future.”
Changsun Lianyu was even more refined in his manners, truly a young gentleman. He would point out without mercy after the Crown Prince left, “You didn’t understand. Let me explain it again.”
A rather pedantic young boy.
But he also had a mischievous side, though he restrained himself, only showing his innocent and lively nature when no one else was around.
As for Lou Panshun, he remained unrestrained in the dream. He would force Huo Xian to drink with him, but never let him take a sip, tantalizing him with the smell of wine and making him crave it, then laughing heartily.
Half-drunk and half-awake, he always said he would teach Huo Xian the most powerful formations and combat skills in the world, and that one day he would take him to the battlefield to kill enemies.
Together as master and disciple, they would be the most invincible generals in all of Dayong.
Huo Xian had a very bad temper in his youth and seldom encountered people willing to lend him a helping hand. The few who did, were forever left in that wasteland due to the great fire.
Now they seemed to have returned, but also seemed not to have returned.
That fire had taken away everyone, pushing countless people, including Huo Xian himself, into an abyss of despair.
During the first two years after joining the Northern Zhenfu Division, he even dreamt that he had also become a charred corpse in the ruins, unrecognizable.
At first, he would wake up in terror, but as the dreams became more frequent, numbness took over.
Until he dug out Ji Yuluo from beneath those layers of ruins.
Huo Xian’s hands were still cold even now.
The manor physician had left, and the imperial physician had come.
The manor physician of the Huo family was no less skilled than those in the Imperial Hospital, but the imperial physician came to report to the one in the palace.
Huo Xian did not stop him and listened to the diagnosis results.
Most of Ji Yuluo’s injuries were superficial, but they weren’t caused by the explosion but by being hit by debris. The place where Ji Yuluo was found wasn’t inside the teahouse, but in a narrow alley between the teahouse and an adjacent shop. She reacted quickly and probably jumped out of the window before the explosives went off. However, the other party intended to kill, and the explosives were extremely powerful, causing the neighboring shop to collapse as well. Ji Yuluo was buried under the debris between the two buildings, which was a fortunate misfortune.
But one injury was particularly severe—a blow to her forehead.
She woke up briefly when the medicine was applied but then fell into a daze and could not be awakened again.
Nanyue sent off the imperial physician and returned, lifting the curtain, and said, “The imperial physician—”
The room was too quiet, and his voice sounded loud when he started speaking, so he quickly lowered it, “The imperial physician said that the madam has a head injury. She will likely be in and out of consciousness for a while, and it’s uncertain how long it will last. But the madam has a good constitution, so as long as she is well taken care of, there shouldn’t be any major issues.”
While speaking, Nanyue stole a glance at Huo Xian. He looked quite disheveled, with dirt under his fingernails and scratches on the back of his hands from digging Ji Yuluo out. Huo Xian hadn’t applied medicine himself because his hands were stiff; he feared that trembling would hurt Ji Yuluo.
He sat there as if he planned to sit for a very long time.
Nanyue didn’t dare to persuade him and was about to quietly leave when Huo Xian said, “Have someone prepare water, I need a bath.”
Nanyue was stunned for a moment, then quickly ran out after saying “Yes.”
The maidservants prepared water and clothes. Nanyue went to the next room to check on Chaolu’s condition. She was more seriously injured than Ji Yuluo, with her forearm’s skin and flesh blasted open, but her head was unharmed, and she was fully conscious. She was crying from the pain, and it was unclear whether it was a blessing or a misfortune.
The red-feathered bird perched on the head of her bed, seemingly developing an attachment, gently patting Chaolu with its wing.
Nanyue had never seen Chaolu cry like this and didn’t know how to comfort her, so he gave her a piece of candy to suck on.
Then he returned to the main house, dejectedly squatting at the door.
What a day it had been—utterly miserable.
Later, Liyang arrived. The explosion on the teahouse street had caused quite a stir. Since it involved Huo Xian and the Imperial Guards were too occupied, the Jinyiwei were dispatched to investigate the scene and clear the bodies.
After completing the task, he rushed to the mansion.
“How is she? What did the doctor say?”
Nanyue stood up, supporting himself on his knees, and pointed to his head, “Superficial injuries, but she was hit here and is still unconscious.”
Liyang breathed a sigh of relief. As long as she was alive. He then asked, “What about the lord? Is he alright?”
“Still… okay?” Nanyue glanced through the crack in the door and said, “After returning to the mansion, he’s been very calm, saying what needs to be said, responding appropriately.”
Liyang was silent for a moment.
But Huo Xian’s appearance when digging out Ji Yuluo was far from calm.
He sighed softly, fearing that Huo Xian had been terrified to the point of losing his senses, his soul still not fully back. “What did the lord say about Chengyuan Temple?”
At this mention, Nanyue also fell silent.
At present, there was nothing more urgent than this matter, but Jingchen was indeed dead, and it was he who buried the body. Zhao Yong was nowhere to be found. Without capturing Zhao Yong, there was no solution to this matter.
Nanyue pursed his lips. “He didn’t say, only ordered that the madam not be informed.”
As they talked, they paused and heard Huo Xian’s voice from inside, “Biwu, bring the medicine!”
Nanyue heard Ji Yuluo’s coughing and exchanged glances with Liyang, making way for Biwu, who was waiting in the corridor.
Ji Yuluo was awake but seemed ready to fall asleep again at any moment. Huo Xian had to seize the moment to get her to drink the medicine; otherwise, once she fell asleep, she would spit out half of it.
He didn’t let Biwu assist, carefully lifting Ji Yuluo himself, afraid of touching her wounds. As she slightly opened her somewhat dazed eyes, he softly coaxed, “Are you awake? Can you recognize who I am?”
Ji Yuluo furrowed her brows, her lips pressed into a straight line from the pain. She didn’t like to admit to pain, but her expression always gave it away when she was enduring it.
Hearing Huo Xian speak, she made an effort to open her eyes a bit more, feeling that he was asking nonsense. Reluctantly, she gave him a faint “Mm.”
Huo Xian pressed, “Then who am I?”
Ji Yuluo, her voice barely audible, replied, “Huo… Huo Xian.”
Huo Xian, however, continued to ask, “And who is Huo Xian?”
This time, before Ji Yuluo could respond, he said, “Silly girl, we just went through the wedding rites. We are officially married. The marriage certificate says Ji Yuluo and Huo Zhe’an. Huo Xian is your husband. You didn’t bump your head so hard that you forgot, did you?”
His expression was so earnest that Ji Yuluo, for a moment, really wondered if she had amnesia. When did they become true spouses? They had never gone through the wedding rites.
Under Huo Xian’s sincere gaze, Ji Yuluo momentarily believed she had forgotten something important.
This distraction cleared her mind, and she fully opened her eyes, realizing she had been tricked when Huo Xian laughed.
Before she could frown, Huo Xian brought the bowl of medicine to her lips. “Are you awake now? Drink the medicine quickly; it’s the only way to get better.”
He spoke in a tone used to coax a child.
But Ji Yuluo didn’t need coaxing. She disliked medicine but was sensible enough to understand her situation and not indulge in capriciousness.
Seeing the empty bowl, Huo Xian’s words of coaxing were no longer needed. He felt slightly disappointed, saying, “I even prepared some honey water for you. It seems you won’t need it now.”
Ji Yuluo, unable to move much, struggled to lift her eyes to look at him. The medicine was so bitter that it brought tears to her eyes.
Huo Xian said, “Looks like you still want it.”
Not wanting to torment her any longer, he helped her take a few sips of honey water. Seeing her brows gradually relax, he had Biwu clear away the bowls and trays.
Shortly after, Ji Yuluo felt sleepy again.
Huo Xian was about to help her lie down when she grabbed his sleeve, “What about Chaolu?”
He replied, “In the next room, no serious harm.”
“And Zhao…”
“Don’t worry.” Huo Xian said, “He won’t get away.”
Ji Yuluo truly couldn’t resist her drowsiness; as soon as she let go, she lost consciousness.
Huo Xian’s gentle expression vanished instantly. He pushed the door open and walked out, where Liyang was still waiting outside. He reported the situation at the teahouse, saying, “The secret passage has been blocked and is no longer usable.”
Huo Xian replied coldly, “He never intended to use it again. Has that servant named Chang’an entered the capital?”
Nanyue nodded, “Afraid that leaving him at the residence would be unsafe, he’s hidden in the madam’s teahouse. Master, do we still need him?”
“Of course we need him,” Huo Xian said. “Go find Xiao Yuanjing for me. He’s a lovesick fool. He sold out his uncle for someone like that; there’s no way he’ll leave the capital without seeing the person. He must be hiding somewhere in the capital. Find him, dig three feet if you have to.”
Nanyue didn’t dare delay and hurried off.
“Liyang,” Huo Xian called Liyang again. Liyang straightened up and saw a hint of ferocity in Huo Xian’s eyes. “Bring Xiao Yuanting back to me.”
—
As dusk fell over the capital, the colorful clouds of Tongzhou still hung in the sky. The sky there was clearer and broader than in the capital.
Xiao Yuanting had been in this beautiful and prosperous place for several months.
When he first arrived, he was truly fascinated. He hadn’t expected Tongzhou to be as bustling as the capital. Many of the entertainments in the pleasure houses were things he hadn’t seen in the capital. He was so enraptured that he didn’t want to return. With Liu Wu constantly finding different beauties for him, Xiao Yuanting had no desire to go home.
But no matter how wonderful the pleasures, they eventually became tiresome.
That day, Liu Wu wanted to take him out for more fun, but Xiao Yuanting declined listlessly.
It was pointless; he had experienced all the entertainments Tongzhou had to offer. Even the beauties, who only moved in the same ways, became monotonous.
Xiao Yuanting, feeling restless, said, “Is Huo Zhe’an ever coming? What task could take months? Tell him, if he doesn’t come soon, I’m not waiting for him.”
Surrounded by Jinyiwei, Xiao Yuanting was kept completely in the dark about the news from the capital. He still believed that Xiao Cheng had returned triumphantly and was probably furious with him for leaving home without reason, completely unaware that the great Yong had already changed.
