Yue Chengkong was arranged by the Crown Prince to recuperate in a secluded courtyard.
His limbs were all disabled, and his eye sockets were empty. But he could still hear, speak, eat, and sleep.
His will to live was extremely firm.
Especially when he heard that his two sons were only sentenced to exile instead of death.
He was even more firmly convinced that as long as he served the Crown Prince and helped the Crown Prince bring down the Eldest Princess, the Crown Prince would surely spare his life.
The Crown Prince came to see him in person.
"Your mother is dead."
Yue Chengkong's face was numb.
There was no sadness, no confusion, and no anger.
It was as if he had just heard the news of the death of an insignificant person.
"If you want to burn paper at her tomb, I can arrange it for you."
Yue Chengkong laughed self - deprecatingly. "In her heart, the Eldest Princess was far more important than I, her own son. For the Eldest Princess, she could even let me die. Is there any need to pay respects to such a mother?"
"I have already appointed Liu Zhonglin as the governor of Yunzhou."
Yue Chengkong understood what the Crown Prince meant. The Yue family was already destroyed.
Yunzhou was about to change completely.
His heart felt as if it had been hollowed out, and a heavy sense of loss enveloped him.
But his mind was clear at this moment, and he resigned himself to his fate.
"Please spare Jiaojiao, Your Highness. She was just spoiled. She has a willful and domineering temper, but she has really never done anything immoral."
The Crown Prince had naturally investigated Yue Jiaojiao.
She was rough in her behavior and would beat and scold maids and servants whenever things didn't go her way, but that was all.
There was no human life on her hands.
"I will leave her a mansion, a fortune, and two servants to attend to her, so that she can live a peaceful life."
Yue Chengkong was extremely grateful. He struggled to get up and tremblingly kowtowed three times to the Crown Prince.
...
Liu Zhonglin took up his new post, and the governor's mansion took on a new look.
The Liu family held a banquet and invited the Crown Prince, Shi Minglang, and a group of officials in Yunzhou.
The Chu family was also on the invitation list.
Liu Zhonglin was promoted by the Crown Prince and was on intimate terms with him. This would attract attention, so to avoid suspicion, the Crown Prince did not attend the banquet.
Instead, Liang Yuzhou became a distinguished guest of Liu Zhonglin.
Among the people at the banquet, except for the Chu family, Shi Minglang, and Liu Zhonglin, no one knew Liang Yuzhou's real identity.
Liang Yuzhou was noble and elegant, like an immortal from beyond the world. Everyone just regarded him as a Taoist priest on good terms with Liu Zhonglin.
Shi Luohan also took time out of his busy schedule to attend the banquet.
Song Wanchu hadn't had a good talk with her elder brother for a long time.
"How is Yaoguang?"
"She's fine. We're just waiting for the Crown Prince to return to the capital, and then we'll take her to see the emperor and expose the Eldest Princess's crimes of colluding with the enemy and betraying the country."
"Yaoguang can finally avenge her great hatred."
Song Wanchu sighed that Yaoguang had had a tough journey.
Yaoguang was the most determined and strong - willed woman she had ever met.
"It's easier to avenge a great hatred, but it's the hardest to restore the country."
Shi Luohan looked at Song Wanchu, and a look of guilt flashed in his eyes. "When Yaoguang restores her country, she will personally lead the soldiers into battle. Since I've promised to be with her for life, I will firmly stand by her side and fight shoulder to shoulder with her."
Song Wanchu nodded, a smile curving her lips. "Brother, you don't have to worry about me."
Shi Luohan drank a cup of wine. Looking at Liang Yuzhou not far away, his emotions were complex. He just let out a soft laugh.
"Wanchu, I really didn't expect that one day I would hand you over to Liang Yuzhou again and let him protect you for the rest of your life."
Song Wanchu felt Liang Yuzhou's burning gaze, and her heart inexplicably felt heavy.
The Yue family had been eliminated, and the Crown Prince would return to the capital soon. If she couldn't leave Yunzhou before the Crown Prince's return, she would surely be taken back to the capital by the Crown Prince.
Liu Zhonglin toasted Liang Yuzhou and then raised his glass in the direction of Shi Luohan.
Shi Luohan raised his glass in response.
"Everyone in the eight southern states knows the name of Young Hero Shi. Since your escort agency was founded, not a single escort has been lost or damaged. I really admire you."
Liu Zhonglin was a tall and strong man in his thirties. He also had a full beard, but he gave people a sense of steadiness and reliability.
He was completely different from Yue Chengkong's brutality.
Shi Luohan smiled. "You flatter me."
Liu Zhonglin laughed. "I have an escort mission here and would like to trouble Young Hero Shi."
"Please speak, Lord Liu."
Liang Yuzhou slowly put down his chopsticks and looked in Song Wanchu's direction.
Liu Zhonglin said, "There is an uncle in my clan who is in Qingzhou. He is terminally ill. The clan has already started preparing for his funeral. I have a coffin here as a token of my filial piety to my uncle. Since the coffin is made of top - grade Chinese fir from the cloud - capped mountains and is most afraid of being bumped, I really can't rest assured if I hand it over to others for transportation. So I would like Young Hero Shi to take on this escort mission."
Shi Luohan readily agreed. "Since Lord Liu has made the request, I will personally escort it."
"Then I'll thank Young Hero Shi in advance!" Liu Zhonglin was happy. He then turned to Liang Yuzhou and said, "The clan is also looking for a Taoist priest to perform a ritual for my uncle. They are not satisfied with the Taoist priests in Qingzhou, so I recommended Taoist Priest Qingzhou. At that time, I'll have to trouble Taoist Priest Qingzhou to go to Qingzhou with us."
Liang Yuzhou's eyes were cold. He just nodded slightly.
Liu Zhonglin knew that he had agreed.
Song Wanchu met Liang Yuzhou's gaze, and her palms tightened, sweating.
She knew what Liang Yuzhou's plan was.
After the banquet ended, Luo Cen whispered in Song Wanchu's ear, "The Crown Prince is waiting for the young lady at the Moon - Picking Tower."
Song Wanchu's heart skipped a beat.
In the private room of the Moon - Picking Tower, the Crown Prince was sitting by the window.
Hearing the footsteps, he got up and walked around the screen.
Song Wanchu saluted him. As soon as her knees started to bend, the Crown Prince supported her arms.
"From now on, you don't need to salute in front of me."
But Song Wanchu insisted on finishing the salute.
"In front of the Crown Prince, Wanchu dare not be presumptuous."
To the Crown Prince, this meant that she didn't want to accept the privilege he gave her.
In other words, she didn't want to accept his favor.
A look of disappointment flashed in the Crown Prince's eyes, and then he smiled gently. "Wanchu, come back to the capital with me in three days. The Wen family has already spread the news that they will adopt a daughter after the New Year. You will soon have a new identity."
Song Wanchu lowered her head and stood still, saying nothing.
Her expression was as calm as a wisp of cloud on the horizon.
The Crown Prince didn't get any response from her. His eyebrows knitted tighter and tighter, forming a "chuan" character.
"You don't want to?" His voice turned a bit colder.
Song Wanchu wanted to fight for herself one last time. "The love of an emperor is really hard to bear. Daji was favored, but in the end, she was burned to death on the Deer Terrace with King Zhou. Concubine Yang was favored, and the Yang family became extremely glorious. But when the army mutinied, Concubine Yang had to hang herself. And..."
"I'm not King Zhou, nor am I Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty!"
There was a faint trace of anger between the Crown Prince's eyebrows. He restrained himself and tried to make his voice as gentle as possible.
He stepped forward step by step, and Song Wanchu stepped back. She retreated to the corner and was surrounded by the man.
The Crown Prince lifted her chin and questioned her word by word. "Wanchu, no matter what I do for you, you won't appreciate it?"
His fingers slid down along her slender neck and stopped at her chest.
"Have you forgotten how the scar on your chest came about?"
A continuous pain welled up in Song Wanchu's chest.
"He kept saying that he loved you and planned for you for three years, but he didn't even believe that you had taken your heart's blood for him!"