Ling, do you want to die?!
Shen Le's head buzzed. His whole body swayed slightly, and he instinctively turned to look outside.
Princess Pingyang. Yes, Princess Pingyang—if there was anyone in this world, within these memories, whom he desperately wanted to see, the first would be Qin Prince Li Shimin, and the second would be Princess Pingyang.
But he could not see her—not like Li Shimin, a battle-hardened general galloping across the fields of war. Princess Pingyang was a princess of the Tang Dynasty, one of the foremost noblewomen of the age. She was not someone he could request an audience with simply because he wished to.
What was more, ever since Chang'an had been captured, Princess Pingyang had not appeared on the battlefield for six years...
Shen Le had always thought he could wait a little longer, wait for the best opportunity—even if he could only catch a glimpse of her from the roadside. There was still plenty of time, or so he had once believed. But he had overlooked one thing:
The Battle of Hulao Pass had taken place in the fourth year of Wude, and it was now the sixth year of Wude...
Princess Pingyang had died in the sixth year of Wude.
"Princess..." His voice was dry, every word seeming to scrape out of his throat. "The Princess, she..."
The civil official who had rushed over with the news silently shook his head.
In the end, Shen Le still failed to see Princess Pingyang. Even the Qin Prince, who had hurried back, had not been able to see his sister one last time—
All the Qin Prince could do was send the Princess off in burial, while all Shen Le could do was stand at the roadside and watch the long funeral procession leave Chang'an:
Feathered