Chapter 50

Pei Qing vaulted onto his horse, but barely had he settled into the saddle before Lou Yun caught hold of the reins. The evening breeze stirred their hems.

"Take care on the road," Lou Yun reminded him.

"I will." Pei Qing took the reins and urged his horse forward a few steps, only to slow again at a pace Lou Yun could plainly see.

Why was he suddenly so reluctant to leave?

Lou Yun found it amusing, yet his actions stirred a faint ache in her heart. Neither of them was a child anymore, but this sudden parting still saddened them.

She joked, hoping to make him leave more decisively. "It's not as though you'll never come..." Back again.

His movement cut Lou Yun's words short.

Pei Qing sat astride his horse. The hazy moonlight obscured his outline, yet those blurred edges made his face seem all the clearer. He leaned until his upper body was almost level with the horse's back, hooked one hand around the nape of Lou Yun's neck, and drew her toward him.

"Your Highness, wait for me."

Softly, like the wind, yet carrying earnest solemnity, those words reached Lou Yun's ears.

Then a faint sweetness passed to her lips through his, making Lou Yun reach around the back of his head and deepen this parting gift.

Parting his teeth, Lou Yun opened her eyes slightly. This time, he kissed with particular earnestness, his raven-feather lashes fluttering as he allowed the invader to storm his cities and seize his lands.

As they were about to draw apart, he opened his eyes, his expression languid with intimacy. Deep beneath the desire he could not conceal lay a hidden reluctance to part. He studied his beloved carefully once more, as though to carve her into his mind, before reluctantly releasing her.

His cool fingertips turned upward and gently stroked her face a few times. They were close enough for Lou Yun to see her own reflection in his eyes, and at that very distance, he suddenly broke into a dazzling smile.

Lou Yun could not say what she had been thinking when she saw that smiling face. Perhaps nothing, perhaps a great deal. All she knew was that, in this moment, he had once again taken her breath away.

Pei Qing gave her no time to react. He straightened, pulled the reins to turn his horse, and galloped into the endless night.

Lou Yun instinctively reached out to catch him, but failed to touch even a corner of his robe.

Looking at her empty palm, she felt an unexpected sense of loss.

That night, she stood outside the city for a long time. Long after his figure had vanished, she still did not leave.

Perhaps she was the one who truly could not let go.

When the first raindrop struck the back of her hand, her first thought was still: I wonder whether he brought rain gear.

Chapter 50

What Lou Yun had not expected was that the rain would continue for over half a month, and the downpour made news from Pei Qing travel exceedingly slowly.

She finally received evidence of Xu Lin's fabrications, only for news of flooding in Jiangnan to follow immediately afterward.

"Report! Your Majesty, Jiangnan is flooding! This is the message from Jiangnan."

The rain-soaked soldier raised the bamboo slips in his hands. At Lou Qing's command, the old eunuch presented them to him.

For some unknown reason, Lou Qing said, "Give this to the crown prince."

Lou Yun accepted the slip of paper in confusion. A moment later, she understood Lou Qing's meaning.

On the note was handwriting she could not have known better: Flooding in Jiangnan. The Huang River has breached its dikes.

Standing in the great hall, Lou Yun read the note over and over in disbelief. Her fingers abruptly clenched, nearly crumpling the already fragile paper in her hand. Fear and anxiety utterly consumed her thoughts.

She knew this was merely an accident, yet could not help venting her anger. She glared at Xu Lin, who stood at the head of the civil officials in the young man's absence. "Perhaps the chancellor could explain how a perfectly good drought turned into a flood?"

Xu Lin had not expected his fabrication to come true in an entirely different direction either. Though this was unexpected, he had lived more than half a lifetime-what storms had he not weathered? He replied with perfect assurance, "I did not personally travel to Jiangnan and bring back the news of drought. If I must be held at fault, it was merely for failing to discipline my subordinates and believing rumors."

Lou Yun laughed in fury. Old bastard. Knowing the court dared not gamble with news of natural disasters and had no choice but to believe it, he acted without restraint.

Knowing disaster relief was the immediate priority, Lou Yun stepped forward without hesitation and dropped heavily to her knees. "Father, I am willing to go to Jiangnan personally to provide disaster relief."

Before Lou Qing could speak, an impatient minister jumped out. "Although the recent drought proved a farce, officials have already been dispatched to provide relief. Why is Your Highness in such a hurry?"

Lou Yun scoffed and looked at the official as though he were an idiot. "Relief measures for drought and flooding are worlds apart. Even a three-year-old knows that. On what grounds did you make such a statement, my lord?"

The man knew his impatience had muddled his head and made him say something ridiculous. He immediately lowered his head and shuffled awkwardly back to his place, receiving an eye roll from Xu Lin and laughter from countless colleagues along the way.

"Granted-"

Her thoughts fixed on Pei Qing, Lou Yun rushed out without pausing after court, only to be stopped by a hand holding a horsetail whisk.

"Your Highness, His Majesty asks that you come."

The old eunuch watched her with a smile and bowed, gesturing toward the rear hall.

What could Lou Qing want with her? Neither before nor after she took Lou Ze'an's place had Lou Qing ever summoned her alone.

"Thank you for bringing the message." Anxious, Lou Yun quickened her steps, but when she noticed the elderly eunuch could not keep up, she silently slowed, waiting without drawing attention to it.

"If Your Highness is in a hurry, there is no need to wait for this old servant. Please go ahead." The old eunuch had seen it all. A kindly smile rose on his face as he spoke considerately.

Lou Yun nodded to the man behind her. "Thank you. Take your time, Eunuch. I will go on ahead."

Lou Yun rushed impatiently into the rear hall. Lou Qing was stooped, one hand pressed to his lips as he coughed incessantly. Seeing that she had entered, he quietly hid his hand behind his back.

"You're here. Come, sit here beside your father."

Lou Yun had never liked dealing with people. Apart from Pei Qing and Noble Consort Su, she had never sat so close to anyone. But Lou Qing was first the emperor, and also her birth father. Awkward though she felt, she sat beside him as instructed.

"You've suffered during this time, haven't you?"

The question left Lou Yun utterly bewildered. She could only reply along those lines, "It was all my duty. It hardly counts as suffering."

Lou Qing looked at Lou Yun with clouded eyes. Father and daughter met each other's gaze for a while before he said, "I know you're worried about the imperial tutor, but this journey to Jiangnan is for disaster relief. It is unlike other matters. You must be careful. Do not let worry throw your mind into disarray. Do you understand?"

Though she did not understand why Lou Qing had made a point of showing concern before her departure, Lou Yun accepted his kindness.

"I understand. Rest assured, Father."

Lou Qing seemed truly to want only to show concern for his child. After a few more reminders, he let Lou Yun leave.

Even after leaving the hall, Lou Yun could not fathom his intentions. If this was concern, she was now using Lou Ze'an's identity, and how long had Lou Ze'an fought at the border? Yet Lou Qing had not specially summoned him to offer concern when he returned, had he?

Unable to understand, Lou Yun set the matter aside. Pei Qing was more important now.

Inside the hall after Lou Yun left-

The old eunuch slowly returned to the place where he had stood for over half his life. Understanding his master's thoughts very well, he asked, "Is Your Majesty worried because this is Her Highness's first long journey alone?"

Lou Qing glanced at the old eunuch and said haughtily, "Hmph. I am

merely concerned that, as a woman, she will face many inconveniences traveling to provide disaster relief."

"Then why did Your Majesty not say so directly?" the old eunuch deliberately pointed out.

Lou Qing's gaze suddenly settled on the unseen void. "This daughter of mine has a mind of her own. Ordinarily, she dislikes staying in the palace and leaves a counterfeit here every day to fool me. When something happened to Ze'an, she abandoned her identity as a princess without a second thought and stepped forward without hesitation to take her imperial brother's place and shoulder the burden. I was merely thinking, if... Ze'an truly cannot return, leaving Great Yan to her would be excellent too."

"It is entirely for Your Majesty to decide." The old eunuch bent beside the desk and ground the inkstick in circles.

Lou Qing lifted his brush and said pensively, "Of course. I am the ruler of this nation. If they do not heed me, whom should they heed?"

He paused, then sighed. "Alas, I merely wonder whether these four square palace walls can hold an eagle that soars."

The old eunuch narrowed his eyes slightly and replied, "Has Your Majesty not already reached a decision?"

He opened his palm, revealing the other note he had not given Lou Yun. "Perhaps only this child can make the eagle willingly remain in a cage."

The note he had not handed Lou Yun plainly read: The drought was Xu Lin's scheme. All disaster relief funds have been embezzled. Now floods rage and rain falls incessantly. Supplies in Jiangnan are scarce. I hope Your Majesty will make a decision soon.

Even without him showing that child the note, she had guessed who was behind it. How could she possibly contain her anger?

Meanwhile, after checking everything, Lou Yun set out with her men. Because this was a flood, with the Huang River's dikes breached, she brought the personal guards who had defended the border alongside Lou Ze'an.

She had seen Pei Qing off when he left. When she departed, people came to see her off too.

"Your Highness! Your Highness!"

Through the curtain of rain, Lou Yun could not clearly hear the approaching voices. She turned to see an old man and a young man riding two horses, one tall and one short.

Su Changqing rode in front. He dismounted briskly and cupped his hands toward Lou Yun, with Su Ren close behind. The two saw her off from a distance.

"Your Highness, take care on your journey!"

Lou Yun bowed to them from horseback and called out, "The roads are slippery in the rain. You should both return home soon."

Chapter 51

The journey did not go as smoothly as she had imagined. Not only did the rain persist, but Xu Lin and the others had no intention of letting Lou Yun have an easy time. Assassination attempts came without end.

It was truly a leaking roof meeting nights of endless rain, a delayed ship meeting a headwind. After finally struggling through the wind and rain and evading the assassins, they were almost at Jiangnan, only for-

"General, the road ahead has been blocked by a mudslide from the mountain."