0p0 Chapter 612: Mother's Sacrifice
Chapter 612: Mother's Sacrifice
Emperor Shenwu and Lan Qingwu and their entourage traveled all the way to the border. The official inns along the way were arranged neatly by Emperor Shenwu. Every night the convoy would enter the official inns to rest, and everything was prioritized for comfort and safety.
The postmaster had received the news early on that a distinguished person was going to stay at the official inn. Ye Feng took the token and negotiated with the postmaster in person. The entire official inn was surrounded by well-organized troops. Lan Qingwu was helped out of the carriage by Emperor Shenwu, and the two were led into the official inn shoulder to shoulder.
In the distance, people were discussing, "Who is this person traveling? He looks like he comes from a wealthy family!"
"How impressive! They've booked the entire government post!"
"They are obviously soldiers!"
Night fell silently. Inside the house, the Seventh Princess was pulling Lan Qingwu and acting coquettishly: "Mother, you promised me that you would sleep with me at night! Mother!"
Lan Qingwu looked helpless: "Then Queen Mother, please talk to your father!"
The Seventh Princess nodded happily. But after the Emperor Shenwu entered the room, the Seventh Princess's excitement had not yet subsided. The Emperor Shenwu glanced at her and said, "What are you still doing in your mother's room so late? Go and get some rest!"
The Seventh Princess was suppressed by the bloodline of Emperor Shenwu, so she pouted her pink lips, bowed, and took her leave.
Lan Qingwu quickly said, "It's like this, Yueyue wants to accompany me..."
"How old is she? You're just spoiling her too much! In two or three years, she should be ready for a prince consort!"
Lan Qingwu was shocked: "No! My daughter must be older before she can get married!"
Emperor Shenwu looked at Lan Qingwu in confusion. "Xiao Qi has been weak since childhood. You said he should marry later, but you didn't want me to arrange for palace maids to take care of him. I agreed to both. But why is Yueyue doing this?"
Lan Qingwu felt that he couldn't explain it clearly to Emperor Shenwu, so he had to say, "She is a princess, so she can get married a few years later. Brother Heng, a woman should get pregnant and have children after marriage. If she is two years older, pregnancy and childbirth will be more stable. Brother Heng, don't you want your daughter to stay with us for a few more years?"
Emperor Shenwu thought for a moment and said, "Then I will first choose a consort for my Princess Zhangzhu. When Yueyue wants to get married, I will ask the Imperial Astronomical Observatory to calculate a date and set the wedding date!"
Lan Qingwu nodded, and thought of his other son who was left alone in the imperial city. "Chu Ming is alone in the palace. He will definitely blame us! Brother Heng, you left Chu Ming in the imperial city like this."
Emperor Shenwu said helplessly, "Wei Ruo, you've told me this more than a dozen times along the way! I've carefully taught Chu Ming for more than a decade. If I don't use him at a time like this, then when will I use him? I think this is a good opportunity to hone Chu Ming a little more. He's the crown prince, and sooner or later he'll have to face these things alone!"
"And weak, I've always said I could let you leave the palace, but I've never said I'd let you go!"
Lan Qingwu was speechless.
At night, Lan Qingwu tossed and turned, unable to sleep. The Divine Martial Emperor embraced him and comforted him, "Don't worry. Wu Jinghou returned to the border early. We will be a few days late at most. Your mother will also want you to take care of your health, right?"
Lan Qingwu silently hugged Emperor Shenwu back. At this moment, she was really glad to have Emperor Shenwu's company.
A group of people traveled quickly during the day and rested in the official inn at night. Qian Hui and Ye Feng took turns to keep watch.
They continued like this without stopping for a single day, and finally arrived at the border after an absence of nearly twenty years on August 15th, just before the Mid-Autumn Festival.
After a night's rest, all the members of the Lan family welcomed the emperor the next day, leading Emperor Shenwu, Lan Qingwu, the seventh prince and the seventh princess to the endless Xuanwu Peak. The Xuanwu Peak has three main peaks. The tallest and most central one is the Lan family's ancestral tomb, where Lan Qingwu's mother was buried.
At the time, the Lan family didn't have a single male relative, so it was Border City Lord Xu Qingfeng who presided over this special funeral! During the funeral procession, members of the Lan family, even those from distant branches, emerged from their homes, no longer remaining silent. Gradually, the funeral procession grew larger and larger, with the common people, their arms draped in white cloth, carrying Madam Lan's coffin all the way to the foot of Xuanwu Peak.
After reaching the main peak, Lan Qingwu finally couldn't control her emotions when she looked at her mother's tombstone. She remembered her mother's last earnest instructions in her dream, and tears were already streaming down her face. She said in grief: "Mother, your daughter is back! Your daughter still wants to say a lot of things to you. If I could be your daughter again, I would definitely listen to you! Your daughter is unfilial and made you worry about her until the end!"
At this time, only the emperor and the empress were in front of the tombstone. The Shenwu Emperor half-hugged Lan Qingwu and solemnly said to Madam Lan's tombstone: "Madam, mother-in-law, I am the emperor of the Dasheng Dynasty and the husband of Lan Qingwu. Today, I swear in the name of the emperor that in this life, I will never let Lan Qingwu down, and I will never let her cry again! In the afterlife, you don't have to worry about me anymore!"
A breeze blew from Xuanwu Peak, and the gentle wind gently caressed the cheeks of the two people, disappearing in an instant, as if responding to their words.
Lan Qingwu murmured softly: "It's mother! It must be mother!"
Emperor Shenwu said, "Yes! Mother will definitely watch over us and will definitely bless us!"
After the two of them finished the sacrifice, the Seventh Prince and the Seventh Princess stepped forward.
Emperor Shenwu ascended to the summit of Xuanwu Peak, Qian Hui following closely at his side. From his perch, Emperor Shenwu gazed down at the three peaks connected to Xuanwu Peak. Aside from the Lan family's ancestral tomb in the middle, the other two peaks were densely packed with countless tombstones! Years, years, decades, centuries, nearly a thousand years had passed, and these once-living people, who had protected the border's safety, were now reduced to tombstones. Some didn't even have the chance to leave their names. Many more graves contained only fragments of limbs or pieces of armor. The tombstones were as smooth as mirrors, completely blank.
At first glance, it is awe-inspiring and awe-inspiring, shocking the hearts of all who see it.
Emperor Shenwu's face was solemn: "Protection is never without a price! Peace is never achieved without bloodshed! The spirit of heroes who sacrificed generations of time, Xuanwu's strongest backing, is the foundation of our Dasheng's prosperity and glory from generation to generation!"
Lan Qingwu planned to stay at the border for a few days. Lan Youchen respectfully invited the Emperor and Empress to stay at the Wujing Marquis Mansion, but was rejected by the Shenwu Emperor. Lan Qingwu was bewildered: "Brother Heng, where should we stay then? Can't we just stay at the Lan family's manor where we stayed last night?"
Emperor Shenwu gently stroked Lan Qingwu's black hair: "Let's go back to our own home! Come with me!"
When Lan Qingwu saw the mansion called "Yun Mansion", he stared at the Shenwu Emperor with wide eyes. The Shenwu Emperor took Lan Qingwu's hand and said, "Let's go! Let's go in!"
"I thought since I'm not going to stay for a few days, I'd rather be more comfortable at home, isn't it?"
"It seems that Brother Heng has done many things without telling Ruo Ruo!"
Emperor Shenwu chuckled and said, "Do you like it, Ruo Ruo?"
Lan Qingwu did not answer, but just smiled back.
When Emperor Shenwu arrived at the border, it was naturally impossible for him to just offer sacrifices to his mother-in-law and enjoy the scenery. On the second day, the prince of Wujing, Lan Qingbai, brought the chief general of the Lan family, the Ma family, the Wang family and others to gather outside the Yun Mansion, waiting for the emperor's summons.
Emperor Shenwu was busy for several days, summoning civil and military officials on the border, inspecting the civil and economic affairs, and inspecting the border defense lines. What he saw in the memorials was still different from what he actually saw with his own eyes.
Emperor Shenwu had stayed at the border for several years, but after all, the situation had changed over the years. After inspecting the border defense line, he immediately gave an order, ordering the Ma family to take over the main defense line of the border. The Ma family and the Lan family were relatively close. Lan Youchen was in mourning, and Lan Qingbai had just taken over the Lan family's troop deployment and was not suitable for the main defense line. It was taken over by the Ma family's main general with many years of experience. The two families had a tacit understanding and would respond immediately as long as there was any movement from the grassland people.
The Wang family's chief general could only retreat to the side. This outcome had been foreseen by the Wang family's head when the Lan family's injustice was redressed. After all, the Wang family had let the Lan family off during the prison assassination attempt. No one was foolish; they were all well aware of the conflicts of interest, grievances, and hatreds between the border factions.
By the time the Emperor found some free time, Lan Qingwu had already rested for several days. They couldn't wait to revisit the Small Peach Garden. The large peach tree was still lush and flourishing. Compared to the dream where the Emperor had returned alone, in reality he was holding Lan Qingwu's hand, with their two children following behind him. The Emperor felt extremely satisfied, his chest swelled, and seeing the scenery of the Small Peach Garden again, the corners of his mouth curled up in joy.
The Seventh Prince and the Seventh Princess had already gone off to play somewhere else. Lan Qingwu could still hear their faint conversation. "It's so hard to find the place here, with so many twists and turns!"
The Seventh Prince said, "Of course it's hard to find. This is where Mother used to sneak in to play when she was little! Let's go and take a look!"
The emperor and the empress smiled at each other.
A few days later, Emperor Shenwu left his two children behind, and the two of them, dressed in casual clothes, walked through the streets and alleys of the border.
Lan Qingwu looked at the bustling street and suddenly laughed out loud. "I remember when I was ten, I borrowed a piece of silver from you to save a teenage prostitute. But that woman insisted on staring at you and kowtowing to you to express her gratitude. It pissed me off!"
Emperor Shenwu said innocently: "That's none of my business!"
Lan Qingwu glanced at the Divine Martial Emperor and said softly, "It's all because of your face, Brother Heng!"
Emperor Shenwu just smiled and didn't answer.
At night, the Emperor Shenwu embraced Lan Qingwu and said temptingly, "Ruo Ruo, now that you're out, I plan to take you on a tour of the east and west! Especially the east, where many ancient murals and stone statues are preserved. They are very beautiful! Do you want to go?"
Lan Qingwu's pair of sparkling eyes sparkled, "I want to go!"
Emperor Shenwu looked at those sparkling eyes and could not help but kiss them. He whispered, "Ruoruo, can I?"
Emperor Shenwu has been wearing plain clothes for quite some time because Lan Qingwu has been mourning for Madam Lan intentionally or unintentionally.
Lan Qingwu silently counted the days, and his mood improved a lot. Then he wrapped his arms around the neck of the Shenwu Emperor like a spirit snake, and took the initiative to kiss the Shenwu Emperor's thin lips. "Brother Heng, I want Yun Heng to come back!"
Emperor Shenwu immediately turned from passive to active, and continued to deepen the kiss, "Yun Heng is always here!"
A night of passion and infatuation made Lan Qingwu feel drowsy during the day. She silently blamed Emperor Shenwu for his lack of self-control.
The Shenwu Emperor acted quickly, and they left the border and headed east the day after tomorrow. Lan Qingwu arrived at Xuanwu Peak again. After bidding farewell to her mother, she boarded the farewell carriage.
They came in a low-key manner, and when they left, the road was lined with relatives and officials kneeling to see them off.