Yun Qing woke up and found himself inside a carriage. He lifted the curtain and looked at the completely strange environment outside. Then he looked at the strange man driving the carriage. He guessed that this person should be Chang Qing, the one his Grandpa told him about. He had heard Grandpa talk about Chang Qing before. Chang Qing had excellent martial arts but had scars on his face and always acted indifferent, so he stayed in seclusion. Not to mention, he had never seen anyone in the mansion except for his Grandpa. However, this man was loyal to the Yun family since Grandpa had once saved his life.
"Where's my Grandpa?" Yun Qing asked in a panic.
Chang Qing said with a straight face, "The Old Man vomited blood when he heard the news of the death of the Eldest Master. If it weren't for the tiger wolf medicine, the Old Man would have gone then. Even so, he is still unable to last not more than a few days." This answer meant that he would not live long.
Yun Qing ground his teeth and opened his eyes wide. "I want to go back. Turn around. I want to go back." His Grandpa was going to die. He had to be there during his Grandpa's last journey.
Chang Qing slapped Yun Qing on the face, and Yun Qing fell from the carriage. Chang Qing said coldly, "If you are a man, follow me to Yu City. For a nobleman to take revenge, ten years is not too long[1]. Learn something first; then, you can use your skill to kill the Song family. If you want to return to the capital and die, I will not stop you, but go back yourself." Even though he said it this way, how could he possibly let Yun Qing go back?
Yun Qing clenched his teeth till they went numb. Rationally, he should not go back, but the thought of his Grandpa alone in the capital to face death made his heart feel like it had been thrust with a knife, making him want to rush back immediately. Since childhood, Yun Qing had never cried. He always believed that men should not shed tears, but now his tears fell involuntarily.
Chang Qing's face slowly relaxed. In any case, Yun Qing was only a 10-year-old child. "Time is pressing. Give the Old Man kowtow three times, and then we will hit the road."
Yun Qing looked up and asked, "Is Grandpa planning to do something?" If it weren't for Grandpa's plan, there would be no need to send him away.
Chang Qing did not answer Yun Qing's question but said, "Kowtow and then get into the carriage. We have one more segment of the road to go, and then we'll change our route."
Since Chang Qing did not reply, it indicated that Yun Qing's guess was correct. He got up, endured the pain in his whole body and knelt in the direction of the capital.
It was not apparent on Chang Qing's face, but his heart was sorrowful. The Old General was kind to him, and he was sad to see the Old General fall in this kind of situation, but it was the Old General's choice, and he had no right to ponder. "Hurry up and get to Yu City early. Once there, you will be able to be safe at least one day earlier."
Yun Qing knocked his head on the ground three times in the direction of the capital. Each one of them was very hard. After hitting his head three times, his forehead bled. Because of the pain, he bit his teeth as he rose to his feet and climbed into the carriage, then he said to Chang Qing, "Let's go!"
Yuxi got the news much later than others since she had never left the boudoir. It was already the fourth day when she heard Old General Yun had died in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. She was stunned and asked, "How?"
Hongshan replied, "Miss, Old General Yun said at the Hall of Supreme Harmony that, to seize the military power in Liaodong, the Song family had colluded with Donghu by divulging military intelligence, which had killed thousands of generals and countless people in Tong City. In the presence of all the ministers and generals of the Imperial Court, he also said that Minister Song was a traitor who brought calamity to the country and the people[2] and requested the Emperor to punish Minister Song severely."
"And then?" Yuxi asked anxiously.
Hongshan said, "Old General Yun produced some evidence for his statement, but Minister Song rejected them all. He even said that Old General Yun had framed him. When Old General Yun heard that, he was so angry that he started a move on Minister Song, but instead, he was pushed to the ground by Minister Song." After a pause, she continued, "Old General Yun fell to the ground and never woke up again. Now, everyone outside said Minister Song had killed Old General Yun."
Yuxi asked the critical question, "What did the Emperor say?"
Hongshan shook her head and said, "The Emperor punished Minister Song by deducting his salary for one year and instructing him to shut himself away and ponder over his mistakes[3] at home. That's it."
Although Old General Yun had nothing to do with Yuxi, her heart still felt cold after hearing the news. Could this also be called punishment? This was no different than tickling over the serious issue. She asked another critical question, "Then, where is the eldest grandson of the Yun family, Yun Qing?"
Hongshan replied, "It is said that Yun Qing went to Liaodong. Liaodong has General Huaidong's colleagues and old subordinates. If he went there, his life would not be in danger." Old General Yun had made such a scene, so how could the Song family let go of the Yun family? Currently, the Yun family only had one master, Yun Qing.
It was reasonable for people outside to make such speculation. After all, Liaodong was the stronghold of the Yun family. It was much safer for Yun Qing to leave the capital for Liaodong.
Yuxi said to herself, "I see." She once wondered why a bright and cheerful person like Yun Qing would eventually become a murderous devil. So, it turned out to be a massive change in his family.
Hongshan didn't hear what Yuxi just said and asked with a smile, "Miss, did you really say that the eldest grandson of the Yun family went to Liaodong?"
Yuxi did not reply, and no one knew this matter better than her. Yun Qing did not go to Liaodong but to the northwest border town. Even if she said it out loud, no one would trust her words since the public tended to believe the northwest guards' rumours, which said that Old General Qin and Old General Yun were sworn enemies. Because of this reason, no one thought that Yun Qing would defect to the Old General Qin. It was not until several years later that Yun Qing emerged from the northwest and finally became a murderous devil whom everyone feared. Only then did people know that the so-called animosity relationship between the Yun family and the Qin family was a lie.
Seeing Yuxi's reaction, Hongshan went on, saying, "Now, some people outside claimed that Old General Yun was very ill and would only live for a few more days. That was why he deliberately lashed at Minister Song at the Hall of Supreme Harmony. It was said that he deliberately framed Minister Song. "
The corner of Yuxi's lips lifted up, revealing a sarcastic smile.
Hongshan asked Yuxi carefully, "Miss, is this rumour true?" She was so confused that she could not tell who was right or wrong.
Yuxi didn't say anything. It was not important whether this rumour was true or not. What's more important was that the Yun family had now been ruined, and the Yan family was in danger of being destroyed too. However, with Old General Yun making such a loud noise, the Yan family would not be able to be exterminated now. The Emperor had to worry more about the two hundred thousand generals and soldiers in Liaodong over the ministers' wishes and the rumours among the ordinary people.
Yuxi reminded Hongshan, "Just tell me these things and don't mention them to others." It was alright to talk in private, but if Hongshan dared to talk about it in the mansion, then she (Hongshan) would be the next one to be in trouble.
Hongshan nodded and said, "Don't worry, Miss, I won't say a thing." It was not like she didn't have a brain. It was good to listen to such things. However, how would she dare to talk about them openly?
After letting Hongshan out, Yuxi murmured softly, "It has not been easy." It was normal for Yun Qing to have such a deep hatred and change his temperament. Just like how she was reborn after being burnt in the sea of flames, and she was slowly changing herself now.
Yuxi was still young, so she was terrible at hiding her emotions. Naturally, this also affected her performance in class, which fell into Teacher Song's eyes.
After class, Teacher Song made Yuxi stay behind and asked, "What's the matter? What's on your mind?"
Yuxi also didn't hide from Teacher Song, and she told her the news she had heard. Of course, she did not tell her about Yun Qing's trip to the northwest. She said, "The Yun family was full of loyal people, but they had come to such an end. I feel a little sad."
Teacher Song was stunned. She didn't expect that Yuxi was in low spirits over this matter. She also knew about the Yun family. "There's nothing we can do. Nobody thought that Old Master Yun would suddenly pass away. We could only blame this matter on the Donghu barbarians."
Yuxi's eyes were as big as two bronze bells. "I heard Old General Yun was strong and healthy. He could eat two bowls of rice at a time. How could he die so inexplicably?"
Teacher Song said, "No matter how foolish the Song family is, they didn't dare to murder the Old General Yun in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. On the other hand, Old General Yun died before Minister Song. So, everyone would think the people of the Song family murdered him. Old General Yun used his life to scheme against the Song family." Yun family people were loyal till their deaths, and Old General Yun died for an unknown reason. So, how could they convince the people of the world and the generals of Liaodong? If one were not handled properly, there would be chaos in Liaodong. If Liaodong were chaotic, the world would be the same too. So this time, the Song family could only do nothing. However, they still wanted to completely control the Liaodong two hundred thousand army, which was impossible for them to accomplish.[T/N]
Yuxi naturally knew that the Song family could not be so foolish, but the death of Old General Yun was related to them. "If this were done intentionally by Old General Yun, I would feel even worse."
Teacher Song asked curiously, "Why is that?"
Yuxi lowered her head. "Old General Yun was a well-employed general on the battlefield. If there was no way out, how could he choose such a cowardly way of death."
Hearing these words from Yuxi, Teacher Song looked at her with extremely complicated eyes.
Yuxi could sense that Teacher Song was looking at her closely, and her heart quivered. How could she just say what she had in her mind? She was agitated, so she toughened her scalp[5] and asked, "Teacher, did I say something wrong?"
Teacher Song shook her head. "You're right. Old Master Yun's choice of such a method of death is for lack of better choice, which grieved the Imperial Court." Now that the Imperial Court had internal trouble and outside aggression[6], the whole country would go through a massive rebellion if not handled carefully. However, the Emperor's arrogance and extravagance made him enjoy it more. He prided himself on his beloved Song Guifei[7] and put her younger brothers in important positions. The Emperor didn't care at all about the lives of ordinary people.
Yuxi did not want to continue to talk about this heavy matter, so she changed the subject. "Teacher, I don't want to learn painting."
Teacher Song asked, "Why don't you want to learn painting?"
"I want to spend more time on embroidery. My wish is to create my own double-sided embroidery." The real reason she stopped learning painting was that she wanted to save time to read medical books. The grand event in the Imperial Court reminded her of the chaos caused by refugees in her previous life. This made her feel a sense of crisis. Although this sense of crisis felt strange, she still followed her heart.
Teacher Song said, "It's good to learn embroidery, but you're too fascinated with it." The embroidery took a lot of energy, and it often took several years to make a good pair. It even took more time to make a dress, a purse or a handkerchief. After Yuxi married, she would be busy doing her wife's duties, raising her children and getting into all kinds of social engagements. Where did she have time for embroidery?
Yuxi said without hesitation, "Teacher, I prefer embroidery."
Teacher Song didn't agree with Yuxi's request. If she only had painting skills in the future, it would be too embarrassing for her as her teacher, so she adopted a compromise, "Painting skills should be learned, so I won't give you any extra homework in the future."
Yuxi was not satisfied with the outcome, but she knew that Teacher Song had made concessions, so she should not act like she was winning an inch but wanting a foot[8]. If Teacher Song suddenly did not allow her to listen in, she couldn't do anything, even if she cried a river.
Footnotes Full List
- Chinese idiom: revenge is more satisfying when one has had time to prepare vengeance that is well-planned, long-feared, or unexpected
- Chinese idiom: to damage the country and cause suffering to the people
- Chinese idiom: ponder one’s errors in seclusion
- I don’t know if Teacher Song is from the same clan as the villain Song family since their family names are written with the same character, 宋 Sòng
- common Chinese phrase: brace oneself
- Chinese idiom: in a mess both domestically and abroad
- noble consort
- Chinese idiom: not satisfied with small gains
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The Rebirth of Han Yuxi