The Emperor and Empress going on a summer retreat wasn’t as simple as just leaving. Before departure, they needed to handle state affairs, select an auspicious date and time, choose the accompanying personnel, and arrange for the Imperial Guards to patrol, clear, and set up defenses, among many other complicated matters.
The entire imperial city became busy, but everyone was happy.
These past few years, life in the palace hadn’t been easy, and they hadn’t gone out except for sacrificial ceremonies.
But A-Le wasn’t happy at all.
“Don’t be unhappy, you can go out too, and to a very far place,” Chu Zhao smiled and said. “Besides, there will be beautiful scenery all along the way.”
A-Le’s lips drooped as she said, “But without the young lady.” She looked at Chu Zhao again. “Young lady, couldn’t Eunuch Qi go instead?”
Chu Tang’s wedding day was approaching. Although a batch of wedding gifts had already been sent, someone would still be dispatched to attend on the day of the ceremony, and Chu Zhao had chosen A-Le.
In the past, whatever Chu Zhao commanded, A-Le would follow without hesitation, even if it meant climbing mountains of knives or diving into seas of fire. But this time, she was very reluctant.
“I’ve never been apart from the young lady before,” A-Le said. “Leaving the young lady alone here, I’m worried.”
These words made Little Man, who was standing by the door, laugh: “Really? Who’s worried about whom? Are you afraid to go out alone?”
“No, no,” A-Le hurriedly denied.
Chu Zhao stopped their argument and looked at A-Le: “You’re going on my behalf this time, not just as A-Le, but representing the Empress. You carry my honor and dignity. Also, I want you to see what it’s like there—my uncle’s family, A-Tang’s husband’s family, and the local people. I need to know their attitudes and opinions toward the Empress.”
A-Le understood and nodded: “I understand.”
“I know you don’t want to leave me,” Chu Zhao held her hand and said softly. “I don’t want to part with you either, but I need your help—”
A-Le hurriedly interrupted: “Young lady, please don’t say that. This is what I should do.” She added with some shame that she had witnessed how difficult it was for the young lady to be the Empress, yet she was only concerned about not wanting to leave her and not doing her duty.
Serving the young lady was something any palace maid could do.
She needed to do more to help her young lady.
“I’ll go select the attendants and maids who will accompany us on this trip.”
A-Le walked away with determined steps.
Little Man stood by the door and couldn’t help but purse her lips. The next moment, she saw Chu Zhao looking at her.
“Hey—” she spoke first. “No need to tell me to accompany her, protect her, and complete your task with those kinds of words.”
She looked at Chu Zhao and snorted.
“My task is to stay with you; other matters don’t concern me, so I’m not so easily fooled—”
She wagged her finger.
“No need to make excuses to get me to leave.”
Fooled, excuses, leave—if A-Le were still here to hear this, she would be shocked.
Chu Zhao smiled: “I wanted to ask, how many people do we still have outside?”
Little Man clenched her hand at her side and said: “Not many. A-Tang took Little Rabbit with her, but Old Mouse and the others are still around.”
Chu Zhao said: “That’s good.” With that, she turned and walked inside.
Little Man couldn’t help but follow, asking in a low voice: “What are you planning to do? There are only a dozen or so people outside. Should I go find more people? It’s too late to get help from Aunty, but we’ve recruited quite a few mountain bandits nearby—”
Chu Zhao smiled at her: “It’s enough, enough. Being able to pass messages is sufficient. If there comes a time when we can’t even send out messages, then it won’t matter how many people come from outside.”
Little Man, who had been through life-and-death situations many times and considered herself fearless, inexplicably felt her heart pounding when hearing Chu Zhao’s words and seeing the smile on her face.
“What exactly are you planning to do?” she asked again in a low voice.
Rebel? No, that couldn’t be right. She was already the Empress; what more would she rebel for?
Chu Zhao said: “Don’t worry, it’s nothing major. I just need to convince someone.”
……
……
Troops of soldiers spread like dark clouds, almost covering the entire street, but this didn’t cause panic among the people. Instead, everyone in the capital poured out to watch.
When they saw the magnificent carriages approaching, the people caught sight of the Emperor and Empress sitting amidst the hanging gauze curtains adorned with jade. Many hadn’t seen the imperial couple for a long time; the child in their memories had grown into a young man, and the young lady beside him was blooming like a flower.
“Long live His Majesty—”
“A thousand years to Her Majesty the Empress—”
Countless cheers rolled forth.
Chu Zhao and Xiao Yu smiled as they looked around at the crowd, leaving the capital city surrounded by officials, attendants, palace maids, and imperial guards.
As the mountains and forests ahead drew closer, Xiao Yu sat even more upright, his expression becoming somewhat stiff. The next moment, Chu Zhao put her arm around his shoulders.
“A-Yu,” Chu Zhao said softly. “Don’t be afraid.”
She also looked ahead.
“You’re wearing the dragon robe, entering this place as the Emperor of Great Xia. Those who wanted to kill you will be frightened out of their wits, and your parents will be excited and happy for you.”
“You don’t need to be afraid when coming here. Those who should be afraid are they—the bad people, the ones who wanted to harm you.”
Xiao Yu looked up at her and nodded: “I’m not afraid.” He held Chu Zhao’s hand. “When I’m with my sister, I’m not afraid of anything.”
Chu Zhao withdrew her hand.
“Even if I’m not here, even if you’re alone, you don’t need to be afraid of anything,” she said seriously, then gently patted his shoulder and smiled with raised eyebrows. “So, A-Yu, let me see your hunting skills.”
Xiao Yu, whose eyes had momentarily dimmed when Chu Zhao withdrew her hand, instantly broke into a radiant smile, his face animated as he waved his arm.
“Sister, you’ll see how amazing I am!”
……
……
Galloping horses made the entire forest tremble, hunting dogs barked wildly, mountain birds flew in confusion, all mixed with the shouts of people.
Sitting on the hillside, one could see the intense hunting activity below.
“A-Yu’s horsemanship is quite good,” Xie Yanfang came over, shading his eyes with his hand as he looked down. “But his archery still needs work.”
Chu Zhao said: “He’s still young.” She smiled again. “Besides, he doesn’t need to excel at archery. He’s the Emperor; riding and archery are just for physical fitness, not to be indulged in as entertainment, nor used as self-defense skills.”
As for indulging in it as entertainment, there was the cautionary example of his father, the former Crown Prince.
And regarding self-defense, if things ever reached a point where the Emperor needed to save himself with archery skills, it would already be a dead end.
Chu Zhao looked up at Xie Yanfang and said: “Isn’t Sir Xie going to set an example for His Majesty?”
Xie Yanfang gazed at Xiao Yu, who was chasing a spotted deer under the protection of the Imperial Guards: “A-Yu once took me as his example, my sister took me as her example, and she naturally wanted A-Yu to take me as his example as well—”
At this point, he lowered his head to look at Chu Zhao and smiled slightly.
“This isn’t because of the deep affection between nephew and uncle, but because A-Yu will be an emperor. If an emperor takes me as his example from childhood, then throughout his life, I will remain his example, and the position of the Xie family will be unparalleled.”
Chu Zhao smiled: “That’s human nature. There’s nothing wrong with the Crown Princess doing so.”
The Crown Princess was a Xie, and though she had married into the imperial family, she would forever be a member of the Xie clan, working for the benefit of her own family.
Xie Yanfang said: “But both the Crown Prince and my sister are dead. Even if my horsemanship and archery are excellent, and I’m learned and talented, knowing everything, in A-Yu’s eyes, a person who couldn’t protect his parents, who couldn’t protect even him, is nothing.”
Chu Zhao said: “You needn’t belittle yourself. A-Yu knows that keeping this throne stable depends on Sir Xie.”
“Yes,” Xie Yanfang said. “I know he knows, and he knows I will do this, but being an example is unnecessary.”
He shook his head and smiled gently.
“I never thought about being anyone’s example. What I want to do is simple: I want A-Yu to become an unprecedented emperor. As for me, as for the Xie family, whether we’re examples or whether our position is unparalleled, it doesn’t matter.”
Chu Zhao nodded: “I can see that this is indeed the Third Young Master’s wish.” She looked at Xie Yanfang. “What about me? Can I be an unprecedented empress in the Third Young Master’s eyes?”
Xie Yanfang smiled: “Of course.”
Chu Zhao looked at him, her eyes somewhat perplexed: “Then why do you kill my people?”
The mountain wind seemed to freeze at that moment. Little Man, standing behind Chu Zhao, didn’t move a muscle. The imperial guards standing around with their hands at their sides seemed not to have heard anything.
Xie Yanfang showed no hesitation or surprise. With a serious expression, he asked: “Are you referring to Zhong Changrong or Deng Yi?”