Like Guo Xu, who wanted his father buried at Luoyan Ridge, Ah’man felt the same way. The Sheng clan’s attitude had changed dramatically—arrogant before, deferential now. Six years ago, they had neglected her as a lone girl who had lost her brother, indifferent even as she fell into the courtesan life. Six years later, they wore different masks, praising her brother as a great hero who sacrificed for country and people, commending her as a remarkable woman who sought justice for her brother, and claiming that her brother’s burial in the Sheng family cemetery would bring great honor to the clan.
As if they weren’t the same people who, just half a year earlier, had refused to carry her brother’s coffin.
Their shamelessness made Ah’man sick to her stomach.
Ah’man believed that her brother would certainly not want to be buried there, facing these people’s faces every day. He would prefer to return to Luoyan Ridge to be with his brothers forever.
However, since Luoyan Ridge was still in Turkic hands, Ah’man could only temporarily bury Sheng Yunting and plan to move his grave after Fengzhou was recaptured.
On the day of the burial, Cui Xun also came. This time, Ah’man didn’t drive him away but politely invited him to pour a cup of sacrificial wine for her brother. Cui Xun sprinkled the wine before the tombstone and then stared pensively at the fresh yellow earth. Ah’man was also silent. After a long while, she finally asked the question that had been lingering in her mind: “That day, Shen Que said His Majesty was involved in this matter. Was that true or false?”
Cui Xun didn’t answer immediately. Looking at Sheng Yunting’s tombstone, he seemed to see, in a daze, the brutal scene of Sheng Yunting fighting fiercely despite being stabbed multiple times. He pressed his lips together and, lowering his eyes, said: “Lu Yumin confessed that he colluded with Shen Que using His Majesty’s name and stole the imperial seal. His Majesty knew nothing about it.”
“So that’s what happened,” Ah’man murmured. “What about you? Have you found anything? Any evidence linking His Majesty to this case?”
“No.”
Ah’man sighed with relief: “So His Majesty truly didn’t know, and Shen Que was also deceived by Lu Yumin.”
This answer relieved her. She said, “When I heard Shen Que’s confession, I couldn’t believe it. Back in the entertainment district, my sisters all said that His Majesty was a most benevolent emperor who couldn’t bear to punish even palace servants who made mistakes. How could such a soft-hearted ruler be so cold and heartless as to abandon his subjects? Perhaps his reluctance to overturn our case was because he couldn’t let go of his teacher-student relationship with Lu Yumin and his brotherhood with Shen Que. But once he realized the truth, he was willing to do right by us. So he is still a good emperor after all.”
Cui Xun didn’t respond. He just looked at Sheng Yunting’s tombstone and asked: “You, He Shisan, and the others—you’ve all gotten what you wished for now, haven’t you?”
“Yes.” Ah’man nodded. “The evildoers have been punished, the dead have been exonerated, and the living have been properly cared for. Everyone is very satisfied with this outcome and deeply grateful to His Majesty and the Empress Dowager. He Shisan even said that he wants to join the military like his brother and continue serving the country.”
Cui Xun nodded slightly and asked: “Will you return to the entertainment district in the future?”
“No,” Ah’man replied. “The court has provided substantial compensation, so I no longer need to make a living there. I want to start a small business in Chang’an and live a good life.”
“If you meet a suitable man, you could also marry him and spend a happy life together.”
Hearing this, Ah’man turned to look at Cui Xun. His profile displayed cold, detached features, but after her whipping wounds had healed, she should have been sentenced to two years of hard labor for the crime of a concubine accusing her husband. It was he who submitted a memorial pleading for her, and only then did the Empress Dowager and His Majesty show mercy outside the law, not only granting her divorce from Shen Que but also exempting her from the two-year sentence.
When he suggested she find a suitable husband, Ah’man smiled and retorted with moderate sarcasm: “You’re overstepping your boundaries—you’re acting like my brother now.”
Hearing this, Cui Xun was taken aback. After a moment, he also smiled gently and said nothing more.
Ah’man turned her head and looked at Sheng Yunting’s tombstone: “Anyway, whether I marry or not in the future, I will live well.”
She asked: “What about you? Will you also live well in the future?”
Cui Xun hesitated and vaguely replied: “Perhaps.”
“What’s past is past,” Ah’man crouched down and used a twig to poke at the still-burning spirit money, then stood up and watched as it burned to ashes. She said: “Just like this spirit money, once it’s burned, it’s burned, and can’t return to its unburned state. But as long as we’re alive, we can always buy more spirit money to honor those we miss.”
As the last wisp of smoke rose from the spirit money, Ah’man said: “Brother Wangshu, I must go now. I’m going to look at some shops with my sisters from the entertainment district and find a way to make a living. No matter how difficult it is to let go of the past, life must go on. I hope you can also look forward.”
Cui Xun’s long black eyelashes lowered as he stared at the tiny ashes floating in the wind. He nodded and said, “Mm.”
After Ah’man left, Cui Xun stayed at Sheng Yunting’s grave for a while before going to find Li Ying. She was sitting by the fishpond where they had first come together. When she heard footsteps, she turned around and noticed the gilded fragrance ball hanging from the decorative belt at Cui Xun’s waist. That day, he had told her he would never part with this gilded fragrance ball, and indeed, he had kept his word and never removed it.
Every promise he made to her was carefully treasured in his heart. If he could fulfill it, he definitely would.
So Li Ying had never doubted his love for her. She was grateful to have met such a man-a man whose heart and eyes were filled only with her.
Li Ying held a golden osmanthus flower in her hand. Before Cui Xun came close, he could already smell the distinctive, rich fragrance. Li Ying stood up, smiled radiantly, and handed the flower to him: “I was bored earlier and took a walk around. I discovered a grove of sweet osmanthus trees. Would you like to see it?”
Cui Xun took the flower, his eyes filled with tender affection. He tucked the flower into Li Ying’s hair—the flower like molten gold at sunset, the person like flawless jade. Gazing at Li Ying’s beautiful face, he nodded: “Sure, let’s go see.”
The sweet osmanthus trees were lush and verdant, with tiny flowers like grains of rice, resembling scattered bits of gold amidst the deep green foliage. Li Ying reached out and caught a falling osmanthus flower: “So, Ah’man and the others are all very satisfied with the handling of the Tianwei Army case.”
“Yes,” Cui Xun said slowly. “They have received exoneration for their family members, respect from the people, and financial compensation. Everyone is very satisfied with the outcome.”
“Besides the Tianwei Army families being satisfied, Mother is also pleased. She can finally implement her new policies smoothly. And though my brother has lost power, he has also cleared the treacherous officials around him. That self-blame edict has won the hearts of people throughout the empire. I believe this lesson will make him reflect deeply for the rest of his life and never again easily trust sycophants. After Mother passes away, when my brother has matured through experience, she will return the power of the Great Zhou to him.”
She sat down beneath a sweet osmanthus tree: “In the Tianwei Army case, Mother didn’t intend to use it as an opportunity to eliminate opponents. She only executed the main culprits and their accomplices. Lu’s faction no longer needs to live in constant fear. Even Lu Huai continues to serve well as the Deputy Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, pursuing his ambitions. I think this outcome should satisfy everyone.”
Cui Xun also sat down beside Li Ying. He picked up an osmanthus flower from the ground, clutched it in his hand, then looked up at the distant mountains, saying: “Yes, everyone in the empire is satisfied with this outcome.”
“What about you? Are you satisfied?”
Cui Xun didn’t answer. In his mind flashed Ji Qingyang’s words: “Now that the matter is resolved, you should cherish the person before you instead of wasting time on needless suspicion.” Then Ah’man’s words: “No matter how difficult it is to let go of the past, life must go on. I hope you can also look forward.” He slowly clenched the osmanthus flower in his hand; the flower’s juice seeped out, staining his palm orange-yellow. Cui Xun lowered his head and said, “They are all satisfied. I… have nothing to be dissatisfied about.”
Perhaps this outcome was indeed the best result for everyone.
Li Ying didn’t speak but slowly leaned on his shoulder. She took his hand and gently caressed his clean, slender knuckles, then moved upward to touch the deep scar on his wrist that went to the bone. Cui Xun noticeably stiffened and tried to withdraw his wrist, but Li Ying held on. She traced the nail marks indented in the scar and said, “My brother is earnestly trying to repair his relationship with Mother. Additionally, because of General Guo’s head being made into a drinking vessel, the common people’s hatred for the Turks has reached its peak. Ashina Wuduo has been sent by my brother to Changchun Temple to become a Taoist nun. She can only spend the rest of her life in the temple. Although this punishment may seem lenient for her, it is still retribution for her evil deeds.”
She sighed softly: “Seventeenth Young Master, you’ve been trapped in the obsession with the past long enough. It’s time for you to let go.”
Cui Xun’s eyes showed a trace of bewilderment. Everyone was advising him to let go of his obsession, forget the past, and look forward. Indeed, this time was different from before. Previously, his fixation was because he was certain that Pei Guanyue, Lu Yumin, and others had participated in the Tianwei Army case. But this time was different—he had no evidence proving Emperor Longxing’s involvement. His suspicion was based only on his observations of the Emperor over the past three years. As the Empress Dowager had said, was his suspicion necessarily correct?
If he allowed his suspicion to develop further, he would inevitably end up investigating the Emperor himself. And investigating the Emperor without authorization—what a serious crime that would be! Since the founding of the Great Zhou, no official had been so audacious. If his suspicion was wrong, he would face irreversible consequences. Worse, Emperor Longxing might take his anger out on Ah’man, He Shisan, and others. Ah’man was still dreaming of opening a shop, and He Shisan was aspiring to join the military. How could he push them all to the edge of the abyss because of his groundless suspicion?
The current outcome had already satisfied everyone. What was he still obsessing over?
How could he be so selfish?
Cui Xun lowered his eyes.
So, for the sake of the Tianwei Army families, for Li Ying, and himself, should he truly abandon his obsession?