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Rebirth: The Journey of an Heiress-Chapter 840 - 837: Sunset and a Dead End
Chapter 840: Chapter 837: Sunset and a Dead End
"The man was just here!" Nanny Jiang said as she was about to head out, "Old servant will go and call Wei Zhong right away!"
"Nanny, wait!" Bai Jinse stopped Nanny Jiang and turned to the Eldest Princess, "Grandmother, Xiao Qi has sent Wei Zhong to inform Eldest Young Lady! Now that Eldest Young Lady is far away in Daliang, fighting for Jin Kingdom to vanquish Liang, and such turmoil is happening in Dadu City, she needs to be prepared."
The Eldest Princess looked down at her young granddaughter, her weariness and old age impossible to conceal despite her best efforts.
She wondered whether the Lin family’s imperial power had already come to an end?
Since the loss of the Duke of Zhen’s residence... Dadu City had been continually in turmoil.
When the fate of a dynasty is nearing its end, it is worlds apart from its peak.
The Wude Gate rebellion had already made the people speculate about the royal family, and now, if chaos arises again, the people wouldn’t know how to react in fear and speculation.
Even though the prosperity of Dadu City hadn’t changed, someone like the Eldest Princess, who had witnessed the glory days of Jin Kingdom and lived through to the present, could sense that the once magnificent dynasty had already reached its twilight.
The Eldest Princess gently patted Bai Jinse’s head and said softly, "If chaos arises in Dadu City, although we are outside the city, if your Eldest Young Lady receives the news and leads the troops to aid the king, King Liang might become desperate and use your mother and you... and the Bai family in Shuoyang to threaten your Eldest Young Lady. Pack your things, and I will have someone send you back to Shuoyang overnight. When you arrive, tell your mother, if the court sends someone to fetch you, do not trust them easily! Luckily, Shuoyang has the Shuoyang Army, which can hold out for a while!"
Bai Jinse tightly grasped the Eldest Princess’s hand: "Grandmother, let’s go together!"
The flickering candlelight illuminated the wrinkled lines at the corners of the Eldest Princess’s eyes, making her look even more kind and gentle. She gently patted Bai Jinse’s head: "Grandmother is old and can’t move anymore! Your second sister is still in Dadu City, and... the Imperial City inside Dadu is where Grandmother grew up! Grandmother needs to stay and guard it."
Bai Jinse, with her clean and youthful features, couldn’t help but feel worried, wondering if her grandmother would fall out with her Eldest Young Lady sister who was on the brink of raising an army against the Lin dynasty.
"Xiao Qi will stay with Grandmother! Let Nanny Jiang send someone back to Shuoyang to remind Mother!" Bai Jinse made up her mind, thinking that with her by Grandmother’s side, she might persuade her a bit.
"Silly child!" The Eldest Princess chuckled lightly, looked up at Nanny Jiang, "Send the Seventh Young Lady back to Shuoyang, leave at once!"
"Grandmother!" Bai Jinse was shocked.
The Eldest Princess bent down to hug Bai Jinse tightly, gently patting her back: "Don’t be afraid, and don’t worry about Grandmother. Grandmother is the Eldest Princess of Jin Kingdom, born in the royal family, she has her own responsibilities and duties. The more critical the royal family is, the less Grandmother can leave! But you are different, you are Grandmother’s granddaughter... Grandmother must protect you! Go now..."
Bai Jinse tightly grasped the brocade blanket covering the Eldest Princess’s lap, her eyes red and swollen.
She just hoped that her grandmother truly thought this way and would protect her granddaughter, and not fall out with her Eldest Young Lady sister.
·
On March 25th of the 18th year of Xuanjia, Xie Yuchang, the former head of the Jin Kingdom’s imperial guards, led his troops holding the Tiger Tally to guard the Imperial Palace, preemptively capturing the rebellious King Liang, Li Mao, Li Mingrui, and the head of the imperial guards, Fan Yuhuai, but was unable to control the gates of Dadu City.
Fan Yuhuai and King Liang raised their arms and shouted that the Crown Prince had imprisoned the Emperor, holding the Emperor in command of the Jin Kingdom, and that King Liang and Fan Yuhuai aimed to serve the royal family.
The Left Prime Minister Li Mao, along with Minister of Revenue Chu Zhongxing and other members of the Left Prime Minister’s faction, supported Fan Yuhuai, controlling the four gates of Dadu City and besieging the city.
Prime Minister Lu, leading the loyalists in the court, promptly took their families into the palace, vowing to resist King Liang and Fan Yuhuai’s rebellion, and the Left Prime Minister’s faction to the death.
Prime Minister Lu was worried that Fan Yuhuai and King Liang would search for the Crown Prince or besiege the Crown Prince’s residence within Dadu City, so he claimed that the Crown Prince had already entered the palace.
Li Mao’s spies also reported that they indeed saw the Crown Prince’s carriage entering the palace gates.
Qin Lang’s wife, Bai Jinxiu, discarded her red wedding dress for a suit of armor, standing side by side with Xie Yuchang, defending the Imperial City together, making Fan Yuhuai’s repeated attacks in vain.
As King Liang grew anxious, news of Princess of Zhen taking Jiangdu on March 19th reached Dadu City, further worrying King Liang, who then ordered Fan Yuhuai to take Wude Gate as soon as possible.
·
At sunset on March 27th, Elder Fang finally arrived in Shuoyang. He lifted the curtain and looked out, seeing Shuoyang’s night market ablaze with lights, the view a golden yellow in the distance.
The bustling sounds filled the streets, the place teeming with life. Elder Fang alighted from the carriage, observing the Shuoyang citizens as they smiled and warmly greeted each other, momentarily blinded by the city’s prosperity.
It wasn’t Elder Fang’s first visit to Shuoyang, but back then, Shuoyang didn’t have such a large population, and the people’s clothing wasn’t as vibrant. Back then, there were far fewer smiles on the people’s faces as well.
He strolled along the brightly lit streets, stopping now and then, noticing that while in the past, only the main street of Shuoyang was lively, now even the slightly off-center streets were lined with stalls, and shops were densely packed."
He had walked for over an hour without seeing a single dark alley; even the remote alleys were adorned with lanterns, lighting up the way for passersby, making it seem like a city that never sleeps.
Elder Fang sat in Shuoyang’s most luxurious tavern, looking out at the boisterous crowd below, pondering how a small Shuoyang could have developed so rapidly in just a few years?
Who is the governor of Shuoyang? Such abilities!
In the distance, two patrols of the Shuoyang Army approached, and the people opened up two pathways for them to pass...
Elder Fang stood up and looked down to see a slender young girl, only about fourteen or fifteen years old, dressed in military attire and armor, leading a team of patrol soldiers with an imposing stride.
The people, contrary to Elder Fang’s expectations, did not scatter like mice at the sight of cats but respectfully and warmly greeted the girl.
An elderly woman with silver hair, who ran a tea stall, stood by the roadside with a cup of tea, calling out when she saw the girl: "Fifth Young Lady, you must be tired from patrolling! Have some tea!"
"Not now, Granny. The Shuoyang Army has rules, no eating or drinking while on patrol!" The spirited girl waved with a smile, holding her sword at her waist as she led her troops away.
Wherever they went, people smilingly called out...
"Fifth Young Lady, thank you for your hard work patrolling the city!"
Watching the orderly, well-trained patrol soldiers, Elder Fang thought they were no less capable than the imperial guards.
Suddenly, a guard on horseback approached from a distance, shouting loudly: "Fifth Young Lady, Madam calls for you to return to the residence!"
The shop assistant pouring tea for Elder Fang noticed Elder Fang stretching his neck to look downstairs and said with a smile: "Guest... you’re not from around here, are you?"
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