Chapter 55 p2
Imperial Palace.
Imperial Stables.
It was almost the hour of Zi. Rows of torches illuminated the racecourse. A few young generals in military uniforms were sitting crookedly on the side of the field.
Each of them had scars, some holding their abdomens, others holding their necks. Those who were standing were also bent over, leaning on their knees, and leaning against their companions.
They were all staring at the two men and two horses about to fight on the field, praying in their hearts for their comrade.
As for the other person, he was their master, whom they had not been able to see before.
And now, for five consecutive days, they had been sparring here every night. They were really beaten scared. No one dared to look at him. If this comrade were to fall from his horse and make eye contact with the master, there would be another round.
On the night five days ago, just after half of the Shenwu Army had been sent on an expedition, the remaining officers above the rank of captain had been summoned to the palace in the middle of the night and ordered to spar with the master.
The master had said himself that if they defeated him, they would be rewarded with ten thousand taels of gold and be enfeoffed as a grand general.
Everyone had given their all and had shown their best skills.
However, after five days, let alone defeating the master, they had not even touched the corner of his clothes. The so-called reward was thrown to the back of their minds. This was not a competition for a reward at all; it was a one-sided beating.
The comrade was brave. He moved his horse’s hooves first. Everyone held their breath.
The horse’s hooves stomped on the ground, making a thudding sound. The young general in a cyan military uniform held a long spear and galloped like the wind, rushing towards the figure in a black tight-fitting outfit who was also holding a long spear.
Xie Yao stood still, in a defensive posture. When the horse was close, he turned his wrist, parried the spear tip that was coming at him, and at the same time, controlled the horse to turn with his other hand. The horse only moved one of its hind hooves, turning to a perfect angle. At the same time, he extended his long arm, flicked the spearhead, and the young general was hit on the back.
Few of the people on the side saw his movements clearly. They only heard a thud, and everyone gasped at the blow their comrade had taken.
Fortunately, the spearhead used in the sparring was made of wax. Otherwise, the young general would have been pierced through the back and fallen from his horse.
Logically, the young general had already lost, but he would not admit defeat as long as he had not fallen from his horse. He endured the pain and turned his horse around. Xie Yao had already turned his horse before him. Before the young general could stand firm, he galloped over.
The young general wanted to learn his move, but when he met his eyes, although the killing intent was not strong, just indifferent and cold, it made him want to retreat.
In an instant, the spear tip was at his face. He raised his spear to block, but unexpectedly, the spearhead turned, and he was swept in the chest by the tail of the spear. The force was so strong that it swept the seven-foot-tall man off his horse.
The comrade had fallen from his horse. The people on the side did not dare to look directly and quickly lowered their heads to pretend to be dead.
Xie Yao turned his horse around and slowly walked to the young general’s side. He glanced at him. “In a battle between two armies, the one who is afraid first loses. Go back and be demoted by half a rank.”
The young general endured the severe pain in his chest and lungs, got up, and knelt on one knee to take his order.
Xie Yao did not stop. He did indeed ride his horse to the side of the field. His tall and broad figure was like a mountain pressing down. There was fine sweat on his forehead, and the shorter, fine hairs were almost soaked. His breathing was slightly panting. He was not tired.
On the contrary, his eyes were a little bloodshot, and he did not look energetic. It was not as if he was enjoying training his subordinates, but more like he was unhappy and was looking for someone to vent his anger on.
But these generals really felt that they were not good enough. Although they had been beaten until they had no spirit left, the dozen of them had taken turns, but the master had not stopped and could still accurately defeat them. The gap between them made them not have any resentment at all.
It was getting late. Usually at this time, it would be Grand General Cui who would come to save them.
Just then, Cui Chengbi did indeed arrive, and at the same time, there was also a shadow guard.
The shadow guard looked at the situation, paused his steps, but still chose to interrupt this scene to say the important matter first.
The shadow guard approached. Xie Yao dismounted. The shadow guard whispered in his ear.
Usually at this time, he should have received the news that she had gone to bed, but not today.
The shadow guard said a lot. When he got to Yuli’s original words, the shadow guard paused and tried his best to maintain a low and normal tone. “The Mistress’s original words: Go and tell your master that I miss him. If he doesn’t come back in two days, I will go and find him.”
Xie Yao turned his head slightly to look at the shadow guard. The shadow guard said in a low voice, “It’s her original words, not a single word is wrong.”
Xie Yao’s eyes were half-lowered, and he did not show any emotion, nor did he have any intention of speaking to the shadow guard.
The shadow guard silently withdrew.
Cui Chengbi came forward and smiled. “It’s time to disperse, Your Highness.”
“Why don’t you also come and try?” Xie Yao looked at Cui Chengbi.
Cui Chengbi was old, and he was already a grand general. He was not greedy for the ten thousand taels of gold that was clearly something one could get but not live to spend. He repeatedly waved his hands and apologized.
Xie Yao sneered and looked at the generals who had already stood up and were preparing to leave. “The last round. All of you together. If you win, you’ll share the ten thousand taels of gold.”
The night was deep and quiet.
On the imperial racecourse, a dozen people were lying scattered, some curled up, others lying stiffly, unable to move.
Only Xie Yao was still on his horse, his hair soaked, sweat dripping from his chin to his chest, his clothes half-soaked.
His eyes were cold. He glanced at the people on the ground and threw his long spear to the ground. “The reward is always valid. That’s all for tonight.”
After saying that, he lightly kicked the horse’s belly and went to the side of the field. The young generals on the ground, as if granted amnesty, struggled to turn over and bow to see him off.
Xie Yao walked to the side of the field, his expression inscrutable, and looked at Cui Chengbi.
Cui Chengbi was afraid of being pulled onto the field. He knelt on the ground and said sonorously, “Your Highness has not been in battle for a long time, but you are still invincible. Your heroic posture is even greater than before. This subordinate looks up to you with admiration and feels ashamed. With Your Highness here for a day, our dynasty will surely be able to bring peace to the country, and all the four seas will submit, welcoming a prosperous age unprecedented in ten thousand generations.”
Xie Yao’s expression changed. “Your words are quite pleasant to hear.”
Cui Chengbi was slightly relieved. It seemed that the advice of the elders in his family was still effective. No one did not like to be flattered.
“How much of it is sincere?” Unexpectedly, the other party asked again, with a heavy majesty.
Did he like it or not? How much was appropriate? Cui Chengbi was at a loss for a moment.
“Do you know why I do not like flattery?” Xie Yao suddenly asked.
Cui Chengbi quickly apologized. “This subject is guilty, but these words are by no means flattery.”
Xie Yao snorted coldly. “You have followed me the most along this road and have experienced the most. Your brain is better than others, and you are also bold. When others flatter me, I just treat it as a joke. If even you were to speak nonsense with your eyes open, how many true words could I hear in this entire court?”
Cui Chengbi quickly agreed, his expression much more solemn.
“Say, how much of it is sincere.”
Cui Chengbi trembled with fear. He couldn’t figure out why he was being held onto today. He carefully weighed it and said, “It was only exaggerated by one point.”
“Really?”
“Just the two words ‘ten thousand generations.’ If there is half a false word in the rest, this subject will never be able to win a battle again in this life!”
Xie Yao’s coldness instantly subsided. He glanced at him. “Take them all away, treat them well, and they don’t have to come tomorrow.”
Besides the imperial garden, there was little vegetation in the palace. In the past, Xie Yao had never paid attention to it, only feeling that it was most reassuring to have an unobstructed view.
But after getting used to living in Mingyue Residence, it was as if he could only see the person swinging on the swing under the flower trellis after going around the rockery, or he could see the camellia tree when he walked out the door, and he could see the person loosening the soil for the tree when he lowered his head.
Xie Yao returned to his bedchamber. The hall was vast, and the servants were in rows, but they were all like clay sculptures, and even their breathing was extremely light and slow.
The hot water in the bath had already been filled. The servant bowed and withdrew. He accidentally bumped into the door frame, making a light sound. He suddenly became irritable.
It was true. He didn’t like any movement or action from other people. It was boring when it was quiet, and annoying when it was noisy.
He hadn’t said anything, just glanced back, and the person had automatically knelt down and kowtowed in apology, not even daring to raise his voice when he begged for mercy.
He didn’t like these people’s cautiousness, but this kind of reaction was also what he wanted. It could slightly calm his irritability, but he didn’t want to say a word. He walked away and took off his robe.
The servant quickly got up and left with a rustle. He was the only one in the hall. He took off his clothes and walked into the bath. The warm water washed away the sweat from his whole body. At this time, he was alone with his heart.
The first thing that popped into his mind was Yuli saying she missed him.
He smiled for a moment, then suppressed it. See, he had lost control again. It was just a little trick she had used to coax him to open his heart to her, yet he had smiled.
He had figured it out five days ago. Song He was right. He had done something wrong with Yuli.
But it was not that he was too controlling, but that he had not controlled it perfectly.
It was wrong to forcibly marry her with a fake identity in the first place.
He was the regent. Although the old emperor had not yet passed away, he could have, under the pretext of selecting a princess consort, set a condition that only she could meet, and married her openly. She would have logically become his one and only wife.
If he had used the status of a princess consort to restrain her, there would not have been all the subsequent loss of control.
But he hadn’t, because his reputation was too bad at that time. Both the court and the public denounced him as a treacherous rebel. He didn’t care, but he wanted to give her a perfect husband.
However, everything he had painstakingly maintained until now, including everything in the future, was not what she wanted.
She wanted to explore the real him.
She wanted to know everything about him, even if she sensed that he was a murderer by nature. She thought she could bear it, and thought that this was for his own good, but he could not bear the consequences.
He would never allow her to escape his control.
The precedent was right before his eyes.
Letting her do business was originally to wait for her to hit a wall and then ask him for help, so that she would admire him, rely on him, and come back to stay safely under his wings. Unexpectedly, she had suffered setbacks again and again, but had refused his help.
He had wanted to lock her up and not let her go out many times, but he had been persuaded by her a few words, and had indulged her again and again, almost putting her in danger.
Wanting to control her and give her the best protection was not a loss of control. Being persuaded by her again and again and indulging her to suffer outside was a loss of control.
He had lost control to the point of letting her run into something as dark and filthy as Ye Weiqing. Just letting her know that such a person existed was a stain on her. He could only let him live in this world for the time being.
Now she said she missed him, but it was just to trick him into going back and letting him lose control under her clever words again.
To take a step back, even if she really missed him, it was not even a fraction of how much he missed her. He could still bear it.
He had to bear it.
When everything was over, he would be the emperor who had created a prosperous age, and there would be no more talk of whether he was worthy of her.
Xie Yao finished his bath alone, wiped off the water droplets, and, passing by a bronze mirror, stood and looked. He was indeed still heroic and invincible.
That painter had grown a little stronger, but even in ten lifetimes, he would not be one-tenth as handsome as him, let alone one-ten-thousandth as tall and straight as him.
Xie Yao curled his lips into a smile. The person in the mirror also smiled. Yuli liked to see him smile, and she also liked his body.
She had kissed him in many places. He had not asked her to kiss him; she had done it on her own initiative.
She was lonely and couldn’t sleep. It was natural for her to miss him, just as he missed her every night after being exhausted on the racecourse.
There was still more than a month before he could return in triumph and ascend the throne. He couldn’t not see her for more than a month.
The imperial physician said that she had vomited today because she had eaten too much. He couldn’t watch her cook for him again and force herself to eat. Her body would be damaged.
And if she stayed alone in an empty room, she would surely not sleep well. If she didn’t sleep well, her body would also have problems.
Her body was the bottom line. Her slight disappointment in him could be made up for later.
A damaged body was not acceptable.
Xie Yao walked to the desk, drank three cups of tea, put on his usual clothes, and, without disturbing anyone, rode his horse out of the palace alone.