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Knowing that Qin Sheng had returned in time and the wedding could proceed normally, Lu Desheng felt relieved. He walked around the courtyard, but then noticed something was off—weren’t there fewer guests than expected? He had sent out so many invitations!
Upon closer inspection, he realized that very few officials from the court had come, fewer than ten in total.
Seeing this, Lu Desheng couldn’t help but wonder if his reputation at court was so poor that they wouldn’t even come to save face? Or had news of his imminent fall from favor spread?
These bastards, it’s his daughter’s wedding today, and none of them bothered to come. He was furious!
He decided to take note of everyone who hadn’t shown up. He would remember this.
As long as the emperor was still here, he needed to vent his frustration. Otherwise, he’d probably have to hold it in from now on. Thinking about how the Fourth Prince would ascend the throne in the future, Lu Desheng felt distressed. The disparity from being a favored minister to becoming a marginalized figure was too great, and he feared he wouldn’t be able to adjust.
The steward responsible for recording wedding gifts noticed his master’s displeased expression and hurriedly informed him that although many officials hadn’t come, they had all sent congratulatory gifts.
Moreover, the stewards from the various households who came to deliver gifts begged him to tell Lu Desheng that their masters were ill and couldn’t come to the Lu residence or to the Xie family’s house.
Lu Desheng replied, “What illness?”
The steward answered, “Diarrhea.”
“Diarrhea is an excuse not to come? It’s just one person with diarrhea. Don’t they have wives or children? Why couldn’t they come?”
“The stewards said the whole family had diarrhea, their legs gave out, and they couldn’t come.”
Lu Desheng had no more words. Well, it seemed that the price of the ba dou (a type of medicinal herb) in Chang’an would likely increase today.
After hearing these explanations, Lu Desheng decided to let it go, considering they hadn’t come to his house or to the Xie’s. He felt a bit better thinking about how the Xie family’s banquet was also sparsely attended.
In reality, the absence of these ministers was partly due to their reluctance to choose sides, and partly because the emperor had not attended court for a long time, and rumors of his serious illness had begun to spread. They didn’t want to draw the emperor’s attention at this time. Only Lu Desheng, who was favored and attended to the emperor daily (or rather, accompanied him), dared to host a lavish wedding banquet under such circumstances.
Lu Desheng walked back to the main hall.
The announcer said, “The groom has arrived, the groom has entered the gate.”
Lu Songli came to bid farewell to her parents.
“Father, Mother, I’m getting married today. In the future, if I’m unhappy at the Qin family, I will come back to live here. This will always be my home.” Lu Songli performed a kneeling bow to Lu Desheng and Madam Jiang, expressing her gratitude for their upbringing and support.
“Get up, get up.” Lu Desheng and Madam Jiang hurried to help her up. Madam Jiang’s eyes were red, and after Lu Desheng helped her up, he turned away to wipe his tears.
“The groom has reached the second gate!”
The official matchmaker urged them to cover the bride’s head.
Lu Desheng took the new red veil and, while covering her, reminded her, “If you’re unhappy at the Qin family, come back and stay here. This will always be your home.”
Qin Sheng, who had just entered the courtyard, heard these words and wondered if he should go out and re-enter?
Next, the groom Qin Sheng needed to pay his respects to the bride’s parents before he could take the bride away.
Qin Sheng took a deep breath, lifted his robe, knelt down on the ground, and performed the bowing ceremony, “Father-in-law and mother-in-law, please rest assured entrusting A Li to me. I will take good care of her in the future, love her, and cherish her.”
Lu Songli, with her head covered, finally saw his current appearance when he knelt down.
There was an undeniable fatigue on his face, but fortunately, his good looks made it less noticeable.
Lu Songli calculated that since the day of their engagement, which was the sixth day of the first month, after returning from the Lu family, he had set off directly. It could be said that he had spent the past nine days mostly on horseback, even engaging in a fierce battle with a group of Qianghu soldiers at Baihe Town, annihilating more than a hundred enemies.
She was impressed, knowing that the Qianghu soldiers who entered Da Li were not many and were certainly elite. It was only because Qin Sheng was young and had a good physical foundation that he could endure it, otherwise, many people would have been too exhausted to continue.
Hardship makes people mature. His current appearance already had a bit of a young man’s demeanor. Previously, he was just a pampered young master full of vigor.
Lu Songli looked at him, feeling a bit uneasy, knowing that growth comes with pain.
The following events were led by Qin Sheng, and she followed the instructions from Mo Bing.
Back at the Qin residence, Qin Sheng took the bow and arrows handed to him by the servant, shot three arrows in succession, aiming towards the sky, the ground, and the distance. After shooting the three arrows, Qin Sheng helped the bride out of the sedan chair, stepped over the brazier, and paid respects at the hall…
Bowing to the heavens and earth, bowing to the ancestors, the couple bowing to each other, finally completing the ceremony!
During the ancestor worship, Madam Qin forced a smile. She had already learned of Qin Ming’s death and had even gone to the side hall to see his remains. Currently, she was keeping it a secret from Nie Yunniang, who was about to give birth, fearing that she would be frightened if she knew.
After completing all the rituals, it was time to enter the bridal chamber.
Madam Qin took the opportunity to remind them, “You are still young, wait until after the new year when you turn sixteen before consummating the marriage.”
Qin Sheng: …
Lu Songli lowered her head.
“Anyway, you better behave.” Madam Qin said to her son and daughter-in-law, feeling a bit embarrassed, and then quickly left.
Even if Madam Qin didn’t remind them, they wouldn’t do anything inappropriate. After all, their fourth brother’s coffin was still in the side hall, without a proper funeral or burial.
Northern Border, Zhuanglang
The Qianghu official fort was tightly surrounded by Qin Yue’s large army.
It was evident that this area had just experienced several major battles, with bodies of both Qianghu people and Da Li soldiers lying on the ground. The snow was stained red with blood, and the smell of blood wafted far away.
Qianghu leader Bushang hid in the official fort and shouted outside, “Qin Yue, I’ll tell you a piece of news, will you retreat?” He was truly scared. Before, when several tribes worked together, he didn’t think Qin Yue was terrifying. Now, being driven by him in battles, he was really in pain. After several battles, more than half of his Qianghu warriors were defeated.
The response from Da Li was, “Unless you hand over the crown prince, we will not retreat!”
Bushang stomped his feet, “I’ve said it, there is no crown prince of Da Li in our tribal land!” He regretted it. He shouldn’t have sent people to assassinate the crown prince for those grains and salt and iron, and even if he did, he shouldn’t have acted at that time. Now, he couldn’t produce the crown prince, and it was clear that Qin Yue would not withdraw his troops.
The soldiers of the Northern army maintained their attacking posture.
“Hand over the crown prince!”
The official fort fell silent.
Qin Yan was a little disappointed. Even after all this fighting, Bushang still wouldn’t hand over the crown prince?
“General, should we continue attacking?”
Qin Yue waved his sword, “Continue the attack!”
The horns of attack sounded, and immediately, a frantic voice came from within the official fort, “Qin Yue, I’ll tell you the truth, the crown prince is dead, he died long ago!”
Upon hearing this, Qin Yan looked at his father in shock.
This statement caused some commotion in the Northern Border army.
Only Qin Yue remained unmoved, not even blinking an eye, “Prepare to attack! Whoever kills Bushang will be rewarded with a thousand gold!”
Qin Yan thought, did his father already guess?
As the horns of attack sounded, Qin Yue charged forward at the forefront.
“Crazy!” Bushang cursed under his breath, but he was also awakened by his primal instincts and led his tribal warriors to meet them.
A fierce battle unfolded.
After more than an hour, as night fell, the battle came to an end. Bushang was killed, his generals were slaughtered, and the people in the Qianghu official fort were either dead or fleeing…
It was conceivable that the Qianghu people would not recover for ten years. At least during these ten years, they would not be able to pose a threat to the cities on the border of Da Li.
The Northern Border generals also paid a heavy price. Not to mention the soldiers who died in this battle, just the general Qin Yue himself was seriously injured in order to kill Bushang.
The surviving Northern Border generals, those who still had strength, were slowly cleaning up the battlefield.
Qin Yue lay on the ground, simply covered with horsehide.
Qin Yan untied his father’s torn armor, ripped open the clothes soaked in blood, and continuously sprinkled the hemostatic medicine he held in his hand onto the wound. His hand trembled as he did so.
“Father, you could have dodged that blow. Capturing Bushang was just a matter of time, there was no need to use this life-for-life tactic!”
Qin Yue smiled and said, “Second son, you are right, but how long would that take? How many more soldiers would have to sacrifice?”
“General!”
“Lord!”
All the soldiers knelt down.
Only then did Qin Yan dare to believe that his father was deliberately seeking death, “Father, why?”
“The crown prince died in the Northern Border, someone must be held responsible for this. This is the account that our Qin family owes to the Emperor!” He was Qin Yue, the Grand Marshal of the Northern Border. Only by his death, taking the blame and atoning for his sins, could he give an account to the Da Li Dynasty, the court, and the world. Only his death could bear the brunt of the responsibility, so that the rest of the Qin family could live.
“Someone is responsible? It was clearly the Qianghu people who killed the crown prince. We have already taken the head of the Qianghu leader Bushang, isn’t that enough to account for it?” The real culprit who killed the crown prince was clearly someone else, why should their Qin family be held responsible?
Qin Yan followed his father in this attack on the Qianghu tribes. He was more dedicated and desperate than in any previous battle, hoping to rescue the crown prince. When he learned of the crown prince’s death, his only thought was to exterminate the Qianghu tribe, take Bushang’s head, and atone for his sins.
“You silly boy, guarding the border is the duty of our Qin family.” It is our responsibility to repel foreign invasion, and winning battles is expected.
“It’s not like that, it can’t be like this.”
“Second son, the rest I leave to you. You know how to write a battle report, right?” The blood flowed continuously from Qin Yue’s wounds, and his voice grew weaker. Hmm, the snow tonight is a bit cold.
Qin Yan shook his head, “Father, I don’t know, I don’t know.” So, please don’t die.
“A Yan is very clever, father believes in you. If you have a chance to meet Little Six’s wife, thank her for me.” Qin Yue smiled, then looked into the distance, towards the direction of Chang’an City.
Today was the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, a good day for his youngest son’s wedding, but unfortunately, he wouldn’t be able to see it. He didn’t want to do this today, but he couldn’t delay any longer.
In the original story, Qin Yue, Qin Ming, and Qin Yan all died in this conspiracy. Qin Ming encountered the Qianghu elite who came to assassinate the crown prince while leading a small team in the wilderness. Qin Ming wanted to save the crown prince, so he clung to them, but was killed. Qin Yue died in the battle to capture Bushang, and Bushang escaped. Qin Yue later realized the conspiracy of the Fourth Prince, personally led his troops to besiege Bushang and the Qianghu tribes, and finally died atoning for his sins.
Lu Songli’s reminder made Qin Yue the first to realize the Fourth Prince’s conspiracy. After weighing the pros and cons, he ultimately went into battle himself, besieging Bushang, and prevented Qin Yan’s death.