Song Lanan was sitting in the waterside pavilion in the courtyard of Changxin Palace. There was a yellow clay stove with tea on it. Seeing this, Song Wan frowned slightly, not knowing why his father came to the palace.
"Come and sit."
Song Lanan pointed to the embroidered pier beside him and asked Song Wan to take a seat.
"How is your father's health these days? I heard from my aunt a few days ago that you almost fell in the snow and was injured. Do you feel any discomfort?"
"Thank you for taking care of your father's health."
Song Wan lowered his head and said quietly: "It's what a daughter should do."
After saying these few words, the father and daughter were speechless. Song Yuning sighed secretly, stood up and said, "You two chat first, I will go to the house to prepare some refreshments."
Song Yuning left, and only the sound of boiling water broke the silence in the water pavilion.
"How are you doing these days?"
"Everyone in the East Palace is kind and everyone takes care of Wan'er. Wan'er lives a good life."
Song Lanan sighed: "That's good."
After two sentences, the father and daughter fell silent again. After a while, Song Wan held the handkerchief and whispered in a low voice: "Is there something wrong with my father entering the palace today? Is it related to Suhe?"
Song Lan'an raised his hand to pour tea for Song Wan, and said casually: "It's relevant, it's irrelevant."
Pushing the tea cup in front of Song Wan: "I also want to meet you two because of my father."
"So many things happened when the Holy Emperor passed away. As a brother and a father, I should come and see how you two are doing."
Song Wan pursed his lips and smiled, not knowing what to say.
Taking out the thin piece of paper from his sleeve, Song Wan handed it to Song Lan'an: "My dear, there is a way, maybe it can defeat Nanqing's cavalry."
"oh?"
Taking it casually, Song Lanan opened it, glanced at it, and laughed out loud after a while.
"This method is despicable and immoral. It doesn't look like you came up with it. Tell me, who gave you this method?"
Song Wan's face turned red and he was filled with shame.
"This... is what the child read from the book."
Song Lan'an sneered and threw the letter into the stove.
"Father, do you think this method is not feasible?"
Song Lan'an said: "Children's jokes have no merit whatsoever."
"Why?"
The smile on his face slowly faded, and Song Lan'an said: "Dongning can't hold on any longer. The imperial court has decided to surrender to Nanqing and become an obedient citizen of Nanqing."
“……”
The handkerchief held in his hand was suddenly tightened, and several threads were even broken due to too much force. Song Wan opened his mouth slightly, but couldn't say what he wanted to say.
Thousands of words were stuck in his throat, and a hot tear slipped down his cheek. Song Wan raised his hand to wipe away the tear stains on his face, and frowned slightly.
Wiping away the tears from his eyes, Song Wan said with a sore tip of his nose: "If there was really no other way, the imperial court would not make such a decision, but as long as it can save the lives of the people of Dongning, this... is fine."
"You are not afraid?"
Song Lanan pushed the snacks on the table in front of Song Wan again.
"Children are not afraid."
I don’t know if surrendering to Nanqing requires ceding territory, paying compensation, or...
"Will the prince come back?"
"meeting."
Song Lan'an said: "Dongning is not dead yet."
"Who will go as the surrender envoy..."
"Me, Lord Shang and several officials from Honglu Temple."
Before Song Wan could finish her words, Song Lanan interrupted her calmly: "Let's set off tomorrow."
"Why?"
"Master Shang has a good reputation. Your father and I... are somewhat famous in this world. It is appropriate to go to Suhe."
Song Lanxin had a plan, but he didn't tell Song Wan.
"Let father do this..."
Her eyes turned red, Song Wan hurriedly turned her head away, and after wiping them clean, she held back her tears and said, "My father's reputation is the most important thing in his life. If he surrenders like this, he will be reviled by the world after the festival, and he will not be able to live in peace for a hundred years."
"It's just a name outside the body."
Song Lan'an chuckled lightly. Hearing that Song Wan's words contained a hint of kindness, he sighed: "I'm just going to hurt you, Tong Fu'er."
Song Wan felt sour in his heart. He didn't expect his father to enter the palace just because of this matter.
He was afraid that he would implicate her and her aunt and brother, so he went to the palace to confess to them.
A name outside one’s body…
Song Wan's eyes were red and there was a lump in his throat.
No matter how important her father was to his external reputation, he now had to bear the world's infamy and be scorned by future generations. Just thinking about Song Wan made him feel pain in his chest and he couldn't bear it.
"Outsiders don't know that the father is a common man in the world, but the daughter knows it. How can he be implicated?"
"The prince treats his daughter very well, and there are no evil people in the East Palace. My daughter will be as smooth and stable in the future as she is now, and her father does not have to worry about holding her back."
"I just wronged my father."
Song Lan'an smiled and waved: "Shang Lao is not aggrieved, why should he be aggrieved as a father?"
"Father should inform Wan'er in advance, so that Wan'er can prepare something for you."
"Everything is available in the house, including food, clothing, and food. You can rest assured."
"When can father return to Beijing?"
"I'll be back after I've taken care of the business."
It was rare for the father and daughter to say a few words of sincerity. After a long time, Song Lan'an suddenly said: "Did you ever complain about your father when he asked you to marry into the marquis' mansion?"
"Never complained."
"Family comes first. This is the father's responsibility as the patriarch. I have never complained about it."
Song Lan'an smiled happily: "If I were not the head of the Song clan, I would not let you marry into the Chengyang Marquis Mansion and become a widow."
As soon as these words came out, Song Wan could no longer hold back the tears in his eyes and let them roll down drop by drop.
Song Lan'an stood up and dusted off his official uniform: "I'm leaving. There are still some trivial matters in the house that have not been explained, so I won't delay here."
"In the future you..."
Looking at Song Wan, Song Lan'an said: "Thanks to your aunt for taking care of you these years, I owe it to my father. When this is done, I will give you a big gift for my father, which will be considered as congratulations on my son's wedding."
After saying that, Song Lanan said no need to say goodbye and turned around to leave.
Song Fuji knew that the court was preparing. When he saw Song Lanan in the mansion, his eyes were blood red. He stood under the wall of the Song mansion and looked at him silently.
"You come with me."
The two walked into the study, and Song Lanan sighed: "If I were you, I would make the same choice."
Raising his hand to open the secret box under the desk, he took out several sealed letters and handed them to Song Fu: "You know what to do."
Song Fu nodded, and Song Lanan added: "This share is for the prince and Wan'er."
"Father……"
"Go ahead."
Song Lanan leaned back slightly and sighed: "Do what you should do."
After leaving the study, Song Fu went to the mansion to prepare the items needed for Song Lanan to go to Suhe tomorrow. At this time, Mrs. Song pulled Song Yao over in a hurry.
"Sir, is it true that the people in the government said that you are going to Suhe tomorrow as a surrender envoy?"
"yes."
Song Lanan looked at Mrs. Song calmly: "What's the matter with you?"
Mrs. Song pinched the handkerchief and couldn't help crying angrily: "Why do you want to take this job? Don't you know what you will face if you come back from Suhe? The whole world can destroy our house with just words and words." Master's backbone, why do you have to do such a shameless thing in the limelight?"
