The road south is still dangerous. Xu Zhou and Xu Keyue took the overland route halfway and traveled in plain clothes. In order not to draw attention to themselves, they took the risk and only left the Western secret guard behind. Xie Sui'an took away most of his entourage and continued to walk on the waterway in a grand manner, pretending to still be escorting Xu Zhou.
Three days later, the clan siblings arrived in Jinling successfully.
Thousands of people welcomed him, hundreds of officials paid their respects, and Xu Zhou entered the Taiji Hall. He chose an auspicious day to hold the enthronement ceremony, paid homage to the Taimiao, told heaven and earth, and established a new dynasty.
However, as the enthronement ceremony approaches, Xie Sui'an has not yet arrived at Jinling.
Xu Zhou asked eight hundred times a day, but the answers he got were all the same - Miss Xie Liu was still on the way.
After they split into two groups, the ship headed south as originally planned. While docking at Longyou Ferry to replenish supplies, it was attacked by a group of dead soldiers. In order to prevent the pursuers from discovering that King Ling'an had already escaped from his golden cicada shell, Xie Sui'an led the pursuers into the mountains with secret guards and spent time fighting guerrillas with them in the mountains.
However, Xie Sui'an was at ease and kept in touch with Jinling. After learning that Xu Zhou had safely entered the city, she abandoned her pursuers and rushed back, so she was a few days late.
Xu Zhou also hoped that Xie Sui'an would be able to catch up with the enthronement ceremony in time, and took her into consideration in every detail.
The guards in front of the palace should accompany the officials throughout the ceremony and perform the duty of protection, but now the only person Xu Zhou can trust is Xie Sui'an, so he naturally hopes that she will stand by his side. Xu Zhou thought that this matter would be simple, but he did not expect that his request was rejected by the Ministry of Rites, because there was no precedent for a woman to serve in the front office of the palace in the past dynasties. Furthermore, even if Xie Sui'an had the merit of serving as a dragon, the official appointed her She is a guard, but she does not have any rank or official position. There is no conclusion on what court clothes she should wear, what weapons she should wear, and whether she can behave appropriately. There is no rule without rules, and the Ministry of Rites believed that it was not appropriate for her to stand next to the new emperor in such a grand and solemn ceremony.
Xu Zhou has always been frightened by the admonitions and reports of his ministers, fearing that he would not do well and be suspected of being unworthy of his position, but he was very persistent in this matter.
No one will empathize and understand the meaning of Xie Sui's contentment with him. He hates her, is even a little afraid of her, but he relies on her.
She is a sharp blade without a handle. When holding the blade, it hurts to cut the hand. She helped him kill enemies and eliminate dangers, but also left him covered in wounds. But he needs these wounds to remind him of the cost of being a king.
He was originally a protected body, but Pang Yu's death tore a cruel hole open, allowing him to see a dark web formed by people's flesh and blood beneath the mountains and rivers, and she was that dark web. At the intersection of the Internet, her family, lover, and friends all sacrificed one after another for his journey south. Her existence reminded him all the time how many bones he stepped on.
He tried to escape, but she slapped him awake.
Those airtight protections kept him from risking his life. She also gave him very important things, allowing him to break first and then build up, rebuilding in confusion.
About courage.
Therefore, with a bit of paranoia, he must let Xie Xiaoliu appear at the enthronement ceremony as a military commander in front of the palace. That was Pang Yu's position, and it was also her position.
She came for Pang Yu's mission, and he wanted to fulfill her.
But the vast majority of people can only speculate about his favor, thinking that if a man and a widow live together day and night, they may have become husband and wife along the way.
Xu Zhou thought it was ridiculous. Could there only be an affair between a man and a woman?
But he couldn't stop the whispers.
Some ministers even suggested that it would be better to make Xie Sui'an a concubine, so that she could legitimately stand at the enthronement ceremony.
When people think of women, they always think that flying up a branch and becoming a phoenix is the ultimate pursuit of all women. But Xu Zhou knew that Xie Xiaoliu could not be trapped in the harem. If he had such thoughts, it would be a real blasphemy against her.
He thought clearly and flatly rejected such a suggestion. I just don't know why, but there is a kind of unreasonable loss lingering around him.
The king's persistence finally made the ministers waver. Finally, the eldest princess Xu Keyue came forward and led Shang Yiku to customize a female general's court uniform for Xie Sui'an, which was considered a precedent.
Xu Zhou became warm again. He asked Xie Sui'an from time to time if he was back, and one day he went to Xu Keyue's in the West Fifth Chapter to see how the clothes were done, and even personally drew the embroidery pattern on the court clothes.
Xu Keyue felt that her younger brother was a little childish, after all, he was the one who would inherit the throne, so she reminded him in a subtle way that the king's overeagerness would only make others doubt Miss Xie Liu's innocence.
Xu Zhou was clicked, and he followed the advice fluently. He suddenly calmed down, meekly allowed others to manipulate him, and did everything he needed to do during the enthronement ceremony.
After working hard for days, Xu Keyue stared at the embroiderer as she cut the last thread. The only court dress in the world was completed on the eve of the enthronement ceremony. However, at dawn, the owner of this dress had not returned yet.
Xu Keyue felt a little regretful.
Suddenly, people were surrounded and stood in front of the square of the Imperial Ancestral Temple.
Under the dazzling sunlight, there are endless flags, and the moving heads are lined up neatly. At a glance, they are all covered with black long-winged hats and various court uniforms.
All officials will advance and kneel.
Xu Keyue saw Xu Zhou sitting on the high altar, with layers of imperial robes pressing down on him, which made people feel a little dazed for a moment, wondering whether the person sitting there was a dragon robe or a person. Looking closely, Xu Zhou's still youthful face has a majesty worthy of a temple.
He seemed to have nothing else on his mind.
The tension in Xu Keyue's heart relaxed slightly.
Tai Zhu advanced to the left holding a board, kneeling to the north and reciting Zhaowen: "...the late emperor reigned for twenty-eight years and was overthrown by the world. Fortunately, thanks to the spirit of his ancestors, he survived the crisis. However, he looked up at the astronomical sky and observed the people's hearts. , Yan Jing has passed away and is now living in the Xu family. Now he has regained his glory and ascended the throne, and the calendar is clear, so you can tell. He inherits the bright virtues of heaven, so he is the pastor of Li Yuan; the king inherits the throne, so he inherits the great rule..."
The lengthy Zhaowen made Xu Zhou feel lost in thought, and he thought about the new clothes hanging in the clothes storehouse that no one cared about. Xie Xiaoliu, she should have come to take a look. She also contributed to the journey to the temple.
He only remembered that that day was extremely complicated and long, and he did not feel excited or timid as expected. He just completed the ceremony step by step without making any mistakes. Everything seemed distorted, and people's faces were blurred.
He and authority have been dependent on each other since then.
In just one day, an ordinary person like him became a highlight in the history books. And behind this stroke, I don’t know how much tragedy has been covered up.
By the end of the ceremony, a piece of news that had been suppressed was finally presented to Xu Zhou.
No one dared to say it, but Xu Keyue finally stepped forward. However, before she spoke, she suddenly heard the official on the throne speaking gloomily.
"I see."
Xu Keyue was stunned and figured out many things in an instant. His enthusiasm for that court dress may be just trying to hide the premonition of loss. He was almost paranoid in preparing for her arrival, as if she would definitely come back. And when he was about to ascend the throne, he suddenly became quiet and stopped asking where she was for the first time. He was forcing himself to accept the death of his old friend in an emperor's manner.
Xu Zhou didn't show any expression for a long time.
They separated only a few days ago, and the waves they saw through the side of the ship seemed to be still vivid in their minds.
Xie Xiaoliu cursed that damn traitor in Jinling, who killed Master Zhongshu Ling, and made them have to be careful in the last half of the journey. But he was afraid that Xu Zhou was too nervous, so he comforted him by saying that Jinling was no longer the Qi people's territory, and they only had a few defeated soldiers left, and they couldn't make any waves.
Xu Zhou thought so too.
The power of the Qi people in the south has been reduced.
Just to avoid accidents, they divided their forces into two groups.
Xie Xiaoliu put on his clothes. The overly long sleeves and corners of the robe looked a bit funny. She shook her sleeves and couldn't help but giggle. She had to wear a very tall hat and stuff some cotton into her clothes, so that she looked like a man from a distance. But it was still easy to reveal the secret at close range, so she had to give up the pretending game and find one among the secret guards who had a similar figure to Xu Zhou.
For some reason, Xu Zhou's impression of Xie Xiaoliu was that she was very tall. It was only at that moment that he discovered that she was just the size of an ordinary woman.
It must be very hard to be able to practice martial arts on par with men.
This thought flashed through his mind.
At that time, it was just commonplace.
……
Not long after they separated from Xu Zhou, Xie Sui'an and his party were attacked at the dock. Fortunately, I was prepared in advance, so I didn't have to deal with it too much in the beginning.
Xie Sui'an led the opponent into the forest to buy time. If they find that King Ling'an is not here at all, they will immediately change direction and attack on land.
But she belatedly discovered that the other party had set an ambush in the mountains and forests.
She underestimated her opponent's determination. This was their last chance. Qi Ren called on all the dead soldiers in Jiangnan to complete the killing. Each one is a top master, with deadly moves.
However, Xie Sui'an felt a flash of joy in her heart. They had been prepared, and luckily Xu Zhou didn't come with her.
She looked at the silver blades flickering in the shadows and felt a little refreshed. Among these people, are there people who have fought against Pang Yu? She was finally able to give it a try.
If she kills one more person and fights for one more moment, Xu Zhou will have more peace and Pang Yu's revenge will be more avenged.
Good deal.
Xie Sui'an fled in the mountains for two days and fought with the enemy until the last moment. Her body was like a piece of cloth with holes in it, and blood was bleeding everywhere. She shouldn't even be able to walk anymore, but she still ran far, far away.
In the end, her eyes looking at the world were covered with blood.
She didn't know whether it was the blood in her eyes that affected her, or whether the world was just that colorful.
She and Xu Zhou's double were forced to the edge of the cliff. When you stop, your body will have time to notice the pain everywhere.
She didn't even have the strength to hold the sword. It was so tiring. She wanted to cheat and quit, so that someone would coax her like before and voluntarily lose to her.
An arrow shot off the man's curtain hat, and they finally discovered that the person chasing them was not King Ling'an.
The long wind blew mightily through the mountains and forests, raising the girl's hair. Xie Sui'an raised his head and laughed heartily.
"You're too late."
The furious enemy ordered the arrows to be fired.
Arrows all over the sky fell on her like fireworks. At the last second of her consciousness, she remembered the summer in Yongkang in the 20th year. She was disguised as a man in Tokyo, eating and drinking behind Xie Chaoen, stealing and drinking. , like a little devil in the world.
At that time, Pang Yu was still worried about whether she had a broken sleeve. They were walking under the fireworks of the Chinese Valentine's Day, and sparks of flames came out of nowhere and splashed on her robe, setting half of her clothes on fire.
With half of her clothes hanging on her body, she hid in embarrassment behind the crowded stage. Pang Yu looked at her tube top and was dumbfounded for a long time. Suddenly, he screamed in fright and ran away far away. Xiao Liu thought he wasn't coming back, but he didn't expect that after a while, the stunned Qing came back with a blushing face. He squinted his eyes and didn't look at her. He took off his robe and threw it to her, and then walked away angrily. .
She coaxed him for a long time, but this man didn't even look at her.
But Xie Xiaoliu knew because he blushed when he saw her.
He is probably the most clueless person in the world. He was so arrogant that people couldn't help but tease him. Seeing his face turned red and so angry that he couldn't even say a word, she finally stopped triumphantly.
They fell in love in the autumn of Yongkang's 20th year, and he kissed her tremblingly for the first time amid the falling autumn leaves.
They held each other's hands tightly, holding on to the naive hope that everything would get better. They didn't know it at that time, but it turned out to be the best years.
Then he died in the snowy mountains where no one cares, and then she fell on the first day of the establishment of the new dynasty.
She thought that Xu Zhou should have arrived in Jinling smoothly. The only regret she had was that she could not say a word to Xie Chaoen until she died, "I forgive you."
But it doesn't matter. Xie Chaoen is a ruthless person and he has a way to convince himself.
Her mission was completed, and she could go to Pang Yu with peace of mind. When they meet again, it will be him who coaxes her. She wanted to show him happily how powerful she was and how many enemies she had killed, but now he must not be able to defeat her.
The young emperor sat in the empty Tai Chi Hall and cried loudly. He held a corner of his robe left by thorns in his hand. It was half of the robe that had been burned in Yongkang twenty years ago. It turned into a butterfly and flew into his hand.
This is the last thing people can find about Xie Sui'an.
