This was an agreement she reached unilaterally with Qi Qi.
Since she didn't like staying at Yifan Temple, and didn't like having her under her nose, then she would leave, so that she could protect Qiqi even if she was far away.
"Take care, Da Fan!" Xie Ying turned around, clenched her fists as she looked south, and finally lowered her head as she stepped into the ship.
Subbag watched the boat leave the shore, ten meters, twenty meters, and he kept sighing. After the boat had traveled five hundred meters, he could only see a tiny silhouette of it.
The boat in the middle of the river suddenly exploded with a "bang," and the boat was instantly torn to pieces. The fire spread in the water and burned into a ball of flames that engulfed the hull.
Subag was startled, yet also seemed to have expected it. Finally, he leaned on his cane and was about to leave.
A graceful figure galloped past on horseback along the shore, her reflection darting across the water. Reaching the shore quickly, Subage recognized her as Yelü Qiqi.
He was immediately astonished: "Princess?! You, what brings you here?"
Qiqi hurriedly looked towards the middle of the river and saw the boat burning on the water. Usually, there were people standing guard on the shore, but now there was no one there.
"Quick, call for help to put out the fire!" Qiqi jumped off her horse and without hesitation boarded a small boat, rowing towards the center of the river.
Subage stood calmly on the shore, telling her with a slightly sorrowful tone, "This is the Princess's order. Create an accident on the way to settle this grudge and let General Xie leave with dignity."
"In this way, the two young grandsons will never know who their father's killer is. When the time comes, we can simply tell them that the enemy is dead."
His only response was that Qiqi rowed away in her small boat without looking back. Subage did not stop her.
They watched helplessly as her figure continued to row towards the burning ship.
Only then did the New Guards on the shore belatedly emerge and shout, "General's boat is on fire! Quick, prepare a boat to rescue people!"
"Oh my god, how could it suddenly catch fire?!"
Subbag suddenly said in a low voice, "It must be a remnant from ten years ago."
Upon hearing this, the expressions of the New Guard soldiers changed. What did "remnants" mean? It meant the First Division. And the First Division was no longer the same as it had been ten years ago. These old men, who should have been called heroes, had turned into remnants because of the change of dynasty.
This was something many people found unacceptable, but fortunately, Empress Jin Zhao granted a special pardon on the day she ascended the throne, and the remaining soldiers were no longer punished.
Now, ten years have passed, and those people still haven't given up. Instead of enjoying their peaceful lives, they attacked the Xie family!
Many of the New Guards were patriots; instead of seeing this as a heroic act, they felt these remnants were causing them trouble.
The newly appointed captain of the New Guard immediately dispatched men to set sail and rescue the people.
"General Xie is our superior. Even though he has been transferred, he was a meritorious official who guarded our territory for a time. Some people have made the general feel disheartened."
"We who have received your kindness, how can we let the general feel disheartened!"
"If I do not repay this debt in this life, I will not have lived a true life."
"Brothers, we are sworn enemies with the remnants of the barbarian army!"
The New Guards shouted in unison, "We are irreconcilable enemies!!"
Two hundred men sailed a warship specially arranged by the imperial court past Qi Qi's small boat to Xie Ying's small boat. Everyone jumped into the water to search for them and pulled out two Xie soldiers who had drowned and were unconscious.
Five bodies were found, but Xie Ying was nowhere to be seen.
When Qiqi, pale-faced, rowed near the wrecked boat, she was immediately taken aboard by the New Guards, who dared not let her get any closer.
Qiqi leaned against the railing, her fingertips gripping the edge. Her lips trembled as she checked the object she was trying to retrieve over and over again. She finally breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Xie Ying wasn't there.
Suddenly, a member of the New Guard shouted, "We've found a corpse!"
The New Guard soldier used a bamboo pole to turn the floating corpse over. It was a charred, blown-to-blind body. Even its clothes were gone.
The charred remains were so intense that it was impossible to tell whether they were male or female.
Finally, when Qiqi peeked forward again, her vision blurred, she fell to the ground, and everything went black.
One of the New Guard soldiers saw this and immediately cried out in terror, "Your Highness!!"
Inside the Yu Palace, Si Caifeng heard that Xie Ying's ship had exploded, and that her two children were still with her.
Li Li and Li Li heard that the ship their familiar general sister was on had exploded. Their little faces were filled with shock, sadness, and disbelief.
Si Caifeng looked at the two children, who remained silent for a long time, seemingly deeply affected. Instead, she said with a stern face, "Li'er, Li'er, your father survived in such a dangerous environment."
"Now that things have come to this, your mother has to tell you something, which may be hard for you to accept, but your father's death was not so simple."
Li Li was sensitive by nature, and he was the first to react: "Mother...you, you mean..."
Si Caifeng looked at her son with relief: "It was Xie Ying who killed him!"
Upon hearing this, a crystal ball in Li Li's hand fell to the ground.
Li Li stared blankly at Si Caifeng.
Looking at the other child's reaction, Si Caifeng couldn't bear it any longer and said, "This attack must have been carried out by the remnants of those loyal to your father."
"But the Empress Dowager did not think that the remnants had done anything wrong."
Li Li struggled for a moment, then instantly accepted: "Now that the enemy is dead, this grudge should be settled."
"The grudges will soon be settled." Si Caifeng's eyes gradually turned cold and sharp. She declared in a stern voice, "I will not allow any remaining remnants to use His Highness the Crown Prince's name to cause further harm!!"
After these words, Li Li seemed to understand something. His mother was using the general's death to eliminate dissidents.
Over the years, Si Caifeng's rule has been repeatedly opposed by Li Li's former confidants, who have even reached out to Li Li, touching a mother's sore spot.
This is why Si Caifeng wants to eliminate the heretics.
Li Li wiped away tears as she spoke, saying, "Why did it have to be my sister...?"
Si Caifeng held her daughter in her arms and patted her back: "As long as she doesn't die, those people will always have an excuse to gather together and rebel."
"Empress Dowager once blamed Xie Ying, but she was also grateful to her. She was grateful for her ten years of perseverance, which gave you all a childhood."
Upon hearing this, Li Li quickly composed himself and said, "If General Sister is not dead, then Mother will decide this matter, and I will not question it."
Li Li wiped away her tears. Even though her mind was full of images of swords and spears, she was starting to come to her senses.
"Little brother, is General Sister... still alive?"
Li Li instead reminded her, "If she lives, she will no longer be our General Sister, but merely our subject! Sister, do you understand?"
Only in this way could he keep her. It wasn't that he was unaware of his aunt and Xie Ying's feelings, nor that he was unaware of his mother's intentions. But as her son, he could only stand by his mother's side, so he had to protect all of her interests.
Only then can we protect this silly older sister.
Li Li nodded, somewhat bewildered, "Oh."
Si Caifeng looked at her two children with relief; the bittersweet feeling of finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel made her want to cry.
Immediately, this strong mother composed herself and ordered, "Men, immediately assemble a search team and arrest all the remnants of the previous dynasty, and execute them on the spot!"
The head guard entered and immediately clasped his hands in greeting, saying, "Yes, sir!"
The head guard, leading a thousand men, began searching various places for Li Li's former confidants, killing them one by one.
This plot to kill Xie Ying, however, became a fatal blow to the remnants of the previous dynasty.
I don't know how many days have passed.
When Yelü Qiqi groggily opened her eyes, someone was gently wiping the corner of her mouth. The person beside her bed was taking care of her as if she were a precious treasure, afraid of hurting her.
As soon as Qiqi's vision cleared, she saw that the person hanging in the air was Xie Ying.
Over the past ten years, she is no longer as spirited as she once was; her once sharp features now reflect maturity and composure. She is no longer the naive and ignorant girl she was ten years ago.
The two were afraid of being chased by time.
For the past ten years, apart from glancing at each other from afar during holidays, we haven't seen each other again.
She relied on seeing him during holidays to ease her longing and endure ten years. When they met again, they looked at each other speechlessly, remaining silent.
Because they are neither in the Yu Palace nor in the First Palace now.
Xie Ying dared not speak; she was afraid it was all a dream, and that she could shatter this beautiful dream with just a little effort.
Seeing Xie Ying's evasive demeanor, Qi Qi stood up and gently cupped Xie Ying in her hands. After Xie Ying looked on incredulously, large tears fell onto Qi Qi's fingertips. Qi Qi finally let go of everything and kissed her.
Xie Ying gently placed her palm on the back of her head, deepening their kiss.
At this moment, there are no enemies, only the lover I can reach out and touch.
Prince Lu of Lu Prefecture felt he had been given a hot potato. He paced anxiously in his bedchamber, afraid to report to either the emperor or the capital. He could only secretly contact Prince Ying, hoping the prince would find out first, at least to cover his tracks.
Xie Lanzhi knew about Xie Ying and Qi Qi's affair, but she just smiled and replied to Gong Fuling: "Let them be."
It seems they can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel and rekindle their old flame.
As for Si Caifeng, she truly deserves to be the new master of the group.
She not only used the remnants of the previous dynasty to resolve the grudges between the two generations and eliminate political opponents, but also schemed to keep Xie Ying in the company through Qi Qi, so that she could be a support for the two children for the next twenty years.
This not only benefited Xie Ying but also brought success to himself.
Xie Ying, remembering this kindness, will surely remain loyal and devoted to Yifan.
A note from the author:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 16:58:49 on March 7, 2022 and 16:37:52 on March 9, 2022!
Thank you to the little angel who watered the nutrient solution: Dew From Tonight White (5 bottles);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 237 New World, New Order
Xie Lanzhi finally put an end to a worry in her heart.
Xie Ying and Qi Qi at least made it work; they spent ten years thinking about their next life, and now they can't live without each other.
During this morning's court session, a mishap occurred at the coastal defense of Yuezhou Prefecture. Two foolish foreign ships attacked the Dabao warship, a domestically produced vessel of the Western Jin Dynasty, and were sunk by two or three shots fired by the Dabao warship.
Among the pirates captured were regular soldiers. Xie Lanzhi did not hesitate to have the Western Guard interrogate them, and discovered that the soldier was from Anluo Kingdom.
For the past few years, the Kingdom of Anluo has been determined to break through the first island chain and has been secretly monitoring the coastal defense capabilities of the Western Jin Dynasty. King George of Anluo is determined to regain the initiative lost ten years ago.
Ten years ago was the weakest period for the Kingdom of Anluo. Because of this missed opportunity, Anluo has been unable to let go of its resentment. It has always wanted to make some small moves in the territory of the Western Jin Dynasty to provoke and test the Western Jin.
Xie Lanzhi also needed information about Anluo Kingdom, to know the extent of their weaponry development. She'd heard that Anluo Kingdom had begun to have electricity. Although it was only usable within the palace, the cost of electricity was considerable.
Xie Lanzhi drew up rough design plans for the hydroelectric power station for Azha and others, but few could understand them. She even made a rudimentary version in an attempt to gradually improve the technology, but unfortunately, the raw materials were unsuitable. All her technical efforts were in vain.