"Brother, why? Why is this happening?" Song Ziyin still couldn't believe it.
Song Zixing looked at Hua Wuduo, who was lying unconscious on the bed, and gently stroked her hair. He said, "I never cared about this country or this world. The reason I fought for it was only to prove that I, Song Zixing, could do it. Now I have done it, and I have no regrets in this life. Giving up all of this is indeed not easy, but my mind is made up. There is no point in you saying more. I did all this not only for her, but also for the Song family and for you."
"For me?" Song Ziyin was somewhat surprised.
Song Zixing said, "You will marry Wu Qi and become the future Empress Song."
Upon hearing this, Song Ziyin was stunned. After a long while, she stammered, "Wu Qi wouldn't..."
"He has agreed."
Upon hearing this, Song Ziyin was first startled, then felt both ashamed and delighted, and a little uneasy and annoyed. But then she shook her head and said, "But, Uncle?!"
“He has agreed,” Song Zixing said.
"How could he agree?" Song Ziyin asked in surprise again.
Song Zixing said, "I have no intention of becoming emperor. This world will ultimately belong to the Wu family, and he is the most suitable one."
“But…” Song Ziyin was speechless for a moment, staring blankly at Song Zixing for a long time, listening to Song Zixing say, “I know Wu Qi. He is meticulous, broad-minded, and a gentleman. He has personally promised to treat you sincerely in the future, to marry you, and to make you his empress. Sister, the future rise and fall of the Song family depends on you alone. I have already made arrangements for the 300,000 Song family soldiers. From now on, they will only be under your command. If you are willing to hand them over to Wu Qi, your brother will not object. But if something happens and he treats you badly…” Numbly, she took the military tally from her brother’s hand, and didn’t hear anything more after that. Because she suddenly remembered the voice she had unintentionally heard yesterday by the lake in Weicheng. That person said, “If you were alive, you would definitely want to see her happy.” The voice was somewhat hoarse, filled with sorrow, “If he can really bring her happiness, what does it matter if I sit in that position?” At the time, she hadn’t recognized who it was, but now she suddenly realized that it was Wu Qi.
Song Ziyin didn't know how she left that room. It wasn't until she sat on her embroidered bed, clutching the military tally in her hand, that she suddenly burst into tears, choking back sobs as she asked herself, "Why, elder brother, could she make you give up so much? Why are you all willing to sacrifice your most cherished empire and even your lives for her? Why?" Song Ziyin couldn't understand it in her entire life. They were all women, the same age, so why did that woman who didn't seem like a woman, who never showed her true face, receive so much love and affection?
The next day, Song Zixing took Hua Wuduo to Tianshan to seek medical help from King Liang. King Liang was a man of simple tastes, devoting himself solely to the study of medicine. His son, Wu Qi, was also deeply influenced by his father and had a great passion for medicine. However, he had also known Wu Yi, the second son of the Marquis of Xijing, since childhood. For some reason, the two became inseparable, forming a close-knit group of scoundrels for over a decade. Wu Qi was heavily influenced by Wu Yi, possessing a refined and gentle demeanor mixed with the habits of a spoiled young master. Wu Qi's medical skills were all learned from his father, King Liang, whose medical skills were unparalleled. Wu Qi was somewhat disheartened by Wu Yi's death. He told Song Zixing that if there was anyone in the world who could save her, it would be none other than his father. However, his father lived in Tianshan, hundreds of miles away. Although Wu Qi's prescription could temporarily prolong her life, given Fang Ruoxi's current condition, the long and arduous journey would likely end before they even reached Tianshan... Fang Ruoxi's hope of survival was extremely slim.
Before Song Zixing left, Wu Qi asked him, "What are your plans if she doesn't make it to Tianshan?"
Song Zixing smiled faintly and said, "You will never see me, Song Zixing, again."
A month later, Song Ziyin married Wu Qi, and the Song family army came under Wu Qi's command. Half a month later, Wu Qi led his army into the capital, the young emperor died suddenly in the chaos, and the Liu family, who had held power for decades, was wiped out.
Ten days later, Wu Qi successfully boarded the plane and became emperor, and Song Ziyin naturally became empress.
Five months pregnant, Empress Song carried a bowl of nourishing soup that had just been prepared by the kitchen staff into the Emperor's study in the afternoon. Finding that the Emperor was not there, she put down the soup bowl and looked up to see the strange painting hanging on the wall.
She had always been curious about what kind of painting it was. It had been hanging in the Emperor's study, but it was always rolled up. The Emperor forbade anyone to see it, and he even cleaned the dust himself. Judging from how often the scroll was turned, it must have been opened to look at it frequently.
She remembered that one day she came to the study and saw the emperor gazing at the painting with a warm smile in his eyes that she had never seen before.
Unable to resist, she secretly unfolded the scroll while the Emperor was away, and saw an extremely strange portrait. The painting depicted two men, both dressed as scholars, one choking the other. She recognized one of them as the deceased Prince Cheng, Wu Yi, while the other, though unfamiliar, subconsciously reminded her of someone…
Within three years, Empress Song gave birth to two sons, and her status as empress was secured by her sons. Her uncle, Song Yan, passed away two years ago, and since then, Empress Song has handed over all her military power to the current emperor. The Song family still entrenched itself in Jiangnan, extremely wealthy and powerful. Unfortunately, because there were no more outstanding figures like Song Zixing among their descendants, and because of Empress Song's suppression, all of the Song family's descendants stayed away from the court. Although they were wealthy, they did not enjoy true glory, and thus became a true Jiangnan aristocratic family.
Song Zixing and Fang Ruoxi disappeared for several years after that day.
Chapter Forty: With You in My Country
In the blink of an eye, spring arrived once again, and with the war over and the new emperor's new policies, taxes were exempted for three years, and the people gradually became wealthier. At this time, in the blooming season of Jiangnan, a little girl of about five or six years old, with her hair in pigtails and her big, mischievous eyes darting around, tugged at a woman's sleeve and asked in a childish voice, tinged with a hint of mystery, "Auntie, when will you teach me the art of disguise?"
The woman curled her lip and said, "Save your mother the trouble of trying. It won't be that easy for her to steal my disguise skills."
The little girl said, "No, Auntie, my mother said that I'm too beautiful, just like you, and that I'll definitely be a source of trouble when I grow up. To avert some disasters for humanity, my mother asked me to ask you to teach me the art of disguise."
The woman's gaze shifted, and she said, "A femme fatale? A femme fatale is good. There are so many women in this world who want to be a femme fatale but can't. Your aunt supports you in being a femme fatale."
Seeing that her plan had failed, the little girl immediately said, "Auntie, I'm always bullied because I'm too pretty. Learning the art of disguise can help me protect myself!"
The woman smiled and said, "Protecting yourself is easy. Just ask your father to teach you martial arts."
"What did my aunt teach me?"
The woman hesitated for a moment before saying, "I'll teach you how to drink."
"No, Auntie, teach me the art of disguise!"
"I won't teach."
"Auntie."
"No……"
"Auntie..."
Why do you always want to learn the art of disguise?
The little girl declared loudly and resolutely, without any hesitation, "Because I also want to steal a man as handsome as my uncle."
Isn't your dad handsome?
"Not as handsome as my uncle."
Where is your third uncle?
"without!"
Where is your fourth uncle?
The little girl hesitated for a moment, then continued firmly, "No! My uncle is the most handsome man I've ever seen!"
"Is he beautiful?" The woman paused, suddenly thinking of someone—someone now high above, someone she could only look up to, admire from afar, but never reach. He was truly beautiful. Thinking of him reminded her of someone else…
"Auntie?"
"Um?"
"Teach me the art of disguise."
"I won't teach."
"Auntie..."
Who is the most beautiful person in the world?
"Auntie!"
"Hmm!" Very satisfied.
"Auntie..."
"Um?"
"I need to pee."
"I'll carry you to the bushes."
"don't want."
Why?
“Mother said that Ah Rui is all grown up and can’t pee or poop anywhere.”
"So...where do you want to take care of this?"
"go home."
Looking at the little girl whose face had turned green with frustration, the woman said disdainfully, "You're nothing like me!"
"Where will Auntie take care of this?" the little girl asked, her face contorted with pain.
The woman pointed upwards, and the little girl looked up and saw a towering tree in front of her. She then said, "Auntie, I want to go too."
The woman smiled and said, "Hold on tight, I'll take you upstairs."
Once the problem was solved, we got back on the road.
As they walked, the woman asked the little girl, "Why didn't you go to the bushes when we said we were going, but you went to the trees instead?"
The little girl hesitated for a long time before answering, "There are bugs in the grass..."
The woman thought for a moment, then nodded and said, "That's true."
"Auntie, where has Uncle gone these past few days?"
"The capital city."
Why go to the capital?
"To see his sister."
Who is his sister?
"The current Empress."
"Wow... what does the Empress look like?"
"Uh... this... looks like a human."
Why didn't Auntie go with Uncle?
“Your uncle said that there are too many restrictions in the palace etiquette. He has to kneel and kowtow when he sees his sister. He himself is not willing to go. If his sister hadn’t known that he had returned from the frontier and had asked him repeatedly, he would not have bothered to go.”
"My uncle is so good to my aunt."
"Is there?"
"Yes, Auntie, you are so lucky."
"Who said that?"
"My mom said so. Oh, my dad said so too, and so did my third uncle, second aunt, grandma, grandpa, maternal grandpa, Xiaochi, and Ami." Xiaochi being her playmate makes sense, but Ami is a parrot… well…
"They've all said that?"
The little girl nodded and said, "My mother said that as long as you are happy, everything is worth it."
The woman frowned and said, "What do you mean by 'it's all worth it'?"
The little girl said, "I don't know, my uncle said so too."
"Oh? Really?"
The little girl nodded and said, "When have I ever lied to my aunt?"
The woman curled her lip and said, "You've lied to me quite a bit."
The little girl said, "I didn't..."
The woman said, "Forget it, I'm too magnanimous to hold a grudge against a petty person."
The little girl paused for a moment, then thought that her aunt was an adult, and she was relatively a little person. Since she was a little person, she accepted it happily.
"Auntie?"
"Hmm? What is it now?"