That won't work, that won't work.
Dou Akou thought for a long time and came up with another idea. That day, she asked the guards for the liquor to accompany her meal, tore off a curtain, soaked it in the liquor, ripped it off, crumpled it into balls, and threw them in various corners of the palace. Then she lit a tinderbox—and she was done.
She had only intended to create a small disturbance to lure Xu Liren out, but unexpectedly, the Chiwei Palace was entirely made of wood. After a few wisps of smoke rose from the ground, flames suddenly burst forth, and the fire spread rapidly, crackling and burning most of the building.
Dou Akou was stunned. By the time she came to her senses, there was a commotion outside Chiwei Palace. Guards and maids rushed in with buckets of water and rushed into the fire to put it out.
"Fire! Fire at Chiwei Palace!" The shouts were deafening, and amidst the chaos, no one noticed Dou Akou standing to the side.
Dou Akou realized, oh no, she'd messed up.
Amidst the chaos, a young eunuch announced in a high-pitched voice, "His Majesty has arrived!"
Xu Liren rushed over, his face grim, his fingers trembling nervously. He looked at the towering flames before him and asked in a trembling voice, "Where are the people inside?"
"Miss Dou is still inside, we haven't seen her..."
"Useless!" Xu Liren flicked his sleeve, shooing away the eunuch who had answered. "Send men in to rescue them!"
The guards looked at each other in dismay. The fire was raging, and if they rushed in to save people, they might not only fail to rescue them but also lose their own lives.
Xu Li squinted at the burning palace. He couldn't wait to see Dou Akou destroyed by Fu Jiuxin, but instead witnessed her extreme farewell. The only person in this world who was truly devoted to him was about to leave.
Perhaps it was the scalding smoke that stung his eyes, but Xu Li felt a stinging sensation. He took a step forward absentmindedly, then another...
"Your Majesty!" His attendant grabbed his leg. "Your Majesty's health is precious; nothing can happen to you! You are here to benefit all the people of the land!"
Xu Liren suddenly came to his senses. He was already very close, and the hot air hit his face, making his sleeves billow.
He took several steps back, regaining his composure: "Send men in to search! If you can't rescue your mistress inside, I'll make sure you all accompany her to the underworld!"
In the end, he still put himself first. He had only just ascended the throne, hadn't yet fully enjoyed this boundless prosperity and extravagance, and didn't want to die. She was just Dou Akou, nothing more...
"Xu Li!"
Xu Liren was suddenly startled and looked up in disbelief.
Dou Akou lowered her head and shuffled over to his side: "I...I didn't mean to burn the house down."
Xu Liren stared at her, staring at her for a long time without saying a word.
Dou Akou simply reneged: "I have no money to pay you back!"
Xu Liren's expression was a mixture of shock, elation, and anticipation. "You..." he uttered a single word before suddenly snapping back to reality. His expression shifted rapidly, returning to its former disdainful yet wicked look. "You're still alive."
Having burned down a house, Dou Akou felt guilty and lacked confidence when making her demands: "Xu Li, when will you release my father and aunt? Also, I want to go to Xilie Fort to see Asin as soon as possible."
Xu Liren was very displeased and said impatiently, "I will naturally take you to Xilie Fort on April 15th. I will not harm your father and aunt, but I will not let them go either."
Dou Akou was discouraged. She knew Xu Liren would say that. She backed down and said, "Then give me back my knife."
Weapons are forbidden in the palace. Except for the first-rank imperial guards who carry swords to the emperor's side, no one else is allowed to bring weapons into the palace. Xu Liren looked at Dou Akou for a long time, and seeing the pure innocence in her eyes, he slowly nodded: "Alright."
Dou Akou has moved to Lanwei Palace. Xu Liren sent someone with a knife and a stack of books, conveying the following message: if you're really bored, practice martial arts and read books, but don't try to burn down the house again. Even if you burn down the entire Ziwei Palace, he won't release you.
Dou Akou drew her sword first. The scabbard was ornate, decorated with colorful gemstones, and the hilt had red tassels. However, the sword itself was very brittle. To an ordinary person, it would be considered a fine sword. But to Dou Akou, who was used to wielding swords, it looked like a child's toy.
She sighed, tucked the knife into her waistband—better than nothing, she thought.
Then she flipped through the pile of books. Xu Liren had clearly put some thought into it; the pile contained all sorts of books. Dou Akou flipped through a few strange magazines and then a few romance novels, but found them boring and tossed them aside.
At the very bottom was a tattered book, its cover yellowed, clearly very old. As soon as Dou Akou picked it up, several pages fell out.
She brushed away a bookworm crawling out of the book, turned to the title page. The book seemed to be a local chronicle, and the place it described was the ancient, now-deceased kingdom of Siyou.
Dou Akou's heart skipped a beat. The news of a treasure hidden underground in Siyou Kingdom had only recently spread, but it had spread throughout the martial arts world overnight, clearly the work of someone. And the ancient book about Siyou Kingdom had just happened to appear at this time. Dou Akou felt that this was heaven helping her, and she had no idea that it was Xu Liren's intentional or unintentional act.
The book states that the Siyou Kingdom has a history of over a hundred years, during which time it has accumulated and developed its own clothing, language, writing system, and cultural institutions. Although the Siyou Kingdom is located in a relatively desolate area west of the Huang Dynasty, it is still very prosperous due to its proximity to oasis water sources. All the rulers of the kingdom have established their capital in Haohui City, and the famous sword Chu Shi Sword has been passed down through generations. Legend has it that whoever possesses the Chu Shi Sword is the de facto ruler of the Siyou Kingdom.
The Huang Dynasty has only existed for fifty-five years since Emperor Huang Taizu established the dynasty. Compared to the Siyou Kingdom, which has a history of over a hundred years, it is like a mere infant. When Emperor Huang Taizu first ascended the throne, he was deeply worried that the powerful Siyou Kingdom would invade the territory of the Huang Dynasty. Therefore, he trained his troops day and night and raised the city wall of Ziwei Qingdu by another ten feet.
But his worries were unnecessary. Fifty years ago, a once-in-a-century storm swept across the borders of the Siyou Kingdom, whipping up sandstorms that instantly buried the entire Haohui City underground, killing and injuring countless people and animals.
This happened almost overnight. When Emperor Huang Taizu received the news, he immediately sent people to investigate. The scouts reported that the former site of Haohui City was now just a vast expanse of yellow sand and Gobi Desert. Only the spire of the Thousand-Story Tower, the tallest building in Haohui City, was still visible above the yellow sand. The rest of the houses and streets were buried under the yellow sand.
Emperor Huang Taizu was filled with regret, not only for the sudden destruction and decline of such a prosperous country overnight, but also for the Chu Shi Sword buried underground with Hao Hui City and the wealth accumulated by the Si You Kingdom throughout the dynasties.
Later generations attempted to excavate the ruins of Haohui City, but all attempts failed. Gradually, this once-illustrious nation was forgotten and forgotten. The former ruins of Haohui City are now just a desolate wasteland.
Dou Akou read the entire book with great absorption, then closed it and stared blankly. She thought that the treasure of Siyou Kingdom ultimately belonged to someone else. If there were any descendants or surviving citizens of Siyou Kingdom, they certainly wouldn't want them, a group of martial arts practitioners, to plunder its treasure.
But she hoped that the Kingdom of Siyou was already without a ruler. That way, perhaps she could find the Chu Shi Sword. A Xin was a swordsman, but his sword was broken by Li San's spear during the last disciple trial and duel. If she could find the Chu Shi Sword, that would be wonderful. Only the Chu Shi Sword was worthy of A Xin's superb swordsmanship.
For several days in a row, she kept flipping through that book, and by the time she finished reading it, several days had passed.
She calculated the days; the martial arts tournament was not far off. This meant she would soon see Ah Xin, and perhaps things would turn around for her father and aunt. Her spirits lifted.
Her Lanwei Palace was usually deserted, but one day someone suddenly barged in.
Ding Zisu was a little drunk and stumbled into Lanwei Palace, startling Dou Akou.
Dou Akou said cautiously, "Miss Ding, let's talk this out, please don't do this."
"Don't do this... Don't what? Everyone is telling me not to do this... Dou Akou, Xu Liren is going to choose a concubine!"
"Oh." Although Dou Akou didn't quite understand what this had to do with her, she couldn't help but feel sorry for Ding Zisu, who had traveled all the way from Baicao Jing to Ziwei Qingdu with Xu Liren, and who had given up her freedom and chivalry as a woman of the martial world for Xu Liren, willingly becoming a woman in the deep palace.
"He clearly said he would make me empress... but my title isn't even decided yet, and he's already choosing concubines!"
Dou Akou didn't know how to comfort her, and said blankly, "Maybe, maybe he had no choice."
"Yes... I know, he just took office and hasn't settled into his position yet. It's understandable that he has the daughter of an elder statesman and the niece of a high-ranking official. But I've only been with him for a few days! Why so fast, so very fast!"
Dou Akou fell silent, somewhat at a loss, unsure of what to do with the drunken Ding Zisu. The two had never really gotten along, and Ding Zisu even seemed to look down on her somewhat. Yet, in this deep palace, she was forced to confide in Dou Akou, which was indeed pitiful.
Ding Zisu let out a burp, then suddenly shouted, "Haha! I'm not afraid! I will cure his poison and then become empress! I will definitely become empress!"
After she shouted that, she stared at Dou Akou. At her age, Dou Akou was already vying for attention and scheming against her younger sisters, her nights filled with sleepless nights of intrigue and backstabbing. Why was Dou Akou so innocent and carefree? Could that naivety be rooted in Fu Jiuxin's own flesh and blood?
She looked at Dou Akou and said coldly, "I hope you won't repeat my mistakes."
Although she was drunk, she remained sober. After her drunken outburst, she walked out of Lanwei Palace alone, leaving behind a sentence that left Dou Akou completely baffled.
Sirieburg
Dou Akou's plan was to get rid of Xu Liren first, and then seek help from Gu Huaibi and Tang Xunzhen when he wasn't paying attention. However, she didn't expect that Xu Liren had no intention of going to Xiliebao at all.
"You're coming with me? Just the two of us?" Dou Akou cautiously probed Ding Zisu.
Ding Zisu was feeling down because Xu Li couldn't bear to leave. Upon hearing this, she glared at Dou Akou and said, "Do you think I want to go? Who wants to go with a fool like you! Xu Lang is the emperor and it's inconvenient for him to leave the palace all the time, so he sent me to keep an eye on you. Don't be smug, and don't even think about escaping halfway. Your father and aunt are still in our hands."
The martial arts tournament was scheduled for April 15th, but they set off on April 8th, with Xu Liren seeing them off at the gate of Ziwei Palace. Dou Akou and Ding Zisu were both dressed smartly, and although they were clearly not much different in age, Ding Zisu looked like a charming woman, while Dou Akou still had a bit of a childlike quality.
Xu Liren stared at Dou Akou for a long time, thinking to himself that she should maintain a little bit of innocent naivety.
He called out to Dou Akou, "Come here."
Dou Akou reluctantly shuffled over under Ding Zisu's venomous gaze, keeping her head down and avoiding looking at Xu Liren: "What are you doing?"
"Your knife." Xu Liren took the sword off his belt. "Your original one was broken by those idiots. This one is your replacement."
Dou Akou's eyes lit up. Although she didn't really want to take Xu Liren's sword, she had to admit that this sword was much better than her previous one, and even better than the one she had in the palace with its jewel-encrusted scabbard.
Xu Liren shoved the knife into Dou Akou's hand, and before she could refuse, he looked at Ding Zisu and said, "Alright, you can go now."
Throughout the journey, Dou Akou was penniless, with all her travel expenses and provisions held by Ding Zisu. Because of Xu Liren's act of giving her the knife, Ding Zisu didn't give Dou Akou a friendly look. When staying at inns, she stayed in the top-class room while Dou Akou stayed in the most basic woodshed. When eating, she ate the hibiscus pastry and goose rolls she had packed from the inn, while Dou Akou ate dry rations without even a sip of hot water.
Ding Zisu coldly watched to see when Dou Akou would finally succumb to her torment, but to her surprise, Dou Akou was living a carefree life, sleeping whenever she wanted and eating whenever she wanted, her plump face fair and tender, which made Ding Zisu even more depressed.
As they traveled north, the number of martial arts practitioners dressed in江湖 (jianghu, the martial arts world) attire increased. At the tea stalls where they rested, most people were discussing the history and treasures of the Siyou Kingdom, with all sorts of opinions circulating. Some even claimed that a bronze tree capable of granting wishes was buried beneath the Siyou Kingdom. Dou Akou secretly observed that these martial arts practitioners all possessed considerable talent, indicating that each sect had dispatched its top disciples, determined to claim a share of the Siyou Kingdom's treasures.
On the fifth day, they arrived at Longfeng Town, the closest town to Xilie Fortress, and settled down. The inns in the town were all booked by martial arts practitioners. As they walked along the road, if a sign fell down, nine out of ten people would be martial arts practitioners, and the tenth would be a martial arts practitioner's follower.
Ding Zisu, being wealthy and powerful, found the best inn in town and spent twenty taels of silver, practically forcing the innkeeper to give up his room for Dou Akou and her companion. The two ordered a table of food and wine in the lobby, eating while listening to the various discussions taking place there.
Ding Zisu glanced around and sneered, "Seven Kill Linked Fortress, Gongsun Mo Family, Waterway Twelve Rows, Pangbo Gate, and Jiangnan Li Family are all here. The eldest daughter of Yiyantang is in Xilie Fortress. It seems our Ding family has already entered the fortress. We're just missing Qingyong City."
Dou Akou remained silent; her mind was not on the treasure hunt, but on finding Axin and rescuing her family. Ding Zisu finished eating and went upstairs first, leaving behind the words, "Let's make this clear first, you'll be sleeping on the floor later, don't squeeze into my bed."
Dou Akou secretly made a face at Ding Zisu's back. She didn't want to go into the room so early to see Ding Zisu's cold face and get tired of her, so she put down her chopsticks and secretly slipped out of the inn.
A river flows through Longfeng Town. Along the riverbank, vendors sell lanterns, and small groups of young girls huddle together, secretly writing the names of their beloved on the lanterns before shyly placing them on the water. Dou Akou was drooling over a stall selling candied hawthorns when suddenly a soft, sweet voice reached her ears. Despite the noise from the riverbank, Dou Akou heard the voice clearly; it was so delicate and sweet that it made her bones melt.
She looked in the direction of the voice and saw a young girl in a light blue dress standing gracefully by the river, holding a lantern in her hand. She said to a man beside her, "Ninth Brother, what do you think we should write?"
Dou Akou didn't hear what the man said. She only saw that the back view was very familiar, so familiar that it overlapped with the figure she longed for in her dreams, without any difference.
She jumped up and ran towards the river.
There were many people by the river. Several girls complained that she was too reckless and had wrinkled their clothes. Dou Akou apologized without turning her head and searched for the two people she had just caught a glimpse of in the crowd. When she ran breathlessly to the riverbank, there was no one there, only a few lanterns floating in the middle of the river.
Fireworks were being set off on the opposite bank of the river, their golden and silver threads blooming in the sky. The person Dou Akou suspected, like those fireworks, vanished into the darkness.
The nightmare left Dou Akou with a very restless night. Ding Zisu threw a pillow off the bed: "Quiet down! I want to sleep!"
Dou Akou finally managed to doze off, and then it was dawn.
Today is the day Xilie Fortress opens its doors to welcome martial arts heroes. The road from Longfeng Town to Xilie Fortress is teeming with people from the martial world. Dou Akou stares wide-eyed, looking around, trying to find the person she saw last night, but all she sees are unfamiliar faces.
She began to wonder if she had misjudged the situation yesterday.
Ding Zisu proudly basked in the admiring glances from the young men along the way, but the girl beside her was making her look bad.
After walking for a short while, the magnificent city gate of Xiliebao came into view.
Gu Huaibi stood at the door, busy greeting disciples from various sects with his father. Just then, a pair of hands handed him two invitations: "Qingyong City and the Hundred Herbs Classic".
Gu Huaibi's heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly looked up, skipping over Ding Zisu to see Dou Akou: "Akou! You've finally arrived! I thought—"
He suddenly stopped and pulled a disciple from Xiliebao beside him: "You stay here and watch over things, I'll be right back."
Then he pulled Dou Akou toward the back garden of Xiliebao: "Xunzhen! Come out quickly, see who's here!"
Tang Xunzhen rushed out of the side room and immediately saw Dou Akou. He lashed out with a silver whip: "You brat! Where have you been all this time! Did you elope with some wild man?!"
She kept arguing, but then rushed over and hugged Dou Akou tightly.
Dou Akou's eyes were also a little red: "Senior brother, senior sister."
Tang Xunzhen looked her over carefully for a moment: "Why have you lost weight? Who did you come with? After we parted ways at Baicaojing a few days ago, you disappeared without a trace. The people we sent out said your house was raided. What happened? Hey, where's your knife? Where are your family members?"
Her barrage of questions came like beans pouring from a bamboo tube, making Dou Akou a little dizzy.
Gu Huaibi remained calm: "Xunzhen, let Akou rest for a while. Let's go inside and get some tea, then we can talk slowly. I just saw her come with Ding Zisu, and the visiting card is with Ding Zisu. What exactly happened?"