A life of two souls traveling through time

Chapter 498 We are all women, why should we make things difficult for them?

"I haven't been able to find any reliable information from Xuanmeng Country in the past half month. It seems that your all-pervasive Shadow Sect will become a joke!"

On the second day after the New Year, Youmei, the head of Shadow Clan, came to Shangjing City to pay New Year's greetings to Xiyue Emperor Yan Qiao as per the custom. Of course, it was not just to pay New Year's greetings, because Yan Qiao was very dissatisfied because Shadow Clan had been slow to infiltrate Xuanmeng country to gather information.

"Ying Ye is naturally vigilant and has already placed spies in the capital of Xuanmeng Kingdom. He has always been a scheming and treacherous person, so it will be difficult for Yingmen to find a chance this time." Youmei heard the displeasure in the emperor's tone, so he bowed tremblingly and explained.

"Forget it. A small country doesn't need to go to so much trouble. Even without Shadow Gate, the Xiyue army can still easily step in." Yan Qiao didn't want to vent his anger on such a small matter during the New Year. It would be best if Shadow Gate could help Xiyue. If not, they could only rely on military force. So he waved his hand and sighed.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your forgiveness!" Youmei continued to bow.

"After the snow melts, I, Xiyue, will be able to march north. You keep a close eye on the Jingsong countries for me." Yan Qiaofeng turned his eyes to the map on the wall and said.

"I heard that Xuanmeng Kingdom's national teacher Shangguan Jiuyi is a powerful figure. Can Yingmen take action to eliminate him?" Youmei answered respectfully, hesitated for a moment and asked again.

"No hurry, I want to see what kind of talent this person has." Yan Qiao curled his lips slightly and chuckled.

"Ever since King Zhao of Jingsong succeeded in suppressing the bandits by using the strategy of recruiting and sowing discord, he has been favored by Emperor Jing. Now his fame has overshadowed that of Crown Prince Gong Liangming. However, Gong Liangzhao has not gotten carried away by this. He is still humble and submissive in front of Gong Liangming." Upon hearing what the emperor said, Youmei stopped talking and turned to chatting about the affairs of Jingsong.

"He is ambitious and scheming. I didn't expect that the cowardly Emperor Jing could give birth to such a son." Yan Qiao sneered.

"Your Majesty!" At this moment, Eunuch Qin's voice suddenly came from outside the tightly closed palace door.

"You leave first." Yan Qiao gave the order to Youmei first, then stood up and walked out of the hall and asked, "What's the matter?"

"Your Majesty, the Queen requests an audience." Eunuch Qin bowed and replied.

Yan Qiao strode towards the imperial study without saying anything. When he arrived, he saw the queen's worried face. He smiled and said, "Who is here to cause trouble to the queen during the New Year?"

"Your Majesty, please take a look at this." When Queen Rong saw her husband, her brows relaxed and she hurriedly handed the letter in her hand to Yan Qiao.

Yan Qiao took the letter out of curiosity and read it, only to find out that Princess Han had deep feelings for the late King Han and was still immersed in grief during the New Year. So she petitioned the Queen to guard the tomb for King Han.

It is said that Yan Han died in the palace on his wedding night. As the New Year was approaching, his body was kept in the mourning hall for ten days until the mausoleum was built. After Yan Qiao issued an edict, he was buried before the New Year's Eve.

The King of Cold had a bad reputation during his lifetime and his death was not inglorious, so the day of his funeral was quite deserted. Even though there were a few royal family members among the funeral procession, most of them were just following orders. When the people in the city learned that it was the day of the King of Cold's funeral, they all hid in their homes, for fear of accidentally encountering the evil spirit of the King of Cold that was still alive.

Luoying had made two plans when she petitioned to guard Yan Han's tomb. First, if the royal family agreed, she could temporarily escape from Yan Qiao's sight and then find a way to contact Jiuyi. Long before Chen Ming got into trouble, she heard him say that the people sent by the young Marquis Qi already knew her identity in Xiyue Kingdom. So once the news of her going to guard Yan Han's tomb spread, they would definitely come looking for her. Secondly, Yan Han's death had caused her to be criticized a lot in Shangjing City. She could take this opportunity to show her deep love for King Han. Even if the royal family did not agree, at least she could dispel some of the outside world's suspicion of her.

"Nonsense, although she is the Princess Han, she is also the Queen's sworn sister, Princess Shuyi. How can she go to the remote Yushan to guard the mausoleum alone?" Looking at the letter in his hand, Yan Qiao frowned, and a hint of anger appeared in his phoenix eyes. It seems that he underestimated her feelings for his second brother.

"Your Majesty, please calm down." It was indeed not appropriate for Princess Shuyi to go to guard the mausoleum. Seeing that her husband was angry about this, Queen Rong was a little surprised, but she did not think much about it and comforted him softly.

Yan Qiao realized later that he had lost his composure in front of the Queen, so he quickly hugged her into his arms and explained in a low voice: "The Queen recognized this adopted sister for me. Now I have to worry about you. Although Princess Yi is already the Princess of Han, she is still young. If she leaves Shangjing City alone and goes to Yushan, if something happens to her, it will affect the reputation of the Queen and the royal family."

"I understand. I'm sorry to trouble Your Majesty." Queen Rong smiled sweetly after hearing her husband's explanation.

Soon, Yan Qiao sent someone to the Prince Han's mansion to convey an oral order, saying that the royal family sympathized with the Princess Han's deep affection for the Prince Han, but as the mountain was remote and the snow and ice had not yet melted and it was the beginning of the new year, the Princess Han was hoped to mourn for the Queen and take care of herself.

Luoying had expected her petition to be rejected, but she cried again in front of everyone. The servants in the palace were busy trying to comfort her. The palace maid who delivered the imperial edict could not help but shed tears when she saw that the once beautiful Princess Han was now in such a haggard state. After comforting her with a few words, she left the palace and returned to the palace to report.

Yan Qiao was displeased to hear that Princess Han was still in grief, so he sent the palace maid away without saying much. While lost in thought, he picked up the folded book at hand again and carefully read the beautiful handwriting on it, with a changeable look in his phoenix eyes.

Luoying went back to the house with the help of Helian. After resting for less than half an incense stick, she suddenly heard the noise outside and asked about it. Helian saw that she had disturbed the princess and had to go in to answer:

"It's the two Ru ladies who are clamoring to see the princess. Princess, don't pay any attention to them!"

"Just ignore them and let them make a fuss outside? How can they make a fuss during a period of mourning?" Luoying knew that Helian was worried about her, but now that she was in charge of the palace, she couldn't just sit back and watch. She had to listen to what they wanted first.

At Luoying's instruction, Helian reluctantly brought the two concubines that Yan Han had left in the mansion during his lifetime into the house. As soon as they saw the princess, they both knelt down and burst into tears before they could say a word.

"If you have something to say, just say it. Why are you crying for no reason?" Luoying helped them up and asked.

"Princess, we...we are still young...we don't want to go to that temple to become nuns..." When the princess spoke, one of them quickly stopped crying and begged in a low voice.

"Who said you are going to become nuns in a nunnery?" Luoying couldn't help but frown when she heard this. She didn't know about this matter, so how could there be such a rumor?

As soon as Luoying finished speaking, the two Madams turned their eyes to Helian beside her, seeming to want to say something but stopped themselves.

"Princess, you don't know that according to the rules, they do have to go to the nunnery after the mourning period is over." He Lian muttered with her head lowered.

"If we go by the rules, shouldn't I, as the princess, be the one to decide what to do with the two of them?" Seeing that it was Helian meddling in other people's business again, Luoying couldn't help showing some annoyance, so she asked solemnly.

"The princess has the final say. Helian has said too much." This made the usually good-tempered princess angry, so Helian knelt down hurriedly.

"After the mourning period, you can decide on your own what to do next. I will do my best to arrange it for you." Luoying ignored Helian and turned to the two Madams and gave instructions.

Upon hearing this, the two men were moved to tears. They bowed and thanked the master before quietly leaving.

"Get up." After the room was quiet, Luo Ying helped He Lian up.

"Princess, are you really going to let them go?" He Lian hesitated for a moment, and finally couldn't help asking.

"Now that the prince is gone, they are alone and helpless, which is pitiful. It is understandable that they want to find other ways out for themselves. As women, why should we make things difficult for them?" Luoying said with a smile, holding Helian's hand.

The princess' words made He Lian feel ashamed. She didn't dare to speak again and just lowered her eyes and nodded in response.