Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 412 Lost
Back then, Emperor Wen used the witchcraft case as a pretext to completely eliminate the Xie family's roots in the court. Later, Xie Chen joined forces with the second prince, Li Mingguang, to force the emperor to abdicate. After the failure, Xie Chen committed suicide out of fear of punishment, and the entire Xie family was almost razed to the ground.

Yan Ciwan originally thought that Emperor Wen did this in order to eliminate dissidents and concentrate all power in his own hands.

But now it seems that there are still many old grudges hidden here.

At that moment, Li Jing suppressed his hatred for killing his wife. Twenty years later, he slaughtered the entire Xie family to comfort his deceased wife's spirit in heaven.

……

The palace gates slowly opened, and the Imperial Guards, dressed in plain clothes, carried out Empress Liang's coffin. Li Xuanhe held Empress Liang's memorial tablet in his arms, bowing his head and silently shedding tears. Countless palace maids and concubines followed behind the coffin, crying so hard they could hardly breathe.

Jiang Meiren was also crying, but because she had cried so much these past few days, her voice had long since become hoarse, and she could no longer make a sound, but her tears never stopped.

Li Xuanhe followed Jiang Meiren, and he was also crying, his eyes red and swollen from crying.

Officials and nobles were already waiting on both sides of the road. When they saw the procession escorting the empress's coffin arrive, they all knelt down, crying and burning paper money and incense.

Yan Ciwan stood in the middle of the road, watching helplessly as the coffin drew closer and closer to her. Unable to move, she could only watch as the coffin passed right through her body.

After the funeral procession had gone far away, people on both sides of the street helped each other to their feet.

A voluptuous noblewoman lowered her voice and asked the man beside her.

"My lord, why didn't I see Consort Xie and the Second Prince in the funeral procession just now?"

The man immediately gestured for her to be quiet.

Yan Ciwan watched the funeral procession leave. Logically, when the Empress passed away, all the concubines, princes, and princesses in the harem had to attend the funeral. However, Consort Xie and the Second Prince did not appear in the funeral procession, which meant that they, mother and son, were unwilling to give Empress Liang even the last bit of face.

With such arrogance and domineering behavior, it's no wonder that the Xie clan will face annihilation in the future.

The surrounding scenery gradually disappeared, and in the blink of an eye, Yan Ciwan was back in the palace.

It was already dark when Li Xuanhe, who should have been asleep, sat alone in his study, looking at his mother's portrait and quietly shedding tears.

A voice suddenly came from behind.

"Brother Royal."

Li Xuanhe immediately turned around and saw that the study door was pushed open a crack, and a small head peeked in through the crack. It was his fifth brother, Li Baizhou.

He quickly wiped away his tears and asked, "It's so late, why aren't you asleep yet?"

"I saw a light in the study when I got up in the middle of the night, so I came to take a look. Your Majesty, may I come in?"

"come in."

Li Baizhou stepped over the threshold and went inside. Although Li Xuanhe had wiped his face clean, Li Baizhou could still tell that he had just been crying.

Seeing the portrait of Empress Liang hanging on the wall, Li Baizhou cautiously asked, "Is Your Majesty missing the Empress?"

“Yes, although my mother has passed away, I still can’t accept reality.” Li Xuanhe said with a dejected expression. “Tonight I dreamed of my mother, and I was very happy, but when I opened my eyes, I found that it was all fake. My mother is gone, and I no longer have a mother.”

As he spoke, he couldn't help but shed tears again.

Li Baizhou stretched out his arm and clumsily wiped away his tears.

"Brother, don't cry. You still have me, your younger brother. I will always be with you."

Li Xuanhe was amused by his mature demeanor and couldn't help but laugh, which also dissipated most of the sadness in her heart.

Li Baizhou was very unhappy: "What are you laughing at? I'm serious!"

"I'm sorry." Li Xuanhe's smile faded, and he bent down to hug the other person. "Fifth brother, thank you for your comfort."

"I want to go to school with my brother tomorrow." Li Xuanhe released him and asked in surprise, "Didn't you say before that you never wanted to go to school again?"

Li Baizhou was a little embarrassed: "That was before. Things are different now. I will accompany my brother to school every day from now on. I can no longer let my brother hide away and secretly shed tears."

Li Xuanhe felt both amused and touched. He patted the other person's head and said, "If you have to go to school tomorrow morning, you can't sleep in. Go to sleep now."

"Your Majesty, go to sleep early too."

Yan Ciwan watched the two brothers leave the study, the door closed, and the room fell into darkness.

Moments later, the darkness dissipated and the sunlight returned.

Yan Ciwan saw Li Xuanhe and Li Baizhou walking along the palace road, and the gate of Hongwen Hall was just ahead.

After they entered the Hongwen Hall, the sun moved quickly in the sky. When the sun was setting, Li Xuanhe and Li Baizhou walked out of the Hongwen Hall together.

The two brothers walked back along the palace road.

Yan Ciwan stood rooted to the spot, unable to move. She could only watch as the two brothers passed by this palace road day after day. As time went by, their figures gradually grew taller, and their faces gradually turned into those of adults.

Li Baizhou kept his promise and stayed with Li Xuanhe every day, doing his best to soothe Li Xuanhe's sorrow.

The brothers have always had a very good relationship.

Until a new student arrived at the Kobunkan.

On the same palace road, Yan Ciwan was still standing in the same spot. She saw that beside Li Xuanhe, in addition to Li Baizhou, there was also a richly dressed young man.

As soon as Yan Ciwan saw the boy's familiar face, she guessed his identity.

"This is the Crown Prince of Xizhou, Yan Hengyu. He has come all the way from Xizhou to Chang'an, so we must do our best to be his host. He will be attending school with us from now on. After school, you can all come to the Crown Prince's residence for dinner."

Yan Hengyu wore a crimson round-necked robe, his hair was tied into a high ponytail and secured with a gold crown studded with jewels, he wore a gold and jade belt, and black leather boots. Due to the long journey, his skin was tanned to a wheat color, and he looked heroic and spirited.

He smiled and said, "From now on we will be classmates. I hope Your Highness the Crown Prince and the Fifth Prince will give me your guidance."

Li Baizhou looked him up and down, his eyes filled with curiosity.

"How old are you?"

"Thirteen years old (by Chinese reckoning)."

Li Xuanhe said, "The Crown Prince of Xizhou is only one year older than my fifth brother."

Yan Hengyu smiled and said, "Empress Liang and my mother are related by blood. If we are to be precise, Your Highness the Crown Prince and I should be cousins. If Your Highness doesn't mind, please just call me by my name."

Li Xuanhe readily agreed: "Okay, Hengyu."

The three boys chatted and laughed as they walked toward the Hongwen Hall.

After that, the three of them went to and from school together every day.

Li Xuanhe said to Li Baizhou, "I have some business to attend to with Hengyu today. I'll have the Imperial Guards escort you back."

"What business do you need to take care of? I'd like to go too," Li Baizhou said.

"You're still young, I'll take you next time, okay?" Li Baizhou wanted to pat his fifth brother's head like he did when they were little, but he found that his fifth brother had grown a lot taller, and it didn't seem quite right for him to pat his head again.

So Li Xuanhe lowered his right hand as soon as he raised it.

He left with Yan Hengyu, leaving Li Baizhou standing there.

Yan Ciwan clearly saw the disappointment in Li Baizhou's eyes.