Destined

Gu Jiusi carried Liu Yuru on his back as he walked out of the palace. Though the distance was short, it felt exceptionally long to him.

At first, he walked steadily, then he began to run, and finally, abandoning all decorum, he sprinted wildly out of the palace grounds. Once outside, he spotted the Gu family carriage waiting by the gate. He leaped inside and urgently commanded the coachman, "Go!"

By this time, Liu Yuru had already fallen asleep. Gu Jiusi sat in the carriage, his expression cold. His hand trembled slightly as he held hers, his lips pressed tightly together in silence. He gripped her hand, feeling her warmth, and brought it to his lips, gently pressing a kiss against it.

His eyes churned with turbulent emotions, yet his entire demeanor remained restrained in an indescribable way.

Meanwhile, deep within the inner palace, the Empress Dowager stared at Fan Xuan in disbelief and said, "Your Majesty, you’re just letting him leave like this?"

Fan Xuan sipped his tea without responding. The Empress Dowager raised her voice sharply, "Your Majesty, you’re letting this treacherous rebel leave just like that?! He disregarded the imperial decree, shouted and made a scene before the inner palace, and even resorted to violence against the imperial guards—what is this? This is defiance! It’s rebellion! How can Your Majesty simply ignore this?!"

"Empress Dowager," Fan Xuan drawled, blowing on his tea, "Minister Gu is young and impulsive. It’s not a major issue. I will punish him, so there’s no need for you to worry."

Hearing Fan Xuan’s words, the Empress Dowager gradually calmed down. Noticing the shift in Fan Xuan’s attitude, Li Yunshang quickly interjected, "Your Majesty must be tired. Mother, let His Majesty return to rest for now."

The Empress Dowager remained silent. Soothed by Li Yunshang’s mediation, she slowly sat down and said coldly, "Your Majesty allowed him to cause such a disturbance in the palace and then swagger out unscathed. Given that he is still a suspect, wouldn’t it be inappropriate for other court officials to witness this?"

"The Empress Dowager is right."

Fan Xuan nodded and said, "I will send someone to bring him back immediately."

The Empress Dowager choked back her words. Was bringing Gu Jiusi back what she truly wanted?! What she demanded was punishment for the man who had insulted her!

By rejecting Li Yunshang’s marriage proposal in such a public manner, where did that leave Li Yunshang’s dignity?

Li Yunshang was her most beloved daughter, and now, with the marriage ending in such humiliation, the Empress Dowager could not let go of her resentment.

But observing Fan Xuan’s expression, she dared not push too far. She understood clearly that Fan Xuan needed her to stabilize the influence of the old nobility. Back when they captured the Eastern Capital, it was through the cooperation of these old nobles that they entered the city so easily. Now, the stability of the Great Xia’s provinces and counties relied on these nobles remaining content and secure. It was with her permission and collaboration that Fan Xuan had ascended the throne and smoothly transitioned from the previous dynasty to the new one. Thus, Fan Xuan was cautious and respectful toward her.

Yet, after all, she was only the Empress Dowager of the former dynasty and could not overstep her bounds.

Since Fan Xuan had spoken to this extent, the Empress Dowager could not press further. She merely said, "He must be punished properly. He is still far too young."

Fan Xuan nodded, then after a moment of thought, added, "As you have seen, Young Madam Gu would rather die than consent to this marriage. The bond between husband and wife runs deep. If the princess were to marry into that household, she would not find happiness. I believe it would be better to choose someone else."

With this, the conversation circled back to Li Yunshang’s marriage.

Li Yunshang secretly clenched her fists, while the Empress Dowager’s face darkened. After a long silence, she slowly said, "Yunshang is now my only child…"

"And she is also the only princess of Great Xia."Fan Xuan spoke calmly, "The Northern Liang envoys will soon arrive in the Eastern Capital. It is not that I am disregarding Princess Yunshang's welfare, but if the Northern Liang envoys arrive before the princess is married and they propose a marriage alliance, I will have no choice but to comply."

"After all," Fan Xuan raised his eyes to look at Li Yunshang, "Great Xia needs stability. Wouldn't you agree, Princess?"

Neither Li Yunshang nor the Empress Dowager responded. Fan Xuan lowered his head to sip his tea and said indifferently, "Minister Gu is not suitable. I have given it some thought—Zhang Quezhi, the eldest son of Left Chancellor Zhang Yu, currently holds no principal wife. At only twenty-four years of age and serving as Vice Minister of Works, he can be considered a talented young man. What about him?"

"How can this be?"

The Empress Dowager looked shocked. Everyone knew that Zhang Quezhi had previously been married. His wife's father had originally served in the Imperial Astronomical Observatory. Four years ago, he presided over the divination ceremony before the Crown Prince's investiture, which yielded an inauspicious result. Resentful, the Crown Prince later used a flood incident to accuse Zhang Quezhi's father-in-law of concealing flood divination reports, leading to disaster. This resulted in Zhang Quezhi's father-in-law being sentenced to execution. When Zhang Quezhi's wife stopped the Crown Prince's palanquin in the street to appeal for her father's injustice, she was mistaken for an assassin and shot dead on the spot.

Zhang Quezhi had originally been an official in the Eastern Capital. It was because of this incident that after his wife's death, he requested a demotion and went to Youzhou to serve under his father.

Now that the dynasty had changed, the former minor official had become the son of a chancellor. Yet Zhang Quezhi's hatred for the imperial family remained deeply ingrained.

And the former Crown Prince was none other than Li Yunshang's own brother.

Li Yunshang's face turned pale. She lifted her eyes to look at Fan Xuan, her lips trembling slightly.

She wanted to say something, but ultimately remained silent.

She knew Fan Xuan was doing this deliberately.

The Empress Dowager and Li Yunshang were the weathervanes of the old nobility, their military standard. As long as this standard remained standing, these people would always remain united. What Fan Xuan wanted was to bring this standard down.

With five thousand imperial guards entering the city, combined with the original garrison forces, the Eastern Capital now almost entirely belonged to Fan Xuan.

"Your Majesty," Li Yunshang looked calmly at Fan Xuan, "Are you certain you truly wish to proceed this way?"

Hearing this, Fan Xuan smiled faintly.

"Your Highness," Fan Xuan set down his teacup and stood up, "I am the Son of Heaven."

As he spoke, his voice turned cold: "The sovereign's word is final."

Neither Li Yunshang nor the Empress Dowager spoke. Fan Xuan decisively turned around and said coldly, "The case of Liu Chun is transferred to the Censorate for thorough investigation. Princess Yunshang is bestowed in marriage to Young Master Zhang, with the wedding to be completed within ten days. Otherwise, in ten days, the Princess may have no choice but to go to Northern Liang."

After speaking, Fan Xuan walked out the main door. Zhang Fengxiang followed behind him and said quietly, "Your Majesty previously said we should show some consideration for the Empress Dowager's dignity. By marrying the Princess to Young Master Zhang, I'm afraid..."

"I gave them face," Fan Xuan said indifferently, "but did they return the courtesy?"

Zhang Fengxiang smiled, understanding Fan Xuan's meaning, and said no more.

Gu Jiusi carried Liu Yuru all the way back to the Gu residence. As soon as they entered, he rushed to the bedroom and immediately summoned a physician.

Ye Shi'an, Zhou Ye, and Shen Ming hurried in after them and asked anxiously, "How is she?"

Gu Jiusi didn't respond. The physician entered, took Liu Yuru's pulse, and after carefully examining her for a moment, said, "The lady has merely taken some sedative and calming medicine. It's nothing serious—she'll be fine after some rest."

Hearing this, Gu Jiusi let out a sigh of relief, the weight in his heart finally lifting.Although he had long guessed that Fan Xuan was unlikely to actually give Liu Yuru poisoned wine, even the slightest possibility had filled him with fear. Now, hearing confirmation that she was safe, he finally felt relieved.

Seeing Gu Jiusi recover, the three people beside him spoke up. Zhou Ye said, "Go change your clothes."

Gu Jiusi wiped his face, nodded, stood up, and went into the inner room.

He had already bathed once that morning before meeting Fan Xuan. Now, he simply changed into a fresh set of clothes, retied his hair, and walked out. The others were waiting for him by the door. Gu Jiusi first asked again about Liu Yuru’s condition and, learning that she would need to sleep a while longer, led Zhou Ye and the others to the outer room for a detailed discussion.

"I heard your case will be transferred to your uncle tomorrow," Ye Shi’an said after listening to Gu Jiusi’s account of the palace situation. "Once it’s handed over, things will be much easier to handle."

"With His Majesty remaining silent during your audience today," Ye Shi’an continued, "everyone should understand His Majesty’s stance."

"Once this matter is resolved," Zhou Ye said with a smile, "I can finally leave the Eastern Capital and take up my post."

Hearing this, everyone was taken aback. Gu Jiusi instinctively asked, "Brother Zhou, you’re leaving?"

"I should have left long ago," Zhou Ye replied somewhat helplessly. "But I couldn’t bear to part with Wanqing, so I stayed with her a little longer. Then your situation came up, which delayed things further."

"Is Sister-in-law not going with you?" Shen Ming asked, puzzled.

Zhou Ye shook his head. Shen Ming glanced at Gu Jiusi, who explained, "The new court has abolished the position of military governor. Brother Zhou’s appointment as the military commander of Youzhou is essentially equivalent to that role. Youzhou borders the frontier, with heavy troop deployments. Brother Zhou will serve as both a civil official and a military commander. For military officers stationed at the border with significant forces under their command, family members are not permitted to leave the Eastern Capital."

"So Sister-in-law is being held as a hostage?" Shen Ming blurted out.

Zhou Ye’s expression darkened slightly. Ye Shi’an shot Shen Ming a sharp look, and Shen Ming quickly added, "Brother Zhou, I spoke out of turn. Please don’t take it to heart."

"What you said isn’t wrong," Zhou Ye replied with a faint smile. "It is indeed a form of hostage-taking, to guard against any potential rebellion."

"Brother Zhou, don’t worry," Gu Jiusi hurriedly reassured him. "We’re all here in the Eastern Capital. We’ll take good care of Sister-in-law."

Zhou Ye shook his head and smiled. "Just focus on taking care of yourselves. As for you, Jiusi—this time, by advising His Majesty to marry off Yunshang Princess, you’ve likely earned the eternal hatred of the Empress Dowager."

Gu Jiusi smiled wryly. "There was no other choice." He poured himself a cup of tea and continued calmly, "Sooner or later, His Majesty and the Empress Dowager were bound to clash. Yunshang Princess is a card in the Empress Dowager’s hand. Whoever she marries will determine the future of the old nobility."

"I heard she wanted to marry you," Shen Ming chimed in eagerly.

The remark made Gu Jiusi shudder. "Don’t spread rumors!" he retorted sharply. "If word gets back to Yuru, I’ll break your legs."

"Just tell us," Shen Ming pressed, curiosity getting the better of him. "Was it really true?"

Surprised by Shen Ming’s nosiness, Gu Jiusi sighed helplessly and nodded.

"What did she see in you?" Shen Ming wondered, stroking his chin. "Was it because you’re handsome?"

"She had her eyes on his uncle."Ye Shi'an, seeing Shen Ming was slow on the uptake, reminded him: "His uncle and the Empress Dowager used to be on very good terms. I heard his uncle originally intended to bring him to the Eastern Capital to marry the princess, as they were already betrothed. Now that Yunshang Princess finds herself in an awkward position—the Emperor forbids her from marrying into the old nobility unless she waits for their resurgence, which leaves only the Emperor's own followers as potential matches. Among them, Gu Jiusi has Jiang He to facilitate connections, earning greater trust from the Empress Dowager and the princess. Add to that his capability and handsome appearance—anyone with eyes can see the Emperor's high expectations for his future. He's a talented young man with boundless prospects, so it's no surprise Yunshang Princess has taken a liking to him."

"If Li Yunshang wanted to marry Ninth Brother before they fell out, I get that. But why still pursue it now, even resorting to this poisoned wine scheme?" Shen Ming gestured toward Liu Yu Ru's direction with his chin. "What's the reason for that?"

"She calculated that I would refuse the marriage," Gu Jiusi said calmly. "If I refuse, the Emperor will inevitably hold some resentment toward me. Even at death's door, she wants to drag someone down with her. As for the poisoned wine—that was the Emperor's doing. Since Yu Ru has already consumed the wine, no one can force the issue, though it doesn't sound good in the telling."

"Lucky it was fake wine," Ye Shi'an sighed. "You all have nerves of steel."

"It's her who's bold," Gu Jiusi said with a bitter smile. "Not me."

As they were speaking, a eunuch's voice came from outside: "Lord Gu, you've seen Young Madam Gu. His Majesty says it's best you return now and await the Censorate to clear your name. You can come back to care for Young Madam Gu then."

Hearing this, Gu Jiusi exchanged a look with those around him, somewhat helpless.

He had someone attend to the eunuch, then stood and entered the room. Liu Yu Ru was still asleep. He sat by her side, gazing at her quietly.

"I'm going back now," Gu Jiusi said softly, as if afraid of disturbing her. "Don't worry too much. I'll be back in a couple of days. Make sure to eat well and sleep well. Don't fret over the Empress Dowager and the princess."

He reached out and placed his hand on Liu Yu Ru's cheek. "Every wrong they've done to you, I'll make them repay—bit by bit."