Chapter 20: Seeing Off at the North Gate (Part 1)

  Qingsang Feli met with the Crown Prince.

  The prince looked at her tear-stained face, her makeup all smeared, but he didn't scold her, knowing she was anxious. He dismissed the attendants and gave Qing Sang a seat.

  Qingsang did not sit, but knelt down and begged the prince to spare Qingsuo and send him to Beirong.

  The prince used a cup cover to gently skim the tea surface, and took a sip of clear tea. He said lightly, "You and Qingbi can only save one of you. Are you leaving or is she?"

  Qing Sang lowered her head, her dense eyelashes covering her tearful eyes. In a low voice, she said: "I and Qing Bi are still in mourning, how can we talk about marriage?"

  The crown prince let out a faint "haha", his voice seemingly filled with infinite sorrow.

  "Filial piety? Marriage talks? Going to the Northern Rong is just going to curry favor, what rules can be spoken of?" The crown prince sneered.

  The usually courteous prince suddenly said such sharp words, making Qing Sang slightly surprised. She looked up at the prince and saw that he was also staring at her, but his eyes were not as gentle as before, instead filled with a hint of hatred.

  Qing Sang knew that the hatred was not towards her, but towards Bei Rong.

  A pea-sized tear rolled down from Qing Sang's cheek.

  To give the precious daughter of the imperial court to those northern Rong who occupy the barbarous and desolate lands, what a humiliation! As the crown prince of a country, how can he not hate?

  "If you must go alone, I'm willing to take sister's place. Please, Your Highness, grant this." Qing Sang pleaded desperately with a pale face.

  "That day, you asked me to help you and Seventh Brother, now you're asking me to let you take Sister's place to go to Beijiang. The two things you've asked for are like sharp swords, piercing my heart. Why must you be so ruthless?" The Crown Prince said with a hint of displeasure.

  "You don't know that Qingbi had asked me to see Mother after, willing to redeem Father's fault, to resolve the worry of Xuan Chao, and was willing to go to Beijun. This matter has been approved by Father Emperor, this heroic deed is being told throughout the country. This is already a done deal, can't be changed. Even if you ask Father Emperor, it would be in vain." The Crown Prince quickly calmed down and said lightly.

  Qing Sang closed her eyes and two streams of clear tears flowed out.

  "Qingbi is a heroic woman. If she didn't go, taking advantage of your family's matriarch's funeral, perhaps she could have escaped this calamity, but your Pu family would never be able to recover. And you, due to the decline of your family's fortunes, although it's not impossible for you to marry me or my seventh brother, as a commoner woman, you can only become a concubine or a secondary wife. Qingbi fears that if she doesn't go, the Pu family will never be able to recover, and she herself won't have any opportunities, so she'd rather sacrifice herself to save the entire Pu family. I also respect her for this. It's a pity that such a good woman has to go to that harsh and cold place." The crown prince sighed.

  Qing Sang already knew everything Qing Bi had done, but she couldn't decide whether she should also do as she wished, to exhaust herself for the sake of the Pu family's honor and marry the crown prince, tying her family's honor and shame together. If she were to do so, she would have to give up her feelings for Tong.

  The crown prince helped her up, held her hand and said: "Seventh brother has returned to the capital, but after returning, he was immediately summoned by the emperor to enter the palace. He didn't rest for a moment before receiving orders to go out. Yesterday, there was a letter sent back saying that he will return to the capital in ten days."

  Qing Sang took a deep breath and said: "Since I have already made an engagement with Your Highness, my heart will not belong to anyone else."

  At this moment, Qing Sang would rather die in pain than give up, and he must wield his sword to cut off emotions. The honor and shame of a family require the fearlessness and sacrifice of too many people.

  The crown prince had no joy in his eyes, he knew why Qinghe was willing to marry him.

  But he really likes Qing Sang, and even if he took advantage of her at this time to get engaged, he couldn't help it.

  "From now on, you don't have to address me as 'master' anymore, and can call me by my name." The prince said with a faint smile.

  Qingsang forced a smile.

  The prince didn't mind and continued: "After I've finished mourning, you and I will get married, I'll definitely treat you with a true heart."

  Qing Sang looked at the Crown Prince, seeing the sincerity in his eyes, and her heart skipped a beat. Previously, she had been hesitant to accept others, but now she realized that the Crown Prince had actually treated her with kindness.

  Qing Sang thanked the Crown Prince for his kindness and withdrew her hand which had been held by the Crown Prince all along, bidding him farewell.

  The prince did not stop her either and let her go.

  The green mulberry tree gazes up at the sky, a feeling of sorrow and melancholy spreading from the heart throughout the entire body.

  Tong? After all, it's a matter of fate whether we are together or apart. The green mulberry tree cries out in sorrow.

  Returning to the mansion, Qing Sang felt ashamed and didn't dare to see Qing Bi. However, Qing Bi knew she had returned but hadn't come to see her, already knowing the outcome. This was an expected result.

  In these last ten days of their life together, Qingbi and Qingsang comforted and consoled each other, releasing all the resentment they had accumulated over the years.

  Ten days later, an imperial edict was issued, ordering Qingbi to move into the palace to live, and two days later, she set out from the North Gate.

  Qingbi didn't wear any red wedding dress, she wore a plain white dress and got into the sedan chair, then went to the palace.

  Qing Sang saw that her family had not prepared any dowry for Qing Bi, and couldn't help but ask: "Father, Mother, how can you bear to let Sister marry off like this? Without a hint of joy."

  Wang held his daughter and said with a guilty conscience: "It's not that Father and Mother are heartless, but this green jade is not for an outsider to marry, and besides, my elder sisters have just passed the 37th day after giving birth, how can our family prepare wedding gifts!"

  Qing Sang felt a chill and after returning to her room, she ordered Xue Yuan to go to the tailor's shop to make a large red cloak.

  Just as Qing Sang was preparing to go to the North Gate two days later to see him off, she heard her father, Pu Jiayear, say that the Emperor had issued an edict stating that all women and family members were not allowed to go to see him off.

  "Why?" Qing Sang asked.

  "That day, the Emperor and Empress will personally escort all the princes and princesses to the North Gate to see them off. The Empress is kind-hearted and cannot bear to see the separation of flesh and blood, the scene of sorrowful wailing and crying. The Emperor also feels that life and death are cruel, fearing that the hearts of the women would be broken by crying, hence this decree."

  Qing Sang heard this and cursed in her heart: How hypocritical! At this time, she actually put on such a pretentious appearance.

  Qing Sang did not speak again, but had already made up his mind.

  Two days later, early in the morning, Qing Sang got dressed. Since she was still in mourning, she couldn't wear anything too bright or colorful. She chose a moon-white skirt, paired it with a snow-feathered jacket, and wore a simple white long-sleeved shirt. She used the double-butterfly jade hairpin given by Qing Yu to lightly pin up her hair, and put on a pink crystal peach blossom hairpiece. Because she was still in mourning, she also wore a small white flower on the side of her temple. This way, she wouldn't look too dull, but also didn't break the rules of mourning.

  When Xue Pan wanted to put the pearl earrings on her, Qing Sang chose the rhombus flower earrings instead. What she did today was very risky, and if she said she wasn't afraid in her heart, it would be a lie. At this time, she only hoped that the rhombus flower earrings could give her courage and help her see Qing Bi.

  Carrying a bundle wrapped in red cloth, Qing Sang set off resolutely on the road to the North Gate.

  Xue Pen wanted to go with her, but she stopped him. She could have gone alone for the sake of defying orders, why would she also implicate Xue Pen?

  Xue Yan knew that Qing Sang had already put life and death out of consideration at this time, and begged her to think thrice.

  Qing Sang smiled and said to Xue Pan: "If I can come back alive this time, I will definitely go to my father to ask for your marriage with Xi Mo."

  Xue Yan was taken aback, her small face instantly turning red. She had never thought that the young lady would be so thoughtful, knowing her and Xi Mo's intentions. But hearing the young lady say this, she felt even more emotional, tearfully begging Qing Sang to take her along together.

  Qingsang knew that Xue would eventually stop her, so she had been prepared. Taking advantage of the moment when Xue lowered her head to sob, Qingsang turned around and left the room, quickly locking the door behind her.

  Ignoring Xuepan's cries, Qing Sang quickly walked out of the back door.

  The horse-drawn carriage hired by Xue had been waiting outside the gate.

  All the way speeding, turned out to be outside the Beimen curfew zone.

  Row upon row of guards stood in formation, waiting. From two miles away, one could see a group of people clustering around someone standing at the North Gate.

  The guards would naturally not let her in.

  Qing Sang clearly knew that seeking was useless, she tiptoed and looked around, seeing He Yan who was patrolling the surrounding environment.

  Qingsang shouted loudly: "General He!"

  No sooner had he finished speaking than Qing Sang was roughly pushed out by the 'guard' and scolded by him.

  A sharp stone pierced into Qing Sang's palm, and the bundle also rolled to one side.

  The young girl, who had fallen to the ground, trembled as she lifted her hand. Fresh blood stained her delicate white palm, and the pain brought tears to her eyes, but she gritted her teeth and forced them back.

  She struggled to get up from the ground, took off the jade bangle on her hand and stuffed it into the guard's hand who had pushed her down, begging him to ask General He Yan to see her, and told the guard that she was a maid beside Princess Jia Ren, and that there was an urgent matter for General He to pass on to the princess.

  The guard looked at her with half-belief and half-doubt, feeling that she was different in temperament and might be a palace maid, but it didn't seem like it.

  Qing Sang saw him hesitating and hastily shouted: "Miss has a sudden illness, what mistake you have made you can't afford to take responsibility for."

  The guard heard that it was the princess and general's child who was seriously ill, so he hurriedly ran over to report to He Yan.

  He Yan rushed over and saw that it was a somewhat familiar yet unfamiliar woman, not one of the palace maids, and he felt very surprised in his heart.

  He walked up and asked: "Was it you who spread the news that the child was ill?"

  Qing Sang hastily knelt down and said: "General, may I have a word with you in private?"

  He Yan didn't know what she meant, but he already knew that this person was definitely not from the mansion. The so-called "young girl's serious illness" was also a lie. He suddenly became furious and was about to scold her when the sunlight hit the diamond earrings, reflecting light and dazzling his eyes.

  He Yan's expression changed slightly as he looked at her, and for some reason, the scolding words couldn't be spoken. He ordered Qing Sang to get up, and the two of them walked aside. (To know what happens next, please see tomorrow's update, which will soon write about the "disaster of Hongjing 26 years ago" mentioned earlier. Hehe.)