Seeing the emperor and empress bring the crown prince over, Baili Qiyu was both surprised and guilty. He'd given up the military order and traded the Baili Clan's future for Xiao An's fall precisely because he'd gone to see Baili Lixiang and listened to her advice. He'd also heard about the Sea King's Seal.
Recalling his father's last words, "Your Majesty, this old official was wrong, wrong!", Baili Qiyu was filled with regret. He was his father's most favored son, so he should've advised his father to rein in the horse before it was too late. Unfortunately, he'd been too indecisive.
In his heart, he'd always rejected working with the Xiao Clan. He'd once asked his father and eldest sister how the Baili Clan, which had been a noble clan for generations, had been reduced to working with the Xiao Clan.
Baili Mingxiang knelt. "This guilty daughter greets Your Majesty, Esteemed Empress, and His Highness the Crown Prince."
At this moment, Baili Qiyu snapped out of his thoughts and hurriedly knelt as well.
Long Fei Ye ignored them and walked to Baili Yuanlong's grave alone. He stood there in silence for a long time, as if he had something to say. But in the end, he didn't say anything. Instead, he personally added a handful of soil to Baili Yuanlong's grave.
This was something only family members would do!
Baili Qiyu and Baili Mingxiang saw this. Regret, guilt, sadness, helplessness, and countless other emotions welled up in their hearts. The siblings had nothing to say, so they kowtowed three times in unison.
Long Fei Ye stood in front of the tombstone in silence.
Baili Yuanlong should understand this silence. After all, he'd looked at it for more than twenty years.
"Why is he buried so high up?" Han Yunxi spoke up.
The living walked to higher places, while the dead were buried underground. Graves weren't suitable for high places, but Baili Yuanlong's was at the top of a mountain.
"To reply Esteemed Empress, father always said he wanted to return to the capital. Only by being buried high up would he be able to see the capital," Baili Mingxiang replied in a choked voice.
Han Yunxi looked to the east. Baili Yuanlong's grave really did face the direction of the capital.
She sighed softly. "Everyone wants to go back. I want to go back as soon as possible. Both of you may rise. "
Baili Qiyu and Baili Mingxiang stood up and bowed to Gu Beiyue, Tang Li, his wife, and Tang Zijin, who had just arrived.
Tang Zijin, who hadn't seen him for a long time, seemed to have aged a lot. His originally white hair was now completely white. He was covered in dust, and his tired face was full of heaviness.
He stood at the very back and gazed at Baili Yuanlong's tombstone from afar, his eyes gradually becoming moist. He and Baili Yuanlong had fought for so many years, but it had always been a competition for favor. Baili Yuanlong wasn't happy that the Tang Sect's guards had spoken up, but they'd managed to climb up to the imperial family. Tang Zijin, on the other hand, wasn't happy that Baili Yuanlong kept showing off his status as a noble. But they had never really fought with each other!
At this moment, Tang Zijin's feelings were complicated. He felt both fortunate and regretful.
Fortunately, he had not forgotten his roots and his identity in the struggle between the factions in the Imperial Court. Otherwise, wouldn't his Tang Clan have suffered the same fate as the Baili Clan? What he regretted was that he had clearly known that Baili Yuanlong was colluding with the Jiangnan military, yet he hadn't tried to persuade him. Instead, he had taken pleasure in his misfortune and hidden his own selfish motives.
Tang Zijin stood there for a long time. When he saw the emperor walk to the side, he strode forward. After adding a handful of soil to Baili Yuanlong's grave, he pulled up his sleeve and wiped the tombstone.
"This shouldn't be! This shouldn't be! Old Brother Baili, you and I … you and I have followed His Highness for so many years. How … how did we fall for the ambitions of those Jiangnan wolves? "He shook his head repeatedly and sighed with emotion.
Long Fei Ye and Han Yunxi stood to the side and watched silently.
Ning Jing's eyes were downcast, making it impossible to tell what she was feeling. Tang Li hugged little Tang Tang and looked at his father with a Cold Gaze. Even now, he was still holding a grudge.
Someone had drugged him and wanted him to let Ning Jing down. If it had been anyone else who had done this, he would've killed them long ago.
Little Tang Tang stared blankly at her grandfather, whom she hadn't seen in a long time. As she stared and stared, she suddenly burst into tears. "Grandma … I want grandma … I want grandma!"
Tang Zijin was very cold to little Tang Tang, but Madam Tang doted on her very much! Before Tang Li and Ning Jing had returned to the Tang Clan, little Tang Tang had always been taken care of by Madam Tang and Mu Ling'er.
Children tended to forget things and people, but Madam Tang was still family. When she saw her grandfather, little Tang Tang naturally thought of her grandmother. She hadn't seen her grandmother in a long, long time.
"Wahhh, I want grandma … grandma, I want grandma!" Little Tang Tang cried.
"Good Tang Tang, don't cry, don't cry!"
"Look, your little brother is going to laugh at you. Don't cry."
Tang Li hurriedly comforted her, but little Tang Tang cried even harder. "Where's grandma? I want grandma to carry me, grandma to carry me … "
Tang Zijin turned around and looked hesitant. In the end, he walked over. It was rare for him to be so gentle. "Tang Tang, don't cry. Grandpa will carry you, okay?"
Little Tang Tang was stunned at first, then frightened. She wrapped her arms around her father's neck in fear that she would be carried away. She stared at her grandfather warily, not daring to say a word.
This scene not only made Ning Jing's heart ache, but also Han Yunxi's. She was about to speak when Tang Zijin said, "Tang Tang, don't cry, don't cry. Grandpa will take you to find grandma. Let's go home together as a family, okay?"
When he said this, Ning Jing and Tang Li were shocked. Long Fei Ye also looked over.
What did Tang Zijin mean?
Was he giving in?
Long Fei Ye had already sent Tang Zijin the memorials about the Tang Sect's failure to deliver the weapons on time. This was forcing Tang Zijin to either find Tang Li and Ning Jing or hand over the rights to the Tang Sect's weapons.
Tang Zijin didn't reply.
Little Tang Tang didn't trust her grandfather. She buried her head in her father's shoulder and didn't even look at her grandfather.
Children were the most willful, but they were also the most honest. Their thoughts were written all over their faces. Tang Zijin couldn't do anything about little Tang Tang. He looked at Ning Jing.
"Ning Jing, let's go home. Your mother-in-law went to the temple for the New Year … "Tang Zijin paused for a long time, then continued," Her health isn't good. I don't feel at ease leaving her alone outside. Let's … let's go pick her up together. "
Tang Zijin's words were tactful. On the surface, he meant that he was thinking about Madam Tang's health. He couldn't go to Ning Jing and Tang Li.
His real intention was to ask for peace.
Ning Jing was about to speak, but Tang Li suddenly flew into a rage. "Can't you go pick up my mother yourself? You know that my mother's health isn't good, yet you let her spend the New Year in the temple! Tang Zijin, what's your heart made of? "
Tang Zijin immediately glared at him. "You brat, what's with your attitude?"
"What attitude? Let me tell you, I don't have any attitude toward you! "Tang Li hugged little Tang Tang tightly with one hand and grabbed Ning Jing with the other. He was about to leave.
Ning Jing and Tang Li had been together for so long. How could she not know what Tang Li was thinking?
Tang Li had also been waiting for his father to come. However, Tang Li wasn't happy with Tang Zijin's tactful words.
He and his wife had suffered so much in the Tang Family. Tang Zijin was clearly in the wrong, but he didn't even admit it. Was he going to ask them to go back with just one sentence?
Tang Li wanted nothing more than for Tang Zijin to admit his wrongs and beg for help.
Ning Jing was definitely more angry than Tang Li, but she still grabbed Tang Li's hand and didn't let him go.
Tang Zijin was Tang Li's father after all!
It was enough that Tang Li didn't want her to be wronged. There was no need for him to continue being rude to Tang Zijin and be accused of treason.
Tang Li stopped and frowned at Ning Jing.
Ning Jing ignored him and carried little Tang Tang over. "Tang Tang, be a good girl. Don't cry. Let's go find grandma and go home, okay?"
When Ning Jing asked the same question, little Tang Tang immediately nodded her head.
Ning Jing's heart ached when she saw her daughter crying so hard. "Don't cry, don't cry. Little brother will laugh at us if you cry any more."
Little Rui 'er was in his mother's arms. He covered his ears with his hands and blinked his big eyes in confusion.
Ning Jing's words made Tang Zijin very happy and gratified.
Actually, he knew very well what kind of wife Ning Jing was. It would be difficult for Tang Li to find another Ning Jing. Unfortunately …
Tang Zijin was annoyed when he thought of that matter, but he didn't have the energy to think about it.
Protecting the Tang Family was more important than anything else! He was old and couldn't care less about other things.
Since Ning Jing had said so, Tang Li naturally listened to her. He lowered his head and didn't say anything.
Seeing this, Tang Zijin's heart finally calmed down.
He walked towards Long Fei Ye and respectfully presented the two memorials. "Your Majesty, this subordinate has sinned and troubled Your Majesty. This subordinate promises that the Tang Family will hand over the first batch of weapons before the end of the month. The progress in the imperial capital will also be completed according to plan. Please forgive this subordinate, Your Majesty. "
Long Fei Ye didn't reply to Tang Zijin. He took the two memorials that hadn't been approved and casually tossed them into a nearby abyss.
Since the memorials had been thrown away without approval, it meant that Long Fei Ye wouldn't pay attention to the two officials who had submitted the memorials.
"Many thanks for Your Majesty's mercy!" Tang Zijin hurriedly expressed his gratitude.
Tang Li and Ning Jing both went forward to light incense for Baili Yuanlong before leaving with Tang Zijin. Gu Beiyue lit the incense and was about to leave when Han Yunxi stopped him.
She whispered something to Rui 'er, who reached out for the Grand Tutor's embrace. Gu Beiyue didn't ask any questions and quietly took Rui 'er away.
Han Yunxi didn't leave after lighting the incense. Instead, she stood to the side and waited for Long Fei Ye.
Long Fei Ye knew that she was nearby and reached out for her to come over. Han Yunxi walked over and took his hand. She whispered, "My condolences."
"Mn."
Although it was only a single "mm," Long Feiye still made a sound.
Baili Mingxiang and Baili Qiyu were standing on the side with their heads bowed, so they could hear everything clearly. Baili Mingxiang couldn't help but think of the silent youth by the lotus pond many years ago. At this moment, the emperor's lonely figure was so similar to that of the past, yet also different.
What would have happened if he had met Han Yunxi earlier?
"Brother, we can't stay here for long because of our crimes," Baili Mingxiang reminded in a low voice.
Baili Qiyu thought that his younger sister would say something to the emperor and empress, but she didn't say a word.
Baili Qiyu walked forward and presented two teardrop-shaped crystals with both hands. The crystals were very beautiful. They were sparkling and translucent, suffused with a faint blue light and possessed a mysterious charm. If one stared at them for too long, they would think of the vast and boundless azure sea.
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