Chapter 58

Bai Yuwen Hong
Bai Shen Hong
The Palace

Yuwen Hong watched as his father delicately polished the qin that was dear to his heart. His smile the constant on his face.

“Fuhuang,” Yuwen Hong begged, “When will you teach me the qin? I have been waiting for years.”

His father gave him the weary eye that Yuwen Hong was accustomed to as the look of contemplation.

“Life has many pleasures a person can indulge in, but duty must come first,” his father pointed out.

“I have been working hard. The people are living well, and the empire has been expanding.”

“Which is true, but when a leader becomes content, room for growth is stifled.”

“However, I seize every opportunity to grow at all times. Even now, I am still building.”

His father’s forehead furrowed in disapproval. “Remember, you do not fall because you are weak, you only fall because you think you are strong.”

The gut-wrenching fear that Yuwen Hong was all too familiar with started to cripple him. His worst nightmare was for his father to not be pleased with him. It was his dream to always receive Fuhuang’s acknowledgement of his hard work.

“Fuhuang is right. Your son will keep working hard for the glory of the empire.”

“Working hard is not enough. Giving yourself to the empire is the best. Before achieving greatness, you must be willing to accept the cost of losing everything.”

Yuwen Hong went to his knees and bowed. “His Majesty’s wisdom is boundless. Your son understands what you are saying.”

His father nodded, now satisfied with his answer, and a guttural belly laugh roared from him in delight.

“Very well,” he howled.

Yuwen Hong opened his eyes to darkness as the foggy dream emptied out. It was for a few minutes that he lay in content peace until reality hit him.

His father was no more and long gone. He was no longer the crown prince but the emperor in charge of an empire. Each decision he took would affect the well-being and welfare of his people. Everything sat on his shoulders, and he had to harness the strength and focus to succeed.

Yu'er shifted and rose to sit. An empty clay jar of wine rolled over. The ache of his lower back admonished him for sleeping on the floor. He drank himself to blankness on that late morning, right after the challenging Morning Court Meeting which left him confused.

Furia had given their answer to his conditions. They submitted their allegiance to Nevoria, that they would support Nevoria in the battle against Huticah.

The other two conditions in which he asked for Nevorians to have allowance to cross the borders of Furia as they saw fit and allowance for marriage between the two, Furia said they were willing to consider it and come to an agreement after negotiations in the near future. It was the most they could do.

The ministers were delighted with the offers and requested for his decree to release Li Lian, so as to get Yang Liu back. Yuwen Hong did not want to fold easily, not when Furia did not explicitly agree to his other two conditions.

Negotiating was a method they would use to buy time till Nevoria gave up and forgot about the matter.

Moreover, the honest truth, he was not prepared to let go of Li Lian.
He was still coming to terms with the fact that she deceived and lied throughout the time they were together; that one of his dreams to have her as his phoenix sitting on the throne next to her was snatched out of his grasp. For a long time, he waited for Li Lian’s return, and patiently, he protected her phoenix seat.

For what? All of it was for nothing.

Yuwen Hong sighed as he crossed his legs and reached for another bottle of wine. He raised it for a sip, only to find it empty.

The bottle of wine was as his situation. He was looking for answers only to find empty bottles. There were empty bottles in his courtroom, empty bottles in his bed, empty bottles in his dreams.

Did he believe in dreams? Could the dead use dreams to speak to those alive? If so, was his father tossing and turning in displeasure due to what he was looking down at―his son choosing love over the interests of the empire he died for?

They say, “A person is as strong as his weakest link.” To be strong, Yuwen Hong needed to dispose of what hindered his strength. Sadly, the first on the list would be Li Lian.

Yuwen Hong took a while to stand on his two feet. He felt fuzzy and a little off-balance due to the alcohol he binged during the day.

“Eunuch Nam,” he called.

“Here, Your Majesty!” His servant ran into his large sleeping room.

“What time is it?”

“The hour of the pig just ended.” (9 pm to 11 pm)

He was asleep for more than 10 hours then.

“Did you do what I asked for?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. We released Wei Li Lian and placed her in the Phoenix Palace.”

As Li Lian was a criminal, her titles were automatically stripped, and she could only be addressed by name, henceforth.

Yuwen Hong could still hear his father's words of correction in the dream, but against better judgement, he said, “I want to freshen up and prepare for departure to the Phoenix Palace.”

A good leader would place his people and the empire first. He heard that many times, but behind the leadership role he assumed in his daily life, he was also human. He was just a man smitten and in love, needing company from someone in order to go through the daily of life.

No one could choose who to love romantically, the heart did that for people. For this reason, he couldn't simply turn around and move on to the life he used to live without Li Lian.

“Greetings, Your Majesty!” Li Lian’s entourage greeted him at the entrance of the Phoenix Palace.

Most of them could barely courtesy as in the past few days they were held in the dungeons. They went through gruelling interrogations concerning their mistress. One ended up submitting to death, unable to withstand the pain.

“No need to hold on to formalities. Go and rest,” he tenderly instructed them. “Tomorrow I will send the royal physicians to tend to your injuries.”

“His Majesty is benevolent!” They thanked.

Yuwen Hong entered the palace and went straight to Li Lian’s sleeping chambers. He was welcomed by darkness, but he had slept in her bed a lot that he knew his way around the sleeping chambers like the back of his hand. He went around the bed to slip in from the other side because he was well aware Li Lian liked to sleep at the side towards the door.

Lifting the blankets, he slid beside her and was welcomed by her intoxicating lavender scent as he evaded her space. She stirred as he circled her body with his arms.

“What are you doing here?” she whispered.

“Welcoming you back,” he whispered back into her ear and kissed her temple.

“Hmm,” she hummed sleepily.

He pecked her on the lips, her nose, her cheeks and recoiled down to her neck. His hands started to toy with the ties of her sleeping garments, while at the same time fondling her breasts.
She chuckled, knowing where it was all headed already.

“Could you not wait?” she teased, now sounding more awake.

“Not at all,” he laughed.

Finally, the ties gave way, and he was pleased to feel the softness of her breast in his palm.

When he heard her gasp, urgency and excitement consumed his movements that he became more hurried. He began to kiss her nipples in appreciation, lulled by the feeling of her hands weaving his hair.

For the first time since their wedding, he felt peace. Indescribable calmness and stability he had struggled to hold on to. So, he indulged in it to the best of his abilities. Because deep down he knew, this was the last time he would ever feel that way.

Afterall, this was their goodbye.

S.V