Huo Ci was hiding in the inner room of the tent, wearing a veil, nervously listening to the commotion outside.
Just the day before, A Yan had revealed her identity at the military camp gate.
Since that old gentleman was sincerely inquiring about her, it was only a matter of time before he found his way here.
Time was tight. He absolutely couldn’t let him reunite with A Yan before their souls were swapped back.
Otherwise, he really wouldn’t know how to face this father-in-law who had seemingly dropped from the heavens.
It wouldn’t matter so much if the man killed him in a fit of rage—what he really feared was that it would bring disaster upon the people of the Western Zhou dynasty, dragging them into the flames of war.
As he was lost in thought, he heard a clamor of people entering the outer room.
They’re here!
Huo Ci’s heart tightened. He quickly held his breath and listened carefully.
“What’s my precious granddaughter’s childhood name?
What’s her birth date?
What are her favorite foods?”
Huo Ci: ?
The voice sounded nothing like the decisive, battle-hardened ruler of the Great Xia kingdom he had imagined.
Shangguan Hanshan was so overly eager that little Ya pouted and clung to Jiang Xingyan for comfort: “Mama, Ya is scared.”
Overjoyed, as if he had found the most precious treasure in the world, Shangguan Hanshan exclaimed, “Ya! Your name is Ya!”
Jiang Xingyan couldn’t stand his fawning demeanor any longer. She took Xiao Ya into her arms and snapped at him coldly, “Enough!”
She casually tossed the Imperial Seal back to Shangguan Hanshan.
Thud!
The man didn’t even catch it!
He let it crash heavily to the ground, not even bothering to check if it had broken.
Jiang Xingyan was even more exasperated: “You’ve seen her. Now, please leave!”
“No!
I’m not leaving until I see my daughter Jiang!”
Jiang Xingyan was furious: “You—you are the ruler of the Great Xia Kingdom! How can you act so shamelessly?”
Shangguan Hanshan retorted without hesitation, “What kind of ruler? You really think I wanted to be one?
If I weren’t worried that my identity would bring danger to Wanwan,
forcing us to hide every day, unable to openly be a loving couple,
do you think I would have gone back to fight for that so-called throne?
In front of Wanwan, it’s nothing but worthless!”
Jiang Xingyan’s face flushed with embarrassment: “Such vulgar language!”
Shangguan Hanshan froze for a moment, then gazed at Jiang Xingyan blankly. “Wanwan used to scold me like that too.
What a pity… after I regained everything, the first thing I did was go to Jiangnan.
I wanted to marry Wanwan with all the honor she deserved.
But the people there told me… Wanwan had passed away…”
Shangguan Hanshan, who had been acting like a shameless ruffian just moments ago, suddenly clutched his chest with his right hand as he recalled this. Tears began streaming down his face.
“They said Wanwan was gone.
They even took me to her grave…
I slammed my head against the headstone, wanting to follow her, but the shadow guards saved me.
Do you have any idea how I’ve lived these past seventeen years?”
At first, Jiang Xingyan was stunned by his deep affection for her mother, but as he continued, her expression gradually turned cold.
“How? By doting on Princess Huaiwan, of course.
Since you’ve already found your adopted daughter, why not just treat her as a stand-in and raise her well?
Why bother coming to disturb others?”
With a crash, Shangguan Hanshan swept a white jade-covered bowl off the side table, stood up abruptly, and strode to stand opposite “Huo Ci,” reaching out to grab “his” collar.
But the moment he saw Xiao Ya’s tiny, clenched fist waving in the air, he quickly and sheepishly withdrew his hand.
“What do you know!
She is no one’s stand-in!”
Jiang Xingyan grew even more irritated: “If you use such crude language again, get out!”
Shangguan Hanshan instinctively felt the urge to obey “Huo Ci,” but the thought that “he” dared to divorce his daughter made him glare at “him” with fury.
“Listen carefully!
I was bedridden for seven days and nights. After I recovered, I held a seven-day Buddhist ceremony for Wanwan.
I wanted to stay in the Western Zhou and guard her grave.
But the shadow guards took advantage of my weakness, swarmed me, and tied me back to Great Xia.
Luoyue—I came across her among a group of refugees on my way back.
Yes, there was a hint of Wanwan in her brow and eyes.
But compared to Wanwan, she fell far, far short!
How could I ever treat her as a stand-in?
That would be an insult to Wanwan!
Not like Xiao Ya—the moment I saw her, I knew without a doubt she was Wanwan’s descendant.”
“Hmph!”
Shangguan Hanshan shot Xiao Ya a fawning look, only to be met with a snort and her turning her back to him. But far from being upset, his eyes overflowed with tenderness.
“I thought Wanwan had taken pity on me from heaven, sending a little girl who resembled her to tell me not to die.
Then it struck me—I’ve committed so many evils in this life, my hands stained with so much blood.
If I died like this, I’d surely be cast into the deepest levels of hell.
Then, wouldn’t I be even further from seeing Wanwan again?
So I desperately did good deeds, worked for the people’s welfare, built temples and monasteries—all to lessen my sins, so I could go to Wanwan clean.
Her resemblance to Wanwan was her fortune.
Once I’d accumulated enough merit, I planned to die.
I’d leave Great Xia to her.
That’s why I gave her a surname and a title.”
He timidly stole a glance at Xiao Ya and lowered his voice. “Xiao Ya, don’t blame your grandfather.
Back then, I had no idea Wanwan and I had a daughter.
Otherwise, I would never have let her be cast out among the common people, marrying a blind and heartless young brat!”
Huo Ci, listening quietly in the inner room: ?
Thanks. I feel thoroughly insulted.
Jiang Xingyan wasn’t entirely convinced. “Rumors say you dug a canal just so Princess Huaiwan could have fresh lychees—”
“Bulls—”
Seeing Jiang Xingyan’s warning glare, Shangguan Hanshan choked back the second word.
Shangguan Hanshan: ?
Huh? Doesn’t that mean I just swallowed a bull’s—?
Wait, why am I scared of “this brat”?!
Just as he was about to snap back at “Huo Ci,” he noticed Xiao Ya pursing her lips, watching him warily.
Defeated instantly, he explained in a very amiable tone, “That canal was going to be built anyway. The blueprints for the new fast boats were already drawn before I found her.
It was for the convenience of the people’s transportation. How could it be just for her?
Even the lychees—she ordered them brought to the capital herself. I never said a word!”
“Then why did you give her a personal shadow guard, letting her act with impunity?”
Shangguan Hanshan stomped his foot in frustration. “Judge! I’m innocent!
I swear, if I assigned those people to her, may I die a horrible death and never see Wanwan again in all my lives!”
He then squatted on the ground and cried. “Wanwan, since you left, no one believes me anymore…”
Jiang Xingyan fell silent.
What he said… seemed to have some truth to it.
“Even her allowances were given strictly according to a princess’s entitlement. Not a single extra tael of silver!”
“How much is the Great Xia princess’s allowance?”
“Ten million taels a year.”
Jiang Xingyan in the outer room and Huo Ci in the inner room both froze, dumbstruck.
So… her seventy-five shops, bustling all year round, barely made a few million taels in the best years?
So… he, who had been fighting on battlefields since birth, risking his life with his head strapped to his belt, only made fifty thousand taels a year?
Where was the logic in that?
Shangguan Hanshan didn’t understand why “Huo Ci’s” expression suddenly darkened. He ventured cautiously:
“If Jiang wishes to be the ruler of Great Xia, I’ll step aside immediately.
If she finds it too tiring, let Luoyue take on the burden.
Then, give her the highest allowance, let her travel, enjoy life, and live in comfort.
She can even keep a dozen or so male companions—”
“Absolutely not!”
Yun Chunfeng exclaimed urgently, while Huo Ci in the inner room nearly shouted in unison.
Shangguan Hanshan turned to glance strangely at Yun Chunfeng, his eyes full of hostility.
This one was also not long for this world!
Jiang Xingyan gave a cold laugh. “Is that giving Jiang silver, or taking her life?
Shouldn’t a ruler investigate thoroughly before making such bold claims?
Jiang has no desire to be stabbed in the back by someone in the shadows.”