Chapter 226: Hello Chang’an
Chapter 226: The Second Possibility
That servant, forcing himself to remain calm despite his terror, carried the sack into the guest courtyard prepared for Chang Suining.
The welcoming banquet set by the Grand Princess’s mansion was sumptuous beyond measure, and Chang Sui’an was both honored and overwhelmed.
His astonishment did not come merely from the lavishness of the meal, but because nearly every dish was one he particularly enjoyed.
Of course, Chang Suining’s preferences were also taken into account, though she was never picky — as long as there was meat, she was satisfied.
Chang Sui’an, too, was not a demanding person, but a young man raised in comfort would naturally have his own tastes. Those tastes, in this meal, were tended to with such care that it was almost touching.
Seeing the boy’s unease, the Grand Princess smiled and said, “When I occasionally exchanged letters with your father, he would sometimes mention your preferences. I’m not sure if what he said was true, but I thought I’d prepare the meal accordingly.”
Hearing this, Chang Sui’an felt surprisingly little shock. His sense of “what doesn’t Father say” had already reached its peak ever since he learned that his father had even told the Grand Princess about the birthmark on his backside.
Compared to that, mentioning his favorite dishes seemed entirely ordinary. Still, it showed how idle those “casual letters” must have been — so idle that even a completely unrelated junior like him would be mentioned over and over again...
If Father really had nothing to write about, perhaps he shouldn’t have written at all.
The young man grumbled inwardly but still offered his thanks sincerely. “Thank you for your thoughtfulness, Your Highness the Grand Princess.”
“Even if it took thought, it was joyful thought,” said the Grand Princess, her smile warm as she looked at the siblings. “You cannot imagine how happy I am to have you both here.”
These were no polite words — the Grand Princess of Xuan’an had never been one for empty formalities.
The laughter in her eyes was genuine and overflowing with affection for the younger generation. She forbade the Chang siblings from offering further thanks and urged them to begin eating.
After the meal, the Grand Princess summoned a physician in her service known for his skill in treating bone injuries to examine Chang Sui’an.
When the Jian Tong pushed his young master back to their quarters under the servants’ guidance, the sixty-year-old physician was already waiting there.
Li Tong lingered with Chang Suining to drink tea. Their temperaments matched well, and they quickly found a natural rapport — Li Tong felt as if she had met a kindred spirit too late.
After finishing tea, unwilling to part, Li Tong suggested accompanying Chang Suining to visit her brother. “Let’s go and hear what Physician Guan has to say.”
On the way, Li Tong asked about Chang Suining’s likes and dislikes — and casually about Ah Dian’s as well.
Ah Dian looked secretly toward Chang Suining, seeking permission to answer.Seeing her nod and smile, he immediately said, “I like candied hawthorns, pine nut candy, jujube cakes, sweet-scented osmanthus fish… bamboo dragonflies, and cats!”
Then, proudly puffing out his chest: “I also have a cat! I brought it with me! It’s orange! When I have time, I teach it to do the cat-fist punch!”
Li Tong laughed aloud. “So powerful? Then you must also teach our household’s cats! You be the master, and I’ll pay you in candied hawthorns, all right?”
Ah Dian nodded vigorously. “Of course! Then send your cat to me for training every day! No slacking! It must study diligently and persevere!”
His innocent seriousness made Li Tong laugh so hard she could barely breathe.
“Xiao Ah Li, what do you think?” Ah Dian turned to Chang Suining eagerly. “Should I open a martial arts school?”
“You should,” Chang Suining said with a firm nod. “Start with a Cat Martial Hall. Perhaps someday you’ll even form a Cat Army.”
Ah Dian’s eyes shone with excitement and resolve.
Laughing and chatting, the group reached Chang Sui’an’s quarters, where they met Physician Guan.
“This young master’s injuries are severe, but timely treated and well cared for,” the old doctor said with a mild smile. “If he continues to recuperate under my supervision for half a year, he should recover completely.”
Li Tong let out a deep sigh of relief. “That is wonderful!”
Chang Suining bowed respectfully. “Thank you, Physician.”
Chang Sui’an had been using prescriptions given by Physician Sun; Physician Guan only made slight adjustments based on his current recovery.
“Where is the young master now?” Li Tong asked as she climbed the steps.
“I had my men prepare a medicinal bath for him,” the doctor replied. “It helps cleanse fatigue and invigorate the meridians — beneficial for his recovery.”
Inside the adjoining room, Chang Sui’an, soaking in the steaming medicinal bath, heard Li Tong’s voice and instinctively clutched his bare torso.“...Jian Tong, go check if the door is properly bolted!”
Jian Tong: “...Yes.”
Li Tong truly took two steps toward the bath chamber and sniffed the rich medicinal aroma leaking through the crack in the door.“This blood-invigorating formula smells so strong, I daresay merely inhaling it could make a woman miscarry.”
“?” Chang Suining instinctively glanced at her abdomen.
Li Tong smiled. “I’m not pregnant — I’m only remarking on how strong the scent is.”
Chang Suining nodded. That was… quite a unique way to make an observation.
Physician Guan was used to such remarks.
Indeed, in this remote Xuanzhou, far from the capital, such freedom of temperament had bred a girl both uninhibited and unrestrained.
Li Tong was not actually born with the surname Li. Her origins were unclear — some said she was the Grand Princess’s adopted daughter; others, that her birth father was once the princess’s favored attendant.
The Grand Princess never cared to explain. Before the deposed emperor had even been dethroned, she had already asked him to grant the girl the surname “Li” and kept her close ever since.
Having received enough love, Li Tong never felt sensitive about her vague parentage. As a child visiting the capital, when royal cousins mocked her and asked who her father was, she simply rolled her eyes and replied coolly, “Father? That kind of thing isn’t important.”
Bold and unbothered by others’ opinions, Li Tong was not, however, bold enough to barge into the bathhouse to watch Chang Sui’an bathe.
She continued chatting with Chang Suining, and upon learning the girl practiced martial arts, she proposed building a training yard for her in the mansion.
Generous as this “elder sister” was, Chang Suining quickly declined.
She had no intention of staying long. Her visit to Xuanzhou was to give thanks, gather intelligence on Jiangnan, and settle Chang Sui’an — after which she had her own plans to carry out.
This mansion was merely a temporary resting place. She could not allow its mistress to go to such lengths.
At that very moment, the mistress of the mansion was crying alone in her room.
The Grand Princess of Xuan’an had held back her tears until now; only in private did she let them fall.
Her tears carried guilt, remorse — and joy.
“...That foolish child is so kind-hearted. How could Heaven bear to let him suffer so?” she said tearfully.
“Then tell Heaven off,” laughed Attendant Chuan Zhu. “Come now, they’re home safe — you should be happy.”
“These are happy tears,” the Grand Princess said seriously. “How did I do today? Was anything amiss?”
“Not at all. If you ask me, Your Highness, you must rein it in — or others will see something unusual.”
“What of it? Sooner or later…” The Grand Princess wiped away her tears and instructed, “We must treat those two children as well as possible. Make their days ten — no, a hundred — times better than in the capital!”
“In short, make them never want to leave.”
The Grand Princess smiled — her goal was to make them forget to return home.
Chuan Zhu laughed and nodded. “Understood, Your Highness.”
After sipping half a cup of tea, the Grand Princess added, seemingly casually, “By the way, send someone to the army camp to find out what news there is of him... I’ve been feeling uneasy of late.”
Chuan Zhu understood well who “he” referred to and nodded.
The Grand Princess quickly added, “Don’t get me wrong — it’s not that I care about his life or death.”
Chuan Zhu nodded. “Of course.”
“It’s for the children,” the Grand Princess insisted.
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Just then, a servant arrived, bowing outside the beaded curtain to report what he had seen.
“...A living person in the sack?” The Grand Princess was unmoved. “When traveling, bringing a live person isn’t strange. A corpse would be something to talk about.”
Servant: “?”
“A girl on a journey — isn’t it normal to bring help for safety? Hardly worth the fuss,” she said, waving him away. “Just ensure they’re well tended and say no more.”
The servant obeyed, silently reproaching himself for being too nosy.
The Grand Princess’s reaction wasn’t careless — she already knew from Yao Jin’s letter that the Chang girl traveled with someone of unclear identity.
“This child trusts me enough to bring that person here. From what Yao Jin said, it was also her idea to come to Xuanzhou — and she saved Sui’an, too. Truly clever and capable.”
Turning to Chuan Zhu, she ordered, “Later, tell her there are several secure rooms in the estate suitable for keeping someone confined. Let her choose one. It’ll be safer that way.”
“And if she needs guards, assign her a few reliable men.”
Once all arrangements were settled, Chang Suining rested for an hour and awoke refreshed.
Then Chuan Zhu came to relay the Grand Princess’s message.
Hearing that she could borrow a secret room to imprison someone, Chang Suining felt deeply grateful. “Please thank Her Highness the Grand Princess for me.”
Her easy acceptance made Chuan Zhu smile — one daring to lend, the other daring to use. Truly, they seemed like family.
Little did she know — that was not far from the truth.
Chang Suining added, “As for the guards, there’s no need. My own people are enough.”
She had secretly brought over thirty elite men under Chang Ren’s command — all utterly loyal. Assigning a few to guard Fan Ou posed no problem.
As for Fan Ou, a trusted aide of Prince Rong, his mouth was tight. She hadn’t been able to extract useful information, but that didn’t matter. Having him in her custody was already valuable.
She would pry his mouth open eventually — for now, confinement would wear him down.
“Her Highness has sent men to inquire about General Chang’s situation. Once word arrives, you’ll be informed at once. You may rest easy here,” Chuan Zhu said finally.
Chang Suining nodded and thanked her again.
She was indeed waiting for news of Chang Kuo, though not through the Grand Princess’s network.
Following her own arrangements, the old soldiers escorting the military funds were due to reach the army camp within days.
They carried more than what was declared to the Ministry of Revenue. She had ordered them to deliver only the official sum — the rest to be hidden away, kept in reserve for the family. One must always leave a path open.
Those veterans would meet Chang Kuo under the guise of delivering supplies and bring back word.
By the time the message reached her, it would be four or five days — enough to confirm her suspicions. Once she was sure Sui’an was safe, she would proceed with her next steps.
Old Chang’s fortune, old Chang’s son — both had to be secured before she could act freely.
Yet before her father’s news arrived, word came instead from Cui Jing in Bingzhou.
He had discovered that Dai Cong, chief secretary of the Grand General’s Office of Bingzhou, had colluded with Xu Zhengye.
After Dai Cong was executed, the military governor of Hedong, Xiao Chuan, suddenly marched his troops to besiege Bingzhou.
Having long been Dai Cong’s friend, Xiao Chuan claimed that Cui Jing had framed and killed him unjustly, insisting Cui Jing himself was the true traitor.
He raised his army of eighty thousand to “avenge Dai Cong,” and many inside Bingzhou — swayed or bribed — echoed his cry for vengeance.
Surrounded and outnumbered, Cui Jing’s position was perilous.
When the news reached Xuanzhou, Chang Suining was unsurprised. On her way there, she had already suspected hidden danger in Cui Jing’s mission.
Now, it was confirmed.
Bingzhou, known as the Northern Capital of Da Sheng, was a strategic key.
Someone had deliberately lured the Holy Emperor into sending Cui Jing to “pacify” the unrest — but the real aim was to seize Bingzhou itself.
Xiao Chuan sought to capture the Northern Capital and kill Cui Jing, using victory and blood to raise his banner!
If Cui Jing fell, the Xuanzhe Army would lose its leader — and with Bingzhou taken, rebels could challenge the already unstable court.
“Xiao Ah Li, will Xiao Jing be all right?” Ah Dian, panic-stricken by the spreading rumors, grabbed Chang Suining’s arm. “Let’s go save him!”
Chang Suining’s face was pale; she pressed down on his hand. “It’s too late.”
Ah Dian’s eyes trembled with fear.
“I mean…” She closed her eyes briefly, a map unfolding in her mind. “Bingzhou lies a thousand li from the capital, and two thousand from Xuanzhou. For such detailed news to reach us, at least five or six days must have passed. Xiao Chuan commands eighty thousand troops, and with internal traitors, he could take the city within three days. By that logic, Bingzhou has likely already fallen.”
That was why she said it was too late.
Of course — there was another possibility, the one she prayed for: that Cui Jing had already prepared for this.
Chang Suining clasped Ah Dian’s hand in reassurance, her gaze cutting through the walls of the Grand Princess’s mansion — steady, far-reaching, toward the north.
So… had he?
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