Chapter 259.1: Hello Chang'an
Chapter 259.1: The Grand Tutor’s Daily Madness
Yao Ran’s visit this time was precisely for this purpose.
Though she had been residing in the Buddhist hall, the deeds of that young lady from the Chang family were simply too sensational. Even the servants near the hall had been secretly gossiping about it.
She had heard bits and pieces—though incomplete, they were enough to astonish her and stir her curiosity. She could not help but want to confirm the truth with her own ears.
Seeing her cousin react this way, Yao Xia immediately broke into a grin, stepping forward to take Yao Ran’s hand. “Then Cousin, come quickly and sit!”
Thereupon, she too became a storyteller—her words even more vivid than Wei Shuyi’s. By the end, to prove her tale’s authenticity, she even took out Chang Suining’s letter and read it aloud with heartfelt emotion.
It was fortunate that Chang Suining herself was unaware of this scene. Had she known, this casually written letter would never have seen the light of day.
Yao Ran listened, utterly spellbound—she even forgot to blink.
Her hands, folded over her lap, unconsciously clenched her skirt. Her heart thudded wildly within her chest, as though she had glimpsed an entirely new world she had never imagined before. Waves of brilliance and wonder surged toward her, enveloping her completely.
After leaving the dining hall, Yao Yi, though filled with a thousand tangled emotions, personally escorted his daughter back to the Buddhist hall.
Though he was quite devoted to his “outer chamber” outside, he had never neglected his duties as a father.
In the past, Pei Shi had disdained both the Yao family and him, refusing to let her daughter grow close to him. Thus, there had always been a lingering regret between father and daughter.
Later, when he saw his daughter forced to bear Pei Shi’s guilt and live a life of hardship and repentance, his heart could not help but ache. He also desired to make amends. No matter how busy official matters kept him, as long as he could return home before nightfall, he would certainly visit the Buddhist hall to speak with his daughter—discussing Buddhist scriptures and doctrines with her.
This he did both to accompany and to guide her.
After all, as a father, who could bear to watch his own daughter spend the rest of her life beside a lone lamp and a cold Buddha?
Now, as they walked along the path back to the Buddhist hall, Yao Yi smiled and asked,
“…When you read the sutra the other day, you said there was a part you could not understand. Have you since grasped its true meaning these past two days?”
The sutras they read and discussed reflected Yao Ran’s own state of mind.
At this moment, she replied softly, “I had not understood it when I came, but after hearing of Lady Chang’s deeds just now, I seem to have realized it.”
“Oh?” Yao Yi glanced toward his daughter, just about to speak, when she asked from ahead,
“Father, may I ask you a question?”
“Go ahead, Ran’er.”
The girl’s words were straightforward:
“Why is your regard for Lady Chang so… special?”
She knew that among the common folk, there were still rumors that Lady Chang was her father’s illegitimate daughter. The reason such gossip continued to burn like an unquenchable flame was in large part due to her father’s refusal to avoid suspicion.
In her eyes, this refusal alone proved how special Lady Chang was to him.
The father and daughter conversed as they walked, while the servants followed at a respectful distance. Yao Yi’s smile did not fade as he replied,
“Do you still remember what I told you before—that I was seeking the daughter of an old friend?”
“I remember,” said Yao Ran. “But didn’t Father say later that you were mistaken—that the one you sought was not Lady Chang?”
“That was because it was inconvenient to speak of openly…” Yao Yi did not hide the truth from her, yet he did not elaborate either. He said frankly, “I do not wish to conceal it from you, but one’s parentage and origins should be spoken of only by that person herself. Until she chooses to speak, even if I am her late father’s old friend, I remain an outsider—and it is not my place to speak on her behalf.”
Hearing this, Yao Ran pondered a moment, then slowly nodded.
“I understand, Father.”
She did not ask further, only said softly,
“Lady Chang truly is unlike any ordinary woman.”
“Everyone is unique,” said Yao Yi. “Our Ran’er is, too.”
Yao Ran smiled faintly. “Father need not comfort me every time…”
Her gaze lifted toward the night sky, to the stars and the moon.
“Lady Chang’s uniqueness is one in ten thousand—rare in this world. It is the kind of difference that appears but once in a century.”
Indeed.
Yao Yi also looked up at the star-filled sky. Each star was different—but undeniably, it was always the bright moon that drew the eyes of the world.
Yet she was far from being as serene as the moon… Wherever she went, she stirred the world into commotion.
When she was in the capital, she fought people—and he had to worry endlessly for her. After she left the capital, she even went to the battlefield and fought with her blade—no longer striking people, but killing them!
If this continued, Yao Yi felt he might truly die of fright someday.
And yet—compared with a life of unchanging calm, the thrill of her daring always revealed new and wondrous possibilities.
As his thoughts churned, they had already reached the Buddhist hall. He stopped at the entrance.
Gazing at the cold, austere hall, Yao Yi sighed lightly and said,
“Ran’er, since you’ve now understood that passage of scripture, you should also know—there are countless karmic paths in this world. The choice before you is not the only one.”
Yao Ran seemed deep in thought. After a moment of stillness, as if resolving something in her heart, she raised her head and asked,
“Father, I wish to write a letter. Could you help me find a way to have it delivered to Lady Chang?”
Yao Yi was a little surprised, but after thinking for a while, he did not refuse.
The next morning at court, Yao Yi once again heard from Wei Shuyi the account of Chang Suining’s deeds.
Even though it was his second time hearing it, his shock remained undiminished—for his niece’s account, though accurate, had been so lively that it lessened the gravity of the events.
Wei Shuyi, however, had recounted everything plainly, using the most objective words to describe the most unbelievable truth.
Inside the grand hall, all officials wore varying expressions—some astonished, some puzzled, some skeptical.
It was not that the entire court had nothing better to do than marvel over a young lady’s exploits, but that what she had done was far too extraordinary.
Moreover, it was not merely a private affair, but a matter of national consequence.
This young lady had not only made a name for herself overnight—she had, with a single sword stroke, cut open the vast chasm separating women’s chambers from the imperial court and battlefield.
Li Yi’s rebellion had been quelled.
And now came the matter of meritorious recognition and rewards.
Her achievements stood solid before all—impossible to overlook, if indeed they were true.
Some officials murmured among themselves before one stepped forward:
“I do not know if what the Assistant Minister Wei reports is entirely factual.
It is said that Grand General Chang spoils his daughter excessively. Might there be some exaggeration in all this?”
The death of General He Wei had already incited anger, and everyone knew his prowess. But now—even what He Wei had failed to do, this little girl supposedly accomplished with ease?
Could it be that Chang Kuo had deliberately attributed his and his men’s achievements to his daughter?
“Lady Chang personally captured and killed Li Yi—this I witnessed with my own eyes,” Wei Shuyi replied with a faint smile. “And I was not the only one to see it. There is no exaggeration whatsoever.”
Among the murmurs, another official asked,
“Then… what of the killing of General Ge Zong under Xu Zhengye’s command? Surely, Deputy Minister Wei did not see that with his own eyes?”
If he had not seen it himself, how could he speak so definitively when recounting it?
This time, the one who spoke was not Wei Shuyi, but the Holy Emperor seated high upon the imperial dais, who had until now remained silent.
“This matter,” the female sovereign said calmly,
“was already verified in the memorials submitted by the Prefect of Hezhou and the officials there. It was clearly stated and confirmed.
Ge Zong indeed perished by the blade of the Chang family’s young lady.
“And not only in that matter—her many contributions in Hezhou were all witnessed by the people and officials alike.”
Finally, she added,
“I have long since dispatched agents in secret to investigate in Hezhou.
The report is true.
Hezhou City stands because of her—this young lady of the Chang family has rendered an irrefutable service.”
The Holy Emperor’s voice was even and steady—carrying only the weight of authority and fairness.
“This…” The official who had questioned her was left speechless.
If one argued that she had captured Li Yi only because he was already wounded while fleeing, then how would one explain Ge Zong’s death?
That general was infamous for his brutality and ferocity—such a formidable foe, such a perilous battlefield—how could there have been any “lucky victory” in that?
Yet if all of this were true, then how could a sheltered maiden possess such heaven-defying skill?
The murmurs within the hall would not cease.
The Holy Emperor watched them quietly, her expression unreadable.
She could understand their astonishment—and their disbelief.
Such a war talent, almost born from nowhere, and a woman at that—
Indeed, in the court and on the battlefield, a woman’s every deed was subject to greater scrutiny and resistance.
She knew this well.
It was also the reason she had once allowed Ah Shang to become Ah Xiao.
Disguised as a man, Ah Shang had ascended to the title of Crown Prince—though obstacles abounded, at least no one could use gender as a weapon to discredit her accomplishments.
And now, she had used her original identity as a woman to accomplish the same feats once more.
With her woman’s identity—
So, was Ah Shang now trying to prove to her that she had been wrong all along?
Beneath her crown, the Holy Emperor—whose hair had grown visibly whiter within mere months—closed her eyes briefly.
When she spoke again, her voice cut through the murmurs in the hall.
The Holy Emperor had no wish to linger on this topic.
The empire was in turmoil, uprisings flaring across the land—her mind could not afford to rest upon a single matter.
Thus, she brought up the issue of rewards and recognition, asking for the ministers’ opinions.
Amidst differing voices, many officials spoke fairly:
“Grand General Chang and his daughter risked their lives to defend Hezhou and swiftly quelled Li Yi’s rebellion—these are indeed great merits, and should be rewarded generously.”
As for the form of reward—for a general of Chang Kuo’s rank, already holding the First Grade title of Grand General of the Cavalry, the rewards could only be wealth and estates.
Any higher—would mean ennoblement.
Yet some tactfully suggested that with the Xu Zhengye affair still unresolved, to bestow a title at this moment might be premature.
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