136 Back to Palace
Gong!
The sound of the gong echoed throughout the grounds of the Imperial Palaceâs Dragon Hall, by late afternoon the Crown Princeâs entourage had already entered the palace, the banners and the giant flag of the great YueYang country fluttering very valiantly at the tip of the tallest pillar emitting a thunderous sound of the wind that fluttered steadily.
The chariot finally arrived at the end of the field where the Emperor and Queen and the second Prince were already waiting for the entourage that had left the palace since tens of days ago, the wide smile on the Emperorâs face did not stop making his face red from being too excited, the news about the success of the Crown Prince in overcoming the problem growing up in the border town of LiuYang made his name continue to reverberate majestically throughout the country, he was indeed the proud Crown Prince.
âHahahaha Xiangâer, youâve finally arrived, hahahahaâ
LuoXiang got off the carriage and helped BaiYing down the steps of the golden carriage which was quite high off the ground.
âGreetings Father, greetings Queen Mother, Second Brother,â said Luo Xiang as he bowed his head in respect.
The Emperor chuckled as he patted the Crown Prince on the shoulder.
âHahahaha smart boy, youâre back tooâ occasionally the Emperor glanced at BaiYing who stood bowing his head behind the Crown Prince since his son was in such a hurry to ask permission to go to the border because Concubine Hua who was suddenly bitten by the most poisonous snake made him also worried about it, it seemed to want to see the state of his beloved daughter-in-law, LuoXiang knew what his fatherâs eyes meant.
âHehehe Yenâer, how are you, sweet kid? Looks like youâre getting betterâ said the Emperor approaching BaiYing and about to help him up.
.....
âGreetings Your Majesty, Iâm fine, thank you for taking care of Yenâer.â
LuoXiang rolled his eyes upwards, what an eye-catcher, he was really beyond help. But before the Emperor could hold BaiYingâs hand, the Queen rushed to him and pulled BaiYingâs hand towards her.
âYenâer, you, itâs been a long time since you leave, oh look at my face, itâs dull since I havenât wear your homemade mask, why have you been gone for so long, look at your face, itâs fresh, youâre looking fine, right, sweet child.â
The Crown Prince held back I couldnât help but laugh at the reaction on the Emperorâs face which had already raised his hand, unable to even move as BaiYing was led by the Queen and Second Prince into the Dragon Hall.
âIâm fine Your Majesty, thank you for taking care of me.â
Luo Yan looked at BaiYingâs face very closely, even raising his hand to brush BaiYingâs front hair which partially covered his eyes.
âJust look, his eyes are glowing again, heâs healthy Motherâ
LuoXiang restrained himself, how could that kid make everyone want to touch him here and there, and he didnât feel uncomfortable at all, but the Crown Prince who was uncomfortable, his chest was about to explode annoyed, but he couldnât get closer and could only watch BaiYing being carried away because the Emperorâs hand was holding him.
âSo tell me what happened in LiuYang? How can you easily defeat that huge serpent and make the city go back to the way it was? Did you kill it? Is the legend true? Then, what power does my Son have now?â There were so many questions from the emperor, but LuoXiangâs ears didnât seem to hear them, he just didnât want to be too far away from BaiYing whose laughter could be heard quite clearly.
âHehehe Your Highness the Second Prince, my eyes are always shining right?â
âHehehe this child is indeed very sweet, come on, Mother and I have prepared fresh drinks for you, you must be very tired right,â said the Second Prince taking BaiYingâs hand into the hall, The Queen followed closely.
âYanâer donât pull Yenâer, he must be so tired, let go of your handâ
The two seemed to be scrambling to hold BaiYing, the young man couldnât help but laugh at the mother and son who greeted him so warmly.
âMother, Yanâer didnât pull too hard, itâs already so gentle, how could Yanâer possibly hurt this very soft Yenâer, isnât it sweet Yenâer?â
On the side of the Emperor and the Crown Prince who also entered the Dragon hall later.
âEm, Father, how about if Xiangâer report to you by tomorrow? Xiangâer is very tired right now, really wants to have a rest.â
But the Emperorâs hand didnât let go.
âThis brat, it wonât take all night, come, quickly tell meâ
âBut, uh Fatherâ
.......
Dinner with the Emperor ended quickly, before long the two father and son were already sitting in the Emperorâs palace resting room enjoying their snacks.
âWhat? Level one command plaque? Xiangâer means, if healer Ou saw the Plaque during the attack on the Hua family home ten years ago?â repeated the Emperor, LuoXiang nodded.
âYeah, he confirmed it, only, the incident happened so fast that he had to save himself immediately, when the attack was over, he was busy treating the injured family so much that he forgot about the plaque until recentlyâ
The Emperor stroked his chin, frowning at his son for a moment.
âXiangâer, this is a serious matter, healer Ou canât say anything without any evidence, after all, itâs a very important matter, only I can issue a palace level one order plaque, other than that other people canât, by looking at the plaque on the day of the assault on the bodies of the attackers, that means indirectly that I ordered the attack, thatâs what Xiangâer meant to ask right?â
LuoXiang looked at his father with sharp eyes.
âThen, is it true that father who ordered it?â without further ado he asked directly, the Emperor straightened his seat, looked at his son while pulling the edge of his lips.
âRotten child, do you think this father of yours can do it? Whatâs more, it caused your mother to be a victim, and if it was true that your father did it, would your father who is so clever be so stupid enough to leave a trail like that?â
âWell then?â
LuoXiangâs eyes were still glaring at his father, the Emperor retracted his lips, eager to smack his stubborn sonâs head looking at him with his sharp eyes as if he was his enemy.
âYou, if father says no so itâs means no, why are you doubting your own father? Rotten childâ
LuoXiang pulled his lips.
âWell, who knows, if it wasnât then why did the plaque evidence never appear in the investigation report? There should be, right? Are you sure youâre not hiding it?â
The emperor restrained himself, the impudent child in front of him was always his opponent in terms of stubbornness, there was no match, this was what made the Emperor make his flagship son the Crown Prince who was indeed so shrewd in carrying out his duties.
âHow could Father hide it? Maybe itâs the healer Ou who is mistaken because the investigator who was in charge of finding out who the attackers at Huaâs house was at that time didnât find any plaque, not even any clear evidence, only the indistinct tattoos on the assailantsâ bodiesâ
Hearing this, LuoXiang turned his head.
âTattoos? Father means the tattoo near the wrist?â
The emperor frowned trying to remember, he nodded slowly.â
âUm, it seems that on the wrist, Iâm not so sure either, I have to see the detailed report, I donât think itâs important because every bandit criminal anywhere must have a special tattoo, heh, that case has long passed, actually Father suspected that some people, however, the people that father suspects one by one turn out to have alibis, and also, some are also old and retired, very unlikely, hemhâ
LuoXiang narrowed his eyes at his father.
âJust how many people do you suspect?â
The emperor raised his hand, counting on his fingers.
âEm, nine, ten peopleâ
The Crown Prince restrained himself, his father was indeed so clever, otherwise, he would not have held the position of the Emperor who was admired by five countries, but at that time for some reason he saw that his father seemed to be so stupid, he must be hiding something.
âFather, Xiangâer said it now, if there is something that Father is hiding from Xiangâer, donât let Xiangâer find out by myself, later you will be punished for lying, thatâs what Father told me before for covering the truth.â
Hearing this the Emperor stuttered a bit, he glanced at his son but didnât see his eyes.
âWhat is Father hiding? There is not any... Ahh Xiangâer, how could your father have hidden something important from you, if it could uncover who was behind your motherâs attack and murder, your father would have told you long ago, itâs as if you donât even know your father.â
LuoXiang lifted his teacup slowly, taking a sip before taking a sip. answered his father who also raised his teacup.
âWell, who knows.â
From his demeanor, and rolling eyes, it seemed that the Emperor was indeed hiding something, but he diverted it quickly.
âHehehe oh well, tell me about that giant Serpent, is it true that he turned into a Dragon? Then, why didnât Xiangâer kill him and get the dragon pearl? That way you can become the unrivaled ruler of the world, right? Why did you let him go?â
âWho said Xiangâer let him go Father?â asked the Crown Prince, the Emperor stuttered, he knew the news from the head of the guard who joined the entourage to protect the Crown Prince and his concubines.
âEh well, you know, your father has a lot of ears, after all, thatâs right, isnât it? Xiangâer just let the dragon go?â
LuoXiang put his teacup back on the saucer slowly.
âKilling that young dragon isnât as easy as turning the palm of your hand father, and also, obtaining a dragon pearl, for a mortal human body it would be very difficult to accept, obtaining the pearl would just be a waste as every being that possessed it should be someone who underwent cultivation at least for a hundred years, and humans, would not be able to take it.â
The emperor stroked his chin, he nodded slowly.
âHem thatâs right, thatâs also what the previous Medicine Valley master BaoYi said, he said a Dragon Pearl would not be able to function optimally in a mortal human body, thatâs why he split the Pearl into four pieces with the celestial sword which when splitting it must also be broken into several pieces, what a magical weapon that was wasted.â
âDid he really find the Dragon Pearl in the cave when the serpents was fighting?â LuoXiang asked.
The emperor thought again,
âEm, according to my fatherâs story, that is your grandfather, at that time I was only two years old heheâ
#Emperor LuoPai was sixty-two years old, so when the extraordinary battle took place in the famous LiuYang valley the Emperor was only two years old.
âSo itâs true that he was so great at getting that pearlâ
âEm according to your grandfatherâs, the great teacher BaoYi was helped by his adopted brother, if he was still alive his younger brother would now be around eighty years old, but, it is unlikely that he is still alive because there are almost no wherever he goes, teacher BaoYiâs adopted brother was an extraordinary fighter, with high ambitions with excellent martial arts even though he is only twenty years old, according to your grandfather, the young warrior known as Cold Wind from the south has defeated almost all the top fighters in all over the country, he got all the praise to the status he could easily have, again, according to your grandfather, he was also once offered to be a young official, but a few years had disappeared, after that, your father did not know how the story, your grandfather did not tell it clearly, but according to your grandfather, that great young man occupied an important position outside of SanPo city, when this, he must be old, he must have retired a long time ago, hm, I forgot, why didnât I ask what his name was?â
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