Ashes to Crown

Chapter 204: Chapter 31: Confession

When Xie Yanfang stepped into the hall, someone was already seated inside—

’So I’m not the only one,’ the thought flashed through his mind, and he couldn’t help but feel amused.

”Lord Grand Tutor,” he said with a salute.

Deng Yi turned and gave a slight nod. ”The Empress will be here shortly.”

Xie Yanfang nodded and, without further prompting, took a seat across from him.

Deng Yi noted the smile on his face and asked, ”What has you so pleased, Mr. Xie?”

Xie Yanfang’s smile widened. ”I was overjoyed to see His Majesty and Her Majesty sitting side by side today. Whenever I think of it, I can’t help but smile from the heart.”

Deng Yi’s lips twitched. He looked away, ignoring Xie Yanfang’s heartfelt smile.

When Chu Zhao entered, Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang were discussing a game of chess. Since drinking and dancing had been forgone at the earlier banquet, the guests had sought other forms of entertainment. Grandmaster Zhou, who hadn’t made a public appearance in ages, had set up a chessboard and invited Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang to a match.

Chu Zhao had been unaware of this; by the time she arrived with the other ladies, the board had already been cleared.

”Who won?” she asked curiously.

Xie Yanfang chuckled. ”Neither of us. Grandmaster Zhou swept the board and won a thoroughly satisfying victory.”

Chu Zhao sat down. ”Grandmaster Zhou’s granddaughter, Zhou Jiang, is already formidable and fiercely competitive. It clearly runs in the family. She gave me a few pointers, and my game improved by leaps and bounds. After I ask Grandmaster Zhou for more guidance, I might even be able to hold my own against Zhou Jiang.”

Xie Yanfang smiled. ”Grandmaster Zhou mentioned that as well. He said you have a natural talent for the game, Your Majesty, and that if you were to focus on it, you would surely achieve great things.”

As a noble son, he understood every aristocratic family and was, in turn, well-known by them. Chu Zhao, as a young woman, understood these families through their own daughters. That literary salon she held for the young ladies had also made her well-known to the great families.

”Oh, I’m certain I will,” Chu Zhao said with a mischievous smile. She glanced between Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang, then asked with deliberate provocation, ”So, between the Lord Grand Tutor and the Third Young Master, who is the better chess player?”

Deng Yi, who had been silent until now, was the first to answer. ”My skills are merely average. I cannot compare to the Third Young Master.”

Xie Yanfang smiled. ”Everyone has their own strengths. The Lord Grand Tutor possesses skills that I cannot hope to match.”

Deng Yi turned to him, a faint, unreadable smile on his lips. ”Such as?”

Xie Yanfang replied, ”The speed of your decisions in court, my lord. You are far quicker than I; I often find myself unable to keep up.”

Deng Yi said coolly, ”You’re too modest, Mr. Xie. No matter how quickly I make a decision, there is little progress if you do not speak up.”

As the country returned to normal, Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang stood as equals in this new court, their rivalry an unspoken, surging undercurrent.

Chu Zhao could sense this tension just from observing the court proceedings, to say nothing of moments like this, when the two men sparred face-to-face with just a few pointed words.

”You are both working for the good of the state; disagreements are inevitable. But please don’t let it create a rift between you,” she said with a smile.

Deng Yi corrected her. ”These are matters of state, not personal grudges. How could there be any talk of a rift?”

Xie Yanfang simply smiled. ”You needn’t worry, Your Majesty.”

Chu Zhao smiled as well. ”I don’t doubt either of your hearts for the country. In fact, it’s because I see how selflessly you both serve the state that I worry you won’t agree to my request.”

Chu Zhao had summoned them for a reason, of course. But ever since she had begun to preside over the court, her intentions had become increasingly difficult to fathom.

’What unconventional request does she have this time? Surely she doesn’t want to start approving official memorials, does she?’

Deng Yi remained silent.

Xie Yanfang said with a gentle smile, ”Please, speak freely. We’ve already overcome a thousand trials and dangers. What is there left to worry about?”

Chu Zhao said, ”I wish to leave the Capital City to visit my father in the Border County.”

Both Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang were taken aback. She had ascended the throne with the Emperor, presided over court with him, and just held a grand banquet to stand before the aristocratic families and dignitaries. Not only that, but she had also pushed her cousin to the forefront—Empress Chu’s influence was growing at a formidable rate.

And now, she wanted to leave the Imperial City, the Capital City...

”Is this truly appropriate?” Deng Yi said, his disapproving gaze fixed on Chu Zhao.

Xie Yanfang said nothing, a thoughtful expression on his face.

”My father is in poor health,” Chu Zhao said, looking at Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang earnestly. ”You two know better than anyone how much I want to return to the Border County.”

Their acquaintance had begun precisely because she had run away from home to reach the Border County. Deng Yi’s furrowed brow relaxed slightly. He knew her desire to return was genuine.

”I understand how you feel,” he said, his voice softening. ”The court sent word to the Border County at the first opportunity. Zhong Changrong went back personally, taking an Imperial Physician with him. Mr. Xie also found a renowned doctor to send along. The replies from the Border County and from your father himself have only just arrived.”

He looked at Chu Zhao.

The reports from both the Imperial Physician and the Xie family’s renowned doctor, as well as Chu Ling’s own handwritten letter, all indicated that while his health was indeed poor, his life was not in immediate danger. Furthermore, Chu Ling had stated that he would come to the capital soon.

Chu Zhao herself had received a handwritten reply from her father.

’So why had the news, instead of placating her, only strengthened her resolve to go to the Border County?’

”Is there news that we are not aware of?” Deng Yi asked.

He certainly didn’t treat her like a child. He suspected she had her own network and sources of information, independent of the court and beyond his control.

Chu Zhao shook her head. ”No. The news I received from my father is the same as what you know, my lord.”

She just—

”If you want to go, then go.”

Xie Yanfang, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke.

Both Deng Yi and Chu Zhao turned to look at him.

Xie Yanfang looked at Chu Zhao, his gaze gentle. ”He is your father. If you want to see him, then go. You don’t need a reason.”

The young woman’s eyes lit up.

”She may not need a reason! But,” Deng Yi shot to his feet, his voice cold, ”the people and the courtiers do!”

”Chu Zhao, you are the Empress now, not some unruly girl of the Chu Family who can just steal money from home and climb over the wall to go see her father!”

”Your home now is the Great Xia Dynasty.”

”Do you have any idea what time this is? The turmoil has only just been quelled. The late Emperor is newly dead, a child Emperor presides over the court, the remnants of the Third Prince’s faction have yet to be eliminated, and the King of Zhongshan remains silent, having neither offered condolences for the late Emperor nor paid homage to the new one.”

”And at a time like this, you want to go see your father?”

”Yes, your father is gravely ill. But have you ever considered why he hasn’t returned to the capital all these years, despite his illness? Because he understands that to accept a sovereign’s pay is to be loyal to that sovereign! He understands the responsibility of a General of the Guard!”

”If your father were on the front lines and received news of your grandmother’s death, would he abandon his post and return home?”

”One cannot always fulfill the duties of both loyalty and filial piety. Your father understands this. I refuse to believe that you don’t.”

The Grand Tutor’s cold, deliberate words echoed through the hall.

Chu Zhao stared at the man standing before her, momentarily dazed. ’In her past life, did he scold Xiao Xun just like this?’

’Would he raise a hand and strike her?’

The only Palace Maid in attendance, Xiao Man, who had been standing aside nonchalantly, suddenly tensed, her eyes darting over with a wary look.

But Deng Yi did not strike her, nor did he say another word. With a flick of his sleeve, he turned and strode away.

The hall fell silent. Xiao Man pouted and turned her head away.

”The Lord Grand Tutor certainly has quite a temper,” Xie Yanfang remarked with a smile.

Chu Zhao gave a wry smile. ”I’m the one who angered him. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen him lose his temper like that.”

She sighed.

”It was indeed wrong of me to bring this up at a time like this.”

Xie Yanfang shook his head. ”No, you’ve done nothing wrong. No matter the time or your station in life, it is never wrong to want to see your father.”

Chu Zhao’s head drooped, her shoulders slumping. ”It’s not wrong, but it’s still not appropriate, is it?”

”It’s not inappropriate,” Xie Yanfang said, his voice firm. ”Go at once.”

Chu Zhao looked up at him.

”Miss Ah Zhao, don’t leave yourself with any regrets,” Xie Yanfang said softly. ”Fulfilling a heartfelt wish is a worthy endeavor.”

Chu Zhao gave him a solemn salute, then looked at the elegant gentleman seated before her.

”Knowing you in this life, Third Young Master, is a mercy bestowed upon me by the heavens,” she said with heartfelt sincerity.

...

...

She was happy to know him, grateful to him, and felt safe with him.

Though it sounded a bit strange. If she hadn’t met him in this life, or her last, what would the heavens have done to her?

Xie Yanfang didn’t press her on her unspoken words, only saying, ”Ah Zhao, you’re wrong.”

He looked at the young woman before him.

”You don’t need to thank others. This isn’t a mercy from the heavens. This is you, making yourself worthy.”

Worthy of him—Xie Yanfang—to know, to befriend, to protect, and... to love.

And he, in turn, could make her happier, more grateful, more secure, and... love him.