Da Tang Si Zi: My Six Super Rich Little Nuggets!

Chapter 324 The Secret Box of the Tang Palace: Where the Divine Deer's Heart Returns, When Two

As the palace lanterns of Daming Palace lit up one after another, the window paper of Liangzhou Medical Hall was being torn apart by the north wind.

Cong Xiaoye was wrapped in a cotton robe soaked in medicine, while Niwan Zi listened to the hooting of an owl outside the eaves in the cold night... The imperial edict from Xuanzheng Hall came unexpectedly, and General Zi'an rushed in, his black armor still covered with ice shards that had rushed from Chang'an:

"Lord Ni, Princess Jinyang has issued an imperial edict ordering you to return to the capital immediately to report for duty. This is a secret Jade Dew Ointment made by the Imperial Household Department. Her Highness said... that Xiao Ye's injuries are serious and he must not be subjected to any further agitation. He should first protect his consciousness in the Yeting Palace..."

Zi'an lowered his voice and stuffed a secret edict into Niwan's palm. As the candlelight flickered, he said, "Do you know that the glass relic inside the golden Buddha at Famen Temple is merely bait to lure bandits? Once your memorial on suppressing the bandits is presented, the Emperor will have portraits of you and Xiao Ye painted in the upgraded Lingyan Pavilion of today..."

Before he could finish speaking, crows took flight in fright. In a daze, Cong Xiaoye caught a glimpse of the vermilion annotation on the imperial edict, and it was as if he saw the adorable profile of the princess bent over her desk with a pen. He smiled knowingly—Since he had been her companion in her studies since childhood, Her Highness had always loved to use a wolf-hair brush dipped in vermilion to annotate documents.

Zi'an then realized why Cong Xiaoye was so badly injured...

That day, in the Gobi Desert of Longyou, swirling yellow sands blotted out the sky, and the black armor of Cong Xiaoye, a Jinwu Guard, was stained dark red with blood rust. He locked the bandit leader Song Daqin tightly to a broken pillar in the Dunhuang Grottoes, the gilded handcuffs gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

As Song Daqin's Tang-style scalpel cleaved through the fierce west wind, leaving more than a dozen wounds, Cong Xiaoye tasted a metallic sweetness in his throat. The blood-stained quiver was torn open by the sharp blade, and the sound of the key falling to the ground attracted a flock of circling vultures.

On the verge of death, Cong Xiaoye used her last strength to wrap the chain around the other person's ankle, letting herself be dragged along the Gobi Desert full of rubble, the winding trail of blood behind her like the earth weeping blood.

Niwan Zibian ripped open his cloak and shouted to his colleagues, "Quick!! Ride my Akhal-Teke! Go to Linde Hall and report to Princess Jinyang!"

The setting sun on the northwestern horizon seemed to drip blood. He wrapped the still-breathing Cong Xiaoye in his arms with immense heartache, yet he could feel the warmth emanating from beneath her armor...

In a daze, Cong Xiaoye saw again the century-old locust tree in front of the Hanyuan Hall of Daming Palace. That year, he and Xiao Sizi played a game of "breaking willow branches to bid farewell" here. The jade pendant that the princess had tied to his waist was now pressing against his wound, but he could no longer feel the pain...

Several months later, in late spring in Chang'an, willow catkins were flying everywhere on Zhuque Street.

Niwan Zi, dressed in a black outfit, stepped into the Luoyang Medical Clinic. The aroma of medicine mixed with the sweet scent of locust blossoms wafted towards him. Song Xiaobai was leaning against the carved window frame, gazing at the swaying green bamboo outside.

"Young lady, you look very energetic." Niwan Zi took out a gilded sandalwood box from her sleeve. Inside the box lay two mutton-fat jade plaques, with the words "Imperial Edict" engraved on the front and a lifelike dragon pattern on the back. "These are the golden edicts of pardon that the princess requested His Majesty to bestow upon you, to protect you and your younger brother."

After bowing to the warm jade tablet, Song Xiaobai recalled that night months ago—she had sneaked into the black pine forest where the wolf king was entrenched, stuffed a secret letter containing irrefutable evidence of treason into a bamboo tube, but was shot in the shoulder by a hidden guard's sleeve arrow. As blood stained her white clothes, her mind was filled with thoughts of her younger brother, who was being fostered at the Kailash Taoist Temple.

"If it weren't for your rescue, young master, I fear I wouldn't have survived until today." She gazed at the newly changed belt around Niwanzi's waist, its nine rings all inlaid with Western sapphires—a style rumored to be worn only by royalty. "But why, Your Highness..."

“That secret letter from the young lady hit the nail on the head of the rebels.” Niwan Zi stood with his hands behind his back, the sunlight from the window gilding his face. “As the sages often said, ‘Merit and demerit must be clearly distinguished.’ Now that we have protected the country and brought peace, what do a few pardons matter?”

Outside the clinic, the long cry of returning geese could be heard. Niwan Zi took out a roll of Shu brocade, on which the three seal characters “Chang’an Xing” were embroidered in gold thread: “Tomorrow at Chenshi (7-9 AM), I will set off back to Chang’an. If you encounter any difficulties, you can take this brocade to the Zi’an Inn on Zhuque Street to find me.”

Song Xiaobai carefully put the brocade scroll into her dressing case, curtsied, and said, "Esteemed guests, I am deeply grateful for your kindness. If you ever need my help in the future, I will go through fire and water for you."

As dusk deepened, the purple-clad cavalry rode away, their silhouettes shimmering in the golden sunset. Song Xiaobai, clutching the golden edict of pardon, gazed towards Zhongnan Mountain with a faint smile. The warmth she had protected amidst the bloodshed and carnage now warmed her heart.

However, a few months ago, wisps of white smoke rose from the steamers of the Imperial Kitchen at Taiji Palace, the aroma of toasted flatbread mingling with the sweetness of Persian honey cakes. When palace servants rushed to Linde Hall with the food boxes, the devastating news of His Highness Sizi's passing finally arrived! Princess Jingyang, after all, could not live past her prime…

The sesame cakes on the table, still warm, were hastily removed and replaced with the honey cakes that the princess loved most. Danfeng Gate stood silently in the twilight, the setting sun painting the city walls blood-red. In a fleeting moment, it seemed to merge with the blood splattered on the black armor when Cong Xiaoye fell on the Longyou Road that year…

Inside the West Warm Pavilion of the Wude Hall, the imperial physician was removing the crimson pulse pillow from Cong Xiaoye's wrist. The camphor incense in the gilded incense burner suddenly exploded with a crackling sound, and the mother-of-pearl inlaid deer box in Sizi's hand clattered to the ground. When the words "too late to save him" were uttered by the Yellow Gate Attendant, paulownia leaves outside the hall fell in droves, startling the crows perched on the roof ornaments.

Three days ago, the Divine Deer Heart, stolen decades ago, finally returned to the Wuji family after the Imperial Guards massacred the spies in the East Market. Inside the black brocade box, the deer heart gleamed with a warm, jade-like light, exuding an ancient medicinal fragrance. Si Zi clutched the blood-stained secret letter, bearing the vermilion inscription in his elder brother Zhi Nu's own handwriting: "This heart can prolong the destiny of the Si." In reality, it was the blood of an emperor, but because Elder Wuji had instructed that "the blood of the direct line must be used as the medicinal guide."

However, at this moment, Si Zi knelt barefoot on the bluestone slab, letting the golden needle pierce her palm, pouring the jade liquid mixed with the blood of the divine deer into Cong Xiao Ye's heart: "Brother always said he would protect me... Now I can only protect Xiao Ye..." The jade hairpin slipped, and her black hair fell like a waterfall, but no one would tie it up for her anymore.

A report came from outside the hall from a secret guard, saying that the mastermind behind the theft of the Divine Deer Heart was actually a branch of the Wu clan who coveted the Limitless Secret Technique... Another load of nonsense...

The cooks of the Imperial Kitchen had been busy all night in the kitchen of Hanguang Palace, preparing Cong Xiaoye's favorite roasted camel hump on a celadon plate, the twin lotus blossoms outlined in icing still not completely dry. At three-quarters past dawn, a funeral bell tolled from the Vermilion Bird Gate, and the Imperial Attendant staggered in carrying a white hemp edict of mourning—Princess Jinyang had already departed with the Imperial Physician.

As twilight enveloped the eaves of the Taiji Hall, the candlelight in the Hanguang Hall was replaced by a pure white glow. Freshly steamed crystal durian dragon and phoenix cakes rose again, releasing steam and glistening tears in everyone's eyes… for everyone remembered that this was the little princess's favorite Jiangnan dessert…

The copper arrow in the gilded water clock ticked away, and in a daze, there was the tinkling of jade pendants. Last year on the Lantern Festival, Cong Xiaoye, with a blushing face, held a bottle of osmanthus wine and rode on the Danfeng Gate city wall, mischievously saying to Sizi, "Sizi, when you come of age, I will take you to see the divine deer in the secret realm of the plateau."

At this moment, the silver-white deer of Mount Kailash wandered through the forest, but little did they know that the heart of the divine deer, capable of prolonging life, ultimately failed to protect any of them...