The Great Qi Imperial Palace.
Song Yu had slipped away with Song Shihuan, leaving Emperor Yuanyou with a letter and an equally resentful old man.
The letter contained only one sentence:
"Gone to the northern deserts. Will return swiftly. Do not worry."
Emperor Yuanyou was so angry he could barely speak coherently. Pointing at the pitiful letter lying on the desk, he sputtered, "That scoundrel! He left the capital without a word, and even took my granddaughter with him!"
Master Qingshan, for once, found himself on the same side as the Emperor.
"The Crown Prince's actions are indeed excessive."
"He clearly could have taken me along too..."
"I wonder if we could still catch up if we set out now..."
Each sentence was like rubbing salt in Emperor Yuanyou's wounds.
The Emperor grew even angrier. Just because he was the Emperor, he couldn't leave the palace at will!
"My own flesh and blood, my own flesh and blood..." Emperor Yuanyou repeated silently to himself, forcing himself to calm down. When he looked up again, a faint smile had appeared on his face, which inexplicably made Master Qingshan's heart tremble.
"Tell me," the Emperor said, "where would be a good place for me to build a princess manor for Ahuan?"
Master Qingshan's eyes shifted thoughtfully. If a manor were built for Ahuan, they could directly set aside a courtyard for him, and he wouldn't have to go to the Eastern Palace to find her every day.
Thinking this, the two old men immediately reached an agreement.
They began planning the location for Song Shihuan's princess manor.
This time, Emperor Yuanyou's wrath was more "ferocious" than ever, and even Shen Qingping felt its effects.
"Third Master, so many memorials..." Nian'an stared, dumbfounded. Sorting through this many memorials... was the Emperor trying to work his Third Master to death?
"Yes, so many memorials," Shen Qingping said through gritted teeth. "It's fine. We'll tackle them one by one. If I can't finish reading them, we'll just wait for His Highness to return and read them together."
He emphasized the words "His Highness" heavily.
So, he runs off to enjoy himself, leaving me here in the capital to do the hard labor, is that it?
Meanwhile, Song Yu, who was merrily on his journey, suddenly sneezed.
"Who's grumbling about me behind my back again?"
......
Due to Gu Mingliu's incomplete recovery and Tuan being too young, their travel speed could only be described as snail-like.
Back in the capital, the resentment from the two old men could have filled the entire Eastern Palace, while their party still had a three-day journey to reach the northern deserts.
It was at this moment they encountered a soldier urgently dispatched from the northern deserts, heading to the capital to deliver a message.
"What happened?"
Yu Fan's face was full of worry, fearing something had gone wrong in the northern deserts.
Upon seeing Song Shihuan, the soldier visibly relaxed, as if seeing a savior. "Prince Qi has been captured by the Northern Di!"
"Prince Qi led troops to patrol the border, his legs gave way, he fell into Northern Di territory, and was taken away by the Northern Di people..."
Everyone present was stunned, feeling an absurd sense that while this was outrageous, if it involved Prince Qi, it somehow made perfect sense.
"You continue to the capital to report this matter. This prince will go to the northern deserts to rescue him," Song Yu said slowly. Did this old fool think he could just shirk his duties?
He even has to clean up the mess for the useless son he himself produced.
Meanwhile, at the Northern Di military camp.
"Why is the patrol this time some green recruit?" The Northern Di generals roared with laughter. "Judging by his attire, he might be from a noble family. We've hit the jackpot this time."
"Release me, or our General Gu will not let this matter rest."
Speaking these words, Prince Qi felt utterly humiliated. To save his own skin, he not only had to conceal his identity but also refer to that fox, Gu Mingning, as 'General'!
"You fell into our Northern Di territory yourself; we didn't snatch you."
One of the Northern Di generals spoke up. "I wonder how much grain the Great Qi is willing to pay for your ransom."
The northern deserts lacked grain, but the Northern Di lacked it even more.
This gift of grain delivered right to their doorstep delighted the Northern Di immensely.
"Hey, man from Great Qi, bark like a dog for us."
Prince Qi turned his face away, putting on an air of unyielding defiance.
"Stubborn temper? Then cut off one of his fingers. If he still doesn't bark, keep cutting."
"Woof woof—"
A sound Prince Qi himself couldn't believe he made escaped his lips.
The laughter grew even louder. Prince Qi was humiliated and furious enough to die, but he didn't actually want to die.
Thus, by the time Song Yu and his party arrived in the northern deserts, Prince Qi had already mimicked every animal sound he knew in his lifetime.
The Northern Di people affectionately called Prince Qi... the Songbird.
......
Reuniting with long-separated family, Gu Mingning saluted and then picked up Tuan. Looking at the exhausted, sleeping child, Gu Mingning lovingly stroked Tuan's little face.
"She looks like her mother."
"Everyone says Tuan looks like eldest sister," Gu Mingzhu ran to Gu Mingning's side, rubbing her head against his armor. She had missed her eldest brother terribly.
Gu Mingning handed Tuan to Yu Fan, then turned to Gu Mingzhu. "Mingzhu has grown again. Have you been listening to Father and Mingliu?"
Gu Mingzhu nodded emphatically.
A familiar large hand landed on her head. Gu Mingzhu narrowed her eyes contentedly. She liked her eldest brother's hand, and her father's hand too.
Gu Mingning asked in detail about Gu Mingliu's health. Seeing that she was fine, he finally looked at Yu Fan, clenched his fist, and lightly punched Yu Fan's chest. "Well done!"
Yu Fan immediately broke into a wide grin.
No words sounded better than these.
"Come, let me take you to see your parents. I didn't know when you'd arrive and was afraid they'd wait anxiously, so I didn't tell them in advance."
Yu Fan smiled and shook his head. "Let's rescue Prince Qi first. I'll go see them after we save him. There's no rush."
After all, Prince Qi was a royal prince. If something happened to him in the northern deserts, it would be bad for the region.
Gu Mingning clearly understood Yu Fan's concern and nodded.
Song Yu, however, seemed to have a sudden realization. "This prince wondered what I'd forgotten. So it was that blockhead Prince Qi."
The border line.
"Go tell your general that the Crown Prince of Great Qi has arrived in the northern deserts. We heard you captured one of our northern desert civilians and demand an explanation!"
The murderous aura emanating from Yu Fan made the Northern Di soldiers a few meters away somewhat timid. "We didn't capture anyone."
"A few days ago. Right here."
Song Shihuan also stood to the side. The Northern Di soldiers didn't know her identity and couldn't help but glance a few extra times at this unfamiliar young girl.
"Are you talking about the Songbird?"
Gu Mingning and Song Shihuan both exclaimed in unison. What Songbird?
Another, more lively Northern Di soldier spoke up excitedly. "We didn't capture the Songbird; he fell into Northern Di himself."
"To exchange for him, it'll cost a thousand dan of grain."
"So expensive?" The more experienced Gu Mingning frowned. Could it be that Prince Qi's identity had been discovered?
"The Songbird can imitate all kinds of animal sounds—chickens, ducks, dogs, geese, you name it. Our general is especially amused by him every day," the Northern Di soldier glanced at the two of them.
To be honest, they all thought keeping the Songbird was more interesting.
"If you think it's too expensive, you don't have to make the exchange."
