Jun Huailang had not expected Jun Xiaowu to take him to a relay station outside the city.
The relay station stood outside Chang’an’s northern gate. It had been built many years ago, and the three-story building’s wooden structure had already been worn and weathered, its surface mottled with age.
The relay station had not been built by the government. Numerous peddlers, laborers, travelers, and merchants passing through would stop here to rest. Quite a few carts, horses, donkeys, and mules were parked outside the entrance, making the place look extremely lively.
When the two of them left the residence, they did not take the Duke’s carriage, as they did not want to attract attention. Thus, when their carriage stopped in front of the relay station, it immediately blended into the bustle outside.
“Why have you brought me here?” The moment Jun Huailang got out of the carriage, he was startled by the scene before him. He stopped at the entrance and asked in confusion.
All around them were ordinary commoners dressed in coarse cloth, laughing and calling out loudly. Some merchants were watering their horses and mules by the roadside, while porters were loading and unloading goods. People came and went everywhere, and the place was extremely noisy.
Although he was not a sheltered young master who stayed indoors all day and knew nothing of the mortal world, he had never been to a place with such a strong atmosphere of the common streets.
Jun Xiaowu, however, was completely at home here. Grinning, he pushed him inside.
Jun Xiaowu led him upstairs to the second floor with practiced familiarity and found a spot beside the window to sit down.
There was hardly any decoration inside the relay station. Everything consisted of the simplest wooden structures, and even the tables and chairs were made of rough wood whose material could not be identified. They had, however, been wiped clean.
The dim light of the setting sun streamed through the window, giving the place a quaint, rustic charm.
The two of them were both dressed in fine silk garments, spotless and immaculate. The moment they sat down, they immediately attracted quite a few gazes.
“What will the two gentlemen have?” The waiter quickly came over and poured them both some tea.
“Warm a pot of yellow wine and cut half a jin of beef.” Jun Xiaowu propped one leg up on the stool and spoke familiarly. “Then make several of your best dishes. Whatever’s left over can be your tip.”
As he spoke, he placed a piece of silver on the table.
The waiter immediately realized that a generous customer had arrived. His eyes lit up with delight. He repeatedly agreed, pocketed the silver, and withdrew.
Jun Huailang looked at Jun Xiaowu.
Over the years, this boy had certainly picked up quite a bit of a soldier’s rough-and-ready manner in the military camp. Now, sitting here with his leg propped up and shouting for wine and meat, did he look anything like a young master of a great aristocratic family?
He tapped the tabletop and said with a faint smile, “Put your leg down. What sort of behavior is that?”
Jun Xiaowu chuckled and obediently lowered his leg.
“You brought me out today just to drink here?” Jun Huailang asked.
Jun Xiaowu propped his elbow on the table and leaned closer with a grin. “Isn’t this supposed to be a farewell feast for you?”
Then, as though it were only natural, he said, “I’ve noticed that you’ve seemed rather unhappy lately. I figured you must be reluctant to leave home?”
Jun Huailang froze.
He had not thought his mood had been particularly bad lately. But after hearing Jun Xiaowu say that, he could not help thinking of Xue Yan again.
It was true that he still owed him a thank-you. That time in the palace, he had left without saying goodbye, and now he was going to leave again without a word. He always felt that this was wrong, and an inexplicable sense of discomfort weighed on his heart.
He lowered his eyes to the coarse tea on the table. After a moment, he said softly, “Not exactly. It’s just that I haven’t had the chance to say goodbye to an old acquaintance.”
Jun Xiaowu heard this and did not detect anything unusual at all. Instead, he casually crossed one leg over the other and said, “How could you not have the chance? Just invite him out for a drink.”
If it were any other old acquaintance, that would naturally be easy.
But this particular acquaintance was someone from the palace.
Jun Huailang shook his head with a faint smile. “It would be difficult.”
Jun Xiaowu seemed to understand, or perhaps not. He merely drew out an “Oh.”
As they spoke, the waiter brought the yellow wine and beef to the table. Jun Huailang simply changed the subject and asked, “How did you find this place?”
Jun Xiaowu immediately had his attention diverted. He chuckled and said, “When I went to Yumen Pass back then, I couldn’t bear to leave home either. Once I left the city, I regretted it. But then I remembered that Father wouldn’t let me practice martial arts. In a fit of anger, I randomly found a relay station by the roadside, drank a large bowl of yellow wine, smashed the bowl, and left.”
Jun Huailang burst out laughing.
“How old were you then? You were only twelve or thirteen, and you came here to drink?”
Jun Xiaowu did not care in the slightest. He picked up a piece of beef and tossed it into his mouth.
“So what? Back then, I thought I would go to Yumen Pass and stay there forever. Once I came of age, I’d follow Uncle into battle and never come back.”
Jun Huailang was so amused that he leaned against the table, laughing.
“But you still came back. I suppose you gave Father at least a little face,” he said with a laugh.
Jun Xiaowu pulled a long face when he heard that.
“After all, the sand at the border isn’t very tasty. Stay there long enough, and you’ll still start missing home.”
As he spoke, he picked up his wine bowl and clinked it against Jun Huailang’s.
Jun Huailang clinked his bowl against his and tipped his head back, drinking the yellow wine.
The yellow wine from outside the city was completely different from the wine he normally drank. He was accustomed to wine with a delicate, clear, and refreshing taste, but he had never drunk anything so hot and fiery that it burned the throat. After downing a bowl, Jun Huailang’s brows involuntarily furrowed.
Seeing him frown, Jun Xiaowu slapped the table and laughed.
“Strong, isn’t it? Back then, I only took one sip and my tears came out.”
The strong liquor burned its way down his throat, leaving Jun Huailang’s stomach hot and searing, almost bringing tears to his eyes. But immediately afterward, a rich fragrance and sweet aftertaste spread through his mouth, prompting Jun Huailang to praise it.
“It is good wine.”
Just then, Jun Xiaowu patted his arm and motioned for him to look outside.
“Brother, look over there,” he said.
Jun Huailang looked out the window and saw, beyond the simple, old-fashioned window frame, a vast expanse of white covered in snow.
Unlike the palace’s flying eaves and lofty buildings, the outside was a flat and boundless wilderness, stretching all the way to the horizon. Farther away stood continuous hills and mountain peaks, their loess-colored slopes capped with white snow, creating a lofty and desolate scene.
The sun was already sinking in the west. The golden sunset cast a layer of golden radiance over the wilderness and sky outside the window.
Jun Xiaowu smiled proudly.
“Brother, beautiful, isn’t it? When I left, I was sitting right here. After drinking that bowl of wine, I only had to look outside once to see this vast world. I immediately stopped feeling reluctant to leave. I only wanted to get out of Chang’an and see what the places farther away looked like.”
Jun Huailang stared straight out the window.
The white snow covering the wilderness met the blue sky. A narrow, ocher-colored trade road stretched northward into the distance. The sky had already darkened, and there were only a few traveling merchants on the road, while quite a number of people were approaching Chang’an from far away.
It was indeed a sight rarely seen within the city.
Yet Jun Huailang’s mind involuntarily thought of another person.
Xue Yan.
A year ago, he too had traveled along this very road, making the long journey alone from the far northern Yan Commandery back to Chang’an, hadn’t he?
The moment this thought arose, Jun Huailang found it somewhat absurd.
What was going on? Xue Yan, Xue Yan… Could it be that after spending so much time with him, he had begun thinking of him whenever he did anything?
But Jun Huailang also had to admit that Xue Yan had saved his life, while he had not yet had the chance to repay him in any way. A debt owed to another person was precisely the sort of thing that could make one unable to stop thinking about it.
Just then, Jun Xiaowu suddenly let out an “Eh.”
“Why are there soldiers coming too?” He looked downstairs in surprise.
Hearing this, Jun Huailang also looked down.
Sure enough, a unit of soldiers on swift horses, numbering perhaps a hundred or so, quickly surrounded the relay station. These soldiers were clearly well trained. As they approached, all that could be heard was the orderly sound of horse hooves and the clashing of weapons.
The peddlers and laborers gathered outside were driven into the relay station like a herd of mules, not a single one being allowed to remain outside.
Trailing leisurely behind them was a carriage, accompanied by several soldiers serving as guards.
The carriage was not in the slightest bit hurried. Its occupant seemed completely composed as it slowly made its way over and stopped in front of the relay station.
One of the soldiers lifted the curtain and spoke a few words to the person inside. The carriage was dark, and from upstairs it was impossible to see who was sitting within.
Then the soldier respectfully bowed and loudly ordered, “Search!”
The soldiers immediately moved into action. They guarded the doors and windows before entering the building to search it.
“…They seem to be people from the Ministry of Justice,” Jun Huailang said after watching for a while, his brows furrowing.
Jun Xiaowu was puzzled. “What are they searching for here? Could there be a fugitive?”
Jun Huailang naturally did not know. He merely shook his head.
Jun Xiaowu leaned against the window, watching the commotion out of boredom. Then he suddenly remembered something and said to Jun Huailang with a smile, “Brother, have you heard? That Fifth Highness from Aunt’s palace entered court at the beginning of this year. His Majesty assigned him to the Ministry of Justice.”
Jun Huailang froze.
“Entered court… and went to the Ministry of Justice?”
He had not known anything about this.
“Yes. I heard about it when I went out to have fun with some people a few days ago. I heard His Majesty suddenly took an especially high opinion of him. And because he handled the cases at the Court of Imperial Sacrifices so well, His Majesty actually found him a position in the Ministry of Justice directly…” Jun Xiaowu clicked his tongue. “Good heavens, he’s only sixteen after the New Year. And doesn’t he still have two imperial brothers above him? How did His Majesty suddenly become so fond of him…?”
The Second Prince had never been favored by the emperor. His Majesty had only said to let him study for another two years, and Jun Huailang knew this.
As for the Fourth Prince, he had always stood out among the princes. This year should have been the time for him to enter court, but because something had happened to his birth mother, his entry had been put on hold. That was only natural.
When a prince first entered court, he naturally would not immediately take charge of court affairs. Instead, he would follow the officials and learn through practical experience.
Even so, it was naturally obvious whom the emperor favored and whom he valued.
Could it be that Emperor Qingping no longer feared the so-called star of calamity descending upon the world at all?
Jun Huailang felt that the whole thing was somewhat surreal.
Could it be because his rebirth had disrupted so many events from his previous life, causing even the timing of Xue Yan’s entry into court to be brought forward by so much?
He clearly remembered that in his previous life, Xue Yan had first revealed his abilities when the Jiangnan rebellion broke out. With no generals available in the capital, he had been sent south to suppress the rebellion.
Yet now, there was such a huge difference…
While the two were talking, the soldiers had already searched their way upstairs. The two of them were both young masters dressed in fine clothes, so they were not questioned much and were allowed through.
Before long, several people were brought out from one of the guest rooms on the third floor.
The one in front was a young man dressed in plain clothes. Although his clothing was simple, his entire bearing clearly revealed his noble status. Two young women followed behind him, one of whom was somewhat older and was holding the hands of two young children.
It was an entire family.
“This… Why did the Ministry of Justice arrest a group of women and children?” Jun Xiaowu exclaimed in surprise, craning his neck to look.
Jun Huailang tapped the tabletop.
“Don’t invite trouble.”
Jun Xiaowu acknowledged him, though he remained curious.
They were seated far from the stairs, and once that group went downstairs, they could no longer see anything.
Jun Xiaowu stuck his head out toward the window again.
Jun Huailang had never possessed such an intense curiosity as his brother. He simply continued drinking his tea, waiting for the prisoners to be taken away.
But after the people had been taken downstairs, there was still complete silence below. There was no sound of the soldiers withdrawing.
Jun Huailang casually glanced out the window.
Then he saw the soldiers lift the carriage curtain and place a mounting step beside the carriage.
The person sitting inside slowly stepped down.
He was tall and slender, his figure straight and imposing. He wore no crown, and his long hair was tied with a golden band.
He wore a heavy black brocade cloak. As he stepped down from the carriage, the cloak billowed, giving him an imposing and noble air.
The moment he came to a stop in front of the carriage, a soldier stepped forward and bowed, respectfully inviting him inside.
Jun Huailang’s gaze froze.
The teacup in his hand trembled slightly, spilling some tea onto his hand.
The person who had stepped down from the carriage was none other than Xue Yan.