Chapter 63: I’ll Wait For You To Come Back

Li Rong hadn’t expected Li Chuan to come in person. She frowned and lowered her voice, “What are you doing here? This is no place for you!”  

“Let’s not discuss this here,” Pei Wenxuan stepped forward, shielding the siblings as he glanced around. “There are too many eyes. Let’s go inside first.”  

Knowing Pei Wenxuan was right, Li Rong turned and walked ahead, whispering, “Let’s go.”  

The group entered the prison directly. A servant led the way, not daring to look back, clearly aware of who he was escorting. He guided them respectfully to the cell and then whispered to Li Rong, “Your Highness, you don’t have much time. The shift change is in half an hour. Please make it quick.”  

After saying this, the servant retreated.  

Li Rong looked at the man inside the cell. After a moment of panic, the old man quickly recognized the visitors and exclaimed, “Your Highness! Is it Princess Rong and His Highness the Crown Prince?”  

“Minister Qin,” Li Rong stepped forward and bowed slightly. She looked at the man gripping the bars of the cell. The old man’s prison clothes were stained with blood, and his garments were torn and tattered from the torture. Though her heart ached, she maintained a calm expression and said, “I’ve been assigned to oversee the Qin family’s case. Are you aware of this?”  

Qin Lang was momentarily stunned, then asked softly, “Did Zhenzhen come to you?”  

Li Rong pressed her lips together and nodded. The old man sighed, “It’s good that she got out. Otherwise, how could I face Shan’er in the afterlife and Lin’er on the battlefield?”

Qin Shan was the father of Qin Lin and Qin Zhenzhen. Both he and his wife had passed away early, leaving Qin Lang, as their grandfather, to take on the responsibility of raising his two grandchildren. As Qin Lang spoke, he suddenly remembered, “Your Highness, is Zhenzhen doing well now?”  

Hearing this, Li Rong instinctively glanced at Xun Chuan, who was standing nearby.  

Xun Chuan, wearing a mask, silently watched the old man before her, her eyes filled with pity.  

But she remained silent, so Li Rong didn’t say anything either. Instead, she lowered her voice and said, “Time is short, Minister Qin. Please recount the entire case from beginning to end.”  

“Where should I start, Your Highness?” the old man asked with a bitter smile.  

Li Rong replied calmly, “Start from Huangping County.”  

Xun Chuan fetched a chair and placed it behind Li Rong, then took another chair and set it behind Li Chuan.  

Pei Wenxuan stood behind Li Rong, while Xun Chuan stood behind Li Chuan.  

Li Rong lightly tapped her fan and continued slowly, “This case began when Wen Ping from the Censorate received a letter accusing you of accepting bribes from the Yang family, alleging that you ordered Qin Feng to abandon the city during the battle at Huangping County. The evidence included the confession of your deputy, Luo Juan, as well as gold found in your residence and letters from Yang Lie. I originally intended to question Luo Juan to get the full story, but now he’s dead.”  

Qin Lang froze in place, his voice trembling with disbelief, “Luo Juan is dead?”  

“Yes,” Li Rong replied calmly. “All the generals who participated in the battle at Huangping County are now dead.”  

Qin Lang’s face turned deathly pale, and his body swayed unsteadily. Pei Wenxuan quickly stepped forward, reaching through the bars to support Qin Lang, and said urgently, “Uncle, don’t despair. Her Highness is still investigating the case, and there’s still a chance to turn things around. You just need to tell us exactly what happened back then, truthfully and in detail.”  

“Truthfully and in detail…” Qin Lang’s lips trembled. “But… what’s the use? They’ll never let us overturn the case regarding Huangping County.”

“Just tell us,” Li Rong said directly. “Both the Crown Prince and I are sitting here. Don’t waste time.”  

“Uncle,” Pei Wenxuan said, staring intently at Qin Lang, “you still have your family to think of. If there’s even the slightest chance to survive, you must seize it.”  

“You’re right,” Qin Lang took a deep breath and spoke slowly, “During the battle at Huangping County, we had three thousand soldiers defending the city, and the enemy also had three thousand troops attacking. My son, Qin Feng, was the commanding general. Yang Lie originally planned for us to hold the city for five days, but we were overwhelmed and had to evacuate the civilians first before abandoning the city.”  

“You were defending, they were attacking. With equal numbers, you shouldn’t have lost,” Li Rong pointed out directly. “Why did you lose?”  

Qin Lang fell silent for a moment, then smiled bitterly, “It was I who told Feng’er to retreat.”  

“Why?” Li Rong pressed.  

Qin Lang pressed his lips together. After a long pause, he raised his eyes and looked at Li Rong calmly, “Because there was no one left.”  

Li Rong was puzzled. She didn’t quite understand and could only repeat, “No one left?”  

“Yes,” Qin Lang took a deep breath. “Three months before the battle, our rations were already insufficient. The food supplies meant for three thousand soldiers arrived mostly mixed with sand. The soldiers had nothing to eat and could only spend each day separating the rice from the sand to cook porridge. Much of the rice was also stale. By the time the battle began, though we were said to have three thousand soldiers, many were already too sick to fight. The actual number of combat-ready soldiers was less than two thousand. On top of that, the military pay was delayed. If we had held out any longer, we would have run out of food entirely.”  

“How could the rations be so scarce?” Li Chuan frowned. “Didn’t you report this to Yang Lie?”  

“I did,” Qin Lang smiled bitterly. “But what good did it do? The court allocated only so much military provisions, and after being divided layer by layer, the first-class aristocratic families got priority. Only then did the rest trickle down to ordinary families like ours. Among the sixteen cities in the northwest, who would dare to demand more provisions?”  

“But Huangping County was on the front lines!”

Li Chuan was visibly angry. “Did Yang Lie not even have that much sense?!”  

Qin Lang remained silent. Li Rong cut straight to the point, “Did you report this?”  

“I later wrote a detailed report, which should have been attached to the military campaign logs.”  

“I’ve checked the military campaign logs at the Ministry of War,” Li Rong frowned. “There’s no such record.”  

Qin Lang chuckled softly, his voice hoarse, “Your Highness, how could there be?”  

“That’s the Ministry of War controlled by the aristocratic families,” Qin Lang’s voice trembled with emotion.  

No one spoke for a moment. After a pause, Li Rong said, “Give me a list of all the people involved in this matter back then.”  

As she spoke, Pei Wenxuan handed paper and pen to Qin Lang. With trembling hands, Qin Lang carefully wrote down the names.  

The man had grown old. He had fought on the battlefield his entire life, never bowing his head, yet here in the Great Xia prison, his back was bent and his spirit broken.  

Li Chuan unconsciously clenched his fists. At that moment, he felt something drop onto his shoulder. Surprised, he turned around and saw the person standing behind him, silently staring at Qin Lang in the cell, tears streaming down his face without a sound.  

Li Chuan was momentarily stunned. The young man seemed vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t recall where he had seen him before. He watched quietly for a while until Qin Lang spoke again, “Your Highness, it’s done.”  

Li Rong took the list of names from Qin Lang’s hands. She glanced at the names written on it and remained silent.  

Qin Lang sat cross-legged in the cell and sighed, “Your Highness, you’re still young. You should go back now.”  

Li Rong held the list tightly. She looked at the old man in the cell, who, even after enduring torture, still carried an air of dignity.  

She gazed at him for a long time, then raised her hand and bowed deeply to the man inside.  

Footsteps echoed from outside. Pei Wenxuan said, “Someone’s coming.”

Li Rong nodded, and Li Chuan pulled his hat back down to conceal his face.  

The servant holding the lantern whispered, “Your Highnesses, it’s time to leave.”  

Li Rong acknowledged him and instructed, “Make sure he’s well guarded. No mistakes can be made.”  

The servant nodded in agreement. Just as Li Rong was about to leave, Qin Lang called out to her, “Your Highness.”  

Li Rong turned back and saw the old man hesitating before asking, “How is Zhenzhen… really?”  

Li Rong didn’t answer immediately. She looked at the old man’s worried yet hopeful eyes. After a long pause, she said, “She’s doing well. You don’t need to worry.”  

Qin Lang seemed relieved and bowed deeply to Li Rong. Li Rong turned away expressionlessly and led the group out.  

Once outside, Li Rong immediately turned to Xun Chuan and said, “Gather some men. No matter what, ensure the Qin family is transferred out of the Ministry of Justice tonight. If there are any issues, have them come to me.”  

Xun Chuan acknowledged the order respectfully, then turned and mounted a horse, galloping into the night.  

After Xun Chuan left, Li Chuan finally looked away, furrowing his brow. “That person just now… I feel like I’ve seen him before. Is he one of your new subordinates, sister?”  

Li Rong paused for a moment, then nodded. “You should return to the palace now. Don’t let anyone find out you were involved.”  

“Sister…” Li Chuan hesitated, but Li Rong immediately understood what he was about to say. She looked up at him calmly and said, “This is my responsibility. I know what I’m doing.”  

Li Chuan fell silent. After a moment, he bowed and said, “I’ll take my leave now.”  

Before leaving, he paused and finally added, “Sister, the Qin family must survive.”  

“I know,” Li Rong replied coldly. “Go.”  

Li Chuan nodded and finally departed.  

After Li Chuan left, Pei Wenxuan stood behind Li Rong and asked softly, “Your Highness, shall we return to the manor?”

Li Rong didn’t respond immediately. She gazed quietly down the long street for a moment before speaking softly, “I thought I had grown old.”  

Pei Wenxuan stood silently behind her. Li Rong smiled faintly, “But now I realize that no matter how old you get, there’s always something in your heart that you can’t quite let go of.”  

“What does Your Highness plan to do?”

Li Rong didn’t answer right away. She clasped her hands in front of her and slowly closed her eyes.

After a long pause, she spoke, “Pei Wenxuan.”  

“At your command, Your Highness.”  

Pei Wenxuan bowed deeply. Li Rong lowered her voice and said, “Take the token of the Supervision Office and my personal seal. Follow the route the military provisions took to Huangping Town back then. Along the way, copy all the records of the provisions that passed through each county office at that time.”  

“I’ll be waiting for you.”  

Li Rong looked up, her gaze steady on him.  

Pei Wenxuan met her eyes, and in that moment, he suddenly felt as though she was entrusting her life and death to him.  

“They won’t remain unaware that I interrogated Qin Lang tonight. Now that Qin Lang has written out the list, his fate is likely sealed. I’ve tasked Xun Chuan with protecting the Qin family. Tomorrow in court, I will request to be placed under house arrest.”  

“Twenty days from now is the scheduled execution date for the Qin family. You must return with the records before then.”  

“Can you do it?”  

Pei Wenxuan didn’t answer immediately. He looked at Li Rong and smiled softly, “To serve Your Highness, I would face ten thousand deaths without hesitation.”  

“The road may not be peaceful.”  

Li Rong chuckled lightly, “Be careful.”  

Pei Wenxuan understood what Li Rong meant by “not peaceful.” If he left Huajing and attempted to investigate the grain storage records along the way, it wouldn’t just be a matter of danger—it would be a suicide mission.  

But Pei Wenxuan remained composed. With a sweep of his wide sleeves, he clasped his hands in front of him and bowed, “This humble servant will set out immediately.”  

Li Rong acknowledged him with a nod. As Pei Wenxuan turned to leave, Li Rong watched his retreating figure and suddenly called out, “Pei Wenxuan.”

Pei Wenxuan, with his hands tucked into his sleeves, turned slightly to look back. The young man, dressed in blue robes and a white undergarment, had eyes that usually resembled still, ancient wells but now reflected the flickering lights and stars.  

Li Rong gazed at him for a long time before finally smiling.  

“I’ll wait for you to return.”

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