Chapter 101: The Famine in the Northern Border

Qi Si'an stood in front of the Shanhai Building and happened to be able to see from a distance the paved path leading out of the palace. Watching Pan Yueqing board the carriage and leave, he let out a barely audible sigh. Shiguang somehow appeared behind him and then supported Qi Si'an's arm, saying, "Master, is it really necessary to be so obsessed?"

"I have to say, although she is quite good-looking, but..." Shiguang didn't seem to notice that Qi Si'an's eyes had already turned gloomy. As expected, before he could finish his words, Qi Si'an pointed his sword finger at Shiguang's acupoint to silence him, saying, "Is this a place where you can casually discuss such matters?"

Qi Si'an recalled what Pan Yueqing had said in front of the Empress Dowager about "having someone in her heart" and felt an inexplicable sense of displeasure. He went through several names in his mind and finally stared at the carriage in which Pan Yueqing left with a gloomy expression. He was now extremely curious about who it was that made Pan say she "had someone in her heart."

Moreover, the look of relief on the Empress Dowager's face when she heard those words made his heart skip a beat. He knew too well what the Empress Dowager was thinking and even understood why she had quickly sent Pan Yueqing away. Since he was in the Jiying Hall earlier, he had noticed that His Majesty was acting rather strangely. His father would never deal with a tribute woman from a vassal state so easily just because of a trivial matter.

This realization alone was enough to make him shudder. It was as if if Pan Yueqing had stayed there for just a quarter of an hour more, she would have become the new mistress of one of the palaces. Thinking of this, he unconsciously clenched the railing in his hand. His hair fluttered in the wind, and he stared at the direction where the carriage, which was already out of sight, had gone, forgetting to look away.

This wasn't the first time Shiguang had seen Qi Si'an lose his temper, but it was definitely the first time that Qi Si'an had been angry with him. He quickly knelt down and kowtowed several times to Qi Si'an, using his body language to show Qi Si'an that he would never dare to do it again. It wasn't his actions that quenched Qi Si'an's anger, but rather Qi Si'an was well aware that one couldn't show their emotions casually in the palace.

"Get up," Qi Si'an said, lifting his foot and walking away without looking back.

On the other hand, Pan Yueqing had just entered the Marquis Dingyuan's Mansion. After turning the垂花门 (ornamental gate), she saw the Elder Madam Zhao being supported by Su Ruoqing and sitting quietly in the corridor. After the incident where the Elder Madam Zhao had spat out blood before, Zhao Pinxuan no longer dared to plead for mercy casually. Soon, he left dejectedly. Pan Yueqing quietly nestled beside the Elder Madam Zhao, gently resting her head on the Elder Madam Zhao's lap. Looking at her grandmother's still not fully recovered face and thinking about all the experiences she had in the palace, she felt a tightness in her chest.

"Yue'er can protect herself now," the Elder Madam Zhao, unable to see Pan Yueqing's expression, raised her hand and stroked Pan Yueqing's hair bun, gently moving the white jade and green orchid hairpin in it a few times. She said with some emotion, "When you were brought to me, you were only one year old and cried a lot. But as long as I held you, you would stop crying. Yue'er..."

The Elder Madam Zhao let out a sigh but didn't continue. Pan Yueqing gently sat up and placed her hand over her grandmother's hand. She didn't know what to say, yet it seemed as if she had a lot to say. The Elder Madam Zhao patted her tender hand, smiled, and then raised her hand to beckon. Su Ruoqing stepped forward and supported the Elder Madam Zhao's hand.

"Grandmother," Pan Yueqing finally understood why she felt so uncomfortable. The words the Elder Madam Zhao had said to her were like words of relief, showing that she had complete trust in her. These words brought her a strong sense of unease. She quickly said, "But I still haven't found my Mr. Right."

Su Ruoqing turned back and saw Pan Yueqing standing there with tears in her eyes. He shook his head helplessly. After the grandmother had spat out blood, although Doctor Lin had initially said it wasn't serious at first, the grandmother seemed to have exhausted all her vital energy. She looked emaciated, and within just one hour, she had vomited blood six times. Doctor Lin had said that the grandmother...

Pan Yueqing looked at her grandmother, whose steps had slightly stiffened, and cried, "Yue'er hasn't shown you your great-grandchild yet... Didn't you say that you would definitely protect Yue'er until Yue'er got married and had children?"

In her previous life, her grandmother had dragged on her illness for ten years just because she couldn't let go of her. She was confident that as long as her grandmother held on, she would definitely be able to find the miraculous doctor Li Zhe, who had once pulled her back from the brink of death. Su Ruoqing was a bit surprised to see that the grandmother suddenly gripped his hand with some strength, not as weak as before. He heard the old woman nod and murmur to herself, "Yes, my Yue'er hasn't gotten married yet..."

She still couldn't rest assured.

Pan Yueqing sniffled. After helping to settle her grandmother down with Su Ruoqing, she pulled Su Ruoqing outside and said, "Third Cousin, prepare a horse for me. I'm going to the Northern Border."

"Are you crazy?" Su Ruoqing blurted out when he heard Pan Yueqing's words. After a while, when he was sure that Pan Yueqing wasn't joking, he was shocked and swallowed hard. "It's thousands of miles to the Northern Border. Do you know what that means?"

"But the person who can save Grandmother is in the Northern Border. Don't ask me how I know. That person can definitely save Grandmother!" Pan Yueqing didn't know how to explain Su Ruoqing's question about the source of the information, so she simply cut off the possibility of his asking.

"But you can't go either! You're just a young woman... You..." Su Ruoqing was at a loss for words. "Tell me his name and what he looks like. I'll go find him."

"No one else can bring him back except me," Pan Yueqing shook her head. She turned her face away and gritted her back teeth slightly. Because only she knew Li Zhe's secret, and only this secret could force Li Zhe to come and save her grandmother.

Just as the two were arguing, the Pan family's carriage slowly stopped. Pan Haiyun, who had been staying at home reflecting on his mistakes, came to pay a visit. Since there were hardly any masters in the Marquis Dingyuan's Mansion, it was Su Ruoqing, a younger generation, who had to go and greet him. Pan Yueqing followed as well, but she didn't expect that there was also a stranger who came with Pan Haiyun.

"Please tell the Marquis that there's a famine in the Northern Border," Pan Haiyun said as soon as he saw Su Ruoqing. After seeing Su Ruoqing, his worry was hard to hide. "An urgent letter from thousands of miles away has been sent back to the capital. His Majesty has ordered the Marquis to go north with me to quell the situation. We'll assemble for inspection tomorrow."

After saying that, Pan Haiyun was in a hurry to leave. When Pan Yueqing heard about the Northern Border, she stepped forward and blocked Pan Haiyun's way. "Father, let me go with you."

"Don't be silly. This matter is very complicated," Pan Haiyun frowned. It wasn't that he was annoyed by Pan Yueqing's words, but the matter was indeed urgent and there was no time to waste.

"Father, I can take care of you by your side." Pan Haiyun didn't expect Pan Yueqing to be so persistent. Thinking that leaving her in the capital might lead to more troubles with the people in the mansion, and having learned the lesson from the previous incident at Pinglong'an Temple, he rubbed his forehead and finally decided to agree. "Get ready then."