Cry of the Midnight Jackdaw

Chapter Fifty-eight,
A’Lan

Heading from Wang Tong Hill to the west capital was a mere half a day’s journey. They immediately set out at sunrise, and arrived outside Yu Yang City in the afternoon. Looking out from within the carriage, Yu Yang City’s walls were high and sturdy, and carried the imposing manner of occupying one area, each tile seemed to be engraved with the traces of history, and shined bright in the afternoon’s illumination.

Once they entered the city, He Xuan followed He Heng to deal with the ancestral rite, Xiao Zuo had nothing to do for the time being, and walked around the city along with De Qing and Zi Wan to pass by half a day’s time. On the second day, the two got up very early again, before the break of dawn, He Heng led a grandiose group of people towards the imperial mausoleum.

Xiao Zuo obediently mixed in the group, listened to He Heng recite the difficult-to-articulate ancestral oration, the entire ceremony went on for about one whole day, and when the evening came, they then proceeded to head back. Xiao Zuo long already got so hungry his stomach was grumbling, and lifelessly rubbed his stomach while sitting in the carriage.

He Xuan followed He Heng and the rest to the other palace to participate in the evening banquet, Xiao Zuo was tired and sleepy the entire day, he propped up his final bit of consciousness to eat a bit of dinner in whole mouthfuls, then moved to the bed like a walking corpse, and pretty much slept as soon as he touched the pillow.

Summers in the north made it dark later in the day, so at this time, the evening’s setting sun was still yearning for the human realm’s warmth, laying on the mountain over in the distant lands, hovering there, not willing to return to the dark night. All around in the surroundings, cries of insects rose up then got blown away by this evening breeze and fell into the smoke rising from all the homes, falling into the ears of the farmers who just came back from the fields, and also fell by the children crouching by the walls watching ants.

Just like this, Xiao Zuo slept to this liveliness, and sunk into dream after dream.

“Duke, Duke!” Xiao Zuo hazily seemed to have heard someone calling for him, he slept shallowly, and then struggled out from the dreams. Though he had already sat up from the bed, his brain was still in a daze, his eyelids also barely lifted up, and through the swaying candlelight, he barely saw a particularly fat person standing in front of his eyes, just like a life-eating monster in the stories.

Xiao Zuo’s heart immediately jumped, he shook his head, and just as he was going to open his mouth, Ling Xiang pushed the door open, and said to Xiao Zuo, “Duke, please come help.”

Xiao Zuo responded, and hazily walked over, then felt his shoulders sink, practically like there was a hundred jin of weight crashing onto his body, his legs went soft all of a sudden, staggered to the front, and also tripped forward. Thankfully, Ling Xiang beside him helped him up, otherwise, he would have to use an extremely inelegant pose to embrace the earth.

Xiao Zuo was originally all muddled and switching between a half-awake half-dreaming state, but this one shock immediately made him emit cold sweat, and startled him awake. He then adjusted his listlessness, and carefully looked at the person in front of him. Li Fu Hai was bending his waist, the person leaning on [Li Fu Hai] had an air of alcohol, while the dark-coloured silk robe on the body was already messed up to the point it was full of wrinkles, with the surface mottled with drops of wine. Xiao Zuo slightly knitted his eyebrows, and reached out to wrap around He Xuan’s shoulders, and placed his weight onto his side, then spoke up, “Why is he like this?”

Li Fu Hai sighed, “His Highness went to the Yongeternal Mausoleum today.”

Yong Mausoleum was the tomb that He Heng constructed for himself, the Xiao Yuan Empress was buried within Yong Mausoleum.

Xiao Zuo froze, the breath of air from He Xuan on his shoulder was fire-hot, making the strong liquor wash up, practically about to burn a hole in his neck. His originally angry mood was melted by this prairie-blazing fire, burned into a pool of water, wrapping around He Xuan into a shallow lake.

“It’s already this late, go back and rest, I will be with his Highness.”

Li Fu Hai responded, Ling Xiang also prepared to go with Li Fu Hai as well, and before leaving, she said, “This servant has already brought cold water and placed it on the wooden rack, sobering soup has also been prepared as well.”

“Alright.” Xiao Zuo nodded his head, He Xuan at this time stuck to his body like his entire body had no bones in them, he long almost could not hold it, and barely waited until Ling Xiang closed the doors, then Xiao Zuo hurriedly dragged the drunken He Xuan to bed, and loosened up the buttons on his collar, then walked to washbasin to the side and wrung a cloth.

Just as he stuck the damp cloth onto He Xuan’s forehead, He Xuan seemed like a thirsty traveller in the desert, and moved over along this sliver of seeping coldness, bringing the drunken red face to Xiao Zuo’s hand, then drunkenly lightly rubbed on it.

There were a few loose hairs fallen on He Xuan’s forehead, at this time, it tickled Xiao Zuo palm, and a numb feeling climbed from his hand all the way to his shoulder, making Xiao Zuo abruptly shrink his hand back. He Xuan got startled by his sudden withdrawal of the hand, he slightly hazily opened his eyes, the keen and ruthless phoenix eyes he had normally were steamed all hazy by the wine, emitting a glistening watery light. He seemed to have gone in a daze for a moment, and after a while, then slowly lifted his head up, and muttered with a bit of grievance, “Wh…… what? Does Mother not want Xuan’er anymore too?”

As he said this, he stared with pitch-black eyes, as though the cold winds and blades in these ten or so years were all wiped away by the alcohol, Xiao Zuo blankly looked at his eyes, the inside actually carried an innocence he had never seen on him, like he could see to the ends of a spring mountain with one look.

The window in the bedroom was not closed, and at this time, the winds outside the window quietly blew up the curtains, the air slightly spread with a deep grassy air, like it was going to draw that bit of frailty in the bottom of people’s hearts out, and lay it underneath the currently bright moonlight. Xiao Zuo’s nose ached, he lifted his hand to rub his eyes, and pressed his voice down, “I won’t, I won’t not want you.”

“Mother, you must keep your word.” He Xuan slightly tilted his head, and slightly clumsily smiled. Xiao Zuo could not bear meeting gazes with him again, and moved away his eyes like he was running away, then bent over to cover him with the blanket, and replied, “En, of course.”