Eastern Han Dynasty, not the Three Kingdoms

Lu Wan looked at Dong Bai, her eyes full of panic and hesitation: "How is it possible... I am already a deposed person. Now I only hope that A Yu can grow up safely and set up a family..." Before she finished speaking, Dong Bai had already put her arm around her thin shoulders and said with a smile: "Sister, you are still talking nonsense! When did our general care about these empty names? When the emperor was still alive, he did not hesitate to draw his sword in court to protect you. Who in the world does not know this affection?"

She deliberately dragged out the last syllable of her words, glancing at Ma Chao with a flickering glance: "Our general has always been deeply in love. What could he not do?" This remark, though mocking, held a hidden meaning. Lu Wan's cheeks flushed instantly, and her fingers trembled slightly as she twisted her skirt. Ma Chao coughed uncomfortably, and the tips of his ears crimsoned beneath his silver armor.

Seeing this, Dong Bai's smile became even brighter, and she gently wrapped her wide sleeves around Lu Wan's waist. "In three days, Brother Chao will be crowned king. Having you in the harem won't make much difference, and having you out won't make much either. Even I don't mind, so why are you still shy, sister?" She looked up at Ma Chao, her fingertips gently pinching the seam between his armor. "My husband, is this the truth?" The moonlight in the courtyard was hazy, casting the overlapping figures of the three people on the blue bricks, like a painting with undercurrents.

Ma Chao took a half step forward, his silver armor scraping against the blue bricks, making a crackling sound. He reached out and gently grasped Lu Wan's trembling fingertips, his rough palm covering the back of her cold hand: "Wan'er, why don't you understand? Since we first met in Luoyang, our hearts have been connected." His Adam's apple rolled, and his eyes were burning as he looked into her red eyes. "So what if the emperor deposed the empress? In my heart, you will always be the Wan'er who accompanied me in reading and writing, and brewed tea and ground ink for me."

Dong Bai leaned against the vermilion lacquer column, chuckling softly. Her gilded armor tapped rhythmically against the wooden railing, but it didn't interrupt the two men. Ma Chao turned to look at her, his eyes half pleading and half determined: "Bai'er and I have a life-and-death bond. She understands my feelings. The three of us swore under the Xiliang moon to live and die together, to support each other. Have you forgotten?"

Lu Wan bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes. The past flashed through her mind like a revolving lantern: the freedom of riding together on the Xiliang grasslands, the secret letter passed across the palace walls in Chang'an, and that day in the chaos of the army, when Ma Chao swung his sword and resolutely killed the emperor. She turned away, her voice nasal, "But I'm in such a mess now..."

"Embarrassed?" Ma Chao suddenly laughed out loud, reaching out to gently wipe away the tears from her eyes. The dragon-patterned silver armor reflected the moonlight, "In my eyes, you will always be the most precious. When I become king, I will definitely announce it to the world—" He turned to look at Dong Bai, who nodded with a smile, "I will give you and Bai'er phoenix crowns and bridal robes, and let the whole world know that you are the most important people in my life."

Dong Bai stepped forward just in time, holding their arms. "Alright, alright, if you keep on being sentimental, it'll be dawn soon." Her fingertips brushed against the silver hairpin in Lu Wan's hair. "Don't worry, sister. We're here to protect you." The night breeze blew up the sleeves of the three people's clothes. Lu Wan looked at the two familiar faces before her, and the long-frozen defense in her heart finally melted quietly in the warm affection.

Lu Wan abruptly pulled her hand away, took a half step back, and clutched the hem of her skirt, her white knuckles turning pale. "On your wedding day, I absolutely cannot enter the bridal chamber with you! If this gets out, won't the Lu family's century-old reputation become a laughing stock?" She turned her face away, the silver hairpin in her hair trembling slightly. "Wait until the situation stabilizes... wait until the world forgets about the deposed empress..." Before she finished her words, the last syllable turned into a sigh.

Ma Chao looked at the shadow cast by her drooping eyelashes, and a bitter taste welled up in his throat. The girl he remembered playing the qin at the Lu Mansion Academy had now become so cautious, worn down by the world. He raised his hand to stroke her hair, but stopped abruptly mid-air. Finally, he smiled and nodded: "Okay, whatever you say." His hoarse voice held a subtle sense of loss. His silver armor gleamed coldly in the moonlight, making the tenderness in his eyes even deeper.

The carriage on its return journey rolled over the bluestone pavement, the rustle of its wheels mingling with the clatter of the night watchman's gong. Ma Chao gazed at the swaying moonlight outside the curtains. Dong Bai dozed against his shoulder, her gilded armor rising and falling gently with her breathing. Tonight, she maneuvered between Lu Wan and the others, appeasing those she had known without betraying a trace of jealousy. This perceptive intelligence only served to further unsettle him.

"What are you thinking about?" Dong Bai suddenly opened her eyes, her fingertips tracing across his furrowed brows. "Are you worried about Wan'er?" Her voice was tinged with laziness, but the rouge at the corners of her eyes made them bright as stars. Ma Chao's Adam's apple moved slightly, thinking of her concessions over the years—the tacit grasp hidden under her wide sleeves when Lu Wan entered, the forced smile when she accepted Cai Wenji, and her generous acceptance after learning of Jiangdong's youngest son and Sariel's existence.

"Bai'er..." He had just begun to speak when Dong Bai sealed his lips with her fingertips. The woman stood up, her wide sleeves brushing the back of his hand, her skirt embroidered with lotus flowers cascading down onto the carriage couch. "Since I considered myself a wife of the Ma family when your fate was uncertain, I had already made up my mind to share everything with you." She chuckled softly, a subtle bitterness flickering in her eyes. "But who made me fall in love with such a sentimental person?" ... Her voice stopped abruptly, and the gilded armor suddenly clenched the carriage curtains. The night wind blew a few dead leaves into the carriage.

Ma Chao grasped her cold hand, the warmth still lingering in the cracks of his silver armor as she comforted Lu Wan. The image of the beautiful woman in Hanzhong intruded upon his mind at an inopportune moment—Zhen Mi's resolute gaze as she broke her engagement for him, her unwavering presence by his sickbed. He suddenly felt his throat tighten, his breath burning.

"If you have something on your mind, tell me." Dong Bai leaned back into his arms, her hair brushing against his chin. "Why should we be so cautious?" The carriage suddenly jolted, and she buried her head in his shoulder. Her voice came out muffled: "Don't forget, back then under the Xiliang moon, you said, 'I will never hide anything from you.'" Ma Chao stared at the flickering lanterns outside the carriage, his heart beating violently beneath his armor. He didn't know how to speak to the man in front of him, so as to be worthy of his deep affection.

Before dawn the next day, Ma Chao had summoned Li Ru and Lu Su to his study. Under the flickering glow of a bronze lamp, he slammed a densely inscribed scroll of parchment onto the table. The dragon pattern on his silver armor shone with his movements. "During the Chang'an Rebellion, Dian Wei and Li Tong risked their lives to protect the Lu Mansion, and Zhang Dun died fighting to open the city gates. The contributions of these three must be engraved on the memorial stele."

Li Ru's half-lidded eyes moved slightly, and his fingertips stroked the jade ring: "General, Zhang Dun is a nobody. If his name is put on a high platform, it may be difficult to convince the people." Before he finished speaking, Lu Su clasped his fists and said loudly: "Mr. Wenyou, you are wrong! If Zhang Dun had not risked his life to open the city, how could our army have cooperated internally and externally? Such a loyal and brave man deserves great acclaim!"

Ma Chao stood up suddenly, making the bamboo slips on the table clatter. "Li Tong and Zhang Dun have been friends since childhood. That day, Zhang Dun tried to open the city gate to give me a chance to escape, but he didn't stop the winch of the thousand-jin gate..." His Adam's apple rolled, remembering Li Tong's red eyes when he talked about this incident last night. "If even the loyal souls cannot remember, how can our Xiliang army serve others?"

Li Ru stroked his beard and pondered for a moment, then suddenly chuckled: "General, you are kind and righteous, and this is what the army wants. Why not attach Zhang Dun's deeds to the inscription and posthumously confer titles on his family members? This will not only show that Xiliang does not forget the meritorious people, but also comfort the living." Upon hearing this, Ma Chao's tense shoulders finally relaxed. He raised his hand and patted the two men on the shoulders: "Let's follow Wen You's plan! In three days' time, at the coronation ceremony, everyone in Chang'an must know that under my command, Ma Chao, I never let down those who are loyal and courageous!" The morning light penetrated the window lattice, casting the overlapping shadows of the three people on the wall, just like a painting about loyalty and righteousness.

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The three-day deadline arrived as promised, and Chang'an's Suzaku Street was abuzz with activity. A three-meter-high platform, built on a base of black iron and draped in scarlet silk, dangled from the eaves a nine-tasseled white banner billowing in the north wind. The wolf fangs of the Western Liang adorning the tassels gleamed coldly in the sunlight. All around the platform, the silver armor of the Western Liang cavalry gleamed like snow, their scarlet battle flags borne on their spear tips fluttering and rustling, dyeing the entire Suzaku Street a river of blood.

On either side of the elevated steps, Xiliang civil and military officials stood solemnly, their dragon robes and jade belts complementing their silver armor and spears. The swords at the generals' waists gleamed with the cold gleam of years of sharpening. Young counselors waved their feather fans, their sharp wits concealed in their wielding. Each pair of eyes burned like flames, fixed firmly on Ma Chao's figure.

At three quarters past the hour of the morning, the morning bell rang. Ma Chao, clad in a royal robe inlaid with black gold and silver, the nine-section bronze bell dangling from the jade pendant at his waist tinkled with each step. With each step he ascended, soldiers on either side shouted, "Welcome the King of Liang!" The sound rustled the tiles on the city walls. Reaching the top of the terrace, Ma Chao turned and looked down. He saw the people of Chang'an kneeling on the ground, a sea of ​​heads stretching as far as the eye could see.

Atop the high platform, Ma Chao stood, sword in hand, his dark royal robe rustling in the wind. He surveyed the forest of banners and the frenzied crowd below. Suddenly, he slammed his scabbard to the ground, his voice resonating like a bell: "Everyone! Do you know where I, Ma Chao, came from to achieve my position today?"

The sound of the waves died abruptly, leaving only the sound of wind passing over the nine-tasseled white banner. Ma Chao stepped forward slowly, his silver boots treading the white marble steps. Each step seemed to crush the past: "In the past, I went to Luoyang to study the classics under Lu Gongzhi, determined to become a pillar of the Han Dynasty's revival!" He raised his hand and pointed in the direction of Weiyang Palace. "But when I joined Dong Gong's camp and went to the court of the Western Qiang King for a meeting alone; when I led my cavalry to destroy the Xiongnu camp in the northern border and hung the heads of the Jiedi rebels at the city gates; when I went south to Yangzhou to help Sun Ce pacify Jiangdong—"

The sword blade was half an inch out of its sheath, and the cold light made his eyebrows and eyes look like frost: "The emperor who was supposed to protect the world, set up a Hongmen Banquet in Chang'an! Continuous arrows pierced my silver armor, and blood soaked the brocade robe he personally gave me!" Angry shouts came from the audience. Ma Chao suddenly swung his sword into the void, facing the civil and military officials of Xiliang, his eyes sweeping over every familiar face: "The new emperor named me the King of Liang and promised me the land of Xiliang. But these thousands of miles of mountains and rivers were forged by your blood! It was you who followed me through the wind and sand, with swords under your pillows, from Xiliang to Luoyang, from the northern border to the south of the Yangtze River!" Ma Chao suddenly threw his sword to the ground, "Ma Chao has risen to the throne and become king. I don't ask to leave my name in history, but I hope to live up to my brothers!"

"Long live the Prince of Liang!" The roar instantly overturned the Chang'an city walls, startling geese as they flew across the blood-red sunset. Ma Chao gazed at the sky filled with banners and banners, a trance that brought back his vision of himself when he first arrived in Luoyang—fancy clothes and a vigorous horse, his heart set on the world. Now, with the blood-stained royal robe draped across his shoulders, he finally understood: peace in these troubled times can only be forged with iron and blood.