Daily life in the academy

At the hour of You, the sun had already set, and only layers of orange halos remained on the horizon. Suddenly, a fire broke out in the direction of the East Palace of the Imperial City, and black smoke filled the sky. The people suddenly realized that the unconscious tension they felt today was actually caused by the palace. The people who were watching the excitement on Suzaku Street were suddenly pushed to the side of the road by a group of soldiers wearing the armor of the Imperial Guards.

Their faces were fierce and their actions were brutal, completely devoid of their earlier amiable demeanor. After a large number of them rushed into the streets and alleys, the frightened common people slowly gathered their courage, got up, and rushed home, still shouting that things were going to change... things were going to change...

However, these people who fled in a hurry missed the most exciting scene, which was the General Mu Feng, whom they admired very much, followed by a group of soldiers chasing him, and they kept talking about the birds singing and the flowers blooming.

Yan Yi fled towards the west gate with Prince Jing, but as expected they were stopped by the city defense battalion. The city defense battalion guarded the four major city gates in the east, west, south and north, and was affiliated with the central army. They had received instructions from Mu Feng long ago. The two sides fought fiercely, and blood and flesh flew in front of the west gate. But when Mu Feng and his men arrived, they were still one step too late. Yan Yi and a dozen elite soldiers rushed out of the encirclement. When Mu Feng and his men chased them, they were delayed by the people who had been arranged by Prince Jing to pick them up, and they had to watch them escape on horseback.

Around midnight, Mu Feng finished explaining all the follow-up matters and returned to Prince Ning's mansion, cursing profusely. Seeing Bai Zhi intact with his own eyes, his emotions calmed down considerably. However, upon meeting Prince Ning, he was furious again and cursed, "That damn Yan Yi is truly cunning and treacherous. I originally thought he was being manipulated by the Crown Prince, but he turned around and burned down the Eastern Palace, catching me off guard. He also took advantage of the chaos to abduct Prince Jing. Even if he runs to the ends of the earth, I will chase him down and kill him. This general has never been played like this before."

"What?" Yan Tai was shocked and asked, "How is the Crown Prince now?"

"What else could it be? Of course he was imprisoned by my people. However, according to my people's report, after they brought the fire in the East Palace under control, they found the Crown Prince huddled quietly in a corner. No other bodies were found in the palace. He seemed to have dismissed most of the eunuchs and palace maids early in the morning, as if he had anticipated this outcome and was waiting for someone to find him, or... to collect his body." Mu Feng sighed and shook his head. "What a pity for such a good Crown Prince."

"Yes...what a good prince he is. I watched him grow up under my care." Yan Tai also sighed.

After a moment's silence, Yan Tai continued, "Your Majesty's condition has been brought under control, but he is still in a coma. Doctor Hu said that his heart meridian is damaged, and he may be in a coma for some time. During this time, Mu Feng, you must control the situation as quickly as possible. Sheng'an City cannot be in chaos."

Mu Feng straightened his back and said seriously, "Don't worry, as long as I'm here, there won't be any chaos."

The central army temporarily took over the palace and everything in the city. The chaos in Sheng'an City was settled. After Mu Feng finished talking with King Ning, he returned to the Mu Mansion with his wife and daughter.

At dawn on the third day, the vanguard soldiers of the central army stopped in front of the Mu Mansion on their fast horses. After handing the horses to the guards, they hurried to the backyard.

Sheng'an City is about seven or eight days' walk from Liangzhou, and about four or five days' ride on a fast horse. If Yan Yi and others are captured halfway, there should be news sent back. Mu Feng has been waiting for Yang Shuo to send back the news for the past two days. In order not to disturb Bai Rou's rest, he rested in the side room. The servants on duty saw the dusty vanguard soldier and hurriedly led him to the side room.

"General, this is the battle report."

Mu Feng walked to the table with his clothes on, took the letter to the candlelight and examined it carefully, cursing angrily: "They are all useless things. I have to take action."

After that, Mu Feng quickly ground some ink, picked up his pen, wrote a letter, and handed it to the vanguard soldier, saying, "Go back quickly and give the letter to Yang Huan. Ask him to do as the letter asks."

"Yes, General." The vanguard soldier took the letter with both hands and left without stopping.

After everyone left, Mu Feng put on his clothes, called his servants and gave them a few instructions, then quickly left the Mu Mansion.

At noon, Baizhi finished washing up with the help of Bishui. When she went to the main courtyard to have breakfast, she learned that Mu Feng had gone to the central military camp early in the morning to dispatch troops to Liangzhou to capture the rebels.

Seeing Bai Zhi's worried face, Bai Rou comforted her, "Don't worry, your father has fought on the battlefield for decades. It's just a small Liangzhou. Maybe we'll hear news of their victory soon."

Ever since that terrifying moment in her dream, Bai Zhi had been deeply repulsed by the thought of war. However, she also knew that the emperor would be restless if the rebels were not eliminated. Perhaps she should find an opportunity to discuss this matter with Yan Qingchen as soon as possible. Thinking of Yan Qingchen, she felt much more relieved. She smiled and shook her head, saying, "Mother, have breakfast quickly, or it will get cold soon."

"Okay." Bai Rou responded lovingly.

It was already March. After the mother and daughter had finished their breakfast, they sat in the garden for a while as usual. The sun at 9 o'clock had already brought a scorching temperature, and if it shone for a while longer, it would feel hot.

The two stood up and prepared to go back into the house. Chun Tao, with a joyful look on her face, handed two letters to Bai Rou, "Madam, there's another letter from Beidi. Perhaps there's news about the young master. Please take a look."

Bai Rou didn't take the letter immediately. She turned her head to look at Bai Zhi who was curiously examining the letter, and said softly, "Azhi, it's getting hot now. Let's go back to the house and sit down and read the letter slowly, okay?"

Bai Zhi nodded in response.

After returning to the house, Bai Rou took the letters and opened the top one first. It was signed by Bai Linfeng. She glanced at it briefly, shook her head helplessly, and handed the letter to Bai Zhi, saying, "This is from your uncle. He found Bai Lian. This child is really a worry."

Bai Zhi was laughing non-stop because of what her uncle had said about Mu Bailian's actions in the army in the letter. But when she saw her mother's expression change drastically after opening the second letter, she immediately stopped laughing and asked with concern, "Mom, what happened?"

Bai Rou forced a smile, "It's okay, don't worry about it. Mother has something to do at Prince Ning's mansion."

Bai Zhi knew she must be lying. Perhaps the Northern Army was at war again. She quickly stood up and took her arm. "Mom, I'll go with you. It's so boring to stay in the mansion alone."

Seeing Bai Rou hesitant, Bai Zhi shook her arm again and said coquettishly, "Mom, take me with you, okay?"

"Okay, okay, Mom will take you to Prince Ning's Mansion." Bai Rou's heart softened in the face of Bai Zhi's coquettishness.

On the carriage to Prince Ning's mansion, Bai Zhi tentatively asked, "Mother, is there another war in the north?"

Bai Rou raised her eyes and saw Bai Zhi's cautious gaze. She had vowed not to let Ah Zhi look at anyone else's face again, but now she was the first one to be looked at by Ah Zhi. She felt sorry for him. Perhaps excessive protection was not what Ah Zhi wanted. So she nodded and replied, "That's right."