Chapter 70
During the Mid-Autumn Festival, as the Marquis of Huai'an was laid to rest in the capital, King Li, Li Xian, and their entourage, who had been away from Beijing for two months, had just entered Guizhou and were still ten days' journey from Liping Mansion, the vassal's establishment.
They were accompanied by palace maids, eunuchs, and three hundred personal soldiers gifted to King Li by Emperor Qianxing. Each feudal king was only allowed three hundred personal soldiers, but some risked secretly raising additional forces, facing severe consequences if discovered.
King Li had not yet reached the vassal's territory and even doubted the loyalty of his three hundred soldiers, making any thought of raising troops improbable.
After observing the three hundred soldiers along the way, King Li and Li Xian were aware of their lack of ability, most being low-ranking recruits from various barracks in the capital. Nearly a hundred elite soldiers remained, but they were sent by Emperor Qianxing to surveil King Li, treating him with disdain.
In spite of their martial arts training, King Li and Li Xian had both experienced illness during the two-month separation from the capital. They had been attended by a physician arranged by Li Yong. However, the physician was later killed by Wei Gang, commander of the personal soldiers, on false grounds.
Though deeply angered, King Li and Li Xian were unable to challenge the three hundred soldiers, all loyal to Emperor Qianxing.
While Li Xian had a clear conscience in protecting King Li, he was unaware of the pressures King Li faced, fearing for his own safety and the potential peril to Li Xian's life. The imperial physician's true intentions, ordered by Emperor Qianxing, were clearly to endanger his life.
The physician arranged by the Li family thwarted Emperor Qianxing's scheme. Having just acted to eliminate the obstacle of the doctor, the next time King Li fell ill, he would have to carefully drink the "special potion" prepared by the imperial physician.
He only had one life, and if he died, Li Xian was so innocent.
Despite it being August 15th, the night sky was engulfed in savage and thick black clouds, devoid of even the slightest hint of moonlight.
Unable to sleep, King Li stood by the window of the post house, gazing intently at the night sky.
After resting for a while, Li Xian, noticing that Prince Li might continue to stand there, approached him and whispered, "We have a journey ahead tomorrow. Your Highness, please retire to bed early."
King Li turned around, and in the flickering light, the fourteen-year-old young man had a slight furrow between his eyebrows.
Using nostalgia to mask his unease, he asked with a smile, "It's the Mid-Autumn Festival, do you miss the Duke and the others?"
How fortunate that at least Li Xian still had a family to miss, while he had nothing.
Li Xian fell silent for a moment and replied, "I think about them, but I have grown up and have my own path. They understand it, so I only need to take care of myself without causing them worry and walk firmly along this path."
In King Li's eyes, Li Sanlang, though slender, already possessed a pride and courage not inferior to that of his elder brother Li Yao.
He considered himself fortunate to have such a talented person accompany him for the rest of the journey.
Pity…
King Li lay down to rest, and Li Xian also retired to his bed. The night was as dark as water, and his eyes were clear.
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