Chapter 285

Chapter 285

While Tong Sui was still nestled in her elder brother's arms, Tong Gui, along with Second Uncle and Second Aunt, went outside to welcome Xiao Zhen. They couldn't just leave the emperor standing outside alone.

Even though Xiao Zhen was dressed in casual clothes, Tong Youyu and his wife still intended to bow deeply when they met him.

Xiao Zhen steadied his father-in-law and said, "Xiaoman hasn't seen her elder brother for too long. Let her have dinner at home tonight. I also miss Chengzu and Yining, so I'll return to the palace first and come back to fetch Xiaoman later."

If he stayed, it would only make it harder for his in-laws to have a peaceful reunion.

Tong Youyu was the most restrained in front of his emperor son-in-law, expressing endless gratitude. Xiao Zhen exchanged a helpless glance with his mother-in-law, Zhou Qing, and then departed in the carriage.

As the carriage gradually disappeared into the distance, Zhou Qing sighed, "It must have been the emperor who reminded Aman to dress appropriately. He's truly thoughtful."

When their eldest nephew joined the army, their daughter was only twelve years old, her appearance not fully matured. Even dressed simply, she still looked like the young girl she once was. If she had come directly from the palace in splendid attire, coupled with her current demeanor, her eldest nephew would surely have found her unfamiliar.

Tong Youyu said, "The emperor has always treated us well."

He still remembered the time in Taohuagou when they needed to dry wet wood for making spears, and his son-in-law helped paste new window paper.

Even though his son-in-law had become the emperor, his love for the family hadn't changed much.

In the second courtyard, Tong Sui cried for a while and then looked up at her elder brother, who was now thirty-five. The more different he looked from her memories, the more her heart ached.

Tong Rong was also carefully examining his younger sister.

His Aman had always been the prettiest girl in Taohuagou, especially with those clear eyes like spring water.

His sister was taller now, her once thin cheeks fuller and more radiant, but her eyes remained unchanged.

"You're even more beautiful than I imagined," Tong Rong praised with a smile.

Tong Sui held her brother's sturdy arms and looked him up and down, asking, "How did you meet the emperor? Have you been in the southern regions all these years?"

Her gaze then fixed on her brother's black headband.

Tong Rong didn't want to talk about it just yet and pointed toward the eastern wing room behind him, his eyes full of joy. "Would you like to meet your sister-in-law and nephew first?"

Tong Sui's eyes lit up.

Tong Rong called out, and his wife, Zhong Li, led six-year-old Xiaoshan forward.

Zhong Li was a graceful beauty, while Xiaoshan, raised in the mountains, was tanned but strong. After all, Tong Rong had become the mountain leader not long after his son was born.

Tong Sui was delighted to see her sister-in-law and nephew, which indeed helped to dilute the sorrow of being separated from her brother for seventeen years.

But even in her happiness, she couldn't help but notice her brother's unusual black headband.

Tong Rong couldn't gloss over it and had to take it off, explaining about being captured as a prisoner of war and forced into labor.

Tong Sui was heartbroken and cried again.

Zhou Qing cried and laughed. "Go ahead and cry today, but starting tomorrow, it’ll be nothing but good times."

Zhong Li comforted Tong Sui, "Sister, please stop crying. Second Aunt cried so much yesterday that her eyes are still puffy today. If you keep this up, her eyes will be swollen again tomorrow."

Tong Gui also chimed in, "It's just a brand. You and I have suffered so many injuries on the battlefield. That hit on elder brother is nothing. Besides, Grandfather has already seen it and said he'll find a way to remove the brand. With Grandfather's medical skills, don't you trust him?"

Knowing there was a way to remove the mark, Tong Sui felt a bit relieved.

Zhou Qing joked, "It would be great if it could be removed, but if not, no big deal. After all, your elder brother is already married. As long as his wife doesn't mind, it's fine."

Zhong Li blushed under her aunt's teasing.

Zhou Qing said, "Tell Aman again how you and the eldest got together."

Tong Sui accepted the damp cloth from her second sister-in-law and wiped her face while looking expectantly at her elder brother and sister-in-law.

A marriage is a happy event, and sharing their story now would lift everyone's spirits.

Zhou Qing shooed out her husband and her second nephew, leaving the women to huddle together. Tong Rong, being the groom, could stay or leave.

Zhong Li was still a bit shy and glanced at her husband.

Tong Rong coughed, "I'll tell the story."

The year he fled into the deep mountains of Fuzhou, he was twenty-six years old.

The deep mountains weren't ideal, but they were the only refuge for someone like him on the run. The local villagers were relatively peaceful among themselves but very wary of outsiders. With a prisoner’s brand on his forehead, Tong Rong lived alone, using his strength and martial skills to work as a guard for the old mountain lord.

However, no matter how reclusive he was, the mountain village was small, and he still encountered some villagers.

In the mountains, there was a private school where Zhong Li’s father taught. Because of her beauty, many young men admired her. One of them was a scoundrel who, after being rejected, tried to kidnap and assault her. Tong Rong rescued her.

Tong Sui chuckled, "So it was the elder brother playing the hero."

At this point, Tong Rong started stammering, and Zhong Li gave him a glance and snorted, "He is a hero, so I like him, but he said we weren't meant for each other. He avoided me for a whole year, never showing up wherever I was. When I deliberately went into the mountains to collect herbs, he followed from afar. So I pretended to be bitten by a snake, and he finally ran over."

Zhou Qing said, "You should’ve ignored him and married a handsome guy, letting him cry alone."

Zhong Li did have that rebellious thought, but in the end, she liked him too much and couldn't bear to see him lonely.

Tong Rong said, "... You chat, I'll go outside for a bit."

Once he left, the three women laughed.

Seventeen years had gone by, and there was so much to catch up on. That night, the whole family gathered around, chatting non-stop as they ate dumplings.

After dinner, the conversation continued. Tong Sui still hadn't had her fill of stories when the gatekeeper came to report that the Emperor had come to escort the Empress.

The sound of the night watchman's gong was heard from the street.

Zhou Qing said, "Oh, it's so late. I just urged you to return to the palace, and the Emperor actually came to fetch you!"

Tong Sui looked at her elder brother.

Tong Rong said, "Go back. There will be more opportunities to gather in the future."

Before Tong Sui could react, Zhou Qing had already handed her daughter her shoes...

Tong Youyu, Tong Rong, and Tong Gui went out first to welcome the Emperor.

After the greetings and farewells, Tong Sui boarded the carriage. While waiting for Xiao Zhen to come aboard, she lifted the curtain and gazed intently at her elder brother standing among the family.

Two large red lanterns hung outside the Tong family home, casting a soft red light on Tong Rong’s face.

Tong Rong smiled at his sister.

Tong Sui responded with two streams of clear tears.

Tong Rong hurriedly said, "Tomorrow, I will enter the palace to pay respects to His Majesty the Emperor, Her Majesty the Empress, the Crown Prince, and the Princess."

Tong Sui did not respond and kept staring wistfully at her elder brother, as if this were just a dream that would end once she left.

Since she didn’t pull down the curtain, Xiao Zhen didn’t signal the coachman to start.

It was Zhou Qing who took the initiative and ordered the coachman to begin, allowing the carriage to move forward steadily.

Tong Sui kept looking back until the carriage turned out of the street.

Xiao Zhen then pulled Tong Sui onto his lap and gently wiped her face with a handkerchief he had ready, speaking to her swollen eyes, "Luckily, Chengzu and Yining are asleep. Otherwise, they might not have recognized you in this state."

Tong Sui encircled his waist with her arms and buried her face in his chest. Just as she began to say "Thank," Xiao Zhen interrupted, "No need to thank me. Your brother did all the hard work. Besides, we should thank him. If he hadn't led forty thousand elite troops to attack Yongzhou, Xie Jian wouldn't have won so quickly; it would have taken at least two or three more months."

Tong Sui said, "But he needed you to attack Ling first to give him the chance to come out of hiding."

Xiao Zhen replied, "I was able to attack Ling because I became the emperor of the Great Wei. I could become this emperor because you assisted me. What, are you getting distant because you have your brother now?"

Tong Sui pinched the flesh on his waist.

Xiao Zhen lifted her up and made her sit facing him on his lap.

Tong Sui knew her eyes were very swollen and kept them lowered, not looking at him.

Xiao Zhen supported her waist with one hand and touched her face with the other, "For eight months, haven't you missed me?"

Earlier today, when we returned to the palace, the kids were still around. After they left, he had to first send her back to reunite with Tong Rong. It was only now that the couple could have some quiet time alone together.

How could Tong Sui not have missed him?

She missed him, sure, but she also had some questions to ask him!

"Pan Yong was pretending to surrender. You knew he had other plans, so why did you let him get close enough to try and kill you?" she asked sternly, looking up at him.

Xiao Zhen replied, "If I gave him the chance early, he’d strike early, and I could win the Ling army’s loyalty faster. Otherwise, wouldn’t I have to keep guarding against him?"

Tong Sui said, "He's been a blacksmith for decades and possesses immense strength. Didn’t you think about what might happen if..."

Pan Yong, in a desperate gamble, was risking his life and would have done anything to capture Xiao Zhen.

Many officials from the previous emperor's court, including Fan Zhao who treated Pan Yong like a servant, looked down on the blacksmith-born Pan Yong. However, Tong Sui knew of Pan Yong's cunning and abilities. Pan Yong had indeed killed the renowned general Qin Sizhu and regained military power in the Ling Kingdom.

The stronger Pan Yong got, the more scared Tong Sui was that Xiao Zhen would put himself in danger.

Xiao Zhen kissed her eyes before she could cry, holding her tightly and saying, "Don't cry anymore. Even if I know you're just missing your elder brother and worrying about me, I don't want to see you cry anymore. You've already cried enough today."

Tong Sui said, "You were the one who risked your life first."

Xiao Zhen replied, "He was unarmed, with nothing but a pair of fists. How did I risk my life?"

"Do you really think the Xiao Family’s Second Master, who’s barely over thirty and in his prime, can’t handle a nearly sixty-year-old blacksmith from the Pan family?"

Tong Sui fell silent.

Xiao Zhen said, "If I had known you thought so little of me, I should have spared his life and had a sparring match with him in front of you."

Tong Sui pursed her lips and looked at him. "There's no need to spare him. You can spar with Fifth Younger Brother. As long as you can beat him, I'll be relieved no matter who you fight in the future."

Xiao Zhen: "Alright, first you underestimate me, then you compare Fifth Younger Brother to Pan Yong, offending both Xiao Family brothers in one go."

Tong Sui playfully hit him.

Xiao Zhen: "Tomorrow, have Third Brother explain it to you, or Qi Ling can do it. You'll see how many moves Pan Yong lasted against me."

Tong Sui: "No need to beat around the bush. Just tell me if you can beat Fifth Younger Brother."

Xiao Zhen: "I know you're sentimental, and you were even thinking about what to do with Pan Dai after capturing him. But when Pan Yong's plan failed, the Ling Emperor had Pan Dai executed to avenge Lu Yi, which saved me the trouble."

Tong Sui was sentimental, but since Pan Yong conspired with Fan Zhao to harm her, Xiao Zhen, and their families, any remaining affection she had for Pan Dai and his father was severed.

So, she gently held Xiao Zhen's face and looked into his eyes. "Can you beat Fifth Younger Brother?"

Xiao Zhen kept his head still and looked up at her hair bun. "Why did you change your hairstyle back? I wanted to see the Aman girl from Taohuagou again."

Tong Sui suddenly laughed.

Laughing, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.