Chapter 259

Whether to speak or not, Du Shanü is now truly curious—

Just who exactly is Yu Baobao's birth mother?

The Taizong emperor would remain unmarried for her sake, and the Deposed Crown Prince Huan would travel a thousand miles, sparing no effort, to find Yu Baobao again.

What exactly is love, then?

How can it be that, despite such distance and such a long span of time, it remains unchanged?

And moreover, and moreover......

Yu Baobao, it seems, truly has many people who love her.

His cousin-in-law is—this Deposed Crown Prince Huan, who shares no blood relation even after eight generations, is also like that.

No wonder Chinu previously said......

Du Shanü was somewhat dazed, until a young man stepped forward briskly, helped Zhu Huan to his feet, and then placed him on another person's horse, whereupon she snapped back to attention and said:

"Tie a few more loops."

"He is currently unconscious; if, when we later pass the gate, the horse is startled and he falls, his injuries could only worsen."

The young cavalryman replied, and two others nearby fetched ropes to help secure him.

Du Shanü then withdrew her gaze and asked:

"After hearing of this, he insisted on coming with you—did you readily agree?"

Chen Er was swallowing his steamed bun with difficulty, about to drink the fresh water he had just drawn, when Du Shanü in front of him knocked away his waterskin.

Du Shanü untied a bag of boiled water from her own saddle and gave it to him, then signaled with her eyes for him to continue.

Chen Er was somewhat bewildered, but he did as instructed, drank a few sips to ease the choking in his throat, and then replied:

"To answer the master, though I may be slow, I am not entirely stupid."

"He kept pulling me aside, asking this and that; naturally I was wary from the start, but the old man was genuinely easy to talk to—he not only told me many hard-to-find secrets, he also invited me to his mountain hermitage's thatched cottage, putting me up for a night."

"The old man packed up his meager belongings the next day, then said that taking him back to Yongzhou could earn a reward, and that if he went along, he would not burden me......"

Although it is indeed somewhat of a burden now.

But being attacked by famine refugees is truly unavoidable.

Moreover, the reason the two were attacked by famine refugees lies in his fault first—if he had not mistakenly entered Tancheng's territory, they would not have encountered the famine refugees......

Chen Er may have done some wrong in the past, but his nature is still not bad.

Seeing him take most of the blame upon himself, and even piling on more, Du Shanü could not hold back; she swung onto her horse and said:

"Just tell me straight what those secrets are."

Chen Er's chattering mouth paused, he looked around somewhat embarrassed, rubbing his hands, not knowing where to go.

Until another middle-aged man reached out his hand, inviting him to ride together, did he finally breathe a sigh of relief and smoothly set out on the road home.

But although he relaxed, his words instead made Du Shanü feel a bit stifled.

Du Shanü heard Chen Er's answer.

That, she had already somewhat anticipated the answer.

Chen Er said:

"To answer the master...... they're all dead, all of them."

"Since the southern child emperor ascended the throne and forcibly seized the Jia'shi merchant house of the Yu family into the state treasury, the Yu family has withered like falling leaves."

According to the old man's account——

In the previous generation of the Yu family there were Second Daughter, Third Daughter, Fourth Daughter, Fifth Son, plus Yu Baobao's mother, Yu Xiaoniangzi, making five siblings in total.

Yu Erniang never married, exhausting herself for Chong'an and the merchant house; in recent years her health has not been good, and she is constantly nursing illness.

Yu Sanniang, in her early years, insisted on marrying the not-yet-usurping 'child emperor' Yuan Lang, and thereafter had no contact with her natal family.

Yu Siniang also never married, often staying at home to eat vegetarian fare and chant Buddha, praying blessings for her sisters and brothers.

Among these three, Yu Siniang died when Yuan Lang sent men to seize the Jia'shi merchant house for the state treasury; hearing of that night, it is said that, contrary to expectation, she was eating vegetarian fare and chanting Buddha, and the usually most demure Yu Siniang offered the fiercest resistance; in the chaos she was struck by someone unknown, fell to the ground, and lost her breath.

Seeing her sister dead and the family property seized, Yu Erniang followed her a few days later.

The line of Yu Wulang is the most distinctive.

Yu Wulang was a man who once entered the court as an official.

Yu Wulang, or rather, having become the grandfather-generation's Yu Wulaoye, as a Grand Historian, also enjoyed a smooth official career.

However, he neither clung to a corner nor fawned and flattered.

After Dayin lost its capital, he urged Yuan Lang to abdicate and return to the throne to no avail, recorded the history of Yuan Lang's regicide and usurpation, and then died by striking a pillar.

Yuan Lang demanded the histories be altered, and Yu Wulaoye had five sons, named Wen, Wu, Tao, Lve, and Jun.

His second son, 'Wu', upon hearing the news entered the palace, and beside his father's corpse wrote again '【Yuan Lang murdered his sovereign, attained the throne unjustly】', and then likewise died by striking a pillar.

His third son, 'Tao', hearing that his father and elder brothers were dead, led troops to storm the palace walls, and was pierced through the heart by a volley of arrows from the palace guards.

His fifth son, 'Jun', hearing that his father and two elder brothers had died, again entered the palace, and wrote '【Yuan Lang murdered his sovereign, attained the throne unjustly, slaughtered the loyal ministers】'......

One father and two sons dead, this earned Yuan Lang joint condemnation by the court officials, and finally put an end to his desire to alter the histories.

But by this point, amid this string of calamities, the Yu family, aside from the line of Yu Xiaoniangzi, had left only the Young Emperor; the line of Yu Wu had left only the eldest son who had taken a husband's surname and left home, ignorant of worldly affairs, and Yu Lve, who at the time was still returning with his troops......

The whole household, loyal and steadfast, ultimately withered away completely.

The late sun sank westward, the sky grew dim and bleak.

A lone hoof treads the earth, all around is sorrow and desolation.

Amid the endless sound of hooves, Du Shanü finally understood why Yu Lve seemed not very bright......

Perhaps it's not that they appear unintelligent, but that they, together with the whole family behind them, are in fact not clever enough.

A wise person, knowing that Yuan Lang rose to power because he happened to hold military authority at the time, should keep far away and enjoy his own wealth and status.

After all, it is their own kin who hold power; even if one goes out to slay heaven and earth, one cannot reach their riches.

However, the Yu family, contrary to expectation, did not hide away in a corner; they were immersed in wealth and honor.

Are the Yu members stupid, foolish, and asking for trouble?

No!

This isn't it!

This is clearly using the lives of their own family to nail Yuan Lang's illegitimate rise to power into the history books!

That Yuan Lang......

Just what is going on with Yuan Lang?

Why, after marrying Yu San Niang, did he not at all inherit the Yu family's loyal spirit, but instead commit such acts of forcibly seizing family wealth and murdering loyal officials?

Du Shanü did not understand; she truly, truly did not understand.

However, everything simply could not wait for her to understand.

Perhaps her mind had changed; amid the clop-clop of horse hooves, Du Shanü's abdomen once again began to clutch in pain.

This pain was fiercer than all previous pains combined; in an instant it made Du Shanü break out in a cold sweat.

She bent over, lowered herself on the horse's back for a few breaths, but could not withstand it.

Seeing someone nearby notice her condition, Du Shanü made a quick decision and gritted her teeth:

"...... There's no time, no time to return to Dun Cheng."

"Just find any city to settle in, to look for a doctor for me and the Deposed Crown Prince......"

Her voice fading, in the last instant before closing her eyes, Du Shanü heard clamor erupting around her, someone shouting:

"Master? Master?"

"Quickly find a place to settle nearby!"

"Let's head there first...... wait, why are there so many people ahead?"

"Oh no, those are troops, troops who don't know where they're headed to attack the city! Withdraw! Withdraw!"

?? Loyal bones fill the family; where can we hope to return home?

? Truly worthy of our Shasha, enduring stomach pain for several chapters, she held on until she fainted.