Chapter 11 — Kinh Thao

Everything happened exactly as we expected. Everything develops according to our plan. There's just one thing...unexpected. The person that I previously saw as just a chess piece pretending to be my wife... in the end became the only wife in my heart. It's not that I never regret it. But at that time our power was still not strong enough. If we rush to confront the new emperor, not only will we not be able to save her, but we will also cause all those who follow us to die. I kept telling myself to wait a little longer. Wait until I return to the land, wait until I gain military power, wait until I have enough strength to confront him...I will definitely welcome you back. Side story 2 - Tieu Dat "Actually, our meeting that year... was all arranged by you, right?" At that moment, I knew... The Can Mieu of the past, the person who every time he was wronged, would hold my shirt tightly, determined to get justice, was no more. She finally stopped being naive and trusted everyone. During her five years in the palace, she had clearly thought everything through, but was always patient and never revealed anything. She even turned the medical skills she was always proud of into a poison that kills people without seeing blood. She has changed. Or to be more precise...she died a long time ago. She died on the day I tricked her into entering the capital. Later I got the throne. On the coronation day, the civil and military mandarins knelt under the palace, chanting in unison "Viva". I sit on the long chair that people have always craved for half their lives. But in my mind I only remembered the dilapidated medical shop in the Southwest. Remembering her wearing a loose and ill-fitting wedding dress, she smiled and asked me: "Tieu Dat, can we continue to live like this forever?" At that time, I hugged her and said: "Okay." It turns out... in this whole life, only those words are true. Unfortunately, when we realized that, it was too late. In the end, I still lost her. Side story 3 After Tieu Dat ascended the throne, he focused on handling court affairs, diligently day and night, never relaxing a day. Except for one time he traveled to the Southwest in disguise for two months, for the rest of his life, he never neglected national affairs for a single day. There was only one thing... Throughout his life, he did not create a Queen, nor did he add any concubines. The courtiers, using the excuse that the society had no descendants, knelt in front of the main hall for three days and three nights to advise. He then chose ten children around seven or eight years old from a branch of the royal family, brought them into the palace, raised them, and personally raised them. He said: "The throne... talented people can do it." In the twelfth year after ascending the throne, he personally selected the most outstanding child among them, held the adult hat ceremony and was ordained as Crown Prince. Seven years later, Tieu Dat announced his abdication of the throne. The new Emperor, the Queen and the little prince knelt down and begged him to stay in the palace to enjoy family joy. He just smiled and said: "I promised someone that I would make the world peaceful." "Now... I have done it." "So... it's time to find her." She once gave him more than one hundred and seventy days of peace in the human world. And he...used seventeen years of peaceful and prosperous rule to respond to her. That fall he returned to Man Chau alone. Side story 4 Outside Man Chau citadel, there is another temple. Incense smoke lingers in front of the temple all year round. There are women carrying their children to pray for peace. There are young people who kneel for a long time, praying for their loved ones to get well soon. There were also doctors who brought new copies of medical books to offer incense and offerings... Tieu Dat sat under a lonely almond tree in front of the temple door, quietly watching all day long. Late at night, he sent all his entourage back down

Slowly walked to the stone stele at the temple door. The two words "Can Mieu" on the stele, because too many people have touched it, have long since been smoothed. He smiled softly. If Can Mieu were to know that every time her junior took the exam at the medical clinic, she would run to touch her name to ask for blessings, she would certainly try to act mature and exclaim: "Really, if we had that time, it would be better to study a few more pages of the book." But as soon as she turned away, she proudly clasped her hands behind her back, no matter how hard she tried, the corners of her lips could not hide the smile. No... He forgot. That was the Can Mieu of his youth. As for Can Mieu later on... he was honed by life into a calm and peaceful appearance. She always carried a bowl of medicine with her, sat quietly in front of the table, thinking about how to improve the medicine, how to convert difficult ancient methods into simple words so everyone could understand... He took out an old wooden brooch from his chest. That's an old brooch that Can Mieu bought at the market for two coins when the two got married. He has kept it for many years. "Miao Miao." "You once told me to become a good emperor." "I did it." "There are villages along both banks of the Yellow River." "The food warehouses in all places are full every year." "What I promised you... I have done it all." "Don't be angry with me anymore... okay?" He leaned his back against the stone stele, just like in the past when he leaned in front of the door of the medical clinic, quietly waiting for her to return every day. medical visit. Until morning. The entourage discovered that the Emperor was no longer breathing. But...the corner of his lips still carried a smile. In my hand...still holding that wooden brooch tightly and not letting go.