Chapter 1 — Praying for Tham Yen Tri Binh A

On the day the war was reported to the Imperial Capital, the Seventh Prince Tham Yen Tri got married. All over the city, red silk strips were blown by the wind, and the sound of firecrackers rang out in the sky. He wore a royal robe embroidered with a four-clawed golden python. Under the gaze of the civil and military mandarins, he held the hand of the daughter of the Marquis of Tran Bac Palace. That girl had a gentle appearance, was the top talented woman in the Imperial Capital, and when she smiled like peach blossoms in March. Unlike So Lang Yen, who only knows how to argue with him. When the small soldier carrying the news ran to the funeral gate, So Lang Yen was lying on the cemetery outside Bac Canh citadel. …… That's right, So Lang Yen has been dead for seven days. The Bac Di people threw her body under the temple. The knife mark extending from her forehead to her chin on So Lang Yen's face had long since stopped bleeding - because she had no more blood to bleed. She opened her eyes and looked at the Bac Canh sky from day to night, then from night to day. Black crows circled above her head, perhaps considering whether to eat her or not. So Lang Yen wants to tell them not to eat. Her whole body was full of bones, not much flesh, but she couldn't open her mouth. Before dying, So Lang Yen told his deputy: "Don't tell Tham Yen Tri." The deputy general cried and nodded in response. But now So Lang Yen regrets it. She was floating in mid-air, looking at this capital filled with joy, suddenly wanting Tham Yen Tri to know that she was dead. So Lang Yen was slashed three times by the Bac Di people, fell from the city wall, his ribs punctured his lungs, he could not breathe, and could not scream. But in the end, she still called his name. Tham Yen Tri, the last person they called was you, did you hear that? You don't hear. You are bowing to the road. "First bow to heaven and earth —" Hi Nuong's voice was both high and clear. Tham Yen Tri bowed down, with a smile on her face that So Lang Yen had never seen before, but had imagined countless times. It's funny to say it, three years ago So Lang Yen also wore a robe. The deputy commander of the forbidden army, Tong Truong Uyen, lifted her veil. The first thing he said was: "General Chu, you have suffered a loss." So Lang Yen replied: "Not really, just going through a ritual." The next day she rode horseback and left Imperial Palace. Before leaving, she looked back, the castle wall was empty, no one came to see her off. Later I heard people say that that day Tham Yen Tri stood on the citadel all day, just not letting So Lang Yen see him. Who knows how real or fake it is? Even if a knife is at his neck, he cannot say a pleasant sentence. At the age of thirteen, So Lang Yen fell and broke his leg. He carried her on his back and ran through three streets to find the doctor, scolding him endlessly along the way: "So Lang Yen, are you a pig?" At the age of fifteen, during the Thuong Nguyen Tet, he secretly stuffed a rabbit lamp into So Lang Yen's palm. As soon as she smiled, he immediately turned away: "Pick it up on the side of the road. Throw it away if you don't need it." So Lang Yen held it tightly along the way, not willing to let it go. When she was eighteen years old, at the palace banquet, someone laughed at her for being the daughter of a military general and not understanding poetry. He immediately threw the wine cup. "You guys have learned so much and understood so much, why don't you go to Bac Canh and preach to the barbarians?" The whole hall was abuzz. He turned to look at So Lang Yen again, opened his mouth and said: "So Lang Yen, in the future you should stop going to places like this and lose face." So Lang Yen knew Tham Yen Tri for thirteen years and argued for ten years. The things they say to each other the most are: "So Lang Yen, are you sick?", "Tham Yen Tri, do you want to die?", "Just wait, sooner or later I will deal with you", along with: "Come here, am I afraid of you?" But So Lang Yen could not wait for the day Tham Yen Tri would deal with her, but instead waited for a decree. That year, Bac Di invaded the border, leaving no one in civil and martial arts in the entire dynasty

Who dares to receive the marshal seal? She asked herself to go to war. Everyone looked at So Lang Yen like a crazy person. The saint was silent for a long time and then said: "So Lang Yen, you are a woman, you cannot lead soldiers, you can only go as a military commander. You must first get married, get married before you can leave, this is the rule of Dai Nghiep." So Lang Yen replied: "Yes, I will marry you." That day he received the order, the next day he worshiped, and on the third day he went to war. On the wedding night, in the fluttering red rose room, she wrote that letter to Tham Yen Tri. "You didn't expect it, right? This lady is one step ahead of you to enjoy happiness!" She wrote very arrogantly, very proud, each stroke of the pen was so strong that it almost punctured the paper. But So Lang Yen did not dare to write anything else. Don't dare write that she's about to go on an expedition, don't dare write that she might not return, and don't dare write: "Tham Yen Tri, can you come see me once?" It is said that after receiving the letter, Tham Yen Tri immediately tore it to pieces, not even caring about his face, turned to the So family's residence and scolded So Lang Yen. Three years in Bac Canh, seventeen battles, she regained three citadels. So Lang Yen learned how to bandage himself, learned how to sleep on horseback, learned how to warm himself through winter nights without lighting a fire, and also had a scar on his face. Actually, these things are not worth much. What annoys her the most is that every time she wins a battle and writes a letter home, she always adds one sentence at the end: His Highness Tham Yen Tri, how are you these days? Unfortunately, she never received a reply from Tham Yen Tri. Only later did So Lang Yen know that it was the Queen Mother's intention. The Queen Mother said: "The marriage of Tham Yen Tri is a state matter, we cannot let a female general guarding the border disrupt royal protocol." That's right. She is just a female general guarding the border, so how is she related to the heavenly prince? Before dying, So Lang Yen looked at the Northern Sky sky one last time. The sky was gray, thick clouds of heavy snow pressed down. She silently said in her heart: Tham Yen Tri, if one day you know I'm dead, don't be sad. I protect not your own country, but everyone's country, and you are just among "everyone". But So Lang Yen couldn't say it. In her entire life, she had never considered him "everyone". Tham Yen Tri is all of her teenage spirit, all of the words that are condescending, is every word hidden under more than ten years of quarrels. It was the smile he turned his head to when she chased and beat him at Quoc Tu Giam, it was the rabbit lantern during the Thuong Nguyen Tet that he said he "picked up on the side of the road". That was when he broke the wine cup at the palace banquet, then turned around and scolded her for losing face. That was when he forced So Lang Yen onto the fake mountain in Ngu Hoa Vien, gritted his teeth and said: "So Lang Yen, you just wait. When this palace is crowned king, the first person this palace will deal with will be you." The one who was speechless was never the only one. "Second high bow -" Tham Yen Tri helped the new princess turn around and bowed down to the emperor and sat on the throne. The Emperor gave him a wish-fulfilling jade, and the Queen rewarded him with a set of pure gold jewelry. Guests filling the hall all said that His Highness Seventh Highness and the new royal concubine were a match made in heaven. So Lang Yen hovered in mid-air, looking and thinking: Nonsense! He was wearing red that clearly looked like a boiled shrimp, where was the pair born in heaven? "Husband and wife bowing —" When Tham Yen Tri bowed his head, So Lang Yen suddenly remembered something. When she was sixteen years old, she had an argument with him. In anger, he said: "So Lang Yen, people like you can't get married in this life!" She immediately scolded: "Nonsense! If the old lady wants to get married, she will marry the best man in the world!" He laughed coldly: "Who? Tell me."

So Lang Yen replied: "Anyway, it's not you." Tham Yen Tri's face immediately changed. He turned around and left, not paying attention to her for three days. Only later did So Lang Yen know that that night he ran to find her father. He asked: "General So, what do you think the best man in the world should be?" Father So Lang Yen is also a good old man, deliberately saying: "At least he must be a prince." She didn't know if Tham Yen Tri took those words to heart or not. But now he is a prince, he is married to the most talented woman in the Imperial Capital, red silk is hung all over the city, and officials come to congratulate him. "Brought into the cave -" Tham Yen Tri held the new king's hand and turned around. Amid the cheers echoing throughout the hall, his steps suddenly stopped. So Lang Yen thought he discovered something, but he just tilted his head and looked towards the wedding door. With just one glance, I quickly closed my eyes. What is he looking at? Besides that little messenger, there was nothing in front of the door. The little soldier was still kneeling on the ground, looking awkward - he hadn't finished reading the war report yet, Grand Prince Tham Yen Hanh stopped him. "On the royal wedding day, don't ruin the joy!" The little soldier moved his lips, but in the end he still didn't dare to say the words "So Lang Yen has sacrificed his country". So Lang Yen flew in front of Tham Yen Tri, very close to him, so close that one could clearly count each eyelash. "Tham Yen Tri," she said, "I'm here, can you see me?" Of course he didn't. He held the new king's hand and walked across the threshold of the wedding hall. So Lang Yen stopped in place and did not follow. The messenger soldier was still kneeling outside the door, the war report in his hand was squeezed until it was wrinkled. Tham Yen Hanh looked at the soldier with red eyes and trembling lips. The war newspaper slipped through his fingers, fell to the ground, and was turned over by the wind. Tham Yen Hanh stepped on one foot, pinning that page firmly under the sole of his shoe. So Lang Yen was hovering in mid-air, looking at this scene, suddenly wanting to laugh. "Good step," she said, "don't let that kid Tham Yen Tri see it." Of course, Tham Yen Hanh did not hear So Lang Yen's words. He picked up the war report, folded it twice and stuffed it into his sleeve. Then he raised his head to look at Tham Yen Tri's back. There was no malice in those eyes. Just a senior brother, on behalf of my younger brother, to stop something that shouldn't be known today. The road from the wedding hall to the cave is paved with a red carpet. Tham Yen Tri held the hand of the new princess and walked on that path. So Lang Yen hovered in mid-air, looking at his back, thinking that she had been through this road before - once she got drunk, climbed the wall into his palace, and he shouted "go back to sleep", but his ears were as red as dahlia flowers. The door to the cave room opened, and the rose glowed brightly. The new princess sat down on the edge of the bed, her veil covering her face. Princess Hi handed over a golden scale: "Please, Your Royal Highness, lift your veil." Tham Yen Tri received the scale and slowly held it out. So Lang Yen stood behind him, deliberately saying: "Tham Yen Tri, if you lift it up, I will never pay attention to you again." Of course he didn't hear. They argued for ten years, every time they said "I don't care about you" they would still pay attention in the end. The only time she really didn't notice was the day she married someone else - he didn't come. The veil is lifted. The new princess raised her head, her eyes curved, gentle like the early spring breeze. Tham Yen Tri looked at her face and paused for a very short moment. In that moment, So Lang Yen seemed to see his eyes drift a bit - After drinking the wine, he happily retreated and the door closed. Hong Chuc exploded loudly. The new princess bowed her head and clenched her sleeves, while Tham Yen Tri went to the window and pushed it open. The night wind rushed in. He looked to the north. "What are you looking at, Your Majesty?" The new royal concubine was quiet

ask.