yes sire

Chapter 64 Separation

Xia Siyan didn't lose his temper, nor did he make a scene, but shook his head repeatedly and said, "No, I don't agree."

"Your Majesty," Han You said with reddened eyes, "We're just not together anymore, but I'm still here."

Xia Siyan gasped, and said with difficulty: "We're not together anymore...then what should I do?"

He looked so sad that Han You couldn't bear to watch it any longer, and his heart would soften if he continued to watch it.Han You closed his eyes, pressed his forehead against Xia Siyan's chest, and said softly, "You are still my Majesty."

Xia Siyan's chest heaved, tears gushed like mountain springs, "I don't want it."

"Your Majesty," Han You finally couldn't help crying, "I am grateful to Your Majesty for your grace, and I will be... heartbroken... to repay you with death..."

The sound of New Year's firecrackers overwhelmed the weeping of separation, and the sleepless lights lit up half the sky.

Another year has passed.

The first day of the first month of the ninth year of Zhaoxuan.

Civil and military officials arrived at the Huangji Hall before dawn, and lined up neatly to participate in the Lunar New Year Ceremony.As the sun rises, bells and drums ring on the Huiji Gate, and the ceremony and music to welcome the New Year resounds across the sky.

Standing in the line of officials, Han You saw the emperor wearing a black gown and a twelve-pronged crown on his head, sitting on the throne of the Huangji Hall.

The red and swollen eyes from crying have been covered with ice packs, and there is no trace of last night's embarrassment.He looked expressionlessly at the civil and military officials kneeling under Dan Chi, and he could recognize Han You at a glance without carefully distinguishing them.But when he looked at Han You, Han You lowered his head, and when Han You looked at him, he looked elsewhere.They didn't even look at each other until the end of the whole ceremony.

After the court, some officials who were close to the emperor stayed behind to present congratulatory forms, including all the cabinet ministers, except Han You who left early.

Han You went to Wu Mansion.

Wu Wenci no longer knew anyone, and seemed to have lost all memories of the past.But for some reason, since he heard the sound of firecrackers last night, he has been clamoring to change into an official uniform and enter the palace to celebrate the new year.

He held a solid yellow pear wood cane in his hand, and beat anyone who stopped him. The whole Wu Mansion was thrown into a frenzy by him, until Han You came to appease him.

Wu Shijie in the prison never dreamed that his father no longer remembered him, and he was still looking forward to the father of the court official to come to rescue him.

The emperor greeted him and locked him alone in the cell of a serious criminal. He was not allowed to visit or have contact with anyone. He was given three meals a day to ensure that he was alive, and there was not even anyone who interrogated him.After almost a month of this kind of life, he was already a little mentally disturbed.

Mrs. Wu spent a lot of money to pass the news to the prison, and a courageous jailer who wanted money and risked his life helped her bring the message to Wu Shijie.However, Wu Shijie didn't expect that after knowing that his father had become stupid, he felt hopeless and tried to commit suicide in prison.

The situation was reported to Hu Qimin, and Hu Qimin said, His Majesty has orders, and he must ensure that Wu Shijie is alive.Therefore, additional staff were sent in the prison to strictly guard him, so that Wu Shijie could continue to live like this.

Wu Wenci still remembered the name Wu Shijie, but he always recognized Han You as Wu Shijie, so Han You had to patiently tell him repeatedly that he was Han Jinglue.

Mrs. Wu had nothing to do with her stupid husband, and she couldn't see her son, so she fell ill on the first day of the new year.The Wu Mansion on Baishun Street, which used to be full of people during the New Year's Eve, was so deserted for the first time this year.

On the contrary, since the second day of junior high school, people have been queuing up to visit the Han Mansion to give gifts.Han San had never dealt with such a big scene before, and was so frightened that he was in a hurry. Fortunately, there was no trouble with Yunniang's help.

The news that the emperor intends to make Xia Siyi the crown prince and grant Han You the post of Taifu quietly spread in Beijing, and public opinion once again pushed Han You to the forefront.And he didn't explain it, and let people talk about it behind their backs.

On the day of Shangxin, Han Youcai saw Xia Siyan again.

It is the most important sacrifice of the year to pray for the valley on Xinri in the first month.When Han You was still in the palace, he saw that the emperor had been making preparations for this matter. At that time, Xia Siyan joked with him that he would fast and forbid sexual intercourse three days before the ceremony of offering sacrifices to heaven. I made it.

These details of the past were quietly buried in his memory, and they would pop up from time to time to sting him. He had no time to defend himself, and he had nowhere to hide.

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The altar was too high and too far away, and the procedure of the ceremony was extremely cumbersome and complicated. Han You and other officials stood together in the square outside the Great Sacrifice Hall, unable to see the emperor's face clearly.

Taichang Temple plays music according to the procedure of the ceremony. Everyone has a pious face, keeps their hearts clean, and salutes appropriately, in order to seek the gods and bless the coming year with good weather and a good harvest.

However, Xia Siyan, who was kneeling in front of the god's throne, thought deviantly, if he prayed to heaven for Han You to come back to him at this time, he wondered if his wish would come true.

It was too busy today, and there were so many people, officials from the Ministry of Rites and Taichang Temple surrounded him all the time, and he didn't even have the chance to take a look at Han You from a distance in the crowd.

It has been six days, and this time he really felt what it means to live like a year.

"Stay in Beijing" is Han You's last concession.Xia Siyan originally thought that as long as Han You was still by his side, he would have a way to coax him back.But Han You was too calm during this time, so calm that Xia Siyan felt that he had really lost him.

After the sacrificial ceremony, besides the palace banquet of the Lantern Festival, there is another very important day - the twelfth day of the first lunar month is Xia Siyan's birthday, which is the Longevity Festival.

During Emperor Jing's period, due to the country's financial difficulties, he ordered the abolition of the tradition of birthday gifts and banquets for all officials.

Han You's notebook was handed over to the emperor on the [-]th day of the first lunar month. The emperor knew that Han You would not write anything else in it. The content must be correct and serious, and the format must be precise and rigorous. It can be used as a template for a congratulatory form.But he still read carefully from the end to the end, as if he could trace back the way Han You wrote them from the strokes.

In the following days, Han You was as upright and rigorous as this congratulatory letter.When toasting Xia Siyan at the Lantern Festival banquet, his gaze and tone were all respectful and unfamiliar.

Feng Ke went to send word that His Majesty invited him to sit in the warm pavilion after the banquet. He said he was not feeling well and left before the banquet was over.

But being unwell is no excuse.

The dull pain that occurred in his stomach when talking to Xia Siyan gradually deepened as time passed, and finally the pain was so painful that he couldn't stand upright, and Li Tian helped him back home.

Yuan Zheng was ordered to come to see him in the Han Mansion. He asked Yuan Zheng if there was any medicine that could relieve the pain of missing him. Yuan Zheng said that the emperor had also asked this question, but the lovesickness had no solution.

Exclusive

However, before they had time to recover from the torment of separation, the battle reports sent back from the north left them no time to take care of their own pain.

Fifteen days ago, Beichang secretly surrendered to Baihui, and Baihui sent troops to help Beichang attack Zhaoguo.On the day of Shangxin, Baihui raided in the early morning, and the Northern Expeditionary Army suffered a disastrous defeat. Yu Sixian's eldest son died in battle, and the three counties of Changzhou fell.

The cannon that Xia Siyan planned to use to talk to Baihui on an equal footing has not yet been built, and Baihui has already approached the city.

On the nineteenth day of the first lunar month, there was a fierce quarrel between the main combat faction and the main peace faction.The war faction believes that Baihui has been entrenched in the north for many years, and it is precisely because of their support that Beichang dared to attack repeatedly.Baihui regards Beichang Kingdom as a stone to throw stones to ask the way, and finally finds out the truth and reality, and finally ends by himself.

The Zhuhe faction believes that Baihui State attacked Zhao State because Zhao State was too aggressive in the battle with Beichang, which put Beichang in danger of subjugation.Originally, Beichang served as a buffer zone between Baihui and Zhaoguo, maintaining a delicate balance between the two great powers for many years, but Zhaoguo's onslaught broke this balance and made Baihui feel threatened.

It is true that Baihui Kingdom surpasses Zhaoguo in terms of land area and military strength, but long-term combat is always a dilemma that Baihui Army cannot overcome. Taking a chance to breathe, the peace faction sees this as a signal that the dispute can be resolved with moderate diplomatic means.

However, in the beginning, the Northern Expedition Army won Taishun. This failure was attributed to Baihui's cunning raid and Yu Sixian's accidental mistakes. In addition, tens of thousands of Zhao soldiers damaged the battlefield, and the sentiment of revenge was high among the people. , the war faction finally won the debate.

In early February, Zhenxi General Zhang Zhouhan led an army of 20 to the northern border for support.

In mid-March, the first batch of giant cannons produced by craftsmen working day and night were transported to the north by land.

Because of the war, the financial expenditure in the first quarter has exceeded [-]% of the total budget for the year, and the tax money recovered from opening up for business is simply a drop in the bucket.Seeing that the hole in the deficit was getting bigger and bigger, Han You and Xia Siyan quarreled several times in front of civil and military officials at the court meeting.

After every quarrel, Xia Siyan would call him Han Aiqing, and Han You would sometimes answer "Yes, Your Majesty".

At the end of April, the Northern Army ran out of food and grass, and began to use Changping warehouses in several nearby states.

In mid-May, a large-scale drought occurred in the twelve prefectures of Zhaoguo. The people rushed to complete the summer harvest before the crops withered, but there was still no rain until July, and the time for summer planting had been completely missed.

Rumors of food shortages in autumn and winter caused panic among the people, and food prices soared.

Han You cut off all other expenses except military expenses to protect the people's livelihood. In September, the imperial court could not even pay officials' salaries.Xia Siyan reduced the royal family's expenses, disbanded the bell and drum division, stopped all entertainment, halved the palace expenses, and even deducted a meal of beef from Xueqiu.

Even so, it barely lasted until October.Since mid-October, the number of victims of starvation in various places has been reported to the capital every five days, and the number has been rising every time.

The Northern Expedition Army and Baihui fought for more than half a year. Yu Sixian and Zhang Zhouhan split into two groups to drive Baihui out of the country of Zhao. The two armies faced off outside the city of Changzhou in the north.

Baihui learned of the famine situation in Zhaoguo, and expressed his willingness to negotiate peace, hoping that Zhaoguo would show enough sincerity.

The condition they offered was to open a treaty port in Changzhou, and sell Zhaoguo's unique tea, wine, porcelain and silk to Baihui at the price they demanded.

This condition is similar to robbery, but the economy of Zhao Kingdom has been dragged down by the war, and the foundation of the country has been shaken.

On November 50th, Han You was on night duty in the cabinet. He copied the death toll from the famine reported by the local government on a piece of paper. More than [-] people died of starvation across the country, more than the number of soldiers who died on the battlefield.

When he arrived at the desk, he felt a pain in his stomach and asked the handyman to pour some hot water for him.Standing up with support on the table, suddenly there was darkness in front of my eyes, the world was spinning, my ears were buzzing, I shook a few times and couldn't stand still, and passed out.

I don't know how long he slept, but he slept very warmly and comfortably, with a reassuring smell surrounding him, making him want to indulge in this dream and not want to wake up.He reached out and touched the silky satin quilt, only to realize suddenly that it was not his own quilt. He opened his eyes and found himself lying on the bed in the Changle Palace bedroom.

Xia Siyan sat on the edge of the bed and looked at him, and asked softly like before: "You woke up, do you feel better?"

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I am so sad to write this chapter, I must write a super sweet after they reunite!At that time, it will be posted on @二师叔

Smart friends, guess where Mr. Han is going in the next chapter~

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