Outside, the kind words of a few maids put Li Xia's furrowed brow at ease somewhat. Li Xia was not affected by the matter involving Lin Meizhen. Instead, she was troubled by what Zhou Heng had written in his letter.
Zhou Heng's letter stated that Prince YongKang had secretly arrived in Yuzhou and had seized control there, preparing to launch a rebellion. Since Liuzhou was next to Yuzhou, Prince YongKang's rebellion would certainly attack Liuzhou.
After verifying this information, Zhou Heng passed it on to Li Ming, sending an urgent letter to Li Xia as well. Upon receiving the letter, Li Xia had already responded to Zhou Heng, instructing him to provide those weapons to Li Ming as reinforcements. She had also asked Zhou Heng to protect Li Ming and Mrs. Lu.
In the past decade or so of her life, this was the first time Li Xia did not know what to do. Should she inform Li Hui and Li Xin about the situation in Liuzhou, or keep it from them?
While Li Xia wavered, the situation quickly changed. At dawn, hurried knocking rang out in Osmanthus Alley, waking up the gatekeeper Li Er from his sleep. Throwing on some clothes and dragging his feet, he sleepily emerged from the house, yawning and muttering, "Coming, coming, coming."
As he unlatched the door while still grumbling, "Who is it, knocking so early in the morning," he opened it to see the person standing outside. Li Er couldn't help but rub his eyes, leaving his yawning mouth agape.
Hearing the noise, Zhao Pan came over and exclaimed in surprise, "Chunlu Granny, why have you come to the Capital City?"
"Zhao Pan, the lady has arrived. Go and inform the young master and young ladies," Chunlu Granny's words left the steward Zhao astonished. He instructed the servants to quickly open the main gate and welcome Mrs. Lu and her party inside.
Puzzled as to why Mrs. Lu had come without any prior indication, he wondered if something had happened in Liuzhou. As he gestured for someone to quickly notify the heads of the various residences, he pondered what could have occurred.
Awakened by the commotion, Li Xia noticed Mrs. Lu's arrival and wore a faint expression of "finally, she's here." Fortunately, it was dim inside, so Qiu Shui did not catch Li Xia's expression.
Mrs. Lu's arrival left everyone in Osmanthus Alley astonished. Qiu Shui brought out clothes, urging Li Xia to get up while instructing the three handmaidens, "Young Miss, get up quickly. Qiu Chan, is the hot water for washing ready? Bring it over. Qiu Kui, help me dress the Young Miss. Qiu Ling, comb the Young Miss's hair."
Qiu Chan brought the hot water and wrung out a towel to wipe Li Xia's face. Qiu Kui and Qiu Shui helped Li Xia dress, while Qiu Ling attended to her hair. Once dressed, Qiu Chan handed Li Xia a cup of hot tea to refresh herself.
Leaving her bedroom, Li Xia saw Auntie Mei's solemn expression. Auntie Mei approached, took Li Xia's hand, and said, "Let's go and pay our respects to the lady." Auntie Mei's hand felt cold.
Holding Li Xia's hand tightly, Auntie Mei led her to the main hall. Even before entering, they could hear sobbing from inside – the voices of Auntie An, Aunt Wang, and Li Shan.
Auntie Mei seemed to recall something, her complexion turning pale. Li Xia steadied her, whispering, "Auntie, I'm here. Everything will be alright."
Regaining her composure, Auntie Mei gazed at Li Xia beside her and said, "Let's go in."
Entering the room, they saw the travel-worn Mrs. Lu seated in the main position, tears streaming down her face, with Li Xin supporting her, her eyes also red. Li Chou and Li Guang sat silently at the lower seats, heads bowed. Auntie An, Aunt Wang, and Li Shan were wailing loudly.
Some major incident must have occurred for everyone to be crying like this. Auntie Mei grew even more fearful, glancing around and noticing Li Hui's absence. Where was the eldest young master? Just as she was about to speak, Li Xia's voice rang out.
"Auntie, please go to the kitchen and prepare some food for Mother and the other aunties." Li Xia's words broke the melancholic atmosphere in the room.
"At a time like this, you still want to eat? You really are heartless," Auntie An snapped at Li Xia.
"That's right, Mei Jie, how did you raise this child? She has no sense at all," Aunt Wang chimed in.
Li Xia ignored Auntie An and Aunt Wang, her gaze fixed on Mrs. Lu. "Mother, I don't know what has happened, but I do know that crying won't solve anything. What we need to do now is compose ourselves and find a way to resolve the situation, no matter how difficult it may be."
After many days apart, Li Xia had changed a great deal. Or perhaps she hadn't changed at all, merely not shown her true self before. Under Li Xia's firm gaze, Mrs. Lu collected herself, wiping away her tears. "Auntie Mei, please arrange for breakfast. Liu Xiao and Zi Juan, assist me in washing up."
Auntie Mei bowed and left, but not before casting a worried glance at Li Xia, who gave her a reassuring look in return.
"My lady, you..." The others looked at Mrs. Lu, uncomprehending.
"The second young lady is right. Crying won't solve anything. Since the master has run into trouble, we must find a way to rescue him and Liuzhou." Mrs. Lu rose and instructed those seated, "All of you, go and freshen up as well. With the master absent from the Capital City, we must protect the Li family." They exchanged glances and left, accompanied by servants to help them wash up.
Li Xia turned to Li Xin. "Sister, where is Brother?"
"Brother has gone to Beining Marquis Manor," Mrs. Lu explained. Upon her arrival, she had immediately recounted the situation to Li Hui. As military matters were involved, Beining Marquis Manor would have more pertinent information.
Prince YongKang had fled with his men to the neighboring Yuzhou and caused unrest there, seizing control and amassing forces to attack Liuzhou.
Li Ming had received advance warning and, as the governor of Liuzhou, could not abandon his post. However, he could not let his wife and children stay and face death with him.
He had arranged for Commander Wang to escort the two families' women and children away from Liuzhou. After reaching the Provincial Capital, Commander Wang's family refused to leave, choosing to wait there for him.
Mrs. Lu had also intended to wait in the Provincial Capital, but Li Ming did not feel it was safe for them there. Before leaving Liuzhou, he had secretly instructed his men to ensure they were sent to the Capital City.
Traveling non-stop, they had arrived in the Capital City last night but could not enter as the gates were closed, so they waited outside until this morning to gain entry. Recounting this, Li Xin's tears fell again. "How could this happen? We don't know if Father is alright, or what will become of Liuzhou."
"I believe Father will be fine. Don't cry. We must find a way to help him," Li Xia consoled Li Xin.
"But how?" Li Xin truly could not think of anything they could do. This was a matter of war – how could they in the Capital City aid their father so far away in Liuzhou?
"The imperial court will definitely send troops to aid us, and father will surely be able to hold on," Li Xia believed that the Emperor would not allow Liuzhou to be occupied by Prince YongKang. Beyond Liuzhou lay a vast expanse of plains, with no advantageous terrain to impede Prince YongKang's army.
If Liuzhou fell, the Capital City would be in grave danger. Li Xia did not believe that after Prince YongKang was rescued, the Emperor had made no preparations. For now, it all depended on whether Liuzhou could hold out until reinforcements arrived.
"When will the imperial court be able to dispatch troops?" Li Xin asked anxiously, wishing the imperial court would send soldiers immediately.
"That's what we need to consider, we must make the imperial court send troops as soon as possible," Li Xia echoed Li Xin's sentiment.
"But how do we make them act quickly?"
