Chapter 383 “Their Regret”
“Okay, let’s go home,” taking her son’s hand, Bai Yan raises a beautiful smile before leaving this uncomfortable place.
“Ahumph,” Zheng Qi (first elder) was the first to break the silence with his cough, “Yan Yan, you go ahead, we will come find you afterwards when we are done wrapping things up here.”
“Okay,” turning back to face his shifus, “I will be at the Lan House so you can find me there.”
……
With the departure of Bai Yan’s family – Di Cang included – the crowd once again broke out into an uproar.
There’s certainly some elations and surprises among the people, but more were regretting their past decisions right now. If only they knew Bai Yan’s identity then they never would’ve backed Lu Zifeng.
Sadly for them, their choices had been made and it cannot be retracted. Now, because of an expelled disciple of the Holy Land, they have directly offended the disciple of the three chief elders of the Holy Land. A total loss no matter how one weighs it!
“Queen Mother.” Awkwardly coming before his mother the Dowager, Nangong Yuan uses a whispering voice to plead: “Can you help me ask for forgiveness from Bai Yan? If we can purchase the Dan pills from her then surely our Liu Huo kingdom would grow exponentially in strength.”
Issuing out a disappointed smile at her son, the old queen could only shake her head in refusal: “I’m sure you are aware of the lass’s character by now. Pleading? My son, you must take responsibility for your own choices.”
“But…” Nangong Yuan (king) attempts to defend himself with an excuse, “I was afraid the Holy Land would turn their anger at the Liu Huo kingdom if I stepped in, that’s why I didn’t dare to testify. Queen Mother, you have always treated Lan Yue as your own daughter. Now that Bai Yan’s relationship is this good with you, I’m sure she would listen to you.”
This only made the old queen even more disappointed. Issuing out a helpless laugh, she closes her eyes in response: “Bai Yan already spared our Liu Huo kingdom because of me; otherwise, why do you think she didn’t do anything to the royal family? Now you also want me to go persuade her to sell us her Dan pills? My son, would you help someone that had wanted to put a knife in your back?”
Nangong Yuan’s face instantly went stiff at that last part because he wouldn’t. Dropping his head, he begins to go into a deep contemplation on his next move.
Finally, after a good minute of deep thoughts, he eventually raises his head as if he’s decided something extremely important. “Someone come, spread the word to the entire kingdom. My crown will be handed to my seventh son Nangong Zhun immediately.”
Due to the man not bothering to hide his voice, every word could be heard for the audience here, thus sending them into a shocking uproar.
That’s right, they are shocked because Nangong Yuan wasn’t setting up a new crown prince, but rather he’s directly passing on his throne to his seventh son instead!
Then again, this shouldn’t be all that unexpected if these people thought about it. Simply making the young child as the crown prince of this nation wouldn’t bring any benefit to the kingdom because they would still be barred from the Flower Brothel. But if the lad becomes king then that’s a different story!
Bai Yan’s the shifu of Nangong Zhun, though she’s never truly taught the child anything and was a terrible example of a teacher, she’s still a shifu in name. There’s no way a shifu would want their disciple to be in a bad position.
“Queen Mother, from this day forward Zhun will be king and I will retire to the summer villa. It’s been hard over the years and I feel like its time I took some rest.” From Nangong Yuan’s (king) eyes came a never before seen level of fatigue. It’s as if the words alone had deflated his entire body of life.
If his abdication will allow Bai Yan to sway in her decision of blacklisting the Liu Huo kingdom then that’s good enough. Zhun was his son and that fact will never change. Besides, it’s not like his living standards will suddenly change just because he’s no longer king.
“My dear, what’s your take on this decision?” Instead of trying to comfort his son over the loss, the old queen only had her attention on the young child.
Staying silent for a good while, Nangong Zhun didn’t answer right away. He would’ve definitely taken up the offer if it was the past him; however, his heart no longer held much desire for that position after all that he’s experienced.
“Grandmother, I only want to follow Shifu around and protect Xiachen. Aside from that, I want nothing else.” Raising little head, Zhun’s expression had never been so clear and precise. It’s obvious he’s made up his mind on this and doesn’t intend to change it.
“Okay,” the Dowager happily pats the child on the shoulder, “Granny is very proud of you and supports anything you decide. Remember, no matter what occurs in the future you mustn’t forget what you said today. Without Xiachen and your shifu then there would be no you today. A person cannot forget the kindness of others, especially with the level of help they gave you. Do you understand Granny’s words?”