678 The Prophecy
Night comes. Even from the bright sun until it was pitch dark, the sound of excited screams still resounded loudly from the large square located beside the Wah Ye palace building. The oil lamps had been raised, and a giant bonfire had been lit before long.
The field was changed in such a way that so many young people and bare-chested men were pulling huge logs with all their might. Some even fell because they were not strong enough. All seemed to have been doing forced labor without stopping.
The sound of the palace guards’ long whipping sounded loudly on the backs of the young men who were half exhausted.
“Stand up! Don’t stop, keep going, pull! Pull!”
Screams were heard. The malnutrition body of workers with almost left skin and bones only. Whipped hard by the thick lashes as if they were just wild horses.
“Hurry, stand up!” some of the young workers fall on the muddy ground having almost no left power in their thin bodies. Some just resigned their body to be hit because of being extremely exhausted.
“Please let us rest, we’re so tired”
The building is so tall that it almost reaches the skies, and that’s not even half of it. The shape was octagonal with the center part hollow, just like the pagoda but had different details.
From the Palace complex, some maids were seen walking with a woman at the front. Who else but Queen Yu Yan, accompanied by her old advisor the white-haired woman who was often near her? The Queen’s long gown, which used to be known as one of the King’s favorite concubines, was so long that it swept the dirty floor of the construction area of ??a tall towering building in the middle of the field. The woman looked up at the half-finished building that was planned to have thirty floors.
.....
“Hey, it’s been twenty days, isn’t my offering table finished yet? These children work very lazily” the woman slowly walked and sat in the chair her bodyguards had provided.
“Miss, the offering table faces the middle of the sky, for the table itself it can only be built when the magic shaman recites the spell and gathers natural energy on a certain night, and they haven’t said when it is, Miss.”
Empress Yu Yan pursed her mouth.
“That’s so annoying, but it’s the most important part of the building. I can’t wait to see if Aunt Mo Yan’s scroll prediction is true. This is the day I’ve been waiting for twenty years.”
Aunt Hu looked far ahead to where the forced laborers, the young people caught by the palace soldiers were gathered for forced labor. There should have been more of them than this if it weren’t for the Queen having other plans for the young ones.
“Miss, the eastern sky is orange, the west is Green and red, according to the prophecy,, those auras will appear in Wah Ye’s sky when that happens. The Shaman had somehow predicted it quite accurately. How can a clear sky cast such colors?”
Queen Yu Yan nodded.
“Then, aunt, this is a perfect time. I’ve been itching to do this since a long time ago.”
Not long after, a young man, head bodyguard approached and lowered his body in front of the Queen.
“Report, Your Majesty, there is a letter sent directly to Your Majesty,” said the man stretching out his hands forward handing over a scroll of brown letters with a seal she recognized.
Queen glanced at the old woman beside her to take it.
“Aunt Hu”
The woman took the scroll from the young warrior’s hand and allowed the soldier to stand up and fall back into position.
The white-haired woman unrolled and read it.
“Miss, this is a letter from Prince Yen Hui, he said that Prince Fang Li is in his custody, and he intends to do negotiation to exchange him with His Majesty the King.”
Queen Yu Yan, who was watching the construction process of the building, grinned. She glanced at the woman for a moment.
“Hey, that kid, dared to negotiate with me, what right does he have to ask me to negotiate with him, a yesterday afternoon kid”
The white-haired old woman handed the letter to the Queen.
“But Miss, he said Prince Fang Li is in his hands, won’t you do anything to release him?”
Queen Yu Yan looked at the old lady for a moment, frowning.
“Why should I exchange that stupid child with the King, was he that desperate? That kid doesn’t even deserve me to exchange him for my gold, just let him be”
“Miss, but Prince Fang Li is your son after all”
Empress Yu Yan waved her hand.
“Come on Aunt Hu, you and I know that he is the son of that ugly old man and a palace maid, He is nothing for me. Who wants to admit a child with an ugly face like that? If it now for that King to let me stay here Oh, that was really troublesome, it’s good that he’s out of the palace now”
Aunt Hu widened her eyes, the maids could have heard her.
“Miss” but the Queen did not seem to care.
Queen Yu Yan instead pointed at the towering building in the middle of the field.
“Auntie, dont talk about that brat again. I’m not so in a mood to think about that. I want the building to be completed before the night of the red full moon this month, I don’t want to miss this most precious opportunity. The offering table must be finished before that time. Oh yeah,” the woman turned to her advisor. Look at the scroll in the woman’s hand.
“This is a good chance, tell that stinky kid, if he wants his old and ugly Father to get out of here, he has to do something for me”
Aunt Hu, the old lady looked at Queen Yu Yan with doubtful eyes.
“But Miss, I don’t think this is a good idea, I’m worried, just like what the Shaman also predicted, if...”
Empress Yu Yan raised one hand.
“How many times should I tell you Auntie, that can’t be happen. Stop thinking ridiculously like that. Tell the shamans to immediately perform the ritual or whatever they need to start building the offering table, it’s taking too long, should I wait until it’s too late? They really getting so cocky”
She look at her advisor with big eyes.
“You think that I, the excellent and magnificent, perfect Queen Yu Yan, can be defeated by that ill-fated child? Hey, don’t be joking Auntie, that old shaman probably ate something wrong before saying such ridiculous things. I just need to increase my spell on him and he could die in a very painful way, but, he is too dear to be killed, look at his sweet face, heh, too bad,” continued Yu Yan.
Queen Yu Yan took out something from her sleeve, a small red bottle with very beautiful carvings. The size of the bottle was no more than her pinkie, looking at it as if it was her most precious thing.
“Tell him, if he doesn’t do what I ask before the full moon, I will hang his father’s body in front of the palace gate, let their king be a spectacle for his people, that will be so perfect”
Aunt Hu widened her eyes, but the old lady didn’t dare to argue anymore, she lowered her head.
“Yes, Your Majesty”
.......
The sun peeps shyly behind the densest trees, the wind gently blows the bamboo’s stem swaying it in the most romantic way. The weather is so fine that even the sunlight feels so soft when it hit directly on the skin’s surface.
Luo Xiang stopped his track, seeing Bai Ying who sleep soundly on the long bamboo couch on the front porch still at Sheng Li’s residence. The sound of a waterfall not far from the hut as if a lullaby makes everyone feel so calm and tired easily, lazy to do anything else.
Luo Xiang stops and lowers his body right at Bai Ying who sleeps in a sideways position, with his face now in front of Luo Xiang. He can’t hide his smile, just to see that very delicate and sweet innocent face.
Slowly, gently as to not wake him up, Luo Xiang raises his hand and touches Bai Ying’s soft and reddish cheek, so smooth that even his rough hand was not worth touching it.
It’s been days since they decided to stay there waiting for the news from Yen Hui. As their original plan, was to send them a letter or any sign if they really need it. With Song Ma Yi and Wang Xiao Ye with them, they both should be fine. They have been waiting, this is too long and too calm, what is that Queen planning for?
And since Bai Ying’s condition is still not very good, even if he wants it too, Bai Ying can’t help Sheng Li to take his blood to forge the Divine sword. The sword itself was ready, just need the last most important ingredient left, his blood.
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Slowly, Bai Ying who feel the soft touch on his cheek opened his eyes and smiled at the Crown Prince.
“Your Majesty”
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