27 Long Time No See, the Great City (1/2)
Chapter 27: Long Time No See, the Great City
Translator: TransnEditor: Transn
Ning Que was awakened by a sudden pain, with his pupils filled with horrification. He unbuttoned his shirt and started groping his chest, but all he could feel was sweat instead of a broken heart hanging on the cracking breastbones. Relieved, he patted himself on the chest and slowed down his breathing.
He turned to stare at Sangsang, who was still sound asleep. He looked at the little bead of sweat on Sangsang's small nose, suddenly feeling that it was a blessing to be alive.
He didn't plan to tell Sangsang, or anyone else, about the horrifying nightmare he had just dreamed. As it made him awful to merely recall a small portion of the dream, he decided to forget about it.
The rough carriage started to travel again with the squeaky noise made by its wheels the next day. It followed the cavalries team, which kept growing larger, to move southwards. Around ten in the morning, the team stopped at a small village near Chang'an. A messenger from the capital, who represented the entire official court and complex rituals, had already been waiting for the princess for the past few days.
Ning Que jumped off the shaft of his carriage and stood by the side of the cheering crowd. He glared into the sky at the border of town. There was a hint of a dark gray structure of a city. Nevertheless, it was so far away that he could not see it clearly even if he had squinted his eyes. Ning Que guessed in his mind—it must be Chang'an.
The intricate and fancy guards of honor started to move forwards slowly. However, the young master and the little handmaiden were not asked to follow this time.
Ning Que and Sangsang stood on the sidewalk and watched the fancy carriage slowly pass them. The window was closed tightly. Ning Que thought of the bonfire as he was thinking about the princess and the little prince of the Tribe of Savages sitting inside the carriage. He could not help touching his face and smiled.
The corner of the curtain of the fourth horse carriage was lifted as it passed them. Lyu Qingchen combed his white beard and smiled at Ning Que. Ning Que bowed deeply in return.
The bodyguards and grassland barbarians made obeisances to Ning Que for farewell without dismounting from their horses when they passed by Ning Que. Guilty smiles appeared on their faces. The guard of honor of the empire was strictly managed. Although the bodyguards' leader, Peng Guotao, was expected to have a great future back to Chang'an, he didn't dare to show any emotions in front of the court officials. As for the several grassland barbarians, they were relieved after bidding farewell to Ning Que as they began to imagine the happy life in prosperous Chang'an, without the wood-chopper around Shubi Lake.
The cavalries from the Gushan Commandery, who were assigned to go last, observed the surroundings with caution. Their leader, Senior Captain Hua Shanyue, rode the horse with one hand and gave a glance at Ning Que. Then he sped up as if he had not even noticed Ning Que. Of course, he might have forgotten about this nobody totally.
Ning Que did not care much about the Hua Shanyue's attitude. Afterall, he was the son of a high-class noble family and the most outstanding leader among the younger generation of the Tang's military in Chang'an. In contrary, Ning Que was only a commoner in the lowest class since he had left the army. Even if he were lucky enough to get into the academy, he would still merely be at the bottom of the Empire's court officials. He would have nothing to do with this Senior Captain Hua Shanyue, who had been hostile towards Ning Que and even wanted to kill him.