Chapter 714 - To Sob
After staying in the villa in Tanggu Town for two days, Yu Xiaocao and her husband traveled back to the capital with the escort of a thousand soldiers from the Firearms Barracks. The journey was uneventful and took only a short three days complete. Naturally, this was the stretch of the journey that was most vulnerable to attack.
If the enemy didn't bring a large number along, then it wouldn't be an issue. After all, with the two great experts, Imperial Prince Xu and Chief Steward Su, along it'd be difficult for anyone to gain the upper hand. However, if the traitors from the previous dynasty decided to use the tactic of flooding them with people who were willing to use suicidal tactics, they'd be hard pressed to protect the now already four-month pregnant Xiaocao.
Thus, when the emperor got notice that the party had reached shore, he had sent out the Firearms Barracks to escort these two important officials back. The thousand or so soldiers from the Firearms Barracks were led by the second-in-command and they arrived in a grand manner to the Tanggu Harbor. If people didn't know better, they would have thought that a large-scale battle had broken out at the docks!
With the fierce and well-equipped soldiers escorting them, the enemy naturally wouldn't try to attack them in vain and end up dying for no reason. Thus, they had a relatively quiet journey back to the capital. The carriage that Xiaocao sat in had also been especially prepared for her. The shock absorption had been upgraded and all of the furnishings were renovated in order to increase her comfort to the max. Even with these accommodations, Xiaocao still slept heavily for two days after getting to the capital before she finally felt like herself again.
As the imperial envoy, she naturally needed to report on her mission after arriving back. Yu Xiaocao donned her official's attire and appeared at court with the swell of her pregnant belly visible under her clothing. As she greeted the emperor, Zhu Junfan personally came down from the dais and bent over to support this interesting official.
Yu Xiaocao, on the other hand, didn't stand up and instead hugged the emperor's calf as she wept loudly, "Your Imperial Majesty ah--this official almost died and wouldn't be able to see you again. Wah wah wah...it's not important whether I die or not but this official hasn't finished her dream of seeing rice paddies that produce a thousand catties per mu, allowing the people of the empire to be able to not starve anymore. Even if this official died, I wouldn't be able to close my eyes out of regret--wah wah wah!"
Zhu Junyang didn't expect that the little lass would play this type of scenario. His phoenix eyes bugged out in shock and he stared fixedly at the calf that his wife was hugging in a furious manner--he needed to chop that leg off ah!
The emperor: 'You dare! This is plotting to harm the ruler! Think again and open up those dumb eyes of yours! Your wife is holding onto us, why don't you chop off your wife's hands instead of our leg?'
Zhu Junyang: 'Can't bear to hurt her!'
The emperor: 'You can't bear to hurt your wife but you're okay with hurting us?! You're truly our good official and good cousin!'
When the officials in the court saw this scene, they couldn't help but feel tears stinging their eyes. Originally, the report that Imperial Prince Xu sent back had seemed a bit exaggerated as he had described Yu Xiaocao's wounds in a pitiful manner. Now, when they saw her obviously pregnant self, crying like a child, they suddenly realized that the imperial envoy was only a young eighteen year old lady. Furthermore, she was also the mother of an unborn child.
In addition, this mother who almost lost her child was sobbing, not because she had become injured or that she had almost had a miscarriage, but because if she had died at this time, she'd be letting down the country's experimental fields and all of the empire's people. The officials who had gotten word that the imperial envoy and Imperial Prince Xu had been using her time in the south injudiciously to travel and play around now felt guilty that they had planned on making things difficult for them at court.
