Chapter 93: Going Home

A wu followed Yehan, riding southward all the way, heading toward her hometown.  

Actually, from the moment they set out, she hardly dared to believe it—could Emperor Jingxi really have truly let her go?  

At first, she did lose her memory, but then it came back.

After recovering, she thought she might as well keep pretending—pretend to be foolish, maybe then he would give up on her.  

Later, when he allowed her to see Yehan, she felt at ease.

Then he said he would let her leave.  

Everything happened so suddenly that she hardly believed it, but through the dusty journey, she gradually settled her heart.  

She confirmed he would not come after them; he really had let her and Yehan go.  

A wu recalled that last night.

She thought, he must have finally despaired, completely giving up on her.  

As she thought this, she raised her hand and let her fingertips touch her neck, where she felt the man’s ring finger guard.  

This guard had once been worn day and night on his hand—it was part of the emperor himself.  

To A wu, the ring meant imperial power; it represented that man’s cruelty and ruthlessness.  

But now, he had taken it off and hung it around her neck.  

A wu vaguely remembered him whispering something softly by her ear, but she couldn’t recall what it was.  

She took a deep breath and thought, enough—let all of that be in the past.

No matter what, she had to go home.

She had to go home somehow.  

At that moment, she recalled the map Emperor Jingxi had once shown her.  

On that “Map of the Eastern Sea Territory,” the Great Hui bordered the Eastern Sea with a mountain called Jia Yue.

Beyond Jia Yue Mountain and Chixia Islet, after three days of day-and-night travel, there was an open land.

There lay Wanniu Mountain, and beneath Wanniu Mountain stretched fertile land all the way to the Eastern Sea coast.  

Her hometown was there, a place called Xiniu Village.

Now, she and Yehan were rushing toward Xiniu Village—their hometown.  

After several days of travel, both of them oblivious to fatigue, one midday A wu finally saw under the vast blue sky the faint outline of mountain peaks.  

Yehan said, “A wu, look, that’s Wanniu Mountain!”  

A wu leaned against Yehan’s chest, gazing at the almost reflective mountaintop, her eyes moist.  

“We’re back!”  

Feeling her excitement, Yehan held her hand tightly and said, “Things here have changed, but we can go back and see.”  

A wu gripped his hand in return, choking back tears.

“It’s alright. I understand. I just want to come back to see our home, and my mother. I have to sweep her grave.”  

Yehan nodded, “Okay.”  

They continued forward and soon encountered travelers—mostly locals from the Wanniu Mountain area, but also some seafarers and merchants passing through.

Seeing all this, A wu’s excitement grew.  

The locals mostly wore straw sandals and wooden clogs, their clothes made of ramie or banana fiber.

Occasionally, a scholar or official wore boots, which was very different from the opulence of the Imperial Capital.  

But looking at all this, A wu only felt familiar and warm.  

At that moment, the sea breeze blew in, moist and salty.

A wu murmured, “Brother Ye Han, we’re home.”  

Yehan wrapped an arm around her waist, pursing his lips as he looked at the distant mountain peaks.

“Yes, we’re home.”  

Deep down, he sensed that what A wu would see next would bring disappointment and pain, but he didn’t know how to tell her or comfort her.  

He could only say, “Once we get home, we’ll get married. A wu, I’ll work hard and earn a lot of money. I’ll make sure you live a good life. When we’re wealthy enough, we’ll find your father and brothers.”  

A wu nodded.  

At that moment, some passersby glanced at them curiously.

Even though they had changed their clothes, they still stood out on the road.  

Yehan led A wu down a secluded path, riding swiftly toward their Xiniu Village.  

Although they had expected this, they were still shocked when they arrived.  

The tide had swept through, the sea rising and receding mercilessly, leaving behind nothing but fine white sand stretching all the way to the ocean.  

A wu stared blankly for a moment, then looked at Yehan helplessly.  

Yehan avoided her gaze but said, “This is it.”  

This?  

A wu looked again—just sand, flat sand, nothing at all…  

So where was the village?

The houses?

Her mother’s grave?  

Before leaving, she had even stuck a stick at their door to keep wild beasts out.

Their yard had banana plants growing.  

Where was their gate?  

A wu was stunned for a long time.

In Yehan’s unwilling gaze, she finally painfully and despairingly confirmed the truth.  

This was their home now.  

Her legs gave out and she nearly collapsed, sitting down hard on the sand.  

She looked around blankly, whispering, “How could this be? Why like this? Where’s our village?”  

Yehan came over, crouched, and held her shoulders and said, “A wu, shortly after we left, the place was flooded. Completely flooded.”  

Of course she remembered—this was why they left.  

But her subconscious had held on to hope, unable to imagine how the sea destroyed everything that once belonged to her.

She couldn’t imagine how a sturdy fence with a stick tied to it couldn’t stop the flood.  

How could this happen?  

Suddenly, A wu remembered what Lu Yunjian had said—that she was stubborn, heartless, and stuck in the past, obsessed only with her homeland, refusing to open her eyes to those around her.  

A wu hadn’t listened to him.

She thought he was just talking nonsense!  

But now, she began to think maybe Lu Yunjian was right.  

She stubbornly wanted to return to the past, back to when she was fifteen, when her parents and brothers were all alive, when she lived in her family home, cherished and pampered.

When her mother’s gentle smile and her brothers’ protection surrounded her.  

If she cried a single tear, her eldest brother would raise a fist and beat anyone who bullied her half to death!  

But now, staring at the rippling sand, she knew after she left, a great flood had come!

Her homeland had been destroyed long ago.

The past was unreachable!  

All the beauty of those days was just a memory inside her heart—never to return.  

Her parents, her brothers, her home—  

A wu helplessly buried her face in her knees and cried out loud.

All she had longed for day and night was just a dream.  

The dream ended, and everything was empty.

She had nothing left.  

Neither Lu Yunjian, nor the Imperial Son, nor Emperor Jingxi, nor even the pair of Imperial Heirs she bore for the emperor—she had never truly cherished them in her heart.  

Because one soul was bound to her homeland, resting on that fence tied with a stick.

She had lived in her dream and refused to wake up.  

Now awake, clutching handfuls of fine sand, she finally truly understood—those past three years were not illusions; they had really happened.  

She had grown taller, experienced one man after another, had even carried a child.

She had stepped into the palace, heard the music of the Imperial Capital, seen the empire’s fireworks.

Her life and memories had expanded, painted with many new colors.  

She was no longer the child cherished in her parents’ hands.  

A grown child, she could never return.  

A wu sobbed uncontrollably, heart-wrenching pain tearing her apart.

No matter how Yehan held and comforted her, it was useless.  

No one could comfort her!  

Just then, faint shouting came with the sea breeze—ethereal, accompanied by urgent footsteps.  

Yehan looked up and saw someone running hurriedly in their direction, glancing around as he ran.  

Yehan suddenly stood up and said, “A wu, look there!”  

A wu’s crying abruptly stopped.

Her teary eyes blurred as she looked far away.  

It was a man wearing a rough short jacket, tall and sturdy, running toward them.  

He looked this way, kicking up clouds of sand in his haste.  

A wu stared in disbelief at the approaching figure—the face so familiar, it could not be more so.

It was her second brother!  

Sudden joy struck A wu, the happiness after grief almost overwhelming her.

She was dumbfounded, squatting there with her head tilted, blankly watching her brother run toward her.  

Ning Erlang stumbled forward and collapsed onto the sand.  

Amidst the flying fine sand, he looked at his sister.  

Years apart, she had grown taller, matured a little, but she was still his sister—the sister their parents and brothers had cherished!  

His trembling hand, rough and covered in sand, reached out.

His eyes red, choking with emotion, he said, “A wu, you’ve finally come home.”  

A wu stared at him, then suddenly burst into tears, collapsing into Ning Erlang’s arms.  

She sobbed uncontrollably, barely able to breathe.  

Years of hardship, years of drifting—she was finally home.  

The village was gone, the home was gone, but her brother was still here!  

She buried her face in her second brother’s shoulder, sobbing, “Where did you all go? I’ve been looking for you for so long. You never came back. Others bullied A wu, but you never came!”  

Ning Erlang also shed tears holding his sister tightly.  

He hugged her close, soothing her, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. Father, eldest brother, and third brother—we’re all back. This time we brought many goods, sold a lot, and got a good price. We’ve made a lot of money. We bought a house in town. From now on, we’ll live well!”  

Hearing this, A wu felt as if dreaming.

This was the dream she had always had—the unreachable dream she longed for crazily, and now it had come true.  

Ning Erlang said, “A wu, whatever you want from now on, I’ll buy it for you. I’ll prepare lots of dowry for you. All the good things in our family belong to you—all yours!”  

A wu’s heart bloomed with joy.

She was delighted beyond measure, yet still wanted to cry.  

This sudden joy was too sweet, like gulping down syrup.

She needed to slow down and savor it.

How could it be so good?

Father and brothers were back, and they were rich!  

She couldn’t believe it—the dream she had waited for so long had come true so easily.  

She hugged her brother tightly, her heart trembling.

“A wu has waited so long. You’re finally back!”  

The siblings cried in each other’s arms.

Yehan knelt on one knee nearby, wiping away tears.  

A wu buried herself in her brother’s embrace, crying for a long time until her emotions finally eased somewhat.  

She sobbed, eyes red, looking up at Ning Erlang as she asked, “What about Father? What about Eldest Brother and Third Brother? Where did you go?”  

Ning Erlang held her tightly and replied, “We went through many things overseas these years. After landing, we heard the village had trouble. We meant to find news of you, but then met a messenger from the prefectural office. They said you’d registered there, looking for relatives. They sent word that you were rescued by kind people and would be coming back soon. They asked us to wait well for you.”  

A wu listened, vaguely understanding—was this Emperor Jingxi sending word?  

So… when Emperor Jingxi let her go, he already knew about her father and brothers?  

Or rather, he let her return because he knew of them?  

Ning Erlang said, “We were half in doubt, but since the news came from the prefectural office, we didn’t dare run off. Because we had moved, we feared missing you, so your eldest brother, third brother, and I took turns staying here. We wanted someone to be here in case you came. I just went home to eat something and hurried back, and unexpectedly, I saw you and Yehan!”  

At this, Ning Erlang and Yehan, who had grown up like brothers, were naturally very excited to see each other.  

Then Ning Erlang quickly took A wu and Yehan to return home.  

In their hurry, Ning Erlang rode horseback with A wu, while Yehan ran on foot.

They arrived at a nearby town.  

This town had about a hundred households.

Because many travelers passed through, it had inns, the local prefectural office’s official post station, and many vendors.  

As soon as A wu stepped into the town, she saw her eldest brother.  

Ning Dalang was overjoyed to see A wu.

He immediately called out loudly.

Soon, their father and Ning Sanlang also hurried out to greet them.  

A wu’s father was named Ning Yinhua.

Seeing his daughter, he was deeply moved, calling her name as he hurried to meet her.  

A wu threw herself into Ning Yinhua’s arms, crying, “Father, Father!”