“Your Highness, your breakfast is ready.” Ming Xuan said as he faced the the prince who was already kneeling at the table waiting for his breakfast. Two servants were behind him with the trays which held the prince’s breakfast.
“Thank you.” He replied towards Ming Xuan and the servants courteously. As soon as the servants have served him the meal, he began eating.
“Your Highness, I will be leaving to complete the chores now. Please remember to remain in the Frost Palace for the next 7 days of your confinement.
“Of course. Don’t worry Ming Xuan I ‘ll behave.” Jin Huan replied with a wry smile on his face.
As he was not expecting any guests or even allowed outside he had dressed very casually. He had donned on a baby blue thin robe over his white underclothes and his hair was left loose without a single hair ornament though it was brushed back accentuating his wavy hair.
After breakfast he began browsing through his collection of novels to pass the time. As he walked between the shelves which contained his private collection, he noted to himself. “Hmmm I think It’s about time I visit the bookstores in town. It’s time to get new books to read.” He thought as he passed over most of the books which he had read and reread over and over gai in the past.
“Ah It’s been a while since I read this one.” He said to himself as he picked up a novel from the end of the shelf, the title ‘The Arrogant King’s Love’ was printed in bold upon the plain red cover of the novel.
The novel is about an arrogant king who fell in love with a reputable scholar and military advisor, Lord Han Xin. The met during the siege upon the King’s Palace where Lord Han Xian had unknowing rescued the king who was disguised as a palace servant in an attempt to escape. The story revolves around the king on his character development into becoming a better king for his people all the while trying to gain the affections of The revered Lord Han Xian through secret admirer letters.
It is a very romantic and erotic tale which Is Jin Huan’s favored genres of literature.
Jin Huan reclined on his bed and began reading.
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The Northern Borders (post of the Northern Guards)
It was still early in the morning thus, members of the Northern Guards were still quite idle as they began their day. Some were getting the morning chores done, some were retiring to their quarters after night duty, changing shifts with those who were on day duty and some high ranking members were either moving along to supervise their people or heading to the office to catch up on paperwork.
However, the peaceful and quite atmosphere was shattered by the clanging of bells from the watchtower.
It was the emergency alarm bell. That bell is used to alert the entire army of Northern Guards of any suspicious or oncoming danger detected by the guards posted at the watchtower.
Clang clang clang clang clang
The sharp clanging of the bell pierced through the clear early morning air grew more urgent as seconds ticked by causing tension to thicken. Already most of the army of the Northern Guards were already clamouring out of their quarters, brandishing their weapons in case if it’s an enemy, some were even at the entrance of the gates.
Those who have just retired to bed have also rushed out, all signs of tiredness and fatigue was extinguished and replaced with worry and fierce fighting spirit, preparing themselves in case of a hostile situation.
The head of the Northern Guards, Commander Li Hongshin stepped out of his office, already in his own armour with his sword in his scabbard.
He quickly made his way to the front. His men made way for him as he approached at the sight of their highest-ranking superior.
The patrol guards who had been dispatched for their regular patrol has returned. They were all injured. Some more critical than others. One of them was even being supported by his comrade on the other’s horse. It was clear that they have been engaged in a fight not too long ago.
This seem to raise the tension within the gathered army. All of the Northern Guards have been well trained and highly skilled combatants. It is no simple feat to join the army regardless of their post or division they were assigned to. And this particular group is lead by one highly skilled martial artist who was born into a sect before he enlisted as a soldier and another is an excellent swordsman and daughter of a general. Even these two individuals have not escaped any injury though theirs were considerably lighter compared to the others.
This situation is even more worrisome for regular troubles which has occurred in the past such as bandits or smugglers could not even hope to land a hit on these prodigious soldiers much less injure them! This showed that their opponents are highly skilled and strong.
“What happened? Who did this? Report! “Li Hongshin demanded as the men dismounted. A few others stepped up to help their injured brethren.
Things were rarely chaotic at the Northern Borders. Things weren’t always peaceful but usually any troubles are easily resolved especially under the command of their commander and other skilled warriors. Therefore, this incident which took out not one but two or their best people including the rest of the patrol team is quite shocking.
“Sir we were attacked by 8 unknown individuals In dark cloaks on horseback. We were unable to determine their identities but one of them appears to be a master swordsman and the others used a variation of martial arts.” The leader of their group replied holding on to his side as blood seeped through the plates of his armour.
“Quickly get the doctor! You guys get inside and get your wounds treated immediately. Chen Hong, quick send word to the palace! Now!”
As soon as his captain left to alert the palace of the incident the commander then turned to his men.
“I will soon be leaving for the palace to report to His Majesty the Emperor. For now the Northern Borders will be on lockdown. Nobody is to get in or out! I will be leaving for the Palace to report to His Majesty the Emperor soon. The patrol teams are to be doubled in size and post more men on to the watchtower.”
He then turned to his second in command, General An Xian. “General you will be in charge of everything upon my absence. Send out alerts to the army base at Snake’s Cove for reinforcements. Address your letter to Commander Hong Chian, the head of the Snake’s Cove army base under my name. he is an old friend and a dependable ally.
“Yes Commander!” The general replied.
As soon as he finished giving out his orders, the commander quickly retreated to his quarterst o prepare for his long journey ahead. With the situation as it is right now there is not much time to be spared. This incident was the first of it's kind, however there were other odd occurrences happening on other frontiers such as mysterious sightings, missing inventory and others, this kind of incident shows that the enemy is escalating to much larger and dangerous scale especially if they have even dared to attack a members of their troops. The training his men had been put through and skills of his men and women of his army are nothing to scoff at. Therefore the fact the enemy succeeded in injuring them shows either they have large army, resources or extremely skilled all of which are causes for concern especially if it involves the security of their borders.
The Imperial Court is thrown into chaos. The ministers and court officials assembled have long since abandoned any semblance of propriety, throwing their usual dignified calm manner out the window before the Northern Guards Commander could even end his verbal report. Only a few ministers remained calm along with the other parties assembled in court. The Emperor who summoned these people in order to address the situation in hopes to come up with a counterattack is growing increasingly irritated but hid it behind a mask of calm…. Which was as noted by Head Eunuch Hong mentally, closed to breaking as the noise increased.Head Eunuch Hong gulped as a cold sweat broke out on his skin as he switched his attention towards the squabbling group of imbeciles…. Cough cough… I mean……respected ladies and gentlemen who are in charge of assisting the Emperor in governing and safekeeping the empire. the pillars of their great empire with the hopes that some
The court fell into complete silence as the Crown Prince stepped into the throne room. Jin Qiqiong the Crown Prince who had just returned to the capital was still donned in his armor with his long jet black hair held in a high ponytail bore a commanding presence befitting that of the future emperor of their empire. Jin Qiqiong the Emperor’s heir and first son bore the most resemblance towards the Emperor compared to the rest of his siblings.Aside from the gentle look on his face as opposed to the Emperor’s cold stoic one he is almost a younger version of the current emperor!The entire court held their breath as the Crown Prince knelt before the Emperor, eager to hear the news he brought with him a swell as the report of his mission when he was summoned back to the capital.“Crown Prince Jin Qiqiong greets His Royal Father the Emperor. Reporting to Your Majesty, the restoration efforts of Xuanxi village is near completion. Half of the troops i
Jin Qiqiong stepped into the residence of his Fourth brother and immediately scanned his surroundings. Yesterday as soon as court was adjourned, he found out from Jin Ling and Jin Xiu Ying that Jin Huan had been misbehaving and before Jin Ling could even come up with a plan of rescue their father had gotten the news and immediately sent out Fan Longwei and punished Jin Huan with confinement. Thus Jin Huan had been unable to leave Frost Palace to greet him upon his return as he usually did for any of his siblings who had been away. Jin Huan had always been a filial person and valued family relationships that would always welcome his family home even if they had been gone for only a day!Due to the long journey home and the extended court session and joyous reunion with his father, Jin Ling and Jin Xiu Ying he had decided to visit the next day after paying respects to his mother the Empress.Right after breakfast with his mother he then took the time to visit his aunts,
“It’s been a while since Big Brother was home, everyone really missed you especially Aunty Song. She has been quite busy fulfilling her duties as Empress but I often felt that she has been missing you very much. Hahaha. Aunty must have been reluctant to let you leave earlier..” he chuckled as he teased his brother mercilessly.Jin Qiqiong laughed sheepishly as he recalled being “ambushed” by Jin Ling and Jin Xiuying and later even their own father had joined them yesterday at the throne room.As soon as all the officials cleared out he was “attacked” by his sibling literally pawing at his robes for the letters from Second Brother. His Royal Father had been of no help as he leisurely remained seated at his throne but now adopted a more casual, lazy posture. He had his head resting against the palm of his hand as he watched them with a glint of amusement in his eyes.********************************************************
The following days after the lunch reunion with his brother had been uneventful for Jin Huan despite the chaos the Imperial court had descended to. Jin Huan had spent the remainder of his confinement save for the servants of his palace and his dear mother, in the midst of chaos cropping up left and right which had left the Imperial Harem busy helping wherever their authority is required and fulfilling their duties assisting the Emperor and their families during these turbulent times, still had her son in her mind who was still undergoing punishment.According to his mother the Consort Zhou, a former general before her marriage to the Emperor, the court had descended into chaos, the country is facing national security breaches on all sides and rumors have surfaced regarding rebel forces at work in the Northern regions. The country has literally been turne
After the latest court session finally came to an end, all officials were dismissed for the day everyone returned to their respective homes eager to put an end to the grueling eventful day. As soon as the court was empty, the Second Prince Jin Jian was immediately accosted by his two younger siblings, all sense of poise and decorum befitting their status seem to have flown out the window along with the officials who had left the Imperial Palace. Prince Jin Ling and Princess Xiu Ying who had been praised left and right by everyone for the great contributions of their investigation and thwarting rebellion. He was tackled into a hug by his two younger siblings, the hug was so sudden with both his siblings being well versed in martial arts, they were able to ‘attack’ him out of the blue. The force of the ‘double attack’ had been so powerful it had nearly toppled over. Jin Qiqiong, his eldest brother and their Crown Prince were of no use whatsoever as he me
It had been about an hour later that the small reunion had ended, one of the eunuchs had informed the Emperor that the memorials and reports sent in by the military commanders of the frontiers had to be reviewed. The Emperor had then left his gathered children to their own devices as he left accompanied by a group of attendants towards his private office to resume his duties, but not before reminding his second son to dine with him and his mother, Consort Shu later tonight, a tradition the Emperorestablished for his family whenever any of his children were to return from their travels.In his perspective, the relationship between parent and child must never be neglected even when the children have taken up their own duties as adults. It is also his way of spending time with his wives and their children as a family like the more common households which is where it differs from Imperial F
“Good evening Your Highnesses. And welcome home my prince, I hope your travels have been uneventful and well?” General Fan Long Wei greeted them with a deep bow before straightening up and turning towards his childhood friend and classmate, the Second Prince, Jin Jian whom he had not seen for a few months now.Jin Jian, upon seeing his old friend’s formal posture let out a loud and unrestrained guffaw before moving forward slinging his arm around Fan Long Wei’s shoulders, chuckling the whole time. He said, “Geez, what’s with the formalities, its not like you don’t know my siblings. Haha. from what i've heard from the other guards earlier you have been working on quite a few projects together with these two rascals eh?” Jin Jian exclaimed fondly while gesturing at Jin Ling and Jin Xiu Ying. It was apparent that he was referring to the multiple arrests made by the court led by both his sibling’s respective inve