Chapter 721 So far away
"My Lords, the prefect has already informed us in advance. We have arranged all the necessary things. Please come in!"

On the afternoon of May 14, the bride's escort team entered the territory of Junzhou. According to the "travel post" plan, the local prefect had arranged four adjacent inns in advance for the bride's escort team to stay.

All the way here, for a full fourteen days, Liu Xunyi and Zhao Xin hadn't spoken a word to each other, and they even had very few opportunities to meet.

Every morning, Zhao Xin boarded a carriage from the inn and went straight to the next inn. After getting off the carriage, she was directly led to her room, and even had her meals alone in the room.

Therefore, Liu Xunyi could only see Zhao Xin twice a day, once when she got on the carriage, and once when she got off the carriage. But even so, there were still many people around Zhao Xin, so Liu Xunyi could only watch from afar and had no chance to get close.

In order to avoid arousing the suspicion of the Mongolians, Liu Xunyi did not dare to show any abnormality in public even though he longed to be with Zhao Xin forever. Every time he got on and off the bus, Liu Xunyi would stand far away, looking at Zhao Xin in the crowd with a hidden but affectionate gaze, using her fleeting and blurred figure to barely fill the emptiness and longing in his heart.

When Zhao Xin's figure disappeared from Liu Xunyi's sight, he reluctantly withdrew his gaze. He rode on his horse, absent-mindedly recalling every detail of the two of them. A day passed by unknowingly, and he came to his senses only after the sunset. He once again gazed at his beloved who was so close to him, yet so far away.

Fourteen days seemed like a flash of lightning to Liu Xunyi, but also like a year.

He was like a soulless walking corpse, following the wedding procession aimlessly from place to place, but he did not react to anything that happened around him or encountered. He did not even have any impression of what he had eaten, where he had lived, what he had said...

If you ask him what he relied on to support himself during this period of time? And how could he keep a distance from Zhao Xin despite such attachment and longing, and even pretend to be indifferent in front of outsiders? Perhaps, even Liu Xunyi himself could not explain it clearly.

But what is certain is that Liu Xunyi's calmness and restraint do not come from reason. On the contrary, they should come more from memories and fantasies.

The calmness supported by memories and fantasies should not be called "calmness" but "paralysis".

Zhao Xin's every move, every frown and smile were like a jar of rich and mellow wine to Liu Xunyi, making him intoxicated, as if in a dream, unable to distinguish between truth and falsehood, reality and illusion.

Looking at her, longing for her, thinking about her... gradually he confused the difference between reality and fantasy, and blurred the boundary between the two, to the point that Liu Xunyi often smiled stupidly while riding on a horse, and sometimes even fell off the horse without noticing, which surprised Feng Tianba, Su He and others who were following him.

In fact, in this team, Liu Xunyi is not the only one who is distracted all day long and has no appetite.
However, Zhao Xin's situation is more complicated than Liu Xunyi's, so her disguise is more perfect than Liu Xunyi's.

Zhao Xin had been silently reminding herself in her heart that no matter when or where, she must not look Liu Xunyi in the eye. She was afraid that once she saw Liu Xunyi's affectionate eyes, she would feel sorry for him, shed tears, waver in her will, and lose control of herself...

Because of this, every time Zhao Xin got on or off the bus, she would carefully restrain her gaze, and even deliberately avoid Liu Xunyi's "crazy gaze". Eyes look at the nose, nose looks at the mouth, mouth looks at the heart, even though she knew that doing so would greatly disappoint Liu Xunyi, who was obsessed with her, and even make him heartbroken, Zhao Xin still had to make up her mind to maintain her manners and reserve as much as possible.

Every time of "ignoring" was like a fierce battle for Zhao Xin. When she was away from Liu Xunyi's sight, her depressed mood, listless spirit and pale complexion were so unbearable to look at and made people feel pity.

What’s even more helpless is that Zhao Xin can only bear all the bitter consequences alone and cannot confide in others.

However, even though Zhao Xin tried her best to maintain her "heart of stone", when she was sitting alone in the carriage, her beautiful eyes could not help but look at Liu Xunyi's looming back through many obstacles.

Every time she stole a glance, the corners of her mouth would lift up into a rare knowing smile.

Love is so embarrassing and so humble that even a glance, a smile, or a greeting become an unattainable luxury. The fact that Liu Xunyi and Zhao Xin are not destined to be together makes people feel both distressed and helpless.

"Princess, the upper room has been cleaned up and the food is ready. Please go upstairs!"

Ding Qinghong's voice woke up Zhao Xin, who was in a trance. With the help of two maids, she slowly got off the carriage. When her peripheral vision accidentally swept over Liu Xunyi in the distance, her heart suddenly tightened, and a hint of panic flashed in the depths of her eyes. However, she concealed it very well, and quickly calmed down her mood, and asked Ding Qinghong: "Where are we?"

"Princess, we have entered the territory of Junzhou." Ding Qinghong seemed to have sensed the "remote connection" between Liu Xunyi and Zhao Xin, so he leaned forward slightly to properly block Liu Xunyi's sight. At the same time, he pointed at the inn and said with a sly smile, "The King of Hexi sent someone to say that he has not recovered from the cold, and he is worried that he will infect the princess with the disease, so he will not come to greet her."

"it is good."

Zhao Xin answered casually, and then walked slowly towards the inn surrounded by a group of maids.

When Liu Xunyi, who was reluctant to leave, subconsciously raised his foot to follow, Xu Guangsheng suddenly stood across to block his way.

"General Xu, what does this mean?"

Feng Tianba and Xu Guangsheng disliked each other. Seeing Xu Guangsheng making trouble out of nothing, Feng Tianba couldn't help but speak up for Liu Xunyi.

"Don't misunderstand, Lord Liu. The princess's legs are not as strong as yours and mine. A weak woman walks slowly. She hasn't entered the guest room yet, so please wait here for a moment, Lord Liu." Xu Guangsheng's righteous tone made Liu Xunyi's face change slightly.

"Xu Guangsheng, do you have to be so ruthless?" Feng Tianba said angrily, "Don't Lord Liu and the princess even have the qualifications to meet?"

"Before leaving, the Deputy Privy Envoy instructed that the princess and Lord Liu should not meet alone, and even their encounters should be minimized." Xu Guangsheng said expressionlessly, "I will follow orders. If Lord Liu thinks it is inappropriate, you can report me to the Deputy Privy Envoy when you return to Lin'an City."

"Don't go too far..."

"More!" Before Feng Tianba could refute, Xu Guangsheng's eyes suddenly turned cold. He stared coldly at Feng Tianba, whose face was ashen, and said in a bad tone, "I am the guard general, and you are just accompanying me. Next time when you talk to me, remember your status, and don't be disrespectful to me!"

"you……"

"Forget it!" Liu Xunyi reached out and grabbed the indignant Feng Tianba, and whispered, "This is not the place to quarrel." After that, Liu Xunyi cast his deep gaze straight at Xu Guangsheng. Although he did not say a word, Xu Guangsheng felt a sense of fear in his heart for no reason, and his whole body became more and more uncomfortable.

Gradually, Xu Guangsheng's gaze became vague, as if he dared not look directly into Liu Xunyi's eyes anymore.

"My lords, you may come in now!"

Suddenly, Ding Qinghong's voice sounded from the inn, which was like a life-saving straw, which shocked Xu Guangsheng and he quickly withdrew from Liu Xunyi.

"The villain is in power!"

Feng Tianba snorted coldly and strode towards the inn.

Liu Xunyi was about to raise his foot, but was suddenly startled and subconsciously looked up towards the second floor of the inn.

However, just as Liu Xunyi raised his head, a window on the second floor was slammed shut.

Although it happened in a split second, Liu Xunyi still clearly saw Zhao Xin's complex face, which was melancholy, nervous, and finally a little panicked, through the fleeting gap in the window.

Just this one glance made Liu Xunyi's heart skip a beat, and an impulsive thought of flying upstairs regardless of everything flooded into his mind. His eyes trembled, his expression became excited, and even his breathing gradually became rapid.

"Xin'er, do you have something to say to me?" Liu Xunyi felt mixed emotions in his heart, with a myriad of thoughts in his mind, "Do you miss me as much as I miss you..."

“Brother Liu!”

When Liu Xunyi used the last bit of his rationality to suppress his impulse to fly upstairs, Su He's hearty voice suddenly came from behind him. It was like a basin of cold water, instantly extinguishing the fire in Liu Xunyi's heart.

"Su...Brother Su." Liu Xunyi looked at the smiling Su He blankly, and asked in the calmest tone possible, "The King of Hexi is not feeling well, why are you here instead of taking care of him?"

Since An Chen, Su He, Zhao Xin and Liu Xunyi did not live in the same inn, Liu Xunyi asked this question.

"The King of Hexi asked me to ask about tomorrow's schedule." Su He said, "We have been walking for half a month, but we are still not out of the territory of the Song Dynasty. The King of Hexi is inevitably a little anxious."

"The letter of invitation is in General Xu's hands, please come in, Brother Su!"

As they were talking, the two of them entered the lobby of the inn together.

When Su He explained his purpose, Xu Guangsheng quickly took out the travel document and read it carefully, and replied: "According to the plan, we will arrive at Yunya Town at the southern foot of Qinling Mountains tomorrow afternoon, and set out to cross Qinling Mountains the next day. If nothing unexpected happens, we will enter Mongolian territory in the evening of the day after tomorrow."

Although it is "Mongolian territory", it is actually Han territory.

Su He pondered and said, "The King of Hexi wants us to hand over the ten carts of dowry to the local government to escort us after we pass through the Qinling Mountains. The princess and I will travel light and rush to Helin as soon as possible. What do you think?"

Liu Xunyi couldn't help but frown when he heard this. Just as he was about to speak, Xu Guangsheng readily agreed: "No problem! Once we enter Mongolian territory, we will follow the arrangements of the King of Hexi and General Sui. I will order my men tonight to count and load the heavy materials onto the trucks, and then hand them over to the local government office for escort."

"So good!"

Seeing that Su He and Xu Guangsheng had reached an agreement, even though Liu Xunyi had some reservations, he did not want to interrupt at this moment, so as to avoid a stalemate with Xu Guangsheng in front of Su He.

After the discussion, Su He did not delay any longer and bowed to the few people and said goodbye.

"General Xu, the princess is weak, how can she bear the hasty journey?" Liu Xunyi couldn't hold back his dissatisfaction and questioned, "As a general of the guard, how can you not consider the princess's health?"

"Lord Liu, you are worrying too much!" Xu Guangsheng sneered, "Do you think you are the only one who cares about the princess's health? Don't forget, she is not only a princess of the Song Dynasty, but also a princess of Mongolia. There are some requests that the princess of Mongolia can make, but we can't make them for her. Just like Feng Tianba can't act recklessly in front of me, this is the rule. In addition, whether it is the princess of the Song Dynasty or the princess of Mongolia, it is not the turn of Lord Liu to be so anxious and concerned. After all, she is a married woman now. I hope Lord Liu will be more cautious. This... is also the rule."

"But……"

"General!"

Before Liu Xunyi could argue, a soldier hurried into the inn, looked around, and then ran to Xu Guangsheng and whispered. Xu Guangsheng was stunned, and a hint of suspicion gradually appeared between his brows.

"really?"

"Absolutely true!"

After receiving the sergeant's affirmation, Xu Guangsheng's eyes became a little strange. He first took a deep look at Liu Xunyi, who was hesitant to speak, and then whispered a few words to Ding Qinghong, as if to instruct him. Finally, under the guidance of the sergeant, he hurriedly walked out of the inn, leaving Liu Xunyi and Feng Tianba, who did not know the truth, looking at each other in bewilderment, not knowing what to say for a long time.

……

(End of this chapter)