Chapter 86 Reunion with Yanzi

Yongqi stayed in Hangzhou for more than a month, but Xiaoyanzi never showed up. Helpless, he had no choice but to leave.

To everyone's surprise, on Xiao Yanzi's fifteenth birthday, the day she came of age, they finally saw the Xiao Yanzi they had been longing for day and night.

Emperor Qianlong and his entourage were having lunch in the restaurant. Looking at the table full of delicious food and the dejected Yongqi beside him, he sighed, "Today is Xiaoyanzi's birthday. I wonder where she is now. We can only send our blessings from afar. I hope she can receive them. I also prepared a gift for her, but we can only open it after she returns to the palace."

"Who said that?" A familiar voice came from outside, and everyone excitedly ran outside. Yongqi looked at the person in front of him excitedly, "Little Swallow!"

Unable to contain himself, he rushed forward and hugged Xiao Yanzi tightly, exclaiming, "Xiao Yanzi, it really is you!"

"Yongqi, I'm back." Xiaoyanzi hugged Yongqi tightly, unwilling to let go. How long had it been since she had been in Yongqi's arms...

Seeing that the two young lovers had been hugging for a while, Qing'er finally spoke up and told them to separate. Xiao Yanzi explained, "I finally finished dealing with the previous matters, so I rushed over just in time for my own birthday!"

Emperor Qianlong laughed and said, "Little Swallow, you've been gone for several years now, and Yongqi has lost a lot of weight!"

"Master, I see you've lost a lot of weight. Are you really that reluctant to let me, Little Swallow, go?"

Qing'er muttered, "Of course! You have no idea how we've all been doing these past few years while you were gone!"

Emperor Qianlong said, "Little Swallow, you must be exhausted from your hurried journey. Come in and have something to eat."

"Great! Let me see how good this chef's cooking skills are."

Yongqi took Xiaoyanzi's hand and they went inside together. After everyone was seated, Xiaoyanzi asked, "Yongqi, where's your mother? Why isn't she here?"

"After eating, Mother felt a little unwell, so she went back to rest."

Little Swallow asked anxiously, "Are you feeling unwell? Is it serious? Has the imperial physician been summoned?"

Yongqi comforted her, "Little Swallow, don't worry, your mother is fine, she'll be alright after a rest."

Emperor Qianlong looked at the two of them with affection and sighed, "Little Swallow is back, and Yongqi seems to have come back to life. You little girl, will you leave again?"

Little Swallow shook her head, "I'm not leaving. I'll stay by your side from now on. Please don't find me annoying, Master!"

Both Emperor Qianlong and Yongqi smiled, and Yongqi excitedly asked, "Really? You're really not leaving?"

Little Swallow nodded. "I'm not leaving. I've already helped the people you asked me to help. They've promised that as long as our Great Qing doesn't invade us, they will remain loyal forever!"

"That's wonderful!" Yongqi was overjoyed upon hearing the news. Qianlong asked curiously, "Little Swallow, Yongqi, what are you two talking about?"

Xiao Yanzi handed a letter to Emperor Qianlong. After reading it, Qianlong was very surprised. "Xiao Yanzi, you've given me such a big surprise as soon as you come back!"

Little Swallow said proudly, "Master, would you consider me a meritorious official?"

Emperor Qianlong nodded repeatedly, "Of course, of course! Whatever reward you want, as long as it's within my power, I will grant it to you!"

"Is it too much for me to ask for an imperial decree to grant us marriage?"

“Little Swallow…” Yongqi was already stunned. “Little Swallow, what…”

Shouldn't he be the one to say this? How come Little Swallow stole the spotlight from him?

"Sir, what I brought to the Qing Dynasty should be no less than that of the daughters of high-ranking officials and nobles, right?"

Emperor Qianlong admired Xiao Yanzi from the bottom of his heart. At such a young age, she was able to resolve the unrest in the Hui region. He laughed and said, "Good. Since you already have enough strength, it is not difficult to grant you a marriage. However, we still need to go through the formalities with the Empress Dowager."

“What you say is true, sir. After I finish my meal, I will go and pay my respects to the Empress Dowager.”

After the meal, Emperor Qianlong took Yongqi and Xiaoyanzi to the Empress Dowager's residence. Qing'er had already informed her of Xiaoyanzi's return, "Mother, Xiaoyanzi is now a first-rate heroine of our Great Qing Dynasty, having solved a great problem for me. She asked me for a favor, and I felt I could grant it, but I didn't know what Mother meant, so I brought the two children here..."

The Empress Dowager sighed, "Is this to grant Yongqi and Xiaoyanzi their wish? This old woman of mine has heard countless stories from Qing'er about Xiaoyanzi's experiences in the martial arts world, and now, with Xiaoyanzi's achievements in the court, what reason do I have to stop them? However, they are both still young, so let's arrange their engagement for now..."

"Your Majesty, the wedding can wait, but I want to have Xiao Yanzi's name registered in the Imperial Register first..." Only when her name is registered in the Imperial Register can he feel at ease.

If it's just an arranged marriage and the marriage hasn't taken place yet, what if something unexpected happens later? Wouldn't he have to compromise again before his power rises?

"What???" Registered on the imperial genealogy before marriage? The Empress Dowager was shocked. This seemed to be unprecedented.

"..." Qianlong fell silent. Looking at Yongqi's serious expression, he knew that Yongqi's mind was made up. He smiled helplessly and said, "Your Majesty, it seems that Yongqi and Xiaoyanzi are already prepared. We have no choice but to let them have their way..."

"Alright, since you've all made your decisions, this old woman won't interfere anymore. But Little Swallow, now that you're back, you must come and visit this old woman often. I want you to tell me the stories that happened to you outside."

Little Swallow happily replied, "Yes, Little Swallow obeys!"

After leaving the Empress Dowager's place, Xiao Yanzi looked at Yongqi and said, "Quickly, take me to see your mother."

"Come on, Mother will be very happy to know you're back."

After meeting Consort Yu, Xiao Yanzi knew that what Yongqi had said was true. However, the more Xiao Yanzi heard about Yongqi's life over the past few years from Consort Yu, the sadder she became. "Xiao Yanzi, you and Yongqi should talk. Your mother is going to rest."

After everyone left, Xiao Yanzi followed Yongqi to his current study. "Why do you always come to the study?"

Yongqi turned to look at Xiaoyanzi, walked towards her step by step, reached out and hugged her, and whispered in her ear, "If we go to the bedroom, I'm afraid I won't be able to control myself..."

They are still young and there are some things they cannot do yet. If he goes to the bedroom, he is afraid he will do something wrong!

Yongqi looked at Xiaoyanzi with concern and asked, "Xiaoyanzi, where have you been these past few days? Why haven't we been able to contact you?"

Little Swallow glanced at Yongqi mischievously and laughed, "Of course I'm going to do something important. When I'm busy, I naturally won't contact you. Once I'm done, I'll come find you. But that won't happen again. I'll stay by your side forever, and you won't be able to get rid of me even if you want to!"

"I'm so happy you've always been by my side, how could I possibly send you away?" Yongqi nestled in Xiaoyanzi's arms, feeling her familiar scent, "Xiaoyanzi..."