Chapter 64: The Return of the Wedding Procession

The news of Li Chengqian granting amnesty to the Ganye Temple spread through the entire imperial court the very next day like a thunderclap from a clear sky.

Borne on wings, the news rapidly caused a massive uproar among the officials.

Even the newly appointed young officials hailing from Xianyang wore looks of utter astonishment, finding it impossible to accept Li Chengqian’s course of action.

They looked at each other in dismay, their eyes filled with incomprehension and confusion. In their worldview, this was nothing short of an outrageous and rebellious act.

Those were, after all, the concubines of the late emperor!

In their view, these women should have spent the remainder of their days in Ganye Temple, praying for the late emperor and guarding their chastity.

How could they possibly be released and permitted to marry again!

This violated the proprieties, and emotionally it was even harder to accept—it felt like a desecration of the royal dignity.

To them, Li Chengqian’s actions were tantamount to sheer fantasy, striking hard at their deeply ingrained beliefs and turning their minds into a chaotic jumble that they simply could not fathom.

To the earnest and righteous memorials repeatedly submitted by the court ministers, Li Chengqian responded without the slightest hesitation, beating them all back by invoking the precedent set by Emperor Wu of Wei in the past.

If Emperor Wu of Wei could do it, so could he!

His attitude was resolute, leaving no room for maneuver. In his eyes, since Emperor Wu of Wei had broken the ice, why couldn't Li Chengqian do the same?

He had his own considerations, and his own understanding of the imperial household and the people's livelihood.

Although the status of women in the current dynasty had improved somewhat compared to the past, it was still far from ideal.

As for the women of ordinary commoner families, the imperial court was relatively lenient; if a suitable opportunity arose, remarriage was accepted by the world.

After being widowed, they could once again seek a pillar of support for their lives and open a new chapter.

However, those women who had once been concubines of the late emperor were tightly bound by the shackles of traditional ritual and propriety. To them, remarriage was an almost insurmountable chasm—a taboo despised by the world and rejected by ethics.

Li Chengqian was well aware of the stakes. This time, he had handled Li Shimin's funeral with deliberate brevity.

One of the major reasons for this was that he could not bear to see the large group of concubines in Ganye Temple forced into funerary immolation following obsolete customs.

In his view, the lives of these women should not be so easily stripped away; they too deserved the right to survive.

Yet this behavior of his left many civil and military officials with a heavy ache in their hearts, as if crushed by a massive boulder.

Their overflowing indignation and helplessness had nowhere to vent, and the atmosphere within the imperial court grew increasingly tense.

...

Gar Tongtsen, the Grand Prime Minister of Tibet, led the matrimonial delegation across the vast and boundless earth, the flying dust mirroring their complex state of mind.

The long and arduous journey left every member of the delegation looking exhausted, and they all harbored pent-up resentment.

The root cause of all this was the unreasonable conduct of the Great Tang, which had ruthlessly shattered their originally perfect plan and brought all their efforts to the verge of complete failure.

What was supposed to be a journey of betrothal filled with hope had now turned into a disaster.

Filled with anxiety, they thought to themselves that upon returning to Tibet this time, let alone receiving a reward from the Tsenpo, whether they could even survive the Tsenpo's wrath remained an unknown question.

Amidst dust and wind, they made their way back toward Tibet, their figures appearing exceptionally small yet resilient against the vast landscape.

Many soldiers in the delegation frequently cast covert glances at Gar Tongtsen during the trek, their eyes filled with awe and reliance.

In the hearts of these soldiers, Gar Tongtsen was their supreme anchor. As long as this wise and majestic Grand Prime Minister was present, at least the Tsenpo would surely treat them with leniency.

Upon hearing the news that the matrimonial delegation was about to return, Songtsen Gampo was filled with anticipation and joy.

He personally led a large force to welcome them, a scene that could only be described as grand.

Fine steeds galloped, banners fluttered, and the Tibetan people, dressed in festive attire, made joyous laughter echo through the valleys.

Among the ranks were both Tibet's most valiant warriors—with gleaming armor and weapons flashing in the sunlight—and citizens adorned in their finest garb.

Holding flowers and hadas in their hands, everyone looked forward to witnessing this historic and wonderful moment.

That should have been a jubilant prelude, striking up the notes of a friendly marital alliance between Tibet and the Great Tang.

But now...

As Gar Tongtsen led the returning delegation and beheld the grand welcoming scene prepared by Tibet, his heart instantly sank, as if an invisible, powerful hand had tightly gripped it.

A bad omen welled up inside him, and he silently cursed.

In fact, he had long dispatched more than one group of messengers back to Tibet ahead of time to report the detailed situation along the road, hoping the Tsenpo could make early preparations of troops and ready himself for any unexpected turns of events.

Yet, upon seeing this bustling scene that was so completely out of touch with reality, he already understood the general picture in his heart.

He knew that the Great Tang must have continuously placed stumbling blocks in their way along the journey, deliberately setting up heavy obstacles to hinder their progress.

A journey that should have taken only a month had been dragged out to two full months. The hardships and tribulations involved could only be appreciated by those who had experienced them firsthand.

Worse still, those messengers responsible for reporting the news had failed to reach Tibet successfully, which was undoubtedly a massive disaster.

Gar Tongtsen knew clearly in his heart that the Great Tang was deliberately buying time!

Subconsciously, he touched the scarred whip mark on his face, inflicted by a Brocade Guard Commander named Zhang Xianhuai.

Whenever he recalled that name, a flash of angry cold light could not help but gleam in his eyes, and his jaws instinctively clenched tight, making a grinding sound.

He had deeply engraved this grudge in his heart; he had even written Zhang Xianhuai's name stroke by stroke along the hem of his robe.

Every single stroke embodied his profound hatred, and he silently swore that when the day of vengeance finally arrived, he would make this detestable fellow pay a heavy price for everything he had done.

Yet, under the current circumstances...

Gar Tongtsen wore a look of utter helplessness.

The Tsenpo's dignity...

Was completely gone!

Treading on thin ice, he led the matrimonial delegation forward.

Songtsen Gampo stood in the middle of the welcoming procession, waiting with joyous anticipation for the return of the bride-welcoming party.

Whenever he thought about how this alliance was established with the Great Tang, and that the bride he was marrying was a noble princess of the Great Tang, his heart swelled with pride and glory.

This sense of glory enveloped him like a dazzling halo, making him somewhat lightheaded.

In his mind, wonderful images continuously floated past, imagining the prosperity of Tibet and the Great Tang following their marital alliance.

Tibet's status among neighboring countries would be greatly elevated, trade exchanges between the two nations would grow more frequent, and the Tibetan people would live prosperous and peaceful lives.

However, as the matrimonial delegation gradually came into his field of vision, the smile on his face slowly froze.

He saw that the delegation was shrouded in an aura of deathly stillness, devoid of the slightest festive atmosphere.

The cheerful and passionate sounds of drums and music that should have been playing were nowhere to be found; the entire procession was as quiet as a graveyard in the dead of night, with only the monotonous and dull thud of hooves echoing in the air—a sound that felt like a heavy sigh.

Everyone in the procession lowered their heads like a group of criminals who had committed unforgivable sins, not daring to lift their heads and meet his gaze.

Their shoulders slumped, and moreover, there was no Tang army accompanying and escorting them. This was completely different from the scene he had imagined beforehand.

Songtsen Gampo acutely sensed that something was amiss the very first moment. His brows involuntarily knitted together tightly, a trace of doubt and worry flashed in his eyes, and an ominous premonition rapidly spread within his heart.

Gar Tongtsen exchanged a meaningful glance with Songtsen Gampo.

He hoped Songtsen Gampo could comprehend his underlying meaning.

Upon seeing Gar Tongtsen in this state, Songtsen Gampo...

Already had a rough guess in his heart.