One Lifetime Is Never Enough

1.54 Resolution

(HeShan and SunChen's voices as I imagine them to be. The first male's voice you hear would be HeShan's. The second one would be SunChen's)

Although the Empress had harshly commented on the song during the banquet, of course she could do nothing with the popularity of it among the common people.

Neither she, YuLan, or the two culprits behind the fame, knew currently -

- That the song would become a battle anthem for the mighty men of Da Lang in their future military conquests against hostile forces.

[The rivers and mountains have not aged. But the beauty has clearly aged.] 

Of course, they marched to battles to sustain their country, but more so, to provide a safe home for their family. To earn substantial money, to make sure their family had enough to eat, to make sure the country they risked their life to protect would always be a safe haven for their family's livelihood.

But the song screamed about the beauty waiting. In fact, this could not be more true for numerous young men leaving their fiancees, their sweethearts, their young wives, to battles.

[Separation is to be endured.]

[Though hard to bear, separate we must.]

[Entrusting the wild geese to head south, but where shall this heart go?]

There was a beauty waiting back home. Country was important, a safe house was important. But what good would it be if the beauty would cry rivers of tears because they could not make it back home? 

[She is no longer; while time flows as always.]  

Life is fleeting.

Instead of enticing revolution, the song became the soldiers' boost of morale.

For decades to come, the brave young soldiers of Da Lang would march into battles, not just throwing their lives on the line to protect the country and to provide monetary contribution to their family,

They fought like they had been injected with chicken blood(1), with more fervor than ever, 

So they could ease the war as soon as possible,

To return home to their waiting beauty. 

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"The Empress' personal eunuch just delivered a calling card for Bai-er," Second Madam Hai FenChu handed a small scroll to Ji ChanFang. The scroll was delivered by Zhi gong-gong, the old eunuch who had always been serving the Empress.

Ji ChanFang was being attended to by Wu JianRui in his room - currently drinking some herbal concoction to regulate the poison in his blood.

Although he was not in immediate harm's way, the poison had run too deep, causing him to be dependent on herbal medicines for possibly the rest of his life.

Ji ChanFang opened the scroll and read the content.

It was a personal edict from the Empress, summoning Ji LanBai to come to her personal courtyard inside the Imperial Palace. As Ji LanBai would become the Third Prince's princess consort, as her future mother-in-law, the Empress would like to strengthen their bond.

"Why would the Empress suddenly pay attention to Bai-er?" Wu JianRui fidgeted while standing by her husband, holding the now empty bowl of medicine. The letter was all proper, but the Empress had never paid any attention to their family before, and even to the Third Prince.