In the early morning, the fiery sunrise bathed Chaimen Street’s courtyard.
Yang Ge, with his bed hair sticking up, stretched lazily towards the sunrise, "Ahhh..."
Huang sat at his feet, equally bleary-eyed and yawning, "Ahhh..."
After a satisfying stretch, Yang Ge looked down and lightly kicked Huang, "What do you want to eat today?"
Huang tilted his head, thinking, then said, "Woof woof."
"Noodles again?"
Yang Ge scratched his messy hair, "We’ve had noodles for two days straight, aren’t you sick of them yet?"
Huang grinned and wagged his tail vigorously.
"Alright, alright..."
Yang Ge grumbled as he rolled up his sleeves and walked into the kitchen, where a thin wisp of smoke began to rise, and the sound of water rinsing a large iron pot echoed.
Soon, the two of them were squatting in front of the kitchen door, faces buried in bowls larger than their heads, eating with great slurping sounds.
Just then, the sound of the Xie Family’s door closing carried into the courtyard, and Huang’s ears perked up, listening carefully.
Yang Ge laughed, "What’s up, want to go out and play?"
Huang’s shiny black eyes brightened, and he immediately stood up, swinging his big tail and whimpering as he nuzzled Yang Ge’s face.
"Gross!"
Yang Ge tactically leaned back with disgust, "Your mouth is all greasy..."
Huang didn’t care one bit, persistently nuzzling his face into Yang Ge’s chest.
"Alright then, remember it was you who wanted to go out and play."
Yang Ge pushed away his big face, smiling, "But don’t you regret it later!"
Huang’s tail was wagging so fast it was a blur, "Ying ying ying..."
Before long, a pained howl, followed by a streak of golden light, burst forth from the courtyard, shooting towards the west.
"Woof woof woof, woof woof woof..."
The sound of frantic barking tore through the sky, and countless people from Lu Ting, holding large bowls while squatting in front of their homes for breakfast, looked up curiously and wondered, "Since when do dogs fly in the sky?"
After muttering amongst themselves, they exchanged smiles, understanding each other without a word.
An hour later, Yang Ge, riding a blade of light, landed outside the gates of Ziwei Palace. He bent over to set Huang down, and after staggering on legs turned to jelly for a few steps, Huang collapsed to the ground with a "plop."
Angry, he turned to look at Yang Ge and barked furiously, "Woof woof woof, woof woof woof!"
Yang Ge couldn’t help but grin from ear to ear, "Blaming me now?"
"Woof woof woof, woof woof woof..."
The Imperial Guards stationed at the palace gates tensed up, clenching their swords and spears, staring straight ahead as if they saw nothing, completely ignoring the man and dog.
Yang Ge didn’t make it difficult for them and playfully teased Huang while slowly releasing his oppressive aura...
Not long after, Tang Xiong could be seen coming out of the palace quickly, combing his hair while walking, and from a distance he began to complain, "Why do you always have to make such a big fuss? Just come if you say you’re going to come."
Yang Ge, leading Huang, smiled and said, "Otherwise? Should I just barge in?"
Tang Xiong had nothing to say in return and resignedly stepped forward to grasp Yang Ge’s arm, "Let’s go, let’s go, let’s try the morning meal at our Imperial Stables..."
Yang Ge didn’t budge, "Thanks, but I already ate."
Tang Xiong asked, "So you’re just going to wait like this?"
Yang Ge replied, "Let’s wait for now, I’ll trouble you to accompany me on a walk later."
Tang Xiong said, "Why keep such a distance? The emperor is still your disciple."
Yang Ge said, "It’s better to keep a distance... times have changed."
Unable to persuade him, Tang Xiong could only turn around and waved to the Imperial Guard, "Bring two chairs for this old man, and brew two cups of hot tea."
Yang Ge laughed, "No need to bother, the person has already arrived..."
Surprised, Tang Xiong looked back and saw Zhao Miao exit the palace at a trot with a small bundle on her back.
"Brother Yang, Huang..."
From a distance, she waved at Yang Ge and Huang with a joy that leaped from her.
Yang Ge watched her, thinner and more haggard...
Tang Xiong glanced from the neatly dressed Zhao Miao in her simplistic apricot scholar’s gown beneath the golden tiles and red walls to the worn white blue long gown of Yang Ge and uttered an indecipherable "tch."
Zhao Miao ran out of the palace gates, gasping for air, and hugged Huang tightly, "Haha, Huang, did you come to pick me up and take me home too?"
Huang, seeing her, didn’t bark but happily wriggled and whimpered in her arms with a tail wagging so fiercely it almost left afterimages.
Yang Ge took the small bundle from Zhao Miao’s shoulder, hung it on himself, and took hold of Huang, "Let’s go, take me to see your mother."
Zhao Miao paused for a second, then, thrilled beyond hope, pulled Yang Ge toward the palace, "Let’s go, let’s go, my mother was just talking about you last night..."
Yang Ge, holding Huang, let her pull him inside, listening to her chatter about Ziwei Palace’s magnificent buildings, treasure-like and proud.
Huang, tail wagging, walked between them, looking curiously around the unfamiliar large courtyard. As it passed through the palace gate, it lifted a leg and urinated at the base of the wall, marking its territory... It might have been the first rural Chinese dog to ever strut proudly through the main gate into the palace.
The inconspicuous pair and dog walked slowly through the palaces, with their gold tiles and red walls, so out of place yet so naturally poised.
Tang Xiong followed silently behind them.
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Yang Ge said, "Please discuss with the emperor later, see if you can allow Zhao Miao’s mother to leave the palace and live outside. It’s not very appropriate for me to keep running into the palace..."
Tang Xiong pondered for a moment and nodded, "I will discuss this matter with the emperor."
Yang Ge bowed his hands in thanks, "Much appreciated."
Tang Xiong waved his hand, "It’s your own face that matters, I’m just the messenger; no need for your thanks."
...
Time, once again, proved that without anyone, the sun will still rise as usual.
The imperial throne was smoothly passed on, and aside from a little turmoil during the month following the new emperor’s accession, life in the following days seemed no different from before.