As dawn broke, the inn's serving boy had fed the horses, and after everyone had a bit of breakfast, they set off again. It took six days of travel, and they arrived at the Imperial Palace in the evening.
After a night of rest, Dugu Chen awoke before dawn. He turned his head to see his wife sleeping soundly beside him, then quietly got up and put on a purple robe embroidered with pale blue flowers. His ink-black hair was half-draped, half-tied just as before. He had only worn the Dragon Robe once since his ascension and Feng Xuxu's coronation as Empress, and then he'd put it away and never worn it again.
After freshening up, he left the bedroom hall and boarded the Dragon Carriage that had been prepared early in the morning to go to the Qianqing Palace for the morning audience.
The assembled ministers stood silently in the great hall, and after Dugu Chen took his seat of supreme authority, the ministers knelt to the ground and greeted him, "Long live the Emperor."
