“Xue Gu, that great fire back then — were you the one who went into the flames to save me?”

Feng Jiu asked suddenly. Though she could not make out who the figure in the sea of fire had been, she would not have remembered it wrong.

There had most certainly been a figure there — someone who had rescued her from the flames, only to disappear completely afterward.

The strangest detail was this: the Feng Jiu of the twenty-first century had been twenty years old when the accident happened, yet she had no memory whatsoever of anything before the age of ten.

And ancient Feng Jiu’er had been six years old when the fire burned her into a state of idiocy, and sixteen when Feng Jiu’s soul came to inhabit her body.

She retained memories of ancient Feng Jiu’er’s life before the age of six, and memories of modern Feng Jiu’s life from the age of ten onward. Ten years later, she had become Feng Jiu’er. The missing ten years in between — whether ancient or modern — ran perfectly in sync…

Feng Jiu’s heart seized. These thoughts struck through her mind like lightning, yet they also trapped her within them, and for a moment she could scarcely pull free.

It was Xue Gu’s voice that finally drew her back from her bewilderment: “When the Feng Manor caught fire back then, I was away from the city. I did not make it in time to save you.”

“It was not you?” Then who within the Feng Manor had cared enough for her to rush into the fire without regard for their own safety?

That figure had clearly been a woman. Feng Jiu truly could not think of anyone in the Feng Manor who would have felt such tenderness toward her.

“It was not me.” But whoever it had been, Xue Gu was grateful.

“I went to the Feng Manor to see you afterward, but you… ah.”

The Feng Jiu’er after the fire had become fully vacant — drifting through each day in a daze. Xue Gu had gone to see her several times, and she no longer resembled the sharp, clever child she had once been.

It was not that Xue Gu wished to give up on her. It was that given Feng Jiu’er’s condition at the time, she seemed unlikely to accomplish anything. Even if Xue Gu were to tell her about General Long’s affairs, what good would it do?

Besides, Xue Gu later realized that although the vacant Feng Jiu was indeed unloved in the manor, at least that kind of simple, unaware girl would have no one wanting to move against her anymore. In a way, it had kept her safe through ten years of relative peace.

But now — the sharp, bright-eyed Feng Jiu from childhood, the one who was so like Long Feiyan, had come back.

It had to be said that once Feng Jiu’er was no longer vacant, the dangers she encountered were very real and very many.

So sometimes, being simple and unaware was not entirely a misfortune. But if one recovered, naturally that was better.

Feng Jiu knew well enough what the later Feng Jiu’er’s circumstances had been. As for the past — what was done was done, and there was little use dwelling on it.

“Why are you willing to speak of these things with me today?” When Xue Gu suddenly brought up the past, there was always a reason.

Otherwise, she would have told her all of this half a year ago.

Xue Gu had never been one for many words. That much, Feng Jiu understood better than anyone.

“I am not sure why I brought up the Battle of Broken Wolf Mountain. In truth, the way things are for you now… it is not so bad.”

Xue Gu looked at her. Though she was dressed in men’s clothing, at the very least she was living with a measure of freedom.

“Perhaps it is because so much has happened recently. You are still entangled in palace matters. I have felt a vague unease — a persistent sense that the mysterious organization from back then may still exist. That it may even be… inside the palace.”

“Are you suspicious of the person within the palace?” Emperor Qiwen was so obedient to the veiled lady — that veiled lady must be a figure of great standing.

Yet, could she have had a hand in Long Feiyan’s death back then? That thought had truly never occurred to Feng Jiu before.

“And yet she… carries herself with great integrity.”

That was right — that was the impression the veiled lady gave Feng Jiu. A genuine, upright presence. Whatever one might say, she did not resemble those petty, scheming sorts.

“I have never seen her, so naturally I cannot make any judgments. In any case — be careful in all things.”

“I know.”

Xue Gu glanced at her once more, a hint of quiet satisfaction in her eyes.

This girl was a great deal like General Long — passionate, kind, principled, and shrewd.

But compared to General Long, this girl also had a touch more calm, and a touch less of that fierce, volatile edge. Perhaps it was because the Dragon family was a clan of loyal martyrs, and General Long had grown up in the military camp from childhood.

As for Feng Jiu’er, she had been raised as a young lady of a great household. Though she possessed a fiercer spirit and drive that most daughters of noble families lacked, the life of an inner courtyard had still ground some softness into her.

This Feng Jiu’er — she was perhaps more tenacious than General Long, yet her path seemed to be all the more winding.

If she could, Xue Gu hoped Feng Jiu could keep her distance from the court and live freely, answering to no one.

But as things stood now… it seemed that would be difficult.

That night was another night for entering the palace.

Tonight, however, Feng Jiu made her own way in using her token. No one shadowed her step by step, and it felt rather liberating.

Come to think of it, she had never truly taken the time to appreciate the scenery of the imperial palace.

This palace, though somewhat removed from the largest palace she had seen in the twenty-first century and unable to match it in scale, had a night scenery that was unexpectedly beautiful.

Lanterns and decorations hung everywhere. Even on an ordinary evening, the splendor along the paths lit everything around it as bright as full daylight.

Xue Gu had said that her mother had once been a great general, a meritorious subject, and was frequently invited into the palace.

Walking through the palace grounds, Feng Jiu could not help but wonder — when Long Feiyan had once walked this same path, what had been in her heart?

Why had she come to have a grievance with Nanmeng Rong? Was it truly only because Nanmeng Rong envied her ability and her beauty?

But there were so many beautiful women in this world. Why had Nanmeng Rong been willing to go to such lengths just to be rid of her?

Was it perhaps because of Long Feiyan’s accomplishments?

Perhaps Long Feiyan had only ever wanted to be a good commander, to defend the homeland and protect her people. But to certain people, those who excelled were simply not permitted to exist in this world.

A person of Nanmeng Rong’s pettiness — even without Long Feiyan, there would still be Feng Jiu’er. The people she chose to resent would never be entirely cleared away.

A person like that, living in this world, would always have imagined enemies. The conflict would never end. Did she not tire of it?

So as not to draw too much attention, Feng Jiu walked on her own to the outside of Li Yuan.

Li Yuan had been abandoned for many years. From the outside it looked like nothing more than a courtyard choked with weeds. Even the name plaque was half-covered by climbing vines, obscuring much of its face.

Who would ever imagine that within such a Li Yuan there lived a “lady” whom even Emperor Qiwen held in reverence?

As for whether the veiled lady was truly a lady of the palace in the proper sense — Feng Jiu had still been unable to confirm this.

But that she was an extraordinary figure of great importance was beyond any doubt.

Reaching the half-latched gate of Li Yuan, she touched down lightly with her feet and vanished inside in the blink of an eye.

Emperor Qiwen and the Head Eunuch were both there. Toward this veiled lady, Emperor Qiwen had always had an inexhaustible patience.

One could not help but feel it was in line with the old saying — what one cannot have seems most precious. He could not have her, and so to this day he remained cautious and reverent, his face full of sincere devotion.

What if one day he did manage to obtain her?

Feng Jiu did not know what she was thinking. Those thoughts passed through her mind and vanished in an instant. She walked forward and said mildly: “This humble one pays respects to Your Majesty.”