The northwest wind howled through the dim forest.

Two men who had just fought a battle to the death lay in the snow.

With a groan, Lin Jinlou slowly opened his eyes. Feeling moisture on his lips and a parched throat, he instinctively moved to lick them. Someone promptly lifted his head and offered him clean water. He drank eagerly, and when he tried to struggle up, an excruciating pain shot through him, causing him to cry out. The pain made him more alert, and turning his head, he saw Xiang Lan holding him in her arms, giving him water from a warming pot.

After drinking a few more sips and swallowing slowly, he asked, “Lu… Lu Shaotang?”

Xiang Lan replied softly, “Dead…”

“Why… why didn’t you run away instead of coming here?”

“…”

“…Search Lu Shaotang’s clothes. Military men usually carry medicine.”

Xiang Lan bit her lip and carefully laid Lin Jinlou down. She went to search for Lu Shaotang’s corpse. Her hands were too frozen to move properly, so she warmed them under her arms before searching again. She found a silk pouch on his belt containing three porcelain bottles and various other items, which she quickly brought to Lin Jinlou.

Lin Jinlou instructed her to pour out the contents of the bottles. One contained pills, another powder, and the third an ointment. He sniffed the pills and placed one under his tongue. He had Xiang Lan open his clothes and apply the ointment to his wounds. The application caused intense pain; his face turned pale as he struggled not to scream, his body drenched in a cold sweat as if he’d been pulled from the water. Xiang Lan took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat and blood from his face, tore off Lu Shaotang’s sweat towel to bandage Lin Jinlou’s wounds, and despite her discomfort, removed the headband from the corpse to bind Lin Jinlou’s arm.

After resting briefly, Lin Jinlou struggled to stand, using a tree trunk for support while leaning on Xiang Lan. After several failed attempts, Xiang Lan urged, “Rest a bit longer if you can’t manage.”

Lin Jinlou, breathing heavily, shook his head, “No time. The rebel army will be here soon. Staying here means certain death.” He ordered Xiang Lan to hand him Lu Shaotang’s crossbow and bring over his horse. Gritting his teeth, he forced himself up and onto the horse’s back, then tried to pull Xiang Lan up.

Xiang Lan shook her head, worry evident on her face.

Too weak to argue, Lin Jinlou lay on the horse’s back and pointed toward one end of the dense forest, saying, “That direction.”

Before departing, Xiang Lan put on a pair of fur gloves taken from an archer, tied the warming pot to her belt, kept the blanket over Lin Jinlou, and led the horse forward through the uneven terrain.

Xiang Lan’s entire body was frozen, the wind cutting her face like knives, her eyes barely able to stay open. After some time, they emerged from the dense forest, but the snow-covered ground made it impossible to discern any path. She wanted to ask Lin Jinlou, but seeing him motionless on the horse’s back, she panicked and checked on him. Finding him still breathing, she sighed in relief. Looking at the vast expanse ahead, she could only press forward. Hearing faint battle cries behind them, she didn’t dare look back, instead quickening her pace while leading the horse.

After walking for an unknown duration, the path grew steeper, indicating they were descending the mountain. Xiang Lan’s deerskin boots weren’t suited for mountain terrain, and she slipped several times, falling to the ground. Each time, she quickly got up, rubbing her injuries while holding the reins to continue forward.

About an hour later, or perhaps half an hour, Xiang Lan felt exhausted and could barely move forward. Suddenly, she spotted flickering lights ahead, filling her with a mix of surprise, joy, and fear. As she carefully approached the horse, she heard battle cries. Xiang Lan quickly stopped. The sounds of fighting grew closer, seemingly from people attacking a caravan, which was now fleeing toward her position.

Greatly alarmed, Xiang Lan looked around and saw only pine trees, cypress, and craggy rocks offering potential shelter. The horse was too large to hide, so in desperation, she pulled Lin Jinlou down, who fell on top of her. She quickly crawled out, noting with relief that he had landed face-up, avoiding pressure on his chest wound. She dragged him behind the rocks, panting heavily. When she turned to get the horse, she saw it had already turned and galloped away.

There was no time to dwell on this. Xiang Lan checked on Lin Jinlou, who remained unconscious. She hid behind the rock, peering out as the chaos and screaming intensified. High-pitched screams from the caravan indicated the presence of women. As the sounds drew nearer, several carriages rushed past, ablaze with fire arrows. Elderly, women, and children in fine fur and silk clothing scrambled from the burning carriages, fleeing in all directions. Their pursuers followed with drawn weapons, while servants in uniform tried to resist. Suddenly, a horrific cry rang out as a man in a fox fur coat was beheaded – it was Zhao Gang’s face that rolled toward them! Terrified, Xiang Lan grabbed the crossbow from Lin Jinlou’s waist, her body trembling.

The fighting gradually subsided. From her hiding place between the rock and cypress, Xiang Lan watched the attackers slaughter the caravan members. The battle had been fierce, with many attackers also falling. Finally, only four remained, one of whom lay grievously wounded, moaning in a pool of blood. They dragged several heavy chests from the burning carriages, finding them filled with gold, silver, precious paintings, and artifacts, prompting cheers of celebration.

Suddenly, someone dragged a woman from nearby, shouting excitedly.

The remaining men immediately rushed over.

The woman screamed and struggled, kicking and biting, but they subdued her and lifted her away, their leering faces and words full of malicious intent.

The woman thrashed her head wildly, shrieking, “Beasts! Beasts! Let me go! Let me go!” Her voice was startlingly familiar.

Xiang Lan instantly recognized her – it was Zhao Yuechan!

She froze, standing up involuntarily, watching as the three men forced Zhao Yuechan to the ground. Xiang Lan retreated, closing her eyes, unable to watch as Zhao Yuechan’s cries mixed with the men’s vulgar laughter.

Xiang Lan covered her ears, sitting dazed against the rock. How was Zhao Yuechan here? The beheaded man earlier was her brother Zhao Gang – were all these carriages carrying members of the Zhao family?

As Zhao Yuechan’s cries and struggles continued, Xiang Lan felt her heart being repeatedly wrenched. Though Zhao Yuechan had once viciously wronged her, inspiring intense hatred, time had dulled that hatred to mere disgust. Now, hearing Zhao Yuechan’s tragic wails, she surprisingly found no satisfaction. Instead, she felt an inexplicable sorrow, mixed with sympathy, pity, and fear. She could only feel sorry for Zhao Yuechan.

After some time, the sounds quieted. Xiang Lan cautiously looked out again. The three men were gathering around the chests with torches, loading them onto the only unburned carriage. Halfway through, the severely wounded man moaned and called out. A tall, thin man gestured and spoke, seemingly suggesting they load the wounded man onto the carriage. However, the carriage was too small to fit both him and the chests, so the others refused.

The tall, thin man was dissatisfied and began shouting, leading to an argument. Being too far away, Xiang Lan couldn’t hear clearly. Suddenly, one man exchanged glances with another, who nodded slightly and drew his weapon, stabbing the wounded man in the chest! The man’s legs twitched once before he died.

The tall, thin man cried out in anguish and swung his sword, cutting off the murderer’s hand. The man screamed, and they began fighting while the third man watched indifferently. The tall, thin man showed some martial skill, quickly killing his opponent with several strikes, then turned to coldly regard the remaining man.

That man just smiled and said something. After a long silence, the tall, thin man appeared convinced. Together, they loaded the remaining two chests onto the carriage. However, when the man bent to drag Zhao Yuechan, the tall, thin man suddenly grabbed his head and repeatedly stabbed his chest with a dagger. The man groaned and fell; after a few more stabs, he stopped moving completely.

The tall, thin man collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. Xiang Lan’s heart raced – in mere moments, he had dispatched everyone and would now claim all the stolen treasures for himself.

Just then, Lin Jinlou began coughing violently, blood spurting from his nose and mouth! The sudden noise terrified Xiang Lan. She wiped the blood with her sleeve while urgently whispering in his ear, “Master, please be quieter, there are bandits outside…”

Lin Jinlou, eyes half-closed, continued coughing severely. He grabbed some snow and stuffed it in his mouth, dirty with mud and soil, trying to muffle his coughs while drawing up his left leg. Xiang Lan, panic-stricken, grabbed the crossbow and held it firmly.

The tall, thin man had heard the noise and followed it, noting the chaotic tracks in the snow as he approached, gripping his sword tightly.

Xiang Lan hid behind the rock, her heart pounding, finger on the crossbow’s trigger, but her hands were too numb from cold to feel anything. A shadow suddenly appeared, and in her desperation, she tried to pull the trigger, but her frozen fingers wouldn’t respond.

The tall, thin man seemed stunned, looking at the blood-covered Lin Jinlou and then at Xiang Lan, before breaking into laughter. Looking down at them, he said, “What an unexpected bonus today,” while grabbing Xiang Lan.