Ashina Bisuo packed his belongings and arranged the horses and carriages to visit Yaoying at the Buddhist temple.

In the courtyard, vines entwined the flower walls and wooden frames, with clusters of grapes hanging abundantly among the emerald branches. Though not yet ripe, each grape was plump and translucent.

Bisuo reached up and picked two bunches of grapes to bring inside.

Yaoying knelt before a long table, her brows slightly furrowed, with a large stack of Buddhist scriptures before her.

Bisuo couldn’t help but chuckle: “Did the King ask you to read these?”

Yaoying nodded with a smile, pushed aside the scriptures, sat up straight, and gestured for Bisuo to take a seat.

Xie Peng, who had been standing guard in the corner of the room, bowed his head and withdrew.

Bisuo sat on the felt carpet, his gaze quickly scanning the room. The furnishings remained as they were before, without any additional silk curtains, brocade hangings, or soft bedding – only a few large boxes filled with books had been added.

Princess Wenzhao was a princess who could endure hardship, adapting to wherever she found herself.

This was exactly what worried Bisuo. She possessed transcendent beauty, the charm and grace of a young lady, the bright and unrestrained nature of a royal princess, and an unyielding spirit. He admired such women and therefore was more afraid of Princess Wenzhao getting close to Luojia.

Lost in thought, he was startled when Yaoying glanced at him and asked, “General, is the Regent King unable to see me?”

Bisuo came to his senses, coughed once, and said, “The Regent King has important matters at hand and cannot meet with the Princess. If the Princess has anything to say, I can convey the message.”

Yaoying pondered for a moment. Sudan Gu’s whereabouts were mysterious, with important decrees all being delivered by personal guards. She wanted to meet him but didn’t know when that would be possible. Some things could be discussed with Bisuo just as well.

“Have all the Northern Rong people the General captured that night been sent back?”

Bisuo shook his head: “Not yet. I’m departing tonight for Northern Rong to personally escort them back.”

Yaoying was startled: “The General will personally escort them?”

Bisuo’s eyes flickered briefly, not mentioning the letter Luojia had personally written: “Yes, I will personally escort them back to Northern Rong. Their prince’s guards appeared in our royal court and palace – the Northern Rong Khan must give our court an explanation.”

Yaoying didn’t inquire further, saying, “I wanted to discuss this matter with the General. Those Northern Rong people could be put to great use.”

Bisuo raised an eyebrow.

Meeting his scrutinizing gaze, Yaoying spoke frankly: “When I was held captive in the Northern Rong camp, I heard many secrets about their royal family. Haidu Aling is an adopted foreigner of Khan Wahan. The Khan’s sons have long been at odds with him, and the Khan has grown wary of him. There are deep internal conflicts within the royal family. If the General can properly utilize those Northern Rong people, you can deepen the rift between Khan Wahan and Haidu Aling.”

Bisuo narrowed his eyes, looking at Yaoying differently than before: “How does the Princess know there’s already a rift between Haidu Aling and Khan Wahan?”

Yaoying smiled lightly: “When the Buddhist Master urgently needed water hemp grass before, didn’t Khan Wahan immediately agree to return my dowry when the General went to request it, and even reprimanded Haidu Aling?”

Bisuo stroked his chin and said: “That’s correct.”

Yaoying said with certainty: “If another prince had taken my dowry and the General went to Northern Rong to request it, Khan Wahan wouldn’t have agreed to return the dowry so easily.”

Bisuo recalled the scene from that day and nodded: “Indeed, Khan Wahan was very courteous to me and even publicly scolded Haidu Aling…”

His eyes brightened as he clapped and laughed softly.

“Khan Wahan was deliberately using our court to suppress Haidu Aling!”

The Northern Rong people worship strength and remain barbaric. It’s common for the Khan’s position to change hands in a single day – whoever is stronger can become the new Khan, even between fathers, sons, and brothers. Therefore, family ties within the royal family are weak. Whenever an old Khan dies, the tribes experience violent turmoil due to power struggles. A powerful empire can rapidly expand and conquer the grasslands in just a few years, or it can fall apart and collapse overnight.

As Khan Wahan grew older and Haidu Aling was young and strong, and not his real nephew, the old Khan began to guard against Haidu Aling.

After being excited for a while, Bisuo frowned and said: “But these are just our speculations. Perhaps Khan Wahan was deceiving me.”

Yaoying nodded, “Perhaps as the General thinks, Khan Wahan is deeply calculating and was only deceiving you at the time, but what happened later proves my guess wasn’t wrong. Haidu Aling’s diplomatic mission to our court this time confirms it.”

Bisuo narrowed his eyes: “Oh? Why does the Princess say so?”

Yaoying smiled: “General, if you were Prince Haidu Aling, commanding strong troops, fighting campaigns north and south, with great ambitions, would you repeatedly provoke our court over a woman like me after the alliance between our court and Northern Rong was established?”

Bisuo was stunned, his gaze falling on Yaoying’s face: “The Princess has divine beauty, Haidu Aling is determined to have you.”

Yaoying remained calm: “Yes, Haidu Aling sees me as his prey, but he is an experienced hunter. A cool-headed hunter wouldn’t risk his life alone for prey.”

Looking at Yaoying, Bisuo’s expression gradually changed. He couldn’t help but sit up straight, his demeanor becoming more serious.

“What does the Princess mean?”

Yaoying spoke slowly: “I have some understanding of Haidu Aling. He’s crude but subtle, with grand ambitions. He’s not someone who would disregard the bigger picture for a woman. He’s deceiving Khan Wahan and the Khan’s sons, making the Khan lower his guard.”

She had reason to be so certain.

In the book, Haidu Aling was brave and skilled in battle, rising quickly to power, which aroused jealousy from other princes and suspicion from Khan Wahan. The princes set a trap for Haidu Aling, and he fell for it, nearly dying in an ambush, with most of his trusted guards killed.

After recovering, Haidu Aling lay low and pretended to be self-destructive due to a limp from his injury, maintaining the pretense of limping for over a year. Later, he captured several Northern Mo beauties during a campaign, including a woman known as the first beauty, who was alluring and skilled in bedroom arts. He spent his days indulging with the woman in his tent, neglecting military affairs. When his subordinates remonstrated, he killed them with his sword.

Seeing Haidu Aling become wasteful, living in debauchery, losing support, and unable to leave his beautiful woman’s side, Khan Wahan and his sons gradually lowered their guard against him.

Later, Haidu Aling led his troops into the royal tent, personally killed Khan Wahan, slaughtered the entire Northern Rong royal family, and became the new Khan.

When Yaoying was in the Northern Rong camp, the Northern Rong princes and Haidu Aling had already had several open and secret conflicts. She simply added fuel to the fire, enticing other princes to seize Haidu Aling’s war spoils and intensify the conflict. Later, when Bisuo brought a message to Khan Wahan requesting the dowry, she also planted some tricks in the letter to make the Northern Rong Khan wary of Haidu Aling.

Now the Northern Rong royal family must be in a state of tension.

Yaoying said softly: “Haidu Aling is not someone who would be confused by beauty. He must have had conflicts with Khan Wahan and his sons, so he deliberately came as an envoy to our court and snuck into the palace at night, making Khan Wahan think he’s a fool who loses his head over women.”

After speaking, she smiled, “These are all just my guesses. Since the General is going to the Northern Rong royal tent, you can observe to see if Haidu Aling and the other princes are already in serious conflict.”

Bisuo was shocked and stayed silent for a long while before nodding.

“If everything is as the Princess guesses, I can start with those subordinates to disrupt Haidu Aling’s plan of hiding his true abilities, making Khan Wahan more wary of him.”

Yaoying clapped and laughed softly – this was exactly what she wanted to discuss with Bisuo: “Whether Haidu Aling snuck into the palace at night out of impulse or had other plans, the General can take advantage of the situation. If I guessed wrong, the General can adapt accordingly, such as making Khan Wahan think Haidu Aling has reached some agreement with our court. This way, even if Khan Wahan never suspected Haidu Aling before, he will now.”

Bisuo’s eyes suddenly widened.

To think Princess Wenzhao could devise such a poisonous strategy!

If the Northern Rong royal family was peaceful, they would sow discord between Khan Wahan and Haidu Aling.

If the Northern Rong royal family was already in turmoil, they would add fuel to the fire, making it burn more fiercely.

In any case, regardless of why Haidu Aling came as an envoy to their court, Princess Wenzhao wanted to drag him down, forcefully take a bite out of him, and thoroughly disrupt the Northern Rong royal family!

Bisuo’s expression was too horrified, making Yaoying look puzzled as she explained: “The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting. Reminding Khan Wahan to guard against Haidu Aling and intensifying their conflict weakens Northern Rong, leaving them too preoccupied to cause trouble. This is also one of the ways to avoid war.”

Northern Rong had sowed discord and incited war between Central Plains countries, wanting to take advantage of the chaos to plunder. She was simply returning the favor.

Yaoying finished speaking, sat up straight, and formally bowed to Bisuo, saying: “I am not from your court, merely staying in the Holy City. I shouldn’t meddle in such important matters, but because we face the same threat from Northern Rong, I dared to speak my thoughts. I hope the General won’t take offense. Please consider it just the naive ramblings of a young person.”

Bisuo’s palms were slightly sweaty. After a moment of silence, he stood up to help Yaoying rise: “Princess, you are an honored guest of our court. These words will remain between us, no one else will know.”

Yaoying smiled faintly.

She didn’t care how Bisuo saw her, as long as her suggestions could be put to use.

Bisuo suddenly asked: “Why doesn’t the Princess advise the King directly? I’m just the General of the Central Army, all decisions must be approved by the King.”

Yaoying blinked, her eyes bright with girlish craftiness: “To be honest with the General, the Master is such a pure and noble figure… I find it difficult to speak of such schemes and intrigues before him.”

Dammo Luojia was like a lotus standing in the wind, cold and noble. If she discussed these things with him, would he frown and drive her out of the temple?

Bisuo was stunned for a moment before bursting into laughter.

“What do you take the King for? He is the ruler of our court…”

After laughing for a while, some of Bisuo’s worries also dissipated.

Luojia was right – Princess Wenzhao had no romantic feelings for him, only pure reverence and gratitude.

Luojia was always so clear-headed and rational, never deceived by appearances.

Whether he was Luojia or his other identity.

As Bisuo got up to leave and reached the corridor, he suddenly turned back, leaning into the room: “Princess, you said one thing wrong.”

Yaoying looked up: “Hmm?”

Bisuo said seriously: “Haidu Aling fights campaign north and south with great ambition. After our court and Northern Rong established an alliance, his repeated provocations to take you might not be entirely an act.”

Yaoying shook her head and smiled.

She was naturally beautiful from birth. Even though she didn’t appear in public much, she quickly became famous throughout the Central Plains, with pampered young masters who admired her as numerous as fish crossing a river.

Whenever she rode out, those noble sons would race their horses after her just to catch a few more glimpses.

Zheng Jing, the fifth son of the Xue family, the Pei family’s son, the Lu family’s son, the Cui family’s son… Li De’s subordinates, the Xie family’s guards…

Many people were captivated by her beauty.

Yaoying believed their love was sincere, but so what?

She was born in troubled times and grew up among noble families, understanding that some things stirred men’s desire for conquest far more than beauty – that was power.

Men can cast aside everything to climb to the peak of power. In this era of rising heroes and emerging talents, men were busy competing for power – beauty was merely an ornamental touch in their moments between conquests. If they could don the yellow imperial robe and hold the world in their hands, what was a beautiful woman in comparison?

When Li De posthumously titled Lady Tang as empress, people praised his deep affection for his humble first wife, completely forgetting how he had resolutely abandoned her earlier to consolidate his power. Li Xuanzhen and Zhu Lüyun were passionately entangled for years, and he was willing to die for her, yet he still married the noble lady Zheng Biyu for the position of crown prince.

Someone like Haidu Aling would never halt his conquests for a woman. Every move he made was for his ambitions.

Seeing Yaoying’s dismissive expression, Bisuo grinned. “Princess, I don’t know Haidu Aling, but I am a man.” When a man is determined to possess a woman, he can disregard everything and take desperate measures.

Yaoying spread her hands. She didn’t care what Haidu Aling was thinking. Even though he had held her captive for half a year, even though he occasionally showed a gentle side, she remained clear-headed. She had been taken by Haidu Aling – he wanted to tame her.

Bisuo grew interested, leaning against the doorframe as he looked Yaoying up and down. “Princess is from the Central Plains, where propriety is emphasized. The Northern Rong doesn’t care for such complicated rules, and neither do we. In the tribes, whichever man is strongest and most valiant wins the admiration of all women. Haidu Aling is strong and heroic – is the Princess truly not moved at all?”

Yaoying raised her head, looking at Bisuo as if he were a fool: “General asks this – perhaps the General admires men like Haidu Aling?”

Bisuo was speechless.

Yaoying lowered her head to look through the scriptures. Li Zhongqian had raised her, loved her, cherished her, and doted on her – how could she demean herself by having feelings for a man who viewed her as a plaything? She respected every genuine feeling, and even if she couldn’t reciprocate, she wouldn’t casually belittle it. But Haidu Aling’s kind of attraction – she begged to be excused from it.

Bisuo rubbed his nose, looking embarrassed as he turned to leave. He could be completely at ease now – the Princess was so rational, she would never risk the entire court’s hatred by seducing Luojia.

…

After returning to his residence, Bisuo discussed with his advisors for a while before sending the compiled proposals to the temple.

“These strategies were suggested by the Princess!” he emphasized at the end.

Someone as pure as Luojia would surely despise women with deep schemes.

Dammo Luojia read through the proposals, his expression calm and neutral. Without a word, his eyes lowered as he wrote his instructions.

Bisuo couldn’t tell if his plan had worked as he withdrew from the meditation chamber with the instructions.

Before departing, he visited the palace.

Princess Chima was hosting a banquet with dancing and music, cups crossing back and forth. The guests were all drunk, with officials everywhere embracing singing girls in pleasure. The melodious music could barely cover the ambiguous sounds, the scene awash in red lanterns and wine.

Bisuo found the half-drunk Princess Chima, pulled away the man lying on top of her, and threw him aside, saying: “Princess, I’ll be away for a few days, going to Northern Rong.”

Hearing this, Chima’s drunkenness receded somewhat. She sat up on the couch, her snow-white shoulders exposed, “You can’t go! It’s too dangerous!”

Bisuo said flatly: “I’m the General of the Central Army, going on a diplomatic mission to Northern Rong – what danger could there be?”

He paused, his expression somewhat impatient. “Princess, let me advise you – don’t do anything foolish that might harm Luojia. I’ll continue to have people watch you while I’m away.”

Princess Chima’s face darkened. “Luojia let that Han woman stay in the temple,” she said coldly. “He’s been bewitched by beauty, disregarding family vengeance and breaking the fifth precept against lust. He’s committed such a scandalous act that people are gossiping everywhere. Instead of advising him, you come to warn me?”

She raised her head, staring directly at Bisuo. “I know you all say I’m harsh, scheming, willful… Compared to the noble Luojia, I’m a vicious woman. His tolerance makes my hatred seem ridiculous.”

“Bisuo, watching my family members die tragically one by one, how can I not hate?” She laughed coldly several times, her fingers digging deep into her palms.

“Why must he always oppose me? Why? Back then when I wanted to kill all the Zhang clan, his merciful heart wouldn’t let me slaughter the innocent. Fine! I didn’t kill innocent people! But now? Why must he show such favor to a Han woman?”

At this point, Princess Chima suddenly calmed down, looking thoughtful. “Luojia always shows mercy to Han people… Does he know something?”

Bisuo frowned deeply, picking up a gauze robe nearby and draping it over Princess Chima’s shoulders: “It’s not what you think. Luojia just wanted to save someone – Princess Wenzhao saved his life.”

Princess Chima sneered.

Bisuo let out a long sigh, “Luojia carries too heavy a burden, don’t make trouble for him.”

Princess Chima’s face churned with anger, her body trembling. She held back, controlling her rage, and said coldly: “The Northern Rong are cunning and cruel. Take more men with you when you go.”

Bisuo smiled, “Don’t worry about me. Khan Wahan fears Luojia, he won’t dare harm me.”

Then he sighed again. “I hear you’ve been feasting and making merry with those corrupt officials every day lately. What’s the point? Don’t harm your health.”

Princess Chima gave a faint acknowledgment, her face dark as she watched Bisuo leave. She immediately called her maids: “Bisuo is going to Northern Rong. Keep watch on the temple. I don’t believe Luojia saved that Han woman just to repay kindness! They must have been intimate already!”

The maid said hesitantly: “Princess, the palace guards aren’t strict, we can gather information… but the temple is the King’s residence, and the guards are all from the Central Army’s elite guard. We’ll be discovered as soon as we get close. And if the Regent King finds out…”

Princess Chima’s brown eyes narrowed slightly as she cut off the maid’s words: “Fool! If you can’t get close, can’t you find someone who can? No matter how strict the temple guards are, there must be gaps! Listen carefully and find evidence of Luojia’s intimacy with the Han woman!”

The maid dared not argue further and kowtowed in agreement.

Princess Chima stood up, took a glass of wine, and walked to the window. Bisuo’s figure hurried through the courtyard with light steps. He was utterly loyal to Dammo Luojia, yet Luojia sent him to a hostile country.

Hatred flashed through Chima’s brown eyes as her fingers tightly gripped the wine glass. The Dammo family didn’t have only Luojia as a prince – she was a Dammo princess. Since Luojia repeatedly disappointed her, she would take back the Dammo family’s power. The civil and military officials would surely stand with her.

…

After Bisuo left, Yuanjue was assigned to protect Yaoying.

“The Princess needs a guide when going out.”

Yaoying felt relieved. Although Dammo Luojia had assigned her studies, he allowed her to leave the temple and move about freely after morning lessons – he was truly open-minded and considerate.

The elderly Qi Nian from outside the city sent news that the first batch of silk in the shop had sold out, asking when the second batch would be available for sale. Yaoying told them not to rush to sell, but to wait until the Hu people had mostly sold their goods.

Before leaving, Bisuo had introduced Yaoying to a Sogdian merchant. She had the merchant help her buy a large piece of land, and following the original plan, moved all the people living outside the city there. She also bought several hundred sheep, some seeds, and fruit trees, and had those who knew farming quickly plant mulberry, hemp, melons, and fruits.

Qi Nian, who had been a steward before, managed everything in perfect order.

The merchant caravan agreed to cooperate with Yaoying and help deliver messages, though Northern Rong was deliberately cutting off connections between the Central Plains and the Western Regions. With the western trade route blocked, they could only cross the Pamir Mountains to the east, and couldn’t guarantee they would deliver the messages.

Yaoying didn’t lose heart – any hope was better than none.

After handling the shop’s affairs, she asked Yuanjue if there were any skilled carpenters in the court. Yuanjue recommended several Persian merchants who had fled to the court.

Yaoying found these merchants and asked them to help make the wooden items she wanted. The Persians didn’t know Han Chinese, and her foreign language wasn’t fluent. After much-confused communication, the Persians promised they would make what she wanted.

Yaoying felt the Persians definitely hadn’t understood her requirements, but seeing their confident manner, she could only make do.

After handling various matters, she began recruiting guards. Many people from various Western Region tribes had been forced into exile, and these people would risk their lives for a Sassanid silver coin.

Within a few days, the Sogdian merchant had recruited a batch of guards for Yaoying. These men had black hair and eyes, curly hair and brown eyes, or red hair and green eyes, coming from various fallen tribes.

Yaoying didn’t dare trust outsiders yet, so she had them guard Qi Nian and the other weak and elderly, or follow the merchant caravans. The guards could be loyal to her for silver coins, but they could also betray her for silver coins.

After several busy days, Yaoying was exhausted, her waist and legs aching.

Just as she wanted to rest, Yuanjue told her that in a few days, Dammo Luojia would be giving a sermon during morning lessons, and she should prepare in advance.

Yaoying inwardly groaned – what preparation? Was Dammo Luojia going to test her on her lessons? Why was he so serious? She had thought the daily practice was just for show and hadn’t remembered anything!

Yaoying didn’t dare object. For the next few days, she got up early and obediently sat at her desk reading scriptures.

Early this morning, after finishing the accounts, she sat at her desk reading scriptures when suddenly there was a loud bang – a bunch of grapes flew in from outside, landing on the long table, the grapes rolling everywhere.

Yaoying had been reading until her head spun, and was startled. She stared at the yellowish-green grapes on the table, lost in thought.

A chorus of apologies came from the corridor – several guards had been playing in the courtyard, picking grapes and throwing them back and forth, accidentally throwing them into the room.

Xie Qing immediately drew his sword, rising to teach those guards a lesson.

Yaoying waved her hand, stopping Xie Qing: “A’Qing, have you ever eaten raisins?”