Beyond the frontier, deep winter.

The Hu people’s emergency grain and fodder supplies were ambushed during transport by an elite Wei cavalry that had stealthily penetrated deep into their territory. All provisions were burned to ashes. Then, their final organized counterattack was ruthlessly intercepted by the Wei forward troops, completely routing them.

These successive blows finally forced the Hu people to accept reality.

Although they had prepared for this day for a long time, dedicating their entire nation’s strength to wage war against Great Wei.

This conflict had continued intermittently from the early summer of the previous year until this deep winter.

But to defeat the army led by the old Marquis of Wei and seize the Hetao region from his hands—this seemed to have become an unattainable dream.

Even the heavens gave no respite. Heavy snow fell for three days and three nights. For many consecutive days, people and horses continued to perish from hunger and cold. If they didn’t retreat now, once the Wei forces formed an encirclement, even if they maintained the courage to drive their horses and fight to the death, the remaining troops would still die from hunger and cold.

That night, the Hu forces fled north. By dawn, their camp in the snow was left in disarray, with only the bodies of fallen cavalry and war horses that hadn’t yet been buried.

This difficult battle to defend Hetao, which had been fought for more than a year, finally concluded with this decisive victory for Great Wei.

This war had been prolonged and exceptionally difficult. After dawn, in the Wei military camp, shouts of victory resounded to the heavens.

Jars of fine wine were brought in, and herds of cattle and sheep awaited slaughter. This long-anticipated victory feast now only awaited the return of the brave elite cavalry who had risked their lives to successfully raid deep into Hu territory.

The leaders of these brave warriors were the current Third Prince Xiao Lie and Pei Xian, the eldest son of the old Marquis of Wei who commanded the Wei army.

That year, Xiao Lie was only eighteen.

Xiao Lie and Pei Xian had grown up together, as close as brothers. A year earlier, when conflict erupted beyond the frontier, seventeen-year-old Xiao Lie had obtained an imperial command from the Emperor and, together with Pei Xian, followed the old Marquis of Wei to serve the court in the military.

Because of his status, at the beginning, the old Marquis feared for his safety. In the first battle, Pei Xian served as the vanguard, while Xiao Lie was assigned to supply coordination. Xiao Lie went to the commander’s tent to request combat duty, speaking so passionately that the old Marquis was moved by his enthusiasm and agreed to let him join the battle. However, as a precaution, he ordered Xiao Lie to stay behind him and not act independently. After several battles, Xiao Lie fought bravely, coordinating seamlessly with Pei Xian as they repeatedly achieved military merit together. Only then did the old Marquis gradually relax, entrusting this important raid to Xiao Lie and Pei Xian who had volunteered for the mission. The two did not disappoint, burning the Hu people’s supply of provisions and making a significant contribution to ending the war.

Snow fell heavily and the north wind howled. Despite such adverse weather, the elite light cavalry unit composed entirely of young riders galloped swiftly on their return. Commander Xiao Lie and Deputy Commander Pei Xian were in high spirits. That night, when they made camp, the two shared a tent and drank the last half bag of wine remaining in their flask, promising that upon returning to camp, they would jointly request permission to take advantage of the victory’s momentum and attack a place called Mutuo, which had been seized by the Hu people during the previous dynasty. Slightly intoxicated, they drew their swords and sang, their youthful passion soaring. After singing, Pei Xian smiled and said, “Third Highness, you’ve been away from the capital for over a year now, establishing merits repeatedly. Not only the commander but all the officers and soldiers have come to view Your Highness with new respect. The victory reports sent to the capital will surely praise Your Highness, and His Majesty will be greatly pleased. Has Your Highness thought about what reward you might request when the time comes?”

Of the current Emperor’s three sons, the youngest, Xiao Lie, was the most talented, and the Emperor favored him. However, Xiao Lie’s birth mother had died early, and he had no maternal family to rely on. Moreover, he had been naturally spirited since childhood. In others’ eyes, the Crown Prince was compassionate, the Second Prince was steady, but the Third Prince was arrogant in his father’s favor, secretly labeled a “wild troublemaker.”

“Boming, if I were to say that after conquering Mutuo and returning to the capital, I don’t want rewards from my father, but rather wish to ask for a treasure from your father, what would you think?” Xiao Lie addressed Pei Xian by his courtesy name, looking at him with a smile.

Pei Xian was startled, exchanged a glance with him, and seeing how Xiao Lie stared at him with slightly shining eyes, immediately understood.

The Third Prince and his sister Wenjing were mutually attracted to each other. Whether his parents knew about this, he wasn’t certain, but he had noticed it long ago, though he had never mentioned it.

He remembered that year during the Lantern Festival when he took his sister to see the lanterns at the market. Because of the crowds, they accidentally got separated. Fortunately, his sister had loyal servants with her, and they had agreed beforehand that if separated, they would meet at the bridge at the entrance of the lantern market.

When he went to find her, from a distance he saw the Third Prince standing beside his sister under a willow tree. The Prince had hung something like a jade pendant on a willow branch and said something to her. At first, she didn’t respond and turned to leave, but then she seemed to notice his approach. Perhaps afraid of being seen by him, she hurriedly turned back to take the jade pendant and hide it.

Although this happened several years ago, the memory remained fresh in his mind.

He stared back at Xiao Lie, the smile gradually disappearing from his face.

“Third Highness, I know your intentions. I have only one sister, and I cannot allow anyone to treat her lightly. My parents view her as the pearl of their palm, not seeking prominence for her, only wishing that she find a good man. Though Your Highness is of noble status, if you’re merely playing with Wenjing, I will be the first to object!”

He spoke word by word.

“Boming, I can swear to heaven that if I have even the slightest intention of trifling with her, or if I ever fail her in the future, may I, Xiao Lie, not die a natural death! Even if I live, may my life be worse than death! How about it, do you now believe in my sincerity toward her?”

Xiao Lie’s expression changed from his previous smile to one of extraordinary solemnity.

Pei Xian looked into his eyes for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter: “With Your Highness’s words, what more could I worry about? When we return, I will take Your Highness to see my father. As long as Your Highness speaks up, how could my father not agree? Even if he doesn’t, I will assist Your Highness, and ensure you and my sister become a couple. Your Highness can rest assured!”

Xiao Lie was overjoyed. He poured out the remaining wine from the flask, and they both drank it in one gulp. He smiled and said, “With Boming’s word, I am at ease.”

That night, the two chatted until late, finally falling asleep contentedly.

Xiao Lie gradually entered a dream.

In the dream, amid ice and snow, the girl he had been thinking of constantly during their year-long separation approached him with a smile.

He felt no cold at all; his heart was as warm as spring.

His heart overflowing with joy, he called out her name loudly and ran toward her.

The war had ended, Great Wei had won, and he had not only realized his childhood dream of being a hero on the battlefield but also proven his abilities.

He was not the wild prince who only acted as he pleased because of his father’s favor, as others saw him.

He was Xiao Lie, a prince who had earned the respect of Great Wei’s iron-blooded soldiers through his efforts.

In a few more days, by next spring at the latest, he would be able to return, make her proud of him, and then marry her.

Having her company for this lifetime would be enough.

But just as he was about to embrace her, suddenly, as if an invisible thunderbolt struck between them, it carved out a deep, unbridgeable chasm. He could not cross it and could only watch helplessly as she stood on the opposite shore, her face filled with sorrow, her eyes gazing at him, her figure growing smaller and smaller until finally disappearing.

Strange scenes began to flash before his eyes.

At his father’s funeral, he saw her figure from afar. She seemed to sense something and turned her head to look at him.

Just a fleeting glance.

By then, she had already married and become the Empress of his eldest brother, who had just ascended the throne as the new Emperor. Afterward, he went to Yunnan to establish his residence there.

That glance became the only and last look she gave him before he departed for Yunnan.

Later, an epidemic broke out in the capital, and she fell ill and was sent to a temple for treatment.

He saw himself secretly going there to accompany her. Half a year later, before leaving, he committed a grave mistake.

It was that mistake that took her life.

He saw her struggling to give birth to a child for him, then dying, while the real him at that time knew nothing of what was happening.

He saw clearly that before she died, she still held in her palm the jade pendant he had half-forcefully, half-roguishly given her on that Yuan Festival night…

“Wenjing!”

His heart pounding wildly, he cried out in terror and suddenly opened his eyes, only to find himself still in the tent.

The extinguished candle had somehow been relit. Beside him, Pei Xian was sound asleep, but across from him, a person was standing.

It was a young man with bright eyes that were unforgettable once seen.

He was tall and thin, refined and elegant, yet emanating a power that seemed capable of commanding thousands of troops and determining the fate of the world.

Now he stood there silently, looking at him with a gaze that seemed both sad and compassionate, motionless, just staring at him.

From the first moment he saw this young man, Xiao Lie felt a strange sensation arise in his heart.

He was certain that in his eighteen years of life, he had never seen this man before.

But his feeling was so familiar—as if the man was the closest person in his life.

“Who are you?” Xiao Lie slowly rose from his sleeping place, stood up, and asked.

Because of that terrible dream, his voice was trembling slightly.

The man gazed at him and said, “I’ve come to tell you something. The Emperor will soon pass away. If you go to attack Mutuo now, by the time you finish the battle and return to the capital next spring, the Crown Prince will have already asked the Emperor for a marriage decree. For the rest of her life, she will never be your wife.”

The Crown Prince had already come of age, but a respected figure had previously predicted from the Crown Prince’s birth chart that he should not establish a Crown Princess too early. Additionally, in recent years, the Crown Prince himself had not been focused on this matter, so no Crown Princess had been appointed yet.

Xiao Lie immediately recalled what he had seen in his dream and became even more terrified: “Who exactly are you? How can you speak such absurd words? How could the Crown Prince ask my father to marry Wenjing?”

The man said nothing more and turned to leave the tent.

Xiao Lie immediately chased after him but couldn’t keep up with his pace. He watched helplessly as the figure with flowing robes was about to disappear into the snowy night.

His heart burning with anxiety, he tried to chase again, but his foot slipped, and he fell into the snow, crying out loudly. Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice calling “Third Highness.” He woke up, opened his eyes again, and saw Pei Xian sitting up, looking at him. It was Pei Xian who had awakened him, and he was still in the tent.

Had everything just now been a dream within a dream?

“Third Highness, did you have a nightmare? I heard you shouting continuously just now. You woke me up, but you were still asleep.”

Pei Xian looked concerned.

Xiao Lie was covered in cold sweat. Despite the winter night, he felt as if he had just been pulled from water. He sat there blankly, staring straight ahead as if something was there. After a moment, he suddenly jumped up and rushed out of the tent, only to see vast expanses of snow and a pitch-black sky, with no sign of the man from his dream.

“Third Highness, what has happened?” Pei Xian followed him out and was shocked to see him standing barefoot in the snow.

Xiao Lie’s figure froze for a while, then he abruptly turned around and said in a trembling voice, “Boming, I have an urgent matter and must leave for the capital tonight!”

After speaking, he quickly returned to the tent, put on his armor, hurried to the horse pen, led out his warhorse, mounted it, and galloped away.

In the snowy wilderness, a powerful warhorse, driven by an eighteen-year-old prince, raced toward the capital.

Just before waking from his dream, he had been singing with his sword, full of spirit, but at this moment, his heart was filled with terror, fear, and anxiety. He wished he had wings to fly immediately back to the four-cornered city that was now a thousand miles away from him.