In the tent with crackling charcoal fire, the young man in light night-travel clothes gently placed the limp figure from his arms back onto the couch. He sat quietly at the edge, looking at her face that had grown thinner, tucked the quilt around her, used his fingertips to smooth the wrinkles between her brows, and wiped away the tear stains on her cheeks.
Soon, footsteps sounded outside the tent, and two maidservants walked in quickly.
Xiaoman approached the couch, picked up the wedding dress that Jiang Zhiyi had just changed out of, and asked Yuan Ce: “General, shall this servant go to the next tent to help Sister Jing Zhe change into the wedding dress?”
Yuan Ce nodded.
Gu Yu walked up to Yuan Ce and reported: “General, all the servants in the procession, including the Minister of Ceremonies, have been replaced with our people. All the border-crossing documents, marriage alliance papers, and imperial edicts are now in our hands. The Xuance Army soldiers you brought have changed into the escort guards’ armor, and this set is yours.”
Gu Yu presented a set of armor.
Yuan Ce stood up and accepted it, putting on each piece over his night-travel clothes.
Gu Yu tightened her hands at her sides, feeling both anxious and excited.
Back in May, when the Princess returned to Chang’an, to travel lightly she had only taken Jing Zhe as her maid, so she and Xiaoman had temporarily stayed at the Shen residence in Guzang, planning to return to the capital with General Shen at the year’s end. They never expected the thunderbolt news in August that the Princess was being sent for a marriage alliance, and they almost thought they would never see the Princess again.
In Guzang, they watched General Shen receive the news but had to restrain themselves and accept it. For over three months, the entire Shen residence was so oppressively quiet that not even insects dared to make a sound.
But seeing General Shen going out early and returning late each day, never having a moment’s rest, they guessed he must be lying low and planning, so they continued to wait for his orders.
Until a few days ago, when the marriage procession entered Hexi territory, the two of them couldn’t wait any longer and asked General Shen when he planned to act, why he hadn’t acted yet?
General Shen said that the Princess had agreed to the marriage alliance to protect everyone except herself, and for him to protect her, he needed to protect everyone she wanted to protect. The time to act had not yet come.
Gu Yu and Xiaoman could only continue to wait anxiously until Dr. Li brought a secret message confirming the personnel in the marriage procession, and they began to prepare for this switch.
The Princess would never agree to let Sister Jing Zhe take her place in the marriage carriage, nor would she agree to let General Shen and hundreds of Xuance Army soldiers take such a daring risk. So they had all concealed this plan from the Princess until tonight.
Yuan Ce, now fully armored, checked the long sword at his waist: “You, Xiaoman, and Dr. Li stay here to look after the Princess. Together with the men I’ve left behind, take care of everyone from the marriage procession.”
Gu Yu nodded quickly: “Rest assured, General!”
Yuan Ce turned back, looked at the peaceful sleeping face of the person on the couch, bent down to place a gentle kiss on her lips, then straightened, turned, and strode out.
Li Dafeng stood outside the tent with his hands tucked into his sleeves, looking Yuan Ce up and down: “It depends on the person. This golden armor looks much more striking on General Shen than on those ordinary people.”
Yuan Ce gave him a cool glance.
Unnecessary flattery meant he had genuinely considered Jiang Zhiyi’s plan in Chang’an and felt guilty about it.
“Instead of flattering me, you’d better keep an eye on those several hundred people.”
“Don’t worry, General. Before your triumphant return, not one of these people will wake up.”
As they spoke, Jing Zhe, dressed in the wedding attire with a red veil covering her head, was helped out from the adjacent tent by Xiaoman.
A group of Xuance Army soldiers disguised as escort guards also lined up in front.
Yuan Ce stood at the entrance of the tent, his gaze sweeping over everyone: “Are you all familiar with your equipment?”
The “head guard” at the front smiled: “General, this equipment is truly inferior to ours, but it will do. Fighting the Xilu people is like cutting melons—easy work!”
Yuan Ce smiled briefly, then resumed his serious expression, his hand on the long sword at his waist as he faced everyone: “Today I command you to escort Princess Yongying to the Xilu border, slaughter the Xilu welcoming party, and take the head of Xilu’s Second Prince to compensate for the Princess’s hundred days of hardship on her western journey!”
“Yes, sir!”
A day and a night later, in the deep of night.
In the tent that kept out the cold, charcoal burned quietly. Jiang Zhiyi’s body lay in a warm bed, but her mind drifted in a chaotic dream.
Before her eyes, at one moment was a tent with flickering candlelight. She heard Yuan Ce giving orders and ran out frantically to stop him, but something blocked her throat, and she couldn’t say a word. She could only stand barefoot in the ice and snow, watching helplessly as he rode away.
At another moment was the vast, boundless desert. Under the blazing sunlight, the winding marriage procession traveled through the desolate sand sea to the west, accompanied by the sound of camel bells. Xilu envoys dressed in fur and felt came to welcome the bride, speaking awkward Chinese, greeting her with Han customs.
Then came a starless, moonless night. In a camp dotted with bonfires, Great Ye’s marriage procession and the Xilu delegation shared one camp, each occupying one side. All the tents had fallen into quiet sleep when suddenly a whistle broke the silence of the deep night. Sounds of weapons clashing erupted in the camp, and in an instant, it became a battlefield of flashing blades and swords.
As the two armies fought, the air was filled with the scent of blood amid the hacking and slashing. That tall figure, wielding a long sword, charged into the enemy formation. His blade, sharp as autumn frost, cut through enemy lines, and wherever the cold light of his sword went, enemy soldiers fell.
…
At the same time, a hundred miles away at the meeting point of the Hexi and Xilu borders, in a camp in the night, Jing Zhe sat upright on the couch in the main tent, imitating Jiang Zhiyi’s posture, watching as the light of blood illuminated the sky outside the tent, while the sounds of close combat continued without cease.
With her heart pounding, Jing Zhe vigilantly kept her eyes fixed on the closed tent entrance, gripping a long sword that was ready to be drawn at any moment.
The marriage procession had calculated the timing precisely, arriving at the Xilu border at dusk to meet the welcoming Xilu delegation. The Xilu envoy had intended to take them across the border immediately, but Jing Zhe, following the plan, pretended to feel dizzy and nauseous, fainting in the carriage and unable to continue the journey, requesting to rest for a night.
The Xilu envoy hadn’t thought much of it, but the Second Prince of Xilu, who had come along, perhaps fearing that delays might bring complications, cited the severe night frost as a reason, hoping to take her to a nearby city.
This Second Prince, who had personally arranged the marriage alliance and come to supervise the welcoming, was naturally shrewd. Harboring suspicions, he feigned concern and invited a Xilu physician to examine her.
Fortunately, General Shen had asked Dr. Li to prepare medication that would alter her pulse beforehand, which she had taken in advance. When the physician examined her, it confirmed she was suffering from motion sickness, stating that she shouldn’t travel at that time. This reduced the Second Prince’s wariness by half.
Having followed the Princess for so many years, Jing Zhe naturally knew how to mimic her tone. She had thrown a tantrum in the carriage, crying and saying that if Xilu treated her so poorly, forcing her to travel while ill, she would turn back to Great Ye. Finally, Xilu could say nothing more.
Thinking of this, Jing Zhe was still angry. If the Princess had come here and truly fallen ill, would the Xilu people have treated her this way?
Fortunately, she had come in the Princess’s place, and fortunately, after General Shen launched this night attack, everything would be over.
Jing Zhe sat on the edge of the couch, gripping the sword hilt, watching blood splatter on the tent canvas, not knowing how many waves of Xilu people approaching her tent had been killed by the Xuance Army guarding outside.
The sounds of fighting gradually subsided. Jing Zhe swallowed nervously, then suddenly heard footsteps approaching. She rose abruptly, drawing her sword.
At the same time, the tent flap was lifted, and an Xuance Army soldier walked in.
Jing Zhe sighed in relief and lowered her sword.
“Miss Jing Zhe, rest assured. The Xilu delegation has been annihilated. Their reinforcements might arrive soon. Please come with us and retreat quickly!”
Jing Zhe nodded and walked out quickly.
The camp was a sea of blood and corpses, with Xilu people piled on the ground—a completely one-sided massacre.
This massacre, planned and executed after long periods of restraint and preparation, was perhaps the result of every knife strike and sword slash that Yuan Ce had repeatedly envisioned and meticulously designed over the past three months and more.
Jing Zhe made her way around the sprawled corpses, marveling all the while. Last night, Xiaoman had told her that this group of Xuance Army soldiers had been rigorously trained by Yuan Ce himself every day for over three months. Their combat prowess now exceeded that of the Northern Xia’s once-strongest and most feared “Ghost Army.” Tonight, she could see that they were indeed terrifyingly formidable.
In the camp, one group of Xuance soldiers was following Yuan Ce’s orders, using their swords to finish off the corpses on the ground, ensuring that each body was completely dead with no chance of ever speaking again. Another group was dealing with the scene, modifying the traces of the slaughter.
Yuan Ce, his golden armor splattered with blood, stood in the center of the camp. The long sword in his hand still dripped with fresh blood as his gaze fixed intently on the corpse at his feet. He slowly stepped on that face with the toe of his boot, using the sole to wipe away the blood and mud, lowering his eyelashes to confirm the identity—it was the Second Prince of Xilu.
It was this beast who had schemed. Since he was so good at scheming—
Yuan Ce narrowed his eyes, and with a flash of his sword, he severed the head that still stared with wide eyes even in death.
Then this head better not exist anymore.
The next morning, a hundred miles away, near Huyang Pass in Hexi.
After a long sleep, Minister of Ceremonies Zhou Zheng’an slowly awoke on his couch in the tent. As he opened his eyes, his eyelids felt heavy, his head dizzy, and for a moment, he couldn’t remember when he had gone to bed.
With a splitting headache, he struggled to recall for a long time, only remembering that his last memory was urging the preparation of the Princess’s evening meal in the camp.
He couldn’t even remember whether this evening meal was eventually eaten or not.
Zhou Zheng’an laboriously propped himself up from the couch, looked down at his undergarments, then turned to look for his official robes containing the marriage alliance documents, but couldn’t see them on the wooden table. Suddenly coming to his senses and feeling that something was wrong, he wondered…
Zhou Zheng’an’s heart raced wildly as something occurred to him, and he immediately got off the couch: “Someone—someone——!”
“Minister Zhou, are you looking for your official robes?” a young male voice sounded from outside the tent.
The next moment, the tent flap was lifted, and Zhou Zheng’an saw a guard in golden armor bringing his official robes. He breathed a huge sigh of relief and was about to step forward to take them when he suddenly felt something wasn’t right.
The man opposite was covered in blood from his armor, and as he entered, a strong smell of blood filled the tent.
Zhou Zheng’an’s hand, extended to receive the official robes, froze in place as he noticed that his robes were similarly spattered with blood.
In a moment of deathly stillness, Zhou Zheng’an slowly raised his eyes to meet a face that was both strange and familiar, covered in blood.
Strange, because the owner of this face should not be wearing the royal golden armor.
Familiar, because as an official dealing with foreign affairs, he had of course seen this person before—Shen Yuance.
Zhou Zheng’an drew in a silent breath of cold air, suddenly feeling his eyes blacken and the world spin, as if his head had already left his body…
Yuan Ce chuckled softly, gently placing the official robes into his palm: “Minister Zhou has endured a night of fierce battle and been frightened. Quickly change into your official robes and return to Chang’an to report.”
Zhou Zheng’an was stunned, as if his head had returned to his neck: “Re-report what?”
“Yesterday, Minister Zhou escorted Princess Yongying into Xilu territory, meeting with the Xilu delegation at dusk. That night, they camped in the wilderness. Who would have known that in the depths of the night, the Second Prince of Xilu, drunk, forced his way into the Princess’s tent, intending to dishonor her? Our Great Ye guards fought to the death to protect the Princess, having no choice but to draw swords against the Second Prince of Xilu. In the chaos of battle, the Second Prince of Xilu unfortunately lost his life.”
Zhou Zheng’an’s eyes grew wider and wider as he listened. Before he could recover his senses, the man opposite suddenly lifted the box tucked under his arm, and a fresh head was presented before his eyes.
Zhou Zheng’an retreated three steps in horror.
The man opposite continued calmly: “With the Second Prince of Xilu dead, the Xilu delegation was enraged and began fighting with our Great Ye. Our Great Ye fought valiantly to protect the Princess, and after the battle, none of the Xilu delegation survived. Minister Zhou, fortunately not failing in his mission, escorted the Princess back to Hexi territory overnight.”
Zhou Zheng’an stared at Yuan Ce in shock, raising a trembling hand: “You, you dare to commit such…”
“If Minister Zhou dares to lose the Princess of the marriage alliance, what wouldn’t I dare to do?” Yuan Ce raised his eyebrows.
Zhou Zheng’an’s trembling heart suddenly sank to the bottom as he understood why Yuan Ce dared to kidnap the Princess of the marriage alliance, assassinate the Xilu royalty, and then return so openly—
Losing the Princess of the marriage alliance was a capital offense. If Shen Yuance were to be charged with a crime, he, Zhou Zheng’an, along with the hundreds of servants and guards in this marriage procession, would face the same fate!
“Minister Zhou need not worry. The Princess is now safely in the main tent of your camp. We are now in the same boat. Only what the living say becomes the truth,” Yuan Ce curved his lips, lifting the box containing the head. “Does Minister Zhou want to be the criminal who lost the Princess of the marriage alliance, or the meritorious official who protected our Great Ye Princess and upheld our Great Ye’s prestige?”
Two hours later, in the main tent, Jiang Zhiyi awoke from her chaotic, intertwined dreams, slowly opening her heavy eyelids. She turned her head slightly and vaguely saw a familiar dark figure sitting at the edge of the bed.
Jiang Zhiyi blinked hard, and as her blurry vision gradually cleared, she suddenly widened her eyes when she fully recognized the person at the bedside, staring intently at that face.
In that startling moment, she couldn’t tell if she had truly awakened or if she was having a new dream.
Yuan Ce raised his hand, now washed clean of blood, and waved it in front of her eyes, as if suspecting the drug’s effects had not yet worn off.
Jiang Zhiyi gazed at him in a daze, murmuring: “Am I… dreaming?”
Yuan Ce tilted his head with a smile: “If this is a dream, what does the Princess want to do?”
“I want—” Jiang Zhiyi’s eyes filled with tears, “I want to elope with you—”
Yuan Ce smiled and held out his hand to her.
Jiang Zhiyi placed her hand in his palm in a daze, and with a gentle pull from him, she was drawn up. Looking down, she realized she was already dressed in her wedding attire, though she didn’t know when this had happened.
Following the force of his hand, Jiang Zhiyi’s legs swayed as she stood up.
Yuan Ce knelt on one knee, helped her put on her wedding shoes, and led her up from the couch.
Jiang Zhiyi stumbled after him, watching as he lifted the tent flap and pulled her all the way out, then lifted her onto a tall horse before mounting behind her and embracing her from behind.
With a flick of the long whip, the fine horse galloped away.
“Then your subject shall elope with the Princess.”