The snow was falling so heavily. The cold wind howled, and the entire world was a sheet of white, obscuring one’s vision until it was unclear and indistinct. Shen Xiling even felt as if she could barely keep her eyes open anymore.

She desperately wanted to look at that person one more time, but for some unknown reason, when she struggled to open her eyes, what met her gaze was a bed canopy that was both strange and familiar. It did not belong to the small courtyard where she and her mother had lived in her childhood, nor did it belong to Fenghe Courtyard, yet she vaguely felt she had seen it somewhere before.

She was truly in a daze, momentarily unsure what day it was or where she was. Suddenly feeling tightness in her chest, she coughed twice, which seemed to startle someone.

She heard hurried footsteps, then her bed curtains were lifted by a maid. Bright daylight from outside shone in, like beautiful spring light, quite different from the gloomy flying snow of Langya she had seen moments before.

Her eyes were dazzled by the suddenly brightening light, making it difficult to open them for a moment, so she didn’t see the maid’s face clearly. She only heard her voice, filled with joy and tears, as she turned and shouted toward the outside: “General! Madam has awakened, Madam has awakened!”

After her words fell, more sounds came from the outer room, as if many people had all rushed in together. Shadows moved about, and a man sat down beside her bed, urgently calling her name: “Xiling?”

Shen Xiling’s vision was still unclear, and even more confused were her thoughts.

…General? Madam?

Who were they calling?

It certainly wasn’t her and Qi Ying—she should be called “Miss,” and he should be called “Young Master” or “My Lord.”

She felt a man sit down beside her bed, which was a very intimate gesture, but he definitely wasn’t Qi Ying. His scent was unfamiliar to her, and moreover, he called her “Xiling.”

That person had clearly called her “Wenwen.”

He would only call her Wenwen.

Shen Xiling was both confused and somewhat fearful in her heart, even shrinking back a little.

While trying to dodge toward the corner of the bed, she struggled to see the visitor’s face clearly. In the bright light, the man’s features were somewhat blurry, but she could still make out his outline—sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, tall and handsome, which also made her feel both unfamiliar and familiar.

She looked at him in bewilderment, her mind a chaotic mess, sometimes filled with the overwhelming snow from moments ago, sometimes with all this confusing present situation.

It was quite a while before she came to her senses, not because of anything else, but because she was chilled by her own pillow—she had cried her pillow wet, and now it was cold and damp.

Only then did she finally understand… it turned out those incredibly real people and events were merely another dream of hers.

These dreams were really nothing new. Ever since she had come to Shangjing, they accompanied her to sleep nightly, especially when she had just parted from that person. It was just that in the past, these dreams were always fragmented, rarely connected so completely. This was probably because she usually didn’t sleep well and seldom had long periods of peaceful rest.

But why was she able to sleep for so long this time?

Shen Xiling struggled to remember, and then recalled… she seemed to have fallen ill.

Bit by bit, she became more lucid, remembering that before sleeping, she had attended a tea gathering at the wife of the Imperial Censor’s residence. It was said that person had also gone, debating scriptures with the Wei people in the front courtyard. She was both delighted and apprehensive, trying every means to escape from the back courtyard. She had nearly searched the entire Imperial Censor’s mansion before finding the guest room where he was resting. Through the door, she pleaded with him, wanting to see him just once, but he would not agree.

They were separated by merely a door, yet it felt like an insurmountable distance.

And then?

Then… then she left and returned to where she lived.

Where did she live again?

She couldn’t quite remember, but she knew it definitely wasn’t Fenghe Courtyard, otherwise she would never have been reluctant to return.

So where was it?

…Oh right, Duke Yanguo’s Mansion.

Yes, Duke Yanguo’s Mansion.

She lived in Duke Yanguo’s Mansion because she had married—married the young general who inherited the Duke’s title, Gu Juhan.

Yes, she had married.

Shen Xiling’s eyes gradually became clearer. She slowly turned her head to look at the person sitting beside her bed, and this time finally recognized her husband—he looked somewhat haggard, with stubble on his chin, watching her with great concern.

He called her name again: “…Xiling?”

As if confirming whether she had truly awakened.

Shen Xiling had indeed awakened. She had recognized the people in her room. Besides him, there was his sister Jingqi, her own maids Lian Zi and Wan Zhu, and vaguely in the outer room stood a man who appeared to be Gu Juhan’s aide-de-camp, Xu Chuan.

She recognized them all, very clearly, yet at the same time felt somewhat dazed, always feeling that Lian Zi and Wan Zhu should be Shuipei and Fengshang, Jingqi should be Zijun, and as for Xu Chuan, perhaps he should have been Qing Zhu or Bai Song…

She shook her head, casting these absurd thoughts from her mind, looked at Gu Juhan with a smile, and replied: “…General.”

Her voice was terribly hoarse, startling even herself, but everyone in the room was overjoyed to hear her speak. Only Gu Juhan seemed stunned for a moment, his eyes appearing somewhat dim. Gu Jingqi was so happy she nearly cried, rushing to her bedside to take her hand and saying: “Sister-in-law, you’ve finally awakened! Why did you sleep for so long? We were all worried sick!”

“You kept running a high fever, wouldn’t wake up no matter how we called, just kept talking in your sleep,” she chattered on, “The Imperial Physicians from the palace prescribed so many medicines, but we couldn’t get any of them down your throat. They were all at their wit’s end, even saying that if you continued like this, your brain would be damaged by the fever!”

She looked very frightened, and Lian Zi and Wan Zhu nodded along, all wearing expressions of relief and joy after surviving a disaster. Shen Xiling knew her illness had caused trouble for everyone and felt very sorry. She reached up to pat Gu Jingqi’s head and said: “I’m sorry for making you all worry…”

After speaking, she began coughing, frightening everyone in the room into a flurry of activity. Gu Jingqi panicked terribly and was pulled aside by her brother, watching as he helped their sister-in-law sit up halfway while scolding her: “Your sister-in-law just woke up, don’t make such a commotion.”

Gu Jingqi felt quite wronged but didn’t dare argue back, only pouting. Gu Juhan paid her no mind, only asking Shen Xiling: “Do you feel better? Are you still uncomfortable?”

Shen Xiling had no strength in her body. Even sitting against the soft pillow by the window was somewhat unstable. She forced herself to gather her spirits and said: “…It’s nothing, I’m fine now.”

Gu Juhan looked at her, his brow still furrowed. Before he could speak, Gu Jingqi interjected again with a giggle: “Sister-in-law is finally alright, otherwise my eldest brother would have eaten people alive! Sister-in-law didn’t see how terrible his expression was these past few days. Those court physicians almost didn’t dare come to our mansion—they all avoided us by eight zhang!”

These words were quite witty, and with Shen Xiling’s awakening, everyone in the room’s mood improved. Even the usually steady and rarely smiling Lian Zi couldn’t help but laugh upon hearing this.

Unfortunately, her words offended her brother, making him feel somewhat awkward. Naturally, she couldn’t escape retribution—glared at by her stern-faced elder brother, she immediately shrank her neck and hid behind the maids.

Gu Juhan sighed, glanced at Shen Xiling, then turned back to the others saying: “You all go out first. I need to speak with Madam privately.”

This was natural. Madam had just awakened, and the General was naturally very happy. The couple wanted to be intimate, and others shouldn’t disturb them. Gu Jingqi and the maids all understood tactfully. Upon hearing this, they all covered their mouths and giggled secretly. Only Lian Zi was more proper, bowing and saying: “Then this servant will go prepare medicine for Madam first.”

After speaking, she left the room with Wan Zhu. Gu Jingqi also left, making faces at Shen Xiling before departing.

All these interactions were very lively, making Shen Xiling feel even more awake, and she gradually remembered many things outside of her dream.

Counting it up, she had been married far away to the north of the river for five years now, the same length of time as she had stayed in Fenghe Courtyard. Many, many things had happened here, and she had formed connections with many new people. All of this was good, all peaceful and warm.

But… she was still lost in that dream. Even though it caused her such pain that she had nightmares for years, it was equally wonderful and made her obsessed.

She wanted to go back.

It seemed she had completely awakened, yet also seemed like she hadn’t. Many things from the dream still left traces on her. She even had hallucinations, always faintly smelling the sweet pine fragrance from that person’s body. Though only a little, it continuously surrounded her, making her mistakenly believe he had been in this room.

She felt foolish for having such absurd thoughts, yet couldn’t help but keep thinking this way. After everyone else had left, she still asked Gu Juhan: “General… has he come?”

Would he come to see her?

Gu Juhan sighed quietly upon hearing her words.

The reason he had sent everyone else away was because he knew that after she awakened, she would inevitably ask about that person, and these words were not for others to hear—though they weren’t truly husband and wife, they had lived under the same roof for five full years. He actually understood her quite well, at least knowing that her heart and eyes were full of that person.

He had always known about their deep feelings for each other and never harbored any inappropriate thoughts. It was just that they had shared five years together, and their time living together was no shorter than hers with Qi Jingchen. Truly calculated, it might even be longer.

She had always been someone with heavy emotional defenses. When she first married into the Duke’s mansion, she was always polite and courteous with him, maintaining a respectful distance while keeping him at arm’s length.

He knew she was heartbroken at the time and understood her difficulties, so he was always lenient with her. Later, he would occasionally bring her news about that person, which gradually made her realize he wasn’t a bad person, and their relationship finally improved somewhat.

Later, his father fell ill and died, leaving him despondent and in pain for a time.

She was indeed a somewhat strange person. Wealth and comfort seemed unable to evoke her sense of closeness, but melancholy and suffering made it easier for her to empathize. During the time when his father died, she was always very considerate of him, as if sympathizing with him. She even ran around organizing the funeral arrangements, like the true mistress of the house, wearing mourning clothes and receiving guests who came to pay respects alongside him in the mourning hall, more like his real wife.

It wasn’t until they had exchanged their deepest, most bone-deep pain that she truly stopped being so guarded against him. As time gradually passed, they finally became like friends. Before he went to battle, she would worry for him; when he returned safely, she would be genuinely happy. Later, she also stopped formally addressing him as “General” and began calling him “Wenruo.”

Author’s Note: Awakening from a great dream