Moonlight was pale, wind fierce. Campfires burned bright.

“General! Commander Wei has led troops toward Ru Mountain!” A soldier from the Wei family army hurriedly came to the Qin family army’s camp to report.

Qin Jixun sat in his military tent. Hearing these words, a pair of sharp eyes lifted: “Supervisor Song’s order?”

“Yes! Commander Wei had no choice but to dispatch troops toward Ru Mountain, but he ordered me to see the general, saying that if the general has orders, just send me to Ru Mountain to relay them to him. He is willing to obey your orders, even…” The soldier bent one knee, clasping his fists. “Even willing not to obey Supervisor Song’s orders!”

Qin Jixun was stunned, his hand resting on the chair curling into a fist.

He had received news of Yang Tianzhe’s rebel army arriving at Ru Mountain only the time it takes to burn one incense stick ago, yet Song Song already knew and had even ordered Wei Dechang to lead troops to Ru Mountain to surround and exterminate Yang Tianzhe.

Song Song had informants in his army—Qin Jixun had always known, but he couldn’t find an opportunity to deal with it.

“General! Commander Wei is still waiting for your military order!”

Seeing his prolonged silence, the soldier bowed his head and spoke again.

Qin Jixun was about to speak when he heard a burst of urgent footsteps. Then his personal soldier Duan Rong lifted the tent flap and entered. Duan Rong was panting. “General, the personal guards Supervisor Song sent to deliver money, silk, and women to Su Qile are all dead at Agate Lake!”

“What?”

“Those several chests of money and silk are all there. Our men searched the area thoroughly and found all those women and brought them back. According to them, a young man killed those soldiers!”

Duan Rong said while wiping sweat from his forehead.

“One person killed so many?”

A trace of astonishment appeared in Qin Jixun’s cold, sharp eyes.

Duan Rong glanced at the general’s expression, his tone carrying some unwillingness. “General, now that those several chests of money and silk and those women have all been brought back by your subordinate, we don’t know how to handle them. What do you think—should we still send them to Su Qile?”

“Is General Qin truly willing to let such an excellent opportunity pass?”

Outside the military camp there was commotion. Among the surging shadows, a sharp voice was particularly clear amid all the noise. Qin Jixun immediately stood up and lifted the tent flap to go out.

In a stretch of continuous firelight, a hundred soldiers raised blades and spears, surrounding a man and woman. When the two stepped forward, the soldiers retreated a step.

Qin Jixun’s gaze fell on the two. He saw the woman’s dress was wet, her hair knot somewhat disheveled, her face completely uncovered, her expression showing not the slightest trace of fear.

The young man wore a long cloth covering his face, revealing only a pair of eyes. However, those eyes lacked any spirit, and he needed the woman beside him to support him before he could step forward.

“You force your way into the military camp at night—do you know this is a grave crime?”

Qin Jixun’s eyes narrowed slightly as he assessed the sword held in the man’s hand.

Following the direction from which his voice came, Xu Hexue turned his face slightly. “Speaking of grave crimes, wouldn’t my crime of killing Supervisor Song’s personal guards be even graver?”

“What? You killed them?”

Duan Rong at his side couldn’t help but cry out in shock. “But your eyes clearly cannot see—how did you kill people?”

“He suffers from night blindness and simply cannot see at night.”

Ni Su supported the arm of the person beside her and spoke.

The moment she opened her mouth, the gazes of Qin Jixun, Duan Rong and the others couldn’t help but fall on her. The scene became deadlocked for a time. After a moment, Qin Jixun looked again at the young man beside her: “Why did you kill Supervisor Song’s personal guards? Having killed them, why do you still dare to come to this general’s military camp? Aren’t you afraid this general will ensure you don’t return?”

“I had no choice.”

Xu Hexue raised his chin slightly toward Ni Su’s direction, his tone bland. “Song Song’s men captured her. Actually, as long as I didn’t appear, this matter could never be traced to me. Song Song would only suspect you, General Qin—of publicly complying while privately opposing.”

Duan Rong rebuked: “Impudent!”

Qin Jixun raised his hand to stop Duan Rong from speaking further. He watched that person. “Then why did you risk danger to come to my military camp?”

“To give General Qin a gift.”

Qin Jixun frowned. “What gift?”

“Just outside the military camp.”

Xu Hexue’s voice was calm.

Hearing this, Qin Jixun immediately looked at Duan Rong beside him. Duan Rong nodded, then led several soldiers hurrying out. Before long, they dragged back a corpse.

“General, it’s Vice-General Jin!”

Duan Rong used his scabbard to lift the disheveled hair covering the corpse’s face. He turned his face, staring at the young man in frost-white robes with a strange expression.

“The news of Yang Tianzhe arriving at Ru Mountain was leaked to Song Song by this person. General Qin, now Commander Wei is still waiting for your military order. Do you truly want to cooperate with Su Qile to surround and exterminate Yang Tianzhe?”

Xu Hexue couldn’t see the firelight burning in this military camp, nor could he see the faces of Qin Jixun and the others, yet he could vaguely recall some fragmentary memories regarding this person Qin Jixun. “The rebel army Yang Tianzhe has led back consists of Qi common people who have suffered every humiliation under barbarian rule in the thirteen northern provinces. Great Qi lost the thirteen provinces and also abandoned them under the barbarians’ iron hooves. Now they risk everything seeking to return to their old country, yet you gentlemen would meet them with swords and blades. Such actions—wouldn’t this chill the hearts of the Qi common people in the thirteen provinces?”

“Surely among you Yongzhou people, aren’t there those who fled here as refugees from beyond Juhan Pass more than a decade ago? Do you still have relatives at Juhan Pass, in the thirteen provinces?”

Xu Hexue’s words were mild yet weighed a thousand catties, almost striking the hearts of many soldiers. Yongzhou’s population was not abundant. Among these people there were indeed many who were originally descendants of garrison troops at Juhan Pass or even the thirteen provinces.

“Yongzhou has an old custom where clan elders can arbitrarily dispose of women. But since this custom was strictly abolished more than a decade ago, it has been General Qin who single-handedly maintained this order. Therefore I believe that in General Qin’s heart, the women of Great Qi should not become playthings of barbarians either.”

“Those who seek security through the flesh and blood of women and children should be executed.”

As these words emerged, the camp actually fell silent for a moment. Sparks crackled in the iron basin. Everyone present felt shock in their hearts. Duan Rong’s throat tightened. He couldn’t help but turn to look at Qin Jixun before the military tent: “General…”

Ni Su also couldn’t help but look at the person beside her. A long cloth covered his face, and his eyes didn’t focus. He should be weak, his voice not strong enough either, but standing beside her, his posture was always upright, like a green pine covered in snow—cold and sharp.

Stripping away the gentleman’s elegant refinement, he still possessed a general’s sharp edge.

At this moment, she seemed able to glimpse a part of who he once was.

“General, we cannot send them! If we send those women and money and silk, what would that make us?” Someone couldn’t hold back and spoke vigorously.

“This insult cannot be accepted! This insult cannot be accepted…”

“General! I would rather fight the barbarians to the death than flatter and fawn!”

More and more voices emerged.

“General! Even if Commander Wei truly surrounds and exterminates Yang Tianzhe with Su Qile at Ru Mountain, there’s no guarantee that afterward Su Qile won’t go back on his word and use Aduorong as a pretext to cause trouble again! The rebellions in their tribes have been pacified—now is precisely when they’re becoming restless,” Duan Rong knelt and clasped his fists. “We sons of Great Qi do not fear dying on the battlefield. We need not deal falsely with that Su Qile!”

For sixteen years, the garrison troops here had never properly fought a battle. Qin Jixun was controlled by others, and they too had therefore continuously retreated and endured. Years of grievance and unwillingness were all stirred up tonight.

Qin Jixun was ultimately a general. His face showed not too much emotion. He raised his hand to suppress the soldiers’ agitated voices and pressed coldly: “Who exactly are you?”

“A Qi person.”

Xu Hexue’s two words were brief.

Qin Jixun’s expression moved. He was silent for a long while, then raised his chin toward Duan Rong beside him. Duan Rong immediately understood and ordered the soldiers gathered here to disperse.

The open space before the general’s tent soon had only the four of them remaining. Qin Jixun walked down the wooden steps. He stared fixedly at this mysterious young man: “You incite military morale in my army—do you know how serious the consequences are?”

“General Qin was born in Yongzhou and grew up in Yongzhou. I heard that in your youth you also accompanied the army to the barbarian grasslands. You should know that this year is increasingly bitter and cold, and the barbarians’ twenty-nine tribes have been almost completely subdued by the Wuluo royal court after more than a decade of rest and recovery. Their ambitions extend far beyond the thirteen northern provinces. Great war is ultimately unavoidable.”

Qin Jixun pulled his lips: “Yes, I know, but there are many who don’t know.”

“Pedantic types who indulge in armchair strategy—General Qin’s heart must be very frustrated,” Xu Hexue’s dark lashes lifted lightly. Firelight reflected in his unseeing eyes. “Since you and I both clearly understand where the crux lies, why not simply resolve it?”

“You…”

Qin Jixun’s brow jumped. “He was authorized by the emperor and sent to Yongzhou as supervisor. How dare you…”

“Then make him the unavoidable reason for this war.”

“He’s from the peace faction, a close minister who once served near the emperor! He cannot possibly easily tear apart relations with Su Qile!”

“General Qin should immediately recall Commander Wei, ordering him not to continue surrounding and exterminating Yang Tianzhe’s rebel army. Then enrage Su Qile, forcing Song Song to come forward to mediate.”

Qin Jixun paused. He scrutinized this person. “He is extremely afraid of death. All these years he’s stayed in the rear and never taken risks. How can I make him come forward?”

In Great Qi there were too many civil officials like Song Song. They had never been to battlefields yet held themselves in high regard, thinking they could plan strategies and prioritize the big picture, yet actually they had never even seen the bloodshed of battlefields.

Yet it was precisely these people who firmly suppressed these military officers below them, constantly interfering in military affairs.

“The Yongzhou prefect is Shen Tongchuan?”

Xu Hexue asked mildly.

“Correct.”

Qin Jixun nodded.

“Ask Shen Tongchuan to speak with him.”

At these words, Qin Jixun immediately fell silent, while Duan Rong at the side couldn’t help but explain: “That Prefect Shen is even more of a hands-off type—he doesn’t ask about anything, doesn’t look at anything, just tends his flowers and plants in his prefect’s mansion. Because he doesn’t manage anything, our general has even had some friction with him. How could he possibly listen to the general…”

“Song Song manages everything, so naturally Shen Tongchuan cannot manage anything. But General Qin doesn’t seem to clearly understand that Shen Tongchuan is Minister Meng’s disciple. Minister Meng came from military ranks. This Shen Tongchuan under his tutelage, before becoming an official, traveled through mountains and rivers and also witnessed battlefield conflicts and the people’s suffering. Compared to Song Song, he should better understand your difficulties.”

“What you’re describing… is that really Prefect Shen?”

Duan Rong really couldn’t connect the Shen Tongchuan he described with that cheating prefect who lost money at cards and shamelessly said “this round doesn’t count.”

“I can go persuade Shen Tongchuan, but the prerequisite is that General Qin is willing to set aside previous grievances with him and turn swords into jade.”

Xu Hexue said.

“Prefect Shen and I actually have no major grievances. Even if we do, when facing national affairs, I can also set them aside!” Qin Jixun showed no hesitation on this matter. “But even if Song Song leaves the city, it’s to negotiate peace with Su Qile. How can he serve as the reason to start war?”

Wind and sand blew Xu Hexue’s frost-white garments. The long sword in his hand gleamed coldly: “As long as he dies in Su Qile’s military camp, you’ll have material to work with.”

Qin Jixun’s heart shook. “You…”

Xu Hexue spoke lightly:

“I’ll kill him.”

All around was silent. In the iron basin, flames clustered and danced wildly. A sudden sneeze abruptly broke the silence. Xu Hexue’s eyes saw only darkness, yet he heard the young woman beside him lightly sniffle. He immediately drew her closer to his side, blocking some of the wind and sand for her.

“Are you very cold?”

He spoke in a low voice.

“Not really.”

Ni Su shook her head.

Not hearing Qin Jixun’s voice, Xu Hexue raised his head: “General Qin?”

“You go, make that Wei family army soldier who just came to the camp catch up to Commander Wei and tell him,” Qin Jixun gazed at the young man and woman supporting each other before him, “I’m ordering him to come back.”

“Yes!”

Duan Rong’s spirits lifted. He immediately turned around.

“Now I have already disobeyed Supervisor Song. There is no retreat. I will release those women back to the city, but this one beside you,”

Qin Jixun stared at Ni Su. “I cannot yet release her.”

“I will advance and retreat with him.”

Ni Su grasped Xu Hexue’s arm, meeting Qin Jixun’s gaze.

Qin Jixun was stunned. “What? A mere woman like you still dares to accompany him to Su Qile’s camp?”

“Why wouldn’t I dare? I know the general has concerns. Entrusting your life and fortune to us two strangers is already very risky, but you dare—I also respect you as a good general. If we truly had ulterior motives, we wouldn’t have brazenly intruded here today. Please trust him, General…”

Ni Su looked toward the person beside her. He lowered his eyelids halfway, quietly listening to her speak, blocking the wind and sand for her. She continued: “The shattering of mountains and rivers, the suffering of the people—this is his lifelong regret. For this, though he traveled ten thousand miles, he still cannot fulfill it. But if it can be fulfilled, he—though dead, yet lives.”

Though his body died, yet as if alive.