The crowd was bustling, and Fan Changyu and Xie Zheng were quite far apart. They only exchanged a glance across the throng before she followed Qi Shu to the great hall for change.

On the men’s side of the viewing platform, a eunuch came to announce, “The next match will include the Grand Princess, General Huaihua, Young Lord Shen, Duke Jianning… Are there any gentlemen willing to participate?”

This was an excellent opportunity for the ordinary gentry to mingle with the powerful. Immediately, several young men eagerly volunteered, their faces flushed with excitement.

Some who had already played in earlier matches lamented, “Why is the Princess only joining now?”

Someone nearby chuckled, “Young Lord Shen is charming and excels at polo. Perhaps the Princess is coming to admire his skills.”

Another voice lowered in sarcasm, “What’s left to see in this match? The Princess has a noble status, General Huaihua is a martial arts expert, and Young Lord Shen is a polo prodigy. With the General and Young Lord Shen protecting her, this match is just for the Princess’s enjoyment. Who knows, a polo game might even lead to a marriage between the Princess and Young Lord Shen.”

Gongsun Yin glanced at Xie Zheng’s eye-catching white attire and said through gritted teeth, “Xie Jiuheng, I’ve done you many favors over the years. How about you return one today?”

Xie Zheng turned and gave him a cool look-

The changing hall was not far from the polo field. The men’s changing area was in the front hall, while the women’s was in the rear, separated by a courtyard. A young eunuch guarded the corner gate to prevent people from entering the wrong area.

Fan Changyu was already wearing a simple outfit, so changing was quick. However, Qi Shu’s palace attire was intricate, and removing her elaborate jewelry and redoing her hair was time-consuming. Even with seven or eight maids bustling around her, it would still take two cups of tea’s worth of time.

After changing into her crimson polo outfit, Fan Changyu went to wait in the courtyard.

She had never played polo before, but after watching a few matches from the stands, she had grasped the basic rules. There were polo balls and mallets in the side hall, so Fan Changyu took a mallet to practice her swing in the courtyard.

Today’s polo match was a ten-person武球 (wu qiu), or martial polo. As long as there was no intentional harm, players on horseback could use mallets to hit the ball through the goal on the field to score.

There was a stone lattice window on the courtyard wall. Since no one else was around, Fan Changyu used it as a target, striking a ball through the opening.

Her aim was excellent, and the fist-sized ball flew straight through the window, earning applause from the attending palace servants.

However, the cheering abruptly stopped.

On the other side of the window, a large hand with distinct knuckles caught the ball.

The afternoon breeze was gentle, rustling the hem of the newcomer’s indigo athletic robe. The hand that caught the ball had prominent veins, and above the wrist was a ruyi-patterned bracer. The narrow sleeve revealed the taut muscles of the forearm, seemingly full of strength.

Fan Changyu thought she had hit someone and stepped forward to apologize, “I’m sorry—”

As the person turned his head, her words caught in her throat. She looked at Xie Zheng in his indigo athletic robe with surprise and asked, “You’re also playing polo?”

The athletic attire suited him better. His ink-black hair was all tucked into his headpiece, and though his expression showed some indolence, his delicate features were full of spirit and boldness, making it hard to look away.

Xie Zheng walked slowly to the moon gate and tossed the ball back to her, saying, “I was asked by the event organizer to join and liven things up.”

Fan Changyu caught the ball he threw back, understanding his meaning. In her team with Qi Shu, most were royal relatives. If there wasn’t someone of high status on the opposing team, they would only defer and flatter during the match, making it uninteresting.

She was about to reply when suddenly a male voice came from the other side of the moon gate: “Jiuheng! So you’re here! I’ve been looking all over for you!”

The newcomer had handsome features and greeted everyone with a smile. It was Shen Shen. He was looking for Xie Zheng but noticed Fan Changyu practicing in the courtyard. He suddenly grinned, “I was wondering why a busy person like you suddenly had the leisure to play polo. So you’re here to accompany General Huaihua!”

He was wearing the same crimson athletic outfit as Fan Changyu, clearly on the same team as her and Qi Shu. He immediately slapped Xie Zheng’s shoulder hard, “It’s good! We haven’t played polo together in years. Let’s see who’s better on the field later!”

His voice must have been too loud, as Qi Shu, who was changing inside, heard him. She came out in her athletic attire and greeted the two, “Regent, Young General Shen.”

Shen Shen’s father had died early, and he was entitled to inherit the title of Duke Shen. Thus, many at court called him Young Lord Shen. But he also held an official position, so many called him General Shen as well.

Shen Shen bowed with a bright smile, “Greetings, Princess.”

Qi Shu caught a glimpse of indigo robes flashing by the lattice window. Her eyes dimmed slightly, but she smiled and said, “This Princess is just here for fun. I’ve never played before, and I hear Young General Shen is an expert. Could you give me some pointers?”

Shen Shen was always easy to talk to. He immediately smiled and said, “It would be my pleasure.”

Qi Shu looked at Xie Zheng, “It’s Long Yu’s first time playing polo too. Teaching one’s wife, that’s for the Regent to handle.”

She gave Fan Changyu a teasing smile.

Fan Changyu looked puzzled. After Qi Shu left with Shen Shen, chatting and laughing with their mallets, she felt awkward standing there alone with Xie Zheng. She said, “I think I’ve practiced enough…”

“Your mallet swing is incorrect. You could get hurt on horseback,” Xie Zheng interrupted.

Fan Changyu stared at him blankly.

Xie Zheng stepped forward, grasping her hand that held the mallet from behind. He said, “Keep your wrist level and relax your waist. Don’t be so tense.”

His warm palm gripped her wrist holding the mallet, and his other hand rested on her waist. Some memories suddenly flooded back, and Fan Changyu’s waist involuntarily tensed even more. Xie Zheng looked down at her, “What’s wrong?”

Fan Changyu forced herself to say, “Nothing.”

Fortunately, Xie Zheng was genuinely focused on teaching her.

The ball that Fan Changyu hit after mastering the technique flew quite far. As the servants went outside the courtyard wall to retrieve it, Fan Changyu turned back to Xie Zheng with a smile, “I didn’t know you were skilled at this!”

A gentle breeze blew, scattering sophora flowers everywhere. Some clung to Xie Zheng’s clothes, but he didn’t brush them off. He only reached out to remove the tiny flowers that had fallen in Fan Changyu’s hair. “Is Ayu happy now? Will you return home with your husband today?”

Fan Changyu looked at the tall, graceful figure standing amidst the falling flowers. Remembering the conversations she had overheard at the viewing platform, she suddenly smiled, “That depends on your performance on the field.”

–

The polo match eventually went awry. Qi Shu’s horse was somehow startled on the field and charged straight towards the viewing platform, causing chaos.

Fan Changyu was right beside Qi Shu and could have protected her, but Gongsun Yin and Shen Shen, seeing Qi Shu’s horse panic, both spurred their horses forward to save her. The three collided, making matters worse. In the end, although Fan Changyu managed to save Qi Shu, both of them fell from their horses and were nearly trampled by the horses charging from behind. Fortunately, Xie Zheng arrived in time to control the approaching horses.

The two unlucky ones, Gongsun Yin and Shen Shen, collided with each other in the chaos and both fell from their horses, breaking their legs.

What was meant to be a polo match to find a potential husband for Qi Shu ended in such a fiasco. Yu Qianqian was also at her wit’s end, ordering people to send the shocked noble ladies home, summoning imperial physicians for examinations, and launching a thorough investigation into the cause of the horse’s fright.

After much investigation, they finally traced it back to a noble lady.

The horse Qi Shu rode was the gentlest in the entire field. Originally, a certain duchess was supposed to ride it in that match. The noble lady had an old grudge against this duchess and had fed the horse grass laced with drugs just before the match.

Unexpectedly, Qi Shu suddenly decided to join the match, and the duchess had to give up her horse. This led to the whole incident.

Yu Qianqian was furious. Fortunately, when Qi Shu fell with Fan Changyu, Fan Changyu protected her as they rolled, dissipating much of the impact. Neither of them was seriously hurt.

Only Gongsun Yin and Shen Shen were more severely injured.

By the time everything was settled, it was nearly dusk. Fan Changyu returned to the mansion with Changnin, accompanying Xie Zheng.

After dinner and a bath, Fan Changyu came out but didn’t see Xie Zheng. Upon asking the servants, she learned he had gone to bathe in the cleansing room near his study.

Fan Changyu found this strange. Since their marriage, Xie Zheng had rarely avoided her to bathe alone in the study’s cleansing room. When she went to look for him, she ran into Xie Shiyi carrying medicinal wine to enter.

Only then did she learn that Xie Zheng had injured his arm while controlling the panicked horse.

Fan Changyu dismissed Xie Shiyi and personally carried the medicinal wine into the study.

Xie Zheng had finished bathing, his hair half-dry. He wore only a single robe and was intently writing something by candlelight at his desk.

Hearing footsteps, he looked up. Seeing the medicinal wine in Fan Changyu’s hands, he frowned slightly, “The people downstairs are becoming less and less discreet.”

Fan Changyu raised an eyebrow, “If you want to raise a group of people loyal only to you, go ahead.”

Her barbed words made Xie Zheng laugh. He put down his brush, “Such a temper?”

Fan Changyu placed the medicinal wine on the desk and coldly looked at him, “Why didn’t you tell me you were hurt?”

Xie Zheng said, “If I got injured just from controlling a frightened horse, wouldn’t Ayu think less of me and refuse to come home with me?”

Even at this moment, he was still joking. Fan Changyu glared at him and said stiffly, “Take off your clothes. I’ll rub in the medicinal wine.”

She was truly angry now. Xie Zheng stopped teasing her and removed his outer robe, revealing a patch of honey-colored, taut muscles in the candlelight.

His right arm was already swollen, with two rings of abraded skin. These were injuries from when he had wrapped the reins around his arm to control the panicked horse, struggling against its strength.

Fan Changyu poured some medicinal wine into her palm, rubbed her hands together, and slowly massaged it into his bruised arm. She frowned and asked, “Does it hurt?”

Her spring attire was thin, and she had just bathed. Her black hair was simply pinned up, and as she lowered her head to focus on rubbing in the medicinal wine, a strand fell from behind her ear, half-concealing her jade-white earlobe in a strangely alluring way. She smelled of the soap she often used, and the air was filled with the scent of medicinal wine.

Xie Zheng gazed at her furrowed brow in the candlelight and suddenly felt his heart warm. He hadn’t been drinking, but he felt slightly intoxicated.

He smiled softly and said, “It doesn’t hurt.”

Fan Changyu sighed helplessly, “You…”

After she finished rubbing in the medicinal wine, she noticed that Xie Zheng was still wearing the snow-white-trimmed robe from earlier in the day. She asked, “Why did you wear a scholar’s robe today?”

Xie Zheng lowered his phoenix eyes and replied, “I hadn’t worn it before. Just trying it out.”

Then he asked her, “Does it look good?”

Fan Changyu nodded.

He did indeed look handsome in a scholar’s robe.

Xie Zheng’s eyes were deep as he pulled up the robe he had lowered for the treatment. He suddenly smiled and said, “Since Ayu likes it, I’ll wear it more often.”

But there didn’t seem to be much mirth in his eyes.

Fan Changyu felt increasingly strange and frowned, “That’s not necessary…”

Xie Zheng’s eyes were dark and unfathomable. He pulled her to sit in his lap, resting his chin on her shoulder. “Do you remember this copy of ‘The Tiger Strategy’?”

Sitting at the desk, Fan Changyu could now see clearly that he had been making annotations on the book pages. Judging by the thickness of the book, he seemed to have almost finished annotating it.

Xie Zheng kissed the back of her neck and said, “Last time when I quizzed you on military strategy, there were many parts you didn’t understand. Once I finish the annotations, you can study it thoroughly.”

He shouldn’t have brought this up. Fan Changyu glared at him fiercely and said through gritted teeth, “There won’t be a next time!”

Xie Zheng chuckled softly behind her, “Where is Ayu’s mind wandering? Your husband merely feels that not having finished annotating ‘The Six Strategies’ for you was my failing. Besides ‘The Tiger Strategy’, I’ll find time to annotate the other five military texts for you as well.”

Fan Changyu suddenly felt a bit embarrassed. Looking at the detailed annotations, she said casually, “I think I might have a copy of ‘The Tiger Strategy’ in my collection.”

In the past, when she read military texts, there was much she didn’t understand. She had hired several strategists at great expense, but when they explained the military strategy to her, they looked as if they wanted to bang their heads against a pillar. This made Fan Changyu feel quite uncomfortable, so she sent them away to annotate the military texts for her.

When Li Huai’an gave her military texts, she immediately passed them on to her subordinates, not remembering which ones he had given her.

Later, when Zheng Wenchang returned that copy of ‘The Tiger Strategy’, she casually asked Xie Wu to put it on the bookshelf. When she came across it again, she assumed it was annotated by her former advisors, having long forgotten that Li Huai’an had given her military texts.

Hearing this, Xie Zheng’s eyes grew colder, but he only smiled faintly and said, “Is that so? Your husband didn’t see it when organizing for you. Perhaps it was lost during the move.”

With him saying this, Fan Changyu didn’t think much more of it.

She was about to get up, but the person behind her kept his arm around her waist, showing no intention of letting go. He was intermittently kissing the back of her neck, his intentions quite clear.

Fan Changyu was startled and glared at the person behind her with some irritation, “Your arm is injured!”

Xie Zheng left a red mark on the side of her neck and raised his head. His eyes were so dark they were captivating. His voice was soft as if negotiating, but with a smile that seemed to bewitch, “Then will Ayu be gentler and take care of me?”

The desire in his eyes wasn’t intense, but it was interwoven with some extremely deep emotion.

Fan Changyu was stunned by his shameless words. In the end, she didn’t dare to struggle too hard. When it was over, she lay on the desk, slowly catching her breath, her long hair disheveled. The robes underneath were hopelessly wrinkled.

Xie Zheng kissed her cheek and went to the cleansing room to fetch water for cleaning up.

Fan Changyu regained some strength and got up. As she did, her sleeve knocked a book off the desk. She bent to pick it up and noticed another book wedged under the table’s leg. Upon closer inspection, she saw that the cover read “The Tiger Strategy.”

Fan Changyu looked at the newly annotated copy in her hand, then at the one used to prop up the table leg. She picked up the one from the floor as well.

When Xie Zheng returned, he saw Fan Changyu holding two books, comparing them in the candlelight. Hearing his footsteps, she looked up at him, perplexed, “Didn’t you say this book was lost?”

Xie Zheng replied without changing his expression, “It was lost. Where did you find it?”

Fan Changyu’s face darkened, “Xie Jiuheng, do you take me for a fool? Weren’t you using it to prop up the table leg?”

The servants would never dare use books from the study to prop up table legs. It could only have been him!

Xie Zheng calmly said, “So it was used to prop up the table leg? I forgot.”

Fan Changyu was speechless for a long moment. She pondered but still couldn’t understand, “What did this military text do to offend you?”

Recalling how he had previously quizzed her on the contents of this book and tormented her, Fan Changyu suddenly felt that the problem might lie within this military text.

Hearing this, Xie Zheng stared at her for a long while before finally saying with a very faint smile, “It didn’t offend me.”

Fan Changyu knew Xie Zheng was angry.

When he was angry, he didn’t give her the cold shoulder. He would still answer her questions, but his tone would be neither cold nor warm, and he would smile in a way that made her heart uneasy.

Fan Changyu couldn’t figure out what was wrong even by the time she went to sleep. When she asked Xie Zheng, he would reply in a light tone that it was nothing.

His behavior made “nothing” seem very strange.

In the pitch-black bed curtains, Fan Changyu glanced at Xie Zheng lying on the outer side, his breathing shallow, seemingly asleep. Finally, she let out a soft sigh and forced herself to sleep as well.

Perhaps because she was truly exhausted from the day, she quickly fell asleep.

In the middle of the night, however, she was awakened by a pressing sensation.

Humid, hot, stifling.

The person behind her seemed to know she was awake but remained silent. His broad chest and iron-like arms held her tightly, preventing her from moving even slightly. His movements below were unusually fierce.

At first, Fan Changyu could endure it, but eventually, even with her teeth clenched, she couldn’t help but let out a few muffled groans, almost tearing the bedding.

He then turned her face to kiss her. The kiss was also fierce, carrying a hint of punishment and frustration…

Due to the horse-startling incident, both she and Xie Zheng had taken leave from the morning court session the next day.

When Fan Changyu woke up, Xie Zheng was no longer in the room, but breakfast had been kept warm for her.

Changnin, learning that Gongsun Yin had injured his leg and couldn’t lecture at Chongwen Hall for some time, was quite disappointed for a while. After comforting her and learning that Xie Zheng had gone to his study again, Fan Changyu, considering the delicate situation between them, didn’t go there directly.

Xie Wu, since being questioned by Xie Zheng that day, had noticed the tension between Xie Zheng and Fan Changyu. Today, he finally had the opportunity to tell Fan Changyu about the military text.

When Fan Changyu learned that the copy of “The Tiger Strategy” was annotated by Li Huai’an, she was stunned, “Wasn’t it annotated by the advisors I hired at great expense?”

Xie Wu was almost in tears, “No, it was Young Master Li.”

Fan Changyu suddenly felt a headache coming on. She finally understood why Xie Zheng had been acting strangely these past few days-

The window lattice of Xie Zheng’s study was wide open, the spring light brilliant, the courtyard lush with greenery.

Xie Zheng, dressed in a moon-white brocade robe, sat at his desk, intently reviewing the documents in his hand. His features, bathed in spring light, showed not a trace of warmth, only coldness.

Suddenly, there was a “Ha ya!” sound from the windowsill, and a small wooden puppet appeared. The puppet wore soft armor with a robe over it, dressed like Fan Changyu often did.

Xie Zheng looked up and saw that the puppet’s limbs and body were controlled by thin strings, like the common puppet shows in folk performances.

The small puppet raised a long sword. Despite its crude craftsmanship, it somehow managed to look quite imposing. A voice came from below, “Once upon a time, there was a girl who, by chance, went into battle and became a general.”

“A military inspector, knowing she wasn’t well-read, gave her some military texts. But when she realized that the inspector had approached her from the beginning to use her, she no longer considered him a friend and gave the military texts he had given her to her subordinate soldiers.”

As this explanation continued, another small puppet in a blue robe appeared on the windowsill. This puppet handed a book to the female general puppet, who then turned and passed the book to several small puppets with “soldier” written on their heads.

“Later one day, a straightforward general came to borrow books from her. To show that she both borrowed and returned, she returned the military texts she had given away.”

A puppet with “Zheng” written on its head handed a book to a puppet with “Wu” on its head.

“With the book back in her hands, she couldn’t very well send it away again, so she had her subordinates put it away. She didn’t even know which book had been returned.”

“Later, this girl got married. Her husband discovered that book and learned that it was annotated by that military inspector.”

Another puppet in white robes, more finely crafted, appeared on the windowsill.

“He was unhappy but didn’t tell the girl why. The girl couldn’t guess. One day, the girl found the military text being used to prop up a table leg. She didn’t remember at all that this was the book the military inspector had given her. She thought it was annotated by the advisors she had hired, and asked him why he was using the book to prop up the table. This made him even more unhappy.”

The white-robed puppet stamped its feet vigorously on the windowsill.

“So the girl pondered, why was he unhappy? He even started dressing like a scholar, which he used to disdain. When the girl discovered that the military text wasn’t annotated by the advisors she had hired, but was given by that military inspector, she finally understood. Her husband was jealous.”

The female general puppet paced back and forth on the windowsill, looking very troubled: “The girl thought she should comfort her husband. But her husband was accomplished in both civil and military affairs, clever and resourceful, and one of the world’s greatest heroes. She couldn’t understand how he could be jealous of a mere military inspector.”

“After thinking for a long time, the girl felt that she rarely expressed her feelings to her husband. So she went to find him.”

The female general puppet walked up to the white-robed puppet, and the two puppets’ heads touched under the control of the strings.

“The girl had recently learned a poem. One line goes, ‘Having seen my lord, how can I not be joyful?’ She heard it means that even in wind and rain, seeing you brings joy to the heart. She felt that this was exactly how she felt every time she saw her husband, and she should tell him.”

The vermilion brush in Xie Zheng’s hand had long since left a large stain on the paper.

He seemed frozen in place, unable to move, but his heart was beating more fiercely than ever before. Thump thump thump, thump thump thump, as if it would break through his chest and leap out.

When Fan Changyu stood up from below the window lattice, despite the vast sky and broad earth, his dark eyes could only reflect her.

His female general, bathed in bright spring light, rested her elbows on the window and smiled brilliantly at him, saying, “Xie Zheng, having seen my lord, how can I not be joyful!”