The troops from all directions gradually returned, concealing Chu Zhao within their ranks, allowing her to finally breathe a sigh of relief. She looked back, but the peach grove was no longer visible, and the people who had been enjoying the scenery were completely out of sight.

“Miss,” A-Le urged her horse alongside and asked in a low voice, “Were you arguing with the Third Young Master just now?”

She had been nearby and saw the Miss and Xie Yanfang drinking tea and laughing, but the atmosphere had seemed strange somehow, though she couldn’t quite put her finger on what was odd. It certainly felt different from when Miss was with Xie Yanlai.

By all accounts, Xie Yanfang should have been much more likable than Xie Yanlai.

“We weren’t arguing,” Chu Zhao explained to A-Le, not hiding anything from her, “The Third Young Master didn’t understand some of my recent actions, and I was explaining them to him.”

A-Le understood this and slapped her horse’s head. “What’s not to understand! How dare he blame you! On what grounds? Miss, you took such a great risk, stopped the King of Zhongshan from doing evil, quelled the flames of war, and rescued the common people from disaster, yet he still dares to blame you?”

If these words hadn’t come directly from her mistress’s mouth, she truly wouldn’t have believed it.

How could Xie Yanfang blame the Miss for this matter?! Shouldn’t he be congratulating her, admiring her, and expressing his gratitude instead?

“Calm down,” Chu Zhao said with a smile. “The great risks I took and the things I did were my affairs, and they have nothing to do with Third Young Master Xie.”

A-Le stared wide-eyed: “But how can you say—”

“Indeed, it has nothing to do with him,” Chu Zhao also stared at the young girl. “Because he has his affairs to attend to.”

“Miss, this isn’t just ‘his affairs,'” A-Le corrected. She was no longer an ignorant servant girl from the border province. “This is a matter of national importance!”

Chu Zhao was taken aback by her words, then smiled.

“Yes, A-Le is right,” she said, nodding, then letting out a soft sigh. “And that’s where the problem lies. This is indeed a matter of national importance, but the people who take action are independent individuals, and all people have their selfish motives.”

“Miss has no selfish motives!” A-Le said, feeling aggrieved.

Chu Zhao shook her head. “I do.”

A-Le responded with a simple “Oh” and said nothing more. If the Miss said she did, then naturally—she must be right.

“Third Young Master Xie had his plans,” Chu Zhao continued in a low voice. “I didn’t consult with him before taking action. Although I resolved a matter of national importance, I disrupted Third Young Master Xie’s plans.”

This time A-Le understood and also lowered her voice: “So, he’s angry?” Then she grew nervous, clutching the reins tightly. “Will he harm you, Miss?”

Though she wasn’t sure why this thought had occurred to her—after all, the Third Young Master was considered a good person in everyone’s eyes.

Chu Zhao shook her head again: “No, the Third Young Master is a very forthright person. When he had doubts, he came to question me immediately. Once everything was clarified, he was no longer angry.”

Xie Yanfang had directly stated that the King of Zhongshan’s battle was under his control, and even something he was pleased to see.

The implication was that the Xie family wanted to use this battle to enhance their reputation.

But she, Chu Zhao, had disrupted that plan.

So she had also frankly told Xie Yanfang that the King of Zhongshan’s battle was an opportunity for her as well, and she wanted to participate to gain a reputation for herself.

She did this for her own sake, not deliberately to oppose Xie Yanfang.

She was acting against the situation, not against the person.

Distrust, fear, admiration, even desire for fame and power—Xie Yanfang could accept all of these. He could understand them, and even seemed quite happy about it.

Third Young Master Xie was an eagle soaring in the sky; he didn’t mind the selfish desires of mortals below.

As long as it wasn’t malicious.

Or rather, he could probably accept malice too, but it depended on whom the malice was directed against.

Ants, wild rabbits, birds, and insects didn’t matter.

But if it was against an equal, a peer—

Then for Third Young Master Xie, it was probably a case of “either you or me.”

Chu Zhao pressed her chest and let out another gentle sigh. She certainly bore no malice toward Xie Yanfang, although in her previous life, the Xie family had been among her enemies—cursing her father, slandering her as an evil empress, and even killing Uncle Zhong—

But in this life, having learned the circumstances, she understood that due to Xiao Xun and Chu Lan’s schemes, the Xie family and her Chu family were indeed on opposing sides.

In this life, she and Xie Yanfang stood together, and she had no desire to become his enemy.

Of course, she hadn’t completely opened her heart to Xie Yanfang either; there were still private motives hidden in her heart that she couldn’t reveal.

In this life, she had gained an early advantage and used it to step into the chaos of Great Xia. She had indeed seized many opportunities from others, including Xie Yanfang.

Feeling somewhat guilty, Chu Zhao looked back once more. Fortunately, no matter how Xie Yanfang might guess or probe, even if he flew to the mountain peak, he would never discover this.

“It’s good that he’s not angry,” A-Le muttered beside her. “Miss did this for His Majesty. If the young Emperor isn’t angry, then he has no right to be angry. If he gets angry, that’s deceiving the sovereign.”

Chu Zhao laughed heartily: “My, my, our A-Le knows so much.”

A-Le snorted and raised her chin: “I am a maid who stands in the great hall listening to court proceedings.”

Chu Zhao laughed again: “Good, let’s hurry back to the capital and once again enter the great hall to listen to court discussions!”

……

……

But to return to the capital for court, they needed to change horses first.

At the last relay station outside the capital city, Chu Zhao asked Ding Dachui to lead people to change the horses, while she took A-Le to a nearby teahouse to rest.

This was already a prosperous area, with an elegant relay station and bustling surroundings, though at this time only four or five people sat in the teahouse.

Seeing Chu Zhao approach, they stood up, looking nervous and excited.

A-Le let out a happy sound and said: “It’s Commander Zhang.”

It wasn’t surprising that Zhang Gu and others appeared here. She had concealed her movements from local officials and commoners, but the relay station soldiers, especially Zhang Gu, had always known her whereabouts.

Chu Zhao smiled and said: “Now he should be addressed as Official Zhang.”

By this time, they had already entered the teahouse. Hearing these words, Zhang Gu hurriedly bowed: “Thank you for your patronage, Empress.”

His companions behind him also bowed one after another, wanting to look at Chu Zhao but not daring to stare.

“Please don’t stand on ceremony, everyone. I entered the capital without the Empress’s procession to conceal my identity,” Chu Zhao said with a smile. “Just treat me as A-Fu.”

They wouldn’t dare to do that. But at the mention of A-Fu, recalling past events, the tension among the relay soldiers eased considerably. One soldier spoke up: “We wouldn’t dare call you A-Fu. We should still address you as Miss Chu.”

Chu Zhao nodded with a smile and said that would be fine.

Zhang Gu invited her to sit down and said: “Although Your Highness said not to arrange a ceremonial welcome, we still wanted to see you. Your Highness has achieved such great merit, yet you’re entering the capital quietly with no one knowing—”

Earlier, when His Majesty personally led the expedition, crowds of people had gathered in support. The Empress had also joined the campaign and prevented greater casualties in the conflict, yet she was returning to the capital so quietly. They felt this wasn’t right.

Chu Zhao smiled: “This was my own decision. If I wanted to return to the capital with great fanfare, neither His Majesty nor the court would object. I simply find it troublesome and prefer to return to the palace quickly and quietly.”

Zhang Gu nodded: “We understand. But even though we understand, still—” he pointed to the table inside, “we’d like to offer tea instead of wine, to express our humble sentiments.”

Chu Zhao looked at the tea and pastries arranged on the table. This was the second time she had been invited to tea upon entering the capital. She raised an eyebrow and smiled: “Did you personally brew this tea as well?”

There were only a few of them in the teahouse; the owner had been sent away in advance.

Hearing Chu Zhao’s words, one of the relay soldiers couldn’t help but laugh and said: “That wouldn’t do at all. The tea we brew tastes terrible.”

……

……

But in truth, the tea brewed by roadside teahouse owners wouldn’t taste that good either, certainly not comparable to the fine tea personally prepared by Xie Yanfang. However, Chu Zhao naturally didn’t care about the taste of the tea—what they were consuming wasn’t tea, but everyone’s goodwill.

They barely drank any tea, as everyone was busy discussing recent events.

“Er Xi is coming back soon?” Chu Zhao asked after listening. “Has his wound healed?”

Er Xi was the relay soldier who had delivered the news about the King of Zhongshan’s heir raising troops against the court.

Zhang Gu shook his head helplessly: “No, by all rights, he should rest for half a year, but this stubborn child won’t listen and insists on coming back.”

Chu Zhao said: “Brother Zhang’s place is his home, of course, he’s eager to return.” Then she asked, “Have the funeral arrangements been made for Brother Wang who died in the line of duty?”

Zhang Gu said: “Your Highness need not worry, everything has been arranged. He has a son, and if he wants to join the military in the future, I’ll recruit him directly under my command.”

Chu Zhao nodded, then smiled and said: “He could also be assigned to A-Jiu’s unit.”

A-Jiu—these familiar yet distant names echoed in their ears, making Zhang Gu grin: “A-Jiu has become a great general, right? According to Er Xi’s letter, he’s formidable now.”

Chu Zhao waved her hand: “Not yet, not yet. He still needs to earn more merit before he can become a great general.” Then she smiled again. “But it should happen soon, right?”

Zhang Gu certainly knew how difficult it was to earn military merits, ranks, and positions, but he still nodded firmly: “It will happen soon.”

This confidence wasn’t just because Xie Yanlai was a member of the Xie family.

“A-Jiu is both clever and formidable.”

A relay soldier, reminded of something, took a teacup from the side, placed it on the table, and poured tea into it: “Since we’re gathered today, we can’t leave out A-Jiu. Let’s add a cup for him.”

Zhang Gu laughed heartily, raised his teacup, and said: “On this reunion day, let us congratulate A-Fu, Miss Chu, for her glorious achievements in protecting the country and saving the people!”

The relay soldiers raised their teacups and responded loudly in unison.

A-Le also raised her teacup and drank with Chu Zhao and everyone else in one gulp.

After finishing this cup, Chu Zhao poured tea again and said: “Having celebrated the good fortune, let us also share a cup for our brothers who cannot reunite with us, for the fallen soldiers, and for the suffering common people.”

With that, she poured the tea onto the ground.

Zhang Gu and the others became even more emotional, all pouring their tea onto the ground.

After the second cup of tea was offered, Chu Zhao poured tea again and raised it: “For the third cup, let us wish A-Jiu an early appointment as Great General.”

Laughter filled the teahouse as everyone stood up, raised their teacups, and drank heartily.