Rain pattered loudly on the carriage, noisy yet isolating them from the world.

Xiao Xun reached beneath him and pulled out a sheet of paper—an official announcement containing the latest news.

The Emperor had passed away, the new Emperor had ascended the throne, and the Empress had been installed.

That girl had become the Empress.

Her becoming Empress wasn’t surprising. If he had entered the palace, she would have been Empress too.

Xiao Xun crumpled the announcement in his hand. He had thought she would only counterattack; he never expected her to seize the opportunity.

She had snatched this chance from his hands.

“I still underestimated her,” he said.

In the dim lamplight, the young man’s face bore a smile, shallow dimples showing, appearing pleasing to the eye. But the old woman’s expression showed fear as she whispered, “Your Highness, we had hoped to assume an official identity at the courier station. What shall we do now?”

Xiao Xun had left the capital quickly enough, but his pursuers were faster.

Though not officially sanctioned, troops searching under the pretext of hunting down Zhao family remnants were secretly tracking his movements. Even more concerning were the unofficial people emerging from all directions, making his journey extremely difficult. With detours and evasions, he still hadn’t managed to return to Zhongshan Prefecture.

Xiao Xun wasn’t angry, nor was he worried. Still smiling, he said, “As long as they don’t catch me, as long as they don’t dare to openly accuse me and my father, they can’t do anything to us.”

The curtain was lifted, and Iron Eagle, wearing a rain cloak and bamboo hat, said, “Ning Kun suggests we switch to waterways.”

Xiao Xun asked, “What does Father say?”

Iron Eagle’s voice held a hint of exasperation: “The Prince said that you should find your way back, and that he wants to see if you’ve improved your abilities during this trip.”

Without waiting for Xiao Xun’s response, he expressed his displeasure.

“At a time like this, the Prince is still joking around.”

Xiao Xun sat up. “If Father can still joke with me, it means Zhongshan Prefecture is safe and sound.”

The new Emperor had ascended the throne. There was no evidence to convince Chu Lan to kill the Imperial Grandson, and this Empress Chu would not announce it to the world. But the new Grand Tutor and the Xie family certainly knew. While hunting him down, they would inevitably also reach for Zhongshan Prefecture—

Reach for it? Xiao Xun smiled. It wouldn’t be so easy. A minor official who appeared out of nowhere to become Grand Tutor, a dying general from a border province, and an imperial relative who had been biding his time before suddenly stepping into the public eye—did they think they were omnipotent?

His father hadn’t been killed as a child and hadn’t been killed in all these years either. It would be even more difficult to kill him now.

“Let’s go,” Xiao Xun said. “Iron Eagle, we can’t let my father laugh at us.”

The old woman handed a raincoat to Xiao Xun. He put it on and stepped out of the carriage. The old woman also donned a rain cloak, wrapping herself and the child before disappearing into the rainy night. Only a solitary carriage traveled through the mountains, soon plunging toward a cliff and vanishing.

…

…

The night rain didn’t stop everyone. Some were fleeing, some were pursuing, and some were racing with official documents on their backs.

Days rose and fell, clear skies alternated with rain, and news of the imperial dynasty’s changes spread to every corner of Da Xia.

The border province was no exception.

They learned of it earlier.

And the border province had experienced its turmoil, with an extremely dangerous situation. If Chu Li hadn’t suddenly appeared with troops, who knows what would have happened to Yunzhong Prefecture?

Chu Li was now stationed in Yunzhong Prefecture.

Previously, some might have been dissatisfied, but now absolutely no one was.

Forget about Yunzhong Prefecture—no one would object if he went to guard the capital.

His daughter had become the Empress, and Chu Li had become the Emperor’s father-in-law.

It was unbelievable. Chu Li had rarely been mentioned, not only in the capital but even in Yunzhong Prefecture. Who would have thought that overnight, everyone would be talking about Chu Li and his daughter?

“That Miss Chu, I do have some impression of her. She often came to play in the prefectural city. Besides being pretty, I didn’t notice anything special.”

“I noticed she had quite a temper, very spoiled. She argued with several young ladies and even claimed she was from the capital, looking down on them.”

“And she became the Empress.”

“They say she saved the Imperial Grandson.”

“Well, that’s possible. After all, she is Chu Li’s daughter. General Chu is very brave, and His Majesty trusted him greatly, rewarding him generously—a very, very long time ago.”

Deputy General Zhong galloped through the bustling streets. Since approaching Yunzhong Prefecture, he had thought of nothing but Chu Li, especially after hearing that Yunzhong Prefecture had also experienced turmoil—

Deputy General Zhong burst into the room.

“General!” he shouted, his gaze darting around. Whether from extreme anxiety or unfamiliarity with the environment, he temporarily failed to spot Chu Li.

Was the General unable to rise from his bed?

“Changrong.”

A gentle male voice came from the side.

Deputy General Zhong hurriedly looked over and finally saw Chu Li standing with several military officers by the wall, examining a campaign map hanging there.

Everyone seemed startled by Deputy General Zhong’s entrance.

“Old Zhong, why have you come back?” someone urgently asked. “How can the young miss be alone in the capital?”

These were all Chu Li’s confidants. Seeing everyone present, Zhong Changrong felt half his worries ease.

“The young miss sent me back,” he said, stepping forward and staring intently at Chu Li, his voice somewhat choked. “The young miss was concerned about the General.”

The officer before him still had a tall, imposing figure and a gentle countenance, but his complexion was no longer as ruddy as when Deputy General Zhong had left, now covered with a layer of frost-white.

Hearing his words, everyone around looked somewhat sad.

Chu Li smiled and gestured to everyone: “You all go attend to your duties first. We cannot be negligent at this time, especially with Western Liang. Keep a close watch. Later, let Changrong tell everyone about the situation in the capital.”

Everyone acknowledged and took their leave, each patting Zhong Changrong’s shoulder as they passed him.

After everyone left and the door was closed, only the two of them remained in the room.

“Brother,” Zhong Changrong stepped forward. “Are you well?”

Chu Li smiled and said, “I’m fine. I won’t die yet.”

That meant he wasn’t well. Zhong Changrong almost shed tears.

“How is A-Zhao?” Chu Li asked.

Just as Zhong Changrong was about to speak,

Chu Li asked again, “Was she injured?”

Zhong Changrong swallowed what he was about to say, shaking his head and then nodding: “No, just some minor external wounds.”

Chu Li hurriedly asked, “Where was she injured?”

Zhong Changrong suppressed the exciting stories of how the young miss had rescued the young Imperial Grandson, how cleverly she had ordered them to storm the imperial palace, how she had convinced the guards at two palace gates, met with His Majesty, and persuaded the Emperor, who then bestowed the marriage—and all those other thrilling events. Instead, he earnestly answered the father, who was only concerned about whether his daughter was injured and where.

He raised his hand and pointed to locations on his own body.

“There’s a wound on her arm where a blade grazed her. A-Zhao wasn’t wearing armor.”

“A slight injury on her shoulder where an arrow brushed past.”

“Her foot is also slightly injured. This happened when A-Zhao was running and wasn’t careful, twisting it a bit.”

“Brother, A-Zhao was incredible, didn’t cry at all. However, she’s still afraid of pain. When the imperial physician was bandaging her wounds, she held A-Le’s hand and didn’t dare to look.”

Chu Li listened attentively, carefully observing each place Zhong Changrong indicated on his body, as if his daughter were right before his eyes.

Zhong Changrong recounted in detail everything that had happened in the capital. By the time he finished his long account, dusk had enveloped the room.

Chu Li sat at the table, reaching out to pour tea.

Zhong Changrong quickly moved to pour it for him, shaking the water pitcher on the table, which was only half full. The liquid poured into the cup emitted a strong medicinal smell.

He was drinking medicine as if it were water?

Zhong Changrong’s nose stung with emotion, and he steadied himself against the table, feeling unsteady on his feet.

“That was the situation at the time,” he said through gritted teeth. “The events were sudden, but A-Zhao handled them appropriately. A-Zhao said this was the best outcome. She was worried about you becoming anxious and not trusting others, so she urged me to return.”

Chu Li slowly drank from the teacup. The medicine smelled nauseating; one could only imagine how difficult it was to swallow. It would have been easier to drink it all at once, but Chu Li sipped it as casually as if he were enjoying fine tea.

“What hardships has A-Zhao endured,” he said, “to believe that this is the best outcome?”