Chu Zhao didn’t care about what Ding Dachui and “Madam Ding” discussed afterward, or how Xiao Man went to warn and threaten them again.

She had done what she needed to do, and she believed in herself and Xiao Man.

With these thirty people, they could barely begin their journey.

There could be no more delays. Her father had passed away in battle against Western Liang, and this was her last chance to see him.

Chu Zhao walked back to the tent with A-Le. Old Bai was waiting at the entrance and handed her a letter: “Young Miss, a letter from Official Xie Yanfang.”

A-Le made a sound of delight: “The Third Young Master has written to you! I thought he had forgotten about you.”

Since leaving the capital, Deng Yi, Xie Yanfang, Chu Tang, and all those familiar people had disappeared from their lives.

A letter from Xie Yanfang? Chu Zhao was also pleased. Throughout the journey, she had only focused on moving forward, without knowing any news from behind. She wasn’t worried about court affairs, as Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang were certainly handling things well, but Xiao Yu was just a child, and she truly wasn’t at ease about him.

Chu Zhao took the letter and went inside, sat down, and opened it. The letter wasn’t long, only half a page. It first mentioned court affairs after her departure, and matters concerning Xiao Yu—that he was seriously attending court sessions, studying and learning, but had a terrible temper—

“That’s because you’re not there. He’s afraid inside, so he uses anger to gain a sense of security.”

Then the letter mentioned hearing about the ambush, expressing concern.

“See, he also suspects it was the work of the Prince of Zhongshan,” Chu Zhao said to A-Le.

A-Le sat beside her, reading along, and nodded at her words: “Then it must be true. It was indeed the Prince of Zhongshan.”

Xie Yanfang wrote very directly in his letter, telling her that the Prince of Zhongshan had far greater power than what the public and the court knew.

Although his teeth had been pulled and his claws removed back then, after decades of development, he had still grown into a fierce tiger.

And the true situation regarding his money, people, and private army was completely beyond the court’s knowledge and control.

Chu Zhao nodded, then pursed her lips and smiled. These words about the Prince of Zhongshan could also apply to the Xie family. In that lifetime, when the Xie family refused to submit, the fierce tiger descended from the mountain, causing Great Xia to split from north to south, and the conflict hadn’t ended even by the time of her death.

In this lifetime, it was the Prince of Zhongshan who refused to submit. If war broke out, the situation would probably be similar to that previous lifetime.

“Why is there nothing after this?” A-Le asked, interrupting Chu Zhao’s wandering thoughts.

Chu Zhao looked at the letter where A-Le’s finger was pointing at the last line.

“I am very worried about you,” A-Le read, then looked at Chu Zhao. “What comes next?”

The letter ended abruptly there.

“Did he not finish writing?” A-Le asked, puzzled.

Xie Yanfang must be very busy, so he didn’t finish?

Chu Zhao looked at the letter and smiled again. It wasn’t that he hadn’t finished; Xie Yanfang’s meaning was that he was very worried about her, but didn’t want to stop her.

She knew that when news of the ambush reached the capital, Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang certainly wouldn’t want her to continue forward. Moreover, with the Western Liang King invading and battles breaking out in the border counties, the Prince of Zhongshan had more opportunities to exploit. The Prince of Zhongshan had already set his sights on her, making the journey extremely dangerous. Whether considering her safety or the overall situation of the court, she should now turn around and return to the capital.

That was the reasoning from the broader perspective, but from a personal standpoint, Xie Yanfang knew how much she wanted to go to the border, so he was unwilling to persuade her against it.

That’s why he wrote only half a letter.

Chu Zhao’s finger rested on the last line, slowly and gently moving back and forth. What to do? What to do? He could express all his worries but couldn’t bring himself to dissuade her, only because he knew, he understood, he—

“Young Miss—Xie—” Old Bai’s voice sounded from outside.

Before he could finish, the curtain was abruptly lifted, and someone stood in the sunlight, bursting in together with the light, filling the room.

Chu Zhao raised a hand to shield her forehead, seeing the sunlight dancing on his dust-covered armor, his fair face, and his upturned phoenix eyes and high nose.

“A-Jiu.”

The next moment, she jumped up and happily rushed toward him.

A-Jiu had come!

……

……

Old Bai didn’t know what was happening.

He was standing at the door, but the next moment he was flung inside.

The girl who rushed in stopped in front of him, as if seeing something ridiculous, and burst into laughter.

Well, throughout the journey, this was the first time Young Miss Chu had laughed so loudly.

Behind him, the young officer was also laughing, his cold breath hissing through his teeth and blowing on Old Bai’s neck.

Young Miss Chu laughed heartily and said, “A-Jiu, I didn’t expect you to come.”

Officer Xie laughed with a hiss and said, “Young Miss is being modest. Is there anything you don’t know?”

Old Bai thought to himself, he knew nothing, for instance, why was he standing here?

Fortunately, the Empress indeed knew everything. Seeing his embarrassment and confusion, she smiled and said, “You may go about your business now.”

Old Bai didn’t even have time to say “yes” before turning to leave.

With Old Bai out of the way, Chu Zhao could see the mockery and smugness in Xie Yanlai’s eyes, a look that said “I knew you would do this, but I’m one step ahead,” and she laughed again.

“I just read Third Young Master Xie’s letter,” she said, “and here you are.”

Xie Yanlai’s expression remained mocking, but his upturned phoenix eyes lowered as he said, “I’m here on his orders to take you back.” With a toss of his head, he added, “Let’s go.”

He strode out.

Chu Zhao followed with a smile, taking small steps to circle in front of him, blocking his path. Her face showed no anger or unease as she smiled: “You’re scaring me again.”

……

……

“Who is that person?” “Madam Ding” happened to see this scene and asked with some surprise.

Because the previous events had been too sudden and too joyful, she had been in such disarray that she didn’t know what to do, and had wandered around the camp.

When Xiao Man found her, her mind had just begun to settle.

Xiao Man complained to her: “Chu Zhao is just like that. She’s incredibly cunning. Who knows what she was thinking, or when she started watching you all, but she caught you, Aunt.”

The woman thought of the earlier scene when that girl walked in like a bright lantern. She hadn’t dared to look much, finding her dazzling and heart-stirring—she hadn’t seen whether the girl was cunning or not, she had only heard her say things that were so adorable and considerate.

Adorable enough to believe she was Ding Dachui’s wife, considerate enough to let husband and wife stay together.

The woman giggled and murmured, “The General raised her well.”

She was a girl raised with love.

“It’s Aunt who bore her well,” Xiao Man said angrily. After all these years, her aunt never said a bad word about that Chu Yi. Then she asked, “So what do we do next?”

Should they do as Chu Zhao said? Go with them, no longer needing to hide away?

She had never dared hope to appear before her, to talk with her, to be looked at by her with a smiling face—

The woman pressed her hand to her chest: “This must be heaven taking pity on me.” She raised her head to look at Xiao Man. “Then I’ll be this Madam Ding.”

Hearing this title and recalling the scene, when Ding Dachui’s face had turned pale, yet Chu Zhao hadn’t noticed anything amiss, Xiao Man couldn’t help but laugh heartily.

“She’s so silly,” she said.

Madam Ding lightly patted her: “Stop laughing. Madam Ding isn’t familiar with you either, so put on a stern face.”

Xiao Man covered her stomach to avoid laughing too hard.

As the two were laughing and talking, Madam Ding suddenly looked in one direction, where a group of horsemen were galloping in—such groups were common in the military camp, with others visible elsewhere at this moment, but she focused only on this group.

Dust-covered, they weren’t locals.

The other horsemen stopped, and one of them headed directly toward Chu Zhao’s location.

This was also common; couriers delivering messages always delivered them directly to Chu Zhao.

But this courier—

The woman narrowed her eyes. He was young, with an extraordinary bearing.

He dismounted, and the soldiers at the door didn’t hinder him at all. That Old Bai even welcomed him warmly. The young courier directly lifted the curtain and went in—

Then, he came out again, looking displeased, while Chu Zhao followed behind him with a smile, jumping like a little deer in front of him, blocking his path—

The woman felt her heart skip a beat.

She wondered if this young courier’s heart had also skipped several beats.