The next morning, despite Zhuge Yue going out early, despite his lavish spending of gold coins, after searching the entire city, he couldn’t buy a single horse or hire a single carriage. The entire horse market, even the mounts of the traders themselves, had been completely bought up overnight. In frustration, Zhuge Yue tried to buy other means of transportation, such as donkeys, and mules, or even condescended to inquire about oxen.

The result, however, was the same everywhere.

At the same time, Chu Qiao sat in the superior room on the second floor of the inn, watching the escort agency’s people coming and going, shouting. Her brows furrowed slightly, sensing something wasn’t right.

When Zhuge Yue returned, they exchanged a glance, but neither spoke.

When the convoy left the city, it was far from the four to five hundred followers that Escort Leader Yu had mentioned. The people at the front had already left the city while those at the back hadn’t even mounted their horses yet—altogether over two thousand people. Large quantities of supplies, provisions, gold, silver, jewelry, and goods were loaded onto more than three hundred carriages. Behind them was an endless line of women and children, dressed in luxurious clothes, bustling about in a complex throng. One carriage after another surrounded them front and back, creating a magnificent spectacle.

Chu Qiao and Zhuge Yue were arranged at the very back of the entourage, in a relatively worn-out carriage that had obviously just been purchased, with an unpleasant smell inside.

Their concerns were completely unnecessary, as their current status gave them no opportunity to approach the young master of the Liu family.

In the morning, Chu Qiao followed behind several servants who were carrying luggage and saw from a distance a man in a lake-blue brocade robe boarding a carriage under the escort of many guards. The weather in Amber was already very hot, but the man wore a large cape. He was somewhat thin, his hood half-covering his face. Yet that figure, half-hidden in the morning mist, immediately startled Chu Qiao.

She unconsciously stopped in her tracks, watching that silhouette gradually move away and then board a magnificent, spacious carriage. She remained motionless for a long time.

“What’s wrong?”

Zhuge Yue, walking in front of her, turned back and asked in a deep voice.

“Oh, nothing,” Chu Qiao smiled self-mockingly and shook her head as if trying to throw some impractical thoughts out of her mind. “Let’s go.”

The carriage slowly drove out of Amber City. Chu Qiao leaned at the window, lifting a corner of the curtain, and looked outside through a light veil.

“Oh, right,” suddenly remembering something, Chu Qiao took out a small package and handed it to Zhuge Yue, saying calmly, “I asked the waiter to buy this when he went out this morning.”

Zhuge Yue took the package and opened it to find a windproof hood to protect against sand. Although wearing it at this time was somewhat inappropriate, it was finely crafted, made of thin material, and wouldn’t be too hot to wear.

“It’s always good to be careful,” Chu Qiao said softly, then smiled faintly, “Although there probably won’t be much chance to use it.”

With over two thousand people and hundreds of carriages of supplies stretching endlessly along the post road, it was impossible to see the vehicles at the front from where they were.

Zhuge Yue placed the hood aside but didn’t withdraw his hand, keeping it pressed on top.

“The merchants of Xian Yang are fleeing.”

Chu Qiao smiled slightly, turned her head, and said, “You figured it out.”

“War between Yan Bei and Da Xia is imminent. These old foxes are all fleeing to Bian Tang together. They dare not depart from Xian Yang in large groups, so they can only split up and then gather in Amber before heading to the Tang capital together. Those carriages probably contain all their life savings.”

Chu Qiao nodded lightly and said softly, “Yes, they want to stay out of it all.”

Unlike Zhuge Yue, Chu Qiao suddenly felt a sense of panic in her heart. She knew the identities of several major merchants in Xian Yang and knew how they had made their fortunes over the years. Now, they were about to flee.

Remembering the figure she had seen earlier, Chu Qiao’s heart suddenly felt as if it was on fire. She wanted to jump off the carriage and run up to see. But then she laughed self-mockingly, shook her head, and leaned back on the swaying carriage, slowly closing her eyes.

Chu Qiao, are you too tired? Since the Zhen Huang uprising began, you’ve been through so much along the way. Are you starting to falter, which is why you’re having such unrealistic fantasies?

Yan Xun, they’re about to flee, right before my eyes. What should I do? How can I stop them?

What should I do?

It was now midsummer, with long days. The group traveled until the sun was tilting westward before setting up camp, lighting fires, and cooking in a valley.

Chu Qiao and Zhuge Yue were assigned a small tent—short and small, where they would bump their heads if they sat up.

Sharing the outer camp with them were some servants. Upon inquiry, they learned that this convoy included not only the Liu family from Xian Yang but also the Wang family, the Jia family, the Ouyang family, and others.

After a day of jolting travel, Chu Qiao’s body grew increasingly weak. The air in the tent was poor, so Zhuge Yue helped her out and leaned her against a short tree stump. He bought a freshly caught rabbit from one of the guards, lit a fire, and roasted the meat. In no time, the delicious aroma of meat wafted through the air, whetting everyone’s appetite.

Tearing off a piece of meat, he held it to Chu Qiao’s mouth. As she opened her mouth to take it, she felt a pain on her forehead as Zhuge Yue flicked her. The man said with a stern face, “It’s hot!”

“Oh,” Chu Qiao smiled understandingly, puffed her cheeks, and blew gently twice. Then, with her fingers raised, she took the meat. It was delicious, and Chu Qiao couldn’t help but give a thumbs up, saying, “I didn’t expect you to have this skill.”

“Learned it during those years on the mountain,” Zhuge Yue said casually, drawing a dagger to cut the rabbit into small pieces, and handing them to Chu Qiao one by one.

Night had fallen, and sunlight was gradually swallowed by darkness. She sat in a patch of green grass, under a starry sky, with crickets chirping and occasional nightingales returning. The valley was peaceful, with a large number of guards bustling about in the distance, creating a clamor, yet filled with calm warmth.

Chu Qiao took a deep breath and smiled with delight, like a pure child, suddenly exclaiming, “I miss this so much!”

Zhuge Yue casually responded, “Miss what?”

“Miss this feeling,” Chu Qiao leaned against the tree stump, her face serene, still smiling, and said quietly, “Miss the tall grass, green trees, camping in the wilderness, a group of people gathering to cook by the fire, and after dinner, lighting a bonfire to sit together, chat, drink a little wine, eat the wild rabbits we caught. I miss the days when we didn’t have to worry about tomorrow or fighting for survival.”

Zhuge Yue looked at her quietly and asked, “Have you ever lived such days?”

“Of course,” Chu Qiao raised her head, smiling gracefully, “It was a long time ago. Me and three good friends, in a valley just like this, eating roasted rabbit just like this, though our cooking skills were better than yours, and we had more seasonings too.”

“Hmph!” Zhuge Yue snorted disdainfully and turned his head away.

“Xiao Shi learned cooking from a French chef, her skills were first-class, especially at roasting meat.”

Zhuge Yue raised his eyebrows and asked in a deep voice, “French? Is that a restaurant?”

“Hmm?” Chu Qiao smiled and nodded, “Yes, it’s a restaurant.”

Zhuge Yue snorted contemptuously, “Never heard of it. Must not be a famous one.”

In the distance, large bonfires were lit, with roaring sounds creating a lively atmosphere.

“Continue.”

“Hmm?” Chu Qiao was startled.

“Continue talking. We’re idle anyway,” Zhuge Yue lowered his head and continued cutting the rabbit. “Tell me about your friends.”

“Oh,” Chu Qiao nodded. For some reason, her mood was a bit heavy tonight. Perhaps because the actions of the Da Tong Guild elders had hurt her heart somewhat, and she needed to think about other things to divert her attention. With grass swaying and night falling in the west, she spoke in a calm tone, “Their martial skills were all better than mine.”

Zhuge Yue raised his eyebrows, “They were all women?”

“Yes,” Chu Qiao glanced at him sideways, “You look down on women, don’t you?”

Zhuge Yue didn’t respond, and Chu Qiao continued, “But that was then. If we were to compete now, I would probably be about their equal.”

“Xiao Huang was good at shooting, well, archery too. Xiao Shi was best at hand-to-hand combat; she once defeated seventeen agile men single-handedly. Mao’er’s skills weren’t as good as those two, but when it came to the art of killing, she was the best.”

Zhuge Yue slightly raised his eyebrows, “And you?”

“Me?” Chu Qiao chuckled, “I was an all-rounder.”

The man glanced at her impatiently, “Boastful.”

Chu Qiao wasn’t angry. She turned her head and asked, “Zhuge Yue, do you have any wishes?”

Zhuge Yue frowned as he looked at her, finally snorting coldly, “I hope you go back immediately, never let me see you again, and stay in that mountain valley in Yan Bei for the rest of your life without ever coming out.”

“That’s impossible,” Chu Qiao smiled as if they were discussing something ordinary, “Even if you don’t attack Yan Bei, we will still come down to attack.”

“Then I hope Yan Xun is utterly defeated, Yan Bei is annexed by the Batuha family, and you wander everywhere until you have to beg at my doorstep.”

Chu Qiao glared at him, “Such a vicious man.”

“But that’s impossible too,” Chu Qiao smiled lightly, “If such a day ever comes, I would probably have died in battle. I would never go out begging.”

Zhuge Yue was stunned and immediately fell silent.

“Back then, the four of us also asked this question,” Chu Qiao’s gaze was distant, quietly recalling those memories in her mind. With her hands cupping her cheeks, she said softly, “Xiao Shi looked cold on the outside, but she was the most fragile one among us. She liked collecting dolls, expensive ones, always making her monthly expenses very tight. Her biggest wish was to receive a large severance payment after leaving the organization, then marry an ordinary good man and be a good wife. She had a childhood friend, and if not for what happened later, she might have fulfilled her wish.”

Chu Qiao’s smile suddenly turned somewhat sorrowful. She pursed her lips slightly and said, “Xiao Huang was the most adventurous, from a good family, with a spirit for adventure. She was planning to climb a high mountain at that time, and her wish was to carve her name at the summit.”

“Mao’er’s wish was always simple—to make money.” Saying this, Chu Qiao suddenly smiled lightly and said, “She was the most money-hungry, and bold too, willing to take on any job. She never had much loyalty to the organization. In her words, it was just a way to make a living.”

Zhuge Yue raised his eyebrows slightly, “And you?”

“Me?” Chu Qiao was slightly stunned. After a long time, she slowly said, “I don’t know. I was planning an operation at that time. I only hoped that the operation would go smoothly and that I would complete the mission soon.”

Zhuge Yue snorted, his voice quite disdainful.

Chu Qiao turned her head, smiling faintly, “Actually, I’ve always been like this. I have no wishes. I’m very dogmatic and rigid in my conduct. I only hope that my faith is correct, worthy of having as a lifelong goal to strive and work for.”

“For example…” Chu Qiao thought for a moment, then said, “What you owe me, I will take back. What I owe you, I will repay.”

“I rather admire that Mao’er,” Zhuge Yue said lightly, “The organization you mentioned is the Da Tong Guild, right? If there’s a chance, you can introduce her to me.”

Chu Qiao quietly shook her head, smiling bitterly, “I find it strange that I would tell you these things.”

Zhuge Yue snorted, “It’s not like I forced you to tell me.”

At this moment, careful footsteps suddenly came from the distance. Both of them were highly alert and raised their heads simultaneously. They saw a little girl, no more than five or six years old, wearing a little red jacket, her hair in two small braids, with chubby cheeks, eagerly staring at the rabbit meat in Zhuge Yue’s hands while biting her fingers.

They knew that besides the masters of several wealthy families, there were also many family servants here, some of whom brought their own families. This child must be a servant’s child.

Zhuge Yue frowned, about to speak, when Chu Qiao suddenly beckoned, saying, “Come here!”

The little child suddenly brightened up, opened her small hands, and toddled over.

The little girl’s eyes were like grapes, big and bright. Chu Qiao smiled and asked, “How old are you?”

The child looked nervously at Zhuge Yue, then timidly said, “I’m six years old.”

“What’s your name?”

Seeming to find this older sister very approachable, the child lowered the finger she had in her mouth and said, “My name is Xing Xing.”

As soon as the child finished speaking, both of them were slightly startled.

Zhuge Yue looked at the child impatiently and said in a deep voice, “Go back and tell your parents that you’re not allowed to use this name anymore!”

The child was startled. Seeing Zhuge Yue’s stern face, her lips suddenly quivered, and her eyes blinked rapidly, as if about to cry.

“Why are you scaring the child!” Chu Qiao frowned, pulled the child closer, and spoke to her softly. In no time, she had made the child laugh.

Zhuge Yue sat to the side, watching Chu Qiao and the child giggling together, and suddenly felt something strange. The Chu Qiao in his memory shouldn’t be like this. She was calm, silent, composed in the face of change, clever, and cunning. She seemed to never have had such normal female emotions. But in this reunion, he saw more and more things in her. Perhaps, he smiled self-mockingly, she had always been acting before. Treating him as an enemy, never showing any truth, and even now, she might not be completely genuine. Otherwise, why would she still keep weapons on her, cautiously guarding against danger even when severely injured?

There had never been any trust between them. Perhaps, as she said, what one owes, one must repay.

Zhuge Yue’s lips curled in a cold smile, but his eyes gradually grew gloomy.

But damn it, he was captivated by the current feeling.

At this point, the child suddenly came to his side, persistently tugging at his sleeve, pointing at the remaining half of the roasted rabbit in his hand, and asking in a childish voice, “Are you still eating that?”

Zhuge Yue impatiently handed her what he was holding. The little girl immediately beamed with joy and said to Zhuge Yue, “You’re so nice!” Then she returned to Chu Qiao’s side, stretched out her chubby little legs, sat down on the ground, and very generously shared the piece of rabbit meat with Chu Qiao.

Zhuge Yue was slightly stunned. The child said he was nice. The man smiled coldly. He hadn’t deserved the word “nice” for a long time.

After a while, someone came calling the child’s name. The child sprang up and ran towards that person, turning back to say goodbye to Chu Qiao and Zhuge Yue as she ran. Her smile was sweet, and her giggle echoed in the evening breeze.

Chu Qiao pointed at the child in front and turned back to Zhuge Yue with a determined smile, enunciating each word, “My wish is that someday, all children in the world can smile like this.”

The night breeze brought the light fragrance of grass. In the learning institutions of Da Xia, with various schools of thought contending, he had heard such words thousands of times. But at this moment, he suddenly didn’t know how to refute her. Not because of the intrinsic meaning of these words, not because of her firm tone and hopeful expression, but because he suddenly felt that perhaps she really could achieve it.

However, immediately afterward, he negated this thought.

But he didn’t know that many years later, the world would undergo earth-shattering changes because of these words. A fire would be lit on the old system, blazing fiercely, and the person holding the torch would walk step by step toward her ideal. Blood would flow underfoot, countless people would fall like wheat, becoming the sacrificial victims of the old powers.

At that time, the person on the high platform would have a pale face, and the corner of her mouth would no longer have the hopeful smile she had now.

On the road ahead lay so many mountains of swords and seas of fire. To reach the other shore, one had to break through wind and waves, wade through cold waters, endure the baptism of storms, the tempering of fire, being ground down, beaten, walking through betrayal, walking through killing, walking through despair, walking through all the weaknesses and kindness in one’s character, finally becoming a sharp sword. Only then could one ultimately stand at the peak of royalty.

Chu Qiao looked at the retreating figure of the child and suddenly remembered many years ago, in front of the Nine Abyss High Platform, with heavy snow falling, when she raised her head and looked at the Sacred Golden Palace hidden in layers of shadows, taking that poisonous oath.

“I’ve always been like this. I have no wishes. I’m very dogmatic and rigid in my conduct. I only hope that my faith is correct, worthy of having as a lifelong goal to strive and work for.”

…

Just in this quiet moment, a panic-stricken scream suddenly rang out, like a thunderclap exploding in everyone’s ears!

Zhuge Yue sprang to his feet, but at that moment, countless cold battle blades were suddenly drawn from their sheaths, followed by over a hundred archers who charged into this poorly defended outer camp with bows and arrows at the ready.

In an instant, cold blades gleamed, with swords and arrows poised!

“You!”