Better to be a dog in peaceful times than a person in chaotic ones.

This year was a bustling and highly dramatic one. The historical records show that several major events that changed the course of history happened this year. From the beginning of the year, the Zhenhuang Bloody Night, the Great Unity Guild Revenge Incident, the Rebellion of the Nine Princes, and the Xia-Tang War came one after another. One heavy bomb after another continuously struck the head of the Great Xia Dynasty. The ancient land of Ximeng was devastated. Various forces took turns on stage, establishing their territories on the blood and flesh of soldiers and the white bones of women and children.

At the beginning of the year, the Zhenhuang Imperial Capital was engulfed in the greatest snowstorm in its history. Heavy snow attacked this ancient city for twelve consecutive days. In the bitterly cold wind and flying snow, on the lonely ancient plank road, a troop in black armor braved the storm, galloping across the ancient snow plains, quickly approaching Zhenhuang City.

“Father!” A fourteen or fifteen-year-old child rode up on horseback, shouting before even dismounting: “I’ve seen Fourth Brother’s battle flag!”

The man was in his fifties, with some white at his temples, but he didn’t appear old. His eyes and eyebrows were hidden under his hood, showing only his strong nose and tightly pressed lips. His features were resolute. He wore a deep purple fur coat with a sable fox tail collar that covered his chin.

The man didn’t speak, only slightly raised his head, his gaze penetrating the heavy snow, looking into the far distance.

Seven years. The precious sword he had spent countless efforts forging was finally ready to be unsheathed.

While the heads of the various branches of the Zhuge family were gathering outside the East City Gate waiting quietly, a light cavalry entered the city silently through the South City Gate. This troop looked unremarkable, wearing ordinary blue cloth coats with fur hoods. Their sabers and spears were wrapped in cotton cloth and carried on their backs. The warhorses they rode were common Red River horses. At first glance, they seemed like ordinary city garrison troops. However, upon closer inspection, there was an indescribable sharpness about them that made one’s spine chill.

The troop passed through Jiuwei, bypassing the busy main street, crossing Purple Wisteria Square through the back of Red Lake, and stopping at White Stone Camp, where only the Inner City Imperial Guards were allowed to stay. The leader, a man in ink-colored armor with a black fur coat, lightly shook off the snow and yellow sand. He left the troop, leading several subordinates directly to Tai’an Gate, entering the heavily guarded Holy Gold Palace with ease.

“Seventh Prince!”

In the snowstorm, the young Zhao Che raised his head, his brow full of frost. His eyebrows were like swords, his eyes cold. Four years of border defense had been like a stubborn stone, grinding this sharp blade even sharper. He frowned slightly and asked in a deep voice: “Where is Eighth Brother?”

“He has been taken into custody by the Zongren Hall.”

The man raised an eyebrow and said in a low voice: “How have you been performing your duties?”

Several servants immediately knelt, their expressions fearful, and kowtowed in unison: “We deserve death, Your Highness.”

Zhao Che sat on his horse, slowly narrowed his eyes, and said in a deep voice: “If you know you deserve death, why come to see me?”

After speaking, he turned and walked along the Qianxi Perimeter Road, leaving several young guards kneeling in the snowstorm, their faces ashen.

The snowstorm grew heavier, with howling gales raging. A group of people wore cloaks and hoods, hurrying along.

“Who goes there?”

A blue-robed guard suddenly shouted sternly. The figure walking ahead immediately stopped. Under the cover of the great snowstorm, only a shadow could be dimly seen. The person was not tall, quite thin, but very agile, promptly kneeling as soon as they heard the voice, humbly lowering their head.

“Your Highness, it should be a palace maid from the rear hall.”

Zhao Che nodded. Although this journey was not meant to be known by outsiders, now that they had entered the palace, it wasn’t appropriate to make a commotion. He signaled for his men to follow and quickly moved forward.

A strong gust of wind suddenly blew off the person’s hat. The short hair was tied in a male-style bun, but the neck was fair and slender. Zhao Che’s boot stepped on the hat. He frowned slightly, then turned back to look at the person kneeling on the ground and slowly said: “Raise your head.”

A delicate face came into view, with calm eyes of extremely dark color. Although dressed in men’s clothing, it was a rare beauty. Zhao Che’s brows furrowed slightly, then gradually relaxed, as if remembering something. He laughed meaningfully: “When one person attains the Way, even chickens and dogs ascend to heaven. So now even you can walk freely in the Holy Gold Palace?”

Chu Qiao kept her head down, her expression calm, not responding.

Zhao Che’s gaze lightly swept over the young woman’s back, then with a soft sound, he kicked the hat back to Chu Qiao’s side and left without another word.

The snowstorm continued to blow. The young woman raised her head but could only see a faint shadow. Yet somehow, she felt such heavy pressure coming toward her. In today’s snowstorm, how could the one returning to the capital be him?

The situation in Zhenhuang had unconsciously become increasingly tense. Although there were still six months until the day of Yan Xun’s return to the north.

That evening, in the Holy Gold Palace, a grand banquet was held. Among the attendees, besides the triumphantly returning Seventh Prince Zhao Che, there was also Zhuge Yue, the fourth young master of the Zhuge family, who had gone to Wolong Mountain to recuperate from illness seven years ago. Now, he was already the Deputy Commander Judge of the Military Affairs Bureau.

The Xia Emperor Zhao Zhengde still habitually did not attend various banquets. Only Empress Mu He Na Yun symbolically showed her face. After all, the Seventh Prince Zhao Che was still her biological son. The banquet was harmonious, with cups and plates clinking in a scene of peaceful happiness between the ruler and his subjects. There was no sign that just three days ago, the Eighth Prince Zhao Jue had been secretly executed at Zongren Hall in the capital for offending the imperial family, demoted to a commoner, and taken to Zongren Hall for interrogation.

“Those bloody coups are often like stones in the water—not everyone can see their size and shape. Only those with courage dare to go in and feel around. But how deep the water is and whether one can come out alive is hard to say.”

When Chu Qiao told Yan Xun, who still did not qualify to attend the Great Xia banquet, what she had seen during the day, Yan Xun was trimming a potted plant. He lowered his head and calmly said these words.

Chu Qiao tilted her head, carefully considering, then handed him a pair of scissors and said softly: “So you’re saying, Zhao Che didn’t come back this time to help Zhao Jue?”

Yan Xun smiled faintly: “Mu He Na Yun only gave birth to two sons. If the Mu He clan wants to compete with the Wei faction for the position of Crown Prince, they can only put effort into supporting one person. Zhao Che has been stationed at the border for four years, far from the capital. Who knows what he’s thinking? In the royal family, the brotherhood among the Zhao clan, hehe.”

With a crisp snap, the orchid stem was cut by the sharp scissors. This was an exquisite ink orchid, quickly transported from the southern region of Dalu to the capital, just brought into the greenhouse. Chu Qiao gasped lightly in distress, but she saw Yan Xun unhesitatingly pick up the ink orchid and throw it aside, then take a pot of snow orchid grass and continue trimming.

“Now for the Mu He clan, they’re like me, with only one choice—to continue trimming the snow orchid grass,” Yan Xun smiled slightly. “Who told the gardener to only bring two pots of orchids into the palace today?”

Outside, snow filled the air, with no starlight or moonlight. Chu Qiao suddenly realized that the plan she and Yan Xun had jointly executed four years ago to frame Zhao Che had completely failed. This prince, who had once offended the Wei faction and even the entire Council of Elders and was abandoned by the Mu He clan, had now risen from the mud with a heart full of hatred and killing intent, returning to the capital once more. Although he didn’t precisely know who his true enemies were, their days would require even more caution as if walking on thin ice.

“Don’t worry,” Yan Xun’s hand lightly rested on Chu Qiao’s shoulder. “Zhao Che’s return from the dead might not be a bad thing. Haven’t you always hated the Zhuge family for killing your siblings? Before we leave, let’s collect some interest first.”

Late at night, the Zhuge family’s carriage drove out from the Holy Gold Palace. Zhuge Mu Qing went directly to West Bay Entrance, where a songstress from Bian Tang had recently become very popular. Although Zhuge Mu Qing held a high position and was extremely calculating, he still had the basic instincts of a man. The nearly sixty-year-old man greeted his son briefly, then drove away from the Zhuge family’s escort team.

Just after entering Qingshan Court, Huan’er came forward, holding an umbrella to shield the snow from Zhuge Yue’s head, and said rapidly: “Fourth Young Master, Doctor Hua just left. There’s no major issue now.”

Zhuge Yue entered the study with an unchanged expression. The bookshelf in the study had been moved aside, revealing a dark opening. He took off his cloak, tossed it aside, and wiped the snow from his head as he walked.

A pale, small-framed woman was tightly chained, sitting in the center of the stone chamber. Her complexion was sallow, white as paper. Seeing Zhuge Yue enter, she only glanced up slightly, her eyes cold and silent.

The boy of yesteryear had grown up. The once effeminate temperament had become sharp through years of experience. He coldly looked at the woman in the stone chamber, but his gaze seemed to see through her to the shadow of another person.

“Worthy of being family!”

Zhuge Yue laughed coldly in his heart, then raised an eyebrow, suddenly turned around, and instructed the servants on both sides as he walked: “If this happens again, you might as well die with her.”

Everyone fell to their knees in fear. The lights extinguished in an instant. The thinly-clothed woman slowly bit her lip, a tear running down her cheek, slowly falling.

That very night, the Eighth Prince Zhao Jue, most beloved by the Xia Emperor, was secretly executed at Zongren Hall in the capital. The affair proceeded smoothly, with the body carried out through the West Peace Gate, disappearing instantly into the boundless night. No one knew what great crime he had committed, nor did anyone intend to investigate the beginning and end of this matter. People only knew that this was the first person the Xia King Zhao Zhengde had personally ordered to be killed since Yan Men was executed at the Nine Abyss Platform. Therefore, he must have had a reason that made death inevitable, just like Yan Shi Cheng.

As for who was behind this affair, sailing the ship and pushing the oars, it no longer mattered.

Seven days later, the Crown Prince of Bian Tang, Li Ce, would visit Great Xia as an envoy. At the same time, he would personally visit Great Xia to select one of the many princesses of the Xia Emperor as his marriage alliance object. This was a right this Crown Prince of Bian Tang had fought for after attempting suicide by hanging, jumping, and poison. As the sole heir of the Tang King, Li Ce was an oddity among the royal family, not loving power, fame, or profit, only valuing poetry and beautiful women. Perhaps only those who had never experienced struggle could possess such a luxurious leisure.

While the Xia princes were secretly fighting to the death, Li Ce, who styled himself as Bian Tang’s number one talent, was approaching the Zhenhuang Imperial Capital.

At this time, Chu Qiao had no idea what connection this world-renowned Bian Tang talent would have with her future. She placed her final chess piece, laughing as she won the last piece of cake in front of Yan Xun, and slowly said: “I don’t know whose prey will be the most at tomorrow’s martial competition, but I do know that you’ll go hungry tonight.”

Yan Xun smiled lightly, his gaze following the window outside, where a pear tree stood proudly in the snowstorm, with its unique charm.

“Ah Chu, do you remember that bottle of Yulan Spring we buried under that tree years ago?”

“Of course, I remember,” Chu Qiao smiled gently. “We agreed to drink it the day before we return to Yan Bei.”

Yan Xun gently closed his eyes, sniffed, and said: “I seem to smell the aroma of that wine. Do you think I’m being too hasty?”

Chu Qiao shook her head: “You have never been hasty. You’ve just been waiting too long.”

The sunset in the west, casting a crimson glow over the vast snowfield. The north wind was rising in Zhenhuang, bringing another year of spring chill, harsh and cold over the vast land.

“Xi’er,” In the vast snow, a group of people were trudging with difficulty. A finely dressed man sat in a luxurious carriage, extending a pair of slender jade-like hands, his eyes smiling as he said to a voluptuous and charming woman: “My hands are cold.”

Xi’er giggled, gently opening her collar to reveal half of her fair, full bosom. Two rouge-red buds faintly showed through the thin white gauze. She said seductively: “Then let Xi’er warm the Crown Prince’s hands.”

The man’s hand slipped inside her collar, then lightly grabbed, exclaiming: “Xi’er, what is this?”

The woman moaned softly, immediately collapsing into the man’s arms, her eyes like a cat’s as she giggled: “Crown Prince, it’s a hand warmer.”

“Is it?” The man frowned, his fingers caressing: “What an elegant hand warmer.”

His voice suddenly became hoarse: “Little temptress, make me warmer.”

The world was dim. The nobles of the celestial dynasty were, at this moment, all engaging in their pre-sleep activities in various ways.

The Zhenhuang Imperial Capital was becoming increasingly lively.