After the Double Ninth Festival, the great army that had been temporarily stationed outside the city began to gradually break camp and leave the capital.

Most of the troops under Xu Mi’s military command, except for a few, were preparing to return to Jingxiang the next day.

Yang Xuan was ordered to remain behind to follow up on Li Mu’s marriage arrangements.

In the evening, the military camp presented a scene of busy but orderly activity. On this final night of rest, the mess hall provided extra rations—one additional meat dish and wine. Everywhere one could see a relaxed atmosphere.

Li Mu emerged from the command tent and saw Gao Huan waiting there. Walking toward him, he nodded slightly and smiled.

Gao Huan’s complexion was gloomy, and in his eyes, one could no longer see the brightness of former times.

“General Li, my uncle has come and has words to speak with you. Follow me.”

He avoided Li Mu’s gaze, spoke quietly, then turned and left with hurried steps.

Li Mu followed him to the bank of the horse-watering river, where from afar he saw Gao Qiao standing by the water’s edge, gazing at the setting sun that was about to sink behind the distant mountain peaks.

The wind stirred his beard and the corners of his robes as he seemed lost in deep thought.

Li Mu walked behind Gao Qiao and bowed to his back: “Li Mu pays respects to Your Excellency.”

Gao Qiao remained motionless, continuing to watch the setting sun until it sank behind the mountain peaks, then slowly turned around, looked at Li Mu, and said: “Li Mu, do you know what I was just thinking?”

“This subordinate does not know.”

“I was thinking that the sunset I see here should also be setting over the western bank of the Luo River. Only, as I watch it here, I wonder who, at this same moment, is watching it set on the other side of the Luo River?”

His tone was filled with desolation.

Li Mu remained silent.

Gao Qiao looked at him for a moment, then sighed.

“Li Mu, I’ll speak frankly—when I first met you, I had high hopes for you. You are the most capable military commander I’ve ever encountered in my life. Given time, you would surely become a great asset to the nation. But I don’t understand why, from the very beginning, you schemed deliberately to trap me with those words. Your proposal has dragged the Gao family, Lu family, and even the Xu family into this affair, causing deep harm to all. Your intentions are definitely not as simple as merely becoming my son-in-law, Gao Qiao! I’ve summoned you today to ask you—what exactly is your purpose?”

Li Mu raised his gaze to meet Gao Qiao’s.

“In answer to Your Excellency, Li Mu’s presumptuous request to marry your daughter stems from feelings of admiration.”

His tone was calm, showing no emotional fluctuation.

Gao Qiao stared at him with furrowed brow for a moment, then sneered coldly.

“What fine ‘admiration’! Your single word of admiration is such a convenient excuse, yet it has caused three great families of the court to develop rifts and mutual suspicion! For many years, there have been constant disputes between the Great Yu imperial house and the aristocratic families, frequent internal chaos, and widespread popular resentment. We finally achieved today’s stable situation where the three families maintain balance—though they compete, none can easily break the equilibrium. Recently, first there was Prince Linchuan’s rebellion, then the great battle in Jiangbei. It was precisely through borrowing the court’s balanced power and the three families’ united efforts that we managed to weather these crises together. Now, because of your actions, we see the three families at odds.”

“Li Mu, what exactly are you plotting?”

Gao Qiao’s tone suddenly became severe.

“Li Mu’s marriage proposal stems from feelings of admiration.”

His tone remained calm as before.

Gao Qiao’s frown deepened, and his expression grew ugly.

“Li Mu, do you really think I, Gao Qiao, have no way to deal with you? If I truly verify that you harbor ulterior motives and have other designs, even though I value your talents, for the sake of Great Yu and the realm, killing you would be a trivial matter!”

“Your Excellency, may I ask you one question?” Li Mu suddenly inquired.

“Speak.” Gao Qiao’s face was cold.

“Even without Li Mu’s marriage proposal this time, may I ask Your Excellency—in today’s court, how long can the harmonious situation between His Majesty and the three families be maintained?”

Gao Qiao was startled.

“Li Mu dares to ask one more question—why did Your Excellency’s Northern Expedition end in defeat years ago?”

Gao Qiao’s expression changed.

“Li Mu is merely a common military man who only knows marching and warfare, not court affairs. Since Your Excellency has condescended to seek me out today, and because of Your Excellency’s earlier words about having high hopes for me, Li Mu will swear here: regardless of how the court situation develops in the future, if Your Excellency again harbors ambitions for a Northern Expedition, Li Mu is willing to serve as vanguard. Until we break through Loulan, I swear not to look back!”

After Li Mu finished speaking, he stepped aside and said no more.

Gao Qiao seemed somewhat surprised, staring fixedly at him.

The sky was heavy with crimson clouds, autumn wind raged across the wild land, and yellow grass swirled in all directions. In the distance came several deep, resonant sounds of military bugles.

Gao Qiao seemed to come to his senses only then.

His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but ultimately he remained silent. After looking at Li Mu once more, he walked away with a stern face, hands clasped behind his back.

Li Mu watched Gao Qiao’s figure gradually disappear into the distance. Just as he turned to leave, Gao Huan suddenly approached quickly.

He stopped in front of Li Mu, staring at him.

“General Li, I originally held great respect for you. But you have disappointed me greatly. Thinking back now, when you saved me initially, perhaps you had already made up your mind to make things difficult for my uncle! I…”

His face gradually flushed bright red.

“I would rather take my own life and return it to you than see my uncle in such difficulty! Even more, I cannot bear to see my sister lose her good match and wash her face with tears!”

Gritting his teeth, with a “clang” he drew the long sword at his waist, placing the blade against his own throat.

The sword’s edge quickly cut through his skin.

A line of blood slowly trickled down his neck.

Li Mu looked at him and said coolly: “Zile, since you know what kind of person I am, do you think threatening me with your life will be useful?”

He looked up at the gradually darkening sky.

“It’s getting late. You should return.”

After speaking, he walked past Gao Huan.

Gao Huan stood frozen in place, slowly turning his head to watch Li Mu stride away, his figure gradually becoming a black dot in the twilight.

…

Li Mu returned to his own tent, and Liu Yong immediately followed him in, grinning as he said: “General Li, Brother Jiang Er from Jingkou has followed your instructions and found an excuse to take the old mistress to a safe place for a short stay. Don’t know who spread the news, but in just a few days, everyone in Jingkou knows about this matter, and they’re all delighted. The brothers are even happier than if they were getting married themselves. Only the old mistress remains in the dark, not knowing anything. When she finds out, who knows how overjoyed she’ll be! Also, Brother Jiang Er said that besides those people from last time who came looking for the old mistress but couldn’t find her and had to return, this time they caught several more acting suspiciously—probably also sent by the Gao family. He asks how to deal with them.”

“Release them,” Li Mu said.

“Release them?”

Liu Yong’s eyes widened.

“Brother Jiang Er says those people don’t look like good sorts—they probably intended harm to the old mistress! Everyone’s very angry!”

“Release them. Just have Brother Er protect my mother’s safety for me.”

Liu Yong scratched his head, then suddenly seemed to think of something and grinned: “I understand! I heard General Yang went to propose marriage to Minister Gao on the general’s behalf today, and Minister Gao personally came to see the general. Even if the Eldest Princess is unwilling, the general will surely soon marry the beautiful young lady from the Gao family. Since we’ll all be family, naturally it wouldn’t be good to embarrass the Eldest Princess too much!”

Li Mu smiled.

…

In autumn, daylight grows shorter. It was barely the hour of You when darkness fell.

Once dark, the chill could be felt.

The camp enforced night restrictions, and with most of the army departing early the next morning, tonight the soldiers retired early to their tents to sleep soundly under their blankets.

Li Mu rested later than the others, sitting alone behind a simple table in his tent.

Though the soldiers now called him general, his rank was not high. While he had a tent to himself, no soldiers were specially assigned to guard him, and the tent was old with several torn openings.

Night wind would occasionally penetrate through these openings, causing the lamplight to flicker.

Li Mu continued reading a military manual in his hands.

As night deepened, the autumn chill grew more intense. From time to time, the sound of night wind whistling over the tent tops could be heard, adding to the desolation of this autumn night.

On Li Mu’s table sat a pot of wine. It had been brought by a soldier from Yang Xuan’s retinue, who said that wine was being distributed in the camp tonight, and General Yang, knowing Li Mu slept late, had specially saved a pot for him to warm his body.

Li Mu poured a cup of wine and set it there. Unhurriedly turning the pages of his military manual, he reached for the wine several times, lifting the cup as if to drink, but then setting it down again.

This happened several times.

The last time, he brought the cup to his lips and was about to drink when he seemed to notice something important in the book and stopped.

In a dark corner outside the tent, a spying eye suddenly widened.

Li Mu paused, then finally raised his arm, brought the cup to his mouth, and drained it completely. Afterward, he casually placed the empty cup on the table and continued reading his military manual.

After a moment, he seemed to feel a headache, supporting his forehead with his hand. He put down the military manual, and without extinguishing the lamp, rose and walked to the simple military cot, lying down on his back.

For a long time, he remained motionless, as if fallen into a death-like sleep.

With a “click,” a small stone flew in through a tear in the tent wall, landing squarely on Li Mu’s shoulder.

His eyes remained tightly closed, showing no reaction whatsoever.

After another moment, a black shadow quietly slipped into the tent from outside, silently approaching the cot. From within his clothing, he withdrew a slender bamboo tube and removed the lid.

A triangular green snake head emerged from the tube, flicking its red tongue.

The person held his breath, moving the snake head closer and closer to Li Mu’s neck.

Just as the snake head was about to touch Li Mu’s neck, suddenly Li Mu opened his eyes, raised his hand, and lightning-quick grabbed the snake’s vital spot, pinching with two fingers until the snake’s neck snapped in two. The snake, as if its spine had been extracted, immediately hung limp and powerless.

The person was greatly shocked, quickly retreating and turning to flee the tent, but where could he escape?

Li Mu drew a long sword from beneath his pillow, and in a flash of cold light, the blade was at the person’s throat.

“Who sent you?”

Li Mu blocked the tent entrance, asking coldly.

…

On the night before breaking camp, an assassin had actually infiltrated the camp intending to harm Li Mu.

When the assassin attempted to escape and fought with Li Mu, the commotion alerted the sentries.

Yang Xuan was awakened from sleep, hurried over, and upon learning what had happened, flew into a rage. While comforting Li Mu, he sent people to search the entire camp to ensure no accomplices remained.

Eventually, nearly the entire military camp was disturbed.

Though the assassin had committed suicide, the matter was far from over.

Somehow, news quickly spread that this assassin must have been sent by the Gao family.

The reason was obvious—naturally, they were unwilling to fulfill the promise made before all the world that day.

If Li Mu died, the Gao family naturally wouldn’t need to marry their daughter to a dead man.

Not only were Li Mu’s soldiers extremely angry, but Yang Xuan was also greatly displeased. Seeing the soldiers’ indignation and their desire to seek justice for General Li from Minister Xu, he did not intervene.

Before dawn, news of the military camp’s disturbance reached both the imperial palace and Gao Qiao’s ears.

Emperor Xingping urgently summoned Gao Qiao to the palace, his expression grave.

He also mentioned that the people of Jingkou now all knew the Gao family intended to marry their daughter to Li Mu, and everyone eagerly awaited this event. If this news also reached Jingkou, it might even incite civil unrest.

The Emperor finally said that he had originally sympathized with the Eldest Princess’s difficulties and was unwilling to force his niece to marry Li Mu. But unexpectedly, last night’s incident occurred, leaving him truly powerless, and he asked Gao Qiao how to resolve this.

Gao Qiao could only kneel and beg forgiveness, saying he would submit to whatever His Majesty arranged.

“The urgent task is first to dispel rumors and calm people’s hearts. How to dispel rumors—Minister Gao should understand better than I, shouldn’t you?”

The Emperor sighed, his tone filled with helplessness.

…

Gao Qiao left the palace and immediately rushed to Bailu Zhou.

Xiao Yongjia had naturally already learned of this news.

She stared at her niece kneeling before her, kowtowing with tears streaming down her face, crying pitifully, and felt her hands and feet turn cold.

She had an ominous premonition.

Because of this niece’s arrival and the subsequent incident she could never have imagined, this time she would very likely truly be unable to keep her daughter.

Suddenly, urgent footsteps could be heard outside.

Xiao Yongjia recognized these as her husband’s approaching footsteps.

His footsteps were filled with anger.

“Aunt, please, just say you didn’t know! Don’t tell Uncle it was me. I only wanted to help A’Mi—I never thought such a thing would happen—”

Gao Yongrong cried heartbrokenly.

Xiao Yongjia showed fatigue on her face and waved her hand dismissively.

Gao Yongrong kowtowed to her, quickly got up from the ground, wiped her tears, and hurriedly left.

Gao Qiao strode across the threshold in one large step.

Xiao Yongjia hurriedly rose to greet him, but looking up, she saw him stop there.

He didn’t come closer. Only two gaze full of anger, like sharp swords, shot straight toward her.

As if burned by fire, Xiao Yongjia shrank back, her steps stopping. For a moment she dared not approach, only watching as his gaze upon her slowly changed from initial anger to disappointment and disgust.

“Eldest Princess, you disappoint me greatly. I never imagined you would commit such a foolish act again! I heard you even sent people to Jingkou, intending to threaten Li Mu through his mother?”

Her entire body felt as if soaked in ice water, fine coldness slowly penetrating her skin, deep into bone and marrow, reaching every part of her body.

Xiao Yongjia’s heart slowly sank and grew cold.

Since that day, after crying in her husband’s arms, the vague hopes that had occasionally risen in her heart these past days, making her unconsciously anticipate like a young girl, vanished without a trace.

Her expression gradually became cold and hard. Finally, she raised her beautiful and delicate chin, saying coldly: “Since I killed people in the past, what’s wrong with killing one more now?”

“Good! Good! You are the Eldest Princess—I cannot restrain you. Do as you wish. But do you know that because of your ‘killing one more person,’ A’Mi must now marry! Marry the very person you most despise! Are you satisfied now?”

Gao Qiao was so angry his face turned blue-green, his voice slightly trembling.

Xiao Yongjia said through gritted teeth: “Whoever dares take my daughter away, I’ll fight them to the death!”

Gao Qiao laughed bitterly in his extreme anger: “His Majesty has already issued the decree—the wedding is set for next month. Go ahead and fight him!”

Xiao Yongjia’s face suddenly turned deathly pale. She quickly moved toward the exit but was grabbed by the arm and forcibly dragged back by Gao Qiao.

“Where are you going now?” he roared.

“I’m going to find that Li Mu! I want to see what kind of creature he is to dare take my daughter!”

Xiao Yongjia’s eyes were red, struggling desperately, but her arm was clamped tight as an iron vise by her husband’s hand. How could she break free? In desperation, she lowered her head to bite his wrist.

Gao Qiao felt pain but forced himself to endure it, only shouting sternly: “You shrew! If you keep making trouble, believe it or not, I’ll lock you up!”

“You heartless old thing! I’ve been married to you all these years, and this is how you treat me—”

Xiao Yongjia suddenly stopped speaking, released her husband’s wrist which she had bitten until faint blood marks appeared, collapsed to the ground, and covered her face in tears.

After only two sobs, she heard a young woman’s voice say: “A’Ye! A’Niang! Your daughter is willing to marry him! Your daughter will live well! Please, I beg you, stop fighting!”

Xiao Yongjia stopped and looked up to see Luoshen in a light bluish-green robe, like an autumn begonia in the wind, standing there with her hand supporting the door frame, the twin sashes at her slender waist fluttering like butterflies in the breeze.

Though her face was pale, her expression was extremely solemn. Slowly, she knelt down and, outside the threshold, kowtowed to both herself and Gao Qiao.