With burning gazes from both sides, Tie Ci felt her heart like oil in a frying pan for an instant.

She closed her eyes, fingers digging into her palms, letting that fine, dense pain help her calm down.

After a long while, she looked toward the Liaodong direction, her burning heart gradually returning to calm.

She had been too concerned and lost her composure.

Rushing over there now was not the best approach.

Feiyu had been in trouble for some time. Since he hadn’t died yet, he wouldn’t die immediately.

Prince Da’an was keeping him alive either because he needed to obtain something from him, or because he needed him to do something important.

Under these circumstances, for her to rush alone to Liaodong to rescue someone would be difficult and irrational. Once her identity was exposed, it would bring new troubles to Feiyu.

Prince Da’an was surrounded by armies, and Liaodong was under strict control. If she wanted to rescue someone, she would have to spend a very long time infiltrating.

But time was exactly what she lacked most now.

She suddenly remembered the abyssal iron incident. Sufficient benefits could make that prince, constantly surrounded by armies, leave his own territory and personally take action.

In any game, whoever’s home turf it is has the advantage.

Rather than going to the Liaodong King’s home turf and struggling at every step, it was better to lure someone to her home turf.

“Miss Ye…” Zhao San couldn’t help but urge.

“I’ve thought it through. I can’t go.”

“Miss!” Zhao San’s eyes widened, stammering, “How can you… how can you…”

His face flushed red. He couldn’t help saying: “If you were in danger, my young master would definitely rush over immediately…”

“If Prince Da’an is using your young master as bait to fish out his accomplices or friends, my rushing over would only bring him greater trouble.” Tie Ci said calmly. “You go back and find a way to get a message to the great king. Tell him that some of the abyssal iron weapons the second prince secretly forged in the past are hidden somewhere you know about, but only your young master can personally come to open the secret vault door.”

Zhao San’s eyes panicked.

He instinctively thought Tie Ci had guessed Murong Yi’s identity.

Because the young master indeed possessed a batch of abyssal iron weapons, hidden within Da Qian’s borders. For safety’s sake, they hadn’t all been transported back to Liaodong at once, but were slowly taken through secret channels. There were still quite a few stored in the vault.

That vault door could indeed only be opened by the master.

But the abyssal iron weapons couldn’t be revealed.

Once private possession of weapons was confirmed, that would truly be treasonous intent. This carried different weight in the great king’s mind than killing several princes out of personal grievance.

He said anxiously: “This won’t work. Private possession of weapons is such a grave crime. Once Prince Da’an knows and obtains the weapons, he’ll definitely kill the young master.”

Tie Ci glanced at him and said calmly: “I’m not talking about the portion he hid.”

Zhao San vaguely felt something was wrong but couldn’t figure it out. He instinctively said “Huh?”

“I’m talking about the portion I intercepted.” Tie Ci walked back.

The batch of abyssal iron weapons that the Crown Princess’s Nine Guards had intercepted at great risk was her important trump card. Originally, she had planned to use these weapons as her ultimate tool to guard against and deal with the Xiao family.

Zhao San felt something was wrong again. His mind was muddled as he followed behind her, saying in confusion: “But the weapons don’t have markings. How can we make Prince Da’an believe they weren’t privately intercepted by my young master?”

Tie Ci walked a few steps, then stopped again. Zhao San nearly crashed into her.

“You tell Prince Da’an that your young master is involved with Da Qian’s Crown Princess. The Crown Princess has intercepted a batch of abyssal iron weapons, hidden around Yongping. Your young master knows exactly where those weapons are. You can also tell Prince Da’an that the Crown Princess is deeply in love with your young master.”

Zhao San: “…”

He was so shocked and guilty he didn’t dare raise his head, burying it deeply.

After a long while he stammered: “You are… you are…”

Tie Ci stared at him. This fellow couldn’t pretend: “You already knew?”

“Just found out…” Zhao San didn’t dare lie and answered honestly. “But this news didn’t reach the young master in time.”

Then he reacted and hurriedly tried to remedy: “Shiba… Your Highness, please don’t misunderstand. The young master originally didn’t want to investigate you. It was us…”

“Investigating me was appropriate. In fact, his investigation was much slower than I expected. I should thank him for his trust.” Tie Ci waved her hand dismissively. “Go.”

Zhao San mounted a fast horse and left. Tie Ci watched his figure disappear into the distance, silent for a long time.

Zhao San didn’t know if he could see Feiyu and inform him of her identity.

But Prince Da’an definitely wouldn’t tell Feiyu about this, because he would fear Feiyu would ruin his plans.

Exposing her identity and their relationship was hoping that Prince Da’an, who never acted without profit, would temporarily refrain from killing Feiyu because of this connection.

After all, those in power habitually kept everyone who had potential value.

She had disregarded everything and revealed her identity and feelings.

Only hoping to keep the one she loved.

…

Qi Yuansi vaguely guessed what had happened. Standing silently behind her, seeing the desert’s night wind quickly forming frost on her eyelashes, his heart felt sour and swollen with an indescribable taste. He said softly: “Your Highness, please rest for a while…”

His voice startled Tie Ci awake. She blinked, ice crystals shattering on her lashes. When she looked again, her eyes were already clear and determined. She quickly turned and mounted her horse, cracking the whip once, heading in the opposite direction from Zhao San.

Qi Yuansi and Da Wu also hurriedly mounted their horses.

“Your Highness, where are we going?”

“Back to Yongping, to reclaim everything that belongs to me.” Tie Ci’s voice scattered in the wind sweeping across the desert. “I want to use Yongping’s myriad army formations to welcome Prince Da’an who dares to harm him.”

…

On Ox Head Ridge, inside the main tent, Liu Chen was again drinking with Lou Xi.

The wine was still good wine, the people still these two, but the conversation wasn’t as cordial as before. Lou Xi had been drinking in silence.

After their unpleasant parting last time, Lou Xi hadn’t come again, and no one had bothered Ox Head Ridge. Yongping Guard remained in a tense atmosphere. Openly, large numbers of troops conducted carpet searches throughout Yongping Guard. Secretly, more soldiers were dispatched to the border with Western Rong. Huang Ming wanted to assassinate the Crown Princess at the first opportunity.

Once the Crown Princess appeared publicly in Yongping, her orthodox imperial identity would override everyone else’s. Unless Huang Ming openly rebelled, he would be forced into a passive position.

So now, as time passed and Di Yiwei remained missing, Huang Ming was acting like a madman, placing massive military forces at the northern foothills of Fu Mountain and Ten Thousand Complete Grassland—the most convenient routes from Western Rong to Da Qian. He had issued death orders: if any suspicious persons appeared, kill them immediately without any questioning.

The search for Di Yiwei continued. Huang Ming and Xiao Chang finally turned their suspicious gazes to several camps near the main base.

After all, if Di Yiwei had escaped to the capital, there should be news from there by now. Since there wasn’t, it meant Di Yiwei hadn’t left Yongping. After all this time, Di Yiwei should have crawled to somewhere near the main camp.

Several camps that had good relationships with Di Yiwei were searched with comb-like thoroughness. The soldiers were startled three times each night.

Only Liu Chen’s place, because of his worst relationship with Di Yiwei, was searched the least.

After Lou Xi’s visit that day, Xia Houchun and Chi Xue both suggested whether they should relocate and hide elsewhere. But Di Yiwei opposed this. She not only didn’t leave Ox Head Ridge, she didn’t even leave from under Liu Chen’s sleeping platform. She just dug another tunnel beneath the existing one with Chi Xue and Xia Houchun, creating a new layer of camouflage.

Facts proved her choice was correct. That very night, Liu Chen discovered that Lou Xi had posted sentries at all passages around Ox Head Ridge, even personally manning some posts. If Di Yiwei had escaped that day, she would have inevitably encountered the checkpoints.

From this, everyone confirmed that Lou Xi was just trying to trick them, so they had remained quiet for a period.

But as time passed, Lou Xi couldn’t hold back again.

This time he didn’t speak, just drank one mouthful after another in silence.

He wasn’t drinking the expensive fine wine from last time, but the coarse, harsh fire-sand wine from the north.

As the name suggested, drinking it felt like burning sand entering one’s chest.

Lou Xi was born handsome and tall, like a well-bred young scholar, yet drinking this strong liquor that even strong men couldn’t handle, he drank bowl after bowl, making Liu Chen’s bull eyes widen repeatedly.

He drank so fiercely, as if wanting to burn away all the accumulated depression of half his life with this fire, grind it away with this sand.

Liu Chen watched with some trepidation.

Wine jars gradually piled up beside the sleeping platform.

Lou Xi suddenly threw down a wine jar.

The crude pottery jar shattered on the ground with a crisp sound.

The strong wine scent spread. Liu Chen was caught off guard and shivered.

He watched in shock as Lou Xi smashed the wine jar and suddenly stood up. Turning around, he threw back the heavy blankets and mattresses on the sleeping platform.

Liu Chen’s expression changed drastically, but it was too late to stop him. Behind Lou Xi, someone quietly drew a blade.

But Lou Xi didn’t turn back at all. Throwing back the bedding to reveal the wooden panel door underneath, he opened it without a word and jumped down, causing Liu Chen’s sneak attack from behind to miss.

Liu Chen could only rush over. He knew this tunnel was empty and hoped Lou Xi wouldn’t discover the next tunnel. Lying at the tunnel entrance, he shouted: “Commander, what are you doing? I hid a few jars of wine and you have to dig them out?”

Lou Xi looked up from below. Liu Chen saw his eyes were blood-red while his face was pale as a ghost. His heart constricted and he couldn’t speak anymore.

Lou Xi lowered his head to examine the tunnel. There were obvious traces of someone having stayed inside. He felt along the walls inch by inch, then squatted to feel the ground.

Liu Chen’s heart went cold, thinking today would surely not end well.

Below, Lou Xi knocked around for a long time, then suddenly lay down and brushed away a layer of loose earth.

Liu Chen’s eyes narrowed as he slowly raised his blade.

Under that cover board, Xia Houchun and Chi Xue had each prepared their killing moves.

They weren’t afraid of Lou Xi discovering them. Liu Chen was absolutely loyal to Di Yiwei and had said countless times that Ox Head Ridge’s garrison would definitely follow the commander. They could rebel immediately and launch a night raid on the main camp rather than suffer hiding underground like this.

They didn’t even understand why Di Yiwei wouldn’t take this opportunity to contact other camps and reclaim power. Obviously, though Yongping’s garrison had been shaken by the commander’s status revelation, many years of comradeship meant there were certainly still many loyal to her. Liu Chen had volunteered more than once to help her contact old subordinates, but Di Yiwei had refused every time.

No one knew what Di Yiwei was thinking.

Chi Xue suddenly froze.

Xia Houchun’s eyes went round.

Di Yiwei began removing her clothes.

As if no one else was present, she opened her outer garment and reached inside. After a moment, she pulled out a long strip.

White, three fingers wide, drawn out in a long length.

Xia Houchun was bewildered for a long time, then suddenly realized what it was. Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, he jumped up and quickly turned his back.

Chi Xue stared blankly, her face also reddening.

That was obviously breast binding cloth.

What was the commander suddenly removing this for?

After the strip was completely pulled out, Chi Xue clearly saw Di Yiwei’s chest tremble and expand.

Well, there was quite a lot there.

No wonder such a long strip was needed.

Who would have thought, from such a pale, thin person.

Chi Xue watched as Di Yiwei tucked one end of the strip into a gap in the cover board.

She watched as Di Yiwei bit her finger and wrote several characters on the tail end.

Above, Lou Xi used his blade tip to lift the cover board and suddenly picked up something long.

White, covered with dirt.

He looked bewildered as he lifted the strip, longer and longer.

Finally, his expression changed too.

He had recognized what this was.

At the strip’s end was a line of blood characters.

“You personally removed my clothes. Now do you want to take my life too?”

“…”

Upper level, lower level.

Separated by one board.

Deathly silence.

Lou Xi knelt by the cover board, gripping the strip tightly, staring at that line of blood characters.

The cover board had already been pried open a crack. With just a lift of his hand, he could see the person he wanted to see.

But he had already been pierced in advance by this line of characters, straight to his heart and lungs, blood flowing freely.

Half his life he had followed, a lifetime he had loved deeply, seeking but never obtaining. Finally, forced to choose betrayal, breaking one of her wings, only hoping she could fold her wings and fall into his embrace.

Yet it caused her public humiliation and fall into the abyss.

One selfish thought became a great mistake. Spilled water couldn’t be retrieved. From then on, so close yet worlds apart, worlds apart and hard to meet.

Heartbreaking and soul-crushing, nothing exceeded this.

He suddenly let out a howl like a wolf, holding his head as he crouched down violently.

Liu Chen stretched his head out like an old turtle but couldn’t see clearly what that long strip was. However, he instinctively felt this moment was crucial, so he said from above: “Old Lou, if you want to completely destroy twenty years of friendship, then lift that cover board.”

This was like giving Lou Xi another knife. He suddenly jumped up, rushed to the tunnel opening, knocked Liu Chen aside, and ran frantically out.

Liu Chen was baffled but also relieved.

Below, the cover lifted to reveal Di Yiwei’s pale face. She matter-of-factly picked up the strip and dusted it off. From her appearance, she intended to bind it back around her chest. Xia Houchun was so shocked he turned around again, but Di Yiwei casually stuffed it into her pocket.

Xia Houchun’s nose wasn’t a nose and his eyes weren’t eyes.

Liu Chen and Chi Xue found it amusing, yet within the amusement grew a trace of sadness.

Both relaxed, but saw Di Yiwei straighten her clothes, insert her blade behind her back, reach up to grab the tunnel opening, and nimbly climb up.

Chi Xue and Xia Houchun looked up at her, not understanding why she had refused to come out before, but now that Lou Xi was gone, she suddenly emerged.

Xia Houchun then reacted and also changed expression, urging Chi Xue to quickly exit the tunnel.

Chi Xue didn’t delay either. After everyone emerged, Di Yiwei said: “As a precaution, let’s go.”

Everyone understood. Lou Xi’s relationship with her was different after all. Huang Ming and Xiao Chang might not necessarily watch him. Him coming to Liu Chen’s place once was one thing, but coming again and leaving with an unusual expression—this place might already be under surveillance.

Liu Chen had prepared early. Outside the barracks sat a supply wagon loaded with wooden boxes. The three hid in the boxes. Liu Chen ordered a trusted quartermaster to drive the wagon to the supply depot. Supply depots, like granaries, were generally located slightly away from the main military camp. One couldn’t move freely in military camps or approach the two depots casually. The quartermaster carrying Liu Chen’s waist token naturally passed through unobstructed. The wagon drove directly into the supply depot. After the three emerged, a side door opened at the deepest part of the supply depot. Going out from there led to the rear perimeter wall of the military camp. Over the high wall and climbing a section of the rear mountain cliff, they could cross the mountain.

That cliff was difficult for ordinary soldiers to climb and was usually guarded, but Liu Chen had already reassigned them for safety.

At parting, Liu Chen pointed to the right. Di Yiwei knew he meant to go to Yongping’s right army at Phoenix Ridge on the right side of the main camp. The commanding general there was her most trusted deputy besides Lou Xi—also the one who had spoken sarcastically to Huang Ming during the incident.

Liu Chen had mentioned contacting Deputy General Xie more than once, but Di Yiwei never responded. Liu Chen thought the commander was afraid of implicating Deputy General Xie, but why consider so much at this point?

If he didn’t understand Di Yiwei’s character, Liu Chen would almost think the commander had become overly cautious after the great change.

The three exited through the back door and climbed over the perimeter wall to see ropes hanging down from the mountain cliff. Night had deepened. The black ropes against the black cliff were hard to distinguish. The moment Di Yiwei grasped the rope, behind them in the main camp, a ball of fierce flames suddenly erupted.

Simultaneously, hoofbeats thundered as someone charged into the main camp, holding high supervisor and deputy commander tokens, shouting: “Because Ox Head Ridge garrison is suspected of colluding and harboring wanted criminals, all troops are ordered to lay down weapons and retreat to barracks! Ox Head Ridge commander Liu Chen is temporarily stripped of military rank and detained pending investigation—”