Perhaps due to a sleepless night, Xiao Rongyan’s already profound eyes appeared even deeper, with visible red blood vessels from fatigue.
These past days, Great Yan had been somewhat unstable.
The new king of Beirong had sent envoys to Yan, claiming that to strengthen relations between the two nations, he requested that Great Yan bestow a princess as his queen. In return, he was willing to offer cattle, sheep, and grain for the Great Yan troops stationed in Beirong to survive the winter, and would present their Rong-Di remedies for treating typhoid fever.
The Great Yan army currently stationed in Rong-Di territory was Great Yan’s most powerful bargaining chip for controlling Beirong and keeping them fearful and submissive. However, the Great Yan forces were now suffering from a sudden outbreak of typhoid fever and were outwardly strong but inwardly weak. Beirong needed the Great Yan army, which was why they proposed this marriage alliance in exchange for medical remedies, seeking mutual peace of mind.
But if winter arrived and both Southern and Northern Rong could no longer continue their conflicts due to food shortages, over time, even with Nanrong nearby, it would be difficult to prevent Northern Rong from developing wariness toward Great Yan.
Emperor Yan had no daughters, and the Princess didn’t know that Prince Murong Yan had long since left Yan to serve the nation abroad.
To resolve the predicament of the Great Yan garrison, the Princess voluntarily requested a marriage alliance in the great hall before the Rong-Di envoys. The Rong-Di envoys were overjoyed. Seeing no way to dissuade her further, Emperor Yan elevated the Princess to royal princess status for the marriage. When Xiao Rongyan received the news yesterday, the Great Yan princess was already on the marriage route.
Xiao Rongyan had never approved of marriage alliances. Moreover, he had already sent physicians and herbal medicines to aid the forces, and was also arranging grain and military supplies for the Beirong garrison—why should their Great Yan women need to marry for alliance!
Furthermore, the Princess was their Great Yan’s most valiant general… and Xie Xun’s beloved. No matter what, Xiao Rongyan had to intercept the marriage procession before it entered Rong-Di territory and somehow rescue the Princess for Xie Xun’s sake.
Fine rain dampened Xiao Rongyan’s hair, and Bai Qingyan’s cloak was also covered with a layer of moisture.
“I originally planned to visit the Bai mansion to bid you farewell, having half an hour before departure…” In Xiao Rongyan’s smiling ink-dark eyes reflected the eternal bright lanterns of Shuoyang City’s Yangming Street.
The golden lamplight illuminated Xiao Rongyan’s sharp facial contours, making his features more prominent and reducing his usual scholarly gentleness while revealing an authoritative bearing that brooked no argument.
Bai Qingyan nodded gently and gripped her reins tighter: “I was also thinking of riding out to see you off.”
Hearing these words, Xiao Rongyan reached out to gently grasp Bai Qingyan’s slender wrist, his thumb caressing her wrist bone. The smile in his eyes deepened, his throat moved slightly, and he exerted all his strength to suppress the impulse to pull Bai Qingyan onto his horse.
“Let me escort you out of the city.”
Just as Bai Qingyan finished speaking, a gust of wind blew down the black cloak hood covering her head, revealing the wild goose jade hairpin that Xiao Rongyan had personally carved, now inserted in Bai Qingyan’s ink-black hair.
He pulled with his large hand, causing the unprepared Bai Qingyan to stumble toward him, her shoulder colliding with Xiao Rongyan’s chest.
Seeing the goose hairpin on Bai Qingyan’s head, he ultimately couldn’t restrain himself and pulled Bai Qingyan onto his horse.
Bai Qingyan found herself completely embraced in Xiao Rongyan’s arms, the familiar scent from the man making her breathing irregular.
They were extremely close… so close that when Bai Qingyan looked up she could see Xiao Rongyan’s exceptionally long eyelashes, so close that… if Xiao Rongyan lowered his head he could kiss Bai Qingyan’s lips.
Bai Qingyan’s palms tightened, still gripping the reins without letting go.
His gaze fixed on the corner of Bai Qingyan’s lips, his throat moved, and his slightly labored breathing slowly approached with a tentative quality.
The early morning air with fine rain was cool and damp, but when Xiao Rongyan’s straight nose touched her nose tip, her face uncontrollably began to burn.
She gripped Xiao Rongyan’s solid arm tightly, enduring her rapid heartbeat as she turned her head away: “This is on the street!”
Xiao Rongyan nodded and pulled Bai Qingyan closer in his embrace, his voice hoarse: “It’s raining… your health isn’t good to begin with. Go back and rest. I’ll escort you home.”
With that, Xiao Rongyan dismounted and helped Bai Qingyan down. The two walked back, leading their horses.
“Wang Jiuzhou will remain in Shuoyang for now. Besides the mining matters, if you have anything inconvenient for the Bai mansion’s people to handle, you can use Wang Jiuzhou—his work capabilities are quite good.” Xiao Rongyan told Bai Qingyan.
“This is Shuoyang. It won’t reach the point where personnel are inconvenient. Rather, you… The journey to Rong-Di territory will be difficult. You must take care.”
Xiao Rongyan turned his head to smile at Bai Qingyan, who was bidding farewell with such seriousness. The smile in his eyes deepened as he nodded: “Mm, no need to worry about me. Having traveled abroad for years, I can take care of myself. As for you… have you been taking your medicine on time?”
Bai Qingyan recalled the day Xiao Rongyan had burst into her chamber to deliver medicine. With all the recent busyness, she had indeed forgotten about the medicine.
Seeing Bai Qingyan’s silence, Xiao Rongyan knew she had probably forgotten: “If you start using it, take it in the evening… it will help you sleep better.”
“I’ll remember.”
Bai Qingyan stopped when they were about to turn into the street leading to the Bai mansion: “This is far enough. Don’t escort me further! Be careful on the road, don’t be hasty—safety is most important.”
Xiao Rongyan stepped closer to Bai Qingyan and pulled up her wind-blown hood, his large hand naturally resting on her slender shoulder, his voice extremely low: “Only by achieving unification early can Yan fulfill his wish to take A’Bao as wife. How can Yan not be anxious?”
Bai Qingyan’s palms felt slightly itchy as she looked up at Xiao Rongyan’s calm yet profound gaze, her heartbeat quickening.
Since becoming engaged to Xiao Rongyan, it had always been Xiao Rongyan making efforts to approach her. Bai Qingyan’s heart couldn’t remain unmoved.
No matter how heavy the burden on her shoulders, reason could not restrain emotion. Once feelings were stirred, there was no turning back.
Seeing no one around, she stepped closer to Xiao Rongyan, grasped his arm, and rose on her tiptoes, her eyelashes trembling with nervousness.
Seeing Bai Qingyan approach, Xiao Rongyan was surprised but couldn’t help embracing her slender waist and lowering his head to meet her.
When Bai Qingyan’s lips touched Xiao Rongyan’s burning thin lips, the night watchman’s wooden clapper sounded from Mingyang Street. Bai Qingyan quickly lowered her feet, her face flushed red as she tried to push him away.
This was the first time Xiao Rongyan had encountered Bai Qingyan taking the initiative—how could he let her go so easily? His solid arm around Bai Qingyan’s slender waist tightened, pulling her back into his embrace. He lowered his head to kiss Bai Qingyan again while pulling the reins with one hand, causing both horses to step around them with their hooves, surrounding the two in the center.
Bai Qingyan’s hood fell again, and the hand pressed against Xiao Rongyan’s chest tightened, gripping his clothing firmly. She could even feel Xiao Rongyan’s strong, powerful heartbeat and his burning body temperature.
The man’s deep, magnolia-like scent forcefully invaded her heart and lungs through her breath. Whether due to the cool, rainy early morning before dawn or something else, Bai Qingyan trembled, and goosebumps rose on her neck.