The moment she saw the letter from Lady Golden Jiaoren, even before opening it, Ziqing was already smiling.
Had she gotten so caught up in slaughtering beasts that she’d completely forgotten they still had Lady Golden Jiaoren’s support in reserve?
Unlike ordinary beasts, which had always been commanded by humans within the Beast Clan without any true “king of beasts” ever emerging—only figures capable of subduing the beast horde—the Jiaoren clan actually had a golden Jiaoren, exactly like the king of beasts, someone who held absolute dominion over the entire Jiaoren race!
Wherever the golden Jiaoren appeared, ten thousand Jiaoren would submit!
This was an unshakable belief etched into the Jiaoren’s very bones and blood, an eternal instinct passed down through generations—or perhaps, one could even call it a kind of inherent submissiveness.
Upon seeing the letter, not just Ziqing but everyone around her—Jue Mingzi, Meng Duo’er, Xiong Xiaobao, all of them—broke into delighted smiles.
If Nanzhao suddenly lost the support of the Jiaoren clan, that would be equivalent to losing a full third of its power across the realm.
If the Jiaoren clan turned against Nanzhao and invaded from the coastline, Prince Nanzhao would surely leap up from his throne as if his seat had caught fire!
Everyone stared at the letter in Jun Beiyue’s hand, watching intently just like Ziqing, hearts pounding with excitement—after all, everyone had already guessed at two possible outcomes!
Either Lady Golden Jiaoren had successfully repelled the Jiaoren’s assault, or she had already successfully subdued the entire Jiaoren clan, commanding them to defect against the Nanzhao royal house!
Naturally, everyone hoped the news was the latter—if so, this war would surely come to an end very soon, because Prince Nanzhao simply couldn’t afford to lose.
Jun Beiyue swept his gaze across everyone present, yet took his time opening the letter—was this man really going to keep everyone in suspense at such a critical moment! Ziqing couldn’t help but furrow her brow, but before she could say anything, Xiong Xiaobao moved even faster than she did, snatching the sealed dispatch straight out of Jun Beiyue’s hand while he wasn’t paying attention!
One had to admit, Xiong Xiaobao’s move genuinely startled everyone!
Who in this entire world would dare so brazenly snatch something right out of Jun Beiyue’s own hands?
Well, Jun Beiyue merely arched an eyebrow at Xiong Xiaobao, remarkably indulgent about it, let alone actually angry—aside from this child and Ziqing, there was probably no one else in the world who could get away with such an exception.
The moment the sealed dispatch landed in Xiong Xiaobao’s hands, his movements became astonishingly quick—the instant he tore it open, he burst out laughing, “Hahaha! Hahaha! We’re saved!”
At this, Ziqing immediately smacked him. “Saved from what? Watch your words!”
They didn’t need Lady Golden Jiaoren to “save” them—they only needed her cooperation!
However, when Ziqing snatched the dispatch away, she too couldn’t help but cry out in delight, “The Jiaoren are going to counterattack!”
“Really!” Meng Duo’er couldn’t help exclaiming. Lady Golden Jiaoren truly was formidable—in just a matter of days, she’d already brought the entire Jiaoren clan to complete submission. Now that was what you’d call a swift, decisive victory.
Even their own campaign of slaughtering beasts couldn’t compare to Lady Golden Jiaoren’s sheer dominance!
Jun Beiyue hadn’t even glanced at the letter himself, yet the corner of his lips curved into a satisfied smile. He thought to himself that this war wouldn’t need to continue any further—they could simply sit back these next few days and wait for news from Prince Nanzhao.
Just as everyone was celebrating, a guard hurried in to report that Baili Weisheng had woken up.
Everyone was still listening, but Meng Duo’er was the first to rush out, heading straight toward Baili Weisheng’s tent. Seeing this, aside from Jun Beiyue, who remained utterly indifferent, everyone else exchanged strange, knowing looks.
This girl’s feelings were far from subtle, weren’t they?
“Is there really no hope for him?” Ziqing asked quietly. She still, to this day, hadn’t been able to call Jue Mingzi “father.”
“It’s hard to say,” Jue Mingzi said. He’d been searching for a solution all along, but amnesia wasn’t like other ailments—it truly couldn’t be controlled or predicted. “Whenever something feels familiar to him, he gets a headache, but he still can’t remember anything,” Xiong Xiaobao quickly chimed in. “That’s why I dragged him to the battlefield—I was hoping it might jog something loose.”
The group continued talking as they made their way toward Baili Weisheng’s tent, and upon entering, they found Meng Duo’er attentively serving him tea and refreshments.
Baili Weisheng, meanwhile, sat listlessly on the bed, his eyes somewhat hollow, as if his spirit had wandered off somewhere.
Not until everyone gathered in front of him did he finally come back to himself, though he still looked utterly bewildered—why was he here? Hadn’t he been seized by a flying beast?
His memory stopped at the moment he’d charged onto the battlefield, surrounded by ferocious beasts. What had happened after that, he had no idea at all.
“Who saved me?” Baili Weisheng murmured.
At this, Xiong Xiaobao was the first to burst out laughing, though he said nothing.
Everyone else laughed along too, equally silent. Yet Ziqing simply couldn’t bring herself to laugh at all—her eyes held a flicker of tender ache. This version of Baili Weisheng was genuinely amusing, yet the amusement was almost painful to watch.
You damned scholar—who would have thought that one day you’d actually become a real scholar? When will you ever remember everyone again, remember yourself?
Baili Weisheng cast a displeased glance around the room, about to glare at Xiong Xiaobao, when his gaze happened to fall on Ziqing’s eyes instead, and he found himself instantly captivated.
Seeing the tender ache in her eyes, he inexplicably felt a corresponding ache well up within himself too, unsure who exactly was aching for whom.
He secretly wondered—could this woman named Han Ziqing possibly be someone he’d once loved? But she already had a husband, a son.
The scholar thought to himself, surely not—how could he possibly have fallen for a married woman? That would be far too improper, entirely against his own principles.
Seeing everyone stay silent, Baili Weisheng curled up on himself, gazing pleadingly at everyone without a word, looking as though he’d been bullied somehow.
Some in the room burst into laughter, others felt a pang of sympathy.
Just then, Meng Duo’er hurried in carrying a bowl of millet porridge. “Make way, everyone make way, he hasn’t eaten all day!”
Everyone stepped aside, and Meng Duo’er sat down at the edge of the bed, placing the food tray in front of Baili Weisheng. “Scholar, you must be hungry. I made this myself—try it.”
After all, everyone had been thoroughly exhausted by the day’s fighting—no one had expected Meng Duo’er to still have the energy for this.
A large bowl of thick, hearty millet porridge, accompanied by five or six small dishes of side food, crisp and refreshing on one side, savory and appetizing on the other—truly a feast for the eyes, nose, and palate, making everyone else suddenly feel hungry too.
At this moment, Baili Weisheng felt most familiar with Meng Duo’er of everyone present. He truly was famished, and without standing on ceremony, he accepted the food and dug in heartily, eating with great gusto, all the while grinning at Meng Duo’er between bites. “Delicious! You’ve got real skill!”
Meng Duo’er’s face flushed slightly. All of this had come so naturally to her, doing whatever felt right without a second thought—she felt she’d been so useless; if it weren’t for her own inadequate abilities, Xuanyuan Lige and Baili Weisheng wouldn’t have ended up in such dire circumstances today.
Everyone had relied on her barrier techniques, but unfortunately, she’d let them all down. Though no one had ever blamed her for it, she herself had never been able to let it go.
She would take care of Baili Weisheng, then—and she would keep trying her best to help restore his memory.
She liked this damned scholar best when he wasn’t being “damned” at all.
Though he seemed indifferent on the surface, Baili Weisheng hadn’t lost his composed demeanor at all, continuing to eat with relish under everyone’s watchful eyes, no longer bothering to question or pursue his earlier confusion—whatever, as long as he was alive, that was enough.
Watching him eat so contentedly, a flicker of warmth crossed Ziqing’s eyes. She said quietly, “Let’s go too. Have the meal served—we can discuss anything else later.”