Ziqing knew little about Eastern Qin, only that the entirety of the land north of Great Zhou had once belonged to a single great kingdom, called Qin.
West of Innocence Gorge lay boundless grasslands, lush with water and grass, where nomadic peoples followed the seasons with their herds of cattle and horses. East of Innocence Gorge lay flat, open plains stretching all the way to the eastern sea.
Later, when the Qin general of the Chu clan rebelled, he seized the grasslands west of Innocence Gorge and founded Western Chu, while the remaining royal descendants of Qin held onto the land east of the gorge, calling it Eastern Qin.
By the time Ziqing stood at the southern edge of Innocence Gorge, on the cliffs bordering all three realms, gazing across at the famed Three Realms Cliff opposite with Xuanyuan Lige beside her, she had already mastered nearly all the pieces he’d taught her.
“Young Master Xuanyuan, who exactly are you in Eastern Qin?” This was her second question.
“Has anyone ever told you that in Eastern Qin, outside the imperial family, no one is permitted to bear the surname Xuanyuan?” Xuanyuan Lige said flatly.
The moment he said this, Ziqing’s heart lurched with a sudden “thud,” racing.
What he meant was clear — in Eastern Qin, only members of the imperial family bore the surname Xuanyuan. Which meant he was part of Eastern Qin’s royal house!
Eastern Qin’s throne was currently held by a reigning Empress — for no other reason than that, for over twenty years, any male infant born into the Eastern Qin royal family had never lived past the age of seven.
And him?
“Are you the only prince left in Eastern Qin?” Ziqing gasped — her third question. There was no way she could have guessed this.
“Mm,” Xuanyuan Lige answered simply.
“Why did you bring me here?” she asked again — her fourth question.
“To watch a battle,” Xuanyuan Lige answered plainly.
“A battle?” Ziqing didn’t understand, not realizing this was already her fifth question.
“A duel between two men. A war between two nations that should have begun long ago. It starts tomorrow.” With that, Xuanyuan Lige turned and walked away.
“You’re despicable!”
Ziqing understood immediately what was happening — Xuanyuan Lige had used her to spark a war between Western Chu and Great Zhou.
She moved to chase after him, then stopped abruptly — below her lay a bottomless abyss, above her a sheer cliff face. Her lightness skill was far too weak; she could neither climb up nor leap down. And Xuanyuan Lige’s white figure had already vanished into the depths.
Ziqing turned to head back, then froze suddenly. The gold hairpin in her hair, which always swayed with her movements, had gone still — puzzled, she reached up, and only then discovered the gold hairpin was gone!
It had to be Xuanyuan Lige who’d taken it. But Ziqing couldn’t fathom why. Despite the Eastern Qin royal family’s deep hatred for Western Chu, they were also thoroughly intimidated by them — for years they’d swallowed their pride, fearing above all that Great Zhou and Western Chu might go to war and drag Eastern Qin into the conflict.
As for Jun Beiyue’s side — though his forces weren’t weak, they still fell somewhat short against Western Chu’s cavalry. That man never fought a battle he wasn’t confident of winning, and he certainly never fought an ugly, poorly-executed war.
And yet this time, he was actually going to war? She refused to believe that man would fly into a rage over a woman like this — heaven only knew what trap Xuanyuan Lige had laid for him.
If war broke out, wouldn’t she become the “beauty who brought ruin to the nation”? At the thought, Ziqing couldn’t help but laugh coldly. Women were always the ones sacrificed. Fortunately, reputation meant nothing to her. Xuanyuan Lige’s one-month deadline was almost up — once the world descended into chaos, she’d still have to return to the capital, and she still intended to kill Jun Beiyao.
But why exactly did Jun Beiyue want to go to war?
It wasn’t only Ziqing who couldn’t understand — even the commanders of the three tiger armies were baffled.
At the great encampment in the Three Realms Territory, the three tiger generals had been kneeling in supplication for a long while now.
“My lord, the seven Youyun provinces and the three northern prefectures are entirely within our sphere of influence. If we carve out these ten provinces and establish our own kingdom, even the capital wouldn’t dare interfere!”
“My lord, Western Chu has waited years for a war like this. Do not fall into their trap — once battle is joined, Western Chu will surely throw its entire army into the fight!”
“My lord, war aside, going to a banquet at Three Realms Cliff for the sake of one woman simply isn’t worth it!”
…
In the face of the three generals’ fierce objections and pleading, Jun Beiyue didn’t so much as lift his eyes. One hand propped against his head, the other marking notations on a map, his cold eyes remained utterly unmoved, treating the three great generals as though they weren’t even there. Such composure left even the surrounding guards inexplicably unsettled.
Suddenly, two guards arrived together.
One reported first. “My lord, news from the capital — His Majesty has bestowed upon the Seventh Prince the title Prince Zhenyuan, sending him to the western frontier to command troops, intending to redirect a portion of that army to support the northern front!”
“Hmph. Empty gestures!”
“Can the western frontier troops even fight?”
“They’re more suited to delivering supplies!”
The three generals showed nothing but contempt — their dissatisfaction with Emperor Tianhui had by now curdled into something closer to resentment.
Only then did Jun Beiyue look up, finally speaking. “The Seventh Prince?”
“Indeed. It’s said the Seventh Prince strongly persuaded the Second Prince at court this morning and won His Majesty’s favor, receiving the title on the spot,” the guard reported honestly.
A cold smile touched Jun Beiyue’s lips. He simply waved a hand, dismissing the matter. At that moment, the second guard hurried forward with something. “My lord, an invitation has arrived from Western Chu!”
Jun Beiyue opened it, and found tucked within a single gold hairpin — Han Ziqing’s own.
Seeing this, all three generals’ eyes flashed with fury, about to speak. But Jun Beiyue said flatly, “All of you, go on. The three of you should go rest as well.”
“My lord!” the White Tiger General protested urgently, refusing to move. The others remained rooted in place as well.
Jun Beiyue paid them no mind, turning the gold hairpin over in one hand while lightly tapping the desk with the other, his handsome brow furrowed slightly. Naturally commanding even without trying, now clad in his dark battle armor, cold and mysterious, he radiated a pressure that left everyone around him instinctively fearful.
When he said nothing, even at such close range, one couldn’t shake the illusion that this man wasn’t mortal at all, but rather a carved ice sculpture — some divine statue of a war god from the demon realm itself.
The guards had already withdrawn entirely. In the silent encampment, even the three great generals who’d followed Jun Beiyue for years couldn’t help but feel a flicker of fear. The three exchanged glances, and the White Tiger General finally gritted his teeth, about to speak.
But just then, Jun Beiyue suddenly looked up, his cold gaze cutting through them. The White Tiger General immediately lowered his head, his whole body going rigid, turning mechanically and striding out. The other two generals, snapping back to themselves, quickly turned to follow as well.
If their lord truly lost his temper, he showed mercy to no one — hadn’t the once-untouchable Emperor Tianhui himself been living proof of that, not long ago?
But just as they reached the entrance, Jun Beiyue suddenly spoke. “White Tiger. Take your forces and guard the Eastern Qin border.”
“What!” General Baihu couldn’t help but blurt out in shock.
The Eastern Qin border? Was his lord joking? That border had always been considered the safest in the entire realm — the three tiger armies had guarded the northern frontier for years, watching Western Chu’s border, and had never once given Eastern Qin a second thought.
What exactly was his lord planning?
Yet Jun Beiyue said coldly, “Don’t make me say it twice. This is a secret order. Take your men and guard the Eastern Qin border. If you fail to hold it, come back with your head in your hands.”
A secret order?
General Baihu glanced at the other two generals, not daring to say another word, and immediately set off to carry out the order.