Ning Fei settled Xue Ying comfortably in the carriage. Before he could turn away, Xue Ying hesitantly tugged at his sleeve. “Fei, I don’t know if I’m overthinking, but I feel her gaze is very strange when she looks at people.”

Ning Fei pinched her nose. “Try not to get too close to her, and especially don’t be alone with her. I’m not sure about her either—Wei Ran said she was talking with Manager Huang for nearly an hour.”

Xue Ying frowned in thought. “Won’t Manager Huang tell that Feng bastard about her situation here? I was too impulsive that day. I’m worried I might have harmed Yi Xiao.”

“He probably won’t,” Ning Fei hesitated before reassuring her. “She and Yi Xiao are now mutual hostages. If one suffers, the other won’t fare well either. So don’t worry!”

Xue Ying nodded anxiously but couldn’t help glancing back at the magnificent phoenix palanquin.

“Sister—” came a soft, drawn-out call. Qin Qi poked her head in from outside. Yi Xiao, lost in thought by the window, turned at the sound. “Little Qi, I haven’t seen you in a while.”

“Yes,” Qin Qi wrinkled her small face in distress. “Grandfather suddenly wanted me to learn so many things. Even my archery practice has been neglected.”

Yi Xiao chuckled lightly. “As long as you learn the essential things, it doesn’t matter if you learn archery or not.” Seeing Qin Qi’s confused look, Yi Xiao continued, “Sometimes, invisible weapons are a hundred times more powerful than swords and spears.”

Qin Qi exclaimed in surprise, “How come Sister says the same thing? Grandfather said that too.” Yi Xiao returned a smile. “Is that so? Little Qi, if you knew the path ahead would be difficult, would you still willingly follow Earl Qin’s arrangements step by step?”

“I would,” Qin Qi replied cheerfully. “As long as I have Grandfather and Brother Feng, I’m not afraid of anything.” At this, she lowered her head shyly. “Does Sister think I’m useless, always relying on others?”

Yi Xiao couldn’t help but stroke her smooth cheek. “Relying on others or yourself isn’t that different. As long as you believe in yourself, protect yourself, and live for yourself, that’s enough…”

“Sister,” Qin Qi eagerly grasped her arm. “I admire you. I always hope I could be like you…” Yi Xiao gently pressed her finger to Qin Qi’s lips, stopping her words. She said softly, “I’ve been through a lot, so my ability to endure is stronger than others. But growth comes at a cost. If you can have a smooth journey, that’s the best. I hope you can walk your path smoothly to the end—Actually, everyone is unique. Little Qi, you are you. Don’t compare yourself to others, okay?”

Seeing Qin Qi nod, Yi Xiao released her hand. “You came to practice archery with me, right? I haven’t exercised for several days either. Let’s go…”

Qin Qi suddenly exclaimed, “I almost forgot—Grandfather asked me to invite you to see something. I haven’t seen what it is either. Grandfather only said it was prepared for you to use in the upcoming competition.”

Yi Xiao shook her head in refusal. “I’ve already received such a precious bow from Earl Qin. How could I accept anything else? Let Earl Qin keep it. Perhaps there will be someone more suitable in the future.”

“How can that be!” Qin Qi stubbornly pulled her towards the door. “That thing has been kept in the hall all morning. Grandfather wouldn’t let me in to see it. If you don’t go, I’ll never know what it is—I’m dying of curiosity. Dear Sister, please accept it!”

Yi Xiao, entangled by her persistence, had no choice but to let Qin Qi lead her out.

This was Fu Yi Xiao’s first time entering the main residence of the Qin manor. Behind her, as immovable as a mountain, followed Gu Yu.

Qin Qi cheerfully greeted the servants and family members they encountered along the way, pointing out the various courtyards of her home. “Sister, look, that’s the Thousand Lantern Pavilion where Grandfather keeps his collection of divine weapons. The red-tiled roof behind it is the Wuyin Hall where he stores jewels and jades… The main hall is just ahead. Grandfather put your things there.” She released Yi Xiao’s hand and ran ahead, calling out repeatedly, “Grandfather… Grandfather, Grandfather, Sister is here!”

“This little girl,” Earl Qin appeared almost instantly, mildly scolding, “Always so unrestrained with her words. How can you call her ‘Sister’? It’s so impolite…”

“Earl Qin is too kind,” Yi Xiao said, somewhat embarrassed. “It’s fine to treat me as a younger family member.”

“How can that be?” Earl Qin burst into laughter. “But, I’ve never heard such words from other noble ladies!”

Chatting and laughing, Earl Qin led Yi Xiao into the main hall but blocked Qin Qi and Gu Yu behind him. “Don’t disturb the Junior Consort. Gu Yu, take Little Qi to help organize the books in the Nine Masts Tower…”

Gu Yu obediently nodded, but Qin Qi clung stubbornly to the doorway. “Moving books is so tiring! And I still want to see… Ah!” Her words turned into a shriek. “Let go of me… Gu Yu! Let go quickly…”

As the noisy voices faded away, Earl Qin smiled and retreated from the hall under Yi Xiao’s puzzled gaze. “Junior Consort, take your time looking. If you need anything, just call out.” With that, he slowly closed the door.

The hall suddenly dimmed. Yi Xiao blinked, looking around but not finding any placed objects. She walked towards the side hall, stopping before reaching the door. “Come out.”

From inside, someone sighed and said, “You’re always so perceptive. I wanted to give you a surprise, but you’ve ruined it.” Yi Xiao didn’t answer, standing there staring at Feng Suige as he emerged from his hiding place.

“How did you know I was inside?” he asked, puzzled, standing in front of Yi Xiao and looking back at where he had been. “You can’t see from here, can you?”

Seeing Yi Xiao still silent, he could only surrender in frustration. “Alright, no more nonsense. Let’s go in and look at the thing.” He pointed to the side hall. “I drew the design for the armor as you described and had the Qin family’s weaving workshop rush to make one. Go try it on and see if it fits.”

Yi Xiao walked out from behind the screen, dazzling in snow-white. It was a white armor inlaid with gold thread. The only difference was in the protective folds on the shoulder guards—this new armor had changed the brocade totem to small flowers intertwined with gold thread. Feng Suige gently pointed out, “This is the June snowflower. Among the Susha people, it’s a flower lovers use to express their love. Unless snow falls in June, the love will never fade.”

Yi Xiao seemed not to hear him speak, just staring blankly while stroking the leather strap on the shoulder guard. The quiver that came with the armor was inlaid with a golden phoenix totem. The entire quiver was tightly wrapped around her body with this hanging strap across her shoulder—such a stable design ensured that every time she reached back for an arrow, the quiver would be in a fixed position. What surprised her even more was that the entire set of armor, from the wristguards to the shoulder guards to the outer robe, fit perfectly.

Before, when making armor at Jinxiu, just taking measurements would take almost an hour, but…

Seeing her silence, Feng Suige anxiously moved closer to look at her expression. “Yi Xiao? Why aren’t you saying anything? If you don’t like this flower, I can have the craftsmen redo it…”

After a long while, Fu Yi Xiao slowly said, “As soon as I entered the main hall, I smelled your usual incense.” Feng Suige hadn’t expected her to say this and was momentarily at a loss for words. “Because it was so faint, I didn’t pay attention at first. When I reached the door of the side hall, the scent became stronger, so I spoke out to test, and you were there.”

Feng Suige didn’t understand what she was trying to say and could only listen in bewilderment. Yi Xiao suddenly turned to look at him. “Feng Suige, you’ve never believed me, and you’ve underestimated yourself too much. I’m not heartless. How could I truly be numb to your kindness—but I’m selfish. If you can’t give me what I want, you should let me go early. Otherwise, I’m afraid that one day, I might kill you with my own hands.”

Feng Suige smiled, sighing in relief as he embraced her. “If you can bear to, then kill me.” This time she didn’t resist, saying faintly, “I will kill you, cut by cut…”

Her last words disappeared under Feng Suige’s lips. It wasn’t a fierce plunder, but a gradual deepening, slow, exploratory, gentle…

A kiss.