Wang Shitou had tried to block him.

He had, in fact, gone up to block him. But a drunken Ashina Khan in high spirits — how could someone like him hold him back? The Ashina Khan kicked him to the ground with one blow. Wang Shitou spat blood.

Wang Shitou spat that mouthful of blood to the side, clutched his chest, and hauled himself up, ready to charge in again — when Ma Jianye grabbed him.

“What’s gotten into you!” Ma Jianye wrenched him back hard, cursing under his breath, “Today is the princess’s wedding! That man is her husband!”

Wang Shitou was frantic. “But — but the princess said…”

“And you take everything the princess says at face value! She’s just a child!” Ma Jianye held him back, lowering his voice, “Besides, they’re going to be husband and wife from now on — can we really interfere with affairs between a husband and wife?”

Wang Shitou was genuinely stunned into hesitation. Princess Baohua really was young — with matters between a husband and wife like this, she might not even understand what was happening yet…

He and Ma Jianye were the first and second commanders of the princess’s guard. With both of them standing irresolute and undecided, the soldier Qian Fugui on duty that night grew all the more uncertain.

When all the officers in charge were hesitating, how could any of the common sentries dare to raise a hand to stop anyone?

In that moment of hesitation, the Ashina Khan had already forced his way into Xie Yuzhang’s tent. Wang Shitou heard him inside, bellowing, “Baohua, Baohua Princess, where are you? Come — let me teach you how to make a child! Ha ha ha ha ha!”

Clearly drunk!

Wang Shitou’s heart lurched violently!

That old man was drunk! And today he had killed someone!

Wang Shitou had put down bandits before — he had killed men and seen blood. He knew from personal experience what it felt like for a man after killing someone: that flood of heat through the whole body, that desperate need for release.

But the princess — the princess was still so small, so frail and slight!

This would not do!

Wang Shitou wrenched free of Ma Jianye, ignoring his “Hey! Hey!” of protest, and was about to charge inside.

But a figure moved faster than him, already striding in with great sweeping steps!

Xie Yuzhang sat in the inner chamber. She heard the drunken, nonsensical shouting as Ashina burst in, and her face went pale. She gripped the dagger in her hand, tight.

Wang Shitou had not stopped him.

Her Fifth Elder Brother had not appeared.

Within Xie Yuzhang’s heart, disappointment and defeat had reached their absolute limit.

Then she heard the sound of Wanxiu’s voice from the outer chamber: “Khan — the princess has already retired to sleep. You cannot go in…”

All of them had only just heard what the Khan had done in the great tent — how he had killed a slave with such ferocity. Wanxiu’s voice trembled, yet it was so brave. Almost exactly like Lin Fei had been back then.

No wonder Wanxiu was the ladies’ maid Lin Fei had most cherished and trusted in Zhaoxia Palace — people of like nature are always drawn to one another.

What followed was not unexpected: from outside came the sound of a sharp, resounding slap, and the startled cries of the ladies’ maids. This was no ordinary slap — one blow from the aged Ashina Khan’s hand was enough to send a slight woman flying to the ground, spitting blood, unconscious.

In those days, it had been several before Lin Fei’s face was presentable again — one whole side had been too swollen to look at.

Lin Fei was not here. Wanxiu had taken her place, and was experiencing everything Lin Fei had once experienced.

And then, a shadow like a lion’s fell on the curtain of the inner chamber. The fire in the brazier of the outer room flickered, casting that shadow into a reaching, snarling shape — as if it were about to lunge at Xie Yuzhang and tear her apart — just as it had in her previous life.

But Xie Yuzhang was no longer the Xie Yuzhang of her previous life. Such a thing — once was enough.

The memories of that night surfaced in her mind: the terror, the humiliation, the agony, all of them vivid and sharp! Xie Yuzhang shot to her feet and gripped in her hand the dagger Li Gu had given her!

Perhaps it was despair, perhaps it was rage — in this moment, she had lost the composure she had maintained all along. In truth, she did not know what she intended to do, gripping that dagger. But her mind roared and thundered, and she swore to herself — if this life Ashina forced his way in again, this was the moment the dagger would leave its sheath!

However, Ashina did not force his way into the inner chamber. His great, shaggy shadow suddenly vanished from the curtain, and in its place fell the shadow of another person.

The moment Wang Shitou saw the Ashina Khan force his way inside, he knew it was bad. He shook free of Ma Jianye and was sprinting to charge in.

But a figure moved faster than him, striding inside with great, sweeping steps.

Wang Shitou stopped short in astonishment.

Ashina stared at the curtain of the inner chamber, and thinking of the young, tender, exquisite princess inside, his appetite was greatly stirred.

He reached out his hand to pull back the curtain — and then his right shoulder was gripped by a tremendous force, and he was dragged backward.

Ashina was drunk. He stumbled and lurched back several steps before sitting down hard on the ground. He squinted through the firelight, and saw a man standing with his hand on his sword, blocking the way before the curtain of the inner chamber.

The young man’s martial brow and sharp eyes were cold and vicious in the firelight. Within that gaze was killing intent.

Ashina looked again, and the killing intent was gone — as if what he had just seen was a trick of an instant.

“Li Shiyi?” Ashina was not so drunk that he could not recognize people.

Drunk, yet still three parts sober. The ones who were truly soaked through with drink had already been snoring away long ago — Prince Shou, for instance.

That principle, every man understood.

What Ashina, drunk as he was, intended by forcing his way into Princess Baohua’s tent — that too, Li Gu understood.

In this moment, Li Gu had genuinely wanted to kill Ashina. He was using every ounce of his willpower to press that killing intent down with brutal force.

Xie Yuzhang’s five hundred-strong escort was a mob — their combat ability was barely worth mentioning. The mission’s two hundred protective soldiers were infantry at best. The only forces truly capable of fighting were the five hundred Flying Tiger Army soldiers he had brought. And Ashina’s personal guard was a thousand iron cavalry — the elite of the elite. A thousand of them could sweep through a tribe of ten thousand without difficulty. To say nothing of the various princes who had come along, each accompanied by their own soldiers and guards.

To kill Ashina here and let chaos break out — he was confident he could fight his way out with Xie Yuzhang. But the others… Prince Shou, the Fifth Imperial Prince, the loyal ladies’ maid who lay on the ground unconscious and spitting blood — they would likely all be lost here.

To say nothing of the thousands of civilians in Xie Yuzhang’s procession — craftsmen, physicians, scholars, monks, women, and children.

Every decision an authority made carried the weight of so many lives.

Li Gu forced that killing intent back down hard.

“Khan, please stop. The princess has already retired for the night,” he said, his voice flat and cold.

“You — you get out of the way… she — she is my wife!” The Ashina Khan’s words were already slightly slurred. He climbed to his feet, came forward, and reached out to shove Li Gu aside.

But that wrist was caught by Li Gu in an iron grip.

Ashina pulled once — and could not break free. He had been renowned for his strength since youth, and this was the first time he had ever met someone whose grip he could not escape. Ashina was taken aback for a moment, and the drink cleared somewhat.

He narrowed his eyes and stared at Li Gu with open menace.

Li Gu stared back. “The princess is young. The Khan is drunk. Do not frighten her.”

Two men, the tendons on the backs of their hands standing out, muscles taut, locked in a silent contest of strength.

The ladies’ maids and female slaves were all too frightened to move. Wang Shitou stood at the entrance to the tent, gulped, and was so tense he did not know what to do.

Then Ashina heard a soft sound — a click — as Li Gu’s thumb pressed the sword a thin line out of its scabbard.

Only then did Ashina notice: Li Gu had been gripping him with his left hand.

Ashina paused — then suddenly burst out laughing. “Fine, fine — I won’t frighten her. Drunk, just drunk. Water — where’s the water? Are you trying to let me die of thirst?”

At the sound of the Khan’s bellow, the female slaves scrambled to find a bowl and pour water — the cups set out on the Zhao princess’s low tables were far too small for the Khan’s drinking.

Li Gu released his grip. He pressed the sword back into its scabbard, waited for Ashina to finish a bowl of water, and then said flatly, “It’s late. The Khan should rest.”

Ashina tossed the bowl at a female slave, who caught it in a rush. He narrowed his eyes and looked Li Gu over once more, then nodded. “Li Shiyi — you’re very good.”

With that, he gave a great, sprawling yawn and spread out his arms. Two female slaves immediately stepped forward, draping his arms over their shoulders to support him.

Ashina said, “Sleeping, sleeping,” and with an arm around each of the two female slaves, walked out.

Wang Shitou hurriedly stepped aside to make way.

He turned around — and Li Gu was staring at him. The look in Li Gu’s eyes was colder than it had been when he stared at Ashina, and held back not at all.

Wang Shitou suddenly felt his calves go weak and an icy chill rise up his spine. He stood there, unable to move, unable to think of a single thing to say.

He had no idea how much time passed before Li Gu finally spoke.

“Go,” he said. “Bring the Grand National Preceptor here.”

Wang Shitou let out a dazed “yes,” turned, and walked out. Two steps later, his legs suddenly gave and he nearly stumbled and fell.

The cold outside closed around him, and a sharp chill spread across his scalp. Only then did he realize his forehead and back were soaked — completely drenched in cold sweat.

Ma Jianye was standing just outside the entrance to the tent, hesitating, peering and craning his neck. Seeing him come out, Ma Jianye opened his mouth to call after him. Wang Shitou ignored him, and walked away in long, uneven strides.

Ma Jianye’s mouth hung open. He looked at Wang Shitou, then at the tent entrance, hesitated for a moment, and ultimately did not dare to go inside.

Inside the tent, Li Gu finally turned around and looked at the curtain of the inner chamber. The brazier in the outer room burned bright. His own shadow fell upon it.

He called softly, “Your Highness?”

Though he could not see her, his instinct told him that Xie Yuzhang was standing just on the other side of that curtain. Between him and her, only a thin door-curtain.

Between him and her it was always like this — forever with something in between. A carriage window. A room door. A courtyard wall.

A feeling that, before the tide of great events, amounted to nothing at all.

Xie Yuzhang did not know why her face was wet with tears.

Born again in this life, she had so often relied on the guise of frailty to win others’ pity, and used her beauty to stir others’ feelings.

But in this moment, she did not want Li Gu — this one man, of all men, the most deserving of her tears — to see her in this weakened state.

Xie Yuzhang wiped her face, drew a long breath, and answered, “I’m here.”

That voice struggled for composure, yet could not conceal the catch in the throat.

She had still been frightened, hadn’t she? He should have come sooner.

Li Gu clenched his fist.

He and Prince Shou and the Fifth Imperial Prince were different — he could not even be counted as part of the bridal procession. He was only someone sent by Li Ming, the overlord of the Northwest, to ensure the procession’s safety through the Northwest stretch of the journey.

His task had been completed the moment he delivered Xie Yuzhang safely into Ashina’s hands.

The princess had her own guards. The bridal procession had its own soldiers. Only Prince Shou and the Fifth Imperial Prince, as the two noble representatives, had been placed together with Xie Yuzhang in the central area of the encampment.

Li Gu, as an “outsider,” and his Flying Tiger Army had been stationed at the outermost perimeter — further out than even the officials.

After the banquet broke up, he had already been on his way back to camp — had in fact already walked partway — when for some reason he grew uneasy in spirit, changed his mind on a whim, and turned back.

He had only wanted to see whether Xie Yuzhang had gone to sleep. He couldn’t possibly enter her tent at an hour like this — at most he would have taken one look at her tent and been done with it.

But then he had seen Ashina force his way into Xie Yuzhang’s tent, and Wang Shitou and Ma Jianye standing there pulling at each other, failing to stop him.

Li Gu was both shaken and furious over tonight’s events, and shaking with relief at what might have been.

If he had not come, or if he had come even a little later… he could not bring himself to imagine how that slight and delicate young woman would have faced a drunken Ashina.

Li Gu gripped his sword hilt with his right hand, the joints of his fingers going pale. His jaw was clenched so hard it distorted the muscles in his cheek. If such a thing had happened, he would never have been able to forgive himself.

“Your Highness,” he said quietly, “when the National Preceptor arrives in a moment, I will deal with him. Your Highness need not appear — you may remain inside.”

He paused, then added, “If Your Highness can manage to cry out loud, it would be for the best.”

From behind the curtain came Xie Yuzhang’s voice: “Very well — I will cry very loudly.”

Hearing it was almost laughable, yet Li Gu could not bring himself to laugh.

He turned and walked over to crouch beside the unconscious ladies’ maid, examining her.

Wanxiu had blood at the corner of her mouth, one whole side of her face already swollen. Li Gu lifted her eyelid and looked, then said “nothing serious,” pressed his fingers to her philtrum and brought her around.

Wanxiu came to. Her first words were to ask, “The princess — where is the princess?”

Li Gu’s eyes showed a flash of admiration. He pressed her back down. “No need to get up.”

He pointed to two of the sturdier frontier female slaves and said, “Help her over to the bed there and apply medicine.”

Then he commanded Xie Yuzhang’s ladies’ maids, “Two of you, go inside and stay with the princess. Cry loudly.”

He was only a fifth-rank frontier officer, and had no real authority to command the princess’s ladies’ maids. But in that moment, all of Xie Yuzhang’s ladies’ maids looked to him as though he were the sky itself, and obeyed his every word without exception.

Grand National Preceptor Abazha had been dosed with a bowl of sobering medicine, forcibly dragged over by Wang Shitou. The moment he entered the tent, he heard the sound of women weeping from the inner chamber. In the outer room, a ladies’ maid sat half-reclined on a bed, blood at the corner of her mouth, one side of her face grotesquely swollen, someone in the midst of applying medicine to her wounds.

Li Shiyi stood with his hand resting on his sword hilt, staring at him with fierce severity.

Perhaps it was the drink. Abazha found that his head ached terribly.