“Seventh Young Madam.” The tip of Zuo Liang’s blade still dripped with blood that belonged to Shi Cheng. His eyes were stained red with killing intent. “This isn’t the kind of scene you’d want to see, is it? So tell them all to stand down — otherwise, I won’t mind washing the Military Police Division in blood.”

Yan Qing knew that at this moment, they should yield, they should retreat. Yet watching everyone around her fight with their very lives to protect her, how could she be a coward? At worst, she would stake her life on it. At worst, they would all go down together.

With that thought, Yan Qing bit down hard, and in a single motion her palm flipped over — a scalpel had appeared in her hand. She gripped the small scalpel and thrust it toward Zuo Liang with all her strength.

Zuo Liang let out a cold laugh, his face etched with boundless mockery. Clearly, he did not believe this thrust from Yan Qing could land. He only needed to sway lightly —

But he was wrong. While the smile was still frozen at the corner of his mouth, a piercing pain bloomed in his chest. That tiny scalpel had truly sunk into his abdomen.

He lowered his head to look down. His face was filled with disbelief. Beyond the hand gripping the scalpel, there was another hand laid over that small hand. This thrust had been driven in by him grabbing Yan Qing’s hand and plunging it forward together.

Yan Qing’s eyes went wide as well. She stared blankly at the figure who had appeared before her without her knowing, until that figure gripped her hand and drew the scalpel out of the flesh. The sensation of the blade pulling from the wound was so vivid and real that she finally knew she was not dreaming.

Before the astonishment could fade from Yan Qing’s face, that figure had already sheltered her completely behind him.

He still wore the down jacket she had made for him. After all this time, it remained perfectly clean and neat, though if one inhaled closely, there was the scent of long travel and journeying dust.

She had no time to see his face clearly before he had already placed himself as her shield. His tall, towering frame had always been her safe harbor.

Watching his back, tears slid uncontrollably from Yan Qing’s eyes.

Zuo Liang had been stabbed in the abdomen. Though the blade was thin and short, the sensation of the steel piercing his flesh still drew a muffled grunt from him.

He involuntarily stumbled back a few steps. In his eyes there was an expression of disbelief, mixed with a trace of fear.

He admitted that he had always harbored a measure of dread toward the man standing before him. He had dared to act so brazenly in the Military Police Division this time for two reasons: first, because he had the Commander’s seal, and second, because this man was far away in a distant land.

Zuo Liang furrowed his brow, cold sweat seeping from his forehead, but he still forced himself to speak through the pain. “Director Shi, I have the Commander’s orders in hand. Are you publicly defying the Commander’s wishes?”

Shi Ting’s icy gaze landed on his face. Before Zuo Liang could react, a fist suddenly slammed squarely into his face.

Zuo Liang felt only a flash of darkness before his eyes, followed immediately by a searing pain across the bridge of his nose. A warm, metallic rush streamed out from his nasal cavity.

He knew his nasal bone had to be broken.

The men around Zuo Liang immediately pressed forward to protect him.

Zuo Liang clutched his bleeding nose, shouting in fury, “Director Shi, you are openly defying the Commander’s orders. Don’t blame me for being impolite.”

“I’d like to see who dares make a reckless move.” The voice that spoke was resonant as a bell. As the words fell, a group of fully armed soldiers poured in from outside, surrounding Zuo Liang’s men so tightly that not a gap remained.

Liu Qingnian strode in with steady, powerful steps and went directly to Shi Ting.

He gave a respectful salute. “Director Shi.”

Shi Ting gave him a nod. “I’ll leave things here to you.”

“Understood.”

Shi Ting could not be bothered to spare Zuo Liang another glance. Instead, he turned and walked to Yan Qing. He took her hand and led her through the crowd into his office.

The office door closed behind them. Yan Qing felt a warmth press to her lips. He grasped her slender shoulders and pressed her back against the door, and a kiss descended upon her, sweeping and surging, carrying with it the force of all his longing.

Yan Qing was nearly breathless from his kiss, yet she could not help but hook her arms around his neck and respond to him with equal heat.

The longing of so many days apart, all the fright she had suffered before — it all dissolved into deep, devoted tenderness poured into this fervent kiss.

It was only when he felt the dampness spreading across her face that Shi Ting finally pulled back. His breathing was visibly rough — not from desire; she could feel the fire burning in his chest.

He cradled her face and gently kissed away her tears. His gaze was full of tender affection, yet in the very depths of his eyes there stirred a boundless, freezing coldness.

In the time he had been away, they had made her cry. This girl he sheltered in the palm of his hand and guarded with such care — they had actually dared to make her shed tears.

Shi Ting had never been this angry before. Not even that time he had fallen into the Red River, when Yan Qing had exhausted herself trying to save him.

The hand he held around her shoulder gradually tightened beyond his control. Her salty tears nearly made him lose himself entirely.

“Ting!” Yan Qing softly called his name. “Don’t act on impulse.”

Her slender fingers reached up to brush his brow, gently stroking his face. Her voice was like the notes of an angel, slowly calming his raging emotions back to stillness.

“If you clash head-on with Zuo Liang, you’ll be playing right into his hands. He’ll have Shi Guang go before the Commander and file a report against you very soon.”

When Shi Ting moved to speak, Yan Qing’s fingertip pressed against his lips. She shook her head lightly. “I’ve made a new discovery — something good that came out of all this trouble.”

He gently kissed her fingertips. His voice drifted slowly from his throat. “Qing Qing, I missed you deeply.”

“I did too.” Yan Qing’s eyes curved into a smile. She rose on her toes and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “Missed you very, very much.”

“I’m sorry for letting you suffer.” Shi Ting held her tightly in his arms. “The news from that side was completely blocked off. The moment I learned what had happened, I raced back without stopping.”

“I know.” Yan Qing buried her face in his chest, indulging in the feel of his heartbeat and his scent. “You even called in Liu Qingnian.”

“Yes. I was afraid I wouldn’t arrive in time, so I sent someone to find Liu Qingnian.” Shi Ting thought of the scene he had walked in on just moments ago and still felt a lingering fear. When he had first stepped inside, he had seen Yan Qing holding a scalpel — she had looked ready to fight Zuo Liang to the death.

A tiny scalpel. She had no martial arts skill whatsoever and would have been no match for Zuo Liang. She had simply wanted to stand alongside everyone in the Military Police Division, sharing whatever fate came.

“They’ve been hurt.” Yan Qing suddenly remembered. “I need to go out and check on them.”

“Alright.” Shi Ting also felt concern for his soldiers. Though there was so much still left to say between them, and the longing in his heart had found no relief, with chaos still at hand, he had to step out and resolve it.

“I’ll go out first to look. You stay here and wait for me.” Shi Ting gently caressed her temples, his eyes full of tenderness. “I’ll be back soon.”

Yan Qing watched Shi Ting leave. Only then did she notice that her right hand had been trembling the entire time.

When she had gripped the scalpel to thrust at Zuo Liang, she hadn’t felt frightened at all. Now, looking at her own hand, she realized she hadn’t had the nerve to actually harm another person.

Even though she had dissected countless corpses, even though she had long since made her peace with life and death — faced with a living, breathing person, she needed real courage.

Outside, Liu Qingnian’s men and Zuo Liang’s men stood glaring at each other. Zuo Liang had been arrogant earlier, buoyed by his numbers. Now, facing Liu Qingnian’s well-equipped troops, his bluster deflated considerably.

But he still leaned on the Commander’s seal in his hand, knowing that Liu Qingnian couldn’t truly do anything to him.

Zuo Liang’s nosebleed had stopped. His nostrils were still stuffed with cotton, and the throbbing pain of his broken nasal bone continued to remind him of how Shi Ting’s fist had landed just moments before.

“General Liu, are you going to rebel?” Zuo Liang said. “You are the Commander’s general, not Director Shi’s general. I’m suddenly confused — do you listen to the Commander, or to Director Shi? If I’m not mistaken, the one who commands the north is the Commander, not Director Shi, isn’t that right?”

Liu Qingnian chuckled. “Young man, I don’t know your name, but since you seem to know who I am, you should also know I’m a rough soldier. I’ve spent years leading troops in battle outside. This Commander’s seal of yours — I’ve never seen one with my own eyes, and now you’re suddenly waving it in front of me. I couldn’t say if it’s real or fake.”

“You dare to say the Commander’s seal is fake?”

“Real or fake, I couldn’t say. But there’s a saying: when a general is away in the field, certain commands from above need not be obeyed. In other words, you waving that seal back and forth in front of me doesn’t really do much.”

“You…” Zuo Liang hadn’t expected to meet someone as tough and slippery as Liu Qingnian, and what he said was all perfectly sound. A general of his caliber was indeed not bound by written orders.

“How about this,” Liu Qingnian said with a grin. “We take this thing before the Commander and ask him directly. If the Commander says he affixed this seal with his own hand, I’ll have nothing more to say and will immediately take my men and clear out.” He chuckled. “Young man, what do you think of my proposal?”

Zuo Liang was left at a complete loss for words.

This seal had been stolen by Qian Lan in secret. It had absolutely not been affixed by the Commander himself. If this were truly brought before the Commander, the consequences would be unbearable.

After weighing everything, Zuo Liang decided he could not take the risk.

“In that case, I’ll go back and consult Second Young Master’s wishes. General Liu, please wait here for my word.” Zuo Liang motioned to his men. “Withdraw.”

“This is the Military Police Division.” Shi Ting came striding through the crowd, his calm face cloaked in a layer of stern, killing gravity. “Not your family’s courtyard. You can’t just come and go as you please.”

“Director Shi, what do you mean by that?” Zuo Liang narrowed his eyes. “Surely you’re not going to move against us here in broad daylight? Don’t forget — we are under orders from the Commander…”

“Zuo Liang, perhaps only you yourself believe that.” Shi Ting’s lips curved in a cold smile. “General Liu just made an excellent proposal. Whether this seal is real or fake, we should truly go before the Commander and ask him in person.”

Zuo Liang kept his face closed, saying nothing. He knew that with a sharp man like Shi Ting, saying too much only meant more opportunities to slip up. Staying silent was harder to find fault with.

“Director Shi, what exactly do you intend to do?” Zuo Liang asked in a low, measured voice. “I should point out that I am Second Young Master’s man. I advise Director Shi…”

“General Liu, I’d trouble you with one thing.” Shi Ting didn’t listen to Zuo Liang’s blathering at all. “Please have your men stretch their legs a bit and toss these people into the Military Police Division’s jail for me.”