The small moon at the zenith rose and fell, fell and rose again, gradually becoming full.

This day, Lu Qianqiao sat by the window again, waiting for the girl who would push open the window with a beaming smile and jump in whenever the moon rose. He waited until the moon reached its zenith, but she still hadn’t come.

How many days had it been now? Had some accident occurred?

He felt somewhat restless and anxious.

But even if she came, what then? Would she continue harboring expectations toward him? Waiting for a response he couldn’t possibly give?

The full moon was about to pass, and the remaining time was only two and a half months.

Lu Qianqiao began to feel conflicted again, hoping she would come, yet also hoping she simply wouldn’t come… Why had he been constantly wrestling with this question lately? He rubbed his temples.

The door opened and Si Lan walked in, his expression poor. He held up what he was clutching—a roll of golden yellow silk.

“General, the Emperor has sent another imperial decree.”

It must be urging him to return to court to quell the internal strife for the Emperor. This Emperor really wasn’t a good person. When there were no wars to fight, he listened to slanderous words and banished the General to guard the Imperial Tomb for no reason. Now that trouble had arisen, he was crying and sending multiple decrees begging him to return.

What a wretch! Si Lan curled his lips in disdain.

Lu Qianqiao showed no reaction. His entire mind was entangled in whether Xin Mei would come or not, staring blankly at the small moon at the zenith.

“General, that girl is the type who fishes for three days and dries nets for two. Right now she’s probably taken a fancy to some other decent young man. Why take her seriously?”

Compared to the Emperor, Si Lan had even less favorable feelings toward Xin Mei. Women should be like Miss Yinglian—gentle as water, quiet and serene. Someone like Xin Mei could only be called a bristling cat. The General was brilliant and mighty—how could he have such poor judgment as to fancy her?

Lu Qianqiao turned his head and said nothing, only picked up the roll of imperial decree and casually glanced at it, then suddenly froze.

The decree was crimson and white, lengthy and flowery with beautiful language—this was Emperor Rongzheng’s bad habit. Even writing an imperial decree was like composing poetry, always packed densely with text.

But that wasn’t the important point.

He frowned and read it twice, his fingers slowly tightening.

Emperor Rongzheng was arranging his marriage, with Xin Mei as the bride… Mother had indeed interfered in this matter after all.

He stared intently at one particular passage in the decree, his brow furrowing deeper and deeper.

“…follow in death, buried together in the same grave after death, only then can propriety be fully observed, and their mutual affection not be betrayed.”

Qiong Kingdom still maintained the system of living burial sacrifices. The decree was saying that when he died, Xin Mei would have to follow him in death? He suddenly threw down the decree, instantly realizing the meaning of his mother’s words that day. She had said she wanted Xin Mei to accompany him forever, even in death. So this was what she meant?!

“Si Lan, go bring Lie Yunhua!”

Lu Qianqiao fastened his cloak and jumped out the window. He needed to find Li Chaoyang!

Si Lan responded in amazement, then looked back at the decree thrown on the ground. Unable to resist, he picked it up for a glance and was immediately stunned.

“General! They’re forcing you to marry that little girl?!” he cried out in shock. “And she has to be buried alive too?! What kind of dog shit Emperor…”

“It’s not his doing,” Lu Qianqiao shook his head. “Go get Lie Yunhua.”

Si Lan ran off hastily. Lu Qianqiao stood quietly in the moonlight, feeling his heart beating violently in his chest, his body even trembling slightly.

A bad premonition… The scenery before his eyes gradually became blurred. He closed his eyes and opened them again—the small moon in the sky seemed to have become thousands.

He suddenly felt a dizziness unlike any he’d experienced before.

“General, the horse is here!”

Si Lan dragged Lie Yunhua back at flying speed. Looking up, he only saw a pair of dark red eyes glowing in the deep night like those of a wild beast.

June twenty-fifth, an auspicious day suitable for marriage.

Amidst thunderous gongs, drums, and firecrackers, Xin Mei put on her wedding dress and boarded the bridal sedan.

Lu Qianqiao didn’t come. The wedding procession was led by several officials sent by the Emperor. It was said that because the General banished to guard the Imperial Tomb had not received imperial permission, he couldn’t leave the Imperial Tomb even one step, so the wedding escort had to be entrusted to others.

This slightly unpleasant detail didn’t affect the good mood of everyone at Xinxie Manor. Regardless, the little demon star who had troubled them for sixteen years was finally married off—this kind of wild joy was something outsiders could absolutely never understand.

Xin Xiong even cried like a baby. Seeing anyone, he would grab their hand and chatter: “Heaven protect us, her mother protect us, Little Mei finally has someone to take her off our hands…”

And the one taking her wasn’t ordinary people either. Even though banished to guard the Imperial Tomb, he was still a General! Xin Xiong felt he had turned his fortunes around overnight. Facing the townspeople from Lushui who came to offer congratulations, he rarely showed a smug expression. These bastards used to flee like rabbits when Xin Mei’s husband-killing fate was mentioned. It was still his daughter who had ability—going out once and hooking up with a husband, and a General at that!

Never mind why the Emperor suddenly wanted to bestow this marriage for no reason. In any case, the most important thing was that Xin Mei had someone who wanted her!

Xin Mei waved at him from inside the bridal sedan: “Father, in a few days I’ll return home to visit you. Don’t cry anymore—your snot is running out.”

Xin Xiong blew his nose hard and roared: “Wait a month before talking about visiting home! Coming back so early, be careful they don’t want you!”

…Her father had probably gone mad.

Xin Mei shook her head and lowered the sedan curtain. The spirit beast leading the way ahead let out a long neigh, flapped its wings, and flew up to the clouds. The long wedding procession rose slowly like a red cloud, gradually disappearing from everyone’s view.

What was Lu Qianqiao doing now? Xin Mei lifted up a small corner of her veil and lay by the window watching the white clouds outside.

For some reason, thinking of that day when he wielded his long whip on the high platform, his back straight and outstanding—that was something completely unrelated to the fame, profit, and status that everyone envied. She really wanted to watch him again; it didn’t matter if she didn’t speak.

Lu Qianqiao, are you now dressed in silly groom’s red robes, wearing red flowers and waiting for me?

Right now, are you happy? Or are you curling your lips in disdain?

She rather liked this kind of speculation, imagining his expressions, the words he would say—at this moment, she finally had some sense of being a bride.

However, this feeling completely vanished when they reached the Imperial Tomb.

The Yunwu Array that once surrounded the Imperial Tomb had long since disappeared without a trace. Withered flowers and mud messily covered the surface of the spirit road, obviously not cleaned for a very long time.

The wedding officials got out to discuss for a moment, finally sending someone to hesitantly report to her: “Ma… Miss, there’s no sign of the General’s wedding procession ahead. This is… very unusual.”

Xin Mei thought about it: “Then should we go further inside?”

That was the only option.

The wedding procession magnificently entered the depths of the Imperial Tomb. Along the roadside they occasionally saw old collapsed offering halls. The green mountains and clear waters remained, but everything was deathly still and chaotic everywhere. Only the flowers in the roadside flower groves bloomed silently. The once-noisy little demons were nowhere to be seen.

The procession stopped in front of Lu Qianqiao’s house. Someone went to knock on the door. After waiting a long while with no response, they broke down the door. Moments later, that person ran out in panic: “No one inside! It’s a mess! The General has disappeared!”

Xin Mei immediately felt like someone had poured a bucket of cold water over her in the depths of winter, involuntarily shivering.

The officials discussed in confusion like headless flies, then had to send someone to report to her again: “Then… we can only ask the Miss to wait here temporarily while we immediately dispatch people to search inside and outside the Imperial Tomb.”

They had never encountered such a thing. The imperial decree had been delivered right to his doorstep, yet this always rebellious and untamed General treated it like a fart, not even showing his face, leaving everyone standing outside.

A fierce life indeed needed no reason.

But this wasn’t just giving the Emperor attitude—it was equivalent to slapping his own wife unconscious. This poor girl, just married over, encountering such a tragedy… That girl… eh, why was that girl getting out of the sedan by herself?!

Xin Mei slowly got out of the sedan, yanked off her veil and threw it on the ground, clapped her hands, and strode forward.

The frantic officials quickly rushed up to stop her: “Ma… Miss! It’s not proper for a bride to wander around!”

She was in a very bad mood now and too lazy to talk, so she just waved her fist in front of everyone: “Look carefully, this is a fist.”

A fist… Everyone looked together at her tender, delicate small hand. This fist looked quite nice… so what?

She then pointed at a pear tree as thick as a bowl beside her: “This is a tree.”

So… so what?

The next moment, this pretty fist smashed into the bowl-thick pear tree. With a “crack,” the tragic pear tree fell over weeping.

Everyone instantly stepped back three large steps, respectfully and reverently clearing a broad path, silently and trembling as they watched her walk away.

Xin Mei actually didn’t know where to go herself; she just walked slowly forward, walking straight ahead.

She repeatedly recalled everything that happened after meeting Lu Qianqiao, but couldn’t figure it out—could it be that he actually hated her? Hated her so much that he moved out of the Imperial Tomb overnight, not even leaving her a note?

She had once thought the Imperial Tomb was a very hateful place, because she had been forcibly confined here then.

Later she felt this place was actually quite beautiful, because Lu Qianqiao was here.

Now the flowers still bloomed and the green water still flowed, yet she felt that deep disgust again, with much confusion and grievance mixed in the disgust.

Suddenly, her footsteps stopped.

Before her eyes was an endless pale white apricot grove, and that familiar high platform. Xin Mei looked up, not knowing what answer she sought. Perhaps she hoped to look up and see Lu Qianqiao standing up there, wielding his long whip as always.

Apricot blossoms filled her sleeves. She lowered her head, and several large pearls from her hair ornament rolled off and scattered on the ground like tears.

It was time to go back, wasn’t it? Give up naive fantasies—Lu Qianqiao actually completely despised her.

Yes… time to go back.

…

Go back my ass!

Xin Mei ripped off her wedding dress.

Where was Lu Qianqiao?! Where was that bastard hiding?! She was going to drag him out and beat him into a human pancake, slice him into a human stick! She kicked a blue brick at her feet, and the brick flew out like an arrow, crashing into the apricot grove. A muffled cry of pain immediately came from within.

Xin Mei rushed in, reached out and grabbed, pulling out the person hiding inside by the hair in a wretched state.

“It’s you!”

“So painful!”

Both cried out simultaneously. Xin Mei looked up and glared at the man whose posture was very twisted because she was gripping his hair.

Si Lan.

Seeing her, he was also extremely shocked. His facial expression changed countless times, finally revealing a trace of pity in his eyes.

“Let go!” He struggled but couldn’t break free, immediately saying urgently: “The General won’t marry you! Give up! Go back quickly! He’ll have the Emperor cancel this marriage later!”

Xin Mei was furious: “Where is he?!”

Si Lan kept a stern face: “I won’t tell! It’s useless even if you beat me to death! In any case, go back quickly! Not just the General—even I won’t let him marry you. You’re completely unsuited for each other!”

Xin Mei stared at him seriously for a long time, then suddenly had an epiphany: “You like him! You see me as a rival in love?”

Si Lan nearly vomited blood: “Bullshit!”

She raised her hand and tested it against his face: “If you don’t tell the truth, I’ll knock out your teeth.”

Si Lan was filled with tears. General! For you, I, Si Lan, can endure any cruel torture! Even slaps from your beloved girl are no problem!

The raised hand fell quickly, but before it could slap his face, a cold voice behind them said quietly: “Xin Mei.”

She trembled violently and turned around in disbelief. Lu Qianqiao, whom everyone had searched for without success, now stood in the apricot grove, quietly watching her.

His once deep black pupils were now blood red.