The snow’s brilliance shone through the window, casting a milky glow upon the young lord who had risen – his face was so handsome and refined that the Prefect of Luoyang had rarely seen its equal in his life. He had the kind of looks that would make ordinary young ladies unable to tear their eyes away if they encountered him on the street.

Moreover, his disheveled clothing presented an alluring, messy beauty.

After the Prefect stumbled into the chamber, he saw the young man pull up the outer robe that had been draped over his shoulders, covering the plain inner garment beneath. When he looked over, his expression carried hints of playfulness and languor, his bearing so elegant it was beyond compare. Without lit candles in the chamber, the Prefect could only judge by the faint snowlight from the window. His heart skipped a beat when he saw what appeared to be women’s silk garments in dawn red and flower blue colors scattered at the young lord’s feet. On the silk and waistbands lay hairpins, ornamental steps, and bracelets gleaming with the luminescence of jade.

Those… were Chen Xue’s belongings!

An affair!

The Prefect’s face turned deathly pale: Chen Xue’s temperament was mysterious and elusive, always leaving him unable to fathom her depths. Given her turbulent past, though the Prefect had his doubts, the people he sent to investigate her background couldn’t immediately uncover the truth due to this woman’s numerous experiences. Chen Xue maintained a distance from him, her every smile and frown filled with melancholy. This young lord before him, this young lord…

Such refined features!

Moreover, as he approached, the Prefect dazedly felt that he overlapped somewhat with his beloved… but the Prefect immediately shook his head, thinking he must be drunk. How could there be any overlap? His Xue’er would never betray him, she must have been taken advantage of by this man…

The Prefect’s mind was in chaos, feeling his thoughts weren’t clear. But he had only drunk a few cups of wine… The Prefect of Luoyang couldn’t hold himself up, leaning back and supporting himself against a table to keep from falling. He struggled to maintain composure: “Where is Xue’er? Hand her over, and for your crime of breaking into the Prefect’s mansion at night, I could…”

Lu Yun walked toward him. The Third Young Master Lu had returned to his male form, pure as snow, face white as jade. He walked toward the Prefect in the darkness, wearing just ordinary grey robes suitable for night movement, yet his tall and slender frame gave them the elegant bearing of a noble. Broad shoulders, narrow waist, walking unhurriedly. Hearing the Prefect’s words, he remained unmoved, merely raising his brow bone slightly.

The Prefect shouted hysterically: “Where is my Xue’er?!”

But while speaking thus, his hand supporting himself against the table was frantically feeling around. He finally found a candlestick, and as Lu Yun drew closer, the Prefect suddenly exerted force, hurling the candlestick at him. At the same time, the Prefect showed no desire to fight, hoping the candlestick would obstruct this person for a moment while he turned and stumbled toward the exit, shouting: “Assassin! Help, assassin—”

At the Prefect’s warning – the Prefect’s mansion being guarded as a military stronghold – when the shout rang out, the door was pushed open and three or four soldiers rushed in. These men, whatever they had been doing earlier, hadn’t touched a drop of alcohol tonight. With stern expressions, they directly drew their swords and struck at the man who had suddenly appeared in the chamber.

The Prefect felt a cool breeze pursuing him from behind. He tried to crawl out of the room, but his shoulder was grabbed from behind.

The Third Young Master Lu laughed lightly: “Why are you running?”

As the soldiers attacked him, he went after the stumbling Prefect, grabbing hold of him. Even though the Prefect wasn’t a warrior, being from a noble family, he knew martial arts. He turned to exchange a palm strike with Lu Yun, trying to slip away from his grasp. However, firstly he was sluggish from the effects of alcohol, and secondly, Lu Yun’s movements were excellent and his target was clear. One palm strike to the Prefect’s chest left his legs weak.

The soldiers: “Scoundrel, cease your impudence!”

Lu Yun didn’t answer, only staring at the Prefect.

The soldiers who had entered couldn’t stop Lu Yun. With nowhere to escape, when Lu Yun attacked again, his robe sleeves flying, he engaged the Prefect in close combat. His flying robes were like a crane skimming water, his approaching features cold and proud, yet eternal and far-reaching like ink-wash landscape paintings. Wisps of clear fragrance emanated from his body. This scent, in recent days, had intoxicated the Prefect many times—

His mind exploded, and this time the Prefect truly went mad: “What exactly is your relationship with Chen Xue? Why do you have her scent? Where is she? You…”

“Pah—!” With the Prefect’s mind in disarray, Lu Yun had no patience for romantic sentiments. When the Prefect grabbed his wrist to question him, disgust flashed in Lu Yun’s eyes as he twisted the other’s arm upward. A cold wind approached from behind as the soldiers’ attack arrived, but Lu Yun held the Prefect and turned, using him to block the attack meant for himself.

The Prefect’s mouth filled with blood from the fierce palm wind, coughing incessantly.

Lu Yun remained silent, holding onto the dazed Prefect as he leaped out of the chamber. As his foot crossed the threshold, snowflakes falling, he placed his hand to his lips and let out a clear whistle, warning his companions. In an instant, in the pitch-black night, dozens of people suddenly emerged from the quiet rear courtyard of the Prefect’s mansion.

Iron horses clashed, tall steeds neighed!

Shadows swayed on horseback.

Someone shouted fiercely: “Go—”

The whistle continued intermittently, and someone in the darkness called: “Young Lord, we’ve rescued the people!”

Lu Yun: “Those with the rescued should leave first, the rest stay with me to cover the retreat.”

“Yes.”

The poor drunken Prefect was held in Lu Yun’s grasp. Lu Yun used him as a shield, his fingers constantly pressed against the Prefect’s neck. Lu Yun raised an eyebrow and said coldly: “Take one more step, and I’ll squeeze the life out of him. Surely Luoyang’s highest official shouldn’t die tonight?”

“Don’t touch the Prefecture Lord!”

“Villain, do not kill the Prefecture Lord!” The Northern soldiers and attendants of the Prefect’s mansion who rushed out from various directions all hesitated upon seeing the Prefect captured. At the same time, they were also stumbling, and many times during the fight, their slow reactions fell victim to the calculations of Lu Yun’s Southern soldiers.

Continuously, people began to realize: “Was there poison in the wine? Why is my head so muddled…”

The Southern soldiers stayed close to Lu Yun, ensuring those with the rescued people went first, while those covering the retreat didn’t plan to stay long either. Although Luoyang wasn’t a military stronghold of the Northern country, due to the presence of a Gunpowder Master, there were still many troops stationed there. They needed to escape to Southern territory as quickly as possible. They didn’t bother answering the Northern soldiers’ doubts.

There was no poison in the wine – if there had been, with all items entering and leaving the Prefect’s mansion being inspected, how could poisoned wine have been served at the banquet? These wines had merely been enhanced by Southern soldiers following Lu Yun’s arrangements, using secret recipes to make them more mellow and intoxicating. The South excelled in tea and wine, they had many methods to enhance wine’s fragrance and make it more addictive.

Having drunk too much, these Northerners would fall behind in pursuit and combat.

Meanwhile, because Lu Yun’s disguise as Chen Xue had been celebrated as Luoyang’s famous beauty, her acceptance as the Prefect’s concubine was a moderately significant event. To arrange this, the Prefect’s mansion inevitably needed to make preparations, requiring more manpower, which increased the possibility of fishing in troubled waters. Under Chen Xue’s cover, Southern soldiers had quietly replaced those who should have entered the mansion, infiltrating the Prefect’s household, all for tonight.

Enduring for days, waiting for this moment!

The Prefect, held in Lu Yun’s grasp, had a head full of wine, being shaken about. Just as he gathered some thoughts, they turned back to mush. Snow had spread a frost-white layer over the lake, and Lu Yun coordinated with his companions to fight their way out of the mansion. As their feet touched the water on the lake, the Prefect was shaken until his head ached. When he inadvertently looked toward the small pavilion by the lake, he saw snow dancing like willow catkins, screens blown open by the wind, snow-white paper floating gracefully, with shadowy beautiful figures on the paper. Some paper cutout figures near the candles were blown upward.

The Prefect raged: “The scholars, the scholars… they’re all gone! When did they disappear? When I left during the drinking, I still saw them painting!”

Lu Yun smiled mockingly.

Lu Yun was busy fighting and had never intended to explain to the Prefect. But even though the Luoyang Prefect was drunk at this time, seeing the paper cutouts floating out from the wide-open doors and windows, he finally understood: “Using pre-cut figures near candlelight, shadows cast on the closed doors and windows. This is how you switched people… Why, why…”

His face turned blue: “You’re Southern spies! You came to rescue those scholars! The Gunpowder Master, the Master…”

The Luoyang Prefect belatedly realized, perhaps still in a haze, also becoming aware that Chen Xue was fake, that this lady was a Southern spy sent to deceive him. The lady had caused such a commotion in Luoyang, maintaining distance from him, all to investigate where the scholars and Gunpowder Master were being held.

The Prefect was overwhelmed with grief, feeling all his feelings had been fed to dogs. He shouted: “Chen Xue! You’ve caused me such misery— This isn’t over between us—”

Lu Yun, who was holding him while fighting, suddenly stumbled, his expression becoming somewhat strange and awkward—

This person still hadn’t figured out who Chen Xue was. Could he have truly fallen in love with Chen Xue?

…

As trouble erupted in Luoyang City, in the middle of the night, the guests who had come to the banquet were dead drunk. The Chief Secretary of the Prefect’s mansion led attendants to wake these guests one by one but to no avail. The wine was too intoxicating, and coupled with the rare occasion of the Prefect taking a concubine, everyone was drunk. Those Southern soldiers had mixed in among the guests, servants, and wine-serving commoners. Half of the soldiers in the Prefect’s mansion were drunk, the less than half who remained sober couldn’t stop those Southern soldiers. They could only watch as their leader, holding their Prefect, escaped from the mansion, heading south triumphantly.

The Chief Secretary interrogated his subordinates: “Who exactly was that person?! How did they appear in our Prefect’s mansion without anyone knowing?”

“How could you not tell me about someone with such a bewitching face!”

The subordinates were also bitter: “As you say, that lord was indeed handsome. If we had truly seen him before, we certainly wouldn’t have forgotten such a face. Since we don’t remember, naturally we’ve never seen this person.”

“We don’t know when he entered the mansion.”

“Also, Lady Chen Xue… has also disappeared. Earlier when rescuing the Prefecture Lord, we seemed to hear something about an ‘affair’…”

The Chief Secretary shot them a fierce look, his gaze sharp, and the talkative person naturally fell silent, not daring to say more. The Prefect’s mansion gathered troops in the middle of the night, and the general stationed in Luoyang was awakened in the dead of night. Upon learning that both the Prefect and the Gunpowder Master were missing, his face changed dramatically, and he slapped the Chief Secretary across the face.

The Chief Secretary, however, dared not say more.

Watching the general gather troops and pursue out of Luoyang Prefecture— “Pass down the order! Light the wolf smoke! Gather all nearby troops to pursue southward!”

“We can’t let the Southern spies return to the South! We can’t let our Master fall into their hands.”

“Notify our main forces to pressure those counties near Nanyang, increase the offensive! We’ve reached the crucial moment, don’t hold back any means. If we don’t use full force now, we’ll lose!”

For the North to win this war, they faced an embarrassing problem – they weren’t as financially strong as the South. It was precise during winter, while the Southern army was weak and the Northern army strong, that they needed to break through the enemy’s defenses in one go, seize the opportunity to negotiate with the South, and snatch territory from their hands. The North couldn’t sustain this war either… If the Gunpowder Master disappeared, this would be their second major defeat!

His Majesty would surely be enraged.

Quick, quick, quick! Seize every moment, and grab the initiative!

…

The Northern army’s offensive suddenly increased dramatically, with several prefectural cities requesting aid, claiming Northern troops were brazenly attacking their cities. From the night of heavy snow, it became utterly frenzied.

Battle reports arrived at General Wei’s location, all pleading for his help, requesting troops and provisions. With multiple voices clamoring, the prefectures needed to resist, but backup resources were insufficient. They could only squeeze the noble families, but even their grain stores were limited, and they still needed to feed their clan members. Friction between the military and the nobility continued to mount.

At the same time, commoners began to run out of food.

All resources were prioritized for the military, but as days dragged on, with prefectural cities snowbound for days, resources everywhere slowly began to become problematic.

General Wei was troubled and vexed, unsure how to handle the crises erupting everywhere. At this time, Luo Yan, who had returned to the South, and his cousin Luo Lingyu rushed back and forth, explaining and mediating everywhere, helping General Wei ease conflicts. They were of great help to General Wei, and Luo Lingyu especially encouraged him multiple times, hoping the army could hold on a bit longer.

General Wei gritted his teeth: “Damn it, those Northerners are a bunch of lunatics, not afraid of being buried in snow this heavy, still wanting to fight. You think I’m afraid of you? Come on then, let’s fight!”

“Stop asking me for troops and provisions… Can you fight?! I’m asking if you can get to the battlefield! As long as you have one breath left, you’ll crawl to the enemy and bite their ass if I tell you to, understand?”

“Everyone buck up! The enemy’s sudden increase in attacks means something’s happened to them, Commander Lu’s plan has succeeded! Commander Lu will return soon, we will win!”

The situation was tense, with encouragement from all sides hiding inner anxiety.

Luo Lingyu was still helping in the army’s rear, treating wounded soldiers from the battlefield alongside other noble ladies. The few ladies in the same tent as her had been working for days, their faces somewhat pale, their hands holding scissors trembling slightly. They came in shifts and were already this exhausted; but Luo Lingyu, wanting to receive frontline news as soon as possible, spent ten out of twelve hours daily in the military camp.

The excessive fastidiousness typical of noble ladies was now thrown to the back of their minds.

Hearts gradually grew numb, only knowing to continuously stop bleeding, change bandages, apply medicine…

Luo Lingyu rubbed her eyes, red from staying up late, when she suddenly heard a lady beside her exclaim: “This is bad.”

The kneeling lady looked up, her beautiful eyes gazing over. Seeing the blood all over that lady’s hands, she turned to look in horror: “Sister Luo, we’re out of bandages, and the medicine is gone too. How will we dress the wounds of new patients?”

At these words, other ladies nearby went to check the remaining medical supplies, and then all began to panic, saying there weren’t enough medicines.

Luo Lingyu’s mind went blank: “…The noble families…”

The ladies glanced at her: “We may be wealthy and powerful, but we’re not pharmacies. We’ve already contributed what medicines we could. Even if you press us, our families can’t provide anymore.”

The ladies’ words carried considerable resentment toward Luo Lingyu. Among women, there was much competition. They might not have particularly respected Luo Lingyu before, and when conflicts erupted, they only liked her less. Previously, Luo Lingyu would have tried to reverse this situation, but now she was like a broken pot past saving, letting them think what they would – what needed to be done had to be done.

Because the South Yang noble families had been heavily exploited recently, the ladies who could read and write and came to the military camp to bandage the wounded were all from noble families. Luo Lingyu sided with the army, exploiting their families – how could they be happy? They looked over and saw Luo Lingyu pressing her lips together, feeling as if an iron hammer had struck their hearts. Even though Luo Lingyu was typically thick-skinned and cold, she couldn’t help but panic a little now. Just as Luo Lingyu was about to think of a solution, the tent flap was lifted.

The maid Lingyu had run hard, bending over with hands on her knees, her breath forming white mist in the cold wind: “My lady, you asked me to watch the Prince of Hengyang… This servant saw their main force leave the city, not to support General Wei, but heading toward Mount Funiu as you predicted.”

Luo Lingyu stood up with a whoosh, her hands clenching in her sleeves. Her sudden excitement caused all the ladies in the tent to look over in surprise.

Luo Lingyu’s eyes flickered: It must be Lu Yun, there must be news from Lu Yun! The Prince of Hengyang was going to provide support! Lu Yun was coming back, he was coming back…

Luo Lingyu took two steps toward the exit, eager to go out, but she stopped, remembering she was just a weak woman – whether in the current South Yang chaos or the war at Mount Funiu, her rushing over would be useless. She might even become a burden to him…

Luo Lingyu bit her teeth.

Another soldier lifted the curtain and ran in: “My lady, the front lines have run out of provisions again! The noble families won’t give grain, I couldn’t find Young Master Luo, General Wei told me to find you…”

Another servant followed in, saying grievously: “Nonsense! How can you say we’re not giving? Miss Luo, we really can’t afford to give anymore… Yesterday we went without food for a day, the young masters in our family couldn’t eat. My lady, please be fair, what can we do? The army can’t force us to death, right?”

More people came from other tents, with grave expressions: “Do you have any medicine? We have a new wounded soldier, but we’re out of medicine.”

“None left…”

“All gone…”

“Empty…”

Various voices surrounded Luo Lingyu from all sides. Without realizing it, these people all wanted Luo Lingyu to make decisions. She had been the one giving ideas, so naturally, she had to be the one making decisions. Luo Lingyu stood tall but slender in the tent, surrounded by people, her maid unable to rescue her from the crowd. Luo Lingyu sought help from everyone, but her mind was wandering, unable to focus because her heart was with Lu Yun. Knowing he might be at a crucial moment, knowing that deadly trap might come at any time, how could she have the mind to care about other matters?

She stood there pale-faced, trying several times to calm herself, yet failing several times. She knew she should find ways to solve these people’s problems, but deep in her heart, she thought, I can’t save them, I just want to find Lu Yun…

The tent flap was lifted again, and cold wind entered, making Luo Lingyu shiver amid the crowd.

She looked to the heavens and earth, seeing the sky was dim, the snow had stopped sometime earlier without anyone noticing. After the snowfall, a layer of fog spread along the ground, growing thicker the closer it got to the surface. Luo Lingyu stared blankly at the snow-white landscape, watching the silver-gray-white fog drift open. The cold wind brushed her face, making her snow-white fox fur collar and sable sleeves, and crimson cloak flutter slightly.

Luo Lingyu’s heart suddenly emptied.

She didn’t know what made her lose focus, but just seeing this snow, seeing this fog, she instinctively began to feel anxious…

She didn’t know how long she had been lost in thought when suddenly someone pulled her: “Sister Luo, someone’s here to see you!”

The tent flap was lifted once again, this time by a soldier. The fog had risen across the land, making it impossible to see clearly beyond thirty feet. And from the fog, slowly emerged a young lord, his features like a painting, as gentle as jade. This lord’s face was somewhat pale, looking weak, but the warmth in his eyes, the gentle strength in his gaze, made Luo Lingyu’s eyes sting, moisture gathering on her eyelashes.

Under Luo Lingyu’s dazed gaze, this lord smiled slightly, first speaking to the excited soldier: “Provisions and medical supplies have arrived at the south city entrance. There are no soldiers, but some militia from Jiangnan voluntarily crossed the river to come, would that be acceptable? When might I be able to see General Wei?”

The soldier first expressed thanks, then turned to look at Luo Lingyu: “Lady Luo, this lord claims to be Zhou Zibo, saying he’s come to assist our side. The enemy has spies, so our army dares not to be careless. Lord Zhou says you know him, can he be trusted?”

Luo Lingyu said softly: “He can be trusted.”

The soldier felt relieved, apologizing before daring to leave. Other ladies and servants curiously looked at this newly arrived Lord Zhou, the ladies especially showing wonder in their eyes. But Zhou focused intently on Luo Lingyu, making them uncomfortable: …Why did all these young lords stare at Luo Lingyu? She wasn’t the only woman in the world.

Zhou Yangling looked tenderly at Luo Lingyu, sighing softly, her voice gentle: “Sister doesn’t recognize me? I’m a bit late, having been delayed by some matters…”

The journey north had been blocked in many ways. Zhou Yangling had to negotiate with people, and thinking that the North lacked not only food but probably herbs as well, she had taken a detour. Her constitution was poor, she fell ill on the way but had to endure the pain to continue. After several ordeals, she had only arrived now.

Seeing the moisture on Luo Lingyu’s eyelashes, Zhou Yangling frowned, somewhat self-reproachful: “It’s my fault for coming so late, letting sister suffer…”

Luo Lingyu choked up: “Lord Zhou!”

The countless hardships found some comfort in seeing an old friend. Lord Zhou had come, the Lord Zhou who always stood by her side had come. Her eyes reddened, and she stepped forward, holding Zhou Yangling’s arm, burying herself in the other’s neck, and began to cry.

Zhou Yangling stiffened but didn’t avoid it, instead patting her shoulder in comfort. Facing the various expressions around them, Zhou Yangling explained: “Luo sister and I share a sibling relationship, please don’t misunderstand.”

The ladies hurriedly said they wouldn’t, but thought in their hearts: Third Young Master Lu was her cousin too, didn’t that sibling relationship still turn into something strange?

…

On Mount Funiu, snow stretched endlessly, and fog gradually surrounded the area. The enemy pursued all the way, while the Prince of Hengyang’s army provided support, relieving Lu Yun’s pressure.

Holding the Prefect as they walked through the snow, Lu Yun looked at the fog between the mountains, and like Luo Lingyu, inevitably thought of the timeline given in Second Young Master Lu’s dream.

The Luoyang Prefect, who had been grabbed by Lu Yun all along to block swords, had fainted many times, and this time, as the cold wind filled his ears, he woke up again. He found himself still held by that lord. But this time, in the snow-covered land where heaven and earth were clear and cold, he looked at that lord who was gazing thoughtfully at the mountain fog and was stunned for a moment.

His side profile was elegant, his lips red, and his neck long.

The beautifully handsome lord standing in the snow, a tall and slender figure straight and proud, his robe sleeves flying, graceful as a startled swan.

The Prefect blurted out: “Xue’er?!”

Lu Yun trembled, coming back to his senses: “…Shh, don’t call out so disgustingly. I don’t want my sister Yu’er to know about this.”

The Prefect hadn’t heard what Lu Yun was saying, his face turning from green to white, his spirit about to collapse. He gripped Lu Yun’s hand back, and though Lu Yun tried to shake him off, the Prefect suddenly used great force, grabbing his wrist, and refusing to let go even though he was thrown about dizzy. The Prefect even moved closer, staring intently at Third Young Master Lu’s face: “You are Xue’er? So that’s it, that’s it… How is it possible, where are your breasts… You and Xue’er look exactly alike, are you… are you male or female…”

Are you male, or are you female?!

The one I fell in love with, was it a man or a woman?!