Sunlight swept across the green treetops in the forest, illuminating a pale yellow vista in the distance. It was a vast expanse of purely yellow earth that occasionally flickered with golden light, so piercing it hurt the eyes. One had to shift their gaze farther away to look at the soothing emerald green for relief.

Waves of wind carried a fragrance three parts medicinal herbs and three parts grass—the unique scent of neighboring Xiang Kingdom’s fragrant marshes.

A group of people stood on a slightly elevated slope, gazing at that vast golden expanse and sighing deeply.

“I really don’t understand why we’re taking this route?” For the hundredth time, Jiang Ya, captain of the escort convoy, unfolded the route map in his hands, sighing in puzzlement and frustration. “Xiang Kingdom, Yu Kingdom, Floating Water, Falling Cloud, Meng Kingdom, Liuli, Ji Kingdom… We could clearly go through Xiang Kingdom past Huangjin to Zhanyu Chentie and reach Daimo’s Blackwater. Why are we taking the longest possible route?”

“Those are the higher-ups’ orders, we can only comply.” Deputy Captain Lei Xi patted his shoulder. “Are you planning to go back and question Marshal Ying now?”

“Completely unreasonable, completely!” Jiang Ya angrily crumpled the route map into a ball. “Setting aside how some of these nations and tribes are exceptionally difficult and strange to deal with, first of all, Yu Kingdom and others mostly haven’t submitted letters of allegiance to Her Majesty. Take Yu Kingdom—the Yelu family’s stronghold, losers in Imperial Song’s power struggles. The former Left State Preceptor lost influence in Imperial Song’s upheaval, then the Yelu family sent their eldest son to the capital, where he maneuvered for two years and was about to attain the Deputy Minister of Personnel position, clearly aiming for the State Preceptor position. Who knew Imperial Song would have another upheaval, and the Yelu family’s eldest son got swept up in it again. Now he’s still a重囚 in our convoy. Escorting such a重囚 back to his family’s stronghold—have the higher-ups all had their brains stuffed with mud?”

“Didn’t Marshal Ying give you a strategic plan, telling you to open it at the right time?” Lei Xi smiled. “Perhaps the higher-ups have other plans. Why worry about it now?”

“They call it a strategic plan, but I haven’t even seen a ghost of a pouch. This large convoy has over a hundred criminals and more than two thousand escorting soldiers. The lives of more than two thousand men rest on my shoulders—if anyone dies, it’s my responsibility. How can I not worry?” Jiang Ya stuffed away the route map, then turned to see something on the other side of the slope, his expression immediately darkening. “That damned kid!”

Lei Xi’s gaze followed, and he burst out laughing.

Below the slope, the army was resting, setting up tents and preparing meals for the night’s rest, with everyone busy. Therefore, the leisurely figure picking wildflowers on the slope stood out particularly glaringly.

That fellow was humming while picking flowers. After gathering a large pile of miscellaneous blooms, he comfortably lay down in the sunlight and carelessly wove flower garlands. After finishing, he looked left and right, holding the garland as if desperately wanting to find someone to try it on, but everyone was busy with no time to pay attention to him.

Suddenly, someone carrying a bowl of water walked over, went all the way to the highest point of the slope, tested the wind direction, held the bowl steady in his palm with his back to the wind, then closed his eyes and stood motionless.

Jiang Ya and Lei Xi both sighed in unison.

These were the convoy’s two newly emerged treasures.

That little soldier called Bobo—heaven knows where such a strange name came from—relied on being the neighbor of the nephew of the wife of the brother of Marshal Ying of the Yuzhao Dragon Riders, a privileged class member who didn’t work, bore no responsibilities, only ate and drank daily, and often disappeared in various ways. When he vanished, he was truly gone—you could dig three feet into the ground and not find him. When he appeared, he materialized like a ghost anywhere. They’d passed through Xiang Kingdom once, and he’d disappeared seven times. Eventually, everyone got used to this fellow’s disappearances; they found it strange when he stayed properly with the convoy for a day.

The other one was even better—supposedly the daughter of the sister of the master of the brother of Marshal Pei’s future wife, practically a freak. She dressed plainly but carried herself like a queen. She didn’t approach others, nor allow others to approach her. When looking at people, she would glance from afar, making you feel she was looking down her nose at you. She didn’t speak—at first everyone thought she was mute, but later learned she wasn’t speechless but simply wouldn’t talk to people. She only spoke to animals and plants, preferring to mutter to a tree rather than properly answer others’ questions. She wouldn’t eat at the same table as others, wouldn’t eat vegetables, wouldn’t eat food with any seasonings, wouldn’t eat hot food. Every day she carried her bowl alone to stand in high, windy places to eat, allowing no one to approach while she ate, especially forbidding anyone from appearing upwind. Once during camping in Xiang Kingdom, a soldier had stomach troubles and vomited. Though he was a full thirty zhang away from her, somehow she knew and immediately threw the soldier into the lake.

No one knew her name, and no one dared ask. She was very thin, very frail, very pale. Her clothing style was somewhat outdated, as if she’d been buried underground for decades, carrying an aura of darkness and decay. On her pale face, only a pair of deep, large eyes were visible—jet black with faint purple flashes. One glance was like entering a cave filled with purple lightning, threatening to split one’s very soul.

With two such privileged oddballs, no one wanted to provoke them. Everyone hoped these two weirdos would clash with each other, but they seemed so disdainful they couldn’t even see each other. After traveling together for more than half a month, they’d never even made eye contact.

Jiang Ya and Lei Xi watched for a while. The two indeed minded their own business like oil and water, leaving them unsure whether to feel relieved or disappointed as they sighed and went about their duties. They were close to Yu Kingdom’s major city Linzhou, which reportedly had branches of the Yelu family, requiring careful preparation.

On the slope, Jing Hengbo lazily squinted and glanced at the tall, thin woman standing aside, using the wind to cool her plain rice while waiting to eat.

The day she left Imperial Song, when Pei Shu brought this person, she was startled at first glance.

Her first reaction was: Snow Mountain!

Then she felt something different. This woman was mentally listless and cold, her clothing worn, lacking that pretentious air of someone about to descend from Nine Heavens Gate.

But the detachment and coldness emanating from the woman’s temperament was familiar, that disdain cultivated only by reclusive noble families was familiar, even her tightly bound collar seemed familiar.

In that moment, her heart ached.

Pei Shu indeed said, “This is one of the death warriors the other party left behind to block me when I was pursuing Nine Heavens Gate’s sect master’s wife, because she couldn’t shake me off. I almost killed her, but suddenly felt she was different from Snow Mountain’s other death warriors, so I spared her life. I originally wanted to use her to find clues about Yelu Qi, but later had other thoughts. Don’t you think she looks somewhat familiar?”

Jing Hengbo sighed softly.

Indeed familiar.

Like… Gong Yin.

Not similar in appearance—this woman appeared to have only average looks for now. The resemblance was in that reserve and detachment belonging to the Longying noble house. Seeing this woman, she immediately thought of that Long Qing from before.

Whether Nine Heavens Gate or Longying, these century-old noble families always had their unique styles and methods of education, making their offspring, regardless of different appearances, share similarities in essence and bearing.

That the Nine Heavens Gate sect master’s wife had Longying family people around her, and used them as sacrificial pawns, surprised her greatly. Then she understood what Gong Yin had said about family matters back then. Could it be that Longying family people had always been trapped in Snow Mountain?

Then was Gong Yin in Snow Mountain? Had he gone to search for family members?

These were questions she’d always wanted to ask the woman, but the other looked at her like plague, with an expression saying “don’t you dare speak or you’ll regret it.” Even if she asked, she probably wouldn’t get answers, so she’d been waiting for the right opportunity.

She closed her eyes and lazily tossed the flower garland, reaching into her bosom to pull out the divination pearl, gazing at it thoughtfully.

The pearl had traveled through all the nations and tribes she was close to and familiar with during that half year, yielding nothing. The feedback confirmed her suspicion: either Gong Yin wasn’t within the Six Nations and Eight Tribes’ territory, or he was avoiding the tribes she was familiar with and on good terms with, hiding in places like Yu Kingdom where relations were poor, to reduce the chance of her finding him.

Instinct told her the latter was very likely.

She had recalled the pearl, orchestrated Imperial Song’s internal strife, dealt with the court in a simple, brutal manner, and personally came to find him. Except for Xiang Kingdom which they had to pass through, the rest of the route covered tribes she’d never set foot in before. Setting Yu Kingdom as the first stop, she hoped that even if she couldn’t find Gong Yin here, she might at least get news of Yelu Qi—the Yelu family and Nine Heavens Gate had deep connections.

A cold snort suddenly came from above on the slope.

She looked up to see the ice woman had abruptly turned around, staring at her coldly.

While staring at her, she simply dumped her bowl on the ground, white rice spilling everywhere with a vaguely yellow something in the middle—flower petals upon closer inspection.

The flower garland she’d thrown had been blown by the wind, dropping a petal into the ice woman’s rice bowl.

The other’s gaze could kill, as if Jing Hengbo had destroyed not a bowl of rice she’d cleansed with heavenly wind, but the Longying family’s ancestral treasure.

Having reached her current position, Jing Hengbo had long been immune to all kinds of killing intent. She just smiled with a curl of her lips, casually spinning the pearl with her fingertips.

The ice woman’s gaze dropped, suddenly noticing her pearl. For just an instant, Jing Hengbo noticed her gaze waver.

She straightened—this ice woman recognized the pearl?

A cold wind swept by, and the ice woman had already darted over, reaching out to snatch her pearl.

The next instant, Jing Hengbo appeared behind her, kicking toward her rear.

The ice woman’s reaction was surprisingly quick too. Without looking, she immediately flipped over. Jing Hengbo kicked empty air, and before she could steady herself, an ice-cold hand appeared out of nowhere, fingertips clawing viciously at the pearl.

Jing Hengbo flashed again, standing on a nearby tree, stomping hard so flowers from the tree rained down on the ice woman’s head.

Normally, such dirty petals would make the ice woman quickly brush them off, maybe even take a bath. But now she ignored them completely, leaping up the tree with a crack as she broke the branch under Jing Hengbo’s feet.

But Jing Hengbo was already standing on a higher branch.

The ice woman pursued again with another kick, and the branch under Jing Hengbo broke again.

Then she heard Jing Hengbo’s call from above, “Hey! Keep climbing.”

The ice woman looked up. Her temperament was truly persistent, immediately pursuing again with the exact same move.

The two figures flashed like lightning, constantly ascending the not-too-thick tree with continuous cracking sounds as branches broke and fell scattered to the ground with creaking and groaning.

Finally, Jing Hengbo stood shakily at the treetop, smiling down, “How will you stand here?”

The ice woman stood on the branch one level below her, looked at her, said nothing, and kicked down the entire tree.

…

With a thunderous crash, the tree fell. Two human figures flashed and disappeared. Moments later, at the bottom of the slope, Jing Hengbo laughed and scolded, “Hey, we’re both women, why do you keep pestering me?”

“Pearl.” The ice woman reached into her bosom to grope around. Jing Hengbo raised her hand and smashed bird droppings on her head.

That obsessive clean freak who even found plain rice too dirty seemed to have no awareness of the yellow-green mess on her head, persistently reaching out her hand, “Pearl.”

“Get lost, you can’t steal it.”

“Pearl.”

“Tell me why you want this pearl,” Jing Hengbo dodged away, “and I’ll consider it.”

“Only people from my family know how to use this pearl.” The ice woman said, “But this pearl can only be cultivated by people outside. You know Long Yin.”

Jing Hengbo was stunned for a moment before remembering that Gong Yin should actually be called Long Yin.

“You know him too?” she asked tentatively. “Are you his family? Aunt?” Looking at the other’s expression, she corrected, “Sister? Younger sister?”

The ice woman just stared at her unblinkingly, “Where did the pearl come from?”

“You came from Snow Mountain, did you encounter Gong… Long Yin?”

“Where did the pearl come from?”

“First tell me if Long Yin is in Snow Mountain?”

“Give me the pearl first.”

Jing Hengbo irritably scratched her hair—truly talking at cross purposes.

She felt hot and pulled off the heavy soft armor outside, revealing tight-fitting black satin clothing underneath.

She always prioritized clothing comfort and appearance. Even the tight-fitting inner garment was expertly tailored with exquisite materials. The black satin gleamed, fitting snugly along her curves with a faint fragrance wafting out.

The ice woman who had been staring woodenly at the pearl suddenly shifted her eyes, moving them from the pearl for the first time to rest on her chest.

The naturally alluring curves couldn’t be hidden. The ice woman’s gaze showed some amazement as it shifted, following Jing Hengbo’s chest downward, flowing like water over her slender waist and long legs. A flash of light seemed to appear in her eyes before she turned her head away.

Jing Hengbo caught that flash of light.

This light was very familiar to her. In the past, when she walked through crowds in women’s clothing, there were always some mature women or young girls who would secretly steal glances at her—at her face, at her figure—with flickering gazes full of envy and admiration.

The ice woman’s gaze held some similarity, though without jealousy, there was a kind of subtle longing she might not even be aware of herself—the instinctive female longing for curves and beauty.

Jing Hengbo was somewhat surprised but also pleased. She’d thought this ice woman had been frozen solid in places like the Longying noble house and Snow Mountain, losing all normal female instincts long ago.

Where there was desire, there was a lever to move the ice mountain.

“Come with me, and I’ll tell you who gave me the pearl.” She suddenly grabbed the ice woman’s hand, and their figures flashed away.

Half an hour later, convoy captain Jiang Ya’s booming voice once again roared through the camp.

“Damn it, that Bobo is missing again!”

…

Half an hour later, on Linzhou’s most prosperous Nine Holes Street, appeared a somewhat mismatched pair of women.

One was perfectly proportioned with a stunning figure. Though wearing a bamboo hat, her flame-red lips were still visible.

The other wore worn white hemp clothing, tall and thin, with stiff posture and an expressionless face.

The two were completely different in temperament, appearance, posture, and expression—they looked like people who could never walk together. Yet the former was forcibly linking arms with the latter, dragging her in and out of various clothing shops, cosmetics and powder shops, shoe stores, jewelry stores… all the establishments filled with beautiful, exquisite things that women loved.

“This dress is white, snow silk gauze. You’ll definitely like it. Try it.”

“This feather hair ornament looks very suitable for you. It would soften your slightly hard temperament. Try it.”

“This rouge is pale pink, not flashy at all. It would make you look warmer… Try it, try it and I’ll tell you about Long Yin.”

“These pearl earrings may be small, but their color is pure and lustrous, perfect for your complexion.”

At the counter, Jing Hengbo deployed her silver tongue. Beside her, the ice woman’s expression and posture went from initial resolute resistance, to silent departure, to finally stopping, to quiet appreciation, and now she finally held those understated yet crystalline pearls in her hands.

The warm golden afternoon sunlight made her palms appear nearly transparent, as if the golden light could pass through them. The pearls rolling in her palm appeared even more translucent, reminiscent of white foam pushed ashore by rising tides.

Her eyes gazing at the pearls were moist and dark, seemingly moved to tears.

Jing Hengbo turned her head, quietly watching those eyes. It was hard to imagine that this woman, cold as ice and hard as stone, could have such soft, touching gazes. Did these pearl earrings hold some special meaning for her?

The jewelry store owner, seeing both women’s expressions, knew they were tempted and eagerly promoted, “Both ladies have excellent taste. Though these pearls aren’t large, they’re first-class authentic sea pearls. Originally ordered as jewelry by a wealthy family’s daughter in this city, but they changed their minds at the last minute. Now that both ladies have discerning eyes for treasures, our shop is willing to include a matching pair of sea shell earrings from the same fishing grounds as a gift…”

Jing Hengbo smiled and reached for her money pouch, when she suddenly heard the ice woman say quietly, “I’m called Nan Jin, nickname Ming Zhu.”

“Ming Zhu…” Jing Hengbo murmured, thinking that such a lustrous, crystalline name must have carried the cherished love and respect of elders and friends, hoping she would be brilliant and precious like a bright pearl, lustrous and pure. Looking at her current haggard appearance—more like mountain stone than bright pearl—she couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

She reached into her sleeve pouch for money, touched the divination pearl, and suddenly had an impulse to take it out and look, when suddenly a hand grabbed her sleeve.

Therefore, she didn’t see that inside the divination pearl in her sleeve pouch, the straight blood-red line suddenly bent at its tip.