The sky gradually darkened, and colorful lanterns began to light up. Intricately woven candle lanterns stretched from the western end of God-Worshipping Street, illuminating half of Lin’an City in a continuous line.

Ruyi sat in the best seat on the second floor of Lion Tower, perfectly positioned to watch the two lion dance troupes facing off beneath the town’s memorial archway. The lion heads were lifelike, and their dance was vivid and spirited.

She loved watching these small earthly festivities. Though clumsy and complicated, they were things that would never exist in the mountain forests.

The person beside her seemed already accustomed to such sights. He wasn’t looking down at the performance, but used the motion of lifting his wine cup to stare at her in a daze.

He was puzzled by why he would care so much about a woman he was meeting for the first time, and puzzled about what her background could be. Thinking deeper, he even became wary, secretly wondering if she might be a spy sent by a neighboring country.

But neighboring countries were mostly populated by barbarians, whose women were tall with deep-set features. The person before him was like a crescent moon—slender and elegant.

She must have lived a pampered life, so her ten fingers were like scallions untouched by worldly concerns. The jade hairpins and pearl ornaments in her hair were already luxurious, and around her neck hung an eastern pearl the size of a thumb. When she casually turned her head to smile at him, her smile was even more lustrous and captivating than that pearl’s glow.

“I’m thirsty.” She pointed at the empty wine cup beside her hand.

No courtesy, no small talk. Her tone was matter-of-fact, and she even lifted her chin slightly.

Wei Zijue was possessed by something as he picked up the wine pot and poured her a small cup.

The person before him nodded with satisfaction, picked up the cup and drained it in one gulp, then pressed her lips together to savor the taste, her fingertips stroking the cup’s rim intermittently.

“The General is acquainted with the Ningyuan Marquis, yet I have never seen the General before.” She suddenly spoke. “It seems the General hasn’t returned to Lin’an for four years.”

“More than four years.” He instinctively replied. “Zeyou and I served together in our youth and should have stayed together all along, but when I was twelve, my father was assigned to guard the border cities, so I could only follow him. Counting it up, it’s been seven years.”

“Oh?” She blinked curiously. “Are the days in the border cities harsh?”

How could they not be harsh? Lin’an was abundant and lively, with everything one could want, but the border cities were almost all desolate villages. The best thing he had eaten since age twelve was a piece of white flatbread.

But none of that mattered. His duty was to guard the border cities well and prevent the barbarians from disturbing the people.

Wei Zijue’s emotions churned inside, but to a woman he was meeting for the first time, he only said: “It’s quite good.”

The person across from him looked at him, and in her eyes was complete understanding.

Watching this, he felt somewhat puzzled, and after the puzzlement came some anger. What right did a carefree woman of Lin’an have to look at him with such eyes? What did she know? Snow in winter, for instance—in Lin’an it was romantic beauty, but in the border cities it meant corpses strewn everywhere.

Had she ever seen those hellish scenes? Did she know what kind of feeling it was for military men like them to spend their entire lives unable to cross the Nine Rivers?

Taking two deep breaths, Wei Zijue rose angrily to his feet. Just as he was about to bid farewell, he heard her say lightly: “Sit down.”

What a joke! He was the mighty General of the South—should he obey the orders of a commoner?

…But she seemed displeased. The smile at the corners of her lips disappeared, and there was a trace of impatience between her brows.

After pacing back and forth irritably for two steps, Wei Zijue still sat back down in his original position.

Ruyi muttered crossly: “After all these years, you still can’t change this hot-tempered nature.”

“What?”

“I said,” she turned her head toward the archway, “the Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl is about to begin.”

Below, the two lion dance troupes went back and forth, frantically competing for the embroidered ball hanging from a tall pole, drawing cheers from the watching crowd.

Ruyi propped her chin on her hand as she watched, saying carelessly: “There’s a saying in Lin’an City that the moment when the embroidered ball from Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl falls from the tall pole is such a splendid spectacle that even immortals will peek out to watch. So, making a wish at that moment is most likely to be heard by the immortals.”

Wei Zijue was puzzled: “There’s such a saying?”

“Does the General have any wishes?” she asked in turn. “Promotion and wealth? Marriage and children?”

“No.” He said seriously, “I want to lead Great Qian’s soldiers across the Nine Rivers.”

Eight years ago, Great Qian had ceded the territory south of the Nine Rivers to neighboring countries to quell the warfare. Every single day since then, these border garrison officers had been thinking about how to recover the lost territory and how to rescue their comrades.

This wish was too grand—even if immortals heard it, they wouldn’t care.

Watching the embroidered ball fall from the pole, Wei Zijue only smiled mockingly and didn’t make a wish.

The current Emperor, like the late Emperor, wanted peace under heaven and prosperous towns. They wouldn’t want to wage war, much less allow military power to fall into others’ hands. His return to the capital this time, besides attending Zeyou’s wedding banquet, was to surrender his military authority and then live in idle retirement in Lin’an.

A nineteen-year-old commander had already gained too high a reputation in the border cities—it wasn’t suitable for him to continue standing guard there.

Ruyi made a “hmm” sound and nodded almost imperceptibly.

In this lifetime, A’jue had finally found something he was passionate about. Before this, he had seemed to live only for her.

“There’s a question I’d like to ask the young lady.” Wei Zijue suddenly spoke.

Ruyi turned her head to look at him.

His face flushed again, and his hands resting on the table clenched into fists. After hesitating for a long while, he still asked: “Is the young lady married?”

Bringing up this topic, Ruyi smiled: “The Ningyuan Marquis and the General have exchanged letters for so many years, yet it seems he hasn’t mentioned me even once.”

Wei Zijue was startled: “What do you mean by this?”

She didn’t answer, only smiled meaningfully.

Wei Zijue’s complexion gradually paled.

She belonged to Zeyou? But she was wearing the hairstyle of an unmarried woman.

A mistress? Impossible—she had entered the marquis’ manor openly today.

Countless thoughts flashed through his mind. He pressed his lips together and pinched the bridge of his nose in distress.

Ruyi didn’t explain a word, only watched him suffer and struggle, hesitate and wrestle with himself. After a long time, he finally raised his head and said to her hoarsely, “As long as you’re not married, everything is good.”

When he said this, even his eyelashes were trembling. His gaze was evasive, as if he were trying hard to deceive himself, yet the corners of his eyes revealed traces of collapse.

Falling in love with his brother’s woman—he could conquer reason for a moment, but would have to live with guilt for a long time. He wasn’t someone who would make such an absurd choice, but—

Wei Zijue raised his head and looked at Ruyi, always feeling that he had already loved her for many, many years.

Ruyi quietly appreciated his suffering.

Why else would they say that beauty in this world always carries some brokenness and cruelty? Beauties like him and Shen Qiyuan were most moving at times like this—crushing reason, being forced to break the shackles they usually wore, approaching her step by step with wild yet restrained intensity.

She couldn’t help but reach out and touch the side of Wei Zijue’s face.

His pupils contracted slightly. Wei Zijue looked at her in shock, yet felt his heart warming because of this soft touch on his face.

Were her heart and his heart in harmony?