The Yu family had produced many military generals.

But when it came to truly gifted young military talents, none compared to Yu Huanchen.

Now, with the blue eaves and gray snow as his backdrop, his white military robe moved without wind as he broke through the blockade of the prince’s guards with his strength alone, already reaching the middle courtyard.

Since he had come uninvited, he hadn’t even drawn his sword.

Yu Lingxi ran until she was out of breath and called from the corridor: “Elder Brother!”

Yu Huanchen stopped in his tracks, his gaze turning toward her.

Yu Lingxi lifted her skirt and descended the stone steps, her face flushed as she said solemnly: “Everyone stands down!”

The guards instinctively glanced toward a certain place nearby, and having received some unspoken order, they obediently sheathed their weapons and stood to the side.

Yu Lingxi sighed in relief but suddenly felt her wrist tighten as Yu Huanchen led her to the side with large strides.

“How are you? Are you hurt?”

Seeing her with disheveled hair and thin clothing, Yu Huanchen’s heroic eyebrows furrowed even tighter. “In such snowy weather, without even a thick coat to keep warm—is he deliberately mistreating you?”

“No.”

Yu Lingxi shook her head. “When I heard Elder Brother had come, I was so happy that I didn’t have time to dress properly.”

Yu Huanchen took off his outer robe and wrapped it around his sister, asking worriedly: “Has he… bullied you?”

Yu Lingxi was stunned for a moment before understanding the meaning of “bullied.”

She displayed a clean smile and said gently: “No bullying. I’m well here.”

This wasn’t entirely untrue.

Although Ning Yin occasionally played tricks to frighten her, he had never crossed the line. Even when he truly went mad, he only dared to guide Yu Lingxi’s hand holding the blade toward his own Adam’s apple.

Yu Huanchen looked at her with suspicion.

“That day during the palace coup, our household defenses were lax, implicating Suisui—it was my fault. After returning and not finding you, we were nearly driven mad with worry.”

He tensed his voice. “It wasn’t until I saw the fragrance sachet on Prince Jing’s waist during the morning court and recognized it as your embroidery that I was certain you were indeed in Prince Jing’s mansion.”

The only pattern his sister excelled at embroidering was the auspicious rabbit design. Everyone in the Yu family had one, and they were all familiar with her needlework.

Yu Huanchen had worn his rabbit sachet for three or four years, only replacing it with a silver openwork grape-patterned sachet given by Su Wan after their marriage this year.

“I knew Elder Brother would recognize it. However, this matter truly has nothing to do with Ning Yin. Ning Yin knew the sachet was meant to send a message to you, yet he still chose to wear it, which already demonstrates his attitude.”

Fearing deeper misunderstandings, Yu Lingxi explained, “After Wang Lingqing’s plot failed, he became desperate. Having heard that the Seventh Prince had once been reduced to servitude, he kidnapped me and sent me here as a gift to exchange for his life.”

Wang Lingqing?

Yu Huanchen pondered: The details of the Seventh Prince’s exile had not been made public—how did a mere Eastern Palace lackey know about it?

Before he could figure it out, he heard his sister ask: “How is the current court situation?”

“Murky waters.”

Mentioning this, Yu Huanchen’s expression became even more solemn. “The old factions and new nobles are restless, with many fearless ones trying to grab a share amid the chaos.”

No wonder Ning Yin had so much undried blood on him these past few days. Yu Lingxi frowned slightly.

“Let’s set that aside for now. The day before yesterday, Father and I tried to use our military merits to ask the Emperor to rescind the marriage decree, but the Emperor only pretended not to understand. We can’t resolve this openly.”

Yu Huanchen said, “Who knows what might happen before the wedding day? Come home with me for now.”

Yu Lingxi clutched her brother’s large outer robe but didn’t move.

Yu Huanchen turned around and called: “Suisui?”

“I don’t want to go back.”

Yu Lingxi took a deep breath and raised her head. “I want to stay by Ning Yin’s side.”

“Suisui doesn’t want to return?”

Yu Huanchen was somewhat surprised, then lowered his gaze. “Is Prince Jing threatening you, making you stay as a hostage?”

“I told you, it’s me who wants to stay.”

Yu Lingxi exhaled a white breath, lowering her eyes and saying softly, “Last time, I had no choice; this time, I don’t want to abandon him again.”

Although the court situation was chaotic now, at least Ning Yin was no longer Wei Qi, who had to endure humiliation with his life hanging by a thread.

Yu Huanchen was still uneasy.

With small disturbances constantly occurring at court, and Ning Yin being too prominent, how could he possibly feel at ease leaving his sister here alone?

“No…”

“I want to take a gamble, Elder Brother.”

Yu Lingxi’s eyes were determined, her thoughts clear. “If there’s no final result by the wedding day, then I’ll accept my fate.”

“The wedding is only four days away. How is there enough time?”

Yu Huanchen said seriously, “You’re gambling with your life, Suisui.”

“But if I don’t choose him, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life.”

Seeing that Yu Huanchen wouldn’t relent, Yu Lingxi pressed her lips together and smiled.

“Let me tell Elder Brother a secret.”

Her eyes filled with transparent light as she stepped forward. “You think we’re the only ones anxious about the imperial marriage decree—isn’t Ning Yin anxious too?”

That man would grind his teeth in jealousy at the mere mention of her marriage to the Xue family.

So Yu Lingxi wanted to take a gamble, betting on her position in Ning Yin’s heart.

Yu Huanchen said nothing, but there was a hint of struggle in his gaze.

Yu Lingxi gently tugged at Yu Huanchen’s sleeve, coaxing: “I’ll see Elder Brother out of the mansion, alright?”

Yu Huanchen looked at his sister for a long time, finally letting out a long sigh.

Yu Lingxi wore a clear, bright smile as she escorted her brother to the mansion gate.

“No, it’s still too risky!”

Having left the gate, Yu Huanchen turned back, grabbing his sister’s wrist. “I can’t rest easy!”

Just as he touched Yu Lingxi’s wrist, a whistling sound cut through the air.

Years of battlefield experience made Yu Huanchen let go immediately, and then an arrow grazed his wrist guard and flew past, embedding itself in the ice-covered tiles behind him.

The tile instantly cracked with spider-web patterns. The arrow’s force drove it two inches into the ground, its tail still vibrating.

Yu Huanchen glanced at his torn sleeve, his expression darkening. If he hadn’t quickly withdrawn his hand, the arrow would have pierced more than just his sleeve.

“Suisui, your brother hopes you’ll think this through.”

Yu Huanchen pointed to the arrow on the ground. “You want to stay with such a dangerous person?”

Yu Lingxi knew the quarter-hour was up.

“He’s just afraid you’ll take me away, like last time.”

Yu Lingxi pressed her lips together, took off Yu Huanchen’s outer robe, and handed it back. “I’ll write to the family daily to report that I’m safe. Indulge Suisui once more, please?”

Yu Huanchen’s feelings were incredibly complex. He took the outer robe and walked a few steps outward, then stopped.

He turned back to look at his sister for a long time, only leaving after she smiled and waved, heavily descending the stone steps before mounting his horse.

Snow fell from the eaves with a soft pat.

After her brother left, Yu Lingxi lowered her eyes to look at the arrow embedded in the brick cracks and sighed softly.

Using both hands, she pulled the arrow out, weighed it in her hand, then turned and went to the bedchamber.

Now it was time to close the door and settle accounts with the little madman.

There wasn’t a single attendant in the bedchamber. Ning Yin sat barefoot on the couch, still in the same position as when she left, playing with a black jade carving in his hand, lost in thought.

Yu Lingxi rarely saw him in such a quiet state.

Seeing Yu Lingxi enter with a calm expression, he was visibly stunned for a moment before slowly breaking into a smile.

“You came back.”

He straightened up nonchalantly, locking the jade carving back in a hidden compartment at the head of the couch. “Two breaths late.”

“What is this about?”

Yu Lingxi frowned, angrily slapping the arrow down on the table in front of him.

“Oh, this.”

Ning Yin picked up the arrow, and tapped the cold arrowhead with his finger, making a “ding” sound. “I’ve always been vindictive, so I told Li Jiu that if Yu Huanchen dared to take you away, he should cripple one of his hands.”

Seeing Yu Lingxi’s glaring eyes, he said indifferently: “It’s just crippling one hand, not killing him.”

“That’s my brother.”

Yu Lingxi stood opposite him, her expression solemn. “If you want to hurt him, you might as well hurt me directly.”

“How could I bear to hurt Lingxi?”

Ning Yin laughed softly, saying gently: “Lingxi will never make mistakes; it’s always others who are wrong.”

“I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I didn’t leave with my brother, so your plan failed.”

Yu Lingxi crossed her arms, dropped her facade, and sat down beside him. “Since Your Highness has risen to such heights yet is still willing to lower himself to be my lover, why should I leave?”

Ning Yin looked up, examining her expression for a while, then asked: “What did you say?”

“I said, I’m staying right here!”

Yu Lingxi enunciated each word. “Even with the Emperor’s marriage decree, even if no one comes to my wedding palanquin four days later causing the wedding feast to descend into chaos, it has nothing to do with me! After all, it was Prince Jing who kept me here, it was His Highness who couldn’t bear to part with me…”

“Impudent.” Ning Yin narrowed his eyes.

“Isn’t it true? My brother left in anger, my parents won’t manage me anymore—I have no home.”

Yu Lingxi became increasingly emotional as she spoke, her nose growing sour as she turned her face away. “If Your Highness doesn’t take care of me, at worst, we’ll die together four days from now.”

Ning Yin didn’t answer for a long time.

The usually sarcastic and eloquent Prince Jing had become exceptionally docile, his cold eyes fixed steadily on Yu Lingxi, churning with unknown darkness.

After a moment, that darkness subsided, condensing into a deep, bottomless pool.

“Lingxi has deceived me again.”

He seemed to be speaking to himself as he glanced at the messily stitched sachet hanging at his waist, sneering slowly: “After all, even the handmade sachet was only meant to send a message to the Yu family.”

Yu Lingxi looked at him in disbelief.

Sometimes, she truly wished she could open Ning Yin’s head and see what twisted thoughts filled it.

She simply reached out and yanked the sachet down.

With a light sound, the faint smile in Ning Yin’s eyes froze.

He grabbed her wrist, pulled her closer, and looking into her eyes, said gently: “Give it back before I get angry. Be good.”

“Since you knew my intention, why did you willingly wear it?”

Yu Lingxi couldn’t help but ask, “You’re so clever, why didn’t you ever think to open the sachet and look inside?”

Angrily, she threw the sachet back at Ning Yin, then turned away to sit at the end of the bed, back turned, ignoring him.

Ning Yin was suspicious and pinched the dark green pot-shaped sachet.

The texture indeed felt somewhat unusual.

After receiving this item yesterday, he had been busy with official duties and only took it off to smell its fragrance when he was tired.

Like drinking poison to quench thirst, with an almost self-abusive clarity and a willingness to sink into addiction, he hadn’t questioned the filling inside.

Ning Yin hesitated for a moment, finally pulling open the tightened string of the sachet and emptying the herbs and cotton inside.

Besides common herbs like mint and cloves, there were two red beans the size of a fingertip.

The red beans had characters carved on them: one with “Sui” and one with “Qi.”

Ning Yin suddenly grew quiet, lowering his eyelids, his fingertips repeatedly stroking the two love beans with their crudely carved characters.

Shaking the sachet again, a folded note fell out, written in beautiful tiny characters with two sentences:

【雙生有幸，見君不悔】 [Blessed with two lives, seeing you bring no regrets]

“Blessed with two lives, seeing you brings no regrets.”

Ning Yin repeated it silently to himself, then laughed softly, pretending to be calm as he asked: “People usually speak of ‘one life, one world,’ why does Lingxi write of ‘two lives’?”

Yu Lingxi turned her head and said stubbornly: “Because one lifetime isn’t enough for your mischief!”

Placing red beans in a sachet was a way for women in the capital to express their love and sincerity, symbolizing endless longing across lifetimes. She had spent half the night making this, yet this madman Ning Yin hadn’t understood at all—no wonder he had been so odd this morning.

The bright and gentle young woman was a pleasing picture to behold even when sulking alone.

Ning Yin stared at the note in his hand for a moment, then suddenly laughed, his laughter growing more unrestrained until his shoulders shook and even the corners of his eyes turned red.

Yu Lingxi had never seen Ning Yin laugh so freely before and frowned as she watched him.

Ning Yin turned her shoulders around, but Yu Lingxi remembered she was still angry and twisted away.

When he reached for her again, she pulled away once more, showing rare stubbornness.

So Ning Yin pulled her entirely into his embrace, then tightened his arms, resting his chin on top of her head, gently rubbing.

He didn’t say a word—he would never say “I’m sorry.”

This was his way of apologizing.

“You’re done for.”

Yu Lingxi, muffled in his embrace, was both accommodating and coquettish. “I’m sticking to you, little madman.”

Ning Yin held her even tighter as if wanting to merge her into his blood and bones, hiding her in the depths of his heart.

“All right.”

He smiled tenderly yet madly, biting her earlobe. “Come to hell with this madman.”