After reaching an agreement, Ye Li granted Han Mingyue a certain degree of freedom. Similarly, out of consideration for Han Mingyue, she no longer had people watching Su Meidie’s every move, though still confining her to that small courtyard. Han Mingyue was a clever person and naturally knew what would be best for both himself and Su Meidie. While the Prince of Zhennan did value Han Mingyue, it was only because of the power and wealth he controlled. Now that Han Mingyue had nothing, he would likely become nothing more than a target for the Prince’s anger. As for Su Meidie, Han Mingyue clearly understood that neither Mo Xiuyao nor Ye Li would have much patience for her, so if he wanted Su Meidie to live well, the best solution was to keep watch over her himself.
Despite achieving another victory in her confrontation with the Prince of Zhennan, Ye Li’s mood hadn’t improved. She understood clearly that the current situation remained extremely unfavorable for the Prince of Dinguo’s manor. Watching the constant stream of military commanders entering and leaving Mo Xiuyao’s study, Ye Li knew that another separation was imminent.
Three days later, news arrived that Jiangxia was under siege again. Mo Xiuyao quietly gazed at the graceful woman sitting beside him, his eyes filled with deep regret and reluctance to part. The Mo family’s army of 700,000 troops stood ready for battle, yet for the first time in his life, he hesitated before setting out on a campaign. He had never so despised and hated Mo Jingqi’s selfish and base tactics; if possible, how he wished he could keep his A’Li by his side wherever he went. Ye Li looked amusedly at the man before her showing rare childlike behavior, reached out to caress his handsome face, and said softly, “You should depart now. Don’t worry, I will guard everything well for you—whether it’s Xinyang and Jiangxia, or the entire Northwest.”
Mo Xiuyao pulled her tightly into his embrace. This man who had rarely shed tears found his eyes growing moist and hot, but he didn’t want his wife to discover this moment of weakness. Sometimes… love doesn’t need to be expressed in words; sometimes, certain words and actions can express their meaning better than the word “love” itself.
“A’Li…”
Ye Li pursed her lips in a faint smile and raised her arms to return his embrace. “Don’t you trust me?”
Mo Xiuyao shook his head. “In this world, if I can’t trust A’Li, who else can I trust?”
“In that case, go do what needs to be done with peace of mind.” Ye Li held his shoulders and raised her head to speak seriously. She wasn’t naturally inclined to clinginess, and although unwilling to part, she understood clearly that some things must be done. Since that was the case, she would guard this vast territory of the Northwest for him, letting him proceed without worries. The burden heaven had placed on this man’s shoulders was already heavy enough; since she had chosen him, let her share some of it.
“A’Li, once this war ends, no one will ever be able to separate you from my side again.” Mo Xiuyao said through gritted teeth, fiercely kissing the fragrant lips of the person in his arms. The deep kiss continued until both were somewhat breathless before parting. Ye Li laughed softly, “I won’t always stay under your wings, Mo Xiuyao. If I’ve chosen someone, I hope to stand beside him as an equal.”
Mo Xiuyao trapped her in his embrace, saying dissatisfied, “You’ve never hidden under my wings. However… This Prince looks forward to a life walking side by side with A’Li.”
After seeing Mo Xiuyao off, Ye Li stood on Xinyang’s city wall, gazing far into the distance at his departing figure. Mo Xiuyao hadn’t taken Xinyang’s troops with him, as Xinyang and the entire Northwest region similarly faced hundreds of thousands of powerful enemies. Only a few commanders like Lu Jinxian followed him to the new battlefield, while Feng San, who had always been by his side as his most trusted confidant, was left in Xinyang.
Han Mingyue stood in a corner of the city wall, watching the elegant woman gazing into the distance from the battlements, his eyes flashing with extremely complex emotions. There seemed to be envy, comfort, and loss.
“The Prince of Ding seems quite at ease,” Han Mingyue walked to Ye Li’s side and stood still, sighing softly.
Ye Li turned her head to glance at him, smiling calmly, “I am his wife. If he can’t trust me, who else can he trust?” Han Mingyue raised his eyebrows, asking with a smile, “This time is different from the Yonglin incident, and the Prince of Zhennan is not the Prince of Li. Is the Princess truly not afraid at all?” Ye Li turned around, looking at him with an ambiguous smile, “If fear could solve problems, then… I would be very afraid.” Having said this, she didn’t wait for whatever else Han Mingyue wanted to say, instead addressing Feng San who stood not far away, “Send people to support General Yuan Pei. Also, scatter the army throughout the Northwest; Xinyang city doesn’t need so many people.”
Feng Zhiyao’s sword-like eyebrows furrowed slightly, expressing some disagreement, “Princess, if we disperse our forces, it might be disadvantageous for defending Xinyang.” Ye Li said calmly, “Who said anything about defending Xinyang? What we need to do is keep the Prince of Zhennan and his central army of hundreds of thousands tied up in the Northwest, preventing him from interfering with His Highness. As for Xinyang… how many civilians are left in this city besides the Mo family army? When great chaos arrives, who will still pay attention to this northwestern town? From now on… the Central Plains will be the important stage for this world.”
After a moment of silence, Feng Zhiyao cupped his hands and said, “This subordinate accepts the command.”
Watching Feng Zhiyao turn and leave, Han Mingyue smiled and sighed, “Feng San has always been proud, listening to no one except Xiuyao. I didn’t expect him to be so willingly convinced by the Princess.” Not just Feng Zhiyao, even he was privately amazed by the bearing and decisiveness of this woman not yet twenty years old. He finally understood why the cold and aloof Mo Xiuyao would value this Princess of Ding so highly. Such a woman was enough to intoxicate and captivate the world’s heroes and outstanding men.
After watching Ye Li descend from the city wall, Han Mingyue gazed at a certain spot on the battlements and said quietly, “Do you now understand the difference between you and her?”
From the shadows, Su Meidie emerged silently. Her exquisitely beautiful face was filled with gloom and unwillingness, not just because Mo Xiuyao trusted in Ye Li, but more because she knew she didn’t have Ye Li’s capability and resolve. Watching Ye Li calmly and composedly command the army and issue orders with such bearing made her envious and even desperate to have such authority herself. But deep in her heart, she also understood that she didn’t have such ability, just as she, raised in the inner chambers of a noble family and having only fought in palace intrigues, couldn’t comprehend each order Ye Li gave. She snorted lightly in unwillingness, “So what?”
Han Mingyue remained silent, then after a while said, “Let’s go. When the war ends, we’ll leave this place. Don’t do anything unnecessary; if you anger the Princess of Ding, even I won’t be able to save you.”
Su Meidie bit her lip, and glared at Han Mingyue for a while, but ultimately said nothing more.
Mo Xiuyao’s departure signaled the end of Xinyang City’s brief peace. On the city walls, the Mo family army’s soldiers stood vigilantly on high alert, watching the Western Ling army that eyed the city covetously below. Following Ye Li’s orders, Feng Zhiyao secretly dispatched the majority of the Mo family army from Xinyang City. Whether the Prince of Zhennan discovered this or not, or perhaps believed that a Xinyang with few defenders better suited his interests, almost every day there were battles large and small outside Xinyang city. However, the Western Ling army that had previously been unstoppable could no longer step through Xinyang city’s gates as they had before. The news from various parts of the Northwest, along with the Mo family army that seemed to suddenly appear throughout the region, made the Prince of Zhennan furrow his brows deeply even upon receiving news that Mo Xiuyao was surrounded by nearly 800,000 troops. He had already understood the true intentions of that woman who occasionally appeared on the city walls, gazing indifferently at the bloodshed below. But now… he could no longer withdraw. Without completely conquering the Northwest, his ambitions to extend his influence to the Central Plains would fail. What angered him, even more, was that even news of Mo Xiuyao being surrounded by heavy forces couldn’t cause that woman in the city to show the slightest disturbance or panic. While occasionally mocking Mo Xiuyao for having married such a cold-hearted and unfeeling wife, he also had to privately speculate about what kind of woman she was.
On the city wall, Ye Li, as usual, finished handling the city’s military and government affairs before ascending the wall to gaze at the Western Ling camp in the distance with its rolling banners.
“Princess…” Feng Zhiyao climbed the city wall, looking at the slender and beautiful figure before him, and couldn’t help but sigh slightly in his heart. Only those trusted confidants knew exactly what burdens and pressures this young woman was bearing. At the same time, the tenacity and decisiveness of the woman before them made the entire Mo family army’s soldiers even more willingly convinced. Only because she was Ye Li, not because she was the Princess of Ding.
Ye Li turned back with a faint smile and said, “Feng San, is something the matter?”
Feng Zhiyao frowned as he looked at her somewhat pale complexion, saying worriedly, “The Princess seems unwell these past few days, should we have a physician take a look?” Ye Li shook her head and said, “I’m just a bit tired. If the Prince of Zhennan from Western Ling were so easy to deal with, he wouldn’t be known as the War God of Western Ling. I’m quite nervous too.”
Feng Zhiyao looked at her smiling and said, “This subordinate can’t see any sign of nervousness from the Princess. By being able to keep Western Ling’s partial forces and the Prince of Zhennan tied up in the Northwest, we’ve at least reduced His Highness’s opposing forces by one-third. The Princess’s contributions cannot be overlooked.”
“One-third…” Ye Li pondered for a moment, then asked, “How is His Highness’s situation now?”
Feng Zhiyao hesitated for a moment, but still replied truthfully, “Although all the Mo family army’s forces are now under His Highness’s control, currently Western Ling, Nanzhao, and the Prince of Li are all attacking simultaneously. His Highness has only a bit over 500,000 troops, making it impossible to deal with three fronts at once. Moreover, we must guard against that person in the capital making underhanded moves.”
“How many people does His Highness need to deal with now?”
“At least 800,000,” Feng Zhiyao said solemnly.
Ye Li gave a cold laugh and said, “It’s not about guarding against his underhanded moves; he’s already made his move. Nanzhao is a small country, their total military force won’t exceed 300,000. In the south, Mo Jingli must guard against Mo Jingqi and can at most spare 200,000 troops. As for Western Ling… Lei Tengfeng’s forces won’t exceed 200,000 either.”
Feng Zhiyao’s expression changed slightly as he said, “Currently there’s no news of troops from various regions of Da Chu participating in the war, which means… Mo Jingqi has secretly hidden at least several hundred thousand troops!”
Ye Li closed her eyes slightly, sighing softly, “Mo Jingqi is determined to destroy the Prince of Ding’s manor and the Mo family army.”