Han Mingyue silently watched his brother leave, ultimately saying nothing more. Although he had left behind a mess, Mingxi had managed to pull through on his own. As for himself… he turned to look at the white-clad woman approaching him and a bitter smile tugged at his lips.
“Han Mingyue!” Su Zuidie walked with delicate steps to the corridor. Looking at Han Mingyue leaning against a pillar, her face was dark, her exquisite features filled with displeasure. “When can we finally leave this cursed place!” Su Zuidie felt she was going mad. She had never so regretted agreeing to the Garrison South King’s plan to return to Great Chu and seduce Mo Xiuyao. Not only had she failed to seduce Mo Xiuyao, but these days following the army, she ate plain food, wore ordinary clothes, and worst of all, during the march she couldn’t rest whenever she wanted. Every day left her exhausted to death. Finally reaching Hong Province, she had thought things would be more comfortable, but Ye Li had people stuff her into this small, crude courtyard and then ignored her completely. Besides the people who delivered meals daily, there weren’t even serving maids, pushing Su Zuidie’s patience to its absolute limit these days.
What Su Zuidie didn’t know was that the lack of serving maids in the courtyard wasn’t Ye Li deliberately mistreating her, but rather Han Mingyue himself had dismissed all the people sent to serve. Thus, Su Zuidie had to dress herself, clean her room, and even wash her clothes.
Seeing Su Zuidie’s unbridled impatience and anger, Han Mingyue felt as if his heart was being scraped by a dull knife. Frowning as he recalled Han Mingxi’s words, he lowered his eyes and asked quietly, “Leave here? Where do you want to go?”
“Back to Western Ling, of course!” Not noticing Han Mingyue’s expression, Su Zuidie answered as if it were obvious: “I want to return to the palace! I can’t stand this cursed place anymore.” Han Mingyue raised his eyes to look at her, his expression calm and undisturbed, “Don’t you want revenge against the Princess Consort anymore?” Su Zuidie started, her delicate brows furrowing in hesitation. Of course, she wanted revenge against Ye Li – she dreamed of it. But she wasn’t a fool; as long as Mo Xiuyao lived, she didn’t dare take revenge against Ye Li. She had grown up with Mo Xiuyao – she could underestimate any man in the world, but never Mo Xiuyao. Looking at Han Mingyue, Su Zuidie bit her lip and asked, “When you said you would help me, was that true?”
Han Mingyue looked at her without speaking, but Su Zuidie took his reaction as agreement. Her eyes flickered seductively as her delicate jade hand pressed against Han Mingyue’s chest, her voice gentle and enchanting, “Mingyue, help me… help me… kill Xiuyao…”
Han Mingyue’s heart turned cold as he looked down at the woman leaning against his chest. Her transcendent beauty was like that of a heavenly immortal, but the words from those cherry-like lips made one’s blood run cold. “I thought you could never forget Xiuyao?”
Su Zuidie smiled lightly, unconcerned, “Of course I can’t forget Xiuyao. Even if he dies, I’ll never forget him in this lifetime. Mingyue, do you remember what Xiuyao was like back then in the Chu capital? I knew then there would never be a more excellent man in this world. Unfortunately… at that time he was just the second son of the Nation-Stabilizing Prince’s manor, the Prince’s brother. If not for Mo Xuwen, it would have been perfect. But alas… though he’s the Prince now, we can never see again that bearing and appearance that once made him famous in the Chu capital.”
Listening to Su Zuidie’s almost self-muttering words, Han Mingyue’s heart suddenly skipped a beat. He stood frozen in the corridor, unresponsive even with the warm fragrance in his arms, as if lost in thought.
Su Zuidie wasn’t looking for Han Mingyue’s opinion, just continued smiling, “Originally I thought perhaps one day Xiuyao and I could mend our broken mirror. But this reunion made me understand… Xiuyao has been seduced away by that slut Ye Li! You saw how cruel he was to me… Since I can’t have him, that slut Ye Li shouldn’t have him either!” At this point, Su Zuidie’s stunning features had become twisted with hatred. But when she raised her head to look at Han Mingyue, her eyes were again full of tender affection, “Mingyue, help me kill Mo Xiuyao. Help me kill Mo Xiuyao and I’ll be yours…”
Han Mingyue’s eyes were empty and confused, “Kill Mo Xiuyao…”
Su Zuidie nodded, saying softly, “You know, I only like the strongest man in the world. Kill Mo Xiuyao… prove that you are the most powerful man in the world…” Han Mingyue remained silent for a long while, then suddenly asked, “Will you come with me? To watch Mo Xiuyao die with your own eyes?” Su Zuidie’s eyes flickered slightly as she smiled charmingly, “I’ll wait for you in Western Ling’s imperial city. Bring Mo Xiuyao’s head to me. Then we can be together forever.”
Han Mingyue stared at her steadily until Su Zuidie’s slight smile began to falter, then slowly removed her hand and turned to walk deeper into the small courtyard. Su Zuidie started, watching Han Mingyue’s retreating figure in confusion. She had grown too accustomed to taking whatever she wanted from Han Mingyue; in fact, he had never truly refused her before. Even during those years when she had abandoned him for Western Ling, even when Han Mingyue was most cold toward her, he would always do whatever she asked. But this time, she suddenly felt uncertain.
“Mingyue…”
Han Mingyue turned back, his elegant features full of exhaustion, “Zuidie, have you thought about what would happen if I went to kill Xiuyao?” He was no longer the Han Mingyue who controlled the Tianyi Pavilion – even at the height of his power, he hadn’t been confident he could kill Mo Xiuyao. Su Zuidie’s delicate brows furrowed, but she quickly smiled again, “I know this is very dangerous, Mingyue. Of course, I will find people to help you.” Han Mingyue remained unmoved, “Do you know what would happen to Great Chu if Mo Xiuyao died?” Su Zuidie frowned in displeasure, “What does Great Chu matter to us? Mingyue, will you help me or not?”
Han Mingyue shook his head heavily, watching as Su Zuidie’s face changed suddenly, glaring at him fiercely before calling him useless and turning away. Watching that unhesitating departure, Han Mingyue sighed. If he had agreed, forget about whether they could assassinate Mo Xiuyao – whether they could survive tonight was still a question. Was this… the woman he loved? With the white figure no longer in the corridor, Han Mingyue thought with some bitterness in his heart.
In the study of the Governor’s mansion, most of the Mo family army commanders who remained in the Northwest, except those leading troops outside, had gathered in a rare assembly.
Ye Li sat in a comfortable chair, smiling as she listened to the commander’s report on the recent military situation. Although the commanders remaining in the Northwest were generally quite young, with almost no famous generals among them, the Marquis of the South, who outsiders believed had met with misfortune, had stayed behind. The Marquis’s experience and knowledge were incomparable to ordinary young commanders. Though he couldn’t openly take the field, these days he had taught Ye Li much about military matters and similarly shared much of her pressure.
“…Of the eleven cities in the Northwest, besides three that have fallen to Western Ling and two that are being repeatedly contested, the remaining six cities are completely under our army’s control. We await the Princess Consort’s instructions.”
Ye Li nodded with satisfaction, “All the generals have worked hard.” Peacefully taking control of cities originally held by court troops required effort no less than fighting Western Ling forces. This way, the situation in the Northwest was finally in the Mo family army’s hands. Even if Western Ling sent more troops to the Northwest, they had enough room to maneuver without worrying about attacks from both front and rear or being secretly plotted against by Mo Jingqi’s people. Everyone stood and said they didn’t dare accept such praise. Ye Li smiled and looked toward the Marquis of the South who sat drinking tea to the side, asking, “Marquis, what are your views on the coming military operations?”
The Marquis of the South cupped his hands toward Ye Li and said, “Winter is approaching in the Northwest. If the Western Ling forces don’t want to wait with us until spring next year, they will likely intensify their attacks soon. This servant believes we need not be polite with them anymore – we must strike back hard! The Northwest is one of Great Chu’s three major granaries. If fighting continues after spring, I fear it will affect the common people’s farming.” The Marquis’s humble manner, referring to himself as a ‘servant’ to this young woman, already showed his current attitude. On the other hand, the Marquis was also very satisfied with Ye Li’s performance. This Princess Consort was not like ordinary women who either grasped for power or were arrogant, nor did she pretend to understand things she didn’t for the sake of face. She was very clear that she wasn’t skilled at large-scale troop deployment, so she never hesitated to ask her subordinates’ opinions. A true leader didn’t need to charge into battle or even need to know how to arrange troops. They only needed to be able to make good use of capable people and make correct decisions at crucial moments. No wonder the Duke of Hua praised the Princess Consort so highly – in the Marquis’s view, though she was a woman, she already possessed the bearing of a ruler.
Ye Li nodded, “The Marquis thinks thoroughly. I have also been quite worried about this matter. Since that’s the case, let everyone share their thoughts.” Ye Li wasn’t only worried about next year’s spring planting in the Northwest. Although the Mo family army and the court hadn’t officially broken face yet, everyone knew that regardless of how this war ended, the balance between the Nation-Stabilizing Prince’s manor and the Great Chu royal family that had been maintained for over a hundred years would no longer exist. If the Mo family army lost, naturally there would no longer be a Nation-Stabilizing Prince’s manor in this world. If they won, Mo Jingqi would likely strike when the Mo family army was exhausted after the great battle. So Ye Li knew clearly in her heart that the Northwest wasn’t just about driving out the Western Ling forces – she had to hold the entire Northwest for Mo Xiuyao, ensuring this land remained in the Mo family army’s hands. Because this might become the Mo family army’s final refuge. Therefore, the food situation needed even more attention.
These days the Mo family army had been fighting intermittently, almost just dragging down the Western Ling army’s pace. There had been almost no truly spectacular battles, so the troops felt somewhat stifled. They had long been bursting with energy to give Western Ling forces a painful blow, and now hearing Ye Li’s words they immediately became excited, all speaking their opinions at once until the entire study was filled with clamor.