“Very well! I’ll take you to see Fourth Imperial Uncle!” The corners of Feng Jiang’s eyes held a hint of warmth and amusement. He pulled the reins, and the horse set off at an unhurried but steady pace.

Jiu’er truly felt that this Third Imperial Brother before her was nothing at all like the princes she had imagined.

There was not the slightest sense of pampered nobility about him. He was even rougher and more rugged than an ordinary man.

Injured as he was — though the wounds were all superficial flesh wounds — it must still hurt very much.

Yet when had Third Imperial Brother ever cried out in pain? He was iron-boned and stalwart — a true man of steel!

“I wonder which young woman will be lucky enough to marry Third Imperial Brother one day.”

Though Third Imperial Brother seemed a little rough around the edges, he was a kind person, and one with a strong sense of responsibility.

She was not praising her own family just to flatter them. It was because he truly was that good!

“We will have to wait until after you have married before we can think about a match for myself.”

So on this matter, Feng Jiang felt not the slightest urgency.

“Why is that?” Feng Jiu’er was puzzled.

As she thought about it, First Imperial Brother and Second Imperial Brother were both no longer young — First Imperial Brother especially, who must be around twenty-five by now.

Why had none of them a Princess Consort yet?

“Only once the Imperial Princess has settled her future can we brothers begin to think about our own lifelong affairs.”

“What do you mean by ‘settled’?” Did that mean getting married?

“That is to say — only after you have become Empress and taken the throne can we consider taking wives.”

“What?!” Feng Jiang’s words gave Feng Jiu’er such a fright that she swayed in the saddle, nearly tumbling off the horse.

Feng Jiang quickly steadied her with a hand, and frowned. “What is wrong?”

“Wait until I become Empress?” Was Third Imperial Brother certain he was not joking?

“I had no thought at all of becoming Empress.” That was the truth. Though everyone said she was surely to be the future Empress of the Feng clan.

But she had no desire for it whatsoever. She even had a feeling that she was meant to leave this palace one day.

“Moreover, Imperial Father is still so young. If we had to wait until I ascend the throne, how long would that take? Surely you and the others cannot truly be barred from taking wives and having children all that time?”

“Of course we cannot.” Feng Jiang was entirely unbothered by this.

Taking a wife and having children — not only did it waste time, it wasted energy.

A person who lived perfectly well on their own would suddenly have another person beside them at every turn, and every day would involve endless compromise and accommodation.

A life like that would be unbearable. What would be the point of it?

In any case, there was one good thing about being a prince of the Feng clan — once the Empress ascended the throne, if she granted a special pardon, he would not actually be required to marry.

“Jiu’er, when you become Empress in the future, do not go pairing me off with some young lady on a whim. You can see I’ve treated you well enough — do not be the death of me.”

“I am to arrange your marriage?” Feng Jiu’er felt that this night’s conversation had truly shattered her understanding of imperial family members to a new level.

“Surely it would be Imperial Father who arranges marriages for you?”

“Naturally not. You are our sovereign. Imperial Father has his own generation of brothers to look after him.”

So even their own marriages would depend entirely on Jiu’er’s good favor.

When he thought about it, he really ought to treat her even better.

Feng Jiang hastily arranged his face into a broad smile. “Well then, Jiu’er — whenever Third Imperial Brother’s attitude toward you was not quite as it should have been, please do not take it to heart.”

“Your Third Imperial Brother is not very good with words. Sometimes he can be a bit blunt and abrupt, so you must be patient with him. In the future, even if you want Third Imperial Brother to march into battle for you, that is fine — just so long as you do not make Third Imperial Brother get married. Third Imperial Brother would be eternally grateful to you.”

The corners of Feng Jiu’er’s forehead were immediately covered with dark lines of exasperation.

No matter how he put it, it sounded as though marriage were the greatest catastrophe imaginable.

“Everyone needs a companion eventually. You cannot spend your whole life in solitude. What is wrong with getting married?”

“Is it not good to have Third Imperial Brother looking after you? Why must you push me out?”

Not getting married, and instead serving as the Empress’s most loyal warrior — that was the dream he held for his entire life.

In short, he wanted to be exactly like Fourth Imperial Uncle: fierce and valiant on the battlefield.

Affairs of the heart between men and women — that sort of thing was simply far too troublesome. If he could avoid it, he would sooner stay as far away as possible.

“Look at Fourth Imperial Uncle now. All on his own, living as free and easy as anyone could wish.”

That was the life he longed for most — free and unrestrained, keeping company with brothers-in-arms, a warm and joyful existence!

“I would never let you end up like Fourth Imperial Uncle, living in such loneliness.”

Jiu’er gave a quiet scoff. At the mere thought of Fourth Imperial Uncle, her mood grew strangely heavy.

Was Fourth Imperial Uncle’s solitude really something to be admired?

Alone and isolated — even when he fell ill, there was no one to look after him. With only an old servant at his side, and no one to speak to when his heart was full.

That was no good at all.

Yet Feng Jiang was so startled by her words that the color drained from his face.

“Jiu’er — surely you would not truly send Third Imperial Brother off as a peace-offering bride? I… have I not been good enough to you? Whatever you want, Third Imperial Brother will give it to you — all right?”

“A peace-offering bride?” Feng Jiu’er looked up at him, her understanding of the world shattered yet again to a new height.

“Do not tell me that when necessary, a prince must go out beyond the borders as a peace offering, just like a princess — to secure the stability of the nation.”

Feng Jiang’s expression grew rather somber. Since she already knew, what more was there to ask?

Seeing that expression of his, Jiu’er was immediately astonished.

It was actually true! But — wasn’t being sent as a peace offering something that a princess was supposed to do?

How could it be that even princes could be sent away here? It was simply… unimaginable!

In what she remembered of the past, things had not worked this way. No matter the dynasty, it had never been possible for a prince to be sent out as a peace offering.

But then — where had those memories of the past come from?

Her head began to feel a little uncomfortable again. She raised her hand to rub the space between her brows, and Feng Jiang grew anxious at once.

“All right, whatever you decide is your own affair. I will not interfere, and you need not distress yourself over it.”

He did not know whether Imperial Father had already given her instructions, or whether the two of them had already settled the matter of his being sent as a peace offering.

Feng Jiang felt a sudden wave of despondency — yet she had no choice but to follow Imperial Father’s wishes. He believed that with Jiu’er’s current temperament, she was not yet in a position to involve herself in affairs of state.

If it was Imperial Father’s decree, then how could he question it?

“I…”

“Imperial Father has not said anything to me, and I have decided nothing.”

The moment Jiu’er saw his expression, she knew what he was thinking.

Suppressing the shock in her heart, she smiled and said, “Rest assured. If you are unwilling, I would never force you to do anything against your will.”

“Truly?” Feng Jiang’s eyes lit up immediately. She had better not be teasing him.

“Truly.” But the question was — did she really have to become Empress?

In any case, whether she did or not, she would never compel her imperial brothers.

Siblings — you only had so few of them in a lifetime. How could she ever treat them poorly?

In another life, such a meeting would never come again.

Ahead, the great gates of the Night Prince’s Manor drew steadily closer.

The gates stood open as they always did. Feng Jiang rode straight in, but as he drew near Feng Li’s bedchamber, his expression shifted ever so slightly.

Fourth Imperial Uncle’s manor — tonight, something seemed very wrong…