At this moment, Lu Yun was climbing on the cliff when he heard great sounds of battle below. Looking back and gazing into the distance, he saw Qin Zhonghai’s troops beginning to retreat in defeat. His heart was shocked, not knowing what had happened.

Suddenly he heard someone shouting below. Lu Yun quickly looked down and saw four barbarian monks had already climbed near—their martial arts appeared quite formidable. It seemed the rebel army would not rest until they captured the Princess. Knowing the gravity of his mission, he could only struggle desperately to climb upward.

As he was climbing, suddenly the wind beside him grew fierce—someone approached incredibly fast and was already flying up to attack. Lu Yun saw this barbarian monk wielding a curved blade with seemingly exceptional martial arts, especially excellent lightness skills, and couldn’t help being alarmed.

The barbarian monk grasped the cliff wall, and upon seeing the Princess sleeping in Lu Yun’s arms, his face suddenly showed an evil smile as he said, “The little lady is quite beautiful—no wonder the Fourth Prince wants to capture her alive, hehe!”

He laughed several times and raised his blade to chop at Lu Yun’s throat. The curved blade was extremely sharp—if this strike hit, it would not only sever the windpipe but likely separate head from body.

At this moment Lu Yun’s entire body was suspended in air, relying only on his right hand’s five fingers to tightly grasp a sharp corner of rock. Mountain winds howled, and both feet swayed suspended—the situation was extremely perilous. Seeing the barbarian monk raise his blade to strike, how could he dodge, resist, move, or leap? Lu Yun’s face changed color, truly not knowing how to avoid this gleaming curved blade.

In his panic, the curved blade had already chopped toward his neck, with only inches of distance remaining. Lu Yun gritted his teeth and suddenly released his right hand’s five fingers—his whole body lost support and immediately fell toward the cliff bottom. The blade swept over his head and struck the rock with a clang and shower of sparks—the danger was extreme.

Just as Lu Yun was about to fall into the deep valley and be smashed to pulp, he still had a life-saving technique. He calmly pressed both hands against the smooth cliff wall, then took a deep breath of true qi. In an instant his inner power activated, using the adhesive force of the “Inexhaustible Heart Method” to halt his falling momentum.

With a sudden whistle, another barbarian monk climbed up from the left. Completely disregarding the Princess’s safety, he raised his blade to chop at Lu Yun’s hands—his technique extremely vicious, wanting to cleave him off the cliff in one strike. Lu Yun was greatly alarmed and slightly raised his left leg to kick at the barbarian monk. This leg struck first despite starting second, immediately hitting the monk’s chest.

The barbarian monk, struck by this kick, was sent flying far out, seemingly about to fall into the deep valley. Lu Yun breathed a sigh of relief and was about to climb up, but who knew the barbarian monk had not actually fallen—he swayed in mid-air and flew back toward Lu Yun. Lu Yun was shocked, not knowing how he could use such magic. Looking quickly at his body, he saw a rope tied around him with the upper end bound to a protruding rock—he relied on rope binding to move freely.

The barbarian monk sneered and shouted, “Where are you going!” His body swayed like a swing as he flew toward Lu Yun, his curved blade flashing as it sliced toward Lu Yun’s left arm.

Lu Yun extended his right palm to stick firmly to the mountain wall, drew the captured curved blade with his left hand, and blocked the barbarian monk’s strike. With a clang, the two blades met with a crisp sound. The barbarian monk called out, “Hit!” Lu Yun’s left hand was immediately cut, blood flowing profusely and quite painful. Eager to turn the tables, Lu Yun gave a great shout and raised his blade to chop at the barbarian monk’s waist. The monk kicked hard against the mountain wall, swaying his body to fly outward, avoiding Lu Yun’s strike.

The barbarian monk sneered, swayed once outside the mountain wall, and flew back again—this time raising his blade to chop down at Lu Yun’s skull. Lu Yun hurriedly blocked, and when the two blades collided, he groaned and was again wounded on the shoulder by the barbarian monk. He was barely managing with left and right defenses, extremely struggling. Each time he counterattacked, the barbarian monk would swing his body far away, easily dodging Lu Yun’s attacks. But Lu Yun had to stick close to the rock and couldn’t move at all—it was a situation of taking beatings without fighting back. He knew that if this continued, he would surely be unable to hold on.

The first barbarian monk to climb up had already learned by example, also securing his body with rope and swinging back and forth on the cliff. He whistled and charged fiercely at Lu Yun. With a flash of white light, Lu Yun was desperately blocking the left monk’s attack when another blade came from the right—how could he resist? He cried out in pain as his back was already struck, blood shooting out. Fighting two barbarian monks alone, he was immediately in mortal danger.

The Princess had been sleeping but was suddenly awakened by Lu Yun’s scream. Seeing him struck by several blades and bleeding continuously, with fierce barbarian monks attacking from both left and right, she said in panic, “What’s wrong with you! Are you badly hurt?” Lu Yun gritted his teeth, “It’s nothing serious!” As he spoke, blades came from left and right simultaneously. Lu Yun used both hands and feet—left foot kicking out, right hand wielding his blade—barely escaping disaster.

Seeing the ten-thousand-foot cliff below and wolves and tigers on both sides, though the Princess was naturally dignified, she couldn’t help being terrified at this moment. She cried, “What do we do! Are we going to die like this?”

Lu Yun was busy dodging and couldn’t answer. In his confusion, his back was struck by another blade, blood immediately staining his outer garment red. The Princess was so frightened that tears filled her eyes. She quickly extended her delicate hands to embrace Lu Yun around the chest, pressing both hands on Lu Yun’s back wound, fearing he would die from excessive blood loss.

Seeing the critical situation where the slightest carelessness would mean falling off the cliff, Lu Yun thought, “My inadequate protection deserves death, but the Princess has a noble body—how can she die here?” Remembering Liu Angtian’s instructions to protect the Princess’s life at all costs, at this moment he only needed to keep her alive—there would still be ways to rescue her in the future.

With this thought, Lu Yun looked down at the Princess and said, “Your Highness, if we continue this vicious fighting, I fear both of us will die here. We might as well surrender temporarily—there should still be a thread of hope.”

The Princess shook her head, “I won’t agree. These people are cruel and brutal—I’d rather die than be humiliated.”

Lu Yun, unwilling to let the Princess die needlessly here, said urgently, “Your Highness must know that a bad life is better than a good death! If you endure briefly, the court will surely ransom you out later. What’s the harm in bearing momentary humiliation?” The Princess also knew the situation was critical and hesitated for a moment.

Seeing her silence, Lu Yun thought she had agreed to surrender and immediately called to the barbarian monks, “Don’t come any closer! We want to surrender!”

The two barbarian monks looked at each other, hearing Lu Yun’s words of surrender, both showing pleased expressions. One barbarian monk called, “Surrender is acceptable, but we only allow the Princess to come over. You must first jump off the cliff and commit suicide.”

These two barbarian monks feared Lu Yun’s formidable martial arts and worried he might go back on his word with a false surrender, so they wanted him to commit suicide first to prevent any tricks.

Hearing this, Lu Yun was stunned, thinking, “These two are so ruthless—they won’t be satisfied without killing me. Could it be… could it be I really must jump off this cliff and die so worthlessly?” In that instant, he thought of Gu Qianxi and couldn’t help feeling heartache, thinking, “Oh Heaven! I can’t even see her once—how can I die in the Western Regions? I don’t want to! I don’t want to!”

Lu Yun’s heart ached as he suffered greatly. The Princess, seeing his miserable expression, asked, “What’s wrong? Why aren’t they attacking anymore?”

Hearing her inquiry, Lu Yun suddenly came to his senses. He looked at the Princess’s tender face and thought, “If I don’t commit suicide now, I’ll only harm her to die miserably with me in a foreign land. Lu Yun, ah Lu Yun, who in the world doesn’t die? Trading one life for another before us—as long as I can protect the Princess’s life, even dying here would be worthwhile.”

With this resolve and death determination, he said softly, “Your Highness, I have negotiated peace with them. I hope you can endure and surrender temporarily.” The Princess was shocked, “You want me to surrender? What about yourself?”

Lu Yun looked at the cliff and smiled bitterly, shaking his head, “I have my own place to go—Your Highness need not worry.” Knowing the Princess’s compassionate nature, he didn’t tell her plainly that he was about to commit suicide.

The Princess, seeing his sorrowful expression, knew he must be hiding something from her and was alarmed and uncertain for a moment. Suddenly she heard the barbarian monk shout, “Bastard! Quickly jump down! What are you still dawdling about?” Fearing Lu Yun couldn’t understand barbarian speech, he spoke in Chinese.

Hearing these words, the Princess already knew Lu Yun would trade his life for hers and immediately cried out, “This cannot be! Staff Officer Lu, you absolutely cannot agree to them!” She was compassionate by nature and had never killed anyone in her life—hearing the two barbarian monks demand Lu Yun’s suicide, how could she bear it? She urgently spoke to stop him.

Lu Yun ignored her and called to the two barbarian monks, “Fine! I’ll follow your agreement and jump down now. But you must promise beforehand to treat the Princess well, or I’ll never forgive you even as a ghost!”

The two barbarian monks laughed, “Don’t worry! The Fourth Prince has given orders to capture her alive—who would dare harm her life?”

The two men intentionally wanted to reassure the Princess and answered in Chinese.

Hearing Lu Yun had already agreed with them, the Princess was greatly shocked and could only shake her head frantically. But Lu Yun pretended not to see her expression and called, “It’s settled then. I’ll send the Princess over now—you catch her well.” His left hand gripped the cliff wall tightly while his right hand went to untie the clothing bands binding them.

Seeing Lu Yun about to hand her over, knowing he would jump off the cliff to his death once he released her, the Princess became urgent and called loudly, “Staff Officer Lu Yun, receive this imperial decree!”

Hearing her voice full of authority, Lu Yun couldn’t help being startled, “What does Your Highness command?”

The Princess said sternly, “Listen clearly! This palace would rather fall from this ten-thousand-foot cliff and be smashed to death than be captured by thieves! If you hand me over, you… you would be a traitorous minister!”

Seeing her suddenly become willful, Lu Yun couldn’t help giving a cold laugh and said softly, “Your Highness, matters of life and death are not ordinary. At this moment, if you insist on not surrendering, I fear we’ll fall together into the ten-thousand-foot abyss and die miserably. Aren’t you afraid?”

The Princess stared unblinkingly into Lu Yun’s eyes and said slowly, “Listen well—this palace would rather die than surrender. If you hand me over, I’ll immediately dash my head against the wall and commit suicide. This palace always keeps her word.” Her meaning was extremely resolute.

A barbarian monk beside them was quite impatient and shouted, “Hurry up! Stop dawdling there!” Continuously urging them. Lu Yun sighed and looked down at the Princess, seeing her nod with no fear in her expression—she truly had the determination to die.

Lu Yun already knew the Princess’s intention and immediately lowered his voice, “Since Your Highness intends to fight to the death, let’s take a risk and deceive them—perhaps there’s still a thread of hope.”

Hearing he had another trick, the Princess couldn’t help being delighted and asked softly, “How do we deceive them?”

Lu Yun whispered, “Your Highness, don’t worry—leave everything to me.” He raised his head and called loudly to the two barbarian monks, “The Princess is coming! Catch her well!”

The barbarian monk on the right sneered, “Boy, you’re quite lucky to be able to embrace the Princess. Bastard, quickly jump down!”

Lu Yun called, “I’m jumping right now!” He pretended to untie his waist band, then suddenly kicked against the mountain wall, his body lunging out as his right hand grabbed for one barbarian monk’s rope. The Princess, seeing herself already in the high sky, couldn’t help being greatly shocked and quickly closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, her heart pounding rapidly.

The barbarian monk extended his hand to catch her, laughing, “Be quick about it—don’t let the Princess fall.” This man wasn’t very bright and still hadn’t seen Lu Yun’s deceptive intention, still extending his hand to catch Lu Yun’s body.

Lu Yun, seeing the opportunity was not to be missed, quickly raised his foot and kicked viciously—his big foot flew out and happened to hit the barbarian monk’s chest, kicking him until he spat blood with broken bones and tendons, dying on the rope while his face still wore a bewildered expression, as if not knowing why Lu Yun had killed him.

Lu Yun was about to grab the rope when he heard someone shout, “Shameless deceiver! Die!” As soon as the words ended, his back suddenly hurt—he had been kicked hard. Lu Yun, suspended in mid-air, suddenly turned to look—it was the other barbarian monk taking advantage to attack from behind.

Seeing the critical situation, Lu Yun suddenly gave a great shout. Though his back was painful, he still counterattacked with a palm regardless of everything. With a light “pop” sound, his palm hit the barbarian monk’s crown—the palm force activated and immediately shattered the monk’s skull. The barbarian monk screamed in pain and was already doomed.

Lu Yun’s right hand stretched out—his fingers had already touched the rope. His five fingers were about to close when who knew the barbarian monk was extremely fierce—though his skull was already shattered, he still gave a tiger’s roar and shouted wildly, “Let’s all die together!” He kicked out and immediately hit Lu Yun’s waist. A great force transmitted, sending him flying far away. Lu Yun, suspended in mid-air with nothing to rely on, fell from the ten-thousand-foot height.

Seeing death before his eyes, Lu Yun couldn’t help feeling heartbroken. In that instant, all the great and small events of his life passed through his mind. His whole life had been wandering and drifting across the seas, and now he was about to die here. Thinking of his parents’ deep kindness and remembering Miss Gu, his heart was indescribably sorrowful, and tears were about to burst from his eyes.

At this moment, he suddenly felt his embrace tighten—it was Princess Yinchuan hugging him forcefully.

Lu Yun’s heart stirred, only then thinking of the Princess, secretly thinking, “Alas! If she had been willing to listen to my advice earlier, she wouldn’t have to die with me now.”

Lu Yun felt sad and looked down at the Princess, seeing her pair of watery eyes looking at him. Her facial expression was quite strange—though facing death, she showed no panic or fear and was even calmer than himself. Lu Yun sighed softly—it was all because his martial arts were too weak and his protection inadequate, causing the Princess to be smashed to pulp with him. He truly felt sorry for Lord Liu’s entrustment.

As they fell rapidly, Lu Yun said in her ear, “Your Highness, this subject deserves ten thousand deaths for failing you. I wish to repay you in the next life.”

The Princess hugged him tightly and said gently, “Don’t say that. You’ve been very good to me, repeatedly risking your life for me. If we have a next life, I should be the one to repay you.” She rested her head on his chest and closed her eyes to await death.

Lu Yun felt sad and didn’t know how to comfort her. He only felt his body falling rapidly, all his blood rushing to his head, almost fainting.

At this moment of life and death, he suddenly saw a barbarian monk clinging to the rock with his back toward them. Lu Yun was delighted and called, “We’re saved!” Then his left hand quickly reached out and grabbed the barbarian monk. Relying on this grab’s force, he had slowed the falling momentum, but the barbarian monk was pulled by this great force and immediately fell off the cliff.

Lu Yun, taking advantage of his slightly stabilized form, quickly extended his right hand and roared as he grabbed at a sharp corner. At this time the falling force was still great—his five fingers collided with the rock, immediately spurting blood while his nails broke and turned up, the pain piercing his heart and lungs. He gritted his teeth and endured, both hands grabbing continuously until he finally stabilized his form, scraping the skin off his palms before stopping the falling momentum.

Suddenly he heard shouting below—the barbarian monk Lu Yun had grabbed fell rapidly and crashed into another person’s head. Lu Yun quickly covered the Princess’s eyes with his hand. With a loud “bang,” the two monks screamed miserably as their brains splattered and they rolled down the cliff together.

Seeing the two barbarian monks had rolled off the cliff, knowing the Princess hadn’t seen this, Lu Yun withdrew his hand from her face. He sighed and said, “Thanks to Your Highness’s fortune, we’ve come back from the dead again.” He wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked down at the Princess. At this moment the Princess’s beautiful eyes were also looking at him—their gazes met and both smiled slightly.

The Princess gazed at Lu Yun and smiled, “Staff Officer Lu is too kind. Perhaps it’s your own great fortune that allows me to benefit from your luck!” She covered her mouth and laughed lightly, quite cheerfully.

Since leaving the capital, Lu Yun had never seen her so happy. Thinking of his narrow escape from death, he couldn’t help laughing heartily as well.

As they were laughing, the Princess suddenly said seriously, “Staff Officer Lu, if we encounter another situation of trading one life for another in the future, this palace absolutely forbids you to act on your own—do you hear me?” Her voice trembled slightly, as if deeply dissatisfied with Lu Yun’s earlier actions.

Lu Yun’s heart trembled as he said seriously, “This subject respectfully obeys Your Highness’s decree.” Not daring to jest anymore, he continued climbing up the cliff.

After climbing for a while, Lu Yun felt his five fingers gradually becoming numb, all his strength about to leave his body. Fearing he couldn’t hold on halfway and would fall off the cliff, he immediately fought with his remaining courage, gritting his teeth and struggling upward. Half an hour later, the peak was less than half a foot away, but his hands and feet were already feeling powerless. He roared and exhausted his last bit of strength, crawling and climbing until he finally rolled onto flat ground.

Upon reaching the mountain peak, Lu Yun collapsed as if completely drained and fell to the ground. The Princess cried in alarm, “What’s wrong with you!” But Lu Yun didn’t move at all, as if dead.

The Princess was both alarmed and afraid. She quickly untied the bindings on her body and helped Lu Yun up from the ground. She saw he had been struck by over ten blades with two arrow shafts still stuck in his back, his whole body covered in blood, and the nails on his right hand’s five fingers had broken and fallen off. His new and old wounds were truly unbearable to see.

The Princess’s heart was shaken as she shed tears, “You… you were injured like this for me—how can this palace repay you?”

Lu Yun lay prone on the ground, “Subject Lu Yun, following imperial orders to protect Your Highness, would die ten thousand deaths without complaint. Please don’t speak this way, Your Highness—it truly shames this humble person!”

He supported himself on the ground, feeling all his wounds burning with pain like fire. Unable to hold on any longer, his eyes rolled back and his body slowly went limp as he fainted.

The Princess was panicked in her heart. The cliff top had no grass or trees—besides smooth rocks, nothing could be seen. Now she was alone and didn’t understand medicine or herbs, truly not knowing how to save him.

The Princess said urgently, “Staff Officer Lu, you must hold on!” She continuously shook Lu Yun’s body, but Lu Yun had already lost consciousness—how could he hear her?

Lu Yun lay unconscious, not knowing how much time had passed when he suddenly felt severe pain in his back. He startled awake and swung his palm backward, but heard a delicate cry—it was the Princess’s voice. Lu Yun was shocked and quickly withdrew his hand, turning to look. He saw the Princess holding the curved blade he had captured, looking at him with a face full of concern.

Lu Yun cried out in alarm, “Your Highness, you… what are you doing?” The Princess smiled slightly and picked up an arrow shaft, “There’s not a soul here—if I don’t treat your wounds, who will help you?”

The arrow shaft was bloody—the Princess had personally removed it for him.

Seeing the Princess lower her noble status to personally treat his wounds, Lu Yun was moved and quickly knelt on the ground to bow, “How can a humble commoner like me let Your Highness do such menial work? Lu Yun deserves ten thousand deaths—please stop this immediately!” He kowtowed continuously, his manner greatly alarmed.

The Princess gently shook her head, “If I don’t save you now, you certainly won’t last until tomorrow.” She slowly approached and reached out to touch Lu Yun’s back, “Don’t move—let me bandage your wounds!”

Lu Yun shrank back and said tremblingly, “This subject doesn’t dare trouble Your Highness!” During the day when rescuing her, his behavior had been quite improper in some respects, but because of the emergency, even before thousands of troops he remained calm and composed. But now, with no one around, he was trembling with fear, afraid of overstepping boundaries.

The Princess, seeing him dodge away, realized this person was quite rigid and shook her head, “If you die tomorrow, who will protect this palace? Would you have me suffer humiliation from those thieves all alone?” Lu Yun was greatly shocked and knelt on the ground in panic, “This subject wouldn’t dare!”

The Princess reached over and gently stroked his back, saying softly, “Since that’s the case, don’t move.”

Lu Yun couldn’t refuse again and lowered his head, saying quietly, “This subject thanks Your Highness.”

At this moment, having the dynasty’s princess treat his wounds, Lu Yun was trembling with fear, keeping his head low and eyes closed, not daring to breathe.

The Princess found where the arrow shaft had entered the flesh and immediately pulled it out forcefully. Lu Yun gritted his teeth and didn’t move, but his body suddenly trembled as large beads of sweat rolled down from his forehead. The Princess took out a handkerchief from her bosom and gently wiped his forehead.

Using a fragrant handkerchief to wipe sweat—previously Yinchuan had struggled in every way but couldn’t bring herself to act, yet now she thought nothing of it and naturally wiped Lu Yun’s perspiration. She herself didn’t notice this dramatic change.

Lu Yun deeply knew this was highly improper and felt somewhat afraid, saying quickly, “Your Highness’s deep kindness—this subject Lu Yun could not repay even with ten thousand deaths.”

The Princess smiled, “Ten thousand deaths to repay my deep kindness? Can you really die ten thousand times?”

Lu Yun heard the teasing in the Princess’s words and quickly said, “This humble position comes from a lowly background—to receive Your Highness’s favor today, even death would be appropriate.”

The Princess, seeing Lu Yun speaking in formal language—sometimes calling himself a subject, sometimes a humble position—never daring to neglect court etiquette, smiled slightly and said, “You speak like an old scholar, just like those scholars in Wenhua Hall. I see you’re refined and cultured—why don’t you take the imperial examinations to become a top scholar instead of being Staff Officer to General Qin?”

Lu Yun coughed lightly and was about to answer when the Princess suddenly said, “Be careful!” Then her fingers exerted force and picked out another arrow shaft. Lu Yun, with severe pain attacking his heart, suddenly cried out loudly.

The Princess was alarmed, “I’m sorry—I was too heavy-handed. Does it hurt badly?”

Lu Yun, knowing he had lost composure, quickly said, “This subject momentarily lost control and cried out—please forgive me, Your Highness.”

The Princess shook her head, “All men in the world are like this—stubborn and competitive. If you’re in pain, you should naturally cry out. This is only natural—why force yourself to endure?”

Lu Yun said softly, “Before Your Highness’s sacred presence, how dare this subject cry out randomly? If I were so cowardly, how could I protect Your Highness thoroughly?”

The Princess smiled lightly, “Didn’t you cry out yesterday before Prince Karachi’s thousands of troops? Then you could shout wildly—why not now?”

At that time Prince Karachi’s wedding procession had been quite arrogant. Lu Yun, following Lord He’s orders to deliver the invitation, had used long whistles to greatly dampen the barbarian army’s spirit. He hadn’t expected the Princess to have seen this too.

Lu Yun coughed lightly, “At that time, seeing the Prince’s army approaching menacingly, fearing he might be disrespectful to Your Highness, in my urgency I cried out to frighten and stop them. It’s very different from now.”

The Princess smiled slightly as she tore her handkerchief to bandage Lu Yun’s wounds, “I hear you speak their language quite fluently—when did you learn it?” Lu Yun said, “Having nothing to do on the road, I learned a few phrases from the musician.”

The Princess made a sound of understanding and nodded, “Hmm, after learning for just a month or so you can speak so fluently—it’s really not simple.” Her words were full of admiration.

Lu Yun, hearing her speak these sentences also in the Hui language, felt her pronunciation was correct and smooth, even more fluent and clear than his own. He couldn’t help being curious, “So Your Highness also speaks excellent Hui.”

The Princess nodded lightly, “I began learning Hui before leaving the capital.” Seeing Lu Yun’s face full of surprise, she smiled, “But I’m not as clever as Staff Officer Lu who can speak fluently in one month—I’ve been learning for half a year now.”

Lu Yun nodded, “Did His Majesty order Your Highness to learn it?”

The Princess said lightly, “Yes—I’ll be living permanently in the Khan nation in the future. How can I manage without knowing their language?”

Lu Yun heard some sadness in her words. Thinking that the Princess would soon marry and make peace with the barbarians, he couldn’t help feeling some sympathy.

The Princess, seeing Lu Yun looking at her with quite pitying eyes, changed the subject and smiled, “After you go down the mountain, don’t tell anyone I can speak Hui. In the future when I live in the Khan nation’s palace, I’ll pretend not to understand what those ministers and palace ladies are saying. Without being on guard, they’ll surely reveal many flaws—it’ll be quite amusing.” She stuck out her tongue, showing a girl’s mischievous expression.

Lu Yun had only seen her dignified and majestic side. Now seeing her girlish manner, he couldn’t help being startled, thinking, “Actually this Princess is quite young—looking at her appearance, she’s only about two years older than Miss Gu.” But somehow he had always regarded her as an old lady, never thinking she was also a young woman.

The Princess, seeing him in a daze, asked, “What are you thinking about?” Lu Yun quickly said, “Before Your Highness’s sacred presence, how dare this subject think randomly?”

The Princess smiled slightly and said no more, only gently pressing Lu Yun’s back wounds while bandaging them.

Lu Yun, seeing her gentle technique and skilled bandaging, couldn’t help asking, “Have you treated wounds for others before, Your Highness?”

The Princess nodded, “When I was small, my several younger brothers were quite mischievous. Each time they injured their feet, they didn’t dare let Father Emperor know, so they all came to find me, their older sister, wanting me to help them clean and bandage their wounds.” She looked at Lu Yun’s wounds and sighed softly, “But I’ve never seen such severe wounds—I hope I won’t delay your healing.”

Lu Yun, seeing her face show gentle, loving expression, suddenly felt moved and blurted out, “Someone with Your Highness’s character really shouldn’t be sent for a marriage alliance.”

The Princess made a sound and said, “Staff Officer Lu, why do you say this?”

Lu Yun shook his head and sighed, “Most wealthy and noble people in this world are treacherous and cold-hearted—you couldn’t find one in ten with Your Highness’s kind heart. Yet you’re going to marry in a foreign country… alas… For this marriage alliance, why did His Majesty choose you specifically? Isn’t there anyone else who could substitute?” Though these words were somewhat improper, every word and sentence came from his heart.

Hearing these words, the Princess suddenly frowned tightly and said nothing for a long time. Lu Yun, seeing her displeased expression, was startled and only lowered his head, not daring to speak further.

After a long time, the Princess sighed softly. She finished bandaging his wounds and walked before Lu Yun, saying gently, “Staff Officer Lu, I accepted the imperial order for this marriage alliance willingly—there’s no question of choosing or substituting. You must not mention this matter again—do you understand?”

Lu Yun, hearing her serious tone, quickly said, “This subject spoke carelessly—please forgive me, Your Highness!” For a moment they were silent, and he walked to a corner to rest, not daring to speak further for fear of displeasing the Princess again.

After a while, the Princess, seeing Lu Yun’s grave expression, suddenly asked, “Staff Officer Lu, are you angry?”

Lu Yun had been resting with closed eyes. Hearing this question was greatly startling and couldn’t help opening his eyes in alarm, “Your Highness shames this humble person! As a subordinate, I only fear displeasing Your Highness—how would I dare be angry with Your Highness?”

The Princess, hearing his self-reproach, said gently, “Actually I wasn’t angry with you just now—it’s just that when you said that, it seemed to show I was full of unwillingness. If this were to spread, it would be bad for both me and His Majesty, so I hoped you wouldn’t mention it again—do you understand?”

Lu Yun, hearing her mention court matters, knew he shouldn’t listen further and quickly said, “This humble person understands.”

The Princess nodded slightly and continued, “Actually, the palace was quite unpleasant about this marriage alliance—several princesses shifted responsibility to each other, and none was willing to go. Seeing this would never be resolved, as His Majesty’s eldest daughter, I could only volunteer to accept this great responsibility.” Speaking to this point, she suddenly sighed, “Alas… if our dynasty could be stronger, how wonderful that would be…”

Lu Yun, hearing the Princess’s helplessness, also sighed, “Yes! If not for that year’s disastrous defeat in the imperial campaign, Your Highness wouldn’t need to make this marriage alliance.”

The Princess made a sound of agreement and nodded, “You know quite a lot—even about the imperial campaign.”

Lu Yun said, “I heard it from Marquis Liu.”

Hearing the words “Marquis Liu,” the Princess suddenly pondered for a moment and asked softly, “Marquis Liu? Are you speaking of Liu Angtian?”

Lu Yun, hearing her speak the name directly which was quite disrespectful, but then thinking this woman was the dynasty’s princess and all the court officials were her subjects, so calling them by name was perfectly acceptable, could only mumble, “Yes, Lord Liu.”

The Princess sighed, “When the imperial campaign took place, I hadn’t even been born yet. Poor Uncle—so wise and mighty, yet he died at the front, leaving this heavy burden of the state to my Father Emperor… alas…”

Lu Yun was curious, “Uncle?”

The Princess said, “My Father Emperor is the younger brother of the late Emperor Wuying—naturally Emperor Wuying was my uncle.”

Lu Yun understood and immediately nodded repeatedly.

The Princess sighed deeply and said, “When Father Emperor ascended the throne, he was only eighteen years old. At that time the nation was in turmoil, and the late Emperor had been killed by treacherous ministers. Fortunately Father Emperor came forward to stabilize the situation—otherwise, with wars raging and armies at the city gates, who knows what state the court would be in today.” Lu Yun nodded, “That year Yesen Khan had already surrounded the capital region—His Majesty was truly a great benevolent and brave hero to dare accept such heavy responsibility.”

The Princess smiled slightly, “Are those words sincere, or just casual flattery?” Lu Yun’s face reddened as he said hastily, “Your Highness sees clearly—having studied the writings of sages, how dare I commit such shameless acts?”

The Princess laughed, “Don’t be afraid—I know you’re loyal, righteous, and brave. If you weren’t, just now… just now you wouldn’t have sacrificed your life for me…” Speaking to this point, a blush suddenly appeared on her cheeks, and she glanced at Lu Yun before slowly lowering her head.

Lu Yun thought, “Looking at the Princess this way, she must still be shocked and needs rest.” He bowed respectfully, “Your Highness has labored all day—please rest for a while.”

The Princess raised her head to look at Lu Yun. When their four eyes met, Lu Yun only felt the Princess’s gaze was full of caring concern, thinking, “This Princess Yinchuan truly loves her people like her children—even toward subjects she shows such considerate care. Sacrificing myself for such a person would not be in vain.”

The Princess took out her handkerchief and gently wiped his forehead, saying softly, “You’ve lost much blood—you should rest for a while. Go and recuperate.” Lu Yun agreed and went to sit by the cliff edge, practicing his skills to heal. Gradually he forgot both self and surroundings, reaching a state of empty illumination.

The “Inexhaustible Heart Method” activated, deep internal power flowing through his body. In an instant, all his limbs and bones felt smooth and unobstructed. Though his external wounds were severe this time, his internal power was completely undamaged—there should be no serious problems.

Seeing Lu Yun practicing to recuperate, the Princess also went to sit by the cliff edge to rest.

All around was complete silence—except for the howling mountain wind, not a sound could be heard. The Princess gazed at the faint evening clouds on the horizon, thinking of her uncertain future fate and wondering if she could ever return to Chinese soil. Her heart was filled with tumultuous thoughts. Actually, this marriage alliance shouldn’t have been her responsibility—it should have been her younger sister Princess Yuning. This young princess’s mother was named Consort Yan, who had long fallen from the Emperor’s favor. Since Yuning wasn’t particularly close to the Emperor either, marrying her off wouldn’t cause much heartache. Who knew Consort Yan would weep all night, begging Princess Yinchuan to persuade the Emperor to rescind the order. Since Yuning was young and frail, Princess Yinchuan couldn’t bear for her to marry alone in a foreign land, so she personally petitioned the Emperor to substitute herself for Yuning in the marriage alliance. She never imagined that what should have been a good marriage would somehow become a great conflict—truly unexpected.

As she was thinking, she suddenly saw Lu Yun swaying as he stood up. She quickly rushed forward to support him, saying, “Weren’t you supposed to rest? Why are you up again?” Lu Yun said, “I’ve recovered considerably and am fine. It’s just that Your Highness cannot go a day without food—let me go arrange some provisions.” He picked up the curved blade to search for food on the cliff top.

The Princess, fearing his injuries made movement difficult, quickly said, “Are you going hunting? I’ll come with you.” Having just shared life-and-death peril together, the Princess no longer regarded him as an outsider. Her heart was naturally kind, and now in shared adversity, she was even more gentle and affectionate toward Lu Yun.

Lu Yun knew that during the crisis he had already behaved quite improperly many times. Now that both were safe, how could he continue with improper conduct? He immediately shook his head, “How could I trouble Your Highness with such menial tasks? Please rest a while—I’ll go search myself.”

The Princess was about to speak when Lu Yun had already turned to leave. She saw him bow and slowly back away several steps before turning to depart—his manner extremely respectful, completely different from his bold confidence on the cliff.

Seeing his constrained behavior, the Princess suddenly smiled, thinking, “This person is sometimes audaciously bold—even daring to disobey my words—yet other times cautious and fearful, as if terrified of me. How strange.”

Thinking of the life-and-death moment on the cliff, her heart suddenly began pounding, as if Lu Yun’s arms were still around her waist, holding her tightly in his embrace.

How could Lu Yun know the Princess’s thoughts? At this moment his whole body ached, but worried about military affairs, he found it hard to rest. Looking up and seeing the sky was already dark, he hurried to the cliff edge to gaze from the peak, trying to locate Qin Zhonghai’s troops.

Looking out, he saw mist and vapor across the wilderness, with distant mountain haze faintly dancing—a beautiful misty scene, but he couldn’t see where Qin Zhonghai’s forces were. Lu Yun felt worried, thinking, “I wonder where General Qin and the others have retreated? To escape this danger, we must find them.”

He repeatedly pondered in his heart, thinking how to escape this place. However, the current situation was truly dire—enemy troops gathered below the mountain, and the cliff top had no grass or trees. He truly didn’t know how to escape. He sighed deeply and could only go hunting first to fill their stomachs.

Lu Yun carried his blade and went off, seeing several snow grouse walking back and forth on the ground. He was immediately delighted and leaped to catch them. Though wounded, his skills were still quite agile, and he immediately caught two. He found some dry grass on the cliff and lit a fire to roast them on the spot. Lu Yun had worked as a noodle vendor for over a year and was quite skilled at cooking. Thinking this chicken was for the Princess to eat, he paid special attention to the roasting. Before long, the snow grouse was tender and cooked, its meat fragrant and mouth-watering.

Lu Yun tore off half a snow grouse and returned to find the Princess, walking to the cliff edge where he saw her still sitting on a stone, seemingly lost in thought.

Lu Yun carried the snow grouse to before the Princess and knelt, saying, “Your Highness, please dine!” He offered the fragrant chicken meat with both hands, his manner extremely respectful.

Hearing his words, the Princess’s face suddenly flushed with an inexplicable blush, and she lowered her head as if she had something on her mind.

Lu Yun’s eyes looked downward, not seeing her expression, only raising the snow grouse, “Your Highness, this snow grouse was roasted by me for you—please eat some!”

The Princess reached out to take it, smelling the appetizing meat fragrance that made her mouth water. Holding it in her hands, it was still somewhat hot. Seeing the desolate surroundings with no grass or trees, Lu Yun must have spent considerable effort arranging food for her.

She looked into Lu Yun’s eyes and asked softly, “Staff Officer Lu, why are you so good to me?”

Lu Yun showed a surprised expression and couldn’t help exclaiming “Eh!” He only knew he was a subject and the Princess was like heaven, like a god—how could he not be good to her? This question left him stunned on the spot, unable to speak for a long time. After a while he said, “Serving Your Highness is this subject’s duty—how can there be any distinction of good or bad?”

Hearing his well-balanced reply, the Princess only made a sound of “hmm” and lowered her head. She neither nodded in approval nor asked further questions, but showed an expression of wanting to speak but stopping herself.

Seeing the Princess silent, Lu Yun thought he had spoken too vaguely and made her unable to understand. He knelt on one knee solemnly and said, “Reporting to Your Highness, serving my lord is naturally ordained. I am originally a country commoner, elevated by Lord Liu and General Qin to serve with the army. Before departure, Lord Liu repeatedly instructed that the Princess must not suffer the slightest harm. Feeling grateful for this kindness, even if I lose my life, I dare not let the Princess be hurt or humiliated. Please don’t take this to heart, Your Highness.”

Princess Yinchuan heard him speak at length about not betraying trust and fulfilling loyal duty. Somehow she felt stuffy in her chest, as if somewhat unhappy, but couldn’t say exactly what made her unhappy.

She looked around, her expression somewhat flustered, unable to respond for a long time.

Lu Yun, seeing her unstable expression, thought she was overly frightened. He coughed lightly and said, “Your Highness, this chicken will not taste good when cold—please eat quickly!”

The Princess held the snow grouse but didn’t open her mouth to eat, seemingly lost in thought.

After quite a while, she suddenly said, “Staff Officer Lu, I want to ask you something—I hope you’ll answer truthfully.” Her voice trembled slightly, as if this matter was quite important.

Hearing her speak so seriously, Lu Yun quickly said, “Please speak, Your Highness.”

The Princess stared at him intently and asked, “Staff Officer Lu, if this marriage alliance weren’t me following orders but my sister Princess Yuning marrying to the Western Regions, would you… would you fight so desperately to protect her too?”

Lu Yun, seeing the Princess’s face somewhat agitated as if waiting for something, thought, “The current situation is tense—seeing the Princess like this, she must be afraid. I should comfort her well to put her at ease.” He nodded, “Your Highness speaks correctly. No matter which princess marries, it represents our dynasty’s prestige and is watched by all under heaven. I would naturally protect her with all my strength, not daring the slightest negligence.”

Hearing his words, the Princess suddenly lowered her pretty face, tears almost falling from her eyes, and said softly, “So… so whether it’s Yuning or Yinchuan makes no difference to you, does it?” Lu Yun nodded, “Naturally. No matter which princess, all are His Majesty’s beloved daughters and equally noble to me.”

As soon as these words left his mouth, the Princess’s face immediately flashed with shadow. The original faint blush slowly faded, turning to bloodless pallor. She turned her head away and said softly, “Very good—with such loyalty to the court, His Majesty will surely reward you in the future.”

Suddenly her eyes reddened and two streams of tears flowed down.

Seeing her like this, Lu Yun couldn’t help feeling puzzled, not knowing what he had said wrong. Seeing the Princess still holding the snow grouse, he said, “Your Highness, this chicken won’t taste good when cold—please dine quickly!”

But the Princess gently shook her head, “I’m not hungry—you go eat first.” She returned the snow grouse to Lu Yun and turned to walk away.

Lu Yun was suddenly stunned, not knowing why the Princess had been fine but suddenly became so strange. Remembering Lord Liu’s important trust, he quickly followed, “Your Highness has a precious body and cannot go a day without food. If this snow grouse doesn’t suit your taste, I’ll immediately catch some rabbits for you.”

The Princess ignored him and sat alone in a corner of the cliff, her beautiful eyes gazing down the cliff, her manner quite cold.

Lu Yun stood bewildered, thinking, “What’s wrong? Did I say something wrong?” Reviewing his words, he felt there was nothing improper, so he shook his head. At this critical moment with war’s dangers causing great worry, the Princess was also being willful, making him not know what to do. Lu Yun strung the snow grouse on a branch and walked before the Princess, saying, “I’ll leave the snow grouse here—if you get hungry later, please eat some.” He stuck the snow grouse in the ground.

The Princess seemed completely unaware, only gazing distantly down the cliff, not knowing what she was thinking.

At this moment a cold wind blew, and Lu Yun suddenly felt cold. Looking up at the sky, he saw night falling with dense rosy clouds—soon it would probably snow. This place was at high altitude, and winter nights were certainly bitter cold. Though his internal power was deep, he might not endure it, let alone the Princess who had been pampered since childhood like a golden branch and jade leaf—how could she withstand it? He immediately hurried to find shelter to get through the night.

After half an hour, the sky had already darkened. Lu Yun climbed high and low on the cliff, searching up and down, finally seeing a cave under a rock wall that should be sufficient to shelter the Princess from wind and cold. Lu Yun was delighted, but fearing wild beasts might be inside, he raised his blade to enter and investigate.

Seeing no trace of wild beasts in the cave and no beast droppings or foul odors on the ground, he was even more pleased. He immediately lit a fire and spread grass, cleaning inside and outside the cave. Knowing the Princess was born into royalty and accustomed to a life of luxury, he paid special attention to arrangements, fearing she couldn’t adapt.

After busying himself for quite a while, seeing the cave interior warm with firelight and everything prepared, he stopped and was about to return to summon the Princess to rest in the cave.

Walking to the cliff edge, he saw the Princess still sitting by the cliff, the snow grouse still stuck in the ground, completely untouched and already frozen like ice.

Lu Yun hurried forward urgently, asking, “Your Highness, why haven’t you eaten anything? If you’re feeling unwell, please give orders—I know a little about medicine and can surely cure your illness.” He thought that with last night’s frost and heavy dew, the Princess might have caught cold. With enemy troops surrounding them now, that would be like adding frost to snow.

The Princess shook her head and said softly, “I’m not ill—don’t worry.” Her expression was quite forlorn.

Seeing her dejection, Lu Yun felt quite self-reproachful and immediately knelt down, saying, “I deserve ten thousand deaths for failing to care for Your Highness properly, causing you to worry and feel melancholy, unable to be cheerful. Please punish me severely.” The Princess sighed softly, “Along this journey, do you know how many times you’ve said ‘deserve ten thousand deaths’ and ‘unforgivable sin’? Do you really have so many faults? Am I really such an easily angered person?”

Lu Yun didn’t dare respond, only nodding continuously and agreeing repeatedly.

The Princess sighed again, her face now calm as usual. She asked lightly, “Has General Qin returned? This palace wishes to descend the cliff.”

Lu Yun kowtowed, “Reporting to Your Highness, the rebel forces are currently vast and our army has temporarily withdrawn. General Qin must have entered the pass to seek reinforcements. When the great army assembles, they will surely march to rescue us. I believe Your Highness needs to rest on the cliff top for several days awaiting the arrival of reinforcements.”

The Princess nodded but said nothing.

Lu Yun said, “Not far ahead there’s a cave that can ward off cold. I’ve already cleaned it—please go rest there, Your Highness.” He was about to step forward to help the Princess up, but saw her shrink back, avoiding him as she stood up herself.

Lu Yun then led the Princess toward the cave. At this moment snow clouds had arrived and heavy snow suddenly began falling. The two quickened their pace, braving wind and snow as they hurried forward. The Princess’s foot slipped and she was about to fall when Lu Yun quickly reached out to catch her, preventing her from slipping. When their palms touched, the Princess’s body suddenly shuddered, and she quickly withdrew her small hand, then walked away rapidly.

Lu Yun felt strange and looked down at the Princess, but saw her continuously avoiding his gaze. He was puzzled, not knowing why the Princess had become like this, but didn’t dare ask.

The two reached the cave entrance. Lu Yun pointed inside, “This is the cave—please bear with it for a few days and rest here temporarily, Your Highness. The furnishings inside are simple—I fear you won’t be able to adapt.” Princess Yinchuan said nothing and slowly walked into the cave. She saw the ground had been swept clean, with firelight reflecting off the walls, warm as spring—compared to the bitter cold outside, it was a different warm world. Seeing Lu Yun had indeed taken care to look after her, she was quite moved and wanted to say some words of praise. But seeing Lu Yun standing to the side with hands hanging down, extremely respectful, her heart suddenly felt depressed again, so she only sat on the bed’s edge and looked down at the ground.

Lu Yun said, “Please rest for a while, Your Highness—I’ll go prepare more food for you.” The Princess shook her head, “No need—I’m not hungry.” Lu Yun, seeing the Princess preoccupied, didn’t want to disturb her further and said, “I take my leave—please rest well, Your Highness.” Before long, he had roasted another chicken and placed it at the cave entrance for the Princess’s needs. Seeing all matters arranged properly, he went outside the cave to rest.

In the deep night with heavy dew, the two people—one outside the cave, one inside—each had their own concerns.

Lu Yun guarded at the cave entrance, watching the firelight inside and thinking, “This Princess is quite strange—earlier I saw her face life and death boldly without fear, but now that we’re safe, why has she suddenly become melancholy and sad? It’s truly incomprehensible.” For a while he guessed repeatedly but never understood the reason.

In the cold wind and moon, Princess Yinchuan sat alone in the cave, quietly worrying. Watching the red firelight, she suddenly remembered the prosperous scenes of the capital. If it were last year at this time, the Forbidden City would already be decorated with lanterns and colored streamers, and she would be leading palace maids to arrange everything as everyone celebrated the year’s end—how warm it was. Who knew now it would be this desolate scene, with herself alone hiding in this cold mountain cave, not even knowing if she’d live or die tomorrow. Looking at the jade bracelet on her hand, she suddenly remembered her mother’s loving care—before departure, her earnest advice and their tearful embrace suddenly flew into her heart.

She knew she was far from home and would probably never see her mother again for the rest of her life in the Western Regions. Overwhelmed with grief, tears flowed down like rain.

With Lu Yun’s level of skill, sitting several zhang outside the cave, he heard low sobbing and knew the Princess was secretly weeping. Worried, he quietly walked to the cave entrance to check.

Lu Yun called softly, “Your Highness, are you well? I, Lu Yun, come to pay my respects.” For a long, long time there was no response. Seeing the Princess didn’t answer, not knowing her condition and fearing she had fainted from cold, he anxiously rushed into the cave.

Entering the cave, Lu Yun saw the Princess lying on the bed, her back slightly rising and falling as she wept softly.

Lu Yun was alarmed and hurried forward in panic, “Your Highness, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?” Seeing him enter the cave, the Princess quickly wiped away her tears and said softly, “I’m fine. Go rest yourself.” Lu Yun saw the snow grouse still stuck in the ground, completely untouched, and said, “Your Highness, if you don’t eat or sleep, your body certainly won’t hold up. I’m very worried.” The Princess shook her head gently and sighed, “What are you worried about? Perhaps tomorrow we’ll be captured by rebels—at that time life will be worse than death. We might as well die here cleanly.” Lu Yun, hearing her speak so despondently, was alarmed and advised, “That day I heard Your Highness say that as long as the people could live peacefully, even sacrificing yourself wouldn’t matter. I was quite moved—why is Your Highness now pessimistic and despairing? It makes me so sad!” The Princess could no longer hold back—her eyes reddened and tears rolled down as she wept, “I… I don’t want to be like this either…” Seeing her cry again, Lu Yun panicked, wanting to step forward and touch her little head in comfort, but lacking the courage. For a moment he rubbed his hands repeatedly, not knowing what to do.

At this moment, faint footsteps could be heard in the distance. Lu Yun was greatly shocked and said softly, “Someone’s coming! There must be enemies climbing the cliff!” It seemed those barbarian monks were relentless and had again sent people up the cliff to search and capture. Hearing him speak, the Princess remembered those fierce barbarian monks and her face also changed color.

Lu Yun stepped to extinguish the fire, drew his blade and went outside the cave. He quietly moved to the cliff edge and saw someone looking around on the cliff, with companions continuously climbing up—five or six people in total. These people wore guard uniforms and were clearly personal bodyguards of the Fourth Prince.

Lu Yun secretly approached the cliff edge. Seeing the man walking over, he immediately kicked out forcefully. The great force reached the man’s chest, and his ribs cracked on the spot. His body flew far off the cliff without a sound, already dead.

A nearby warrior said softly, “Klar, where are you?” Lu Yun hid behind a large stone. That person looked around and walked before Lu Yun, who immediately leaped out and swung his blade, already cutting the man’s throat. The man waved his hands frantically but made no sound, struggled briefly, then fell to the ground motionless. Lu Yun quietly dragged his corpse and threw it off the cliff.

The remaining men, not seeing their companions, all called out softly. Lu Yun, crouching in hiding, quickly dealt with two more men in the same manner, throwing their bodies off the cliff one by one.

Having dealt with four men, only one warrior remained on the cliff. Lu Yun, seeing the balance of power had shifted, no longer hid but strode out boldly, shouting in their language, “You barbarian, why do you come here to seek death!” The man suddenly saw Lu Yun and was immediately panic-stricken, saying tremblingly, “I… I… you… don’t kill me…” His words were confused and incoherent with fear. Lu Yun shouted, “Do you know your companions have all been killed by me and thrown to the bottom of the cliff?” The man knelt and wailed, “Sir, spare my life! I have old parents and young children—I really can’t die! Please spare me!” Lu Yun raised his steel blade about to kill when he suddenly saw the man’s humble expression and felt unwilling to strike, so he lowered his blade. He thought, “This man seems quite pitiful—why not tie him up and keep him in the cave?” But thinking again, the current situation was extremely critical, and watching over this person would surely cause countless troubles. Hearing the man’s repeated pleas, Lu Yun raised his blade and waved it, shaking his head, “No good—in war between two countries, either you die or I live. Quickly pick up the weapons on the ground and let’s fight!” The man cried, “I’m no match for you! Please spare me!” Lu Yun sighed and pointed to the cliff, saying, “Fine! Since it’s like this, I won’t take action—you jump down yourself!” The man cried even louder. Lu Yun, seeing his cowardice, shook his head and raised his blade to strike.

Suddenly he heard the Princess’s voice: “Wait!” Lu Yun turned around and saw the Princess standing at the cliff edge, gazing at him.

Lu Yun quickly bowed, “Reporting to Your Highness, this man is an assassin sent by the Fourth Prince. I was about to execute him on the spot to prevent complications.” The Princess said, “This man also has parents and children—didn’t you hear his pitiful words? Staff Officer Lu, Heaven values life—let him go!” Hearing these words, the man seemed to have met a living Buddha and desperately kowtowed on the ground.

Lu Yun gave a cold laugh and said loudly, “Princess, ah Princess! The current situation is dangerous—not like when General Qin was here! Then we had a great army for protection, and if you wanted to release assassins, we had no objection. But now our lives hang in the balance—you must not be willful!” Though he knew the Princess was compassionate by nature, at this moment one careless move would put the Princess in barbarian hands. Lu Yun, remembering his heavy responsibility and absolutely unable to let the Princess risk danger, spoke with urgency that carried a slight tone of lecturing.

The Princess’s pretty face showed anger as she said, “This palace doesn’t care about such things—I want you to release this man. Release him immediately!” Lu Yun was both shocked and angry, not knowing what to do.

The guard cried repeatedly, “Thank you, Princess! Thank you, Princess! This humble one will forever be grateful and will never dare offend Your Highness again.” He also kowtowed to Lu Yun, crying, “This humble one knows his error—please show mercy, sir!” Seeing him still afraid, the Princess smiled slightly and walked forward several steps, saying, “Don’t worry—with this palace here, no one dares harm you.” Lu Yun, seeing her suddenly approach within feet of the man, rushed forward and cried out, “Get away! Don’t go near him!” Before his words ended, the man straightened his back and suddenly leaped up from the ground—his martial arts seemed quite formidable. Lu Yun was greatly alarmed and tried to block in front of the Princess but was a step too late. In an instant, the man had grabbed the Princess and looked up laughing triumphantly.

The Princess, seeing this sudden change, was terrified. Despite her excellent upbringing, she couldn’t help screaming.

Lu Yun covered his forehead with his hand, feeling extremely regretful. He blamed himself for being soft-hearted and careless, allowing this man to succeed in his sneak attack. He pointed at the man and shouted loudly, “Quickly release the Princess and I can spare your life!” The man spat and sneered, “You still dare to chatter? Now who listens to whom—get that straight!” He looked at the Princess’s powdered face and leered, “If you dare provoke your master again and put me in a bad mood, I’ll rape and then kill her on the spot—believe it or not!”

Lu Yun was both frustrated and angry, “Let’s talk nicely—you mustn’t act rashly!” The man pointed at Lu Yun and cursed, “Little bastard, you wanted me to jump off the cliff and kill myself? Damn you, you jump down first! Save me the trouble of killing you!” Seeing Lu Yun not moving, he immediately leered, “If you don’t go down, do you think these two hands of mine don’t know how to touch women? Do you want to watch me get intimate with your Princess?” The Princess was furious, but the man held a blade to her and she was helpless for the moment.

Lu Yun was extremely angry. He walked to the cliff edge, glared viciously at the man, and suddenly jumped down. The Princess was shocked and screamed, “Staff Officer Lu! Staff Officer Lu!”

The man laughed heartily, “Ignorant boy daring to fight on the battlefield!” He released the Princess and leered, “Barbarian princess, thanks to you saving my life—in a while I’ll love you tenderly to repay your kindness!” The Princess, thinking Lu Yun was dead, couldn’t help her legs going weak as she collapsed to the ground, crying, “Staff Officer Lu… it’s all my fault that killed you…” The man laughed heartily, “Why cry? Your subordinate killed so many of our brothers—he deserved to die! Now he’s dead and gone with no one to interfere! Watch how your master deals with you, little slut!” The Princess was naturally strong-willed. Hearing this man’s crude, cruel, and lustful words, not only was she unafraid, but it aroused the pride of a Celestial Empire imperial daughter. She stood up angrily, “How dare you! How dare you speak to this palace like this!” Seeing the Princess’s bearing, the man was suddenly startled, but thinking only he was here now in a position to do as he pleased, he immediately leered, “Princess! Think clearly—now I’m your emperor and you must serve me well, hehe…” He reached toward the Princess’s face. Though the Princess scolded angrily, the man’s lust was aroused and couldn’t be restrained. Seeing the large hand approaching her body, the Princess was so frightened she screamed and dodged frantically.

At this critical moment, a voice from behind said, “Shameless villain—if you’re an emperor, then I’m your ancestor.” The man angrily asked, “Who is it?” As soon as these words left his mouth, his throat felt cold—it had been cut, and a kick sent him straight off the cliff.

The Princess quickly turned to look and saw a man with an angry face holding a curved blade—it was Lu Yun! She cried out joyfully and rushed to embrace him tightly, exclaiming, “It’s you! You’re not dead! You’re not dead!” In her joy, tears flowed down—she was crying from extreme happiness.

Lu Yun quickly stepped back and bowed, “I didn’t actually jump off the cliff just now—I only clung to the cliff side. This man was careless and didn’t come to check, giving me a great opportunity for a sneak attack.” The Princess’s face was full of joy, momentarily forgetting all unpleasantness as she looked at Lu Yun with bright eyes and smiles, her happiness overflowing.

Lu Yun looked down the cliff and said, “Tomorrow I must make some traps so these people can’t come and attack again.” The Princess suddenly walked up several steps, took Lu Yun’s hand and smiled, “Don’t talk about that now. I’m a bit hungry—let’s eat together!” Her manner was extremely intimate.

Seeing the Princess’s changed expression, Lu Yun was startled and stepped back, not knowing why the Princess had changed so quickly—he was completely bewildered. He dragged the snow grouse over and began roasting it. In the red firelight, the Princess looked at him with a face full of joy and smiles.

Lu Yun thought, “This Princess is suddenly happy, suddenly sad—she seems strange. Could she have caught cold and become mentally unclear? I must be careful in dealing with her.” He finished roasting the chicken, tore off a leg and said, “Your Highness, eat while it’s hot.”

Princess Yinchuan smiled and reached out to take it, gently taking a bite. Lu Yun, fearing she wasn’t used to wild game, quickly said, “This is just something I prepared casually—I fear it doesn’t suit Your Highness’s taste.”

The Princess chewed and found it full of meat fragrance with quite good flavor, then smiled, “It’s delicious—even the Forbidden City’s imperial kitchen doesn’t have such good skills.”

Lu Yun, coming from a noodle vendor background, most loved others praising his cooking skills. Hearing the Princess’s words, he was so happy he seemed about to fly, saying with great joy, “Your Highness’s praise is truly the greatest honor of my life.”

Seeing his expression, the Princess smiled lightly, “With such good cooking skills, were you perhaps a cook before?” Lu Yun, hearing her inquiry and thinking of his past, couldn’t help his expression changing slightly, then nodded.

The Princess said curiously, “So you really were?”

Lu Yun smiled awkwardly, “To tell the truth without Your Highness laughing—I wasn’t even qualified to be a cook, just a noodle vendor in Wang Fu Alley.”

The Princess made a sound of understanding, “Noodle vendor? What’s that?” This princess, pampered and sheltered, when had she ever wandered outside? Hearing the words “noodle vendor,” she had no idea what it meant.

Lu Yun smiled bitterly, thinking, “This Princess doesn’t know worldly affairs—why should I tell her much? I’ll just give a casual response.” He shook his head, “A noodle vendor is just a businessman who sells noodles—nothing worth mentioning.”

Seeing the heavy snow about to fall again, he stood up, “Your Highness, it’s getting late—please enter the cave early to rest!”

Though the Princess didn’t understand worldly matters, she was naturally compassionate and quite good at reading people’s hearts. Seeing Lu Yun’s expression, she knew he had pain in his heart and didn’t want to speak of his past. She said gently, “Staff Officer Lu, we’ve repeatedly shared hardships with life and death at stake, yet I don’t even know your background. Since we have time now, why don’t you tell me about it?”

Lu Yun, hearing her repeated inquiries, couldn’t help smiling bitterly in his heart. He shook his head and slowly sat down again.

Since leaving Jiangnan, he had wandered and drifted, making his home in the four seas, never mentioning his past to anyone. He hadn’t expected the first person to ask him would be the dynasty’s princess. Thinking of the inexplicable sins he bore and how he’d be melancholy for life, he couldn’t help feeling sad. Remembering when he parted with Gu Qianxi in Yangzhou years ago, his heart couldn’t help but ache.

Not wanting to reveal his inner thoughts, he gazed at the starry sky with a slight smile, but that smile was full of bitterness.

The Princess was startled, “What’s so amusing?”

Lu Yun lowered his head and poked at the fire, saying softly, “I come from humble origins and am not a respectable person—it’s better not to speak of it, lest it pollute Your Highness’s pure ears.”

The Princess, hearing his sorrowful tone and seeing his strange expression, knew he must have some unspeakable secret. She thought, “This person’s background is quite mysterious—if I can leave this place alive, I must investigate thoroughly.”

The firelight flickered as Lu Yun tended the fire with neither joy nor sorrow in his expression. The Princess was irrepressibly curious, her pair of clear large eyes blinking as she stared at Lu Yun. Both harbored their own thoughts in silence.

After a long while, Lu Yun said, “Your Highness, it’s terribly cold outside—please go into the cave to rest and don’t catch cold.”

The Princess looked back at him, “What about you? Must you blow in the wind and suffer the cold outside?”

Lu Yun said lightly, “I’m healthy as an ox—mere cold wind and snow can’t harm me in the slightest.”

The Princess nodded and said softly, “Thank you for your hardship.” She then walked into the cave.

Lu Yun watched the Princess’s retreating figure and felt a warmth in his heart—something unprecedented since leaving Yangzhou. He swore in his heart to protect the Princess safely and smoothly, absolutely not letting her fall into enemy hands.