The moon was cold and the wind severe. The originally quiet military camp suddenly erupted with miscellaneous sounds—armor clashing, numerous footsteps, various cries of pain, and the medical orderlies in camp hurriedly ordering people to boil hot water and find wound medicine.

Xu Hexue sat quietly by the bedside when he suddenly opened his eyes. He looked at the unconscious young lady on the bamboo bed. At some point, fine beads of sweat had crawled across her forehead again. He picked up a cloth and wiped it for her, then reached out to extract his sleeve from between her now much more relaxed fingers. Supporting himself on the bed’s edge with one hand, he struggled to stand and put his mask back on.

Just as he lifted the tent flap, Xu Hexue ran head-on into Qin Jixun, who reeked of blood. The treasured blade in his hand was still dripping with fresh blood, and the knife wounds on his face and the backs of his hands had yet to be bandaged. With this collision, Xu Hexue staggered back two steps. Qin Jixun immediately moved to support him, but saw him grasp the tent flap beside him and straighten his body.

“Young Master Ni, are you alright?”

Qin Jixun’s voice carried concern. “Have you had a medical orderly look at you? And Miss Ni, she…”

“We are both without serious injury. General Qin need not worry.”

Although the outside was brightly lit, these were not lights personally set by Ni Su. Xu Hexue only recognized who he was by hearing his voice.

Qin Jixun helped him walk outside to sit by a fire pit. “Su Qile killed himself. His subordinate general Zhahe resisted desperately to the death and was killed by Duan Rong. The remaining barbarian soldiers mostly fought desperately to the death and refused to surrender. Those still alive, I have bound and brought back as you instructed.”

“However…”

Qin Jixun’s expression became much graver. “Yang Tianzhe says that Su Qile’s general Shi Monu is leading tens of thousands of elite troops approaching Ru Mountain. If not for this, Yang Tianzhe would not have appeared so timely behind Su Qile today.”

Although Qin Jixun had sent someone early to Ru Mountain to deliver a letter to Yang Tianzhe, requesting he join in encircling Su Qile, with the message Su Qile had released beforehand, Yang Tianzhe might not fully believe it. The reason he could so swiftly lead the rebel army over was because the Danqiu main army was pressing from behind—he could not retreat, only advance.

“The people of the Nanyan tribe have always been like this. Even if you could have captured Su Qile alive, when Shi Monu arrives with his army at the city gates in the future, he would likewise prefer death rather than allow himself to become a bargaining chip for the Yongzhou army to threaten Shi Monu.”

If Xu Hexue had taken Su Qile away during the battle between the two armies, Zhahe and the others would certainly have desperately chased after him, and he would not have been able to bring Ni Su smoothly through the encirclement.

But at that time, Xu Hexue had also already anticipated this current result. Su Qile’s attitude was Shi Monu’s attitude. As Su Qile’s supporter and a great general from the Nanyan tribe, once Su Qile fell into the Yongzhou army’s hands, Shi Monu would understand in his heart Su Qile’s choice.

The Wuluo royal court prioritized ability above all. Having suffered this great calamity, even if Su Qile returned alive to the royal court, he would not be able to raise his head before his father and brothers.

“But according to our previous plan, today we should have temporarily spared Su Qile’s life. That way Magistrate Shen’s memorial would have sufficient time to be delivered to Yun Jing, and reinforcements from the rear could arrive in time.”

Qin Jixun’s blade was embedded in the dust, one hand propped on the handle. The firelight illuminated the blade’s severe gleam.

Xu Hexue’s half-lowered eyes were utterly lifeless. He remained expressionless, only resting one hand on his knee. “General Qin, do you regret it?”

“Over these dozen years, there are many things in my heart that I regret, but this matter today alone—I absolutely do not regret.”

Having just experienced a battlefield slaughter, Qin Jixun showed no fatigue. On the contrary, he was full of vigor, his entire person like a rusted blade that had seen blood today, shedding its rust to reveal a chilling edge.

Su Qile’s intention to invade Yongzhou was clear as day. The reason Qin Jixun had burned his boats, using Song Song’s death to encircle Su Qile, was merely to seize a slight advantage, to make the court abandon its plans for temporary peace, and even more to allow more ample time for deploying reinforcements from the rear.

But now that Su Qile was dead, the time remaining to them was limited.

“Those prisoners, General Qin might as well interrogate them thoroughly. You have never crossed hands with Shi Monu. Pry open their mouths and you may learn some useful things.”

Xu Hexue lifted his chin slightly. “There is also Yang Tianzhe. Although he held a low position in the royal court, he cannot possibly know nothing.”

Once the Yongzhou army engaged in battle with the Juhan Pass garrison under Shi Monu’s command, then the surface peace between Great Qi and Danqiu over these dozen years would be thoroughly shattered.

Yongzhou would unavoidably face a fierce battle.

“Doesn’t Young Master Ni want to see Yang Tianzhe?”

Qin Jixun nodded. “Once they are settled, I will arrange for you two to meet.”

Qin Jixun did not stay long. He summoned a medical orderly to hastily bandage his wounds, then rose again to busy himself with post-battle military affairs. Xu Hexue was helped into the tent by Qingqiong. The lamp candles inside had already burned down by more than half, and his vision was very blurred.

“Miss Ni, you’re awake?”

Hearing only Qingqiong’s sudden exclamation, Xu Hexue immediately turned his head toward the bamboo bed. He saw only an indistinct shadow. He heard her hum in acknowledgment, her voice dry and hoarse: “Qingqiong, please replace the remnant wax on the candlestick and bring me a fire starter.”

“Alright.”

Qingqiong helped Xu Hexue sit by the bedside, then turned back with slow steps to find new candles.

Xu Hexue could not see Ni Su clearly, but felt his sleeve being tugged. He raised his eyelids and saw only her blurred outline. “Does it still hurt?”

“These words—I was just about to ask you the same.”

Ni Su coughed once, her voice hollow and weak.

The person before her had changed into a different set of clothes—a clean, soft, pale blue round-collared robe with a snow-white, neat inner collar, not a single trace of blood.

Having removed that copper mask, he had wrapped himself in the long cloth again.

“It’s nothing.”

Xu Hexue’s expression was calm as he reached out, groping to pour a bowl of hot tea at the nearby table and bringing it before her.

Ni Su had no strength in her body and could not sit up. Xu Hexue heard the rustling sound of fabric rubbing against the quilt, her brief gasps from pain. He immediately set the tea bowl back down and leaned forward to support her.

His hand had just supported her shoulders and back when his icy temperature penetrated through the inner garment to press against Ni Su’s skin. She trembled—actually only very slightly—but his hand paused and he immediately moved to release her.

Ni Su, however, grasped his wrist.

He could not see her face clearly and did not know that Ni Su was looking him over without restraint. She lowered her eyes, her gaze falling on the back of his hand where raised veins lay beneath cold white skin. Whether holding a brush or gripping a sword, this hand was always so powerful.

“I want to drink water.”

She said.

Xu Hexue said nothing, but did not withdraw his hand again. He merely wrapped the quilt around her, then supported her to sit up and placed a soft pillow behind her.

Ni Su used her uninjured hand to receive the tea bowl he handed her. After a few sips, her parched throat finally felt much better. Just then Qingqiong entered the tent, carrying back some candles and fiddling with the candlestick to the side.

“What about that white horse?”

Ni Su leaned against the soft pillow and asked.

“My father is feeding it fodder. When I just came over, I saw it eating while wagging its tail.” Hearing her voice, Qingqiong turned his head, speaking slowly.

Xu Hexue listened quietly without much reaction.

“What was your previous horse called?”

Ni Su asked.

Xu Hexue thought of the words Wuluo Su Qile had spoken today. He closed his eyes. “Suspended Star.”

Ni Su silently repeated this name once and said, “It sounds really nice.”

“It looks very much like Suspended Star, doesn’t it?”

Xu Hexue nodded. “They both have silver-gray manes.”

The difference was that Suspended Star had some mixed colors on its belly, while today’s horse was pure snow white throughout, without any mixed colors, only its mane tinged with silver-gray.

For as long as Xu Hexue had been in the army, Suspended Star had accompanied him.

Through glory and disgrace, it was at his side.

“Doesn’t this count as a kind of fate? Although Suspended Star is gone, its young horse has come to your side. With such a spirited temperament, it only needed to sniff your collar before happily following you. It knows who you are. Perhaps it was born waiting for you.”

Ni Su looked at him. “Won’t you give it a name?”

“That’s right, General Xu. We don’t know what it was called before, but I think it definitely doesn’t like the name the barbarians gave it.” Qingqiong brought the candlestick with new candles before Ni Su, then blew the fire starter to flame and handed it to her.

Ni Su lit the candle flame, which also instantly restored clarity to Xu Hexue’s eyes. He could see clearly her pale cheeks, delicate and fragile neck, and those eyes looking toward him.

Both Ni Su and Qingqiong were watching him, waiting for him to name the little white horse outside enthusiastically eating grass.

“I want it to follow you.”

After a long while, Xu Hexue said to her.

“So the name—you choose it.”

“Why? Don’t you like it?” Ni Su was astonished.

“No.”

It was precisely because he liked it that Xu Hexue wanted to leave it by her side. She was alone in this world and always needed companionship.

He could not accompany her long.

This was something Xu Hexue had always understood clearly in his heart. He would not re-enter the Netherworld, nor was he willing to dwell in the Nine Heavens. His journey through the mortal world was a road of no return from which he could not turn back.

“It’s not impossible for me to choose.”

Ni Su’s voice fell upon his ears. Xu Hexue raised his eyes to see her pale lips curve slightly as she said, “In any case, following me—isn’t that also following you?”

Without a beating heart of flesh and blood, he only had luminous dust silently floating at the edge of his sleeves.

“Mm.”

He responded, his expression calm.

“What should it be called? It looks so clean and snow white—how about Little White?” Qingqiong scratched his bare head, then felt it was inappropriate. “Its father’s name was so scholarly. Wouldn’t calling it Little White be not quite right?”

Ni Su racked her brains. After a good while, she suddenly brightened, grasping his sleeve and causing luminous dust to float down onto her fingers. “I remember a line of poetry—’The sun’s wheel halts the frost lance, the moon’s spirit hangs the carved bow.'”

“I once heard my elder brother recite it. Its father was called Suspended Star. How about it be called Frost Lance?”

“That’s good!”

Qingqiong clapped his hands.

Xu Hexue nodded under their two gazes.

Qingqiong immediately turned to go out, calling the name “Frost Lance” as he went to feed the horse together with his father.

Ni Su was helped by him to lie back down. The pain in her shoulder prevented her from raising her left arm. Cold sweat broke out on her forehead again, her breathing tight.

She was drowsy again.

Xu Hexue saw her eyes close and thought she had fallen asleep. He slowly rose while supporting himself on the bed’s edge, then picked up a lamp and walked out.

Ni Su opened her eyes and saw the tent flap move, his figure obscured.

She heard him enter the tent next door, and also heard his occasional light coughs. The bamboo bed sounded lightly once—perhaps he had lain down upon it.

He moved no more.

Outside, wind and sand blew, howling sounds.

In the bright candlelight, Ni Su saw the copper mask set upon the desk.

Fierce and cold and hard.

Today,

she had witnessed the finest young presented scholar general in all the world.