It was already afternoon. You Hongzhuo rode his horse into the outer settlement northwest of Weisheng.

Three of the four gates of the outer settlement had already been closed, and the gate facing toward Weisheng had its guard reinforced as well. The number of soldiers patrolling atop the walls had doubled, and outside the city, members of the rebel army were already digging holes along some of the approach roads, preparing to bury landmines.

Every member of the rebel army wore an expression grim enough to be frightening.

News of the death of the “Young Ming King” Chen Fangda had come from the northwest a few days earlier. The first wave of reports had been sparse in detail, only revealing that the rebel army had suffered a crushing defeat in a surprise attack — units routed, losses severe everywhere. The news had likewise drawn Lou Shuwan’s full attention, with mounting reports pointing toward a Mongol-Jurchen convergence — a violent upheaval loomed close at hand.

To brace for what was coming, Yu Yulin had begun heading south to stabilize the situation in Guanzhong, and restlessness stirred among the rebel army’s ranks as well. But Wang Juyun had held back the immediate calls to reinforce the northwest — the rebel army’s resources were limited, and he wanted to see things more clearly before acting. Privately, in conversation with An Xifu, You Hongzhuo, and the others, the old man had shaken his head and said, “I doubt it’s that simple.”

During the years of Jurchen devastation, the rebel army Wang Juyun had built had rescued a great many people from the ruined lands north of Jin territory and south of Yanmen Pass. But given the overall hardship, their combat-ready forces numbered only around forty thousand — with dependents included, perhaps as many as a hundred thousand or more — while the civilians they had originally sheltered numbered in the range of four to five hundred thousand.

After the Jurchens’ defeat and their merger with Jin territory, a great many civilians had already begun dispersing across various parts of Jin territory. The more than a hundred thousand people directly under Wang Juyun’s protection had been scattered across three towns north and west of Weisheng. When Young Ming King Chen Fangda had marched his forces west, he had taken over forty thousand troops and civilians with him across two columns, leaving roughly ten thousand combat soldiers and several tens of thousands of dependents at the largest gathering point, northwest of Weisheng.

One is always wary of what lies close to one’s own bed — allowing this settlement to be set aside specifically for the rebel army to manage was already the greatest trust Lou Shuwan had ever extended to Wang Juyun.

They had taken up arms the moment word arrived.

Then, on the morning of the third day of the sixth month, news broke suddenly: Ma Ling had turned traitor, and the Female Chancellor’s convoy had been ambushed en route to Yuci. Everyone at once understood the urgency of the situation. That day, You Hongzhuo led a team gathering all manner of information within Weisheng; when he rushed back to the rebel camp, a fellow member came out to meet him.

“Good timing. Father wants you to come right away for a council.”

“I was just heading there myself,” You Hongzhuo said. “The city’s in chaos, but there are signs pointing to who’s really behind this…”

“I think I can guess,” the sworn brother said in a low voice. “The Huaxia Army’s Zhan Wu has arrived.”

You Hongzhuo nodded, and the two of them hurried off together. Before long they reached the rear hall of the council residence, where Wang Juyun, An Xifu, Zhan Wu, and three other adopted sons of the rebel army had already gathered. You Hongzhuo paid his respects to Wang Juyun, then cupped his hands toward Zhan Wu. “Master Zhan the Fifth.”

“Back from the city, little brother? Learn anything?”

“Wouldn’t you know more, given that you’ve come all this way, Fifth Master?”

“Why don’t you go ahead and tell us.”

“Very well.” You Hongzhuo nodded. “From what I can see, some in the court had clearly prepared for this in advance. Word of the Female Chancellor’s misfortune spread quickly — Right Chancellor Shao Qingshi, following the original plan, has ordered Bai Yuanzhou to march north with troops to deal with Ma Ling and rescue the Female Chancellor, and has also ordered Niu Wenzhong to send troops, though I hear Niu Wenzhong’s response has been evasive… But the real trouble is Madam Jin, who’s been stirring behind the scenes. This morning alone, six separate groups entered the inner palace, and word is they were all discussing what should happen after the Female Chancellor’s death. I think that tells us everything we need to know…”

The Madam Jin You Hongzhuo referred to was once Tian Shi’s concubine, now the mother of Tian Shan, the nominal heir to Jin territory. While Lou Shuwan had held power, this mother and son hadn’t dared make a single move. But the moment word came of last night’s attack on the Female Chancellor, Madam Jin had sprung into action — and some things had become very clear indeed.

Wang Juyun shook his head. “Too impatient. Foolish.”

“I doubt it’s foolishness — more likely, it was planned long in advance,” Zhan Wu said. “Given how things are developing, I suspect tomorrow’s court session will see the plan formally set into motion… Go on, Brother You.”

“Yes… As for the news from court, I think the most important thing is Madam Jin’s move… As for elsewhere, some of the Female Chancellor’s guards have been trickling back. Last night’s slaughter south of Yuci was truly brutal — the attackers were skilled with firearms, using tactics utterly unlike anything Jin territory has seen before. Even the Dragon King was gravely wounded, and it’s unclear whether he’ll survive. Before Bai Yuanzhou set out, many had already mobilized, preparing to march north to rescue the Female Chancellor. But…” You Hongzhuo looked toward Zhan Wu. “Fifth Master, this is really your Southwest’s special-forces tactics, isn’t it?”

Zhan Wu looked back at him. “Go on.”

“The rumors spreading in secret have been rather unusual,” You Hongzhuo said. “The story of the Female Chancellor’s death is being told so vividly by so many people that some, in their eagerness to make it convincing, have practically already let slip who’s really behind it all — your Huaxia Army’s Zou Xu.”

“He’s not really one of ours anymore, these days.”

“But he’s still the only one who truly understands your methods that deeply,” You Hongzhuo said, looking around at everyone present. “Putting everything together, here’s my read on it: last night, Zou Xu ambushed the Female Chancellor near Yuci. Whether she’s alive or dead is still unclear, but Madam Jin and certain figures at court had already been colluding with him well before this. Right now, his forces and Ma Ling’s are closing in from the north, searching for the Female Chancellor’s trail. But whether she’s alive or dead, these court factions are already preparing to use this crisis to escalate matters as far as they possibly can… What worries us most is that if Bai Yuanzhou and Niu Wenzhong have also struck a deal with Zou Xu, there may be no way for the Female Chancellor to make it back to Weisheng alive.”

The room fell into a brief, heavy silence at his words. Wang Juyun and Zhan Wu exchanged a glance, and Zhan Wu nodded. “I’d heard Brother You once trained in the Southwest — and now I see there really is someone besides Zou Xu who understands our Southwest tactics.”

You Hongzhuo cupped his hands. “No need to be coy, Fifth Master.”

Zhan Wu nodded. “The truth of the matter is more or less exactly what Brother You laid out. We too believe it’s Zou Xu.”

Wang Juyun looked at him. “What is the Huaxia Army’s response to this?”

“The moment Xue Guangcheng learned of it, he went straight to the East City. Unless I’m mistaken, given Zou Xu’s style, the attack on the Female Chancellor and the strike on the East City won’t be far apart in timing. By now, the first attempt may already have been repelled — you should be getting word of it soon. That would confirm it as Zou Xu’s doing.”

“So what should we do?” An Xifu looked up. “Fifth Master, do you think the Female Chancellor is still alive?”

“I don’t know. It happened too suddenly — whether she survives may simply come down to her own fortune. But the reason I’ve come today is to ask all of you in the rebel army to proceed on the assumption that she’s still alive, and to do what you can to help steady things. For instance,” Zhan Wu said, “reach out to whichever factions you have influence with, and at the very least make sure the garrison forces defending Weisheng don’t waver and defect, so that when Zou Xu and Ma Ling bring their forces to bear, the city can hold and not fall. And Brother You, given your knowledge of Southwest special-operations tactics, perhaps you might consider leading a team north to take part in rescuing the Female Chancellor.”

Wang Juyun said, “Do you need us to send troops to defend the East City?”

“If the situation grows critical, General Wang may act at his own discretion to assist.”

Wang Juyun’s eyes narrowed. “You’d already prepared for this?”

Silence settled over the room; all eyes turned to Zhan Wu, who let out a slow sigh.

“We had some anticipation of the possibility that Zou Xu might make a move.”

“Then why didn’t you inform us? Why not warn the Female Chancellor?” Wang Juyun stared at him.

“Master Ning did include a warning in a letter to the Female Chancellor,” Zhan Wu said, meeting his gaze calmly. “But this matter is difficult to explain in detail. We believed there was a possibility Zou Xu might betray Jin territory, even push northward to seize it. But in the Huaxia Army’s early projections, the general staff alone drew up seven scenarios they considered reasonably plausible. Separated by thousands of li, we had no way of grasping the finer details of the situation — even the possibility of his turning on us was, to us, only speculation. General Wang, if you had seven speculative scenarios pulled out of thin air, which one would you have chosen to voice? And if we had spoken up, the Female Chancellor would likely have taken it as nothing more than an attempt to sow discord.”

He spoke all this calmly. The room fell silent once more. Wang Juyun frowned, and after a long while finally said, “In your eyes… is Jin territory really so full of holes?”

Zhan Wu shook his head. “In truth… our general staff’s projections are often little more than flights of fancy. Separated by thousands of li, without the right timing, terrain, or popular support, without knowing the details on the ground at the time — even we ourselves might not have been able to carry it out.”

Hearing this, the tension in the room eased somewhat. An Xifu thought for a moment. “Here in Jin territory, our rebel army is little more than a minor auxiliary force, and we’ve just been ambushed in the northwest and badly weakened. If it’s a steadying hand you need, your Huaxia Army — though few in number — carries more than enough influence to sway the whole situation. So why ask us to go persuade the people in the city? If you yourself stepped forward, Fifth Master, and made some commitments, surely many of the wavering factions would fall in line.”

This echoed the question on everyone’s mind, and You Hongzhuo and the others looked to Zhan Wu as well. He was silent for a moment. “If the Female Chancellor is still alive, it’s far better for these people to show their true colors today than to keep them suppressed. The situation here is complicated — in truth, it was the Huaxia Army overreaching in the past that led to the Female Chancellor’s troubles today. In the past, we couldn’t speak freely about this. Today, we can.”

Everyone nodded.

An Xifu said, “Then why come to us at all?”

“If the Female Chancellor is dead, the Huaxia Army wishes to make a deal with the rebel army — of everyone in Jin territory, you are the force closest to the Southwest’s Four Peoples.”

The moment Zhan Wu’s words landed, even these worldly, seasoned men in the room instinctively held their breath; the air grew so still one could have heard a pin drop. After a moment, Wang Juyun let out a heavy sigh.

“Fifth Master Zhan, now that you’ve said that — the odds of the Female Chancellor surviving have only gotten smaller.”

Zhan Wu looked at him and smiled. “We too would like to see what fortune has in store for the Female Chancellor. As for what to do next, that’s for General Wang and all of you to decide for yourselves.”

For as long as anyone could remember, the Huaxia Army’s representatives stationed in Jin territory had always shown a friendly, accommodating attitude — even privately seeming to tacitly allow rumors that Lou Shuwan was Ning Yi’s cherished confidante to spread. At times, outsiders genuinely believed Lou Shuwan might one day become the Huaxia Army’s own “lady of the house.”

But in this moment, Zhan Wu’s words, calm as still water, carried an underlying meaning cold as ice — the Female Chancellor’s life had been placed, without the slightest hesitation, upon the cruel scales of power, left to sink or swim on its own.

Before long, Zhan Wu took his leave.

In the council hall, no one spoke for a long while. Someone seemed on the verge of suggesting that it might simply be best to let the Female Chancellor die, but in the end no one voiced it aloud. Wang Juyun sat there, seeming almost satisfied with the silence, and after a long while finally smiled faintly, turning to look at You Hongzhuo.

“Of everyone here, only you have witnessed the Huaxia Army’s tactics firsthand. If you go, are you confident you can handle it?”

“Not especially confident,” You Hongzhuo said. “But we’re bound to run into it sooner or later — better to use this chance to scout it out.”

“You’ll lead the team. Staying alive comes first,” Wang Juyun said, looking at him. After a pause, he added, “If you find the Female Chancellor, bring her back.”

“Father, have you given no thought to what the Huaxia Army proposed?” someone asked.

Wang Juyun fell silent for a moment.

“She’s governed Jin territory for over a decade. Politically, the Female Chancellor may have her shortcomings. But as a woman, she’s devoted herself entirely to the people of Jin territory for all these years, working herself to exhaustion without ever once slacking. The people of Jin territory owe her a debt of gratitude.”

He looked around at the others.

“You ought to respect her — as I do.”

“Yes.”

The men cupped their hands and bowed respectfully.

Before evening fell, You Hongzhuo led his team north. By this point, countless hearts within Weisheng were gripped by anxiety — officials and generals conspiring in secret, while officials loyal to the Female Chancellor had already begun arming their household guards, preparing to clash violently with traitors within the city walls.

Along the road north from Weisheng, hundreds of wandering swordsmen from the martial world left the city, moving out on their own initiative just as You Hongzhuo had — for out there, fighting was already breaking out at every point along the roads leading south: soldiers, the firearm-wielding special forces of the Gong Chen Guard, scattered guards once loyal to the Female Chancellor, and warriors acting either on orders or of their own accord, clashing again and again.

In the early hours of the fourth day of the sixth month, news arrived in Weisheng from the southern bank of the Yellow River: Guanzhong had fallen under attack.

For a long time, Guanzhong’s terrain had made it easy to defend and hard to attack. But under the guise of cooperative development and mutual trade, on the first day of the sixth month, several armies struck simultaneously at Wuguan, Tongguan, and other passes — catching the defenders completely off guard, compounded further by the defection of certain generals. In that moment, Dai Mengwei was already leading troops in a triumphant march to claim the eight-hundred-li Qin River plain.

By day, the morning court session began. Madam Jin, holding Tian Shan in her arms, took her seat behind the curtain to rule as regent. Several officials began asserting that the Female Chancellor was already dead, demanding that the court immediately select someone to take charge and respond to Zou Xu’s aggressive advance…

It was said that, near the front lines approaching Yuci, Zou Xu had already raised his banner — and hanging from the pole was the corpse of the Female Chancellor, stripped bare.

Right Chancellor Shao Qingshi denounced this as a baseless rumor, but it seemed, all the same, that an era was slowly drawing to its close…

Many things about Zou Xu had, in truth, shown warning signs long before.

Ning Yi’s letters had mentioned his temperament before as well — that he was a man capable of enduring hardship in silence, biting back his pride, but that once he finally struck, he would be utterly ruthless, sure to bite clean through his enemy’s throat.

Why hadn’t she understood that at the time?

Because in her own letters to him, she had often thrown out bits of information or demands purely to needle him, all the way off in the distant Southwest.

So when she’d read Ning Yi’s unflattering words about Zou Xu in his letters, had she simply assumed it was Ning Yi deliberately provoking her right back?

It wasn’t as though she hadn’t been at all on guard…

But against an adversary like Zou Xu, it seemed she had still been… far too careless, too complacent…

She deserved this…

The midday sun blazed fiercely.

At this very moment, on the fourth day of the sixth month, Lou Shuwan stood in the wilderness, staring down at two sticks on the ground, struggling to compare them.

One was straighter, and looked almost sturdy enough to serve as a weapon — in the future, it could be appointed Grand General.

The other had a slight curve and a knot in the wood, but seemed easier to grip — that one, she decided, should be appointed Minister of Personnel.

She weighed the two, and chose the one meant for Minister.

Though less handsome, it would help her go farther along her path.

Gripping the stick, she pressed onward with great effort.

Her forehead, fingers, waist, legs, the soles of her feet — every part of her ached constantly. The sun left her parched with thirst. Having finished the last of her rations, she picked some wild fruit, but her stomach churned uneasily. She pressed forward through the pain, trying to make out the road ahead.

Since becoming Female Chancellor, she had lived a fair share of comfortable, pampered days — but in a place like Jin territory, she had also spent plenty of time fleeing before the Jurchens, and as a result had studied the surrounding terrain closely. She tried to avoid the main roads and circle back toward Weisheng — a long and winding path, and she had no idea whether she was even going the right way.

But regardless, all she could do was keep moving forward…

That evening, she spotted a run-down hut in the distance, out in the wilds.

Thirsty and starving, she didn’t dare approach right away.

From a distance, she heard voices, and forced down the urge to run toward them, crouching low and hiding herself behind a cluster of bushes.

Several figures who looked like wandering swordsmen from the martial world approached the hut, and hurried voices could be heard exchanging words.

Suddenly, a volley of gunfire — bang, bang, bang, bang — erupted from inside the hut. The swordsmen scattered and dodged; some fell in pools of blood. Figures burst out from inside, wielding weapons, moving in tight coordination as they clashed with the remaining swordsmen.

In moments, all the swordsmen had fallen.

The figures who had emerged from the hut conferred briefly, then headed off in one direction.

The wind howled across the rugged wilderness, rustling the wormwood. Lou Shuwan waited a long while behind the bushes before finally, still crouched low, creeping toward the scene.

On the wasteland outside the hut lay only the corpses of the swordsmen. Lou Shuwan felt through their clothing and pulled dried rations from the bodies.

The water skin on the first corpse was already empty. The water skin on the second had been shattered by a bullet — sheer bad luck. She tucked away the food she’d pulled from these two bodies and moved on to search the third. This one still had water in its skin. Struggling with one hand, she tried to untie it — and suddenly, the corpse twitched. A blood-soaked hand seized her right wrist.

The grip was so powerful that Lou Shuwan clenched her jaw, and even as her left hand throbbed with agony, she instinctively reached for the dagger at her side. The wandering swordsman on the ground opened his eyes, staring at her in a daze for a long moment. Then, all at once, his gaze sharpened with recognition.

“Lou… Lou… Female Chancellor?”

The hand released her.

Lou Shuwan snatched up the water skin, and with trembling, difficult movements, pried open the stopper, then pressed the mouth of the skin to her parched lips.

After two swallows, she finally turned her gaze to the man dying before her from his grievous wounds. “You…” Her appearance was utterly wretched, and for a moment she didn’t know what else to say.

“Chancellor Lou…” Tears welled at the corners of the man’s eyes. He tried to reach out a hand, but it only rose partway into the air before falling still, trembling.

“You’re alive… Weisheng, Weisheng is in chaos…” He drew a labored breath, pressed his lips together, and then forced out with great difficulty, “Chancellor Lou… they… they’re strong… don’t go… east…”

“…Mm.” Lou Shuwan nodded, tears spilling from her eyes. “Mm.”

“…” The man’s expression relaxed. His face, scarred and fierce-looking, had seemed to be straining to rise, but now his head sank fully back down. His eyes stared up at the sky, and as his gaze grew faint, a faint smile spread across his face.

Lou Shuwan reached out a hand.

The last thing she heard from his lips, faint and weak, was: “…save the people…”

Lou Shuwan crouched there, the pain drawing tears streaming down her face. Trembling, weeping, she stuffed the dried rations she’d scavenged from the corpses into her mouth…

The cold sunlight fell across her back.

Before long, she straightened up and set out once more upon the road.