Chapter 110

Edited By: Mim

“Why do you take in so many adopted daughters?”

As they left the Shengzi Palace, Li Zhi couldn’t help but ask Xie Lanxu, who was riding just behind her.

Xie Lanxu’s arms stretched past Li Zhi to hold the reins, calm and unhurried as they both rode atop Longyan, the steed they had raised together since childhood.

“To foster closeness, naturally. Calling me ‘GodFather’ feels far more intimate than calling me ‘brother.’ By taking their daughters as adopted children, it puts their hearts at ease while also sparing me from taking in those concubines.”

“If you were to take concubines and they bore children, wouldn’t that tie the two families together even more tightly?”

“And when the Li clan fell,” Xie Lanxu countered, “did those families allied by marriage lift a finger to help you?”

Li Zhi fell silent.

When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. [Note: A idiom meaning that followers or supporters abandon a leader in their time of misfortune.] When the Li clan was condemned for treason, their in-laws were more concerned with fleeing than with offering aid. Why would they ever help?

“What’s more,” Xie Lanxu added, “I simply don’t want any other women.”

His words struck a chord in Li Zhi’s heart. Perhaps, all along, the answers she sought in her questioning had merely been leading to this one response.

“That night at the hot springs, you confessed your fears—that other women would see you as a thorn in their side,” he said. “So, I chose to have only you. For me, you are enough.”

“Thank you, Ah-Li… But this promise of yours—just keep it while I’m still here. If I’m no longer around, then you—”

“Don’t talk nonsense,” Xie Lanxu cut her off, pulling her tightly into his embrace. “That day will never come.”

Li Zhi said no more. She closed her eyes and leaned quietly into Xie Lanxu’s arms.

The two rode together back to Mingyue Tower.

A year had passed, but little had changed. Mingyue Tower still stood as it had when they’d left. Madam Zhang was still selling steamed buns, Old Man Liu was still weaving bamboo baskets, and the familiar shops still lined the streets. The Duhu Mansion looked unchanged on the outside, though it now housed a new Commander.

“Is there anywhere else you’d like to go?” Xie Lanxu asked. “This might be our last visit to Mingyue Tower.”

Li Zhi pondered for a moment before replying, “Lake Mana.”

Xie Lanxu hadn’t expected her to name that place. He glanced at her but refrained from asking further questions.

“Hyah!”

With a flick of the reins, Xie Lanxu urged Longyan forward, and the horse bolted like an arrow. The ride was rough, and Li Zhi clutched the saddle tightly. Each time her body swayed precariously, the arms around her would immediately steady her.

After the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, Longyan halted on a vast meadow. Before them lay Agate Lake, its waters as clear as a mirror.

The season for seaweed had passed, and the shimmering lake surface exuded a cold stillness.

Li Zhi declined Xie Lanxu’s offer of help and dismounted on her own.

“This… this is one of my unresolved knots,” Li Zhi said.

Xie Lanxu silently watched her.

Li Zhi walked toward the lake, kneeling on the smooth pebbles along the shore. With her hands clasped, she prayed for the spirits of the lake’s dead.

“He had to die.”

Xie Lanxu’s voice came from behind her. Li Zhi didn’t open her eyes.

“If he hadn’t died, Yi Prefecture wouldn’t have descended into chaos for fear of the Commander’s retaliation.”

Li Zhi continued murmuring her prayers for the dead.

“And besides,” Xie Lanxu paused, “I saw him that night, trying to violate you. You only stopped him by threatening to take your own life. He deserved to die.”

There was no trace of regret in Xie Lanxu’s voice.

At this point, Li Zhi no longer had the standing to criticize him.

“I was just thinking,” Li Zhi finally opened her eyes, her gaze settling on the serene lake surface, “Lu Han never wronged us. In fact, he helped us in many ways. Yet we killed his only son. If there really are spirits in the afterlife… we’ll surely go to hell.”

“I’m the one who killed him. What does that have to do with you?”

“I failed to stop you and even helped you cover it up afterward. Naturally, I’m equally guilty.”

Xie Lanxu was silent for a long moment before suddenly chuckling.

“If, after we die, we go to the same place, then so be it. Even if it’s the eighteenth layer of hell, I’ll gladly see the sights—as long as I have you by my side.”

…

After paying their respects to the spirits of Agate Lake, Li Zhi and Xie Lanxu returned to the military camp under the cover of night.

Within the camp, Moqi Li continued impersonating Xie Lanxu. Not only had the enemy forces in Baisha City failed to notice the deception, but even the Yan soldiers within their own camp remained unaware.

Moqi Li, who had an older brother known for his wisdom and a younger brother famed for his cunning, rarely had such an important role to play. To fully embody Xie Lanxu, he had shed fifteen pounds, and from his physique, he was now indistinguishable from the real Xie Lanxu. When recounting this to Li Zhi and Xie Lanxu, his face brimmed with pride.

Xie Lanxu naturally expressed his deep gratitude.

There was still no news from Li Cien, who had ventured to the grasslands to negotiate peace with the Thirteen Tribes. Li Zhi could only silently pray for the safety of both her and her escort.

Over the past few days, Li Zhi had not been idle either.

Part of the previous dynasty’s treasure had been quietly moved and liquidated to purchase warhorses, which were then delivered to the Shengzi Palace.

As the intermediary, Li Zhi handled the allocation personally and discreetly kept a small share for herself. Compared to the entirety of the treasure, what she retained was a mere drop in the ocean, but even that “drop” was enough to buy the most expensive restaurant in the capital—Huixue Pavilion.

In the blink of an eye, a month had passed.

Still, no word came from Li Cien. Li Zhi didn’t know whether it was due to the vast distances making communication difficult or… something worse. Each time she entertained such thoughts, she would forcibly cut them off before they spiraled further.

Li Xiangsheng, a strong and capable escort, had accompanied Li Cien, and with Li Cien’s cleverness and resourcefulness, they should be able to turn any peril into safety.

Yet, as time dragged on, no amount of self-reassurance could diminish Li Zhi’s growing worry for her siblings.

One night, a clap of thunder jolted her awake.

Xie Lanxu, who had gone to oversee the treasure’s relocation, had not yet returned. The other side of the bed remained cold and empty. Outside the tent, rain poured down in torrents, loud as thunder. When Li Zhi peeked outside, a flash of lightning turned the world stark white, followed by a deafening roar of thunder.

She pulled the blanket over her head, hoping to muffle the sound.

But the thunder seemed to pierce through the fabric, seeping into her ears and her very bones. Rather than comforting her, it made her feel more unsettled, her mind racing with unwelcome thoughts.

Li Zhi instinctively reached for the shell bracelet on her wrist, only to grasp at air. Only then did she remember—it was no longer with her.

The one thing that had always calmed her was gone. In its absence, fear and panic swept in, coursing through her veins and spreading to every corner of her body.

Unable to bear the suffocating silence of the tent, which eerily mirrored that night, she suddenly bolted upright.

The left side of the bed, empty and still, seemed haunted by a shadow—a figure who had once laid there. She could almost see her sister’s final moments: blood draining from her body, eyes wide open even at the end. Those lifeless pupils still held remnants of fear and sorrow.

Every time Li Zhi thought of what her elder sister had endured in her final hours, her heart ached unbearably.

She’d rather bleed to death than ask for help from anyone…

How desperate must her elder sister have been in those last moments?

Another crash of thunder resounded, and Li Zhi could no longer stay still. She threw on a random outer garment and stumbled out of the tent into the storm.

The two soldiers guarding the tent were startled and hurried after her.

“Miss! The rain is so heavy—where are you going? Please, go back to the tent!”

Li Zhi ignored their pleas. The two soldiers didn’t dare pull her back by force, so they could only exchange worried glances.

She had no destination in mind.

Standing in the pouring rain, letting it drench her to the bone, seemed to ease the suffocating feeling in her chest. The downpour obscured her presence, shrouding her identity and the fact that she was living a life of anonymity—hiding in plain sight.

How loud and chaotic the world was.

The sound of rain, the roar of thunder—her existence felt so small, so insignificant.

Suddenly, a horse’s neigh broke through the chaos of the storm.

Xie Lanxu returned through the rain, a conical hat shielding his face. He dismounted swiftly and strode toward Li Zhi.

His gaze swept over her disheveled and distraught appearance, his brow furrowing deeply. He removed his hat and placed it on her head, then scooped her up into his arms without a word.

Xie Lanxu’s tall, lean frame was deceptively strong, his muscles taut and powerful like a panther’s. Carrying Li Zhi was effortless for him.

Cold rain and a biting wind fell like soft needles, but within Xie Lanxu’s warm embrace, Li Zhi’s trembling slowly subsided without her realizing it.

When they entered the tent, the flap fell shut, cutting off the storm outside. Even the thunder seemed quieter within.

Xie Lanxu placed Li Zhi on the bed and ordered the soldiers outside to fetch a bucket of hot water.

“What’s wrong?” Xie Lanxu asked. “You’ve never mentioned being afraid of thunder before.”

Li Zhi’s lips were pale, and her rain-soaked clothes clung tightly to her body, adding to the chill that permeated her.

“…Well, now you know,” she muttered faintly.

Xie Lanxu took a dry towel, sat beside her, and gently began wiping the rainwater from her face.

“This is about your sister, isn’t it?”

“Every time there’s a stormy night, I think of her,” Li Zhi admitted. “I think about how I still haven’t avenged her, how the true culprit remains at large. I hate myself for being so powerless…”

Xie Lanxu wrapped an arm around her shoulders, unbothered by the rain soaking into his own clothes.

“With the two of us together, there’s nothing we can’t accomplish.”

Li Zhi closed her eyes and fell silent.

The blood shed by the twins had stained her entire life.

Until Xie Shencong was dead, she would never escape the night of the thunderstorm.

—

The next day, after the rainstorm cleared, the sky was dazzlingly bright.

The morning dew lingered on the blades of grass, trembling with the breeze.

Xie Lanxu convened a military council to review the scouts’ latest report on Baisha City.

The food stores in Baisha City had been completely depleted. The last remaining rations had been hoarded by the noble families of Yaxiu, leaving the commoners starving. They could only look longingly at the unharvested rice fields outside the city walls. Hunger had driven the people to desperation, and sporadic riots had already broken out.

Several attempts by Yaxiu’s royal forces to send reinforcements from beyond the pass had been intercepted and repelled by Xie Lanxu’s troops.

At this rate, Baisha City would fall without a single attack.

This council was held to decide whether to launch an all-out assault in the coming days.

Li Zhi stood firmly in favor of a direct attack.

While waiting for the city to collapse sounded ideal, the prolonged siege would only increase the suffering of the commoners within the city. How many would die of starvation? How many desperate parents would turn to cannibalism, as had been recorded in histories past? If Baisha City remained under siege, it would only be a matter of time before such tragedies unfolded.

Better to strike now, while the enemy forces were weakened, to minimize the sacrifice of innocent lives.

Xie Lanxu agreed with Li Zhi’s position.

For him, nothing was more important than taxes.

With Xie Lanxu’s support, the military council quickly passed the resolution to launch an all-out assault on Baisha City within days.

Just as the meeting was about to conclude, a scout barged into the tent, his face pale with urgency.

“Report!”

When delivering emergency military intelligence, scouts didn’t need prior permission to enter.

The scout strode in swiftly and knelt before Xie Lanxu and the assembled generals.

“Twenty li southwest, a massive cavalry force is approaching at full speed!”

A cavalry force—entirely composed of mounted troops?

Even the former dynasty couldn’t have amassed such wealth to field an army entirely of cavalry!

Xie Lanxu immediately ordered the camp alarm to be sounded. Each general rushed to their posts as the camp prepared for battle, every soldier on high alert.

After issuing the necessary commands, Xie Lanxu and Li Zhi ascended the watchtower together, waiting to glimpse the mysterious cavalry force.

Amid the dense forested mountains, a cloud of dust and smoke rose, inching steadily closer to the Yan army’s camp. The rumbling tremors of the earth soon reached their ears.

How many riders are there?

Fifty thousand? A hundred thousand?

For an army entirely composed of cavalry, who could command such an overwhelming force?

Could it be the Rakshasa Empire taking advantage of the chaos?

Finally, the cavalry emerged from the dense woods. But as the leading figures came into view, Li Zhi’s eyes widened, and tears instantly filled them.

It was Li Cien and Li Xiangsheng!

Behind them rode a massive force of grassland tribesmen mounted on sturdy warhorses.

These men were tall, rugged, and brimming with untamed ferocity, yet they clustered tightly around Li Cien like royal guards protecting their princess.

Beside Li Cien, in addition to Li Xiangsheng, there was a young man dressed in tribal attire. A wolf fang necklace hung proudly around his chest, marking him as someone of noble lineage among the tribes.

As they approached the Yan army’s camp, Li Cien dismounted first, striding forward with confidence.

It had been months since Li Zhi last saw her sister, and the changes in her were striking. The traces of girlish immaturity were gone from Li Cien’s face, replaced with a radiant maturity. Her jet-black eyes gleamed with intelligence and elegance, like a blossoming flower at its peak.

From a distance, she performed a formal bow and announced in a clear, resounding voice:

“Li Cien, your humble subject, together with my brother Li Xiangsheng, has not failed Your Highness’s trust. I have brought the Thirteen Tribes of the grasslands to bow in submission!”