Six years ago, when Wei Xiren had returned to the capital to give her report, the two had met eyes separated by the great distance of the crowd of senior ministers at court; since then, Wei Xiren had guarded the border and never returned to the capital. Xie Qianbing had never been to the Western border, and so, the two had only met each other again after six years. Actually, Wei Xiren had never seen Xie Qianbing as a good friend. When they'd first met, Jiang Changbai had only just become Emperor, and all of the Great Li had been in turmoil and on the verge of crisis. At the time, Wei Xiren hadn't understood why Song Juguang had surrendered the territory she'd conquered so painstakingly to another without resistance, nor did she understand why Song Juguang had been so utterly willing to bow her head and submit. At the time, Xie Qianbing had been the only person Jiang Changbai had trusted. Back then, Wei Xiren had disdained Jiang Changbai, feeling that she'd ascended her ...

When Qi Shou'an's right hand lifted the tent's curtain, she still thought that Wei Xiren would insist that she meet the Shejin deputy general, Yu Jiuyun, in a small town not far from the camp. She'd even thought of how she'd explain it. She sent the letter, but Yu Jiuyun didn't respond. Typically, Yu Jiuyun led the patrol squads, but recently, someone else had taken her place. In the end, this was the border of the two states, and she couldn't go looking for Yu Jiuyun anywhere, and could only wait for her to contact her. But when she stepped into the tent, Qi Shou'an caught the scent of a terrible, sour scent. The awful scent was mixed with that of blood, and it choked her until she coughed. She shifted her gaze, finding Wei Xiren sitting, cross-legged, on a cushion, cleaning her long dao, and without even thinking, Qi Shou'an said, "Jiangjun, I've already sent a letter to Shejin thrice…" Before she'd even finished speaking, Wei Xir...

A strand of the sunset light seeped in through the crack between the curtains, its brightness layering the memorials piled on the desk with a sheen of gold. Leaning over the desk to look at something, Jiang Changbai's brows couldn't help but furrow tightly. When she'd been young, she'd assumed that being Emperor would give one the entire world, and it was only now that she felt she'd trapped herself within layer after layer of memorials. Just as she was thinking this, she suddenly heard the sound of footsteps approaching. Song Juguang came to a natural stop behind Jiang Changbai, raising her hand to rub her temples. "How lucky for the common people of the Great Li, to have an Emperor who governs so diligently," Song Juguang said, her tone mingled with laughter, but she didn't reduce the force of her hand. "Flatter," Jiang Changbai accused with a smile, but put her brush down and leaned backwards, falling into Song Juguang's embrace. ...

With Xu Shuqiao having become an official, the Xu residence had long since moved. They no longer lived in the desolate alley of the past, but had moved to a large residence closer to the Imperial Palace. When Xu Shuqiao left morning court and returned home, she could hear the thump-thump of a bamboo boards arising from the rear courtyard from a distance. Only when she grew closer did she find that her mother was using a plank of red sandalwood as a disciplining rule, bringing it down blow after blow on Xu Shuyi. Xu Shuyi, on the other hand, was sprawled atop a long bench, her moon-pale silk trousers around her knees, her rear crisscrossed with dozens of red, raised marks, her usually neatly-gathered hair in a disarray, stray strands stuck to the nape of her neck with sweat. Conducting trade to raise her two daughters had long since caused a swift and decisive temper in Mother Xu. In these past few years, she'd been most proud of her elder daughter earning the Emperor's favour,...

Before Feng Puzhi arrived, her voice carried in; in the moment He Leyong and Xie Qianbing were startled, she pulled the curtain aside and arrived before them. The two had never seen Feng Puzhi before, and just now they'd only heard her bell-like voice, and had assumed she was a middle-aged woman. Only once they truly saw her did they realise she was already in her seventies. Feng Puzhi's figure was thin, and the clothing she wore, made of coarse hemp, had started fading from wash, and the collar of her inner robes, revealed at her neck, gave off the faint scent of honey locust. Though it was already a summer's day, she dressed in spring weather clothing, as if she couldn't sense the blazing heat of the moment. Her figure lacked any adornments except for the peach-wood hairpin that carelessly gathered her headful of silver hair. "Shifu," Qin Anhe called out, and hurried over to stand at Feng Puzhi's side. Feng Puzhi didn't respond, merely meeting He Ley...

The great hall was deathly silent, the newly-promoted Vice-Minister of War's head lowered, and, unseen by anyone else, wiped at her temples. All the ministers' heads were lowered, not a single one daring to make a sound. All of them knew it wasn't a good assignment. Though Shejin had already bowed its head and declared vassalage to the Great Li, the rumours from the border lately had long since reached the capital, and everyone knew there was something strange about Shejin; they'd only managed with great effort to come to such positions, and naturally they valued their lives. Seeing Xie Qianbing had spoken, everyone let out breath of relief. Jiang Changbai's heart, though, skipped a beat, and after muttering to herself for a few moments, she said, "Shejin is far away, and if you are to go now, it would take at least two months to reach it. The Ministry of Appointments is busy and bustling—Qianbing, have you thought this through?" Jiang Changbai's words...

Actually, at first, Song Juguang didn't know what Qin Zhixun's "I've already won against you" meant; after the Great Li's capital saw off the Shejin Envoy, it returned to its usual tranquility. If some upset had to be mentioned, then it would only be learning that the prisoner who'd tried to assassinate Qin Zhixun had run into a wall and passed away. The one most shocked by this was Jiang Changbai. Though that night Song Juguang had told her everything, Jiang Changbai was still curious about Song Juguang's past. So, she'd specially ordered the Warden to treat that prisoner a bit better, and at least keep her a live, so that she could question her in the future. She hadn't imagined that, before she'd even managed to make the time to go question her, she'd die. With neither a name nor relatives, it was said that it was the old woman in the cell next to hers who'd found a mat to wrap her body in. Song Juguang, though, wasn't emotio...