In the first month of the year, wind and snow thoroughly enveloped the locks and bells.
By the end of the month, the weather gradually ward, ice and snow lted, and streams flowed down the mountains, winding their way into the plains on either side of Dan Prefecture.
Feng Yun received a ssage from Puyang Yi saying that Princess Chang had sent her so fabric from Xinjing, along with preserved delicacies, and expressed a desire to visit her in the camp.
Feng Yun refused.
This is the warfront; coming and going only stirs up gossip.
Feng Yun replied that she would visit her personally on a sunny day.
That night, her sleep was restless; she dread of Puyang Yi, covered in blood, extending her hand and crying out loud.
"Lady Empress, grant a child!"
"Please, Lady Empress, grant a child!"
Feng Yun woke from the nightmare, cold sweat covering her back.
Puyang Yi’s obsession had even invaded her dreams.
"I wonder if my elder brother and sister-in-law are faring well. I should find ti to visit Dan Prefecture."
Pei Jue turned up the lamp, gazing at the sheen of sweat on her delicate face, and soothed her back in a comforting gesture.
"Tomorrow, then."
Tomorrow...
But didn’t Master Kong of the Astronomical Bureau say last night that it would snow tomorrow?
Feng Yun pondered for a mont, then let out a heavy sigh. Nestled against Pei Jue’s chest, she relaxed her arm over his waist, her fiercely beating heart finally calming.
"Hurry up and clear, please. I’m losing my patience..."
Pei Jue stroked her shoulder without saying a word.
"I miss Rui Bao. Doesn’t Your Majesty miss him?"
"I do."
"I wonder when we can return to the capital..."
"Soon." Pei Jue inclines his head and kisses her forehead. "Sleep."
The next day, the forecast proved true—it was a light snowy day.
Feng Yun lazily rose and prepared to head to Dan Prefecture.
The carriage rolled out of the camp, but she faintly sensed sothing amiss.
A group of auxiliary soldiers led horses toward the stables, and in the yard, cargo seed to be unloaded.
Feng Yun lifted the curtain to inquire, only to see Qian Sanniu galloping into the camp from outside.
She called out to him, "Co here."
Qian Sanniu hesitated montarily, dismounted, and jogged over with a smile, bowing in salute.
"What are Lady Empress’s instructions?"
Feng Yun raised her brow slightly. "Has an esteed guest arrived at the camp?"
Qian Sanniu gave her a thumbs up and grinned. "That’s why everyone says Lady Empress has divine foresight! Nothing escapes Lady Empress’s notice."
He led his horse closer, patting the saddle where two jars of wine and so food were hung.
"Who has arrived?"
Pei Jue was ticulous in his military discipline; drinking was rare under his leadership, and there wasn’t anyone in Da Yong who could force him into a banquet.
Unless...
A suspicion stirred faintly in Feng Yun’s heart.
Then Qian Sanniu smiled and said, "It’s Prince of Yunchuan here for a visit. His Majesty is giving him a grand reception."
Feng Yun’s heart gave a subtle jolt.
Chunyu Yan had stepped into Da Yong territory three days ago.
Ten thousand soldiers were stationed near Lian River.
A small town bordering Xinyi and Bingzhou, close to Mingquan.
Naturally, the location was mutually agreed upon by both sides.
With ten thousand Yunchuan soldiers stationed there, pressure mounted imdiately on Qi Country’s Bingzhou.
But...
What was Chunyu Yan doing in Dan Prefecture instead of overseeing matters at Lianshui?
Feng Yun’s thoughts shifted, recalling Pei Jue’s words from the previous night.
Ah, so that’s why he urged her to visit Puyang Yi today...
Tsk! Who says Pei Gou is magnanimous?
He’s clearly a petty man.
Feng Yun’s smile widened unknowingly, her brows arched as she nodded to Qian Sanniu and said:
"If His Majesty inquires, tell him I’ve gone to Dan Prefecture to visit my sister-in-law, and won’t disturb his discussions with Prince of Yunchuan."
Feigning propriety, she hurried away.
In truth, she and Chunyu Yan had never harbored romantic feelings for each other...
However, perhaps courtesy of Chunyu Yan’s frequent jests—or his casual self-designation as her "lover"—paired with the incident involving Qiu Tong’s soft whip last ti, she’d rather not upend Pei Jue’s jar of vinegar again...
The carriage rolled swiftly onward to Dan Prefecture.
The city gates were bustling with activity; entering the city took considerable effort.
With two nations at war, inspections at entrances and exits were stringent. Feng Yun avoided revealing her identity, mingling in crowded throngs for half an hour before passing through.
Puyang Yi welcod her warmly with a banquet filled with dishes.
Initially, Feng Yun thought she held the idle lancholy of noblewon seeking a confidante—or perhaps wanted to share her anguish over having a child...
Unexpectedly, the mont Puyang Yi saw her, she burst into tears without a word.
Feng Yun rarely cried.
But she couldn’t bear seeing beauties shed tears.
"Oh dear, what’s the matter, what’s the matter?"
She half-embraced Puyang Yi, patting her shoulder to comfort her. "Your crying is breaking my heart, and I don’t even know what’s wrong yet!"
Puyang Yi raised her head and, under Feng Yun’s puzzled gaze, hesitated and finally said, "My husband is keeping a mistress outside..."
Feng Yun froze, her mouth opening and closing silently for a mont.
"Do you have evidence?"
Puyang Yi shook her head.
Feng Yun exhaled slightly in relief. "Then how do you know?"
Puyang Yi said, "Since arriving in Dan Prefecture, I’ve dread of it several tis."
Feng Yun: ...
Puyang Yi’s expression was genuinely sorrowful—heartbroken, even. At over thirty years old and childless, she had grown so sensitive that even slight disturbances terrified her.
Feng Yun couldn’t help sighing.
"Sister-in-law, don’t let your imagination run wild. Elder Brother has never liked such frivolities, and it’s warti; he wouldn’t act recklessly..."
Puyang Yi cried, tears streaming endlessly.
"I actually hope he keeps a mistress who can bear him children, preventing our lineage from ending... But I just don’t want him hiding it from , carefully avoiding to see her, and refusing to bring her back for to et..."
Feng Yun was montarily speechless.
She couldn’t fully empathize.
She seldom thought about having children. There were simply too many responsibilities she had to shoulder, while Puyang Yi, shut away in her courtyard, had nothing else to think about except for n, waiting, longing, and brooding...
Throughout the al, Feng Yun listened to Puyang Yi lant how suspiciously Wen Xingsu had been acting, how elusive and secretive he seed; she finally gleaned the root of the problem...
It wasn’t that Puyang Yi feared Wen Xingsu had other won.
She feared Wen Xingsu had soone else and would abandon her.
Being childless was grounds for divorce under the Seven Grounds for Rejection.
Wen Xingsu indeed had reasons to discard her.
Feng Yun comforted her for a long ti, but by the end, she found herself running out of words...
Puyang Yi was no longer the Lord of Pingyuan County she once was.
The marriage she had painstakingly preserved hadn’t brought her joy; marrying the man she loved had instead beco a heavy shackle binding her...
If only she didn’t love him...
Like her first marriage, where she punished a scoundrel of a husband, burned their ho, and caused an uproar in the whole city.
Back then, she was still a bold and unrestrained celestial beauty, wild and fearless.
Feng Yun had specifically chosen such snowy, slippery weather to enter the city precisely to avoid bumping into Chunyu Yan. Originally calculating her timing to leave before the city gates closed, she didn’t expect to be stopped by a group of Yunchuan soldiers as she stepped out of Puyang Yi’s residence.
"Lady Empress, greetings. Prince of Yunchuan has requested your presence..."
Feng Yun glanced at Xiang Zhong bowing deeply, then at the Yunchuan soldiers and attendants encircling her, letting out a cold laugh.
"From the looks of Eunuch Xiang’s display, it appears that whether I wish to et him or not, I’ll be compelled to do so?"
Xiang Zhong’s face flushed with embarrassnt as he clasped his hands in apology.
"Please don’t misunderstand, Lady Empress. I wouldn’t dare have such intentions. It’s just... the King deeply misses Lady Empress after so many years apart and hopes to converse privately..."
Nonsense about "private conversations."
What private matters could she possibly have to discuss with Chunyu Yan?
Feng Yun fixed Xiang Zhong with a frosty stare, her lips pressed into a firm line.
"And if I insist on leaving?"
Xiang Zhong wiped the sweat glistening on his forehead.
"Lady Empress might find... leaving imdiately sowhat difficult."
Dan Prefecture was under Da Yong Army control. Feng Yun had only brought two guards, two retinue mbers, and Xiaoman with her, all disguised as commoners...
Being stopped like this left her outnumbered and slightly overmatched.
Feng Yun had not anticipated Chunyu Yan would have the audacity to pull such a stunt.
Still, she refused to yield.
"Xiang Zhong."
Feng Yun smiled faintly, her tone devoid of emotion yet cold with every syllable.
"I will depart from here today. Should anyone dare to lay a finger on , I assure you they will die a miserable death..."
Without waiting for a response, she dropped the curtain with a snap and ordered Ge Guang coldly.
"Break through!"
Ge Guang drew his blade, gripping the reins tightly. "Yes!"
The blade glead sharply in the snowy daylight, aid directly at Xiang Zhong.
On his broad, pale face, Xiang Zhong’s expression fluctuated between indecision and terror.
He could neither advance nor retreat. He couldn’t give way nor stand firm against her...
How could anyone forget how formidable Feng Shi’er Niang could be?
Xiang Zhong cursed to himself, lanting that his master had clearly miscalculated; how could a re eunuch prevent the Empress of Da Yong from leaving in her carriage...?
Madness!
As Xiang Zhong’s brow furrowed deeper, contemplating throwing himself despairingly against Feng Yun’s carriage in a final act of loyalty, the sound of horse hooves broke the gathering tension.
Then ca a brisk, clear reprimand.
"You useless idiot!"
Xiang Zhong had been scolded, but with that, the enormous weight in his chest finally dissipated.
He turned swiftly toward the approaching figure and bowed deeply.
"Greetings, Great King..."
Chunyu Yan snorted icily.
Without bothering to respond further, he tugged at the reins and rode past Xiang Zhong, advancing toward the carriage ahead.
The Yunchuan soldiers parted imdiately to clear the path.
Inside, Feng Yun heard his voice but remained composed, seated steadily in her carriage without a single movent.
"What, is Lady Empress too shy to et ?"
The voice drifted softly, like spring breezes stirring ripples in the lake, blossoms sinking into the cold pool.
Feng Yun slowly lifted the curtain and glanced in his direction.
"What, is Prince of Yunchuan intent on using force?"
Chunyu Yan narrowed his eyes. "So many years, and Lady Empress remains indifferent as ever."
Feng Yun: "So many years, and you haven’t improved in the slightest."
Her words were as blunt as ever.
The Yunchuan guards and attendants surrounding Chunyu Yan were well-acquainted with his temper and could only listen in trepidation.
Yet Chunyu Yan simply began to laugh, slowly and unfettered.
The tangled thoughts that had made a knotted ss in his mind before seeing her unraveled in that mont, finally clear.
"Indeed, Lady Empress knows well."
Feng Yun sneered, "And what about that seems worth celebrating?"
Chunyu Yan: "Seeing Lady Empress is worth celebrating in itself."
Feng Yun: "In Da Yong territory, blocking the Empress’s way—are you aware, Prince of Yunchuan, of the grave misconduct you are committing?"
Chunyu Yan’s lips curved slightly, tinged with derision.
"What does it matter? I’ve never claid to be a gentleman."
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