The moment Gao Yuexing’s hand intertwined with his, Li Fuxiang almost didn’t think—it was an immediate response. Because of this, when that red butterfly-shaped prize token fluttered down in front of them, neither of them caught it. Instead, it fell to the ground.
The people attending the lantern festival in the capital wouldn’t create a commotion. Out of respect for the young birthday star, His Highness Prince Xiang, they wouldn’t dare cause any unpleasant incidents at the festival.
However, in the grand Shengjing of the Great Xu Dynasty, there were always some foreign visitors drawn by its reputation.
Gao Yuexing noticed the prize token on the ground and was about to bend down to pick it up when suddenly a hand reached out, swiftly snatching up the token. Immediately after, a bright, playful laugh from a young woman rang out beside her:
“Hahaha! I picked it up! I have a lantern now, too!”
Following the voice, Gao Yuexing looked over and saw a girl slightly older than herself.
What first caught Gao Yuexing’s attention was the girl’s smile—so dazzlingly radiant that it seemed to bring the brightness of the midday sun into the night. She wasn’t wearing the attire of someone from the Central Plains but a vivid red outfit, with a belt adorned with a ring of silver bells at her waist.
Beside the girl, a man spoke harshly, “How rude! That belongs to someone else. Return it immediately.”
When Gao Yuexing turned to look at the man, she noticed he had a robust build, but his clothing resembled that of a native Central Plainsman.
The girl pouted reluctantly but still held out the token with both hands to return it.
Gao Yuexing quickly interjected, “If you like it, miss, please keep it. Tokens like this are a matter of fate.”
The girl finally smiled brightly again. She glanced back at the man, and when he nodded, she accepted the token with joy and happily thanked them.
Gao Yuexing glanced at Li Fuxiang, only to find his gaze fixed on the man.
The man, in turn, also focused his eyes on Li Fuxiang. The two of them stared at each other for a long time.
Suspicion crept into Gao Yuexing’s heart. It seemed like they knew each other.
And sure enough—
The man spoke first, “What a coincidence, young master. I didn’t expect to meet you here in the capital.”
As he said this, Gao Yuexing felt a bit relieved.
It seemed they had met before, but the man didn’t know Li Fuxiang’s true identity.
But then the man continued, “I wasn’t expecting to see you, so I came unprepared. Allow me to verbally extend my congratulations on your birthday, young master.”
Gao Yuexing: “!”
He knows Li Fuxiang’s true identity!
Li Fuxiang’s jaw tightened. He nodded slightly and said, “It is indeed a coincidence. I didn’t expect to encounter you here in the capital.”
Those who knew Li Fuxiang well could tell that this was a gesture of guardedness.
The man pointed to the girl beside him and said, “This is my younger sister. She loves to play and has always wanted to visit the capital to see the famed twelfth-month lantern festival. I couldn’t let her travel alone as a young woman, so I accompanied her.”
Li Fuxiang replied, “I hope you both enjoy yourselves. We’re all friends here. If you need any assistance, feel free to send me a message. You know how to reach me.”
Those who obtained a prize token could wait to collect a glass lantern.
And so, they nodded at each other and bid farewell.
Li Fuxiang held Gao Yuexing’s hand as they walked away.
Gao Yuexing asked, “Who was that just now?”
Li Fuxiang replied, “He’s a tribal prince from the Western Territory, named Ru Zilin.”
Gao Yuexing remarked, “What an unusual name.”
Li Fuxiang explained, “Their people all have names like that. Their tribe is called Xumo’er.”
Gao Yuexing, who had been leaning against him and walking playfully, suddenly froze in her tracks.
Her abrupt halt caused Li Fuxiang to stumble slightly. Turning back, he asked, “What’s wrong?”
Gao Yuexing’s eyes darkened, and even the lantern’s glow failed to illuminate her expression.
A vague unease gripped Li Fuxiang’s heart. Gently placing a hand on her shoulder, he asked softly, “What’s wrong…”
His voice seemed infinitely distant.
But Gao Yuexing knew this wasn’t a place to lose composure. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and steadied the pounding rhythm in her chest.
The year after their wedding, during the winter, Li Fuxiang had led an expedition for the second time. As the commanding general, he fought to subdue the unruly Xumo’er tribe in the Western Territory.
In this life, after nearly drowning and teetering on the brink of life and death, she had the extraordinary fortune of encountering her nine-year-old self from her previous life and learned certain truths.
—The enemy had hung her lifeless body above the city gates. Li Fuxiang, at the foot of those gates, was pierced by a barrage of arrows and died.
It was the Xumo’er tribe.
Gao Yuexing had thought that all those events were long behind her, as if they belonged to a distant past, something from another lifetime. The peace of her current life often lulled her into a sense of stability, as if those memories were nothing more than a dream.
But the reappearance of the Xumo’er tribe…
Forced her to slap herself awake.
Things weren’t over.
Dreams weren’t real.
Li Fuxiang called her name, “Gao Yuexing—”
She opened her eyes, her scattered gaze struggling to focus. Finally, she saw Li Fuxiang’s anxious face clearly. She parted her lips and said, “I’m fine.”
Li Fuxiang said, “You scared me.”
Gao Yuexing replied, “I’m sorry.” She raised her hand and touched his chest lightly, murmuring as if to herself, “Does it hurt…”
Li Fuxiang pulled back his sleeve and said, “It hurts like hell.”
On his wrist, there were several bright red scratches—wounds that Gao Yuexing, in her earlier daze, had inflicted with her grip.
Seeing the faint traces of blood, Gao Yuexing finally regained her full composure. She took his hand in hers, gently brought it to her lips, and blew on it tenderly.
Seizing the moment, Li Fuxiang asked, “What were you thinking just now?”
Feeling it was necessary to warn him, Gao Yuexing carefully said, “Your Highness, do you think… the Xumo’er tribe is safe?”
Though she phrased it delicately, Li Fuxiang immediately grasped her meaning.
He sighed in relief. “So that’s what you’re worried about…” After seriously considering the matter, he said, “Xumo’er is even more barren than Fox Hu. At least Fox Hu is a small kingdom, while Xumo’er is just a tribe formed by bandits on horseback. Their survival relies on pillaging and plundering. It’s a bit early to draw conclusions, but your concern isn’t unfounded. I also believe that war is only a matter of time. When they can no longer survive by eating sand, they’ll naturally set their sights on the vast and prosperous lands of our Great Xu Dynasty…”
Gao Yuexing quickly asked, “Shouldn’t we prepare early? Maybe even strike first?”
Li Fuxiang laughed again.
Understanding her lack of military knowledge, he patiently explained, “That’s not possible. We just finished a war this year. Many of our citizens haven’t yet recovered, and the damage caused by conscription hasn’t faded. Many families of fallen soldiers are still mourning, and the national treasury can’t afford reckless actions.”
Gao Yuexing lowered her gaze, realizing her naivety.
The phrase “One general’s success is built upon the bones of ten thousand soldiers” echoed in her mind. A war is never as simple as a ruler giving an order.
But…
But by the time Xumo’er’s ambitions swell and they invade the Central Plains, it will already be too late.
Li Fuxiang comforted her, saying, “Thank you for reminding me. I’ll keep a close watch on them at all times.”
The Xumo’er prince and princess, having visited the capital, had just experienced the grandest lantern festival imaginable. Could they truly return willingly to their barren homeland, living a life of eating sand every day?
Human ambition has never been something to underestimate.
Behind them, Ru Zilin watched his sister delight in the glass lantern she had received and asked her, “Do you like it here?”
His sister replied sweetly, “I do!”
Ru Zilin said, “Then I’ll marry you off to the capital in the future.”
Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, his sister suddenly grew displeased, pouted, and said, “No! No matter how good the capital is, I won’t come without you, Brother. I don’t care about marriage or anything like that.”
Ru Zilin laughed. “Alright, alright. I won’t bring it up again. But one day, I’ll bring you to live in the capital forever.”
…
On their way back, Li Fuxiang stopped at a street stall and bought some cherry cakes.
He bought them himself and carried them himself, leaving no hand free to hold Gao Yuexing’s.
When they reached a quieter spot, Gao Yuexing stopped and stared at him with a hint of grievance.
Li Fuxiang, completely unaware of her displeasure, looked back at her with an innocent expression.
Gao Yuexing said, “I’m going home tomorrow.”
Li Fuxiang didn’t seem the least bit upset and said, “Don’t worry. I’ve already figured out how to come get you to go out and play.”
Gao Yuexing replied, “I won’t go out with you again. I’m very busy.”
Li Fuxiang, puzzled, asked, “What are you busy with?”
Gao Yuexing said, “I have to embroider my wedding dress. It’ll take me a whole year.”
Li Fuxiang: “…”
He was suddenly at a loss for words. What could he do? He couldn’t very well stop her from embroidering. Without a wedding dress, he couldn’t marry her. By that logic, it was better for her to hurry up and finish embroidering it.
Gao Yuexing said, “I’ll give you one last chance—hold my hand.”
Li Fuxiang looked at his left hand, then at his right. With a reluctant sigh, he handed one of the frost cakes to a group of passing children. Only then did he free a hand to take hers again.
Later, as the hour approached for the palace gates to be locked, they met the princess on Huayang Street, hurriedly boarded a carriage, and rushed back to the palace.
Gao Yuexing curiously asked the princess where she had been.
The princess refused to tell her.
Gao Yuexing had a vague suspicion in her heart.
Girls at this age, once they had secrets and little schemes, it was often related to a lover.
She remembered that the princess eventually married Zheng Yan.
Li Lanyao was about the right age now.
Gao Yuexing thought to herself that perhaps the princess’s match would be settled even before hers.
The next day, back at the palace, Gao Yuexing hastily packed her belongings, waiting for her family’s carriage to come pick her up.
Fu Yun, looking a bit reluctant, said, “I only just got to spend some time serving by your side again, and now we’re parting already.”
Gao Yuexing calculated the time for her and asked, “Aren’t you about to reach the age when you should leave the palace too?”
Fu Yun replied, “Almost. Just one more year. But my family’s long gone, so once I leave the palace, if you don’t mind, I’d like to come to you for shelter.”
Gao Yuexing said, “Why wouldn’t that work? If you’re willing, you can stay with me for the rest of your life.”
Fu Yun finally felt some relief and smiled. “That’s wonderful. My life will have some stability now. By then, though, I might not even call you ‘young lady’ anymore. I might have to call you ‘Princess Consort.’”
When discussing such matters, Gao Yuexing showed none of the bashfulness typical of girls her age. Instead, she spoke matter-of-factly, saying, “It won’t happen that quickly. Let’s just wait and see.”
She always thought things would progress slowly and assumed their marriage would take some time to finalize.
Little did she know that behind her back, Li Fuxiang had practically flipped through the almanac until it was worn out, desperately wishing to hasten their wedding as soon as possible.