No one could stop him.
Not the emperor, nor Gao Yuexing.
The moment the news broke about Prince Xin, Li Fuqian, embezzling disaster relief funds, the court was thrown into an uproar. The imperial family’s prestige among the people was nearly overturned. If not for Li Fuxiang remaining steadfast in the most disaster-stricken areas, standing alongside the people through thick and thin, how could the public’s hearts have been soothed?
Gao Yuexing, surrounded by ancient texts on her desk, felt the weight of past events pressing on her heart. She furrowed her delicate brows. The lives of half the city’s people were in her hands. She dared not dwell on it but couldn’t stop herself from thinking. Whenever she closed her eyes, it was as if she could hear the anguished wails of countless ghosts, all clamoring at her, crying out their grievances.
Gao Yuexing’s senses were in chaos, yet her mind remained clear. Staring at the blood-red hellscape in her thoughts, she silently resolved: Don’t worry, I will save you.
But the inner demons in her heart refused to let her go.
Gao Yuexing wanted to escape, but she could not see a way out.
Suddenly, she felt something scratching the back of her neck. She instinctively shrank and turned around, only to see Li Fuxiang leaning against the window, stretching out a stalk of foxtail grass toward her.
He called out to her, “Come out and play! Why are you acting like an old granny?”
Gao Yuexing stared at him for a long time before finally relaxing her brows. “What’s so fun out there? I’m not going.”
Li Fuxiang replied, “But it’s so stuffy in here.”
The summer heat had finally enveloped the entire valley.
Indeed, it was cooler out in the forest.
But Gao Yuexing stubbornly insisted, “I don’t mind the stuffiness.”
Li Fuxiang said, “Then I’ll come in and carry you out.”
Gao Yuexing replied, “You wouldn’t dare.”
Just as the two were glaring at each other in a standoff, a calm voice came from the inner room where Yaonu was. “Keep arguing, and I’ll throw you both out.”
Neither of them dared to make another sound.
Li Fuxiang persistently waved at her, beckoning her to come out and play.
Gao Yuexing slowly and methodically tidied up the books, papers, and brushes on her desk before finally stepping outside.
Li Fuxiang just wanted to cheer her up.
From a few steps away, Li Fuxiang suddenly lunged forward and pulled her into a tight embrace.
With her face buried against his chest, Gao Yuexing began to flail and struggle, letting out muffled protests, “You’re going to suffocate me…”
Li Fuxiang replied, “No, I won’t.”
He refused to let go, no matter what.
Gao Yuexing, unable to overpower him, realized quickly that her efforts were futile. No matter how much she kicked and flailed, she couldn’t even match the strength of one of his fingers. Accepting her defeat, she switched tactics, letting her hands slowly slide down to Li Fuxiang’s waist.
At that moment, Li Fuxiang hadn’t noticed anything amiss.
Gao Yuexing mischievously squeezed his waist, and the muscles and bones in that area twitched involuntarily.
By the time he reacted, it was already too late.
Gao Yuexing’s hand slid along his slender waistline, tracing downward.
After all, the sky was dark, and they were hidden under the grape trellis outside the fence. No one would deliberately come in to look.
Her hand stopped at that particular curve.
Li Fuxiang panicked, releasing her immediately and retreating a few steps. After standing there for a moment, as if that wasn’t enough, he turned and bolted.
Gao Yuexing was finally left in peace. She estimated that he wouldn’t be back for at least an hour.
To be honest, Li Fuxiang wasn’t exactly young anymore.
Yet, mischievous thoughts gradually began to creep into Gao Yuexing’s heart.
Watching how Li Fuxiang’s early morning disappearances were becoming more frequent, she couldn’t help but wonder. Clearly, he was suffering, yet he stubbornly adhered to that invisible boundary. Gao Yuexing began to suspect that the emperor must have said something to him before their wedding.
Under the grape trellis, she found a rattan chair, reclined on it, and let the night breeze wash over her while she waited for him.
As expected, over an hour later, Li Fuxiang finally reappeared before her, dripping wet and intentionally shaking the water from his hair onto her face.
Gao Yuexing didn’t dodge, simply lying there and looking up at him.
Li Fuxiang said, “You’re too wicked.”
Gao Yuexing smiled. “That’s just how wicked I am. What are you going to do about it?”
Li Fuxiang had no answer to that.
Unable to hold back any longer, Gao Yuexing finally asked, “Before our wedding, what exactly did the emperor say to you?”
Li Fuxiang squeezed onto her chair, lightly leaning his head against her pillow. With one arm loosely encircling her, he said, “The emperor told me that children are little life-draining demons. If you get pregnant even a year earlier, the King of Hell will shave ten years off your lifespan.”
Gao Yuexing: “…”
Even the dignified emperor was capable of spouting such nonsense.
But Li Fuxiang believed it completely, saying, “Wasn’t my own birth mother killed by me draining her life away?”
Gao Yuexing’s expression changed, and she sat up abruptly. “Don’t talk nonsense!”
Li Fuxiang looked at her and said, “I’m not talking nonsense. I don’t like children. Let’s not have any.”
Gao Yuexing replied, “I should thank your mother for bringing you into this world and then giving you to me.”
She knew what he was afraid of.
As Li Fuxiang grew older, thoughts of his birth mother, whom he had never met, might not have evoked nostalgia, but they did fill him with endless regret.
So, when the emperor told him that children were life-draining demons, Li Fuxiang believed it without hesitation.
Caressing her face, Li Fuxiang asked, “Why doesn’t the emperor hate me?”
Gao Yuexing didn’t understand. “Why would he hate you?”
Li Fuxiang said, “If my wife died in childbirth, I would never want to see that child again.”
Gao Yuexing held his hand tightly and said firmly, “You wouldn’t.”
Li Fuxiang said, “I would.”
Gao Yuexing: “You wouldn’t.”
Li Fuxiang’s eyes were filled with confusion.
Perhaps this was the difference between men and women.
A woman’s maternal instinct is often innate.
For men, it usually takes longer to understand.
Especially for Li Fuxiang, who grew up without the guidance of his biological parents and never learned about virtues like benevolence, loyalty, or filial piety from the teachings of sages. It was his innate kindness that shaped him into who he was today.
He simply didn’t understand.
Gao Yuexing said, “I hope that one day I can give birth to a son, a child like you. For ten months, I would nourish him with my own blood and essence. He would be a part of my life, a part of my body. If anyone dared to harm him, I would stop at nothing to fight them to the end. If, in the future, I face a difficult labor and a choice must be made to save one or the other, I would want him to live as the continuation of my life… Your Highness, just like how, back then, Imperial Concubine Zheng ordered the imperial physician to save the child over herself on her deathbed.”
Blood filled Li Fuxiang’s eyes.
He couldn’t hold back his tears.
Not just for Gao Yuexing, who spoke such words, but also for his birth mother, who had once given her life to bring him into this world.
Gao Yuexing sighed, moving closer to embrace him. She gently stroked his back and comforted him, “It’s okay, don’t be afraid. I promised you that I would live. We’ll live well together, and I’ll take care of myself. One day, everything you’ve lost will come back to you.”
Their tender moment was interrupted by the sound of hurried footsteps in the distance.
The sound was urgent.
Hearing it, they stepped out from under the grape trellis, only to see it was Langdu.
Langdu had come late at night to Xuancao Hall to meet with Yaonu, giving rise to an uneasy feeling.
Understanding that the affairs of Medicine Valley were internal matters, Gao Yuexing, as a guest, did not plan to intrude unnecessarily. However, Langdu stopped when he saw Li Fuxiang and said, “Since His Highness Prince Xiang is here, please come inside as well. This is a serious matter, and I dare not treat it lightly.”
Li Fuxiang and Gao Yuexing exchanged a glance, both seeing unease in each other’s eyes.
What could it be?
Inside Xuancao Hall, four people sat around the guest table, each holding a cup of cold tea.
Langdu began, “A few days ago, there was a business venture within the valley. We headed westward, and one of our disciples stayed in Fox Hu for a few days and discovered something unusual.”
No wonder they had specifically called Li Fuxiang in to listen.
Anything involving the Western Territories always put Li Fuxiang on edge. If he had a tail, it would undoubtedly have been bristling like a feather duster by now.
Li Fuxiang: “Explain in detail.”
Langdu continued, “Two years ago, Your Highness led your troops on a campaign, thoroughly crushing the royal court of Fox Hu underfoot. After capturing many members of their royal family and nobility, they completely submitted to our dynasty. Their ruler was escorted to the capital, where he signed a treaty of surrender, swearing never to violate us again. To demonstrate the grace of our dynasty, His Majesty did not mistreat them and instead sent them back unharmed.”
Li Fuxiang: “What? Are they once again unable to suppress their wolfish ambitions?”
Langdu said, “In the treaty signed between Fox Hu and our dynasty back then, there was a clause regarding mutual trade. As a result, merchants from our dynasty often treated Fox Hu as a safe rest stop when passing through. The same goes for the people from our Medicine Valley. However, just recently, a caravan we sent out returned and reported that the Fox Hu royal family has recently been associating with desert bandit tribes. They’ve blocked the western trade routes and have already plundered countless of our dynasty’s caravans.”
Gao Yuexing muttered under her breath, “Xumo’er…”
Li Fuxiang, not the least bit surprised, shook his head and said, “The emperor is too merciful… I shouldn’t have brought them back to the capital back then.”
Everyone present understood the implication in Li Fuxiang’s words.
It was clear he had intended to eliminate them long ago.
No one would have thought that someone so young could harbor such ruthless thoughts when it came to warfare.
Langdu said, “Beyond the western borders, it’s all wolves, tigers, and leopards, all eyeing our fertile lands with greed.”
Li Fuxiang’s gaze dimmed, like the faint glow of night shrouded in shadows. He said, “I have to go see for myself.”
Gao Yuexing immediately asked, “When will you leave?”
Li Fuxiang replied, “As soon as possible.”
Langdu frowned and said, “But if it’s so sudden, wouldn’t it seem lacking in justification? After all, we’ve only glimpsed some clues. Their wolfish ambitions are still hidden beneath the surface and haven’t fully revealed themselves.”
Li Fuxiang said, “Who said anything about deploying troops? I’ll go alone, quietly.”
Gao Yuexing slammed her teacup down on the table. “By yourself?”
Li Fuxiang nodded, staring at her. “By myself.”
Gao Yuexing’s gaze turned cold.
Yaonu covered her forehead with a hand.
Langdu glanced between the two of them, then hastily bowed, mumbling a farewell before making a quick escape.
Yaonu gathered the tea cups from the table and said, “You two take your time talking.” She then ascended the wooden stairs, disappearing upstairs to avoid the conversation.
Gao Yuexing tried to speak calmly, asking, “You decided to go alone because you’re afraid I’ll drag you down?”
Li Fuxiang said, “You know that’s not the reason.”
Gao Yuexing said, “During that autumn hunt, amidst the chaos of the army, you once told me—you couldn’t leave me behind, nor could you entrust me to anyone else. So, wherever you were, I would be too. And I said—fine, I will stay by your side, through life and death.”
Li Fuxiang said, “But this time is different.”
Gao Yuexing closed her eyes and, without arguing further, said calmly, “You can leave me behind and face the dangers alone. But listen carefully: from now on, you will no longer have any part in my life. Whatever I do, whatever I face, it will have nothing to do with you, Li Fuxiang. We don’t need to support each other anymore.”
Li Fuxiang, meeting her increasingly cold gaze, raised his hand hesitantly, only to lower it again, looking visibly hurt. Gao Yuexing refused to look at him any longer and simply said, “Think carefully about it yourself.”