The Fox Hu was defeated, their entire army annihilated. The nation’s ruler refused to surrender and brazenly declared, claiming that victory and defeat were uncertain, life and death unpredictable, and that they should revisit the matter ten years later.
Some of the elder officials of the current dynasty were so furious that they blew their beards in anger.
What they relied on was nothing more than the protection of the Hucha Sea. To wage war against the Fox Hu, one must first traverse the Hucha Sea. However, using limited military and financial resources to explore a deadly desert was an endless burden imposed on soldiers and ordinary people. As such, the emperor was unable to make a decisive move.
There was still no news of Li Fuxiang, who had ventured deep into the Hucha Sea, nor of Zheng Qianye, who had gone to search for him and was also missing. For half a year, the emperor had not cracked a smile. The capital of Great Xu felt as though it was perpetually shrouded in dark clouds, and everyone treaded cautiously as if their heads were on the line.
From the unseasonable snowfall in the third month of spring to the scorching sun baking the Gobi Desert in midsummer, nearly half a year had passed.
Zheng Qianye’s army’s bold declaration of war against the desert bandits had long caught the attention of the Fox Hu. When Zhan Ji led his subordinates to join forces with Zheng Qianye, the Fox Hu mistakenly believed reinforcements from the Great Xu court had arrived. Panic-stricken, they dispatched troops to surround and suppress them, fortifying their city defenses.
Gao Yuexing, dressed in light armor and riding among the troops, appeared like a young general not yet fully grown. From a distance, no one could tell she was actually a woman.
They had just finished a siege battle.
Zheng Qianye, strict in command, prohibited anyone from consuming the seized food and water. However, the dry rations they had brought were running dangerously low.
Zheng Yan secretly brought her some water.
Gao Yuexing shook her head and refused.
Everyone in the army was struggling. If she drank more, someone else would drink less. With Zheng Yan’s character as a young general, he would never deprive his subordinates of their rations, meaning he must have saved it from his own share.
Leading his horse, Zheng Yan stood beside her, gazing at the distant sunset. He said, “Drink it. We’re almost through this.”
Gao Yuexing murmured, “Yes, today is already the 28th of June…”
Zheng Yan didn’t understand the deeper meaning and laughed. “I admire how you can still keep track of the days. I’ve long lost sense of time.”
Eight days.
Gao Yuexing began counting down in her heart.
Zheng Yan asked, “Why did you leave the capital back then and head to the Medicine Valley?”
Gao Yuexing gave her usual response, “I wasn’t in good health and went to seek treatment.”
That was the official reason the Gao family had given to the public. Only Gao Jing and Xi Heng knew the truth. Even Gao Yuexing’s mother truly believed her daughter was unwell and had to go to Medicine Valley for recuperation.
Back then, Zheng Yan was just a child and wouldn’t have understood much. But now that he was grown, he gradually began to grasp the murky waters beneath the capital’s surface. “That’s not right. We grew up together. Why would you hide it from me?”
Staring at the sunset for too long, Gao Yuexing’s eyes grew sore. She blinked and said, “Since you know I’m hiding something, don’t ask further.”
Zheng Yan replied, “Fine, I won’t ask… But does Master Gao know about your journey to Xiang City?”
Of course, he didn’t. Besides, with the mountains and rivers so far apart, Gao Jing, burdened with official duties, couldn’t possibly investigate Medicine Valley in person.
Before setting out, Gao Yuexing had prepared more than a dozen letters home. She entrusted her senior brothers in Medicine Valley to send one back every seven days.
Her father wouldn’t know.
Zheng Yan said, “It’s tough on a delicate young lady like you… My grandfather had a bit to drink the other day and secretly said to me, ‘If only she were born into our Zheng family.’”
The daughters of the Zheng family were scarce. Generation after generation, they had only male heirs. Finally, in Zheng Qianye’s generation, they had a daughter. She was cherished like a pearl for over a decade, but in the end, she met such a tragic fate.
Gao Yuexing asked, “Do you like daughters?”
Zheng Yan, without much thought, smiled brightly and replied, “Of course I do.”
Gao Yuexing nodded. “Your future wife will give you one.”
Zheng Yan froze for a moment, then blushed. “You… you… why are you suddenly talking about this?”
Seeing his reaction, Gao Yuexing understood. At his age, if he were honest and straightforward, he wouldn’t have reacted this way. Most likely, there was someone in his heart.
Perhaps it was his future wife.
Gao Yuexing speculated.
The other end of Zheng Yan’s romantic thread was tied to Princess Li Lanyao. In a few years, he would marry the princess and become the imperial son-in-law. The princess’s first childbirth would give him a pair of beautiful daughters.
Gao Yuexing’s thoughts suddenly drifted far away, as if she could already smell the luxurious aroma of pepper orchids wafting through the capital.
Indeed, no one could endure war for too long. To some extent, they all longed for home.
Li Fuxiang infiltrated silently.
The Fox Hu was nothing more than a small and insignificant nation.
Their iron cavalry, built with all the resources of the nation, had been entirely defeated by Zheng Qianye’s forces. Now, not only had their national defense collapsed, but the common people in the city were also living in utter misery.
On the day Zheng Qianye truly arrived at the city gates, the entire Fox Hu army, even the old, weak, women, and children who were forced into the defense, guarded the gates with their lives.
As a result, the royal city’s defenses were sparse.
Li Fuxiang’s 3,000 cavalry rode straight in, planting the Zheng family army’s banner on the royal court of the Fox Hu.
The entire Fox Hu royal family was captured.
Although the common people of Fox Hu were impoverished, the royal palace was still overflowing with gold, silver, jewels, and countless treasures.
When everything was settled.
Accompanied by Zheng Yan, Gao Yuexing went to meet Li Fuxiang. The moment she stepped into the royal court, she saw a line of young Fox Hu women standing outside, dressed in bold and flamboyant clothing.
As she approached, a rich fragrance wafted from them.
The women of Fox Hu were skilled in perfumery, a talent that should have been highly valuable. However, each of these women wore a different scent, ever-changing and varied. When mixed together, the fragrances lost their intended charm, leaving a muddled scent that made one’s head feel foggy.
Gao Yuexing was stunned and asked a nearby guard, “What are they here for?”
The guard scratched his head, hesitating to explain. Finally, he stammered, “They’re beautiful women from the city, sent voluntarily by the commoners as a gift for our lord. They said it’s to thank him for sparing their lives…”
Gao Yuexing asked, “Where is your lord?”
The guard, having discerned that she was a woman but unsure of her identity, hesitated to respond. Zheng Yan glared at him. “Speak up!”
After all, the Zheng family army respected their superiors, so the guard quickly pointed toward the inner chamber and said, “His Highness just returned, covered in blood. He’s bathing now.”
Gao Yuexing pushed open the chamber door, and warm, humid steam rushed out to greet her.
Li Fuxiang had commandeered the local hot springs. Having dismissed everyone, he was submerged in the water, his back leaning against the edge of the pool, eyes quietly closed. Gao Yuexing moved closer, but he showed no reaction, as if he were either asleep or simply ignoring her.
Gao Yuexing tilted her head to take a closer look and concluded he must have fallen asleep.
He had indeed lost a considerable amount of weight.
The last time they met, though he appeared disheveled and haggard, at least his body had been solidly built. But now, his collarbone was deeply sunken, his frame so emaciated that his thin flesh barely clung to his bones. His body bore numerous scars, old and new overlapping. The freshest wound was near his neck, close to his face—a graze from a stray arrow. The wound wasn’t deep and had already scabbed over, but with the humid heat from the water, it showed faint signs of reopening.
Gao Yuexing reached out and touched it.
Li Fuxiang woke with a start.
His military training made his reflexes faster than his thoughts. Though his mind was still groggy, his body acted instinctively. He grabbed the tendon on the back of Gao Yuexing’s hand with a vice-like grip.
Neither of them had time to process what was happening. Before Gao Yuexing could even cry out, she was yanked into the water. Li Fuxiang showed no mercy, pressing her down by the back of her neck and forcing her underwater.