The cold wind coming from the north carried heavy snow. Being separated by the drifting white snow, two Commanders-in-Chief of the Eastern Depot, the current and the former, were standing, facing each other. They looked calm and indifferent, fixing on each other with piercing stares.

Yue Xilou was the new Commander-in-Chief of the Eastern Depot.

Actually, Leng Qingtang had heard his name from Lu Qiange.

It was said that this person was handsome like a gentleman. Although he was young, he acted ruthlessly. He was a loyal dog whom Huanan Xin had personally promoted since his enthronement.

It seemed there was a silent confrontation. They were engaged in a battle of wills with their stares.

Leng Qingtang finally realized why he had had a feeling of being watched on the day when he and Gu Yunxi's carriage had driven past on the street.

It wasn't that he had been oversensitive. Presumably, their trail had been discovered by the imperial court of Da Yi.

This group of secret guards must have followed him and his wife for a long time. This was why they had deliberately brought the restaurant manager and landlady, whom they were familiar with, when they showed up today.

At that moment, Yue Xilou closed his hand and instantly stopped the rotating energy ball in his palm.

He looked a little bit gentler, looking down slightly and seeming to give in first. He deliberately avoided continuing the battle of wills with Leng Qingtang.

Having reluctantly clasped his hands in a salute, he slightly raised the corner of his thin dark purple lips to put on an elegant smile.

"Speaking of which, I must call you 'Your Highness'."

Leng Qingtang upturned his dark eyes and a cold look passed across Yue Xilou's face. Leng Qingtang pointed his finger at him, speaking clearly and decisively.

"I had an arrangement with His Majesty long ago, stating that we will have nothing to do with the imperial court and the Imperial Family Huanan. His Majesty has always kept his words but you killed my previous subordinates at will. His Majesty wants to break his promise, doesn't he?!"

He opened his hand secretly in his sleeve, about to make a powerful knife hand strike.

Leng Qingtang was fully prepared, ready to engage in a battle anytime.

Yue Xilou was calm, speaking steadily, "I don't know the arrangement between you and His Majesty, but I do know that you took away the lover of His Majesty. That is why I was ordered to chase you here to get that thing back from you, Your Highness."

Leng Qingtang looked serious and his face was turning red with anger. He raised his long eyebrows high, shouting angrily, "You have no shame—"

Before these words could finish, there was the sound of swords being drawn in unison. There was such brightness from all the blades. It was as if it formed a cage made of light, too bright for anybody to look at.

Immediately following that, there was a series of sounds from doors slamming on either side of the street.

There were a few people crowding under the head sills of those few stores that were open for business. They poked their heads out, trying to see what was happening over by the carriages.

Seeing the men in black draw their swords and that bloodshed was about to take place, those who had been curious or nosy immediately ran away. They shut their doors and closed their windows. No one wanted to be the one who would get killed.

Noticing that the atmosphere was tense, in a total panic, Manager Jiao climbed up from the snowy ground.

The secret guards of the Eastern Depot only half surrounded him, so there was a gap by the carriage. The manager intended to escape through this.

Seeing him doing that, his two servants followed him slowly.

Mrs. Tian was only a woman, one who had just been spooked by the chilling blades. Now she was tired, being paralyzed in the snow. She was too weak to stand up, let alone escape.

When acting as ordered, the secret guards had to abide by strict rules. As their target person was Leng Qingtang, as long as their Lord didn't give other orders, they would not pay any attention to the insignificant.

Yue Xilou gazed at three men as they were stumbling over the thick snow, having run to be a hundred meters away. Suddenly, he spat out two words from his mouth, briefly without hesitation, “Kill them!”

A couple of secret guards raised their arms. Expressionlessly and decisively, they shot three weapons at them without blinking.

"No—"

As he had just turned around, crying out with bitter hatred, Leng Qingtang saw the three of them suddenly stop, falling to the ground one by one, not moving anymore.

Black blood oozed out from wounds hurt by the poison arrows, forming a stinking stream in the snow.

"Bastard, the Eastern Depot in the past has never killed innocent people!"

Leng Qingtang immediately looked furious, roaring at the killers as he could no longer hold back the anger.

The look on Yue Xilou's face remained unchanged. Ignoring him, Yue Xilou raised his eyebrows, sneering, "Look after yourself first!"

Yue Xilou waved his fingertip slightly, and more than thirty of the black-clad secret guards beside him rushed towards Leng Qingtang, waving their broadswords.

Leng Qingtang turned around to take off his black fox fur coat, waved it over his head, and within a blink created a whirlwind to act as a shield against the enemy, forging a way out for himself.

A bleak wind blew straight on his face.

Feeling how the pressure that could tear his face apart was getting stronger and stronger, Leng Qingtang abandoned his black fox fur coat and retreated. He squatted and turned a back somersault to avoid a deadly attack.

There was a sharp sound of tearing cloth right by his ear. It came from his expensive fox fur coat that had just been cut into two halves.

Leng Qingtang jumped onto his carriage, with several secret guards in hot pursuit.

The physical fight on the roof of the carriage was fairly intense. During their fight, screams and sounds of breaking bones went on and on.

Throughout a hundred rounds, some secret guards were constantly falling off the carriage.

As a hostile wind came to Leng Qingtang's ears, he knew a tough enemy would appear.

The moment that Leng Qingtang had swiftly leaned to the side, a steel cast bronze ball glanced off his arm and then away into the distance. If it had hit his back, he would have spat blood and fainted even if he hadn't died.

Leng Qingtang was about to fall off the carriage, but he reached out his one foot and hooked onto a corner of the carriage's window frame just in time. He turned his body and then steadily dropped to the snowy ground.

Yue Xilou watched him from afar. He had a serious look, raising a corner of his mouth and smiling, "Go, don't let him get away. His Majesty and Her Grace are enjoying a good time together, so don't let this ninth prince spoil His Majesty's fun."

Leng Qingtang suddenly looked stunned, helplessly watching the secret guards dashing towards him again. They quickly surrounded him in a smaller area.

The burning pain was relentlessly flowing around Leng Qingtang's chest. His eyes were bloodshot. He looked in the direction of the end of the road, and shouted.

"Yunxi!"

...

Gu Yunxi's hand trembled, and the teacup slipped and fell into pieces at her feet.

Just now, she seemed to have heard her husband calling her.

Her heartbeat was fast as if this had made her heart out of rhythm. There was an inexplicable feeling filling up inside her.

Gu Yunxi stared blankly at the wet stain on the ground, slowly and anxiously squatting down to pick up the broken pieces. Her movements clearly showed that her mind was elsewhere.

She hadn't been careful enough, so her index finger was cut by the porcelain pieces. The blood on the tip of her finger was so red that it looked horrifying.

"Darling, my darling..."

Gu Yunxi looked blankly, licking her injured finger and slowly standing up, not knowing what to do.

There were some sounds outside. Someone had come into the courtyard.

On hearing it, Gu Yunxi's worry instantly disappeared.

She thought, "Thank God, it must be my husband!"

Gu Yunxi happily lifted the hem of her dress, ran out of her room and opened the door.

It was a man's face that she saw.

As if it had been a blow to her head, Gu Yunxi instantly froze to the spot.

No, all this must be a dream!

She panicked, holding her breath and closing her eyes. A little while later, she quickly opened her eyes and looked at the face in front of her. Her pretty face instantly turned pale and cold.

The man outside the door had an extraordinarily good appearance with handsome features. Traces of wisdom showed there in the pair of deep eyes.

He wore a purple silk robe with eight elaborately-embroidered raised round motifs, and the hem of his robe was decorated with koi patterns in golden silk.

He wore a golden-brown cloak on top, with a large hood. The cloak was decorated with corals, magnificent and beautiful.

He didn't wear a hat on his head. He only tied his hair with a golden crown mounted with jewelry and pearls from the North East. On his forehead, there was a headband embroidered with a design of two dragons playing with a fireball.

When he was facing the beauty whom he had been longing for, there was a special kind of spark flashing through his bright dark eyes. It was like having a feeling of being surprised, missing her, and being hurt. Different emotions mixed together, complicated and indescribable.

"Yunxi, it has been a few months since we said goodbye. Have you forgotten me?"

He looked deeply at her, asking the question in a voice gently as the soft fluttering willow.

Gu Yunxi's pale lips trembled for a moment, and she tried to stumble out some words.

"You, you are... Huanan Xin."

"How dare you!"

Behind the young emperor, the Eunuch Superintendent Liang Zhen, who had followed him here in casual clothes, raised his narrow eyes. Two eyes coldly fixed on Gu Yunxi, and his voice was sharp and piercing, "Your Grace, how do you dare to say His Majesty's name?"

"Shut up—"

With his hands at the back, Huanan Xin slightly tilted his head, reprimanding him, "Yunxi and I have known each other since when we were in misfortune. She can call me in whatever way she wants!"

Liang Zhen's expression suddenly changed. He clasped his hands to hide them in his sleeves, becoming silent and humbly bowing his head.

Huanan Xin casually took off his cloak and strode into the house.

Gu Yunxi was extremely terrified. Having turned around, trying to escape to the outside, she was then stopped by the arms of two guards.

"Ha-ha..."

Liang Zhen smiled nastily. Lowering his dangerous voice and approaching her, he fawned over her, saying, "Your Grace, where else do you plan to run to? I have been serving in the palace for years but this is the first time I have seen His Majesty in disguise for the sake of a concubine. He has followed you all the way until the border. I advise you to stop struggling when everything is good. Don't go too far."

"You!"

Gu Yunxi worriedly frowned, opened her almond-shaped eyes in anger, and clenched her white teeth, speaking furiously, "I have already married someone else. I am not Your Grace!"

"Humph."

Liang Zhen snorted, putting on a disgusting look, "Whether you are or not, you and I can't decide. His Majesty's decision is the only thing that counts."

Raising his finger and pointing it towards the inside of the house, he squinted. With his tone becoming harsher, he spoke horribly, "Your Grace, please go inside!"