"Your Highness, this is a message from County Princess Huimin," Xue Song said, handing the letter to his master.
Xue Jingyun took the letter, glanced at it, and destroyed it with his internal energy. "A'ning has taken Arid Marsh."
Xue Song was startled and said, "Really? The Empress is truly formidable."
Seeing that his master was silent, Xue Song looked up and realized his master's expression was still grim.
"Your Highness, shouldn't you be happy? The Empress has regained control of Arid Marsh," Xue Song asked, unable to understand why his master was not pleased.
"Am I unhappy?" Xue Jingyun asked.
Xue Song nodded. "Yes, very unhappy."
Xue Jingyun gazed into the distance and said indifferently after a long pause, "I don't know, I just can't bring myself to be happy."
"Your Highness, perhaps you haven't seen the Empress. You'll feel better once you see her," Xue Song suggested.
Xue Jingyun nodded.
Three days later, Xue Jingyun and Xue Song arrived in the capital.
At the city gate, a young woman on horseback was riding towards them.
Her pure and beautiful face was filled with joyous excitement. "Yan Zhao..."
"A'ning..." Xue Jingyun rode his horse forward.
The young woman suddenly leaped from her horse and landed before him, sharing his mount.
"Yan Zhao, I missed you so much..." The young woman threw herself into his embrace.
He gently pushed her away, looking at her for a long time before saying, "A'ning, I'm late."
The young woman shook her head. "No, it's not late."
Upon entering the city, Xue Jingyun withdrew his gaze from the welcoming crowds lining the streets and entered the imperial palace. The young woman pulled him into her chambers, dismissing everyone.
Xue Song, being discreet, retreated from the scene.
The young woman threw herself into his embrace. "Yan Zhao, I missed you, I want you..."
"A'ning, sit down and tell me what has happened during this time."
The young woman blinked, her face flushing slightly. She looked up with tender eyes. "Yan Zhao, you haven't seen me for days, don't you miss me?"
"A'ning..."
The young woman took his hand and led him to the bed. She shed her clothes and stood before him. "Yan Zhao, I want you..."
As she leaned closer, he suddenly moved, a sweep of his hand sending her tumbling onto the bed.
The speed was so great that she couldn't even register it.
He carefully covered her with the quilt, his eyes darkening as he looked at the young woman on the bed, then he walked out.
He stood in the courtyard, closed his eyes, and felt the gentle breeze.
It was A'ning's face, and A'ning's body, yet he couldn't feel the affection he thought he had for her in his heart.
Could it be that he didn't care for A'ning as much as he imagined?
Impossible. Here...
He clutched his chest. Thinking of A'ning still caused a slight pang.
What was wrong with him?
Six months later.
A large proclamation was posted at the capital's city gate. Someone read it aloud, "Next month, the Empress of Arid Marsh will marry the Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom. A general amnesty will be declared."
"Hey, what's wrong with you? Why are you pushing me?"
"My apologies, I'll apologize on her behalf!"
"Control your own wife. Such erratic behavior is not good."
"Yes, yes..."
When he saw the young woman wearing a veiled hat across from him, he froze. This... this young woman looked somewhat familiar, as if he had seen her somewhere before.
Where had he seen her?
The young woman suddenly ran off, and the man behind her chased after her.
It suddenly dawned on him. He had seen the current Empress's appearance, and this was exactly the same.
"A'ning..."
The young woman stopped and turned to look at the person chasing her, her expression somewhat cold. "He didn't recognize me either?"
"A'ning, Xue Changan now has your exact same appearance. He might not be able to recognize you." Even I might not be able to.
The young woman's gaze lowered, tinged with sadness. "I thought he would be the one who was different."
"A'ning..."
The young woman looked up and smiled. "I'm fine. My martial arts are completely crippled now, so I can't do anything. You don't need to worry about me seeking revenge on Xue Changan."
He was stunned.
The events of six months ago were still vivid in his mind.
He and A'ning had fallen into Xue Changan's scheme. Xue Changan had successfully performed a soul transference, and the backlash had drained both his and A'ning's martial arts, all of which were now possessed by Xue Changan. The current Xue Changan's skills were far beyond what they were in the past.
Fortunately, Xue Yu had shown them a sliver of mercy when he was pursuing them.
"A'ning, the opportunity is still there."
"Yun Jin, look at you, you can't even muster conviction in your own words."
Hua Yun Jin fell silent. He had wanted to return to Hua Kingdom, but now Hua Yun Xuan was already the Crown Prince of Hua Kingdom.
What would be the point of returning? His martial arts were lost, and moreover, Hua Kingdom was now on friendly terms with Arid Marsh. Xue Changan would likely not let him go either.
Being able to live peacefully with A'ning like this was something he had never dared to imagine before.
But he knew that A'ning would never be content with this.
"Have you shown Yan Zhao the wedding attire?" She held the wedding dress, imagining herself on the wedding day next month, her face beaming with joy.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, the Crown Prince has returned to the country."
The young woman was taken aback. "When did he leave? How come I didn't know?"
The palace attendant, frightened, quickly knelt. "Reporting... reporting to Your Majesty, the Crown Prince said he needed to go back to prepare things for the wedding and left early this morning."
"All of you are useless! Didn't I tell you to report to me immediately wherever Yan Zhao went?"
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. When the Crown Prince left, I wanted to report to you, but you..."
She suddenly remembered that she had been indulging in carnal pleasures with male attendants at that time.
"I understand. You may withdraw."
She waved her hand, and the palace attendant left. She sat on a chair, and a pair of hands began to gently massage her shoulders. Immersed in the sensation, she reached out and caressed the hands. "Come to me."
She opened her eyes and saw a young man kneeling on the ground. His face was delicate and handsome, though he couldn't compare to Yan Zhao. But Yan Zhao wouldn't serve her like this, would he?
"Come here and serve me." She extended her hand, and the young man stepped forward, sitting in her lap.
"Your Majesty..." A voice came from outside the door.
She frowned and said coldly, "We'll discuss it later."
"Your Majesty, someone has discovered Xue Zining outside the city..."
She trembled, pushed the struggling young man away, and walked out. Outside stood the dark guards she had trained under Xue Yu.
The dark guard lowered his head. She asked coldly, "Repeat what you just said."
"Someone has discovered Xue Zining outside the city..."
"Is that so? My good sister is still not giving up? Send people to investigate and kill anyone who finds her."
"Yes, Your Majesty." The dark guard replied.
Xue Changan turned around, looking at the young man kneeling in the inner chamber, and suddenly lost interest. "Get out..."
The young man scrambled out of the room.
Xue Changan looked at the sun outside and gave a cold smile. "Xue Zining, even if you appear again, what of it? It's just a futile effort. Once I am married to Yan Zhao, what can you do then?"