The small moon in the sky rose and set, set and rose again, gradually growing fuller.
On this day, Lu Qianqiao once more sat by the window waiting for the girl who would push open the window with a smile and leap in when the moon rose. He waited until the moon reached its zenith, yet she still hadn’t come.
How many days had it been now? Had something unexpected happened?
He felt a growing unease.
But even if she did come, what then? Continue holding onto expectations for him? Await a reply he could never give?
The full moon was about to pass, leaving only two and a half months left.
Lu Qianqiao began to agonize again—hoping she would come, yet also wishing she wouldn’t… Why had he been so preoccupied with this question lately? He rubbed his temples.
The door opened, and Si Lan entered, his expression grim. He held up something in his hand—a roll of golden-yellow silk.
"General, the Emperor has sent another Imperial Decree."
It was surely urging him to return to court and quell the internal strife for him. This Emperor was truly no good—when there were no battles to fight, he listened to slander and unjustly demoted the General to guard the Imperial Mausoleum. Now that trouble had arisen, he was weeping and sending multiple Imperial Decrees begging him to return.
How despicable! Si Lan curled his lip in disdain.
Lu Qianqiao didn’t react. His mind was entirely consumed by the question of whether Xin Mei would come or not, staring blankly at the small moon in the sky.
"General, that girl is the type to work by fits and starts. Who knows, she might have taken a fancy to some other decent young man by now. Why take her seriously?"
Compared to the Emperor, Si Lan had even less fondness for Xin Mei. Women ought to be like Ying Lian—gentle as water, serene and composed. Someone like Xin Mei could only be called a bristling cat. The General was wise and mighty—how could he have such poor taste as to fancy her?
Lu Qianqiao turned his head but said nothing. He merely picked up the Imperial Decree and unfolded it, glancing casually at its contents—then froze.
The decree was elegantly written in vermilion and white, its language florid and poetic—a bad habit of Rong Zhengdi, who composed Imperial Decrees as if they were poetry, each time cramming them densely with words.
But that wasn’t the point.
Frowning, he read it twice, his fingers slowly tightening.
Rong Zhengdi had arranged a marriage for him—the bride was Xin Mei… His mother had indeed intervened in this matter.
His gaze fixed intently on one passage of the decree, his brow furrowing deeper and deeper.
"…Follow in death, buried together in the same tomb, to fulfill the rites and not betray the affection between you."
The kingdom of Qiong still retained the custom of live burial for the dead. The decree was saying that if he died, Xin Mei would have to follow him in death? He flung the decree aside, suddenly realizing the meaning behind his mother’s words that day. She had said she would make Xin Mei stay with him forever—even in death. Was this what she had meant?!
"Si Lan, bring Fierce Cloud Colt!"
Lu Qianqiao fastened his cloak and leaped out the window. He was going to find Li Chao Yang!
Si Lan, startled, acknowledged the order, then glanced back at the decree lying on the floor. Unable to resist, he picked it up and read it—and was instantly stunned.
"General! They’re forcing you to marry that little girl?!" he blurted out. "And she has to be buried with you?! What kind of dogshit Emperor is this—"
"It’s not his doing," Lu Qianqiao shook his head. "Bring Fierce Cloud Colt."
Si Lan hurried off. Lu Qianqiao stood quietly under the moonlight, feeling his heart pound violently in his chest, his body even trembling slightly.
A terrible premonition rose within him… The scenery before him gradually blurred. He closed his eyes, then opened them again—the small moon in the sky seemed to multiply into countless fragments.He suddenly felt a dizziness unlike anything he had ever experienced before.
"General, the horse is here!"
Si Lan came running back, dragging the Fierce Cloud Colt by the reins. When he looked up, all he saw was a pair of dark red eyes glowing fiercely in the deep night, like those of a wild beast.
June 25th—an auspicious day, most suitable for weddings.
Amidst deafening gongs, drums, and firecrackers, Xin Mei donned her wedding dress and boarded the bridal carriage.
Lu Qianqiao did not come to fetch his bride. Instead, several officials sent by the emperor came in his stead. It was said that the general, who had been demoted to guarding the Imperial Mausoleum, had not received imperial permission to leave his post. Thus, he could not take a single step away from the mausoleum, and the task of welcoming the bride had to be entrusted to others.
This slightly unpleasant detail did nothing to dampen the high spirits of the Sinister Clan. After all, no matter what, the little demon star who had plagued them for sixteen years was finally getting married—a joy so overwhelming that outsiders could never understand.
Xin Xiong even cried himself into a mess, grabbing anyone he saw and rambling, "Heaven be praised, her mother be praised—someone has finally taken little Mei off our hands..."
And not just anyone, either! Even if he had been demoted to guarding the Imperial Mausoleum, he was still a general! Xin Xiong felt as though he had risen in status overnight. For once, he couldn’t help but show a smug expression to the well-wishers from Greenwater Town. Those bastards had once fled like rabbits at the mere mention of Xin Mei’s "husband-killing fate." But his daughter had real skill—she had gone out just once and managed to snag herself a husband, and a general at that!
Never mind why the emperor had suddenly arranged this marriage out of the blue. The most important thing was that Xin Mei was finally someone else’s problem now!
From inside the bridal sedan, Xin Mei waved at him. "Dad, I’ll come back to visit in a few days. Stop crying—your snot’s dripping out."
Xin Xiong blew his nose loudly and roared, "Don’t even think about visiting until a month has passed! If you come back too soon, he might change his mind!"
...Her father had clearly lost his mind.
Shaking her head, Xin Mei lowered the sedan’s curtain. At the front of the procession, the lead Spirit beast let out a long cry, flapped its wings, and soared into the clouds. The long bridal procession rose like a crimson cloud, gradually disappearing from everyone’s sight.
What was Lu Qianqiao doing right now? Xin Mei lifted a corner of her red veil and leaned against the window, gazing at the white clouds outside.
For some reason, she thought of him that day on the high platform, wielding his long whip, his back straight and proud—something entirely unrelated to the fame and status that others envied. She wanted to see him again, even if they didn’t speak.
Lu Qianqiao, have you already put on that silly red groom’s outfit and hung the ceremonial flower, waiting for me?
Are you happy right now? Or are you curling your lips in disdain?
She rather liked this guessing game, imagining his expression, the words he might say—at this moment, she finally felt a little like a bride.
But that feeling vanished completely when they arrived at the Imperial Mausoleum.
The cloud mist array that had once surrounded the mausoleum was nowhere to be seen. Withered flowers and dirt lay scattered messily across the sacred path, clearly untouched for a long time.
The officials escorting the bridal party stepped down to confer. Eventually, one of them hesitantly approached her to report, "M-Madam... young lady, there’s no sign of the general’s bridal carriage ahead. This... is most unusual."
Xin Mei thought for a moment. "Should we go a little further in?"
There was nothing else they could do.The wedding procession marched deep into the Imperial Mausoleum, passing by dilapidated and collapsed sacrificial halls along the way. The green mountains and clear waters remained, but the place was lifeless and in disarray. Only the flowers in the roadside groves bloomed silently, and the once-noisy little Demons were nowhere to be seen.
The procession stopped in front of Lu Qianqiao's house. Someone went to knock on the door, but after waiting for a long time with no response, they broke in. Moments later, the person ran out in panic: "The house is empty! It's a mess! The General is gone!"
Xin Mei felt as if she had been doused with a bucket of cold water in the dead of winter, shivering involuntarily.
The officials buzzed around like headless flies, hastily discussing before sending someone to report to her: "Then... we can only ask the young lady to wait here for now. We will immediately send people to search inside and outside the Imperial Mausoleum."
They had never encountered such a situation before. The Imperial Decree had been delivered right to his doorstep, yet this notoriously unruly General treated it like nothing, not even showing his face, leaving everyone standing outside like fools.
A formidable life indeed needs no explanation.
But his actions weren’t just a slap in the face to the Emperor—it was also like knocking his own wife unconscious. This poor girl, just married, had to face such a tragedy... That girl... uh, why is that girl getting out of the carriage by herself?!
Xin Mei leisurely stepped out of the carriage, yanked off her bridal veil, and tossed it to the ground. Clapping her hands, she strode forward without hesitation.
The flustered officials rushed to stop her: "Madam... young lady! A bride shouldn’t wander around!"
In no mood to talk, she simply raised her fist in front of them: "Look, this is a fist."
A fist... Everyone stared at her delicate, fair hand. It was a very pretty fist... And then?
She pointed to a pear tree as thick as a bowl beside her: "This is a tree."
So... so what?
The next moment, that pretty fist smashed into the pear tree. With a loud crack , the unfortunate tree toppled over, as if weeping.
Instantly, everyone took three steps back, respectfully clearing a wide path. Silently trembling, they watched her walk away.
Xin Mei didn’t actually know where she was going. She just walked forward slowly, straight ahead.
She kept replaying everything that had happened since meeting Lu Qianqiao, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t understand—was it possible that he actually hated her? Hated her so much that he emptied the Imperial Mausoleum overnight, not even leaving her a note?
She used to think the Imperial Mausoleum was a terrible place because she had been forced into confinement here.
Later, she came to see its beauty because Lu Qianqiao was here.
Now, the flowers still bloomed, the waters still flowed, but she felt a deep disgust again—mixed with confusion and resentment.
Suddenly, her footsteps halted.
Before her stretched an endless grove of pale apricot blossoms and the familiar high platform. Xin Mei looked up, though she didn’t know what answer she sought. Perhaps she hoped to see Lu Qianqiao standing there as usual, wielding his long whip.
Apricot petals covered her sleeves. She lowered her head, and several large pearls from her hairpin rolled to the ground, scattering like teardrops.
Was it time to go back? To give up on naive fantasies—Lu Qianqiao must truly despise her.
Yeah... time to go back.
...
Go back, my foot!
Xin Mei tore off her wedding dress.Where is Lu Qianqiao?! Where is that bastard hiding?! She was going to drag him out, beat him into a pancake, and carve him into a stick! She kicked a blue brick at her feet, sending it flying like an arrow into the apricot grove, where it immediately elicited a muffled cry of pain.
Xin Mei charged in, reaching out to grab whoever was hiding there, yanking them out by the hair in a most undignified manner.
"It's you!"
"That hurts!"
Both shouted at the same time. Xin Mei looked up, glaring at the man whose hair she had seized, leaving him in a terribly contorted position.
Si Lan.
He was equally stunned to see her, his expression shifting through countless emotions before his eyes finally betrayed a hint of pity.
"Let go!" He struggled but couldn't break free, growing frantic. "The general won’t marry you! Give it up! Go home! He’ll have the emperor cancel this marriage later!"
Xin Mei was furious. "Where is he?!"
Si Lan stiffened. "I won’t tell you! Beating me to death won’t help! Just go back! Not only the general—even I won’t let him marry you. You two are completely mismatched!"
Xin Mei studied him seriously for a long moment before suddenly realizing something. "You like him! You see me as a rival?"
Si Lan nearly spat blood. "Bullshit!"
She raised her hand, testing it near his face. "If you don’t tell the truth, I’ll knock your teeth out."
Tears welled in Si Lan’s eyes. General! For you, I, Si Lan, can endure any torture! Even a slap from the woman you love!
Her hand swung down swiftly, but before it could land on his face, a cool voice spoke softly from behind. "Xin Mei."
She shuddered, turning in disbelief. Lu Qianqiao, whom everyone had been searching for, stood quietly among the apricot blossoms, watching her.
His once deep black eyes were now the color of fresh blood.
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