Hearing the voice, two of the four almost turned to leave. The Crown Prince also didn’t want his brothers entangled with his former fiancée again, but he (in his own opinion) was a true warrior, daring to face life’s bleakness and matchmaking. So, steadying his breath in his dantian, he strode boldly toward the palace gate. Yuan Shen followed with a bitter smile, then Huo Bu Yi, whose body trembled slightly, and finally Luo Jitong, whose face was grim.
Outside the Upper West Gate lay a vast open space where the carriages of noble families and court officials could gather during grand palace celebrations. The Crown Prince had intended to reprimand the negligent guards first, but upon rushing out, he found them dutifully stationed at the gate—though they were all craning their necks, grinning as if watching a spectacle. Among the amused onlookers were the drunkenly giggling Fourth Prince, supported by the Fourth Princess Consort and the Second Prince.
Not far ahead stood an indigo-canopied carriage. On it stood a beautiful young woman dressed in practical casual attire, while below stood a handsome youth holding two horses by their reins. About twenty feet in front of the carriage, over a dozen well-trained family generals worked together to hold a sturdy hemp rope net, within which struggled a burly, bearded man.
Shao Shang, glowing with triumph, declared, “…Did you really think you could rival the heroes from The Biographies of Assassins ? Let me tell you, the only reason you escaped so many times was because Prefect Yuan went easy on you! The moment you glared at me that day at the Yuan residence, I knew this day would come!”
The Second Prince frowned. “Since this man has repeatedly caused trouble, to avoid further risks, shouldn’t he be handed over to the Court of Justice or executed…?”
“No, no, Your Highness,” Shao Shang quickly interjected. “He’s not actually a bad person. I’ve already looked into it—over the years, he could have assassinated Prefect Yuan in crowded, chaotic marketplaces, but he feared harming innocent bystanders, so he always chose remote mountain paths or wilderness for his attempts. This time was no different. He could have ambushed me along my route, but instead, he picked the palace gate where there are fewer people… Di Wu Cheng was once a renowned chivalrous hero in his youth. He’s just… stubborn now.”
Hearing this, Di Wu Cheng stopped struggling and shouted, “Well said! For these words alone, Lady Cheng, I swear I’ll never trouble you again—”
“Ha! ‘Never again’? You think I’m like Prefect Yuan, catching and releasing you over and over? You’re in my hands now—do you really think there’ll be a ‘never again’?” Shao Shang planted her hands on her hips, radiating confidence.
“Then what do you intend to do?!” Di Wu Cheng’s face flushed with anger.
“Take you back and reason with you, of course,” Shao Shang said. “To prevent you from straying further down the wrong path, to uphold justice and righteousness in this world—”
“Bullshit!” Di Wu Cheng roared.
Shao Shang shot back, “You used to seem like a decent man, but now you’re losing yourself! If no one stops you, you’ll soon be nothing but a follower of evil and crooked ways! Whatever grudge you hold against the Yuan family, why drag me into it? Am I a Yuan? Am I? Even if I marry into the family someday, I wasn’t even born when your sister’s tragedy happened—what does any of this have to do with me?!”
—The Crown Prince couldn’t help glancing at Yuan Shen, whose expression was truly a sight to behold.
The Second Prince chuckled. “Enough. Stop wasting time with words and just take him away. This is the palace gate, after all. If this escalates, you won’t be able to protect him.”
Shao Shang clasped her hands with a bright smile. “Many thanks for your understanding, Your Highness!”Di Wu Cheng continued to rant and curse incessantly. One of the family generals chuckled, "Young Lady, shall we gag him?"
Shao Shang replied, "Why gag him? He's a renowned hero—gagging would be too humiliating. Just knock him out instead!"
The family generals cheerfully complied, and the palace guards burst into laughter. Shao Shang was a frequent visitor to the palace, and everyone was familiar with her. Some even playfully shouted, "Cheng Niangzi is mighty!" and "Cheng Niangzi, the heroine among women!" Even the Second Prince and the Fourth Princess Consort couldn't help but smile.
—When the Crown Prince glanced at Huo Bu Yi again, he noticed a peculiar gleam of joy in those deep amber eyes—greedy yet restrained, unsettlingly intense.
Cheng Shao Gong led a yellow and a spotted horse over and sighed helplessly at his younger sister. "Had enough fun? Can we go home now? Do you want to ride or take the carriage?"
Shao Shang leaped down from the carriage, brimming with enthusiasm. "A heroine like me doesn't ride in carriages! Third Brother, hand me A Niu." A Niu was her beloved spotted pony.
Just then, the drunken Fourth Prince pointed at the palace gates and shouted, "Third Imperial Brother, you're here…"
Everyone turned to see the Crown Prince and his entourage, promptly bowing according to their ranks.
Shao Shang's heart pounded as she shakily rose to her feet, finally spotting the tall, imposing figure beside the Crown Prince. Her stomach twisted with inexplicable panic—wasn't he supposed to arrive the day after tomorrow? She had even planned to take leave and avoid him.
"What are you all doing here?" the Crown Prince demanded sternly.
"I—I, this humble one…" Shao Shang fumbled, instinctively realizing that if she told the truth, the Crown Prince would never let Di Wu Cheng off the hook. But how else could she explain the scene?
Yuan Shen had the same thought, though he cared little for Di Wu Cheng's fate. He stepped forward, ready to divulge the old grievances of the Yuan family, but the Second Prince spoke first.
"Crown Prince," the Second Prince said, moved by Shao Shang's years of paying respects to his late wife, stepping in to help. "Cheng Niangzi was just about to return home."
The Crown Prince caught the pleading look in the Second Prince's eyes and decided not to drag things out further, letting the matter of the insignificant Di Wu Cheng drop. Seeing this, Yuan Shen retreated.
Cheng Shao Gong seized the lifeline eagerly. "Yes, yes! We're going home. Shao Shang, hurry up and mount your horse."
Shao Shang chimed in, "Right, right, we're leaving now… Third Brother, where's my horse?"
She could feel the scorching gaze of the man beside the Crown Prince fixed intently on her. Frantically, she grabbed the reins her equally flustered brother handed over and clumsily scrambled onto the horse. The moment she settled into the saddle, she inwardly groaned—the seat beneath her was covered in soft, tan-colored horsehair. She had mounted the wrong horse!
Cheng Shao Gong also realized he had mistakenly handed her his own horse's reins. The siblings exchanged bewildered glances.
Though twins were said to share a telepathic bond, the Cheng siblings once again proved the exception. Cheng Shao Gong thought they should switch back, but Shao Shang was desperate to flee and refused to dismount.
Finally deciphering his sister's frantic glare, Cheng Shao Gong—mindful of the former brother-in-law behind them—gave a subtle nod of agreement and reached for the spotted pony's reins.
"Wait—!" A clear male voice suddenly rang out, adding fuel to the already boiling scene.The crowd, each harboring their own thoughts, turned their gaze toward the source of the voice, their faces revealing profound expressions that could be summarized into three types: ‘This is going to be interesting,’ ‘Could old flames be rekindled?’ and ‘The Crown Prince and Young Master Yuan’s eyes are about to pop out of their sockets…!’
Huo Bu Yi took a deliberate step forward: “Cheng… Shao Shang… please stay.”
The atmosphere in the courtyard instantly tensed, and everyone was stunned. The Crown Prince and Yuan Shen felt their hairs stand on end, while Luo Jitong gasped softly, “General Huo…”
Huo Bu Yi paid no heed to the thoughts of those around him and continued walking forward. Each step seemed to shake the earth like the legendary Mount Buzhou. The onlookers, initially eager for drama, gradually grew uneasy, yet he remained unwavering as he strode toward the radiant girl with her bright eyes and pearly teeth.
Though the distance was no more than twenty paces, in the blink of an eye, Huo Bu Yi was already standing before Shao Shang’s horse.
Shao Shang sat frozen in the saddle, feeling strangely unsteady, as if she might topple over. Before she could speak, Huo Bu Yi reached out with his right hand, supporting her slender waist with a gentle push upward.
Only then did Shao Shang realize the issue—Cheng Shao Gong, though appearing frail, was still a man with longer legs than his younger sister. As a result, seated in his saddle, her feet dangled helplessly, unable to reach the stirrups.
At Huo Bu Yi’s action, the crowd collectively gasped. Yuan Shen’s face turned icy, his posture rigid as a frozen pillar. Luo Jitong broke into a cold sweat, hesitating whether to approach.
The Crown Prince took several uncharacteristically hasty steps forward before stopping, unsure of what to say. In the end, he forced a gentle tone: “Zisheng, do you remember what you just said?”
Luo Jitong also looked at him with hopeful eyes.
Huo Bu Yi did not respond. The Fourth Prince, standing nearby, asked foolishly, “Third Brother, what did Zisheng just say? Oh, I know—after we left, His Majesty must have shared some private words with you all again…”
“Silence!” The Crown Prince angrily flicked his sleeve.
Huo Bu Yi gazed at the delicate waist beneath his palm—still as slender as ever, easily encircled by his fingers.
He looked up. Noblewomen in the deep palace seemed untouched by time. Five years had passed, yet her skin remained flawless like congealed jade, her brows emerald, her lips ruby, her youthful glow undiminished. She looked like a carefree little girl who had just fluttered out of a warm nest on soft wings, eager to see the world beyond.
He remembered that cold, brutal night of slaughter, the howling wind, and her tearful, chaotic fists pounding against him as if unleashing a lifetime of grievances and fury… That parting had been five long years ago, fleeting as starlight.
“Let me adjust the stirrup straps for you,” he said softly—though the daylight was bright, it felt like a dream.
Shao Shang, too, felt as though this moment were surreal. When awake, she never dwelled on the past. Only in dreams did fragments of bygone days occasionally flicker through her mind.
She remembered how he had once stood before her in dark gold and crimson robes, majestic as bloodstained silk, peerless in grace. Now, he wore only a plain, slightly worn black robe, unadorned, his face weathered, strands of silver glinting at his temples—his cold, handsome beauty almost painful to behold.
Around them, at least fifty or sixty people had gathered, yet the scene was eerily silent. From the Crown Prince, wide-eyed in shock, to Yuan Shen, trembling with anger yet unsure whether to curse or fight, and all the others—everyone simply stared, dumbfounded, as events unfolded.Shao Shang felt a sudden tightness in her chest. After steadying herself, she said, "Lord... Lord Huo, there's no need for this..."
Huo Bu Yi had already fastened one stirrup and was holding the girl's ankle to place it into the other stirrup. Hearing her words, he looked up and slowly tightened his grip, squeezing the delicate bone of her slender foot.
"Am I no longer even worthy of adjusting your stirrups now?" He gazed at her deeply.
Beside them, Cheng Shao Gong's mouth hung open as he screamed internally—This isn't how it's supposed to go! Since when does an ex-fiancé casually grab waists, hold ankles, and adjust stirrups at will?!
Shao Shang, however, noticed the back of his hand—pale skin marred by several mottled, savage scars. Her voice trembled, "What happened to your hand...?"
Huo Bu Yi lowered his thick lashes and replied softly, "Frostbite. It festered later. Now it's scarred over. It's healed."
Shao Shang glared fiercely at the scars, biting her lip so hard it nearly bled.
Huo Bu Yi stared at her blankly: "Aren't you going to ask if it hurt?"
Shao Shang nearly bit through her lip, stubbornly shaking her head with force before finally saying, "Lord Huo, I'm going home now. Please step aside."
Huo Bu Yi grabbed her reins: "The other stirrup isn't adjusted yet."
Shao Shang yanked the reins back and gave a cold laugh: "I'm not the same person I used to be. Even without stirrups, I won't be afraid anymore!" With these words, she raised her whip high and expertly flicked it once. The yellow-maned horse immediately bolted away.
The girl's movements were bold and spirited, though in Cheng Shao Gong's eyes, they carried more than a hint of fleeing in panic. Huo Bu Yi unconsciously took a step forward when suddenly a hand rested on his shoulder from behind. Turning, he saw Yuan Shen.
Yuan Shen said coldly, "Thank you for your concern for my wife, General Huo. Let this be the end."
Without waiting for a reply, he climbed directly into the Cheng family carriage and leaned against the door, saying, "Shaogong, I happen to be free today. I'll go home with you." Then, right in front of Huo Bu Yi, he slammed the carriage door shut with force.
Cheng Shao Gong gave Huo Bu Yi an awkward smile before somewhat flusteredly mounting his spotted pony. Leading the equally silent and disheveled Cheng family generals—along with the unconscious Di Wu Cheng—he scurried away in a cloud of dust.
Huo Bu Yi watched the departing Cheng entourage for a moment before turning away without a word. He briefly cupped his hands in farewell to the Crown Prince, waved off the approaching Black Iron Carriage, snatched the reins from a guard, mounted his horse, and rode off swiftly in another direction.
Luo Jitong, seeing that Huo Bu Yi hadn't even remembered her existence before leaving, had no choice but to endure her humiliation as she bowed farewell to the Crown Prince and made her own way home.
The palace guards, seeing the show was over and fearing the stern Crown Prince might take his mood out on them, quickly returned to their posts.
The Second Prince noticed the Crown Prince still standing motionless, his expression less solemn and severe than... dazed?
"Third Brother? Third Brother?" The Second Prince nudged the Crown Prince. "What's wrong with you?"
The Fourth Prince, now mostly sober, also came over: "Imperial Brother, Third Imperial Brother, what's wrong...?"
The Crown Prince suddenly snapped out of it, then turned abruptly and sprinted away, followed by a long string of eunuchs and palace maids who had just managed to react.
"Third Imperial Brother, where are you going?!" The Fourth Prince shouted at the top of his lungs.
"I'm going to find Father!" the Crown Prince yelled back—Dear father! This isn't how it was supposed to go!
Author's Note: Heatstroke is awful. No medicine works as well as finding a ruthless master for a gua sha session, though it hurts terribly.
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