The Prisoner of Beauty

That very day, Qiao Ping sprang into action.

First, he consulted with his advisors, who then privately met with some of the Qiao family's military officers. The troops of Yanzhou were under Qiao Ping's command, and they all complied without hesitation.

Subsequently, Qiao Ping went to meet Qiao Yue alone, proposing the idea of strengthening Yanzhou's military forces to prevent future troubles.

Initially, Qiao Yue showed little interest in the suggestion. Qiao Ping spent a long time discussing with him, analyzing the current situation in detail.

Born into a warlord family, Qiao Yue had led troops in his youth and was not entirely oblivious to the world's affairs. However, his weak character led him to drift along without much ambition. As Qiao Ping swayed him with persuasion, a dozen military officers suddenly entered the hall, kneeling down in unison, pleading with tears in their voices. Overwhelmed by the collective sentiment, Qiao Yue reluctantly nodded and entrusted the matter to Qiao Ping. Qiao Ping then summoned the Qiao family's military officers for a meeting, and the hall remained brightly lit with candles late into the night.

Her younger brother, Qiao Ci, also attended the meeting and had not yet returned to rest.

Xiao Qiao lay in bed, her heart turbulent, unable to calm down for a long time.

She thought of the events from her past life, of Bi Zhi and Da Qiao in this life, and of her father finally taking action.

Since Madam Xu's fate could be changed, as long as the Qiao family took action, at least they would not be sitting ducks in the future.

She increasingly felt that her return was very necessary.

Her father had finally acknowledged her persuasion and was taking action.

Xiao Qiao's mind was excited, thinking of one thing after another. She pondered over many matters until late at night, gradually feeling weary. Just as she was about to fall asleep, a man's face suddenly appeared in her mind.

It seemed to be Wei Shao's face... He should be returning soon...

Xiao Qiao also remembered that on the morning she saw him off to war months ago, she had promised Madam Xu that she would always see him off and welcome him back...

Now that she was in Yanzhou, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make it back in time.

She had broken her promise so quickly...

Xiao Qiao suddenly felt ashamed towards Madam Xu.

Next time, starting from the next time, she would definitely keep her promise. For Madam Xu...

Feeling extremely tired, Xiao Qiao closed her eyes and fell asleep.

......

In his last letter to Madam Xu, Wei Shao mentioned that he would return to Yuyang by the end of the month.

In reality, he arrived more than ten days early.

The triumphant army was still behind him, marching back at a speed of a hundred li per day. The troops were divided into two routes.

One route was taken to Jinyang to spend the winter. By next spring, Wei Shao himself would also go to Jinyang to reunite with the army.

The other route followed him back to Youzhou.

But when the army reached Gaoyang, Wei Shao handed over the daily march to the generals and, with a small team of light cavalry, returned to Yuyang ahead of the main force.

He arrived early.

On the day he reached Yuyang, it had just started snowing in the morning, and by midnight, the ground was covered with deep snow that buried the horses' hooves.

The guards at the south gate heard knocking and someone shouting outside the gate, "The Lord has returned."

The guards thought they had misheard.

Earlier that day, the gate commander had said that the triumphant army would arrive by the end of the month at the earliest, and they should remain vigilant, ensuring that the city's defenses were flawless until the Lord's return.

But now, in the middle of the night during a heavy snowstorm, someone was shouting outside the gate that the Lord had returned.The guards rushed to the top of the city wall to look down. By the light of the blazing torches, they saw more than a dozen warhorses standing on the snowy ground outside the city gate. These were all tall Ferghana horses, capable of traveling hundreds of miles in a single day. But now, these horses seemed utterly exhausted, their tails flicking incessantly, and their heavy snorts echoing one after another.

Amid the swirling snow, the guards turned their gaze to the man seated on the foremost horse.

He was clad in armor, with a thin layer of snow accumulated on his helmet and the shoulders of his battle robe.

His head was slightly raised, and the guards noticed that a faint layer of frost had settled on his sword-like eyebrows. Beneath those brows was a handsome and youthful face.

"The Lord has returned!"

The guards exclaimed in delight, scrambling down from the city wall.

Moments later, the heavy gates creaked open, slowly parting to either side.

Wei Shao, carrying the chill of frost and snow, galloped through the city gate and headed straight for the Wei residence in the northern part of the city.

The gatekeeper, startled awake by the knocking, opened the door. He was so shocked that he forgot to bow, staring wide-eyed as the Lord, who had been away on a months-long campaign, strode in covered in snow. His figure quickly disappeared down the corridor.

Wei Shao's return did not disturb many servants. Nor did he intend to wake his grandmother or startle his mother at this hour.

He went directly to the west wing and knocked on the courtyard gate.

The old woman who had just crawled out of her warm bed rubbed her eyes, shivering, and recognized that the Lord had returned. She opened her mouth, but before she could say that the Lady was not here, the Lord had already strode far inside, leaving a trail of footprints in the snow behind him.

Wei Shao entered the inner courtyard.

The courtyard was pale and dim. The trees, pathways, steps, and rooftops were all blanketed in white.

All was quiet. In the night sky, the snow continued to fall silently. A few flakes landed on his forehead and face, quickly melting from the heat of his body.

Though the weather was bitterly cold, Wei Shao did not feel the chill. On the contrary, he felt hot.

Perhaps it was because his armor was too heavy. He felt a damp sweat breaking out on his back.

His steps were quick. He didn’t notice that the lanterns hanging at intervals along the corridor were all extinguished.

He took the steps two at a time and finally stopped at the door. He raised his arm and gently pushed the door, as if testing it.

She hadn’t bolted the door.

It opened at his touch.

The room was pitch dark. There was none of the warm, fragrant air that Wei Shao had imagined would greet him.

Wei Shao hesitated for a moment but continued inside. He stopped in front of the bed, his figure frozen.

The faint light from the snow outside was enough for him to see the scene before him.

The bed curtains were drawn to either side, and the bed was neatly made with folded blankets and pillows, but she was not there.

It was empty.

Wei Shao’s eyes widened. He leaned down, reached out his hand, and touched the cold, empty bed. Then he straightened abruptly, turned, and strode out, his footsteps heavy and resounding. When he reached the door, he yanked it open, and the wind, carrying snow, rushed in.

"Where is everyone? Where have they all gone?"

He roared into the empty courtyard.

Soon, the lights in the west wing blazed brightly.Wei Shao lowered his head and began to remove his armor himself. Lin Ao, standing beside him, cautiously said, "My Lord, Madam left over a month ago. She said she was returning to Dongjun to visit her aunt who was ill. It was Elder Madam herself who gave her permission at the time."

"Who escorted her?"

Lin Ao answered.

"Did she say when she would return?"

"This servant does not know."

"What about Chun Niang?"

Wei Shao glanced around at the maids and servants who had been startled by his earlier shout and were now lined up before him.

"Chun Niang also went back with Madam," Lin Ao replied.

Wei Shao frowned. He seemed lost in thought for a moment, then waved his hand dismissively and said calmly, "Prepare the bath."

Lin Ao hurriedly complied. She signaled with her eyes for the others to leave the room and prepare to serve the Lord during his bath. She was the last to exit.

She had already noticed that the Lord, who had returned home unexpectedly late at night from a long campaign, was in a bad mood. She guessed it had something to do with Madam's return to the south. So, even though she knew about the incidents that had occurred in the north and east wings earlier, she wouldn't dare mention them to the Lord now, even if she had ten times the courage.

...

Wei Shao emerged from the bathhouse, not even wearing an undershirt, his upper body bare. He threw himself heavily onto the bed, lying flat on his back.

The sturdy sandalwood bed creaked slightly under the force of his weight.

Wei Shao closed his eyes, feeling a deep sense of loss and a wave of restlessness.

He remembered clearly—the night before he left for the campaign, when she heard the news that he was leaving, her face had immediately paled, as if she were about to cry. She had thrown herself at him, pinned him down, and shaken his shoulders, pleading with him not to go.

The next morning, his legs had felt weak. He had almost considered changing his mind, letting others lead the expedition while he stayed behind to guard Youzhou.

It was only Gongsun Yang's expression, as if he were about to cough up blood, that had made Wei Shao bite his tongue.

The military advisor, suffering from his old ailment and coughing painfully, had insisted on accompanying the army.

How could he, a fully capable Lord, be swayed by a woman's pleading and shoulder-shaking? If his subordinates found out, where would his dignity be?

So, the next night when he returned, he had firmly refused her, avoiding her sorrowful gaze. But later, seeing her lying in bed, sullen and unhappy, he had softened again and moved closer to comfort her. Yet, she had turned away, pulling the blanket over her head, leaving him with only the back of her head.

It was that back of her head that had made Wei Shao resolve himself. After some internal struggle, he decided to let things take their course and stopped trying to coax her.

He couldn't let this woman lead him by the nose anymore. If this continued, he might make a grave mistake someday.

The King of Youzhou had once lit the beacon fires to amuse the feudal lords, all to win a smile from his beauty. Such absurdity had almost happened to him.

Just thinking about it was unbelievable!

So, for the next few days, they had maintained a lukewarm relationship.

He hadn't touched her. Not even a finger.

And then he had gone off to war.

He had rolled through piles of corpses for months.

Now he was back.

The woman who had begged him to stay, who had nearly made him commit a mistake, was gone? She had returned to the Qiao family in Dongjun?

For a moment, a dark thought crossed Wei Shao's mind—he wished he could immediately destroy that damned Qiao family.

Let her return then!