Shadow Love (Yu Jin Chang An)

Li Shuang held onto the rope with one hand, balancing precariously on the surrounding blades, while her other hand looped the rope around the man's waist, trying to secure him before pulling him up. Yet, despite her efforts, she couldn't manage to tie him properly with just one hand. Growing impatient, she snapped, "Move your other hand a bit and help me loop the rope over so I can get you up!"

The man didn't budge. Li Shuang, her temper flaring, looked up to scold him, only to find his crimson eyes gazing at her with a tenderness like water, brimming with affection—so much so that she wondered if she had unknowingly left behind a passionate lover in the frontier in some forgotten past.

But right now, all Li Shuang wanted to say to that look was:

"What are you staring at?! Don’t you want to get up?!"

Infuriating! Was this really the time to be staring at someone? No sense of urgency at all!

Even after her sharp rebuke, the man remained unruffled. With utter seriousness, he replied, "Oh," then wrapped his injured arm around her waist and pulled her into a rough, domineering embrace.

Li Shuang froze. "What are you doing?"

"Taking you up."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he released his left hand, grabbed the rope she had lowered, and with a few deft steps off the blades, he leaped out of the trap, landing safely on solid ground—all while holding her.

In the blink of an eye, Li Shuang found herself out of the pit. Yet, the man showed no intention of letting go. Being held in the arms of a stranger felt utterly bizarre to her. She immediately pushed against his chest, stepping back with a frown. "You could’ve gotten out on your own?"

He nodded. "The blades were poisoned. I needed time to regulate my breathing."

So much for her worry being wasted…

There was no time for further talk. Outside, the sound of bandits breaking through the door echoed, their chaotic footsteps suggesting dozens of them. Li Shuang’s expression hardened as she tightened her grip on the blade at her waist. But before she could act, the man abruptly scooped her up, moving like lightning as he crashed through the window.

The world around her blurred into streaks, the only constant being the man who held her.

By the time her surroundings slowed, Li Shuang found herself placed atop a horse. The man swung up behind her, and with a bold gallop, they burst through the stone fortress gates, leaving the bandits in disarray behind them.

The frontier night was brutal, the wind cutting like knives, the snow thick as goose feathers, rendering the landscape desolate and bleak.

Li Shuang had long grown accustomed to such harsh, arid climates. In her three years stationed here, she had fought in countless battles—ambushing enemies in freezing nights, repelling invaders under scorching suns. No matter how dire the circumstances, she had always ridden alone. As the general of the Changfeng Battalion and the pride of the Great Jin’s border defenses, her spine had never bent, nor had her will ever allowed weakness.

So to be seated before someone now, enveloped and protected by a man’s presence—for Li Shuang, this was…

A first.Amid the heavy snow, a single horse carried two riders as they galloped through the desolate frontier, covering an unknown distance until they reached a cliff. The horse, seized from the bandits, could run no further, its mouth frothing as it slowed to a halt.

From here, the distant silhouette of the Changfeng Camp was faintly visible.

The man dismounted and reached out to help Li Shuang down. But she remained atop the horse, staring fixedly at him. "You know who I am," she stated firmly, her gaze locked onto his eyes. She had never revealed her identity to him, and today she had been clad in night attire, not the uniform of the Changfeng Camp. Yet without asking a single question, he had led her straight toward the camp—clearly, he knew who she was.

The man didn’t respond, his hand still extended in the air. Only when Li Shuang dismounted on her own, standing on the opposite side, did his eyes dim slightly as he withdrew his hand.

The blood on his back had frozen in the frigid air.

Li Shuang pressed again, "Who are you, really?" She narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing him with wariness. "How do you know my identity? How did you track my movements? And why did you come to my aid?"

Her questions were calm and sharp, yet they sank like stones into the sea, eliciting no response.

Frowning deeply, Li Shuang suddenly drew her sword, pointing it at his throat. "If you refuse to answer, I’ll take you back to Changfeng Camp for interrogation." Her mission to rescue Li Ting had been sudden and urgent—logically, no one outside her closest confidants should have known. Yet this mysterious man had anticipated her every move.

Military secrets were at stake. Li Shuang couldn’t simply let him go just because he had saved her and seemed harmless.

That was her reasoning.

But when her blade pressed against his throat, she saw a flicker of hurt in the crimson eyes behind his cold, black mask.

Being treated as an enemy… wounded him?

Li Shuang was taken aback. What was this man’s deal? It was as if she were some heartless betrayer…

In that moment of hesitation, the man suddenly stepped forward, his throat nearly grazing her blade. Not truly intending to kill him, Li Shuang instinctively tilted her sword aside to avoid piercing him.

This only emboldened him further. He took another step, his scorching palm pressing against her back once more. By the time she tried to fend him off with her sword, she was stunned by his next move.

Without warning or permission, he cupped the back of her head and kissed her—brushing his lips against hers in a sudden, brazen act.

Just like that… he kissed her!

The touch of his lips was something no one had ever dared before. Li Shuang’s eyes widened in shock, her martial arts and inner strength forgotten in an instant.

To him, her breath was like rain after a long drought. He drank her in greedily, parting her lips and invading her mouth as if to consume her, to claim her.

After a brief, dazed moment, Li Shuang finally snapped back to reality.

This scoundrel!Li Shuang's anger surged from the depths of her heart, and she delivered a fierce punch to the man's abdomen, not holding back in the slightest.

The man let out a muffled groan, clearly in pain. He bent at the waist, yet still refused to release her, clinging to their contact as if he couldn't bear to let go.

Just as Li Shuang resolved to strike with deadly force, the clouds on the horizon suddenly brightened—dawn was about to break.

Li Shuang felt the man stiffen abruptly, as if suppressing some unbearable pain, and then he released her. He took two steps back.

Li Shuang raised her sword and shouted at him, "Don't even think of escaping!"

But before her words could fully fade, the man leaped straight off the mountain cliff. Li Shuang's pupils contracted as she rushed forward to search for any trace of him, but by then, he had completely vanished without a trace.

Just as suddenly as he had appeared, he disappeared before her again, leaving behind neither a word nor a clue.

Standing alone atop the mountain, gazing at the distant sunlight on the horizon, Li Shuang hurled her sword into the ground in frustration, covering her mouth as she gritted her teeth in fury.

"Damn bastard!"

By the time Li Shuang returned to the military camp, the sky was fully bright. The moment her figure appeared in the distance outside the camp, a lookout spotted her and immediately reported her arrival. Qin Lan, whom she had left in charge of camp affairs, quickly rode out to meet her.

As he reached her side, Qin Lan dismounted, his gaze fixed intently on her. After scrutinizing her for a long moment and confirming she was unharmed, the tension in his tightly pressed lips finally eased slightly. "General," he greeted respectfully with a bow. "You must be exhausted. Please mount the horse."

Li Shuang was indeed weary from the journey and didn't stand on ceremony. She climbed onto the horse, allowing Qin Lan to lead it by her side. "Has Li Ting returned?" she asked.

"Yes. The medics have already examined him. The young master was merely frightened and is otherwise unharmed."

Li Shuang sighed. "Father was right. Li Ting may seem tough, but he's been spoiled in the capital. When trouble arises, he still acts like a delicate maiden. He needs tempering."

Qin Lan gave a quiet acknowledgment. "The young master is still of tender years, General. Please don't be too harsh on him." He paused, glancing subtly at Li Shuang atop the horse before continuing softly, "The young master mentioned that last night at the bandits' stone stronghold, a mysterious man in a black mask came to your aid. General..."

At the mention of this man, Li Shuang recalled the scene on the mountain just before dawn. A mix of humiliation and anger flared in her chest, but she couldn't possibly reveal such emotions before her subordinates. She merely kept her expression cold and cut Qin Lan off. "Don't bring it up."

Qin Lan was taken aback, lifting his eyes to look at her. But seeing her displeasure, he lowered his gaze and murmured, "Understood."

His status did not grant him the right to say more to Li Shuang. Even excessive questioning would be overstepping.

Upon entering the camp, the soldiers immediately crowded around. Li Ting, bundled in a thick fox-fur coat, rushed out from a tent. The moment he saw Li Shuang, his eyes reddened, and he threw himself into her arms. "Elder Sister!"

The softness of his embrace melted even Li Shuang's hardened heart for a moment. After all, Li Ting was her beloved younger brother, raised under her care. Moreover, the decision to have him accompany the soldiers to escort the provisions had been her own—she couldn't blame him for what had happened.Li Shuang sighed and pulled Li Ting aside, saying, "Go back first." Then she raised her head and ordered someone to summon Luo Teng and several other deputy generals.

Li Ting was quickly escorted by an old servant from the general's residence, shielding him from the biting wind as they hurried toward the tent. Li Ting turned back, lingering with every step as he gazed at Li Shuang. She was already issuing commands to the other deputy generals who had arrived:

"Last night, we sent too few men and failed to eradicate the bandits. Today, we hold nothing back—muster three thousand soldiers and wipe out that den of thieves. Be ruthless." Her expression was icy, her eyes devoid of warmth. "Make an example of them. Let the other forces and Xidu see what happens to those who provoke Great Jin."

To be ruthless meant that Li Shuang wanted no survivors.

Li Ting stared at her, watching as her gaze sharpened like a blade, her face cold and unyielding. He was momentarily stunned. In his eyes, Li Shuang had always been the sister who roughhoused with him, occasionally even a little irreverent. Only now did he realize that the whispers in the capital—those who called his elder sister a "tigress"—were not the slightest exaggeration.

For those who fought for their country, the nation came first. Schemes, strategies, slaughter, bloodshed—all were commonplace. And it was precisely because of people like her, who stood as walls of flesh and blood guarding the borders, that the people of Great Jin could live in peace and prosperity. It was also why he had the luxury of idly arguing with the prime minister’s son over how to play with a sugar figurine back in the capital.

At home, his father often said he was not as capable as his sister. Li Ting had always brushed it off, thinking it was just a matter of age. But now, he truly realized—the gap between him and Li Shuang was vast. So vast it felt as though they existed in entirely different worlds...

Gritting his teeth, Li Ting silently retreated to his own tent.