Madam, don't do this!

Chapter 224 He is my brother-in-law (Bonus chapter for Yong Su's Alliance Leader)

The name Lin Xue only flashed through Song Yan's mind briefly, and he didn't pay much attention to it.

After all, Mei Xue's mother had passed away.

Song Xue's older sister also disappeared at the age of three, most likely killed by Yang Miaoqing.

Even though Yang Miaoqing didn't kill him, in this era, it was extremely difficult for a three-year-old child to survive.

From Hua Lianyue's words, Song Yan gained a general understanding of the Hehuan Sect's situation. He also understood why Hua Lianyue knew that the Hundred Flowers Mirror was on him.

It's all because of that woman, Mingyue.

There's no reason to blame Mingyue. As a disciple of the Hehuan Sect, it's perfectly normal for her to report to her superiors upon seeing a secret manual that had been lost for decades.

However, this whole affair was caused by Mingyue, so when we get back, I must give that woman a good beating, hundreds of lashes.

I have also gained some understanding of the situation in the State of Chu. The State of Chu is full of martial spirit, unlike the States of Ning and Zhao, which emphasize civil affairs and suppress military affairs, making civil officials completely subservient to military generals.

Just like Lin Xue, who was the eldest daughter of the Lin family, a prominent military family in the Chu Kingdom.

As the eldest daughter, she had the demeanor of a big sister since childhood. Her younger siblings were all disciplined and obeyed her. Because of her strong abilities, she looked down on those weak scholars. When she wanted to lead troops into battle, she was impeached by a group of civil officials who said that it was immoral for a woman to command troops.

As a result, overnight, all the officials who had been impeached were put in sacks, and when they went to court the next day, they all had bruises on their faces.

It is said that the Chu emperor was on his dragon throne at the time, struggling to suppress his laughter.

From then on, there was no longer any dissent regarding Lin Xue becoming the first female general of the Chu Kingdom.

When Song Yan heard this, he couldn't help but burst into laughter. Although they were on opposing sides, Lin Xue could be considered a remarkable woman.

Song Yan suddenly remembered something: "Speaking of which, isn't the Yang family of Huilong in the State of Chu?"

"That's right."

"Among the concubines of the Chu Emperor, are there any women from the Yang family?"

Hua Lianyue was slightly taken aback, seemingly not understanding why Song Yan would be interested in this, but she still thought about it seriously: "It seems that there is indeed a Consort Yang, who should be quite favored. Yes, the birth mother of the Third Prince or the Fourth Prince is Consort Yang, but I don't remember clearly."

Song Yan chuckled. So that's how it is.

However, it seems that the Chu royal family is much more resourceful than the Ning royal family; at least many of the Chu emperor's children should have survived.

The snow continued to fall very late.

Hua Lianyue finally finished sewing the leather and handed the slightly larger vest to Song Yan, who put it on. Although it had no sleeves, his arms were still a bit cold, but the animal skin pants made him much warmer.

I didn't take any measurements, but it fits quite well.

Hua Lianyue also put on the vest, which made her originally tall and fit body look somewhat bulky.

The fox was also skinned, and its furry tail was used to make a scarf to cover Hua Lian Yue's slender neck.

The bearskin was thick, so even lying on the ground, it didn't feel uncomfortable. Last night, Hua Lianyue was lying diagonally opposite the dilapidated temple, but today, she was leaning against Song Yan. Their body temperatures mingled, and the last bit of coolness seemed to have silently dissipated.

"No matter what, we have to leave here tomorrow," Song Yan said slowly in the dimly lit, dilapidated temple.

Faintly, one could hear Hua Lian Yue humming in response: "Where are we going? To the Jurchen tribes, or to Xinhou County?"

"We'll just go wherever we end up," Song Yan smiled. "Can you even tell which way is which?"

"Probably not."

"Me too."

"So we're just going to walk along like this, confused and clueless?"

"It's okay, the Earth is round."

What is Earth?

In the darkness, there is only meaningless conversation.

Gradually, Song Yan could hear Hua Lian Yue's soft snoring. He chuckled and closed his eyes as well.

……

Xinhou County.

The county government office and the inner residence.

Luo Tianyi stood quietly on the rooftop. She had been in this position for who knows how long, with a thick layer of snow piled up on her head. Her clear, cold eyes gazed into the distance, as if that figure would suddenly emerge from the darkness.

"Heavenly Garment".

A voice came from below; it belonged to Princess Gaoyang, who was wrapped in a fox fur coat.

It's so cold.

Although being wrapped up so thickly was a bit awkward, and she might easily trip and fall, only to be laughed at by some despicable jerk, she tried wearing less that day, and the next day she was back to being a dumpling.

Compared to style, warmth is more important. Gazing at the slender woman in the wind and snow, Gao Yang's eyes revealed a complex mix of emotions: a touch of pity, and a hint of worry.

Upon hearing the sound, the statue-like figure finally moved slightly, glanced down at Gao Yang, but did not react further.

“This can’t go on,” Gao Yang sighed. “Tomorrow, you still have to go look for your cousin, right? If you get frostbite, how will you find him?”

“There’s no use in you just standing on the roof watching. If Song Yan really has a way to come back, he will come back even if you don’t watch. If he doesn’t, it won’t do you any good even if you stand like a waiting-for-husband stone.”

Such persuasion seemed to have worked, and Luo Tianyi fell from the roof.

Gao Yang patted the snow off Luo Tianyi's head. This action seemed to make Luo Tianyi feel a little uncomfortable, so she twisted her body slightly, broke free from Gao Yang's embrace, shook her head, and the snowflakes on her head scattered on the ground.

Gao Yang didn't mind and took Luo Tianyi's small hand to walk into the inner room: "Look at these hands, they're as cold as ice. Don't think that just because you're good at martial arts, you can't take this wind and snow seriously. In Liaodong, you can easily get frostbite if you're not careful."

Once inside the room, a hand warmer was placed in Luo Tianyi's hands.

Then they summoned Yue Niang and had her brew a bowl of ginger soup.

Ginger soup can dispel cold.

That Yue Niang was a woman rescued from Jurchen cavalry on the way to Xinhou County. She had the straightforwardness and cheerfulness typical of people from Liaodong. Since there weren't many people in the county government who knew how to cook, they asked Yue Niang to be their cook.

After drinking the ginger soup, Luo Tianyi felt her body warm up. Gao Yang then pulled Luo Tianyi into the quilt. Since they were both women and relatives, there was no need to be too concerned.

The thick quilt pressed down on him, its weight seemingly transforming into warmth, and Gao Yang sighed comfortably.

"You don't need to worry too much."

“Grandma said that the person who kidnapped Song Yan is called Hua Lian Yue, and he is a Grandmaster-level martial artist. If he really wanted to kill Song Yan, he would have been dead long ago. Moreover, although the name Hehuan Sect doesn’t sound good, it is still a reputable sect. They would never do something like murder and robbery.” Gao Yang comforted her softly.

Luo Tianyi pursed her lips and remained silent, but her eyes still looked somewhat empty.

Gao Yang frowned: "This isn't a solution. Even if you find it, what then? It's a grandmaster; you're no match for him."

“Mingyue also said that Hua Lianyue is looking for Song Yan most likely just to get rid of the cold poison in her body. Once the cold poison is cured, Song Yan will come back.”

"The worst outcome would be that they would be taken to the State of Chu; at least they would still be alive."

Luo Tianyi's eyes remained vacant, as if she couldn't find a focus in them.

He felt as if his soul had been ripped out.

Thinking of Luo Tianyi's almost desperate search over the past two days, Gao Yang suddenly frowned, a thought popping into his mind, and then his mouth spoke faster than his brain: "Tianyi... have you fallen for Song Yan?"

I like Song Yan...

These words kept echoing in Luo Tianyi's ears.

Her body trembled, and her face instantly turned pale. Her thin lips moved, and a voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz slowly echoed in the girl's boudoir: "He... is my brother-in-law."

"My mother told me to protect him."

"But he was still kidnapped."

Her weak voice was filled with deep self-reproach.

Seeing that, Gao Yang's heart clenched.

Having known Luo Tianyi for so many years, this was the first time she had ever seen such a vulnerable expression on Luo Tianyi's face.

That heroic woman, who was always so dashing, actually had such a vulnerable moment.

Gao Yang slowly reached out and wrapped his arms around Luo Tianyi's waist, letting her slender body lean against him, as if this would make Luo Tianyi feel a little better.

She gently patted Luo Tianyi's slender shoulder, her brows furrowed slightly, as she recalled Luo Tianyi's answer.

He's my brother-in-law!
This girl only answered the question about Song Yan's identity, but didn't say whether she liked him or not.

Perhaps even the girl herself didn't realize it.

However, the identities of brother-in-law and sister-in-law are really a bit troublesome...bullshit!
Putting aside everything else, there were two concubines in Emperor Ninghe's harem who seemed to be sisters.

If the emperor can do it, why can't Song Yan do it?

At worst, I can just marry both Luo Tianxuan and Luo Tianyi.

Given Aunt Luo Yuheng's personality, she probably wouldn't care about outside criticism. Besides, when she had Luo Tianyi stand in for Luo Tianxuan to perform the wedding ceremony, she might have had this intention in mind.

As Gao Yang was thinking this, Luo Tianyi in his arms suddenly widened her eyes and, like a nimble snake, easily broke free from Gao Yang's embrace, her two fingers already resting on the hilt of the sword on the bedside table.

The next instant, a streak of white light flashed by.

"Uh!"

A faint sound came from outside the window.

A spurt of blood sprayed onto the window, bright red.

(End of this chapter)