Transforming into a stunningly beautiful fox spirit, leaving a scar on the heart of a prodigy.

Autumn always arrives earlier in the capital than elsewhere.

The autumn wind swirled fallen leaves, making them dance beneath the vermilion palace walls.

The Dengwen Drum outside the Meridian Gate has not sounded for several whole years.

The large cowhide drum, covered in a layer of dust, stood alone on the high platform, like a sleeping giant beast.

Until noon today.

A bald man, dressed in rags and covered in mud, stumbled and rushed up the platform.

He clutched a token that was neither gold nor jade tightly in his hand; it was his talisman, but also the death warrant that evil star had given him.

"Thump—"

The first drumbeat, deep and resonant like thunder, shook the Imperial Guards outside the Meridian Gate, causing them to turn pale.

"Thump—"

The second drumbeat startled the crows on the palace wall.

"Thump—"

The third drumbeat resounded throughout the Golden Palace, interrupting the court proceedings.

The bald man threw down his drumsticks, collapsed to the ground, and gasped for breath.

He stared at the imperial guards surrounding him, at the gleaming tips of their spears, and roared at the top of his lungs, "An urgent report from Luofeng Slope! Present it to His Majesty! Anyone who dares to stop me, Prime Minister Gu said, bring him your head!"

Gu Xiang.

The moment those two words were uttered, the Imperial Guards, who had been exuding a murderous aura, froze instantly.

In this capital city, in this Great Zhou Dynasty, the name of Gu Xiang sometimes carries more weight than an imperial edict.

That was a living Yama, a god of death, a sword hanging over the heads of all officials.

Half an hour later.

Inside the Imperial Study, the air was filled with the fragrance of sandalwood.

Li Yuping dismissed his attendants, leaving only the Imperial Preceptor.

He sat on the dragon throne, holding the blood-stained memorial in his hands, his knuckles slightly white from the force he exerted.

The handwriting on the memorial was wild and unrestrained, exuding an undeniable madness; it was undoubtedly Gu Xiang's handwriting.

"Your Majesty, I have found my deceased wife at Luofengpo and am temporarily residing here to conduct official business. Important state affairs will be reported here daily. Do not worry about me or disturb me."

These few words, though brief, were like a thunderclap, exploding in Li Yu's mind.

"Finding...his deceased wife?"

Li Yu muttered to himself, his voice trembling slightly. He raised his head and looked at the Imperial Advisor standing by the window, "Imperial Advisor, am I seeing things? Or has that Gu Xiang gone mad? Su Qing... Su Qing, wasn't she... years ago..."

That blood-red night, the woman in red who ripped out her heart and committed suicide in the ancestral hall, and the nine-tailed celestial fox whose soul was scattered to save Gu Xiang.

That's what they saw with their own eyes.

Even the bones turned into countless specks of light, dissipating into the world.

How could he still be alive?

The Imperial Advisor turned around.

She wasn't wearing a mask, and her stunningly beautiful face was filled with astonishment.

She walked quickly to the imperial desk and took the scroll of memorial from Li Yu's hands.

The moment his fingertips touched the memorial, the Imperial Preceptor's pupils constricted sharply.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

A very faint trace of scent remained on it.

It wasn't the smell of blood, nor the scent of ink.

It was a unique fragrance, carrying a hint of languor and eeriness. It was the primal scent unique to the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox, the scent of its kind.

It's her.

The Imperial Advisor opened his eyes, his voice trembling with disbelief, "There is her scent here. Although it is very faint, like a tender sprout just emerging from the soil, it is indeed Su Qing's scent."

"It's really alive?" Li Yu suddenly stood up, his dragon robe belt overturning the teacups on the table, spilling tea all over the floor.

"Phoenix rising from the ashes, reborn from a drop of blood." The Imperial Advisor turned his gaze to the window, looking towards the distant south. "If anyone in this world can be brought back to life, I can't think of anyone else besides her."

Li Yu paced back and forth in the imperial study.

joy.

Shock.

There was also a trace of bitterness that was hard to explain.

"It's good that you're alive, it's good that you're alive..." Li Yu murmured, his eyes reddening. "I knew it, that fox spirit is a scourge that will live for a thousand years, she's not so easy to kill. That idiot Gu Xiang, he's tormented himself to the point of being neither human nor ghost these past three years, but now he's finally made it through."

"Your Majesty," the Imperial Advisor interrupted his musings, "Gu Xiang mentioned in his memorial that he intends to conduct his business at Luofeng Slope. That place is considered an ominous location, and it's also being watched by the Supreme Forgetfulness Sect. One of them has just been reborn and hasn't recovered his cultivation; the other has fallen from Confucianism to demonic possession. If the disciples and grand-disciples of True Master Xuanyin discover this..."

Li Yu paused, his face darkening.

"I need to go," Li Yu said. "I want to see for myself if it really is Su Qing. If it is, I will bring them back. The capital is protected by a great formation; it's much safer than those desolate mountains and wilderness."

"Your Majesty, you mustn't," the Imperial Advisor shook his head. "The situation in the court has just been stabilized, and the demons in the northern border are stirring up trouble. If Your Majesty leaves the capital, the court will be without a leader, and chaos will surely ensue. Moreover, since Gu Xiang has said he wants to work there, given his temperament, Your Majesty won't be able to persuade him to come back."

"Then you go?" Li Yu looked at the Imperial Advisor.

"I can't leave either," the Imperial Advisor said with a wry smile. "The core of the national protective formation is on my body. If I leave the capital, the formation's power will be halved. If the Supreme Forgetfulness Sect takes advantage of this weakness..."

The two looked at each other and saw the helplessness in each other's eyes.

As emperors and imperial advisors, they possessed supreme power, yet they were also trapped within this four-sided city by that power.

"Who should we send?" Li Yu frowned. "This matter is too shocking. If it gets out, it might cause panic. We need to find someone trustworthy who can verify Su Qing's identity and also help them out."

Silence fell over the imperial study.

for a long time.

A series of light footsteps came from outside the door.

"Your Majesty! I heard that Prime Minister Gu has sent a letter?"

A crisp sound broke the silence. The door to the imperial study was pushed open, and a young girl dressed in a pale yellow palace gown rushed in.

The Fifth Princess, Li Qingge.

Three years have passed, and the girl from back then has blossomed into a graceful young woman. Only the spirited air between her brows remains unchanged.

She spotted the memorial in Li Yu's hand immediately, her eyes lighting up as she reached out to snatch it: "Let me see! Has that idiot come to his senses and wants to come back? I knew it! There's no hurdle in this world that can't be overcome. He can't spend his whole life guarding a dead man..."

Li Qingge's voice abruptly stopped.

She saw the contents of the memorial clearly.

"Finding...his deceased wife?"

Li Qingge's eyes widened, and the memorial in her hand fell to the ground with a thud. She looked up at Li Yu, then at the Imperial Preceptor, her voice trembling, "Brother, what... what does this mean? Sister Su... Sister Su, she..."

Back then at the poetry gathering, there was the "Young Master Su" who dressed as a man and amazed everyone with a love poem.

Later, at Zuixianju, there was Sister Su, dressed in red, barefoot, and fiercely protective of her own.

That was Li Qingge's most splendid dream during her teenage years, and also her deepest regret.

"Perhaps it's true." Li Yu looked at her sister and sighed. "The Imperial Advisor confirmed it; there's her scent on the memorials."

Li Qingge stood there, stunned.

Two lines of clear tears slid down her cheeks without warning.

"I knew it..." Li Qingge laughed and cried at the same time, "I knew that troublemaker wouldn't die so easily! She still owes me a drink! She even said she'd teach me how to swear!"

Seeing her sister's appearance, Li Yu had a sudden thought.

"Qingge," Li Yu began.

Li Qingge wiped her face haphazardly and sniffed: "Brother, please speak."

"I can't leave, and neither can the Imperial Advisor." Li Yu picked up the memorial from the ground, dusted it off, and solemnly handed it to Li Qingge. "You will go to Luofeng Slope for me."

Li Qingge took the memorial, her eyes instantly hardening.

"Go and see if it's really Su Qing," Li Yu instructed. "If it is, give her this token."

Li Yu took a jade pendant with a dragon pattern from his waist. It was a token of the Great Zhou royal family; seeing the jade was like seeing the emperor.

"Tell Gu Xiang that I will take care of things at court for him. Tell him to keep a close eye on his wife and not lose her again." Li Yu paused, then added, "If he needs anything, just ask. I'll empty the national treasury and send it to him."

"Your subject obeys the decree!" Li Qingge clasped her hands in a salute, her movements crisp and decisive, displaying a certain heroic spirit of a chivalrous heroine.

"And another thing." The Imperial Advisor stepped forward, took out a brocade pouch from his sleeve, and handed it to Li Qingge. "This is a concealment talisman I made. Su Qing has just been reborn, and her aura is unstable, making her prone to attracting evil spirits. Give this to her; it can conceal the secrets of heaven."

Li Qingge took the brocade pouch and carefully put it into her bosom.

"Rest assured, Your Majesty, and Grand Preceptor," Li Qingge turned around, her skirt fluttering. "I'm setting off now. If I don't see Sister Su, I'll stay at Luofeng Slope and never come back!"

Watching Li Qingge's departing figure, Li Yu breathed a sigh of relief.

Outside the window, the autumn wind grew stronger.

The swirling yellow leaves seemed to sweep away the somber atmosphere of the capital city.

"You said..." Li Yu gazed at the southern sky, her eyes somewhat unfocused, "...that they might come back?"

The Imperial Advisor remained silent for a moment.

"As long as hearts are together, anywhere is a home," the Imperial Advisor said softly. "Gu Xiang mentioned in his memorial that he works there. Perhaps he wanted to tell us that he has found a place more important than the capital."

Li Yu smiled.

"Too."

"That idiot, that's all he'll amount to in his life."

……

Outside the capital city.

A swift horse galloped away, leaving a trail of dust in its wake.

Li Qingge changed into a tight-fitting outfit, carried a long sword on her back, and cracked her riding whip.

The wind tousled her hair, but it couldn't extinguish the light in her eyes.

It's been a few years.

The person who has amazed us all has finally returned.

"The Magpie Bridge Fairy - A Letter from the Divine Capital"

The autumn wind carries a message, the drumbeats startle the palace, and a letter written in a frenzy is as blood-red as a sheet of paper.

Suddenly, I heard that someone had returned from their old haunts, and they said that their past karmic ties had not yet been severed.

The king rejoiced, while the beautiful woman wept, her heart overflowing with memories of the past.

Let the dragon jade be sent south, lest the yin and yang be severed again.