Denghuangtai

Inside the imperial prison, Pei Qingyan drifted into a deep sleep once more.

In the seventeenth year of the Jianyuan era, the army returned victorious.

Pei Qingyan, clad in silver armor, followed his father and brothers with great spirit. Just as they reached the Weiyang Palace, Emperor Jianyuan descended the steps with his civil and military officials.

The emperor descending the steps was the greatest favor bestowed upon generals who had distinguished themselves in battle.

Despite having served in the military for many years, this was not the first time Pei Xuan had received such favor from the emperor, but his eyes were still red with emotion, just as he had been when he first received such favor from the emperor.

He knelt on one knee, his voice trembling, "Your subject has fulfilled his mission and returned with the troops." As he spoke, Pei Xuan took out the military tally, held it above his head, and presented it to Emperor Jianyuan.

Pei Qingyan, who was following behind Pei Xuan, also knelt down when Pei Xuan knelt. However, before that, she spotted Yun Zheng among the officials at a glance.

He stood in the crowd, his eyes revealing aloofness and indifference. His cheeks were devoid of any excess fat, and his handsome face at that moment was almost like a skeleton, with skin clinging to the bones.

When Pei Qingyan first saw Yun Zheng in his official robes, the red robes didn't make him look as handsome and dashing as he had imagined. Instead, he looked like a frail frame that would sway in the wind.

"He's lost weight."

Pei Qingyan's first reaction was to feel a pang of unease. Before the expedition, in front of Empress Yun, facing her accusations, she had been able to calmly defend her father.

But facing Yun Zheng...

No amount of lofty principles or reasoning could convince her to stop feeling sorry for the man in front of her.

Even a year ago, the image of Yun Zheng exchanging tokens with Princess Yongchang was still vivid in her mind.

Even though the suffocating heartache of the past was still there, she couldn't help but feel sorry for Yun Zheng.

Yun Heng was wrong, but what about Yun Zheng? He lost his life at a young age and now he has lost his biological father. Pei Qingyan understood this feeling all too well.

A year ago, she almost lost her beloved father.

Feel the same.

Because of these four words, she gradually convinced herself during her year in the North. She thought that as long as Yun Zheng took the initiative to talk to her, she would pretend that nothing had happened that day.

As Pei Qingyan made up his mind, Emperor Jianyuan led everyone to Weiyang Palace. The generals were taken to the rear hall to remove their armor and change clothes, waiting to attend the welcoming banquet later.

Because Pei Qingyan was a woman, she was placed alone in a side hall of Weiyang Palace.

She disliked relying on others, so after the palace maids helped her remove her armor, she told them to go outside and wait.

Pei Qingyan was changing clothes alone in the palace when the voices of two palace maids outside the door reached her ears intermittently.

"Have you heard? Young Master Yun is getting married soon."

Pei Qingyan paused in her dressing, holding her breath as she listened to the sounds outside.

"Yeah?"

"Yes." The same voice rang out again. "The Empress prepared many gifts a couple of days ago, and it was Young Master Yun who personally delivered them to Princess Yongchang."

Upon hearing this, Pei Qingyan's mind went blank.

She couldn't remember how she spent the welcoming banquet that day; she only remembered returning to the Grand Minister's residence in a daze. She slept for several days, burning up with fever until she lost consciousness.

After regaining consciousness, she dragged her now-healthy body into the palace, requested an audience with Emperor Jianyuan, and volunteered to serve on the frontier, remaining in the newly built Shuofang City to guard the border.

Although Emperor Jianyuan was shocked, he ultimately agreed to Pei Qingyan's request to guard the border due to the lack of generals to defend the newly expanded territory.

After that... separated by thousands of miles, Pei Qingyan never inquired about Yun Zheng again.

"pain!"

Outside the dream, the old man removed the silver needles from Pei Qingyan's body. Pei Qingyan frowned, muttered softly, and let out a series of faint moans...

When Yun Zheng woke up in the morning, he saw several larks perched on the branches of trees outside the window. On a whim, he asked someone to find some millet, which he then casually scattered outside the window.

After days of heavy snow, these birds had nowhere to find food and were starving. Upon seeing food, they immediately flew down from the trees and happily foraged for food on the ground.

Yun Zheng stood by the window with his arms crossed, watching the little ones scramble for food with a slight smile. He hadn't shown this childlike side of himself since a few years ago.

It was a clear day after the snow. Pei Qingyan rushed to the Yun residence early in the morning, dragged the sleepy Yun Zheng out of the house, and excitedly asked someone to find her a straw basket, hemp rope, and millet.

She single-handedly and nimbly devised a bird-catching mechanism, then playfully set it up under Yun Zheng's windowsill, excitedly making Yun Zheng wait for her achievement.

She was wearing a red embroidered gold jacket and skirt, her black hair as black as ink, and she was squatting in the snow with a bright smile. She was like a little sun, instantly brightening up the gloomy and boring winter day.

The only problem was that she was too lively. Every time, before the birds had even landed completely, she would pull the rope. As soon as the rope moved, the wooden strips supporting the straw frame would fall down, causing the straw frame to collapse and startling the birds into flight.

This happened several times in a row. Finally, Yun Zheng took action and successfully caught one, preventing Pei Qingyan's hard work from being wasted.

"My lord." The chief secretary's voice pulled Yun Zheng back to reality.

"What is it?" Yun Zheng frowned, his tone impatient.

"The palace...sent some people over..." the registrar stammered.

Upon hearing this, Yun Zheng didn't hesitate and said directly, "Send them to the backyard and put them with the others. With them introducing the rules of the Grand Minister's Mansion to the newcomers, we won't have to worry about anyone causing trouble."

"But this time the people are a bit special."

"What's so special about it?"

The chief clerk took a deep breath, looking like he was going all out, and said, "Your Majesty, you will know once you see it for yourself."

"Where is he?" Yun Zheng's face was gloomy, clearly feeling somewhat disappointed by the news that morning.

The chief clerk, trembling with fear, said, "The side hall..."

Yun Zheng turned around and walked towards the side hall.

The side hall was quiet. Yun Zheng, his face grim, pushed open the door and entered. The room was filled with the pungent scent of perfume and cosmetics, which instantly darkened his expression. He was about to explode in anger when he suddenly met a pair of calm, still eyes.

The person was sitting directly opposite the door. Upon seeing Yun Zheng, he gracefully rose and bowed to Yun Zheng. His movements were fluid and pleasing to the eye.

But Yun Zheng showed no appreciation whatsoever. His face was ashen, yet a faint smile played on his lips. "Raise your head."

Yun Zheng's voice was cold, and suddenly the wind picked up outside, howling.

The woman slowly raised her head, and her eyes once again came into Yun Zheng's view.

Yun Zheng's eyes trembled slightly, and there seemed to be suppressed emotions in his eyes, which were about to burst forth.

"Snapped!"

Suddenly, a window in the outer room was blown open by a strong wind. The window sash slammed heavily against the wall, then bounced back and hung there swaying precariously.

"Guards," Yun Zheng's voice grew even colder, "drag her away and gouge out her eyes."

As soon as the words were spoken, the woman turned pale with fright, trembled violently, and collapsed to her knees, begging, "Please, Grand Marshal, spare my life!"

Before leaving the palace, she was secretly pleased to hear that she was to be sent to the Grand Minister's residence, thinking she had struck gold. She had seen Yun Zheng once before and was immediately captivated by his handsome face, a sight she could not forget.

Compared to the other servants who were sent to the side of the middle-aged, pot-bellied nobles, she felt that she had a better future. While waiting in the side hall, she thought about how to please and flatter this young and promising Grand Minister of Works, and how to bear him a son or daughter and become the mistress of this huge mansion.

Even if she wasn't qualified to be Yun Zheng's legal wife, perhaps she could use her beauty to become Yun Zheng's favored concubine...

In short, she had considered countless possibilities, but she never imagined that Yun Zheng would order his men to gouge out her eyes the moment he saw her!