Chapter 39: Home, Country, and the World

Even though I knew Fu Junmo would definitely come looking for me, I hadn't expected to see him leisurely drinking tea in the room, and I certainly didn't anticipate that his first words upon seeing me would be:

"Come back with me."

I stepped back, looked outside—yes, it was the East Wing! So I hadn't entered the wrong room; he had intruded.

I sat down before him, Xiao Yin quietly lying in my arms, Xin Luo unusually not leaning against me but tightly gripping Xin Hui's hand. Wu Ye shut the door, standing to the side, fully on guard.

Seeing them act on their own, I feared no amount of words would help—how detestable this ingrained servility is!

"Ruo'er…"

Suddenly I became aware of the person sitting opposite; I looked up, saw his complicated, unspeakable expression, and said lightly, "Go back with you? Where to? Crown Prince, you're joking."

"As long as you go back with me, I can cure the poison on Xin Luo's body," he said confidently, looking at me. "Then whether you say to set them free or keep them by your side to serve you, it's up to you."

My hand gripping the cup tightened, an urge to pull him in rising, but a cold sneer appeared on my face: "I'm puzzled—if the Crown Prince so wants me to go back with you, why doesn't he propose to my father and say he wants to marry me?"

His complexion shifted; he set the teacup on the table, but his hand did not release.

"Let me answer," I laughed, "Because the Crown Prince's plan cannot tolerate any slip, marrying a clueless, obedient woman to 'openly repair the causeway' is, of course, far safer than marrying someone like me who could ruin your plan at any moment, right?" I watched his expression shift repeatedly, my hand on the cup clenched tight, and said lazily, "As for taking me back now, perhaps you're a bit interested—after all, you admitted I'm the first person who dared to threaten you. Keeping a woman like me around for occasional amusement is indeed a pleasant pastime."

"But, Your Highness the Crown Prince, we both know deep down that the main reason you want to take me away is to prevent me from leaking information before your plan succeeds, right?"

Fu Junmo's already grim face turned colder, his gaze icy, his voice eerily terrifying: "The Crown Prince doesn't have time to waste with you now. Do you think I'm negotiating? As soon as I give the order, even if you're left only a corpse, you'll have to be taken to Key Nation for me."

"Fine then!" I smiled coyly, stood up, and opened the window.

"What are you doing?" he asked, his face dark.

"Test whether you can order my death or capture faster, or whether I can shout out your plan faster. Besides, there are three of us here; Wu Ye's martial skill level, you're an expert, you surely can tell. Even if I truly die at your hands, do you think he lacks the ability to transmit my information?"

"Snap—" The cup in his hand shattered on cue, his eyes blazing with fury, burning as if to devour me.

"You don't want the antidote of 'Thousand Insects Ten Thousand Flowers' anymore?"

"Crown Prince!" I called him haltingly, "When you were still called Crown Prince, please don't use this to bargain with me."

"Xin Hui!" Fu Junmo's eyes fixed on me, his voice cold as he called Xin Hui's name, "Although you're not directly under my command, I assigned you that mission, and you dare betray me?"

Xin Hui's face turned deathly pale, her whole body trembling, her grip on Xin Luo's hand tightening to death. I expected her to kneel, as Wu Ye had helplessly watched Wei Lingfeng, but though her body quivered like a willow leaf in the wind, she never bent a knee nor fell.

She finally forced a sentence between her lips and teeth: "The past is past, the present as it is, the future as it will be, Xin Hui and Xin Luo will recognize only Miss as their master, unchanged for this life."

A sudden shock jolted my heart, and I stared blankly at the seemingly fragile, unremarkable woman before me... In fact, what has always moved me to help her is not her outward softness but her inner strength.

"Good! Good!" Fu Junmo rose, slapped the table with one palm; the table shattered, wood splinters flew, his hand became a bloody blur, his complexion shifted from red to white, and he stared at me intently.

I stood, opened the door, and said lightly, "Although only Lan Junqing knows your identity, sneaking into the bride's younger sister's chamber before the wedding will likely affect your plan, too. So, Crown Prince, you're invited!"

Finally having sent the plague god away, I collapsed onto the bed, recalling Fu Junmo's wounded gaze, his sinister expression before leaving, and his parting words: "One day, you will kneel before this Crown Prince, regretting every word you said today."

As for why he didn't habitually pinch my chin, it's because his hand, halfway raised, was forcibly stopped by our family's super‑invincible thunderous and brave Wu Ye.

Seeing someone's face full of resentment yet helpless, I felt an exhilarating thrill—indeed, having Wu Ye around makes all the difference.

Glancing at the shards on the floor, I muttered, "You pervert, even as you leave you still destroy things in my room. I was just thinking of making a deck of cards, four people would fit perfectly..."

I don't know whether the sky over Key Nation has changed, but I do know the Lan Family has undergone a reversal of fortune, right after Fu Junmo hastily married the Lan Family's third miss.

Under the bustling wedding's veneer of peace, Fu Junmo's subordinates, under cover of night, killed all the guards and low‑rank workers at the Lan Family's shipyard, and the master craftsmen were seized along with the newly built warships.

The worst part wasn't even that. All the Lan Family's warship design drafts and marching formation maps were replaced with blank sheets.

Lan Junqing was enraged, nearly killing everyone who had any connection with Fu Junmo!

Second Madam Li Yuer was confined to a room, and the second brother and others at the front line were urgently recalled.

I wasn't confined, yet without Wu Ye's reminder I was fully aware my movements were being tracked.

At the same time, the naval battle grew more intense, and Ting Nation finally reached a day of national crisis.

On the streets, the usual bustling flow of people was gone; instead, it was unusually lively. Frequently, one could see wealthy families hurriedly loading several carts of belongings, families in tow, fleeing in panic.

Amid this somewhat desolate, tense atmosphere, a letter from Wei Lingfeng arrived. It wasn't signed by him but by Wen Ce; I guess it was the attendant of Wen Xiu from that day, as the letter mentioned that ten days were approaching.

The letter was delivered openly, unlike that gold; it was secretly slipped in on the most bustling wedding day, unnoticed by anyone. Yet in this martial‑law‑imposed Lan Residence, the letter inevitably had to pass through Lan Junqing's hands.

Lan Junqing handed me the letter and asked, "How do you know the Prime Minister of Qi Nation?"

I lowered my head and replied, "I happened to meet him during the half‑year I was eloping."

He snorted, then asked, "Are you going to keep the appointment?"

I nodded and said, "Yes."

His sharp gaze lingered on me for a long time, then he sighed, waved his hand, and said, "Go."

I stepped out, but heard his cold voice behind me say, "If you can make use of it... then make good use of it."

I shivered and walked out of the cold, empty room.

"Wu Ye, is there any way to shake off the people behind us?"

Wu Ye nodded. This time I hadn't brought anyone else; the two of us darted east and west until I felt dizzy. He said, "We've shaken them off. But master, actually it's unnecessary. Someone near the Emperor will naturally deal with them."

"I said Wu Ye!" I was speechless, glared at him hard, "In the future, please say such things earlier!"

It was still that "private room"; the scholar and the warrior stood at the doorway. I approached Wen Xiu and asked, "Are you Wen Ce?"

He smiled gently and nodded.

"So you're the Prime Minister of Qi Nation," I realized, "How could you have such a distinctly different temperament as an attendant?"

Wen Ce's mouth twitched, but he gave no reply.

I turned to the other one and asked, "What's your name?"

The martial one snorted, "Xuan Tian."

Such an imposing name? I asked weakly, "Are you... a guard?"

His temples bulged with veins, and he shouted, "I am the Guardian of the Nation General!!"

"Yes, yes..." I hurriedly forced a smile, muttering, "How did Qi Nation become the strongest nation?"

Wen Ce, ignoring the about‑to‑explode Xuan Tian, chuckled, "Miss Lan, the master has been waiting inside for a long time."

Wei Lingfeng today wore a white robe, a silver‑thread brocade cinched at the waist, his black hair still casually tied with a golden thread rope hanging behind him. Handsome and graceful, like a jade tree in the wind, he left me staring in awe.

He chuckled, pointed to the seat beside him, and said, "Miss Lan, please have a seat."

Since he told me to sit, I unceremoniously pulled Wu Ye to sit down. Today those two, one literary and one martial—cough—Wen Ce and Xuan Tian weren't polite either, they plopped down rudely. Wen Ce even warmly smiled as he laid out dishes for me and his master; I said, how could I have thought he was a lackey before?

I took off the white jade pendant from my waist, pushed it toward Wei Lingfeng, and said, "Returning the original item."

Wei Lingfeng glanced at it, but didn't take it, pulling an extremely handsome smile: "Don't you want to ask what this piece of jade means?"

I had just been wandering outside for half a day, starving and thirsty, so faced with the food I naturally dug in without hesitation. Fortunately I could still remember to mind my manners; of course, his question was just a casual reply: "You say."

"This is the phoenix seal of the queens of Qi Guo throughout the ages; with it one has the authority to mobilize half of the Imperial Guard of Che Jin Lin Du and all the imperial palaces..."

"Cough cough... what did you say... cough cough... what?" A cup of water at a suitable temperature had already been thoughtfully handed to me; I shoved it away and, trembling, said, "What did you just say?"

Wei Lingfeng moved the water to the other side and replied, "With it one has the authority to mobilize half of the Imperial Guard of Che Jin Lin Du and all the imperial palace guards."

"Not that!" I waved my hands frantically, "The first sentence!"

"Hmm?" Wei Lingfeng's long sleeve lightly brushed his face, suppressing a smile, "This is the phoenix seal of the queens of Qi Guo throughout the ages."

I turned deathly pale, shrank back, and stammered, "Fortunately it's only temporarily placed with me."

Wei Lingfeng extended his long, fair finger, touching the jade, which glowed with a faint light. He smiled, moved the jade back before me, and said solemnly, "That's right, it's only temporarily placed. Now I will give it to you."

I, stunned. Even the saliva I wanted to swallow caught in my throat, my heart paused for five seconds.

"Give……to……me……? You……are……me?"

I trembled again, leaning forward, I reached out with my left hand and stroked his forehead—hm, really smooth—cough! Looking for a fight! I stretched out my right hand to touch my own, for comparison, and muttered, "Strange, no fever, so why is he spouting nonsense? Could his nerves be messed up?"

"Ha ha……cough……" The laughter in the room burst out, then was abruptly cut off.

I'm sure the laughter was Xuan Tian's—this clueless guy—I was just stating facts, making a judgment; why make such a fuss?

Seeing Wei Lingfeng's eyes narrow dangerously, I quickly withdrew my hand, pushed the jade back toward him, and snatched my hand away as if it had touched plague.

"I say, Wei……uh, Your Majesty." Strange, I'm not from Qi Guo, why should I call him Your Majesty. But a wise man doesn't suffer immediate loss; calling him once won't cost me a piece of flesh: "This joke isn't funny at all, old man, cut it out."

Wei Lingfeng picked up an unknown beautiful dish and placed it in my bowl, lightly saying, "Do I look like I'm joking?"

I swallowed the word "like" back into my stomach; I was so full that even if the dish were perfect in color, fragrance, and taste I couldn't eat another bite. After hesitating a while, I decided to bite the bullet, straightened my expression, raised my voice, and said, "I don't want to marry you."

Wei Lingfeng's smile grew even richer, and he happily kept offering me another dish: "I know."

Now I was left bewildered, and I foolishly asked, "You know you still… you still gave me this damned jade?"

Wei Lingfeng only smiled and said nothing; being stared at by him made my skin crawl, so I finally gave in: "Then why on earth do you want to marry me?"

"The reasons, many." Only then did Wei Lingfeng set down his chopsticks and actually begin to count them off to me with a serious air.

"I suddenly realized that my imperial palace seems to be missing an empress. That's the first."

"Whoa……suddenly, realized?" I shook off the black lines filling my head, straightened my twitching mouth, and endured—I must endure!

"The Lan family's strength, though halved, is still not to be underestimated. As for a marriage alliance, it's not out of the question. That's the second."

I picked up my chopsticks and tasted a mouthful of the dish—how could it be so bland and tasteless? I gave a cold smile, what a first-rate empire's emperor! Then I looked up and said, "Your Majesty, please continue."

Wei Lingfeng's expression remained light as he served me another dish: "The consorts in my palace often form factions; no matter who is supported as empress, it disrupts the balance of power. If it were you on stage, first, because of the marriage alliance they'd find it hard to obstruct you in many ways; second, you alone in Qi Guo have no power or influence, so they wouldn't be too wary of you attaining that position. That's the third."

Wen Ce stared up at the emperor in shock—he had never imagined that a split-second decision could have been so thoroughly weighed for gains and losses. Compared to him, I am truly nowhere near as capable.

Isn't that just saying you want to push me into the spotlight so you can smooth over the troubles in the harem and court? I sneered, "Your Majesty, you really speak candidly."

Wei Lingfeng chuckled and continued, "You have saved my life; I suppose I… like this person, and both emotionally and rationally I ought to repay you well. Marrying you back—would that count as giving myself in return? That's…"

"Enough!" I hurriedly interrupted him; if he kept listing his possessions like that, I'd be sold off and still have to help him count the money. I lifted my head, looked earnestly into his beautiful eyes, and said earnestly, "I won't marry!"

Wei Lingfeng tilted his head slightly; Wen Ce immediately leaned forward to refill his tea, and when he was about to do the same for me, I quickly stopped him, saying lightly, "No need, Minister, I can't afford that."

Wei Lingfeng sipped his tea, calm and composed, and said, "Before you came out, Lord Lan surely had you make good use of Wen Ce, right?"

I started, looked up at him— that letter, he actually sent it out in the open on purpose?

"The Ting Guo, without my aid, couldn't last more than five days." Wei Lingfeng's cold gaze fell on me, "Lord Lan may have suffered a loss at Fu Junmo's hands before, but now he has no choice but to gamble again."

I wanted to laugh, but for some reason I couldn't pull out a smile, so I could only reply expressionlessly, "He's him, I'm me, and Ting Guo is just Ting Guo." What does that have to do with me?

"Oh?" Wei Lingfeng set down his teacup with some surprise, "I thought you'd at least show some regard for your own country, your own family, and your kin, Miss Lan."

My whole body shivered, alertness filling every pore. Those words clearly implied he suspected I wasn't the true Lan Yingruo. This person is too formidable; even just staying a second longer with him makes me feel I'll be inexplicably swallowed.

I took a deep breath, hid my nervousness, and said lightly, "Your Majesty, don't waste more words. No matter what, I won't marry. At most, I'd just elope again."

"Then there's nothing to be done." Wei Lingfeng took back the white jade that had been left drying on the table for a while, his gaze burning with excitement as it swept over me, his expression still calm, "Setting aside the third reason, at most I'll settle for second best and marry the Lan family's second daughter."

"Wei Lingfeng!" I slammed my hands on the table and glared at him, "Don't go too far!"

"Bold!" Xuan Tian and Wen Ce leaned forward and rose, grabbing me and shoving me back into my seat; both hands gripped the sword hilt and fan ribs tightly. Wen Ce's usually gentle face turned cold: "In front of the emperor, how can you be so rude? Miss Lan, please know your place!"

Killing intent, fully revealed.

Wu Ye's hand reached out to grasp mine; the calluses on his hand prickled painfully, yet I clung tightly, afraid that if I let go even the last bit of my courage would vanish.

I lifted my head, chin high, and coldly regarded the handsome yet wicked-looking man before me, whose gentle smile made the hand hanging under the table tremble uncontrollably: "Your Majesty, love whom you will and marry whom you will—it's nothing to do with me. Anyway, I—absolutely—will—not—marry!"

Having said that, I didn't look at his expression, pulled Wu Ye's hand, and left; I knew that if I didn't leave now I'd surely be knocked down—this man is too terrifying.

The moment my hand gripped the door handle, his pleasant voice that made me tremble reached me, seeming to sound at my ear: "Within ten days, if you regret it, find Wen Ce; I still have this much patience."

At the time I never even thought about why he said ten days instead of five, nor how I could possibly find Wen Ce. Though the answer would be revealed the next day.

All I could do then was flee in embarrassment; I couldn't think of anything else.

Returning to the Lan manor, Xin Hui waited for me at the gate; seeing me, she eagerly came forward and said, "Miss, the second young master and the Jin Hong young master have returned!"

Over the past month of getting along, Xin Hui had practically become one with the second brother and his friends, so now that she knew they were back, she couldn't help but feel excited.

My heart tightened; what should have been a joyful feeling became irritable because of Wei Lingfeng's line, "At most I'll settle for second best and marry the Lan family's second daughter."

It was I who insistently tried to match Jin Hong with the second sister; now they've just begun to fall for each other, obstacles fading, yet I must cruelly tell the second sister she must marry into Qi Guo—because I refuse to marry.

Looking back on this journey, I've continually invited trouble upon myself, regardless of whether the starting point was voluntary.

Clearly I'm doing good, clearly I'm pursuing sunlight, clearly……longing to warm hearts like Qi Ran does, yet why does the sunlight feel ever farther from me, and my once‑strong heart grow ever weaker?

Because I want to, I act, and then I am happy.

I have always thought so, and I have been acting accordingly.

But at this moment, I wavered—are these things I've done really what I wanted? Am I truly… happy?

My hand tightened as Wuye grasped my hand; only his eyes were visible, showing concern and comfort. I was used to the muffled voice (because of the mask), but this time it was especially warm: "Master, this has nothing to do with you; don't blame yourself."

I nodded, pulled my hand away, and walked inside. Xinhui looked at Wuye in some astonishment, using her eyes to ask what had happened. Wuye didn't answer, just shook his head slightly and followed me.

Seeing Jinhong and my second older brother again, I could hardly believe it. It turns out the battlefield can truly drain a person's vitality and even their faith completely.

Last time I returned, when we spoke of the war, they were indeed extremely worried, yet hope still filled their brows. Even though the second older brother appeared timid on the outside, his fervent fighting spirit seemed to lie hidden in his bones.

But this time, not to mention the second older brother—even Jinhong, whose eyes were once pure and passionate, had sunk inward, filled with unwillingness, fear, and despair. His once clean chin was now stubbled, and he looked utterly exhausted, as if he had weathered countless hardships.

When the second older sister saw him, she burst into tears and flung herself into his arms. Only then did a flash of the familiar light I knew appear in his eyes, and the corner of his mouth lifted in a gentle smile.

But I dare not delve into how much bitterness lay within that tenderness.

When he spoke to me, he looked so weary that I could hardly recall the bright-eyed boy from just a month ago, who used to shout my name: "Yingruo, thank you for looking after Yingyue."

"How bad is the situation?" I asked.

He clutched his head in pain and said: "Our forces are vastly outnumbered—they bombard our single ship with ten vessels, and they've cut off most of our water and food supplies. Brothers fall before my eyes one after another, and I can do nothing…"

My second older brother forced a smile and said: "Fourth younger sister, there's nothing you can do about this—hearing it only makes you sadder. Anyway…" His weak face showed resolve: "We will share the fate of Tingguo."

I clenched my fists, bit my lip, and told myself over and over that this had nothing to do with me, nothing at all.

(End of chapter)