Chapter 214

Regent Prince's residence.

Morning sunlight streamed through the window lattice, falling onto the dressing table, as Aheng combed Shen Shuangning's long hair.

Seeming to have discovered something, Aheng suddenly exclaimed in surprise, 'Princess Consort, the red mole on your neck is gone!'

Upon hearing this, Shen Shuangning almost immediately reached for the back of her neck, finding it smooth.

It had indeed disappeared.

She sat dazedly before the mirror, momentarily feeling a bit disoriented.

Since her rebirth, this mole had accompanied her for a full ten years, so long that she had grown accustomed to its presence.

But today, Aheng said it had suddenly vanished.

Shen Shuangning involuntarily thought of Pei Zhi. She had once glimpsed an identical red mole in the same spot on the back of his neck.

Later, upon learning that he too was a reborn one, she naturally took this mole as a 'mark of the reborn,' never giving it further thought.

Even after Xiao Jingyuan learned of this, whenever he drew near, he would pay special attention to that spot, sometimes nibbling at it with a hint of possessiveness, as if he wanted to bite off that piece of her flesh.

But now, the mole has suddenly disappeared...... what could it signify?

Meanwhile, outside Jingcheng's suburbs, beneath an old pagoda tree by the mountain path, the scene exuded a sense of leisurely openness.

A monk in tattered robes shook a broken palm-leaf fan, its surface specked with dirt and grass, yet this did nothing to diminish his contentment.

He gazed at the faint outline of Jingcheng in the distance, then turned to the white‑clad monk beside him and asked, 'Revisiting your old haunts, won't you go see an old acquaintance?'

The white‑clad monk withdrew his gaze, smiling as he shook his head.

The monk circled him once, smiling ambiguously, and said, 'Tell me, old sir, are you Pei Zhi or Xie Yan?'

The white‑clad monk lowered his eyes to the prayer beads in his hand, gently turning one between his fingertips, his voice clear as a mountain spring: 'I am neither Pei Zhi nor Xie Yan. I am Wuwang.'

The two characters 'Wuwang' are taken from the Zhouyi, meaning 'to act without rashness, not to cling to falsehoods.'

Upon hearing this, the monk burst into loud laughter, then patted his shoulder with the palm‑leaf fan, saying, 'It seems you have truly let go of your obsessions.'

In his previous life, Xie Yan leapt into Wangyou Valley carrying Shen Shuangning's corpse; his blood splashed onto her, later condensing into a vivid red mole that was branded upon her.

That was actually Xie Yan's obsession.

Wuwang turned his gaze once more to the distance, his eyes deep and tranquil. The mountain breeze brushed his snow‑white monk's robes, carrying the fresh scent of vegetation.

Though Jingcheng lay within sight, it felt as if separated by an age.

'Disciple has a question: in the previous life, only three people jumped into Wangyou Valley; why is there now an additional reborn one?'

The extra reborn one that Wuwang spoke of is none other than Song Xizhi.

Ji Gong's eyes flashed with surprise; upon reflection, he thought that the person before him, whose intellect bordered on demonic, would naturally notice—nothing strange about that.

Ji Gong took down his wine gourd, tipped his head back for a big gulp, then drawled, 'She secretly followed you to Wangyou Valley; that Prince Rui, using her mark, located the spot, saw you were dead, and on a whim shoved her over the edge to silence her—thus she gained the chance of rebirth.'

Wuwang nodded in understanding: 'Ah, that explains it.'

In the eighteenth year of Yongxi, the weather was mild and bright.

After eighteen years of rest and recuperation, Da Liang's national strength returned to its peak. This year, Regent Prince Xiao Jingyuan, together with the new emperor, personally led a million‑strong army on a northern expedition; banners blotted out the sun, armor gleamed.

Since ancient times, when emperors personally led campaigns, there have been two typical outcomes: either a desperate last stand amid national ruin and familial destruction, or a victorious omen when the state's strength is at its height.

As for Da Liang's northern campaign this time, there is no doubt it is the latter.

Faced with Da Liang's irresistible army, the Northern Qi ruler and his ministers had long lost their former morale—border garrisons surrendered at the first wind, cities fell one after another, and even the Northern Qi imperial family, when the army loomed, chose to open the gates and submit, daring not to meet Da Liang's forces head‑on.

This battle was a great victory; all of Northern Qi's territory was incorporated into Da Liang's domain, and the former lands of Northern Qi were renamed Yanyun Dao, placed under the jurisdiction of a military governor.

Another year passed, and within Yunzhou City in Yanyun Dao, someone spotted a peculiar procession.

At the fore was a man in dark robes with a jade belt, his demeanor calm and steady; beside him a woman in plain white attire, gentle and graceful, her eyes full of smiles.

Behind them followed a pair of youths—a boy and a girl; the boy stood tall, his features resembling his father's, the girl had bright eyes and white teeth, her manner like her mother's, and there was also a child about five or six years old, hopping and skipping while holding the woman's hand.

This family's looks were astonishingly outstanding; even if they deliberately wore ordinary clothes, their aura could not be concealed, making them strikingly conspicuous in a crowd.

Some recognized them as the Regent Prince's family, and many stopped to pay their respects; Xiao Jingyuan merely gave a gentle nod, then led his wife and children into a manor—upon closer look, it was the City Lord's Manor.

'Quickly go greet your adoptive father,' Xiao Jingyuan said to the two children.

The handsome youth in indigo‑blue martial attire stepped forward, bowed to the man on the steps, and called out loudly, 'Father!'

Xiao Ningxi also stepped forward, knelt in salute, and said, 'Father.'

The 'adoptive father' they referred to was none other than Yongning Marquis Xie Lin, who years ago had volunteered for duty and remained in Yanyun Dao to oversee its administration.

Nowadays, he bears a touch of weathered steadiness in his brow, yet remains gentle.

Before Xie Lin could respond, the child beside Xiao Ningxi sprang forward, flung his arms around Xie Lin's trouser leg, lifted his round little face, and cried out crisply, 'Dad!'

Xie Lin laughed, bent down, lifted the child, and gently tweaked his nose: 'Your pockets are bulging—what have you stuffed in there, and have you made your older siblings spend again?'

The child blinked guiltily.

This child is not Xie Lin's biological son.

Several years ago, one of Xie Lin's subordinate commanders died in battle while suppressing the remaining bandits of Yan Yun Circuit; the commander's wife, overcome with grief, actually committed suicide, leaving behind only an infant still in swaddling clothes.

Seeing the child helpless and without support, Xie Lin felt unable to refuse, so he took the child back to his manor to adopt him, making the child acknowledge him as father. Externally he only said the child was his biological son, while the child's mother had already died of illness.

Even Xiao Jingyuan and Shen Shuangning did not know that the child was one he had adopted.

After Xie Lin sent the three children off to play, he then looked at Xiao Jingyuan and Shen Shuangning before him and said helplessly: "You've dumped Ning Zhou and Ning Xi on me again; where do you plan to go wandering this time?"

Shen Shuangning glanced at the man beside her, then smiled and said: "I don't know yet. I haven't seen all the scenery of Yan Yun Circuit; wherever we go is fine."

Xie Lin didn't ask further.

He stood at the gate of the City Lord's Manor, watching the two walk away shoulder to shoulder, gradually fading into the distance; not knowing what he was thinking, his eyes held a hint of regret, yet also a sense of relief, which finally turned into a faint smile at the corner of his mouth.

Xie Lin walked back to the manor with his hands behind his back.

In the outskirts of Yan Yun Circuit, the grass grew long and the orioles flew.

Xiao Jingyuan rode his fine horse, holding the woman in his arms tightly, and said loudly: "Ning Ning, the weather is so nice—could you say one more time that you like me?"

Shen Shuangning faced the wind, her strands of hair sticking to her cheeks, bringing a faint itch.

She said, "Having seen a gentleman, why would I not be delighted?"

Xiao Jingyuan smiled and replied, "Having won your heart and shared my intent, what fear is there of lofty mountains and long rivers?"

End of text.