What Chen Jinan said was so shocking that Guard Zhou stared in disbelief for a long time before reacting. “What did you just say you’re going to do?”
Chen Jinan explained calmly, “Didn’t you say the Yang family has absolute authority over the Lingnan region? If I can go back using Yang Yueshan’s identity…”
“Wait a minute—why can you use Yang Yueshan’s identity?” Guard Zhou’s mind was a complete mess.
Chen Jinan: “Because the real Yang Yueshan is already dead. Everyone who could prove his identity is dead as well. And now I have Yang Cheng’s private seal—this is all I need to confirm my identity.”
Guard Zhou was completely stunned. Seeing that he was still dazed, Chen Jinan didn’t explain further. Instead, he turned and began stripping Yang Yueshan’s corpse.
Guard Zhou swallowed nervously. “…What are you doing?”
“Stripping him to see if he has any birthmarks or scars.” Chen Jinan didn’t even look back.
Seeing that he was serious, Guard Zhou sighed and stepped forward to help.
The corpse was already stiff, and with no proper tools at hand, the two of them had to forcefully tear the clothes off bit by bit.
“You’re really serious about this?” Guard Zhou asked.
Chen Jinan: “Yes.”
“What are you going to tell Her Highness?” Guard Zhou asked again.
Chen Jinan: “Nothing. When you go down the mountain, just say I died here. Don’t mention me again.”
“What do you mean?” Guard Zhou frowned.
Chen Jinan paused for a moment, then said plainly, “If this works, I might be able to deceive them. If not, it’s a dead end anyway. Whether word of my death comes now or later doesn’t make much difference. If it does work, I’ll be walking a tightrope. Until I’ve fully gained control of Lingnan, I can’t risk contacting Her Highness. If anything happens to me, she’ll be implicated. So I’d rather be considered dead from the start—it spares her the worry. As for what happens afterward… that depends on my own fate.”
“This is… way too risky,” Guard Zhou sighed. The Yang family wasn’t stupid. The odds of him being accepted based on a private seal alone were almost nil. It was basically a death sentence.
Chen Jinan: “But if there’s a chance to risk a little for a lot, I can’t let it go.”
“Then I’ll go with you,” Guard Zhou said immediately.
Chen Jinan: “And with what identity?”
Guard Zhou was momentarily at a loss for words.
“You’re not on the list of accompanying soldiers. Your skills aren’t average either. If you follow me, you’ll only expose me,” Chen Jinan said. “Better to carry out Her Highness’s orders and escort the shizi and Doctor Shen to Yunming.”
After speaking, he patted Guard Zhou on the arm. “Brother Zhou, secrecy ensures success. The fewer people who know, the better. So I need you to promise me.”
Guard Zhou’s eyes turned red. “Then you have to come back safe too. When New Year comes, I’ll take you to see the ice lanterns.”
Chen Jinan smiled lightly. “If everything goes well, by then you’ll probably be celebrating New Year back in the capital with Her Highness.”
“Then we’ll wait for you in the capital. There are ice lanterns there too,” Guard Zhou insisted.
Chen Jinan gave a faint smile. “Alright. Then this little brother bids you farewell.”
With that, he solemnly knelt down and kowtowed to Guard Zhou three times. Guard Zhou didn’t stop him—only after Chen Jinan finished and carried off Yang Cheng’s body did he punch the wooden pillar beside him in frustration.
Chen Jinan trudged down the mountain with Yang Cheng on his back. Halfway down, he suddenly looked up and saw a blazing fire atop the peak.
With that fire, the name Chen Jinan was completely burned away. From this day forward, he was the son Yang Cheng had reclaimed from outside—a nominal son about to be officially recognized by the Yang clan. His new name was Yang Yueshan.
Chen Jinan exhaled slowly, then descended the mountain without looking back.
***
At the end of February, beginning of March, the south was already warm. But in Yingguan, the cold still lingered—though it had softened from the biting chill of the first month into a gentler coolness.
Wenge stirred from a heavy sleep. When he opened his eyes, he saw his robe wide open and Feng Lezhen sitting beside him with an expressionless face, sprinkling some kind of powder on his arrow wound. The moment the powder touched the injury, it felt like needles stabbing into his flesh, making sweat pour from his body in an instant.
“What are you doing?” He grabbed her wrist.
Feng Lezhen shot him an annoyed glance. “Your eyes aren’t injured. Can’t you tell I’m treating your wound?”
“You’d be that kindhearted?” Wenge stared at her.
His face was fully exposed now, stubborn and sharp. In her previous life, when Feng Lezhen had known him, he’d only been seventeen. Now he was in his early twenties. Compared to his teenage self, his features were even more defined, and that stubborn streak had grown deeper.
Feng Lezhen gave a soft laugh and shook the fine chain in her hand. “If I weren’t kindhearted, you’d be dead already.”
It had been two days since she’d been kidnapped. Two days earlier, Wenge had escaped the underground tunnel with her—blowing up the entrance on the way out to block Ah Ye and the others. After emerging, he knocked her unconscious. By the time she awoke, he had somehow smuggled them out of the city, past layers of patrols, and now they were speeding south toward Yue City, outside Yingguan’s borders.
Yue City was three days’ travel from Yingguan, separated by a vast no-man’s-land. Though technically under separate administrations, Yue’s governor was one of Feng Ji’s maternal relatives. In recent years he had avoided provoking Yingguan, but Ah Ye’s people likely wouldn’t be able to mobilize such a grand search effort there.
All the more so because Ah Ye and the others clearly hadn’t expected Wenge to get her out of the city so quickly—their search was likely still focused inside the city.
Now, after two days and nights of hard riding, the horse finally collapsed under the weight and died. In this desolate wilderness, only the two of them remained.
“I have a kind heart and specialize in repaying hatred with virtue. If you’re moved by that, you can go ahead and let me go now,” Feng Lezhen said as she shook the chain on her wrist.
As she shook it, the bell fastened to Wenge’s wrist on the other end of the chain jingled clearly.
Wenge was badly injured and had been jostled for hours on horseback. His face was completely bloodless now. Hearing her words, he merely looked at her with a heavy gaze. “You only saved me because you couldn’t find the key on me, didn’t you?”
The chain connecting the bells was forged from fine iron, and the lock had been crafted by the most skilled artisans in the palace. Without the key, it was absolutely impossible to open. Although spring had officially begun, nights in the countryside were still bitterly cold. Even though they were already near Yue City, it wasn’t unusual to see no travelers for days. If he died, she, a lone woman, wouldn’t be able to drag his corpse. She’d freeze to death here in a single night.
Seeing that he wasn’t even a little grateful, Feng Lezhen gave a regretful smile. “I couldn’t find the key, and not even a dagger. So I had no choice but to save you.”
If she’d had a dagger, she would’ve hacked off his hand and gone into the city alone. But she didn’t… so saving him was the only option.
Wenge didn’t get angry at her words. After a short rest, he stood up. The fine chain between their wrists was only about a foot long, so when he got up, Feng Lezhen had no choice but to rise with him.
Watching him stagger toward Yue City, Feng Lezhen strolled after him and asked, “Are you so determined to head for Yue City because you think once we’re there, my people won’t be able to touch you?”
“Shut up,” Wenge muttered. He had lost too much blood, and his mind was starting to drift. His tone was no longer patient.
Feng Lezhen didn’t mind. She simply followed behind him.
It was already dusk. The cold crept in, and the bell hanging from the chain jingled cheerfully, making a pleasant sound. The two of them walked slowly along the desolate official road, one in front and one behind. The last rays of the sun stretched their shadows long. Once the sun fully set, everything around them fell into darkness, and the occasional cry of wild beasts echoed from afar.
As they walked, they began to sweat. The cold wind hit their damp skin, making them feel even colder. Feng Lezhen wasn’t injured, so this bit of chill wasn’t much to her—but the man ahead of her, already shaky from the start, was now clearly on the verge of collapse. At this rate, he wouldn’t last much longer.
They were already not far from the city gates, but at their current pace, it would take at least another hour to get there—enough time for him to die three times over.
To avoid being dragged down with him, Feng Lezhen suddenly stopped, tugging at the chain. The man at the other end was yanked back and turned around with a grim face. “What?”
“There’s a village over there. Let’s stay the night,” Feng Lezhen said, motioning toward a nearby cluster of homes.
Wenge frowned and stood still.
“If you keep walking, you’ll be dead before long,” Feng Lezhen said with a smirk.
Wenge stared at her for a long time before finally relenting.
“No tricks. If you try anything, I’ll kill you on the spot,” he warned.
Feng Lezhen raised an eyebrow. “Relax. Even if it’s for the sake of my own life, I won’t act recklessly.”
Wenge couldn’t tell if she was lying. He just glanced at her once, then headed toward the village.
The two walked in silence. Soon, they arrived at the edge of the village. It was already nighttime, and every household had gone to bed. The large village was eerily quiet, broken only by the occasional bark of a dog.
Wenge had reached his limit. After surveying the area, he headed toward the smallest house.
Feng Lezhen, realizing what he intended, quickly stopped him. “That house only has two rooms, and even the yard is fenced in with a flimsy barrier. I doubt they can take in both of us.”
“But that house has the fewest people,” Wenge said flatly.
Feng Lezhen paused, then laughed in disbelief. “What, you planning to kill them and take the house?”
Wenge didn’t deny it.
Feng Lezhen gave him a cold glance. “Let me remind you—villages like this are usually all relatives for generations. If you kill someone tonight, they’ll be discovered by morning. And in your current state, do you really think you can escape?”
Wenge frowned.
Feng Lezhen knew he’d taken her words to heart. After looking around, she spotted a relatively well-off house with a lit lantern at the door.
“Come with me,” she said, walking directly toward it. Wenge’s vision was already starting to blur, but he forced himself to follow her.
Knock knock knock—the sound of knocking stirred a wave of barking dogs.
Amid the commotion, the door finally creaked open, and a girl of about eleven or twelve peeked out. She paused when she saw the two strangers. “You are…?”
“We’re travelers passing through,” Feng Lezhen said gently. “The city gates were closed, so we were hoping to find a place to spend the night. Would it be possible to stay here?”
Compared to a few years ago, when she and Shen Suifeng had once wandered into a village, Feng Lezhen now had more experience dealing with people. She had even learned how to ask for help the way Shen Suifeng used to.
The girl blushed under Feng Lezhen’s gaze. “I’ll have to ask my father first.”
“Of course,” Feng Lezhen nodded politely.
The girl tossed out a quick “I’ll be right back” and ran inside without even closing the door. Feng Lezhen looked at the wide-open entrance and couldn’t help but smile at the simplicity of village folk.
When the girl returned, Feng Lezhen suddenly remembered something and turned to Wenge. “Right, if they ask what our relationship is, just say—”
She didn’t get to finish. Wenge suddenly swayed, everything went black, and he collapsed straight toward her.
Although he was several years younger than her, he was still a full head taller. As his body fell toward her, it stirred the air like a gust of wind. Feng Lezhen instinctively dodged aside and watched him crash heavily to the ground. His handsome face was instantly cut in several places.
Feng Lezhen was silent for a moment and pretended not to see anything.
When the little girl came running out again, she saw Wenge lying motionless on the ground, his condition uncertain, while Feng Lezhen squatted beside him, staring thoughtfully at the bell on his wrist.
Seeing the girl, Feng Lezhen smiled reassuringly. “Little one, does your family have a knife? If not, a sharp axe will do.”
