Just as he had said, Chu Tianxing only rested in Qingyuan County for one night before hurriedly leaving.

In such a remote place, if there is nothing that catches his eye, there is no way to attract his attention, and staying there for even a moment longer is torture.

Chu Tianxing originally planned to meet his friends here, but he chose not to after being persuaded by Hua Ruocheng. Otherwise, he could have stayed a few more days.

So the novelty of the prince's arrival didn't last long. A few days was enough for the journey to the border. When they arrived, the border, which had been ravaged by war, had not yet fully recovered.

However, there were quite a few people here. There were plenty of refugees in the world, and they were everywhere. Li Ruochen simply used the grain he had extorted from other places to quickly gather a group of able-bodied men.

In addition, the soldiers remaining from the previous great battle are enough to form the core, and with time, they might be able to train another powerful army.

As for Chu Tianxing's arrival, Li Ruochen naturally received him in accordance with custom. However, after the last incident, Li Ruochen's temperament was obviously more composed, and he showed a sense of neither servility nor arrogance when facing Chu Tianxing.

"Li Ruochen, the garrison commander of Shanyin Pass, pays his respects to Your Highness."

Seeing that Li Ruochen was about to kneel down, Chu Tianxing quickly ran a few steps and said, "Niece, if you really kneel down, it might cost me my life when we get back."

"Your Highness, we are outside. Please do as you please and do not stop me."

Old Mu chuckled and said, "It's good to be calm and composed, but sometimes you have to be able to distinguish between insiders and outsiders. We're all family, so doing this is actually not good."

Chu Tianxing immediately pulled Li Ruochen up, "Please spare me, if your aunt finds out you knelt before me, who knows what kind of trouble she'll cause when we get back."

Chu Tianxing's queen is Li Ruochen's aunt. Back then, she was a remarkable woman. Even now, Chu Tianxing has no romantic affairs. Only Li Ruochen's aunt has been able to keep him firmly in check.

This extraordinary woman's favorite was Li Ruochen, which is why Chu Tianxing acted this way.

Looking at the Shanyin Pass, which was already half-built, Hua Ruocheng commented, "It seems that last time was really tough for you. Such a thick city wall, and you still managed to destroy it like this. Those messengers deserve to die."

A memory surfaced in Li Ruochen's eyes, and the sadness in his heart was impossible to conceal, but he quickly suppressed it.

"The past is now just a memory. Even if there are some suspicious circumstances, what can be done? This is the only way things can be. No one cares about the lives of a mere few thousand people."

Chu Tianxing comforted him, "I know what happened before must have been very painful for you. Your third uncle is a tough guy, but you should always look forward. Why don't you come back with me this time and not stay here?"

Li Ruochen refused outright, saying, "Thank you for your kind offer, Your Highness, but I have no intention of going back. Perhaps one day I will, but definitely not now."

Chu Tianxing naturally knew what kind of person Li Ruochen was, so he didn't continue to persuade him. Instead, he changed the subject and said, "You probably know why I came. This matter should be explained. But with me here, don't worry, it's just a formality at most."

"With you here, do I need to worry? If it were someone else, I would indeed be worried, but since it was you who came, it's just a matter of picking it up high and putting it down gently."

Hua Ruocheng said, "That's not necessarily true. After all, the prince put in a lot of effort to suppress this matter. Otherwise, it probably wouldn't be the prince who came here."

Li Ruochen frowned slightly. This seemed to be different from what she had thought. After all, given the strength of the Li family, her actions should not have caused any trouble.

After all, the border was only breached for a few days and then immediately recaptured, without causing any real loss. Even if the other side did intend to target us at the beginning, that shouldn't be an excuse for launching an attack.

Suddenly, as if Li Ruochen had thought of something, Hua Ruocheng also spoke up at the same time: "That's right, it's just what you thought. That person is really persistent. I didn't expect that even after being away from the capital for so long, he still couldn't forget you."

Li Ruochen's usually serene face was now filled with disgust. If her coming to Shanyin Pass was partly due to her ideals, the other part was probably because that disgusting guy had actually set his sights on her.

These spoiled brats are common at any time, and even in the capital, there are plenty of them.

The most famous of them was Wang Guanhuo, known as the King of Hell in the capital. He was not exactly an idle and good-for-nothing playboy, but what he did was extremely difficult for people to accept. Watching from the sidelines was his favorite thing to do, and he was the one who always started the fire.

Anyone who provokes him will find no one able to escape his grasp. He is the eldest son of the Wang family, one of the eight great families, and is essentially the next head of the family.

If Wang Guanhuo hadn't been uninterested in being an official, he might have been able to attain a very high position based solely on his intelligence.

Wang Guanhua had met Li Ruochen once a few years ago, and it was because of that meeting that Wang Guanhua fell in love with Li Ruochen at first sight.

Unfortunately, given Li Ruochen's personality, he would never like someone like Wang Guanhuo. Even though everyone thought it was a match made in heaven, Li Ruochen still rejected it outright.

Given their identities—one is destined to become the next head of the Wang family, and the other is the beloved daughter of the head of the Li family—Wang Guanhuo would never resort to any forceful means to achieve his goals.

Even though Li Ruochen had refused many times, he still couldn't stop Wang Guanhuo's persistent heart. After being bothered by him to no end, Li Ruochen immediately decided to leave the capital and get as far away from this guy as possible.

Fortunately, chaos had already emerged when Li Ruochen left, so Wang Guanhuo was also arranged by the Wang family to handle some other matters, and things have been peaceful in recent years.

Just when everyone thought Wang Guanhuo had given up completely, he suddenly started trying to force Li Ruochen back.