Time rewinds, location shifts to Jiangnan.

Wang Jize chatted with the Crown Prince for a while, when a subordinate came to report, "Your Highness, General, someone has come out."

The two exchanged a glance and quickly hid behind a tree. Before Wei Tingsi and Zhao Shu went to find the hermit Jiecao, Chen Jianbo and Yan Shiren went to deal with the flood, while the Crown Prince and Wang Jize came to the high slope outside the city.

This hillside has no name, there are no villages nearby, and the land is mostly rotten, so it cannot grow fruits or rice. The only thing growing around here is weeds.

There used to be villages in this area, but at some point, the villagers discovered that nothing they planted would survive. Seedlings transplanted from elsewhere would wither and die within a few days. Even when they invited Taoist priests and monks to perform rituals, it was to no avail, so they gradually moved away.

After everyone found a hiding place, they soon saw a place covered with weeds slowly rise up from the bottom of the hillside. After rising, it split in the middle, revealing a dark hole inside.

A man in black, covered in mud, crawled out of the cave. After he came out, another man in black emerged from behind the thorns and said something to the mud-covered man. The mud-covered man nodded and turned back into the cave.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the man in black did not crawl out again. The Crown Prince frowned, exchanged a glance with Wang Jize, and shouted, "Retreat quickly!"

However, it was too late. His words had barely left his mouth and hadn't even had a chance to travel before they were drowned out by the explosion. With a 'boom,' the hole that had just been exposed exploded from the inside out, blooming like a yellowish-brown flower.

Mud and debris flew everywhere from the explosion. Wang Jize reacted quickly, shielding the crown prince with his body. After the explosion, the crown prince, ignoring the flying mud, shouted, "Don't worry about me, chase after them!"

Wang Jize helped him up. “Your Highness, he probably ran away from somewhere else. The Hermit of Jiecao has been operating in Jiangnan for many years and must have many escape routes. In addition, Prince Yong has not been in charge of his fiefdom in recent years, and various forces have been entrenched in Jiangnan. Brother Wei cleared out many of them a few years ago, and many have gone into hiding.”

Zhao Shu and Wei Tingsi had just arrived when they heard the explosion. "I didn't expect Zhao Bi to be so cunning!" Zhao Shu stomped her foot in anger. "A cunning rabbit has three burrows, but he has thirty!"

"Don't we still have a fake one?" Wei Tingsi said nonchalantly.

Zhao Shu looked at him, and the two smiled at each other, both understanding each other's intentions.

The Crown Prince and Wang Jize came down from the mountain. Their clothes were already covered in mud before they went up the mountain, and the explosion earlier had left them covered in mud, making them look quite disheveled.

"Ah Jun." The Crown Prince was so surprised that he couldn't speak when he first noticed the fake Zhao Bi who was tied up tightly.

Looking at Wang Jize, he was somewhat shy, blushing, and at a loss. He secretly glanced at Zhao Shu, then immediately lowered his head, his face turning even redder.

Zhao Shu didn't need to guess to know that the man beside the Crown Prince was the boy who had hidden behind her all those years ago, yearning for the sunlight yet also afraid of it. She walked towards Wang Jize, tilted her head to look at him, and asked, "Don't you recognize me?"

Wang Jize glanced at Zhao Shu quickly and shyly, then lowered his head again, this time lowering it even further. He placed his hands in front of him, twirling two fingers around, unsure of what to say. He instinctively nodded, but then realized something was wrong and quickly shook his head.

Zhao Shu chuckled, "You're shaking your head and nodding at the same time, do you remember or not?"

"I remember." Wang Jize's nose and forehead were covered in mud. When he saw Zhao Shu, his heart pounded and he broke out in a cold sweat. The sweat gradually increased until large beads of sweat started dripping from his hair. He felt a little itchy on his face and forehead and reached up to wipe it.

His face was covered in mud.

Seeing his adorable expression, Zhao Shu burst into laughter, "Hahaha, I'm not going to eat you, what are you afraid of?"

Wang Jize looked up shyly, staring blankly at Zhao Shu, his face flushed and his heart pounding.

It's been raining every day in Jiangnan lately, the air is fresh, and it's not particularly hot, but he still feels like he's in an oven, unbearably hot.

As I gazed at her, I forgot to look away. Zhao Shu, dressed in men's clothing, was dashing and heroic, with bright eyes and white teeth. The smile in her eyes was just like the one I had seen at Biyou Palace, even more radiant than the sun.

Although she was dressed as a man, with her black hair tied up in a hair crown, he recognized at a glance that the woman in front of him, disguised as a man, was the one who had led him out of the darkness. Back then, she had said that they were friends.

A brother in the army said that when you like a woman, she is the most beautiful and the most attractive in your eyes, unmatched by anyone.

At this moment, all he wanted to do was compliment the woman in front of him: "You are so beautiful."

Before leaving the Biyou Palace, he didn't know she existed, nor did he know there was such a beautiful woman in the world. He couldn't explain what made her so beautiful, but since seeing her, he could never find a more beautiful woman.

After enlisting, whenever he had free time, he would think about what she looked like, whether her eyes were like the moon, and whether she was especially cute when she smiled.

It is still as dazzling as the stars.

He knew that the woman's name was Zhao Shu, a titled princess, the most noble princess of the royal family. She was younger than him, but about the same height. He had heard that people could grow taller by exercising more.

Over the years, many times he thought that he must grow taller so that he could protect her, like a big tree.

"It's good that you remember, so I don't have to introduce myself." Zhao Shu looked at him with amusement, it was rare to see him so shy. She reached out and patted his shoulder in a manly way, "You've grown up pretty fast."

Wang Jize is now at least two heads taller than Zhao Shu. Although he grew up in the army, he has no trace of a warrior. On the contrary, he is tall and slender, and when he is shy, he looks just like a scholar.

"Ah Jun, I've always remembered you. I recognized you at a glance." He stammered, touching the arm Zhao Shu had patted, and then, quite obliviously, became even more shy.

Wei Tingsi coughed deliberately, and in front of him, took Zhao Shu's hand and said gently, "Let's go, we shouldn't stay here any longer."

Zhao Shu rolled her eyes at him, but didn't break free. She then gave Wang Jize a thumbs-up in a very manly manner, wanting to say something, but was pulled away by Wei Tingsi.

The Crown Prince shook his head and chuckled, patting Wang Jize's arm with sympathy. "Life is different if you're a step behind. There are plenty of fish in the sea. Don't worry too much."

With Zhao Shu gone, Wang Jize reverted to his domineering and arrogant ways in the army. He also saw through the relationship between Wei Tingsi and Zhao Shu, and was heartbroken. He pulled the Crown Prince, who was walking back, aside and poured out his grievances, "Your Highness, please be the judge. My brother originally planned for me to study under General Peng, but Brother Wei refused. Without my brother's consent, he brought me to Jiangnan. Over the years, he has never let me go to Guanzhou. General Peng is training troops in Guanzhou, and my brother wanted me to go and learn from him, but he wouldn't allow it. Don't you think he did it on purpose!"

The Crown Prince looked at him with pity, but said nothing, unwilling to rub salt into his wounds.