The assassins were clearly highly trained; without saying a word, they drew their swords and charged at Wei Li and Zhao Xiheng.
Wei Li instinctively shielded her behind him.
Heaven and earth can bear witness that Wei Li's indifference towards the assassins was well-founded. For example, he had just slit the throats of two people with a single stroke, then glanced at the drafty roof, the moon and stars were sparse, and the cold wind was howling. So he dragged the people out and chopped their corpses into several pieces.
The room was filled with blood and drafty, making it uninhabitable.
Zhao Xiheng followed behind him like a little tail, tugging at his clothes.
Wei Li glanced at her, washed his hands with the snow water, lowered his head, suppressed the smile that unconsciously crept onto his lips, and said nothing.
"My lord, are you too cold?" Zhao Xiheng fawned over him, placing her hand on his ear, "To warm you up."
Wei Li, with his thick skin, didn't even show any change in expression while traveling in the cold weather; now his ears were red from the cold.
"Get out of here."
Wei Li's ears turned even redder.
Zhao Xiheng rubbed her hands together. Why were Wei Li's ears getting redder the more she covered them?
She knew Wei Li was a good fighter, but she didn't expect him to be this good, taking down two people with just one move.
Although Wei Li has many enemies, he's incredibly dangerous! It's safe to be with him!
Given the extent to which Wei Li has attracted hatred, she was even a little afraid that an assassin would suddenly appear in the middle of the night and kill her. After all, killing for revenge means killing the whole family. Although she was not Wei Li's family, there were only the two of them alive in the house. Those assassins wouldn't carefully consider what her relationship with Wei Li was.
The house was empty and gloomy; at least Wei Li hadn't thrown her out as a target earlier.
Wei Li washed the blood off his hands and asked her, "Are you scared?"
Zhao Xiheng shook her head.
Wei Li looked at her red eyes and red nose, and her delicate appearance. He wiped her eyes and said, "Don't cry. Look at you, so pathetic. I'm here. Do you think I'll let anything happen to you?"
Zhao Xiheng was stunned when he stroked her fur. Cry? Why are you crying? She was so cold that tears were about to come out.
But that's fine too, let him think that way if he wants to.
Wei Li grabbed her waist and lifted her up again. "Just this one more time, so you won't be so scared that your legs go weak and you can't keep up, and you'll keep me from sleeping."
He figured Zhao Xiheng must be too scared to stand, but she was afraid of being scolded or abandoned, so she forced herself to stay upright. After all, this little girl was incredibly timid these days, afraid of everything. He'd already scared her enough for tonight, and if they delayed any longer, it would be almost dawn.
Zhao Xiheng: "???"
It's really inexplicable.
She glanced at her boots, which were soaked through with snow, but in the end remained silent, letting Wei Li carry her away.
Yes, what he meant by "lifting" wasn't actually lifting, and what he meant by "hugging" wasn't actually hugging.
Wei Li thought he could just leave the room open for the night, but then he thought about how spoiled and cuddly his wife was. If she were to stay in a place that the dead had lived in, she would probably cry with him all night.
Having made up his mind, Wei Li went straight to the backyard.
Zhao Xiheng noticed that a magnificent courtyard was locked, and thought that Wei Li was going to pull out a key from somewhere again, but to her surprise, he kicked the door open.
The lock wobbled and deformed before falling down.
She touched her small body, guessing that it wasn't as sturdy as the lock. If Wei Li really wanted to kill her, he wouldn't need to do anything else; just kick her in the chest.
“This place was built by the Prince of Zhenbei for a woman, but she ran away from the marriage before she could move in. The courtyard has remained uninhabited ever since. I heard she was a lady from some respectable clan,” Wei Li said, as if explaining something.
Zhao Xiheng muttered to herself, "If it were me, I wouldn't want to move in either."
"Why?" Wei Li kicked open another door, only to find it wasn't the place he was looking for. He then turned and kicked the door next door.
"Didn't the Prince of Zhenbei marry his princess when he was young? Only proper married couples can be listed on the same household register as the two heads of a family and registered with the government."
That girl comes from a prestigious family and probably wouldn't want to be a concubine. Even if the Prince of Zhenbei favors her most among all his concubines, so what? Treating her too well is considered spoiling a concubine at the expense of the wife. What respectable clan would look down on a concubine? They despise the act of favoring a concubine over the wife. Asking her to go from someone she despises to that kind of person is truly unfair to her.”
Zhao Xiheng realized that Wei Li really didn't understand these things, so she explained them to him in detail.
Even in the imperial palace, even if a concubine rises to the rank of Lady, second only to the Empress, in the eyes of others, she is still nothing more than a concubine.
Nowadays, the world is in disarray, and infighting is rampant. Everyone is looking for momentary pleasure, so who cares about rules and etiquette? As a result, cases of favoring concubines over wives are constantly emerging.
The legal wife is always married through proper channels; who would want to be overshadowed by a concubine?
Therefore, not only is the situation in the Great Zhou Dynasty chaotic, but the inner courts of the various feudal lords are also in turmoil, and it's hard to say whether the concubines or the principal wives are more pitiful.
Wei Li nodded thoughtfully, then suddenly put his arm around Zhao Xiheng's waist, patted her head, and leaned closer to say, "Don't worry, you're the only one for me."
He watched as Zhao Xiheng's pupils dilated with terror, and couldn't help but laugh out loud, which sounded eerily sinister in the dead of night.
"I forgot to tell you, probably not everyone knows that Princess Jingcheng, Zhao Xiheng, is my wife. Zhao Xiheng, now wherever you go, your name will be tied to mine."
The green grass filled Zhao Xiheng's heart like a vast ocean.
She was speechless for a moment, and dared not open her mouth, for fear that if she did, she would utter a curse.
Zhao Xiheng felt like an eternity had passed before she finally found her voice, "Why, why?"
Wei Li tilted his head. "If you won't be my wife, why should I keep you? Just as you said, a concubine is nothing but a plaything that can't be brought into the hall of elegance, and is not worthy of being associated with my name. If you become my concubine, then you will abandon your family background and name, and people will call you Zhao Shi of Wei Li's household."
Just imagining this scene sent a chill down Zhao Xiheng's spine. Her parents had gone to great lengths to name her and give her a surname, but in the end, people only called her Zhao. She felt utterly disgusted, as if her dignity had been completely stripped away.
When Wei Li forcibly abducted her that day, she did consider the possibility of being forced into submission, but she didn't think about it in such detail.
Wei Li wanted to humiliate Zhao Xiheng, to bind her name to his own, inseparable from it, and to drag her down to the same level as him. But what was the point of having her as a concubine? If Zhao Xiheng became his wife, people would say that Zhao Xiheng was the wife of that scoundrel Wei Li.
Look, he's a scoundrel, and Zhao Xiheng is his wife; they're both infamous because of him.
Everyone likes Zhao Xiheng, but he wonders if those people will still like her after they know that Zhao Xiheng is tied to him.
Wei Li seemed to have found the place he was looking for—a spacious bedroom, fully furnished.
He lit the lamp, and good heavens, the lampstand was made of gold! It was clear that the Prince of Zhenbei was truly enamored with that young lady.
"Tsk." Wei Li felt sorry for the wife of the Prince of Zhenbei; her room probably wasn't even this luxurious.
Zhao Xiheng sat on a couch with her hands tucked into her sleeves, watching the room gradually light up, her eyes blinking.
She stayed in Pingzhou for a few days and started tucking her sleeves in; it was indeed warm that way.
"It looks nice?" Wei Li asked her. "I'll cover you with one like this later."
"No!" Zhao Xiheng looked at Wei Li's sinister eyes and slowly changed her tone, "It's too expensive... too much."
Wei Li couldn't see anything good about this tacky, opulent room full of gold and glitter.
"It's alright, not expensive." If Wei Li weren't young and handsome, Zhao Xiheng would have thought he was a nouveau riche who had suddenly become rich and was showing off.
No matter how lavishly decorated this place is, it's still bitterly cold.
Zhao Xiheng watched helplessly as Wei Li took out clean bedding, took off his clothes, and lay down inside.
It's normal that he can't wash or shower in this situation, but he still took off his clothes! How can he take off his clothes in such cold weather!
Wei Li patted a quilt next to him, "Come and sleep."
Zhao Xiheng looked at the soft couch not far away, shook her head, and did not want to sleep with him.
“That’s true. If an assassin comes in, you’ll be the first target. If you have that intention, why should I care?” Wei Li ignored her and closed his eyes to sleep.
Zhao Xiheng felt a chill run down her spine and hurriedly took off her boots and climbed up.
Wei Li opened his eyes and pushed her aside, saying, "Take off your clothes, you're filthy."
She had traveled a long and arduous journey, and her clothes were covered in dust and snow, with a faint smell of blood. Her shoes and socks were also soaked. She took them off, and although she felt her coat was dirty, she was still afraid of the cold and couldn't bear to take it off.
Wei Li rolled up the quilt he had left for Zhao Xiheng, saying, "If you don't take it off, you can sleep outside."
Zhao Xiheng looked at the thick bedding, and finally silently took off her outer garment, leaving only her inner jacket and the padded jacket, before snuggling into the quilt.
The bedding hadn't been used for a long time and had a musty smell when stored in the closet.
However, Zhao Xiheng adapted well to the environment and fell asleep in no time, although her inner thighs ached slightly from riding the horse.
The lieutenant, carrying a sword stained with blood and ice, slowly entered the house.
He then dealt with the person who splashed dog blood in front of Wei Li's residence.
He was seriously injured the day before yesterday and has been running around today; deep weariness is evident between his brows.
The fact that the lights were on at home warmed his heart.
"Brother!" His younger sister, Chen Ruonan, greeted him; she was a tall and pretty girl.
She brought hot water to her brother, Chen Ruojiang.
"Brother, tonight the lord posted a notice saying he married a princess. You've been following the lord the whole time, is that true?" Chen Ruonan looked at him nervously.
Chen Ruojiang's face turned cold, and he slammed the cup on the table. "Are you still thinking about our lord?"
“Brother, the lord paid for Mother’s medical treatment, I…” No matter what others said, Wei Li was a hero in Chen Ruonan’s heart.
"Why would he treat Mother's illness? Isn't it because I'm willing to risk my life for him? Isn't sacrificing me enough? You want to rush into the fire too?"
Chen Ruojiang had a cold face. Although he felt that Wei Li's move was rash, it was indeed a good thing that he could put an end to his sister's unrealistic ideas.
"I want to meet that princess and see how she's better than me!"
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