Flames shot up into the sky, weapons rang out, and shouts were deafening in this cold winter night.

The gate was broken down by the army, and a large number of soldiers in silver armor rushed in.

The fire in the Taiji Hall was raging, and everyone inside was in chaos. The timid nobles and their female relatives were terrified, and the desire to survive drove them to flee.

Screams, cries, and yells become a unique and lively atmosphere on New Year's Eve.

Princess Jingyang protected Qinghe, whose face turned pale, and soothed her, "Don't be afraid, mother is here."

After all, she had seen big scenes before, so she remained calm. She just frowned and stared at Emperor Zhaokang on the side, "Royal brother, what's going on?"

Emperor Zhaokang glanced at the panic-stricken Empress Zhou calmly, then stared at Pei Yan for a while, his face gloomy as water, and snorted coldly, "What else can we do? Someone doesn't want to live anymore."

The fire in the Taiji Hall grew more and more fierce. Under the escort of the imperial palace guards, everyone hurried to the Changle Hall not far away.

Not long after the group arrived at Changle Palace, the imperial guards who had been sent out to investigate also rushed back, knelt down in front of Emperor Zhaokang, and said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, the Third Prince and General Zhang Yi, the commander of the Left Guard, led more than 6,000 people from the North City Camp to break through the Xuanwu Gate!"

Emperor Zhaokang's facial muscles twitched as he sneered, "Third Prince."

His eyes suddenly became sharp, shooting straight at Queen Zhou like a knife.

Queen Zhou shook her body, her hand tightly grasped the dagger in the sleeve of her wide robe, but her face was panic-stricken, "How could it be Changzhou? No, it can't be. Your Majesty, I don't know about this matter, maybe there is some hidden story."

Emperor Zhao Kang asked the imperial guards, "What banners are they flying?"

The imperial guard swallowed his saliva and said, "Purge the emperor and punish the villains."

"Who is the villain?"

"Yes...it's the Minister of War, Mr. Gu Qu."

"Ha." The smile on Emperor Zhaokang's face grew even wider, and he glanced at Gu Qu who was calm and composed below him.

Gu Qu also noticed the look from Emperor Zhaokang, and met his gaze fearlessly, openly and unrestrainedly. After a moment, he took a step forward, bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I am willing to go and resist the traitors to prove my innocence."

Before Emperor Zhaokang could say anything, Empress Zhou raised her eyebrows and scolded, "How dare you, a villain who once plotted to assassinate Your Majesty, accuse the prince of being a traitor!"

Gu Qu pretended not to hear and did not move at all.

Seeing this, Pei Yan also stepped forward and said sternly, "Father, I beg your permission to go with Minister Gu. I will definitely capture Pei Changzhou alive."

Emperor Zhaokang sat on the throne with a stern face, staring at Pei Yan with an obscure look, "Yan'er, are you sure?"

Pei Yan felt that Emperor Zhaokang's gaze was as penetrating as fire. His heart sank, but he didn't show it on his face. He just lowered his head even more and said calmly, "I will definitely live up to your expectations."

After a long silence, Emperor Zhaokang raised his hand, his tone revealing a barely perceptible fatigue, "Then go ahead."

It was almost midnight, the city gates were closed, and the troops stationed at the Longxiao Camp outside the city would not be able to arrive for a while. The only elite troops available in the palace were the guards.

Pei Yan and Gu Qu rode on horseback and led the guards to Xuanwu Gate.

Emperor Zhaokang still had a lot of momentum. He sat quietly on the chair, the cold wind blew past, and his face was tense in the darkness, as sharp as a sculpture.

With the emperor in charge, no one dared to make any more noise. For a while, the Changle Palace was completely silent, with only the occasional sound of uncontrollable sobbing.

Soon, the sound of fierce fighting came from far away, and the atmosphere gradually became tense.

There were still tears on Qing He's eyelashes. She sniffed and asked Princess Jing Yang quietly, "Mother, are the Crown Prince and his brothers back?"

Princess Jingyang held her hand tightly, unsure in her heart, and just hugged her tighter in her arms. She glanced at Young Master Xie who was protecting them, and felt a little more at ease.

Queen Zhou's heart was also tense, as victory or failure depended on this one move.

Under the cold moonlight, two teams appeared one after another in the spacious square in front of Changle Palace.

Leading the group were Pei Yan and Gu Qu, their bodies covered in blood, swords tightly grasped in their hands, and they were galloping on their horses.

Behind them was Pei Changzhou, wearing silver armor, leading a team of elite cavalry, chasing them relentlessly.

At this time, Pei Changzhou was pulling the bow to its full extent, preparing to shoot an arrow.

And that arrow was undoubtedly pointed at Pei Yan——

However, his archery skills were not very good. He shot several arrows but failed to hit Pei Yan at all.

But he was not in a hurry. He led so many elite troops in the North City Camp and was unstoppable. He was able to kill Pei Yan, Xiao Si, Xiao Wu, and even his father without leaving a single survivor.

The people in front of Changle Palace looked at this fierce pursuit and had different reactions.

Emperor Zhaokang tightly grasped the armrest of the throne, his face as black as charcoal, and he gritted his teeth and cursed, "Evil son, evil son!"

When Queen Zhou heard the scolding, she stopped being alarmed. A hint of pleasure flashed across her delicate and beautiful face. She stared at the arrow closely, and shouted in anticipation:

Kill Pei Yan, kill him! It would be best if he was killed in front of the emperor, so that the emperor could experience the pain of losing his beloved son.

The officials standing by the East Palace were all worried about the Crown Prince and secretly prayed that His Royal Highness would be fine.

Seeing Pei Changzhou shoot another arrow, Qinghe screamed in fright.

Fortunately, the arrow only grazed Pei Yan's arm. Qinghe breathed a sigh of relief and was thankful in her heart: Fortunately, my cousin's wife returned to the East Palace early, otherwise she would have fainted after seeing this scene.

Young Master Xie narrowed his eyes, bent down and patted Qinghe's shoulder, "Qinghe, don't be afraid."

Princess Jingyang frowned and murmured softly, "This situation... looks a little weird."

Young Master Xie asked, "Mother, do you think so too?"

Princess Jingyang nodded.

Before they could analyze it carefully, Gu Qu and Pei Yan in the square suddenly tightened their horses' bellies, increased their speed, and galloped to one side.

The next moment, there was a roar of a sky rocket, breaking through the sky.

Suddenly, countless black-clad archers appeared around the Changle Palace.

Just like rain, countless sharp arrows shot towards the center of the square with unstoppable momentum.

In just a breath of time, the elite troops led by Pei Changzhou fell under the feather arrows one after another.

Even Pei Changzhou himself was shot into a hedgehog by a dozen feather arrows.

Pei Changzhou lowered his head in disbelief, looking at the feather arrow that pierced his body, warm blood gushing out.

How could this happen?

Where did all these archers come from?

Is he going to die like this?

In extreme shock and reluctance, he heard the cold sound of arrows breaking through the wind, screams of pain, the sound of metal colliding in close combat, and a heart-wrenching cry -

"Changzhou! My son——"

Pei Changzhou turned his head and saw his mother looking at him in front of the magnificent and bright Changle Palace. Her face was distorted by great sorrow.

He felt a little ashamed for a moment. He lost, what would his mother do?

The mother is the queen, and the son is incompetent.

He fell off his horse, and out of the corner of his eye he saw his father again, high above, solemn and majestic. He clearly saw him fall, but his eyes did not stay on him for long, as he anxiously looked for another figure.

Pei Changzhou fell heavily to the ground, with a strong smell of blood filling his nose and mouth.

At the last moment when his focus faded, he followed his father's gaze.

Oh, it’s Pei Yan.

Amid the flames, Pei Yan's handsome face showed confidence and calmness, as if everything was under control.

At this time, Pei Changzhou's mind also came to its senses. It turned out that all this was just a trap set by Pei Yan!

What a good trick to lure him into a trap and wipe out all his forces in one fell swoop.

Anger, resentment and regret filled his heart, and he died with his eyes open.

…

The Queen of Zhou collapsed.

Seeing her son pierced by thousands of arrows and lying in a pool of blood, the string of hope in her heart broke with a snap.

Pain filled her heart, but at this moment, she couldn't afford to shed tears.

The intense hatred clouded her mind. She clenched the dagger in her hand and rushed towards Emperor Zhaokang like a madman.

"His Majesty!!!"

"Royal brother!"

"uncle!"

Everyone present was horrified to see Empress Zhou's dagger pressed against Emperor Zhaokang's throat, the sharp blade gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

Emperor Zhaokang heard Empress Zhou's rapid breathing, narrowed his eyes, and asked in a deep voice, "Empress, what are you doing?"

Princess Jingyang also shouted anxiously, "Queen, are you crazy? Let my brother go quickly."

Queen Zhou smiled sinisterly, "Let him go? I can let him go. But my son is dead, someone has to pay for his life!"

She shouted fiercely, "Pei Yan, where is Pei Yan? If you want the emperor to be alive, call Pei Yan!"

In this situation, everyone looked at each other and dared not say a word.

The rebels in the square had been completely wiped out. The steps were piled with corpses. The air was filled with a thick smell of blood. Even the full moon in the sky seemed to be stained with blood, glowing an eerie scarlet.

In this dead silence, there was a sound of steady footsteps.

Everyone looked subconsciously and saw a tall and slender figure climbing up the stairs with a long sword in hand.

His robe was stained with large patches of blood, and his handsome face was also stained with blood. His black eyes were as deep as ink, and the powerful aura around him made people hold their breath involuntarily.

In the minds of the public, the prince has always been a gentle, elegant, noble and clear-headed gentleman. How could they have ever seen a prince like this?

Evil and cold, like a bloodthirsty Shura walking out of hell.

Pei Yan held the sword and walked to stand in front of Emperor Zhaokang and Queen Zhou. His eyes stayed on the dagger for a moment, and then he slowly met Queen Zhou's eyes full of hatred.

He said calmly, "The Queen is looking for me? I'm here."

Seeing his calm demeanor, Empress Zhou hated him even more. She gritted her teeth and said, "You evil beast, I want you to pay for Changzhou's life! Only one of you and your father can survive today."

At this point, she smiled sinisterly and said to Emperor Zhaokang, "Your Majesty, you usually favor the crown prince so much. Today I want to see whether your beloved son will choose you or himself."

Emperor Zhaokang frowned, a sinister look flashed in his eyes, "Zhou, I think you don't want to live anymore."

Queen Zhou laughed and said, "You have destroyed the Zhou family, Changzhou is dead, and the attempt to force me to abdicate has failed. Do you think I can still live? Do I still want to live? Your Majesty, the road to the underworld is cold. I will definitely take you and the prince with me."

She laughed so hard that her hands trembled, and the dagger immediately cut a bloody mark on Emperor Zhaokang's neck.

Princess Jingyang was so shocked by Queen Zhou's smile that she angrily shouted, "Be careful, don't hurt my brother!"

"What's a small wound like this? My poor Nagasu, he was shot by so many arrows, did any of you feel sorry for him?"

Queen Zhou looked crazy. After she finished speaking, she stared at Pei Yan and said, "Prince, make a decision. If you commit suicide now, I will release your father. Otherwise, I will take your father with me to die!"

Pei Yan raised his thin lips and looked at Queen Zhou with a smile, "You want to negotiate with me?"

Queen Zhou's smile froze, and she vaguely felt something was wrong.

Pei Yan said, "I also have chips in my hands."

Having said that, he raised his hand.

Soon, two soldiers pushed the tied-up Pei Lingbi forward.

Pei Lingbi was trembling all over, obviously very frightened. When she saw Queen Zhou holding Emperor Zhaokang with a dagger, her eyes widened and a muffled sound came from her stuffed mouth.

A soldier took the cloth off Pei Lingbi's mouth, and Pei Lingbi immediately shouted, "Mother, what are you doing? Are you crazy? How dare you hold my father hostage!"

Queen Zhou had apparently forgotten that she had a daughter. When she first saw Pei Lingbi, she looked dazed and then started crying, "Lingbi, your brother is dead."

Pei Lingbi was terrified, but she didn't feel too sad, but more fear. "What's going on? What on earth is going on?!"

Isn't today New Year's Eve? Why did my brother die? Why did my mother want to support my father?

She was locked up in the temple for a month, how come the situation outside became like this?

Pei Yan looked at the mother and daughter coldly, then raised his hand and placed the sword on Pei Lingbi's neck.

Pei Lingbi froze instantly, with her hair standing on end.

Pei Yan said calmly, "Queen, you already have a son dead, do you want a daughter to die?"

Pei Lingbi was frightened by these words and her face turned pale. Tears rolled down her cheeks and her voice became hoarse due to excessive tension. "Mother, save me! I don't want to die! I don't want to die!"

Queen Zhou felt heartbroken when she saw her daughter with a face full of fear and tears streaming down her face.

Even though she is partial to Pei Changzhou, her daughter is also a piece of her flesh and blood.

Just as her expression relaxed, Pei Yanmeng raised his hand.

A hidden weapon flew over and hit the back of Queen Zhou's hand.

With a "clang" sound, the dagger fell to the ground.

Li Gui seized the opportunity and rushed forward with two eunuchs to control Queen Zhou.

But in the blink of an eye, Queen Zhou was pressed tightly to the ground, the phoenix crown on her head fell to the side, and the exquisite pearl string broke and scattered on the floor tiles.

Pei Yan quickly stepped forward and helped Emperor Zhaokang to sit aside, "Father, I'm sorry to scare you."

Emperor Zhaokang touched his neck and said, "It's okay. I was caught off guard for a moment, which gave this crazy woman the opportunity to take advantage of me."

When Queen Zhou, who was pinned to the ground, saw this scene, her face was full of mockery. She laughed crazily, "What a touching scene of loving father and filial son! Oh, Pei Yan, Pei Yan, you are so stupid. You should have let me kill him just now, so that it would have been revenge for your mother! Do you think your father is a good person? He killed your mother, and you still saved him! Hahaha, so stupid..."

Hearing this, Pei Yan's eyes narrowed, and Emperor Zhaokang's expression also turned cold.

Queen Zhou looked at the reactions of the father and son and laughed until tears came out.

She had just put the dagger on Emperor Zhaokang's neck, and he had remained calm the whole time, but now when she mentioned Gu Yuan, his expression changed immediately.

Ridiculous, really ridiculous.

Before Pei Yan could ask, Emperor Zhaokang stepped forward and fiercely pinched Empress Zhou's neck. Veins popped out on his forehead, and he shouted, "Tell me! What do you mean I killed Yuanyuan? Is Yuanyuan's death related to you?"

Queen Zhou's face turned red from being pinched, but she still smiled, with desperate malice in her beautiful eyes, "Pei Yuanche, has Gu Yuan ever been happy to be with you? I didn't harm her, she didn't want to live anymore, I just told her the truth."

the truth?

Emperor Zhaokang frowned, his eyes became sharper, "What did you say to her?"

Queen Zhou smiled painfully and said, "I told her that her childhood sweetheart, Wenming Yan, did not die of illness, but was killed by you. I also told her that you have always been brooding over the illegitimate offspring of her and Wenming Yan, and that the illegitimate offspring's sudden death from asthma was also arranged by you!"

She thought back to that dreary afternoon sixteen years ago, which was the fifth anniversary of the eldest prince's death.

That day, Gu Yuan knelt in front of the Buddhist temple and recited scriptures.

She knelt in front of Gu Yuan with tears in her eyes, confessing, "My Queen, I am sorry for you, but there is one thing that I have kept in my heart for many years, and I can't bear the reproach of my conscience. The death of the eldest prince was not an accident, but was actually arranged by your Majesty... Your Majesty has always hated the eldest prince's life experience, so he specially ordered the eldest prince's personal maid to cover the eldest prince's mouth and nose with a handkerchief dipped in lacquer tree powder, causing the eldest prince to have an asthma attack and suffocate to death...

At that time, I was behind the rockery in the garden and witnessed everything. I was so scared that I accidentally fell while running. The maid found me and took me to His Majesty. His Majesty ordered me not to tell anyone, otherwise he would kill me... I didn't dare to disobey His Majesty, so I kept it a secret for all these years. But in the past five years, I often dreamed of the eldest prince's tragic death. I really couldn't keep it a secret anymore, wuwu..."

She will never forget Gu Yuan's expression after hearing these words.

She felt so happy when she saw it that she almost couldn't help laughing.

At that time, Gu Yuan's mental state was already very bad. Her words, which fueled the situation, became the last straw that broke the camel's back.

On the day after the eldest prince's death, Gu Yuan took poison.

Thinking back, Empress Zhou looked at Emperor Zhaokang provocatively, "Your Majesty, you are nothing but a pitiful insect. No matter how good you are to Gu Yuan, you can never compare to the position of Wenming Yanhe, that evil creature, in her heart!"

The corners of Emperor Zhaokang's eyes were red, his brows were full of violence, and he increased the strength in his hands, "You are talking nonsense!"

Queen Zhou was almost choked to the point of suffocation. Her face turned red as liver. She turned her gaze towards Pei Yan with difficulty and stammered, "Crown Prince...Crown Prince..."

Pei Yan's hanging hands tightened a little bit, and his knuckles turned white.

His eldest brother is a bastard?

Was the Queen Mother's death due to the Emperor's death?

Layer upon layer of fog shrouded his heart, and his thoughts were in a mess.

Seeing that Emperor Zhaokang was about to strangle Empress Zhou to death, Gu Qu, who had remained silent, stepped forward, held Emperor Zhaokang's hand, and said with a piercing look, "Let go and let her speak."

Emperor Zhaokang was startled, his eyes flashing coldly, "Gu Qu, you are so brave."

Gu Qu continued to hold his hand, his serious face showing the same persistence as many years ago, "I just want to find out why my sister died!"

The four looked at each other in a stalemate.

Finally, Emperor Zhaokang let go of his hand in anger.

Queen Zhou's body went limp and she collapsed to the ground. Her instinct for survival made her cover her neck and breathe heavily.

After she recovered from her shock, she cursed at Emperor Zhaokang with red eyes, "Gu Yuan is a scumbag. She eloped with someone before entering the palace and got pregnant with another man's child! You treated such an unclean scumbag as a treasure, pampered her, and even became a bastard for her! I was devoted to you and gave birth to children for you, but you threw me away like a worn-out shoe. Pei Yuanche, you are a blind man. You can't tell good from bad!"

After she finished cursing, she looked at Pei Yan fiercely and mocked, "Do you know why your father is so good to you? Because he dreams of being associated with Gu Yuan. He is a madman and wants to lock Gu Yuan by his side forever. He finally had you, the flesh and blood of him and Gu Yuan, so of course he loves you.

But Gu Yuan hates you, just like she hates your father. You are her humiliation, her unbearableness, and her burden! For the sake of the eldest prince she loves, she can take poison without hesitation and abandon you and your son. Hahahaha, you and your son are the same, both are pitiful insects! Poor insects abandoned by Gu Yuan!"

Her laughter was wild and mournful, and every word she spoke pierced the scars deep in Emperor Zhaokang's heart.

Yuanyuan would rather take poison than leave him.

He loved her so much that he wanted to give her the kingdom and his heart, but she never loved him.

Seeing that Empress Zhou was still scolding him, Emperor Zhaokang turned around anxiously like an extremely angry lion, and finally snatched the sword from the guard and roared in anger, "I'm going to kill you, you crazy woman!"

Queen Zhou, on the other hand, was fearless at this moment. She raised her head with a sarcastic smile on her face.

When Emperor Zhaokang chopped at Queen Zhou, Pei Yan, who had been silent all this time, stepped forward and blocked Emperor Zhaokang's sword, "Father."

Emperor Zhaokang was stunned for a moment. Looking at the calm and indifferent Pei Yan in front of him, he suppressed his anger and said, "Yan'er, let me kill her."

Pei stretched out his slender hand and slowly pried open Emperor Zhaokang's fingers that were holding the sword. He said calmly, "Father, she doesn't owe you anything. You have no right to kill her."

Emperor Zhaokang's face was stiff.

"But she owes me her life."

Pei Yan slowly took the sword from his hand, held it tightly, his eyes dark and deep, "Sixteen years ago, she caused me to fall into the water. Since then, I have been thinking that one day, I will take revenge myself."

Emperor Zhaokang's pupils shrank sharply, staring straight at Pei Yan, "It was her back then?! Yan'er, why didn't you tell me..."

Pei Yan raised his lips and smiled, "Father, you can protect me for a while, but you can't protect me all the time."

Having said that, he no longer looked at Emperor Zhaokang, but slowly turned around and walked towards Empress Zhou step by step.

Looking at the imposing young prince, Queen Zhou's heart shrank. She stepped back subconsciously and shouted, "The one you should kill is Pei Yuanche. He killed your mother and your brother. He—"

The words were still stuck in her throat when it was slit by the sharp blade.

Warm blood continued to flow out, and Queen Zhou widened her eyes in unwillingness.

"Mother!!!"

Pei Lingbi, who witnessed this crazy farce, screamed and burst into tears.

Queen Zhou fell straight down, and the blood dyed her gorgeous bright red phoenix robe even brighter.

Her lips moved slightly -

Gu Yuan, you win.

Without Queen Zhou's insults, the palace became much quieter.

Pei Lingbi cried and cried until she realized that she was the only one crying, so she covered her mouth in fear.

Her brother was forced to abdicate and died, her mother also died, her uncle's family also fell, and she was the only one left.

She looked around in panic, trying to find someone to ask for help.

Emperor Zhaokang, Pei Yan, Princess Jingyang, Qinghe, Young Master Xie... seeing their indifferent faces made her heart grow heavier.

Pei Yan dropped the sword in his hand, caught a glimpse of her from the corner of his eye, and told the guards calmly, "Drag her away."

Pei Lingbi's expression suddenly changed, and she cried out helplessly, "Don't touch me, don't! Father, save me, save me! I don't know about my brother and mother's conspiracy, I am innocent!"

Emperor Zhaokang just thought she was too noisy at this moment.

The guards quickly covered her mouth and dragged her back down.

“Ding ding ding…”

At this moment, the sound of midnight bells rang in the distance, and in this empty square littered with corpses, it sounded so long and sad.

The new year is here.

Seeing Emperor Zhaokang standing there in a daze, Pei Yan calmly arranged the mess in front of him. Those who needed to leave the palace left the palace, those who needed to collect the corpse collected the corpse, and those who needed to clean up cleaned up...

After making some general arrangements, he walked up to Emperor Zhaokang, bowed, and clasped his hands. His tone was respectful, and no trace of sadness, joy, or anger could be heard. "Father, it's late. You should go back to the palace and rest."

Emperor Zhaokang raised his head. His stern and stern face was now filled with confusion and panic, as if he had aged a dozen years. His deep eyes no longer had the sharpness of the past.

He opened his mouth with difficulty, as if trying to explain.

Pei Yan's dark eyes moved slightly, and he asked in a deep voice, "Father, are all the things you did to Mother true?"

The corners of Emperor Zhaokang's eyes suddenly turned red, and the arrogant emperor showed a dejected look. He was silent for a long time and finally said nothing.

Pei Yan pulled the corner of his mouth, and the last glimmer of light in his eyes became completely dim.

"You are her humiliation, her unbearableness, and her burden!" Zhou's words are still ringing in her ears.

It turned out that the Queen Mother did not love the Emperor, nor did she love him.

He was also the one abandoned by his mother.

Emperor Zhaokang took a step forward and stretched out his hand to pat Pei Yan on the shoulder, but Pei Yan avoided him stiffly and coldly.

My hands froze in the air, feeling extremely awkward.

Pei Yan stepped aside, lowered his head, and said in a distant and cold voice, "Your Highness, I respectfully bid you farewell."

…

In the East Palace, Tao Ti was running out of breath on the thin snow.

Behind him, Linglong and other palace maids were calling anxiously, "Crown Princess, please go slower, the snowy ground is slippery."

She didn't listen and continued running forward, her mind full of Pei Yan.

Her highness, her husband, was still in danger of life and death in that blazing fire.

She didn't know how long she had been running. The accumulated snow had soaked her thin and soft slippers. Her legs were numb from the cold and she could only repeat the running movements mechanically.

She ran and ran, and fell three times along the way. Her butt hurt a lot, but she didn't care about the pain and got up and continued running.

Finally, she saw the Zhide Gate connecting the Eastern Palace and the Imperial Palace.

Tao Ti's eyes lit up, and she fell again in excitement.

She almost burst into tears due to the pain, but thinking that crying on New Year's Day was unlucky, she bit her lips tightly and tried to hold back her tears.

When she managed to get up, she saw a tall and straight figure slowly walking out from behind the tall door.

Pei Yan's silver-gray robe was stained with blood, and his bony hands were tightly grasping a long sword, which was also stained with blood.

Under the cold moonlight, his handsome brows seemed to be covered with a layer of cold frost, his thin lips were pursed, and the line of his jaw became even more sharp.

Tao Ti was stunned and stood there motionless.

Pei Yan also saw her.

Under the moonlight, in the snow, the little person was wearing thin clothes, with long black hair flowing down like a waterfall and clear eyes, like an elf who had mistakenly entered the mortal world.

The cold and murderous look between his brows disappeared, he threw away the sword in his hand, and a smile appeared on his face, gentle yet a little morbid.

He waved at her, "Ati, come to Gu Huai Li."

Tao Ti's eyelashes trembled slightly, "..."

Pei Yan's smile froze when he saw that she didn't move.

As if he was afraid that she would abandon him, he walked towards her in two steps.

He didn't care about the blood or his image. At this moment, he just wanted to hold her tightly.

Pei Yan bent his waist, pinching the back of her neck with his cold fingers, his long eyelashes drooped, covering his deep eyes full of emotions, and his tone was a little aggrieved, "Don't be afraid of me, I will be sad."

His crisp breath brushed past Tao Ti's ears. She heard the trembling of anxiety in his voice, and her heart softened instantly.

She raised her two soft arms, wrapped them around his waist, and said softly, "I'm not afraid. I know His Highness won't hurt me."

Pei Yan's heart warmed up, he lowered his head and took a deep breath into her shoulder, "Ati, promise me that you won't abandon me."

"Well, I promise you." Although I don't know why he suddenly asked this.

"Will never leave me," he added.

"Well, never."

"Then why didn't you come and hug me just now?"

"…My feet are numb from the cold."

“…”

After a moment, Pei Yan laughed softly.

Taoti, "..."

It's all to find you! And you're still smiling!

After a while, Pei Yan bent down and picked her up, his peach blossom eyes full of tenderness, "Let's go home."

It started snowing again, and the pure white flakes were falling gently.

Tao Ti gently tugged at his collar, her eyes sparkling, "Your Highness, Happy New Year."

Pei Yan frowned and kissed her forehead, "Happy New Year, little girl."