Leave the capital immediately
From childhood to adulthood, Wu Qi always said things like "Look at you so well," "You've grown taller again," "How amazing our Third Young Master Yi is," and "I like you so much, Yi Shen." To this day, Yi Shen has heard far too many of these kinds of words.
She is generous with praise and not shy about expressing her affection.
But her promises are indeed rare.
Tonight, Yi Shen had a dream. Amidst the vast expanse of white snow, he stood in the corridor, looking silently at the person in his room across a courtyard and the swirling snow.
She was sick at the time, perhaps because she had a stuffy nose from staying in his room, or perhaps because she wanted to enjoy the snow, so she opened the window for ventilation.
There was no wind in the winter, and the snow fell gently. She leaned against the window, dozing off.
Winters in the capital are usually harsh, with biting winds and ankle-deep snow. Rain and snow fall together, whitening the pedestrian paths and wetting the flowers in the snow. But that winter was exceptionally gentle, with no cold winds or rain, only soft, damp snow.
Yi Shen watched quietly, expecting yesterday's scene to be blurry, but unexpectedly, it was so clear in his dream. He could clearly see himself standing there, looking at her from afar.
Before the frost and snow, the view through the window, and the one I love.
But yesterday's scene was just a dream, and upon waking, all was emptiness. Yi Shen opened his eyes, his breath light and shallow. He turned his head to look at the person in his arms, then turned to completely envelop her in his embrace.
Her hair and breath were not nothingness.
"It's still early, let's sleep a little longer," Yi Shen said.
Wu Qi showed no signs of waking up. He gave a perfunctory reply, then, fearing it wasn't enough, he looked up and kissed Yi Shen, muttering, "Sleepy."
She was wearing a nightgown, the collar of which was loose. With just a few movements, the marks on her neck, which were covered by the nightgown, were revealed. Yi Shen tugged at her collar, revealing the red marks on her body, and there, clearly, were teeth marks.
He bit it.
Last night, the two did nothing. Wu Qi had been working so hard these past few days, he certainly couldn't possibly torment her at this time. He held back, leaving marks on her neck, intending to let her sleep, but unexpectedly she held his arm and lightly kissed Peach Blossom.
Before Wu Qi could react, Yi Shen pinned her down. The bedsheets were soft, and she tried to move, but before she could even utter "Yi Shen," he restrained her hands and forced her to raise her arms.
For some reason, she saw Yi Shen smile, and then, with his other hand, he pulled open her collar, revealing a red plum blossom on her collarbone. He stared at the red plum blossom on her collarbone, lowered his head, kissed it two or three times, and then bit it, leaving a tooth mark.
Thinking of Wu Qi's surprised expression when she saw the teeth marks, Yi Shen smiled. He straightened Wu Qi's collar, held her in his arms, and patiently waited for her to wake up.
Outside, it was cold and rainy, but the blankets were warm. Wu Qi nestled in Yi Shen's arms and slept soundly, undisturbed by any nightmares or sweet dreams; she simply slept. She groggily woke up in the middle of the night, saw Yi Shen still beside her, stirred slightly, and then fell asleep again.
When I woke up again, the rain had stopped.
"Hmm? Is it raining?" Wu Qi asked.
"It rained a bit earlier, but it's stopped now. Are you still sleepy?"
"I'm not sleepy anymore."
"Shall we get up and eat?" Yi Shen asked.
"good."
Wu Qi felt lazy again and lay in bed for a while. Unexpectedly, it started raining again outside the window. The rain fell in a drizzle, carrying with it a cold wind, and it grew colder and colder.
Someone outside shouted, "It's snowing!!"
Wu Qi suddenly opened her eyes, looking much more alert. She put on her shoes and opened the window, only to see rain and snow falling. The snow had just started to fall and hadn't yet gathered into a white mass; it had all melted into the rainwater.
With a slight slump, Yi Shen draped the cloak over her shoulders.
Wu Qi wrapped his cloak tighter around himself and said with delight, "Yi Shen, it's snowing."
Snow falls in the capital every year, sometimes reaching up to a person's calves. Mischievous children would roll over and sink into the snow, their entire bodies seemingly sealed in it, except for a pair of eyes that shone exceptionally brightly. Wu Qi was the most beautiful child among them. She always wore the fox fur coat that Qi Kong had carefully prepared for her, closed her eyes, jumped into the snow, and would lie in the snow, waving her arms and legs, inviting Yi Shen to play with her.
Yi Shen always refused, standing silently to the side waiting. After Wu Qi had finished playing, he squatted down and brushed the snow off Wu Qi's body.
He still wore an expression that revealed neither joy nor sorrow.
Wu Qi wrapped his coat tighter around himself and exclaimed with delight, "Yi Shen, it's snowing!"
Yi Shen asked, "Want to go play?"
Wu Qi shook his head and said, "What I meant was that the winter solstice is approaching."
Winter Solstice is Yi Shen's birthday.
Wenru kept each child's birthday in mind and reviewed everything, so Yishen's birthday was always grand and joyful.
However, it seems unlikely this year...
Wenru put down the book in her hand, looked at the two children in front of her, and said regretfully, "I had already planned how to celebrate Weichong's birthday this year, but who knew that General Wei would leave the capital. Since he has already left the capital, you will probably have to leave the capital before the winter solstice as well."
"Once I leave, I don't know when I'll be able to return..."
Wu Qi said, "If we can't hold Yi Shen's birthday celebration on the Winter Solstice, you can hold mine on the Spring Equinox. Next year on the Spring Equinox, Yi Shen and I will celebrate our birthdays together, and we'll need your help and my mother to make our birthday celebrations so that others will be envious."
Wenru happily said, "That's great! You two can celebrate your birthdays together then, it'll be a once-in-a-lifetime occasion." Mentioning Wu Qi's mother, Wenru then asked, "Did your mother mention in her letter when she would return to the capital?"
"Soon," Wu Qi replied.
Wen Ru said wistfully, "I don't know if I can make it back before you go to the battlefield."
“It’s alright. Anyway, we’ll come back, and we’ll meet again sooner or later,” Wu Qi said.
The snow fell intermittently for several days. During these days, the students of Cizige Middle School dared not slacken their efforts, working tirelessly to operate the cannons. Aside from sleeping and eating, they operated the cannons day and night within the pavilion. This was because they had not received any news about the battlefield.
If they don't know, it means their parents don't know either.
No one doesn't love their children. Those high-ranking officials had also secretly investigated information about the battlefield, but they couldn't find anything. Without exception, the parents were so worried that they couldn't sleep well for several nights. In particular, Wu Yin's father, Wu Donggui, even thought about getting information from Wei Si, or asking Wei Si to say a few good words for Wu Yin to the emperor, hoping that Wu Yin wouldn't go to the battlefield.
Wu Yin said, "I haven't married Wei Si yet."
Wu Donggui said, "But he did propose marriage."
Wu Yin said, "I didn't agree."
Wu Donggui then advised, "Good daughter, why do you insist on piloting that cannon unicorn to the battlefield? You have plenty of food and clothing, you can have whatever you want, why do you have to gamble with your life? If something really happens, how will your father live?"
Wu Yin said, "Father, it's not that I want to gamble with my life, it's that His Majesty wants me to gamble with my life. You should thank Wu Qi. If she hadn't developed the cannon fin and improved our chances of winning, your good daughter would really have died on the battlefield. Also, don't mention Wei Si all the time."
Wu Donggui said, "But Father..."
Wu Yin said, "Since you know that the Emperor is his maternal uncle, others must know it too. He has a bad reputation, and others avoid him like the plague. We shouldn't get too close."
She didn't know if Wu Donggui had listened to her, but she took her umbrella and went out.
The capital had been covered in snow these past few days. Wu Yin opened her umbrella, lifted her skirt, and stepped into the gate of the Moonfall Camp. The students in the pavilion were resting. Li Jian was so tired that he was asleep on the table. For some reason, he opened his eyes groggily and noticed that there was a slightly darker spot on the hem of Wu Yin's skirt.
It was soaked by the snow.
Li Jian sat up, getting himself up as he came to his senses. He took a brand new dress from his closet and handed it to Wu Yin, saying, "Why did you come over with all this snow outside? If I had known you were coming, I would have picked you up."
Wu Yin took the dress and asked, "Why did you take me?"
He yawned and joked, "Let's get soaked in the snow together."
Wu Yin said, "It's too late."
Li Jian asked in confusion, "What do you mean it's too late?"
"We didn't have time to get soaked in the snow in the capital together."
Why?
Wu Yin said, "Because we are leaving the capital."
Upon hearing this, the students at Gezhong Middle School instantly awoke from their drowsiness, sitting up straight with solemn expressions. Regardless of where Wu Yin's information came from, she had no need, no right, and certainly wouldn't deceive them.
Wu Yin said, "When I returned to the manor, Wei Si was having a long talk with my father. He received a secret letter in the middle of the conversation and left before he even finished his tea. I think that for Wei Si to change his expression so drastically, it must be news from the battlefield, and it must be bad news."
She continued, "General Wei is old. Even if he is the best in the world, he is powerless to change his ways."
Fame, fortune, and a lifetime of glory are all insignificant compared to old age and decline.
Wu Qi sipped his hot soy milk, looked out at the falling snow, and said, "It's a little later than I expected."
Ning Xunxu stood up to leave, saying, "Excuse me, everyone, I'll take my leave now."
Lin Kuo leaned against the window, blocking Ning Xunxu's way. He reached out and caught a bird, patted its head, unwrapped the scroll, looked at it, and tossed it to Ning Xunxu, saying, "I guess you won't be able to go back to the manor to say goodbye to Sister Yuqu."
Ning Xunxu unrolled the paper scroll, which read: "The person has arrived; leave the capital immediately."
The door was suddenly opened, and everyone turned around in an instant. The golden-armored soldiers arrived with the imperial edict.
The imperial edict was simple, containing only two points.
First, Wu Qi is a general, whose official rank is below that of General Wei, and he has the power to command tens of thousands of troops. The students of the Pavilion School who operate the cannon unicorn only need to obey Wu Qi's orders.
Second, the students of Gezhong must set off immediately and must not delay.
Wu Qi stood up and looked at the token in his hand. He felt that the token was not like a military order, but more like a painting of fish, dragons and butterflies dancing. It seemed to be made by the same person as the token of the Moonfall Camp.
Without time to pack up or say goodbye, the group chose two swords, grabbed steaming hot soy milk, and boarded the vehicle in twos and threes.
Ning Xunxu was in a bad mood and said sarcastically, "They won't even let us say goodbye, is this human trafficking?"
Lin Kuo said, "Brother really has the will but not the strength. The messenger bird was beheaded by the golden-armored soldiers guarding the garrison as soon as it poked its head out. Alright, alright, Han Su, don't worry, when things relax a bit, I will definitely give the messenger bird to you so you can say goodbye to Sister Yu Qu properly."
Ning Xunxu was still unhappy and cursed, "What kind of dog beast came up with the idea of leaving the capital immediately? Giving him a head is useless."
The people in the carriage looked at each other, but no one tried to stop him. Let them curse a few times if they want. Unfortunately, this was their youngest brother.
Lin Kuo handed him the hot soy milk and said, "Mmm, you beast, calm down, calm down!"
Ning Xunxu took a sip of hot soy milk angrily and said, "Hmph!"
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