In order to revitalize the Hetao region, Fengye relocated 100,000 people from Qianzhou and Datong to open up the land, reduced taxes by half for three years, and set aside several of the best pastures for horse breeding. The horses in Hetao were the best horses that could be found in the interior of the country, and were almost as good as those of nomadic peoples.

Once the Hetao trade was opened, this region, which had been in turmoil for decades, finally began to recover.

Feng Ye took care of the people and recruited soldiers at the same time. He not only reorganized the troops of Qianzhou, but also recruited some of the Datong troops that had been cut by the court in the past. Gradually, he had nearly 200,000 troops under his control, and he looked down upon the world from the northwest.

Of course, the imperial court would not sit idly by and wait for death. It recruited 360,000 troops from the Central Plains, Jiangnan, Huguang and other places, and was determined to suppress the rebellion.

Winter is not a good time to fight a war. Everyone is keeping a low profile and waiting until the weather warms up next year. A major war is bound to sweep across the country.

When everyone was busy, Yan Sikong received a letter from Chen Yi.

The letter said that he was grateful to Yan Sikong for sending Shen Hexuan to Yunnan, but he had already treated Shen Hexuan well and sent him back to his hometown.

Yan Sikong was a little surprised, but after thinking about it carefully, he was impressed by Chen Yu's deep scheming. Shen Hexuan tried to escape twice on the way to Yunnan, but was caught both times. He went to Yunnan out of helplessness and was definitely not willing.

Chen Yu so generously sent away such a powerful conspirator and enemy who might hinder him in the future. Firstly, he estimated that Shen Hexuan was tired of his nagging in the past and didn't want him to keep around and cause trouble for him; secondly, he was worried that Shen Hexuan might be sent by Yan Sikong to restrain him; thirdly, he planned to make Shen Hexuan owe him a favor. A versatile person like Shen Hexuan is hard to come by and might be of great use in the future.

Chen Yu's trick of offering flowers to Buddha made Yan Sikong very unhappy.

If they let Shen Hexuan go, they didn't know what kind of trouble it would bring them. If they had known this, they should have killed Shen Hexuan from the beginning... But he had wanted to kill Shen Hexuan at least three times, but he couldn't bear to do it. It was also his soft-heartedness.

——

As the year draws to a close, Datong is already covered in ice and snow. However, in stark contrast to the freezing weather, the relationship between Yan Sikong and Feng Ye is slowly warming up.

Since Xie Zhongren confessed in the imperial prison and cleared Feng Ye's suspicion of Yan Sikong in the Feng family case, Yan Sikong risked his life to go to Chahar for peace talks and finally solved Feng Ye's biggest worry without any soldiers. Feng Ye no longer confronted him or was aggressive. The two of them ate and slept together and seemed to be in harmony.

However, Yan Sikong knew that Feng Ye was still on guard against him and did not give him any real power. Even so, it was much better than the previous relationship of walking on thin ice.

Yan Sikong could never forget what Feng Ye had done and said to him after their reunion, but he could not help but yearn for the little warmth before his eyes. He knew that he and Feng Ye could not go back to the past, and the gap between them would never be eliminated in their lifetime. They both kept half of themselves hidden and dared not face each other wholeheartedly, but he would not desire more. It was enough for him to be able to work peacefully with Feng Ye.

Although he couldn't help but miss the simple sweetness of the past when facing Feng Ye, he knew that it was given away by his own hands and he could not get it back.

——

On this day, it was snowing heavily and an uninvited guest came to the palace. When Yan Sikong heard the announcement from the doorman, he was so excited that he strode out in a thin coat. From a distance, he saw a very tall and strong figure standing in the courtyard. His clothes were a little dirty and old, and his cotton shoes were covered with thick mud. It was obvious that he had come from a long journey.

"Ali!" Yan Sikong shouted.

The man in the yard turned around, the wrinkles on his face suddenly relaxed, his ugly face was full of excitement, and he knelt down in the snow with a thud.

"Ali!" Yan Sikong also felt sad, and hurriedly stepped forward to help Ali up, trembling and said, "Fortunately, you are safe."

Before leaving Beijing, he had discussed with She Jun and Ali that after hearing the news, they should send Ali out of Beijing as soon as possible, otherwise Ali would be implicated by him and suffer the wrath of the court, and he might not even be able to leave with a complete body.

Ali nodded continuously, gesticulating with his hands excitedly, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes.

Yan Sikong sighed: "From the capital to Datong, you must have suffered a lot along the way."

Ali shook his head desperately again, gesticulating: If I can see you again, I will die without regrets.

The servants in the palace stood aside with curiosity and fear, looking at this strong and strange-looking man. They couldn't believe that Yan Sikong, a handsome young man, would have such a servant.

Yan Sikong patted Ali's arm vigorously and said, "From now on, we will never be separated as master and servant again."

Ali was wiping away tears.

"How is everything at home? Is everything okay, Princess?"

Speaking of the princess, Ali looked embarrassed. He gestured and said: The emperor issued an order to confiscate their property. The princess and the little princess were taken back to the harem. The princess hates you very much.

Yan Sikong sighed. He felt guilty towards Wan Yang. He asked again, "Is Duo'er's identity still..."

Before Yan Sikong finished speaking, he saw from the corner of his eye that behind Ali, the housekeeper led three beautiful women wearing floral shirts into the room, and they bumped into Yan Sikong and others. Both sides looked at each other in confusion.

The housekeeper glanced at Ali and was surprised by his appearance: "Master Yan, this is..."

"He has been my servant for more than ten years. He came from the capital to seek refuge with me." Yan Sikong looked at the three women. "Who are they?"

The housekeeper rubbed his hands awkwardly: "Oh, they are all new maids."

Yan Sikong raised his eyebrows: "Maid?" He had only seen maids who were dressed so well and looked so good in the palace. The housekeeper was clearly lying.

The housekeeper stole a glance at Yan Sikong and said, "Then I will take them there first..."

"Uncle Xu," Yan Sikong said, "is there something you must hide from me?"

The housekeeper sighed and said in embarrassment: "Lord Yan, they are actually... General Feng wanted to give them to the Wolf King. At this time of day, you are usually reading in your room or practicing martial arts in the martial arts room. I didn't expect..."

Yan Sikong froze in place for a long while, and suddenly felt a chill entering his body. He then remembered that he was wearing too little, and the wind blew through his clothes. He tightened his shirt and whispered, "In that case, Uncle Xu, go and get busy."

General Feng gave this to the Wolf King...

Yes, Feng Ye is already twenty-five or twenty-six years old. If he were an ordinary noble man, he would have had wives and concubines and given birth to several children. But Feng Ye doesn’t even have a concubine now.

In other words, he is the concubine.

Feng Ye once said that for him, he could never marry, but the wild words of his youth have long gone with the wind. He is no longer the Yan Sikong who could make Feng Ye risk his life for him. Even if Feng Ye wants to marry a wife or a concubine, what can he do? He already has a wife and daughter...

Why should he...why should he be so upset?

What right does he have to feel bad?

Yan Sikong said to Ali, "Come on, follow me into the house."

"What are you doing?" A steady male voice came from behind. The voice was not loud, but it had the power to penetrate the wind and snow in an instant.

Yan Sikong turned around and saw Feng Ye walking towards them with the bear cloak he had hunted himself.

The housekeeper shuddered and said fearfully, "Wolf King, this... General Feng has sent three more women."

Feng Ye frowned and said impatiently, "It's not over yet."

"General Feng ordered me to bring them to you. I had no choice but to bring them into the mansion first. I couldn't let the girls freeze outside. I was thinking of sending them away after the snow stopped. Who would have seen them..." The butler glanced at Yan Sikong cautiously.

Yan Sikong's expression was calm and unperturbed: "I heard that Ali is here, Ali, and has seen the Wolf King."

Ali hurriedly knelt down in front of Feng Ye.

"It's not easy for you to make it to Datong alive." Feng Ye waved his hand to signal him to get up, and while putting a cloak on Yan Sikong, he complained, "You ran out dressed like this."

Yan Sikong tightened the warm and thick cloak, and his body immediately felt much warmer: "Thank you, Wolf King."

Butler Feng Yechong said, "Uncle Xu, take them downstairs and send them away as soon as the snow stops."

"Yes." The butler took a few steps, then stopped, looking at Feng Ye hesitantly as if he wanted to say something.

Feng Ye narrowed his eyes: "What else do you want to say?"

"If General Feng asks me, how should I answer?"

"Uncle, I will answer."

"yes."

"Wait."

"Why."

Feng Ye pointed at Ali and said, "Take this man away and treat him well. Prepare a room for him in Yan Sikong's house."

"yes."

Yan Sikong said, "Ali, you've had a hard journey, take a good rest first."

Ali bowed and followed the servant.

Feng Ye hugged Yan Sikong's shoulders and said, "You should hurry back to the house as well."

"I am a martial artist, so it won't be a big deal if I freeze for a while." Yan Sikong said calmly.

"Does anyone else like to keep it frozen?" Feng Ye pushed Yan Sikong into the house without saying anything.

Yan Sikong took off his cloak and hung it up carefully before asking casually, "Does General Feng often send you women?"

Feng Ye glanced at him and said, "Uncle has been scolding me for not getting married yet, and he is afraid that the Feng family will have no successor."

Yan Sikong lowered his eyes: "General Feng is always thinking about the Feng family. He is truly a very loyal and filial person."

Feng Ye narrowed his eyes slightly: "I don't like women at all, and I don't want to marry one to hinder my work, or do you also think that I should marry a wife and take a concubine?"

Yan Sikong paused and said calmly, "The Wolf King should make his own decision."

Feng Ye put his hands around his chest and said, "I just want to hear your opinion."

Yan Sikong was silent for a moment: "I think... General Feng is right."

Feng Ye's expression turned cold: "You mean, I should get married and have children, right?"

Yan Sikong took a deep breath, his heart was so heavy that he could hardly utter a word. He didn't want the Feng family to die out, he also wanted Feng Ye to have children and grandchildren around him, but...

He could increasingly understand how Feng Ye felt when he first knew that he was going to marry Wan Yang.

Seeing Yan Sikong remained silent, Feng Ye said coldly, "It is not up to others to judge what I do or don't do."

Yan Sikong nodded heavily.