Feng Changyue stared at Yan Sikong with inquiring eyes. Seeing his unpredictable expression, he couldn't figure out the truth for a moment, but he still believed that this matter was related to Yan Sikong, and demanded that Yan Sikong give him an explanation in a stern voice.

Yan Sikong was stunned for a long time before he came to his senses and whispered, "General, let me investigate this matter."

"You want to check? Who are you going to check? How are you going to check? Do you know anything?"

"It is inconvenient to explain the details to the general at this time."

Feng Changyue hit the case hard: "Who do you think you are?!"

Yan Sikong was irritable and anxious. He was too lazy to flatter Feng Changyue. He looked cold and narrowed his eyes. He said gloomily, "The King of Zhenbei can be what he is today. I have called myself a 'great contributor'. It is not arrogant. Therefore, the King of Zhenbei relies on me - no matter why. As for what I am, it is not important. The important thing is not to hurt the uncle-nephew relationship between the general and the King of Zhenbei because of me."

"You..." Feng Changyue was speechless. Because he had never been an enemy of Yan Sikong, he almost forgot what a ruthless character Yan Sikong was.

Yan Sikong added: "Besides, the general's surname is only half a 'title'. The King of Zhenbei respects his elders, but there are some things that should not be done by others."

Feng Changyue's heart was shocked. He knew the relationship between Feng Ye and Yan Sikong very well. When Yan Sikong said this, he couldn't help wondering if Feng Ye was using Yan Sikong to criticize him. He straightened his body and looked at Yan Sikong coldly: "What do you mean by that?"

"General, you are wise. I don't need to exaggerate." Yan Sikong bowed and said, "I will take my leave."

——

After saying goodbye to Feng Changyue, Yan Sikong left with a cold face.

Along the way, he kept thinking about what Feng Changyue had said.

In fact, he had already felt something was strange when Feng Ye fell off his horse that day. Although Zuihong was still wild, he was very spiritual. He had only recognized Feng Ye as his master in his life. He had accompanied Feng Ye in battles for so many years and had never made any mistakes. How could he let Feng Ye fall under him?

If Feng Ye did not fall off his horse, then the injury was really caused by internal force. Then, who hurt Feng Ye, or...

As soon as he thought of that possibility, Yan Sikong felt as if his heart and lungs were about to explode. He couldn't tell whether he was angry or heartbroken. Feng Ye's chest was bleeding and he was dying. It flashed before his eyes like a nightmare. His eyes swelled up and he couldn't even see the road clearly.

Before he knew it, he had walked to the inner courtyard and stopped in front of Feng Ye's house.

When the guards saw Yan Sikong, they saluted him one after another. However, Yan Sikong stood in front of the door for a long time before he took a deep breath and pushed it open.

Feng Ye was sitting on a couch, leaning against a soft cushion. The bed was covered with official documents. He was reviewing them with a pen in his hand.

Hearing the voice, Feng Ye raised his head, and his originally calm eyes suddenly flashed with pure joy: "Kong'er, you're here."

Yan Sikong walked to the bedside calmly and asked, "Have you taken your medicine today?"

"I've drunk it." Feng Ye's eyes have been following Yan Sikong since he entered the room, as if he was afraid of missing a glance. "Sit down, and have dinner with me tonight."

Yan Sikong glanced at the things on the bed and asked, "Are these what you received after you were promoted to the title?"

"Yes, I received a basket of congratulatory messages alone. These are the general outlines of the local military, politics, law and taxation in the past twenty years that I ordered the officials of various prefectures to submit. I am of course familiar with Datong, and I need to learn more about Qianzhou except for Hetao. I know almost nothing about Xuanhua and Liaodong."

"When you recover from your injury, you should visit the other three prefectures."

Feng Ye nodded: "That's how it should be."

"When will your injury heal?" Yan Sikong stared at Feng Ye's chest. "Why is it that it keeps coming back and won't heal this time?"

Feng Ye looked down, but the wound was wrapped in cloth and he was wearing clothes, so he couldn't see anything. However, the pain from the torn wound tortured him day and night. He hadn't been able to sleep well for a single night since he was injured. He said lightly, "Maybe the doctor in Datong is not as good as Que Linghu. He should be healed soon."

"I asked Quewang to go to Medicine Valley to ask his uncles, uncles, and brothers, anyone, for help. If your injury continues, it will damage your foundation."

"Don't worry, I'll be fine after a while of rest." Feng Ye picked up a document at hand and said, "Look, this is from Liang Huiyong. He is quite prestigious in Liaoning. I plan to..."

Yan Sikong slowly pressed his hand down, staring into his eyes, and said in a deep voice: "Your injury has not healed this time because of the fall from the horse that day. Zuihong is not a human being, and it is unreasonable. But your accompanying guards did not stop you from riding. They should be punished for dereliction of duty to serve as a warning to others."

Feng Ye was obviously unwilling to continue the topic. He said, "No need. I insisted on riding it. It's not their fault."

Yan Sikong said coldly: "As your personal guards, they would risk their lives for your safety. But now they have caused you to fall off your horse and get injured. How can you not blame them?"

"I told you, I insisted on riding." Feng Ye blurted out. He realized that his tone was too harsh, sighed, held Yan Sikong's hand, and said slowly, "Kong'er, there's no need to involve the innocent in this matter. I know my limits."

"Have some sense of propriety." Yan Sikong suppressed his anger. "Do you have any sense of propriety? As the King of Zhenbei, you know that your safety is related to the people of the four prefectures. How can you do such a rash thing just because of a spur of the moment impulse? Your injury was about to heal."

Feng Ye whispered, "Are you in such a hurry to leave?"

Yan Sikong was stunned: "What did you say?"

"You care so much about my injury, are you waiting for me to heal so you can leave?" Feng Ye looked at Yan Sikong tremblingly. He was afraid to hear the word "yes" from that mouth, and even more afraid to see indifference in those eyes. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't change anything.

He can overturn the whole world, but he can't win back one person's heart.

"No." Yan Sikong gritted his teeth and stared at Feng Ye with a sharp gaze: "I did this for you and for the people of the Northern Territory. How can a dignified King Zhenbei stay bedridden forever?"

Feng Ye avoided Yan Sikong's gaze and said softly, "I will... take good care of myself."

Yan Sikong looked at Feng Ye's gloomy expression and couldn't ask the questions in his heart.

Feng Ye put down the paper and pen in his hand and said, "It's a beautiful spring day today. Come for a walk with me."

Yan Sikong hesitated for a moment.

"I'm just taking a walk. It's no problem."

Yan Sikong had no choice but to help Feng Ye get off the bed, put a thin cloak on him, and walked out slowly with him.

Arriving in the courtyard, Feng Ye looked at the rockery and fish pond in front of him and said, "This piece of Taihu stone was a birthday gift given to my father by the former Dali Temple Minister. It was specially transported from Jiangnan and took a full half a year on the road."

Yan Sikong looked at the huge Taihu stone. It had a strange and rugged shape. From the front, it looked like a stone tree that was painfully sprouting branches. From the back, it looked like an eagle spreading its wings. It was majestic, just as Bai Juyi described it: "From a distance, it looks old and rugged; from a close distance, it looks strange and steep." Such a wild and large Taihu stone must be of the highest quality.

Feng Ye continued, "When I was a child, I thought it was just a broken stone and didn't think much of it. But after we parted, I returned to Datong and looked at it, and I remembered the Jiangnan you and I described." He looked at Yan Sikong, "You said you never forget anything. Do you remember that we also agreed to travel around the world together?"

Yan Sikong pondered for a moment and said, "Remember."

Feng Ye smiled tenderly, "How I wish I could leave everything behind and wander around the world with you, to see white horses riding in the autumn wind on the frontier, to see apricot blossoms in the mist and rain in the south of the Yangtze River, to see the sunset over the long river, to see all the rivers flowing into the sea, to see the jagged rocks, to see the verdant mountains, to see the alternation of the sun and the moon, and the cold and hot seasons in the world with you. Tell me, what kind of life would that be?"

Yan Sikong felt a pain in his heart. With every word Feng Ye said, his mind was full of thoughts. Yes, what kind of life would that be? If they were not them, and did not have to shoulder these responsibilities that were difficult to unload throughout their lives, would they be as free and happy as She Jun?

Unfortunately, there are no ifs in the world.

Feng Ye looked down at Yan Sikong. He had a smile on his face, but his eyes flashed with heart-wrenching sadness: "Kong'er, why don't I go with you?"

Yan Sikong lowered his head: "Stop joking."

"I..." Feng Ye felt a dull pain in his chest. He didn't even know whether the pain was on the surface or inside. He only knew that Yan Sikong didn't need a sharp arrow to pierce his heart. Just a word or a look was enough. He murmured, "What if what I said is true?"

Yan Sikong was panicked for a moment, but he remained calm: "You are the Wolf King, the King of Zhenbei, and you have been tied to that high position all your life. Feng Ye, I have said that everyone is 'incomplete', and you can't have everything."

Feng Ye lowered his head and remained silent for a long time.

"It's windy outside, let's go back to the house."

Feng Ye remained silent. Just when Yan Sikong wanted to help him back to the house, he suddenly stretched out his arms and held Yan Sikong in his arms. His movements were so neat and domineering that he didn't look like an injured person at all.

Yan Sikong's body stiffened.

Feng Ye's voice was so weak that it seemed as if he was having difficulty breathing: "At least I dare to say what I want and I dare to take it. What about you? Kong'er, what do you want? Not for the world, not for the people, not for the Yuan family, not for me, just for yourself, what do you want?"

Feng Ye's breath rushing into his nostrils already made Yan Sikong panic, and Feng Ye's question stumped him even more.

What does he want?

After thinking about it, he didn't know what he wanted. Power? Wealth? Fame? Women? He didn't care about what ordinary people wanted because he had them all, but none of them could stop him from falling into the abyss. Since he was thirteen years old, his goal in life was revenge. He engraved the name of his enemy in his heart and never forgot it for twenty years.

But when he finally got his revenge and vindicated Yuan Mao, he looked back and realized that he had never lived for himself and never cared about the desires in his heart.

He could not answer "what he wanted", but if someone asked him what he dared not want, he would know.

He didn't dare ask for a home, didn't dare ask for love, didn't dare ask for anyone to be by his side, because in the end God would take all of these away, just like countless times before, this was his fate.

Rather than worrying about what you will get, it is better to be alone until the end of your life. It is better for both you and others.

Yan Sikong's silence made Feng Ye's heart drop. He gently rubbed Yan Sikong's forehead with his cheek, "Kong'er, have you ever thought about yourself? Have you ever asked yourself, ask yourself from the deepest part of your heart, what do you want? Have you ever thought about making yourself happy?"

Yan Sikong took a deep breath: "...No, I don't want anything."

Feng Ye's heart ached. He could not help but lower his head and hold Yan Sikong's lips, kissing her very gently, melting all his affection and desire into the entanglement of their lips. He wished that with a kiss he could awaken the Yan Sikong who once truly loved love, his Yan Sikong.

The kiss was too light, too soft, and too cautious. Yan Sikong only felt sad. He remembered all kinds of kisses between him and Feng Ye, youthful, curious, eager, passionate, wild, rough, forced, or as affectionate as this one.

The more I recall, the more I can't help crying.

No matter how hard he forces himself to be as calm as an ancient well, there is still someone in the world who can easily stir up huge waves in his heart.

That is Feng Ye.