General Xu, too, made his blush and heart race with the sweet words he uttered to his young prince, despite his advanced age and unmarried status.
The group arrived at the capital of Yexi Kingdom. The emperor had already sent people to wait at the city gate to meet them. The head eunuch read out the imperial edict, "His Majesty has been waiting for His Highness and General Xu in the palace for a long time. Please come in, Your Highness." He greeted Han Yun and Xu Xie with a smile as they entered the palace.
The palace of Yexi Kingdom was not as magnificent as that of Kuiyang Kingdom, but it exuded a calm and grand atmosphere.
Bi Xie met the emperor of Ye Xi Kingdom in the Golden Palace. He looked to be in his forties and had a majestic appearance. There were also many court officials standing in the hall. As soon as she and Han Yun entered the hall, countless eyes turned to look at them.
Han Yun glanced at her with concern, only to find her calm and composed, showing no sign of unease.
"I have long admired General Xu of Kuiyang Kingdom, and seeing him today, I can confirm that his reputation is well-deserved!" The emperor's voice boomed from the throne.
Bi Xie bowed respectfully, saying, "I am merely fortunate to have received your great favor, and I dare not presume to be the chief general of Kuiyang Kingdom." The implication was that Kuiyang Kingdom was full of talented people, and she was only lucky to have become the commander-in-chief on the battlefield.
The emperor's expression darkened, and he let out a long, meaningful sigh. "General Xu is too modest. If it weren't for General Xu's defenses, several border fortresses in Kuiyang would have been destroyed by our army long ago. General Xu's military strategy is brilliant, and he has won many victories with fewer troops. It is truly Kuiyang's good fortune."
This means that without you, Xu Xie, Kuiyang Kingdom would have been swallowed up by my Yexi Kingdom long ago. You're just getting in the way.
Bi Xie muttered "old fox" to himself, and was about to subtly retaliate when a black figure blocked his way, expressionlessly looking up at the person on the throne. "Guard Lin said you are my father?"
The hall erupted in commotion. They had been summoned by His Majesty today because they had heard that the young prince, who had been separated from his family, had been found and brought back by His Majesty.
However, the young prince's actions clearly indicated that he was protecting General Xu of Kuiyang Kingdom, and his tone of voice towards His Majesty was so disrespectful.
The Emperor of Yexi frowned slightly as he looked at the young man in the hall. His features did indeed resemble his mother's, but he was too delicate and lacked any masculinity. However, there was nothing he could do. The Crown Prince could not continue the bloodline, and he had only managed to seize the throne after his brothers and uncles had fought amongst themselves. He could not simply hand it over to someone else.
"What is your name?" the emperor asked, looking at him with an air of authority.
"Han Yun".
"Not even a surname?" The emperor frowned and looked at him for a while, his gaze falling on the cinnabar mark between his eyebrows. He said in a deep voice, "From this day forward, you are the young prince of my Ye Xi Kingdom, and I bestow upon you the name Si Jin."
Upon hearing this, everyone in the court immediately offered their congratulations and kowtowed.
The boy's expression was indifferent: "Thank you, Father, for bestowing this name upon me, but I am not pleased."
Despite the apparent joy, Bi Xie couldn't detect a trace of happiness on his face. This name was sixteen years late.
The Emperor of Yexi Kingdom originally intended to use the opportunity of recognizing his son to teach Bi Xie a lesson, but who knew that his newly recognized son would protect him at every turn, leaving him speechless several times. The Emperor was furious, but for the sake of the continuation of his lineage, he had no choice but to suppress his anger, dismissing the officials with a pale face and leaving Si Jin behind.
Bi Xie followed Lin Jinwei out of the palace and returned to the mansion that the Emperor of Yexi had bestowed upon Han Yun.
After a long and tiring journey, Bi Xie ate a simple meal, took a shower, and then crawled into bed.
She was awakened by the howling wind outside the window in the middle of the night. She opened her eyes groggily and saw that the room was dark. She remembered that she hadn't extinguished the candle before going to bed. She turned over and asked Ru Hua, "Has the villain come by?"
As if it were a 24-hour service: "Yes, host, you came an hour ago."
Bi Xie yawned lazily: "So he went to sleep too?"
"No, the villain is sitting in the pavilion drinking," Ru Hua's heart began to run wild again, a tune playing in her ear, "Come on, have fun, there's plenty of time anyway, come on, love... ah~~ itchy... the more panicked I am, the more panicked I am, the more itchy I am, the more I scratch, the more itchy I am..."
"Stop singing!" Bi Xie sat up, rubbing her temples. "What's he doing drinking in the pavilion so late at night instead of sleeping? Can he even drink?" She remembered that Han Yun couldn't drink. Did he learn to drink after being reborn?
"Host, the villain is drunk."
She knew that Bi Xie got up, put on a black cloak, and went out. He found that it had snowed outside at some point. The white layer seemed to glow in the moonlight. His shoes made a "crunching" sound as he stepped on the snow. The boy was indeed drunk. He didn't even notice her standing outside the pavilion.
"Pounce! Pounce! Pounce!" Ru Hua shouted in her mind, encouraging her.
Bi Xie walked to the stone table and sat down. The young man's drunken, hazy eyes slowly focused on her. His snow-white face was tinged with a light red from the alcohol, and the cinnabar mole between his brows seemed to shimmer with blood, dazzling and captivating. "You...who are you?"
"You're drunk. How could you drink so much?" Bi Xie picked up the wine cup and shook it. It was empty. How much had he drunk? He had just recovered from his illness, and tonight he was caught in the wind from being drunk. He might get sick again.
"Don't... frown," a pair of hands reached out and rubbed her forehead.
Bi Xie was stunned and stared at him. She saw him suddenly purse his lips and smile as he looked at her relaxed brows. "You still look better like this," he said. He stood up unsteadily and walked towards her. He seemed to lose his balance and fell towards her. Bi Xie instinctively hugged him and wrapped his arms around her neck.
His heartbeat was like a chaotic drumbeat, thump thump thump thump.
He was faking being drunk.
Bi Xie reacted almost immediately, her heart pounding as if infected by the wind. The wind and snow outside the pavilion were slightly cool, but the boy's warm skin seeped through the fabric and touched her body, making her heart skip a beat. She cursed herself for being a beast, pushed his chest, and hurriedly stood up. "Han Yun, stop fooling around. You've drunk so much. Go back to sleep."
He hummed softly twice, then clung to her tightly, refusing to let go.
Bi Xie nearly lost his balance and fell. Seeing a group of servants carrying lanterns approaching from a distance, he quickly helped him up and, listening to his thunderous heartbeat and unsteady breathing, whispered, "I know you're pretending to be drunk. It's cold outside, let's go back to the room, okay?"
He shook his head, his soft black hair brushing against her face, causing a slight tickle. He held her neck tightly, stubbornly saying, "I'm drunk, I can't remember anything. Tell me, what's your name, okay, Ah Xie?"
Bi Xie froze, and after a long pause, he said in a daze, "You know?"
"Mmm." He buried his head in her neck and whispered, "The general wasn't as good to me as you were, and the general wouldn't have made me grasshoppers and rose rings... The general died in her previous life."
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