When Yaoying woke up, she had already returned to the inn.

It was dark, and there was no light in the house. It was pitch black. The flickering light from the corridor shone through the window into the room, accompanied by the whistling sound of the wind.

She sat up dazedly, thinking about what happened before she fell asleep, and wondered if she had been thinking about it and had a good dream.

The night wind gently hit the wooden windows, making a continuous creaking sound.

Yaoying put on her clothes, got up and opened the door.

At the end of the corridor, lights were flickering. A tall and burly man was sitting with his back to her in front of a window sill that was more than ten feet high in the air. His long legs were resting on the narrow edge, his sleeves fluttering in the wind, and he was drinking from a sheepskin wine bag in his hand.

"Brother, drink less."

Yao Ying was stunned for a moment, then said happily and walked over quickly.

Hearing the sound, Li Zhongqian immediately turned around, jumped down, stuffed the wine bag in a hurry, and reached out to help her.

"It's not wine." He helped Yao Ying stand still and pinched her face. "Brother, listen to Mingyue Nu and haven't had wine for a long time."

Ever since he woke up from his injuries and learned that she was sent away to marry, he hasn't touched a drop of alcohol since.

Yao Ying didn't believe it, so she took his hand that was holding the wine bag, unplugged it, and took a closer sniff. Sure enough, there was no smell of wine, only a sour fragrance. What he drank was sour yogurt.

She said with satisfaction: "Brother is injured, so you should drink less."

This earnest look on her face still vaguely resembles the look she had before we parted.

The cold night wind filled the corridor. A dim moon was visible against the inky black sky. Below the tall buildings was a foreign border town that was completely different from Chang'an. Towers, domes, bunkers and earthen buildings stood tall, and there were Buddhist temples everywhere. Sand and rocks were flying day and night, and mud was falling off the walls of the houses. Looking down from the tall building of the post station, one could see the tents set up by envoys and caravans from various countries on the plain.

The eating habits, clothing and accessories are completely different from those in the Central Plains.

She was stranded in such a remote place and suffered a lot.

Li Zhongqian lowered his eyes, his grief and sorrow were all in his eyes. He raised the corners of his mouth slightly, smiled and patted Yao Ying's head: "Housekeeper."

Yao Ying shuddered.

Li Zhongqian was startled, took off his cloak and put it on her shoulders, took her back to the house, and said hurriedly: "You are sick, don't get up, go back and lie down."

Yao Ying was delighted. She hugged his arm and rubbed her slightly hot forehead against his arm.

"I'm fine. I'll be fine after taking the medicine."

Li Zhongqian didn't say a word. She had been in a coma for almost a whole day. He invited all the doctors in the city to come over, and watched his personal soldiers boil the medicine and feed it to her. After a busy day, he met all the personal soldiers and asked her all the questions he wanted to ask before she woke up.

He was heartbroken but couldn't bear to wake her up. His guards said she hadn't slept for several nights.

Back in the house, Yaoying took off her shoes and got on the bed, refusing to go to sleep. She still looked a little haggard, but now she was in a good mood, full of energy, with a pair of bright eyes, and she insisted on sitting and talking to Li Zhongqian.

Li Zhongqian was helpless. He pulled a thin blanket to wrap her up, asked the accompanying doctor to come and check her pulse, and went to the kitchen to get some hot soup, hot cakes, and fried meatballs with mixed vegetables, and urged her to eat them.

Yao Ying had a great appetite and ate the soup cakes and fried meatballs. She sat cross-legged on the couch with a happy expression. But then she remembered something and a look of worry flashed across her face. She insisted that the doctor also examine Li Zhongqian's pulse.

"Brother, how are your injuries? Have you incurred new injuries in the past few days?"

Li Zhongqian shook his head: "Don't worry, I am a martial artist, these are just superficial injuries, I am much better now."

Yao Ying stared at the doctor without blinking.

The doctor checked Li Zhongqian's pulse, smiled and shook his head at her, indicating that nothing serious was wrong.

Yao Ying's heart finally settled down and she breathed a sigh of relief. After the doctor left, her eyes fell on the scar between Li Zhongqian's eyebrows.

"Brother, why are you with those horse thieves?"

Li Zhongqian said casually: "A group of horse thieves and rebels occupied Wuquan and blocked my way. I waited for several days and was anxious to see you. I killed their leader and they followed me. I was too lazy to pay attention to them and just followed them."

After knowing where Li Yaoying was, he was afraid that she would get into trouble on the way to find him. He wished he could grow wings and rush to the royal court overnight, telling her to wait for him, and to be cautious along the way, not caring about anything else, just hurrying on. It happened that the Northern Rong was in chaos, and there were rebels everywhere. For safety reasons, he had to avoid the prosperous towns and take a detour to Sand City. After finally rushing to Wuquan, he was so impatient that he couldn't wait, but Wuquan was occupied by the rebels and horse thieves. The two sides were deadlocked, cut off from each other, and no one could leave.

Li Zhongqian did not want to be impatient, and patiently waited for a few days to find the right opportunity. However, the bandits and the rebels lingered and refused to leave. He was afraid that Li Yaoying would be anxious, so he risked killing the bandits and the rebel leaders in anger. The two sides were in chaos, and he took advantage of the chaos to steal a horse and headed straight for Shacheng.

The group of horse thieves lost their leader and were leaderless. One of them chased him relentlessly, nominated him as the new leader, and swore allegiance to him.

He just wanted to be reunited with Li Yaoying. He ignored everything else, refused to eat or drink, and just rode away on his horse.

The thief Ma was following behind him. When he saw Li Yaoying and his companions, he was overjoyed and shouted that he wanted to rob them to please him.

Li Zhongqian was determined to go to Shacheng and didn't want to meddle in other people's business, so he hurried on his way. He inadvertently glanced at the hill and saw the Han soldiers. His heart skipped a beat. Then he saw the flying flags and immediately realized that Li Yaoying had come out of the city to find him.

Thinking of this, Li Zhongqian's face darkened, and he looked at Yao Ying with a gloomy and stern look: "Didn't I tell you to wait in the royal court? It's so chaotic outside, why did you leave the city?"

Yao Ying had never been afraid of him. She said, "I'm afraid something might happen to you. Wuquan is not far away. I brought several hundred people with me. We can go back and forth within a day. Nothing serious will happen."

Li Zhongqian frowned, "What if you run into Haidu Aling? The Northern Rong are in such a mess. The old Khan and several princes are fleeing under the pursuit of the royal army. Only Haidu Aling is away from the battlefield with his elite troops. He may appear at any time."

He had heard from Yang Qian and the others that Haidu Aling was determined to get her.

Yao Ying shook her head: "Brother, Haidu A Ling will never appear near Sand City. I am absolutely sure of this, so I dare to leave the city."

Li Zhongqian's expression softened a little, "Don't take risks next time. Wait for my brother."

And... don't sacrifice yourself for him anymore. He is in a daze, wantonly indulgent, asking for nothing else but that she live a peaceful and happy life.

Yao Ying hummed, hugged her knees with her hands, rested her chin on them, and stared at Li Zhongqian who was sitting on the edge of the couch with a smile, as if she couldn't see enough.

Li Zhongqian's throat choked.

He had thought that once he found her, he would give her a good scolding and make her swear never to do such a stupid thing again. No matter if she cried or acted coquettishly, he would never show mercy.

But now that he had really found her, and regained her after having lost her, his heart was filled with pity and love, and he was afraid that she would suffer any injustice again. How could he have the heart to criticize her?

Li Zhongqian sighed, closed his eyes, and glanced at Yaoying's dark circles under her eyes.

"Be good, go to sleep. Brother won't leave. He will stay here with you."

Yaoying hummed softly and sat still.

"Brother."

She called him softly, with a smile on her face.

"Um?"

Li Zhongqian responded with a smile, his expression gentle.

Yao Ying said, "Brother, you have lost a lot of weight. You need to eat more."

"Um."

"Has your martial arts recovered?"

Li Zhongqian said calmly: "There is more than one kind of martial arts in this world. Without the golden hammer, you can practice something else..."

He could have given up martial arts to pursue literature, and then given up literature to pursue martial arts, and was not afraid to start over again. Although the martial arts he had practiced for many years were wasted, his basics were still there. He knew that he would never be able to pick up the double hammers again in his lifetime, and he had already decisively switched to a sword.

"...Mingyue Nu, don't worry about me."

Yao Ying responded and asked curiously: "Brother, when you were in the Northern Rong, how did you provoke the Wakhan Khan and the eldest prince? You almost shot the old Khan to death with an arrow? You were injured, how did you heal it, and did you really not have any internal injuries?"

She looked at Li Zhongqian and asked him a series of questions, just like she did every time he returned from the war when he was a child.

It was as if she had never suffered.

Li Zhongqian lowered his eyes and touched her hair. "The day I found Yizhou, Princess Yiqing detained us..."

The wind was howling outside and the lights inside were dim.

Li Zhongqian lowered his tone and recounted his experiences after leaving Beijing. All the thrills and dangers he had experienced were nothing more than insignificant matters when he thought about them now.

Yaoying listened, letting out a soft cry from time to time, and a look of nervousness and worry flashed across her face.

I don't know how long it was before the candle wick crackled twice and a wisp of green smoke rose up.

Li Zhongqian lowered his head.

Yao Ying curled up into a small ball, leaned against him, and fell asleep with a silk sac in her arms.

Just the same as when I was a kid.

He raised her single-handedly, and no matter how old she was, in his eyes, she would always be a child.

"Ming Yue Nu..." He stroked her head with his fingers, "Were you afraid when you were sent to the Yelu tribe?"

Yao Ying was drowsy and said, "I'm a little scared."

Li Zhongqian slowly closed his eyes.

He heard everything from Tali during the time he was recuperating in Beirong.

Yaoying said she was just a little scared.

Tali said she couldn't sleep all night, holding the knife in her hand.

"Does the eldest prince scare you every day?"

Yao Ying said in a daze: "Brother, it's okay, I have personal soldiers to protect me, he won't dare to do anything rash."

What Tallie said was that the eldest prince was so reckless that he dragged a slave girl into his tent and raped her in broad daylight, and the sound could be heard throughout the camp. He deliberately broke into her tent several times while drunk, and once even touched the hem of her skirt.

"Did you suffer a lot on the way to Yelubu?"

Yao Ying subconsciously denied: "No..."

Tali told him that she was not used to riding a horse on the dangerous mountain trails. Her legs were bleeding and she was in so much pain that she couldn't move when she got off the horse. She needed the help of two maids to stand steadily.

"Haitu A Ling tortured you?"

Yao Ying shook her head, "Brother, I'm fine... He locked me up, and I wanted to find a way to escape..."

Tallie: "The prince was polite at first, but the princess was unmoved. So the prince asked her to brand the horses... Every spring, the foals in the tribe are branded to distinguish which tribe's property they belong to. The herdsmen round up all the horses, and the warriors with the best riding skills and the most experience in the tribe brand the foals..."

"When the red-hot iron is branded on a horse, the horse will definitely struggle and it is easy to kick and hurt people, so the job of branding horses is done by men. The prince asked the princess to brand the horses to scare her, so the princess rolled up her sleeves and went. Every day, the horse's screaming was heard, and the princess's hands were covered with burns, purple bruises, etc...."

"Later, the horse branding was over, but the princess still refused to give in. The prince was very angry and did not allow her to ride a horse with the army. He made her walk with the slaves. The princess' shoes were worn out and the soles of her feet were rotten..."

"The guards didn't give the princess any food. She was very hungry, so she dug grass roots with the slaves to eat... Every time she found something edible, she would be very happy and try to hide some on her body..."

"The prince has no patience for women. He keeps the ones he likes in his tent and gives the ones he doesn't like to his subordinates. The princess has always refused to give in... and even tried to escape..."

Li Zhongqian remembered clearly every word and every sentence that Tali said.

Countless nights, he saw her in his dreams.

I dreamed that she was sitting on a horse and wiping her tears.

I dreamed that she was curled up in the corner of the tent and shivering.

I dreamed that she was disheveled and squatting on the wasteland digging grass roots with a group of slaves.

I dreamed that her hands were tied and she was tied to the back of the team, with blood all over her feet.

In her dream, she was bullied in every way and cried to him: Brother, I'm scared.

Every time he woke up, Li Zhongqian felt more painful than the self in the dream who witnessed her suffering, because he knew that what Tari told him had happened.

Yaoying has been sensible and well-behaved since she was a child. She has never done anything bad and has saved countless people, but she has to go through these hardships.

Li De and Li Xuanzhen were unhappy when Tang died of leukemia. They knew that the knot in their hearts was hard to untie and they could give up everything and just live in seclusion with their mother and sister, but Li De refused to let them go.

If he had known this would happen, he should have died together with his father and son when he was eleven years old and ended everything.

Only by killing Li De and Li Xuanzhen can she avoid being drawn into the vortex again.

Li Zhongqian opened his eyes. In the dark night, his pupils shone with a cold, cruel and vicious light.

He pulled up the thin blanket and wrapped it around Yaoying, who was sleeping on her side, and stuffed a pillow under her neck so that she could sleep more comfortably.

Yaoying's eyelashes trembled slightly, she raised her eyes, half asleep and half awake, and clutched Li Zhongqian's sleeve.

"Brother...I later met a man..."

Li Zhongqian leaned forward and asked, "Who is it?"

"A very good person..." Yao Ying said softly, "He is a monk and he is very kind to me."

Li Zhongqian hummed lightly.

The monk she was talking about was undoubtedly Wang Ting's Buddhist disciple.

In the Northern Rong, he could not understand the language of the Hu people, but it was different in Gaochang. There were many Han people there, and he heard too many rumors. When the Hu merchants gathered together to talk about everything, they liked to talk about the story of the Buddhist son and the Han princess. Their words were erotic, vulgar, and they described Yao Ying as a shameless and dissolute person. He endured it again and again, but several times he couldn't help it and overturned the table to knock the nonsense talker to the ground with a punch, which caused trouble.

Later, when he heard merchants talking about Buddhist disciples, he would avoid them to avoid losing control and hurting others, thus delaying his journey.

Today he asked his personal soldiers, and they all said that Fuzi took good care of Yaoying, and that Fuzi was a high-level monk who was not interested in women and had no disrespect towards Yaoying. He was relieved.

Monks are different after all.

"Brother... the Master will be very happy for me if he knows that I found you..."

Yao Ying's voice was hoarse. "Let's go to the Holy City to meet him, okay?"

"Okay, since the Buddha saved you, it is reasonable for you to thank him in person."

A slight smile appeared on Li Zhongqian's face.

Then, he can take Mingyuenu home.

Li Zhongqian covered Yao Ying with a thin blanket and tucked her arms under the blanket. Her fingers touched a hard object that looked like a string of Buddhist beads.

Without thinking much, he stood up and went to sleep on the couch in the compartment.

…

The next morning, Li Zhongqian woke up first.

He had been running around outside for so long that he had developed a habit of waking up at the slightest noise. He would quickly put on his clothes and get up, then go to the cubicle to see Li Yaoying first.

She was sleeping soundly with her brows relaxed.

Li Zhongqian pulled up the blanket, walked out of the house, went downstairs, frowned and asked his personal guard: "What's the noise outside?"

The guard replied, "Ah Lang, all the horse thieves who were traveling with you have surrendered... They are clamoring to see you."

When the horse thieves saw Li Zhongqian returning to the city with Yao Ying, they immediately laid down their weapons and surrendered, followed them into the city, and could not be chased away.

Li Zhongqian said coldly: "If anyone comes to bother you, don't be polite, just beat them away."

The personal soldiers should be.

…

Yao Ying hadn't been able to sleep for several nights, but she slept soundly that night and didn't wake up until noon. She opened the door and saw Li Zhongqian practicing sword in the courtyard downstairs, with a smile on his face.

Thinking of the pair of golden hammers he had used since childhood, the smile on her face faded a little.

When she was a child, Li Zhongqian was practicing hammering. She watched from the side and became curious and wanted to try it. Li Zhongqian lifted a golden hammer and handed it to her. She reached out to take it, but fell face first with a thud.

The hammer was so heavy that she couldn't lift it with both hands.

Li Zhongqian laughed out loud, and later had someone make her a pair of cloth hammers stuffed with valley shells. She lost interest in playing with them after a few days and used them to scratch her itch.

His hammer was gone.

Yaoying was distracted for a while.

The personal soldiers came to report that more and more people were gathering outside the gate. In addition to those horse thieves, there were also a large number of refugees who entered the city in the past few days.

"They recognize Ah Lang and want to follow Ah Lang."

It turned out that Li Zhongqian had killed several bandit leaders and bullies who took advantage of the chaos along the way. He was a brave and valiant man who rode away from the enemy. The refugees remembered the scar between his eyebrows. He was silent every day and wore tattered clothes. The refugees did not know his identity. When they heard from the horse thieves that he knew the Western Army, they believed that he must be an important figure and rushed to join him.

These refugees were not from the royal court, and the royal court allowed them to enter the city to avoid disaster. Afterwards, they returned to their original tribes, hoping that Li Zhongqian would take them back to kill them.

Yao Ying rolled her eyes, waited for Li Zhongqian to finish practicing sword, brought him a cup of tea, and said, "Brother, when this is over, we will meet up with Ah Qing. Ah Qing will have a lot to ask you."

Li Zhongqian wiped his sweat and said, "Let's talk about it later. The Northern Rong are in chaos now. It's a good time for us to return to the Central Plains. After meeting the Buddhist disciple, we will set off immediately."

Yao Ying was stunned: "Brother, we can't go back to the Central Plains now."

Li Zhongqian's eyebrows knitted together.

"What did you say?"

Yao Ying said seriously: "Brother, I am the leader of the Western Army now. I can't abandon the Western Army."

Li Zhongqian frowned and said, "These things should not be borne by you. How can you shoulder the heavy burden of the Western Army? Brother will take you back."

Yao Ying said seriously, "Brother, I have already taken on this responsibility. Since I started it, I must fulfill my promise and responsibility. I can't just ignore it... Besides, the Xie family has no soldiers left. If you and I go back like this, won't we be at the mercy of others? We can't just go back like this."

Li Zhongqian's eyebrows jumped: "Where is the Western Army now? You are alone in the royal court, Yang Qian is in Gaochang, and the troops in Guazhou and Shazhou are even farther away."

Yao Ying shook her head, "Brother, the Western Army is not with me now because they are where they should be."

She picked up Li Zhongqian's scabbard and drew several lines on the ground.

"In the east, Li Xuanzhen led his troops to intercept the reinforcements from the Northern Rong. In the west, Yang Qian guarded Gaochang."

"Ah Qing is guarding a more important place for me..."

"The royal army is pursuing Wakhan Khan and his remnants, and the Northern Rong are too busy to take care of themselves..."

The scabbard in Yao Ying's hand drew a big circle on the sand, marking out a large area of ​​land.

"Brother, now is not the best time for us to return to the Central Plains, but it is a great opportunity for us to regain our lost territory!"

"These places will be filled with the flags of the Western Army."

She spoke softly, her tone even.

Several beams of sunlight poured down and enveloped her. Amid the brilliant golden light, she looked calm, and it was obvious that she was used to planning these things.

Li Zhongqian stared at her in silence, his palms numb.

He was afraid that she would look like his mother.

Now he realized that he was more afraid that she looked like his uncle.