3.

As October approached, the weather grew colder, and the lanterns on the eaves seemed like flowers blooming in the sky. The clear pool water reflected the bright moon, and the gentle breeze stirred, causing ripples on the surface.

The Fourth Prince, Qin Qi, lived in a palace behind the pool, which was the residence of his late mother. When Ye Xiao, dressed in a black tight suit, entered the palace, she seemed out of place among the gentle and tranquil atmosphere. Her murderous aura scattered the peaceful mood, and even the fragrance of the osmanthus flowers in the air became chilly. Qin Qi was leaning on the pavilion, eating grapes, and jumped up excitedly when he saw her.

"You must be Ye Xiao? I've heard about your stories; you're very skilled."

Her face was cold as she threw a sword towards him, making him stumble back. "Pick up the sword and fight with me."

Qin Qi looked at her in disbelief, "Just like that? I don't know anything; you should teach me some moves."

She tightened her sleeves and tied her long black hair with a white jade hairpin, her expression growing even colder. Years of military training had made her voice lose its gentleness, taking on a slight hoarseness.

"Moves aren't taught. When you're fighting for your life and you use all means to escape from the enemy's sword, you'll naturally know how to wield it well."

Before her words finished echoing, she had already lunged forward with the sword, causing Qin Qi to scream and retreat in panic, knocking over tables in the pavilion, with cries of distress filling the air.

When the emperor arrived, Qin Qi's face was already a swollen mess, and he couldn't stop crying when he saw his father. Qin Qi was the only child of the emperor's most beloved concubine, and the emperor doted on him dearly. Seeing his son beaten up so badly, the emperor's heart ached.

The person in question, however, sat nonchalantly on the pavilion railing, eating grapes. It was he who had asked her to stay and teach Qin Qi, and now he didn't know what to say. He could only hint, "My minister, Qin Qi is only fifteen. Your usual training methods may not be suitable for him."

Qin Qi nodded repeatedly.

She jumped down from the railing, "I was already fighting on the battlefield when I was fifteen."

...

Who could compare to you? You are the Grim Reaper—Ye the Butcher. Just saying your name can scare children to tears. My beloved son is here to learn martial arts to protect his life, and now he's almost being beaten to death by you.

The emperor was filled with regret on the spot. The following day, an imperial edict was sent to the Song residence, summoning Song Lanting to the palace. It was stated that the Fourth Prince could not only learn martial arts but also needed to study literature, and he was ordered to teach the Fourth Prince along with Ye Xiao.

Song Lanting hobbled into the palace with his body almost crippled by Ye Xiao, and everyone felt sorry for him.

The emperor had thought, "I'll put Song Lanting by your side, you can beat him up, leave my son alone."

The weather in October was unpredictable, and the fine rain came down without warning, dripping onto the white bamboo umbrella. Song Lanting's face still bore the marks of injury, and his mouth was still adorned with his usual smile. In the misty rain, his refined demeanor was like an immortal descending from heaven. Meanwhile, Ye Xiao stood silently in black attire, her hair drenched by the rain, yet her murderous aura was even more pronounced. The two stood facing each other, one like an immortal, the other like a demon from hell.

Qin Qi stood between them, almost in tears.

"Pick up your sword and come fight with me."

"Today, do you want to study the 'Four Books' or the 'Five Classics'? Do you still remember the 'Analects' from last time?"

"If you can't even touch my clothes, stand in horse stance for two hours."

"If you still can't recite yesterday's text, you won't be allowed to eat dinner."

In the breeze, clusters of wood chrysanthemums were hidden among the rain-soaked lotus leaves, and red carp leapt from the water only to disappear among the leaves again. The surrounding area was like a dream, beautiful and serene.

Suddenly, someone shouted loudly, "Help! The Fourth Prince has jumped into the lake."

The emperor, looking at his son who was coughing and sneezing from his illness on the bed, regretted with a thumping heart why he had provoked this nightmare. Meanwhile, Ye Xiao left as if nothing had happened.

Song Lanting came out to call after Ye Xiao.

She turned around, and a branch of wood chrysanthemum poked out from her shoulder, the flower blooming right beside her ear. In the darkness, her usually cold face softened, and her black clothes and hair blended into the night, reflected in his eyes.

"Is there something?" Her voice was still impatient, but it was much more restrained than usual.

Song Lanting approached with his hands behind his back, "The lady asked about you today. She misses you and wonders if you can come to the Song residence tomorrow."

Ye Xiao tilted her head, recalling the gentle woman from her memories. Back then, she had mistakenly eaten a poisonous fruit on the border, which damaged her heart meridians and caused a serious illness. After returning to the capital, the imperial physicians helped to expel the poison, but her body was very weak. Fortunately, Madam Song, from a hidden family, had a hot spring in her garden and, upon hearing of this, offered to take her in. Using the spring to boil medicine, she warmed and nourished her body, and she recovered completely.

Ye Xiao, born and raised in the borderlands, where the wind and sand wreak havoc, had never experienced the gentleness of the capital before. She realized that women could also be gentle and elegant. However, since childhood, her parents had taught her that, as a girl, she must never lose her dignity, so she had no connection to any words that described women. She only needed to be a good general.

At that time, Song Lanting was always by her side, speaking with the maturity of a young man, "You are just too strange. Besides your long hair, you don't have a single bit of a girl's demeanor."

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

With her still weak body after recovering from a serious illness, she beat him half to death and then stepped on him, "You are just too weak."

He clawed and roared, "A gentleman speaks and does not use his hands! You are barbaric! A bandit!"

And she kicked him again, knocking him unconscious.

Madam Song worried for a long time, and Ye Xiao felt a bit guilty, preparing to apologize. Outside the door, she heard Madam Song telling Song Lanting, "Though Xiao-You hit you, you must not hold a grudge against her. Without the Ye family guarding the border, you would not be able to live a happy and peaceful life in this prosperous capital."

Song Lanting seemed a bit dissatisfied, "But she isn't, she is even younger than me!"

Ye Xiao heard Madam Song sigh, "Xiao-You will become a person like her parents in the future, dedicating her life to protecting the homeland. The children of the Ye family will all become heroes." At that time, she was still called Ye Xiao.

After that, Song Lanting looked at her with a different gaze, probably intimidated by the grand word "hero." The young nobles of the capital didn't know Ye Xiao's identity, and seeing Song Lanting often bring her out on the streets, rumors spread that the Song family had adopted a young wife.

Song Lanting first tried to explain, but later just let them say what they wanted. Ye Xiao didn't mind it, often sitting in the courtyard polishing her long spear, silent and solitary, often going her own way.

Song Lanting disliked her proud demeanor and often purposely tried to provoke her.

"You are already ugly, and you don't even like to smile. If you keep this up, no one will dare to marry you in the future."

She was indeed angered, and like a tiger, she pounced on him, pressing him directly into the hot spring and threatening him with his collar, "Do you still dare to say that?"

He continued to roar fearlessly, "Barbarian, no one will marry you!"

As a result, he almost drowned in the hot spring.

Ye Xiao thought that her days of recuperation in the capital would be boring, but she didn't expect to have Song Lanting as a mischievous companion. However, no matter how badly he was bullied, he would still enjoy provoking her.

But she would eventually return to the Yanmen Pass.

On the day she left, Song Lanting stayed inside, and only his attendant came running with a string of firecrackers, muttering, "I asked the young master if he wanted to come see you off, but he said to send you off with these firecrackers."

She left amidst the crackling of firecrackers, feeling an unexplainable annoyance.

Ye Xiao thought she would never have any contact with Song Lanting again in her life, but she received a letter from him a month after returning to the Yanmen Pass. The first sentence of the letter read, "This carrier pigeon took a lot of effort to raise. From now on, all our messages will rely on it. Please don't roast and eat it!"

She burst out laughing immediately.

At fifteen, she received an adult gift from Song Lanting, a pair of bells. Since soldiers couldn't wear jewelry, she strung the bells together with a red rope and hung them carefully around her neck.

What happened after that?

After that, in the battle at the Yanmen Pass, the Ye family was almost wiped out. In a crisis, she was entrusted with the mission, put away all her daughterly thoughts, and reorganized the army with her iron-fisted methods, changing her name to Ye Xiao and vowing to become a hero.

Not long after, a soldier reported that they had captured a suspicious person outside the city who claimed to be from the capital. When they brought the person up, she saw Song Lanting, unkempt and disheveled, after several years.

Ye Xiao was momentarily lost in thought.

He had rushed over the moment he received the news from the Ye family, enduring countless hardships along the way. Seeing her standing in front of him, safe and sound, he managed a smile that was even more pitiful than a cry.

Her eyes were cold with anger as she barked, "Ridiculous! Chen, lead three hundred iron-clad riders to escort him back to the capital and make sure he reaches the Song residence before you return to report!"

Song Lanting looked at her, taking her slightly trembling hand, "Ye, you must be exhausted."

After the family suffered such a disaster, she had not shed a single tear. Now, with his warm hand holding hers, the strength she had been forcing herself to maintain was about to crumble. But she was Ye Xiao, no longer the Ye You of old. How could she be weak? How could she cry?

Song Lanting stayed with her at the Yanmen Pass for three days before she had him bound and sent back. Before leaving, he said to her, "Ye, you still have a home. Your mother misses you so much."

Standing on the tall city wall, the wind and snow whipped her long hair, and her figure was as straight as a rod. So frail yet she had to bear the weight of an unimaginable responsibility.

After that, she never received another letter from Song Lanting. The returning officers reported that Song Lanting was engaged to Pei Yan, the daughter of the Prime Minister Pei Zhong. She clenched the map in her hand, then relaxed it, continuing to study military intelligence.

It was for the best.

Three years later, news of Pei Zhong's treasonous dealings reached her. Remembering the family who had died in battle and the soldiers slaughtered by the Western Rong tribe, she rode thousands of miles, leading an assault on the capital, and personally beheaded Pei Zhong. She never expected Song Lanting would plead for Pei Yan's life.

As his fiancée, even if he could no longer marry her, he still wanted to protect her safety. He said Pei Yan was innocent, but what about the innocence of his family?

She would never let any member of the Pei family go, even if it meant defying the emperor's command. She caught up with the exiled convoy and killed Pei Yan with her own hands, the blood flowing down the long spear and onto her palm, feeling a bit warm.

On the day she left, Song Lanting rushed over like a madman and slapped her. This time, she did not retaliate. She looked at him indifferently, mounted her horse, and from then on, they were strangers.

"It's fine if you don't want to."

Song Lanting was still waiting for Ye Xiao's answer. In the darkness, his face was unseen, but he was no longer the Song Lanting he once was, the one who would say, "I'll be with you."

Ye Xiao frowned, memories flooding back, almost making her unsteady on her feet. How many years had it been? She was about to forget that there was still a warmth in her heart that only this person could touch.

Under the moonlight, countless flowers bloomed. She abruptly removed her armor, her figure thin and desolate: "Song Lanting, how do you see me now? Do you wish I had never come back, that I had died on the battlefield?"

Her voice trembled slightly as it reached Song Lanting's ears. The footsteps behind her paused slightly, and he coldly looked at her before finally turning his gaze to her.

"You should have guessed how much I hate you when you drove the long spear into Yan's heart."

Ye Xiao was momentarily stunned, but she burst into laughter the next moment, her laughter devoid of any emotion, as if the person who had asked that question wasn't her. She was the feared general, Ye Xiao, how could she be weak because of anyone?

She approached him, her laughter wild.

"My greatest regret is not killing Pei Yan in front of you."

...

The next day at court, the spies reported that a portion of the Northern Di tribe's army was stirring, seeming to be planning something. Ye Xiao requested permission to lead the troops, which the emperor granted.

She left with her three thousand iron-clad riders, arriving in the snow and leaving with the evening glow of the sun.

A fortnight later, the court received an urgent report from the border. The Northern Di tribe took advantage of a blizzard to launch a surprise attack on the Yanmen Pass. Ye Xiao led the troops to meet the attack, having already repelled the invading army, but for some unknown reason, she returned to the city alone and was surrounded by the remaining forces of the Northern Di tribe. When the vanguard arrived, she was severely injured and unconscious. The doctors in the Yanmen Pass were helpless, and they requested the emperor to send imperial physicians.

Everyone was speculating why she had returned, and after some inquiries, they found out that she seemed to be looking for something.

The emperor ordered three imperial physicians to travel immediately to the Yanmen Pass, making sure to save Ye Xiao's life.

While the nation was concerned about Ye Xiao's condition, a poisoning incident occurred in the palace, targeting the emperor's beloved son, the Fourth Prince Qin Qi. The emperor was enraged, but after an investigation, they executed a maid but found no further leads.