Pei Wenyan’s palm suddenly became sweaty, and she tried to flatten her tone. “Young Master Xie is joking. Pei San has had no interaction with Young Master Xie before, so how could there be any offense?”

Xie Chi nodded and said, “I misunderstood Miss Pei San.”

As he walked over, the embroidered golden thread on his knee-length robe swayed gently with his movements.

A jade ring hung from his belt, and under the interplay of sunlight and snow, there was a unique youthful aura on his face, far from the dark and fierce appearance in her dreams.

But Pei Wenyan still subconsciously wanted to avoid his gaze.

After dreaming about miraculous coincidences with reality, facing this young lord, who was nicknamed the Little Wolf King, made her feel somewhat strange.

A delicately embroidered sachet appeared in front of her.

The hand holding the sachet was slender and thin, with prominent knuckles due to years of martial arts training.

Xie Chi’s voice sounded lazy. “Miss Pei San’s sachet was left in the warm pavilion. If something is lost in my Xie Mansion, it’s our fault if it causes any inconvenience to Miss Pei San.”

He reached out his hand. “Return the item to its rightful owner.”

Pei Wenyan looked down and indeed saw her sachet hanging from her waist.

She reached out to take it. “It must have fallen when I left earlier. Thank you, Young Master Xie.”

As she was about to retract her hand after taking back the sachet, Xie Chi, who was still holding the sachet’s strap, didn’t let go.

He tilted his head and looked at Pei Wenyan for a while before his gaze fell on the strap. “This strap is quite unique.”

Pei Wenyan didn’t know whether to continue holding onto the sachet or let go.

With a bit of hesitation, she said, “It’s just a common design. If Young Master Xie likes it, I can teach the maids in the mansion when I come with Miss Qin next time.”

The strap was sewn onto the sachet.

If she were to give away just the strap, she would have to give away the sachet as well.

As an unmarried man and woman, giving away a sachet or anything similar sounded inappropriate.

Xie Chi looked at the woman in front of him, who lowered her head and spoke softly, not knowing what she was thinking. He finally let go of the strap and said, “Alright.”

Just as Pei Wenyan had just taken back the sachet, Xie Huan led Qin Sheng from the direction of the Flower Gate, followed by two maids holding makeup and silk fabrics.

Xie Huan was somewhat surprised to see the two of them standing here. “Is my younger brother seeing Miss Pei off from the mansion?”

Xie Chi didn’t mention the sachet incident, only saying, “It’s just a gesture of hospitality.”

Since he didn’t bring it up, Pei Wenyan naturally wouldn’t mention it either.

Xie Huan, who knew Xie Chi’s temperament well, looked at him strangely and glanced at him, even Qin Sheng noticed that something was amiss.

Her black eyes rolled between him and Pei Wenyan.

Once Qin Sheng and Pei Wenyan were on the carriage, Xie Huan hinted at something. “Although Miss Pei San comes from a martial family, she is ultimately a young lady. You should tone down your temper a bit in front of her.”

Xie Chi knew that his brother had probably misunderstood something, but he didn’t explain.

Instead, he expressed some confusion. “Brother, why is it that with some people, even though you’ve never met them before, you feel like you know them as soon as you see them?”

This included the scent she carried.

Before he found that sachet, Xie Chi had never smelled such a fragrance.

But after smelling it, he felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

When he returned the sachet, he subconsciously wanted to ask what scent was inside.

However, it wasn’t appropriate to ask such a question to a young lady, so he changed course and praised the strap’s appearance.

The response he received was more cautious than he had expected.

Rather than saying she would make new straps for him, she said she would teach the maids of the mansion how to make them next time she visited with Qin Sheng.

Even if he were to use those straps in the future, it had nothing to do with her.

Moreover… the next visit was indefinitely postponed.

This excuse was too obvious.

His initial feeling was not wrong.

She was indeed avoiding him and didn’t want to have any interaction with him.

Xie Huan heard Xie Chi’s question, smiled meaningfully, patted his shoulder, and returned to the mansion.

Xie Chi watched his brother’s back and frowned.

He knew that his words had been somewhat ambiguous, but when he first saw Miss Pei San, he did indeed feel a sense of deja vu.

On the carriage, Qin Sheng had been unconsciously holding onto the sachet at Pei Wenyan’s waist since she left Xie Mansion, feeling worried. “Wenyan, did the young lord make things difficult for you?”

Pei Wenyan’s expression was slightly startled, but she shook her head immediately. “Not at all.”

Qin Sheng breathed a sigh of relief and spoke gently. “The young lord’s temperament is not as good as the elder brother’s, but as long as you don’t touch his sore spots, most of the time, he should still be reasonable.”

This remark somehow struck Pei Wenyan’s funny bone, and she couldn’t help but suppress a smile.

She murmured softly, “So he was like this even when he was young.”

Qin Sheng didn’t catch what she said and asked, “What?”

Pei Wenyan opened a small slit in the thick curtain and looked at the swirling snow outside. “I said, this war, I don’t know when it will end.”

As soon as the topic of war arose, Qin Sheng’s worry on his face intensified. “From Bianjing to the south is the Jianghuai region.

Regardless of whether Bianjing is at war or not, Jianghuai will be in danger.

My mother and siblings are still in Jianghuai. If I had martial arts skills like Ah Zhao, I would just want to rush back to Jianghuai.”

Pei Wenyan looked at the delicate yet resilient woman sitting across from her, and through her, it wasn’t difficult to imagine how her famous sister, renowned for her beauty, was like.

But that beauty wasn’t the only thing her sister possessed; she also held the most precious power in this chaotic world, and was revered by the people.

Before that princess consort, the highest praise any woman in this world could receive, regardless of her position, was simply being virtuous and gentle.

But she, she managed to garner the same admiration that was usually reserved for men.

Pei Wenyan even felt that it was precisely because that princess consort stood high and shone brightly that many ambitious girls like Lin Zhao also emerged in this chaotic world, making a name for themselves.

Wasn’t she herself walking down this path for the same reason?

She spoke slowly, “For this realm to find peace, it not only requires brave generals on the battlefield but also wise ministers to toil day and night.

The Crown Prince led the army to conquer this realm, but in governing it, it is the Crown Princess who assists him.”

“Asheng, the Crown Princess Consort is not only your elder sister but also the one who founded the Women’s Army and made the virtuous and capable ministers willingly serve under her. You don’t need to worry too much.”

Qingzhou.

From the moment Wang Biao returned with the message, the atmosphere above Qingzhou City seemed to freeze.

Wang Biao and his entourage returned to the city at dusk.

After Qin Zheng ordered someone to settle them in, she immediately summoned all the ministers of Qingzhou to discuss countermeasures against the enemy.

“More than hundred thousand troops from the Northern Barbarian are about to pass through Liangzhou, cross Bianjing, and enter the heartland of Great Chu.

It will take His Highness at least half a month to return the troops to Jianghuai. Do you have any plans?” Qin Zheng asked the ministers seated below from her main seat.

When she first learned about the attack on Beiting and that someone in the Women’s Army had been injured, she was still in a state of panic and grief.

But now, facing civil and military officials, she remained calm and composed.

However, the ministers below were shocked upon hearing that more than ten thousand troops from Northern Barbarian were about to invade.

“More than hundred thousand troops?” one trembling minister counted in a low voice. “Jianghuai now has thirty thousand troops stationed, and there are another twenty thousand in the southern region.

But recalling those twenty thousand troops from the south may not be feasible.

With only thirty thousand troops, how can we face more than ten thousand troops from Northern Barbarian?”

Immediately, another minister continued, “Bianjing has more than fifty thousand troops under Shen Yanzhi and Li Zhong.

If Northern Barbarian wants to head south, they must first take Bianjing.

If the thirty thousand troops from Jianghuai join forces with Bianjing, they should be able to resist for a while.”

“Will Shen Yanzhi and Li Zhong cooperate with us?” a more radical minister sneered. “Don’t forget, the tragedy of the Pei family in Liangzhou was caused by the collaboration between the Li family and the Northern Barbarian! Li Zhong was previously defeated and could only flee to Bianjing seeking refuge under Shen Yanzhi. It’s evident that those two are birds of a same feather!”

This statement made the other ministers even more apprehensive. “If Bianjing’s fifty thousand troops are also used by Northern Barbarian, can we still hold on to Jianghuai?”

Qin Zheng looked at the timid minister and spoke firmly and sharply, “Minister Hu, that is the worst-case scenario.

Bianjing has not yet made a decision.

Even if it comes to that, General Wang has already gone to Leizhou to report the situation.

If Jianghuai is in danger, the Xie family’s army from Leizhou will come to our aid.

As long as Jianghuai holds out and delays until His Highness brings the troops south, victory is not entirely impossible.”

Lu Ze had been frowning and contemplating since he learned about Northern Barbarian’s detour southward.

It was only at this moment that he spoke up, “What Her Highness the Crown Princess Consort said is correct.

The Northern Barbarian troops excel in cavalry and are best at charging across plains.

From Bianjing to Jianghuai, there are many mountains, hills, rivers, and lakes. We can take advantage of the terrain to trap the Northern Barbarian army in the mountains and waterways.”

Apart from Cen Daoxi, Lu Ze was one of the two most trusted strategists under Chu Chengji.

When Chu Chengji went north, fearing that Li Zhong and Shen Yanzhi might counterattack, he took Cen Daoxi with him, leaving Lu Ze in Jianghuai.

As for military leaders, there were An Yuanqing and Dong Cheng, two capable generals.

After An Yuanqing was transferred back to Jianghuai, the task of clearing up the remnants of the Prince Huaiyang forces in the southern region fell to Han Xiu.

Song Heqing added, “For naval warfare, we have General Dong. Yuan River connects Bianjing and Wujun. To stop the Northern barbarians, we can set up defenses in the rivers around Zhuzhou. As for mountain warfare, we can entrust General An to lay traps and ambushes to kill the Northern Barbarians.”

Qin Zheng nodded. “This plan is feasible.”

She looked at Dong Cheng. “No time should be wasted. General Dong, tonight, you shall lead your troops to Zhuzhou to make preparations.”

Dong Cheng stepped forward and clasped his fist. “I obey!”

Qin Zheng then looked at An Yuanqing. “General An, I entrust the defense of the areas beyond the Yuan River to you.”

An Yuanqing clasped his fist and said, “Your Highness and Consort, you have saved my An family’s life several times. Even if I die, I will never let the Northern barbarians trample on our Jianghuai soil!”

With the military defenses in place, Qin Zheng turned to Qin Jian. “The intrusion of foreign tribes into our land is a matter of great importance. Put aside personal grievances for now. After you return, compile a letter of admonition and send it to Bianjing. Let’s see what response Bianjing will give.”

As long as Bianjing stood with them on the same front line, the odds of resisting more than hundred thousand troops from Northern Barbarian would increase.

Although Qin Zheng remained calm on the surface, she also knew very well in her heart that if the fifty thousand troops from Bianjing were truly used by Northern Barbarian, even if they occupied the advantageous terrain, they would still be in a dire situation.

After the meeting at Ten Miles Pavilion, she had already made it clear that she was not the original Crown Princess Consort.