Bianjing, Shen Mansion.

Shen Yanzhi stood outside Shen Chan’s room, listening to the heartbreaking coughs coming from inside.

His expression was numb, the embroidered golden cloak seemed unable to shield him from the biting wind and snow, making him feel cold all over.

As the serving maid left, holding a blood-stained handkerchief, Shen Yanzhi caught a glimpse, his expression darkening a bit, but mostly remaining numb.

He carried a bowl of small dumplings and stepped into the room.

The snow on his cloak melted from the warmth inside, making it damp and the fur collar messy, a sorry sight.

“Chan’er, do you still want to eat dumplings today?” He sat down by the bed, holding the bowl gently, his tone warm.

“…I want…” Shen Chan’s face was pale as wax, her whole body thin to the point of being unrecognizable.

Speaking seemed difficult for her.

A dumpling reached her lips, but she struggled to open her mouth, unable to swallow.

Shen Yanzhi helped her along her bony back, saying softly, “Take your time, no rush.”

He knew, despite all the medicine he had tried, she was destined to leave soon.

Looking at Shen Chan’s current state, he suddenly understood that forcing her to stay would only prolong her suffering.

As she managed to swallow half a dumpling, Shen Chan vomited again, coughing up more blood than before, soaking her clothes and sheets.

“Chan’er!” Shen Yanzhi hurriedly put down the bowl, using his embroidered sleeve to wipe away the filth and blood.

At that moment, he looked fragile and sorrowful.

Shen Chan tightly gripped his hand with her pale and thin one, lifting her dim eyes to him, calling out repeatedly, “Brother, I’m sorry, I can’t accompany you anymore…”

Tears fell from Shen Yanzhi’s eyes, landing on their intertwined hands.

“You can rest assured now, I won’t keep you this time,” Shen Yanzhi said softly.

Shen Chan looked at him, managing to pull a faint smile, her voice choked with tears as she said, “I can’t bear to leave you, Brother…”

Shen Yanzhi, his eyes bloodshot, lowered his head, his forehead against their intertwined hands.

His shoulders shook violently, veins bulging on his neck, and tears soaked their hands.

“Brother…” The last tear fell from Shen Chan’s eyes.

She tried with all her might to grasp Shen Yanzhi’s hand again, but her strength was as light as a touch.

Shen Yanzhi said, “Your final wish, Brother will fulfill it for you.”

As he walked out of the room, Chen Qin stood outside holding two letters. “Master, letters have arrived from the Northern Borders and Jianghuai.”

But Shen Yanzhi paid no attention, walking past him without a word.

Chen Qin stood still, unsure of what to do with the letters.

In Li Xin’s palace, apart from a young eunuch delivering meals every other day, no one else entered.

When the chief eunuch opened the door to the bedchamber, a foul stench hit them.

The young eunuch covered his nose, but Shen Yanzhi didn’t even wrinkle his brow.

“What’s that smell?” The chief eunuch’s voice trembled.

But upon seeing Li Xin lying on the dragon bed, the chief eunuch fell silent.

The bedding was so dirty that it was impossible to tell its original color.

Li Xin claimed he had suffered a stroke from poisoning, and he ate, drank, and relieved himself all on this bed.

He couldn’t move or speak, consuming leftovers even the palace servants refused to eat.

But coming from a poor peasant family, Li Xin had eaten grass and tree roots during famine years.

He ate whatever the young eunuch brought him.

He just wanted to live.

As long as he lived, there was hope for a comeback.

But when the young eunuch didn’t come every day, he often felt thirsty and hungry, lying in filth and foul odor, devoid of warmth.

Over time, his lower body began to decay and worms infested his flesh.

The chief eunuch, experienced in palace affairs, almost retched at the sight of Li Xin’s skeletal figure, with maggots crawling on his face.

Li Xin’s face was sunken due to emaciation, making his eyeballs protrude unnaturally.

When he saw Shen Yanzhi, hatred filled his eyes, wishing he could devour Shen Yanzhi’s flesh and blood.

Sitting on a chair brought by the young eunuch, Shen Yanzhi looked at the unrecognizable Li Xin on the bed and spoke slowly, “Since you set this trap for me, you should have anticipated this day.”

“Your few underage seeds all succumbed to illness this harsh winter. Your Li family’s dynasty ends today.”

Li Xin, furious, made urgent noises with his mouth.

Shen Yanzhi seemed to know what he wanted to say, sneering, “That child in Muxi Palace? She’s not even my sister’s own blood. Why would I hesitate?”

This news seemed to shatter Li Xin’s last shred of sanity.

He screamed at Shen Yanzhi in hysteria.

But Shen Yanzhi didn’t want to look at this man who had caused him and his sister so much harm.

He said to the chief eunuch, “Force-feed him the medicine.”

As the chief eunuch and a few young eunuchs approached to administer the medicine, Li Xin suddenly started to laugh strangely.

Shen Yanzhi, seeing the mockery on Li Xin’s face, narrowed his eyes. “You’re at death’s door, what’s so funny?”

Li Xin continued to laugh, his eyes even holding a hint of condescending pity.

Just as the chief eunuch was about to force the poisoned wine into Li Xin’s mouth, Shen Yanzhi suddenly said, “Give him the antidote. I want to know what he finds so amusing.”

The chief eunuch couldn’t fathom the Regent’s thoughts and had no choice but to comply.

After the antidote was forced down Li Xin’s throat, due to the decay of his lower body and the bedsores from lying too long, combined with prolonged malnutrition, he had no strength to lift his hand and his voice sounded hoarse, like a broken gong: “Do you think killing me… will bring you revenge?”

Li Xin sneered, “The Qinxiang Pass scheme was orchestrated by the Crown Prince of the Northern Borders, Kadang.”

Shen Yanzhi’s face changed suddenly, but he still seemed somewhat incredulous: “Why would Kadang help you?”

Li Xin smirked, “After you entered the game, with Luo Xianshen’s death and fifty thousand Luo family soldiers being ambushed at Qinxiang Pass, he could take control of the Hexi Corridor.”

Shen Yanzhi’s jaw tightened instantly.

He wanted to tell himself it wasn’t true, but Li Xin continued gleefully, “Is Prince Rong still alive? Ask him if the person who came to Shen Mansion to escort the bride was a tall, foreign-looking man. I told him back then, that’s my trained foreign expert, haha…”

In the next instant, Shen Yanzhi raised his sword and swiftly chopped off Li Xin’s head.

Blood splattered everywhere, and the severed head rolled on the ground several times.

The young eunuchs in the hall couldn’t help but scream.

Shen Yanzhi stood still, the hem of his embroidered robe stained with blood.

After the short scream, the entire bedchamber fell into silence again.

Shen Yanzhi dropped the sword, kneeling on the ground with a crisp “ding” sound, sharp and prolonged.

He walked out of the hall, his crimson regent’s robe dragging along the ground, embroidered with dizzying dark patterns that seemed to drip with blood when hit by sunlight.

Shen Yanzhi went straight to the dungeon, the first time he had personally visited his so-called father since returning to the capital.

Prince Rong’s condition wasn’t much better than Li Xin’s.

His cell was adjacent to the torture chamber, where he heard the screams of tortured prisoners day and night.

He hadn’t slept well, and his mental state was extremely fragile.

When brought before Shen Yanzhi, he looked disheveled, emaciated, and desperate.

Seeing Shen Yanzhi dressed so immaculately, he burst into tears of joy. “My son, have you forgiven your father? Are you here to release your father from prison?”

He was shackled heavily and crawled to hug Shen Yanzhi’s knees, crying bitterly, “Father was wrong, truly wrong. Father shouldn’t have listened to that despicable person’s slander, mistreating you and Chan’er. You are the flesh and blood left to me by the royal garden…”

He didn’t mention his deceased wife, but as soon as he did, Shen Yanzhi’s eyes filled with hostility, and he pushed Prince Rong away forcefully. “Don’t call her that, disgusting!”

Prince Rong was kicked against the wall, his forehead bleeding, but he didn’t care. He crawled back to Shen Yanzhi’s side, “Yes, yes, I won’t call her that. After I’m released, I’ll kneel in front of her memorial tablet every day to repent. My son, can you please let your father go?”

Toward the end, his voice was filled with tears and begging, repeatedly knocking his head against the ground in front of Shen Yanzhi.

Shen Yanzhi closed his eyes heavily.

Even in this situation, his resentment towards this man had not diminished, but only increased disgust.

He asked, “When you promised Chan’er to Li Xin, among the experts he sent to escort Chan’er, was there a man from the Northern Borders?”

Prince Rong didn’t dare to deceive him. After careful thought, he nodded repeatedly, “Yes, there was such a person, over eight feet tall, with a high nose and deep eyes, obviously skilled in martial arts.”

With the answer he wanted, Shen Yanzhi turned slowly and looked down at Prince Rong, “Do you know why I’ve kept you alive until now?”

In Prince Rong’s bewildered eyes, he said coldly, “Because Chan’er is still alive.”

There’s a saying among the common folk: as long as parents are alive, they can accumulate blessings for their children.

And Shen Chan, with her kind heart, even though she hated Prince Rong, didn’t want him to commit patricide.

The elders said that would invite divine retribution, and Shen Chan didn’t want Shen Yanzhi to bear this burden.

Prince Rong clearly understood Shen Yanzhi’s meaning.

His eyes were filled with extreme fear for a moment.

Shen Yanzhi’s gaze turned icy, piercing. “Once Chan’er is gone, you’ll follow her underground and personally make amends to her and my mother.”

He stepped out of the narrow corridor of the dungeon, leaving behind the sharp and mournful wails of Prince Rong.

A long time ago, he had also heard such cries emanating from this dungeon, but that time it was for the funeral procession of Prime Minister Lu and Duke Qin.

Shen Yanzhi stopped at the courtyard, lifting his head to gaze at the sky through the square holes, where large flakes of snow drifted down, wetting his temples and settling on his shoulders.

…

That night, two edicts were issued from the palace.

One listed Li Xin’s crimes and overturned the Chen Dynasty he had established; the other restored Shen Chan’s freedom and granted her the title of Princess of Shen.

As long as Li Xin was bedridden, he had controlled the court, and during this time, those who were loyal to Li Xin had been completely eradicated.

Only those who remained were fence-sitters, and there was no dissent against the two edicts he issued.

When Shen Yanzhi returned to the Shen Mansion, the aged steward was tearful as he awaited at the door. “Please go see Miss for the last time!”

The serving maids knelt by Shen Chan’s bedside, softly weeping.

It was evident that Shen Chan was on her deathbed, her lips half-open, as if she still had some unfulfilled wish.

Thinking she wanted to eat the bowl of unfinished dumplings, they heated it in the kitchen and tried to feed her, but she was unable to eat, her lips still half-open.

It wasn’t until Shen Yanzhi, with a chill about him, entered the room, that his icy hands grasped her already cold ones, and he softly said, “Li Xin is dead, and the Chen Dynasty is no more. You are no longer a wife of the Li family. You are a maiden of the Shen family. Go find our mother.”

Shen Chan’s half-open mouth slowly closed.

Her pupils had lost their focus, and as her eyelids closed, there was a faint smile at the corner of her mouth.

The maids’ crying suddenly became sharp, but Shen Yanzhi remained motionless, holding Shen Chan’s hand.

After Shen Chan’s burial in the Shen family cemetery, her grave was next to her mother’s, as if after many years apart, she had fallen asleep next to her mother again.

Not long after Shen Chan’s passing, it was rumored that Prince Rong also died violently in the dungeon, but no one knew how his body was dealt with.

Some gossipers claimed to have seen a male corpse resembling Prince Rong in a mass grave.

Although Shen Yanzhi overturned Li Xin’s regime, he did not declare himself emperor.

Instead, news spread, much like it did with the news of Shen Chan’s death, that he was amassing troops like he had done with Prince Huaiyang.

Though Qin Zheng had only met Shen Chan once, she always remembered the kind-hearted girl who made one’s heart ache.

Qin Zheng took three sticks of incense and bowed three times in the direction of Bianjing, as if bidding farewell to that girl.

There was no response from Bianjing to Qin Jian’s letter urging Shen Yanzhi to ally with them against the Northern Borders.

Qin Jian had prepared for the worst.

She ordered the sick refugees from Zhuzhou and Wucheng, who had not yet recovered, to be moved to cities in the southern border to treat them.

At the same time, she strengthened the defense of Zhuzhou and spread rumors about the rampant plague and death in Jianghuai.

However, Shen Yanzhi knew that they had found a way to treat the plague, and the people of the Northern Borders had not experienced such a plague before, so perhaps they would not be as wary of the plague as the people of the Central Plains.

He stepped out of the narrow corridor of the dungeon, leaving behind the sharp and mournful wails of Prince Rong.

A long time ago, he had also heard such cries emanating from this dungeon, but that time it was for the funeral procession of Prime Minister Lu and Duke Qin.

Shen Yanzhi stopped at the courtyard, lifting his head to gaze at the sky through the square holes, where large flakes of snow drifted down, wetting his temples and settling on his shoulders.

…

Qin Zheng and Qin Jian intended to stay in Jianghuai, but Madame Qin refused to leave. “You are both here, where else could I go?”

Qin Jian knelt down and pleaded, “Mother, Father often said, ‘When in position, plan for the politics; take up responsibilities and fulfill duties.’ As a subject, I cannot retreat when facing a great enemy. Mother, please go south first. If you leave, I will have one less worry in my heart.”

How could Madame Qin not understand the righteousness and reason in this?

However, seeing her eldest son following the path of her late husband, she couldn’t help but feel sorrowful.

She looked at Qin Zheng and asked, “Aren’t you leaving either, A’zheng?”

Qin Zheng knelt before Madame Qin and said softly, “When Your Highness headed north, entrusting Jianghuai and the entire southern border to me, I must guard them well for His Highness.”

Seeing Madame Qin shed tears, she comforted her gently, “If Jianghuai truly cannot be defended, I will retreat to the southern border as well. Mother, please don’t worry too much. If you go to the south, me, my brother, and Sheng’er will feel more at ease.”

Madame Qin held her hand and tearfully said, “All of you resemble your father so much. I am happy that you resemble him, yet I don’t want you to be like him…”

With the conversation reaching this point, the matter of persuading Madame Qin to go to the south was settled.

As Qin Zheng left the Qin Residence, she looked up at the silver disk-like moon hanging in the sky and sighed softly, “When will you return?”

She couldn’t show weakness in front of others, but facing this seemingly hopeless battle, how could she not be afraid?

…

In the Northern Borders.

Amidst the snowy night, the vast army snaked through the snowy peaks and wilderness.

The north wind cut against the faces like a knife, as if scraping off a layer of skin.

Upon receiving the news from Lin Yao about the secret southward migration of the Northern Barbarian’s army, Chu Chengji immediately broke camp and rushed towards Jianghuai.

However, the distant mountains and long roads meant that the marching speed of the eighty thousand strong army could not match that of the meteoric horses delivering the military intelligence.

He wrote many strategies to counter the enemy and sent them back to Jianghuai with the meteoric horses, but he also understood that when the disparity in numbers between the two armies was so vast, the role of strategies was limited.

The enemy could simply pile up corpses to fill up the moats dug in the mountains and continue to charge forward as if on level ground.

Chu Chengji tightened his grip on the reins as he gazed at the moon hanging high in the wilderness, his profile illuminated by the moonlight amidst the snow, appearing even more cold and stern.

The cloak behind him fluttered in the cold wind, mirroring the state of his mind.