Chapter 1 On the Road to Yunzhou

On the road to Yunzhou, Ye Tao finally loosened Tan Weiran's tongue and learned who was behind that additional clause, as well as the many efforts the Tan family had made regarding this matter. When he discovered that the regrettable "additional clause" referred to Dai Yun, he practically jumped up in "astonishment" and "anger."

"How could this be? How could it be her? Dai Yun is my friend, my brother! Who's ever heard of marrying one's own brother? This is a gross misunderstanding and an attempt to drive a wedge between Dai Yun and me!"

Then, Tan Weixin, who was present, used an incomparably wicked and devastating sentence to choke back all of Ye Tao's words. She said casually, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, "If Dai Yun doesn't object, you can dote on her in a 'brotherly' way."

Ye Tao didn't know how to react, and even Tan Weiran, whose self-restraint was usually quite remarkable, couldn't suppress the twitching of his shoulders as he fought back a surge of laughter. Tan Weixin's words, although a bit wicked, were indeed spot-on.

Why was it that Dai Yun, already in her late twenties, was still unmarried? It wasn't because she wasn't beautiful. Although Dai Yun didn't have the gentle, delicate features and tender, watery eyes of Tan Weiran's wife, Dai Xi, her sharply defined face and the unwavering determination in her calm gaze were very attractive.

The problem lay precisely there. Dai Yun had her own opinions, a resolute character, rich experience, and even military achievements that few generals in the world could match. She also enjoyed high prestige among the Yunzhou tribes in Yunzhou and on Benlang Plain, and even among the tribes further north that she had defeated... and countless admirers. Anyone who entertained the idea of marrying Dai Yun had to understand one thing: marrying Dai Yun might bring a comfortable life, a promising career with the help of the Dai family, and access to things that others couldn't enjoy, but it wouldn't bring Dai Yun's complete obedience. No matter how good a family one came from, marrying Dai Yun would feel like marrying into her family. Because, although she didn't have the title of princess, Dai Yun was an indisputable princess in Yunzhou and on the northern grasslands. Perhaps some might presume that their talent and learning could subdue Dai Yun, but Dai Yun wouldn't easily believe in stories like "There is a fish in the Northern Sea," because she had personally witnessed the immense power unleashed when the ice sheets of the Arctic broke apart, seen the seemingly endless nights and the lights suspended in the sky, and watched real whales creating small fountains on the surface of the water as they breathed. Dai Yun also understood the Confucian classics and poetry, and there was no need to mention military strategy in front of someone like Dai Yun, who had commanded hundreds of thousands of troops and achieved bloody and glorious victories. In this situation, how many people dared to marry Dai Yun, to marry such a powerful woman who would make all their cards seem insignificant? In this era, Dai Yun was an absolute career woman.

However, some quietly circulating rumors changed everything unexpectedly.

It all started with Ye Tao and Dai Yun's brotherly hug. In this time and space, especially in Dongping and Yunzhou, although there weren't strict rules about physical contact between men and women like in Chunnan and Xiling, the more noble one's status, the more reserved one would naturally be in this regard. Such a tight embrace between a man and a woman was simply beyond everyone's imagination. Tan Weixin naturally knew that a brotherly hug was just that, but others didn't. Although the officers and guards who were present at the time knew that they had to keep their mouths shut, they couldn't help but discuss it in private. And gossip unrelated to military affairs spread quickly everywhere. Although no one dared to disrespect Ye Tao and Dai Yun, they began to secretly believe that the two were kindred spirits.

When Tan Weiming proposed to Tan Xiaopei that Ye Tao be appointed as the Yunzhou Pacification Commissioner, he naturally mentioned this matter in order to ensure that he could receive full support in Yunzhou and carry out his ideas without obstruction. At the time, Tan Xiaopei was surprised, but also thought it was a good idea. If Tan Weiming had any hesitation, it might be about the opinions of Tan Weixin, Dai Yun, and Ye Tao.

Tan Xiaopei doted on his daughter Tan Weixin, and he wanted to seek her opinion in advance regarding the appointment of Ye Tao as the Yunzhou Pacification Commissioner. Unexpectedly, Tan Weixin adopted an ambiguous attitude towards both Ye Tao's appointment and the related matter of Ye Tao marrying Dai Yun. She couldn't deny that Ye Tao would definitely do a good job, but she didn't think that it was necessarily a good idea to marry Dai Yun, and her explanation at the time, that friends didn't necessarily have to end up in bed, made Tan Xiaopei chuckle, feeling that Tan Weixin might be a little jealous, or worried about her position in Ye Tao's heart, in Ye Tao's increasingly strange family. In fact, Tan Weixin didn't really care much about this kind of thing. Physically, she couldn't share the same joy as Ye Tao's wives, but spiritually, only she, as a fellow transmigrator, could touch the deepest parts of Ye Tao's heart. This spiritual exclusivity was enough for her now that physical intimacy was akin to suicide. After being annoyed by her father's explanations and persuasion, Tan Weixin reluctantly expressed limited support for this matter and agreed to keep it a secret from Ye Tao.

As for Ye Tao, he would inevitably be the most vocal opponent, but Tan Xiaopei wasn't without a solution. He wrote directly to Ye Laogeng, obtaining his approval. Ye Laogeng was already uneasy about marrying into the Tan family. After all, he was an honest man who wasn't particularly interested in fame. Even though he was now considered a very important member of the imperial relatives, he wasn't willing to accept Tan Xiaopei's invitation to serve as the Director of the Technology Department of the Ministry of Works with the title of Vice Minister, preferring to continue managing the complicated affairs of the Ye family workshop. And now, for his son to marry another woman of equally exaggerated status, whose reputation seemed even louder, and to form another highly respected family alliance, Ye Laogeng felt even more uncomfortable. However, Tan Xiaopei, in his capacity as the ruler of the nation, repeatedly wrote letters personally explaining his intentions, which finally led Ye Laogeng to nod. With Ye Tao's father's agreement, the matter was basically settled. The words of parents and matchmakers were still useful, after all.

What about the opinions of the Dai family, especially Dai Yun's opinion? Tan Xiaopei first asked Dai Yun's father, Dai Shikui, who said that Dai Yun would have complete say in the matter. A woman making decisions about her own marriage? Although he wasn't very enthusiastic about such things, Tan Xiaopei could only shrug and accept this idea, given his own daughter's precedent. This time, Dai Shining brought Dai Yun's reply: she agreed. Dai Shining carefully stated that Dai Yun would relinquish her military power after the marriage and resign from the Tielu (Iron Cloud) Cavalry. Tan Xiaopei laughed and said that was something for Ye Tao and Dai Yun to negotiate themselves.

In short, that's how things were. Only a few people knew the entire process, but the whole plan was carried out in full swing, seamlessly.

"You... you guys just drove a wedge between our precious brotherhood," Ye Tao said helplessly.

Tan Weixin thought carefully, not about what to say, but about whether to say those words to Ye Tao. As her health gradually improved, she was no longer the frail figure who seemed to have practiced the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra, "without joy, anger, surprise, or fear" to prolong her life. At least she now had a smile and all the joys that everyone should enjoy, as well as the power to express those joys outwardly. At the same time, she also had the ability to feel sorrow, to taste heartache and bitterness... Emotions were always a double-edged sword.

She said slowly, "Actually, for Dai Yun, this might be a good thing. She is indeed an extraordinary woman, a... female warrior god who seems to transcend this era, aloof from the world." When she mentioned "transcend this era," Tan Weixin made eye contact with Ye Tao, and then continued to speak while looking directly at him. "I don't want to think too much about what would happen if someone else married Dai Yun, suppressing her and looking down on her for the sake of their own face, for this or that reason, or simply going after the Dai family's power, money, and prestige... You know what kind of person Dai Yun is, I know, and everyone knows. She is the Supervisor of the Xueqi (Blood Kirin) Army, the commander of the Tielu Cavalry, the princess of Yunzhou, a person who will never tolerate compromise. Do you think that besides you, can you think of how many people, even just one, who can treat her as an equal, who can allow her to continue displaying her talents, who can fully express her personality? I think Dai Yun must have thought of my precedent..."

Tan Weixin's calmness was mixed with some sorrow: "Indeed, without love and marriage, without a family, without children, a woman like Dai Yun can certainly live on, but after all, such a life is incomplete."

They were having this conversation in a carriage. After Tan Weixin finished these sentences, which were perhaps full of parallelism and passion because she had written too many scripts, the carriage fell silent, leaving only the trembling sound of the wheels rotating. —No matter how much effort Ye Tao had put in, the soundproofing of the carriage couldn't be perfect, and rubber had only just appeared in his field of vision; he obviously didn't have the ability to immediately turn rubber into tires.

"Sister, it's good that you support this matter. This is a good thing after all. Military Supervisor Dai is really an amazing person," Tan Weiran said with a smile.

"I just understand this matter and don't oppose it, but I didn't say I support it," Tan Weixin retorted. Tan Weiran quickly turned his head away, pretending to be interested in the scenery outside the window.

"Do women... really have to sacrifice the perfection of their bodies as a necessary condition to complete their lives?" Ye Tao sighed.

Tan Weiran, who was already married and had a fairly harmonious married life, couldn't help but burst out laughing, and then became even more uncontrollable. "Brother-in-law, that's a classic line!"

"Get out! Get out of here!" Tan Weixin naturally heard the bit of teasing and sarcastic attitude in Ye Tao's words. However, what might be an interesting joke between them as husband and wife could only enrage Tan Weixin when Tan Weiran heard it.

"Okay, okay, I'll go back to my own carriage." Tan Weiran laughed, opened the latch, and pushed open the carriage door, whistling while pinching his fingers. Immediately, his personal guards released his mount, allowing the beautiful, young, reddish-brown horse to run up. Tan Weiran casually grabbed the saddle, steadied himself in the stirrups, and flipped onto the horse. During this process, the speed of the carriage didn't decrease at all.

Seeing that his younger brother could actually pull off such a stunt, Tan Weixin curled her lips, looking helpless. Everyone had grown up, everyone was mature, and everyone had to consider more things. And what did this mean for her? Did it mean that she was growing further and further away from being a modern woman?

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As everyone wished... Dai Yun