"Lift your head." Just as she was thinking of Xie Yun Liu, the oppressive feeling in front of her intensified, forcing her to raise her head.
Meng Jiang Ming looked down at the slowly lifting face and was slightly stunned. It was an utterly ordinary face, and he felt a pang of disappointment.
"What is your name?" Meng Jiang Ming asked.
"Xiao Yue," Xue Xing Yue replied in a hoarse voice. Wu Hen could alter her appearance, but not her voice, so she had to rely on herself for that.
"Xiao Yue?" Every word from Meng Jiang Ming's mouth sent tremors through Xue Xing Yue's ears.
"The day after tomorrow, this驸马 will go into the city to gather provisions. You will accompany me." Meng Jiang Ming stood up, his footsteps carrying a more imposing and soul-crushing momentum as he strode closer. As he approached, Xue Xing Yue's heart tightened.
She found it hard to breathe. Finally, his footsteps stopped about a meter away from her. For a long time, Meng Jiang Ming said nothing, only her gaze assessing her with undisguised boldness.
"Do you have any objections?" Just as she was about to relax, Meng Jiang Ming's voice cut through the silence.
"This subordinate dares not!" Xue Xing Yue replied.
"I can imagine you wouldn't dare," Meng Jiang Ming said with a cold laugh.
"Yes." Xue Xing Yue bowed deeply, her head lowered.
Meng Jiang Ming looked at the subservient soldier with growing anger and, more so, disappointment. A clear, beautiful face appeared in his mind – clear eyes like polished jade, too hard for him to penetrate, an aura of nobility emanating from her entire being. She was a heavenly daughter, the undefeated legend of Zhen Guan. How could the person before him be her?
He must truly be mad to have thought this person was Xue Xing Yue.
"You may go!" Meng Jiang Ming waved his hand impatiently.
"Yes." Xue Xing Yue retreated with her body bent, taking care with every step. Upon seeing Xie Yun Liu's icy expression outside the tent, she let out a sigh of relief.
Actually, Xue Xing Yue thought, Xie Yun Liu wasn't that disagreeable.
"I..."
Xie Yun Liu surveyed the surroundings and lowered his voice, "Let's talk in my tent."
Xue Xing Yue nodded and followed Xie Yun Liu into his tent. Xie Yun Liu dismissed everyone outside, leaving only the two of them inside.
The charcoal in the tent had long since died out, and the cold wind seeped in through the gaps in the tent flap. Yet, Xue Xing Yue felt that the tent wasn't so cold.
"Did he do anything to you?" As Xue Xing Yue was lost in thought, Xie Yun Liu stepped forward and grabbed her hand.
Her hand was as cold as melted snow from a mountain, chilling to the bone. Sensing Xue Xing Yue's shiver, Xie Yun Liu quickly released her hand.
"I… did I chill you?"
"How long were you standing outside?" "Not long," Xie Yun Liu replied, turning his face away unnaturally.
"Not long, yet so cold?" Xue Xing Yue looked at Xie Yun Liu's pale, almost greenish face, realizing he had been waiting outside for her to come out.
He didn't know how to take care of himself. He was the general of the Xie Family Army; if he fell ill, wouldn't the Xie Family Army collapse?
"It's good that you are alright," Xie Yun Liu said, walking to the tent flap and turning his back to her.
The anger in Xue Xing Yue's heart was defeated by these words. "I'm fine. Wu Hen's disguise technique is excellent; he won't discover anything."
"It can work for a short time, but what about long-term?" Xie Yun Liu turned around, his face as cold as jade, a look of worry beneath.
"I… I will be careful." She knew the disguise could fool them for a while, but Meng Jiang Ming was not a fool; he would eventually discover the truth.
"What if he finds out?" Xie Yun Liu stepped forward, staring intently at her.
Xue Xing Yue's eyes turned cold. Only at this moment did the aura she exuded become that of Princess Xing Yue of old – noble and aloof. "If he finds out, I will kill him."
"Xue Xing Yue, have you forgotten your duty? What you are supposed to do? Kill him, and then your identity will be exposed? If so, what was the point of you hiding in Zhen Guan for two months?"
Xue Xing Yue trembled, her gaze as clear and cold as frost. "I haven't forgotten, but… I'm afraid I won't be able to control myself."
Xie Yun Liu walked closer, his breath, cold as ice, misting her face. "Xue Xing Yue, killing one person is simple, but killing him will expose your identity. Don't you know Xue Tian Yue has been secretly looking for you? There might even be spies from their side within the Xie Family Army. Xue Xing Yue, I hope you can remain calm."
"I… I will be calm." Xue Xing Yue closed her eyes, then reopened them after a moment. She knew Xie Yun Liu was right. Wasn't her hiding here, undiscovered, precisely to find evidence of Xue Tian Yue's crimes and reveal to the world that Xue Tian Yue was a patricide?
Xie Yun Liu sighed and gently stroked her head with his knotty fingers. She could feel the distinct shape of each knuckle.
She heard his low voice say, "Then I will wait for you here. If you don't return, I will come looking for you."
"You… how can you abandon the Xie Family Army?"
A self-mocking smile touched Xie Yun Liu's lips, tinged with deep sorrow. "If you can abandon me, why can't I abandon you?"
Xue Xing Yue stiffened. She looked at Xie Yun Liu's face, still as cold as ancient ice jade, but beneath his starry eyes, a faint sadness was hidden.
Suddenly, she felt a stirring in her heart.
"Xie Yun Liu, is it worth it for me?"
Xie Yun Liu paused slightly, then smiled. Xue Xing Yue had never known that the melting of ancient ice jade could be so beautiful, like a fleeting昙花.
Xie Yun Liu turned, his slender frame standing alone in the tent, his body clad in armor of purple-gold bronze that hugged his lean physique. She had always thought the heavy armor would weigh down his shoulders.
Yet, he stood as upright as ever.
Suddenly, he turned back, his eyes like a vast starry sky, twinkling with countless points of light. "It is worth it."
His words were light, like a breeze in her ear, but each syllable penetrated deep into her eardrums.
"It's not worth it," Xue Xing Yue said, shaking her head.
Xie Yun Liu stood there, then walked towards her. "It is worth it."
"So, you must return. Otherwise, I will abandon everything and search for you."
Xie Yun Liu stood before her, only a few steps away, his face like icy jade, but his eyes gazing at her with softness.
He watched her turn and walk step by step out of the tent.
Xie Yun Liu took a deep breath, looking at the direction Xue Xing Yue had gone with a self-mocking expression. His brilliant starry eyes suddenly dimmed.
What he truly wanted to say was that when he saw you at eight years old, standing on the rockery, calling my name, Xie Yun Liu, I knew then that you were the person I would spend my entire life protecting.
Xue Xing Yue didn't know how she returned to her own tent, only that her mind was filled with Xie Yun Liu's shining starry eyes and his repeated words of "worth it."
Xue Xing Yue didn't leave her tent all day. She didn't know how to face Xie Yun Liu, and Xie Yun Liu hadn't appeared until now. Her taut heart slowly began to relax.
"Miss, I'll accompany you the day after tomorrow," Wu Hen said, seeing Xue Xing Yue's dispirited state.
Xue Xing Yue shook her head. "No, Meng Jiang Ming already suspects me. If you follow, he will suspect even more. One person's doubt is better than two people's."