Xiao Shan's voice was resonant and powerful, like a thunderous strike, his presence imposing.
With his words, a cacophony of clattering swords and dropped blades filled the air.
After a period of chaos, the scene finally quieted down.
The King of Runan now stood with a numb expression, his eyes devoid of life. Dragged away by guards, he was like a puppet.
Song Beiting watched Xiao Shan, whose aura was as magnificent and unstoppable as a charging dragon, and the woman he held in his arms, whose beauty was tempered with an unyielding strength.
The pairing was strikingly incongruous, yet it pierced his eyes like shards of glass. The pain was unbearable, forcing him to shut his eyes tightly, his veins bulging as his hand almost snapped the sword hilt.
"Shall we go back and rest first?" Xiao Shan asked, looking down as he adjusted Ling Yao's cloak. "I'll handle these matters."
Ling Yao took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his forehead, praising him sincerely, "Husband, you were so magnificent."
Xiao Shan pressed his lips together, then replied with mock seriousness, "Thank you for your praise, Princess."
Such pretense.
Ling Yao let out a soft laugh and scanned her surroundings.
The Second Prince, protected by guards, stood at a distance, observing them. His expression was unreadable.
"Be careful. Go back and make a warm bowl of soup for the Princess," Xiao Shan instructed Yu Liu and the others.
His large hand clasped her fair, small one for a moment before he turned and walked towards the captured soldiers.
Qing He helped Ling Yao walk back, her delicate and beautiful face etched with a hint of worry.
"Princess, this servant sees that Commander Song still hasn't given up on you. He's working in the palace now, so could this be... inappropriate?"
"I know, but this is the first time my second brother has made a decision, and I didn't object. Besides, Brother Wen Tang has always been well-mannered and knew his place since childhood. He shouldn't do anything out of line. Once the General's mansion is ready, I'll move out of the palace."
"Move out of the palace?"
Qing He had just thought that Song Wen Tang's politeness was a thing of the past; his disposition had changed, and who knew what he would do now! But then she heard the Princess say she would move into the General's mansion. This wasn't right!
"Princess, if you move into the General's mansion, it would be considered marriage, which is against the rules. Even if you move out of the palace, you should establish a Divine Maiden's Mansion and have him live with you."
Qing He's concern for her was evident, and Ling Yao knew it. But she and Xiao Shan were already inseparable, and rules were no longer a concern. The simple farmhouse they lived in before, she considered home.
Now, whether it was the opulent Phoenix Palace or the General's mansion, or the Divine Maiden's Mansion, they were merely temporary dwelling places.
They would always return.
But Qing He didn't know these things. The Divine Maiden was born for the Jing Kingdom, for the entire world. Her life was to pray for this world.
However, she was no longer the Ling Yao she once was. She was a Divine Maiden with selfish desires, and this selfishness surpassed the world.
It surpassed everyone.
"Qing He..." Just as she was about to speak, she saw a figure block their path.
"Princess, I wish to speak with you for a moment."
Song Beiting knew that the Phoenix Palace was filled with experts arranged by Xiao Shan, and he could not enter. If she didn't come out, seeing her would be harder than ascending to heaven.
How laughable.
Before, he could at least enter openly once a month. Now, he had become a complete stranger.
Why?
He was the Great Yao Divine Lord, destined by the Emperor and the Grand Sorcerer, her fated man! Not that brute from a peasant background!
He had merely taken advantage of her vulnerability, obtaining her when she was at her weakest.
A villain!
Qing He coolly reminded him, "Commander Song, there are many palace affairs at present. Please prioritize the bigger picture."
Song Beiting looked at her, his eyes as dark as ink. His dark hair was neatly tucked into a jade crown, and his tall, slender body stood like a white poplar.
Qing He frowned. Even in military attire, his former self couldn't hide the gentleness in his bones, especially when he looked at the Princess. His eyes always held a ripple, with starlight flowing within.
Now, apart from the scar on his face, his features were still handsome, his nose aquiline. His demeanor was respectful, but his eyes held bitterness, pain, unwillingness, and a hidden ferocity.
He had indeed changed.
Qing He watched him warily, standing in front of Ling Yao, while Yu Liu and Yu Shan were already radiating killing intent.
"Heh heh!" Song Beiting laughed and shook his head, his smile forced and mocking.
"Miss Qing He, in the past, when I entered the Phoenix Palace, you watched me constantly, always afraid I would do something improper. Now, you guard me like a thief. Why? Why don't you guard that crude man? I am the Great Yao Divine Lord!"
He truly didn't understand why. He was the rightful Great Yao Divine Lord, tested by the Grand Sorcerer!
The first time he saw Ling Yao, he fell in love. He loved this soft, sweet young girl, loving her so much that he wanted to hold her in his hands every day and protect her with care.
The Grand Sorcerer said he lacked a bit of masculine energy, so he abandoned literature for martial arts. They met when he was ten years old. The monthly meetings, the torment and sweetness of waiting from the beginning to the end of the month, no one knew.
He waited patiently, enduring, until he was seventeen.
Then, she disappeared.
"You all step down. I will have a chat with Commander Song."
This matter needed to be clarified. Ling Yao waved everyone away and walked towards a nearby bluestone path.
Song Beiting watched her gently touch her belly as she carefully ascended the steps, walking with grace and poise.
She was no longer that girl who loved to jump and run, so endearingly naive.
He began to search for her former self, only to find that in just one year, she had undergone a complete transformation, a rebirth. She had grown rapidly in places he couldn't see.
"Princess... Ling Yao..." Song Beiting's chest ached. In a daze, it was as if he had returned to a dream. He reached out, wanting to grasp the figure ahead, "Don't go."
Ling Yao turned back and saw him as if he were possessed, his eyes as desolate and cold as withered wood, filled with grief.
She felt as if she had seen this look in a dream.
"Brother Wen Tang!" she couldn't help but call out.
This single utterance was like a life-saving straw, pulling him from the endless illusion. Under the warm winter sun, her face held concern.
Song Beiting came back to life.
"You're still willing to call me that..."
"Brother Wen Tang." Ling Yao bit her lip. "I am already married. Forget about the past! Find a good girl and live your own life!"
"What if I refuse? Ling Yao, don't do this to me. From the age of ten, I knew I would be the Divine Maiden's husband. I have been waiting for you to grow up!" He looked at her pleadingly, his dark eyes beneath his lashes filled with infatuated sorrow.
"You cannot be with him. You cannot! He saved you, he can be granted official titles, wealth, and a good wife. Anything is possible. You are the Divine Maiden; you don't need to pledge yourself to him! Ling Yao, ten years of knowing each other, does it mean less than Xiao Shan, who suddenly appeared?"
If it were anyone else, Ling Yao could have been cold-hearted. But this person was the one who had always been gentle and loving towards her, the one she had thought she would marry in this life.
Ultimately, the royal family had wronged him.
But she was destined to be unable to reciprocate his feelings.
"But when I fell into the abyss, he was the one who pulled me out! Brother Wen Tang, you appeared when I was at my most glorious and radiant. That was a mistake."
"And he, when I was on the verge of death, was the charcoal fire that appeared in the ice and snow."