Yuan Qian left in a state of shock, leaving Mingzhen to look at Qiu Huan with a hint of reproach.

“What’s the matter? If you can’t even control Yuan Qian, how on earth are you supposed to run the entire Tonglou? As the Bolaow, I have a duty to oversee Bai Xiao—if you don’t do your job well, let Cheng Babao take your place.” Ignoring Mingzhen’s piercing gaze, Qiu Huan feigned confusion.

…It’s true that Lord Qiu Fengze has stepped down from the position of Bai Xiao, but she never said she was leaving Tonglou altogether. The new leadership team of Tonglou is headed by Bai Xiao and Mingzhen; the former Yousun has yielded to Qin Yaoyue, Cheng Jingtian has taken over Huiyuan, Qiu Huan has succeeded as the head of the Dark Department, and the vacant position of Jiaodiao has been filled by one of Mingzhen’s disciples. In fact, the one who really left Tonglou was Yuan Mo.

Mingzhen felt sorry for the fresh wounds on her body—though she wasn’t sure if it was just wishful thinking, since Yuan Mo hadn’t seemed to be suffering at all—and couldn’t bring herself to say anything harsh. After much deliberation, she only managed to say, “Next time you do something like this, give me a heads-up first.”

“Okay,” Qiu Huan thought to herself, secretly chuckling.

Just then, a physician from Xinggu came looking for Yuan Mo, saying that Cheng Jingtian had an urgent matter to discuss with him. Yuan Mo squeezed Qiu Huan’s hand, nodded to Mingzhen, and then stepped out.

Mingzhen watched Yuan Mo’s tall, vigorous figure, and a flash of hatred crossed her eyes.

“Ahem.” Qiu Huan deliberately cleared her throat to remind him not to stare at her man. Mingzhen turned away indifferently, her face now warm but somehow insincere.

“Do you have something you want to tell me?” she tapped the table.

“Yes, only Huan’er understands me,” Mingzhen said with a cold smile. “How did Huan’er convince Yuan Mo to step down from the Yousun position?”

Qiu Huan shook her finger. “It wasn’t me who convinced him—it was his own request. I just didn’t have any reason to object.”

“He’s only doing this to please you now; he’ll regret it later. What will you do then?” Mingzhen’s eyelashes fluttered, and her gaze grew dim.

“He’s not you, Mingzhen. Yuan Mo isn’t you,” Qiu Huan knew her words might hurt him, but she had to say them. “If he really does regret it, then I never would’ve allowed him to step down—or I never would’ve chosen him in the first place. Don’t you see? You and I are fundamentally different people. Fame, fortune, power, wealth—I don’t care about any of that, not because I’m noble, but simply because I can’t find joy in it. That’s just how I’m made. Yuan Mo doesn’t care either, or maybe he cares only a little, but at least within the bounds I can accept. You’re different, though. To secure your early succession to Tonglou, you orchestrated Yuan Mo’s assassination of the incumbent Bai Xiao; to gain support from the next Crown Prince of Gaoyang, you even had the pregnant crown princess killed. How is that any different from the very reasons your father raised me, or from his own selfish pursuit of war? As your sister—or your closest friend—I may not think much of your actions, but if you were my partner, I’d simply say I couldn’t bear to live with someone who’d do such things.”

“If you mind so much, I can give up these methods!” Mingzhen argued urgently.

Qiu Huan shook her head, amused. “You’ve said it yourself—if you’re only doing this to please me, you’ll regret it someday.”

“I won’t,” he replied after a long silence.

“You will,” Qiu Huan confirmed with a smile. “Deep down, you know it too. Even if you say you won’t regret it, there will come a day when you do—or maybe you’ll secretly do it behind my back. But that’s not the real issue. As long as our values differ, no amount of change will matter. Though I don’t believe life is the ultimate goal, we should all be responsible for ourselves and others. Precisely because power means nothing to me, I can’t bring myself to hurt anyone for it. That’s why, even though I know you’ve always chased high positions and trust that Tonglou will grow under your leadership to heights I could never reach, I still decided not to hand it over to you right away. A Tonglou built on the foundation of war isn’t the kind of Tonglou I want to see. Now that you’re the Bai Xiao, whether it’s Gaoyang or Liangqiu, whatever happens from here on out is up to you. I won’t stand in your way anymore.”

A trace of pain began to show in Mingzhen’s eyes, and Qiu Huan felt a pang of sympathy, yet she still met his gaze directly.

“But without you, even if I conquer the world, who will be worthy to stand by my side and share this joy with me?”

“Zhao Erhan has already found someone—how could you possibly fail?” Qiu Huan deliberately mentioned Zhao Erhan’s name. “My brother can’t be worse than him, or Yun He will surely laugh at me.”

After a pause, she added, “Besides, I can’t really share the joy with you. Standing at the pinnacle of the world is one thing, but in everyday life, I prefer strolling across the land, meeting all kinds of people, or spending a month or two doing nothing at all—lying on my bed with a book in hand, cooking for myself when I feel like it, enjoying a leisurely feast. Yuan Mo can accompany me through all this, and he even enjoys it. But you must be terribly uncomfortable living in Shuanglin Garden, right? If Zhao Erhan hadn’t come along later, you probably wouldn’t have been able to stay there at all.”

“But this is the real Qiu Huan. The Qiu Huan by my father’s side was constrained—practicing martial arts day and night. Those days weren’t happy at all; if it hadn’t been for the debt of gratitude I owed him, I would’ve run away long ago. Yet after recovering from my injury two years ago, every step I took on this land and every day I lived under this sky became the most beautiful years of my life. So I can’t go back to the way I was before, nor can I leave the person who accompanied me through those wonderful years.”

“Mingzhen, I’m sorry. If I’d figured it out two years ago, I wouldn’t have kept you waiting so long. Luckily, it’s still not too late.”

Qiu Huan stood up and bowed to Mingzhen—perhaps as an apology, perhaps as a farewell. Her beautiful phoenix eyes shimmered with light; Mingzhen had never seen such a dazzling glow in her pupils before, and could only sigh.

He closed his eyes and asked one last question: “That day in the Renshou Hall, Yuan Mo didn’t choose to save you—he agreed with Gu Yonghuang that they should deal with the bilateral agreement first. If he hadn’t, your heart wouldn’t have been damaged so severely by the delay, making it impossible to save. Huan’er, do you really think he cares about you?”

Hearing this, Qiu Huan couldn’t help but laugh.

“Of course, Brother. Yuan Mo’s care is his respect. His respect for me even makes him suppress the fear of losing me—doesn’t that count for something? I don’t need a lover who claims to ‘do what’s best for me’ but ignores my opinions completely. That’s exactly what I love most about him!”

When Mingzhen stepped out, Yuan Mo was already waiting outside.

“You must take good care of her,” the man in blue said to the visibly moved other party before leaving.

“This has always been my duty and my life,” Yuan Mo said, bowing to the newly appointed Bai Xiao in his capacity as the former Yousun and current Bolaow guard, then watching him depart before turning around and walking into the house.

The woman in white was standing there, smiling at him.

“Are you touched?”

Actually, he was deeply moved. Yuan Mo had always thought she just couldn’t be with Mingzhen, so he’d settled for being with him instead—but he never imagined Qiu Huan would actually say the word “love” to him. Even if she hadn’t said it outright, he still wouldn’t have expected it. Now he felt a bit… as if he’d fallen into a thick fog, struck dumb by a gift from heaven.

Fortunately, Qiu Huan hadn’t really meant it—she’d just teased him playfully. She knew Yuan Mo was sensitive about such things and shouldn’t joke around too much, or he might get angry. So she changed the subject: “A Mo, you’ve already mastered internal energy cultivation without any flaws. Given enough time and refined swordsmanship, you’ll surely catch up with Mingzhen. Now that you’ve given up the Yousun position, do you feel even a little reluctant?”

She’d felt a tiny bit of nervousness when Mingzhen asked that question—just a tiny bit.

Yuan Mo put aside his earlier worries and looked at her with tender eyes, making Qiu Huan’s skin prickle.

“…Don’t try to be like Mingzhen—it’s kind of gross.”

“…” Yuan Mo, feeling deflated.

“…” Qiu Huan, stroking her hair.

Once the guard regained his composure, Qiu Huan immediately felt much better.

He reached out and held a deep purple sachet in his palm.

“Like Huan, I know exactly what I want. I won’t do anything I don’t want to do, even if it means putting myself through hardship,” he told her.

They exchanged a smile, understanding each other perfectly.

“Fengze…” The tearful woman in red held the hand of the man in white.

“Alright, alright—when you miss me, just contact the two remaining secret guards and me. If I ever return to Gaoyang, I’ll come see you as soon as possible. Don’t cry, be good,” the man in white gently patted her head, his expression incredibly tender.

“But, but…” The woman in red couldn’t stop sobbing: “I want to stay with Fengze forever…”

Passersby on the street watched the couple with envy.

—Except for the few men behind them, their faces dark with jealousy.

“Can’t you control your woman?” Mingzhen couldn’t bear to watch the scene and turned to look at the person beside her.

Zhao Erhan responded with a gentle, elegant smile, calmly meeting Mingzhen’s gaze: “What’s wrong? Isn’t their sisterly bond a good thing? There won’t be many chances to meet again anyway, so let them say goodbye properly.” He deliberately lowered his voice when he said “sisterly bond.”

Qiu Huan had already revealed her relationship with Duan Yunhe to Zhao Erhan—after all, she wasn’t worried about him spilling the beans. Someone who’s going to be emperor won’t keep even these two sentences a secret.

“…Fine, do whatever you want. I’ll head to the Eastern Palace first and quickly wrap up the remaining matters. Tonglou still has plenty of work waiting for me, so I don’t have time to watch them bid each other farewell,” Mingzhen said, then sprang into the air and disappeared in a few leaps.

They were both jealous that Qiu Huan wasn’t as close to him as they were! Duan Yunhe and Yuan Mo thought the same thing.

Duan Yunhe finally reluctantly let go of Qiu Huan and returned to Zhao Erhan’s side. In the Great Liang, they couldn’t travel openly, and Zhao Erhan’s everyday clothes made him look even more refined and cultured, which made Qiu Huan a bit envious.

“A Huan?” Yuan Mo didn’t understand her little schemes and gave her a puzzled look.

“Mm.” Qiu Huan instantly adopted a very serious expression: “Your Highness, the future of Gaoyang is in your hands. I hope you’ll maintain friendly relations with Liangqiu and prosper together, so that the whole continent can develop peacefully. That way, all my hard work won’t have been in vain.”

Zhao Erhan bowed respectfully as an equal, speaking with great sincerity: “We will certainly live up to the efforts of the Bai Xiao and your esteemed brother.”

“It’s the Bolaow,” Qiu Huan said, taking Yuan Mo’s hand and smiling at Zhao Erhan and Duan Yunhe. Duan Yunhe still wanted to say a few parting words to her, but before he could, the person in front of him was already gone.

“Fengze’s strength has truly reached the level of Da Hua,” Zhao Erhan remarked.

Duan Yunhe had admired Fengze greatly, but hearing Zhao Erhan say that made her feel a bit uneasy. After all, her whip technique was excellent too!

So she stormed off, fuming.

Zhao Erhan followed behind, smiling and comforting her.

When have I ever sighed, “I return your pearl, tears streaming down my face, wishing we’d met before I was married”? Now, however, I wish I were a star and you a moon, shining brightly together night after night.

Times change, seas turn to fields, and one day the distinctions between right and wrong will no longer matter.

All I ask is that we cherish the people before us.

Six years after that war, when the King of Liangqiu proactively visited Gaoyang to express goodwill, the two countries signed a non-aggression pact. At the same time, the King of Gaoyang reflected on his mistakes six years earlier and promised to return all the cities occupied during the war to Liangqiu.

After returning home, the King of Liangqiu reclaimed his original territory and gradually increased his influence over the unclaimed lands, eventually regaining all the regions Liangqiu had lost during the war two years later. Thus, the era of unclaimed lands came to an end.

A year later, the King of Gaoyang passed away, and the Crown Prince Li Zhao ascended the throne, appointing Duan Yiling, daughter of General Duan Shihong and Princess Jin’an, as empress. Li Zhao was known for respecting talent and governing diligently, a rare ruler indeed. The people of Gaoyang slowly accepted the new king, despite their fear of losing their beloved monarch.

Over the following decade and more, Gaoyang and Liangqiu maintained friendly relations, and the people lived in peace and happiness.

==============================End of Text==================================================Bonus Extra Chapter==========

Extra Chapter 1: Hidden Waves in the Cold Pool

“Ugh.” The person lying on the bed groaned softly, while the maid attending to her kept working steadily. Soon she finished her task, packed up the medicine box, and left the room.

But by then, the girl no longer had the strength to wipe the sweat from her forehead.

A series of rhythmic knocks sounded at the door.

“Come in,” she weakly murmured.

A slightly youthful boy, yet already showing signs of charm, walked into the room.

“Huan’er, how are you doing?”

Seeing him enter, the girl forced a smile, her eyes tinged with resignation. “I’m okay—though the wound is quite deep. I’ll probably need to rest for a while. Has Father woken up yet?”

“The Master just woke up and went straight to the secret chamber to practice. I’ll report your condition to him when he comes out. This time he really went too far—if Yuan Mo hadn’t pulled him back, he might have broken a bone. You’re still growing, so getting injured like this all the time…what’s the point?” The boy spoke with a hint of worry.

“At least it’s on my back. If it had hit my face, I wouldn’t want to be disfigured,” the girl joked, laughing rather carefree, though her voice betrayed her exhaustion.

Seeing that she wasn’t in the mood to talk, the boy personally checked her pulse to make sure she was really fine before leaving.

Incense for calming the soul burned nearby, soothing the nerves twitching from the pain, and the girl fell into a deep sleep.

“Fengze, Fengze~!”

A strange place—a courtyard, but very different from ordinary courtyards. The garden was filled with all sorts of medicinal herbs, meticulously cared for, most of which were rare varieties the girl had never seen before.

“Who are you?” Most importantly, there was an unfamiliar woman in red standing here.

“Hey, Fengze, how come you don’t recognize me? I’m Yunhe!” The woman pointed at herself with her index finger, her big almond-shaped eyes blinking rapidly, looking utterly confused.

“I’ve never seen you, and I don’t know the ‘Fengze’ you’re talking about either,” the little girl said, her eyes cold, her expression cold, her movements cold—clearly keeping everyone at arm’s length.

The woman was baffled by the girl’s behavior and tentatively reached out to poke her cheek. The girl tried to brush her off but failed. She quickly took two steps back, staring in disbelief at her own arm—what happened? Where did her inner strength go?!

“Never mind all that—Fengze, you were so cute as a kid! You’re making me melt (star-eyed)! Let me hold you, okay?” The woman in red, completely oblivious to the girl’s odd reaction, reached out to hug her.

“No—ugh, no—” The girl, having lost her inner strength, couldn’t possibly compete with an adult’s strength. Sure enough, she was grabbed and pressed against the woman’s chest, being rubbed and kneaded.

Girl: Let me die=。=

“…” The woman, thoroughly satisfied with the pet’s perfect cuteness.

“…” The girl, barely clinging to life under the rubbing.

The woman sat down on a low stool in the courtyard and cradled the girl sideways on her lap. Suddenly, she seemed to notice something and curiously asked, “Fengze, why is the clothing on your back torn open, and there’s blood?”

Back, blood? Could it be the spot where Father hurt her? But she’d already changed her clothes, and…thinking it over, she hadn’t felt any pain in her back since coming here, yet she definitely got injured. Maybe this isn’t a real place—maybe she’s dreaming?

“Am I dreaming?” the girl asked the woman, tilting her head up.

The woman gave a thoughtful expression.

“Dreaming? Probably. But I think I’m the one dreaming.”

If it’s a dream, then everything’s fine. The girl breathed a sigh of relief—after all, if her inner strength really did disappear, Father would surely kill her, and she wasn’t ready to die yet.

“This is a wound. Father went crazy again just now, even crazier than before, and it’s harder to control. He slashed my back,” the girl answered, since it was a dream, she didn’t have to worry about so much.

The woman examined the tear in the clothes and exclaimed, “It goes all the way from the shoulder to the waist—how deep is the wound?”

“Not too bad, thanks to the guard who pulled me out. You can see the bone at the shoulder, but it’s not that deep in the back,” the girl replied casually.

“Good heavens!” The woman covered her mouth in astonishment. “This is ‘not too bad’?! Fengze, how much suffering have you endured! What kind of father is this, anyway?”

“They say he sometimes goes crazy, like a completely different person, and seizes every opportunity to torment me,” the girl said impatiently.

End of Chapter 38: Yu Continues Fengze