“Whoever dares lay a hand on any of them will have to answer to me.”
Gao Zhi raised her hand, and Chan Yi tossed the Sun-Soul Sword toward her. In one smooth motion, Gao Zhi caught it and sheathed the sword.
Feng Che’s fingers curled inward as he stared fixedly at the beautiful figure he could only see in his dreams, taking in every detail from head to toe, every strand of her hair.
Was she still the same as he remembered?
【She’s thinner…】
Gao Zhi heard Feng Che’s voice and instinctively turned her head, meeting his dark, deep-set eyes.
It wasn’t the thirty-five-year-old Feng Che.
This year, he had just returned to the capital. He was only twenty-two.
There was no white in his hair yet, and there was no frost-like chill in his eyes.
The young and handsome man stood before her.
Only then did the reality of her rebirth truly sink in.
“Miss Gao, didn’t you agree to marry my cousin?”
Zhu Wen swallowed and pointed at Feng Che. “Feng Che has already fathered several brats behind your back. You still want him?”
Feng Che’s eyes trembled, as though those words had wounded him. He hurriedly turned his face away, unwilling to meet her gaze.
Gao Zhi froze.
There was grievance in his eyes, along with heartache.
Was he feeling wronged for himself and hurting for her?
“Who said I’m going to marry the Crown Prince?”
The woman’s clear voice fell, and Feng Che looked up in surprise, their eyes meeting once again.
“I already have a fiancé. Now that he has returned, I will be marrying him soon.”
Gao Zhi pressed her lips together and walked toward him.
Feng Che hurriedly straightened his clothes, hiding the injury to his leg. He forced himself to stand a little straighter, but the spasms in his knee still made his back bend slightly.
He was no longer the shield that could protect her from wind and rain as he had been years ago.
A hint of pain and loneliness colored his brows and eyes, yet he could only pretend to remain composed.
In her previous life, every year when he came to pay his respects, he had used the hem of his robe to conceal his injured leg.
The sight stabbed at her heart.
“She’s completely insane.”
Zhu Wen had finally found an opportunity to vent the anger he had harbored all these years, but he had never expected Gao Zhi—the very person he had used as an excuse—to appear and leave him in such an awkward position.
“If you still refuse to leave, tomorrow I’ll personally go before the Empress and tell her all about the crimes Young Master Zhu has committed these past few days.”
Gao Zhi turned her gaze back to him.
Her beautiful eyes were laced with coldness.
Zhu Wen knew that this tomboy Gao Zhi never made empty threats. He shot Feng Che a vicious glare, threw out a final threat, then led his men away.
“Feng Che.”
Only then did Gao Zhi turn back to face the young man.
“It’s been a long time. It truly feels… like a lifetime ago.”
Feng Che avoided her gaze.
“Miss Gao, thank you for helping me just now, but… I have the children with me. I need to return home and rest. Please leave first as well.”
Gao Zhi paused.
“After five years apart, you’re already in such a hurry to send me away?”
“I heard you mention the marriage earlier. If I remember correctly, it should be the engagement Your Majesty arranged between us.”
Feng Che lowered his eyes, his thick lashes concealing his emotions.
“I’ll enter the palace and ask His Majesty to cancel it.”
Gao Zhi studied him. Although his handsome face remained expressionless, his features were tense, and even his body betrayed a stiffness.
Compared with the thirty-five-year-old Feng Che, this younger version’s acting was far too clumsy.
They had clearly known each other for so many years.
In her previous life, how had Gao Zhi failed to see through the helplessness hidden behind his cold expression?
“Why don’t you try pretending a little harder?”
Feng Che froze.
“What did you say?”
Gao Zhi looked at him.
“Are you sure you want me to leave?”
Feng Che shifted half a step to the side, politely making way for her to leave.
The moment Gao Zhi mounted her tall horse, she suddenly heard Feng Che’s trembling voice, full of grievance and reluctance.
【Don’t go!】
“?”
That voice…
Gao Zhi turned around.
It really was Feng Che’s voice.
But could that tone possibly come from the ice-cold Feng Che?
Feng Che said, “In a couple of days, I’ll visit General Gao and Madam Gao and explain everything.”
【I don’t want to be separated… I just saw you again, and you want to break off our engagement… Why do you like the Crown Prince…?】
Gao Zhi was stunned.
She was seeing a ghost.
She clearly saw that Feng Che’s lips were not moving.
But why were his words pouring directly into her ears?
【I miss A-Zhi so much. I miss her so, so much…】
【I want to hug A-Zhi.】
【Why has A-Zhi become so thin?】
【And she’s become even more beautiful…】
【No wonder all those jackals and wolves in the capital want to cling to A-Zhi.】
【I’m clearly A-Zhi’s fiancé. Why has fate treated me so unfairly, making me gain her only to lose her?】
At such unabashed words, Gao Zhi’s gaze fell to his chest.
Could this… be his inner thoughts?
“Mother—”
A childish voice came from inside the carriage.
A five-year-old child poked his round head out. His bright, watery eyes seemed to hold stars as he gazed at her.
“You’re so pretty~”
Gao Zhi froze again.
This chubby little boy… could he be Feng Wen Ting, the brilliant and exceptionally intelligent hero who would devise strategies that contributed to the extermination of the Liao ten years later?
“A-Ting, don’t talk nonsense.”
Feng Che scolded him coldly, though a faint blush had appeared on the tips of his ears.
【This child A-Ting has always been clever.】
Gao Zhi: “…”
The onlooking townspeople were far more interested in the juicy spectacle than the reunion between old acquaintances. Seeing that there was no more excitement to watch, and fearing that they might offend the Gao family or the Prince’s Residence, they dispersed one after another.
“Come home with me.”
Gao Zhi said to the man.
A look of astonishment flashed through Feng Che’s eyes.
【A-Zhi… wants to take me home?】