148 sadness

is head lowered as he read a book. When he noticed Ye Li entering, he casually put down the book with a faint smile: "Sit down; were you frightened last night" Ye Li seated herself opposite him and sa...Sadness

148. Sadness

In the City of Xinyang, the residence of the city's prefecture was currently serving as a temporary command center for the Black Warriors. All the main commanders of the Black Warrior army, including Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao, were temporarily residing there. After the bloody massacre that had occurred, the population of the once bustling city of Xinyang, which numbered in the hundreds of thousands, was now almost non-existent. The entire city could be described as being almost entirely occupied by soldiers under military management. The wide streets were empty; no pedestrians or vendors with cheerful calls could be seen. Only disciplined and solemn soldiers marched past. Even when a few civilians did pass by, their faces bore expressions of sorrow and apathy.

Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao walked along the largest street in Xinyang city, Wuzhu Street, and couldn't help but sigh at the sight of the empty streets. Mo Xiuyao noticed her gloomy expression as he looked down at her and silently reached out to hold her hand. Ye Li raised her head and smiled softly at him: "I'm fine; I just feel a bit lost seeing this once bustling city now deserted." Mo Xiuyao said softly, "Once the war is over, it won't take long for this place to flourish again." Ye Li shook her head: "No matter how prosperous it becomes, those people will not be the same as those who originally lived in this city." Mo Xiuyao's eyes darkened slightly, "War always means innocent civilians getting injured or killed."

"Yes... One general’s success is built on countless lives..." Ye Li sighed softly.

"One general’s success is built on countless lives..." Mo Xiuyao seemed deep in thought. The Black Warriors’ illustrious reputation had been forged by countless lives and sacrifices throughout the generations, but when it came to innocent civilians who died during war, did they ever truly lament their loss Ye Li walked ahead, turning back with a faint smile at Mo Xiuyao, her eyes filled with nostalgia he had never seen before. She said softly: "Do you know Someone once told me that the duty of a soldier is to protect the country and its people, ensuring peace for all. The greatest shame for a soldier would be allowing the very civilians they protect to experience war right at their doorstep." Mo Xiuyao was silent as he watched Ye Li's nostalgic expression, which seemed so distant yet beautiful it made his heart ache. He suddenly felt an urgent need to hold her close, fearing she might vanish if he didn't act quickly. So, he followed his instincts and pulled her into a tight embrace, resting his chin on the top of her head as he spoke in a deep voice: "This incident is indeed a disgrace for the Black Warrior army."

Ye Li smiled softly and shook her head: "That's not what I meant. Just consider my words nonsense then. This incident… isn’t your fault."

Moxiu Yao gently said, "It's not your fault either, Ah Li. You've already done your best."

Ye Li nodded and was about to stand up straight and leave Moxiu Yao’s embrace when a melodious voice tinged with surprise and faint resentment came from behind them, "Xiyao, are you here" The two turned around to see the stunning woman standing不遠處，一臉歡喜地看著墨修堯。葉璃心中歎息，蘇醉蝶不僅僅是一個容貌絕色的女子，而且還是一個非常懂得利用自己優勢的女人。信陽城中百業蕭條，她這位客人明顯也不受王爺和王妃待見，自然冇有人會特意為她準備華服美飾了。然而眼前的女子隻穿著最普通的白衣，卻依然能讓她顯得出塵脫俗如同九天仙女入凡塵一般。烏黑的青絲隨意披散，僅用一根白色的絲帶輕輕束住。蘇醉蝶今年已經二十五歲，但此刻站在街道中央盈盈而立，看上去竟然比才十五六歲的葉璃大不了兩歲。

"What are you doing here" Moxiu Yao frowned slightly, looking at her with a composed expression.

Su Zuidie’s hand hidden in her sleeve tightened. She shook her lips sorrowfully and looked up at Moxiu Yao, "You don’t want to see me" Moxiu Yao's face remained unchanged as he stared piercingly at her, his voice deep, "This King asks you: what are you doing here"

Su Zuidie was taken aback. She gave a bitter laugh and looked at him with resentment in her eyes, "I see. You still hate me, don’t you Are you still angry that I left you alone back then But… it was不得已啊，你為什麼就不能原諒我？你還像防備敵人一樣防著我，難道我連出來走走透透氣都不行嗎？如果你這麼恨我，為什麼不乾脆殺了我？”墨修堯皺眉，不再理會蘇醉蝶，對著空曠的街道道：“來人！”

Two shadows appeared quickly at the corner of the street, waiting respectfully for instructions. Moxiu Yao pointed to Su Zuidie who was crying with her face covered and said coldly, "Take her back. If you let me see her outside again, you will have to deal with your punishment yourselves."

"Yes, Your Highness!" Both of them responded in unison.

Su Zhuodie stared in shock at Mo Xiuyao and said doubtfully, "You want to imprison me Xiu Yao, you are so ruthless… My grandfather will never allow you to treat me like this!"

Moshouyao spoke indifferently, "Do you wish for Senior Su to know that you're still alive"

Su Zhuodie was speechless. Given her grandfather's temper, if he found out what she had been up to these years, he would definitely kill her! Glancing at Mo Xiuyao and Ye Li who were still clasping hands, Su Zhuodie knew she couldn’t return with the two shadow guards despite her unwillingness, as it would be even more humiliating.

Ye Li smiled and shrugged nonchalantly at the resentful look that Su Zhuodie shot at them before leaving. No matter how beautiful a woman was, one could get used to it after seeing too many of them. Ye Li believed genuine beauty should be just right; sometimes being too beautiful could also be a flaw.

Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao toured the city together to check on its defenses and reassure the surviving citizens before returning to the Governor's residence. The moment they entered, Feng Zhiyao invited Moshouyao away, while Ye Li returned to her study to attend to her own matters.

The desk was already piled up with various documents and memorials organized by Zhuo Jing and Lin Han. When Ye Li came in, the two who had been busy immediately rose to pay their respects. Ye Li waved her hand dismissively, indicating that they did not need to bow. They then sat back down, focusing on their work. After these two months of instruction, Zhuo Jing and Lin Han were now mostly up to Ye Li's standards for an assistant. Especially Zhuo Jing, who had more time working with Ye Li than Lin Han, was better able to understand her intentions; often without needing words, a gesture or a raised hand would be enough for him to know what she needed. This allowed Ye Li to free herself from the daily hustle and focus only on significant matters that required her decision.

"Any news from Dark Two" As Ye Li sat down, she picked up the documents she had to deal with and asked.

Lin Han stood up and presented a memorial, saying, "This is the earliest one I received. Dark Two had it delivered by express messenger."

Ye Li took over and opened it to read. The memorial was filled with detailed information all related to Su Zuodie. It included her current status and identity in Xi Ling as well as everything about her family, the Xi Ling Bai Clan. There were also many things about Su Zuodie's life inside the palace, including her relationship with the emperor and empresses of Xi Ling, as well as the princesses. After reading further, Ye Li was surprised to find that Su Zuodie wasn't just a favored concubine of the Emperor of Xi Ling but also allegedly had an ambiguous relationship with Prince Yunnan. Su Zuodie's relationship with Empress Bai of Xi Ling was extremely bad; she almost died several times at the hands of Empress Bai, all thanks to Prince Yunnan’s good fortune. After that, Prince Yunnan took direct action against Empress Bai, making her a puppet in the palace and virtually giving Su Zuodie free rein over it. Ye Li found this puzzling: Why would Su Zuodie, who was almost as powerful as the empress herself, travel all the way to Da Chu Was she not afraid that Mo Xi堯 would remember their past and kill her with one sword strike Or did she really have such confidence in her looks that she believed Mo Xi堯 would fall at her feet

After finishing reading what seemed more like a legendary tale than factual history, Ye Li said somewhat boredly, "I’ll send the memorial to His Excellency when I’m free."

Lin Han nodded and put away the memorial. He planned to deliver it to his lord once he finished with his current tasks.

"Zuodie requests an audience with Miss Ye," a soft voice from Su Zuodie was heard outside.

Ye Li frowned, then said after some thought, "Let Her Grace Empress Bai enter."

Su Zuodie swept her angry gaze over the two guards at the door and raised an eyebrow. “Am I allowed to come in now” But for the loyal guards, this beautiful sight was as lifeless as a stone or wooden figurine. They politely said, "Your Excellency requests Empress Bai’s entry."

This title made her feel both angry and embarrassed. Everyone knew she was Mo Xi堯's betrothed, but around Mo Xi堯 and Ye Li, everyone called her Empress Bai. This made her wonder if it was a deliberate insult. In reality, it was all in Su Zuodie’s imagination; most people only knew that the former betrothed of their lord was the world-renowned beauty Su Zuodie, but they also knew she had died. Even if she claimed to be Su Zuodie, as long as Lord and Lady did not acknowledge it, no one would believe her. Moreover, since both Prince Yunnan and his wife called her Empress Bai, naturally their subordinates followed suit.

Su Zuodie huffed and stepped into the study. As soon as she entered, she saw Ye Li sitting behind a desk reading something in her hand. On another desk near one side of the room were piles of accounts, memorials, and documents. Lin Han and Zhuo Jing sat at the table busily working on their tasks without so much as glancing at the beautiful woman who had just entered. Not that they didn’t love looking at a beauty; it was simply that she kept running into His Excellency by coincidence these days. By chance, Prince Yunnan mostly stayed with his wife and so did his retainers, making them see this beauty often. If someone was always pestering you to be close or clinging to you, no matter how beautiful they were, their appeal would inevitably diminish.ingchi. However, while Han Mingyue prioritizes personal feelings, Han Mingchi places more importance on sibling bonds. It would be better for him to know now rather than harbor resentment if he learns...