She refused to marry.

Su Wanwan looked around warily, and a figure emerged from the reeds not far away.

Xiao Xuanjing turned the dagger around.

Su Wanwan gripped Jun Shang's arm nervously, "It's a child..."

Xiao Xuanjing took a deep breath, used his dagger to pull a crab out of the fire, and threw it at the little boy.

The little boy picked it up, not caring that it was too hot to handle, and without even brushing off the dust, he bent down and started eating it.

Su Wanwan took out a pancake from her bag and tossed it over as well.

"Madam, that's tomorrow's rations." Xiao Xuanjing frowned. "There are no villages in sight, and no food available."

"He looks like he hasn't eaten in a long time," Su Wanwan pleaded, looking up at him.

The child wolfed down the food, choked on the biscuit, and limped to the riverbank.

He drank some water, finished the bread, turned around, walked up to them, kowtowed, and thanked them.

"Why are you hiding here?" Xiao Xuanjing asked, raising his eyes.

"I should be in the army, but my mother is all alone at home. If I die, there will be no one to take care of her, so I ran away. I heard that the war has stopped, and I am rushing back to find my mother," the little boy said.

"The war is over?" Su Wanwan's eyes darted around. "Where did you get this news?"

"I heard that Lord Fengchen blew up the valley, and now the entire mountain has been razed to the ground. None of Lord Fengchen's men survived, and Lord Fengchen himself died in battle." The little boy pointed in the direction of White Lotus Mountain.

Xiao Xuanjing's hand tightened, and his face darkened.

"Thank you both for today, farewell." The little boy disappeared into the reeds.

Su Wanwan reached out and stroked the back of the emperor's hand, "They sacrificed themselves for the country, so they won't suffer in their next life."

"Go back to the king and reward their families well. Besides, they've spent their whole lives fighting; perhaps this is a relief for them..."

"Madam, don't worry. Those who go into battle have long since disregarded life and death. Eating fish..." Xiao Xuanjing's eyes dimmed, and he threw the stick aside.

Su Wanwan gazed at him quietly.

His back was lonely, his steps heavy.

It was as if something was slowly and completely devouring him at that moment.

She quietly picked out the fish bones and placed the fish meat on a leaf beside her.

After waiting for a long time without seeing the king return, she curled up on the reeds to rest. Just as she was about to fall asleep, she heard the king's footsteps returning.

Su Wanwan opened her eyes and saw that there was no despair of defeat in the eyes of the emperor. Instead, he looked like a lion poised to pounce, silently waiting to unleash its power.

"I'm full. I left those for you." Su Wanwan pointed to the fish and meat wrapped in leaves next to the fire.

After Xiao Xuanjing finished eating the fish, he kicked away the fire.

They laid reeds on the burned mound of earth and then used the remaining reeds to block the opening.

"Come and sleep here."

Su Wanwan moved closer, feeling warmth behind her. Just as she closed her eyes, the Emperor lay down beside her and covered them both with a thin quilt he had bought.

The next day.

Su Wanwan opened her eyes and saw that she was lying under the armpit of the emperor, curled up in his arms.

The worst part was that her legs were draped over the emperor's stomach.

Their posture was no different from that of an intimate couple.

She was so frightened that she closed her eyes and pretended not to be awake.

Hearing the change in her breathing, Xiao Xuanjing gently released his grip. "Awake?"

"Hmm." Su Wanwan pretended to turn over.

"Get up and pack your things, let's set off early." Xiao Xuanjing stood up.

Su Wanwan felt a cold wind blow down her back, and all sleepiness vanished. She quickly got up, put on her coat, ate a pancake, and set off.

She dared not make eye contact with the emperor the entire time.

Today we ran on a main road, and the horses' running was noticeably less bumpy.

At noon, we sat down at a roadside tea stall where people were having a quick bite to eat. Because the war was over, many people who had left home were also rushing back.

Just then, two soldiers, one tall and one short, carrying knives, appeared. "Waiter, a pound of cooked beef, wrapped in lotus leaves, to go."

The shorter man finished a bowl of tea and said, "Sigh, the young master is really torturous. The valley has already been leveled, and he still wants to dig up the mountain."

"Who says otherwise? I heard he's looking for a woman," the tall man said.

"A woman?" The short soldier paused. "Could it be the woman the prince hung up a few days ago?"

"You've seen him? I heard he had a huge fight with the prince over it."

"How so?"

"The Crown Prince arbitrarily transferred the soldiers from the back mountain to dig into the mountain, which allowed the remnants of Prince Fengchen's army to escape from the back mountain."

The prince was furious and punished the heir apparent's subordinates as well.

Fortunately, no one saw Feng Chenjun escape; he's probably buried in the valley. The tall man drank his tea, sat down, and looked around.

Su Wanwan raised her eyes and met the Emperor's gaze.

The two understood each other without saying a word.

It must be that Jian Qingshan led his men to escape.

"Tell me, why is the young master so concerned about a woman? He even dares to contradict the prince. The second young master has long wanted to take his place, and it's really inappropriate at this critical juncture..." the short soldier lamented.

"Waiter, we need to hurry, so please hurry," the tall man said.

"Alright!" The waiter packed the sliced ​​beef on the cutting board and brought it to the table. "Gentlemen, here you go. Eighty coins in total."

"Keep the change!" The shorter man tossed the loose silver coins onto the table, and the two quickly put on their hats and left.

Xiao Xuanjing put down his bowl, took out some loose silver from his sleeve, and said, "Waiter, the bill, and ten more cakes."

"Alright, gentlemen, please wait a moment," the waiter said cheerfully.

Su Wanwan frowned as she looked at the loose silver coins. She touched the spot on her chest where she kept her belongings, wondering when so much had disappeared.

She looked at Feng Chenjun with a mournful expression and said, "When did my husband become a thief?"

Xiao Xuanjing turned his head away from the direction the two had just left. "Last night, when I turned over, I felt something hard against my skin. My husband just picked it up casually. What's wrong with that?"

"My husband's skin is even thicker than this pancake," Su Wanwan said, pointing at the pancake.

"Catch up with them in a bit..." Xiao Xuanjing got up and walked to her side, lowering his voice.

"What are you doing?" Su Wanwan asked, grabbing Jun Shang's wrist.

You'll find out soon enough.

The two mounted their horses and galloped forward at top speed.

Su Wanwan gripped Feng Chenjun's waist tightly.

Over the past few days, the two of them had long since abandoned any preconceived notions about relationships and were now solely focused on survival.

Today, His Majesty is walking even faster, but the two soldiers ahead seem to have noticed something amiss.

They parted ways at a fork in the road.

Feng Chenjun seemed to have known all along who had the intelligence, and he relentlessly pursued the tall man.

The tall man suddenly disappeared as they entered a narrow mountain path.

Xiao Xuanjing looked around, drew his dagger, and swung it behind him.

A muffled groan came from behind them.

As soon as Su Wanwan turned around, a sharp arrow shot directly at her.