The servant immediately began carefully observing Wei Yan’s expression.

In a deep voice, Wei Yan ordered, “Bring it here.”

Only then did the servant carry the brocade box from the study entrance to the desk.

Wei Yan’s aged yet still razor-sharp phoenix eyes examined the brocade box before him. The box clearly had some age to it. Even the layer of brocade pasted onto its surface had yellowed with time.

He unlocked it and opened the box. The moment he saw what lay inside, a shadow instantly darkened his eyes.

Seeing his expression change, the servant hurriedly glanced into the box as well, and his face immediately paled in shock.

“He… He Jingyuan looked at the letter?”

Inside the box were a letter and a black iron token.

Wei Yan raised a hand and picked up the letter. The envelope was old, yet the seal remained intact, and there was no signature upon it. It looked as though someone long ago had placed the contents into a newer envelope for safekeeping.

“He didn’t dare open it,” Wei Yan said heavily.

He tore open the envelope. As expected, another letter already removed from its original seal lay inside. Both the paper and outer cover had yellowed with age, stained with dried blood that had oxidized into a dull yellow-brown.

On the cover were several bold and powerful characters:

“To Uncle Meng personally.”

Wei Yan had controlled the emperor and commanded the nobles for many years. Though much criticized in court, his calligraphy remained among the finest of the current age.

Anyone who had ever seen his handwriting could recognize at once that the words on the envelope were written by him.

Only after seeing the letter inside did the coldness in Wei Yan’s expression ease slightly, though his eyes remained sharp as hawks.

“The item I ordered the Xuan-ranked death soldiers to retrieve—why did it end up in He Jingyuan’s hands?”

The servant lowered his head, cold sweat pouring down.

“This old servant will immediately order people to investigate.”

But Wei Yan waved a hand, signaling there was no need. Seeing another memorial from Jizhou delivered together with the brocade box, he opened it and read through it before tossing it onto the desk.

“He’s asking me to spare the two daughters of that traitor.”

The servant had survived many years at Wei Yan’s side precisely because he understood how to read people’s hearts. Glancing at He Jingyuan’s report, which described bandits attacking Qingping County, killing multiple innocent civilians, and later being exterminated, he immediately understood the deeper meaning behind Wei Yan’s words.

He Jingyuan had returned the item Wei Yan wanted and, in exchange, hoped Wei Yan would stop there and spare that man’s two daughters.

A thought flickered through the servant’s eyes.

“General He is probably only remembering the bond between former comrades. Earlier, when you tested General He’s loyalty by ordering him to kill those two, didn’t he carry out your command all the same? General He has always been loyal to you. This is merely a moment of softheartedness.”

Wei Yan let out a cold laugh.

“Do you think he obtained this item long ago, or was it truly as he claimed in the memorial—that he mistook the matter for bandit trouble in Qingping County, sent troops to suppress them, accidentally captured the Xuan-ranked death soldiers, and only then learned I was searching for this item?”

The servant considered carefully before replying, “After you ordered him to kill those two, hadn’t you already sent people to watch him? He Jingyuan truly seems unaware of this item’s significance. Most likely, it’s the latter.”

Wei Yan said coldly, “Better to wrongly kill a thousand than let one slip away. Though he did not open the letter, the fact that he thought to use it to plead for the traitor’s daughters means he has likely guessed what it is.”

The servant cautiously asked, “Do you mean… to deal with him as you did the Marquis?”

He made a throat-slitting gesture.

Wei Yan stared at the memorial on the desk. After a long silence, he finally shook his head.

“It has been over sixteen years since the Battle of Jinzhou. Yet only several months ago did talk of Crown Prince Chengde and Xie Linshan’s deaths suddenly begin circulating again among the people. For Zheng’er to investigate the records of that battle, someone must have deliberately guided him toward it.”

At this point, Wei Yan’s tone suddenly sharpened.

“That hidden person has yet to reveal themselves, yet they already forced me to lose the finest blade in my hand.”

His voice turned colder still.

“The Chongzhou warfront is deadlocked now. Perhaps that hidden person has been secretly manipulating things there as well. If I lose another blade like He Jingyuan, then the entire southwest may as well be handed over to others. That traitor knew his limits. He never told his daughters anything about what happened back then. Two little girls are no threat. Let them live for now.”

The servant immediately praised him.

“The Chancellor is wise.”

But inwardly, he understood perfectly.

Wei Yan was only sparing He Jingyuan because even after learning the truth of the Battle of Jinzhou, He Jingyuan could still be used by him. And the man who betrayed Wei Yan had left behind only two daughters. What threat could women possibly pose in seeking revenge?

There was no need to fear future trouble from them.

But Xie Zheng was different.

The hatred of murdering one’s father could never coexist beneath the same sky.

That was why the man before him had struck first, setting a trap within the Chongzhou warfront to bury the Great Yin Empire’s young war god there—the marquis who had earned his title through military merit before even reaching full adulthood.

Wei Yan paid no attention to the servant’s flattery. After giving the yellowed letter one final glance, he casually tossed it into the charcoal brazier beside the desk.

The blazing silver-bone charcoal instantly burned a hole through the paper. As the dark brown gap spread wider, the entire letter was gradually consumed by flames.

The warfare and bloodshed from sixteen years ago also seemed to turn to smoke and dust within that fire, leaving no one in the world who still knew the truth.

Firelight reflected within Wei Yan’s eyes as he said heavily, “Leave the Chongzhou warfront to He Jingyuan for now. Whoever is determined to drag the Battle of Jinzhou from sixteen years ago back into the light will not stop here. Send the Di-ranked death soldiers to watch closely. If there is any further movement, I must see the rat hiding in the shadows stirring up these storms!”

The servant asked, “Could it be the faction under Grand Tutor Li…”

Wei Yan shook his head. His aged face carried the calm steadiness of a towering mountain over an abyss.

“If that old thing had discovered traces of the truth behind the Battle of Jinzhou, he would not have waited sixteen years before bringing up old matters again.”

He slowly continued, “After Crown Prince Chengde died in battle back then, the Eastern Palace caught fire. The Crown Princess and the imperial grandson both died in the blaze. Half of the Crown Princess’s face remained recognizable, but the imperial grandson was burned into a dried corpse. Let us hope the child who died that year truly was the imperial grandson.”

The servant understood the implication immediately, cold sweat soaking through him.

“The one who died alongside the Crown Princess must certainly have been the imperial grandson. Other than him, where else could a young boy have come from within the Eastern Palace?”

Wei Yan only said, “Let us hope so.”

—

Jizhou.

Though it was New Year’s Eve, the imperial army had suffered defeat in Chongzhou. Since Jizhou bordered Chongzhou, every official ranked seventh grade or higher in the prefecture was summoned to the Jizhou government office to discuss countermeasures instead of peacefully celebrating the New Year.

A report was delivered to He Jingyuan’s desk. After reading it, he sighed.

“The Chancellor’s eldest son truly thinks the flames on the Chongzhou battlefield aren’t burning fiercely enough.”

Standing below him, Zheng Wenchang asked, “Why does my lord say that?”

He Jingyuan handed over the official document bearing the seal of the Northwestern Military Commissioner. After the officials in the study passed it around and read it, heated discussion immediately erupted.

Zheng Wenchang angrily said, “The Great Yin Empire has one capital and seventeen prefectures, with the northwest accounting for four of them. Chongzhou has already rebelled. That leaves only Huizhou, Jizhou, and Taizhou. Huizhou is a military garrison, and in order to weaken the military commissioner’s power, the court has long forbidden garrison regions from storing grain or farming. Right now, only Jizhou and Taizhou can still supply grain. Yet Wei Xuan is demanding our two prefectures each raise one hundred thousand dan of grain within three days. Isn’t that impossible?”

Another official added, “I heard Taizhou couldn’t gather enough grain, so yesterday the military commissioner already sent troops to seize grain by force. Even the seeds farmers saved for spring planting were taken away! Forget planting crops next spring—people will be fortunate just to survive this harsh winter without starving!”

“The soldiers under Wei Xuan don’t treat commoners like people at all. I heard several farmers unwilling to hand over grain were beaten to death. The news simply hasn’t spread yet. Once it does, the Wei family’s reputation will gain yet another stain!”

He Jingyuan listened silently as the officials beneath him argued noisily. Only when the debate became increasingly heated did he ask:

“Why exactly can’t grain be levied from the northwest this year?”

The provisions for the hundred thousand troops stationed in Huizhou Camp had always been supplied by the court. But due to the war in Chongzhou, the grain routes had been cut off, delaying the provisions.

If the Chongzhou war had ended sooner, matters would not have deteriorated to this point. Yet the Great Yin Empire’s war god, the Marquis of Wu’an, had already fallen there, and the blow to military morale was impossible to ignore.

The newly appointed military commissioner, Wei Xuan, was also eager for glory. In order to seize control of the hundred thousand troops in Huizhou Camp as quickly as possible, he demoted some of the Marquis’s veteran generals and transferred others far away.

The group of officers he personally brought with him knew nothing about the northwestern battlefield. After suffering repeated defeats, morale collapsed again and again, and the battlefront stretched longer and longer until the existing grain reserves of Huizhou Camp were completely exhausted.

Huizhou was now in critical danger. Logically, the other three prefectures in the northwest should have been able to provide support. Even with only two remaining now, it should not have been impossible to gather grain.

Zheng Wenchang, who always had a fiery temper, clasped his fists and said, “This subordinate already investigated. Recently, a merchant surnamed Zhao purchased massive amounts of grain at high prices throughout Jizhou and Taizhou. The common people only kept spring seeds and coarse grain for their own consumption. Everything else was sold off for silver to celebrate the New Year.”

He Jingyuan said, “Investigate that merchant Zhao.”

Zheng Wenchang acknowledged the order.

He Jingyuan then said, “It is New Year’s Eve today. There is no need to continue discussing matters. Return home early.”

The officials beneath him had all worn bitter expressions moments before. Hearing this, joy immediately flashed across their faces, though they still restrained themselves and formally bowed before leaving one after another.

Only Zheng Wenchang remained standing there with tightly furrowed brows.

Once everyone else had left and only he remained, He Jingyuan rose from behind the desk and asked, “Why haven’t you returned home?”

Zheng Wenchang said worriedly, “My lord, Wei Xuan specifically ordered our Jizhou Prefecture to gather one hundred thousand dan of grain within three days. If we cannot produce it after three days, what will we do?”

He Jingyuan replied, “Did I not order you to investigate that merchant Zhao?”

Zheng Wenchang fell silent. That merchant had begun buying grain long ago. Even if they found him, if the grain had already been sold elsewhere, distant water could not quench immediate thirst.

Suddenly, He Jingyuan halted and looked at the young man before him. His gaze was warm yet steady with strength.

“Do you want me to become like Wei Xuan and force the people beneath me to seize grain from the common folk?”

Zheng Wenchang hurriedly said he would never dare suggest such a thing, though hesitation still lingered on his face.

“But… how will you answer the Wei family?”

He Jingyuan replied, “There will always be a solution, but that solution is not pressing blades against the necks of the people. Wenchang, it does not matter what faction court officials and scholars call us. What matters is that we ourselves understand this office is held for the people of Great Yin.”

Zheng Wenchang lowered his head in shame.

“This subordinate has been taught.”

He Jingyuan said nothing further.

Heavy snow drifted down outside. As he stepped from the study, his thoughts lingered on the item he had sent to the capital after learning of Chongzhou’s defeat. Wei Yan should have already seen it by now.

If the capital’s transfer order arrived before Wei Xuan caused further trouble, then Wei Xuan would no longer pose any threat.

Wei Xuan’s current desperation to collect grain was likely because he feared punishment from Wei Yan and hoped to quickly produce achievements through reckless means.

With no one else left in the northwest whom Wei Yan could use besides himself, the risky method he employed to exchange for the survival of those two sisters would likely succeed.

This was all he could do for them.

Hearing the distant sound of firecrackers exploding from the city streets, a trace of complexity and melancholy surfaced in He Jingyuan’s eyes.

“During festivals and holidays, offerings should still be burned for those who’ve passed on. There is an old friend now left with no one to burn spirit money for him anymore. I have no face to see him. Wenchang, come with me outside the city and burn some paper offerings for an old friend on my behalf.”

Zheng Wenchang acknowledged the order.

A carriage departed the main city of Jizhou and stopped upon a hillside.

Mountain winds howled. He Jingyuan personally lit incense, bowed three times toward the north, then planted the incense into the earth before stepping aside, allowing Zheng Wenchang alone to burn the spirit money there.

The wind whipped the flames violently. Half-burned paper offerings scattered everywhere, mixing with the endless white snowfall and creating a bleak and desolate scene.

After finishing the offerings and descending the hill, Zheng Wenchang noticed He Jingyuan standing with his back toward the slope, his expression sorrowful.

During the return journey, he could not help asking, “My lord has always been compassionate. Why say you have no face to see an old friend?”

He Jingyuan sat inside the carriage with eyes closed as though resting. Hearing the question, he only replied:

“In troubled times, there are always things one must do against one’s will.”

—

Lin’an Town.

The snow on the ground had already been trampled into muddy slush, mixed with soaked paper offerings ruined by melted snow.

When the wind blew strongly, many scraps of spirit paper scattered into the air.

The roads after snowmelt were difficult to walk, full of mud. Fan Changyu carried Changning in her arms while walking along the field ridges. Behind her, Xie Zheng expressionlessly carried a bamboo basket stuffed full of incense, candles, and paper offerings.

According to the town’s traditions, on New Year’s Eve people had to visit the graves of deceased relatives to offer incense, light candles, and burn spirit money.

Fan Changyu’s parents were buried on a mountain outside town said to possess excellent feng shui.

Since the graves were still new, hardly any weeds had grown there. Once they arrived, Fan Changyu set Changning down.

It had already been nearly two months since their parents passed away, yet the moment Changning saw the two grave mounds, tears immediately welled in her grape-like eyes.

“Father… Mother…”

Fan Changyu stroked her younger sister’s head and comforted her softly.

“Don’t cry. It’s New Year’s. We should be happy. If Father and Mother see us from heaven, they’ll feel at ease.”

Little Changning sniffled hard and forced back her tears.

After lighting the incense and candles, Fan Changyu had Changning kneel and kowtow before the graves while she herself took paper offerings from the basket and burned them inside an iron basin specially meant for ashes.

Once Changning finished kowtowing, she also squatted beside Fan Changyu to burn spirit money. Seeing Xie Zheng standing nearby, she handed him a thick stack of paper offerings.

“Brother-in-law, burn paper too!”

After hesitating briefly, Xie Zheng also picked up the spirit paper and began burning it.

The smell of burning paper ash was somewhat choking. The smoke rising from the flames irritated Changning’s eyes until she could barely keep them open, forcing her to retreat to the side.

Only Fan Changyu and Xie Zheng remained beside the brazier.

Xie Zheng noticed she had divided the spirit money in the basket into four portions and asked, “Who are the other two portions for?”

Fan Changyu replied, “My maternal grandfather and grandmother. In the past, my parents always burned offerings for them. Now that my parents are gone too, I’m simply burning everything together.”

Without revealing it, Xie Zheng’s brows subtly furrowed.

Her mother did not even know her original surname, so how could she possibly know her parents’ birth dates and details?

The more he thought about it, the more certain he became that the surname had been deliberately omitted from her mother’s memorial tablet.

As for why her father’s surname had not been hidden, either Fan was not originally her father’s true surname, or… her father had once used another surname entirely.

Though suspicion had already formed in his mind, he had no intention of asking about her grandfather’s surname.

He could already guess the result. Even if he asked, she would know nothing.

Seeing his silence, Fan Changyu assumed he was thinking about his deceased parents. Generously, she said, “There’s still extra spirit paper at home. Later, you can burn some for your parents too.”

Xie Zheng’s slender fingers held a piece of spirit paper being consumed by flames. Amid the firelight and smoke, his expression appeared unusually detached.

“Do burning these things really help?”

Fan Changyu truly could not answer that question. After thinking for a moment, she said, “Maybe it does. The elders always say people in the afterlife still need money to bribe the ghost officials, or they’ll suffer there. And even if it doesn’t help… it’s still a form of remembrance.”

If someone still burned spirit money during holidays and festivals, it meant there was still someone in this world who remembered the deceased.

Xie Zheng said nothing more. He merely continued tossing stacks of spirit paper into the basin from time to time, his lowered lashes concealing the meaning in his eyes.

He threw in too much paper at once, and the unburned sheets piled together, producing thick smoke. Fan Changyu was nearly driven to tears by the choking fumes. Turning her face aside with eyes shut, she complained:

“Don’t throw in so much at once.”

She reached into the bamboo basket for more spirit paper, but instead of paper, her fingers touched a cool, large hand.

Like being shocked by electricity, Fan Changyu immediately jerked her hand back. Opening her tear-filled almond eyes reddened by smoke, she looked both embarrassed and flustered.

“Sorry.”

The warmth of her touch still lingered faintly on the back of his hand. Xie Zheng lightly pressed his lips together. He had intended to say, “It’s fine,” but when he looked up and saw her tearful eyes and the reddened corners of her eyes from the smoke, he froze slightly.