Jin Zi wasnât staring intently at Mu Linger like the past, but treated her as air after a cursory glance. Han Yunxi noted all this privately and felt even more surprised. âWhat does Ning Cheng owe you?â she asked coldly.
âWhen Ning Cheng left Northern Li, he promised to return my private bank to me if I joined him in Yunning Palace. Now Iâm here, but heâs fled. Tell me princess, who else can I find to pay me back, if not you?â Jin Zi said calmly.
Mu Linger assumed that Jin Zi was only here for money, but Long Feiye and Han Yunxi turned. Jin Ziâs words and actions were full of deeper meanings! From what Han Yunxi understood, Ning Cheng had constantly tried to coax Jin Zi into staying behind and playing the pair of Black Clan heir to the end. But Jin Zi never agreed.
When Ning Cheng left Northern Li for Yunning, he was obeying orders and coming to get his rewards. After the Ning Clan troops took down Northern Li, Long Feiye was certain to reward them after he claimed the throne! If Jin Zi had agreed to come along, that meant the man had accepted Ning Chengâs persuasions to accept the rewards with him. In other words, the fact that Jin Zi had returned to Yunning meant he was certain to stay with the Northern Li army!
Now that Ning Cheng had left, Jin Zi didnât follow and even found them to talk face-to-face. His attitude was obvious. At last, Long Feiye and Han Yunxi understood the meaning of Ning Chengâs garrison posts in the north!
If Jin Zi had intentions to stay, then they didnât need to worry for now. Moreover, with the Black Clan and tiger army overseeing Northern Li, the Ning Clan troops could retreat to the rear lines and silence the various military factions. They would have no chance to censure Han Yunxi, either.
Ning Chengâs departure was to advance by retreating! He had truly given Long Feiye and Han Yunxi a huge gift!
Jin Zi took out his tiger tally and offered it up with both hands. âPrincess, this is a token of my sincerity. Donât be a cent short with the private bankâs money!â
Han Yunxi smiled helplessly, but Long Feiye grew unhappy. âYou really didnât see Ning Cheng?â
Jin Zi told the truth. âThis tally was originally in his hands. A few days ago, a youth delivered it to me at an inn. Since Ning Chengâs gone, why bother hunting him down?â
In the past, Jin Zi had a general understanding of the Di Clan and West Qin, but after fighting wars with Ning Cheng in Northern Li for the past six months, he got a better idea of them all. Long Feiye said nothing. Although Ning Cheng had cleaned up Northern Li splendidly and left him no issues, those were only public matters. He had yet to settle his private debts with the man!
Long Feiye might have been preoccupied over the past few months, but he also sent men to find all sorts of potent alcohol. Was this Ning Cheng admitting defeat? Long Feiye wouldnât accept opponents who gave up!
He said coldly, âIf you see Ning Cheng in the future, do me a favor and tell him this crown prince invites him to drink wine!â
âAlright! Iâll remember!â Jin Zi always ended up dead drunk when drinking with Ning Cheng. He was very curious to know who would get drunk first in a contest between Ning Cheng and Long Feiye.
The clueless Han Yunxi was left surprised. Long Feiye would actually ask Ning Cheng out drinking? What kind of plot is hidden in that? Does he want to lure him out? But I donât think Ning Cheng would show himself.
âRegarding the private bank, you can go to Three-Way Black Marketâs East Origin Hall. Someone will make arrangements,â Long Feiye said.
Since Jin Zi had found himself all the way to Han Yunxi to settle his debts, he would naturally help her pay him back.
âJin Zi, Iâll keep an eye on investigating your origins. I heard Ning Cheng say you miss Wintercrow Country very muchâŠâ Han Yunxi trailed off before chuckling. âIf youâre interested, His Highness and I will fully support your efforts in the future. Someone needs to look after the slave trade there sooner or later.â
Naturally, Jin Zi understood the implied hint in her words. She wanted Jin Zi to give up on the slave trade while hinting to him her intentions to take down Wintercrow Country. That way, even if Jin Zi changed his mind one day, heâd have no place to retreat!
âAlright, this one will remember,â Jin Zi said coldly. As he prepared to leave, Han Yunxi stopped him.
âThatâs right, I wanted to clarify something so you donât come asking me for payment later,â she added.
âWhat is it?â Jin Zi asked.
âYouâre not marrying my little sister, are you?â Han Yunxi asked seriously.
Mu Linger never thought Han Yunxi would be so direct. She wanted to bury her head in the table, while Jin Zi was surprised. He assumed their agreement could drag out for a bit longer. If he didnât give Mu Linger a chance to explain herself, the knot between them would never be untangled. But nowâŠ
He finally looked at Mu Linger before asking coldly, âIs she still willing to wed?â
Han Yunxi waited for Mu Lingerâs response. The girl lowered her head and didnât answer.
âAre you still marrying him?â Han Yunxi couldnât help asking.
âIâŠIâm not marrying,â Mu Linger muttered. She who always stuck to her promises had finally said no.
In that moment, Jin Ziâs gaze shifted away from her. This was the result of their one-year agreement: sheâd gone gone back her word.
He shrugged and said, âThen I wonât marry her! Farewell!â
So speaking, he turned and walked out without stopping. Mu Linger never thought things would end so easily! After all, back in Northern Li she had lived every day fearing that Jin Zi would hunt her down. She had already prepared herself multiple times to renegade on her promise.
She knew Jin Zi would be angry at the refusal and might even attack. She had thought of all kinds of ways to persuade her and even threaten him with her big sis and brother-in-law. Who knew that after three whole months, everything ended just like that?
Itâs okay just after he said he wouldnât marry?
Mu Linger lifted her head incredulously. She couldnât see Jin Ziâs cold face anymore, only his thin, solitary back retreating into the distance. Gradually, his figure vanished from sight.
Itâs over just like that?
This manâŠwhoâd yearned for his homeland, who wanted to gallop freely across the plains, had chosen to stay in the Northern Li army and take care of the country in the aftermath of its disasters.
This manâŠwho had forcibly loved and bullied her, who was stubborn and impossible to coax or persuade, gave up with a single sentence.
Jin Zi never asked her about their promise. Mu Linger should have felt a weight off her shoulders, but she had an indescribable feeling instead. She felt that something was wrong with him, but couldnât say what.
Jin Zi, why didnât you leave and go home?
When Jin Zi hadnât chosen to find Mu Linger or go home after burning his indenture agreement, he had probably doomed himself to staying behind forever. Because of that, the irresolute Ning Cheng had finally made up his mind and deployed the Black Clan and tiger army to various locations as a chessboard for Jin Zi and Han Yunxiâs sakes.
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After Jin Ziâs departure, Long Feiye told Chu Xifeng in a low voice, âSpread the news. Just say Iâve conferred Jin Zi as the Great General of the Northern Garrison Posts and given him full military power over Northern Li.â
Long Feiye knew the general gist of the situation, but leaking news out early like this was to shut up certain restless mouths. After all, with Northern Liâs plague cured, many people had started making Han Yunxi their next target!
Han Yunxi only grinned silently from the sidelines. It was only expected for a married woman to be favored by her husband and supported by her maternal familyâs forces. However, the families of the world ranged from the emperorâs court to an ordinary civilian family. Some people simply disliked seeing such logic in practice and would gossip and plot instead. For example, some claimed that married women were made to be bullied, sacrificed, or give up all they had.
There was a good saying for this situation: it was better to rely on oneâs maternal family than oneâs husband, and oneself rather than oneâs family! Only when you yourself were strong could you make everyone fully acknowledge you.
Han Yunxi was strong in all aspects but lacked her own military force. Since the Ning Clan troops were likely to withdraw from the front lines, she would train the Northern Li armies under Jin Zi as a powerhouse belonging solely to herself!
She wasnât sure how dependable Jin Zi could be, but she could at least rely on him for the next few years. Through borrowing him, she would be able to foster a faction truly loyal to herself. Northern Li was near the Mysterious Continent. Han Yunxi estimated that by the time she finished with her preparations, she might pay a visit to the snow mountains and check on the status of the Ice Sea.
Long Feiye had Han Chen promise to guard the northern frontiers for the next 20 years. She would rather open up Northern Li to the Mysterious Continent, if possible. The other continentâs agriculture and medicine werenât as developed as the rest of Cloud Realm Continent. Perhaps Northern Li could even turn into a center of commerce! Of course, these were words for later.[1]
Han Yunxi played with the tiger tally that Jin Zi handed over before she grinned. âLong Feiye, this is mine now!â
Long Feiye arched a brow at her, too lazy to reply. As if he could refuse her anything she wanted. He tossed her another command token, which she caught and studied before realizing sheâd never seen it before.
It was made of bronze and rather quaint looking. It should be a military token of some sort and had the character for âCommandâ (什) ling on one side and a map of Cloud Realm Continent on the back.
âThis isâŠâ Han Yunxi was lost.
âI ordered it made a while ago, but it was just delivered today,â Long Feiye said as he went to pick up a brocade box. Inside was a few other command tokens, all of them identical to the one in Han Yunxiâs hands except for the map on the rear.
Han Yunxiâs map showed all of Cloud Realm Continent, while the other command tokens only had maps of the east, west, north, south, and central regions. Without a doubt, these were brand new military command tokens. The one in her hands had authority over all armies in the continent.
Cloud Realm Continent was so huge that it needed to be divided up into large, separate military regions. The one who commanded all these regions was also leader of all the armies. However, one had to be extremely prudent in choosing the candidate to wield such absolute military power!
âYou have a candidate in mind?â Han Yunxi asked. âWho?â
Long Feiye quirked his lips up in a smile and took the token from Han Yunxiâs hands, playing with it silently between his fingers.
âTell me!â Han Yunxi grew impatient. If heâs taken out the command token, he definitely has someone in mind. I canât begin to guess who it is. As far as I know, nobodyâs suitable for this spot. Rather than give it to an unworthy candidate, itâs better for Long Feiye to keep it himself.
âCome on, just tell me in secret! I wonât tell anyone! Only Gu Beiyue at most,â Han Yunxi went on.
1. Ok, hereâs a question Iâd like to know: if the Mysterious Continent is located north of Northern Li, how is it not a frozen arctic? Or are you saying itâs like going from Russia to the North Pole before descending south into North and South America on the opposite side?