North Wind Eldest Princess, Going South to Negotiate Peace

[The imperial harem's consorts, the emperor's relatives, the wives and daughters of the hundred officials.]

[Amid warbling songs and swallow dances, beauties vied for splendor, like a hundred flowers blooming at once.]

[Clustered at the head was the current empress, the birth mother of the second prince.]

[Beside the empress, a bright and beautiful woman drew the eye. She was tall and graceful, her bearing noble, her heroic spirit pressing upon others.]

[This was the North Wind eldest princess.]

[Perhaps it was the nurture of the northern soil and water that made her the tallest among the women, and so she appeared the most outstanding among them.]

[It was said that her riding and archery were exquisitely skilled, not inferior to any man's in the slightest.]

[Since marrying into this flourishing capital four years ago, as one sent far away in a marriage alliance, in just four years she had gained a firm foothold in the capital.]

[The second prince loved her deeply. To show the singularity of his devotion, he had actually dismissed every concubine in his household one by one.]

[Though the North Wind eldest princess pleaded for them many times, the second prince's mind was made up.]

[Those concubines met rather miserable ends. Some were reduced to servants, while others sank into ponds and died.]

[The reasons for this were known to few.]

[Because of this, the second prince was crowned with the name "heartless."]

[Among the Great Qing imperial clan, she was also like a fish in water. The empress treated her as her own child, and she interacted closely with the wives of the court officials, calling one another sisters and intimate friends.]

[This North Wind princess's methods could not be called anything but high!]

[After exchanging pleasantries with the empress and the consorts.]

[You quietly withdrew to one side and watched in silence.]

[Lu Yu, for his part, kept his eyes on his nose and his nose on his heart, showing not the slightest interest.]

[Among this group of beautiful women, there was no lack of flickering gazes that faintly revealed curiosity and probing toward you.]

[After all, you had once been like the sun at high noon, your name shaking the world. You had been enfeoffed as Junior Guardian and granted the authority to open three offices, as though only one step away from riding the whirlwind straight up, the blue clouds already in sight.]

[At that time, countless beauties had been soul-bound and dream-haunted by you, pouring out all their blooming years for you.]

[Yet worldly affairs were hard to predict. In the end, all they waited for was news that you had retired to Zhongnan. All your former glory was lost, turning you into a commoner in plain cloth.]

[That news was like a biting cold wind sweeping over a lake's surface, instantly extinguishing the fires of passion in countless women's hearts and turning them into a stretch of icy disappointment.]

[In the flood of power, even a hero who had made illustrious battle achievements, once he lost power, was no more than passing smoke before the eyes, gone in a blink.]

[Your once-brilliant record in battle, with the dissipation of power, became insignificant, even less than that of peddlers and porters threading the streets and alleys.]

[And now, the second prince advocated peace, the empress was his birth mother, and you were no longer that hero whose name had moved the world.]

[Naturally, no one dared to touch the empress's moldy brow, risking offense to the second prince and the empress to attach themselves to you, a former general of the pro-war faction.]

[In this whirlpool of the palace court, who still dared to challenge the empress's dignity and question the second prince's decision? Everyone avoided you as though fearing they could not get far enough away, terrified of being connected to you.]

[Now, within this palace court, no one greeted you, leaving only a stretch of desolation.]

[They kept far away from you, leaving an empty space.]

[The womenfolk and young masters of the officials' families carried more than a little mockery and cold laughter.]

[The former Junior Guardian Lu Shenzhou, today's Daoist Lu Chen.]

[The same person, yet heaven and earth had already been overturned.]

[At this moment, however, one person walked toward you.]

[That North Wind eldest princess.]

[With her noble status, naturally no one dared say anything!]

["Jinyu greets the Junior Guardian?" she said softly and delicately, enough to intoxicate the heart and dazzle the spirit.]

[Her voice was actually even more delicate than that of a southern woman.]

[After she married into Great Qing, she requested to have her name changed. The emperor's dragon countenance was greatly pleased, and he bestowed upon her the imperial surname Zhou.]

[Her name was Zhou Jinyu.]

[This name was both her new identity and the beginning of her new life.]

[The second prince was granted the title Prince of Han.]

["Lu Chen greets the Princess of Han."]

[Zhou Jinyu's gaze flowed over you like autumn water.]

["Junior Guardian, this is actually our second meeting?"]

[You were puzzled. In your memory, you truly had no impression of ever meeting this Princess of Han.]

[Zhou Jinyu smiled and said, "Back then, when the Junior Guardian led his iron cavalry and meant to strike straight at Huanglong Prefecture, I saw your figure from afar atop that city gate. But the distance was too great, so I could not see very clearly."]

[She paused, then continued, "At that time, I always thought the Junior Guardian was a hero of iron blood and ringing steel. I never imagined that when we met again today, you would actually be a... Daoist."]

[Perhaps because they were not far away, the crowd of womenfolk and noble scions behind her heard it.]

[Ever since this Princess of Han began speaking with Lu Chen, everyone had pricked up their ears and listened closely.]

[At this point!]

[Behind you, someone had already let out a mocking laugh. As if someone had taken the lead, the sound grew louder and louder, drawing everyone to turn their heads.]

["A hero... a Daoist, haha."]

["Not a false word. A wonderful comparison."]

[Even the empress, motherly model under heaven, could not help a faint smile from rising at the corner of her mouth. However, the smile vanished in an instant.]

[The empress frowned slightly, feeling that it was somewhat improper.]

[Only then did the surrounding clamor gradually subside. Everyone's gazes focused on you once again, craning their necks in anticipation, waiting for your reaction.]

[After hearing it, you appeared calm as drifting clouds and light wind, as though these words had nothing to do with you.]

[Zhou Jinyu's gaze was also fixed tightly on your face, trying to catch even the slightest fluctuation in your emotions.]

[However, you were like an outsider, unmoved.]

[She continued, "Back then, when the Junior Guardian was at Huanglong Prefecture, it truly was like black clouds pressing down on the city until the city threatened to collapse..."]

[She shook her head lightly, a complicated light in her eyes. "Forget it. Those are all passing clouds of the past. They should not have been brought up again."]

[You nodded.]

[As for what happened back then, you had long since stopped wanting people to remember it. Now, you only wanted to cultivate the Dao in peace and leisure.]

[This northern woman saw your expression and suddenly refused to let it go, saying, "Jinyu originally did not want to speak of this, but since you, Junior Guardian, are unwilling to listen, I feel it is necessary to talk about it."]

[Helplessness showed on your face.]

[This northern woman thought back briefly, then said slowly:]

["Back then, when the Lu Family Army fought its way outside Huanglong Prefecture, every one of our North Wind soldiers was terrified beyond measure."]

["At that time, inside Huanglong Prefecture, there were more than two hundred thousand troops stationed in defense, while the Lu Family Army had only eighty thousand men."]

["I was thinking then, with more than two hundred thousand troops waiting at ease for an exhausted enemy, facing those eighty thousand soldiers of the Lu Family Army, could they still fail to win?"]

[She paused, then continued:]

["My elder brother Tuoba Shuyi, who had carried a heroic air since childhood, did not even have the courage to fight a single battle. He only prepared to wait in the city for death."]

["At that time, I truly wished I could scold him for being unworthy of a man's body."]

["As a general, he should have led the soldiers to bravely resist the enemy, not chosen to flee from it."]

["Looking at it now, it seems that back then, it was the best decision after all."]

[She spoke slowly, as if talking to herself, and as if asking for your opinion.]

[Zhou Jinyu turned toward you, a trace of expectation in her eyes. "Junior Guardian, tell me, was going south to negotiate peace the best decision back then?"]

[Just as you were about to answer, a clear and firm female voice suddenly came from behind Zhou Jinyu, interrupting your conversation.]

["Great Qing should not have negotiated peace. The Junior Guardian should have struck straight at Huanglong Prefecture."]

[For a moment, the entire scene was shocked.]

[You followed the voice and looked over!]

[P.S.: The update tonight was too late, a bit late. I'll fix the typos in a bit and revise a few sentences.]

[The pace is picking up. There probably won't be this plot later. Thank you, everyone, for correcting the typos!!]