Huo questioned, “His Majesty actually gave you a task?  He’s never favored anyone from the Yongning Marquis Manor before. How strange.”

Xie Wanyu offered a mysterious smile. “Of course, because I’m a woman. Some things are better suited for me, and I’ve spent years at the Dali Temple, skilled in tracking down criminals.”

The criminal in question, according to the Emperor, was a daring, beautiful young woman with exceptional martial arts skills and cunning deception. 

It was unclear what connection existed between them, but the Emperor still harbored intense resentment years later, wishing to inflict the harshest punishment.

What exactly had that woman done to the Emperor? It was intensely intriguing.

Xie Wanyu made a deal with the Emperor, using the future of the Yongning Marquis Manor as collateral, vowing to find this woman.  She was highly dedicated to the task and had already uncovered some clues.

She was confident that within three months, she would capture the woman and present her to the Emperor.

After speaking with Xie Wanyu, Huo noticed Yu Ning still gazing in the direction where the Emperor had left, lost in thought.

“Ning’er, what’s wrong?” Huo asked.

Yu Ning rubbed her eyes and shook her head. “Nothing.  Perhaps I was mistaken. I thought I saw someone I knew.”

“Times change.  I…must have been wrong.”

Yes, she was wrong. There were many people who looked alike in the world. It was just a fleeting glimpse, a coincidence.

Because of the familiar figure she saw at Mingde Temple, Yu Ning had been frequently dreaming of that person and past events.

The border was ravaged by war, chaos reigned, and bandits roamed freely.

Yu Ning had once been a bandit, a ruthless and unreasonable bandit leader.

Five years ago, Yu Ning found a man at the foot of a mountain, a young man as handsome as a celestial being.

He was severely injured and grabbed her clothes, begging her to save him, promising to grant her any wish she desired.

In a war-torn land, money was useless, especially since the bandits were self-sufficient, cultivating their own fields.  Their mountain stronghold was hidden deep in the mountains, its location unknown to outsiders.

So Yu Ning didn’t ask for money. She had only one request: she could save him, but he must stay.

She needed a husband, and he could be her husband.

He agreed.

Yu Ning was happy and cared for him diligently.

He was a cunning man. He agreed verbally, but when the time came for their wedding night, he escaped without a trace.

However, the mountains were dense and misty, making it difficult for outsiders to enter or leave.  That’s why the bandits lived there.

He couldn’t escape, of course. Yu Ning and her bandits searched the mountains and found him within a night.

He dared to deceive her, so she wouldn’t be polite. She tied him up and forced him into marriage.

He refused to consummate the marriage, but Yu Ning had a way to deal with him. She had learned some medicine from the village doctor and drugged him, forcing him to comply.

He was a wolf, and he couldn’t keep up the pretense. He glared at her viciously. “If you release me now, I will pretend I never met you. If you dare to act recklessly again, I will skin you alive and grind your bones to dust.”

Yu Ning wasn’t intimidated by his words.  Even though he had a strong presence, she was courageous and unafraid. She teased him with her whip, slowly caressing his face.

“You’re in this state, and you still dare to threaten me?  You think I like your face and don’t want to hit you, don’t you?”

Yu Ning raised her whip, smiling gently. “Come on, say something else. Let’s see if your mouth is harder than my whip.”

“Yu Ning, I will kill you!”

“Crack!”

Yu Ning lashed out, leaving a red mark on his chest. “Oh, I didn’t realize your skin was so tender.”

He seemed filled with hatred, his expression dark. Seeing that Yu Ning was unyielding, he stopped speaking.

“Why aren’t you talking? Don’t be like that. It’s boring without talking. Husband, we still have to consummate our marriage later.” After teasing him for a while, Yu Ning finally got bored, threw away her whip, and slowly approached him.

She liked his handsome face more and more. She liked it immensely. “If you don’t speak or cooperate, I’ll help you myself.”

He had drunk her medicine and was aroused, but his agitation didn’t prevent him from remaining stubborn.

“You’re so hot. How much longer can you endure? Don’t endure it. As long as you beg me, I’ll help you, okay?”  Her slender fingers traced his face as she softly coaxed him.

Large beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. His breathing grew heavy, his face flushed, and he gritted his teeth, saying in a low voice, “Yu Ning, I will tear you to pieces.”

“Oh my, tearing you to pieces is a bit much. I saved your life. Without me, you would have died long ago. You should be grateful and repay me with your body.”

“Death would be a clean end.”

Yu Ning pretended to be distressed and touched his face. “Don’t be like that. If you die, I’ll be without a husband. I can’t bear that.”

She smiled and leaned in, pecking his face. “Don’t be angry, husband. I won’t torment you anymore.”

That was their extremely discordant wedding night, filled with hatred and gritted teeth, but ultimately culminating in intimacy, gradually calming down.

Night fell, and Yu Ning woke up from her dream.  She couldn’t sleep anymore and went to the side room to check on Yu Xiaobao, who was fast asleep.

Yu Ning sat by the bed, gazing at her daughter’s face in the moonlight, whispering softly.

“Xiaobao, you really look like him.”

Mother and daughter shared similar features, strikingly alike.

Yu Ning had asked about his identity. He said he was a general who had to go to war, that he couldn’t wait and couldn’t stay in the bandit stronghold.

This man was cunning, and his words were not to be trusted. Yu Ning didn’t believe him, but he was skilled in martial arts, with calluses on his hands from wielding weapons, and she had a hunch that what he said might be true.