Under that cold, gloomy gaze, the words "Father" stuck in his throat. For a moment, Huo Zhizhang felt as if he had plunged into an icy abyss.
He was dumbfounded, standing there stupefied, with only one thought in his mind: he was done for.
Pei Ying looked at Huo Tingshan, who should not have been here. Without waiting for Huo Zhizhang's answer, she already faintly knew the truth.
It seemed Emperor Zhao had truly passed away. But... when did this happen?
Pei Ying stared blankly at Huo Tingshan. At this moment, her thoughts suddenly pulled back to the return journey from the northern campaign.
After leaving Huhe County, Huo Tingshan no longer lodged in any city along the way. Instead, he camped with the army outside city walls, then bypassed them from the side. Since he did not enter the cities, she naturally couldn't go either, so the rest of the journey was spent camping outside.
She had asked him why he did this. At the time, he said there used to be many forest bandits outside the cities, and bypassing them allowed checking for any traces; if found, they could be dealt with promptly.
She hadn't doubted him then.
Later, after returning to Xuantu County, this man specifically made her enter through the south gate, avoiding the crowds of welcoming commoners. Then there was the trip to the Western Suburb Villa, where she was moved while still asleep—also his doing.
All the previous puzzles now had an explanation.
Emperor Zhao had passed away.
Back then, she and he had an agreement: if Emperor Zhao passed away, they would separate...
The last glimmer of twilight faded from the sky. Darkness surged and enveloped everything like a tide, the entire sky darkening. Night had just fallen, and the lanterns in the courtyard hadn't been lit yet. The heavy dusk pressed upon everyone's faces.
Pei Ying gradually could no longer see his expression clearly. His figure was tall and straight, like a towering mountain in the gloom.
Cold sweat broke out on Huo Zhizhang's back. It felt like only a few moments, yet time seemed infinitely stretched. He was held by the nape by an invisible hand, dunked up and down in boiling oil, each moment pure torment.
Finally, Huo Zhizhang saw his father move.
The imposing man in dark robes strode quickly into the courtyard. He came before the beautiful woman, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly. "My lady."
Pei Ying did not respond. Her mind was in chaos.
This man had said countless times, "A gentleman's word is as good as his bond," yet after the Emperor's passing, he himself had sealed the news to keep her from knowing.
Huo Tingshan took Pei Ying's hand. His palm was broad, easily enveloping hers completely. "My lady, come back with me first. We'll talk after we return."
His voice was very soft, as if afraid of startling her.
Huo Zhizhang couldn't help but gape. He could swear that in all his eighteen years, he had never seen his father so mild, even gentle.
Pei Ying was led away slowly from Huo Zhizhang's courtyard.
Watching the two figures recede into the distance, Huo Zhizhang closed his eyes in despair.
His father wasn't settling accounts with him now, which meant the reckoning later would surely be worse. Finished. His life was in danger. No, he couldn't just wait for death. He had to go seek help from his elder brother. His brother was always smarter than him; surely he'd have a way to save his sorry hide...
A slight wind picked up. The winter night breeze brushed against their faces, its repeated chill making one shiver.
Pei Ying's muddled thoughts suddenly cleared considerably.
It was true they had a separation agreement, but the outside world was in chaos now. Even if they were to separate, it would be when the world was at peace. The world outside was far too dangerous; she had no desire to be kidnapped by some mysterious force again, forced to part from her daughter.
Would she just let this matter pass?
Of course not!
This man had kept it from her for so long; he was in the wrong first.
Pei Ying still remembered the night before they set off for the Western Suburb Villa. They had clearly agreed on only twice, yet this man had gone wild in the hot spring pool.
Too reckless, too self-indulgent.
Thinking back on it now, she strongly suspected he did it on purpose. Before, she had no reason, couldn't find the reins to hold him back. But now... now she had them!
Pei Ying suddenly felt the wind wasn't cold anymore. Even the dark, heavy sky above seemed to brighten with a cheerful light. Her heart bloomed with joy.
The corner of her mouth couldn't help but twitch upward, but she quickly pressed it flat.
No. Huo Tingshan was far too shrewd. She had to restrain herself, couldn't let him see any clues. If he noticed, this fellow would surely continue his willful ways.
She had to stay composed.
Huo Zhizhang's courtyard was some distance from the main residence. On the way back, the couple was unusually silent.
Returning to the main courtyard, Huo Tingshan dismissed all the maids, leaving only himself and Pei Ying in the room.
The main chamber held many night-luminous pearls and was lit with candles and lamps, brightly illuminated. He could clearly see every nuance of her expression. Her lips were pressed together, her long lashes lowered, her face frosty, clearly displeased.
"My lady, I can explain this matter," Huo Tingshan said in a low voice.
Pei Ying glanced at him, then wordlessly walked towards the soft couch by the window.
Huo Tingshan followed.
Pei Ying sat on the soft couch. Through her lowered lashes, she saw those black boots stop before her, their owner merely standing. She couldn't help but feel another flicker of amusement inside.
Before, this man would come and sit on her soft couch without a second thought, even liked to squeeze next to her. Now he finally knew some manners.
Pei Ying looked up at him, still silent.
Huo Tingshan, understanding her meaning, spoke. "This matter was indeed unworthy of me, keeping it from you. But there was a reason. I didn't want you to leave me, which is why I concealed Emperor Zhao's passing."
"I never planned to leave Youzhou. You needn't worry," Pei Ying said calmly.
The man gave a light cough. "But I adore you, my lady. I wish to remain husband and wife with you."
He had probably never spoken such words in all his thirty-seven years. His voice was unusually low. But the room was quiet, and the night wind outside happened to have died down just then, so the words were still clear.
Pei Ying averted her eyes. "That's not how husband and wife should be. Marriage is built on honesty and trust. Do you think we have those things?"
Huo Tingshan knew he was at fault. The question was difficult to answer directly. "From now on, I won't keep things from you."
Pei Ying seemed to remember something. She rose from the soft couch and walked towards the storage chests in the room.
Huo Tingshan's eyelids twitched.
Pei Ying moved aside the chests in the corner one by one, then opened the one at the very bottom. Inside were books: travelogues she had read several times, the thick stack of letters exchanged with the Pei family, and... that separation agreement.
No, it wasn't there!
Pei Ying searched twice, from front to back, then back to front, but couldn't find the separation document Huo Tingshan had personally signed and stamped with his seal.
Her gaze shifted to the man beside her. The moment their eyes met, he actually looked away.
Pei Ying was both angry and amused. "You, a dignified Prefect, a Great General appointed by the court, have now changed your tune and taken up the trade of a thief."
He said nothing.
Pei Ying's tone sharpened. "Where is the separation agreement?"
This time he spoke, concise and to the point. "Burned."
Pei Ying: "..."
"When did you burn it?" Pei Ying asked him.
Huo Tingshan: "The second day after our wedding."
Pei Ying thought back. On the second day of their grand wedding, she had slept until the sun was high in the sky. After having lunch with the children, feeling weary, she had gone back to sleep. Later, they had dinner together, and Huo Tingshan had stayed with her right up until bedtime.
If he had any free time, it must have been in the morning before she woke.
This man was indeed used to being domineering. The divorce agreement she had personally signed, he burned it just like that, and burned it so early.
Fine. He had delivered himself another offense to add to the list.
Pei Ying's mind raced, though her expression remained unchanged.
Huo Tingshan tried to take Pei Ying's hand, but she withdrew it. In the past, he would have firmly held her, not allowing her to retreat an inch. But now, his hand lifted slightly, then fell back down.
"Madam once promised me something," he said in a low voice.
Pei Ying furrowed her delicate brows. "What?"
Huo Tingshan: "On the Mid-Autumn Festival outside Huhu County town, Madam promised me that next year, you would give me a gift in your capacity as my wife."
Pei Ying was taken aback. Her memory rewound, and she remembered. There was indeed such a matter.
But...
"You burned the divorce agreement first, and now you're telling me to keep a promise I made you? Huo Tingshan, listen to yourself. Does that sound reasonable?" Pei Ying said discontentedly.
Mentioning Mid-Autumn Festival made Pei Ying suspicious. "So, back during Mid-Autumn Festival, you already knew Emperor Zhao had passed away? You were deliberately tricking me into a promise then, weren't you?"
Huo Tingshan raised his hand, wanting to hold hers. After receiving a glare, he behaved a bit more meekly. "Wanting to give Madam the white fox fur cloak was genuine. The rest was just following the natural course."
Pei Ying pressed her lips together, running through the sequence of events again. Suddenly, she thought of another matter. On the eve of their wedding, he had distributed red eggs throughout the city, giving them to everyone entering. After that spectacle, it would have been impossible for outsiders not to know about his wedding.
Could it be he had known all along?
Pei Ying simply asked him: "When did the Emperor pass away? Before our wedding, or after? Huo Tingshan, you said yourself we should be honest. Don't deceive me again."
Huo Tingshan said helplessly, "Before the wedding."
Pei Ying thought to herself, just as I suspected.
"Madam, aside from me concealing Emperor Zhao's passing and burning the divorce agreement, since our marriage, have you had any dissatisfaction with me?" Huo Tingshan asked.
A flicker passed through Pei Ying's eyes.
As for dissatisfaction, apart from him being overly greedy in bed, there wasn't much else. He was an excellent partner, and for her daughter, he was also a good father.
But now, with a chance to openly address the one point of dissatisfaction, Pei Ying wasn't about to let it go. So she said, "Yes."
Probably not expecting Pei Ying to directly say yes, and with such an unhesitant tone, Huo Tingshan raised his long brows. "Please elaborate, Madam."
Pei Ying: "Our intimate relations are not harmonious."
This was completely unexpected. The man frowned. "I admit concealing things from you was wrong, but Madam need not use such words to brush me off."
Pei Ying's expression was serious. "Who's brushing you off? That's the truth. Neither of us is in our twenties anymore; we should take care of our health. I think once a night at most is sufficient."
Huo Tingshan: "..."
"I need some time to come to terms with the deception. Tonight, I'll make do in our daughter's courtyard," Pei Ying declared, wanting to walk out.
Huo Tingshan took hold of her arm and brought her back. "I have some matters to attend to tonight and will be spending it in the study. The main chamber is for you, Madam."
Pei Ying said coolly, "My thanks for your consideration, General. I'll see you out."
Huo Tingshan paused, then had no choice but to leave.
After Huo Tingshan left, Pei Ying closed the door, lay down on the couch in high spirits to read for a while, and then rested.
Although there was no large human-shaped heater beside her tonight, with the hot water bottle, Pei Ying still slept very comfortably.
She slept until daybreak.
For these past two days, all the advisors and military officers in the residence had noticed the Grand General was in a particularly foul mood. Although he was usually sharp-tongued, he generally couldn't be bothered with minor matters. Not like now, where he was irritable, almost ready to flare up at the slightest provocation.
Everyone who had entered the study recently was miserable.
Logically, the recent situation was very favorable. The Governor of Jingzhou, Cong Liuqi, unable to restrain his ambition, had proclaimed himself emperor first. Neighboring Yizhou, feeling justified in its cause to eliminate the rebellious traitor, was now locked in battle with Jingzhou.
Their own Youzhou was watching from the sidelines, waiting both for the outcome of the two provinces' fight and for the imperial court's move.
If the court sent troops, it would certainly weaken a portion of the imperial army's strength.
If the court did not send troops, it would, to some degree, be tacitly accepting Cong Liuqi's proclamation. Once this precedent was set, the next person to proclaim emperor wouldn't seem so treasonable.
In short, everything was developing in a favorable direction.
Why was the Grand General still unable to smile?
Others hadn't figured it out yet, but Huo Zhizhang understood perfectly well.
For the past two days, his father had ordered him to come to the training ground at dawn for sparring. Leaving aside how grueling the sessions were, this morning he had risen a bit early. While wandering around the residence to pass the time, he accidentally saw his father coming out of the study.
It wasn't even light out yet. It was unlikely his father had moved from the main chamber to the study. The only explanation was that he had been there all along.
He and Mother were at odds because of that night's incident.
Huo Zhizhang was alarmed and anxious, wanting to help but not knowing how. Matters between elders were not something a junior like him could interfere with.
"Report!" A guard urgently called outside the study.
Upon entering, the guard said excitedly, "Reporting to the Grand General, the other southern inspection team has returned with the white cotton!"
The gloom that had clouded Huo Tingshan's brow for two days finally eased somewhat. "Excellent. Go and inform Madam. Tell her the cotton has been found and ask her to come to the study."
The guard accepted the order.
Huo Tingshan twisted the jade ring on his thumb, thinking that after discussing official matters with her later, he should have a private word.
If their intimate relations weren't harmonious, they could slowly discuss and adjust until they were. There was no need to sleep separately over this. Besides, always sleeping apart didn't look proper.
The guard returned quickly, but Huo Tingshan only saw the guard alone, not the graceful figure he expected.
Under Huo Tingshan's heavy gaze, the guard reported: "Grand General, the Madam is feeling slightly unwell. She says she won't be coming."
Huo Tingshan frowned. "What is wrong with Madam?"
"The Madam looked pale," the guard said hesitantly. "I don't know if I heard wrong, but as I was leaving, I seemed to hear the sound of retching."
Huo Tingshan seemed to remember something, his expression changing drastically. He hurriedly stood up and headed for the main chamber.
