Chapter Thirty-Two: The Battlefield

When Ye Pei returned to the Ye residence, the Long Que family had already arrived. Long Que’s parents were inside, keeping Huang Qilin company, while Long Que and Ye Feilan, having heard where Ye Pei had gone, waited for him in the front courtyard.

As Ye Pei led his horse through the gate, Long Que saw his pale face, blood-stained clothes, and the murderous look in his eyes. Tears streamed down her face. In her heart, Ye Pei, though skilled in martial arts, had always been a refined and righteous youth. Now, seeing him like a demon bathed in blood, she felt a pang of compassion and a touch of fear.

Ye Pei noticed Long Que as he entered, the corner of his lips curving slightly upward. Long Que recognized his smile, wiped her tears, and returned a small smile.

Ye Pei handed the horse to Alan and walked to the spirit altar, kneeling in silence.

Ye Feilan, her cheeks stained with tears, approached and clung to Ye Pei’s sleeve. “Mother…”

Without lifting his head, Ye Pei replied, “I’m fine. Go keep your grandmother company. She’s more grief-stricken than I.”

Ye Feilan still worried. “Mother, are you going to avenge Grandfather?”

At the mention of this, Ye Pei’s fury surged again, and unable to control himself, he coughed up blood.

“Mother!”

Long Que at that moment understood the cause of Ye Pei’s sudden turmoil. With her medical skills and sharp mind, she could easily deduce why Ye Pei had spat blood.

“Feilan, go stay with your grandmother. I’ll look after your mother.”

“Yes… cough…” Ye Pei interjected, knowing his daughter was too distraught for rational thought, and her staying here was pointless.

Ye Feilan reluctantly stood and walked inside, glancing back with every step.

Long Que knelt beside Ye Pei, gently patting his back without a word. Ye Pei remained silent. Yue Zhe, just returned, quietly knelt at the altar as well, and the front courtyard fell into a hush.

“Young Master,” Mu Piaoyan, seeing Ye Pei gradually regain composure, spoke, “Luoshui City cannot be left without a commander. Yue Zhe returned with the intention of handing the Ye Army to you. He hopes you will request His Majesty to transfer General Feng Jing to Luoshui City. What do you think?”

Ye Pei’s voice, when it finally came, was flat and emotionless.

“I know the capabilities of the Ye Army. They can hold out for ten days or so. Feng Xiaoyang hasn’t fully withdrawn yet, and Hengguan still needs Old Feng. As for Luoshui City…”

He paused, unable to suppress the murderous aura that surfaced again.

“After my father’s burial, I will personally go to Luoshui City to settle this blood feud with Lin Yufei.”

His killing intent spilled forth, frightening Long Que so much her face turned ghostly pale. Yue Zhe urgently said, “Ye, control yourself.”

Ye Pei snapped back to himself, glanced at Long Que, withdrew his murderous aura, and softly apologized, “Sorry, I lost control.”

Long Que looked into his bloodshot eyes, tears streaming again, gently patting his back. “It’s all right. I’m fine.”

…

Over the next few days, Ye Pei remained kneeling before the spirit altar, forcing himself to eat enough despite lacking appetite, preparing himself for vengeance.

During this period, officials came to offer condolences at the Ye residence. Those who knew Ye Pei sighed deeply upon seeing him kneeling unmoving in cold silence; those unfamiliar, upon learning he was Ye Linhui’s son, couldn’t help but think him cold-hearted.

After all, in seven days, aside from the massacre outside the city against the Chen family, Ye Pei had not shed a single tear.

In the blink of an eye, the day of burial arrived.

The night before, it was time to open the coffin for a final farewell before sealing it.

At this point, Ye Feilan had just turned thirteen, so she was not present inside the mourning tent. Only Mu Piaoyan, Meng Huaicheng, Ye Pei, and his mother, who managed Ye Linhui’s funeral, were there.

When the coffin lid was lifted, Ye Pei saw his father’s face for the first time. Though Ye Linhui had died in battle, his features showed no trace of contortion or horror; he looked peaceful, as if unconcerned about what might happen thereafter.

Ye Pei gazed at the scars on his father’s face and the wounds faintly visible beneath the white shroud, his expression growing colder.

Mu Piaoyan meticulously performed the funeral rites, sprinkling water over Ye Linhui’s seven orifices before sealing the coffin.

Ye Pei assisted Meng Huaicheng in closing the lid, stepped back, and watched as Meng Huaicheng hammered it shut with wooden nails. Then Ye Pei supported his mother as they left the tent.

On the morning of the funeral procession, Ye Pei personally drove the carriage bearing the coffin. Along the way, he suppressed all murderous intent and sharpness, murmuring to his father, recalling every moment from childhood to adulthood between them.

He did not speak of revenge. He knew his father trusted him to avenge him, so there was no need to disturb his father’s peace with talk of violence.

Seeing the newly planted sapling behind his father’s grave, Ye Pei, for reasons unknown, revealed a faint smile that startled those nearby.

That afternoon, Ye Pei hastily packed his belongings, mounted his horse, and prepared to depart.

Just as he was about to leave, Long Que suddenly grabbed his arm. Ye Pei turned, seeing her eyes brimming with tears and worry she could not hide.

Ye Pei gently reached out, wiped the tears from her face, smiled, and released her hand. Then, he knelt and bowed three times to his mother. Knowing that Ye Feilan, exhausted from the past days, had fallen asleep, he did not wake her. He mounted his horse and prepared to ride off.

“Ye!” Yue Zhe hurried over with his horse. “I’m coming with you.”

Ye Pei nodded, about to leave when Meng Huaicheng called out, “Young Master! You haven’t informed His Majesty that you’re going to Luoshui City!”

Ye Pei stopped, turned, and said, “Uncle Meng, send Teacher to the palace; tell Senior Brother that I am taking charge of the Ye Army. If he trusts me with the rest of the Snow Army, let him hand it over; if not, he can appoint another commander.”

With that, Ye Pei looked deeply at everyone present—his mother and Long Que in tears, the weary Meng Huaicheng—but said nothing more. He pulled the reins, and he and Yue Zhe rode off in a cloud of dust.

When Mu Piaoyan entered the palace to inform Zi Ying, she merely said, “I approve,” and dismissed him.

Zi Ying had been in low spirits during this time. Her brother and teacher had died in battle. Though she longed for revenge, she could not leave the capital. Her grief and rage had gradually given way to despair.

…

Ye Pei and Yue Zhe hurried along, changing horses at every post. In just four days, they traveled from Shunxing City to Luoshui City.

“Young General!” Upon seeing Ye Pei, Mo Lei was shocked. “Why have you come?”

Ye Pei, still pale, dismounted and replied coldly, “To avenge my father.”

Neither Ye Pei nor Yue Zhe rested upon arrival; they went straight to the city walls.

“General Mo,” Ye Pei’s tone seemed to have only one register, “what has the Flame Tribe been up to these days?”

Mo Lei answered, “Young General, right after the Marshal… after he fell in battle, they didn’t dare act too boldly. But lately, they challenge us at the gates nearly every day.”

Ye Pei looked at Mo Lei. “Have you not responded?”

Mo Lei said, “With both armies lacking a commander, no one has dared engage without orders. I heard that Dan Yaoqi of Xia is coming personally from Pengzhou.”

Ye Pei shifted his gaze to the distance. “My father taught me: in the army, if no orders come from the sovereign, it falls to the general. You sons of Snow Nation, how can you watch your enemies hurl insults and do nothing?”

At that moment, the gates of the Flame Army camp swung open. Six enemy generals rode out, galloping toward Luoshui City.

“Young General…”

“I see them,” Ye Pei interrupted.

As Mo Lei raised his head, he saw Ye Pei had already drawn his bow, aiming at the Flame generals.

Ye Pei then lowered the bow. “No, killing them like this is too easy. Yue Zhe, take my warhorse outside the city gates.”

Yue Zhe immediately understood Ye Pei’s intention. “What if you scare them off?”

Ye Pei’s lips curled in a cold smile. “They’ve come to challenge; surely they won’t flee without a fight.”

He handed the bow to Yue Zhe. “Hang it on the horse.”

Yue Zhe flashed a bloodthirsty grin. “That guarantees success.”

Yue Zhe left the wall. Ye Pei watched the six Flame generals approach, and said, “General Mo, bring me my father’s Divine Radiance Spear.”

The Divine Radiance Spear was the weapon Ye Linhui had carried all his life, crafted for him by the best smith in Shunxing City when he was young.

Mo Lei’s heart surged inexplicably, and he rushed off to fetch the spear.

As Ye Pei took the Divine Radiance Spear, the six Flame generals were now a mile outside Luoshui City. At that moment, the city gates swung open, and his warhorse charged out. Ye Pei’s gaze locked in, he leapt from the gate, using the wall to dissipate his momentum, and when three meters above ground, pushed off for a lightning-fast jump, landing squarely on the warhorse’s back.

“Uh…”

Everyone present, save for Yue Zhe, was stunned by the feat. The Flame generals, come to challenge, were momentarily dumbstruck.

Seeing this dazzling young man, a Flame general was first to recover, mocking, “Hey, where did this kid come from? Not even wearing armor. You’d best go back; otherwise people will say we bullied you.”

Indeed, Ye Pei was still clad in white brocade.

After that, the other Flame generals regained their composure and began their verbal attacks.

Ye Pei summoned his inner strength. His calm words silenced the six opponents.

“So you’re all ready, then.”

He raised his spear, urged his horse to trot forward, and his emotionless voice carried to the Flame generals.

“My father became a vanguard officer at fifteen. I am now eighteen. Even without armor, I am more than enough to slaughter you all.”

At this, a young Flame general spurred forward, shouting, “Let me, Lin Yukong, test your skill!”

Lin Yukong had been among those hurling insults at the gates these past days, and today, seeing someone finally come out, he could not help but be the first.

Ye Pei had already leapt from his horse, soaring toward the enemy, but upon hearing the name, he paused.

“So, you’re Lin Yukong.”

As he spoke, Ye Pei swept Lin Yukong’s broadsword aside with his spear, then vaulted over Lin Yukong’s head, landed on the rump of his horse, and sprang again, spear tip aimed at the remaining five.

“Then I’ll kill you five first.”