The carriage stopped to rest at a clearing by the woods. The draft horses, just freed of their reins, lowered their heads and drank the half-murky, half-clear lake water, while Chen Yi squatted to the side, twirling a twig as he pointed at the map.

The Southern Border was the southern frontier of Great Yu, connected up and down with Sichuan. In ancient times there had been several kingdoms there, such as Nanzhao and Dali. The latter left the deepest impression on Chen Yi: even if he couldn’t say what exactly Dali was or had, he at least knew that the Duan Family and the Gao Family had ruled it. Only the story was unlike Heavenly Dragon Eight Books—there was no One Yang Finger, no Six Meridian Divine Sword. Now there was only the Annan Royal Mansion, and the sole remaining hereditary prince’s title in the current dynasty—Qin Qingluo.

This journey was long. Between Jiangxi and the Southern Border lay Hu-Guang and Guizhou, and they mainly had to rely on post roads combined with river and lake routes, changing conveyances many times. Because of the complex terrain, there were very few straight routes; they had to detour via the major post stations and ports.

And because they would have to go upriver many times, the feat of covering three thousand li in one night on the way to Lower Dragon Tiger was out of the question now.

He hadn’t known, but once he looked, Chen Yi finally understood what "a world apart" really meant.

There was a rustling from the leaves.

Chen Yi turned his head back. The female crown pushed aside the branches and leaves and walked over with unhurried steps.

"Not staying in the carriage? Weren’t you going to cultivate in quiet?" Chen Yi folded up the map and said casually.

"After I’ve cultivated, it’s no bad thing to get down and take a look at you," Yin Weiyin replied. Seeing him putting away the map, she asked, "How much farther?"

"We’ve hardly been on the road a few days. It’s still a long way off." Chen Yi finished and let out a soft sigh.

Yin Weiyin’s eyes were dark and unreadable. She very much wanted to say, "Since it’s that far, why don’t we just not go?"

Taihua Mountain might very well also have methods for mending meridians. Even if it really didn’t, they could seek opportunities on other mountains, far better than those crooked paths of the Demon Sect. And... that Qin Qingluo was nothing worth seeing anyway. Even if they really had to see her, once the two of them cultivated together and ascended to become Immortal, they could cross a thousand li in a single step. A few steps and they’d be in the Southern Border—wouldn’t that be delightful?

Such thoughts rose and fell; after circling around and around, in the end the words still didn’t leave her mouth. Those were things she could say back when feelings had been sweet and thick—even if she’d said them then, he wouldn’t have minded much. But if she blurted them out now, it would be asking for trouble with her tongue again, and there’d be another round of chrysanthemum tea to drink...

The carriage ride was already bumpy enough; Yin Weiyin had no wish to suffer that kind of torture.

Chen Yi glanced sideways at her and said, "You don’t want to go?"

Yin Weiyin held down the urge to nod and said softly, "A golden boy and jade girl are naturally a pair. Wherever you go, I’ll go."

"Heh, that’s a very pleasing thing to say."

"Just words that follow my heart," she replied.

Chen Yi chuckled. Unlike before, ever since he’d stopped spoiling Great Yin so much, his Great Yin had instead learned how to behave herself. Along the way she’d neither been especially scheming nor complained much about heaven and earth, and compared to before, she was all the more eager to please and docile.

Seeing that he was in a good mood, Yin Weiyin thought a moment, then said, "Actually, the reason I got off the carriage to keep you company, aside from having been cooped up too long, is also because that one surnamed East Palace is getting on my nerves..."

She hadn’t finished before Chen Yi cut in, "Don’t whisper pillow talk slanders. Just put up with him."

Yin Weiyin lightly bit her silver teeth, somewhat displeased but not daring to complain. Her limpid gaze flowed, and she said in a soft voice:

"So once I reach the pillow, I can whisper pillow talk then?"

"You really do know how to dream,"

Chen Yi gave her another look and laughed, then drew her into his arms and kissed her on the forehead, saying:

"Don’t overthink it. In a few days we’ll reach Wuchang, and you and I can have a good, proper time together again."

...

They had come by way of Wuchang Prefecture; they left by way of Wuchang Prefecture as well.

Because of the developed waterways, the road from Jiangxi to Hu-Guang went smoothly. Once they reached Wuchang Prefecture, this allowed the bored-out-of-his-mind Chen Yi and the four women to have a good rest. These past days they were all sick to death of Jiangxi dishes. Jiangxi food was heavy on spice; most women didn’t like it in the first place and found it hard to eat. Chen Yi could handle spicy food, but compared to other regions, Jiangxi cuisine was repetitive and monotonous—round and round, it was the same set dishes.

Nor was there much difference between the Wuchang of coming and the Wuchang of going. After Su Hongtao’s death and Kou Jun’s investigation, it was true the Hu-Guang officialdom had been upended. However, with Wei Wuque assisting Inspector Han Xiu in their deployments, Hu-Guang had ultimately stabilized quickly. With the Forbidden Army garrisoned there, and the White Lotus Sect shifting to the Jiangxi region, the unrest in this area had more or less been put down.

The prosperity here was much the same as in former days.

The difference was that Chen Yi discovered his own fame had soared once again, greater and broader than before. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

The Hero Conference had drawn the eyes of the whole world, and the business of weighing good and evil on Dragon and Tiger, with his merit pressing the Heavenly Official to his knees—these matters were enormous to begin with, and the more they spread, the more exaggerated they became.

Of course, the one constant was still that ridiculously ugly portrait.

Chen Yi didn’t particularly care; it only made him a bit rougher with Yin Weiyin at night.

Night lay thick as hemp. Yin Weiyin panted weakly. These days, whenever they reached a place where they could rest, Chen Yi would pour all the hardships of the road out onto her.

Of course, sometimes he would also pour some of it out onto Lin Wanxiao, but that little lass’s body was frail; he couldn’t pour too much, not like with her, Yin Weiyin.

The female crown traced light circles on his body, her voice softening as she asked, "You’re going to the Southern Border just to mend your meridians?"

He was always more talkative on the bed; this was something Yin Tingxue had told her.

"Not just that," Chen Yi glanced at her. After thinking a bit, he still didn’t mention the matter of repairing the Longevity Bridge for her, and instead said, "I’m also going to pay the Prince of Annan a visit."

Yin Weiyin’s circling finger came to a halt.

From such small details, Chen Yi knew what was on her mind, so he added, "It’s been a long time since I last saw her."

"...How long?"

"We haven’t met once since we parted."

When Yin Weiyin heard this, by her count it had probably been close to three years. And in those three years, she and Chen Yi had come together and parted over and over, each little separation like a honeymoon.