Volume One, Chapter Seven: I Forbid Her to Die

Outside the tent, the piercing cry of a night hawk occasionally tore through the night sky. Lilan was thrown out and locked inside the sheep pen.

The lambs, sensing an intruder in their territory, butted her with their horns one after another.

Tears in her eyes, Lilan was repeatedly knocked to the ground, falling into the sheep dung.

The stench was overwhelming, and Lilan suffered unbearably, as if she were more dead than alive. It was not until the sun rose and illuminated the earth that someone finally took her out.

She staggered forward, never having looked so wretched before.

Kedas ordered his men to push her into the river.

Lilan could not swim. Each time she was about to suffocate, someone would fish her out, wait until her breathing normalized, then throw her back into the water. This cruel cycle repeated until the scent clinging to her body was completely washed away.

Kedas brought her back into the main tent, personally stripping off her clothes and dressing her in the distinctive attire of the grassland people.

He pressed his thin lips to her cheek, admiring her new appearance with satisfaction.

“It fits perfectly.”

Yet at that moment, Lilan barely had half her life left.

Kedas clearly had no intention of letting her off so easily. On this night of the bonfire festival, the area outside the main tent was lively.

He bound Lilan and led her to the very center of the grasslands, where a huge bonfire blazed, its flames nearly lighting up the entire sky.

“Open your eyes and see—your husband is the best fuel on our grassland.”

Lilan glanced briefly and immediately retched.

In the center of the bonfire was a lump of pitch-black matter, its human shape discernible only with careful scrutiny. The flames licked it bit by bit.

Lilan could not stop vomiting.

These barbarians were truly madmen.

Suddenly, she regretted having angered this grassland king.

That night, she whimpered and begged, but the enraged man remained indifferent, night after night until dawn.

Even Gesa could no longer bear to watch.

“Your Majesty, why not grant her death? That would be a release.”

Kedas, dark and brooding, downed an entire jar of strong wine.

“I will not allow her to die.”

Gesa glanced at him, shook his head, and sighed.

The king was torturing not only the Central Plains woman but also himself.

Lilan was ill and weak every day, having lost all the defiant spirit she once had.

The crown prince was dead; the last flicker of hope in her heart was extinguished.

She was doomed to be trapped forever on this boundless grassland, destined to suffer at the hands of these barbarians until death.

During the grassland New Year, the barbarians drank their strong liquor and ate venison, while Lilan cowered alone in the thatched hut with wild dogs for company.

Since she had provoked him, every time after he had finished with her and vented his rage, she would be thrown into the firewood-stacked hut.

This hut was open on all sides, providing neither shelter from wind nor rain.

Lilan’s body was always delicate, and being tormented like this made her less than human. No one cared whether she ate or not, but whenever she fell gravely ill, someone forced medicine into her mouth.

Because he forbade her death.

Every day, Baozhu would bring a roasted chicken drumstick close to her nose to let her smell it, then eat it herself, twirling the bones in front of Lilan before tossing them to the dogs.

Kedas no longer argued; when the tribal chiefs asked about her, he simply said, “That woman is nothing but an object for satisfying desire.”

The grassland had returned to the state it was in before Lilan’s arrival.

She had caused no disturbance to this vast, endless land.

In July, the rains were abundant. For the Central Plains, it was a blessed and auspicious rain, but for the grassland, it was a silent catastrophe.

The rain washed over the earth, rivers overflowed, and many barbarians were displaced, forced to relocate their entire families.

Kedas was overwhelmed with worry, unable to sleep for many days.

Lilan’s situation worsened. The thatched hut where she stayed was nearly blown apart by strong winds, and the rain poured in with no mercy. Her clothes were repeatedly soaked and dried, then soaked again.

Until her body temperature could no longer warm the wet garments.

Cold... a piercing cold that reached into her bones.

Lilan lay on the grass, countless raindrops striking her face, the scent of earth and grass mingling in her nostrils.

In her blurred mind, she seemed to return to her wedding night.

She held the decree appointing her as crown princess — a document she had painstakingly obtained over seventeen years. For the first time, the nanny had not beaten or scolded her but smiled with satisfaction.

At the Dingyuan Marquis’s mansion, no one had given her disdainful looks; instead, everyone was kind and courteous.

But that peace was fleeting.

She was supposed to marry the crown prince and learn to manage the imperial household, revered by all. Instead, she became a hated outcast, scorned and chased by all.

All of it, in the end, was nothing but a fleeting dream.

The sky was heavy and dark as night. Suddenly, she felt overwhelming fear.

Because night brought only endless torment for her.

The rain was icy cold, but her body temperature suddenly rose. Lilan smiled slightly — now she truly was about to die.

After so many twists and turns, she was finally about to have her wish fulfilled.

Just as her consciousness slipped into the abyss, someone called her childhood name by her ear.

“Lan’er, Lan’er, don’t sleep, I’m here to save you.”

She struggled to make out the voice — it was the crown prince’s.

But the crown prince had been burned alive by the barbarians. How could he possibly save her?

She gave a bitter smile and then let herself drift into unconsciousness.

The torrential rain poured down, shrouding the grassland in a hazy mist.

No one noticed that the frail figure inside the thatched hut had been rescued.

Still chilled to the bone, Lilan shivered, thinking that even in paradise there was no warmth.

The cave was gloomy, with only a faint firelight flickering in one corner.

Pei Qizhou, by the firelight, carefully examined her face, and a great joy surged in his heart.

“Lan’er, you’re finally awake! That’s wonderful.”

Lilan slowly opened her eyes but found only darkness around her. The weak firelight was insufficient to illuminate the large cave.

Yet that familiar face, that familiar figure, remained so vivid.

“Brother Crown Prince?” she called out in disbelief.

Pei Qizhou’s gentle, jade-like face immediately broke into a smile as refreshing as a mountain spring, soothing and pure.

“Lan’er, don’t be afraid. I’ve rescued you. Forget all the suffering you endured before,” he said, soothingly brushing the stray hair from her forehead.

Lilan stood stunned, unable to believe the scene before her.

For over a month, she had felt as if trapped in a quagmire, never daring to hope she could escape the grasslands.

“Rest assured, the one who was burned that day was only a decoy I set loose,” Pei Qizhou said.

Lilan’s nose stung. She forced herself to stand and bowed slightly.

“Your Highness must have gone through great trouble to rescue me. I am deeply grateful, but...”

Pei Qizhou quickly steadied her.

“It was worth it. As long as I can keep you safe, it’s all worth it.”

Lilan broke down in tears.

The cave was damp, and soon her long illness flared into a high fever, her consciousness growing dim.

“Lan’er, hold on a little longer. I’ve sent out the signal; the rescue guards will arrive soon.”

Lilan grew colder, her limbs stiffening.

“Water... I want to drink warm water,” she murmured.

“All right, sit tight. I’ll boil some water,” Pei Qizhou comforted her.

But the noble crown prince had never done such humble tasks.

After fiddling with the fire for a long time, not only did the water fail to boil, but the faint firelight was extinguished.

“This fire must have been left by hunters in the forest. The fire was just lit; they can’t have gone far. I’ll go find them.”

“No, don’t go! The barbarians are cunning and treacherous. Be careful not to reveal your whereabouts,” Lilan said urgently, then broke into a fit of coughing.