Li Weiying slipped and fell into the water—in that moment of sinking, she seemed to see something so familiar, so peaceful. She struggled to open her eyes, and tiny flower petals swirling in the water floated past her eyebrows. Before she could think further, she choked on her breath and coughed as she surfaced.
Qu Zhixiu said, "Are you that afraid of me? I can't do anything about it." Li Weiying said, "Then why did you come?" Qu Zhixiu said, "Hey, I'm perfectly healthy. Knowing that a beauty is bathing here, why should I act like Liu Xiahui?" Li Weiying said, "What do you want with your broken hand?" Qu Zhixiu laughed, "Nothing much, just sitting here, looking at your snow-white shoulders and your delicate neck, isn't that good enough?" Then he recited again, "That hot spring, where a beauty bathes." Li Weiying coldly said, "There are thieves there, spying and waiting."
Qu Zhixiu laughed loudly: "Wei Ying, you are really special. But I am not a thief. I just want to rest here for a while. If you wait any longer, the soup will get cold and your skin will get wrinkled. I'd like to see if you will come up then." Li Wei Ying was speechless with anger, but at this moment she had no choice but to stay in the pool.
Qu Zhixiu moved to the pond's edge, his left hand rummaging through her clothes laid on the bank, picking up the items tied to them. He clicked his tongue, saying, "Xiao Shi and Nong Yu, the phoenix has flown away, and the flute is broken like this—what are you keeping it for?" Li Weiying hurriedly said, "Put down my things!" but dared not rise from the water. Qu Zhixiu squinted at the tattered tassel hanging from the flute's end: "...The character 'qu'?" He laughed, "Weiying, it's truly difficult for you to come up with the proper character for 'qu'." "Qu" is a colloquial form of "qu." Li Weiying angrily retorted, "Nonsense!"
He picked up her jade pendant again and said, "Oh, it's genuine Hetian white jade, smooth as solidified fat, and as white as solidified grease. The black bird is carved so lifelike, its wings outstretched as if ready to take flight. With a jade pendant of such material and craftsmanship, would the family need to go to the Western Regions to seek refuge with relatives? But why is it strung together with an iron chain? And with two broken stones added." He casually stuffed the jade pendant and spirit stones into his robes and said, "It's too damp here, and I'm in a lot of pain." He picked up his jade flute and strode away.
Lying lazily in bed, Qu Zhixiu asked his servant, "Why hasn't my lady arrived yet?" The servant replied, "She's still angry." Qu Zhixiu smiled and had the servant help him to his feet. After taking her belongings last night, he had the servant arrange for her to stay at the Willow Pavilion near the Peach Garden. The pavilion was three stories high and guarded; he figured she must have been too angry to sleep all night. Qu Zhixiu entered Li Weiying's room. She stood by the window, giving him a cold look without uttering a word. Seeing that she hadn't taken any of the hairpins and jewelry he had sent, nor touched any of the exquisite cosmetics, Qu Zhixiu said, "Take a good look. This Persian snail-shell hairpin is worth a bushel of pearls. This jade earring is a palace treasure. Shall I put it on you?" Li Weiying brushed his left hand away, saying, "Don't you know that Tang women don't wear earrings?"
Qu Zhixiu was taken aback. He looked closely and saw that she indeed didn't have pierced ears. He laughed, "So you're still willing to talk to me." He simply lay down on her bed, humming a song, looking smug, cheerful, and full of spirit—completely unlike the person who had once suffered a broken arm and been unconscious from the injury. Li Weiying said angrily, "Was your injury fake too?" Qu Zhixiu replied, "My wife's words are heartbreaking. I fell down a mountain stream, my bones were all out of place, but I'm not lying."
Li Weiying said, "Then why break your own arm first?" Qu Zhixiu replied, "Because the mountain stream in Liugu isn't very dangerous. Even if I fall, I might not break my bones. So I need to make sure my bones are broken first, and then use the broken bones to hit the rocks. That way, the break will be clear and everyone will see it." Li Weiying said, "So you tripped Silifa and pretended to help him fall down the mountain." Qu Zhixiu praised, "My dear, that's why I like you. I, Qu Zhixiu, the dignified prince of Gaochang, the Duke of Jiaohe, and the Right Guard General, have been humiliated by him. How could I not seek revenge? I tripped him up to make him fall flat on his face as a small punishment, and then made him offend my father. Humph, he probably won't have an easy time with the Khan in the future."
Li Weiying said, "How many times have you had a good life lately? Aren't you afraid of becoming a cripple?" Qu Zhixiu walked up to her and said, "I am a prince. I only need to plan and make decisions, and I don't need to personally fight. So what if my arm is really crippled? It's still better than going to the Turks. If I go there, I'm afraid I won't be able to come back. Do you really think they're sending me to be a Mei Lu? To put it bluntly, it's just being a hostage. If Gaochang and the Western Turks start a conflict, I will be the first to suffer. Although my father doesn't like me very much, I am still his own son, so he still cares about me to some extent. But who knows, what if one day he returns to the West and my elder brother succeeds to the throne? You'll see if he doesn't cause some trouble and use the Turks to kill me." Li Weiying remained silent. She was familiar with this kind of court intrigue since she was a child.
Qu Zhixiu said, "Only by guarding Jiaohe can I save my life. If I'm old and you make things difficult for me, I'll just carve out my own territory and become king. Wouldn't that be wonderful?" He brought his face close to her lips, about to kiss her. Li Weiying desperately backed away, her head and neck tilting back out of the window. Qu Zhixiu then reached out his left arm to reach her neck. Li Weiying struggled, and her right hand reached for the jade-inlaid gold box containing snail-shell ink on the table by the window, which she then smashed onto the back of Qu Zhixiu's head.
Qu Zhixiu groaned and said, "Be careful you don't fall, I won't be able to save you." He pulled her back into the window, blood already streaming down the back of his head. Qu Zhixiu felt a splitting headache, and a wave of dizziness washed over him as he collapsed onto her. Li Weiying, who was already unsteady on her feet, couldn't withstand his sudden weight and fell to the ground with him.
She struggled to turn his heavy, slumped body over, and saw a pool of blood continuously flowing from the back of his head; his right arm, which had been bandaged, was also bleeding. For a moment, she was terrified and at a loss for words. Had she killed him? Her heart pounded so hard she could barely breathe. She took a deep breath, checked his pulse, and, knowing he was still alive, quickly called for the servants below the window to come up.
The servants simply confined Li Weiying to the inner chamber without speaking to her. She didn't know how Qu Zhixiu was doing and spent two days in constant anxiety. At dusk, a maidservant came in to help her wash and dress, and said that the chief steward wanted to see her. Li Weiying anticipated trouble; having already beaten Qu Zhixiu, she knew there wouldn't be a good outcome. Therefore, she had nothing to fear. She carefully washed her face, finished her hair and makeup, and followed the servants down from the inner chamber.
Upon arriving at the banquet hall, Li Weiying was immediately struck by the musicians and dancers already performing. The chief steward gestured for her to join the orchestra. Li Weiying walked to the side of Lü'er and An'an, who dared not speak, only watching her with concern. Li Weiying's eyes reddened, and she sat down. Her slender fingers plucked the strings of her zither, when suddenly she heard a familiar melody from a flute. Looking up, she saw a young man playing the flute, and in his hand was none other than the flute Cao Ling had given her. Since Cao Ling had remarried and the jade flute had been trampled and shattered by a herd of horses, Li Weiying had not heard this sound for a long time. The man in the room was handsome and elegant, and the flute music was clear and melodious. For a moment, she seemed to see Cao Ling's face.
Staring blankly, the man at the table stopped, walked up to Li Weiying, and handed her the flute, saying, "Is this yours?" Li Weiying took the jade flute and saw that it had been repaired, with some of the deeper cracks being finely stitched with gold thread. The man smiled, "I am A-Xiu's second brother. He is quite ill. Would you like to go and see him?" It turned out to be Qu Zhizhan.
King Qu Wentai of Gaochang's eldest son, also known as Crown Prince Qu Zhisheng, served as Lingyin (equivalent to prime minister) as was customary. His second son, Zhizhan, served as Duke of Tiandi and General of the Left Guard, while his youngest son, Zhixiu, served as Duke of Jiaohe and General of the Right Guard. In ancient times, the left was considered the more honorable position, so Qu Zhizhan's status was slightly higher than Qu Zhixiu's.
Seeing that he was gentle and polite, and did not blame her for injuring his younger brother, and had even brought her a jade flute, Li Weiying gave a slight bow and said, "Please trouble the prince to take me there." Qu Zhizhan smiled gently, "I'm afraid A-Xiu won't be happy to see me again. I came to see him on my father's orders, so I won't go again. Chief Secretary Linghu, you take her there." Linghu Bi, the chief secretary of the Jiaohe Duke's mansion, then led Li Weiying to Qu Zhixiu's residence.
The strong smell of medicine filled the air. Qu Zhixiu lay on the bed with his eyes closed, looking ashen. Because of the injury to the back of his head, he had shaved his already half-shaved head completely bald and wrapped it in several layers of gauze, almost covering his eyes. To avoid putting pressure on the wound, he could only lie on his side with difficulty. His broken right hand was also heavily fixed to a splint.
Qu Zhixiu was foul-mouthed and unruly, but he had taken his jade flute to repair it and endured the pain to pull himself back from the window, which was actually quite kind of him. Having been ostracized in the palace since childhood and disliked by his father, his current temperament was ultimately worthy of sympathy. Li Weiying wondered if he would really lose his arm this time, and felt a pang of regret.
Li Weiying sat quietly by his bedside. Qu Zhixiu opened his eyes, his face immediately contorting in pain. He weakly said, "Don't hit me anymore." Li Weiying said apologetically, "Your second brother sent me to see you. I hit you too hard. You should rest well." Qu Zhixiu said, "So you didn't really want to see me? I've wronged myself, I've wronged myself..." He reached out his left hand to grope around the bedside, but it trembled and was too weak. Li Weiying picked it up for him; it was a newly knotted character "曲" (qu, meaning "melody") made of silk thread. Qu Zhixiu said, "Throw it away, throw it away." He struggled to tear off the knot. Li Weiying quickly pressed him down, "Be careful not to hurt yourself." Qu Zhixiu grumbled, "Then hang it on your flute."
Li Weiying gazed at the bright and beautiful tassel and the gleaming jade flute adorned with gold thread. Memories of her past with Cao Ling flooded her mind. The jade flute had been gained and lost several times, and now, holding it in her hand and examining it closely, she felt a sense of unease and unfamiliarity.
Neither people nor things are the same.
Despite their best efforts, they ultimately couldn't hold on to anything.
Her eyes stung, her nose twitched slightly, and she gave a sad smile. She hung the tassel on the end of the flute, placed it beside Qu Zhixiu's pillow, and said, "It's all right now." She felt a sense of relief.
Qu Zhixiu was taken aback, his face instantly darkening before he chuckled, "Is this considered a token of our love?" Li Weiying replied, "No." She then asked, "You took other things from me too?" Qu Zhixiu smiled slightly, "You asked about the horses, not the people." Confucius, upon hearing of a fire in the palace stables, only asked if anyone was injured, not the horses. He used this allusion to mock Li Weiying for only caring about objects. She understood perfectly, knowing Qu Zhixiu's eccentricities—the more you plead with him, the more he'll ignore you—so she said nothing more.
Qu Zhixiu struggled to his feet, but Li Weiying raised her hand slightly before pulling it back, saying, "I'll call a servant." Qu Zhixiu retorted, "Those stinking men can't compare to you." Li Weiying's face turned cold; he hadn't been well for long before his true nature resurfaced, so she watched as he struggled to crawl to the table. Qu Zhixiu ground ink with his left hand, picked up a brush, and wrote a few characters. Li Weiying was somewhat surprised to see that his left-handed writing was quite neat. Qu Zhixiu said, "Hmph, so what if I don't have a right hand? I'm ambidextrous, a genius of nature."
However, it was still inconvenient without his right hand to hold the paper. Li Weiying felt sorry for him and helped him hold the paper down. Qu Zhixiu smiled slightly and continued writing. Li Weiying glanced at the contents of the paper; it seemed to be something Qu Zhixiu was presenting to King Qu Wentai.
He said, "It's not that I don't want to ask my servants for help, but there are some people around me who are openly or secretly on my brother's side, or even people who may have been planted by him. So I try to do all the paperwork myself, no matter how big or small." He sighed and said, "In order to avoid going to the Turks, I had thought of other ways before, but I was afraid that the secret would be leaked, until I met you by the apricot grove that day."
Li Weiying said, "You're quite quick-witted." Qu Zhixiu smiled, "So it really was you who saved me. But, Weiying, whether you hate me or not, since I used you to cause trouble, I can't just leave you by my side. Now everyone knows I forced you into this situation. If I release you rashly, wouldn't that arouse suspicion? Besides, if you fall into someone else's hands, your life might be in danger." Li Weiying's heart sank, "Then how long are you going to keep me here?" Qu Zhixiu chuckled evilly, "You're already mine. Do you really want to leave?" He stopped laughing halfway through, covered his ear with his left hand, and a look of pain appeared on his face.
Li Weiying asked, "What's wrong?" Qu Zhixiu didn't answer, put down his hand and continued writing. After writing only a few words, he covered his ears again. Li Weiying quickly went outside and gave a few instructions to the servants. She returned and said, "Lie down. Tell me what you want to write." Qu Zhixiu hesitated for a moment, then lay down on the bed as instructed. He continued to cover his ears with his left hand and read aloud. As he spoke, she wrote with great speed. Almost as soon as he finished speaking, Li Weiying would put down her pen.
Qu Zhixiu said, "What can you write so quickly? Let me see it." He reached out and took the text. Although it wasn't a verbatim copy of his original words, it was roughly correct, and in a few places, the wording was even more refined than his own. The handwriting was also elegant and graceful, with a refined and distant air. His expression changed slightly, and he was about to speak when the physician from the manor arrived, so he lay down again. A few days ago, Qu Zhixiu had pretended to flatter the Turks by getting two new ear piercings, which became infected and inflamed, causing him unbearable pain. As the physician administered medicine to him, Li Weiying turned and left. Qu Zhixiu watched her graceful departing figure for a long time, his brows gradually furrowing deeper.
Deeper. Chapter Nineteen.
19. [My Beloved]
From that day on, Li Weiying frequently went to Qu Zhixiu's study to handle his documents. Whenever Qu Zhixiu closed his eyes and lay on the bed, Li Weiying would first quickly skim through the contents of the document, summarize the general meaning, and tell him. Qu Zhixiu would give his opinions, and she would write them down accordingly. At first, he would dictate sentence by sentence, but later, as long as he needed to give a general decision, she would draft the specific instructions.
Qu Zhixiu's surprise grew, but he said aloud, "Qingqing, if I had known you were this good, I should have given you to my elder brother." Li Weiying glared at him. Qu Zhixiu grinned, "My elder brother knows you're so easygoing, he'll be happy to push all the work onto you and then go off to enjoy himself with beautiful women and a life of pleasure. If I just whisper a few words of slander to Father, things will be fine." Li Weiying said, "Do you think your elder brother is a fool?" Qu Zhixiu smiled, "Actually, to be frank, Father and my elder brother are both far less wise than each other. They're all bark and no bite, outwardly strong but inwardly weak. In comparison, my second brother has always been gentle and humble, seemingly weak, but he's actually a formidable character." Li Weiying said, "Oh, didn't you say your second brother was the least capable?" Qu Zhixiu said, "Indeed, he's capable, but he just doesn't want to show it, that's why I said he's not capable. In terms of vying for the throne, he's better than me. But, in a country like this, with a throne like this, what's the point of vying for it?"
Li Weiying said, "You're quite open-minded." Qu Zhixiu rolled his eyes. "Hasn't Gaochang done enough stupid things? You're a smart man, can't you see it?" Li Weiying said, "You mean attacking Yanqi?" Qu Zhixiu said, "King Longtuqizhi of Yanqi is also a fool. All the countries in the Western Regions have always passed through Gaochang to communicate with Tang. Gaochang has been reaping the benefits of passage and quietly making money from tolls. But that old bastard Yanqi insisted on petitioning Tang to open the Qiqi Road, with the southern route going through Loulan and Dunhuang. Isn't this daring to overstep our boundaries? If we don't attack him, who should we attack?" Li Weiying said, "Yanqi is a vassal state of Tang. Isn't Gaochang afraid of angering our Great Tang by openly attacking a vassal state of Tang?"
Qu Zhixiu said, "Since the Han Dynasty, the various kingdoms of the Western Regions have all wavered between the Xiongnu and the Central Plains. Now, they are in a similar situation, some allied with the Turks, others with the Tang Dynasty, siding with whoever is more powerful." Li Weiying, while reading the documents, said, "The Tang Dynasty is probably stronger than the Turks now. The Eastern Turks have already been destroyed, and their high-ranking officials led tens of thousands of their people to surrender. Although the Western Turks still occasionally fight with the Tang, they are ultimately a disorganized group, and their reign is uncertain. Why is Gaochang so siding with the Turks?"
Qu Zhixiu snorted, “It’s a pity that Father always felt that Tang was the weaker one. In the eighth year of Yanhe, which was the fifth year of Daye of the former Sui Dynasty, my grandfather, Prince Xianwen, accompanied Father, who was then the crown prince, to travel to Sui. They accompanied Emperor Yang to Luoyang, the eastern capital, and witnessed its prosperity. Father also accompanied the emperor on a distant expedition to Goguryeo. Father stayed in Sui for more than three years, and the strength of the Sui Dynasty made him constantly think about it. On the contrary, in the seventh year of Yanshou, which was the fourth year of Zhenguan of your Tang Dynasty, when Father went to Chang’an again, he saw desolation along the way, with thousands of white bones, and Chang’an was as dilapidated as a ruin. Therefore, Father believed that Tang was no longer as glorious as the former Sui Dynasty, and that only the Turks were worth being wary of.”
Li Weiying said calmly, "At the end of the Sui Dynasty, the world was in chaos, and war raged everywhere. At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, the population was only one-third of that of the Sui Dynasty. What your father saw was a time of utter devastation. Now, in just twenty years, the Tang Dynasty's national strength and military power have far surpassed those of the former Sui Dynasty. Chang'an is now the capital of all nations. Your father probably couldn't have imagined that." Qu Zhixiu said sullenly, "That's why he dared to detain refugees from the end of the Sui Dynasty, refuse to return them to the Tang Dynasty, and even stop paying tribute. Father never even considered such a situation that angered the Tang Dynasty and put it in such a precarious position."
Li Weiying finished tidying up the last document of the day and said, "Your father has certainly thought about it, but I'm afraid he doesn't consider the situation dangerous." Qu Zhixiu laughed, "Weiying, why do you keep calling me 'your father'? Sooner or later, when I'm better, whether you like it or not, I'll force myself on you, and then you'll have to call me 'father' too." Li Weiying coldly said, "Aren't you hurt enough?" She turned and left. Qu Zhixiu called out after her repeatedly, "I am the Duke of Jiaohe, this is my territory. Do you think you can negotiate with me now that you're in my hands?" Li Weiying ignored him and left straight away.
Leaving Qu Zhixiu's room and turning into the banquet hall, they encountered an acquaintance, a musician. Seeing that the prince wasn't present, An'an boldly asked, "Wei Ying, are you alright? You've been captured for so long, has the prince made things difficult for you?" Li Wei Ying replied, "I'm fine. The prince only requires me to play the zither and write calligraphy every day. He's injured and rests in bed all day. You don't need to worry." Lü'er said, "That's for the best. The prince... his temper is unusual, you... but you must be careful." However, due to the presence of the guards, she dared not speak openly. The sisters held Li Wei Ying's hands, offering words of comfort.
Back at Zheliu Pavilion, as soon as she entered the room, a huge, reddish-brown, long-haired beast leaped out. "A lion!" Li Weiying cried out in alarm, trying to flee, but the lion pounced, blocking her path. With a roar, its fangs bared, Li Weiying was terrified and fled back into the inner room, throwing vases and scrolls at the pursuing lion as she ran. The lion grew even more enraged, lunging and tearing off a piece of her skirt. Li Weiying desperately ran towards the outer room, bumping into someone with a thud. Looking up, she saw it was Qu Zhixiu. He laughed, "So, you're so eager to throw yourself at me today?" Hearing the lion approaching again, Li Weiying quickly ran away. Qu Zhixiu chuckled, blocking the doorway as she circled and dodged inside, saying, "Beg me! Beg me to take you!" Li Weiying's eyes reddened with desperation, but she refused to answer him.
The room was a complete mess, with things Li Weiying had knocked over scattered everywhere. She stumbled and fell, and the lion pounced. In her panic, Li Weiying only saw the lion open its blood-red maw, its sharp teeth about to bite down, and the stench of its saliva filled her nostrils. She closed her eyes and cried out, "Huan She, save me!"
In an instant, time seemed to stand still. The roars of the giant beasts and Qu Zhixiu's lewd laughter faded away. A buzzing sound filled his ears, and a voice still echoed in his mind: "Huan She..."
A large hand touched her face, and she gripped it tightly, refusing to let go: "Huan..." Opening her eyes, she saw Qu Zhixiu staring intently at her. He said, "Who are you calling? I thought you eloped with someone surnamed Cao, but how come there's someone surnamed Huan?" Li Weiying tried to loosen her grip, but he tightened it even more: "Who is that? Who is that?" Li Weiying struggled to get up, but he still pulled her, slamming her against the wall with a bang, saying, "What exactly did he do to you that you call him that?" Li Weiying felt breathless under his chest, reached out, grabbed a seven-jeweled glass lamp hanging on the wall, and smashed it on his forehead. The glass lamp shattered with a crack, and Qu Zhixiu cried out in pain: "You hit me again?" He released her with his left hand, and she ran out the door with all her might. Qu Zhixiu covered his wound and, dizzy, chased after her.
Before the guards of Zheliu Pavilion could stop her, Li Weiying took off running, heading straight for the plateau in the northwest of the mansion. Although she didn't know if there was a way out there, she was only trying to escape Qu Zhixiu for the time being. She heard Qu Zhixiu and the guards shouting behind her getting closer and closer, but she dared not look back. As darkness fell and she could no longer see the road, she suddenly lost her footing in her panic and fell to the ground.
Gaochang receives little rainfall, and the snowmelt from the northern mountains is often absorbed immediately upon reaching the dry, hot ground, leaving nothing on the surface. Therefore, wells and canals are widely constructed throughout the region. The method involves first drilling a positioning well; once groundwater is discovered, vertical shafts are excavated upstream and downstream along the planned canal line. These shafts serve as channels for positioning the underground canals, removing slag, ventilation, and future maintenance. The spacing between the shafts is roughly proportional to their depth. Below each shaft, horizontal underground canals intersect to form a spiderweb-like network, collecting and channeling seepage water. Utilizing the natural slope of the terrain, the water is brought to the surface for irrigation. (This method was likely already in use during the Han Dynasty and is known today as a karez system.) Although Jiaohe City is surrounded by water, it sits atop a precipice, making it inconvenient for dwellings far from the riverbank to draw water. Therefore, wells and canals were still used there.
The well, supported by a sturdy wooden frame, was hollow inside. Fortunately, the fallen leaves at the bottom were thick, preventing her from breaking her leg, though she was in excruciating pain. From the wellhead came Qu Zhixiu's voice: "Weiying, how are you?" The other servants also called out: "Madam, are you injured?" Li Weiying pressed herself against the cold well wall, afraid to make a sound. The calls from above faded away, presumably they had left. The late autumn night was cold and bitter; Li Weiying's teeth chattered and she shivered uncontrollably until she succumbed to the cold and fell unconscious.
She didn't know how much time had passed when she found herself nestled in a warm embrace. She groggily opened her eyes; the lamplight flickered overhead, and she couldn't make out the face of the person before her. A deep male voice echoed in her ear: "Qingqing, Qingqing!" Recognizing Qu Zhixiu's voice, she jolted awake, realizing she was still at the bottom of the well, and that Qu Zhixiu had also descended into it.
Seeing the fear on her face, Qu Zhixiu pulled her into his arms with his left hand and comforted her, "Don't be afraid, the dog has been taken away." Li Weiying was confused: "A dog?" Qu Zhixiu said, "Yes, it's that Tibetan mastiff." She was still puzzled: "Isn't it a lion?" Qu Zhixiu said, "No, it's a Tibetan mastiff. Mastiffs come in two types: lion-type and tiger-type. This one is lion-type, with bristling whiskers and mane, it looks very much like a lion. I was just trying to scare you, but you couldn't take it."
Li Weiying fell silent again, no longer speaking. Qu Zhixiu said, "Shall we go up?" She was silent for a long time, then said, "Please let me go, or just kill me." Qu Zhixiu said, "You must be injured from falling from such a height. Let me take you up to get treatment first." She broke free from his embrace, leaned against the well wall, and said, "Since you torment me like this every day, what's the point of treating me? Abandon me here, let me die in peace." The servant at the well called out, "Prince, aren't you coming up?" Qu Zhixiu glanced up and said, "Get out of here, don't bother me." He thought for a moment and said, "Do you know how this Tibetan mastiff came about?" Li Weiying curled up her cold body and ignored him. Qu Zhixiu said, "It was just sent over by Tibet yesterday. Hey, why did Tibet send something so urgently? Because they're at war with the Tang army." Li Weiying suddenly looked up. Qu Zhixiu smiled smugly: "Two hundred thousand Tibetan troops attacked Songzhou of Tang, saying that if they couldn't marry the Tang princess, they would penetrate deep into Tang territory." He then stopped abruptly.