Snippets from the book (SPOILERS!)

Wow.  Thank you so much. 

For all the people wondering about love triangles...this is how Han Ye treats them.

WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS FOR BOOK! 

After the Fifth Prince returned from a trip to Jiangnan after his wedding, Han Ye invited him to shoot in the paddock to catch up.

It was still early in the morning, so Han Ye changed into a riding outfit and practiced archery in the open field, while the fifth prince, Han Yue, who did not like to dance with spears and sticks, sat aside to watch.

Han Ye did not hesitate to shoot ten arrows, and there were no false shots.

Han Yue clapped his hands and shouted, "Second brother, we should really let all the sons of the capital's families go to the northwest for a campaign. These people raised in the capital have all become frivolous young masters."

Han Ye's forehead was sweaty, and he handed the bow and arrow to the attendant, and laughed: "According to that, you should be the first one to go north. No matter how mischievous the children of the capital families are, I have never seen them eating vegetarian and reciting Buddha all day. Fortunately, you are now married, and Father can be reassured. Otherwise we would worry every day, afraid that any day now you’ll decide to immediately follow the Buddha. Your princess consort is not bad, training you to be more popular."

Han Yue smiled rather shyly, but the bottom of his eyes were transparent and warm. "Royal brother, now that we're both older, I'll be frank with you about something. My mother was of low birth and passed away early, and my age is similar to Ninth Brother’s. Although you protected me when I was young, I inevitably obstructed the eyes of Concubine Jiang. I am a person from the royal family. If I like the Buddha's path since childhood, I will not only have Father’s compassion, but can also make Concubine Jiang feel at ease, so why not do it? It’s just that I’ve been studying the Dharma for a long time. I didn’t expect to develop this kind of mentality now, but this can also be considered a blessing. Royal brother is so smart, and I definitely can’t hide this little trick of mine from you.”

Han Ye listened unhappily, patted his shoulder, sat on the wooden chair beside him, and sighed a little. "I didn't protect you and Anning well." Han Yue and An Ning were in a similar situation when they were young, so it was inevitable that he, the older brother, would look after them more.

"Second brother, don't say that. You've taken care of us enough over the years. After all, the harem is in the hands of Consort Jiang, and you are the crown prince, so you cannot interfere too much. Not to mention the fact that there was still Eldest Brother and the left minister in the court, and you had to worry about the affairs of the Di family..." Han Yue paused, a little chagrined. "Forget it, let's not talk about these things. I heard that the Northern Qin envoy entered the capital yesterday, and the Northern Qin Princess also confronted the Marquis of Jing'an in Ling Xiang House. Royal brother, it’s not easy for you to enjoy happiness!"

The incident of the Great Princess of Northern Qin causing a scene at Ling Xiang House was spread all over the capital in just one day, so it was difficult for Han Yue not to know about it. He was just amused; his second brother was handsome, intelligent and wise. How come all the peach blossoms in his life are such unbelievable girls?

It was rare for Han Ye to be teased, and he was about to speak when the sound of horses' hooves rang out at the entrance of the paddock.

The two looked up and saw a woman in a foreign dress on a horse, with a heroic face, coming straight towards the open space. The guards behind her were brave and domineering, and at first glance it was clear that they were foreigners.

This Northern Qin princess’s appearance is not bad, and it's not unreasonable to really get married. The fifth prince winked at Han Ye and smiled.

The group of North Qin guards had already been stopped by the forbidden guards, but Mo Shuang had a special status, and the forbidden guards did not dare to intercept them at will. Mo Shuang slowed down, held the reins and paced in front of the two of them, and condescendingly looked at Han Ye and the Fifth Prince for a moment. She finally settled her eyes on Han Ye and raised an eyebrow. "Dajing Crown Prince, Han Ye?"

Han Ye took a sip of his tea and glanced at her indifferently, "Princess of Northern Qin, Mo Shuang?"

Mo Shuang happily said, "Yes, that’s me." She tsked twice, "You are as handsome as the rumors say. It's no wonder that the Marquis of Jing’an didn't look kindly on me. So this is how it is."

Han Ye's eyes flickered and he raised his eyes, "The same to you, the princess also has the valiant boldness of the women of Northern Qin."

It seems that he is not a master who anyone can take advantage of, but for better or worse, he is the object for her marriage. Naturally, she has to see what he is worth. Seeing the guard on the side holding a bow and arrow, Mo Shuang became interested and raised her eyebrows, "Your Royal Highness, let's have a competition of riding and archery, shall we?”

"The princess is a guest from afar, how dare I bully you?" Han Ye shook his head and sat firmly, "This spring is perfect, why doesn't the princess dismount and sip tea."

Mo Shuang's face was stern, "This princess is not a young lady of your Dajing, who only knows how to teach her husband and children. Just competing in shooting and hunting, does the crown prince not dare?" She paused and twirled the whip in her hand. "If the Prince doesn't answer, I'll go to the palace tomorrow to see the Emperor of Dajing and tell him I've taken a fancy to you. Even your father can not arbitrarily reject my northern Qin state letter, right?"

When she finished, she didn't wait for Han Ye's reaction, and with a wave of her horse whip ran towards the paddock woods.

The fifth prince was dumbfounded, and glanced at the northern Qin guards who had not moved at all. Deeply concerned, he said, "Second brother, fortunately, I got married a step earlier. This kind of barbaric woman is as fierce as a tiger. This northern Qin Princess is sincerely looking for trouble. If you do not go to compete with her, tomorrow she may force Father to bestow marriage. That would be a bad thing."

Han Ye was silent for a moment, waved his hand, took the bow and arrow from the guard, mounted his horse, and headed towards the forest.

A few moments later, Han Ye caught up with Mo Shuang who was shooting arrows in the forest and drove his horse forward. "What does the princess want to hunt?"

Mo Shuang looked at him and suddenly said, "His Royal Highness, I saw Di Ziyuan yesterday. Such a woman is not common. I heard that Taizu gave you a marriage to her back then. Why didn't you marry her and save me from being sent to Dajing by my brother?"

Han Ye was slightly surprised and said: "Ziyuan is a first-ranking marquis of Dajing, the marriage back then has long since been cancelled. But I didn't expect the princess to turn out to be reluctant to come to Dajing."

"That's natural." Mo Shuang solemnly said, "I have lived in Northern Qin for more than ten years. I have no relatives and no reason in Dajing, so naturally I don't want to come over. Are you willing for Princess An Ning to marry far away to Dong Qian?"

Seeing Han Ye shake his head, Mo Shuang hummed: "I don't know what kind of medicine my elder brother has taken, but he submitted a letter of state without my knowledge." Seeing Han Ye's look of relief, she smiled, "Your Royal Highness, you should not be too happy. Anyway, I don't have a sweetheart, and you and the Marquis of Jing'an are also unlikely. I might not care about your past love affairs. Pairing with you is not unreasonable, at least it can also slow down the dispute between the two countries, it’s a good thing!"

She came to Dajing just for a fun trip, and was not prepared to stay, but at this moment could not resist molesting the serious Crown Prince of Dajing.

Seeing Mo Shuang laugh and smile, Han Ye could not guess which of the Northern Qin princess’s words were true, and which were not, but he knew that it was better to retreat a ways, so he said: “The princess is joking. Since you don't want to come to Dajing, it's better for you to go back to Northern Qin earlier. The temperament of the princess is not suitable for Dajing.”

"Oh? Then where do you think I belong?" Mo Shuang raised her eyebrows.

"I once lived in the northwest for several years, where the sun sets over the long river. The lonely smoke in the desert, the vast grassland, those are worthy of the princess’s stay."

At this time it was sunset. Han Ye looked towards the desolate mountains to the north of the paddock with a smile on his face, and spoke slowly.

He was born handsome, and was the crown prince of a country, noble and majestic, with a warmth and softness that was not found in the men of Northern Qin. The lingering sunlight reflected on his face, quite picturesque.

Mo Shuang was stunned, and was unusually a little uncomfortable. She coughed and turned her head. "Your Highness, I see nothing to hunt in this area, let's go to the north." After she finished, she raised her whip and headed deeper north.

Han Ye was too late to stop her; Mo Shuang had already entered the depths of the dense forest. His face changed. There were fierce beasts in the dense forest north of the paddock. Usually, unless the guards were equipped with crossbows, they would never set foot inside. Even if Mo Shuang had strong martial arts, he feared... She is the Great Princess of Northern Qin; if something happens in the capital of Dajing, the two countries will have a military disaster.

Han Ye looked at the big tent far away, pursed his lips, and turned his head in the direction of Mo Shuang.

Meanwhile, Han Yue, who was waiting outside the tent, looked at the increasingly dark sky. His eyebrows gradually sank, and he felt something was not right. He beckoned towards the prince's guards, "Summon a squad and follow me into the dense forest to have a look."

Half an incense stick later, Han Ye saw Mo Shuang in the depths of the dense forest. He breathed a sigh of relief, hurriedly approached, and said solemnly: "Princess, this place is not peaceful. I will accompany the princess back to the outer forest to hunt."

Mo Shuang had only come here because she had been momentarily flustered. She grew up in a desert and had an innate ability to perceive danger. At this time, the sky had darkened, and the dense forest was even more eerie. She nodded, "This place is a bit spooky, it's good to go back."

Before she finished her words, her expression changed, and she suddenly drew her sword and slashed behind Han Ye. The hand holding the blade fell, and two severed pieces of a snake dropped to the ground, glowing with cold light. Mo Shuang sheathed the sword and smiled, "It seems that Dajing's capital is not safe either."

Han Ye looked at the ground, clasped his fists and said, "Thank you, Princess." Even if Mo Shuang didn't make a move, he could protect himself, but in the end he accepted her favor.

Mo Shuang waved her hand boldly and turned the horse’s head around. "Let's go."

The two of them looked at each other and nodded in a tacit understanding, but before they had taken a few steps, the two stopped in unison with calm eyes.

A few feet away, a ten foot tall black bear bowed, staring dead at the two with a pair of tiny eyes, tongue out, breathing heavily. The appearance of the black bear made the dense forest suddenly cold.
Han Ye looked behind Mo Shuang, frowning. On the way here, Mo Shuang's arrows had long been used up, and he had no more than two left.

“Princess, later when I move, escape towards the south, do not turn back," Han Ye slowly touched the bow and arrows on his back and instructed in a low voice.

“Your Highness, I led you to the dense forest, how can I abandon you here alone?" Mo Shuang refused without even thinking about it.

"You are the princess of Northern Qin. If something happens in Dajing, the two countries will have a military disaster. How can you ignore the overall situation and be impulsive?" Han Ye rebuked with somber eyes. A stern aura appeared immediately between his eyebrows, completely different from the previous gentle and calm one.

Mo Shuang was silent for a while, no longer argued, and her expression was a bit glum.

The black bear was getting closer and closer, and the two horses became agitated, and Han Ye fiercely pulled the bow to a full moon, "Mo Shuang, go!"

When the words settled, he went in the opposite direction and shot an arrow into the black bear's eyes. The black bear was provoked, howled, knocked down the arrow, and chased after Han Ye. Mo Shuang was taken aback, turned around and waved her whip, running towards the edge of the dense forest.

The black bear's roar shook the leaves, and Han Yue, who had just entered the forest, heard the commotion. His face changed drastically, and led he led the guards swiftly to the rescue.
It was dark in the depths of the dense forest. Han Ye's horse took a slap from the black bear and fell down convulsively. The black bear was teased all the way and roared impatiently at the sky, tearing the horse on the ground in half to vent its anger.

Han Ye ignored the carnage and hid behind the tree, carefully restrained the sound, and fully drew his bow. He pointed the arrow at the furious black bear, infused it with internal strength, and shot the arrow steadily.

The arrow tore through the air straight into the black bear’s eye, and sound of its wail echoed fiercely through the dense forest. The black bear staggered a few steps and lunged at Han Ye's hiding place.
Han Ye evaded. A gash swept across his shoulder. He furrowed his brow, picked up his bow, poured internal force into it, and slammed it against the black bear. The black bear roared furiously in spite of the pain, yanked away the bow, and opened its maw to bite at Han Ye. The stench of blood hit his face...

In the nick of time, a figure leapt down from a tree and landed straight on the black bear. The person held the black bear's head for dear life and stabbed the curved blade into the bear’s other eye with all their might. The black bear screamed, let go of Han Ye, and pulled out the blade from its eyes. Blood gushed out, and it threw down the scimitar. Two giant paws rushed fiercely towards the person on his head.
With a muffled grunt, the person rolled off the black bear's head and fell beside Han Ye. Han Ye looked intently and found that it was Mo Shuang who fell to the side panting, and his face immediately darkened: "Foolish, why are you back?"

"Escaping alone is not something I can do." Mo Shuang raised her eyebrows, "Besides, it was I who called you into the dense forest. If you, the crown prince of Dajing, die, then I, the princess of Northern Qin, will not be able to survive as well."

"Mo Shuang, follow me." Han Ye glanced at the black bear and made a low gesture.

Mo Shuang shook her head, her eyes a bit bleak. "You go."

Han Ye was startled and gazed down, furrowing his brow. Mo Shuang's legs had apparently been clawed by the black bear just now, and her knees were dark red and bloody.

The black bear stumbled and roared not far from the two, its face covered in blood, very gruesome.
The atmosphere was somewhat subdued. Mo Shuang didn't hear any movement beside her, and curled her lips self-deprecatingly. Unexpectedly a pair of hands grasped her shoulders. She raised her head. Han Ye's eyes were dark as ink. "I also will not escape alone," he said, slowly dragging her back with care.

Mo Shuang was astonished. A smile flashed across her eyes, rekindling her spirit.

The black bear’s hearing seemed to become more acute with the absence of its two eyes. As soon as the two moved, it sensed them, and without hesitation opened its mouth wide and lunged.
The wounded black bear was more furious and terrifying than before, swiping its giant paws and approaching the two in a blink of an eye. There was a foul wind, and the bloody maw suddenly appeared before the two.

At this moment, Han Ye caught a glimpse of the scimitar that was swept down by the black bear on the ground. He fiercely flung Mo Shuang to the ground, picked up the scimitar, and stabbed with all his might at the black bear.

Wailing sounds rang out in the forest, and blood gushed down from the black bear's chest. With loud crash, the black bear finally stopped moving and fell to the ground.

Han Ye, his face covered in blood and gasping for air, likewise fell to the ground.

Mo Shuang's face was pale, and she stared at the black bear without blinking.

"Don't look, it's dead."

Mo Shuang withdrew her eyes, looked at Han Ye, and after a long time lazily said: "Your Royal Highness, you are so ugly now."

Han Ye waved his hand, "Princess, the same to you."

The two looked at each other, and overcome by the atmosphere of survival, both burst into laughter.

From afar the panicked shouts of the forbidden guards came, and Mo Shuang curled her lips, "Why do all the guards in this world wait until the business is resolved before appearing?"

"Be thankful, at least you don't have to crawl back."

He climbed up and helped Mo Shuang to lean against a tree, tore off the hem of his robe, and covered her legs under Mo Shuang's amazed eyes.

Han Ye smiled, his eyes gentle. "I know that princess is from Northern Qin and is not pretentious, but after all you are a young lady. It’s best to be prudent about everything.”

Mo Shuang looked complicated, stared at Han Ye, and suddenly said: "Has Your Highness done these things to that Marquis of Jing'an?

Han Ye was startled, his eyes a little muted, and he shook his head, "Never."

"No wonder she didn't like Your Highness." Mo Shuang hooked the corner of her mouth, "I heard that all the women in Dajing are smitten with Your Highness because of Your Highness' wisdom and gentleness. His Highness can do this to everyone, but not to the Marquis of Jing'an. What’s more, your royal family still has a feud with the Di family. With the Marquis of Jing’an's disposition, I’m afraid that in this life, she can never like you. Your Highness, I think... you might as well give up on her, there are thousands of women in the world."

Mo Shuang looked up at the sky above the dense forest, dotted with stars, and her voice was extraordinarily clear.

Han Ye smiled and leaned on the tree beside him without answering. He looked at the stars in the sky, and suddenly felt sentimental.

A few months ago he was at the bottom of the Hua Yuan Valley, and the person who lived and died beside him was Di Ziyuan. Now it was the princess of Northern Qin who accompanied him, nagging. Ah, life really could not be predicted.

Ziyuan, there is a girl who asked me to give up on you. She has a noble status and a bold temperament. She is better than most women in the world.

However, she doesn't know that there are thousands of women in this world, but there is only one Di Ziyuan.

At the same time, news of the attack on the Crown Prince and the Princess of Northern Qin in the paddock spread back to the capital, and also included - the Marquis of Jing'an Mansion.

((Continued in next post))

How Di Ziyuan treats the men in her life.

WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS FOR BOOK

When Jili left, Luo Mingxi rubbed the corner of his eyebrows. His face appeared a little tired, and his expression was a little out of focus.

These days he avoided leaving the house, initially because of Han Ye's return.

He had thought of 10,000 possibilities for the future, but he had never imagined that Han Ye was still alive in the world.

Even if Han Ye had completely lost his internal strength and his eyes were sightless, as long as Han Ye was still alive...

Luo Mingxi let out a long sigh, and the corners of his mouth showed a touch of bitter self-deprecation.

"My lord." A low call sounded, and a plain-clothed maid came in carrying a delicacy box. She carefully measured Luo Mingxi's expression before saying, "The folded cloud cake from Fang Yun Zhai, this is what you ordered half a month ago."

This maid is none other than Xin Yu, the maid that Luo Mingxi sent to Tai Shan to accompany Di Cheng'en. Xin Yu is good at medicine and has a gentle and strict nature, and Luo Mingxi felt that it was not easy for her to be tied to Di Cheng'en's side for many years, so he called her back and kept her by his side.

Luo Mingxi raised his eyes towards the delicacy box in Xin Yu's hand. After a long silence, he suddenly stood up from the wooden chair, and the thin fur he was wearing fell to the ground.

"My lord?" Xin Yu froze and exclaimed.

"Perhaps..." Luo Mingxi murmured, "Perhaps she is no longer persistent? After all these years, maybe she changed her mind... How can I not be willing to give it a try, prepare the horse!"

Luo Mingxi raised his voice towards the outside and ordered, took the delicacy box in Xin Yu's hand and walked towards the outside.

" My lord, where are you going?" Xin Yu hurriedly picked up the thin fur on the ground and ran outside after Luo Mingxi with a worried face.

"Jing'an Marquis Mansion!"

The Jing'an Marquis Mansion was renovated three years ago, but the old study room and other places in the backyard had only been cleaned by Di Ziyuan and had not been renovated. Aside from Di Ziyuan and Di Jinyan, few people came here, and it was still the same as it was more than ten years ago, with the mottled and aged traces.

When Luo Mingxi walked into the backyard carrying the folded cloud cake, he saw from afar that Di Ziyuan was sitting on the stone steps of the Guiyuan Pavilion with her knee in her arms, dazed.
Her face was pale, with a touch of weariness.

Luo Mingxi squeezed the delicacy box in his hand and exhaled gently, unusually a little nervous.
He stepped forward and before he could speak, Di Ziyuan was already looking towards him.
"You're here?" Di Ziyuan smiled, showing a rare touch of childishness that only young people have, "I was just thinking about you."

Luo Mingxi was taken aback.

"When we were kids, we used to play in this courtyard. Look, that old acacia tree still has the knife marks I made back then." Di Ziyuan pointed towards the old acacia tree in one corner of the courtyard. "It's been more than ten years now."

Luo Mingxi sat beside her to take out the folded cloud cake for her and set it up, looking towards the old acacia tree with a bit of nostalgia in his eyes, "Yes, it's been more than ten years. Back then you loved to play in Guiyuan Pavilion, and once you even knocked your foot here. You were unwilling to shout in front of people about the pain and went back to your room to quietly wipe your tears in the middle of the night alone."

Di Ziyuan was startled, rather embarrassed, "Mingxi, so you know..."

"Yes, I was outside the room simply anxious ......" and kept watch half the night, worrying. Luo Mingxi patted Di Ziyuan's head. Before he could finish the his words, Di Ziyuan's low voice came.

"It's not that I didn't hurt, I just didn't want him to think that our Di family's daughter was delicate and pretentious and couldn't handle hardship."

Luo Mingxi froze and looked towards Di Ziyuan.

Di Ziyuan hugged her knees and rested her chin, somewhat lost in thought, and her voice carried a touch of memory.

"I entered the capital that year, unwillingly, and felt that I had been wronged a great deal. I also begged my father for half a month to bring you into the capital to support me. After entering the capital nearly all of the capital's famous family ladies came in front of me, not just speaking some sour words, but also one by one tried to trip me up... I realized that our crown prince is the capital's fragrant bun, everyone wants to take a bite. " Di Ziyuan curved her eyes and lifted her chin towards Luo Mingxi, "You did not know this, but you can rest assured, who am I? They did not get a good deal, they were all ashamed to return after being rectified by me."

"Oh? So many ladies of the world, there are always particularly outstanding ones in qin, chess, painting, poetry and song, how did you fix them?" Luo Mingxi listened to her and asked with a smile.

"Since they came because of my identity as the Crown Princess of the Eastern Palace, I can't let them come for nothing." Di Ziyuan propped up her slouch, winked at Luo Mingxi, "When I came out from Di Bei City, I stole the Imperial Ancestor's decree that was enshrined in the ancestral shrine, and every day I let Sister Qin carry it in a box and follow me around. Come and have Sister Qin take out the imperial decree and read it once..."

"Think about it, they have to kneel once they see me. Even ghosts wouldn't dare to mess with me again."
When Ziyuan entered the capital and was unfamiliar with the place, Emperor Jia Ning sent Sister Qin, who was in charge of the palace, to serve her. Sister Qin had entered the palace early and had always been majestic. The ten-year-old daughters of government officials suffered from this stifling anger and dared not to provoke her.

"No wonder when you first entered the capital, day after day the ladies of the world came to visit, but after a month there was not even a single sparrow in the marquis mansion. So this is the reason."

"One time I rectified the first daughter of the Marquis of Jian'an, and it just so happened that he chanced upon it. When that little girl left, he only slowly stepped out and said something to me..."

Luo Mingxi did not make a sound and listened to Di Ziyuan continue.

"He said..." Di Ziyuan's voice is somewhat distant, "Little girl of the Di family, I think your crying and fussing in Jinnan about not entering my eastern palace is a bluff. You hold the marriage decree of the Great Ancestor to shout it all over the capital every day, you must be satisfied with me!"

"I was still small, my skin was not as thick as it is today. He caught me red-handed, and I was so ashamed that I had to run, but he caught me by the collar."

"He said..." Di Ziyuan paused, "But I like this kind of overbearing and unpretentious girl like you."

Di Ziyuan turned her head back and looked at Luo Mingxi. Her pupils were penetrating with years of experience, "Mingxi, I realized after all this time that he was always different, all these years."

"I came back here and remembered that there was a time when we were so carefree."

Di Ziyuan raised her head to look behind her at the Guiyuan Pavilion. The long-ago memories revived in her eyes, but then returned to silence a little.

"But the Prince of Dajing, who was so proud back then, can't see anything now."

"How do you think we got to this point?"

After Di Ziyuan finished asking, she rose and walked towards the outside of the courtyard.

"Don't worry, Mingxi, I'm going back to the palace and won't let you worry."

Luo Mingxi watched her walk out of the courtyard door, and Di Ziyuan's back gradually blurred in his eyes.

The folding cloud cake on the table became cold. Luo Mingxi picked up a piece and stuffed it into his mouth, swallowing it in one gulp.

The ice-cold and stiff pastry entered the throat, the cold breath entered the body, and the sound of heavy coughing sounded, each one more urgent than the last. Luo Mingxi curled up on the stone steps, covering his face and coughing incessantly.

The worried Xin Yu rushed over to hold him and smooth his breath, but Luo Mingxi waved a hand and pushed her away.

The sharp gasps gradually subsided. The person who hung his head was silent for a long time, and when he raised his head again, he was still indifferent and calm and warm as jade.

"Let’s return home."

Luo Mingxi's figure also went far away outside the Guiyuan Pavilion, leaving only a deep sigh.

At night, Luo Mansion Study.

Xin Yu came to report the daily happenings in the capital as usual.

"You said that Di Cheng'en invited the ladies of the houses to gather in the name of memorializing the former prince?"

"Yes, my lord. Those invited are mostly the ladies of the royal families in the capital and some of the old East Palace. Di Chengen has instructed the deputy steward of the East Palace and wants to go to the East Palace tomorrow to retrieve some things from there."

“What things?”

"Some old things from the East Palace. I heard that they are some of the former Crown Prince's paintings and calligraphy. She wants to give them to the ladies of the houses to take back with them, so she must want to make those clansmen and old ministers always remember the kindness of the former prince, so that they can support the one in Qi Yun Hall. My lord, should we block Di Chengen from entering the Eastern Palace?"

Xin Yu asked in a low voice, but raised her head to look before Luo Mingxi responded.

Luo Mingxi was examining the jade pendant that never left his waist. After a long time, he untied it from his waist and handed it to Xin Yu, speaking lightly in her stunned eyes.

"Put it away, from now on this jade pendant does not need to be worn day in and day out."

Sometimes, a step too late is a lifetime.

She has always treated him like a brother, and this life is enough to shackle all his affections.

I read until Chapter 16 of the English translation. And I can’t believe that you have snippets here! I could smack my face for missing this!
Thank you very much!

Han Ye and Di Ziyuan go through a lot for each other, and each of them lose people important to them along the way, but they end up living happily together.

Here's the English translation started by Miho Translations, which is apparently stalled at chapter 16:

https://mihotranslations.blogspot.com/p/the-book-of-emperors.html

And here's a link to the raw novel. You would need to machine translate it with either DeepL or Google translate. Since Chinese writing is basically genderless, sometimes the machine will get pronouns mixed up. Also, Chinese idioms etc won't make much sense at all. But you can get the gist of things.

https://www.51shucheng.net/yanqing/dihuangshu

 I cleaned up portions of the machine translations for my personal rereading while I wait for this to air and posted a few of them here for other people waiting for official translations. I'm beginning to suspect that further translations won't happen, unless LOA becomes a huge hit after airing. If you have a specific scene you're wanting, I may have a "cleaned up" version I can post.

As I read these excerpts (thank you so much!), I'm getting more excited to watch the drama. The ML and FL were perfectly cast for their characters, as described in these excerpts.  I especially like Gong Jun's acting (I loved him and his fiesty but deeply conflicted portrayal in Word of Honor).