“Have you heard? Chen Ziyi has taken Changjing. Prince Shun refused to surrender and hanged himself above the royal throne in the Peace Palace. Chen Ziyi, gravely wounded, has sent word to Yizhou, requesting the return of the Crown Prince and the Emperor.”1

“Is that so?” Song You did not stop walking, meeting the fox’s gaze.0

A few simple words, yet they carried the weight of a shift in the entire world's fate.0

Had they been in Changjing now, even if only standing on Mount Chang, gazing from a distance at the battle for the capital, the gravity of the moment would have been more tangible. 0

But here, on the roadside, hearing it from the mouth of a wild fox—one who was born and bred in this land, steeped in its hidden knowledge—the news felt oddly casual. As if it were nothing more than an anecdote plucked from a history book.0

An offhand remark, yet it marked one of the grand turning points in the river of history.0

“Yes,” the fox confirmed, still trotting alongside them. It never once looked ahead, yet it effortlessly avoided trees and stray branches, leaping over any stones that blocked its path.0

“Prince Shun truly had some of the former emperor’s spirit. Oh, and by the way, the Emperor died on the road a few days ago by himself. Now, with things settled, the world has bought itself another ten or so years of...0