Female Consort Chapter 73: Marriage Alliance

On the thirteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, the Northern Xiongnu declared war on Great Xia.

It was no surprise to anyone that Qiu Che was released. What caught everyone off guard, however, was Yao Tai’s departure.

When Li Qingwu awoke again, Qiu Che was seated by the bed, speaking softly with Yu Ming, who stood nearby holding a book, taking notes as she listened. From time to time, she would glance at Li Qingwu, her gaze somewhat peculiar.

Now that Qiu Che had resumed her identity as a woman and was no longer a prisoner, she appeared for once in a pale blue long dress, with a moon-white fox fur draped over her shoulders.

Her ponytail was still tied high, but without the deliberate makeup that once gave her thick brows and sharp eyes in male disguise, her features now appeared more delicate and beautiful from the side, cleaner, more refined.

Her facial features hadn’t changed, and yet compared to how she looked in male attire, the difference was stark, almost like a completely different person.

It was hard not to look at her.

Even though Yang Qiu had watched over her in the Dali Temple prison and ensured she was not mistreated, the conditions inside were far from good.

Her face still carried a trace of fatigue, clearly the result of just being released and having a mountain of things waiting for her. She was merely forcing herself to stay spirited.

Li Qingwu stared at her in a daze for a while, until Qiu Che seemed to sense something, paused in mid-sentence, and turned around to find her staring.

“…You’re awake?”

Li Qingwu didn’t respond. She pressed her lips together instinctively, then closed her eyes again.

Qiu Che froze for a second, then immediately turned fully back and reached out to feel her forehead.

“What’s wrong? Are you in pain? Didn’t the fever break already? Why…”

Li Qingwu opened her eyes again and met her worried gaze.

For a moment, she wanted to laugh and sigh at the same time. Her voice was hoarse when she finally spoke:
“It’s nothing. I just… thought I was dreaming.”

Qiu Che paused.

Then sighed. “As long as you’re okay. You scared me.”

Yu Ming, ever tactful, promptly said, “I’ll excuse myself.”

Qiu Che nodded slightly. “No need to report back to Wu Yiqi. I’ll speak to him myself.”

Yu Ming acknowledged the order and left, closing the door behind her.

Li Qingwu looked steadily at Qiu Che for a while, then, with her help, sat up in bed. “Is there new information?”

Qiu Che gave a soft “mm” and tucked the blankets in around her without answering directly. “Don’t worry about that now. Get some rest. Fu Ling’s already told me, you’ve barely been sleeping properly. Dr. Chen said you’ve weakened yourself from overexertion…”

Her tone was calm and gentle, her words rambling in that familiar way.

Li Qingwu listened quietly until Qiu Che looked up and fell silent the moment she saw her face.

Qiu Che panicked. “...Why are you crying?”

Li Qingwu’s lips twitched faintly.

She reached out with a weary expression. “Hold me.”

Qiu Che hesitated for a heartbeat, then said, “Alright.”

She sat down on the edge of the bed and opened her arms, pulling her into an embrace.

Li Qingwu leaned against her shoulder, listening to the crackle of burning charcoal from the stove. Her cheek brushed against the soft warmth of fox fur, and her nose filled with a long-missed, familiar scent that belonged solely to Qiu Che, 

A cool, faintly sweet scent, like morning dew… or a delicate floral fragrance.

Neither of them spoke. They simply stayed in the embrace for a while before Li Qingwu said, “Yao Tai is gone.”

Qiu Che didn’t know what to say. She only responded softly, “...I know.”

Yao Tai was already in her coffin. The funeral was being prepared. Qiu Che had seen it with her own eyes.

She had never expected it. In her past life, Yao Tai had been lively all the way until her death. But in this life, she died so early, all because she had shielded Li Qingwu from a blade.

Partings in this world, by choice or by death, were all too common.

To meet, to walk the same path, and to share one’s heart and soul with another… such bonds were rare among rare.

A brief encounter, then never meeting again, that was the norm.

They had already been lucky. 

Lucky to meet you. 

Lucky to trust each other. 

Lucky to have forged a bond of life and death.

It was just… this time, fate had torn them apart for good.

What made it worse was that Yao Tai’s illness, most of it, had been caused by her running around on their behalf.

Now she is gone because of it. It was something Li Qingwu could not easily come to terms with.

She buried her face in Qiu Che’s shoulder. Her tears soaked into the fox fur. Even her crying was utterly silent.

Qiu Che held her just as silently, gently patting her back like one would soothe a child, quietly, indulgently.

It was as if Li Qingwu was trying to cry out all the grievances and suffering she had endured over the past decade, pouring it all out alongside the grief of losing a friend. She cried until her voice was hoarse, until her whole body trembled, until not a single tear could fall anymore.

For nearly a month, Qiu Che hadn’t been by her side. She had taken on everything herself.

Outwardly, she managed everything perfectly, orderly, composed, carrying all the burden and exhaustion herself. She mimicked Qiu Che’s ways, playing the role of the calm strategist behind the scenes.

But a bowstring drawn too tight will snap.

Everything she knew about strategy, she had learned from Qiu Che. But this was her first real battle, and Qiu Che wasn’t there.

Yet everyone looked to her for direction. She had no room to admit weakness.

And she had done it. Brilliantly, in fact.

But in doing so… she had overlooked Yao Tai.

Qiu Che tightened her arms around her. “It wasn’t your fault… Uncle Jiang arrived yesterday, after you passed out. He examined Yao Tai… and said that, based on what Dr. Chen told him, there was never any hope of saving her. He only came in person because he was worried about us, but he was still too late.”

Li Qingwu gripped her robe tightly, her shaking slowly easing at those words.

Qiu Che lowered her head to glance at her. Her eyes were red at the corners, and she was still breathing heavily. The tiny tear mole near the corner of her eye made her look heartbreakingly pitiful.

Unable to resist, Qiu Che kissed the corner of her eye. “...So you’re only sad? Not angry at me?”

She was referring, of course, to the divorce letter.

Li Qingwu’s lashes trembled. She looked at her briefly, then slowly shook her head.

Lowering her gaze, she whispered, “As long as you’re safe.”

How could she not be angry?

When she found out that Qiu Che’s plan had excluded her entirely, when she realized Qiu Che had risked everything and revealed her identity, 

She had been furious. She had even planned to give Qiu Che the cold shoulder for some time once she returned, to show her she was not a burden, but an ally.

But the truth was… she had also been terrified.

Life is truly fragile, gone in an instant, just like that.

But she came back.

She was alive.

That was enough.

Everything else… she could stop caring.

Qiu Che couldn’t bear to see her like this. She let out a deep sigh in her heart.

They hadn’t seen each other for nearly a month. It hadn’t felt so bad when they were apart, but now that they were face to face, the ache in her chest only grew worse.

A short separation should’ve made their reunion feel sweet, like newlyweds reunited. But this was no time for tender moments, Yao Tai had just passed, Li Qingwu had only just recovered from a fever, things in the palace remained unsettled, and the court was surrounded by watching wolves.

No matter how much her heart burned, Qiu Che had to restrain herself.

She had just resolved to let go of Li Qingwu and head to the study to cool down when Li Qingwu tugged at her sleeve.

“Where are you going?”

Qiu Che coughed lightly, trying to maintain her usual calm. “There’s still something I need to take care of…”

But Li Qingwu simply stared at her with reddened eyes, so intently that Qiu Che began to feel uneasy. She was about to ask what was wrong when, unexpectedly, Li Qingwu let go.

Lowering her head, she said softly, “Go ahead then.”

Qiu Che licked her lips. She didn’t know where the courage came from, but suddenly she leaned in and pressed a light kiss to her lips.

Li Qingwu’s breath hitched. “...What was that for?”

Qiu Che murmured, “To comfort you.”

Li Qingwu was still feeling down. She didn’t understand how Qiu Che could act so composed even after they’d been apart for so long. But after that simple gesture, her quiet resentment faded.

Wiping a tear from the corner of her eye, she said, “I’m fine. If there’s something you need to handle, you can tell me.”

Qiu Che parted her lips, about to respond, when a knock came at the door.

These days, every knock made Li Qingwu tense up. It seemed like bad news followed each time.

Sensing her sudden stiffness, Qiu Che gently took her hand in silent reassurance.

“Come in.”

Fu Ling entered with a curtsey. She seemed almost used to such interruptions now, though her voice still carried urgency and fatigue.

“Your Highness, Princess Consort. The Empress Dowager says His Majesty seems to be considering sending Princess Pingyi to Northern Xiongnu for a political marriage… she sent me ahead to inform you.”

Qiu Che and Li Qingwu exchanged glances. Qiu Che said in a low voice, “That’s exactly what Wu Yiqi came to tell me this morning. His Majesty intends to seek peace with Northern Xiongnu.”

So this was what peace meant, marrying off a princess.

Just one crisis after another.

“He’s lost his mind?!” Li Qingwu’s voice was hoarse with fury. She was usually calm and composed, but even now she couldn’t hold back now. “Pingyi is just a child, she’s only ten!”

Qiu Che, on the other hand, was cold and cutting. “Throughout history, it hasn’t been rare for ten-year-old girls to be married off.”

This was a world that consumed people, where gold, silver, and women were all currency to be traded.

Tragic, but true.

As they spoke, Fu Ling’s gaze involuntarily dropped to their hands, still intertwined.

Qiu Che instinctively moved to pull away, but Li Qingwu grasped her hand tighter, refusing to let go.

When Qiu Che turned to her, she looked as though she might cry again, her eyes rimmed red. Now Qiu Che couldn’t quite decide whether to pull away or not.

“You kissed me just now,” Li Qingwu said bluntly. “And now you want to walk away, just like that?”

Fu Ling: “…”

Excuse me.

Does no one care about how I’m feeling?

She had long suspected that Her Highness and this woman, the so-called Princess Consort, were more than just a political pairing…

But she hadn’t expected it to be this real.

So the whole “fake marriage” thing was just a setup for a real relationship?

Qiu Che was caught between laughter and exasperation. She couldn’t even look at Fu Ling’s expression, let alone explain herself properly. “That’s not what I meant.”

She only wanted to let go because she thought Li Qingwu might be embarrassed if someone saw them holding hands.

Li Qingwu’s expression softened, but this wasn’t the time to continue this conversation.

She pushed aside the covers and got out of bed. “I’m going to the palace.”

“Don’t be rash,” Qiu Che said, holding her back and rising as well. Her tone was serious. “I’ve just been released from prison. His Majesty is already displeased with both of us. Add to that the looming threat from Northern Xiongnu, if you show up at court now, you’re just walking into his trap.”

“Besides, we’re not even really married…”

Seeing the look on Li Qingwu’s face, Qiu Che quickly corrected herself. “I mean, in others’ eyes, we’re only married by name. If your father sets his sights on you and forces us to divorce, what then?”

Li Qingwu hesitated, then allowed herself to be guided back to sit down. “Then what do we do? Pingyi is so young. If she’s forced to marry… I’ve heard the King of Northern Xiongnu is cruel and violent, he might torment her to death.”

Before Qiu Che could reply, hurried footsteps echoed outside again.

Yu Ming appeared at the door, slightly out of breath. “Miss, Your Highness, the palace has sent word. His Majesty has heard the Princess Royal has awakened and has summoned you both to an immediate audience.”

A sense of foreboding swept over them.

Qiu Che’s brow furrowed. She pressed Li Qingwu’s shoulder down and said, “I’ll go.”

Li Qingwu blinked in surprise.

Then she heard Qiu Che turn to Yu Ming and say, “Tell the palace attendants that Her Highness is unwell. She’s had another fever and fallen back into unconsciousness. She can’t go to court. Ask His Majesty for understanding.”

Yu Ming bowed. “Understood.”

Li Qingwu’s heart thudded faster and faster. Something didn’t feel right. She reached out and grabbed Qiu Che’s wrist. “You’re going alone?”

What was Qiu Che planning? Why wouldn’t she let her go?

Qiu Che paused, then turned around and, right in front of the other two, leaned in and kissed her lips again.

Li Qingwu hadn’t even blushed the last time. But this time, with witnesses around, her face turned so red it really did look like she’d come down with another fever. “...You?!”

Qiu Che looked a little embarrassed herself, but seeing Li Qingwu like that, she regained her confidence and smiled teasingly. “Still just comforting you.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve already been to prison and back, haven’t I? And I’m still standing here just fine. This time, I promise, I’ll come back in one piece.”