The progress of things was much faster than Qi Yan had imagined. For example, instead of willingly giving up Pu Yangzheng, He Hui made an accidental appearance before the emperor and successfully persuaded him to decree a marriage between her and Pu Yangzheng once again.

In response to this, Qi Yan was at a loss for what to do.

"The Miss from the He family is really set on marrying you. She won't marry anyone else," said in a casual manner, earning a worried glance from Puyang Zheng.

"This is not what I wanted either. That woman is really bothersome!"

Have you ever had any romantic encounters or childhood promises with Miss He?

"How could that be? Since I was young, I have followed my master up the mountain to learn martial arts. At fifteen, I came down the mountain and led troops into battle. I have never stayed in the capital city for long, so how could there be any talk of an agreement?"

Pu Yangzheng took a sip of tea, pondered for a moment, and let out a deep sigh. He picked up the teapot and filled the empty cup.

"That's strange indeed." Qi Yan looked at him calmly, with the corners of his mouth forming the alluring curve of old. "It seems that you can only marry her."

"This won't do!"

"What's wrong with that? You're not married, and she's not married. You have great talent and she's beautiful. Isn't it just perfect?"

"You--!" Puyang Zheng glared at him, but couldn't continue the sentence. After stammering for a while, he angrily swung his sleeves and left.

［Male Lead's Favorability towards Qi Yan +5, Current Favorability: 75］

Watching his retreating figure, the smile that Qi Yan usually had on his face slowly faded away.

A few days later, just as Anxin had settled down, the decree for the arranged marriage came once again. It seems that the emperor is not prepared to give up this profitable opportunity. He Hui must have some capabilities as well, I wonder what kind of deal she made to have the emperor reach for his golden brush and write the imperial edict.

This time, Pu Yangzheng couldn't escape.

Afterwards, Pu Yangzheng was not seen for five consecutive days. Qiyuan felt a slight surprise in his heart and quickly inquired about Pu Yangzheng from the steward. However, he was informed that there was an urgent battle in the northwest, and the Emperor was concerned about the territorial integrity of the nation. An imperial edict had been issued for Pu Yangzheng to immediately go to the northwest and, after quelling the rebels, return to the capital to fulfill the imperial order of getting married.

So, three days ago in the early morning, Puyang Zheng hurriedly set off to battle in the northwest. It's likely that he has long been on the battlefield by now.

Annoyed in his heart, Qí Yán thought to himself, "This silly General doesn't even know that he should have informed him. Perhaps, through this battle, there will be a turning point in the matter of the marriage!"

Getting up to return to the "Joyful Tower" to investigate the news of the northwestern war, he looked up and caught sight of a figure dressed in a shade of green that immediately caught his attention.

It turned out to be He Hui.

Now, she, reclaiming her deliberate attempts to please and her naivety from a few days ago, had a face full of resentment mixed with the satisfaction of winning a battle. She stared at Qi Yan without blinking, her eyes filled with malice as she asked, "Who exactly are you?"

Qi Yan was momentarily taken aback, then smiled and said, "I am Qi Yan, the owner of Hehuan Tower."

"You're talking nonsense! In the previous life, Qi Yan was the one who liked me!" He Hui suddenly shouted crazily, "Who are you, you wicked creature!?"

"Previous life?"

Qiyuan's eyebrows twitched, and it seemed that things were not as simple as he had imagined.

"Miss He, are you delusional? I have never met you before, so why would I be concerned about you?"

"You don't understand, how could you possibly understand?" He Hui glared at Qi Yan as if wanting to tear him apart, "You demon, occupying Qian Yan's body, and even seducing Zheng gege to do those immoral deeds! Hmph! You're probably that fox spirit that everyone avoids!"

"Miss He, you should be more mindful of your words," Qiyuan's face grew colder, his eyes sharp as ice swords pierced directly at He Hui, "Sneaking into the general's residence without notifying anyone, if news of this gets out, Miss He's reputation would be tainted, wouldn't it?"

"I will eventually become the mistress of this place. However, I would like to remind you to leave as soon as possible, you mysterious fox spirit! If you are still here when Brother Zheng returns, I will summon a mage to make you vanish into thin air!"

After finishing speaking, He Hui sneered disdainfully and turned around arrogantly, leaving.

Reduced to ashes and smoke? Ha, what a preposterous delusion.

However...

Qi Yan's confused mind had calmed down somewhat just now, as he recalled He Hui's words. Suddenly, he thought of another possibility.

That is He Hui in this world, not a transmigration, but a rebirth!

The previous life she mentioned is exactly in line with the original plot known by Qi Yan: the female lead transmigrated, her confident aura attracted Pu Yangzheng, and even made "Qi Yan" infatuated with her.

And now, I'm afraid she has already died once, but returned to the beginning of the story with her memories intact. This explains why He Hui only considered Pu Yangzheng and the reason she has not given up on pursuing him until this point.

In this case, as long as Puyang Zheng is alive for a day, He Hui will never give up!

[Host beware! The male and female leads cannot die, or else the mission will fail!]

"I naturally know," he said.

The female lead must not die, and neither should the male lead. However, He Hui, who has some memories from their past lives, will always latch onto Pu Yangzheng, no matter how he treats her.

Qi Yan lowered his gaze and after a long while, he got up and left the General's residence.

Hehuan Building.

Qi Yan rarely wore a simple and stylish outfit, wearing a white robe with silver trim on the edges, he looked dashing. He took out two bottles of powdered medicine from a small wooden box beside the bed, and placed them in the square cloth that was spread out on the bed. There were also a few pieces of clean clothes inside.

"You want to leave?"

A voice suddenly sounded behind him, and Qiyán knew without turning around who it was.

"Hmm, I'm heading to the northwest."

"What can you do by going there? They are currently at war."

"Of course there's something that needs to be done, or else who would go to that ghostly place."

"Hey!"

Qiyán turned around in response and looked at the man who was still wearing the same black attire. "Wusha, I'm giving you ownership of this Hehuan Building."

"What?"

"I say," Qi Yan's voice paused with each word, "Hehuan Building, is yours now."

"Really?" Wusha took a few steps forward and stared at Qiyin. "I wanted to cooperate with you in running this Hehuan Building, but you didn't want to. Now, you treat it like a treasure and are willing to give it to me for free?"

Qi Yan smiled lightly and said, "Hehuan Tower is not something important to me. Initially, it was simply because I disliked working with you that I refused. How do you know that I wouldn't cooperate with someone else?"

One sentence choked him so much that he downed two cups of tea in one breath to cool down.

"Seriously, are you really prepared to go with General Rao Shizi?"

"What do you mean by following Puyang Zheng? You really don't know how to speak," Qi Yan tied the square cloth neatly in his hands, shook it a few times, and satisfactorily set it aside. "I will leave tomorrow, and the future of Hehuan Tower will be entrusted to you."

"You can leave whenever you want. As an acquaintance, I only have one reminder for you: stay away from the battlefield. Swords and knives have no eyes, it's not just empty words."

"I naturally understand."

"...Do you really mean it?" Wu Sha paused for a moment, then finally waved his hand and said, "Forget it, forget it..."

A sleepless night, the starry sky stretching for miles. Only a glance away, darkness enveloped everything. As the horizon began to reveal a hint of light, warmth had long dissipated from Qiyin's room.

As an experienced translator, it is imperative that I have access to the original Chinese paragraph in order to accurately translate it into English. Without the actual content, it is impossible to proceed with the translation. Please provide the Chinese text for me to assist you further.

Fifteen days later, the northwest front line encountered a crisis, and the Emperor dispatched a force of thirty thousand troops to provide support.

A month later, the bandits launched a protracted war, causing chaos and demolishing two frontier cities of our dynasty with deceptive tactics. This enraged the emperor greatly.

Two months later, General Puyang fought valiantly by the side of his two vice-generals against the enemy, ultimately dying on the battlefield. His remains were cremated, and his ashes were swiftly brought back to the capital on a fast horse, reuniting him with his family. Realizing the urgency of the situation, the Emperor dispatched additional troops to support the northwest, as General Puyang was severely injured.

After the month of May, as the year was coming to an end, our dynasty achieved a great victory over the bandits, reclaiming our cities. The people rejoiced, welcoming tens of thousands of soldiers back to the capital, and the entire nation celebrated together.

The emperor praised all the soldiers, but one person was missing.

The cunning thief, just as the fish dies and the net breaks, strikes with a poisoned arrow that pierces through a hundred paces. In the midst of chaos and disorder, General Puyang is shot with an arrow.

Returning to the camp, there was no way to turn the tide.

He didn't wait to return to court, didn't wait for rewards and honors, and so he was buried on the battlefield, amidst the soldiers who were like brothers to him throughout his life of warfare.

Puyang Zheng, deceased.

...

The flowers bloom in their resplendent glory, while entangled in both love and trouble. Throughout this year, the Guest Pavilion has continued to attract a steady stream of visitors, earning who knows how many times more than its competitors.

"Ah, where has the lord gone again?"

"I am also looking for my master!"

"The lord has been acting mysteriously day after day, leaving behind a bunch of mess. Sigh!"

Several managers in Hehuan Building have started searching for people everywhere. Coupled with the noisy and chaotic background, the bustling atmosphere of Hehuan Building is evident at all times.

And the person they were looking for at this time was in a small farmhouse, drinking clear tea and eating oily fruit, feeling quite comfortable.

After eating the fruit, when he stretched out his hand to grab another one, there was a loud "crack" and his hand got slapped.

"Eating, eating, eating. Are you going to ignore Hehuan Tower?"

"Hey, isn't it a great injustice? I've been managing Hehuan Pavilion for you for so long, and now I can't even have a piece of your fruit?"

"No, let's go back to the Round Joy Pavilion!"

"If you're worried, you can go back yourself. After all, those in charge recognize you anyway."

"He can't go back." Suddenly, a deep and magnetic voice interrupted, laced with a hint of a shallow smile.

"Why can't he go back?"

The man walked forward and embraced the standing person, his gaze lowered as he chuckled softly. "He has to stay with me, it's a promise."

The person in his embrace also looked at him, not blushing nor being shy, instead there was a bit of frivolity in the arch of their eyebrows, and their lips still maintained that tempting curve. With a slight parting of their red lips, they said, word by word, "We made so many promises, tonight shall we give it a try?"

"...Of course."

……

Suddenly, the man sitting in the chair stood up, his face full of disdain as he looked at the two embracing individuals. He angrily exclaimed, "Qi Yan, Pu Yangzheng! Can't you two be a bit more discreet in broad daylight?"

"Absolutely not," Qiyin said lightly, as if floating. "If you don't want to watch, then go back to your Hehuan Tower."

Before Wusha could reply, Puyang Zheng immediately added, "You're right. Also, I am now called Yang Zheng, and she is called Liu Yan."

Staring at the two of them without any patience left, he didn't say a word and ultimately left angrily.

Inside the small house, the two people embraced each other and exchanged smiles. That sincere tenderness coming from the depths of their hearts lingered, refusing to dissipate for a long time.

......

The separation of life and death startles the true heart, as the wind passes through the willows, life is reborn again.

[Male Lead's Favorability Towards Qi Yan +25, Current Favorability: 100]

[Congratulations, host, for completing the mission. Currently duplicating and transferring memories.]

[Replication successful. Shall the host immediately depart from this world?]

"Yes."