When we first met…

It was a quiet, snowy night. The wind blew softly as the moon lit brightly in the sky.

He Biya sneered.

Such beauty could be appreciated had it not been for the trail of blood behind her, flowing unendingly from the wounds on her arms and legs. She had just been stabbed by multiple swords.

She had barely managed to escape death moments ago yet now she was racing through time, desperately covering up her injuries with her hands in order to avoid bleeding to death.

"How pathetic."

He Biya limped onwards. It was as if she was fighting against the god of death himself. But her will to live was stronger than anything else that existed. She knew her survival was important for the future of her people.

Eventually however, her legs finally got tired and gave out.

He Biya collapsed onto the cold, snow covered ground, with a loud thud. Her eyes felt heavy and were drooping. She no longer had the energy to try and cover her wounds either, simply letting the blood ooze out onto the snow and create a scarlet red art piece.

She no longer cared. Rather than return knowing she had been betrayed by her closest confidants, it would be better to die in honor out here knowing she had fought proudly…

With the comfort of the darkness around her, He Biya fell into a deep slumber.

*

The smell of herbs and medicine was heavy in the air. When she groggily forced herself to open her eyes, He Biya found herself facing an unfamiliar ceiling. There was an uncomfortable ache in her body.

She slowly sat up and then realized… she wasn't dead!

Had one of her servants found her lying in the forest, then rescued her?

She quickly rid herself of this thought after seeing the broken down wooden hut. There was no sign of anyone inside. With her status, if she truly had been saved by a servant, they would be required to stay by her side at all times.

He Biya narrowed her eyes and wanted to look around but her body refused her commands. She could barely even move her limbs. Let alone exploring, she couldn't even sit up straight without a sharp pain spreading throughout her body. She was worried that in her current state, facing another assassin would be troublesome.

It was then that the door to the hut slowly opened and a short woman with a pale face entered carrying a basket that looked to be of more unknown herbs. He Biya was immediately on alert and cautiously scooted back.

Hearing the rustling noise, the woman smiled and asked, "Ah! Are you awake?"

He Biya lowered her guard and thought to herself that perhaps she could trust this lady and so she answered, "…Indeed. Who are you?"

"My, my, hello. I found you laying outside in the freezing cold and brought you to my home. It has been a couple of days and I was worried you would not wake up. Please do not move around so much, you still have some injuries…" The woman spoke softly and He Biya found herself being comforted by the soothing tone in her voice.

Now was not the time, however.

"I asked for your name, not the situation." He Biya stated coldly.

"Oh! I apologize for my rudeness. I am Shen Liwen." When she smiled, her eyes curved into two crescent moons and the mole under her eye complimented her gentle features.

But the strange part about her was that her eyes were completely white. That was the first thing He Biya noticed when she stepped inside.

"I see. I am He Bi… Qi Biya." Although He Biya concluded that the person who saved her was not suspicious, she still couldn't help but to remain on guard. Rather than giving out her identity, she used a different surname.

"How strange, you share the same name as the Empress of this country… your family name is the same as the previous Emperor as well." Shen Liwen chuckled as she set down the basket in her hands.

"She is the Emperor, not an Empress." He Biya corrected. And as for the surname… the previous emperor was her father, so of course they shared the same name.

It was just that when she ascended the throne, she had decided to take on the name of her imperial father instead.

"But is she not a woman?" Shen Liwen seemed a bit confused.

"Who said women cannot rule."

It was not a question.

"Haha… you are a strange person." Shen Liwen found the other to be amusing and laughed.

He Biya snorted.

"May I see your wounds?" Shen Liwen politely asked.

"How can you be able to see when you are blind?" He Biya raised a brow. She was slightly looking down on this woman for her disability.

"I… how were you able to tell?" Shen Liwen seemed flustered and flushed red, her lips pursing.

"It is difficult not to notice when both your eyes are whiter than the snow outside." He Biya replied.

"I did not think they would show this quickly…" The voice of the other was quiet but He Biya caught onto the slight crack in Shen Liwen's voice.

"That does not matter. I will allow you to treat my injuries."

In the end, Shen Liwen was still her savior, and He Biya was not so cruel as to humiliate the person who had saved her from death's door.

She watched with keen eyes as Shen Liwen searched around for some items from the basket she had brought. She noted that in order to know which herb it was, Shen Liwen would feel around for the texture and scent. This woman's senses were quite good…

And when Shen Liwen kneeled in front of her, He Biya noticed she smelled just like the herbs and medicine she carried.

"Are you perhaps a doctor?" She suddenly questioned. It was on impulse, really. Her lips moved on their own.

Shen Liwen took a while to process the question before shaking her head, "No, I am not. My previous living conditions before this… did not allow women to be so free."

He Biya thought to herself that this might be why Shen Liwen was so curious as to why the emperor was a woman.

While Shen Liwen applied the pasted herbs onto her horrendous looking wounds, He Biya frowned and endured the pain. These stabs were not as painful as the identity of the people responsible for them.

"Did you run away from home?"

He Biya didn't know why but she was strangely talkative. The presence of the woman in front of her was just so calming that she accidentally kept blurting out whatever was on her head.

"Why would you think so?" Shen Liwen's lips curled into a smile as she bandaged He Biya's arm.

Ignoring the question, how sly.

"Your manner of speaking. No normal citizen talks like you." He Biya was amused.

"I cannot answer that, haha… how about yourself? You also speak strangely, like you own the world." Shen Liwen passively complained.

He Biya was shocked by the sudden boldness and after a few seconds of pause, she burst out into laughter.