This was her first time being a mother, and it had been fifteen years since she last saw her own son. Hearing him say calmly yet desolately that he had never been cared for by his mother, she felt a surge of intense self-blame and guilt.
Had Zhao Chu not taken good care of him?
Even applying medicine made him feel so overwhelmed with gratitude.
"Then let's give it a try today."
She looked at him gently, and as if bewitched, Zhao Shaoyou obeyed her words, taking off his blood-stained upper garment.
The young man was only fifteen, his skin not particularly fair, and there was actually a knife scar on his shoulder. Rong Ci’s gaze tightened.
Zhao Shaoyou glanced at the scars on his body but said with unmistakable pride, "These are all my medals!"
Rong Ci found it hard to smile, yet she still sincerely praised him, "How impressive."
"It’s not that impressive," Zhao Shaoyou felt a moment of shyness before continuing, "My father is the truly impressive one. He has many medals, big and small, all over his body. There’s even one stretching from his shoulder down to his waist—that was from the battle that wiped out Han!"
Zhao Shaoyou didn’t notice at all that he had revealed his identity. Unconsciously, he felt completely unguarded toward this lady who looked so much like his mother.
Rong Ci wasn’t particularly concerned about whether Zhao Chu was impressive or not. She gently helped him apply the medicine and even blew on it softly. "Bear with it a little. The antiseptic might sting, but I’ll bandage it for you."
Zhao Shaoyou forgot to speak, silently watching her as she blew on his wound, as if… he really were her child.
His eyes suddenly stung, then grew warm.
If only his mother were still alive.
If only she were his mother.
They looked exactly alike, except for that cinnabar mole between her brows.
As if compelled, Zhao Shaoyou reached out and touched her forehead.
She paused but didn’t pull away.
Zhao Shaoyou rubbed it vigorously.
She looked up, gazing at him with affection.
Zhao Shaoyou nearly cried. It wasn’t fake—it wouldn’t rub off.
The age didn’t seem to match either. She was too young, looking only a few years older than him.
She wasn’t his mother.
Rong Ci felt both amused and heartbroken, guessing why he had rubbed her forehead.
He was suspicious.
Unfortunately, during her first time-travel, her forehead had been clean. During the second, the System had carelessly added a cinnabar mole to settle the matter.
But this cinnabar mole was enough to dispel Zhao Shaoyou’s doubts. He had never spent time with his mother and had no other means of identification.
After bandaging him, Rong Ci patted him gently. "Rest well here. I’ll come check on you later."
Zhao Shaoyou watched her stand up and leave with a look of deep affection.
Once outside, Rong Ci longed to stay by her son’s side, but if she took too long, Chu Xiao would grow suspicious.
She also felt a belated surge of anger. How had Zhao Chu been looking after their child?
Letting their son venture alone into the Wei State Travel Palace—if his identity were discovered, Zhao Shaoyou would surely be taken hostage to use against the Qin Kingdom.
Just beyond the Hexi Highlands, Zhao Chu, who had entered Wei State in disguise, sneezed expressionlessly.
"My lord, the youngest son of Han Xiangong has defected to Wei Zhuang Gong, bringing with him the weapon blueprints of Han State. With Han State destroyed, Zhao State now feels the imminent threat and has also sought refuge with Wei State."
"Now that the King of Chu has set foot in Wei territory, it’s likely these feudal lords are secretly plotting to attack Qin."
Zhao Chu listened indifferently, his face betraying no emotion.
His strategist, Pu Xi, frowned. The current situation was extremely unfavorable for the Qin Kingdom.
"Unless we can find a way to sow discord among the three states and defeat them one by one. At present, it seems best to prevent the King of Chu and Wei Zhuang Gong from forming an alliance."
Pu Xi glanced at his lord, recalling the news brought by the messenger, and said, "It is said that the King of Chu deeply cherishes his consort. For this journey, they used only the finest steeds, traveling for over a month before entering the territory of Wei State."
Pu Xi had long devised a plan, though it was not entirely honorable.
"My lord, if we were to invite the Consort of the King of Chu as a guest in the name of Wei State for a day or two, the alliance between Wei and Chu would collapse on its own."
Though dishonorable, if they treated the Consort of the King of Chu with utmost respect and returned her safely, it could still be considered a decent act.
Consort of the King of Chu.
Zhao Chu silently mulled over these four words.
In warfare, he had always been pragmatic—any method would do as long as it worked.
But when it came to women, he never touched them.
Kidnapping Chu Xiao's woman to drive a wedge between Wei and Chu was far less appealing to him than infiltrating the Wei State Travel Palace and finding an opportunity to kill or severely injure Chu Xiao.
Zhao Chu swept a glance at Pu Xi.
Seeing his lord unmoved, Pu Xi knew this strategy had not been adopted.
"We shall remain hidden in Wei State for a few days to assess the situation."
Zhao Chu urged his horse forward.
Wei State Travel Palace
After listening to Bai Xing and Bai Jian's detailed report, Chu Xiao finally stepped into the palace hall.
His consort seemed particularly concerned about that young man.
Was it truly because Rong Ci missed her younger brother too much?
The moment Chu Xiao gently pushed the door open and entered the hall, the coldness faded from his face, his gaze softening as he looked toward the already lowered bed curtains.
He strode over and, drawing closer, heard faint sobbing.
Chu Xiao paused, quickly stepped forward to draw aside the curtains, and gathered his tearful consort into his arms.
"Rong Ci, did you have a nightmare?"
"Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. Your husband is back."
Chu Xiao's voice was tender to the point of indulgence. Rong Ci opened her eyes with a sob, her lashes trembling with heart-wrenching tears.
Unable to resist, he gently brushed them away and leaned down to kiss her damp eyes.
"Why are you crying so pitifully?"
Rong Ci obediently allowed him to hold and soothe her, only after a long while murmuring gloomily, "Husband, I dreamed that my younger brother was severely injured and on the brink of death."
A shadow flickered in Chu Xiao's eyes, masking the gloom in his heart. Even if it was her younger brother, he disliked seeing her shed tears for another.
But she could not see the suppressed ferocity in his gaze, only hearing his exceedingly gentle voice.
"Rong Ci, your younger brother will be fine. But you, my consort, are frail. Crying like this, if your breath remains unsettled, you will fall ill again tomorrow."
Chu Xiao lifted her chin and gently kissed her.
"Let me help you calm your breath."
It would be best if she thought of no one else—only him.
"Mmm…"
"Chu Xiao… gently."
The moonlight was cool as water, and the delicate, plaintive cries drifted through the half-open window, carried by the wind to the higher eaves across the way.
Zhao Chu sat with his legs bent, expressionless.
His hearing was too sharp, and certain wanton sounds clamored to invade his ears.
"It hurts, Chu Xiao… no more."
"What did you call me?"
"Husband…"
"Rong Ci, what your husband gives, you must accept."
The woman was tormented even more fiercely, fragmented whimpers spilling forth, both sorrowful and impassioned, lingering in the air, making Zhao Chu's dark eyes grow even more somber and piercing, tinged with a chilling coldness.
Zhao Chu glanced down at the half-open window, barely able to make out the scattered curtains inside, concealing the scene within.
His brow was etched with an inescapable irritation and displeasure.
All this weeping and wailing was grating.
It stirred a restless agitation within him, a vague, inexplicable fire rising in his chest.
And an abrupt urge to kill.
The light in his eyes was as cold as frost.
Her cries…
were almost identical to those of the woman in his dreams.
Zhao Chu flicked his sleeve and broke off a piece of tile, hurling it with pinpoint accuracy at the window in the pitch-black night.
With a sharp crack, the window slammed shut.
Inside the bed curtains, Rong Ci gasped in alarm, pushing Chu Xiao away from where he had buried his face in her neck.
"Husband, someone's there!"
Chu Xiao frowned in frustration, his expression darkening as he rose from the bed and strode outside, fastening his robe as he went.
Outside the door, countless Chu soldiers surged forward.
Drawing their blades, they faced outward.