After Scheming Against the Enemy Nation’s Emperor, I Got Pregnant Chapter 87

Two days later, Jiang Huaichu had just gotten up. He changed into a robe and walked around to test the fit. Seeing that his belly was still somewhat noticeable, he helplessly changed into something looser.

Once dressed, he gently poked his belly with his slender pale fingers, smiled, and greeted it with a soft “good morning.”

It wasn’t yet mealtime, so he sat to the side, picked up a copy of The Analects from the table, and continued reading it softly.

A trusted aide knocked and entered. Jiang Huaichu set the book down, frowning as he looked at him. “Zhang Kui is still refusing to eat?”

The aide nodded, clearly upset. “I brought him food, and he knocked it over right away.”

His right sleeve was soaked with soup and oil.

“He’s been cursing at you non-stop these past two days.”

Jiang Huaichu thought for a moment, then slowly stood up. “I’ll go see him.”

The aide was stunned, and protested angrily, “He’s so ungrateful—why treat him so well? Even though Nanruo lacks good generals, we don’t need to win over this kind of man. He’s not the type to surrender anyway.”

He truly didn’t understand. Wangye hadn’t tortured Zhang Kui, had treated him with courtesy, provided good food and drink—and still Zhang Kui called it “charity thrown in contempt,” refusing to eat and cursing the prince day and night.

Jiang Huaichu shook his head.

Zhang Kui had treated him decently back then. After he was captured and thrown into prison by Xiao Yun, Zhang Kui had been the first among the generals to speak up for him and even opposed Xiao Yun.

Though the two nations were at war and each loyal to their own, as long as it didn’t harm Nanruo, treating Zhang Kui better was still worthwhile.

He was a man of unwavering loyalty—just loyal to someone else, that’s all.

…

In the prison, Jiang Huaichu wore a veiled hat and motioned for the aide behind him to stay back. He carried a food box down by himself.

He hadn’t even reached Zhang Kui’s cell when the endless stream of curses rang out.

“That d*mn Duan Wang, acting all noble and virtuous—ha! Shameless scum!”

“If you’ve got guts, just kill me! If I ever get out, I’ll split your head with my axe!”

“I’d rather die than submit! Don’t think I’ll surrender, you bunch of weasels!”

Zhang Kui was gripping the iron bars, red-faced and shouting furiously. When he saw someone approaching, his voice faltered.

The person wore a plain-colored veil that reached down to their ankles, their face hidden beneath the gauzy fabric—completely obscured. The bit of exposed skin on the neck was unnaturally fair.

With an elegant figure and noble presence, it was clear at a glance that this was no ordinary person.

The figure unlocked the door and entered. Zhang Kui watched warily, his eyes falling on the food box in the person’s hand. He growled, “I already said I’d rather die than eat that cr*p!”

“If you eat it, I’ll let you out.”

The voice was calm and gentle, but unfamiliar.

“Hah, I told you I won’t—wait, what did you just say?! Let me out?!”

“Yes.”

The figure kept a distance from him. In the filthy cell, they appeared spotlessly clean.

Zhang Kui sneered, “Duan Wang’s the one who caught me. You think you can get me out? Don’t try to trap me!”

The person shook the keys in their hand.

Zhang Kui stared at the set of keys that could unlock his shackles, eyes wide in disbelief. “You… how do you… how do you have…?”

“Will you eat or not?”

Zhang Kui hesitated for a while. Then, blushing like a rough, embarrassed brute, he shuffled over and gulped down the porridge in just a few bites.

He hadn’t eaten in two days. Only after he finished did he realize how finely and smoothly the porridge was cooked—clearly made to be gentle on the stomach. A wave of guilt hit him.

This person truly cared about his well-being.

“Who are you?”

“I have three conditions: One, stay quietly where I arrange for you—don’t cause trouble. Two, never speak of having seen me. Three, don’t lift a finger to help your emperor harm Nanruo again. Just wait obediently while he negotiates with our Wangye. Our Wangye said, you’re not worth killing, can’t be recruited either, and keeping you around is just a hassle. So if the talks go well, you’ll be released.”

Zhang Kui blushed deeply.

He hadn’t expected the person to only ask that of him.

Just don’t help attack Nanruo again.

There were so many other generals under the emperor anyway—they didn’t need him.

Honestly, just being released by this person was enough to make him feel indebted. He couldn’t bring himself to hurt Nanruo again, even for honor’s sake.

“You trust me? Aren’t you afraid I’ll go back on my word?”

Jiang Huaichu smiled to himself.

Zhang Kui had always been a man of his word. He could be trusted.

“If I can let you go, I can just as easily capture you again.”

Zhang Kui asked, “You serve Duan Wang. Why are you helping me?”

Jiang Huaichu didn’t answer. He simply pressed the keys into Zhang Kui’s hand and turned to leave.

Zhang Kui watched him go.

The prison was dark, and in the faint light, he stared at that slim figure walking away. Everything about him was flawless—except for that oddly thick waist.

….

The spy sent word: Zhang Kui had been released from prison and was now living comfortably in Nanruo.

But no matter how they asked, Zhang Kui refused to say what had happened.

In the command tent, Xie Zhe was utterly dumbfounded as he stared at Xiao Yun, who now wore a human-skin mask.

These past two days, he’d thought Xiao Yun was planning how to rescue Zhang Kui—turns out, Xiao Yun had been crafting a human-skin mask himself.

“Your Majesty, what are you doing?!”

“Still calling me ‘Your Majesty’? You should be calling me Great General Dong now.”

Xie Zhe: “…”

In front of the bronze mirror, the man adjusted his appearance, standing tall with broad shoulders and a straight back. His once-handsome features were now fierce and menacing—not to mention, he now sported a full beard.

Xiao Yun let out a sigh. “Dong Lu really is quite an eyesore.”

“…Your Majesty, what are you planning to do?”

“Rescue Zhang Kui, of course.”

Xie Zhe looked utterly confused. “Didn’t the informant say Zhang Kui was doing just fine? Aren’t you going to ransom him with gold and silver?”

“He is fine, but I, as Dong Lu, don’t know that,” Xiao Yun patted his chest like Dong Lu and declared with righteous indignation, “As Zhang Kui’s best brother, bound by life and death, how could I let him be captured and humiliated by the enemy? Defying the wise and heroic emperor’s command—one who has already seen through all the tricks within the city—I take it upon myself to lead troops and attack the city to save Zhang Kui. I do not ask to be born on the same day, month, and year, but only to die on the same day, month, and year.”

“…” Xie Zhe took a while to process the words, then his eyes nearly popped out of his head in horror. “Your Majesty, you want to… No way, no way!!”

“I’m doing it.”

“No, no, no! You really can’t! You absolutely can’t pull something like this!!” Xie Zhe grabbed Xiao Yun’s robe in alarm.

“I can, and I will.” Xiao Yun’s tone was impatient.

“You really can’t! This is way too outrageous! Seriously, Your Majesty! You sneaking out of camp already scared the old ministers half to death! If you keep going like this, they’re going to…”

“Let go.”

“This is really too much, Your Majesty, haven’t I gone along with every ridiculous thing you’ve done all these years? But this—I absolutely won’t let you do it. I’d rather die than let you go.” Xie Zhe gritted his teeth and yanked with all his strength.

“Let go!”

“No!”

Xiao Yun swung his arm, but Xie Zhe was ready, and the two immediately wrestled. Xiao Yun halted his fist mid-air and didn’t strike his face. Furious, he growled, “Are you crazy?!”

“I mean, Your Majesty, this is way too embarrassing! You’re the emperor—what if you fall into some trap in front of everyone…”

“It’s not my people I’m embarrassing, it’s Dong Lu’s.”

“…Still not okay!!” Xie Zhe blushed just thinking about the scene. But Xiao Yun looked completely calm, even eager.

“Why not?”

Xie Zhe was flustered by him and only managed to collect his thoughts after a while. “It’s not about embarrassment! What if you’re discovered? There are 400,000 enemy troops in there! If something happens to you, what are we supposed to do? And you’re going in willingly—”

Xiao Yun scoffed. “This is why I say you’re not too bright.”

“…No matter what you say, I won’t let you go. If you step out of camp, I’ll scream and tell them you’re going in yourself. See if you can still sneak out.”

“…Then I’ll reason with you properly.”

“You and your nonsense—I’m not falling for it.”

Xiao Yun ignored him. “Zhang Kui hasn’t said anything, but he’s being fed and treated well—not even locked up. What does that mean? It means that little b*stard Xie Caiqing still has some lingering feelings. He’s got some standing with Duan Wang, and people listen to him. General Dong Lu treated him well in court, too. Now if Dong Lu sacrifices himself to save Zhang Kui, would they really throw him in a dungeon? Of course not. He’ll be treated just as nicely.”

“…” Xie Zhe thought for a long time before reluctantly going “mm,” then quickly added, “But that’s assuming you don’t get found out! You don’t look anything like Dong Lu! Even stuffed with padding, you’re not bulky enough! If Duan Wang finds out you’re the emperor of the enemy nation, Xie Caiqing won’t be able to protect you!”

Xiao Yun snorted. “You think I need that little b*stard to protect me?”

Xie Zhe looked deeply skeptical. “Duan Wang has over 400,000 troops.”

Xiao Yun gave a short laugh. “You really think I can’t get out?”

Xie Zhe said nothing, but his eyes were full of doubt.

Xiao Yun chuckled again. “You really are dumb. Do you actually believe Duan Wang has 400,000 troops?”

Xie Zhe was baffled. “Doesn’t he?”

Wasn’t that obvious?

Xiao Yun said with mock wisdom, “That was when I was strong.”

Xie Zhe froze.

Xiao Yun’s lips curled with a deep smile. “When I’m strong, he has 400,000. When I’m weak, he only has 200,000. Not only does he lose half his army, the other 200,000… become mine.”

Xie Zhe was stunned for quite a while before he understood.

Duan Wang did have 400,000 troops—but half belonged to the Miluo Manor.

Miluo Manor had committed to supporting Nanruo because they feared Xiao Yun would crush it. But if Xiao Yun went deep into enemy territory, isolated and in mortal danger—well, the old master was Xiao Yun’s great-grandfather. How could he just stand by…

The old master didn’t want Xiao Yun to kill Duan Wang, but he also didn’t want Duan Wang to kill Xiao Yun…

At that moment, once the token was revealed and Xiao Yun’s identity exposed, the 200,000-strong Miluo army—just as powerful as Nanruo’s—would instantly switch sides and help Xiao Yun break out. He’d be fine…

“That old guy tricked me once—how could I not use him for revenge? Does he think anyone can toy with me?”

Xiao Yun looked every bit an adult, yet there was an innocent glint in his smile. The words that followed, however, were thoroughly wicked.

Seeing Xie Zhe fall silent, Xiao Yun raised an eyebrow and grinned. “So, not so outrageous now, is it?”

Xie Zhe: “…”

“You think it’s someone else being outrageous, when really it’s just you being stupid.”

“…Your Majesty is wise.”

Xiao Yun dusted himself off and stood up.

Suddenly, Xie Zhe shouted, “Wait!! But what if you are discovered in prison and we don’t have time to rescue you?!”

Xiao Yun sighed and gave him a pitying look like one might give a child with a learning disability. “That’s why I’ve had men digging tunnels day and night the past couple days. They’ve already broken through to the prison.”

Xie Zhe: “…”

Of course.

Thanks to their insider, they had precise maps of every location in the fortress.

Everything Xie Zhe could think of—Xiao Yun had already thought through.

Xiao Yun said, “That’s why I need to go soon. If they find the tunnel and seal it off, all our effort will have been for nothing.”

Xie Zhe: “…”

“Well, it’s war. General Dong will just have to sacrifice a bit of his dignity.”

Xiao Yun let out a snort and a cold chuckle. “Just you wait—I’ll drag that little sl*t back myself.”

…

In the afternoon, Jiang Huaichu awoke from his nap. He rubbed his slightly sore waist, and had just thrown on his outer robe when a burst of thunderous laughter rang out from outside.

He had just woken up and, in his daze, momentarily thought he was back in Northern Ning.

Since when did Nanruo have such ear-splitting laughter?

Before he could even push the door open, a few generals had already rushed in, laughing so hard that sweat poured down their faces.

“What’s so funny?” he asked.

“Hahaha! That Dong Lu—oh my god, haha! Does Great Ning really have such a stupid general? Hahaha… I can’t take it—hahahaha…”

Huo Xiao, the first to report, clutched his stomach and laughed uncontrollably for a long while. Jiang Huaichu didn’t even catch what he was saying. “…”

“Hahahahahaha.”

“Hahahahahahahaha.”

Jiang Huaichu watched the group of generals—who were still busy laughing—with a face like water. “…”

Jiang Yu was the first to recover, holding back his laughter as he gave a report of the entire incident to Jiang Huaichu.

“Hahahaha! Now the whole city is laughing! Hahaha! My lord, you only dug three pits, right? So Xiao Yun will probably retreat after falling into the third one—hahaha! At first, we thought he’d realize the trick after just two falls—pretty sharp, we said—hahaha! But then another one just came charging in! Hahahaha! Three in total—any more and we’d have nothing left, it would’ve blown the cover! Isn’t that hilarious? Hahahahaha!”

“…” Jiang Huaichu wiped sweat from his brow and couldn’t help letting out a chuckle.

It wasn’t that he only wanted to dig three pits—he’d have dug more if he could. The more, the better. But this was the only ambush they could set up in such a short time.

When dealing with Xiao Yun, a trick only worked once. Xiao Yun had fought many campaigns and never made the same mistake twice. Jiang Huaichu had even planned to have the pits filled back in, worried that commoners might accidentally fall in.

That Dong Lu had fallen right into it—that had caught him off guard. But it made sense.

…

In the prison, Xiao Yun crouched leisurely in a corner by the wall, chatting like a kindred spirit with the prisoner in the next cell. Before long, he’d learned all about Zhang Kui’s recent legendary tantrums that had become the talk of the town.

And so, he decided to imitate him.

In the command residence, Jiang Huaichu’s trusted aide stood before him with a blank expression. “I tried to bring him food. He knocked it over immediately.”

His left sleeve was soaked in soup and oil.

“He’s been insulting you non-stop all day.”

“…” The conversation was all too familiar. Jiang Huaichu rubbed his brow, pained. As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together. No wonder people said Dong Lu and Zhang Kui were impossibly close—their temperaments were carved from the same mold.

Jiang Huaichu didn’t feel like waiting another day to see how it’d play out. He stood up directly. “…I’ll go see him myself.”

His aide didn’t bother trying to stop him.

…

In the prison, Xiao Yun was lazily crouched down, loosening his collar to cool off. While swatting at mosquitoes, he cursed Xie Caiqing in his heart.

He’d been shouting insults at Duan Wang all day, his throat was dry. He had just paused for a bit when he heard steady, light footsteps approaching.

The drowsiness on Xiao Yun’s face vanished in an instant. He switched up his voice and shouted hoarsely, “The d*mn Duan Wang! Shameless b*stard! ‘Refined and proper’? Pah! Treacherous and utterly shameless!”

“If you’ve got the guts, kill me! I’ll never surrender to a snake like him!”

“You better not let me out of here, or I’ll stab him to death with my halberd!”

“If Duan Wang ever has a son, it better not have a—”

Xiao Yun stopped mid-sentence, staring fixedly at the elegant figure slowly emerging from the shadows.