Jiang Huaichu’s eyes widened, his mind going completely blank.
Xiao Yun said he wanted revenge—but then he kissed him.
Jiang Huaichu feared he might lose control and began to struggle, biting him hard. He bit until their lips bled, but Xiao Yun wouldn’t let go. Fortunately, his hands merely roamed over Huaichu’s stomach and didn’t go any further. He touched it again and again, front and back, left and right. Jiang Huaichu’s face flushed furiously, even his eyes turned red with embarrassment. After getting pregnant, he hadn’t allowed anyone to touch his belly—only he and the old master had ever laid a hand on it.
Xiao Yun…
Their bodies pressed close, lips locked. Xiao Yun paid no mind to the taste of blood between their teeth. He pried open Jiang Huaichu’s mouth, intruding wantonly, sucking as if he wanted to reclaim every inch of territory and mark it anew. His breath burned hot, surging with emotions that had churned inside him over the past three months. He kissed so deeply it nearly reached Huaichu’s throat. Jiang Huaichu had to open his mouth wider, his hands pinned behind his head. Saliva trailed from the corners of his lips as his face burned with shame.
If not for the situation, Xiao Yun would’ve shoved something else into Huaichu’s mouth to mark what was his.
A few moments later, Xiao Yun, still biting Huaichu’s lips, refused to release him. He rubbed their noses together and muttered indistinctly, “See? It’s mine. When I touch it, it responds to me—we’re connected.”
His brows lifted, his face filled with pride. After rubbing for so long, he was simply trying—childishly—to find some sign that it was his.
At the mention of the child, the dazed Jiang Huaichu suddenly snapped to attention and coldly said, “It’s not yours—”
“If it’s not mine, then why are you blushing? I don’t care. It is mine—”
“It’s not—”
Xiao Yun’s expression instantly darkened. He drove his knee against Huaichu, ripped the white feather ornament from his temple and tossed it aside. With both hands gripping his face, he kissed him again—this time even more fiercely, as if he wanted to silence him before he could say anything ugly. The aggression in the kiss overwhelmed Jiang Huaichu, triggering memories in his body that had lain dormant for three months. A soft whimper escaped him—followed instantly by a wave of unbearable shame.
Xiao Yun was overwhelmed by the thrill of regaining what he’d lost. He squirmed against Jiang Huaichu, wishing he could burrow entirely into his body—anything to be closer. As if that would erase all the distance between them. Whimpering, he repeated: “It’s mine! It is!”
“No, it’s not!”
“It’s mine!”
“No!”
“It’s mine!”
Xiao Yun was like a three-year-old throwing a tantrum, furiously mussing Huaichu’s hair into a mess. There was nothing left of the cold, aloof Duan Wang—just a red-faced, flustered man full of anger and frustration. He finally grinned from ear to ear, delighted. “It’s mine. And you’re mine too.”
“I’m not yours. It’s not yours either!” Jiang Huaichu used all his strength to push him away.
“Yes, it is!”
“I’m Duan Wang, not your Xie Caiqing.”
“I know that,” Xiao Yun whispered, licking Huaichu’s flushed ear. “Jiang Huaichu is mine.”
The words hit like a spell, a blow to the heart. Jiang Huaichu froze and looked up at him, shaken.
Xiao Yun grinned like a child learning to speak, enunciating clearly, “Jiang. Huai. Chu. Is. Mine.”
“Jiang Huaiyi’s little brother is mine. Duan Wang is mine. You are mine.”
Jiang Huaichu’s heart trembled violently. Unnameable emotions flooded his chest, his limbs tingling, eyes darting in a panic he couldn’t contain.
“You’re not Duan Wang. Not Jiang Huaiyi’s brother. Not Xie Caiqing. Not even Jiang Huaichu. No matter who you are, you’re my little rabbit.”
Even his fingers trembled uncontrollably. Jiang Huaichu finally regained his composure. Face red and furious, he glared at Xiao Yun.
Xiao Yun looked proud—but the next second, his expression froze. He couldn’t move.
Everything went eerily silent.
Jiang Huaichu looked at him with a half-smile.
“You b*stard! Fck! Jiang Huaichu—fck, fck, fck! Are you even human?!” Xiao Yun’s smug grin was wiped away, replaced by utter shock and disbelief. The greatest man in the realm—frozen mid-pounce, motionless, completely at his mercy.
A tiny silver needle was embedded in the back of his hand.
In front of a stunned and speechless Huo Xiao just outside the litter, Jiang Huaichu—face flushed and utterly expressionless—shoved Xiao Yun off him without hesitation.
“Mighty and wise?” Jiang Huaichu arched a brow. “I’d say your brain’s not working so well.”
Utterly humiliated, Xiao Yun’s face twisted in rage. He had actually forgotten about that!
Jiang Huaichu’s voice turned cold: “Throw him out.”
Xiao Yun’s eyes bulged. “Jiang Huaichu, you f*cking can’t! You can’t! Hey, hey—don’t touch me! Don’t you dare touch me! You actually dare touch me!!”
Unfazed by the threat, Huo Xiao grabbed his shoulder and began to drag him out.
Realizing he was out of options, and his time was up, Xiao Yun stopped struggling. He looked at Jiang Huaichu—whose face was still flushed, hair and clothes all mussed by his hands, no trace of noble composure left—and felt oddly satisfied. He stopped resisting and said seriously: “Jiang Huaichu, remember this: I said you’re mine before I knew whether that child was mine, before I knew if you liked me, even knowing you lied to and used me, endangering the entire realm—I still said it.”
“I withdrew my army because I recognized you.”
Jiang Huaichu suddenly looked at him.
His heart beat violently—so fast and wild he felt helpless and anxious. His fingers curled unconsciously. The cold world seemed to burst into noise all at once. An emotion he couldn’t name cracked through the ice that sealed him in.
He didn’t want to hear any more of Xiao Yun’s theatrics. Arching a brow, he sneered: “Like me? Oh, do you mean the time I was drugged, lost consciousness, and you pushed me into the arms of Qi Wang, who almost violated me twice?”
“…!” Xiao Yun’s eyes went wide.
He actually knew?!!
He actually forgot about that part!!!
“Or,” Jiang Huaichu paused, holding back a laugh, “you found out I wasn’t a spy, regretted it, knocked Qi Wang out with a needle, stripped off all your clothes, and then a bunch of imperial physicians burst in? I’ve never seen anyone put their clothes back on so fast in my life. The illustrious Emperor of Great Ning really opened my eyes.”
“!!!”
Xiao Yun’s eyes almost popped out of his head. He had always been the one making others blush—never the other way around. But now, his face turned completely red, deeply embarrassed. “Jiang Huaichu! F*ck! You f*cking knew?! D*mn it!! Jiang Huaichu, just you wait!!”
Suppressing his smile, Jiang Huaichu said with a blank face, “Throw him out.”
Huo Xiao gave Xiao Yun a sinister grin.
Xiao Yun shouted angrily, “I might not have solid proof yet, but the child is definitely mine. Definitely! Just wait—I’ll find the evidence and come back to settle the score. Then I’ll make you little traitor pay!”
Jiang Huaichu smiled gently. “Why didn’t you call me ‘little sl*t’ this time?”
“…” Xiao Yun was silent for several seconds. “…Aaaaaarghhhhh!!!”
He was tossed down mercilessly by Huo Xiao amid his own howling.
“The poison will wear off in the time it takes to burn one incense stick,” Jiang Huaichu said coolly. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you’re safe and notify the generals of Great Ning to retrieve their ‘Number One Under Heaven.’ Set out—we’re going home.”
…
In the main command tent, Xie Zhe looked at the handsome man clutching his hair, howling and jumping around like a madman, and sighed. The condition had worsened.
“Aaaaah he knew?! I’m finished! Totally embarrassed! He’s known all along!!”
“D*mn it, I lost all my dignity without even knowing it! How could I forget something so important for this long?! Aaaah!!”
Xie Zhe watched him with a blank face.
He’d been carried back like a sack of rice by two generals, and he still thought he had dignity?
Trying to grope Xie Caiqing in front of all his subordinates and not getting his hands chopped off was already a mercy.
Truly, he was bold.
Xie Zhe said, “Your Majesty, haven’t you noticed? You only ever lose your composure in front of Xie Caiqing.”
Xiao Yun paused, thought about it, and agreed. “It’s all cursed fate! Cursed! My wise and mighty self, reduced to this!”
“…” Xie Zhe sighed again.
Amid Xiao Yun’s loud raving, he finally remembered the important question: “Is he pregnant?”
“Yep! I touched him several times this time—definitely real!”
“…” Xie Zhe’s old face turned red. “Is the child Your Majesty’s?”
“Yes!” Xiao Yun answered without hesitation.
Xie Zhe was stunned. “He said so?”
“He said it wasn’t.”
Xie Zhe was shocked: “Didn’t he say it wasn’t?!”
Xiao Yun: “So what if he said it wasn’t?”
Seeing how confidently he spoke, Xie Zhe brightened: “So Your Majesty has conclusive evidence?”
“No.”
Xie Zhe: “…”
Xiao Yun, after hopping around in a frenzy, was finally reminded of the real task at hand. He quieted down, let out a sly chuckle, and said, “Just wait—I’ll find the proof and make that heart-and-body-deceiving little traitor pay his debt!”
Watching Xiao Yun regain his energy with renewed enthusiasm, Xie Zhe suddenly feared the possibility: what if he actually did find proof—and it showed the child wasn’t his?
Before he could think further, Xiao Yun had vanished. Alarmed, Xie Zhe looked around and hurried to catch up. “Your Majesty, where are you going?”
“To Miluo Manor!”
“To ask the old master?”
“Yes. He has to know.”
Xie Zhe frowned. “But clearly, he’s on Xie Caiqing’s side. Why would he tell you?”
“Don’t call him Xie Caiqing. He doesn’t like that. Call him Jiang Huaichu!”
Xie Zhe blinked. “Oh, oh… but the old master is on Jiang Huaichu’s side—”
“Stop, stop, stop. My beloved’s name—you don’t get to say it!”
Xie Zhe’s forehead veins bulged, but he held back and forced a smile. “Isn’t the old master on your little bunny’s side?”
Xiao Yun clearly liked that term. “Since Chuchu has admitted it, of course he will too.”
Xie Zhe was confused. “But your little bunny didn’t admit anything.”
Xiao Yun grinned. “I said Chuchu admitted it, so that makes it true.”
“…” Xie Zhe was silent for a long moment. “Your Majesty is truly wise.”
“We have to hurry—get there before Jiang Huaichu and the old man can compare notes.”
…
That very night, Xiao Yun and Xie Zhe disguised themselves, persuaded the scouts of Miluo Manor with much coaxing and reassurance, and managed to sneak past the layers of guards. They finally appeared before the old master.
After some fake pleasantries over wine, the old master stroked his beard and said, “What brings my great-grandson here this time?”
Xiao Yun smiled. “Great-grandfather, that’s not very honest of you. Chuchu already told me everything.”
Hearing him call him “Chuchu” so directly, the old lord was startled, though he kept a calm face. “Oh? What did he tell you?”
Xiao Yun smiled even more widely. “That he’s pregnant with my child, of course. Great-grandfather, how long were you planning to keep that a secret? You’re being very dishonest.”
The old master was completely at a loss and full of suspicion.
How could Chuchu have told him?
Was this a bluff?
But what he said was true…
His mind racing, the old master said nothing. Xiao Yun sighed. “Old man, don’t keep hiding it. I like Chuchu. If you give me your blessing, I can go after him with confidence.”
The old lord’s eyes widened. “You like him?!”
“Of course!” Xiao Yun looked confused. “Why else would I go through all this trouble to find him?”
“What kind of liking?” the old man asked warily. “The kind where you keep a dog for three days and then hand it to someone else? Or the kind where you just want fun in bed?”
“…” Xiao Yun froze. “Why would great-grandfather think that? I want to marry him and bring him home as my wife.”
“Your empress?!”
“Yes! Just one, for life.”
The old master looked like his eyes were about to pop out of their sockets. He picked up a plum and hurled it at Xiao Yun’s head. Xiao Yun, still completely bewildered, stood there dumbfounded and nearly got hit. He barely managed to catch it with his quick reflexes and roared in fury, “If you didn’t want to tell me, then don’t! Why the h*ll are you throwing things at me?!”
The old master picked up another plum, ready to throw again but stopped, his finger trembling as he pointed at Xiao Yun, cursing through gritted teeth, “Are you f*cking brain-dead?! Are you sick in the head?! Why didn’t you say it earlier?! You told me yourself that you were looking for him just for a bed partner!”
Xiao Yun was still totally confused. “He lied to me and seduced me. He’s a spy from an enemy nation, a threat to Great Ning. If I’d said I came looking for my wife, I’d have lost so much face. You would’ve thought I was crazy.”
“F*ck, you are f*cking crazy!”
Xiao Yun jumped to his feet, yelling, “What the h*ll is wrong with you! Why do you keep cursing at me?!”
“No, wait—are you serious?! You actually want to marry him?!”
“Yes! He’s so cute, so beautiful, so outstanding. I could list all the reasons, and even the ones I can’t name—I don’t know why, I just like everything about him. I just know I’ll love him for the rest of my life!”
The old master was shaking with rage, face full of frustration. “Why the h*ll didn’t you say this the other day when you came to see me?!”
Xiao Yun didn’t see the problem. “What’s the big deal? I’m saying it now—”
“That day, Chuchu was standing behind me.”
The smile froze on Xiao Yun’s face. His eyes widened in horror, as if his world had collapsed. “What???”
“Yeah. The little guy had been worn out by you night and day, completely exhausted. He fainted, and the moment he woke up, he came looking for me. And then he heard your whole speech.”
There was a moment of dead silence.
Xiao Yun’s face turned to stone. “No no no no no—this can’t be. You’re messing with me. You’re trying to scare me.”
The old master looked at him like he was an idiot. “Why the h*ll would I lie to you? Do you know, if you’d said those sappy, lovesick words to me that day, your wife would’ve been yours already. But no—you had to say you were going to attack Nanruo! If I hadn’t kicked you out, I’d have been infuriating him!”
“Aaaaah shut up shut up shut up!!”
“This isn’t my fault!” Xiao Yun clutched his head. “He deceived me emotionally, endangered Great Ning. So what if I said a few angry things?”
The old master rolled his eyes at him. “Who said he deceived your feelings? Who said he endangered Great Ning?”
Xiao Yun looked shocked. “He didn’t?! Don’t start twisting the truth just because you have a great-grandchild now!”
“Go f*ck yourself!”
The old man let out a sigh, no longer wanting to argue. He said patiently, “Chuchu grew up by my side, such a pretty and well-behaved child. Because of his condition, if he married a woman, he probably wouldn’t be able to have children. It would be a lonely life, and unfair to any girl. He said from early on that he’d never marry or take concubines. As he grew up, he was smart, sensible, and ridiculously good-looking—you know that part. I couldn’t bear to see him live alone, and I saw you two got along well as kids, so I thought maybe I could set you up. You’re a man too, so it might work.”
“…Got along well as kids?!”
“Yes! You came to Miluo Manor when you were ten. You met him!”
Xiao Yun’s face changed dramatically. He dug deep into his hazy memories, trying to recall a four-year-old boy, but came up blank.
The old master looked at him and said with a nostalgic sigh, “You hugged him, kissed him, lifted him up, and even said that when you marry in the future, your wife has to be someone like him.”
Xiao Yun’s eyes bulged. “That little girl with the pigtails?!”
“Exactly…” The old man coughed a few times. “I was bored and dressed him up like a girl. He was pretty, wasn’t he? Heehee.”
“…” Xiao Yun nearly passed out.
He never expected that he’d met his wife that early. That he’d even hugged and kissed him.
The old man watched Xiao Yun’s face darken and said with schadenfreude, “That’s why I told him, if he gives you a child, I’ll hand over 200,000 soldiers and the whole Miluo intel network. He loves his brother, loves Nanruo, and he likes kids, so he agreed like a fool.”
“But I never wanted a child. I just wanted him to be with you. You two are a perfect match—equal in status, compatible in personality. You’re both outstanding. I picked your wife for you since you were little, raised him by my side, taught him well. I was even willing to lose everything just to convince him to go find you. He came all the way, used every trick he had, climbed into your bed, and what did I expect? That you’d stupidly hug and kiss him and bring him home to spoil him! But what did you do to him instead?”
He rolled his eyes again. “You’re unbelievable. Dumb when you should be smart, and smart when you should be dumb.”
Xiao Yun nearly fainted again. “I… I didn’t know! F*ck! No no no!”
He tried to hold onto his old excuse. “He lied to me! Betrayed my country!”
The old villa master glared at him. “Did he really? When he made the deal with me, he said outright he didn’t want to harm others for his own gain. Think carefully—did he take anything from you or Great Ning? No. He didn’t care about money. He’s a prince from an enemy state, but in Great Ning he acted like the perfect virtuous helper, helped you make plans, strengthened your empire—and you didn’t see any of that? He wasn’t a spy. He willingly walked into your arms, slept with you, agreed to bear your child, all to be your wife. And what did you do? Push him away to Qi Wang, throw him in prison? You tell me, does that make any sense?”
The old man pouted angrily. “And don’t act like he didn’t get deceived too. You humiliated him in front of me, gave him no dignity. Even during war, he let you go free. He looks heartless, but he’s actually the most loyal, affectionate person.”
Xiao Yun’s vision went dark. His lips trembled. “So he did all this scheming just… just… just to…”
“Yes, exactly what you’re thinking,” the old man let out a chuckle. “Where in the world do things fall into place so perfectly? They don’t. Unless an old man like me plans it all for over ten years!”
The old manor master roared, “And look at you! You ruined everything, and then had the nerve to say you never want to see him again. Aren’t you impressive? Tell me, how could I not be furious enough to throw you out?! Everything was ready, and you just had to stir up trouble!”
“…So…” Xiao Yun’s voice trembled, “The child… is… mine?”
The old master snapped, “What do you think? You think I’d trade 200,000 soldiers and the entire Miluo intelligence network just to get him to take off his clothes in front of you, only for him to betray you and shack up with someone else? How many chips do you think that would take? You’re the Emperor of Great Ning—do you think he even cares about that? Hah!”
Xiao Yun was silent for a long moment, then grabbed his head. “I’m screwed, I’m so screwed!”
“No, no, wait—I took the medicine, didn’t I?!”
Then suddenly it hit him. “Wait a d*mn second—I learned medicine from you!”
The old manor master gave a wrinkled smile. “When you were a teenager, you told me you never wanted kids. For the sake of Great Ning’s eternal glory, remember? So I planned ahead. When you studied medicine with me, I worked hard to fool you into thinking that pill was a contraceptive.”
“Then… then what was it?”
“You didn’t notice that a certain part of you grew quite… remarkable?”
A deathly silence fell.
“You’ve always been gifted, and the more you didn’t want children, the more ‘remarkable’ you became. I’ve never seen you so committed to anything since you were a teen. Truly something to celebrate.”
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