Chapter 223

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Protagonist:

Shaowei

Liu Qi

The little newcomer simply stood blocking Shaowei's path, and Liu Qi couldn't help but get a clear look at him.

Single-mindedly putting on the act of a child, he was like a ferocious guard dog protecting its master, baring teeth and bristling fur, waiting only for its master's command to immediately pounce and bite.

This scene was originally somewhat amusing, but this child...

This child...

Liu Qi looked at those immature brows and eyes that had seemingly suddenly intruded into his sight.

The child's newly grown brows were complete in shape, dark in color, a pair of auspicious phoenix eyes bright and spirited, fixedly watching him without letting go.

Caught off guard, unable to react in time, Liu Qi felt as if falling into a dream; the autumn wind brushing past his ears seemed to transform into spring thunder, rumbling and roaring.

Xiao Yu only felt she had cowed this thief, and hurriedly struck while the iron was hot to propose: "Young Master, quickly tie up this thief!"

Que'er, equally prepared, held a thief-binding rope in her arms, but she recognized Liu Qi, sensed there must be a misunderstanding, and so looked toward the Young Master, awaiting instructions.

"Go." Shaowei's order was concise and comprehensive; she lifted her leg and walked.

Xiao Yu was puzzled, but complied, hurrying to catch up with the Young Master.

However, Xiao Yu had only taken a few steps with the stick tucked under her arm when she suddenly heard a call from behind, tinged with uncertainty: "... Yu'er?"

Following this call, a scatter of green and yellow bamboo leaves drifted down in the wind, lightly landing on Xiao Yu's head.

The bamboo leaves were light and soft, like returning souls on the Double Ninth Festival re-entering the mortal world, riding the wind to gently caress the child's crown.

Xiao Yu stopped in confusion, turned her head — Fish? Was she being called?

The child looking back was no longer baring teeth fiercely as before; the exaggerated expression was gone, and her true brows and eyes became increasingly clear.

In a trance, those clear brows and eyes seemed to overlap with the portrait hidden in Liu Qi's sleeve; the past visage of his brother and sister-in-law also suddenly surfaced...

The place where the Marquis of Lingzhu resided was truly as if enlightened by a deity; sunlight swayed with the bamboo grove, and at this moment light and shadow flowed, as if transforming into two transparent phantom shadows, guarding behind that little girl.

All emotions in Liu Qi's heart condensed into a single sound: the child's dream-entrustment was not false; he truly could recognize his brother and sister-in-law's bloodline!

Striding forward, Liu Qi knelt on one knee before Xiao Yu, both hands gently steadying her shoulders, while tilting his head up to look at Shaowei: "Shaowei, can you not be angry with me first? Can you first tell me, this child... what is her origin?"

Xiao Yu subconsciously wanted to break free, but for some reason, looking at this peerlessly beautiful young thief before her, witnessing his expression, a strange fondness suddenly arose, and she momentarily froze, forgetting to move; the long stick tucked in her armpit also fell to the ground with a "clang."

Shaowei originally didn't want to agree to this "don't be angry first" proposal, but Liu Qi's reaction already showed this matter was out of the ordinary, and she couldn't help but secretly harbor doubts; suppressing her curiosity, she narrated in a flat voice: "Xiao Yu was picked up by me near the Southern City Burial Mound; she has no father or mother, was adopted by a kind-hearted midwife, and fled after that midwife died."

Finishing speaking, Shaowei didn't forget to verify with Xiao Yu: "Is that right, no mistake?"

Xiao Yu nodded, and Shaowei added: "The 'Yu' in Xiao Yu is the fish that swims in water."

Fish — Yu?

Liu Qi's eyes flickered, and he asked the child before him: "Xiao Yu, who gave you this name? And who entrusted you to that midwife to raise?"

Xiao Yu didn't answer immediately, but raised her head to look at the Young Master.

Shaowei stood with arms crossed, still putting on the air of being angry, but also nodded in time.

Only then did Xiao Yu answer: "The medical aunt seemed to have said it was a gravely ill, dying woman who entrusted me to her, but what she was called, she didn't know."

"Called Ji He." Liu Qi's eyes were slightly red, yet he smiled: "She was called Ji He."

Xiao Yu stared blankly, already sensing the answer to her origins might be right before her, and couldn't help asking: "... Who is that?"

"Once a martial servant of Jiaofang Dian, the Ling Empress's confidant."

"Xiao Yu, your birth name is Liu Yu, the 'Yu' meaning 'without worry'; this name was given by your grandmother, the Ling Empress."

Xiao Yu's eyes suddenly widened, her face full of disbelief.

The person before her seemed to hold many past storms in his eyes, but his voice was calm and gentle, truly coaxing a child with utmost restraint, fearing only to frighten her.

"I am your uncle, the maternal uncle of your father." Liu Qi didn't rush to mention more about the Crown Prince, only clarifying his identity first: "All these years your uncle has been searching for your whereabouts, never expecting you were right in Chang'an City..."

Ji He's grave illness must have stemmed from severe injury; she strove to entrust Yu'er to common folk, and preserved the name's original sound as a secret signal for future recognition.

Liu Qi had tears in his eyes, while Xiao Yu still couldn't discern truth from falsehood, but she still hastily retreated, raised her hand toward the Young Master and swore: "Young Master, I said I was an orphan not to deliberately lie; I didn't know I had such an uncle! I always thought I was a ghost child transformed!"

Liu Qi looked blankly at his niece who swore to clear her name of lying at the first moment; even a small child knows what fate awaits deceiving her.

Que'er was ultimately a few years older than Xiao Yu, and had quick discernment; she now seriously told Xiao Yu: "Xiao Yu, the ghost prison you saw in your dream may well be the scene of escaping the palace chaos back then."

Hearing this, Liu Qi's heart felt pierced by needles; the bloodshed of that year had actually turned into a ghost prison, branding and entangling the toddler who couldn't yet remember, in the form of a nightmare.

By this point, age, appearance, homophonic name, and vague memories all matched up; even if further verification was still needed, the possibility of mistaken identity was already very hard to exist.

Shaowei strove the whole time to keep her eyes normal-sized; her heart's shock was like terrifying waves; a little fish she was forced to pick up actually came from the dragon pool, and recalling her previous life, she was guided by Liu Qi to leave the mountain before death, used Liu Qi's three-foot sword to protect his blood relative — was that also a kind of destined opportunity?

Shaowei was determined to be angry alone, because her heart had many tangled threads to sort out, but now another tangled thread had killed its way out midway, simply chaos upon chaos.

Subconsciously trusting Liu Qi's discernment, even if mistaken, at worst they could be sent back afterward; Shaowei cut through the knot with a swift blade, pronouncing judgment like a magistrate: "Since she is your family's child, you may return home and reunite on your own."

Shaowei finished speaking and was about to leave, when suddenly a wailing cry shook the heavens.

"Young Master, no!"

Xiao Yu lunged after her, crying and shouting: "Xiao Yu doesn't know this strange thief; Young Master cannot abandon Xiao Yu!"

The strange thief Liu Qi was in shock, only hearing his niece continue to shout earth-shattering words: "Young Master promised Xiao Yu, to let Xiao Yu be Young Master's little dog for a lifetime!"

Xiao Yu had already thrown herself on the ground, repeating her old trick, tightly hugging the Young Master's legs.

The trace of strange fondness for that young thief in her heart had already vanished without a trace; Xiao Yu cried and twisted her head to look at Liu Qi; the Head of Household was right, this person was indeed a thief, wanting to steal her away from the Young Master's side — truly the world's dog-stealing thief!

A divine-gift reunion, yet viewed as a thief by his niece, and his niece prostrate on the ground tightly hugging the Young Master refusing to let go, screaming she'd be a dog for life... Liu Qi couldn't help feeling somewhat dizzy; if his brother and sister-in-law's souls were truly lingering here, they would surely have to cover their faces.

Yet one must say, fate is so coincidental; uncle and niece, suddenly reunited, before they could have even a moment of family warmth, faced the crisis of being abandoned by the same person; fate so intertwined, yet the little niece chose infighting, as if she was doing a good job being a dog, but this uninvited thief falling from the sky ruined it...

He naturally didn't come to ruin things; his true intention lay in joining.

Although he could not pounce and cling to her legs like his niece, Liu Qi walked over and took the opportunity to hold onto Shaowei's torn sleeve.

"Shaowei, Yu'er is my brother and sister-in-law's only flesh and blood; fortunate to have received your protection and shelter, to me this is a tremendous grace, and I shall surely devote my entire life to repaying it."

Seizing the moment as if swearing an oath, Liu Qi's eyes held an undeniable sincerity, and an intimacy born of deepening bonds.

Meeting those eyes, Shaowei grew even more chaotic; sparrows chirping noisily, pairs of wings seeming to flutter and circle in her heart-field, Zhan Zhan's feather-dust flying in disorder, all things losing order, heaven and earth in chaos.

Driven by instinct, Shaowei urgently sought to escape, and on the spot she revised Xiao Yu's custody terms to Liu Qi: "When Xiao Yu is willing to acknowledge you, that is when you may take her away!"

Xiao Yu, unwilling to be a homeless dog, wailed again, shaking her head like a rattle-drum: "Young Master, Xiao Yu will never acknowledge a thief as uncle wuwuwuwu!"

This was a three-person chaos; Liu Qi hurriedly soothed: "Fine, not acknowledging, not acknowledging..."

And again he quietly pleaded with Shaowei: "Shaowei, may I stay in the Ling Shu Hou Mansion for two days, so I can explain things clearly to Xiao Yu..."

"No!" Shaowei and the eavesdropping Xiao Yu spoke in unison, interrupting and refusing.

The former feared her mind would be disturbed; the latter feared she would be stolen away in the middle of the night.

Liu Qi's eyes showed despair and dejection, yet he still clung to Shaowei's sleeve and would not let go.

Thank heaven, true reinforcements arrived ahead; Shaowei, her mind in turmoil, immediately said: "Grandfather, quickly have this man sent away!"

Zhan Zhan flew over to urge Lu Hou: "Complying with the King's order! Complying with the King's order!"

Seeing his granddaughter entangled as if by two ghosts, Lu Hou immediately glared and raised his brows, shouting first: "Liu Qi, you brat, today is my daughter Shaowei's birthday; whatever thoughts you harbor, you must not make a shameless scene, or this old man will not spare you!"

Hearing this, Liu Qi instantly released his grip; he certainly had the resolve to stay even if beaten half-dead, but as Lu Hou said, today was Shaowei's birthday, and if blood were shed it would surely ruin her fine birthday.

He excelled at pushing his luck, but "an inch" had its limits; she was this determined, and he dared not persist in defiance.

Shaowei strode away; Xiao Yu picked up a stick and followed.

Lu Hou, his face full of indescribable feelings, scolded the wild brat: "At any rate you are of imperial blood; you should know propriety, how can you tear a young lady's sleeve clean off!"

But as the words fell and he drew near, he was startled to see the brat looking entirely like a dejected homeless dog.

Looking closer, he found the boy's hair stuck with rotten leaves, mud on the back of his robe, his front also in disarray... for a moment one could not tell which family's child was more rude.

Convinced his own child was not the one suffering a loss, Lu Hou stopped speaking, glanced at Liu Qi's leg, thought of his own deeds back then, and finally sighed: "Enough... you children's matters, this old man will not meddle in further."

Saying this, he hoisted the youth's arm: "Go on, this old man will personally see you out!"

Liu Qi keenly sensed a trace of old guilt in Lu Hou, and immediately felt as if thorns were in his back; he absolutely dared not use this to win the old man's pity again, for that would be committing a crime in broad daylight, adding sin upon sin.

Things having come to this, and because of Shaowei's existence there was no need to hide from Lu Hou any longer, he simply came clean entirely. Liu Qi supported the old man's arm in return, and in a low voice shamefully explained the truth of his leg injury.

"You scheming brat! This Marquis has worried for years for nothing!" Lu Hou's face changed; he snorted angrily and flicked his sleeves away.

The despairing Liu Qi was finally escorted out of the mansion by household slaves.

The slaves were silent all the way, increasingly embarrassed to turn and look closely.

The welcome and the send-off — such a world of difference; the brat beside them seemed to have been struck by lightning, inside and out, no longer bearing the bearing he had upon arrival.

To have his aperture opened so spectacularly — truly something a numb, indifferent person like him could not understand.

Deng Hu also felt he could not understand.

Inside the carriage, watching the master who had left in splendor return in a sorry state.

At first Deng Hu felt relieved, even secretly praising Tai Puzhe Jiang for becoming steadier day by day, his hand much lighter; this time he left no decent wound on His Highness.

But looking closely, he realized the injury was internal; His Highness was despondent and silent, his soul wandering, as if he could not hear him speaking.

Deng Hu's heart was anxious; speaking again, he tried: "The Crown Prince also sent a birthday gift to Jiang Zhai."

"What thing?" Liu Qi looked up.

The master finally recovered his hearing; Deng Hu breathed a sigh of relief and answered seriously: "It is a long-haired civet offered by a foreign state, said to be called something Lion Slave."

Liu Qi was silent.

He had seen this Lion Slave civet once in the palace; its whole body snow-white, fur long as silk, lustrous and glowing, heterochromatic eyes like colored glass, noble yet gentle.

It rather resembled Liu Cheng.

Sending dead objects merely piles them in the storehouse; a pretty live creature can walk before her eyes at all times, and gifting a mortal civet to a divine civet — such thoughtfulness reveals the thief's heart.

Thinking of that line "you are far less obedient than him," a trace of annoyed hostility rose in Liu Qi's heart; a person previously not regarded as a true opponent suddenly became hateful in appearance.

Yet he also thought of his own gift; though he had specially selected ten fine horses, sent to her farmstead outside the city, for her to enjoy and advance her riding and archery, since he had caused her to shed that one tear, even ten thousand fine horses would not suffice to atone for this sin.

That one tear...

Merely recalling it now, he felt the tip of his nose turn slightly cool, his eyelids trembling lightly in response.

Liu Qi leaned back, slanting against the carriage wall, raised an arm to cover his eyes, and could still faintly smell the shallow fragrance of her breath when she hurriedly wiped away and took back the tears on his face.

No matter what, she said one sentence: "No matter what, I will not not want you."

The corner of his mouth leaked a trace of a smile beyond his control, then thinking of his little niece insisting on treating him as a thief, and the backs of the two of them as they left, for a moment he only felt everything today was terrifying, worrying, ridiculous, lovely, delightful, and congratulatory; Liu Qi recklessly laughed out loud in a muddle.

The youth's haha laughter was clear and bright, yet that sky-collapsing despondent air clearly remained; Deng Hu was startled and uneasy, thoroughly afraid to speak.

Seeing the Sixth Prince with such a despondent expression yet a smile on his lips, Tang Jia was likewise greatly startled.

A terrifying thought sprang from Tang Jia's heart: could it be that day-acting night-deceiving, accumulating illness, this stimulation finally caused his mind to split?

"Your Highness's trip to Jiang Zhai... was it alright?" Tang Jia followed at his side, probing.

"Very good." Liu Qi's left leg limp was not feigned at this moment; walking along, he smiled faintly: "Right now I very much do not want to die."

Tang Jia's expression shifted; he suggested in a low voice: "Master Zhuang has also arrived... if Your Highness has difficulties, why not discuss with Master Zhuang."

Liu Qi: "Not urgent, first see Cong Nan."

?? Another month has ended, just hitting 200 chapters; this book is estimated to finish around 260 chapters, thank you all for your support all along!! This month's monthly tickets also placed third.

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