Chapter 451

"Husband, what are you thinking about?"

Wu Meiniang walked quietly to Qin Mu's side.

She was still the one serving him in bed tonight.

This was, of course, Li Xueyan's idea.

As the Great Qin's sphere of influence grew larger, Li Xueyan, as the Great Qin Princess, felt the burden on her shoulders growing heavier.

Carrying on the royal lineage was her top priority.

"Thinking of an old friend."

Qin Mu smiled faintly and said.

"An old friend? What kind of old friend?"

Wu Meiniang was very nervous inside.

She knew she shouldn't ask so much.

But for some reason, Wu Meiniang just wanted to know more about Qin Mu's story.

Especially the story of Qin Mu before he rebelled!

Wu Meiniang had always had a question in her heart.

Such a talent, a true unicorn, had been buried for so many years, only finally shocking the world when he wrote that magnificent, timeless essay during the imperial examinations.

This was indeed very unreasonable!

So, where was Qin Mu before this?

What had he been doing?

What kind of people did he live with?

These were the stories Wu Meiniang wanted to know most.

Taking advantage of such a good opportunity tonight, Wu Meiniang had to take the risk.

"Do you really want to know?"

Qin Mu looked at Wu Meiniang with interest.

He was in a good mood today.

"Yes! As long as it's about you, Husband, Meiniang wants to know!"

Wu Meiniang nodded without hesitation.

"Alright! The night is long, so I'll tell you a story."

Qin Mu smiled and, miraculously, agreed.

This wasn't like his usual style!

Even Wu Meiniang was quite surprised.

She hurriedly held her breath, pricked up her ears, and listened carefully to Qin Mu telling his own story,

afraid of missing a single word.

But the story Qin Mu was about to tell would completely change Wu Meiniang's life!

"A few years ago, I was traveling in the northwest of the Great Tang, passing through a village, and became sworn brothers with a very strange young man."

"The young man was exceptionally talented and had an extraordinary bearing. But fate was cruel; he was born to a coarse and vulgar village woman."

"I visited his home a few times, which left a deep impression on me. The village woman would either beat or scold the young man, summoning him at will and dismissing him at whim; he didn't seem like her biological son at all."

"Yet the young man remained sweet-tempered, not only without any complaints but also very filial to the village woman. Although he hadn't read books, he had heard that one's body and hair are gifts from one's parents. No matter how she treated him, he insisted on upholding filial piety."

"But later, tragedy struck. One night a few days later, the young man found me covered in blood and told me a shocking truth."

"It turned out that the vicious village woman was not his biological mother; the young man had heard it from the woman herself by chance. The young man was shocked and wanted to ask the woman whose son he really was."

"Even at that moment, the young man had never thought of leaving her. He only wanted to know his own origins. No matter whose son he was, he would still provide for her until her death."

"But who would have thought the woman would be so ashamed and angry, fearing the young man harbored resentment, that she beat him until he was on the verge of death."

"When the young man found me, his injuries were beyond saving. Before he passed away, he gave me a jade pendant he had stolen from the woman and entrusted me with his life, hoping I could help him solve the mystery of his birth. That way, even in death, he would have no regrets."

"After I promised him, the young man died with a smile."

"Later, I took the jade pendant and found the village woman, forcing her to tell me the young man's origins. Fearing I would kill her to silence her, she told me everything."

"More than a decade ago, a noblewoman fled here and gave birth to a son at the same time as her. Seeing the young man's red lips and white teeth, the village woman became covetous and insisted the young man was her child. Later, she found a jade pendant in the young man's swaddling clothes. The noblewoman had also asked if she had seen the pendant. The village woman immediately understood everything; the young man was not her child! The dark and ugly baby in the noblewoman's arms was her own flesh and blood."

"Later, the village woman had an evil thought. She hoped her son would be rich and noble, and since the noblewoman seemed to have an extraordinary background, she lied and said she hadn't seen the pendant."

"Just like that, the fates of the two babies were completely changed. The noblewoman took the village woman's child to Chang'an, while the young man who should have enjoyed wealth fell into hell."

"To fulfill the promise I made to the young man, I went to the capital alone to find the noblewoman's whereabouts. I searched for a year, but still couldn't find her. Just then, the Great Tang announced the imperial examinations to select scholars."

"So I decided to participate in the imperial examinations, hoping to become famous in one stroke, so I could come into contact with some nobles and perhaps find the young man's origins."

"Who would have thought that later, Zhangsun Wuji and the Great Tang Emperor would join forces to steal my top graduate title? With no other choice, I had to defect from the Great Tang. In my haste, I also lost that jade pendant."

Qin Mu finished his story.

The sleeping quarters were silent.

Except for the crackling of the candles, nothing else could be heard.

At this moment, Wu Meiniang's face was pale, her breathing rapid.

Fine beads of sweat seeped from her forehead.

She had heard this story before!

And the person who told the story was none other than the Great Tang Empress, Empress Zhangsun!!!

Back then.

When Empress Zhangsun told Wu Meiniang about Qin Mu's background, she had told her this story as well.

Wu Meiniang had sighed with emotion, thinking it was just fate playing tricks.

But she hadn't expected!

The truth was like this!!!

The Empress's own flesh and blood had died long ago!

And Qin Mu was just the sworn brother of that young man!

In other words.

Qin Mu was not Empress Zhangsun's biological son!

They had absolutely no relation to each other!