The Wife of a Loyal Servant - Chapter 39

In just two short days, she had already seen so many lives lost before her eyes that she could no longer count them, yet she couldn’t even summon a trace of sympathy. She knew all too well that in moments like those, it was either you died, or they did.

Yet she didn’t even know why they had died, or what they had been willing to throw their lives away for.

She turned her head slightly to look at the man beside her, thinking of his past life.

In his previous life, had he also been like those men in black, willing to risk his life to complete a mission?

A sudden wave of anxiety rose within her, and she instinctively tightened her grip on his hand. “Shaotang.”

“Mm?”

“After we safely escort the Crown Prince back to the capital, let’s go home, alright? You can continue being a constable, and I’ll keep running the shop with Dachun and Su Wen. If you don’t like it, I’ll try to spend less time on Liufang Hall and focus only on our family, okay?”

Cheng Shaotang turned to her, his brows faintly furrowed as he gazed at her intently. After a long while, he sighed softly. “Alright. Once we’ve safely escorted the Crown Prince back to the capital, we’ll go home. I’ll still be Constable Cheng, and if you like, you can continue with your business.”

Ling Yu finally relaxed, closed her eyes, and gently leaned against his shoulder, murmuring, “Mother says she wants another granddaughter, but I think it would be better to have another son first, then a daughter. That way, the daughter will have her father and two elder brothers to protect her, and she won’t be afraid of being bullied in the future. Don’t you think so?”

“A daughter or a son, they’re all our children. I’ll love them all the same.” Cheng Shaotang rarely saw her this fragile, or so visibly unsettled. He reached out and pulled her into his arms, gently patting her back. “Sleep now. These past two days must have exhausted you.”

“Yes… I really am exhausted…” Ling Yu murmured. Drowsiness washed over her, and she soon fell asleep.

When it was time to change watch with Chu Liang, Cheng Shaotang quietly got out of bed, carefully tucked in the blankets around the mother and son, pushed the door open, and stepped out onto the deck.

Chu Liang sat cross-legged. Hearing footsteps, he turned to look, and when he saw it was Cheng Shaotang, his hand on the sword hilt relaxed.

“Commander Chu, I’m here to take over. You should go back and rest.”

“No rush. I can’t sleep right now either. If you don’t mind, how about sitting down and talking for a bit?”

Cheng Shaotang had no objection and followed his example, sitting cross-legged on the deck.

“Your wife is capable and virtuous, and your son is clever and bright. Brother Cheng is truly a fortunate man.” Perhaps because of the gentle moonlight, Chu Liang’s expression seemed softer than it had been during the day.

“Commander Chu, you flatter me. He’s just a mountain-raised boy — mischievous and lacking in proper manners. If he has offended His Highness in any way, I ask that you, for the sake of his young age, speak a few kind words for him before His Highness, so that he may at least be forgiven.”

Chu Liang waved a hand. “Brother Cheng, you worry too much. His Highness won’t hold it against a child.”

Besides, having a lively and bold little fellow along for the journey added a bit of interest, making the perilous road ahead seem less frightening.

Cheng Shaotang was unaware of his thoughts and merely chatted idly with him. Whether it was about what he and his master had endured, or about Crown Prince Zhao Yun, he did not mention a single word, showing not the slightest interest.

Chu Liang deliberately or inadvertently steered the conversation toward the capital’s prosperity and the power and splendor of the Crown Prince’s residence, only to find that each time it was quietly deflected by Cheng Shaotang.

He studied him thoughtfully, then, after a moment’s consideration, asked as if casually, “After escorting His Highness safely back to the capital, what plans do you have, Brother Cheng?”

“Naturally, I’ll go home,” Cheng Shaotang replied simply.

“With your skills, you could stay in the capital and make a name for yourself. You would surely have a promising future.”

Cheng Shaotang smiled faintly. “Everyone has their own aspirations.”

“What a fine saying, ‘everyone has their own ambitions,’” Chu Liang sighed, then added pointedly, “But, Cheng Shaotang, do you know there is another phrase, ‘one cannot act of one’s own free will’?”

After that, he patted Cheng Shaotang on the shoulder, stood up, brushed off his clothes, and slowly made his way into the cabin.

Cheng Shaotang’s brows knitted tightly.

Unable to act of one’s own free will? In a person’s lifetime, nothing is more frightening than those four words.

Because they often signify utter powerlessness.

The first night aboard the ship passed by calmly and without incident.

“I didn’t expect this boatwoman to have such fine cooking skills.” After finishing two bowls of fish porridge, Zhao Yun finally set down his bowl, wiped the corner of his mouth, and offered rare praise.

Since the calamity they had endured, this was the only food he found easy to swallow.

“If you like it, young master, you might as well have a few more bowls. Madam Cheng cooked quite a lot—enough for everyone.” Seeing that he was no longer as unable to eat as before, Chu Liang quietly breathed a sigh of relief, put away the silver needle used to test for poison, and spoke quickly.

“This porridge was cooked by that woman?” Zhao Yun asked, a little surprised.

“Yes. Madam Cheng got up early this morning to prepare breakfast for everyone.”

Zhao Yun smiled faintly. “It seems I’m benefiting from their father and son after all.”

He did not believe that woman would be so kind as to personally cook for him. It had to be because she felt sorry for her husband and son and wanted to make them a good, nourishing meal.

Chu Liang pretended not to hear him and hurriedly served him another bowl.

Whatever reason the woman had for cooking, as long as there was food to eat, wasn’t that enough?

Just as Zhao Yun had said, Ling Yu had indeed taken the initiative to help the boatwoman prepare breakfast out of concern for Cheng Shaotang and his son, hoping to make them something nourishing. Unfortunately, fish was the most abundant food on the boat, so she simply cooked fish porridge, carefully removing the bones before ladling it into a small bowl to feed Xiao Shitou.

When Zhao Yun came in, he saw the little boy eating with great satisfaction, his glossy black eyes curved into two crescent moons.

He frowned almost imperceptibly. It was nothing more than an ordinary bowl of fish porridge. Was it really worth being that happy? Children from mountain families were indeed easily satisfied.

Ling Yu noticed his arrival and gave a slight bow in greeting.

Zhao Yun did not pay it much mind and chose a seat by the window.

Ling Yu patiently fed her son most of a bowl of porridge, reminded him to sit still and not cause trouble, then gathered the bowls and chopsticks and took them to the rear cabin to wash.

“Daddy’s sitting here.” Zhao Yun gazed out the window at the vast, white, boundless river. As he thought about his recent ordeal, his gaze grew darker until a child’s unhappy voice interrupted his thoughts.

He turned around and saw that at some point Xiao Shitou had run up in front of him, puffing out his cheeks and glaring at him.

He let out a cold laugh and turned back to look out the window as though he had seen nothing, though his ears were pricked, listening to the child.

“Daddy’s sitting here.” Seeing that he was being ignored, Xiao Shitou anxiously reached out to pull him.

When his arm was tugged by the soft, tender little hand, his body stiffened. He instinctively wanted to brush the child away, but for some reason stopped, allowing Xiao Shitou to cling to his arm and try to pull him up.

A moment later, he suddenly reached out, lifted the little boy up, and tossed him onto the bench opposite. “You little brat, you’ve got quite the nerve! You dare try to drive me away? I insist on sitting here.  What can you do about it?”

Xiao Shitou blinked his glossy black eyes, pointed at him, and suddenly said in a clear voice, “Bad guy!”

“You dare curse me?!” Zhao Yun sprang up as if pricked by a needle, glaring at him fiercely.

“Bad guy!” the little rascal, ignorant of any danger, shouted at him loudly once again.

Zhao Yun hadn’t expected the child actually to dare—much less curse him twice in succession. Rage and hatred surged within him. He longed to cut this insolent offender down with his sword. Yet when faced with that puffed-up, chubby little face, barely the size of his palm, his sword simply could not be drawn.

Letting him off like this was infuriating, so he could only continue to glare at him viciously.

Stared down like that, Xiao Shitou’s mouth flattened, and suddenly he tipped his head back and burst into loud sobs.

Zhao Yun was momentarily stunned by the crying. After a brief pause, the corner of his mouth twitched inelegantly. He looked toward the Cheng couple and Chu Liang, who had hurried over at the sound, only to stop short upon seeing the scene. They exchanged looks of disbelief and hesitation before Zhao Yun finally erupted in fury.

“Chu Liang, throw this insolent commoner out!”

Chu Liang froze. It took him a while to realize that the “insolent commoner” referred to the wailing Xiao Shitou.

His lips moved slightly. After a long moment, he stepped forward, lifted the “offender,” and tossed him into Cheng Shaotang’s arms.

The instant he landed there, Xiao Shitou stopped crying. Tilting up his clean, dry little face, he sweetly called out, “Daddy!”

Cheng Shaotang had no idea what mischief his son had committed to anger the unpredictable Crown Prince. He wanted to ask what had happened, but feared provoking him further, and could only rub his son’s head before carrying him out.

Ling Yu cast Zhao Yun a suspicious glance, then followed behind the father and son as they left.

“Truly detestable! This entire family is detestable to the extreme!” Zhao Yun had naturally realized by now that Xiao Shitou’s crying earlier had been nothing but noise without tears. To think he had been fooled by a three-year-old brat left him furious, and he spat out the words bitterly.

Chu Liang: “…” Your Highness, are you seriously sulking over a three-year-old right now?

“When I return to the capital, I will most certainly teach them a lesson, so they may learn what it means that ‘the ruler is the guiding principle of the subject,’ and finally vent this pent-up anger!” Zhao Yun took several deep breaths before issuing the threat.

Chu Liang suddenly felt his face sting.

Just last night, he had told Cheng Shaotang that “His Highness wouldn’t hold things against a child”—and yet now…

He cleared his throat. Seeing his master glaring resentfully at the laughing family of three on the deck, he hurriedly changed the subject. “The boatman just said that there may be wind and rain tomorrow. The boat will likely need to dock before sunset to avoid the storm.”

When the honest-looking boatman brought this up, he had seemed afraid they wouldn’t agree, only finally letting out a sigh of relief once they did.

“In that case, we’ll dock,” Zhao Yun replied.

After a brief pause, he asked, “Will it be possible to find a suitable village or town to stop at before sunset?”

“I made a preliminary estimate of the distance. It should be fine,” Chu Liang replied after a brief moment of thought.

“That’s good, then.”

Ling Yu had a headache. She never imagined her son would be bold enough to provoke the greatest menace of all. For a moment, she wanted nothing more than to drag the little fellow over and give him a spanking, but Cheng Shaotang shielded their son, saying things like “children speak without thinking” and “adults should be magnanimous.”

Ling Yu was helpless.

Judging by how furious that Crown Prince had looked just now, did he seem like someone capable of magnanimity?

After thinking it over again and again, she still couldn’t swallow her anger. She reached out and pinched her son’s chubby cheek, scolding him in a lowered voice, “Even if a tiger is dozing, it’s still a tiger. You can’t take him lightly just because he looks approachable for the moment!”

The little fellow pouted and said aggrievedly, “Daddy’s seat. Daddy sits there.”

“Yes, yes, everything belongs to your daddy. Why don’t you say this boat belongs to your daddy too!” Ling Yu snapped, pinching him again.

This domineering little rascal—anything Daddy had ever used was his!

The little fellow promptly buried his head in his father’s arms.

Cheng Shaotang helplessly patted his little bottom, then said to Ling Yu, “There may be strong wind and rain tomorrow. Once we reach the nearest village, we’ll stop and rest.”

“Did they agree?” Ling Yu asked, gesturing toward the cabin.

“Commander Chu has already agreed. He’s probably consulting with that person right now. But barring any surprises, he should agree as well—after all, traveling in heavy wind and rain is far too dangerous.”

Before long, they received Chu Liang’s definitive response: the boat would dock at the nearest village and set sail again after the storm had passed.

Cheng Shaotang quietly let out a sigh of relief. Though he had sounded confident in front of Ling Yu, he had been worried that the Crown Prince, eager to return to the capital, might insist on pressing on through the rain. If anything were to go wrong, others might endure it, but his wife and child could not.

With both host and guests having given their consent, the middle-aged boatman left cheerfully. Not long after, Ling Yu could feel the boat moving noticeably faster.

“How long will it take to reach the nearest village?” Ling Yu asked casually, holding her son’s small hand as she spoke to her husband.

“At this speed, about two hours. Don’t worry—we’ll definitely make it before dark,” Cheng Shaotang replied.

Ling Yu nodded, then couldn’t help sighing. “This time, it really is…”

What she meant by that, she didn’t say aloud—but Cheng Shaotang understood perfectly.

Truly, it was an utterly undeserved calamity.

The couple returned to the cabin with their son and were immediately met with Zhao Yun’s darkened expression. After hesitating for a moment, Cheng Shaotang still apologized on his son’s behalf.

Zhao Yun merely snorted coldly, turned his face away, and once again gazed at the vast river outside the window. Cheng Shaotang couldn’t tell what he meant by it.

Xiao Shitou, meanwhile, pouted and kept grumbling. Ling Yu pinched him again, and only then did the little fellow settle down.

Half an hour later, the sky grew darker and darker. In no time at all, a fierce wind suddenly rose.

No one in the cabin could sit steadily. Ling Yu even felt as though the entire boat was about to be swept away by the wind.

“Sir, the wind is too strong. I’m afraid the rain will come early. Let’s find a place to dock first,” the boatwoman said as she hurried in.

“Dock—dock as quickly as possible!” Cheng Shaotang said urgently, holding his son tightly, not waiting for Zhao Yun or his servant to speak.

Having received the instruction, the boatwoman hurried out.

A powerful gust of wind swept into the cabin, knocking items down with a clatter. The curtains whipped wildly in the wind, producing a flapping sound.

The boat rocked violently, shaking Ling Yu so badly that she couldn’t keep her footing. She could only grip the window frame tightly with one hand and clutch Cheng Shaotang with the other.

Cheng Shaotang held his son, who clung to him like an octopus, and barely managed to steady himself.

Zhao Yun and Chu Liang were in much better shape. As martial artists who didn’t need to worry about others, they quickly regained their footing.

The howling wind, like ghosts crying and wolves howling, roared in their ears, frightening Xiao Shitou so badly that his whole body kept shrinking into his father’s arms, his limbs wrapping around Cheng Shaotang even tighter.

“Chu Liang, go help and get the boat ashore as quickly as possible,” Zhao Yun suddenly ordered.

Chu Liang hesitated, uneasy about leaving him alone here. Zhao Yun shot him a displeased look, and only then did he respond, “Yes. This subordinate will go at once.”

After Chu Liang staggered out, the boat soon barely stabilized, but before long another violent gust arose, causing it to rock even more fiercely.

“Daddy, I’m scared!” Xiao Shitou finally cried out.

Cheng Shaotang gave him a reassuring kiss on the forehead, his voice as steady as ever. “Don’t be afraid. Daddy’s here.”

The little one whimpered and clung to him even tighter.

Cheng Shaotang had intended to help as well, but his son’s crying made him hesitate.

Seeing his hesitation, Ling Yu reached out to take Xiao Shitou from him, but the child who usually clung to her refused to let her hold him, burrowing deeper into Cheng Shaotang’s arms.

“Forget it. Let’s see how things go,” Cheng Shaotang said helplessly.

In just a moment, bean-sized raindrops began to pound down. Cheng Shaotang hesitated no longer. Acting decisively, he stuffed his son into Ling Yu’s arms and walked out without even looking back, intending to help the boatman dock as quickly as possible together with Chu Liang.

The little boy, abandoned by his father, immediately burst into loud sobs.

Ling Yu held him and offered a few words of comfort, but the child sobbed as he began to complain to her about how his father was bad, how his father didn’t want him, and the like.

Ling Yu patiently kissed and coaxed him, yet this was the first time the little one had been cast aside like this by his father. He felt utterly wronged, and his soft, whimpering cries simply would not stop.

“Shut up! A real man crying like this—what kind of conduct is that?!” Zhao Yun suddenly barked, startling Ling Yu.

Xiao Shitou’s crying stopped at once. With tear-blurred eyes, he looked at him, and the very next moment let out an even louder wail.

“Bad guy… sob… I hate bad guys…”

Veins throbbed repeatedly on Zhao Yun’s forehead, his face turning frighteningly ashen.

Ling Yu was so frightened that her heart trembled. She wished she could cover her son’s mouth, afraid Zhao Yun might truly erupt, and hurriedly put on a stern face. “If you don’t behave, Mother will get angry!”

The little boy felt even more wronged upon hearing this, yet fearing his mother’s anger, he only sobbed quietly, wiping his tears with his chubby little hands.

Set side by side, Zhao Yun’s expression darkened further.

In less than half an hour, with everyone working together, the boat docked at a desolate, dilapidated village devoid of human presence.

Cheng Shaotang took their son from Ling Yu’s arms. The two of them were nearly soaked through, and under the guidance of the boatman and his wife, they headed into the village.

The wind howled, pounding against the doors and windows of the ruined houses along the way. Raindrops struck their bodies, and a sudden chill crept over Ling Yu.

“Shaotang, what village is this? How could it be so dilapidated?” The war hasn’t even begun—it shouldn’t be like this.

Cheng Shaotang was just as suspicious. He cast a glance at the boatman couple and Zhao Yun and his attendant ahead, his chest tightening as his guard went up.

“Don’t be afraid. It should be fine,” he said in reassurance.

Yet despite his words, Ling Yu only felt more uneasy.

Suddenly, the four people ahead came to a halt. Ling Yu was just about to ask what was wrong when Cheng Shaotang pulled her sharply into his arms. Before she could react, two heavy thuds sounded in quick succession from ahead.

She froze. Cheng Shaotang released her and strode toward Zhao Yun, angrily accusing him, “Why did you kill them?! In the eyes of you royals, are the lives of ordinary people really so worthless as dirt?!”

Ling Yu’s face drained of color. Looking down, she saw the boatman and his wife, who had been perfectly fine moments ago, lying in a pool of blood.

She forcefully pressed her son back just as he was about to crane his neck in curiosity, her body trembling with overwhelming fury.

Two lives that had been whole only moments before were gone in an instant.

Zhao Yun’s face was dark. “Are you accusing me?”

“Those in power should cherish the people as their own children. If you treat human life so lightly, how will you ever become a ruler of a nation? How will you command the submission of the people?” Cheng Shaotang shook with rage, his right hand pressing against the sword hilt, wishing he could rise up on the spot and cut down this future tyrant.

“Brother Cheng, if you hadn’t misjudged people, how would we have ended up in such peril? Take a good look around,” Chu Liang said coldly.

Cheng Shaotang stiffened and instinctively looked up—only to find more than ten black-clad men armed with weapons appearing around them at some unknown point.

Ling Yu’s expression changed as well. Holding her son tightly, she darted behind him.

“Now take another look at the boatman and his wife you were just defending,” Chu Liang’s cold voice rang out again.

Cheng Shaotang lowered his gaze. Beneath the faces Chu Liang had peeled away lay two completely unfamiliar faces.

He froze on the spot, as though the blood in his veins had ceased to flow.

So… was this truly his fault?