The Wife of a Loyal Servant - Chapter 42

“How did he know you were in danger? How was he able to arrive in time to rescue you? When did you make contact with him?” Zhao Yun demanded in rapid succession, his face icy.

Cheng Shaotang fell silent for a moment, then answered truthfully. “That day in Longwan Town, I asked him to pass word to my mother that I was safe, so that those who cared about me might be able to put their minds at ease.”

“So you really did contact others behind my back. It seems I truly underestimated you!” Zhao Yun’s eyes churned like a gathering storm, his expression dark and fearsome.

Chu Liang finally couldn’t hold back and spoke up to plead, “Your Highness, Brother Cheng did indeed commit an offense by privately revealing his whereabouts, but considering that he did render merit in saving you, I beg Your Highness to show him leniency.”

Zhao Yun let out another cold laugh. “I remember it very clearly—he abandoned me and fled first. Regardless of whether he later returned to rescue me, his intentions alone are deserving of death!”

“Your Highness!” Chu Liang dropped to his knees with a heavy thud.

Xiao Mu had already been stunned when Cheng Shaotang referred to himself as a “commoner,” feeling as though he had been struck by lightning. Now, hearing Zhao Yun repeatedly refer to himself as ‘I’ in the imperial sense, even someone as slow as Xiao Mu finally understood the identity of the man standing before him.

His mind went blank for a moment. Listening to the conversation of the three people in the room, he realized that when Cheng Shaotang had come looking for him, he had kept it secret from the nobleman before him. Now it seemed that this nobleman intended to settle scores later.

He knelt down, his voice deep and steady. “This humble subject dares to swear on my life that I have never revealed Your Highness’s whereabouts to anyone else. That day, I happened upon the bodies of the real boatman couple. Concerned for Brother Cheng, I followed him here, and by a fortunate coincidence, I saved his life.”

Zhao Yun’s sharp eyes fixed on him, narrowing as he scrutinized every expression on his face. After a long moment, he slowly turned his gaze to the other two kneeling: Chu Liang, whose face was filled with undisguised worry, and Cheng Shaotang, calm and composed. Finally, he said, “Rise.”

Chu Liang exhaled in relief, knowing that Zhao Yun did not intend to pursue the matter further. Xiao Mu hesitated for a moment, then helped Cheng Shaotang to his feet.

“Your name is Mu Mu*? Who are you? How do you make a living? Do you have any other relatives?” Zhao Yun asked again as soon as he steadied himself.

(*TL’s note: 穆牧 (Mù Mù): though it has the same tone, the characters are different)

Xiao Mu composed himself and answered truthfully. When he mentioned that his only relative, Old Man Mu, had passed away last year, and that he was now alone, his expression grew somewhat somber. Zhao Yun listened expressionlessly, though his mind was clearly elsewhere.

That day, surrounded and attacked, he had been struck by several swords. As he fell, he thought he was surely dead, yet fate still favored him, sparing his life.

The only person he truly trusted was Chu Liang, who had protected him and risked his life for him. Cheng Shaotang might not be entirely trustworthy, but carrying his wife and child, two significant vulnerabilities, made him somewhat credible.

Now, however, he, Chu Liang, and Cheng Shaotang were all severely injured. Returning safely to the capital would not be easy.

This Mu Mu… given the lack of available options, perhaps he could be reluctantly utilized.

Cheng Shaotang had been observing his expression. Seeing this, he sighed inwardly and glanced with complex emotions at Xiao Mu, who spoke freely to Zhao Yun. It seemed that, like him, Xiao Mu’s fate was tied to following the Crown Prince’s “ship.” He thought that perhaps he shouldn’t have sought him out that day; otherwise, he wouldn’t be in this predicament now.

“Cheng Shaotang, according to Mu Mu, you are actually a member of the government?” Just as he was pondering this, Zhao Yun asked. “Yes, this humble subject is the head constable of Qinghe County,” he replied, pausing briefly.

“Who is the magistrate of Qinghe County?” Zhao Yun asked again.

“Lord Guo Qi.”

“Guo Qi…” Zhao Yun suddenly sneered, “I wondered who it was, but it turns out it’s him!”

Cheng Shaotang’s heart skipped a beat. Judging from Zhao Yun’s tone, could he have known Lord Guo? Could there be an old grudge?

But Zhao Yun had already turned away, ignoring him. Cheng Shaotang didn’t dare ask further, bowed, and left. Xiao Mu naturally followed him.

“Brother Cheng, is that really His Highness the Crown Prince inside? I can’t believe I actually saw the current Crown Prince.” On the way back to the house, Xiao Mu’s excitement was hard to hide.

The Crown Prince! That’s the future Emperor! He never imagined he would be so fortunate to see him.

“He really is the current Crown Prince.” Cheng Shaotang, seeing no need to hide it any longer, confirmed.

“So it really is His Highness the Crown Prince! No wonder he refused to tell the truth that day. But who exactly is this person, daring to assassinate the Crown Prince?” Xiao Mu frowned, worry in his voice.

Cheng Shaotang remained silent.

This was something he still couldn’t make sense of, yet didn’t dare think too deeply about.

“Xiao Mu, do you realize that after this incident, whether you’re willing or not, from now on you can only follow His Highness the Crown Prince?” After a long pause, he couldn’t help but warn him.

Xiao Mu shook his head, sighed, then said with firm resolve, “I’m all alone now. Where would I go that would be any different? Rather than live my whole life in mediocrity, I’d rather follow His Highness the Crown Prince and accomplish something great. Only then would this life be worth living.”

“Have you really thought it through? Opportunity has always gone hand in hand with danger. You’ve seen it yourself—those people even dared to assassinate the Crown Prince. You can imagine how perilous this is. If they don’t even care about the Crown Prince, there’s no need to mention people like us,” Cheng Shaotang said calmly.

“I know that opportunity and danger coexist. Brother Cheng, I’ve thought it over. No matter how the future turns out, at least for now, I still want to try. In fact, if I hadn’t run into you this time, I was planning to resign from my position at the steward’s residence and head to Prince Qi’s mansion in Changluo City to seek refuge with Brother Song and the others,” Xiao Mu replied.

Cheng Shaotang fell silent once more. After who knew how long, he let out a sigh.

Back then, he had wanted to avoid any further entanglement with the imperial family, which was why he hadn’t gone to Prince Qi’s mansion. He never imagined that after all the twists and turns, he would still end up dealing with the imperial household. Had he known things would turn out this way, he might as well have gone with his brothers to seek refuge with Prince Qi—at least Prince Qi had shown him kindness, and he could have worked alongside his old comrades once again.

The group temporarily stayed at the small manor to recover from their injuries.

Neither Ling Yu nor Cheng Shaotang ever intended to remain there for long. After all, every extra day Zhao Yun delayed returning to the capital only increased the danger he faced.

Sure enough, after about half a month, once he could barely move about with some ease, Zhao Yun proposed continuing the journey back to the capital.

Chu Liang tried to persuade him for a while, but seeing how determined he was, he didn’t press the matter further. He simply packed their belongings, discussed a new route with Cheng Shaotang and the others, and they set off once more.

“Why didn’t His Highness order his trusted aides to come and protect him?” After packing away all the medicine everyone needed, Xiao Mu couldn’t help asking in a low voice.

Cheng Shaotang shook his head. After a brief pause, instead of answering, he cautioned, “Given our status, we only need to follow instructions. Don’t ask too many questions.”

“I understand,” Xiao Mu said at once.

Indeed, how could people like them possibly understand the thoughts and plans of imperial nobles?

Her injuries clearly not yet healed and already having to rush back onto the road, Ling Yu was thoroughly displeased, secretly cursing that foolhardy Crown Prince to herself. Cheng Shaotang took one look at her expression and knew exactly what she was thinking. He comforted her, “Don’t worry. This time, we’ll disguise ourselves and blend in with a merchant ship—there shouldn’t be much trouble. Besides, Xiao Mu is an unfamiliar face. It’s always safer to have him handle matters.”

Ling Yu also knew that since the Crown Prince had made up his mind to set out, it was hardly her place to object. After hearing this, she could only sigh. “I just hope this journey will be peaceful and safe, and that nothing else goes wrong.”

“It won’t,” Cheng Shaotang said. Beyond comforting her, there was little else he could do. He squeezed the arm of Xiao Shitou, who was leaning against him, and asked softly, “Xiao Shitou, are you afraid?”

“Not afraid!” Xiao Shitou replied crisply.

Cheng Shaotang smiled faintly. Seeing him return to his earlier lively, playful self, he felt relieved more than once.

This time, Xiao Mu took the lead and found a merchant ship bound for the capital. Cheng Shaotang disguised himself as a once-wealthy young man fallen on hard times, traveling to the capital with his wife, child, and servants to seek out relatives. Ling Yu and Xiao Shitou were naturally his wife and child, while Zhao Yun, Chu Liang, and Xiao Mu posed as servants.

What surprised Ling Yu was that Zhao Yun had no objections whatsoever to such an arrangement. Even after putting on servant’s clothes, he didn’t so much as twitch a brow, and even consciously restrained the sharp, imposing air about him.

She couldn’t help but remark that this man truly knew when to bend and when to yield, not so foolish as to parade the superiority of royal blood regardless of circumstance.

Having been dragged into this dangerous affair for no reason at all, Ling Yu did harbor resentment toward him. Now, seeing him reduced to her “servant,” even knowing it was all an act, she still felt a small but undeniable sense of relief.

Zhao Yun lifted his eyes and glanced at her without revealing any emotion, sneering inwardly.

He had said it all along—this family was especially bold. Did this woman truly think he couldn’t see the smug satisfaction in her eyes?

Perhaps the other side had suffered repeated heavy losses and grown hesitant to pursue them; perhaps their manpower was already insufficient, or perhaps this time they had concealed themselves extremely well. In any case, the group traveled north in safety and smoothness, drawing ever closer to their destination—the capital.

“Mom, are we going to a really big, really beautiful place?” Xiao Shitou craned his neck, trying to look at the lively docks, but Ling Yu pulled him back at once.

“Don’t be naughty. What if you fall into the water?”

Ling Yu gripped his small hand tightly, her heart churning as she watched the docks draw nearer and nearer.

According to the plan, they would disembark here and then continue overland to the capital. Yet she had no idea whether the journey ahead would remain as safe as it had been on the ship. If anything were to happen again, others might endure it—but she feared she no longer could.

“Let’s go.” Cheng Shaotang came over at some unknown moment, gently taking her hand and speaking in a low voice.

“Mm.” She gathered her worries and watched him lift their son into his arms, step onto the dock first, and then extend his hand to her.

She took his hand and followed. The instant her feet touched solid ground, her body swayed slightly.

Zhao Yun, Chu Liang, and Xiao Mu also disembarked one after another behind the family of three.

“There are people coming and going here. Perhaps we should find a place to settle down first, and then—” Cheng Shaotang had not yet finished speaking when a burst of orderly, hurried footsteps suddenly sounded ahead, followed by dozens of constables running toward them.

He immediately joined Xiao Mu in shielding Ling Yu and the others behind them.

Zhao Yun’s expression did not change. Chu Liang frowned, but showed no sign of panic.

The constables ran closer and closer, but stopped several zhang away, merely surrounding them. Before long, a middle-aged man in a brocade robe strode forward, walked straight up to Zhao Yun, and knelt on one knee. “This subject arrived too late to rescue Your Highness. I beg the Crown Prince to punish me!”

“Rise,” Zhao Yun said flatly, his tone betraying neither pleasure nor anger.

So one of the Crown Prince’s trusted subordinates had arrived? Ling Yu speculated.

With help at hand, the rest of the journey could finally be faced with peace of mind. Even if assassins struck again, with so many officials present, no matter what, it would not be her man’s turn to step forward.

“This is General Yi of the Zhenguo General’s Residence. With him here, we can rest easy all the way,” Chu Liang said when he found a moment to come over after everything had been settled.

“That’s excellent!” Both Cheng Shaotang and Xiao Mu let out a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

“These are medicines General Yi brought. They’re all fine things from the palace. Use them quickly—your wounds will heal faster.” Chu Liang handed the medicines to Cheng Shaotang.

Xiao Mu accepted them on his behalf.

“Alright, I won’t disturb you any longer. Rest early tonight. We set off early tomorrow morning. Once we return to the capital, there will surely be another upheaval.” Chu Liang rose to his feet.

Cheng Shaotang and Xiao Mu saw him out.

“Brother Cheng, won’t it be safe once we’re back in the capital? Why would there still be upheaval?” Xiao Mu asked in confusion after Chu Liang left.

Cheng Shaotang remained silent. After a long while, he finally said in a low voice, “The Crown Prince has faced assassination attempts and brushed against death several times this time. How could he quietly swallow such a great loss? He will surely settle accounts later. When that time comes, it won’t just be a simple storm—it will likely be a storm of blood.”

Unfortunately, he was already a piece on the board. Even if it became a storm of blood, he could only face it head-on. There was no way back.

In less than two months, under the escort of the Zhenguo General’s Residence, Crown Prince Zhao Yun, after repeatedly brushing against death, finally arrived safely in the capital.

Returning with him was the former head constable of Qinghe County, and the future, much-controversial Duke of Zhenguo, Cheng Shaotang.