Chapter 346: I’m No Worse Than Any Other Child
The scene at the time had been utter chaos. Ji Qingwu’s heart still pounded with fear whenever she recalled it.
Yuan Heng had been so sensible. With a pale little face, he had stood quietly to one side, lips pressed together, watching his "relatives" shirk responsibility, cast blame, and scramble for power.
Because Ji Qingwu didn’t want to expose their relationship, she hadn’t offered him any comfort. She hadn’t even spoken a single word to him.
She could only love and protect him from the shadows, in her own way.
Every time Ji Qingwu thought of it, an unbearable ache twisted in her heart. ’What a brilliant scheme you had, Emperor Wu Su,’ she thought, ’tricking every last one of us.’
A part of her still resented him.
She knew that his deliberate efforts to distance himself from her before leaving the palace were meant to get her out of harm’s way early on.
But she was Yuan Heng’s mother. How could she possibly stand by and watch her little boy fall into such a perilous situation right before her eyes?
She had no choice but to get involved, and under the circumstances, she had no choice but to align herself with Wei Ting.
It felt awful to be blackmailed, but it felt even worse to be kept in the dark.
Ji Qingwu’s gaze drifted out the open window, falling upon the setting sun and the magnificent, colorful clouds.
’Looks like the weather will be good tomorrow.’
Ji Qingwu mentally took stock of her advantages. ’Since I have a system that’s boosted by the nation’s destiny...’
She would crush every obstacle underfoot. The matter with Xijin had to be brought to a definitive end.
The Northern Border had to be pacified. The empire her children would one day rule had to be made even more stable, so that they would never have to wear themselves out with worry and exhaustion as Emperor Wu Su had.
As Ji Qingwu calmed down, her eyes began to shine with an even greater brilliance.
Suddenly, a small, round head popped up from below the window, and just like that, its owner’s eyes met Ji Qingwu’s.
Yuan Heng’s small hands gripped the windowsill as he stared at her, unblinking.
A smile touched Ji Qingwu’s lips before she even spoke. She crawled on her knees across the daybed, moved closer to the window, and pushed it all the way open. Then, she reached out and scooped Yuan Heng inside.
"When did you get here? Why were you so quiet?"
Yuan Heng looked at the arms holding him, and the corners of his eyes couldn’t help but crinkle in a smile.
He feigned calmness and said, "Just now."
After arriving at the Wei residence, Si Hai had gently set him down on the ground. Peeking through the window, he had seen her resting her chin in her hand, lost in thought.
The afterglow of the sunset cast a soft halo on her face, making her seem to shimmer with a golden light.
Yuan Heng had already been watching her from below the window for quite a while.
After lifting him up, Ji Qingwu noticed he was carrying a small bundle on his back. She laughed and said, "You’re welcome anytime. No need to be so formal and bring a gift."
She took the bundle off his back and set it aside, making it easier to hold the little boy in her arms.
Nestled in that soft, fragrant embrace, the light in Yuan Heng’s eyes and the happy curve of his lips could no longer be suppressed.
A rare look of embarrassment, mixed with a hint of chagrin, crossed his little face. "I... I didn’t bring a gift."
Yuan Heng had only remembered to return to Qianyuan Hall to pack a few changes of clothes; he had completely forgotten that one was supposed to bring a gift when visiting.
It wasn’t as if Ji Qingwu actually wanted anything from him. She gently stroked his little head.
"There’s no better gift than having you here." As she spoke, she lowered her head and gently kissed the crown of his hair.
A strange sensation bloomed where her lips had touched his hair, and Yuan Heng’s small body squirmed in her arms.
Ji Qingwu thought he didn’t want her to hold him, that he wasn’t used to such intimacy. Reluctantly, she slowly loosened her embrace.
She asked in a gentle voice, "Are you hungry, Young Master?"
Caught off guard by her letting go, Yuan Heng lowered his head in disappointment. Hearing her call him "Young Master" again made him feel an indescribable sense of awkwardness.
He shook his head. "I’m not hungry."
Ji Qingwu mentally reviewed ways to improve a parent-child bond. "How about we play a game together? Cuju, spinning tops, diabolo, Chuiwan, or maybe pitch-pot?"
Yuan Heng shook his head again. "I don’t want to play."
Ji Qingwu’s eyes darted about. ’He doesn’t want to eat, drink, or play.’ "Then what would you like to do, Young Master? I’ll do anything with you."
Yuan Heng glanced up at her, then quickly lowered his head again. His little hands fidgeted restlessly. He clearly had something he wanted her to do but was too shy to say it out loud.
Ji Qingwu couldn’t guess what was on his mind, so she had to ask.
"As long as you say it, if it’s something I can do, I’ll do it."
’Even if he asked me to climb a mountain of knives or plunge into a sea of fire, I’d do it,’ she vowed to herself.
With his little head still bowed and the tips of his ears turning red, Yuan Heng leaned close to her ear and whispered something.
Ji Qingwu never would have expected such a request.
She couldn’t suppress the smile that bloomed on her face. "Alright, I’ll arrange it right away. But you need to eat something first, or you might get dizzy."
Ji Qingwu called Lan Zhi back in. She wouldn’t be able to handle all the preparations on her own.
When Lan Zhi entered with a tray of food, she saw a little boy as exquisite as carved jade sitting at the table. With a small gasp, she quickened her pace to get a closer look.
But his gaze, sharp and cold, stopped her in her tracks.
Lan Zhi turned to Ji Qingwu instead. "Fifth Missy, whose child is this? Did you bring him home?"
Ji Qingwu placed a bit of each dish onto the plate in front of Yuan Heng.
In a perfectly normal tone, she said, "My son."
Lan Zhi froze, utterly dumbfounded.
Yuan Heng scooted a little closer to Ji Qingwu, pressing his small arm tightly against hers.
It was as if he wanted to prove that her words were true.
Lan Zhi asked in astonishment, "Missy, when did you have a son this old?"
Ji Qingwu put down her chopsticks. "It doesn’t matter whose family he belongs to. Now that he’s in my house, he’s my child."
Lan Zhi’s head was spinning; she couldn’t quite process it. "Oh," she said, "so this is a child you brought home from outside."
But the little boy’s clothes were clearly of high quality; one look was enough to tell he wasn’t from an ordinary family.
Lan Zhi was still curious about the boy’s identity, but Ji Qingwu looked up and said, "Go get the washroom ready first."
She had to fulfill the little one’s wish first.
Once Lan Zhi had prepared everything for the bath, Ji Qingwu gently tapped Yuan Heng’s small shoulder.
"Let’s go."
Ji Qingwu undressed the little boy and placed him in the tub, where the water was the perfect temperature. She then sprinkled a thick layer of flower petals over the surface.
The steam flushed Yuan Heng’s face red, making his eyes seem all the more bright and dewy.
Ji Qingwu took some of Meixiang’s bath powder and began scrubbing his small arm. ’This feels nothing like a soft little girl,’ she noted. ’He’s solid and sturdy.’
Looking at his jade-white skin beneath the bubbles, she lowered her head with a smile and asked, "Why did you want me to give you a bath?"
Through the swirling steam, Yuan Heng remained silent for a moment before he spoke.
"My body, every hair and every piece of skin, I received from my parents."
The words struck Ji Qingwu’s heart like a blow.
Even though her hands were in the warm water, her fingers went stiff, unable to move. The suds on the back of her hand slowly dissolved as the seconds ticked by.
"I just wanted you to see."
Yuan Heng took her hand. "That I’ve grown up very well."
"I’m strong and healthy."
"I’m also first in my class."
"I’m not inferior to any other child."
A drop of water fell into the bath, splashing onto a delicate pink petal. Then another, and another.
Yuan Heng cupped his palm, catching the scalding tear.