Chapter 108: She’s the Only One Alive

Chapter 108: She's the Only One Alive

"I don't want to either."

"Shu Yuan, you have no conscience."

"Yeah, I don't have any conscience."

"However, I do miss Father a little."

"I don't."

"You're being stubborn!"

"I'm just firm-hearted!"

The wind sneaking through the cracks in the doors and windows was cold, bitterly cold.

Shu Yuan couldn't help but tug at the quilt; it was so cold that it cleared his mind.

The memories he had deliberately blurred seemed to come into focus again.

"Xiao Heng, I'm deeply guilty about your mother's death."

"I never expected it, really didn't."

Shu Yuan's voice trembled, and he let out a breath. "It's really cold."

Xie Huaiqian stayed silent, lying on his side.

The tree shadows fell across the doors and windows, dark and jagged, as if they were poised to break in and swallow the two lost in their thoughts.

So much time passed that Shu Yuan thought Xie Huaiqian had fallen asleep.

"Actually, I can't really remember Mother's face."

When the Empress Dowager took her own life, he was still in infancy. Later, he was brought up by the Grand Empress Dowager.

All he knew was that, according to everyone, it was the shameless, self-despising Shu Yuan who drove the empress to her death.

"I remember," Shu Yuan's voice was like snow melting in water, light and ephemeral, "she was a very gentle person."

Xie Huaiqian sneered. "You pushed her to her death."

With that, Xie Huaiqian shifted closer to the edge of the bed.

Shu Yuan was the one who took his father from him and drove his mother to her death.

In the dead of night, there seemed to be faint sounds of sobbing.

In winter, the sky brightens very late.

The sun rose slowly, stingily casting its light. Lu Mingchao, used to sleeping in, lingered in bed a little longer.

Lu Mingchao put on her padded jacket, pushed the door open, and stepped out.

In a spot where the sunlight reached and the wind was blocked, Xie Yan was crafting a bow. Shu Yuan's eyes sparkled with curiosity as he watched Xie Jingyi brush her teeth under the eaves, her cheeks soft and rosy.

You'd never guess that Shu Yuan was almost thirty.

"Morning, Yan."

"Morning, Shu Yuan."

Shu Yuan was surprised and looked at Lu Mingchao with suspicion.

In Shu Yuan's mind, Lu Mingchao was moody and ruthless.

"The most valuable thing on me is that token, nothing else!"

Lu Mingchao's mouth twitched slightly. "You're thinking too much."

"I just wanted to ask what you like to eat, and plan to give you an extra meal."

"A last supper?" Shu Yuan blurted out.

Lu Mingchao helplessly pinched the bridge of her nose. "It could be your last supper."

"I just really don't like tofu!" Shu Yuan said loudly, glancing at Jingyi, who was brushing her teeth.

Lu Mingchao got it. "Do you have a favorite flavor?"

"Does tea scent count?"

"Yeah!"

Lu Mingchao pulled out a tube of Longjing tea toothpaste from the spatial storage and handed it to him. "Everyone in the family gets one, so you should have one too."

"It's your job to teach Uncle how to brush his teeth."

Jingyi spat out the mouthwash, gave a bright smile, and patted her full belly. "I promise I'll get the job done, just like Mom told me."

Lu Mingchao laughed. "Jingyi, you're supposed to pat your chest, not your belly."

"But my belly feels good, and Sanbao likes it." Jingyi tilted her head and said softly.

"Family?" Shu Yuan whispered to himself.

Xie Yan and Lu Mingchao both said at once, "What else would it be?"

Shu Yuan was all alone.

He hadn't had a family for a long, long time.

His name was removed from the Shu family records, Baopu Academy kicked him out, he couldn't stand the eunuchs, and wasn't accepted by scholars.

On top of that, Shu Yuan was written down in the Daqian history books as a dead man, one who died for the former emperor.

Lu Mingchao tutted. In this big house, it seemed like she was the only one really alive.

What a nightmare.

Shu Yuan's eyes cautiously fell on Xie Huaiqian.

Xie Huaiqian looked up. "Without your token, where can you go?"

Shu Yuan looked somewhat odd from excessive surprise. "You're actually willing to let me stay?"

Xie Huaiqian said, "Consider it a companion for nighttime thoughts."

"But you have to listen to your parents and do as they say."

Shu Yuan: ……

Not thinking about it! Not thinking!

"Shu Yuan, would you consider changing your appearance?" Xie Yan blew on the wood shavings in his hand and looked up at Shu Yuan.

Shu Yuan took the toothpaste, frowning. "Skin peeling and bone shaving?"

During his youthful travels, he’d obviously heard of methods that could drastically alter one's appearance.

Xie Yan continued to polish his longbow. "How about we start with a new name?"

"The name Shu Yuan is really notorious."

"Since you're my older brother who's come all this way to seek refuge with me, you might as well take the Xie surname like mine."

After all, aside from his grandfather who was exiled to the northern frontier, he was the most senior.

Emotions flitted across Shu Yuan's eyes. "I'll take the character 'Sui'."

"Xie Sui."

Lu Mingchao raised an eyebrow. "Going with your heart?"

"Or going with the flow?"

Shu Yuan smiled. "Either way."

"That's also freedom." Lu Mingchao added meaningfully.

Shu Yuan looked up at the sun hanging high in the sky, its brightness making him want to cry again.

Presumably, Xie Yan had already filled Lu Mingchao in on his entanglement with the former emperor. Lu Mingchao's first reaction wasn't disgust but acceptance and compassion.

This young woman really saw things clearly and accurately.

"What about my face?"

"Better safe than sorry."

Lu Mingchao waved it off. "I don't have the legendary art of disguise, but I do know a makeup technique that's basically a head-changer."

"You can choose whether you want to look more ordinary or more striking."

"Complexion, eyebrow thickness, eye size, nose shape, cheekbone height—all can be altered."

"I guarantee you'll look like a completely different person before and after the makeup."

"If you're up for it, I can teach you."

"You can practice on my face or Xie Yan's. You've got a knack for this, so you should pick it up quickly."

Shu Yuan's heart raced with excitement. "Yes, I want to learn!"

Perhaps after learning, Xie Sui could truly walk with his head held high in the world.

A completely new and independent person.

Even if just an ordinary person.

Lu Mingchao smiled. "I forgot to tell you, becoming Xie Sui probably means no peaceful life ahead."

Lu Mingchao gave Shu Yuan a quick rundown of what had been happening lately.

The main thing was that people from the capital were on their way.

Shu Yuan said, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

Lu Mingchao asked, "What if you can't stop it or handle it?"

"Either we stop the problem temporarily by dealing with the incoming people, or we address the root of the issue. We make the Duke's family and Yongning Marquis family too preoccupied to bother us."

"The deep mountain behind Changxi Village is really handy."

Lu Mingchao gave a thumbs up with a smirk. "You just keep blowing my mind."

"When I first saw you in the mountain yesterday, I thought you were some clueless idiot."

"Once I learned about your past, I thought you were just some love-struck idiot and a do-gooder."

"Now?" Shu Yuan asked, totally unfazed.

Lu Mingchao said, "A total badass."

"If you went into politics, you'd definitely make it to the top."

"But your life took a wrong turn, and now you're stuck in some unavoidable mess."

Shu Yuan said with a sour expression, "Gu Huai and Xie Yan aren't exactly softies either, are they?"

"Sun Bantian is about to fall apart at the seams."

"Do you really want to make things harder for Gu Huai?"

Lu Mingchao gave Shu Yuan a sharp look. "Why bring up something that's clearly an issue? Is it really okay for a thirty-year-old to be so chatty?"

"Nine-Nine Cold-Dispelling Chart."