Even though he had already heard similar words from the general, he still frowned when he heard Qin Rui's account.
"Brother, do you know what I saw when I turned around?"
Qin Rui suddenly looked up at Qin Chu and asked this question out of the blue.
Qin Chu looked down at the child, whose calm expression suddenly shattered. He grabbed Qin Chu's cloak, his voice trembling slightly: "I saw someone lying there, her stomach was ripped open, and blood was everywhere."
"Brother, do you know? I've never met her, but I recognize her scent. She's been so good to me; I know she's the closest person to me! I always fall asleep listening to her heartbeat, I..."
Qin Rui suddenly stopped talking. He looked down at his hands and then, as if afraid of hurting Qin Chu, quickly removed his hands from Qin Chu's body.
After a moment of silence, he said, "She became like this because I came out. I know she's going to die, but..."
The child's face showed an expression of extreme pain; his features were contorted, and his body was curled up in a ball.
But he still spoke in a low, hoarse voice, revealing the cruelest truth: "But... I actually wanted to eat her up, bite by bite."
"alright."
Qin Chu unconsciously tightened his grip on the reins with one hand, while gently patting Qin Rui's back with the other.
The general and the rumors said that Qin Rui was a monster who crawled out of his mother's womb and fed on his mother's flesh and blood.
Qin Chu only regarded this as a rumor imagined by the ancients, but he did not expect that what he heard from the child was almost the same.
Qin Chu instinctively refused to believe it, and instead quickly searched his mind for various kinds of knowledge, trying to explain it to Qin Rui from a relatively scientific perspective.
He said, "Qin Rui, have you ever heard of cesarean section to remove a child?"
To his surprise, the child reacted strongly to his words, retorting, "No! That's not true! Brother, that's not true!"
Qin Rui turned completely to face Qin Chu. He looked up and explained somewhat incoherently, "I remember everything, whether it's the memories from when I was in my mother's womb, or..."
The child's voice suddenly disappeared, and after a long while, it rang out again: "It's the memory of me tearing open her stomach and running out on my own."
"But... Brother, I didn't want to either. I just wanted to go out and play, I didn't expect it to be this serious."
Tears finally welled up in Qin Rui's eyes. He looked up and stared directly into Qin Chu's eyes, as if afraid Qin Chu wouldn't believe him. "I really didn't want to kill her. I... I really like her..."
"I just wanted to go out and see the world, I didn't know it would turn out like this!"
Qin Rui sobbed as she reached for Qin Chu's cloak: "I didn't eat her either. I'm so hungry, but I really didn't mean to hurt her! It was those white worms that ate her... I really didn't!"
A cool night breeze swirled around, carrying with it the frantic cries of a child, like the mournful howl of a wounded, lone wolf on the prairie, gazing at the moon.
This was the original sin he was born with, the bloodshed he carried for his entire life. No matter where he went or what he did, the memories of the past were like a layer of indelible bloodstains, occasionally turning his vision crimson.
But he couldn't get forgiveness and couldn't appeal to anyone.
It was as if God had etched the words "you deserve it" onto him, and no matter how much he struggled, he couldn't escape it.
Qin Rui was almost out of control. He stood up from his horse and hugged Qin Chu tightly, ignoring everything else: "Brother, believe me, I didn't mean it, I really held back! I..."
"Qin Rui, calm down."
Qin Chu's words had no effect whatsoever. The child seemed completely absorbed in his memories, his emotions churning violently. He covered his face, almost screaming, "I didn't mean to kill her!"
Upon hearing such absurd words, Qin Chu himself couldn't process them, let alone comfort the child. Seeing Qin Rui becoming increasingly agitated, Qin Chu could only reach out and pinch the back of his neck.
The child, who had been struggling in pain, quieted down and nestled softly in Qin Chu's arms.
Qin Chu held him, mounted on his horse, and stood still.
Before knowing about this, Qin Chu did not take Qin Rui's concealment seriously.
He sometimes thought that children's world is too small, and they might worry about even the smallest things. Until he asked about it just now, Qin Chu thought it wasn't a big deal, at least he could sort it out and resolve it from an adult's perspective no matter what.
But now, Qin Chu finds himself unable to do anything except hold the unconscious Qin Rui.
Qin Rui's pain stemmed not only from his birth but also from his love for the mother who gave birth to him.
Because he has memories, he remembers the comfort of being in his mother's womb, as well as his mother's voice and caresses. He even deeply feels a natural closeness to his mother.
Unfortunately, it is precisely because he remembers everything that he can never forgive.
His mother has also passed away, so the only person who had the right to forgive him has disappeared.
He will have to carry this strange and tragic background with him for the rest of his life.
Qin Chu, however, could find no words of comfort for him.
Noah, who had been listening in his mind the whole time, was stunned.
As a meticulous AI, it subconsciously began searching for loopholes: "That shouldn't be the case. Humans can't retain memories from inside the womb; at most, they can only affect the subconscious. And how could a fetus inside the womb have the ability to tear through the uterus and abdominal muscles?"
Noah asked many questions, but Qin Chu didn't respond to a single one, nor did he discuss them with him.
He stood there stunned for a while before continuing to ride his horse forward.
After a long silence, Noah heard Qin Chu ask a question: "Noah, is it possible that the data from these virtual mini-worlds is connected to reality?"
“Theoretically, it’s possible.” Noah was still puzzled. “Sir, you said you were very familiar with Qin Rui, so I searched the database, but there are no similar events or legends in the real world.”
Qin Chu did not answer him.
The next day, in the morning.
Bright sunlight streamed into the thatched cottage through the cracks in the roof. It was springtime, but the border region was still bitterly cold, yet the chirping of birds could be heard intermittently.
Qin Rui slowly opened his eyes, the whites of his eyes still showing some lingering redness.
He rubbed his eyes but didn't get up immediately.
Beneath him lay warm hay, and on his body was the cloak from the Qin-Chu armor.
The house was very simple and didn't look like anyone lived there; it was probably an abandoned house by famine-stricken villagers from the surrounding area.
Qin Chu was not inside the house.
Normally, given Qin Rui's sensitive and obsessive personality, he would already be suspecting that Qin Chu had abandoned him.
But he was too tired. It was as if he had suddenly unloaded a heavy burden he had been carrying. He was in a state of relaxation after extreme excitement, and he had no energy left, neither physically nor mentally.
After a moment, the door of the thatched hut was pushed open, and Qin Chu entered.
He took off his cold, hard armor, leaving him in only cloth, and the intimidating sharpness of his armor was considerably diminished.
Seeing that Qin Rui was awake, he went over and asked, "Are you hungry?"
Qin Rui nodded slightly, his gaze following Qin Chu as he watched him walk outside, bring him some wild fruit, and then bring him a roasted rabbit.
"I was in a hurry when I came out and didn't bring a water bottle, so I ate some fruit to tide me over."
After Qin Chu finished speaking, he sat down on the haystack. Seeing that Qin Rui didn't move, he added, "I've already eaten."
This sentence reminded Qin Rui of the time when the two of them would politely offer each other food.
Qin Rui finished his breakfast in silence.
He thought that Qin Chu would say something today after hearing what he said last night.
But Qin Chu didn't seem to want to talk about it. After watching him finish breakfast, he went outside to feed the horses, then counted the bows and arrows and cleaned his sword.
This is something Qin Chu usually does. He is very meticulous about weapons and checks the wear and tear on his sword after every fight.
Qin Rui got up and quietly watched Qin Chu do these things. Around noon, Qin Chu asked him if he had rested enough, and then took him back to Cangqingzhou.
Originally, Qin Chu did not intend to return, but Qin Rui killed Ti Rong, which should have been considered a first-class military achievement.
So Qin Chu came up with a solution.
He did not conceal his tracks, but instead walked into the general's courtyard as usual, taking Qin Rui with him to see the general.
Facing this elderly but shrewd man, Qin Chu showed him Ti Rong's token and said, "Ti Rong is dead, and the Xiongnu army is in disarray. Now is a good time to attack."
The general looked at Qin Rui, then at Qin Chu, with some suspicion.
The room where Qin Rui was being held was broken into, and Qin Chu fled the city that very night. Although the soldiers guarding the city gate said they hadn't seen Qin Chu with anyone else, those who were interested all assumed that Qin Chu had escaped with Qin Rui.
"You've brought the eldest prince back again..." The general looked at the blood-stained token of the Xiongnu general and was unsure of Qin Chu's thoughts.
"The Xiongnu wanted to kidnap the eldest prince, but the general devised a plan. He found Qin Rui to impersonate the eldest prince and lure the Xiongnu to kidnap him. He also laid an ambush outside the city to kill the Xiongnu general, Ti Rong."
Qin Chu said coldly, "Now that Ti Rong is dead, our plan has been a great success."
The general immediately understood Qin Chu's purpose: to obscure the events of the past few days as a deliberately designed scheme. However, he still looked at Qin Rui with some hesitation.
Qin Chu reached out and called Qin Rui to his side, then showed the general the scar on Qin Rui's palm.
He said, "You said before that the court knows that the Crown Prince is in Cangqing Prefecture, and if he is not careful, he may be punished, and all the soldiers on the border will be implicated."
"Now you can see that the Crown Prince's birthmark is gone, so the marriage alliance is not an option. Even if you send the Crown Prince back, the court will still punish you if they find out that the Crown Prince's birthmark was removed in Cangqing Prefecture. It would be better to just keep the news to yourself."
After saying this, Qin Chu released Qin Rui's hand, tapped the token on the table with his long fingers, and threw out his last bargaining chip: "I will fight the Xiongnu. At most, I will repel the invading soldiers in two years. You can decide for yourselves whether to negotiate peace or continue fighting."
"If we have to fight again, I'll give them five years and completely subdue them."
This is an arrogant statement from anyone.
Once war breaks out, there is absolutely no hope of victory without at least ten years of fighting. Not to mention that the Xiongnu were a particularly warlike race.
But Qin Chu's military achievements speak for themselves; while others might not believe what he said, his words carried weight.
Qin Rui didn't look at the general who was deep in thought, but instead raised his head and focused on the cold and handsome young man with ink-black hair beside him.
He heard Qin Chu's cold yet reassuring voice: "You can assign the military merits to whomever you want. I have only one request: keep Qin Rui's identity a secret and let Qin Rui follow me."
Author's Note:
Two slices have fallen, now besides Qin Rui, there's still the main boss.
Can you guess who it is? Here's a hint: the big boss has a dual identity.
Chapter 75, Fourth Story (21)
Qin Rui felt that he would never forget those words and the way Qin Chu looked when he said them.
He will remember it until the end of his life.
The general accepted Qin Chu's proposal, and Qin Rui's arrest was explained in a different way within the military camp.
Qin Chu took Qin Rui back to their previous residence.
Those things seemed to have never happened, and those words seemed to have never been spoken to Qin Chu. They went back to their old lives.