If Qin Rui wants that position, Qin Chu will help him get it, so that he can leave with peace of mind...
Thinking about leaving the world, Qin Chu lowered his eyes and raised his hand to pat Qin Rui's head as usual: "Okay, I'll stay at the border from now on and wait for you to help me."
Upon hearing this, Qin Rui, who had been looking up expectantly for praise, paused for a moment before realizing something he had been overlooking: "Brother, are you going to stay at the border? Will you stay there forever?"
"Otherwise what?"
That's bad, Qin Rui thought.
How will he be able to stay with his brother in the future?
Are we going to move the capital there?
Upon hearing this question, Qin Rui lost all interest in anything else. Nestled in Qin Chu's arms, he could only hum, "Then I'll just be a general from now on."
Qin Chu couldn't help but laugh: "Whatever you say."
Qin Rui was finally satisfied.
He leaned on Qin Chu's shoulder and hugged him for a while. Perhaps it reminded him of his childhood, or perhaps the position was too reassuring, but he couldn't help but yawn.
Qin Chu glanced at him: "If you want to sleep, go sleep in the car."
"No, I won't be able to sleep if I go down there." Qin Rui buried his head in Qin Chu's arms, and then simply pulled Qin Chu's cloak over his head.
As Qin Rui gets older, sleep is no longer an obstacle.
However, this kid is still a bit different from others. He is more likely to feel sleepy during the day than at night, especially when the sun is at its strongest at noon.
Qin Chu first discovered that Qin Rui could fall asleep at noon one day. He was setting up a sand table when he turned around and saw the kid sitting to the side, almost snoring away.
Qin Chu was astonished. Qin Rui's insomnia had always been a worry for Qin Chu. Now that he could sleep, Qin Chu didn't care whether it was day or night; he let him sleep whenever he wanted.
At first, it seemed like he was trying to make up for what he had missed. Qin Rui would fall asleep on the way to the kitchen at noon, and he could sleep soundly in any shady spot during the day.
They don't need much sleep at night, but they can still sleep just like a normal person.
He gradually caught up and adjusted his sleep schedule to be the same as Qin Chu's. However, without proper control, he was still energetic at night and sleepy during the day.
At the time, Qin Chu was worried that this might be an illness, so he had Noah test him.
Noah couldn't figure out what was wrong either, and just muttered something strange, saying that the habits were so similar to some of the Night Planet Beasts.
In short, Qin Chu had always been lenient with Qin Rui regarding sleep, and didn't say anything at this moment.
Qin Rui buried his head inside Qin Chu's cloak and took a short nap with his eyes closed.
But since he was on the road and still thinking about the question he had just asked, and there were so many people around, he didn't fall into a deep sleep and remained in a semi-conscious state.
Moreover, Qin Rui also discovered that Qin Chu's embrace no longer allowed him to fall asleep as it usually did.
It's not that I feel uneasy, but there's always something...
Just like now, he leaned against Qin Chu's neck, his nose filled with Qin Chu's unique, cool scent.
The smell was the same as the one he had smelled when he was a child. Upon contact, he couldn't help but feel happy and safe, which then made him a little drowsy.
But it's a little different, it seems... a bit more fragrant?
It seems to taste a little sweet?
Qin Rui's Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily.
Then, as if to verify, he subconsciously moved closer to the area with the stronger smell.
His cloak covered his head, and his eyes were closed, so he couldn't see anything. By the time he realized something was wrong, his nose was already brushing against Qin Chu's neck.
Chapter 78, Fourth Story (24)
This big guy was rubbing against her and wouldn't stay still, and Qin Chu was already getting impatient. Now, feeling a chill on her neck, she simply reached out and lifted her cloak: "Are you going to sleep or not? If you're not going to sleep, then go on."
As soon as he realized he had touched Qin Chu, Qin Rui recoiled as if he had been electrocuted.
He looked as if he had done something wrong, and was unusually a little embarrassed.
"It's too noisy, I can't sleep," he said.
But Qin Rui didn't want to go down. He leaned towards Qin Chu again, this time carefully placing his chin on the armor on Qin Chu's shoulder, and whispered, "I'll try again, just in case I can fall asleep."
Qin Chu snorted, but ultimately didn't finish the job.
Qin Rui curled the corners of his lips into a smile.
After spending several years together, he had a very clear understanding of Qin Chu's personality.
His brother may seem cold and aloof, but he's actually quite easy to talk to. If he really wanted to kick him out, he would have done so long ago. Using words to drive him away means there's still some room for him to struggle.
He sat on the horse, leaning against Qin Chu's shoulder.
Although the scenery was different, Qin Rui recalled the night he first felt happiness.
He turned his head to look at Qin Chu, intending to say something to him, but when he lowered his gaze, he saw a small, hideous scar through the gap in Qin Chu's collar.
Qin Rui was taken aback, and the warm feeling of happiness that had been emanating from him faded slightly.
This place was originally the birthmark of Qin and Chu.
He had seen it once when he was a child; it was a bright red patch, standing out vividly against extremely fair skin.
That was the first and only time Qin Rui saw Qin Chu's birthmark.
It happened in a split second, and then the spot where the birthmark had been turned into a bloody wound. Later, the wound healed, but it became a hideous scar, creeping along the junction of Qin Chu's neck and shoulder.
Qin Rui also burned off his birthmark, but as he grew up, the scar appeared smaller and smaller.
Unlike the Qin and Chu, they were always so terrifying.
After staring at the scar for a while, Qin Rui couldn't help but reach out and pull Qin Chu's collar down slightly so that he could see the scar more clearly.
This wasn't the first time Qin Rui had stared at this scar in a daze.
When he was a child, he had the opportunity to bathe with Qin Chu. Every time he saw it, he would carefully ask Qin Chu if it still hurt.
When I can't sleep at night, I'll sneak over and take a look.
At that time, Qin Rui didn't fully understand what it meant for Qin Chu to remove his birthmark. He just thought the wound was too big and must hurt a lot. He had also heard that many people's wounds never fully healed, and would become painful and itchy again on cloudy or rainy days.
So he kept an eye on it.
Later, when he grew up, Qin Chu didn't like others helping him scrub his back when he took a bath, so they would usually kick him out.
Only when he went to add hot water could he sneak a peek at Qin Chu's scar through the hazy steam. Another time was when he was tying Qin Chu's hair, but it was always half-hidden by his collar, so he couldn't see it clearly.
Qin Rui was very concerned about Qin Chu's birthmark.
He also had his birthmark burned off, but he did it voluntarily. Qin Chu, however, was not; Qin Chu was implicated because of him.
If he hadn't revealed his birthmark at the inn and kept it a secret from Qin Chu, Qin Chu wouldn't have been arrested in his place. If Qin Chu hadn't been arrested, she wouldn't have met Prime Minister Lin.
Ultimately... I won't be forced to remove the birthmark.
This has always been a source of anxiety for Qin Rui.
If it weren't for him, Qin Chu would have been a boy.
When he was a child, Qin Rui was somewhat relieved that Qin Chu was not a boy. Otherwise, Qin Chu would have had a very difficult time in the military camp, and might have even married someone else, which he disliked very much.
But as he grew up, Qin Rui couldn't help but consider things from Qin Chu's perspective.
Qin Rui himself had no good impression of the young master's life, but he thought it would be different if it were Qin Chu.
His brother is so good; he deserves to be treated with the utmost care and luxury. Wherever he is, he should enjoy the finest service and be the most precious person.
Qin Chu had said he didn't care, and Qin Rui hadn't used his own ideas to define Qin Chu's gender and life.
but……
He deprived Qin Chu of the right to choose.
Riding on the horse, swaying back and forth, Qin Rui's gaze remained fixed on the scar on the back of Qin Chu's neck.
Perhaps he was a little sleepy, or perhaps the sun was making him a bit drowsy, but a daring idea suddenly popped into Qin Rui's mind.
The moment this thought crossed Qin Rui's mind, his heart pounded in his chest, and his entire body tensed up.
Saying I was nervous might not be enough; besides nervousness, there seemed to be an uncontrollable excitement and exhilaration as well.
He was even a little flustered, his gaze fixed on Qin Chu's neck. He swallowed hard before asking indirectly, "Brother, we...we're not actually brothers, are we?"
"Huh? Why are you bringing this up?"
Qin Chu was somewhat puzzled. He thought for a while and assumed that the child was afraid again upon hearing that they had to return to the capital. Perhaps his next question would be whether the child would abandon him.
But Qin Chu was wrong.
That was just Qin Rui's reaction when he was ten years old.
The nearly sixteen-year-old boy felt a surge of tension and couldn't help but clench his fists, his palms covered in sticky sweat.
He seemed unsure how to speak, stammering for a long while before finally managing to utter a tentative phrase: "Brother, if... I mean, if you still want to be a boy..."
At this point, Qin Rui became even more nervous, his heart pounding like a drum, his voice so loud that he was afraid Qin Chu would hear him.
After much hesitation, he finally whispered the audacious question: "Then... how about I marry you?"
The voice was low and deep, and it rang in Qin Chu's ears.
Almost at the same moment, the scouts ran over to report the situation to Qin Chu.
The soldier's voice was loud, but Qin Rui spoke so nervously that his voice was barely audible, completely drowned out by the soldier's report, leaving only a rapid pounding of his heart.
After listening to the report, Qin Chu turned to look at him: "What were you talking about just now? You regretted getting the birthmark burned and now you want to be a boy again?"
The momentary unease dissipated with the words, and Qin Rui had already returned to his cheerful demeanor.
He didn't repeat what he had just said, but instead laughed self-deprecatingly: "No, I was just half asleep and mumbled something in my sleep, and you actually heard me, brother."
He didn't dare linger on Qin Chu's horse, and quickly jumped off, distancing himself from Qin Chu and falling to the back of the pack.
As the soldiers marched past in columns, Qin Rui, after confirming that Qin Chu was too far away to notice, raised his hand and slapped himself.
"What nonsense are you spouting? Have you no shame?"
After scolding and beating himself, Qin Rui composed himself and walked forward as if nothing had happened.