Mountain and River Chess

Lu Yunchu wanted to comfort him, but it was best not to discuss other people's family matters, so she just lowered her head and pretended to wipe away her tears.

Fortunately, Chu Chengchao didn't wait for her answer and continued, "I have no idea what kind of person my father was... When we were little, he liked to tease us by wrapping dried fish in thread, but other than that, I have no memory of him at all... My mother also passed away early, and when she left, she was still thinking about the little pony her family in the southwest was raising..."

Lu Yunchu listened quietly, remaining silent. Back at the manor, it was still early. Chu Chengchao dismissed the servants, pulled her to sit on a stone bench in the courtyard, and leaned closer, asking mysteriously, "Were you interested in the story about your aunt that I told you this morning?"

Lu Yunchu nodded, but not out of curiosity; she was afraid of touching on these royal taboos. Chu Chengchao lowered his voice: "Aunt Ye is Father's cousin and also my mother's confidante. Your father and she were childhood sweethearts. He agreed to marry her, but actually, he wanted to use her as a stepping stone to meet the princess, your mother, my aunt. Our ancestor ostensibly sent the princess to the northern desert for a marriage alliance, but in reality, he used the princess's death to ignite war. He couldn't bear to part with his own daughter, so he searched among the imperial clan. Your father deliberately hinted to your mother that she might be chosen, and also recommended Aunt Ye..."

He sighed, his voice even lower: "The King of the Northern Desert was betrayed by his younger brother, who conspired with the late emperor to lure him to the capital for his wedding, intending to kill him then. For some reason, Aunt Ye killed the King of the Northern Desert first, then shot and killed the late emperor… Father, taking advantage of the chaos, killed almost all his brothers and ascended the throne… It's said that Aunt Ye did this to help Father ascend the throne. Father and his sisters are not on good terms, but he's close to Aunt Ye. Aunt Ye used to love porcelain dolls, and Father still makes them to this day…"

So that's how it is... Lu Yunchu didn't know what to say, she just felt that her name was absurd.

Seeing her silence, Chu Chengchao assumed she was heartbroken and quickly comforted her, "A name doesn't matter. You can change it if you want. Besides, Aunt Ye is so kind and intelligent; she will surely protect you!"

Chu Chengchao took her hand and his bright smile returned: "There's a lantern festival tonight, I'll take you around, so you won't always look so old-fashioned!"

Lu Yunchu wasn't very interested. She kept thinking about Ye Jiyun's story, feeling that something was illogical, but she couldn't figure it out for the time being.

This was her first time going out to visit a lantern festival. Before, she was confined to her house, and now everything was new and exciting to her.

As dusk settled, the long street teemed with people, and colorful lanterns illuminated the night sky as bright as day. She stared intently at everything before her, afraid it was all a dream, but even in her dreams, she had never seen such a lively scene.

Unlike her, Chu Chengchao excitedly wandered around, sometimes watching the acrobatics, sometimes buying sugar figurines to share with everyone. Lu Yunchu stared at the lifelike faces of the sugar figurines, hesitating to take a bite for a long time, until someone finally pushed her away.

Chu Chengchao always walked on her outside, naturally pulling her along. Lu Yunchu stiffly let him pull her along, like a puppet. She was afraid that he would be as unpredictable as her father and suddenly scold her for not following the rules. Fortunately, he kept smiling.

He was like a child, pointing out everything interesting to her. At a mask stall, he picked up a grotesque mask with green faces and fangs, put it on his own face, and suddenly turned around to scare her. Lu Yunchu found it boring, but still pretended to take a step back. Seeing this, he sheepishly took it off, muttering, "Little sister, you're really brave," before becoming engrossed in the pitch-pot game nearby, but couldn't get the ball in no matter what he tried.

As they walked, they arrived at the riverbank. The water was dotted with lanterns, their flickering candlelight drifting into the distance. Chu Chengchao handed her one: "Make a wish! I've heard they're very effective!" He grinned, the candlelight reflecting in his eyes, sparkling brightly.

Lu Yunchu clasped her hands together and whispered, "May my sister be safe and sound."

She opened her eyes and watched the river lanterns sway and drift away on the waves, hoping only that her sister's wish would come true.

Chu Chengchao also made a wish: "May the border war go smoothly and may the war end soon..."

Lu Yunchu never expected that someone who seemed so unreliable would make such a wish, but when she turned her head again, he had already stood up and was skipping and hopping forward.

Suddenly, he stopped and rushed toward the two figures.

"Little brother! What a coincidence!"

It's the Crown Prince and his sister, what a coincidence!

Chu Chengchao tried to pull the Crown Prince along, but the Crown Prince only gave casual answers. His sister held his hand tightly while protecting her belly, as if afraid of being bumped into.

The group reached a stone bridge, where the flow of people slowed down. Chu Chengchao instructed the Crown Prince to help his sister walk this way to avoid being bumped into. But just then, a flash of cold light appeared, and a dagger came hurtling towards the Crown Prince.

Chu Chengchao instinctively pushed Lu Yunchu and Lu Yuezhao aside, slammed his shoulder into the Crown Prince, raised his arm to block, and blood gushed out instantly, blending into his red outer robe.

"Assassin! Protect the Crown Prince!" the Crown Prince's personal guard shouted sharply. The Crown Prince also hurriedly sought a doctor to treat his wounds. He tore off the hem of his robe and first bandaged Chu Chengchao to stop the bleeding, his expression complex: "Brother, I've dragged you into this again..."

Chu Chengchao let him do as he pleased, still speaking in that nonchalant tone: "How could that be! You're my brother, of course I have to protect you!"

Lu Yunchu observed the relationship between the two, but something felt off. She'd heard the eldest prince's facial injury was sustained protecting the crown prince; he was kind, which was understandable, but he seemed too kind to the crown prince. She hadn't heard of him treating his other brothers the same way, though their relationships were mostly superficial…

She recalled the rumor that the eldest prince and the crown prince were the emperor's older brother's children, and that the emperor, being infertile, had taken his brother's twins...

She returned to the manor with these thoughts in mind. Chu Chengchao was surrounded and treated for his wounds. He would occasionally joke with the Crown Prince, but the Crown Prince was particularly concerned and kept saying that he would not let those assassins go.

Chu Chengchao told the Crown Prince to rest early and sent him away. Once the Crown Prince was gone, he seemed to have a heavy burden lifted from his shoulders, letting out a long sigh: "Chengming always thinks too much; just watching him makes me tired..."

Lu Yunchu wanted to show him concern, but didn't know how. She was still afraid of him, unsure if there were any hidden schemes beneath his cheerful facade. She simply helped him to the bed. Chu Chengchao seemed to want to say something, but ultimately just sighed helplessly, "You're just like Chengming! Cheer up, it's alright!"

Lu Yunchu nodded and ran away. She felt an inexplicable sense of oppression. It wasn't that Chu Chengchao was bad; he was too good, so good that it was almost unsettling.

Jiang Liu told her to pay more attention to others and not to keep her mouth shut all the time, looking like a wooden stake standing there.

The next day, she went to Chu Chengchao to inquire about his injuries, only to find he was already away handling business. She lowered her head, realizing she had made another mistake. She was neither interested in nor good at these household matters, and truly didn't know how to amuse them.

Jiang Liu said that Chu Chengchao was easy to talk to and would say anything, but Lu Yunchu just didn't want to speak; she felt too tired.

She fled to her aunt to pay her respects. Although her aunt always frightened her, she was still more normal than the unusually lively eldest prince. At least her aunt's sinister nature was written all over her face.

Her aunt still looked gloomy. She asked a few questions about Chu Chengchao's injuries and told her to take good care of him and not to lose face as a member of the royal family.

Just then, a burst of laughter rang out, the sound like ripples on water.

She turned her head and saw a woman dressed in a light blue palace dress walk in. Before she spoke, she smiled and gently put her arm around Lu Yunchu's shoulder: "Junhe, don't frighten the child. He was frightened last night. Yunchu, don't worry, Chengchao is a good child, there's nothing to be afraid of."

The person in front of me is Xiao Qiuhe, the shameless Consort Xiao that my aunt mentioned.

Lu Yunchu was usually too shy to stare at people, but when she saw Consort Xiao, she was stunned.

The woman before her was as gentle as water, her gaze as soft as a gentle breeze and drizzle, rippling across the lake of one's heart. She had never met such a gentle person, like jade, without a single sharp edge.

She was stunned. Her aunt pulled Xiao Fei aside with a look of disdain and casually said, "My niece is naive and has never seen the world. Don't take it to heart, sister."

Consort Xiao gently took Lu Yunchu's hand, her smile still gentle: "Yunchu is clearly a good child, I like him very much."

Her words were so direct that Lu Yunchu felt a little embarrassed, but just one glance made her feel that the woman in front of her was so kind.

Consort Xiao shifted her gaze and began playing chess with her aunt. This chess game looked quite unusual; it seemed to be a game simulating warfare, known as the Mountain and River Chess.

While playing chess, Consort Xiao explained the rules to Lu Yunchu. Her aunt's moves were sharp and aggressive, carrying a murderous aura, while Consort Xiao appeared to be playing it safe, but her position was pressing forward step by step.

In the final step, Consort Xiao was about to win, but she deliberately made a wrong move, and her aunt bet without hesitation.

Consort Xiao's smile remained gentle, like a spring breeze: "Yun Chu, isn't this chess game interesting? Let's play together next time we have time!"

Lu Yunchu nodded, watching her pale fingertips brush across the chessboard.

No sooner had Consort Xiao left than the Empress began her tirade: "A vixen! A complete vixen! She's sucked you all away! Don't be fooled by her; her favor with the Emperor has remained undiminished for years, how many tricks must she have up her sleeve..."

What her aunt said might make sense, but her mean face was disgusting no matter how you looked at it. At least, Lu Yun Chu didn't believe that Consort Xiao would use such words to describe another woman.

The aunt started rambling on about how absurd Consort Xiao was, asking the emperor to take her along when he chose other men to serve him, saying she couldn't live without him, and the emperor actually agreed. A few days ago, when she went to see Consort Xiao, Consort Xiao actually came along, and the two of them were inseparable right in front of her. When she tried to dissuade her, the emperor scolded her.

Lu Yunchu listened quietly, unable to connect these harsh words with the woman she had seen before. She could only secretly think that the emperor was becoming more and more tyrannical as he got older, humiliating his concubines like this. Instead of pointing out his faults, her aunt was not letting Consort Xiao off the hook.

If you truly dislike someone, why bother playing chess, especially a game of chess with mountains and rivers...?