Father Pei slowly unfolded the brocade, revealing the cloud and water patterns hidden inside.

"Twenty-three years ago, when I found you in the snow in the North, you were wrapped in this swaddling cloth."

After he finished speaking, Pei Yuan's pupils suddenly shrank! He was petrified on the spot, as if struck by lightning!

Then, Father Pei recalled, "It was fate. Your mother had just given birth at that time, but she couldn't keep the child. When I found you in the snow, the jade pendant in your swaddling clothes still had body temperature.

He smiled bitterly and shook his head, "How can I, an ordinary guard in the palace, be worthy of such a brocade?"

At this time, Pei's mother took over the conversation with tears in her eyes: "After discussing with your father, I asked to see His Majesty at night and told him your identity truthfully. But who knew that when His Majesty saw the swaddling clothes and jade pendant, he sent people to investigate overnight and found out that these items belonged to the Qin royal family.

Pei Yuan, His Majesty ordered the secret guards to investigate for three years, and finally confirmed that you are the orphan of the late crown prince of the Great Qin. You were taken out by a loyal servant during the palace coup, and by some strange coincidence you ended up in the northern border..."

Pei Yuan could no longer hear what Pei's mother said next.

This news was like an arrow piercing his heart. All the blood in his body froze instantly, and his soul seemed to be shaken out of his body.

"Da, Da Qin? The Crown Prince?"

After a while, he finally found his voice, which was extremely hoarse, as if it was squeezed out from deep in his chest.

The Qin Empire was the most powerful of the seven nations today, and the Qin Emperor was extremely warlike and brave, so all the surrounding nations were afraid of its existence.

It was just said that the Qin Emperor was injured in the early years of the war, and the royal family had few descendants. In recent years, there have been fewer wars. However, the internal struggles in the court have gradually become more intense.

Today, Great Chu is adjacent to Chen and Zhao, and is no less than a thousand miles away from Great Qin. Pei Yuan was left behind at the border of Great Chu, and it must have been because the loyal servant could not hold on during the escape.

In a flash, Pei Yuan had figured out the cause and effect in his mind.

No wonder I was chosen by His Majesty and made an exception to enter the palace as a study companion to learn strategies, military tactics, skills, etc.

It turns out that from the very beginning, His Majesty intended to cultivate himself in this way.

But as the son of a guard, he certainly cannot do this with a low status, so His Majesty came up with this idea, letting him be Princess Qingluan's tutor. This can protect his identity from being revealed, and he can also learn knowledge. If he works harder, perhaps he can really be worthy of the princess' status.

"I see." His voice was slightly bitter, and filled with rising excitement. His brows, which had been suppressed and stern for days, also relaxed a little.

With this identity, I can finally reach her...

Seeing this, Mother Pei held his hand worriedly and said, "Your Majesty summoned your father and me to the palace yesterday, saying that he intended to have you and Prime Minister Xie assist the princess together, one in civil affairs and the other in military affairs, to stabilize the country of Great Chu. So your father and I discussed that we should hand over the decision-making power to you.

Don't worry, no matter what you choose, your father and I will support you!"

Mother Pei's eyes were sincere and her tone was earnest.

Over the years, she really took care of Pei Yuan as if he were her own child, never asking anyone else to do anything for her. Whenever Pei Yuan came home, there would always be hot meals and hot water.

In Pei's mother's words, marching and fighting outside is already very tiring, so when you return home, you should naturally relax.

Little did he know how much impact this sentence had on Pei Yuan.

His eyes suddenly opened wide, his pupils contracted, and he felt as if he had been struck by a bolt of lightning.

"Jointly assist?"

He and Xie Yunqi?

"Silly child." Mother Pei said dotingly, "The princess will be the empress in the future, so she can't have only one husband. If you like the princess, you should understand her situation."

"What's more, you and the princess have a childhood sweetheart relationship, which cannot be replaced by anyone."

Pei Yuan's breathing suddenly stopped and his knuckles turned white from being clenched.

Of course he knew that the princess would become the empress of Great Chu and had been trained as the heir by His Majesty since childhood.

Memories of his childhood came flooding back like a tide. He remembered that when he was five years old, the princess stood on tiptoe to put flowers in his hair, mischievously dressing him up as a woman. When he was twelve years old, the princess was assassinated, but at the critical moment of escaping, she held his hand tightly and refused to escape alone. And later, when the princess began to practice martial arts, she asked him to practice with her again and again, and fight against him...

Every moment between him and Chu Qingluan was deeply imprinted in his mind.

He had never thought of having her all to himself!

Seeing that he hadn't spoken for a long time, Father Pei finally sighed and said, "Pei Yuan, if you think it over and want to return to Daqin and restore your identity, your mother and I have no objection, but..."

Father Pei paused, and then said: "Before that, you should go to the palace first, meet His Majesty, and thank him in person!"

…

An hour later, Pei Yuan was already kneeling on the floor tiles of the imperial study.

At this time, the King of Chu raised his head from a pile of memorials and looked at Pei Yuan with some surprise: "What did you say?"

Pei Yuan's back straightened, and his forehead touched the ground again: "Your Majesty, I am willing to protect the mountains and rivers of Da Chu forever in the name of Pei Yuan."

For a moment, the hall was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

The red pen in the Chu Emperor's hand fell on the dragon table with a "click", staining the memorial red.

He narrowed his eyes and reminded: "Pei Yuan, have you thought it through?"

A month ago, the King of Chu received news that the King of Qin was seriously ill, but his two sons were of mediocre talent and were not capable of taking on important tasks. Now he was searching the world for his eldest grandson who had been living among the people, and was willing to offer him ten cities as a gift.

When the King of Chu heard the news, he hesitated for a long time, wondering whether to tell the King of Qin.

But in the end, he realized that he was first the king of the Great Chu and had to put national interests first. Ten cities, plus a huge favor to the Great Qin.

This is the most advantageous option.

Therefore, he had written a secret letter half a month ago and arranged for an envoy to go to Daqin.

Calculating the time, Emperor Qin should have received the news by now.

"Your Majesty, my life was given by Your Majesty and saved by Your Royal Highness the Princess."

Pei Yuan's voice was sonorous and powerful, "My sword will only fight for the Great Chu in this life."

The King of Chu stood up, walked around the dragon table and came to him, and said in a long tone: "Ten cities, and the identity of the future crown prince of the Qin Dynasty, you don't want them?"

The candlelight in the hall flickered, casting a shadow of varying depths on Pei Yuan's resolute face.

He raised his head, his eyes firm: "I have sworn to protect her forever!"

By this point, the King of Chu had understood everything, his fox-like eyes narrowed slightly, and suddenly he clapped his hands and laughed.

"Hahahaha, great! I really didn't misjudge him!"

"But..." He suddenly changed the subject: "Before this, I had already written a letter to your royal grandfather. Calculating the time, he must have already known about it..."

As he said this, he spread his hands helplessly.

Pei Yuan was startled and almost choked on his own saliva——