Chapter 46: Ties

"As a commander of the Shen Ce Army, I am trusted by my superiors, supported by my men, and serve as the liaison for the Shuofang Army. Please tell me, my Lady, why did the court transfer me to the Changhua Palace to serve as a military commander?"

"Isn't this a good thing?" The conflict that was supposed to come finally came. Qian Deng was already prepared. "From the sixth-rank Si rank to the fifth-rank Dianjun, congratulations to Ling Dianjun on your promotion."

Ling Tianshui raised his eyebrows, his voice stern, "Since that's the case, it seems I have no choice but to go to the Ministry of War and ask for the revocation of this transfer."

"And then? You will continue to stay in the Northern Court's Imperial Guard until your identity is exposed, and you will be punished by military law and severely punished?"

Ling Tianshui was stunned for a moment, and stopped walking away, turning back to look at her.

Qian Deng stared at him intently under the emerald shadows of the trees, her voice low and clear, "Why else do you think I would go to the Meng family? Why would I seek justice for Madam Meng? Is it just because she's your benefactor?"

Ling Tianshui opened his lips, but only uttered three words: "Why?"

"Because you are not Ling Tianshui, nor are you Ji Linyou's cousin. You came to Chang'an, to my house, because of Meng Lanxi—your half-brother, right?"

Ling Tianshui's eyelashes trembled slightly, his jawline tensed, and he said nothing.

Qian Deng's voice was even lower than before: "Madam Meng is your biological mother, but you were born in the northwest, and she returned to the Central Plains, so the two of you have never recognized each other."

The secret buried deep in his heart was suddenly revealed. He hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not deny it: "When did you know?"

"I've always had this feeling, but I wasn't sure until recently." Qian Deng said, raising her hands to gently touch both sides of his cheeks and asking softly, "Can you smile?"

Ling Tianshui didn't understand what she meant, and at this moment he had no mood to laugh. He just pursed his lips and said nothing.

However, because of this helpless expression, traces of dimples appeared on his cheeks, weakening most of his overall aura.

No wonder he never smiled in front of others. After all, with such gentle and charming cheeks, how could he intimidate the soldiers he led?

Qian Deng looked at the fleeting dimples and suddenly thought of Madam Meng.

Although they had only met once, and although Mrs. Meng had a sad face that night, when she, Meng Lanxi, and Ling Tianshui smiled, there was an invisible bond between them that could not be severed by blood.

Qian Deng sighed and asked softly, "You once told me that Madam Meng was very kind to you. I didn't know it at the time, but now I understand that it was the kindness of giving birth to me."

Ling Tianshui pursed his lips tightly and did not answer.

"That's why you appeared by her side so quickly that night and cared for her until her death. You're the child that Madam Meng left behind in the northwest before she married Meng Lanxi's father," Qian Deng said, looking at him with a mixture of pity and condemnation. "But you can't pretend to be someone you don't want to repay your family by joining the Northern Yamen Forbidden Army, and you certainly shouldn't forge letters from the Shuofang Army without authorization. Don't you know that if this is exposed, you'll be subject to military law?"

"This is just a small matter, insignificant." Ling Tianshui finally spoke, his tone light, "Since I dared to come here, I naturally have a complete plan to escape."

"So my guess was correct. You are a very important person in the Shuofang Army. Otherwise, with your talents, how could they easily recommend you to serve as a sixth-rank official in the Northern Ya Imperial Guard?"

At this point, Qian Deng stared at him intently and asked the question that had been lingering in his mind: "Could it be that while the Shuofang Army has entrusted you with such an important mission, you also have other tasks to shoulder? For example, is becoming a candidate for my husband also part of your plan?"

Since she was young, her father and grandfather had the responsibility to control Shuofang. Therefore, she always knew that Prince Linhuai had his own army in the northwest and the court was helpless.

Therefore, after this war, the emperor relied heavily on the Northern Court Guards and directly sent trusted eunuchs to control them, with the intention of making the Northern Court Guards superior to all other armies. It was only natural for Prince Linhuai to place people here to secretly investigate the situation.

"No." But Ling Tianshui looked her straight in the eye and answered without hesitation, "Before leaving the Shuofang Army, I never thought that I would one day become a candidate for your husband."

It was fate pushing him and her to this moment today, through coincidence and necessity.

"Originally, the army did arrange for Ling Tianshui to come and investigate the situation, and he had already contacted his clan to reunite with his ancestors. However, in a skirmish before departure, he sacrificed his life protecting me, and I was also injured. The bitter cold of the northwest was considered detrimental to recovery by the military doctors. Since I couldn't go into battle in the short term, I came to Chang'an as Ling Tianshui, firstly to observe the situation and recuperate. Secondly, I also wanted to see my mother, whom I had been separated from for nearly twenty years. If I had the chance, I would do my best to help her. Unfortunately... unfortunately, the day we met again was the day she and I parted forever..."

At this point, his throat choked and his clenched fists trembled slightly.

Qian Deng thought about the night when they first met. Looking at the sadness that could not be concealed in his eyes, she felt the same way and her eyes became warm for a moment.

The tree wants to be still but the wind does not stop, the son wants to support his parents but they are no longer there, they are all the same.

She gently raised her hand, covered the back of Ling Tianshui's hand with exposed veins, and stroked it soothingly, waiting for his emotions to gradually calm down.

After a long while, she finally asked, "Why did your mother... abandon you and follow Meng Lanxi's father?"

"Because she... she was just a lowly concubine. My father's wife was childless, so I was born under her name. It wasn't until I was six years old that I occasionally realized from other people's whispers that the woman who always smiled silently and had the same dimples as me was my biological mother... When the mistress found out, she couldn't tolerate her. So, while my father was away, she secretly set up a trap to make her commit a crime and sell her to a foreign merchant..."

Qian Deng slowly slowed his breathing and listened to the scars that had been buried deep in his heart since childhood—a secret that he had originally thought would accompany him throughout his life and he would never tell anyone about.

"I couldn't ask anyone for help, so I went to the backyard and stole a horse, hoping to... get her back. Back then, I risked my life, riding alone and following the trail, crossing the desert under the stars to find her..."

He was always as calm and steady as a pine tree, but at this moment he could not control himself. He spoke about the events of eighteen years ago with a disordered breath, and his eyes were slightly red.

Unable to control herself, she raised her arms, embraced him in front of her, and gently stroked his back to comfort him.

She hugged his tall and strong body, but it was as if she was hugging a six-year-old child who was in pain and helpless.

As if all his defenses were swallowed by sorrow, he buried his face in her shoulder. His breathing, much heavier than usual, sprayed on his neck, causing her heart to tremble slightly.

His originally tall and strong body finally relaxed in her arms. He leaned on her shoulder, and his heavy breath penetrated her thin spring clothes, making her skin slightly hot.

She seemed to see herself in the darkness of that night, sinking into a trance, hugging him in a daze, seeking the same firm and generous aura in him as that of her father and grandfather.

But at this moment, she was hugging him tightly, using her frail arms to comfort the little boy who was chasing his mother under the stars.

After a long while, when his breathing gradually calmed down, she asked softly, "Later... did you catch up?"

"I caught up, but unfortunately, I was one step too late..." His voice was like a whisper, filled with endless regret, but also seemed to be mixed with hatred, making his body tremble subconsciously. With gnashing teeth and anger, he said, "I will kill them, all of them..."