Chapter 154 Mutual Respect (Important plot point, a must-read!)
Military reports, delivered with utmost urgency from the border, arrived one after another in Chu Huaiyu's study. The ink on the characters was stained crimson, each word dripping with blood.
The barbarian hordes captured three cities in quick succession, and the city commanders were all killed in battle, leaving the people displaced.
As soon as the news spread, panic gripped the capital, with people whispering amongst themselves about the escalating war.
This sudden war, like a sharp blade falling abruptly, cleaved the stagnant deadlock between Chu Huaiyu and Lu Zhaoxue.
For days before, Chu Huaiyu had spent almost all his free time in Lu Zhaoxue's Chengqian Palace. He was no longer the aloof and absolute emperor he once was.
He would personally make Lu Zhaoxue's favorite snacks, and he would quietly sit beside her while she read, even though Lu Zhaoxue never looked up at him once.
Chu Huaiyu tried everything to warm Lu Zhaoxue's already frozen heart, but Lu Zhaoxue's attitude remained indifferent, treating him with only polite formality.
Now, Chu Huaiyu can no longer pester her like this every day.
Lu Zhaoxue stood under the corridor, watching Eunuch Wei's hurried figure, and listening to the faint sound of horns in the distance. Her back, which had been tense for a long time, relaxed a little.
She turned her head slightly to look at Chu Huaiyu's departing figure, her eyes filled with complex emotions.
Inside the Military Affairs Office, the candlelight illuminated Chu Huaiyu's solemn face.
Chu Huaiyu sat upright on the dragon throne, stroking the tiger tally that symbolized military power in his hand. The hall was completely silent, and even Eunuch Wei had been dismissed, leaving only him alone.
Chu Huaiyu thought to himself: His expedition was inevitable.
When the people suffer, how can he, as the emperor, sit idly by? But he cannot launch a large-scale expedition.
Chu Huaiyu closed his eyes, and Chu Siheng's face appeared in his mind. Although he had long since lost his sight and become a cripple, he was, after all, once the crown prince. His former subordinates were like lurking venomous snakes, hiding in the shadows, just waiting for an opportunity to pounce.
If he were to personally lead the campaign as emperor, leaving the capital vulnerable, Chu Siheng's former subordinates would surely seize the opportunity to cause chaos. In that case, the court would be in turmoil, beset by internal and external troubles, and the Great Zhou Dynasty would truly be in grave danger.
Furthermore, if he leaves, the capital will be without a leader. The people are already anxious because of the war, and without a pillar of support, there will likely be even more chaos.
Chu Huaiyu suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze deep and unfathomable, a resolute glint in them.
He raised his hand and clapped three times lightly. A moment later, the palace door was pushed open, and a man with a figure exactly like his walked in slowly.
The man was dressed in casual clothes, and the features of his eyebrows and eyes were exactly the same as Chu Huaiyu's, except that he lacked the majesty of an emperor.
Only when the person gets closer will you realize that his face is covered with a human skin mask as thin as a cicada's wing, so lifelike that you can't see any flaws at all.
"Your Majesty," the man said, bowing his head and speaking in a low, respectful voice.
Chu Huaiyu nodded, his voice icy: "From this day forward, you are the Emperor!"
Lu Huaimin paused, then replied, "This servant obeys."
"Tomorrow morning at court, you will preside over the court in my stead and issue an imperial edict in my name." Chu Huaiyu's fingertips tapped lightly on the table.
"Lu Huaimin is hereby appointed General Zhennan, to lead the expedition, and shall depart immediately."
This double was someone Chu Huaiyu had found many years ago. At that time, he had just ascended the throne, his foundation was not yet stable, and he had made many enemies. So he found this orphan who resembled him and raised him in the shadows, teaching him manners and the ways of an emperor.
So that one day it can be put to use.
The human skin mask was an exquisite work of art, created by him after searching for skilled craftsmen all over the world and spending a huge sum of money.
Over the years, this mask has saved him from a lot of trouble.
Chu Huaiyu's gaze fell on a corner of the table, where the jade bracelet that symbolized his and Lu Zhaoxue's love was displayed.
As everyone knows, Du Xianyue was his former empress. She was pregnant before she was deposed and was once the most favored concubine in the harem.
But no one knew that the so-called "favored concubine" was nothing more than a carefully planned scheme by Chu Huaiyu.
Du Xianyue's child was never his. Those nights when he was chosen by the emperor, those moments when the eunuchs spoke of "the deep affection between the emperor and empress," were all performances staged by Lu Huaimin, a stand-in wearing a human skin mask.
Chu Huaiyu never touched Du Xianyue at all, from beginning to end.
Throughout his life, Chu Huaiyu's heart was always set on Lu Zhaoxue, but he himself had tarnished that affection, making it unrecognizable.
As night falls, the candlelight in Chengqian Palace glows dimly and warmly.
Chu Huaiyu dismissed the palace servants and entered Lu Zhaoxue's bedroom alone. She was sitting by the window, engrossed in a book, and didn't even notice him coming in.
Chu Huaiyu slowed his pace and walked slowly to Lu Zhaoxue's side.
Moonlight streamed through the window lattice, casting a soft glow on her face, outlining her features. Lu Zhaoxue was as serene as a traditional Chinese ink painting.
A wave of bitterness welled up in Chu Huaiyu's heart.
"Zhaoxue," Chu Huaiyu said softly, her voice carrying a hint of barely perceptible tension.
Lu Zhaoxue then raised her head, glanced at Chu Huaiyu with calm and unwavering eyes, and then asked indifferently, "Why has Your Majesty come?"
Chu Huaiyu sat down opposite her, his hands clenched into fists, his palms sweating.
He looked into Lu Zhaoxue's eyes and told her, word by word, about the body double, the secret of the human skin mask, and the truth about Du Xianyue's child, without reservation.
Chu Huaiyu said, "That child has nothing to do with me."
He also said, "Zhaoxue, I know I have wronged you. I forced you into the palace and trapped you in these deep palace walls. I have done so many things to wrong you."
Chu Huaiyu's voice grew softer and softer, tinged with sobs: "But I have never done that with any other woman, never."
"My heart and my body have always belonged to only you, and have never strayed from you by even a fraction."
Chu Huaiyu spoke urgently, as if afraid that if he was a step too late, he would never have another chance to let Lu Zhaoxue know.
As he said this, his gaze was fixed on Lu Zhaoxue's face, as if afraid of missing any expression on her face.
He knew that there were too many things between him and Lu Zhaoxue, the crushed past, the irreparable damage. Perhaps, they could never go back to the way things were.
But Chu Huaiyu still wanted Lu Zhaoxue to know, to understand that his feelings had never changed.
Lu Zhaoxue listened quietly, watching the tension and trepidation in Chu Huaiyu's eyes as he awaited her judgment.
Lu Zhaoxue's heart felt blocked by something. Shock? Confusion? Incomprehension? All sorts of emotions intertwined and surged in Lu Zhaoxue's heart, a mixture of feelings.
She thought she knew Chu Huaiyu well enough.
But it was only at this moment that Lu Zhaoxue realized that she had never truly understood Chu Huaiyu.
His thoughts were terrifyingly deep, and his calculations were astonishingly meticulous.
But at this very moment, in front of her, Chu Huaiyu suddenly dropped all pretense, laid everything bare, and revealed such a vulnerable side.
Lu Zhaoxue remained silent for a long time, staring blankly at him. Chu Huaiyu's heart sank little by little, as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.
Looking at Lu Zhaoxue's expressionless face, he felt a chill creep up his spine from his feet to his entire body.
Chu Huaiyu opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found that his throat was blocked and he couldn't utter a single word.
After a long while, he reached out and carefully pulled Lu Zhaoxue into his arms. Lu Zhaoxue neither pushed him away nor responded; she simply let him hold her.
The moonlight outside the window grew even brighter, shining through the window frame onto the two of them, coating them with a thin layer of silver frost.
The hall was so quiet that only the two of them could hear their shallow breathing. That night, neither of them dreamed until dawn.
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