Chapter 105 Returning Home for Revenge
Inside a carriage at a secret outpost of a caravan from the Western Regions.
Ling Jin sat upright in the bumpy carriage, staring blankly at the scenery rushing past the window. He had changed out of his Da Lin attire and was now wearing a well-fitting Western Region outfit. His dark hair was tied up with a simple silver hairpin, which made his profile look even more hard and cold.
Xi Yuan sat opposite him, leaning lazily against the cushions, toying with a jewel-encrusted dagger, his glassy eyes scrutinizing Ling Jin with interest.
"Still thinking about your young lady and young master?" Xi Yuan's voice was slightly teasing. "Stop thinking about it. From the moment you decided to come with me, you and they were no longer on the same path."
Ling Jin withdrew his gaze, gave him a cold glance, and said nothing.
Xi Yuan didn't care and continued, "I know you have resentment in your heart and feel that I forced you. But don't forget, the blood flowing in your veins is from the Western Regions. That Prime Minister's Mansion, that Great Lin, has never been your home. You belong to the Western Regions, to the Royal Court, to the position that we should fight for."
Ling Jin clenched his fist silently in his sleeve. The carriage jolted, and the scenery outside the window gradually took on the unique pale yellow hue of the Western Regions.
Ling Jin closed his eyes, and the true memories of his childhood that Xi Yuan had told him before he left resurfaced in his mind.
It turns out... his mother lied to him. After all that, his life was a complete lie.
He always thought of himself as a mismatched union between an ordinary Western Region dancer and an alcoholic soldier from Da Lin, a "bastard" rejected by neither side.
Although it was tragic, at least its origins were clear.
A few days ago, while he was out looking for his young master, he was deliberately bumped into. The first thing he saw was a face that bore a striking resemblance to his own. This man called himself Xi Yuan, and Xi Yuan told him that he wasn't the son of some drunkard, but rather the nominal son of the Western Regions lord!
Piecing together those vague fragments of childhood memories, it's no wonder he never had any memories before the age of four. Ling Jin simply thought he was just stupid and couldn't remember.
Unexpectedly, on the way his mother led him to escape from the Western Regions royal court, he was hit on the head, which completely erased his memories of that time in the royal court.
His mother, Aisha, was no ordinary dancer. She was one of the most favored concubines of a powerful lord in the Western Regions, possessing emerald green eyes and captivating dance moves. However, her heart already belonged to the soldier from Dalin whom she had met on the border in her youth, who would later become her "father."
During a royal upheaval, the lord was critically injured and fell into a coma, plunging the royal court into chaos. Aisha seized the opportunity and, with her young son, escaped the golden cage. Their escape was fraught with peril; he suffered a head injury and lost all memories of the royal court.
When they finally found the Great Rin soldier who was said to have retired and settled down after going through countless hardships, the reunion they had been looking forward to turned into another nightmare.
The man was no longer the passionate young man his mother remembered. The years and the effects of alcohol had made him numb and selfish. He despised his mother for having a "burden" and was even more afraid of getting into trouble with the Western Regions royal court.
After exploiting his mother's full value, he ultimately handed over his beloved to the enemy camp for three jars of wine...
That's why, after being humiliated, her mother chose to end her life by Crescent Lake.
Ling Jin felt as if an invisible hand was tightly gripping his heart, and a suffocating pain spread through him.
On the other side of the carriage, Xi Yuan, seeing Ling Jin lost in his memories, suddenly said, "My dear brother, you are in Cao Cao's camp but your heart is with Han. You have made your brother very sad."
Ling Jin suddenly turned his head, staring intently at Xi Yuan, who was leaning lazily against him, his voice sounding like it was being squeezed out through clenched teeth: "What did you just say? Say it again?"
Xi Yuan seemed quite pleased with his shocked expression, a smile playing on his lips, though his glassy eyes held no warmth: "I said, we are brothers born from the same mother. You are my genuine younger brother."
He shifted into a more comfortable position, his tone carrying a touch of wistful reminiscence: "The palace was in chaos back then, and my mother was determined to lead us to escape. Unfortunately, we weren't discovered until we got very far. The pursuers were right behind us, and there was no way we could escape with two children."
Xi Yuan paused, her fingertips unconsciously stroking the gemstone on the dagger: "Your mother was holding you, crying uncontrollably. I broke free from her grasp and ran back to stop those people."
He spoke casually, as if he were telling someone else's story: "I told them that I was the one who encouraged the Empress to run away, and that my younger brother was too young to know anything. Then... I was taken back. Mother was holding you, so you must have successfully escaped."
Ling Jin was struck dumb, frozen in place as if by lightning.
The immense shock left Ling Jin unable to process it for a moment. He looked at Xi Yuan's carefree face and felt for the first time something so unfamiliar yet...familiar.
Xi Yuan looked at his shocked expression and chuckled, a hint of self-mockery in his voice: "Don't look at me like that. I stayed because I'm the eldest son, too conspicuous; going back might not mean certain death. But if you stay, you're certain to die. This deal isn't a loss."
He leaned closer to Ling Jin, lowered his voice, and spoke with an almost cruel clarity: "Ah Jin, we share the same blood, and we're both ruthless characters at heart. Don't be naive. The warmth that the Da Lin Prime Minister's Mansion offered you was nothing but a mirage. Only power, only standing at the top, can ensure your survival and protect what you want to protect—just like when I chose to go back."
“Now, come home with me.” Xi Yuan’s tone left no room for doubt. “We will clean up those scum who killed Mother and drove us to this point, one by one.”
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