Chapter 143: Royal Bloodline

Green trees and blooming flowers filled the courtyard within the pavilion, making it look quite serene and peaceful. Just as she raised her gaze, she saw several court maidens anxiously tapping on a door facing the entrance, calling out inside, "Young master, Young master, please open the door! Stop throwing a tantrum with us; if you starve yourself, His Majesty will punish us!"

Kaiming frowned at the commotion and asked, "What is going on here?"

A young eunuch hurried forward and scolded sharply, "Did you not see the General arrive? What are you shouting for? Have you no manners at all!"

The terrified court maidens lowered their heads and stepped aside.

Kaiming walked slowly up the steps, and before she could even raise her hand to knock, a heaven-shaking roar came from inside the room: "Get out! All of you, get out! If you don't let me see my mother, I will starve myself to death right here!"

Hearing these words, Kaiming felt a mixture of amusement and heartbreak. She let out a gentle sigh, composed her emotions, and called out, "Spoon..."

"Get out!" came another shout from within, the voice childish yet carrying a formidable imposing aura.

She offered a bitter smile. True to being the son of Dayin and the Emperor of Tianjue, he had even inherited their temper.

Once more, she called out calmly, "Spoon, it is me, your mother. Mother has come to see you."

A sudden, dead silence fell over the room, as if Spoon had held his breath.

"If you won't open the door for Mother, Mother is leaving," she said deliberately, heavily stomping her feet in place.

The room door creaked open inwards with force. The boy's anxious face flashed from the doorway. "Mother! Mother, don't go!" Seeing Kaiming standing at the door with a wide, bright smile, Spoon froze for a fraction of a second, then flung his arms wide and hurled himself straight into her embrace.

"Mother, Mother, I missed you so much!" Spoon hugged her tightly, his voice choked with tears. "They lied to me, they said Mother was in the palace. Where have you been these past few days? You won't leave me, will you?"

Kaiming hugged him fiercely, lowering her voice to say, "Mother is not leaving. Mother is here to stay with Spoon!"

Spoon clutched desperately at her clothes, refusing to let go, his face smeared with tears. Kaiming glanced sideways at the court attendants by the door, then embraced Spoon and stepped into the room. "Mother is going to have a proper talk with Spoon. No one is to disturb us." As she delivered those last words, she looked directly at the eunuch and the maids. Understanding her meaning, they bowed and acknowledged the order.

Pulling the door shut, Kaiming crouched down to examine Spoon closely. The boy's chin had grown sharp, his eye sockets deeper, and the healthy glow his skin had maintained in the General's residence was gone. His bright, large eyes looked up at her with a pitiful, puppy-like expression.

Kaiming sighed, resting her palm against his cheek. "You've lost weight..."

Spoon aggrievedly muttered, "That's because I missed Mother so much."

Did he miss his mother? A sudden surge of bitterness welled up in Kaiming's heart. Spoon, the true mother you ought to be missing is at this very moment lying in the imperial mausoleum alongside your biological father, yet you remain completely oblivious to it all.

As she pondered how to break this earth-shattering secret to the child, Spoon spoke first, rushing out his words: "Mother, when I was being brought out of the General's residence, the servants in the mansion were all whispering that General Dayin had fallen. Is that true? Also, ever since General Dayin took Little Wan away, I haven't seen her at all. Do you know where she is now? Is she in the palace too? Why haven't I seen her?"

"Alright, alright, stop right there," Kaiming said, her head spinning from his barrage of questions. She hastily cut him off, raising both hands. "Put away your curiosity for a moment and listen carefully to what Mother has to say, understood?"

Spoon uttered an obedient "Oh" and dutifully sealed his lips.

Kaiming stood up, took his hand, and led him over to a stool. Sitting down beside him, she clasped his small hand, letting out a heavy sigh before a single word had even passed her lips.

"Spoon, everything I am about to tell you will shock you, and you will have many questions. But no matter how unbelievable it sounds, it is the absolute truth. You must learn to accept this reality and guard this secret with your life. Promise me, even if it costs you your life, you must never speak of it!" Kaiming gazed at him solemnly, looking at him as if he were a mature adult.

Catching her gaze, Spoon suddenly felt as though he had grown much older. He puffed out his chest and said resolutely, "I promise Mother. Even if I have to risk my life, I will never leak the secret Mother tells me, otherwise, otherwise..." He scratched his head, unable to think of a sufficiently severe oath.

With a slight chuckle, Kaiming patted his head and said, "Alright, you don't need to strain yourself thinking of 'otherwise' scenarios. Just keep it a secret yourself."

Spoon smiled sheepishly. "What kind of secret is Mother going to tell me that makes it so mysterious?"

Looking at him, Kaiming sighed once more. "It concerns your parentage, Spoon."

"My parentage?" Spoon was even more baffled. "What are you talking about, Mother? Even if Spoon is not born of your flesh, I am Father's true biological son. What kind of mysterious parentage could I possibly have?"

Causing her hand to stroke his head gently, Kaiming whispered, "Spoon, you are not actually your father's biological son..."

"What nonsense are you talking, Mother?!" Spoon let out a strange laugh and batted her hand away. "If I'm not Father's flesh and blood, could I have just been picked up off the street?"

Yet Kaiming's face held no smile. She fixed her gaze firmly upon him, her tone heavy with gravity. "You are not. You were given to him by someone else to raise."

Spoon let out two hollow laughs, trying to force a feigned smile. But upon seeing Kaiming's solemn expression, his smile slowly stiffened on his face. He looked at her hesitantly and asked, "Mother, are you... are you serious?"

Softly, Kaiming asked, "Has Mother ever lied to Spoon?"

Suddenly realizing something, Spoon grasped her hand in panic and urged anxiously, "Mother, Mother, are you abandoning Spoon? Are you just saying these things to trick me? Mother, I'll be very good, I'll do whatever Mother tells me to do, Mother, I won't be naughty anymore..."

"Spoon! Spoon! Listen to Mother!" Kaiming gripped his hands tightly, pressing them firmly within her own palms. "Mother is not abandoning you, and Spoon hasn't been naughty. The point is, Spoon is indeed not your father's biological son! Spoon, you are... you are the child of General Dayin!"

The final words struck Spoon's mind like a thunderbolt. His frantically darting eyes froze completely, and his complexion turned frighteningly pale.

"What did you say, Mother? You're saying I'm General Dayin's child? Are you joking with Spoon?"

"Mother is not lying to you!" Steel-hearted, Kaiming decided to reveal the entire truth. "Spoon, you are General Dayin's child, and furthermore, you are the child of the Emperor of the Central Palace, the Tianjue Palace!"

Staring blankly at her, the corners of his mouth twitching, Spoon was utterly incapable of believing the words she had just spoken. He simply muttered over and over, "You're lying to me, Mother, you don't want me anymore, you're lying to me..."

"Mother has not abandoned you! Spoon is forever Mother's good son!" Pulling him into her embrace, Kaiming struggled to suppress her surging emotions. "Every single word Mother just spoke is the absolute truth, not a shred of it is false! That is why Mother is making you swear that, even if you die, you must never reveal these secrets!"

Huddled in her arms, Spoon breathed rapidly, his face devoid of color. With a heart full of anguish, Kaiming stroked his ice-cold little face, lowering her voice to say, "Spoon, you must listen very carefully to what Mother says next, and engrave every single word into your heart. Spoon, you are the sole surviving royal bloodline of the Central Palace, the true heir to the throne. But right now, you must never expose your identity! You must not let a single soul know who you truly are! Do you remember what Mother said?"

Nodding in a daze, Spoon still wore a look of profound confusion in his eyes.

Sighing, Kaiming said, "Mother has to leave the Central Palace again tomorrow. If you stay here in the imperial palace alone and your identity is accidentally exposed, even Mother won't be able to protect you. So you must remember above all else to protect your life by any means necessary. When Mother returns, I will certainly devise a foolproof plan to safely spirit you out of here. Promise Mother you will, okay?"

This time Spoon understood. Opening his clear eyes wide, he nodded vigorously.

"Such a good boy!" Kaiming affectionately stroked his head. Looking up at her, Spoon suddenly asked, "Then... is Little Wan also General Dayin's child? Is she a royal princess?"

The hand Kaiming was using to stroke his head suddenly stiffened, trembling slightly. "Little Wan, Little Wan is not..."

Wide-eyed with astonishment, Spoon asked, "Could it be that Little Wan is Father's biological daughter?"

"Little Wan is not that either. Your father... had no children." Kaiming twitched the corners of her mouth, forcibly restraining her emotions. She certainly couldn't tell him that Little Wan was merely his substitute, exploited by his own biological mother to become an unjustly murdered ghost!

"Little Wan has gone to a very distant place. Her biological parents came to fetch her, and she is living a very good life now..."

Pouting his lips in dissatisfaction, Spoon muttered, "Little Wan is so inconsiderate. She didn't even say goodbye to her older brother before leaving."

Unable to utter a word in response, Kaiming could only offer a bitter smile and pull him tight once more.

"Mother," Spoon mumbled from within her embrace, "Mother said I am General Dayin's child, but isn't... isn't General Dayin dead?"

Kaiming's breath hitched instantly. Pausing for several long seconds, she opened her mouth, finding speech somewhat difficult. "General Dayin, she... she..."

Spoon clutched the corner of her tunic. "Mother, right now, I can accept any terrifying truth."

Kaiming let out a soft sigh. "Spoon has grown up."

"Yes, Mother." Spoon raised his face, his thick eyebrows knitting together into a firm knot. "Spoon must grow up quickly so that he can protect Father and Mother, and exact vengeance upon the villains who murdered Spoon's biological mother!"

"Vengeance?" Another wave of heartache washed over her. Although Zhaoming had killed Dayin, he was buried in the desolate fields of the battlefield; Spoon's true enemies lay elsewhere.

"Spoon, you must remember this above all: the person you truly need to be wary of is Dai Yuheng, the current ruler of the Central Palace. Your biological parents fought a battle of life and death against the Dai clan for over a decade. When you are in his presence, you must exercise extreme caution and watch every word you say. The best approach is simply to remain silent, and hold on until Mother returns to fetch you. Do you understand?"

Meeting her eyes, Spoon displayed a calmness that far exceeded his years, allowing her to almost catch a glimpse of the living Dayin and Emperor Tianjue. Heredity was truly an astonishing phenomenon, she mused inwardly.

The young boy already possessed the dignified aura of an emperor.