Chapter 127: She Only Wants Him to Have a Child
Chapter 127: Chapter 127: She Only Wants Him to Have a Child
Xie Jinbai couldn’t stop laughing. He hugged the treasure in his arms tighter. "That’s fine by me, but campaigning on the battlefield is mentally draining. As Commander of the Three Armies, I need to constantly... replenish my strength. And for that, I’ll have to trouble you, Yaoyao."
Cui Lingyao: "..."
She was rendered speechless, baffled at how he could steer any topic toward *that*.
"Don’t worry, I’m not in a rush," Xie Jinbai said slowly, pinching the tip of her reddening ear. "For now, we’ll just sleep."
That was what he said, but he was clearly struggling to hold back.
Cui Lingyao could feel how tense his body was.
In their three years of marriage, even during his most volatile moods, their nights had never been quiet...
"When we return to the capital, I’ll first purge the court and secure the position of Crown Prince. Then I’ll come and propose to you. After your year of mourning ends, we’ll get married."
’I have to eliminate all my political rivals. That’s the only way to keep her from being put in danger when our relationship is made public.’
Cui Lingyao nestled in his arms, listening quietly to his plans for their future without saying a word.
Xie Jinbai pressed his lips to her forehead, kissing it gently. "Don’t worry about the issue of an heir. I won’t let you feel pressured about it again."
He had, of course, given serious thought to this matter she kept bringing up, something she clearly saw as a major problem.
Xie Jinbai even found himself reflecting on his own actions. ’I’m not a woman of the inner court; I never understood just how important having children is to a woman. I needlessly put her under so much pressure during those three years.’
’And here I was, priding myself on protecting her so thoroughly.’
"I’ve thought it over. If we can have a child of our own, we will. If we can’t, we’ll choose one from the Imperial Family and just tell the world that you gave birth to them. That will silence any gossip."
He paused, then added, "We’ll give it a year. If you don’t become pregnant within a year, we’ll announce that you are anyway, and then we’ll secretly adopt a child from the Imperial Family."
That way, no one could find any fault.
No one would ever know the Prince’s true identity.
He was thinking entirely of her—to an almost extreme degree.
Cui Lingyao felt as if she were listening to some unbelievable fairy tale. "Don’t you want your own biological child?"
He was only twenty-five, and the position of Crown Prince was within his grasp.
The future ruler of the realm.
’Look at the things he’s saying.’
’He wants to adopt a child from the Imperial Family and raise them as their own.’
"I’m not obsessed with having an heir," Xie Jinbai said in a calm voice. "More than a child, I only want you."
’Nothing is more important than the woman in my arms.’
’That was something he had confirmed long ago.’
Cui Lingyao was stunned for a long moment.
Xie Jinbai lowered his gaze to look at her. "You don’t believe me?"
"..." Cui Lingyao blinked her dry eyes. "I believe you."
’But what she was really thinking was, I wonder if an adopted heir counts toward completing the mission.’
’It should count, right?’
’After all, to the outside world, the child would be mine, which would also make them his.’
’A legitimate heir.’
’But the system was currently dormant, so no one could confirm it.’
Cui Lingyao’s heart was a jumble of emotions. There was the joy of her mission finally having a clear path to completion, but also an inexplicable, poignant ache.
She curled into the crook of his arm, trying her best to process the swirling emotions as she stared straight ahead.
Xie Jinbai was wearing only an inner robe. Lying on his side, the collar was mostly open, revealing a tantalizing glimpse of his collarbone. Above that was his long neck.
His Adam’s apple was prominent, his skin pale.
She could almost see a trace of the young man he used to be.
On a strange impulse, Cui Lingyao reached out, wrapped her arms around his neck, and tilted her head up to ask, "Don’t you think you’d be making too great a sacrifice?"
It had been so long since she had initiated any affection. Xie Jinbai was overjoyed, unable to keep the smile from spreading across his face.
"The sacrifice is great, indeed," he chuckled. "But I can’t help it. I’m afraid you’ll go back to thinking about finding me a concubine to have children with other women."
"..." Cui Lingyao was at a loss for words.
Remembering what she’d said before, her expression turned a bit awkward.
But she was also afraid the system wouldn’t accept an adopted child for her mission. After a moment’s thought, she asked tentatively, "What if I said an adopted child won’t work? That it has to be your own biological child?"
The smile on Xie Jinbai’s lips froze. "What do you mean?"
Before Cui Lingyao could speak, her chin was gripped tightly.
Xie Jinbai lifted her chin, his eyes boring down into hers. "Do you have any idea how strange you’re being?"
He had interrogated countless foreign spies and treasonous rebels.
Xie Jinbai was exceptionally sharp.
Her guilt, her nervousness, her occasional distractedness, and even the look in her eyes whenever she brought up the topic of an heir.
None of it was normal.
Ever since they reunited, she... seemed utterly fixated on him having his own child.
Xie Jinbai didn’t know the reason.
If she weren’t the woman he trusted and cherished most in the world, he would have assumed the worst.
But she was.
She was!
That was why he never put his guard up around her. If she had harbored any ill intent, she could have easily finished him off three years ago.
But she hadn’t.
She had no interest in his life whatsoever.
She just wanted him to have a child.
No matter who he had it with.
The answer was so absurd it was maddening. She had no motive to do such a thing.
Previously, whenever Xie Jinbai’s thoughts reached this point, he would force them to a halt.
But now...
He had to keep thinking.
Xie Jinbai narrowed his eyes, his gaze heavy as he looked at the woman in his arms. "Me having my own biological child... what good would that do you?"
’There has to be a reason, right?’
The question struck at Cui Lingyao’s deepest secret. Her eyelashes fluttered wildly, and she instinctively searched for an excuse.
His thumb pressed against her lips.
It was cool, and slightly rough.
"If you don’t want to tell me, you don’t have to answer. But don’t tell me some half-hearted lie to placate me."
’He wasn’t some fool she could manipulate at will.’
’Even if he was willing to let her fool him, she should at least come up with a better lie.’
"If it absolutely has to be my own biological child..." Xie Jinbai lowered his head, moving closer and whispering, "...then you’ll have to be the one to do it."
He had answered her earlier question.
His own flesh and blood would have to come from her.
"..." Cui Lingyao was dumbfounded. After a long moment, her lips trembled, and she stammered out a single word: "Oh."
She looked so guilty it was almost comical, and Xie Jinbai felt the urge to laugh again.
But the stifling frustration weighing on his heart was hard to dispel.
The hand holding her chin tightened unconsciously.
The slight pain made Cui Lingyao frown.
The next moment, his lips touched the space between her brows.
"I don’t know what secret you’re keeping, or what your goal is, but I will never blame you, much less harm you."
His lips traveled down from her brow to her eyelashes, his voice gentle and coaxing.
"Yaoyao, maybe you can just be honest and tell me. What is it you want me to do?"
’It would be much faster than these clumsy attempts she keeps making.’
Cui Lingyao was almost convinced.
’Maybe I should just tell him the truth.’
’I could hide the details of the last mission and just tell him the price for my reanimation was a deal I made with a deity: I have to ensure he has an heir within a certain time, or I’ll die again.’
’That way... even if only to save my life, he would make producing an heir a priority.’
But Cui Lingyao wasn’t sure if her lies could deceive his perceptive, soul-reading eyes.
The man was too smart, too sharp, and too difficult to fool.