TAMW CH70

Yuqing was like an immortal descending from the heavens. Not only had he broken the army’s desperate starvation, but he had brought an abundance of good wine, setting the entire camp into late-night songs and blazing bonfires that lit the dark skies.

Born and raised in the capital, Yuqing had rarely witnessed such vast crowds. He considered himself merely a male wife of humble origins; though he was now the master of the grain guild, those assets belonged to the Zhou family. Repaying kindness with loyalty was simply his duty, and he had never sought to etch his own name into history.

Rushing across the wilderness for dozens of days, he had grown considerably leaner. The traveling physician had prescribed draught after draught, which he took for days on end until his mouth lost all sense of taste. The moment he stepped into Zhou Xiao’s command tent, before he could even swallow a bite of food, he had collapsed onto the cot and fallen sound asleep.

Zhou Xiao kept vigil by his side. When an orderly lifted the tent flap carrying freshly cooked broth, Zhou Xiao raised a finger to his lips, gesturing for silence and sending the man away. The flush of travel had faded from Yuqing’s sleeping face, replaced by his natural, fragile paleness. Blessed with such a wife, what more could a husband ask for? Zhou Xiao even regretted nursing petty grudges against his father for all those years, staying away from the capital and losing out on countless days he could have shared with Yuqing.

Yuqing had fallen asleep utterly exhausted in body and spirit. He was pregnant, and to reach the camp in time, he had ridden hard on horseback, leaving his inner thighs chafed raw. He had expected to wake in sheer agony. Yet when he blearily opened his eyes, the fatigue and ache were nowhere near as unbearable as anticipated. Puzzled, he looked down and saw his garments had been changed, likely into Zhou Xiao’s robes. Though three years younger, the general was tall and heavily built, so even the simple inner robe hung loosely around Yuqing. Even his chafed skin had been treated with soothing medicinal balm.

His shoulders and calves had evidently been massaged while he slumbered, free from any lingering ache. Yuqing’s lips curved upward. For a warrior raised in military barracks, Zhou Xiao possessed surprising gentleness. Unless a man truly held someone in the deepest corners of his heart, why bother tending to them with such painstaking care?

Outside the command tent, patrols marched past periodically, their leather boots treading the loess soil with a reassuring cadence. In the middle of the night, distant celebrations echoed across the camp. Yuqing lifted the tent flap and walked toward the light. Bonfires reached toward the sky like blazing fireballs in the dark. Soldiers laughed and drank, singing hearty songs in pure jubilation. They had feared starving on this barren battlefield, never anticipating such a miraculous turn of fate that allowed them to rest, feast on roasted meat, and drink freely.

His long hair hung loose and unpinned. Watching the vibrant, living throng warmed Yuqing’s heart, even if none of them knew his identity.

“Madame Zhou! It is General Zhou’s Madame!” a soldier called out, catching sight of him. “Greetings to the Madame!”

Over a hundred men were gathered around the fires, all commanders and trusted officers in Zhou Xiao’s inner circle.

Yuqing paused in surprise, pointing at himself. “Me?”

“The Madame’s boundless benevolence is something we can never repay!”

When they saw him, these battle-hardened lieutenants dropped to one knee without hesitation, their faces painted with awe and reverence. In their mouths, he was no longer merely the master of the grain guild, but their general’s beloved Madame. Their submission was genuine; their eyes held not a trace of disdain for a male wife lying beneath another man, but burned with radiant admiration and gratitude.

Yuqing’s footsteps halted. When Senior Grand Secretary Zhou passed away, he had bestowed Yuqing as a wife to Zhou Xiao to ensure the Zhou lineage continued and the family businesses thrived. A male wife was traditionally condemned to dwell unseen in the inner courtyards. For a man to be a wife, especially to a great general of the state, was something society would ridicule mercilessly. Since arriving here, Yuqing had never revealed his identity as the general’s spouse, terrified of bringing shame upon Zhou Xiao. How did these soldiers know?

“My wife,” a deep voice sounded as strong arms wrapped around his waist from behind.

Yuqing looked at him in bewilderment, his eyes wide. “General… why…?”

“My wife is the savior of this entire army. Why shouldn’t they revere you?”

Holding Yuqing’s hand, Zhou Xiao gestured for the men to rise. Only upon Yuqing’s nod did the officers stand. Some even joked good-naturedly, saying the general and his madame made a match made in heaven, teasing that they had no idea the general had ridden back to the capital for such a momentous affair.

Yuqing asked quietly, “Does the General not feel that having a male wife tarnishes your dignity?”

“You have rendered monumental merit to my army and carry my child in your womb. That is profound grace. If I confined you simply because of the title of wife, hiding your benevolence from the world, then I, Zhou Xiao, would be an utterly incompetent warrior to dim my wife’s brilliance on the battlefield. You shine like the sun; how could the title of wife ever confine you to the inner quarters?”

Yuqing lifted his gaze to look at Zhou Xiao, his brow softening as warmth stirred deep in his chest. Perhaps living cloistered in domestic courtyards for years had made him too traditional. Hearing Zhou Xiao’s words felt entirely novel, wrapping his heart in sweet comfort.

“I thank the General,” Yuqing smiled, his eyes curving into crescents.

Zhou Xiao led him away from the bonfires on foot. Behind the military camp lay rolling loess hills. Carrying only a small firelighter, the flame cast a dim, soft glow. Fearing Yuqing might stumble in the dark, he clasped his hand tightly. Yuqing’s fingers were as smooth as silk. Clasping hands, he could feel the rough, jagged scars across Zhou Xiao’s palm, old wounds from years of battle that left hardened ridges beneath his touch, far from the hands of an ordinary young man in his early twenties.

He had arrived here at fourteen, spending years alone amidst bloodshed and battlefields. A pang of tender ache gripped Yuqing’s heart. When speaking to him, Zhou Xiao often fumbled for words like a simpleton, yet his soul was open and clear, never viewing a male wife as a blemish on his honor, carrying himself with true magnanimity. As for Zhou Xiao, he felt only gratitude for securing such a breathtaking spouse, having burned reams of spirit money for his late father, considering this marriage the only worthwhile deed the old man had ever accomplished.

“You cannot see this in the capital,” Zhou Xiao murmured.

Following his gaze, Yuqing looked up at the sky. A sea of shimmering stars stretched across the heavens, the Milky Way unfurling like a ribbon of luminescent silk. It was breathtakingly bright and vast.

Zhou Xiao said, “Yuqing, I have little to give you. Aside from the Zhou estate, my body, and my heart, I fear I am of little use to you. The only thing I can do is give you everything I know and love, and treat you with absolute sincerity.”

“So the General, finding nothing to gift me amidst the yellow sands, brought me to gaze upon the river of stars?” Yuqing asked, amusement lacing his words. Looking up, he sighed softly, “Indeed, I have never seen such a sky in the capital.”

He did not even know if the stars shone like this above the capital. Cloistered in the inner quarters, buried under the heavy mantle of endless ledgers and domestic duties, when had he ever had leisure to lift his eyes to the heavens?

As they prepared to sit, Zhou Xiao pulled him down into his lap. “Yuqing’s body is precious; the earth would only soil your robes.”

“Is the General always this attentive with others?” Yuqing asked.

Zhou Xiao paused. As Yuqing spoke from his lap, warm breath fluttered against his Adam’s apple, bringing a pleasant shiver. Swallowing hard, his voice deepened: “Only with Qingqing.”

Though they had scarcely known each other before marriage, their days since had shifted between courtly propriety and wanton passion. Such a man, such a life; Yuqing mused that it was delightfully engaging. This Zhou Xiao was truly fascinating. Unable to resist teasing him, Yuqing pressed a light kiss to his Adam’s apple.

Zhou Xiao froze. After a momentary hesitation, he leaned down to return a kiss upon Yuqing’s forehead.

“Oof,” Yuqing gasped softly.

“What is it? Are you… forbidding me from kissing you?” Zhou Xiao asked in a fluster.

“Could the General be a bit gentler? It felt like bumping into stone; it stung a little.”

Zhou Xiao fell mute with guilt. Accustomed to brute military force, he had no idea how to treat a delicate beauty, awkwardly and tenderly resting his lips against the spot. “Let me blow on it.”

As Zhou Xiao leaned close to blow gently on his brow, Yuqing lifted his face, meeting his lips of his own accord. A featherlight brush of lips, soft nuzzling temple to cheek, sweet and fragrant with lingering adoration.

“You are teasing me,” Zhou Xiao murmured against his mouth.

Suppressing his laughter, Yuqing traced his burning earlobe, letting out a musical chuckle. “Indeed. Is the General angry?”

Zhou Xiao sighed helplessly. “How could I ever be angry with you? My only fear is that you wouldn’t tease me, keeping your distance instead.”

Lowering his head, Zhou Xiao pressed gentle, thorough kisses across Yuqing’s cheeks. Yuqing tilted his face upward to accommodate him. The amusement in his eyes never faded. The man’s words were steeped in sweet devotion, bearing no resemblance to a ruthless battlefield commander, genuinely making Yuqing’s heart race. Nestled against Zhou Xiao’s broad chest, he could distinctly hear the powerful, rhythmic thumping of his heart.