The General Was Pregnant with the Emperor's Child - Chapter 6

Xiao Yunan stared at the unfamiliar jade pendant that had suddenly appeared in his accessory box, his face as dark as ink.

While the palace servants were organizing his jewelry, they had placed the pendant, which was faintly scented with winter plum pheromones alongside the items His Majesty wore daily.

Xiao Yunan had been in a deep afternoon nap. The lingering scent of plum in the bedchamber had lured him into a dream of the madman he met in the brothel. Startled awake, he threw back the silken covers with a violent heave.

Finding the bed empty, Xiao Yunan exhaled heavily. For a moment, he had truly feared the madman had found a way to smuggle himself into the Imperial City.

“Gao Su!” Xiao Yunan called out, clutching the jade pendant.

“This old servant is here!” Gao Su straightened his crooked cap and hurried to the Emperor’s bedside.

“Investigate this pendant.” Xiao Yunan tossed the piece of jade toward him.

“Your Majesty, forgive my intrusion, but this is?” Gao Su cautiously picked up the pendant to examine it. The style was unfamiliar, and the craftsmanship was remarkably crude.

Xiao Yunan said irritably, “The flower-thief’s.”

The pendant nearly slipped through Gao Su’s fingers. He adjusted his precarious head (and cap).

Several days had passed. Under Gao Su’s masterful acting, the rumors about the flower-thief had reached a point where no one dared to even mention them. Yet, strangely, the thief seemed to have vanished into thin air. Despite a massive manhunt, there had been zero progress.

After Xiao Yunan’s disappearance, Gao Su had immediately mobilized the General’s personal guards to seal the city gates. Logically, even if the thief had grown wings, they shouldn’t have been able to escape. The brothel where the incident occurred had also been shut down immediately, but after several rounds of interrogation, it was discovered that the establishment was merely the “crime scene” and had no actual link to the thief.

A common flower-thief was actually stumping the Court of Judicial Review!

Faced with this new piece of evidence, Gao Su held the pendant tightly. He was beginning to wonder if His Majesty was deliberately avoiding a clear identification otherwise, how could the investigation keep going so far off-track? Lord Wang, the Minister of Judicial Review, was currently as overwhelmed as Gao Su.

“I want to see exactly who had the audacity to covet the Dragon Bed,” Xiao Yunan said, nearly grinding his teeth to dust.

A flash of a red-robed General crossed Gao Su’s mind, but seeing the Emperor’s furious expression, he immediately dismissed the thought. It couldn’t be General Ye. The General has guts, but surely not enough to make the Emperor this angry!

Sigh! It’s all the fault of that degenerate! Look how worried His Majesty is… Actually, it would be better if it were General Ye.

“Yes, Sire.” Xiao Yunan dismissed him, and Gao Su tucked the pendant away, exiting the bedchamber with a heavy heart.

Xiao Yunan sensed that the appearance of a untraceable thief at this specific juncture was not simple. The thief might not be related to the power struggles between new and old factions, but there were plenty of people who would make it related. No matter how tightly he kept the secret, any leak could be exploited.

The late Emperor had few children; besides Xiao Yunan, there was only a sickly younger brother not yet eight years old. Xiao Yunan also had an uncle who had been exiled to the Southwest. If anything happened to him while his position was still unsettled, an unidentified, illegitimate “child” found among the commoners, could easily become a pawn in a power struggle.

Xiao Yunan’s aura suddenly grew cold. It didn’t matter who the thief was, nor did it matter if they were a prince or a princess. His foundation was not yet firm; he needed a reason to “strike the mountain to shake the tiger.”

He summoned more officials, choosing those with children of marriageable age both Alpha and Omega to give them a “warning” and stir the pot. If he, the Emperor, was willing to sacrifice a bit of his reputation to muddy the waters, who would dare to gossip?

The room grew quiet again, but the plum scent remained. Xiao Yunan searched the room and locked his gaze on a silk handkerchief nestled among his other jade pendants. One corner was embroidered with the character “Ye” as arrogant and flamboyant as its owner. The cloth had likely been sitting near the thief’s pendant for too long, as it too was soaked in that heavy winter plum scent.

Xiao Yunan frowned as he picked up the handkerchief Ye Wuyou had tucked into his sleeve. He held it to his nose; the undeniable fragrance of plum made him press a hand to his forehead in mounting frustration.

Could a mere flower-thief really think they can overturn the heavens?

The “flower-thief” in question didn’t want to overturn the heavens; he only wanted the Son of Heaven’s favor. He had galloped day and night, managing to return to the northern frontier in just ten days.

Yang Nin finally dismounted, clutching his waist with a sallow complexion. He refused to recall the misery of the last ten days Ye Wuyou was simply not human!

Fresh from his Heat and a long, exhausting journey, Ye Wuyou looked completely unbothered as he strolled into the military doctor’s tent. The tent was filled with medicinal herbs, and a stack of dog-eared medical texts sat on a low table. The doctor’s pen didn’t stop as Ye Wuyou entered; only his gaze shifted. Ye Wuyou rubbed his nose and plopped down in front of him.

“I followed your advice and slept with an Alpha,” Ye Wuyou said. “Time was tight, so I just grabbed the first good-looking one I saw and made do for a few days in a brothel.”

The doctor nearly spat out his ink.

“General, mind your words!” Following my advice? He made it sound like the doctor was a pimp! His original advice was for Ye Wuyou to find an Alpha to settle down with and bring them back to camp after a formal commitment.

Ye Wuyou leaned over the table and lowered his voice. “Does the rule about a temporary mark lasting for three months of medicine still hold true?”

He had learned from Yang Nin that after a mark is complete, the blended scent can only be detected by the two parties involved. The scent usually lasts about three months. Having finally slept with an Alpha, Ye Wuyou didn’t dare use his suppressants and had been carefully masking his scent the whole way.

However, this morning, the faint scent he could usually detect had vanished, as if he had taken a pill. He rushed to the doctor the moment they arrived.

“It holds true.” Seeing it was Ye Wuyou, the doctor’s long-standing headache returned. He turned his attention back to his medical records.

“What I mean is, does it hold true for my body? My scent suddenly disappeared.” Ye Wuyou snatched the record away. The doctor looked up, annoyed. I hate patients who don’t follow orders and then harass the physician!

“A normal Omega doesn’t have to wait for their Heat to mask their scent; a single bite on the gland by their Alpha is enough. It prevents the Heat and masks the scent. But you, General, have been abusing suppressants since you were seventeen, throwing your cycle into chaos. Now that the scent is gone, you’re finally worried?” Due to the General’s rank, the doctor couldn’t be too harsh, but he grabbed Ye Wuyou’s hand and slammed it onto a pulse pillow. He also snatched back his records.

Ye Wuyou: “…” He was rareley speechless, but he sat quietly and took the lecture.

On the way back, he and Yang Nin had heard rumors of a new, rising tribe on the plains, threatening the older tribes. Ye Wuyou suspected they would soon test the Great Jing’s encampment.

Being an Omega was a bit of a hassle, but Ye Wuyou wasn’t the type to lament his fate. It was just a cycle that interfered with military operations. He had an Alpha he liked, but Xiao Yunan lived behind palace walls. Even the Empress couldn’t just “sleep with him” whenever she wanted. Ye Wuyou had tasted the sweetness before her, and now he wanted to bite the Emperor every time his Heat came around.

Unfortunately, that was a death wish. He only had one head, and it wasn’t enough for the Emperor to chop off for sport.

As he contemplated the safety of his neck, he noticed the doctor’s expression turned grave and strange. Ye Wuyou’s heart skipped a beat. Was my five-year suppressed Heat not finished with me yet? Dammit! I should have stayed for a few more rounds after the fever broke! Who cares about a sore waist and an aching backside.

The doctor frowned and shook his head. Ye Wuyou felt like his world was collapsing. That face! Am I beyond saving?

The doctor was actually surprised. Despite some fluctuations, Ye Wuyou’s pulse was overall stable and strong a far cry from the chaotic readings of a month ago. The doctor paused, looking at Ye Wuyou’s healthy, ruddy face in disbelief, before pressing his fingers down again. He tapped the table and told Ye Wuyou to switch hands.

Ye Wuyou nervously put his left hand on the pillow.

“This pulse…”

This pulse!

“There’s no major problem. After your next Heat, your scent should return to normal.”

“You’re a doctor, stop with the dramatic pauses!” Ye Wuyou exhaled a long breath. “No other issues?”

Ye Wuyou secretly touched his lower abdomen. Lately, he had noticed… faint traces of what looked like blood on his undergarments. This had been happening intermittently since his Heat ended. He suspected something was wrong.

The doctor asked strangely, “What other problems were you expecting?”

Ye Wuyou’s heart finally settled. There would be new battles to fight, and he was glad he was fit.

Seeing Ye Wuyou’s rare awkwardness, the doctor teased: “Where did you find this Alpha? He actually managed to nourish and stabilize your pulse.”

Ye Wuyou didn’t quite understand. He had been too busy fighting wars for the last seven or eight years; unimportant things went in one ear and out the other.

“Sleeping with an Alpha can nourish the body?” Ye Wuyou asked in amazement.

The doctor’s lip twitched. “The union of Alpha and Omega is like the harmony of Yin and Yang. Your body was starved of pheromones and ‘rain and dew’ for years; now that it’s been replenished, it’s naturally better.”

Given the extent of the General’s prior deficiency, that Alpha must have worked very hard. A dry field finally met a heavy downpour.

“Then what does it matter who I sleep with?” Ye Wuyou knew doctors could read a pulse like a fortune teller, and he was annoyed by the prying. This isn’t something you can just ask about! Aren’t you afraid of getting your whole family executed!

The doctor explained calmly: “Someone with weak essence would not be suitable for the General. The Alpha you found is of prime quality.”

Essence?! You, you’re insulting me!

Ye Wuyou slammed the table. “Speak in plain English!”

“An Alpha needs enough pheromones and… cough… ‘output’ to sustain you, General.”

Ye Wuyou, whose stomach had been full of “Dragon essence” to the point of discomfort for days, went silent. He had felt bloated for quite a while, only improving in the last two days. But since his pulse was stable, it shouldn’t be a big deal likely just another side effect of his chaotic Heat, just like the blood traces.

Back in the brothel, he had indeed been a mess.

Thinking of things, he shouldn’t, Ye Wuyou’s face turned red. “He sounds like a fox spirit.”

The doctor nodded with a look of, “The General is truly a fast learner!”

Ye Wuyou’s mind raced. He leaned in and whispered to the doctor, “So if I sleep with a few more, I won’t have to fear my Heat anymore?”

The doctor felt his ears ringing. You’re treating Alphas like medicinal supplements?

Ye Wuyou compromised: “Then, just sleep with him more often?”

The doctor kicked the harassing General out of his tent.

The wind from the West slightly ruffled the tent flap. The camp was quiet at night, save for the footsteps of patrolling sentries and the crackle of distant fires. Ye Wuyou sat alone in his tent, his freshly oiled armor at his feet. Next to the sand table where he had completed his battle simulations sat a piece of paper.

No paperweight held the corners down, so the edges curled up.

Having arrived safely at the camp, Ye Wuyou prepared to write a report to His Majesty to signal his safe return. He held a pen soaked in ink, but his gaze was uncontrollably fixed on the scrap of fabric tied around his right wrist. A drop of ink fell from the pen, blooming into a dark, round moon on the paper.

He was lovesick.

The scent on the fabric was incredibly faint, yet it held a fatal attraction. The pen tip bled into the paper as Ye Wuyou greedily inhaled the scent on his wrist the scent that belonged to Xiao Yunan.

Suddenly, the sharp whistle of a signal arrow pierced the sky.

“Report! Enemy raid!”