Chapter 888 Confession

"Dahu, fetch a basin of hot water."

"Yes!"

Liu Dahu brought a basin of hot water, along with a towel.

"Come, take off your clothes, Father will wipe you down."

Zheng Fan said as he personally wrung out the towel in the hot water,

"You've sweated so much, you need to wipe yourself clean, otherwise you won't sleep comfortably and you'll easily catch a cold."

"Father, I can do it myself."

"Be good."

"Okay."

Tian Tian took off his upper garment, and Zheng Fan used the warm, wet towel to wipe his body. Tian Tian cooperated very well, raising his arms when he needed to and turning around when asked;

When wiping his armpits, Zheng Fan used a little more strength.

"Giggle..."

Tian Tian laughed as he was tickled.

After wiping him once, he took a dry towel from Liu Dahu for a second wipe. After wiping him clean, he told Tian Tian to put on his clothes.

"Take off your pants too."

"Umm..."

Tian Tian looked around;

His younger brother, the Crown Prince, smiled;

Liu Dahu also smiled kindly.

"Smack."

Zheng Fan tapped Tian Tian on the forehead,

and urged,

"When you were little, you used to crawl all over me naked, what's there to be shy about now?"

Tian Tian had no choice but to take off his pants.

Zheng Fan used the warm towel to wipe him down;

The Crown Prince was beside him, looking at his older brother Tian Tian for a while, and at the Prince for a while.

In this era of strict fathers and filial sons, fathers basically had to maintain a stern demeanor to preserve their authority in front of their sons;

His Imperial Father was already considered somewhat of an exception, but since becoming Emperor, the aura of authority had arisen, and between father and son, there was already the formality of ruler and subject;

Under normal circumstances, the wealthier the family, the more they valued this hierarchical relationship between father and son. Fathers who expressed too much "love" for their children would be frowned upon by the current social atmosphere.

But Godfather… really wipes so carefully.

Liu Dahu didn't have so many thoughts; he knew how much the Prince doted on Tian Tian.

As for the Prince himself,

he hadn't even been married in his previous life, so naturally he had no children;

In this life, as soon as he woke up, the Demon Lords had already prepared the inn, and when he opened his eyes, he saw a maid wiping his body. After that, as he walked along the way, he was always attended to.

When had he ever served anyone?

But after all, he was a father, and in his heart, his feelings for Tian Tian, even if he wasn't his biological son, were no different from those for his own child.

Leaving aside Old Tian's reasons, such a well-behaved and sensible child, raised by your side since he was little, how could you not like him, how could you not cherish him?

After wiping his lower body,

the Prince even flicked his little elephant trunk.

"Umm..."

Tian Tian immediately covered his backside.

"Hahahaha."

The Prince laughed;

Afterward, he helped Tian Tian put on his pants.

The clothes he had been wearing earlier were thrown aside. After wiping his body clean, he changed into clean, new clothes.

The two children had been in Nanmen Pass for so long, one a Crown Prince, the other a Son of a World, to put it bluntly, it was truly impossible to fully prepare the supplies at the front, but if the clothes and daily necessities for these two children couldn't be prepared, then that group of officials could just find a place to hang themselves.

"Good, lie down."

Zheng Fan picked up Tian Tian, laid him flat on the blanket, and then reclined himself.

He stretched out his right arm and patted it.

Tian Tian blinked, rested his head on Zheng Fan's arm, faced Zheng Fan, squinted his eyes, and looked at Zheng Fan with a smile.

The Crown Prince also obediently climbed onto the blanket and lay down on the other side of Tian Tian.

"Sleep, dreams are all fake, all fake."

"Yes."

"Father is by your side. No matter what happens in the future, even if younger brothers and sisters are born, you will always be Father's good son, Father's eldest son. You will be the big brother of your younger siblings;

Oh, right, and Chuan Ye's older brother.

We, ah, will always be a family, always."

"Yes,"

Tian Tian nodded vigorously.

The Crown Prince on the other side heard that he was included too, and a happy smile appeared on his face.

The two children quickly fell asleep.

Zheng Fan's eyes, however, remained open;

He lowered his head and looked at Tian Tian in his arms.

Tian Tian said that he had a dream, a dream that after he had his own biological children, he wouldn't want him anymore.

Zheng Fan, of course, couldn't believe this.

Not to mention that Tian Tian had been frighteningly intelligent and sensible since he was little, and couldn't possibly have such thoughts and worries;

But this child, when he was in swaddling clothes, crawled around on the zombie coffin board every day, slept with the vengeful infant every night, and before the Crown Prince came, his playmates were all demons and monsters.

Even if this child wasn't born with a hard life, with this acquired growth environment and still not dying young, this fate would have long been terrifyingly hard, and ordinary evil spirits and nightmares would basically be unable to enter his thoughts.

Have a nightmare?

This child might know what a nightmare means, but he seems to have forgotten that he hasn't had a single nightmare from birth until now.

Instinctively realizing that

this nightmare was unusual, and very likely related to the Demon Lords in the prophecy.

Was he frightened and didn't want me to worry, so he didn't say anything?

Or,

was there someone else around, so it wasn't appropriate to say?

Zheng Fan's gaze subconsciously fell on the Crown Prince Ji Chuan Ye, who was sleeping on the inside.

Then he lowered his head, looking at Tian Tian's face.

He valued Ji Lao Liu's son, not because of his status as the Crown Prince, but because he was the son of a friend, and this definition of friend was equivalent to a buddy in later generations;

But the one he valued most was still Tian Tian.

Just as the several Madams in the Prince's Mansion were clear, no, the entire Prince's Mansion was clear, the Prince favored Madam Feng alone.

In matters of "love," it was impossible to emphasize being fair to everyone, because it wasn't fair from the very beginning, but biased.

When the child was having a nightmare earlier, Zheng Fan was so anxious that tears really fell;

He had never even shed a tear on the battlefield, but this child was in the softest place in his heart, and with a gentle poke, his tear ducts really couldn't be controlled.

The Demon Pill tried to wake him up from the nightmare early, but failed.

And Zheng Fan didn't want to rush to ask about it at this moment.

He could wait, wait until Tian Tian felt like he could talk about it, he would come to him, in this regard, his son was always very well-behaved.

Wait a while, and then see.

Suddenly, he felt Tian Tian's hand grip his clothes, as if afraid that he would leave;

A smile appeared on the corner of the Prince's mouth,

and he gently kissed his forehead.

It doesn't matter what you would have become, what path you would have taken, and there's no need to care;

"I'm here."

After a pause,

"Father is here."

…

The next morning, Zheng Fan opened his eyes.

Turning his head, he looked at his side, and both children were staring at him.

Seeing Zheng Fan wake up,

Tian Tian and Chuan Ye hurriedly got up, climbed off the blanket, climbed over Zheng Fan, and rushed out of the tent.

Zheng Fan was a little puzzled at first,

then realized,

because he had slept on the outermost side last night, and the two children didn't want to wake him up, so they had been holding back their pee since early in the morning and didn't dare to get out of bed.

"Hehe."

He got up,

stretched;

Zheng Fan twisted his neck, enjoying the crisp sound, walked out of the tent, and sat outside facing the morning sun.

Liu Dahu and Zheng Man walked over carrying washing utensils, to serve the Prince as he washed up.

Then, a burst of horse hooves was heard outside, followed by a messenger who reported:

"Your Highness, the Prefect of Yingdu, Xu Wenzu, requests an audience!"

Zheng Fan nodded and said, "Let him in."

Estimating the current location, it was actually quite far from Yingdu.

Xu Wenzu had come out of Yingdu and ran so far west. For someone of his tonnage, it was already very difficult. In any case, he should be seen.

Xu Pangpang (Fatty Xu) arrived covered in dust. After seeing Zheng Fan, he immediately knelt down and bowed:

"Your subject congratulates Your Highness on the great victory!"

Zheng Fan didn't rush forward to help Xu Wenzu up in an exaggerated manner, but said with a smile:

"Get up, get up, what are you pretending for?"

Xu Wenzu stood up laughing.

Often, people who were once close and familiar would feel some awkwardness once their status changed;

But often it was not the one whose status had risen who felt awkward, he only needed to stand there, and the one below would naturally find his place to cater to their current relationship.

Back then, his little Escort Captain had already surpassed him a great deal after becoming a Marquis. The subsequent conferment of the title of Prince, including the political influence brought about by this great victory, made the current Prince of the West the genuine former Prince of Jingnan, with a vast gap in status, like a chasm.

Zheng Fan invited Xu Wenzu into the tent. Xu Wenzu, holding the written report, briefly said some things about the war without exchanging any pleasantries. Next, he focused on talking about the future development plans for the Yingdu area and Jidong.

Jidong lacked people, while Yingdu didn't. So, Xu Wenzu meant that in the coming years, the two sides should complement each other's strengths;

And the so-called complementary strengths meant that he would serve Jidong as much as possible, so that Jidong could complete its self-development and growth more quickly.

This didn't mean that Xu Wenzu was abandoning Da Yan and trying to cling to the Thistle Family at all costs. A regional official of his level didn't need to cling to power anymore. Even if he was taking sides, he could walk over calmly and stand firm.

Making these plans was to allow Jidong to have a greater advantage in the future unification war, which was to allow Da Yan to have greater confidence. It was truly out of a sense of public duty.

Zheng Fan listened carefully to Xu Wenzu's ideas and designs and expressed his approval.

After speaking,

Zheng Fan said with a smile: "For these things, there's no need for you to make a special trip here, right?"

"It's different. I guessed that you would rush back, after all, two Princess Consorts are about to give birth. I know you, you value love and righteousness. I'm too embarrassed to delay your time, so I made a trip here to give you a heads-up first.

After we've communicated, the following things will be much easier to handle."

"Good," Zheng Fan nodded, "Ha, I was so busy talking that I haven't had time to eat yet, right?"

"That's right."

Xu Wenzu patted his belly, causing a wave of fat to roll.

Zheng Fan hadn't had breakfast either, so he immediately ordered Chen Xianba and the others to prepare it.

Breakfast was relatively simple, porridge with pickles. It was already difficult to have something hot while traveling, so there was no need to be too particular. Even buying the ingredients would delay time.

Xu Wenzu drank two large basins of porridge by himself, and still felt unsatisfied, so he continued to ask for more.

"They all say that drinking porridge is good for the stomach, but I just feel that drinking porridge isn't filling. It's like drinking some sugary water. No matter how much I eat, it won't last until the next meal."

Zheng Fan nodded and said, "That's right."

Liu Dahu went to add porridge again, carrying the basin out and carrying the basin back.

The place outside where the porridge was being cooked, because Xu Wenzu's appetite was too amazing, caused Chen Xianba, Zheng Man, Tian Tian, and the Crown Prince to not have time to eat breakfast yet. Now that Xu Wenzu's eating frequency had slowed down, they were able to add some for themselves.

Chen Xianba handed a bowl of porridge to Tian Tian,

and then found that when Tian Tian took the bowl, his eyes and expression were full of guilt and unease.

Chen Xianba was a little puzzled, what kind of expression was that?

After the commander's tent was full and satisfied, the camp set off again. Xu Pangpang wasn't in a hurry to go back alone, since they were going the same way anyway, so they would travel together.

In the following days, the marching speed of the camp, although not as exaggerated as during the war, still maintained a fast pace.

As they approached Yingdu, Xu Wenzu returned with his staff and guards. A few nights ago, he and the Prince of the West finalized the five-year development plan for the central and eastern parts of Jin.

When the camp reached the Wangjiang River, they received messages from the Jinyi Guards in the Prince's Mansion every day.

Xiong Liqing was about to give birth.

The Prince was really homesick, but there was no choice. With the previous lesson, everything had to be done steadily.

Most importantly,

the Prince had an extremely troublesome thing to do when entering his own territory.

That was to appease the various troops of his own Jidong;

Originally, the various troops of Jidong, including the common people, were all eager to follow the Prince on the expedition, but their Prince had come up with a light cavalry crossing the river;

Good heavens, the fighting was fierce over there, one great victory after another, but the ones in the limelight were other people, while his own people were just staring blankly here?

There was no dare to have resentment. With the Prince's current status, he could subdue even the foreign troops, so how could his own people dare to be presumptuous?

But it was like his own pet, being proud, jealous, and feeling unbalanced. He had no choice but to take some time to smooth their fur.

And after Zheng Fan promised the expansion plans for the next few years and continued to improve the welfare of the soldiers, both the generals and the soldiers were satisfied.

And also on this night, after Zheng Fan met with Gongsun Zhi, Tian Tian came to Zheng Fan's commander's tent alone, without the Crown Prince who was always inseparable from him.

"Father."

Zheng Fan put down the memorial, looked at Tian Tian, waved his hand, signaled Chen Xianba and the others to go out first, and at the same time ordered the Sword Saint to come in.

The Sword Saint was already resting. His tent was immovable, always firmly arranged next to the commander's tent.

"What's wrong?" The Sword Saint saw that there was only this father and son in the commander's tent, and was a little puzzled.

"Come, listen to my son tell a story."

The Sword Saint was trustworthy. Even without the incident when the Sword Saint used himself as bait to create an opportunity for him to break through when he was surrounded in Qian, in Zheng Fan's eyes, Yu Huaping was still truly one of his own.

Moreover, the Sword Saint had known about the Demon Lord prophecy for a long time. It wasn't a big deal to know some more details now.

Currently, the Blind Man was still in Nanmen Pass handling the aftermath;

Xue San had been sent back to the Prince's Mansion early. In this day and age, women giving birth was a big deal, just like when the Sword Saint's wife gave birth, Third Master had to be in position early to prepare.

A'ming had been sent by Zheng Fan along the Wangjiang River before crossing the river to find Gou Moli in Fancheng to convey some of his instructions;

Therefore, apart from the Demon Pill, the only Demon Lord Zheng Fan had left by his side in the camp was Fan Li.

It didn't matter whether Fan Li came in to listen or not, let's put it aside for now. After going back, everyone could gather together, and he would explain it again.

Another purpose of letting the Sword Saint in was that the Sword Saint here could ensure that no one could "eavesdrop";

In this era, eavesdropping devices didn't exist, but some people's methods were more useful than so-called eavesdropping devices.

And this guard army by his side was directly drawn from the expeditionary army to escort him home. When they were outside, they were bound to be completely loyal to him, but when they returned home, some of them might not say they would do anything bad to him, but they might have extra ears.

The matter of the Demon Lord prophecy was a major event that had to be thorough and not allowed to leak.

Zheng Fan held Tian Tian,

Tian Tian sat in his father's arms and began to tell his dream:

"At first, I heard the sound of water, and I thought it was the Crown Prince who had wet the bed…"

Tian Tian spoke slowly, trying not to miss any details. Sometimes he would stop to recall the things in the dream as much as possible;

Zheng Fan listened carefully;

After Tian Tian finished speaking, the child silently looked at his father.

"Good boy, go back and rest. Don't tell anyone else about this, understand?"

"I understand."

"Son, tell me, who is your father?"

"Zheng Fan, the Prince of the West of Da Yan."

"That's right, Father will also tell you what's in his heart. In the future, no matter what you encounter, no matter who you meet, you must remember who your Father is. In your Father's eyes, the foundation and the throne are not as important as the safety of the family.

Your biological father is Tian Wujing, but your father is me."

Zheng Fan touched Tian Tian's face with both hands,

very seriously,

"Even if you cause a great disaster, your father can take care of it for you, understand?"

"Yes, I understand!"

"Go back and rest."

"Your son takes his leave."

Tian Tian left the commander's tent.

Zheng Fan looked at the Sword Saint and said, "What do you think?"

"Just a child's dream…"

"Yeah."

The Sword Saint frowned and said, "No, according to what he said in his dream, I'm responsible for taking care of him, how could he be lost?"

"Because I'm here."

"You're here?"

"Not to mention, if it weren't for me, would you and Old Tian have fought in the suburbs of the capital? Even if you still fought, whether you appreciated each other or agreed with each other,

if I'm not here,

what's the point of Dujuan handing the child over to you?

Where would you send the child?"

"…" The Sword Saint.

"Also, in the whole story, you only noticed this trivial detail?"

"Then what did you notice?" The Sword Saint retorted.

Zheng Fan took out a cigarette from the iron box, tapped it on the back of his hand,

pursed his lips,

and said:

"In the dream, the last person Tian Tian saw sitting on the dragon throne was Chuan Ye."

Zheng Fan frowned,

and sighed,

"Damn, is Ji Lao Liu this bastard so short-lived?"