It had been a while since Cen Yelan had experienced the fear of his secret being revealed. He had held a high position for a long time, serving in the military camp with a cold and treacherous face. Few people were close to him, much less daring to think of him.
There was only Yuan Zheng, who was fearless and reckless. His malicious and inquiring eyes made Cen Yelan feel a chill down his spine, as if he had returned to his childhood.
Cen Yelan was not his original name, and his surname was not even Cen.
He took the late General Cen’s surname.
Before he was seven years old, Cen Yelan wandered around the border and ate at numerous homes for so many years, much like a beggar on the street. As for his parents, they had long been killed by the scimitars of the Hu people, leaving Cen Yelan alone, with nothing to eat, growing up like a weed in the desolate borderland.
When Cen Yelan was young, he didn’t think he looked different from others until he met that old man.
Cen Yelan still remembers those eyes, they were turbid, greedy, and disgusting. When they looked at him, it was as if they were looking at delicious meat bones.
He was hiding from others to urinate. The small boy was so thin and fragile, with both hands gripping his pants, and without any defense. When he turned around, he bumped into those eyes.
Cen Yelan was startled.
The old man forced a smile on his wrinkled face. He took out a hot bun from his arms and said, ‘Little guy, do you want to eat?’
Cen Yelan looked at the bun, swallowed his saliva subconsciously, turned his head away and ignored him, and was about to leave. There is no such thing as a free meal in the world, and besides, the look in this man’s eyes made him very uncomfortable. The old man followed him closely, he came over and said, ‘Eat it ah kid, Grandpa gave it to you. Aren’t you hungry?’
The moment he approached, Cen Yelan’s hair stood on end, and he pushed him and ran away. The old man chased after him, cursing at him, calling him an ungrateful brat.
Cen Yelan was young and frightened. He tripped over the weeds and fell to the ground. Before he could get up, a skinny man’s body fell on him.
He grabbed the child’s hair and laughed viciously, ‘Go ahead and run. Didn’t you run very fast?’
‘I saw it, you little monster.’ He leaned close to Cen Yelan’s ear, like a venomous snake, grasping the child’s thin arms with his five fingers, panting and saying, ‘You little monster with a woman’s thing.’
Despite his valiant efforts, Cen Yelan was pinned to the ground. His face was pressed against the dry grass, and he wasn’t aware of the rubbing. He only felt the hand that frightened him moving down his waist and hips. He let out a small animal-like cry. His legs were yanked violently apart, and his trousers were torn off with a tearing sound. When Cen Yelan heard the man’s heavy breathing, he felt so nauseous that he nearly puked, but he lacked the strength to oppose an adult’s strength.
When he was in despair, he suddenly felt relieved. Someone squatted beside him, touched his head, and said, ‘Kid, it’s fine, don’t be afraid.’
Cen Yelan was still in shock, with tears in his eyes. He looked over and saw a man in armor.
He was looking at him with a smile, pointing at the old man lying there, and said, ‘Everything is fine.’
Cen Yelan grabbed the tattered pants and put them on. His whole body seemed to still retain the sticky feeling of being touched by that person. He kept shivering, and he stared at that general with his two dark eyes.
General Cen thought that the child was still frightened, so he patted his head again and said, ‘Don’t be afraid.’
Cen Yelan looked at the spear stuck on the side and said, ‘Can I kill him?’
General Cen raised his eyebrows. ‘Kill people?’
The child had a pair of glass-like eyes, and his voice was still hoarse after the heart-wrenching struggle and shouting. He said coldly, ‘He is a bad man, as bad as the Hu people, and he deserves to die.’
General Cen said with interest, ‘Please do as you please.’
Cen Yelan climbed up and used both hands to hold the spear that was taller than him. The spear weighed more than twenty pounds and was cold and heavy. However, Cen Yelan gritted his teeth, pulled it out, and then stabbed it hard into the man’s heart.
Blood spurted out along with a scream, blurring Cen Yelan’s eyes. He seemed to smell the strong smell of blood again.
Cen Yelan suddenly woke up, sat up, and subconsciously touched the bottom of his clothes. When he looked up, he met Yuan Zheng’s eyes. The young man crossed his arms and looked at him mockingly, as if all his secrets were exposed.
Cen Yelan’s mind was heated, and anger mixed with panic turned into a raging fire, burning his internal organs and causing dull pain.
“Yuan Zheng!” Cen Yelan said angrily.
Yuan Zheng didn’t care at all and said with a smile, “Angry out of shame? Tsk… I didn’t expect that the famous General Cen would hide such a shameful—”
Before he could finish his words, a silver light that was icy cold and carrying a fierce murderous intent, came straight at his face.
Even though Yuan Zheng’s eyes did not move away from Cen Yelan, but he still dodged awkwardly. The tip of the spear cut off a lock of his hair, and then he followed closely. Yuan Zheng realized how restrained this person was when he and Cen Yelan fought before.
Yuan Zheng drew his sword and blocked the spear. His palm was numb, but he didn’t show mercy. He sneered and said, “No wonder you ran away when you saw women. You are really making a fool of yourself.”
As soon as he said that, the cold silver spear body hit his chest. Yuan Zheng fell a few feet away, spitting out large mouthfuls of blood, and his lungs were aching.
Yuan Zheng watched Cen Yelan approaching while holding the spear, his eyes were full of disgust and anger as they looking down at him. Yuan Zheng choked with laughter and wiped the blood from his mouth with his fingers. “What? Do you want to kill someone to silence him?”
Cen Yelan said nothing. He really wanted Yuan Zheng to shut up forever.
Yuan Zheng’s heart trembled. With a rebellious heart, he looked up at Cen Yelan and arrogantly said, “Do you dare to kill me? Can you bear the crime of murdering the royal family?”
“Can the Cen family bear it?”
When Cen Yelan mentioned the Cen family, his eyes moved slightly, and Yuan Zheng keenly caught it and said in a hoarse voice, “Cen Yelan, you don’t have to be so nervous, it’s not like I will do anything to you.”
“Let’s make a deal.”
Cen Yelan looked at him without saying anything.
Yuan Zheng said, “I don’t want to stay here, and you don’t want to see me here either. Go and hand in a letter to my Emperor Father, asking him to let me return to the capital.”
Cen Yelan was silent for a moment, then said, “That’s all?”
Yuan Zheng felt relieved. The young man slowly smiled, his eyes moved around his face, and he pushed the spear tip away with two fingers, saying lazily: “Help me up.”
Cen Yelan looked at him coldly for a while and finally reached out his hand to Yuan Zheng.
Yuan Zheng sighed and grabbed it. His palms felt cold, but his fingers were strong and slender, with jade-like joints.
