Zhou Fang raised his eyebrows in surprise, looking at Shuai Chang, and suddenly laughed heartily: “No wonder you are the son of the King Li, it seems you still remember me.”
Shuai Chang’s mind was racing; King Li was the half-brother of the late emperor, murdered by bandits over twenty years ago. Zhou Fang claimed he was the son of King Li…
Shuai Chang smiled slightly: “Naturally, I do not dare to forget. Your Majesty is my only relative in this world.”
Zhou Fang’s expression changed, “You really haven’t changed since childhood; you refuse to swallow any bitterness.” Zhou Fang was already middle-aged and had not produced any princes in the palace.
Shuai Chang’s claim of being his only relative was nothing but sarcasm directed at Zhou Fang for being childless.
Shuai Chang leisurely said, “Well said. But how did you find me, Your Majesty? It’s been over twenty years, and I didn’t expect you still remembered your cousin.”
So this was the reason Fu Qingya betrayed the martial world; he had always been a member of the royal family.
Shuai Chang did not invite Zhou Fang to sit, nor was Zhou Fang angry. The Black Armored Guards brought him a grand chair, and Zhou Fang sat upright, neither smiling nor angry, exuding an imposing demeanor.
“The Black Armored Guards are spread throughout the martial world. Someone has seen the divine bird phoenix tattoo on your right arm. Every son of the Zhou Dynasty emperors has this tattoo on their right arm.”
Shuai Chang indeed had a phoenix tattoo on his right arm, only visible under the moonlight.
Standing beside them, Fu Bai suddenly had his pupils dilate; his usually calm face showed a look of surprise, and he asked in a strained tone, “Master, what is the divine bird phoenix tattoo? Is it… a red little bird?”
“How do you know it’s red?” Shuai Chang exclaimed in surprise.
Fu Bai gently stroked his left arm with his right hand, “I used to practice martial arts at night often, and once, when the moon was bright, I took off my shirt and saw a red little bird tattoo there.”
Shuai Chang fell into deep thought. Could Fu Bai be the son of the late emperor, lost to the world?
“Wait!” Zhou Fang suddenly interjected, looking excitedly at Fu Bai, his finger trembling as he slowly raised it, “Is your mother named Yu Rou? You look just like her…”
Fu Bai frowned, inexplicably disliking this emperor, “My mother’s name is Qing Rou.”
Zhou Fang displayed clear disappointment, and Fu Bai added, “My mother is named Qing Rou; Yu Rou is my aunt’s name. She passed away a long time ago, and I have never met her. How do you know my aunt?”
Zhou Fang’s eyes suddenly turned red, “Because… Yu Rou once gave me a son.” At that time, the late emperor was highly suspicious of him, and fearing for the child’s safety, he let Yu Rou take the child out of the palace, publicly declaring that the emperor’s grandson had died early. “Did you grow up in Fu Family Village?”
When Zhou Fang mentioned Fu Family Village, a shadow passed over Fu Bai’s eyes. “Of course, I grew up in Fu Family Village.”
“Ten years ago, the late emperor’s health deteriorated. He constantly dreamed that I would seize his throne and even sent people to hunt down King Li. I was lucky to have survived, but the late emperor discovered that my only son was raised in Fu Family Village. He then sent the Iron Armored Guards to besiege Fu Family Village. I thought, I thought… Hahaha, heaven truly favors me!”
Zhou Fang stood up and walked in front of Fu Bai, “Child, do you know who I am?”
Fu Bai furrowed his brow and remained silent. The man before him looked no more than forty but was already showing signs of aging, and tears were forming in his eyes.
“You say the late emperor Zhou Qing was the murderer who exterminated my Fu family. You killed Zhou Qing; you must be my Fu Bai’s benefactor. I owe you a favor.”
Shuai Chang and Feng Yunlan exchanged glances, realizing Fu Bai genuinely did not understand Zhou Fang’s intention.
No wonder he was so convinced that Murong Ling was a girl.
“Fu Bai, the emperor doesn’t mean it that way,” Shuai Chang said to Fu Bai.
Fu Bai looked at him vacantly: “Master?”
“Fu Bai, you said you have the divine bird phoenix tattoo; we should verify this outside now, and then I will explain.”
After hearing this, Zhou Fang realized that he indeed had not been thorough; he had concluded that Fu Bai was his son solely based on Fu Bai’s appearance and what he had just said.
The group walked out of the study, the bright moon hanging in the sky, with a few stars dotting its side.
Fu Bai intended to take off his shirt but suddenly saw Feng Yunlan staring at him with keen interest, feeling embarrassed, and turned around, “Mistress, it’s not very convenient for you to be here.” He had grown up and could not casually be undressed in front of his mistress.
Feng Yunlan said, “You don’t have to worry, Fu Bai; the mistress is also a man.”
Fu Bai was shocked and turned back instinctively to look at Shuai Chang.
Shuai Chang remained unchanged and nodded, “Lan’er is a man; you need not mind.”
Fu Bai felt as though his worldview had been shaken. The person he had always regarded as his mother was actually a man; what else in this world could not happen?
In a daze, he took off his shirt and held up his left arm to the moon, where a vividly depicted phoenix indeed appeared on his arm.
“Now we can confirm Fu Bai’s true identity.”
Upon returning to the study, Shuai Chang said to Fu Bai: “Fu Bai, you are actually the son of the current emperor Zhou Fang, and Zhou Fang is standing before you right now.”
Fu Bai replied, “Master, my father is the owner of Fu Family Village, Fu Chun. I told you this on the day I came to apprentice with you, didn’t I?”
“Fu Chun is your adoptive father; you are the only child of the emperor and Yu Rou. Yu Rou is not your aunt, but your biological mother. The woman you think is your mother, Qing Rou, is actually your aunt.”
Seeing Fu Bai’s face turn pale after listening to Shuai Chang, Feng Yunlan immediately went over to comfort him: “Fu Bai, I know you can’t accept this all at once. Just like today, when you found out that the mistress is a man, you might think that the mistress and master are deceiving you, but it’s not true. The mistress disguised herself as a woman so that she could marry your master openly; her purpose was not to deceive you. Can you accept the mistress’s identity as a man?”
Fu Bai nodded: “Mistress, I don’t blame you.”
“So, your father sent you out of the palace to be raised by your adoptive father Fu Chun for your safety. You see, he has been emperor for twenty years with only you as his child, which shows how much he loves you and cares for your mother. Shouldn’t you now call him ‘father’?”
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