"I ate muffins today... they were made by your mother. When she ate them, you kicked her hard, and she yelped. It seems you really don’t like sweet things," his father chuckled.
Suddenly, his mother’s voice ca from afar. "Babe, what are you doing over there?"
His father looked like a weasel caught stealing chicken eggs as he yelled back, "Nothing!"
"Co massage my feet, your son has been kicking all day," his mother called out.
"Okay, I gotta go," his father said, reaching out to end the video, but he suddenly stopped himself. "Oh, and if you have a partner in the future, rember: happy wife, happy life."
His mother called out again, and his father smiled before saying, "Byeeee," and ending the video.
Han Xin stared at the floating screen, hot tears streaming down his face without him realizing it. He couldn’t stop himself. He watched another video and then another one. He watched his father excitedly show him cute baby shoes he had bought, saying they could be twins now. He even showed him the full outfit, saying, "I hope you will like it."
His father was so bubbly and energetic, an image far removed from his public persona as the imperial lord.
Han Xin watched another video. This ti, his mother ca into the fra and sat on his father’s lap. She told him to stop boring Han Xin with all his nonsense.
His father rubbed her pregnant belly and said, "Xin Xin, it’s not nonsense, right?" As though responding, his father felt a kick, and his eyes lit up with joy. The husband and wife began to banter, their playful exchange bringing a brittle chuckle from Han Xin.
He could have been born into a happy family, but they were taken from him by that evil bastard. His jaw tightened, and he couldn’t hear anything anymore. He clenched his fists, his ntal power growing chaotic like a raging storm. He was going to tear that man limb from limb and make him pay for what he did.
Suddenly, Eirian ended the video and warned him, "Your ntal power is on the verge of rioting."
Han Xin was so out of it that he didn’t realize when Han Zhan had co into his cabin. When their gazes t, Han Zhan yelped and almost ran away, as if he had seen a beast about to attack him. His throat felt dry. "Xin Xin, I am just going to inject you with so dicine, okay? Don’t attack ... please."
Han Xin didn’t move, but his ntal power was on the edge, ready to snap. Han Zhan swallowed hard and made himself appear docile, hiding any hint of his own ntal power.
He injected Han Xin while holding his breath. In an instant, Han Xin cald down, and Han Zhan sighed in relief. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, feeling the tension evaporate from his muscles. He slumped onto the couch looking exhausted.
"What triggered you this ti?" Han Zhan asked.
Han Xin ran his fingers through his hair before showing Han Zhan the video. Then he got up and went to the mini bar in the other room to pour himself a drink, trying to steady his turbulent emotions.
When Han Xin returned, he found Han Zhan staring at the floating screen, his face as white like he had seen a ghost.
"You saw it?" Han Xin’s voice broke the heavy silence.
"Yeah, um... where did you get this?" Han Zhan’s voice was shaky, his eyes never leaving the screen.
"The Marshal," Han Xin replied his voice filled with emotion.
Han Zhan rubbed his face vigorously as if trying to calm his emotions. He loathed that bastard for taking away such good people and for what? A few years on the throne? "Uncle did like taking videos and pictures. It was almost an illness. You wouldn’t think he was the imperial lord."
Han Xin handed him a drink and sat down next to him. The two of them drank in silence for a while, the weight of their thoughts pressing down on them. The air was thick with unspoken words.
Suddenly, Han Zhan broke the silence. "Did you find anything about Aunty?"
Han Xin shook his head, a shadow crossing his face. Turning to Eirian, he asked, "Do you have any information about Project Starry Night?"
Eirian, who had been in rest mode, suddenly sprang to life at Han Xin’s voice. Spotting a familiar face it suddenly said, "Oh look who it is. Big head, you are all grown up."
Han Zhan’s expression was a mix of surprise and annoyance. "..."
The tension between Han Zhan and Eirian was palpable, a long-standing feud simring just below the surface. He never thought he would encounter this bully of an AI again.
"Who are you calling big head?" Han Zhan yelled, his temper flaring.
"Woah, you did grow a pair balls. Do you want to fight?" Eirian taunted, its tone mocking.
"No fighting, not now," Han Xin interjected firmly. "Eirian, what do you know about Project Starry Night?"
Eirian ceased its teasing and beca serious. "Oh, that. I have it right here." A file buried in a sea of confidential folders popped up on the screen, catching the cousins’ full attention.
Eirian summarized the contents. "It’s an ergency escape plan planned by your father. In case the Federation ever suppressed them, he needed a way to get you and Her Majesty out safely. There are docunts of secret locations, funds, and spacecrafts."
Images of unique houses flashed on the screen, and when Han Zhan saw the photos, his eyes widened. "Wait, go back. What are those?"
Eirian went back and said, "Oh, these. They are the hidden locations of the safe houses. I can scan them for you and give you the locations. Only I can read the encrypted data in the pictures."
Han Xin took out a photo and asked, "Can you read this?"
Eirian wasn’t surprised to see it. "Is that from Miss Xing Xing?"
Han Zhan and Han Xin exchanged shocked glances.
Eirian continued, "Is it not? Her Imperial Empress asked to print that out. She was worried about Miss Xing Xing and wanted her to leave her husband before it was too late."
The realization dawned on them, leaving Han Xin and Han Zhan completely flabbergasted. It made sense that Xiang Yu’s mother knew Han Xin’s mother, but they didn’t think they were that close.
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