Chapter 11
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Bloodlines of the Three Dukes
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"Mother-in-law, what if we registered that child into the Jin Clan?"
A hush fell over the inner quarters.
Sunju turned her gaze to Baek and Duseon at Liu Biao's words.
She soon shifted her eyes away and quietly spoke.
"Registration? Isn't that a bit sudden? What brings this up?"
Liu Biao adjusted his posture.
"The main line of the Jin Clan... has already died out. After the Party Prohibitions disaster, you're the only survivor left. If things continue like this, even Lord Jin Fan's name will fade quietly into oblivion."
Shadows of worry clouded Sunju's face as she listened.
"I know you hold that child dear. And from what I've seen myself, his filial piety and spirit set him apart from others."
Liu Biao looked at Baek and continued.
"I've even asked Lord Pang Degong, who's teaching him. No one has a keener eye for people. He said the same: a fine sapling with great promise."
Sunju gazed at Baek without a word.
Her eyes swirled with countless thoughts.
Breaking the silence, Liu Qi cautiously interjected.
"If I may... I support it. No one knows Baek's character better than I do. He'll surely rise to the occasion."
Baek bowed his head silently, but a faint spark of hope flickered in his heart.
'In this chaotic era, a thread like this might just...'
"Would Mother be registered too?"
Liu Biao smiled warmly at Baek's question.
No words were needed; it was a perfect display of the filial devotion he had just praised.
Sunju watched Baek for a moment before nodding.
Her eyes held unwavering conviction.
"Very well, then... let's do it. Register them both."
But at that moment, the quiet Duseon spoke up.
"We are grateful, but... we couldn't possibly."
The air in the room grew heavy once more at her words.
Liu Biao stared at her for a long while.
As if struggling to accept it, he asked in a low voice.
"Why not? Wouldn't it be better for a child raised without a father to carry the name of this house? Especially the name of one of the Three Dukes, Jin Fan."
Duseon pressed her lips tight and bowed her head briefly.
Her fingertips trembled faintly.
She lifted her head and spoke softly.
"...The truth is, this child's father is still alive."
Sunju raised her head sharply.
"What... what did you say?"
Liu Qi's eyes widened in surprise, and Baek froze in place.
Sunju looked steadily at Duseon, then continued in a slightly trembling voice.
"When you first came here, you said your husband had gone to subdue the barbarians and lost contact. That's why... I thought he'd died long ago."
Pausing briefly, Sunju exhaled and added quietly.
"But he's alive... That's truly a blessing."
Her voice carried the long-held concern she felt for Duseon.
"Have you been in touch? Do you know where he is?"
As Duseon lowered her head silently, Sunju paused, then spoke gently.
"Then bring him here. Whatever his circumstances, wouldn't it be better for him to live with us?"
At Sunju's warm words, Duseon wiped her eyes discreetly, head still bowed.
"If he's family... he should live with us. That way, the heart feels lighter, the body suffers less. Especially with Baek here."
Duseon swallowed her tears and continued in a cracking voice, slowly.
"...Your kindness alone is more than enough thanks, but there are circumstances that make it impossible to accept."
No one in the room pressed her further.
Those who had watched over her for years understood from that one sentence.
Duseon held back her tears and fell silent for a time.
Her fingertips quivered faintly, her lips parting and closing several times.
"Even telling you that Baek's father is alive... was something I hesitated over for so long..."
Sunju's gaze deepened quietly.
Duseon drew a slow breath and cautiously spoke again.
"There's... one more fact I haven't shared until now."
All eyes turned to Duseon.
She looked down briefly before continuing softly.
"...I am the granddaughter of Grand General Du Mu, one of the Three Dukes."
Sunju's pupils quivered faintly.
Liu Biao furrowed his brow slightly, and the room sank into brief silence.
"The year I turned nine, the Party Prohibitions broke out. My clan was wiped out overnight... My parents, my siblings, all fell before my eyes."
She clenched her trembling fingertips and drew a deep breath.
"At that time, a few disciples under Grandfather saved only me and my two-year-old little brother, carrying us out."
It was as if that day's horrors resurfaced in her mind.
"But while fleeing... I lost them. It was such a frantic, chaotic night that I can't even properly remember how we got separated."
Baek looked at his mother in shock, but Duseon continued quietly.
"After that, I wandered endlessly. I couldn't reveal my clan's name anywhere; surviving quietly, undetected, was all that mattered."
She caught her breath briefly and went on.
"I knew the Jin Clan was a famed scholarly house. But... until General Who Pacifies the South mentioned it just now, I had no idea this was the direct line of Lord Jin Fan."
Duseon slowly raised her eyes to meet Sunju's.
"Now that I know we're in the same boat... I felt I no longer needed to hide."
Sunju drew a quiet breath.
Liu Biao, watching her silently, spoke in a low voice.
"But the Party Prohibitions ban was lifted long ago. There's no reason to hide that name now, no need to fear so much."
Duseon closed her eyes once, then opened them.
A long-suppressed terror flashed within.
"...I was too young to understand it then. Too young to grasp why it happened or who was behind it."
Duseon exhaled shortly.
"That fear remains vivid even now. The thought that someone could come at any moment, not just for me but for Baek too... Time hasn't erased it."
With that, she gently took Baek's hand.
Her fingertips still trembled.
"...Your offer is an immense grace that leaves me at a loss. How could I take such gracious words lightly?"
She paused to steady her breath, but even that trembled.
"You embraced a girl of unknown origins, without a home, like your own daughter, and cherished and cared for Baek too... I've never forgotten that."
The emotions Duseon had bottled up rose slowly through her throat.
"But... when I think of Grandfather who left this world that day, and my family..."
At that moment, a tear finally fell.
"...I cannot... accept it."
Her voice, laced with sobs, filled the inner quarters.
She gripped Baek's hand tightly, her shoulders shaking quietly.
The grief pressed down for years finally poured out in this instant.
The next morning, Liu Biao received word from the administrative office and headed straight to the council hall.
An old man was already seated there.
His back bent by age, but his eyes still gleamed with vitality.
Pang Degong.
A renowned scholar of Jing Province, leader of private academies.
And Liu Biao's trusted, secretive advisor.
Liu Biao sat and spoke lowly.
"That's how it turned out. It's flowing differently from what I first envisioned."
Pang Degong smiled faintly.
"It's for the best. Two direct lines of the Three Dukes entering Jing Province... The General Who Pacifies the South must be riding a wave of great fortune."
Liu Biao looked at him and asked quietly.
"What should we do now?"
Pang Degong clasped his hands and spoke slowly.
"First, find Du Mu's grandson. Prove the woman's words to the world. Then hold grand rites for the Three Dukes. Show all under heaven that the blood of Jing Province's Pure Stream heroes still lives and breathes."
Liu Biao furrowed his brow slightly.
"What good will that do against the Cai and Gai clans?"
Pang Degong continued seamlessly.
"Local great clans chase central offices by nature, calling themselves scholarly families and claiming Pure Stream status. They want to appear noble, armed with virtue and righteousness, unlike eunuchs or imperial in-laws. To them, the prestige of the Three Dukes—the pinnacle of Pure Stream—is no mere bloodline; it's a symbol proving their morality and nobility. With this legitimacy revealed, even great clans won't dare trample the Jin or Du houses lightly."
As Liu Biao nodded in agreement, Pang Degong smiled faintly and pressed on.
"And spread Baek's story far and wide. The filial son who wouldn't yield before the mightiest clan in Jing Province, all because they insulted his mother. People etch such tales deep in their hearts."
Liu Biao tilted his head curiously, and Pang Degong set down his cup before speaking slowly.
"Surely the General hasn't forgotten the tale of Yuan Yuanben? Though born a slave, he mourned his father for three years, then did the same for his stepmother. That won him the Pure Stream faction's trust, and eventually recognition as a legitimate figure even at court."
He paused, nodding as if recalling Baek's name.
"This way, that boy Baek... will surely prove invaluable later."
Though he heard it, Liu Biao didn't nod easily.
He let out a long, frustrated breath before speaking.
"Even so, with things dragging this slowly... When will I ever surpass them and realize my ambitions?"
His voice brimmed with impatience and unease.
"I'm past fifty now. At this rate... I'll end up their puppet, achieving nothing."
That was when it happened.
A young man standing quietly in the shadows behind Pang Degong stepped forward slowly.
His face was boyish, not yet twenty, yet it carried an uncanny aura that pierced through people.
His rugged features were pocked with deep scars, but his eyes shone exceptionally clear and sharp.
He spoke lowly.
"I understand the general's impatience. But kingship isn't about the present alone. True greatness looks to the next generation."
As Liu Biao frowned slightly, the youth continued without hesitation.
"The Cai and Gai clans have no interest in your kingship. As long as their privileges and vested rights are secure, they don't care who rules."
He caught his breath and added.
"Even if you rush now, when you pass and your heir succeeds, that power will slip through the Cai and Gai hands to another force. All your achievements would crumble like a sandcastle, failing to endure."
Liu Biao fell silent at his words.
In his eyes, he glimpsed the distant vision of everything he built collapsing after his death.
Pang Tong concluded with firm resolve.
"Their power runs deep and solid. What we need isn't speed, but depth—to topple them slowly from the roots."
The youth was Pang Tong, courtesy name Shiyuan.
In the original timeline, at this point, he would have languished unrecognized, his talents wasted in obscurity.
The ripples from Liu Biao and Baek's encounters were beginning to subtly twist the flow of history.