Chapter 71 Chu Mu’s Birth Mother

Shen Zhao observed the clear panic in Elder Chu’s expression—had she guessed correctly? Chu Mu was not a child of the Chu family, but belonged to the Yu family. Yet Elder Chu’s reaction did not fully support her assumption; perhaps there was something she had overlooked.

Nonetheless, the performance had to continue. She secretly pinched herself, and the sharp pain immediately welled her eyes with tears. Chu Mu saw A Zhao’s trembling, tearful gaze and the stubborn determination not to let her tears fall. His heart ached for her, his eyes reddening in sympathy. How deeply must A Zhao care for him, to have reddened eyes and share in his suffering? Fortunately, he still had the chance to make amends with his A Zhao in the future.

Shen Zhao was oblivious to Chu Mu’s thoughts; at this moment, she only wanted to curse. Damn, it really hurt! Next time, she vowed to practice so her tears could fall on command—though this was not her own body, so the pain was only physical, not emotional. She fought desperately to hold back her tears; if they fell, she wouldn’t be able to cry again if asked. The more sorrowful she appeared, the deeper Elder Chu’s guilt and concern for Chu Mu would grow, making it easier to extract secrets from the past.

Thinking of her father and brother still in exile, her sadness surged, her face grew desolate, and she spoke in a plaintive, earnest tone:

“Brother… Mother raised me, and for all she has done, I have no right to blame or resent her. But some things, Brother… I really cannot… cannot forgive her, cannot honor her as I once did. Whenever I see Mother, those heart-wrenching memories cloud my mind, constantly reminding me that I am a ruined person! Brother… do you know why, all these years of marriage with A Zhao, I have never had children?”

Shen Zhao’s bitter smile made Elder Chu’s heart skip a beat. The third brother would not bring up children without reason. His face instantly drained of color—could Mother have… taken measures against the third brother? She had promised him, she would never harbor such cruel intentions, let alone harm the third brother. Elder Chu’s breath faltered as he asked, “Why… why, third brother?”

Sadness flooded Shen Zhao’s eyes, her voice choked:

“Brother, have you ever heard of the Childless Powder?”

“The… Childless Powder! Third brother, quickly… call for the physician… no… go to the palace and seek the imperial doctor!” Elder Chu immediately gathered his robes and rushed out, completely losing composure.

“No need, Brother. Someone who has been fed Childless Powder for nineteen years—unless a celestial deity descends, I will never have children in this lifetime… The physician? Ha… Brother, every month the physician checks the pulse of the household’s masters for peace, and if not for a chance occurrence, I would never have known I’d been given Childless Powder for nineteen years.

Moreover, the dosage each time was so minute, only an exceptionally skilled doctor could have detected it. Brother, the physician was brought into the household by Mother in earlier years; perhaps he played his part in this as well.”

Hearing this, Elder Chu staggered backward, momentarily dazed. His fists clenched, veins bulged on his neck, his eyes reddened with rage—this was fury at its peak.

Mother… she actually fed the third brother Childless Powder for nineteen years! How could she be so vicious?

“Third brother…”

Shen Zhao immediately interrupted, for what she was about to say next would be even harder for Elder Chu to bear.

“Brother, you needn’t persuade me…”

Elder Chu quickly interjected, “Third brother, I am not urging you to be kind to Mother. I am the one who has wronged you… wronged… you…”

As he spoke, Elder Chu was overcome with sorrow, large tears streaming down his face; a man past thirty wiping his eyes.

“Brother… I know I am not Mother’s biological child. However she treats me, I can accept it, for she raised me. But what she should never have done, never, was to give me Childless Powder for nineteen years and then use filthy tricks against A Zhao.

What fault did A Zhao commit in marrying into our Chu family? Mother… she also gave A Zhao Childless Powder.

Why is Mother’s heart so cruel, Brother! Brother… in Mother’s eyes I am unworthy of anything good. So she could so callously deprive me of the right to be a father.

Many times I wondered, would my children resemble my wife or myself… but now I dare not think… how can a ruined, childless man dare to dream?”

Shen Zhao gave a self-deprecating smile; beside him, Chu Mu clenched his fists in his sleeves. Yes—a ruined, childless man, how could he dare to dream? How could he now be worthy of his A Zhao, or ever make amends?

His heart was suddenly heavy and suffocated.

“I have always respected her, even when Mother was harsh with A Zhao and me, even when she indulged Second Brother’s family in greedy schemes for the general’s estate, even when she treated me as an eyesore—all this I could endure.

But Brother, tell me… tell me… now that I have been deprived of children, how am I supposed to endure?”

“Third brother…”

Seeing the utter despair and helpless self-mockery in the third brother’s eyes, Elder Chu wished he could storm to Mother at that moment and demand to know how many heartless things she had done over the years. It was all his fault; he should never have trusted her. He knew full well her character, yet chose to deceive himself, allowed her to remain near the third brother.

Had he not let Mother stay in the general’s mansion, would the third brother’s suffering have been less? But nineteen years of Childless Powder—back then, the third brother was still young, always saw Mother as his own. How could she bear to harm a child who revered her so deeply!

“Brother!” Shen Zhao’s emotions grew more intense. “What I cannot bear most is that Mother should not torment those who are already dead!”

At last, the tears she had held back could freely fall. “She should never have tormented my birth mother, who has been dead for years!”

Chu Mu suddenly raised his head—A Zhao knew who his birth mother was!

“What… what… third brother, you know everything! Mother… she is not your biological mother.”

Shen Zhao nodded heavily. “Yes, not only do I know Mother is not my birth mother, I know my birth mother passed away long ago, and even in death, she has found no peace. Brother, desecrating a memorial tablet is a sin bound for hell; to torment even the departed, how can you expect me to…” Her voice broke. “Brother, tell me!”

“Desecrating a memorial tablet! You mean Mother destroyed the tablet of the legitimate wife!”

Elder Chu’s eyes now blazed with fury and indignation. How dare Mother—how dare she!

Aunt Yu was his legitimate mother, though Mother entered the Chu household first and bore children before her.

But Mother conceived him through despicable means, entering the Chu household as a concubine.

The legitimate wife!

Shen Zhao quickly glanced at Chu Mu. She had thought… thought Chu Mu was not truly a child of the Chu family, assumed he was a secret child of the Yu family, never imagined his mother was actually the legitimate lady of the Chu household.

But this did not make sense. In proper households, concubines never entered before the main wife, and the eldest son born to a concubine being ten years older than the legitimate heir was far from the norm.