Infinity, The Arcade Age

Inside the cabin, Zhao Yun had already put away his weapon and was now kneeling upright on the floor, his posture firm and his expression solemn. Opposite him, Sun Ji sat cross-legged at the table, while Qin Ming, now serving as her personal guard captain, stood beside her.

Glancing briefly at Liu A'dou, who was playing off to the side, Zhao Yun frowned. After a few seconds of silence, he finally looked up and spoke.

"So, what you're saying is… the young mistress was deceived by that Zhou Dun?"

Hearing his question, Sun Ji snorted coldly, her expression completely devoid of warmth. She didn't even bother giving Zhao Yun a proper response.

At this moment, her heart was filled with nothing but disgust—whether it was toward the generals of Wu or the warriors of Shu, she hated them all.

If Qin Ming hadn't stopped her earlier, she would have already ordered her guards to swarm Zhao Yun and beat him to death right here in the cabin before tossing his corpse into the sea to feed the fish.

She didn't even have any personal grudges against Zhao Yun. On the contrary, he had always respected her deeply.

But so what? He was Liu Bei's most loyal general. That alone was enough to make her sick.

Seeing that Sun Ji had no intention of answering, Qin Ming let out a helpless sigh and decided to step in.

"Yes, Zhou Dun was one of the Sun family's trusted retainers, and he was also the young mistress's childhood companion. When he suddenly arrived claiming that the King of Wu was gravely ill, of course she had no reason to doubt him. That's how she was tricked. It was only halfway through the journey that she realized something was wrong."

"So the warship suddenly changed course and even clashed with the Wu fleet… all because of this?"

"Exactly. Once the young mistress saw through the deception and wanted to bring the young lord back, the Wu side naturally refused, and that led to the battle. Luckily, we reacted quickly and managed to break through their encirclement."

Zhao Yun's gaze flickered slightly. After a few seconds, he suddenly stood up, clasped his fists, and bowed deeply toward Sun Ji.

"Zhao Yun expresses his deepest gratitude for your great righteousness, my lady!"

For Zhao Yun, Sun Ji's decision to forcefully bring Liu A'dou back to Shu—despite even fighting against Wu's warships to do so—was no small matter.

It meant that she had completely severed her ties with Wu.

After all, a direct battle like this was an irreversible break. There was no way she could ever return to Wu now.

By ruining the King of Wu's grand strategy, she had now lost her home forever, becoming an outsider in Wu's eyes.

Sun Ji had paid such a heavy price just to bring Liu A'dou back—how could Zhao Yun not be grateful to her?

Even if Liu A'dou was only in danger because of her in the first place.

Watching Zhao Yun bow respectfully, Sun Ji leaned back in her chair and waved a hand impatiently, as if telling him to stop being so serious.

For Shu's sake? If it weren't for the fact that she had raised A'dou for years and had actually grown emotionally attached to the child, she would have drowned him in the river long ago, cutting off Liu Bei's bloodline just to spite him!

Her gaze toward Zhao Yun was filled with annoyance as she pursed her lips in visible disdain.

It wasn't until she noticed Qin Ming staring at her from the side that she rolled her eyes, let out a sigh, and finally spoke.

"Fine, fine. In the end, it was my mistake to begin with. Since I was the one who took A'dou away without permission, it's only right that I do my best to return him safely."

"My lady is truly righteous!"

"Enough with the flattery." Sun Ji cut him off with a wave of her hand. "From now on, you're in charge of commanding the fleet. You know the ports of Shu better than anyone. As for A'dou, he stays with me. I'll hand him over once we've made landfall and everything is secure."

Zhao Yun glanced up at her, visibly confused.

This woman, known for her fiery temper, who would argue with anyone just for the sake of it, was suddenly being so cooperative and easy to talk to? He couldn't help but find it suspicious.

Still, he didn't press the issue. Bowing once more, he declared, "Please rest assured, my lady! I, Zhao Zilong, will personally ensure the safety of both you and the young lord!"

With that, he caught the command medallion that Qin Ming tossed his way, turned around, and strode out of the cabin.

Sun Ji let out a long breath as she watched Zhao Yun leave. Her body relaxed completely, and she leaned directly against Qin Ming's leg.

"Alright, now that Zhao Yun is here to protect us, we're completely safe. You can finally stop worrying, right?"

Qin Ming looked down at Sun Ji, who was gazing up at him with her beautiful, bright eyes. He couldn't help but grin.

"Yeah, I do feel a lot better. General Zhao has quite the reputation as a 'firefighter'—rescuing people is what he does best. But Sun Ji, in front of others, you should hold back on being so affectionate toward me. Otherwise, it'll cause trouble once we reach Shu."

"Hmph! So what if I'm affectionate? I'll be affectionate with whoever I damn well please! What, is Liu Bei gonna kill me over it?! If you weren't such a power-hungry coward unwilling to leave with me, I'd take you away right now! We'd abandon all this nonsense, take my girls, find a mountain, and become bandit kings! I'd be the leader, you'd be my second-in-command, and Rika Kasamoto would be third!"

"Hey! Don't say stuff like that out loud! There are people here!"

"People? This whole cabin is full of my people—where are the outsiders?"

Sun Ji gave him a puzzled look, only to notice that Qin Ming was glancing toward the side.

Following his gaze, she turned her head—only to see exactly who he was referring to.

It was Liu A'dou and his wet nurse.

A'dou, ever so innocent, simply stared at them with his wide, clueless eyes. He obviously hadn't understood a word of what she just said.

But while the child was an idiot, his wet nurse definitely wasn't.

...

Realizing she had just overheard something she absolutely should not have, the woman was now shaking like a leaf, clutching A'dou in her trembling arms.

Seeing this, Sun Ji rolled her eyes.

Still leaning against Qin Ming's leg, she casually waved a hand.

"Relax. She's just a powerless nurse—so what if she heard something? What's she gonna do, run off and snitch? If you're really worried about her, there's a simple solution." Sun Ji smirked before giving Qin Ming a teasing look. "Just sleep with her tonight—I'd love to see if she still dares to talk after that."

As she spoke, Sun Ji even arched an eyebrow at the wet nurse, her expression full of mischief.

"Hey, I'm letting my consort keep you company for the night. You don't have any objections, do you?"

The wet nurse, already scared out of her mind, shuddered violently. Her face turned deathly pale, and she was so terrified that she couldn't even form words—she just nodded frantically.

Objections?

She wouldn't dare to have objections!

If she so much as hesitated, she'd probably end up stuffed in a crate and dumped into the sea!

...

Meanwhile, in the wet nurse's arms, A'dou felt her entire body trembling. He looked up at her face, then turned to Sun Ji with a curious expression.

"Godmother, what does 'keep company for the night' mean?"

"Huh? Ah—that's not something little kids should ask about! You'll understand when you're older!"

A'dou, still clueless, simply nodded along like he understood.

Sun Ji stared at the little boy—his face did somewhat resemble Liu Bei's. She pursed her lips in disdain.

"Just you wait, you little brat."

"Once you're a bit older, I'll find ten or twenty girls to keep you company. The same way I ruined your father, I'll have them ruin you! I'll make sure the Liu family dies out completely! Let's see what you people will fight over then!"