As he stepped out of the school building, a scribe hurriedly found Xin Huexue.
From the golden pattern of the Truth Goddess Maat engraved on the pendant on his chest, it could be determined that he was a scribe under the court.
The outstanding talents selected by the Pharaoh of Upper Egypt formed a thirty member committee, and among them were judges, who rotated among six courts responsible for adjudicating cases. Under the courts, there were also scribes responsible for basic work.
The scribe said respectfully, “Lord Iah, the Pharaoh requests your presence at the prison to identify the criminal.”
‘Criminal?’
Xin Hexue followed him all the way into the prison before seeing several female slaves with black hair and black eyes.
The features of black hair and black eyes were not uncommon in ancient Egypt, as most people had dark appearances. Many people had come to participate in the Sacred Bull Festival celebrations, making the crowd mixed. Presumably, even if they wanted to hold the female slave who had spilled the problematic wine on the High Priest that night accountable, after missing the best opportunity at the time, they could now only identify a few suspects.
When Xin Hexue arrived, Rahotep seemed to have been waiting there for some time.
But the moment he met eyes with the White King, Xin Hexue understood in his heart.
The female slave from Assyria had either been silenced by the mastermind after the incident or had fled early and disappeared. Recalling the previous conversation with the female slave and relying on first impressions and intuition, Xin Hexue felt the latter was more likely.
So, the White King still asked him to identify the so-called criminal…
The drinker’s heart is not in the cup…he has an ulterior motive.
He just wanted to take this opportunity to observe the Divine Envoy’s attitude toward what happened that night, in order to determine how to position Xin Hexue and how to interact with him in the future.
“Iah, see if there is anyone similar to the one from the Sacred Bull Festival celebration that night.”
As Xin Hexue walked past the several captured suspects, Rahotep stood in the shadows on the other side, his eyes a deep purple as they stared at Xin Hexue.
Since it was called a prison, a place for holding prisoners awaiting trial, the conditions were certainly not good. There was only a single window on the side of the corridor, and the light penetrated through that window.
Dust floated in the golden beam of light, stirred up by Xin Hexue’s footsteps before settling down again.
The single window faced south, making the wind from the northern deserts and the Gobi Desert unable to enter, and the air inside the prison was stifling. In addition, it was still daytime, so the indoor temperature was even hotter.
Xin Hexue walked around and confirmed that the female slave who had previously claimed to be from Assyria was not among them.
He turned to Rahotep and said, “Pharaoh, there are no people with evil intentions here. Release them all.”
….
It was as if the absurdity of that night had been put behind.
Rahotep walked beside Xin Hexue, glancing at him out of the corner of his eye. The Divine Envoy still had that same indifferent expression, as if nothing mattered to him. Even if he had been deeply violated by a man, entangled throughout the night, it would not leave any trace in his heart.
It was like a wild goose flying from the northern sky to Upper Egypt without changing the clouds in the sky in the slightest.
It was clearly the best outcome according to rational analysis…
But Rahotep felt an unprecedented discomfort, as if something was stuck in his throat, as if this result was not what he had hoped for in his heart.
If the man that night had not been him…
Because of this assumption, Rahotep’s breath stopped for a moment.
The golden, plump plants on the high ground steadied his mind.
Rahotep: “This is…”
He remembered that Xin Hexue had once mentioned about crops being tested and planted.
“Corn?”
The hired farmers in the field were originally working. When they saw Xin Hexue arriving, one of them, already aware of the purpose, peeled off the early ripe fruits from several plants and respectfully presented them to the Divine Envoy and the Pharaoh. “By the Sun God Ra, the seeds gifted by the Divine Envoy to the mortal world have truly borne golden fruits.”
After paying respects, the farmer skillfully peeled off the outer layers of the corn. The plump corn kernels exposed under the sunlight shone with a golden glow.
Xin Hexue had originally planned to display the corn during the Sacred Bull Festival celebration. What could better demonstrate divine will than the appearance of golden crops at the festival?
However, the corn plants were still green at that time, and the fruits had not yet matured. Even if he had the intention, he could not present them.
“There are many ways to cook corn. Even simply boiled without spices, it is delicious.” Xin Hexue took the corn in his hand and explained to Rahotep, “It tastes sweet but not cloying. It can be used as a dish or as a staple food.”
This was the first time such a crop appeared on the land of the Nile, yet the Divine Envoy seemed to have tasted it several times and treated it as commonplace, fully familiar with its flavor and cooking methods.
Rahotep had communicated with the Divine Envoy about his origins.
Xin Hexue only replied that he came from a distant place in the East.
Apart from that, Rahotep seemed to know nothing about the Divine Envoy.
Not even his name.
His Iah was like rootless tumbleweed.
Lingering on his land but not staying. If he left, only faint traces would remain on the golden sand, and after a dust storm, there would be nowhere to be found.
Rahotep felt a hollow space in his heart.
When he reacted, Rahotep realized he had asked the previous question again, “Who are you, really?”
Iah looked at him with those eyes that were as clear as the moon in the lake, “Your Majesty, there is no need to concern yourself with where I come from or who I am.”
“Just as the prophecy says, my mission is to choose the one true king, promote the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt, and bring prosperity and abundance to this land.”
They stood between the ridges on the high ground. The wind passed through the gaps between rows of green plants. Below, the entire city of Thebes could be seen, blue waterways like blood vessels crisscrossing the city.
There were commoners carrying buckets to draw water from nearby canals, herdsmen driving cattle and sheep to dry grasslands, and children playing in the shallow banks of the Nile.
Iah looked at him, the wind lifting a strand of silver hair under his hood, “Your Majesty, do you want to know what kind of Egypt I envision?”
Rahotep looked at him with a serious expression, “What kind?”
Xin Hexue’s gaze fell upon the city, “A place where no one suffers misfortune, no one endures hunger, where rivers fill the fields, the land is rich and abundant, and the people are proud of it.”
He turned his head and said firmly, “Will you devote all your efforts to such an Egypt?”
Rahotep’s mind was completely captivated by him.
Such a nation was exactly what he wanted to build, exactly what he hoped for.
Moreover, he believed that with Iah’s assistance, these words were not empty talk.
He wondered if his heart was throbbing with excitement at the blueprint described by Iah. Otherwise, what was stirring in his chest?
The pounding sound made him ignore all mundane noises in his ears.
[Ra-Hotep love value +5]
[Rahotep’s current love value is 80]
On the chariot ride on the way back from the high ground, Rahotep pretended to casually bring up the events of that night.
Xin Hexue looked indifferent, tilting his head calmly, “Your Majesty, it was not a big deal. We both know it was a situation with lack of choices.”
“In the country I once belonged to, the most respected relationship between people was that of ‘zhi ji’ (kindred spirits). There is a saying, ‘A scholar dies for his zhi ji,’ showing that subjects consider meeting a ruler who appreciates them the greatest fortune of life.”
“If they are zhi ji, even sharing a bed every night is not strange.”
Rahotep paused, “Is that so?”
He couldn’t help but ponder the Divine Envoy’s “zhi ji theory.”
So, did Iah have a zhi ji in the East? Even shared a bed every night?
Rahotep turned his head, his gaze darkening. The usual gentle smile on his lips had disappeared.
If there was a mirror inside the chariot, Rahotep would have seen his own reflection at that moment…
A man who, as in legends, was laughable, jealous to the point of madness and irrational.
He suppressed his expression, but jealousy burned in his heart.
His heartache surged like wildfire.
He thought again, would Iah leave him after fulfilling the mission in the prophecy? Return to that eastern land.
He would not allow it. If that day ever came, he would definitely detain Iah, bind him to this land.
The Nile River could not carry away his longing.
He thought with a gloomy expression.
And thus he missed the cunning light in Xin Hexue’s eyes.
….
The White King was a jealous man.
The image he projected was gentle and benevolent, but his actions did not match it at all.
Even without paying excessive attention, Xin Hexue could feel the increased surveillance around him, to the extent that even Seto’s letters could no longer reach him.
During the day, he was busy with the construction plans for reservoirs and dams, as well as discussing with artisans the possibility of promoting the use of iron tools. Sometimes, at night, the White King would use the “zhi ji theory” as an excuse to come and share his bed.
This was purely sleeping together.
After all, both were busy with affairs during the day. Even if Rahotep was still full of energy, Xin Hexue would not let him get far.
He needed sufficient sleep.
So, under the impact of numerous tasks, by the time Xin Hexue came to his senses, he had not received any letters from Seto for nearly over two months.
Regarding the question of the letters, Rahotep cut off all correspondence, using the reason that they “involved military secrets, he didn’t want to burden the Divine Envoy with worries.”
In the blink of an eye, the planting season was about to pass, and the harvest season was approaching. Upper Egypt was immersed in the excitement of the impending harvest.
Because he had lost contact with Seto for a long time, Xin Hexue was so surprised when he woke up one morning and saw him.
The jackal-head mask had a jagged crack. The exposed skin had a shallow mark, already a healed scar.
It looked quite new, likely from a battle while clearing out rebels in the Amra region. An enemy’s sharp weapon had cracked the mask and left a bloody scar below the eye.
The triumphant young roya, carrying the scorching heat of wind and sand and blood.
At this moment, he was like a wolf, bending over and leaning on him, anxiously sniffing constantly, as if he had discovered that during his time away from Thebes, someone had invaded his Mother Goddess.
He smelled a different scent on his Mother Goddess than before.
This was enough to drive the child who had not received replies from his Mother Goddess for over two months mad.
When the news of victory reached the royal city, Seto received orders to leave Amra. He had barely slept all night, traveling day and night back to Thebes, to this place that belonged to him.
But he smelled the scent of an unfamiliar man on Xin Hexue.
How…
How…
How could he make Mother Goddess belong only to him?
Seto’s cold nose tip slid down Xin Hexue’s chest, pausing briefly between the two pink points.
If only he could merge into one with Mother Goddess, but he could not eat him.
Seto leaned close to listen to the heartbeat in this chest, separated only by a thin layer of skin. No one understood better than him how fragile human skin and flesh were.
The edge of the jackal-head mask brushed against the chest, causing a chill, and two points stood up on the chest.
A tingling sensation rose in Xin Hexue’s chest, and the corners of his eyes turned red as he buried the side of his face in the pillow. But he still remembered to grab Seto’s hair, “Stop rubbing randomly.”
Seto finally moved away from that area.
However, after thinking for a moment, he lowered his head again.
He found it…
He lovingly kissed Xin Hexue’s abdomen.
If he could tie a knot inside the Mother Goddess’s body, he would, like a cub, crawl back into that warm abdomen, right?
