HCT – Chapter 253 King Zheng of Qin Makes Plans

When Crown Prince Dan of Yan escaped back to the Yan State, Cheng Jiao and Meng Yi, bringing little Fusu with them, finally met Zhu Xiang and Xue Ji.

Zhu Xiang was astonished. “Why did you bring Fusu here?”

Little Fusu, who was already able to wobble as he ran, threw himself at Zhu Xiang the moment he saw him, burying his face against Zhu Xiang’s leg and wailing loudly.

Zhu Xiang scooped him up and patted his back. “Good boy, Fusu. The journey must have been tiring.”

Little Fusu smeared his tears and snot all over Zhu Xiang’s robe and complained pitifully, “Uncle wouldn’t… give Fusu… meat!”

Cheng Jiao immediately raised both hands to defend himself. “Injustice! The dry rations I gave you were all jerky—how is that not meat?”

Zhu Xiang was puzzled. “Jerky? Can he even chew jerky?”

Cheng Jiao replied, “Uncle, I’m not that stupid. Of course I chopped the jerky into tiny pieces and soaked it in water before feeding it to him.”

But little Fusu began crying again, squirming in Zhu Xiang’s arms so much that Zhu Xiang nearly lost hold of him. “Bad! Tastes bad! Not meat!”

Zhu Xiang couldn’t help laughing. “Did you have to rush that much? You should still have had time to cook a proper meal for him on the road.”

Cheng Jiao clasped his hands behind his head, whistled, and glanced to the side, refusing to answer.

Zhu Xiang turned his gaze to Meng Yi.

Meng Yi stiffened, his body giving a small twitch as he forced out a strained smile.

Zhu Xiang sighed. “Cheng Jiao… you were rushing because you wanted to bring Fusu to me as soon as possible, right?”

Cheng Jiao immediately answered, “Yes yes yes! Exactly! Uncle, do Meng Yi and I look like people who know how to take care of children? The road is dangerous—what if Fusu got sick or hurt before we reached you?”

He tried to squeeze out a few tears, but none came, so he rubbed his eyes vigorously with his sleeve instead. “And elder brother is really something! Fusu is this young—how could he bear to send him away from Xianyang?”

Meng Yi: “…”

He once again gained new respect for Young Lord Cheng Jiao.

Zhu Xiang was amused by Cheng Jiao’s dramatic performance.

He knew that Cheng Jiao truly had worried about something unexpected happening on the road, causing little Fusu to fall sick or get injured—but the way Cheng Jiao exaggerated made it look like he was lying.

“All right, stop fooling around. Go wash up. When your aunt comes back, we’ll have a proper meal to make up for your hardships.” Zhu Xiang chuckled and scolded, “And don’t you dare show up looking like this in front of your aunt if you don’t want a beating.”

Cheng Jiao instantly straightened up, dropping the exaggerated act. “Aunt is here too?”

“Of course,” Zhu Xiang replied.

Cheng Jiao grumbled, “Uncle, you should’ve said so earlier. If Aunt beats me, it’s your fault.”

Zhu Xiang laughed and scolded again. “Get lost, that’s your own doing. Meng Yi, it must’ve been tiring traveling with Cheng Jiao. Go wash and rest.”

Meng Yi hurriedly said, “Not tiring at all, not tiring.”

Little Fusu raised his tiny fists. “That’s it? That’s it? No beating uncle? Beat him!”

Zhu Xiang didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Fusu, where did you learn to talk like that?”

Little Fusu shouted angrily, “Beat!”

Zhu Xiang looked at his expression and twitched the corner of his mouth. “I understand. You must’ve learned it from Zheng’er.”

“Exactly!” Cheng Jiao dragged Meng Yi away quickly, afraid Zhu Xiang would actually take Fusu’s suggestion and hand him over to his aunt for discipline. “Uncle, the weather’s so cool—I want hotpot with mutton!”

Little Fusu lowered his tiny fists. “Eat meat!”

“Okay, meat it is,” Zhu Xiang said.

He lifted his head and glanced at the gloomy sky. “Autumn again. Time really flies.”

But little Fusu continued pestering, “Uncle-grandpa, eat meat! After eating meat, beat uncle!”

Zhu Xiang gave him a light swat on the plump backside. “Eating meat is fine, but beating your uncle is not. He managed to bring you safely over such a long distance—that’s already impressive. Don’t be spoiled.”

Little Fusu pouted. “No. Spoiled.”

Zhu Xiang said, “How about this—when your aunt comes back, you can complain to her. She’s the fairest. Even your father gets beaten when he’s in the wrong. If Cheng Jiao really did something wrong, she definitely won’t let him off.”

Little Fusu tilted his head in confusion. “Aunt… aunt?”

He grabbed his head with both hands, trying very hard to figure out what an aunt-grandmother was.

When he last saw Xue Ji, he had still been crawling and babbling—he had no memory of her at all.

Zhu Xiang carried the tear-streaked, snot-smeared little one toward the bathhouse. “Aunt-grandmother is your uncle-grandpa’s wife—your father and uncle’s aunt.”

Little Fusu clutched his head again. Still didn’t understand.

He was simply too young—his mind wasn’t yet capable of understanding complicated family relations.

Zhu Xiang added, “Just remember this: your aunt-grandmother is the most formidable one in our family. Even your father is afraid of her.”

Little Fusu’s eyes lit up. “Father… afraid of aunt?”

It wasn’t exactly fear, of course. Zhu Xiang smiled. “Yes.”

Little Fusu lay against Zhu Xiang’s chest, his large eyes narrowing, giggling “ge-ge-ge,” clearly plotting something.

Zhu Xiang patted his round bottom again.

Whatever this chubby great-nephew was scheming, Xue Ji would take care of it. If she could handle Zheng’er, handling little Fusu would be nothing.

But when Zhu Xiang finished bathing and changing little Fusu and Xue Ji returned, Zhu Xiang was disappointed.

Xue Ji scolded Cheng Jiao harshly, then, across mountains and rivers, even scolded Zheng’er back in Xianyang. After that, she swept little Fusu into her arms, calling him “my good grandson” nonstop while looking utterly heartbroken.

“Aiya, my poor darling suffered so much. How could Zheng’er send someone as young as you so far away? What if you fell sick?” she cried, wiping her tears.

Cheng Jiao took tiny steps to hide behind Zhu Xiang, whispering, “Aunt looks just like mother and grandmother.”

Zhu Xiang rubbed his forehead. He knew he had miscalculated.

Little sons and eldest grandsons were the hearts of elder women. Although Xue Ji had been strict with Cheng Jiao when he was young, her attitude toward a plump baby grandson like Fusu was another matter entirely.

Not to mention, she had been young when she raised Cheng Jiao—but both she and Zhu Xiang were older now. Their outlook had shifted. It was hard to be strict with such a tiny child.

And to Xue Ji, Fusu was still so young—what fault could he possibly have? Any mistake must be the adults’.

“Xue, Zheng’er trusts us—he sent Cheng Jiao to bring Fusu so we could raise him.” Zhu Xiang tried to reassure her. “Cheng Jiao didn’t mistreat him on the way…”

“How did he not?” Xue Ji shot back. “Even if they rushed, they still had time to boil water. And no time to properly prepare meat?”

Zhu Xiang said, “They couldn’t stop in towns to buy food. They can’t exactly keep live sheep and pigs in the carriage for fresh meat.”

“Why not?” Xue Ji snapped.

She rubbed Fusu’s chubby face, looking distressed. “Poor baby, look how skinny you are from hunger.”

Zhu Xiang: “…” There was really no way for him to respond to that. Back then, Zheng’er had been so round that it made him anxious, and Xueji had also said Zheng’er had “lost weight again.” It seemed that Fusu’s future physique was destined to develop in the direction of Zheng’er’s childhood.

Zhu Xiang patted Cheng Jiao on the shoulder. “Your aunt-mother only feels sorry that Fusu had to travel such a long distance at his age. She’s not blaming you.”

Cheng Jiao sighed. “It’s all Big Brother’s fault.”

Zhu Xiang said, “The broth is already simmered. We’re having hotpot. Xue, Fusu is hungry too.”

Fusu opened his eyes wide. “Hungry!”

Xueji immediately wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes, then rubbed her cheek against her obedient little grandson with a smile. “Alright, Aunt-Grandmother will feed Fusu some meat.”

Fusu said sweetly, “Thank you, Aunt-Grandmother! Aunt-Grandmother, the best!”

A ripple of laughter spread across Xueji’s brow like autumn water stirred by a breeze. “Such a good boy.”

Cheng Jiao lowered his voice and said to Zhu Xiang, “Uncle, Fusu is really smart. He acts this way with Big Mother and Mother as well.”

Zhu Xiang sighed inwardly. This child… it seemed his “special attack” was on female elders.

He would have to be stricter with him in the future. If Xueji’s discipline had no effect, and he himself didn’t harden his heart, they might end up spoiling Fusu into a little menace.

Once the hotpot broth was brought up, Xueji didn’t neglect Cheng Jiao either.

Though she continued scolding him for not taking proper care of Fusu, her hands never stopped swishing slices of meat for him, while she handed the child in her arms over to Zhu Xiang to look after.

After finishing her complaints about how poorly Cheng Jiao had looked after Fusu, Xueji started nagging about his studies.

When she learned that Zheng’er had entrusted Cheng Jiao’s education to her, Xueji jabbed her finger several times at Cheng Jiao’s forehead. “It must be because you’re so unruly. Your big brother can’t control you anymore, so he dumped you on your aunt-mother.”

Cheng Jiao shook his head exaggeratedly. “No, no, it’s because I’m too capable. Big Brother sent me to help you, Aunt-Mother, so you won’t get too tired.”

“Such a glib tongue!” Xueji laughed. “I’ll have to see just how capable you are. Once we return to Southern Qin, let me witness it for myself.”

Cheng Jiao said, “Leave it to me! I’ll definitely show Aunt-Mother properly!”

Xueji poked his forehead again. “Speaking of which, it’s about time you start looking at potential matches…”

Cheng Jiao immediately put on a pained expression. “Stop, stop, stop—Aunt-Mother, I’m still young! I haven’t even finished playing yet!”

Xueji scolded, “Young? What young? Your big brother at this age—”

Her words halted.

Cheng Jiao put down his chopsticks and covered his mouth, laughing. “At this age, my big brother was also still young. Pfft.”

Xueji couldn’t help but laugh too. “You and your big brother are both the same—neither of you wants to settle down early. I think only after marriage would the two of you actually grow up. Forget it, I’ll let you play for a few more years.”

She lightly knocked the head of the loudly laughing Cheng Jiao. “Are you eating or not?”

Cheng Jiao dropped his hand from his mouth. “Eating! I could still eat ten plates of meat!”

While feeding Fusu a roll of meat, Zhu Xiang said, “If you say it, you must do it. If you overeat and upset your stomach, I’ll ban you from meat for the next ten days.”

Cheng Jiao’s face immediately collapsed. “I was wrong. Aunt-Mother, please control Uncle—he’s bullying me again.”

Xueji laughed. “It’s been so long since you last saw your uncle. What’s wrong with letting him bully you a bit?”

Cheng Jiao sighed dramatically. “Alright, I’m very filial. Uncle can bully me however he wants.”

Little Fusu didn’t understand exactly what the adults were talking about, but that didn’t stop him from seeing his uncle’s gloomy expression and letting out a loud, delighted laugh.

Zhu Xiang flicked Fusu on the forehead.

What was with this mocking little face? Why did he look exactly like Zheng’er when he was small? Did Zheng’er corrupt him already? When Zhu Xiang used to take care of him before, Fusu had been a perfectly normal, well-behaved child—never like this.

…

“Achoo.” Qin King Zheng lowered his sword. Though the autumn air was cool, a thin sheen of sweat had formed on his forehead.

A palace attendant immediately stepped up with a cloth to wipe his sweat.

Qin King Zheng handed over the sword and wiped his face. “How is my swordsmanship?”

The attendant replied, “Your Majesty is one who can command armies. Your sword strikes are fierce. How could someone of my low standing possibly judge them?”

Qin Zheng looked at the boy—barely in his teens yet already so quick-witted—and nodded in satisfaction.

This attendant’s name was Zhao Gao, a far-off branch of the Zhao royal clan. But because the bloodline was too distant, his family lived no differently than commoners and still had to perform corvée labor and military service. During the Qin–Zhao war under King Zhaoxiang of Qin, his entire family had been captured and became penal slaves. His mother was selected as a palace servant because she could read and write, and Zhao Gao and his brothers all became eunuchs in service.

At this time, very few eunuchs were actually castrated—most were simply men serving within the palace. Zhao Gao was no exception, which was how he would later be able to rise to high office.

Zhao Gao had been a favored attendant of the Great Ying Zheng. Qin King Zheng hadn’t gone out of his way to search for those trusted by his late king-father, but upon meeting Zhao Gao by chance some time ago, he found him satisfactory and promoted him to serve nearby.

But all Qin kings throughout the generations were suspicious and prideful. Even if someone had been trusted by the Great Ying Zheng, Qin Zheng would not trust them blindly. He would observe for himself and judge afterward.

At the very least for now, Zhao Gao’s cleverness pleased him. He was easy to use.

If Zhao Gao truly had ability, he would send him to spend some time studying under his uncle. According to his uncle’s saying, this was called “gilding”—so that when Zhao Gao rose to high office in the future, no one could bring up his low birth.

Qin Zheng was always very considerate toward those he valued. Even if Zhao Gao was now only a low-born penal slave, Qin Zheng would still plan out a future path for him.

“Your Majesty, why have you begun practicing sword every day?” Without waiting for any announcement, Lin Zhi walked in carrying a stack of documents.

Zhao Gao, whose back had always been slightly bent, stole a glance at Lin Zhi. A flash of envy—and jealousy—passed through his eyes.

Qin Zheng said, “It’s been a long time since I practiced. I didn’t want to grow rusty.”

Lin Zhi saw nothing wrong with that. “It’s good to practice. Don’t learn from Zhu Xiang and your royal father.”

Qin Zheng frowned. “How can Uncle and Royal Father be compared with me?”

Zhao Gao’s eyes flashed slightly. Was the King displeased with the Chancellor?

His thoughts raced instantly. The Chancellor was acting overbearingly, speaking to the King with so little respect, even belittling the late King and Lord Changping. No wonder His Majesty would be displeased.

Qin Zheng continued, “With the way Uncle and Royal Father handled a sword, I could beat both of them when I was ten.”

Zhao Gao, in the middle of overthinking, stared wide-eyed.

Lin Zhi said, “That’s true. You’re the student of Lord Lian and Li Mu. You’ve led charges in battle yourself.”

Qin Zheng’s brow lifted slightly. His expression hardly changed, but that trace of boyish pride still showed.

Lin Zhi glanced at Zhao Gao.

Qin Zheng waved Zhao Gao away and sat down by the stone table.

Lin Zhi set the stack of documents down. “That new little eunuch’s mind is far too active.”

Qin Zheng said while opening the documents, “Having an active mind is not a problem. Having ambition is also not a problem. I can tolerate that.”

Lin Zhi said, “Since you can keep him under control, it’s fine. He should make for a useful blade—though he may not be compatible with Zhu Xiang.”

Qin Wang Zheng’s hand paused on the page he was flipping. He frowned. “If he isn’t stupid, he’ll know to curry favor with Uncle. Uncle is broad-minded, and even toward those he doesn’t get along with, he’s extremely tolerant.”

In other words, if Zhao Gao manages to earn Zhu Xiang’s explicit displeasure, then Zhao Gao must have a major problem—and Ying Zheng must have been blind to have picked him.

Lin Zhi stopped there and didn’t bother with this insignificant character.

He could see at a glance that Zhao Gao’s intentions were crooked. What he didn’t understand was why Zheng’er, who was so clever, would allow Zhao Gao to serve at his side.

But just as Zheng’er said, the attendants around a king didn’t need to be noble. Sometimes those with ulterior motives were even easier for a ruler to use.

A gentleman couldn’t serve as the king’s blade—but the king must have a blade in hand. That was where petty men came in.

As long as Zhao Gao remained loyal enough to Zheng’er, then his characteristics as a “small man” would only make him more easily controlled.

Besides, with a group of elders watching over Zheng’er, a little eunuch like that couldn’t make any waves.

“King Yan is delighted that Crown Prince Dan has returned,” Lin Zhi shifted the topic to real matters. “He has no intention of sending him back to Qin. Seeing Qin has no reaction, he simply let Crown Prince Dan resume his court post—pretending nothing ever happened.”

Lin Zhi stroked his beard and sneered. “His father-son affection for Crown Prince Dan runs deep, it seems.”

Normally, Yan wasn’t a powerful state like Chu or Qin. When a hostage prince escaped, the cost of pursuing the matter was too high for the offended state. So it was often dropped.

Moreover, when Xia Tong or Chu Wang Yuan had secretly escaped in the past, they left behind offspring who could serve as replacement hostages, giving face to the offended state.

Yan only sent Crown Prince Dan as a hostage because they were on the brink of destruction and needed to appease Qin. When Dan fled, he left no offspring behind in Qin. If King Yan had any sense, even if he didn’t send Dan back, he should at least have apologized first, then negotiated with Qin about sending another Yan prince as a replacement.

But instead he pretended Qin didn’t exist, acting as if nothing had happened—a kind of self-deluding stupidity uniquely his own.

Lin Zhi said, “Since he handled it like this, we don’t need to push them into attempting assassination; we can simply send troops.”

Qin Wang Zheng said, “Proceed as originally planned.”

Seeing Zheng stubbornly sticking to the prior plan, Lin Zhi dropped his formal posture.

He crossed one leg over the other, raised his brows, and teased, “Zheng’er, do you truly hold a grudge against Crown Prince Dan? You’re very persistent. What exactly did he do to you? Tell your uncle—so I can decide how thoroughly to avenge you.”

Qin Wang Zheng kept a stiff face. “Nothing, truly.”

Lin Zhi chuckled. “Then I won’t indulge you in wasting time and resources. Do you know how much effort it takes to pull off a successful scheme? How much of Qin’s gold and manpower it consumes?”

Zheng’s stern expression loosened a little.

He thought for a moment. “Then… forget it?” He was somewhat displeased, but indeed, it wasn’t worth wasting time and resources over anger from a dream.

Lin Zhi said, “If he truly bullied you before, then the expense wouldn’t matter. Uncle would make sure he paid the price.”

Qin Wang Zheng hesitated. “I… do have a grudge with him.”

Lin Zhi asked, “But it’s not convenient to say?”

Zheng coughed lightly and looked away.

How could he explain? He couldn’t say that in the past, Ying Zheng and Crown Prince Dan were friends in Zhao; Ying Zheng deliberately let Dan off and allowed him to return to Yan, only for Dan to send assassins after him. And because Ying Zheng trusted him, he let down his guard and almost got injured.

One couldn’t say anything about the great Ying Zheng.

Lin Zhi nodded. “Since you truly have a grudge, then we’ll handle it according to the original plan. Only if he sends assassins after you can Qin justifiably take his head. I’ll speak with Cai Ze. Just wait for good news. But—you’re certain you want to be personally targeted?”

Zheng immediately lifted his chest a tiny fraction. “I have fought on the battlefield before. Uncle, rest assured!”

Hadn’t he been practicing swordsmanship daily for this very moment?

This time, he would behead the assassin in one strike.

Lin Zhi laughed. “I can see exactly what you’re plotting. Fine—we’ll prepare everything ahead of time. You won’t be in danger. But we must keep this from Zhu Xiang. If he learns of it, he’ll ride straight to Xianyang Palace and beat you senseless. Not even Xue Ji could shield you. Zhu Xiang may spoil you normally, but once he gets angry, no one can stop him.”

Zheng immediately turned serious. “I won’t let Uncle know—not now or ever.”

Lin Zhi nodded. “Good. Cai Ze and I can keep it from him. The rest is up to you.”

Zheng’s brows furrowed tightly. Anxiety crept into his heart.

He was confident that no one else could read his thoughts. But with Uncle… he had no confidence at all.

That unspoken understanding—where he could order food from Uncle using only facial expressions—was now becoming a deadly weakness.

Lin Zhi tried hard not to laugh.

He could indulge Zheng in acting wildly. But afterward? How Zheng explained it to Zhu Xiang was entirely beyond his responsibility.

Still… he was truly curious. What exactly did Crown Prince Dan do to make Zheng insist on killing him so openly?

He was just a Yan prince. If Zheng disliked him, once they conquered Yan they could exile him and quietly have him killed. But Zheng clearly wanted to wipe out the entire line of Yan’s crown prince.

Surely Crown Prince Dan hadn’t beaten Zheng when he was still living in Zhu Xiang’s household? Even if Zheng was precocious enough to remember infancy, Crown Prince Dan wouldn’t be so deranged as to beat a baby under a year old… right? That would be unbelievably vicious.

Pity Xia Tong wasn’t around; there was no one to ask about the past.

Lu Buwei might know—but Lu Buwei would never dare speak.

Lin Zhi left in mild regret. Qin Wang Zheng glared at his departing back.

Obviously, Zheng knew very well that Uncle Lìn wanted to see him make a fool of himself.

He hesitated—between being scolded by Uncle, and taking revenge for his dream.

But before he could decide, Crown Prince Dan’s actions made hesitation unnecessary.

After returning to Yan, Dan’s terror of Qin and of the Qin king reached his bones—yet he still committed the very same act he had in Zheng’s dream: he secretly recruited strong men in a plot to assassinate Qin Wang Zheng. King Yan even supported it in secret.

Dan’s concealment was excellent. Only because Lin Zhi and Cai Ze had been watching him from afar did they discover faint traces.

Zheng understood at once. King Yan was involved too?

Of course. How could King Yan not know what his own son was doing? Moreover, whether it was offering cities or sending envoys, none of that could happen without King Yan’s approval. He was clearly a co-conspirator. When the matter failed, he shifted all blame onto his son, pretended ignorance, and used Dan’s head to calm his own fear.

From driving away Yue Yi, to repeatedly attacking Zhao at the worst moments, to attempting to assassinate him—the kings of Yan across generations were unbelievably foolish.

Setting aside that Qin was tightly guarded—even though Ying Zheng was nearly wounded once due to carelessness—sending an assassin with zero assassination experience deep into the Qin palace was an impossible mission.

Even if, by some miracle, they succeeded, Qin would simply lose one king and quickly choose another.

There would be internal chaos for a short time, but with Qin’s overwhelming strength, no other state could take advantage. At most, it would delay Qin’s offensive.

And no matter who succeeded the throne, their first act would be to avenge the fallen king by attacking Yan.

Yan lay outside the Central Plains. If it behaved meekly, it might be allowed to survive to the very end; the royal line might even meet a decent end.

But attempting to assassinate the King of Qin meant irreconcilable enmity—certain destruction.

Lin Zhi and Cai Ze felt deeply strange about all of this. They increasingly suspected Zheng had already known King Yan and Crown Prince Dan would attempt an assassination—and thus had been angry ahead of time.

That had to be an illusion.

How could anyone prepare revenge in advance for something that hadn’t yet happened?

Yet it was hard not to think that way.

Because after learning of Dan’s movements, Zheng increased his sword practice even further—looking downright excited.

Since ascending the throne, he rarely left the palace. But now he pushed aside government affairs entirely to lead a hunting party in Lishan, and even personally sparred with the strong warriors who had captured beasts.

Watching Zheng defeat one aristocrat-sponsored warrior after another, Lin Zhi and Cai Ze tucked their hands into their sleeves and whispered quietly.

Lin Zhi: “Zheng’er is full of spirit.”

Cai Ze: “He’s very strong. Do we still need to secretly bring weapons to court?”

Qin ministers were not allowed to bring weapons into the palace, except for a few trusted by the king. Lin Zhi and Cai Ze had been granted this privilege since the reign of Qin Renwen Wang, though they rarely used it.

Zhu Xiang had earned the privilege as early as the reign of Qin Zhaoxiang Wang—but bringing a sword was useless for him, so he never brought one. The privilege of being able to physically drag away the king’s little lamb was far more powerful than any sword.

Lin Zhi said, “I don’t think we need to. Zheng’er is stronger than either of us. No wonder he’s Li Mu’s personal student.”

Cai Ze asked, “Should we quietly tell Zhu Xiang?”

Lin Zhi laughed. “When Zhu Xiang hears Zheng’er was assassinated, he and Xue Ji will rush here at once. If Zheng’er can hide it from those two, then we’ll overlook it this time.”

Cai Ze raised a brow. “I’ll bet he can’t hide it.”

Lin Zhi burst into uproarious laughter.

Qin Wang Zheng had just defeated another warrior and scoffed—nothing impressive.

Those aristocrat-kept fighters were nothing like true soldiers on the battlefield. He could beat them with one hand tied.

Hearing Lin Zhi’s laughter, he turned with irritation and glared.

Uncle Lin was definitely scheming something!

Zhao Gao saw the king’s displeasure and grew thoughtful.