Looking at the simple compound, there was modern testing equipment all over it. This convalescent resort had always had always focused on recuperation and recovery after illness, and the medical team currently in the room was hired by Bo Yueming from abroad with a great deal of money.

A thin-looking expert held the newly released brain CT and eye examination results, and was a little surprised. “Mr. Bo, your situation is different from what I expected.”

Uncle Kai, who had accompanied Bo Yueming to the examination, panicked. “Professor Lin, what do you mean by that?”

“Uncle Kai.”

Bo Yueming stopped him in a low voice, then took a shallow breath and asked unobtrusively, “Professor Lin, whether it’s good or bad, you can speak up.”

Professor Lin flicked the test results and analyzed: “It’s like this, the reason Mr. Bo suffers from visual impairment and blindness is because the car accident caused a cerebral hemorrhage, and the resulting blood clot compressed the visual center…..”

“Because the position of the blood clot is more remote, it is difficult to remove surgically.”

Bo Yueming was silent. He had been aware of this conclusion at the beginning, otherwise, it would be impossible for him to spend manpower and material resources to invite experts from abroad.

To put it bluntly, he hoped that the experienced Professor Lin and his team could perform the surgery.

“I have seen the images of Mr. Bo’s previous examinations and compared them with the results of the examination just now, and the blood clot has visibly decreased in size.”

“…….”

Bo Yueming’s thin lips were tightly pursed. “You mean, the blood clot will be absorbed and eliminated by itself?”

“From the current examination results, this appears to be the case.” Professor Lin paused, then continued to speak, “Compared with the high-risk surgery, would Mr. Bo consider continuing conservative treatment?”

“As for whether the blood clot will disappear completely and if your vision will recover after its disappearance, I cannot make a guarantee for the time being. We can only make a conclusion based on the follow-up treatment.”

Following the doctor’s words, Uncle Kai’s expression changed from worry to joy.

Bo Yueming was not in a hurry to express his opinion. He silently perceived the spots of light that had appeared in his vision—

It was like turning into a butterfly flapping its wings. At last, a crack had opened up in the atrium that had been clouded over for months, and the miasma of depression scrambled to escape and dissipate through it.

Professor Lin was awaiting his reply. “Mr. Bo?”

“We won’t do the surgery for now.”

Bo Yueming took a breath, confident and determined. “Let’s continue conservative treatment, plus regular checkups.”

Professor Lin respected Bo Yueming’s primary opinion as the patient, and nodded. “However, I still recommend that you use the external help of the instruments and wait for two days for observation.”

“All right.”

. . . . . . 

When bidding farewell to the medical team and walking out of the hall, Uncle Kai revealed his true emotions. “Second Young Master, have you really thought about it?”

Although the operation was dangerous, Professor Lin’s success rate was very high. Otherwise, they would not have spent so much money to invite this medical team in the first place.

“Uncle Kai, don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.” Bo Yueming put a stop to his unmentioned worries. “In fact, I noticed a few days ago that my eyes are improving, but I didn’t say anything.”

Uncle Kai had always trusted Bo Yueming, and hearing that he had made up his mind, he breathed a sigh of relief.

The two of them walked some distance away, and Uncle Kai suddenly recalled something. “Aiyo, Second Young Master, wait a moment! Look at my mind, I’m getting more and more confused. Your guide glasses are on still on the table.”

Bo Yueming paused in his footsteps and didn’t blame him. “Go, I’ll wait here for you.”

Uncle Kai smiled and made an affirmative hum, then hurriedly turned back.

Bo Yueming stood quietly on the spot, and unconsciously, everything that happened when he went to bed last night appeared in his mind—

Pei Yi in his arms clung to him with both hands and feet like a cat. The exposed skin was delicate and warm, and soft hair brushed indiscriminately against his lips, carrying a soft after-shower scent.

Light and sweet.

Before marriage, Bo Yueming never paid attention to the existence of “Little Young Master Pei,” not to mention remembering what the other person looked like. But after getting along for this period of time, he could already imagine Pei Yi’s appearance. Innocent and ignorant, but inadvertently revealing his own cunning.

Shouldn’t he be……even more than the little white cat he raised before……cute?

In an instant, a panicked female voice sounded.

“—Ah!”

Bo Yueming felt a sudden weight in his arms. Immersed in his imagination, he was unprepared, and could only take two steps back under the force of the impact before barely managing to stand still.

Someone had fallen into his arms!

In just a few seconds, Bo Yueming’s nose was filled with a strong citrus scent, so sweet that he couldn’t get used to it.

Bo Yueming quickly took the initiative to retreat, frowning as he kept away from this unknown visitor. “Who is it?”

“A-apologies.”

A delicate female voice sounded, shy and embarrassed. “I’m wearing high heels and suddenly couldn’t stand upright.”

Bo Yueming’s eyes shifted slightly, and he didn’t respond directly.

In the next second, Uncle Kai jogged back. “Second Young Master, what is the matter? Is this lady……”

“I don’t know her, let’s go.”

Bo Yueming interrupted neatly, walking away with Uncle Kai’s guidance.

The long-haired woman who was ignored froze in place. She stared at Bo Yueming’s departing back and murmured in surprise, “He’s so good-looking, but I didn’t expect that he would be blind?”

In the blink of an eye, all the shyness and surprise on her face dissipated, to be replaced by calculation—

That’s right, who among the rich people who came here had nothing wrong with them?

But it is better to be blind, ah, so that it was convenient for her to make a move!

. . . . . .

Bo Yueming and Uncle Kai returned to the main house of the independent villa. In the tidy living room, there was only Lin Zhong handling his work with his computer in his lap.

“Mr. Bo, you’re back? How are the test results?”

“They’re fine,” Bo Yueming said conservatively. He looked around and asked, “Where is Little Sir? Is he still in the bedroom?”

Lin Zhong shook his head and reported to Bo Yueming, “ Little Sir had lunch with me and Driver Fu. He insisted that it is pleasantly cool in the mountains and wanted to take the cat out for a walk.”

Bo Yueming was mystified. “A walk?”

Uncle Kai followed with a smile. “Does Little Sir treat Inspector as a dog?”

Lin Zhong laughed and then coughed, continuing, “This resort is built in the cool mountains, and we dared not stop Little Sir, so we could only let him go. But Lao Fu feared that something might happen to him alone, so he followed quietly behind. It’s only been about ten minutes since he went out, so I suppose he might want to play for a while.”

Bo Yueming let out a breath, saying with a half smile, “He is rather happy to be idle.”

He had enough sleep last night and ate lunch at noon, and now he knew how to take the cat out for a walk.

Uncle Kai and Lin Zhong glanced at each other, unable to grasp the meaning of Bo Yueming’s words for a while. “Second Young Master? You didn’t eat much at noon, shall we send someone to bring over food?”

“No need. You both go back to the side room and rest. I’ll take a shower and sleep in a while.”

He hated the smell of strong perfume, and if he got some on him, he had to change his clothes and take a shower. Not to mention, he was troubled by Pei Yi last night and was very sleepy now.

“Okay, then call for us directly if you need anything.”

Uncle Kai sent Bo Yueming to the door of the main room and took out a change of clothes for him. After making these arrangements, he was willing to leave.

Bo Yueming had long become accustomed to being blind and was able to take care of himself the best he could. He took a quick shower, put on his clothes, and lay back on the bed.

The soft air-conditioning blanket still carried a faint scent, which should have come from Pei Yi’s body. Bo Yueming didn’t dislike it, and it was enough for him to forget that sweet and cloying smell.

There were the occasional crisp notes of birdsong outside the courtyard, accompanied by the rustling of trees.

Perhaps because his eyes were gradually improving, Bo Yueming lost his vigilance for a rare moment, and after lying down, he fell asleep inadvertently.

After an unknown amount of time, the door opened slightly.

The drowsy Bo Yueming thought it was Pei Yi who had returned from his walk, and did not wake up immediately to respond.

“……”

Until the air was once again filled with that nauseatingly sweet citrus smell. The neckline of his bathrobe was pulled open, and Bo Yueming’s delayed vigilance promptly returned. Noticing the strange movements, he raised his eyes in a firm, swift manner—

Pa!

Bo Yueming’s intentionally wayward wrist was frighteningly cold, “What are you doing?”

“Ah…..”

The woman who snuck in was caught in his gaze, and was so frightened that her heart beat out of control. She reacted a little slowly, and explained, “S-sir, I’m an employee of the resort. I, I thought there was nobody in the room and came to clean it.”

How could Bo Yueming believe her nonsense? The cold light in his eyes flickered slightly. “So you just came in?”

“I’m really sorry, I’ve disturbed your rest.” While responding in a sweet voice, the woman approached Bo Yueming, attempting to push her exquisite figure into his arms. Her eyes were full of confidence that she was about to succeed.

Lin Na had gone out to start making a living a long time ago.

Three months past, she learned about the existence of this health resort from a friend. It was said that those who came here to recuperate were rich people, and as long as she was clever and enough to their tastes, it would definitely not be difficult to find the right time to seize some riches.

Her friend had fallen into the eyes of a wealthy businessman, and she didn’t have to worry about anything in terms of food and clothing.

Seeing this, Lin Na, who was even more beautiful, was jealous and ready to give it a try. So she gained access to this convalescent resort to do volunteer work, but it was a pity that her wish was not fulfilled—

Since coming here, she had been able to meet some rich old men and ladies every day, but these old people were used to a good life, and each of them were fastidious and cunning. Not only that, but she hadn’t seen many men under the age of forty!

After a long time, Lin Na was so angry that she wanted to give up and leave!

Today, she had managed to catch such a top-quality Bo Yueming. Even if it was just a short-term pastime, it was likely that she could get a lot of benefits afterwards. At that time, even if she was fired or ran away, it wouldn’t be a big deal.

Thinking of this, Lin Na stuck to him more forcefully.

She couldn’t believe it!

How many men in the world could resist this kind of temptation?

. . . . . .

Leading Inspector on a leash, Pei Yi walked slowly around the pedestrian greenway at the outermost periphery of the convalescent resort. He knew that the driver, Lao Fu, had been sneaking along behind, but pretended not to notice. They wandered around for nearly forty minutes, one person and one cat, before returning to the main house where they resided.

As soon as he stepped through the door, Pei Yi heard a woman’s delicate voice coming from the master bedroom.

“……”

Was it the wrong house? It shouldn’t be!

Pei Yi’s eyes revealed his surprise. After confirming that he hadn’t gone to the wrong place, he walked closer and found that the door was actually locked?

This was wrong.

Bo Yueming had bad eyesight. He never locked the door, and furthermore, how could he share a room with a woman without reason?

Pei Yi quickly entered from the balcony area in the backyard, and as soon as he neared the bedroom, he heard Bo Yueming’s angry rejection—

“Scram!”

Through the glass sliding door of the balcony, Pei Yi saw a woman in a black silk sundress being pushed to the ground. There was clearly not much pain on her face, but she still quickly opened her mouth and let out an artificial cry.

“Meow-wu!”

Crouching at his feet, Inspector probably sensed the strange scent and suddenly let out a low growl, swishing along the gap left in the sliding door and rushing in. “Meow-wu-wu!”

Pei Yi was startled. “Inspector!”

At the same time, just as she was about to get up, Lin Na was frightened by the black shape that suddenly jumped out, and fell back down again. “—Ah! What is that thing!”

It had already become like this. Pei Yi could only open the door and enter from the balcony. He could only see the man’s back at first, and didn’t realize until he entered the room and got closer—

Bo Yueming’s complexion had never been worse. The neckline of the dark blue silk nightgown was slightly opened, and a thin layer of angry red was apparent on his neck and chest.

Pei Yi instantly understood what was going on without questioning this unknown woman on behalf of Bo Yueming.

Lin Na, the intruder, hit back first in a thick-skinned manner. “Who are you? How can you break into someone’s bedroom?”

Bo Yueming said with ample coldness and ruthlessness: “I should be asking you this!”

As soon as these words fell, Pei Yi, who had figured out the situation, picked up the soft pillow at the end of the bed and threw it over, asking in a haughty manner, “Who are you, ah? Don’t bully my husband!”

“……”

The coldness in Bo Yueming’s eyes cracked, and a moment of subtlety passed through his fury.

“……”

Lin Na was stunned by the soft pillow.

She never expected that Bo Yueming would get married at such a young age. And his partner, who was actually a man, “didn’t seem normal?”

Pei Yi quickly walked up to Bo Yueming, turned around, and said, “Get out immediately! Inspector!”

“Meow-wu!”

Inspector immediately got out from under the bed. It arched its body and puffed up its fur, its ears up and its tail rhythmically thrashing. Step by step, it approached Lin Na, making a whining sound in warning, as if it would leap up and scratch her face in the next second!

Lin Na was most afraid of such aggressive cats and dogs. Her face turned from red to white, and she stepped back one foot at a time.

Bo Yueming, who was sitting on the bed, had woken up with a black face and resisted, and within half a minute, there was a Pei Yi. Seeing that the plan had fallen through, Lin Na promptly turned around and rushed out the door, fearing that things were about to become serious!

Pei Yi looked at the fleeing Lin Na, but before he could chase her out, he heard Bo Yueming calling his name.

“Pei Yi, don’t go out.”

He would naturally let Uncle Kai handle this matter.

“Oh.”

Pei Yi picked up Inspector and smoothed its fur, then gave it a can of pet milk pudding as a reward.

He secretly glanced at Bo Yueming, who had yet to shake off his lingering anger. It was somewhat excessive, so he once again restrained himself and moved in front of the other party. “……Er-ge?”

Bo Yueming reacted, taking a deep breath. 

With a strong thirst for knowledge, Pei Yi asked earnestly, “Did she kiss you?”

In other words, to what extent did the woman bend her head before she was pushed down just now? 

“……”

Bo Yueming’s breath caught in his throat, and he clenched his back molars. “No.”

For some reason, the image of a curious cat staring with wide eyes popped up in his mind, cute and annoying.

When Bo Yueming realized that it was a strange woman entering the room, he was already on guard. The first time the other party tried to force herself into his arms, he had already pushed her away forcefully. Naturally, nothing had happened!

Then Inspector rushed into the room, and Pei Yi came back with it.

“Oh~”

Pei Yi responded, dragging the word out a bit.

“Are you disappointed?” Bo Yueming didn’t know whether to laugh or get angry, and brought up old matters again. “You are the only person in this world who dares to take advantage of my unpreparedness to steal a kiss!”

“……”

Pei Yi recalled his bold behavior when they first met, and groaned softly with a rare guilty conscience.

Sure enough, he was the big villain in the original book, and “small grievances must be repaid.” It was just a sneak kiss on the corner of the mouth when they first met, why did he remember it until now?

---

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Chapter Nineteen <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Twenty-One

The terrain of Cuiqiu City was relatively high. Even if the Bai River flooded, most of the fertile land could still be preserved. It could be regarded as one of the safest cities in the river basin, but this safety had brought many new troubles to Hua Pingye and the city’s people.

The carriage traveled on the road for a few days and came upon more and more refugees. They crouched on the side of the road with their families, and seeing a rich man’s carriage pass by, they begged loudly for food. The road was blocked, and the speed of the convoy also slowed down. A-Ning lowered the carriage curtain and asked Liu Xian’an in a low voice: “Young Master, shall we give them something to eat?”

Liu Xian’an shook his head: “We can’t.”

A-Ning didn’t understand: “Why?”

Liu Xian’an said: “There are too many people outside. If you give it to one, ten more will come to beg. If you give it to ten, there will be hundreds or thousands.”

A-Ning looked out through the gap in the carriage window again, and there were a few little children in the crowd who were so hungry that they could barely hold on, so he did not give up, saying: “Young Master, maybe I can secretly give that woman a little snack without being noticed by others.”

Liu Xian’an sighed: “You can give it a try.”

A-Ning picked up a big piece of pastry from the plate, wrapped it in a handkerchief, and put it in his robes before nimbly leaving the carriage. When he and the woman met eyes, he smiled a little and jumped out of the carriage to run over, but the woman had already stood abruptly, dragging her two thin legs as she stumbled toward him.

There were also many other refugees who noticed that A-Ning was with her. The hungry people saw this fair and healthy boy, and  like wolves seeing raw meat, they got up and flocked to him.

“Young Master, give me something to eat!”

They screamed loudly, and some fell to the ground, but there was no one to help them. People stepped on freshly dead bodies and continued to rush forward, completely ignoring the muddy flesh and blood beneath their feet. They were like a group of ragged puppets, numb and senseless. A-Ning was frightened and stayed where he was. Seeing that seven or eight dirty hands were about to pull him into the crowd, a guard swooped in to carry him back to the carriage. He drew his sword out of its sheath and turned his head, saying fiercely: “Get back!”

Its cold light glared, and the refugees stopped in their tracks. There was a moment of hesitation and uncertainty. Taking advantage of this time, the coachman swung his whip vigorously and drove the carriage away with haste.

Screams, begging, crying, and desperate, vicious curses continued outside, terrifying to hear. A-Ning sat at the side of the carriage while holding the broken piece of pasty in his arms, keeping silent. He was used to hearing the Second Young Master speak about the dao of heaven and floating in the void. This was the first time he had faced naked human nature. Just now, at least three people were shoved down and trampled. There was a high probability that they would die, no, they were definitely dead, and it was all caused by his own recklessness and ignorance.

Liu Xian’an said: “Don’t cry.”

A-Ning continued to hang his head.

Liu Xian’an hugged him into his arms, patted him on the back, and comforted: “Doctors can only heal people, they can’t heal the world, so you don’t need to blame yourself too much.”

A-Ning asked in a nasally voice: “Then who can heal the world?”

Who can heal the world. Liu Xian’an didn’t answer, but turned his head to the carriage window to look at the tall, sword-bearing figure riding a horse outside the translucent gauze curtain.

. . . . . .

The square gates of Cuiqiu City were closed tightly, and a large notice was pasted up, saying that the city had successively accepted a large number of disaster victims, and there was really not room for one more person. But even so, there were still many refugees waiting outside, each of them sitting in the shade. When they saw the guard officers opening the city gates for a carriage, they rushed over once more.

Liu Xian’an covered A-Ning’s ears, blocking the cursing and pleading for him along the way. There were similar voices almost everywhere. Although A-Ning was a doctor, he was still young, after all. He hadn’t been able to extract himself from the shadow of that stampede, and was at a loss for words.

Officers and soldiers escorted the carriage into the city, and once the tall gate was closed, two completely different worlds were separated.

Outside the gate was a hellish world proliferated by hunger, while inside the gate, the city still retained its proper appearance. Hua Pingye said: “Your Highness, apart from the food that is distributed to the people in the city according to their needs, Cuiqiu City really cannot find another extra grain of rice. And the corpses outside the gate are growing in number day after day, it is really……”

Like this, there was no need for Huang Wangxiang to know any sorcery or Gu skills. As long as he raised the banner and claimed that they could have enough food in the future, he would draw thousands of people to follow him.

“This group of people first stole the food allocated by the court, and then robbed two or three towns,” Hua Pingye said. “When they see an official, they kill him and hang his head at the entrance of Gaoliang Mountain as a demonstration. Rumor is, Huang Wangxiang once said that if you take the head of a dog official, you can exchange it for two baskets of grain.”

If they stole the food allocated by the Imperial court, the people who were waiting for the life-saving food would starve to death. If they went to rob the towns, what would the people in the towns do? In troubled times, the people had no way to make a living. People first became victims, and then the victims became the perpetrators. In turn, more victims were created, and the cycle would repeat itself. Things could go from bad to worse until the dynasty collapsed.

Liu Xian’an had seen too many similar occurrences in the long river of history.

Hua Pingye prepared guest rooms for everyone. Liang Shu sent Liu Xian’an back to his residence, saying: “I heard from Gao Lin that you want to buy medicine for some common summer heat illnesses?”

“A-Ning proposed the idea. With refugees and hot weather, it is too easy for a plague to breed.” Liu Xian’an said, “As for those corpses outside the city, it is also best to find a place to bury them if at all possible, and sprinkle it with lime.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. Hua Pingye will send officers and soldiers in heavy armor every day to dispose of corpses.” As for why they wore heavy armor, firstly as a deterrence, secondly to avoid being trampled, and thirdly……The more bloody and cruel reality, Liang Shu was reluctant to mention to him. For some ravenous people, fresh corpses were also food, and in order to snatch this “food” from the officers and soldiers, they would frantically bite like wild animals.

Liang Shu’s lips were chapped. Lifting the lid of the teapot on the table to take a look, Liu Xian’an found some thick branches and leaves soaking in it. The color was dark, and it must be extremely bitter, so he turned around and took a porcelain bottle from the cabinet, pouring some powder from it to dissolve in warm water: “Your Highness, drink some water.”

Liang Shu glanced at the pink water in the cup and asked: “You doctors are so upfront when you poison people?”

Liu Xian’an smiled: “It’s dried wild plums ground into powder. I added some sweet plums, which can stimulate the appetite, and some silver pill to refresh the mind. Adding these things together is unlikely to poison anyone.”

Liang Shu drank a cup. It was sweet and sour, and a burst of coolness directly jumped from the tip of his tongue to the top of his head, extremely effective.

Liu Xian’an handed him the porcelain bottle: “There’s still a lot left, would the prince like to keep it for himself?”

Liang Shu didn’t know how to respond: “That won’t work.”

It was normal for a member of royalty, a son of a noble family, to not pour water into his own cup.

Thus, when he wanted to drink, it had to be mixed by the doctor himself.

Liu Xian’an put the bottle back into the cabinet.

Liang Shu sat on the couch and watched him busy himself, and only in this moment was relieved of the heavy burden weighing on his mind. Although he had long been accustomed to life and death, this was very different. The deaths of hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of soldiers on the battlefield were exchanged for the lives of hundreds of thousands, millions, or even tens of millions of common people, so even if their bones were buried beneath yellow sand, it was considered a worthy death. But what about the deaths of the people in the Bai River Basin at this moment?

The deaths of the common people did not have half that glory, only endless humiliation and despair, along with bloody and tearful accusations of incompetence toward their ruler.

In the face of an entire era, the power of one person or a group of people was truly insignificant. Liang Shu closed his eyes, and was just about to clear his mind, when a cool sensation appeared at his temple. Liu Xian’an was bent down with a box of ointment in his hand, and was slowly massaging him with a small jade rod.

Liang Shu said: “Do you not greet patients before treating them?”

“My dad also treated me the same way,” Liu Xian’an said. “For a while, I had a bad spleen and stomach and had to recuperate. I often fell asleep and was woken up by needles.” He moved a chair and sat down. “Only Imperial physicians in the palace require many rules, we……don’t move!”

Liang Shu took a deep breath: “Why can’t I move, can you not see for yourself how big that needle in your hand is?” And why was this thing brought out all of a sudden?

“It’s not thick, the thickest needles are with my dad, and he never lets others touch them,” Liu Xian’an said. “This one is pretty thin. I told you not to move, or it will be crooked.”

His Royal Highness Xiao Wang sat stiffly on the chair, trying to figure out how to send him to his room, but was stabbed in the head with a needle for no reason. From a cup of sweet medicine, to cooling ointment, and then to this astonishing thick demonic thing, it was just like feeling him out. He also knew to divert attention by talking about this and that. In the art of war, it would be called feigning one thing to do another, loosening the reins only to grasp them better, fishing in troubled waters, hiding behind the mask of a fool.

He said: “You did it on purpose.”

Liu Xian’an denied it – no.

Liang Shu: “Gao Lin told you.”

Liu Xian’an continued to deny, he didn’t, ah.

Liang Shu said: “He wants to die…..”

Wearing a tense expression, Liu Xian’an said: “Okay, sit properly.”

It was indeed Gao Lin who came to see Liu Xian’an, saying that the prince had been suffering from headaches recently and had trouble sleeping. But at the same time, he also suggested that it was best not to use acupuncture or bitter medicines, or any kind of treatment that involved lying down. His Royal Highness Xiao Wang had so many faults, and touching his inverse scale may cause him to become angry. Many Imperial doctors had already suffered because of this.

It was fine not to take bitter medicine, and fine not to lie down for a while, but acupuncture was still needed. Second Young Master Liu pressed Liang Shu’s shoulder with one hand and slowly rotated the needle with the other, thinking, this was not difficult, I just went step by step and took advantage of his unpreparedness. Could it be that none of the doctors at the Imperial Hospital could do this?

Liang Shu said: “It hurts.”

Lu Xian’an: “That’s normal.”

“Pain is normal?”

“How much can a few needles hurt? Okay, don’t move. I will have A-Ning decoct the medicine.”

As soon as Liang Shu heard the word “decoct,” his brain began to hurt again: “Why do I still need to take medicine?”

“Of course you have to take medicine when you’re sick.” Liu Xian’an put away the pack of needles. “But the prince need not worry, the medicine isn’t too bitter.”

Liang Shu asked unhappily: “You think this lord is afraid of bitterness?”

Liu Xian’an thought to himself, isn’t that the case? Lieutenant General Gao emphasized it three times to me. However, he still gave the prince face: “Not at all.”

His Royal Highness Xiao Wang forced out a dignified “En” to show his approval.

Liu Xian’an looked at him for a while and then pursed his lips solemnly: “Since the prince is not afraid of bitterness, then I will add a few more herbs to the previous prescription, so that the nerve-calming effect will be stronger.”

While talking, he ground the ink and picked up a brush, and picked up a new sheet of paper to write the prescription on. There was half a catty of goldthread, which made Liang Shu’s temples twitch. Was this dosage for decocting medicine or for bathing? He stared into the other’s eyes, trying to find some joke in them, but there was nothing. Not only did Liu Xian’an wear an extremely serious expression, but his handwriting was thin and elegant. When neatly arranged together, this prescription appeared particularly authoritative and reliable. Even if two catties of pork legs were mixed in, the patient would probably feel that it should be taken like this.

And so, His Royal Highness Xiao Wang was bluffed. Of course, part of the reason was that he knew Liu Xian’an had been forty-eight thousand years old since he could read, young and mature, and saw everyone as ants. He never bothered to joke with any mortal, and had no reason to target him alone.

Liu Xian’an finished writing the prescription, put it in his sleeve, and walked away like an immortal.

Liang Shu, who was left with his precious face, exhaled and leaned against the table, thinking, the medicine can be decocted, but that doesn’t mean I have to drink it.

In the end, A-Ning was unable to bear it. After dinner, when everyone gathered in the study to discuss matters, the servants picked up the food box containing the medicine and knocked firmly on the door.

Liang Shu: “……”

The medicine bowl was so large that one could eat noodles out of it, and when it was revealed, the visual effect was amazing. Hua Pingye was shocked at the sight. He had been in the military camp for many years, and had the impression that even if the prince was seriously injured, he could only sip medicine grudgingly, for fear that one more sip would cause him to suffer a loss. Now that it was replaced by a very big bowl full to the brim, he thought he must be seriously ill, and hurried to raise his rough voice in concern: “Nobody talk yet, let the prince drink the medicine while it’s hot.”

The bowl was full of a brown-black substance, and Liang Shu’s brain flinched when he saw it. Seeing that everyone in the room was staring at him, he had no choice but to pick up the bowl without a change in expression.

He drank it in one gulp, but it was not bitter. It was at most astringent, with a slight sour-sweet taste.

He looked toward the door.

Liu Xian’an folded his hands and couldn’t hide the smile in his eyes.

Not bitter. I was teasing you.

It was stuffy in the study room. Although the windows were open, it was not very cool, and the candlelight was blown by the wind. The room was full of people discussing a few very troublesome things, and the environment was truly not good. Liang Shu had originally been in an irritable mood, but now, because of this bowl of medicine and a smile, he became much more relaxed.

Gao Lin nudged A-Ning with his elbow. What kind of magical medicine is this to make the prince happy, bring me a bowl tomorrow.

“The young master has added a lot of sweet root to it,” A-Ning whispered. “Lieutenant General Gao wants to drink it, but I’m afraid he cannot. The young master said that the medicine is not easy to buy and must be saved, so all the sweet root and hawthorn will be reserved for the prince in the future.”

The two of them were still whispering as Hua Pingye reopened the map. Gaoliang Mountain was a very high and dangerous peak with stretches of ravines, easy to defend but difficult to attack. Liang Shu asked: “How many rebels are there now?”

Hua Pingye said: “At a rough estimate, at least 50,000, but not exactly. Now that Huang Wangxiang’s reputation has grown, many people use his banner to recruit soldiers and horses here and there. It’s really hard for people to distinguish between true and false.”

“Whether it is true or false, they are all rebels.” Liang Shu looked at Liu Xian’an. “What do you think?”

“Can our army pretend to be refugees, mix in with the rebels, and break through from the inside?”

“It wouldn’t be difficult to pretend, but getting in is not easy,” Hua Pingye explained. “It is said that ordinary refugees will only be assigned to the subordinates of the lowest-ranking boss when they first seek refuge, and must follow them to grab food and money or kill a few officials to be eligible to see Huang Wangxiang, and he is not in Gaoliang Mountain now.”

“Where is the main force of the rebel army now?”

As soon as this question was asked, someone sent a new military bulletin, which included one useful paragraph among the complaints and nonsense. It said that Huang Wangxiang led the rebels to break through three cities in a row and ascended the throne in Sanshui City.

Gao Lin’s face paled when he saw it, for no other reason than the trash level of the troops stationed there. Even if they put out a few stakes and stood on the city wall, they should easily sweep away a few rebels, right? It had only been a few days since Hua Pingye heard the news. How come Huang Wangxiang had gone from leading a mob all the way to the dragon chair? On the first day that the Dayan coach arrived in Cuiqiu City, this kind of ghastly news was sent, as if it had been calculated with precise timing.

Liang Shu asked: “How many troops are stationed in the area?”

“Also 50,000,” Gao Lin said. “Lu Xiang is in charge. The prince should remember that he is Lu-daren’s nephew.”

All the civil and military officials in the dynasty knew that Lu-daren would go to the emperor every now and then to remonstrate with the prince. From the Northwest Military Camp to Xiao Wang Palace, trivial problems had to be singled out and written as a 18,000 – word criticism. Even the Son of Heaven himself experienced a great headache. Also, because of the other’s status as an elder of three dynasties, it was not easy to refute him to his face, lest one day he really clashed with him in the hall and had to bear the extra charge of “infuriated a loyal minister” out of thin air. The root cause of Liang Shu’s dialogue about old, white-bearded men pretty much originated here.

The leaders of the garrisons in various part of Dayan were either from the Northwest Military Camp or the Northeast Miltary Camp, with the exception of Lu Xiang. He was born to a noble family and served in the Imperial Guard for two years. Later, due to the instability in the world, there was a shortage of soldiers in the garrisons all over, and the late emperor set an example by reducing the group of cronies around him. It was also at that time that Lu Xiang went to work for the local government as a matter of course.

In short, he was a rich young master who had never suffered much.

“Lu-daren is honest and frugal in court, but his nephew knows how to swallow large sums of military expenses outside.” Gao Lin read the military bulletin again. It said at the end that Commander Lu had led his troops to Sanshui City overnight to encircle and suppress them, plus a lot of nonsense about “viewing death as a return home.” There was no telling if he was sobered up by Huang Wangxiang’s ascension to the throne, or because he heard the news that His Royal Highness Xiao Wang was coming, but he performed his duty overnight.

Liang Shu didn’t mind letting this trash return to his hometown, but Lu Xiang still had 50,000 of Dayan’s soldiers behind him.

He said: “Prepare the horses.”

Liu Xian’an stood: “I will go with the prince as well.”

---

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Chapter Thirty-Five << Table of Contents >> Chapter Thirty-Seven

Stay together?

Hearing this question, Pei Yi shook his head wildly inside.

He already had trouble sleeping in a bed other than his own, and also wasn’t accustomed to sleeping in the same bed with others. Lying down and sleeping with Bo Yueming? He probably wouldn’t be able to sleep all night.

Due to his identity, Pei Yi could only hope that Bo Yueming would refuse. After all, in his impression, the other party had a strong sense of personal domain, so he shouldn’t allow such a thing to happen.

As expected, Bo Yueming’s brow was slightly furrowed.

This courtyard was pre-booked, and it was true that Pei Yi was not included at the time.

Uncle Kai knew best how to read words and expressions, so he took the initiative to speak, “Second Young Master, why doesn’t Little Sir stay in my room? I’ll make do with the sofa.”

The driver continued, “Or we could put two beds together, and the three of us can sleep together. If that doesn’t work, I can sleep on the floor.”

Bo Yueming frowned.

He couldn’t imagine Pei Yi huddled in the same room with his assistant and his driver, and felt that something wasn’t right. What’s more, Uncle Kai was the oldest among them, so how could he sleep on the sofa?

“No.”

“No.”

Bo Yueming and Pei Yi spoke at the same time, emphasizing their attitude of refusal.

For Pei Yi, if two people slept in the same bedroom, he was almost unable to sleep, not to mention three people squeezing together.

He heard Bo Yueming’s almost simultaneous answer and was just about to say that the would “sleep on the sofa by himself,” but Bo Yueming responded unexpectedly, “The arrangements for you three remain unchanged. Pei Yi and I will sleep in the master bedroom.”

“……”

What?!

Pei Yi looked over in disbelief, almost suspecting he had heard wrong.

Hearing this, the person in charge smiled and swallowed back the proposal of ‘another vacant room can be arranged.’ “All right, Mr. Bo. Then shall I ask the kitchen to bring up the pre-ordered dinner?”

Bo Yueming responded in a light voice, “En.”

The matter of accommodations was settled, and everyone took their light luggage to the house to unpack.

Pei Yi digested the consternation in his heart, and moved as slow as a tortoise toward Bo Yueming, who was drinking water. “I think…..it’s not good.”

Bo Yueming oriented himself in his direction, his eyes tranquil. “What isn’t good?”

Pei Yi put it simply, “Sleeping together, not good.”

“How is it not good?”

Bo Yueming’s expression changed slightly. He didn’t expect that he held back that bit of displeasure himself, but Pei Yi actually showed displeasure first.

Unsure about Bo Yueming’s expression, Pei Yi muttered, “I, I’m dishonest.”^[1]

This was not a lie.

Pei Yi had no sense of security when it came to sleeping. No matter if it was winter or summer, he liked to sleep with a big quilt. When he stayed elsewhere in the past, even if a ‘big quilt’ wasn’t available, he would find a way to fold up a blanket and roll up inside it.

Of course, there was a greater chance of being unable to sleep tonight.

Following these words, Bo Yueming’s tightly pursed thin lips curved. “Okay, I get it.”

“…….”

You get it? And then?

Pei Yi was confused by Bo Yueming’s attitude. It took several beats to realize the possible ambiguity of the word “dishonest,” and his cheeks went slightly hot.

“It’s too late tonight, let’s settle down first.” Bo Yueming’s tone was very calm, as if he was smoothing a kitten’s fur. “I will ask the staff to arrange a small bed for you tomorrow.”

Pei Yi covertly snuck a glance at the big king bed in the master bedroom, and reasonably calculated the possibility of the two of them sticking together. 

Seeing that Pei Yi still didn’t open his mouth, Bo Yueming shook the water glass. “It’s really inconvenient for me to be alone in an unfamiliar environment. Someone needs to stay in the room with me.”

He didn’t show his misery to garner sympathy, but it was enough to make people feel helpless.

When all was said and done, Pei Yi had no choice but to give a reluctant “En.”

. . . . . .

Night fell.

After washing up, Pei Yi leaned against the right side of the bed. Looking at Inspector eating in the corner, along with the small cat nest that belonged to it alone, an inexplicable thought surged into his heart—

It’s better to be a cat.

Eat your fill and sleep. After sleeping and playing, there was also your own exclusive small bed.

The sound of the bathroom door opening interrupted Pei Yi’s unrealistic envy.

He turned his head to look. Bo Yueming emerged wearing a bathrobe and walked with one hand trailing along the wall, cautiously and calmly testing the distance from the bathroom to the bed.

Pei Yi hesitated for two seconds, then got up and walked to his side. “Here.”

“……”

A warm palm touched his wrist, still that familiar sensation.

Bo Yueming’s vigilance in an unfamiliar environment was reduced by a lot. He let Pei Yi lightly and easily lead the way, and sat down on the bed smoothly. “I asked someone to bring an extra blanket. Has it been delivered?”

Pei Yi looked at the two sets of thin air-conditioning quilts, feeling a little anxious. “Yes.”

Bo Yueming groped for the quilt that belonged to him, spread it out, and lay down. “All right, let’s rest.”

For tomorrow’s examination, Bo Yueming planned to go to bed early to adjust his state.

Pei Yi glanced at the silent alarm clock showing ten o’clock. He had no choice but to wrap up in the quilt and lie down, but the completely unfamiliar scent of the quilt could not give him any security in sleep.

With a glance at Bo Yueming, who had closed his eyes, Pei Yi called out in a whisper before turning off the lights, “Inspector.”

“Meow-wu!”

Already lying in its nest, Inspector heard the call and immediately trotted to the bed. It lay in Pei Yi’s arms as usual with its head next to its paws, responding in a very low tone, “Wu~”

There was a bit more of a familiar atmosphere, and Inspector was so cute that Pei Yi snuck out a laugh. “Good night, darling.”

“…….”

Bo Yueming, who hadn’t fallen asleep yet, heard this. His lips silently curled up, and he let one person and one cat interact quietly before going to sleep.

Nights away from the city were always extraordinarily silent.

Pei Yi was afraid of disturbing Bo Yueming’s sleep, so he maintained the position of lying on his side and dozed off next to Inspector. He had originally thought that he would suffer from insomnia until dawn, but perhaps he had experienced too much during the day and was short of energy—

After maintaining this motionless posture for a long time, he actually felt drowsy, and his eyelids became heavier and heavier.

Time passed minute by minute.

Pei Yi only felt that his arm was getting increasingly heavy, being crushed to the point of numbness. A faint sense of heat began to rise, and in his sleep, he was unable to bear it and kicked off the quilt.

—Thump!

There was a dull sound on the floor, followed by a surprised meow. “Meow-wu!”

Inspector, who had already been sound asleep, lay on the ground with its eyes wide open in the dark. It pricked up its ears, raised its head, and took a few seconds to confirm that it was its master who “threw” it out of bed, then meowed sullenly in protest.

“Inspector, don’t make noise.”

Pei Yi muttered in his sleep in response.

Inspector was obedient, and went back to its own cat nest aggrievedly.

Because of these small movements, the lightly sleeping Bo Yueming woke up. He took a minute to confirm the situation, and intended to fall back to sleep with his remaining drowsiness.

Who knew that in the next second, lying on his left side, Pei Yi would suddenly turn around and lean over.

Most of the quilt on his body had been lifted off, and the heat originally trapped inside wafted out with a faint after-shower scent. As the distance drew closer, Bo Yueming was uncontrollably infected.

“…….”

Bo Yueming’s breathing stalled slightly.

Before he could figure out the situation, the hot, sleeping Pei Yi seemed to have found a target and wrapped his arms and legs around him. “Hmmn.”

There was a clear difference in physique between the two.

Perhaps because he had found a comfortable temperature, Pei Yi hugged him even tighter.

“Pei Yi? Are you awake?”

Bo Yueming’s throat rolled fiercely, and his breathing was unsteady. “Let go! Don’t, don’t hug me to sleep!”

Pei Yi frowned in his sleep and rubbed his head subconsciously, like he was moving in his dreams, or more like he was being coquettish. “Won’t. I’m sleepy, don’t bother me.”

“…….”

Soft hair swept over Bo Yueming’s thin lips, as if he could plant a kiss on that forehead just by bowing his head slightly. He tried twice to push him back, but only got a clingier hug in return.

The person in his arms was like a mobile heater, making Bo Yueming’s body burn all over.

Helpless, he took several deep breaths, barely suppressing the inexplicable wicked fire in his heart. His sleepiness was completely gone, but in the end, he was unwilling to wake up the person in his arms.

On the other hand, the oblivious Pei Yi entered dreamland, and his breathing gradually stabilized.

The breathing and heartbeats of the two people overlapped.

Feeling all of this in the darkness, Bo Yueming was silent for a long time before letting out a helpless sigh. “It’s really true, you’re not honest at all.”

. . . . . .

Treated like a big pillow, Bo Yueming barely slept that night.

It wasn’t until the birds outside in the courtyard sang that the sleeping Pei Yi hugged his quilt and turned over again. He let out a soft snort in his sleep, but showed no signs of waking up.

“……”

Bo Yueming squeezed his numb arm, turning to lie flat and relax. He broke away from his drowsing state and opened his eyes.

His field of vision was still the usual gray swatch, but there was a gradual difference, and countless small particles of light broke through the fog before him.

Sensing the difference, Bo Yueming immediately focused his attention, and after confirming that the ‘spots of light’ in front of him were not an illusion, a sense of relief overflowed from his expression for the first time ever.

Not sleepy at all, he simply got out of bed and fumbled through the door of the room.

“Second Young Master? It’s not even seven o’clock, why are you awake?”

Uncle Kai’s surprised voice came suddenly.

Hearing the sound of footsteps, Bo Yueming asked, “Uncle Kai, why are you here?”

“As I get older, my time asleep is naturally shorter.” Uncle Kai approached and said with sudden worry, “Second Young Master, why are your eyes so red? The corner of your mouth is also a little……”

Bo Yueming touched the itchy corner of his mouth, and his tone changed slightly. “It’s nothing, I didn’t sleep well last night. Maybe I got a little hot.”

“Didn’t sleep well?”

Uncle Kai looked past him to the closed bedroom door. “What about Little Sir, how did he sleep?”

The numbness of his arm had not completely disappeared. Bo Yueming remembered the stickiness of the kitten hugging people last night, and threw out words with no clear meaning.

“Him, ah, very well.”

“Huh?”

Uncle Kai felt that his answer was not quite right, but it was difficult to unravel the secret for now.

Bo Yueming didn’t want to go into detail. “Uncle Kai, bring me the spare toiletries. I’ll change in the bathroom and wash up.”

So as not to make too much noise in the room and wake up the still-sleeping Pei Yi.

“Okay,” Uncle Kai responded.

. . . . . .

Pei Yi slept until nine o’clock. The sunlight outside the room was just right, and Bo Yueming had disappeared from the other side, so it should be time for his checkup.

He hadn’t had such a deep and peaceful sleep in a long time.

After waking up, Pei Yi felt weak in his hands and feet, but his spirit was exceptionally relaxed. “Comfortable~”

Inspector had already gotten out of its cat nest. It heard movement on the bed and immediately jumped back onto it, burrowing into Pei Yi’s arms on its own. “Meow-wu~, wu~, meow~”

It called out continuously in a milky voice, as if wanting to express the grievance of “being thrown out of bed in the middle of the night.”

But Pei Yi, who didn’t understand the language of cats, got the wrong idea. He didn’t even remember what he did in his sleep at all. Picking up his beloved pet, he stroked it for a while, and since no one was around, he kissed its little head and happily coaxed—

“En, en, en. It was thanks to our Inspector that I was able to sleep so well last night.”

---

[1] In this context, “dishonest” can mean he is a restless sleeper. ⮐

---

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Chapter Eighteen <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Twenty

The dungeons were perpetually dark and damp, with a foul and rotten smell in the air. No matter how many times he came here, it always made Zhao Yelan grimace.

Walking slowly to the innermost cell, he heard a low-pitched nursery rhyme that children in the capital would hum when they were young: “Crescent moon, crescent moon, like a mother’s arms……”

The person inside was restrained with heavy shackles on both hands and feet. Hearing movement, she raised her head and sighed when she saw him: “Why didn’t you leave Beijing as planned last year? If you had left, we wouldn’t be meeting here today.”

“Why did you do this?” Zhao Yelan asked.

The corners of Gu Niaoniao’s mouth twitched.

“I searched every corner of the capital, but I never suspected you,” Zhao Yelan said in a heavy voice.

Gu Niaoniao stood and walked slowly to the door with the dull, heavy sound of her shackles dragging on the ground.

The two of them looked at each other for a moment, separated by a cell door, and Gu Niaoniao asked: “Is he dead?”

“Everyone in the Imperial Hospital is trying to save him. He is still unconscious, but his condition has improved a bit. We will wait for him to wake up,” Zhao Yelan said.

On the day of the assassination, everyone in the capital was shocked. Zhao Xuan was already unconscious when he was sent back to the palace, and the people in the Imperial Hospital were busy coming in and out for three days before they managed to pull him back from the gates of hell. However, he still hadn’t woken up yet, and someone was guarding him day and night.

After seeing Zhao Xuan’s injury, Sun Muyun was filled with grief and couldn’t control her emotions for a while. She had unbearable abdominal pain, and gave birth to a prince prematurely. Fortunately, the mother and child were safe, but they also needed to be taken care of by Imperial physicians. The palace was very busy at the moment.

“Ah……not dead yet. I chose the wrong location, right? Clearly, I was aiming at the heart, ah.” Gu Niaoniao smiled helplessly. “It seems like fate.”

“Gu Niaoniao.” Zhao Yelan gritted his teeth as he called out to her. “Why on earth did you do this? Are you not afraid of death?”

“Death?” Gu Niaoniao’s shoulders trembled and she laughed out loud. “I am most afraid of death, I only fear that before I die, I won’t be able to take some people with me. But it’s okay, Zhao Xu went to the underworld before me. It was worth it.”

Zhao Yelan frowned upon hearing this: “Aren’t you on the same side as him?”

“Yes, and also no.” Gua Niaoniao’s lips curled up in a smile. “Years ago, I heard that the Princess of Nanjiang wished to marry Yan Mingting. I wanted to check her details for you, but who knew that I would find out something interesting. She had an affair with the First Prince.”

“So you helped them meet privately?”

“That’s right. I pretended to help him regain the throne and passed on news from the two countries to him, and he believed it like a fool. Believe it or not, no one else in the capital was willing to help him.” Gu Niaoniao smiled contemptuously. “The people who went to the other palace to take him away were killed by Yan Mingting’s subordinates, and I sent someone to rescue him back to Hongxiu House.”

“You didn’t want to help him win the throne at all, otherwise, you wouldn’t have let him carry out the assassination in public.”

“Of course I wouldn’t help that dog. I just reminded him that the Emperor may leave the palace from time to time. He stayed in the secret passage for a long while, and his mind became confused. He could only think of one thing, which was to kill Zhao Xuan and replace him,” Gu Niaoniao said.

“He failed, but gave you a chance to succeed.”

 “Correct. He was just a jester, and I let him go out and jump around a bit first, waiting for a chance when everyone was focused on him.” Gu Niaoniao smiled. “It wasn’t easy to wait for Zhao Xuan to leave the palace. I thought it would take a long time to carry out this plan.”

“So your purpose was to have the brothers kill each other?” Zhao Yelan asked.

Gu Niaoniao raised her chin and said calmly: “That’s right. I want the Zhao family to die a miserable death. Don’t you find it interesting that father and son, brother and brother, can all kill each other?”

Zhao Yelan guessed that this was related to her childhood experiences, and said: “Those things back then were done by the late emperor and had nothing to do with Zhao Xuan. Moreover, he indirectly helped us get vengeance, and now the land has stabilized……”

“It had nothing to do with him?” Gu Niaoniao suddenly laughed out loud. The laugh was a bit hoarse, and she clutched a pillar tightly with her hands, veins protruding. She asked through gritted teeth, “Then those things back then, did they have anything to do with me? With you? Why is it that when killing us, our entire families are implicated, and they would rather kill a thousand by mistake than let one go, but when it is their turn to be a group of murderers, they are separate and have nothing to do with each other?”

Zhao Yelan gazed at her silently. He had seen hatred in her eyes before. He’d thought it was just that the other party couldn’t hide it, but he didn’t expect that the hatred went so deep.

“Gu Niaoniao, your life is on the line.”

“Don’t call me Gu Niaoniao.” 

Zhao Yelan was taken aback.

“Gu Niaoniao died long ago by the executioner’s knife. My surname is Jiang.”

Zhao Yelan gave her a look of shock. Among the people involved in the case of the Marquis of An, there was only one family named Jiang, and that was the Marquis of An’s. 

“You are……”

“I am my father’s youngest daughter.” Gu Niaoniao recalled the distant past. “I had been studying and learning calligraphy since I was a child. My teacher was the current Imperial Grand Tutor, and my previous knowledge was no worse than that of Yin Pinglu. If I studied for a few more years, perhaps I would have been a female top scorer in the Imperial examinations. My father taught me martial arts, saying that his daughter should have the means to protect herself, and it would be even better if she could protect her family and country. It was a pity that I only learned how to hold a sword, and no one taught me further.”

“Zhao Yelan, you watched your parents die with your own eyes, and endured humiliation for so many years. What about me? Hundreds of people in my family were killed by the sword. Have you ever seen an actual river of blood? My infant brother was thrown into a well before he could even speak. What did he have to do with anything? Regardless of age, regardless of distance, there were more than twenty thousand people who had a relationship with our family and were killed or injured. Even innocent people like you were involved and ended up in ruins. You want me to let it go?” 

“I can’t let it go, ah,” Gu Niao cried out with a sob.

Zhao Yelan’s expression was downcast, and he couldn’t recover for a long while.

He had never suspected Gu Niaoniao, because the two of them had experienced the same tragedies and could understand one another’s pain without saying many words. However, he had still underestimated Gu Niaoniao’s determination and forbearance for so many years. She was able to hide everything completely, and even he had never noticed the difference in identity.

But he was likely the only one who could understand Gu Niaoniao’s choice. If it were him before, he would probably be just as desperate.

He handed in a handkerchief. Gu Niaoniao took it, but her hands were bound and her smile was uglier than her crying: “Wipe it off for me, ba.”

Zhao Yelan wiped her face slowly. Gu Niaoniao raised her head and said: “Actually, when I was first locked up in prison, I really didn’t want to live anymore, but every time I saw you, I felt like I could keep going. You didn’t seek death, so why should I do it first?”

Zhao Yelan said: “Your family must have hoped that you could live a good life.”

“I can’t live, I’m really tired of living in this world.” Gu Niaoniao looked up at him. “When you were about to feign death, you probably thought the same way, ba. The great revenge had been accomplished. There was nothing worth remembering in this world, so it was better to leave.”

Zhao Yelan did not deny it.

“But you were lucky, ah, you met Yan Mingting, who made you miss him so much that you couldn’t bear to part with him.” Gu Niaoniao said, “I didn’t have such luck.”

Zhao Yelan silently accompanied her for a while. Visiting time was ending soon. Gu Niaoniao whispered: “All my savings over the years are in the room we used to meet in. You take those silver taels and arrange a good place for the girls, ba. They are all innocent and don’t know anything about me.”

Zhao Yelan: “All right.”

“I left something for you in the building, don’t forget. You are not short of money, so I could only leave some spices and tea leaves for you. The spices are the Western Region incense I personally selected. For so many years, I have always used incense like you, as if it could cover up the filthy smell on my body over time.”

“…….En.” Zhao Yelan lowered his eyes. His throat rolled, and his tone was cryptic. “Is there anything else?”

“You and Yan Mingting should be fine. He treats you well. Don’t let your temper out all day long, and live a peaceful and beautiful life.”

“I’ll accept your good words.” Zhao Yelan lifted the corners of his mouth with difficulty and asked, “Have you ever heard Zhao Xu mention the Nanjiang poison?”

“What poison?”

“It’s nothing.” Zhao Yelan’s expression dimmed.

“There is one last thing you must help me with.”

“What is it?”

“Weren’t you able to kill Yu Junliang directly in prison before?” Gu Niaoniao said, “I would rather die by your hand than that of the executioner, with my head separated. Can you give me my dignity?”

After a long time, Zhao Yelan replied: “All right.”

“Thank you. In my life, the most valuable thing was to know you as a friend,” Gu Niaoniao said with red eyes.

Zhao Yelan asked with a stuffy nose: “What is your name?”

Gu Niaoniao was stunned for a moment, and after ten years, she at last said her name slowly: “Jiang Mu. My name is Jiang Mu.”

“Hello, Jiang Mu.” 

“Zhao Mengting, take care.”

After he emerged from the prison, he glanced around and suddenly wanted to see Yan Mingting. He got into a sedan chair, but thought that the sedan chair was too slow, so he disembarked halfway and ran all the way back to the General’s Mansion and started shouting as soon as he entered the gate: “Yan Mingting, Yan Mingting!”

“I’m here.” Yan Mingting walked out of the bedroom and Zhao Yelan ran up to him, stretched out his arms, and embraced him.

“You saw her?” Yan Mingting asked, lowering his head.

Zhao Yelan nodded.

Yan Mingting rubbed his head and said softly: “Let’s go inside, ba.”

Zhao Yelan let go of his hand, and just as he stepped over the threshold, he suddenly heard a bang. He turned his head in a panic to look at Yan Mingting, and found that he had slammed one tightly clenched hand on the door and fell down in a daze. 

“Yan Mingting!” Zhao Yelan immediately went to help him.

Slipping to the ground, Yan Mingting leaned his back against the door and smiled at him with a pale face: “It’s fine, I’m just a little dizzy. Just take it easy, go to the kitchen and pour me a cup of water.”

“I’m not going, I’m not going anywhere!” Zhao Yelan hugged him. “Don’t you try to find excuses to drive me away.”

Yan Minging leaned into his arms and said with a smile: “But, but I’m a little dizzy now, I want to sleep for a while……”

“Not allowed to sleep!”

“Alright, no sleeping, I won’t sleep.”

“General, my lord, what is the matter with you?” Xiao Gao followed the noise and stood at the door, startled.

“Go and get a cup of water,” Zhao Yelan immediately ordered.

“Coming, coming, water is coming.” 

Xiao Gao went to pour a cup of water and handed it to Yan Mingting. When he lowered his eyes, he found that Yan Mingting’s entire body was tense, his hands holding onto his thighs. “General, why are you pinching yourself?”

Zhao Yelan was taken aback for a moment, and then noticed that he had been secretly torturing himself to stay awake, and a line of hot tears immediately rolled from his eyes: “Why, why do you have to…..”

“Mengting, don’t cry, ah.” Yan Mingting raised his hand and wiped away his tears, saying with a pale face, “Go and find Yao Muze.”

“Okay, I’ll go.” Zhao Yelan handed him off to Xiao Gao, then got up and went out. Walking outside the door, he waited for a moment, and heard Yan Mingting’s restrained groan of pain inside. It was as if his heart was being whipped back and forth, and the pain was so terrible that he almost lost consciousness. 

Almost all the people in the Imperial Hospital were in the palace, so Zhao Yelan went from the hospital to the palace and brought Yao Muze out.

Seeing his expression, Yao Muze knew that the situation was not good. He quickly followed him to the General’s Mansion, and Yan Mingting seemed to have recovered, half reclining in bed and eating melon seeds like a normal person.

“I really troubled you to make a trip,” Yan Mingting said with a smile.

“The General is courteous.” Yao Muze opened the medical box. “This poison occurs intermittently. I will give you acupuncture first, in hopes of relieving your pain during an attack.”

“Thank you for your trouble.” Yan Mingting looked at Zhao Yelan again. “Mengting, go and see if dinner is ready. Let’s have Doctor Yao stay for dinner tonight.”

“I won’t go.” Zhao Yelan sat down at the table calmly and said, “Do the acupuncture. Don’t worry about me.”

One by one, thin needles were inserted into the acupuncture points. Zhao Yelan felt as if he was about to die from pain just looking at them. However, Yan Mingting had yet to close his mouth, and was chatting with Yao Muze: “Doctor Yao, help me see if my wife is secretly wiping away tears now?”

“He’s not,” Yao Muze said.

“That’s good, I’m really afraid that you outsiders will see it. You don’t know, he was born so beautiful, and he’s even more captivating when he cries. Ai, it’s better that no one ever sees him cry, or I’ll be so angry.”

“Zhao-daren doesn’t cry easily.”

“Is that so……Hey, Doctor Yao, do you think there is anyone in this world who is worthy of him except me, a handsome and dashing man?”

“No.”

“I think so too.” Yan Mingting smiled.

Listening to their conversation, Zhao Yelan remained silent, as if he didn’t exist, and just watched Yan Mingting quietly.

At night, Zhao Yelan lay beside him and talked about Gu Niaoniao, and Yan Mingting sighed endlessly.

“Do you know what she said?”

“What did she say?”

Zhao Yelan propped up his upper body and looked at him. “She said, we should live a good life in the future.”

Yan Mingting touched his cheek and whispered: “I’m sorry, I’m sorry……”

He had obviously been paying attention. After entering the southern border, he ordered everyone not to eat food other than military rations, and had people strictly guard those rations. But he didn’t expect that the Eighth Princess herself would use herself as a source of poison. Knowing that he would press to find out the old general’s cause of death, she poisoned him before she died.

And after years of refinement, the poison was more toxic than in the past, with no reaction in the beginning. He was eager to return and see Zhao Yelan, so he rushed back without stopping. It wasn’t until he was about to enter the capital that he had a sudden severe headache and fell off his horse due to weakness in his limbs, and realized that he might have been poisoned.

“I thought I could face it calmly, but I can’t, ah…..” Zhao Yelan even made arrangements for the funeral, and planned to leave together after Yan Mingting departed. But today when he saw Yan Mingting fall to the ground with his own eyes, he realized that he had overestimated his ability to endure. He couldn’t watch the other party die in his arms at all.

“My parents are dead, one friend is unconscious, with his survival uncertain, and another is waiting to die in a dungeon. Even you must leave me……Why can’t I keep anyone I want to keep? I beg you, Yan Fangli, I beg you, can’t you survive?” Zhao Yelan held his hand and pleaded hoarsely. “I will never lose my temper with you again, don’t leave me alone…..”

Yan Mingting’s eyes became hot. He pulled him into his arms and asked, a little choked up: “Mengting, tell me, am I really an evil star? Now it’s fallen on me, and even harmed you…..”

“What nonsense are you talking about!” Zhao Yelan covered his mouth, kissed his eyes, and took his lips again. The two people’s tears mixed together, and they couldn’t tell whose was whose. They only hoped that this night would pause forever, and that tomorrow would never come.

T/N: Um……is anyone else crying?

---

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Chapter Eighty-Six <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Eighty-Eight

Every plant and tree in the Three Thousand Worlds were personally selected and planted by the master of the worlds, and similarly, guests must obtain the master’s permission before they could step in. Now that His Royal Highness Xiao Wang was here, it meant that deep in Second Young Master Liu’s heart, there was actually such a thing as, “with a long sword in hand, no army dares to disobey.” The image of an invincible general could not only command the entire Dayan army, but could also command forty-eight thousand-year-old sages.

In the vast and boundless spiritual realm, Liu Xian’an sat on a white crane and traveled back and forth unhurriedly and leisurely. The toppled and rebuilt world was still chaotic, and he felt that it may take a long time in the future for him to restore it – only then could he realize the dao of heaven little by little and turn this place back into an orderly paradise. However, his head no longer hurt as much as when he was rescued from the cave. Perhaps this was due to the good-smelling sandalwood fragrance that pervaded the surrounding fields, or maybe it was because His Royal Highness Xiao Wang who was holding a sword looked extremely safe and reliable. Thus, he let himself think about the world slowly in a relaxed state.

Then, thinking and thinking, he slowly fell asleep.

It couldn’t be helped, was his spirit too relaxed?

Liu Xian’an’s head tilted forward a little. Liang Shu’s eyes were sharp, and he reached out to catch him by the back of his collar. Second Young Master Liu remained calm, drifting with the clouds in his dream, his whole body floating. He found a soft place and continued to sleep, not even opening his eyes.

This was also the first time in Liang Shu’s life that someone had thrown themselves into his arms. He hugged the other person’s waist with one hand and frowned slightly. For a moment, it seemed as if that absurd spring dream had moved into reality, and many forgotten details were awakened along the way. The beauty was silent, with a graceful, distant presence. 

He found that he was indeed more despicable than his second sister. Second Sister liked beauties because she appreciated them purely, and was satisfied to the extreme just to place them in the harem. But his own desire for beauty was wrapped in all kinds of unspeakable worldly desires.

Liang Shu put the man on the bed, got up, and left the carriage.

After a while, Liu Xian’an also followed him out with sleepy eyes. This was mainly because he fell asleep, and the scent of sandalwood in the wilderness suddenly faded. After waking up with difficulty, he saw that he was the only one left in the carriage, so in a daze, he went outside to look for that person. Unexpectedly, he first hit his head, and then accidentally stepped on air and fell forward.

“Young Master!” A-Ning was so frightened that he rushed over to catch him. It was naturally impossible to catch him, but Liu Xian’an was not thrown out. Liang Shu lifted him up in the air and placed him firmly on Xuan Jiao’s back.

“Sleepwalking?”

“No.”

Liu Xian’an was still half asleep just now, and when he fell, he acted as if he was still riding a crane and soaring through the clouds, without the slightest bit of panic. Now, being put on a horse, he didn’t rejoice in his fortune. His mind was still in a muddled state, and he yawned, adding a sentence after a long time: “Not sleepwalking, I came out specifically to find the prince.”

The corners of Liang Shu’s mouth rose: “Why were you looking for me?”

“I just woke up,” Liu Xian’an answered in a nonchalant manner, clearly too lazy to think. Liang Shu didn’t urge him anymore, but only slowed down the horse. The autumn scenery in the mountains was truly beautiful, with trees under the setting sun, geese tilting amongst the lonely clouds, and red leaves flowing all over the streams.

Liu Xian’an’s attention was gradually drawn to the forest scenery. He planned to transplant a similar autumn forest into his spiritual world, so he turned his head to look to the side from time to time. After a while, he asked again: “Does the prince like red leaves?”

Liang Shu replied: “I like them.”

Liu Xian’an thought, then I will plant one for you too.

Or be more generous and simply plant a whole mountain of them.

Liang Shu saw that he was presently in high spirits, as if he had completely woken up, so he asked: “Are those white-bearded old men bothering you again?”

Liu Xian’an first corrected him that, they are all my friends, not all of them are old, and there are some beauties. Then he remembered the dream just now and turned around: “This time the prince was there.”

Liang Shu remained calm: “Was I also discussing the dao?”

This sounded so ridiculous that even he himself didn’t believe it.

Liu Xian’an shook his head, his face creased with a smile: “No, the prince was helping me maintain order.”

Liang Shu patted his head: “Presumptuous. Who allowed you to drag this lord to work?”

Liu Xian’an said perfunctorily, “En, en, yes, yes,” but thought to himself, in any case, if I don’t speak of it in the future, you’ll never know.

He turned back around and continued to enjoy the breeze with his eyes closed. Liang Shu also smiled. The mountain was filled with the sweet fragrance of berries after they fell to the ground. However, he preferred the scent of the other party’s collar, which was a mixture of very light herbs and bamboo leaves, gladdening the heart and refreshing the mind.

Gao Lin squeezed into the seat next to the coachman and set about looking at the two with a benevolent expression on his face, like a happy old mother. The relationship between the prince and Second Young Master Liu was truly getting better and better.

A-Ning also thought the same way, because he could be lazy and lie down next to the young master before, but now he could only sit outside the carriage almost all day long. If he wanted to lie down, he had to go to another carriage to do so. He was also curious about what his young master was doing when he stayed with the prince all day long, so he secretly lifted the carriage curtain twice —

The first time, the young master was sleeping, and the prince was also sleeping

The second time, the young master was sleeping, and the prince was watching him sleep.

In any case, he couldn’t escape sleep.

It was not uncommon for the young master to sleep, but it was strange that the prince was willing to sleep with him. This was very different from the rumors. A-Ning asked Lieutenant General Gao, what was it like in the northwest?

“The northwest, ah.” Gao Lin held a blade of grass in his mouth. “If there was no war, just staying at Xiao Wang Palace in Yueya City would not be too busy. But the prince is restless. He can lie down for a day at most without finding something to do…..wrong, he will pay attention to trade at the border or simply lead troops to fight wolves in the desert.”

Yes, that was what the rumors said.

Then why did the prince become so quiet and composed when he was with the young master?

Gao Lin also didn’t understand this matter.

A-Ning analyzed: “Could it be that the prince understands the young master’s Three Thousand Ways?”

Gao Lin put forward another hypothesis: “He may also be possessed.”

The latter was obviously more likely.

After all, compared to the Three Thousand Ways, the prince would definitely be more willing to give someone three thousand knives.

A-Ning: “…..”

Impossible!

The group of people traveled for more than ten days. On the afternoon of the current day, the team rested under the trees. Liu Xian’an lazily dozed off, and A-Ning was reclining to the side, eating wild yellow fruits with a medical book spread out on his lap. If there was something he didn’t understand, he would place a bookmark in it and prepared a lot to ask the young master about later. The guards were very familiar with the master and servant, so they joked: “It really looks like a painting.”

Liang Shu did not refute this statement. It was indeed like a painting, but had little to do with whether it was beautiful or not. Rather, the tranquility and remoteness of the people in the painting relying on each other was really precious, suitable for spectators to enjoy quietly. Only, before the quiet could last very long, a cloud of dust rolled up along with the sound of horseshoes on the mountain road.

Everyone followed the sound and looked over. Liu Xian’an also opened his eyes, and A-Ning closed the medical book and stood up: “It seems to be someone from the government.”

Skid – The horse had excellent legs, and galloped to the front in no time. The person on the horse nearly rolled over to kneel down: “Your Highness.”

“It’s you?” Liang Shu said, “Get up.”

His name was Hua Pingye, and he was once a vanguard officer in the Northwest Military Camp. Later, because of a leg injury, he was transferred to Cuiqiu City as an official. When he married a wife a year ago, he had someone send a cart of wine and wedding candy to Yueya City.

“A-Ping.” Gao Lin helped him stand. “Slow down, what happened?”

Hua Pingye panted: “Your Highness, there are rebels in the Gaoliang Mountain area.”

Ah? A-Ning looked at his young master in shock. How could there be rebels in these peaceful times?

Liu Xian’an patted him on the shoulder. You and I are at peace, and Baihe City is at peace, but that doesn’t mean the whole world is peaceful. Didn’t you hear Lieutenant General Gao talking about the Bai River flood a while ago? Even if it only destroyed one mu of farmland, for the owner of that farmland, this year is definitely not peaceful. What’s more, the flood caused more than one farm and one mu of farmland to suffer.

Hua Pingye had received the news of the rebels near Gaoliang Mountain and the news that His Royal Highness Xiao Wang was about to arrive at Cuiqiu City almost simultaneously, so he promptly came here in person without stopping. According to the secret report, the leader of the rebels at Gaoliang Mountain was named Huang Wangxiang, a man from Xiaohuang Village who was in the prime of his thirties or forties. Because the fields at home were all washed away and his parents, wife, and children all died in the torrential flood, he saw that there was no way out, so he dragged a group of brothers who were also suffering to be kings on Gaoliang Mountain.

This sort of rebel sounded hard for people to hate, but rebellion was a capital crime, after all, and the local garrison should have sent troops to suppress it as soon as the signs appeared. Now that Huang Wangxiang was flourishing, it was either because the garrison had neglected its duties, or it deliberately did not try to take care of it.

If they deliberately ignored it and let it develop, they could use this as an excuse to ask the court for more money. Wasn’t it just a farmer leading a group of refugees who couldn’t get enough to eat? How much trouble could they cause? Or to take another step back, even if there was a genuine rebellion, the Imperial court would transfer troops from other places, and they wouldn’t have to worry themselves. Taking advantage of this situation to make money was a serious matter.

Liang Shu and Gao Lin had seen many silverfish like this, and Hua Pingye also knew the routine, so he didn’t need to say more. He only said: “If they knew that the prince had come to Cuiqiu City, they would have restrained themselves a little.”

Liang Shu handed the confidential letter to Liu Xian’an: “Go back to the carriage. First follow me to Cuiqiu City. If you have free time on the road, take a look at the activities of Huang Wangxiang.” 

It was only then that Hua Pingye noticed that there were two people standing under the tree. He glanced at them and asked Lieutenant General Gao in a low voice: “Is this the rumored Second Young Master Liu?”

Gao Lin was surprised, yes, ah, you can tell at a glance?

Hua Pingye said: “It’s not difficult.” After all, the whole world had been speculating that the princess would marry Second Young Master Liu a while ago, and there were not many people who bore such an appearance.

He continued to speculate: “The prince is going to invite Second Young Master Liu back to the royal city so that he can meet the princess?”

Liang Shu turned his head and glanced at him coldly.

Hua Pingye shuddered and wisely shut up.

Liu Xian’an sat in the carriage and read the confidential letter carefully. Perhaps to cover up the deliberate negligence of the local garrison, Huang Wangxiang was described in the letter as an invincible monster who could confuse people’s hearts, standing nine feet tall. There were several pages of such eloquence, but not a single word of it was useful.

Even A-Ning couldn’t stand it anymore and complained: “Why are these people so useless! When it comes to leading an army, they can’t even compare to a hair on the prince’s head. I could do better than them.”

“You and the prince want the world to be stable, but they wish for constant chaos.” Liu Xian’an said, “Their purpose is different, and their means are naturally different as a result. It doesn’t mean that one is smarter or more stupid than the other.”

He folded the letter neatly and put it back in the envelope. A-Ning continued to ask: “Since they are refugees, they must need medicinal materials. Should we prepare some in advance?”

“I’m afraid they are not easy to buy anymore.” Liu Xian’an thought for a moment. “Okay, you should go discuss it with Lieutenant General Gao first.”

A-Ning agreed and bent down to disembark the carriage. The carriage curtain swung again a moment later, and it was Liang Shu who sat inside.

“How about it?”

“It’s better not to read it.”

Liang Shu smiled: “I think so too. You just take it as a spectacle and see how shameless the world can be in order to satisfy their selfish desires.”

Liu Xian’an returned the confidential letter: “However, there is definitely something special about Huang Wangxiang’s ability to gather a large number of people in a short period of time. The prince should be careful.”

“Unnecessary.” Liang Shu looked at him, saying in a nonchalant manner, “Anyway, someone will heal me if I’m injured.”

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Chapter Thirty-Four << Table of Contents >> Chapter Thirty-Six

“Mr. Li, it’s not that I haven’t thought about it, but the facts are in front of me—”

Another calm and experienced voice sounded, asking with helpless resignation, “Since Old Mr. Li passed away, has your ‘Dawn Games’ ever made a comeback?”

“Yes, I admit that at a young age, you still stabilized a company that was on the verge of bankruptcy in three or four years. Such perseverance and devotion is amazing, but I really can’t see any development prospects in your “Dawn.”

The person named ‘Mr. Yang’ paused, and spoke the cruelest rejection in the calmest tone. “I’m sorry I can’t do anything about this investment. I still have something to do, so I’ll step out first.”

The soundproofing in the box wasn’t good.

Pei Yi listened to the chatter in the box next door, and then heard Li Yuan hoarsely accepting his fate. “I’m delaying Mr. Yang. I’ll see you off, then.”

There was more movement next door as they got up and left.

After the door curtain was lifted, the tone of that Mr. Yang’s speech softened a lot. “Young Mister Li, I still admire your perseverance in doing things. Don’t see me off. If I have a chance, I will treat you to dinner.”

“Thank you, President Wang, for your appreciation. Then leave slowly.”

“En.”

The footsteps gradually faded away.

Pei Yi couldn’t hold back, and opened the curtain of the box. Sure enough, he saw Li Yuan’s back from the side, tall and superior, with the iconic wolf tail and fluffy hair on the back of his head.

Li Yuan, who watched the investor walk away, turned around and met Pei Yi’s gaze. He froze for two seconds, looking around to restrain the disappointment in his eyes.

“Little Young Master Pei, why are you here alone?”

As soon as the words fell, he frowned and asked again, “Our conversation just now, you heard it all?”

“…….”

Pei Yi paused for a second or two, and decided to follow the original owner’s temperament, answering truthfully, “A little bit.”

However, this little bit was enough for him to analyze the purpose and final result of the conversation.

Li Yuan looked at the empty box on his side and let out a soft, bitter laugh. “Forget it. If you heard, you heard. I guess a little fool like you wouldn’t understand.”

The second half of the sentence was spoken very lightly, and the phrase “little fool” was like a pronoun, not a deliberate derogatory remark.

Pei Yi’s eyes moved to the empty seat opposite, then back to Li Yuan’s face, sending a silent invitation: Do you want to sit down?

At the same time, Li Yuan approached and said, “Can I sit down?”

Pei Yi nodded.

As soon as Li Yuan sat down, assistant Lin Zhong came up with a glass of orange juice and small cakes. The latter was a bit surprised to see an extra person in the box seat. “Little Young Master, who is this?”

Li Yuan frowned, and then realized that Pei Yi couldn’t have gone out alone.

Before he could open his mouth to introduce himself, Pei Yi made an affirmative statement—

“Friend.”

Lin Zhong and Li Yuan were simultaneously taken aback. They didn’t expect that Pei Yi would address him with the word “friend.”

Lin Zhong, who reacted first, put down the juice and cake, and took the opportunity to examine Li Yuan for a moment. “Sir, do you need anything? I can go downstairs to order for you.”

As Bo Yueming’s personal assistant, Lin Zhong had good standards, to say the least, and his vigilance underneath and public etiquette on the surface were in place.

Li Yuan declined. “Thank you, but there’s no need.”

Lin Zhong made a sound of acknowledgement and said, “Then Sir, you two talk slowly. I will sit at the single table at the foot of the stairs, call for me if you need anything.”

The curtain was lowered again.

With the sound of Lin Zhong’s footsteps going farther away, Li Yuan’s eyes relaxed a little, and he took out his cigarette case from his pocket. Slender jade fingers pulled one out.

Pei Yi was going to remind him that there was “no smoking indoors,” but it turned out that the other party just flicked the cigarette butt and then put the cigarette under his nose to sniff it.

“…….”

Li Yuan suppressed the turmoil and frustration in his heart with the faint smell of tobacco. Turning to meet Pei Yi’s hesitant eyes, he smiled and said bluntly, “Afraid of the smell of smoke? Have you tried it?”

Pei Yi shook his head.

Occasionally, when he was stuck on a game design, he also smoked to relieve stress. But he didn’t smoke often, and it wasn’t a must.

Li Yuan turned the long cigarette lightly in his hand, complaining, “Just by seeing how obedient and silly you look, I know you don’t smoke. Don’t worry, I know that smoking is prohibited indoors, and I’m not so wicked as to make you breathe second-hand smoke.”

Pei Yi didn’t speak.

Having met twice, he already had a more intuitive understanding of Li Yuan, a “supporting role”—

Sharp, venomous, and straightforward, with a bit of stubbornness and ego, there was also a bit of concern mixed in. 

To put it bluntly, he had tsundere attributes.

Pei Yi’s eyes fell on Li Yuan’s injured finger. The white bandage from last night was still wrapped around it, but the blood clearly seeping out from inside had solidified.

Pei Yi was a little obsessive compulsive, and looked uncomfortable. “Dirty.”

Li Yuan slowly realized what he meant, and touched the bandage lightly with the pad of his thumb. “…….En, I forgot to change it.”

He responded to the word, but was in no hurry to change it.

Li Yuan hid the bandaged hand under the table and exhaled a mouthful of air. “Little Young Master Pei, are you bored? If you’re bored, then chat with me.”

Pei Yi was taken aback.

Li Yuan continued on his own, “The other day, I went to the Bo family banquet and, in fact, I wanted to find an investor to cooperate with from among that group of wealthy families. It was just that I ran into dead ends everywhere. When I was hiding to smoke in the corridor, you were blocked in and bullied.”

Pei Yi had vaguely guessed that this was the case, and continued to listen to what he said.

“Wei Bo and the others were right, I have long since had nothing to do with the glamorous wealthy circle. The Li family declined as early as my sophomore year……”

Li Yuan’s voice was very low. Rather than say he was telling a story, it might be better to say that he was taking the opportunity to vent his depression.

In fact, Pei Yi understood something about Li Yuan’s past experiences from the original book—

The Li family was originally the earliest professional game development company in China, and the top name “Dawn Games” resounded across the country.

With the continuous development of society and technology, and the continuous innovation of internet games, Dawn Games, because of bad decisions at a high level, took the wrong “conservative” path and was completely discarded into the wind, going downhill step by step.

In Li Yuan’s sophomore year, Father Li came down with leukemia, which was uncommon in his age group, and passed away after several treatments.

Mother Li was heartbroken and fell ill, and even the shareholders of Dawn Games kicked up a fuss. At that time, Li Yuan, the only son who was originally studying finance, had to temporarily drop out of school to take care of these difficult matters.

But after all, he was a young man who had not yet entered society. How could he fight against those old foxes who were contriving this and calculating that?

The original “Dawn” was divided up until there wasn’t much left, and in the end, it was almost an empty shell, with some small games that could no longer earn any copyright fees.

In order to safeguard his early-departed father’s life’s work, Li Yuan changed his major to game programming. Over the years, studying and keeping a job had been extremely difficult and frustrating.

Because the company’s R&D funds were insufficient, he could only choose to go out and buy the initial copyright of new mini-games, in addition to finding new sources of investment. It was barely enough to support the company.

Mini-games were not like large-scale games. They followed the trends one after another, and now the company had come to a standstill.

Li Yuan bit his unlit cigarette, as if it would temporarily numb his fretfulness. He raised his eyes to look at Pei Yi, who had been silent all along, and suddenly felt a bit silly for blurting out his confession just now. 

“Little Young Master, no wonder people say you are reticent and mute. My mouth is so dry from voicing bitter things, and you can’t even respond with a sound? You really don’t give me any face.”

It sounded like a venomous rebuke, but in fact, Li Yuan was glad. It was because of Pei Yi’s “foolishness” that he told the pressures he was under that he couldn’t dump onto outsiders, otherwise, he would be too embarrassed to say such things casually.

Pei Yi pushed over the untouched juice and sugar flower cakes on the table in consolation. “Here, it’s sweet. Makes your mood good.”

Li Yuan stared at the delicate sugar flowers on the cakes, then looked away after a couple of seconds. “Childrens’ things. I won’t snatch them from you.”

“No snatching, I give them to you.”

Pei Yi was fed by Shu Wan until noon, and there was no shortage of such things in his stomach at the moment. Looking at Li Yuan in front of him, he felt that his nature was not as bad as the book said.

Perhaps because he was also engaged in the game industry, Pei Yi always had a sense of “one of his own” toward him.

At this thought, a flash of inspiration lit up in Pei Yi’s mind. Before he could catch it carefully, Lin Zhong appeared at the door of the box again.

“Little Sir, it’s time to go. Second Young Master and the others will arrive in a minute.”

“Oh, okay.”

Pei Yi returned to his senses, and when he got up, he pushed the cake dish toward Lin Yuan. “Eat, ba. Bye-bye.”

“…….”

Li Yuan watched in a daze as Pei Yi went downstairs, then slowly turned his back to the food and said faintly, “You really don’t want it, ah? You won’t eat this?”

He pursed his lips after speaking. Taking advantage of the lack of people around, he changed his previous appearance of refusal—

Taking a sip of juice first, he then dug a small spoonful of the small cake.

Within a few seconds, his eyes squinted contentedly, and he completely forgot about saying “children’s things” just now.

. . . . . .

When Pei Yi walked out of the coffee shop, he found a larger car parked by the door with a license plate that didn’t seem to have appeared in the Bo garage.

The car door automatically opened, revealing Bo Yueming’s figure. “Get in the car, ba.”

Lin Zhong glanced at Pei Yi first, and got into the car first to occupy a position in the back row. “Little Sir, you and Second Young Master sit in the same row. I’ll squeeze in behind.”

Pei Yi silently got into the car, and suddenly heard a familiar meow.

“Meow~”

He turned around and found a mobile cat backpack beside Lin Zhong’s seat. Inspector likely caught his scent, and was sticking its little head out and meowing.

Pei Yi was surprised. “Inspector?”

The car door closed automatically again. Uncle Kai signaled the driver to drive, then turned around to explain to Pei Yi, “Little Sir, the Second Young Master has something to go out and do for three days. You will go as well, and Inspector was brought for you.”

Pei Yi narrowed his eyes, and question marks popped up in his mind. According to the few descriptions in the original book—

Bo Yueming shouldn’t bring ‘him’ along when he went out on errands, right? Why did he suddenly say he was going to go?

Bo Yueming seemed to have expected that Pei Yi would be suspicious. “Last night, Bo Wang lost face in public. I heard that he went to a bar and got drunk, and broke his leg when he left the bar in the early morning. It is very serious, and he is now lying in a private ward.”

Pei Yi couldn’t hold his surprise back for a moment. “Ah?”

Bo Yueming followed suit and commented, “En, so careless.”

“……..”

Pei Yi heard a clue and continued to pretend to be puzzled, his gaze continuing to fall on Bo Yueming’s face.

Just careless?

Why did he feel that wasn’t it?

Uncle Kai hid the understanding in his eyes, and went on to explain with a smile, “Second Young Master fears that since Young Master Bo Wang hurt his leg, he and the Second Lady will be unpacified and deliberately come to vent their anger.”

When the time came, Bo Yueming and Uncle Kai would not be there and the servants would not dare to protect him, so the person to suffer disaster would be Pei Yi. And if Inspector protected his master like last time, it would likely encounter the same misfortune.

Hearing these remarks, Pei Yi became more and more sure of his guess—

How could this be the result of carelessness? It was likely that Bo Yueming took the opportunity to send someone out and do it! It seemed that the blackening process of this “villain” was still progressing secretly, ah?

Pei Yi didn’t care how many legs Bo Wang broke, and accepted the current situation as a matter of course.

Two and a half hours later, Pei Yi arrived at a resort with Bo Yueming and the others.

In the mountains, the sky always got dark faster.

The person in charge came to contact them and led them to an exclusive area while disclosing the situation in detail, “Mr. Bo, all the instruments have been shipped and arranged in advance, and the medical team was already in place this afternoon. We can start the first round of examinations tomorrow morning.”

Bo Yueming’s eyes flickered slightly. “All right.”

Pei Yi carried Inspector on his back and followed him silently, already understanding from the behavior of the person in charge—

In the original book, Bo Yueming underwent secret treatment behind everyone’s backs in the early stages. It seemed that this was the purpose of the trip.

No wonder he went out by car early in the morning, and then switched to a bigger car with an unfamiliar license plate. It should be to cover up the eyes and ears of others, and avoid being noticed by the Bo family.

The person in charge quickly took them to a private courtyard, and said after entering the door, “Mr. Bo, there are two bedrooms with three single beds in the west wing, and then a separate master bedroom in the main house.”

Pei Yi suddenly realized something, but Bo Yueming was a step ahead and asked, “So, there are only three rooms?”

According to the original plan, two single rooms were to be allocated to the driver and Lin Zhong, and to Uncle Kai respectively. Then the big master bedroom……didn’t it have to accommodate two people?

The person in charge confirmed the situation, “There were four people specified on the phone at that time, so this small courtyard was arranged.”

As he spoke, he covertly sized up the extra Pei Yi and asked the question, “Is this Little Sir Mr. Bo’s lover? Can, can you stay in the master bedroom together?”

---

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Chapter Seventeen <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Nineteen

Zhao Yelan had sensed that something was wrong ever since he retrieved Yan Mingting.

No matter what, he would never believe that Yan Mingting would allow the horse to run back alone just because he was in a hurry to urinate. Such a pathetic reason must be because something big happened, and he hadn’t had time to figure out a lie.

And during the two days of spending time with one another, he clearly felt that Yan Mingting’s smile was not as worry-free as usual. There was a bit of helplessness behind it, and after it disappeared, there was an endless sigh.

How perceptive was Zhao Yelan? He had expected that he was hiding something from him, but didn’t expect it to be such a huge matter.

The poison that killed the old general was colorless, odorless, and difficult to detect. The symptoms were dizziness and weakness of limbs.

So Yan Mingting was unable to return with the horse that day perhaps because he lost consciousness and fell from the horse. It may be that with the last sliver of reasoning, he asked the horse to find someone to save him, or that the horse had the consciousness to save him and ran back alone to find someone to rescue him.

“Then…..is there an antidote?” Zhao Yelan asked.

Yao Muze shook his head in shame: “I’m not very knowledgeable. I only know that this kind of poison exists, but not how to cure it. From last night to now, I have searched all through the medical arts without finding a solution.”

“What about other Imperial physicians?” Zhao Yelan asked, and was about to go find those other people when Yao Muze stopped him.

“It’s no use. I already inquired about it this morning, and they haven’t even heard of this poison,” Yao Muze said worriedly.

“In this huge hospital, there is not one useful person to be found. How is it worthy of being called a hospital! It’s a bunch of trash!” 

Zhao Yelan cursed a few times, turned around, and strode away. Summoning Yu Dali and the other forty-eight people, he ordered: “You go to Nanjiang now. No matter what methods you use, by whatever means, you must bring all the doctors with good medical skills to the capital. Hurry up!”

After they left, Zhao Yelan walked forward in a daze, unknowingly returning to the General’s Mansion. But just as he walked in the door, he heard Yan Mingting talking with Xiao Gao in the courtyard. He took a few steps back and told the guards at the door not to say anything, and then stood outside the door, listening to their voices.

“Xiao Gao, I will teach you everything I have learned all my life. You have to learn it quickly, all right?”

“Okay, ah!”

After showing him his martial arts, Yan Mingting said: “Three days. Can you learn it?”

“Three days is too fast, ba.”

“Then five days?”

“General, why are you in such a hurry? Isn’t there still a long time ahead? Can’t I learn a little each day?”

“If you finish learning earlier, you can protect your lord. Don’t you want to protect him?”

“Want to, ah. Okay, I’ll learn now.”

Zhao Yelan listened to the sound of fighting inside. His throat tightened and he couldn’t make a sound. Just as he raised his foot to step inside, he suddenly turned around and ran to the nearest sedan chair, held his face in both hands, and wept uncontrollably.

“Guest official, where are you going?” Asked the bearer.

After a long time, Zhao Yelan said: “The Imperial Academy.”

The whole afternoon, Zhao Yelan sat alone in an Imperial Academy room. The door was closed tightly, and no one was allowed to go in and talk. 

His colleagues were a little puzzled, and Ruan Xian walked over and knocked on the door: “Zhao-xiong, is something wrong? Talk to us, maybe we can help you?”

There was no sound from inside. Ruan Xian came several times but received no response. He became increasingly worried and asked the guards to knock down the door.

“Zhao-xiong, I’ll have to offend you.”

After the door was knocked open, Ruan Xian stood in the doorway and was stunned when he saw the scene inside.

He saw Zhao Yelan sitting at the table like a normal person, writing with a brush. The man gave him a slanted look: “Get out.”

“Excuse me, it seems I’ve interrupted you.” 

Ruan Xian insipidly closed the door, and for a moment, he didn’t know what had happened to him.

Zhao Yelan’s eyes returned to the table. On the rice paper spread out in front of him were instructions on what to do with his property.

After returning to the General’s Mansion at night, Xiao Gao excitedly told him that he had learned a very powerful move from the General today and wanted to show him.

Yan Mingting walked up to him, and the two of them watched Xiao Gao show off his skills. Yan Mingting gave a few words of instruction from time to time, and asked Zhao Yelan with a smile: “How about it? What do you think about the apprentice I’ve taught?”

“You’ve barely done anything,” Zhao Yelan said. “Xiao Gao is naturally talented.”

“No matter how talented you are, you must be guided by a good master.” Yan Mingting raised his eyebrows.

Zhao Yelan scoffed coldly: “Then I was also taught by you, so why am I not like him?”

“Isn’t it just your level of talent?”

“So it does come back to natural talent?”

“I say, I can’t win against you.” Yan Mingting scratched his head and laughed, then took his hand to go eat. “Let’s go, the kitchen has made your favorite dishes tonight, and I went to Huichun Tower to buy some snacks. I’m sure you will like them.”

After dinner, Yan Mingting proposed going out for a walk. He took him to the streets and bought a lot of things.

“Jinxuan’s is up ahead, let’s go buy some clothes.”

“No, there are too many at home.”

“You actually think you have too many clothes?” Yan Mingting asked in surprise.

Zhao Yelan was silent for a moment: “Let’s go then, ba, we’ll go shopping for clothes.”

In the end, Yan Mingting bought a dozen or so items for Zhao Yelan, and found that Zhao Yelan also bought a dozen or so items for him.

“Why buy so much, I won’t be able to wear it all in my next life,” Yan Mingting lamented. 

Zhao Yelan paused and gave him a blank look: “Then you have to buy more, buy ten more pieces, and wrap up all the clothes for your next life.”

Yan Mingting laughed loudly and handed over the pile of clothing to Xiao Gao, asking him to send them back to the residence first.

When passing by the gold shop, Yan Mingting once again didn’t control his steps and went in to buy a few golden locks, rings, and pendants. After paying the bill and coming out, he found Zhao Yelan coming out of the weapons shop opposite with several swords in his hands.

Yan Mingting didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and took those things: “I haven’t seen you for a long time and just wanted to buy you something, why do you want to give gifts in return?”

“I have a lot of money and it’s burning a hole in my pocket, can’t I?”

“Okay, okay, you can burn whatever you want.” After Yan Mingting finished speaking with a smile, he didn’t know which word jabbed Zhao Yelan, but the other party stepped on him several times.

The two of them walked around for nearly an hour before returning home. Housekeeper Qin looked at their bags and said in surprise: “What day is it today? Or are you going out for a long trip?”

Both of them were silent for a moment, avoiding the question one after another.

After returning to the room, Zhao Yelan threw the tanghulu he had bought onto the table: “Eat, ba.”

“You bought so much, when can I finish it?” Yan Mingting said with a muffled laugh. This fellow had bought nearly all the tanghulu on the entire street.

“Eat it until your teeth rot,” Zhao Yelan said viciously.

“If I didn’t know, I would think today was my birthday,” Yan Mingting said.

At these words, Zhao Yelan gave him a sharp look: “You liar.”

Yan Mingting asked blankly: “When did I lie to you?”

Who said on last year’s birthday, ‘May you have today’s glory forever!’

Zhao Yelan was so angry that he beat him for a long time and then kicked him out: “Scram, I need a bath.”

Yan Mingting received this long-lost outburst of temper and felt a little happy, standing outside the door for a long time. After going to bed, he was somewhat worried that the other party’s body would not be able to handle it, so he hugged him and slept in a well-behaved manner.

Who knew that Zhao Yelan would ask: “Are you dying?”

“Ah?”

Zhao Yelan turned over and sat on him, bent down, and kissed him a few times: “Isn’t this very good?”

Yan Mingting wore a look of shock and watched his up and down movements in disbelief. No matter how hard it was to restrain himself, he rocked with him again.

In the second half of the night, Zhao Yelan didn’t show any sign of weakness. He clung to his shoulders, smiled coldly, and whispered: “Yan Fangli, let’s just die in bed like this.”

Yan Mingting was worked over hard by him, and the two of them embraced each other practically to death in bed.

The next day, when Yan Mingting got up, Zhao Yelan immediately sat up and asked: “Where are you going?”

“The army is back, I must meet them outside the city gate. The Emperor will lead the courtiers to greet them. Anyway, you don’t have to go to the Imperial Academy, so you can sleep for a while.” Yan Mingting tucked in the blanket for him.

“No, I’m going too.” Zhao Yelan couldn’t miss a moment. He stood up. “Change clothes for me.”

Yan Mingting admired the mottled marks on his body first, then put on his clothes, fondling his neck for a moment with his fingertips: “Ah, there are also marks here. Where is your ointment?”

“Never mind that, let’s go.” Zhao Yelan pulled him along and walked outside.

The two had to separate temporarily. Zhao Yelan walked to the palace, followed the group of the monarch and his subjects, and went to the gate of the city to greet them.

The Imperial army stood guard on both sides of the road, and the mighty troop drew in the common people to stop and watch. Everyone was waiting for the Imperial army with joyful smiles on their faces.

Zhao Yelan followed Zhao Xuan to the city gate and saw a hundred thousand troops falling neatly into rank on the endless road. As dawn arrived, Yan Mingting sat heroically on horseback.

“Open the city gate and welcome the soldiers,” Zhao Xuan said.

The city gate was opened, and Yan Mingting was followed in by a group of lively lieutenants, then soldiers, and the common people cheered and called Yan Mingting’s name.

After Yan Mingting waited for Zhao Yelan and the others to descend the city wall, he led the lieutenants to step forward. Zhao Xuan praised them for their bravery and fearlessness, and ordered the armed forces to be rewarded.

Just as everyone’s attention was drawn, suddenly, dozens of people in the crowd shot arrows at Zhao Xuan.

“Look out!” Yan Mingting reacted first and drew his sword, intercepting the nearest arrow. “There are assassins!”

The street became chaotic in an instant, and people screamed and ran around in fear. The lieutenants immediately protected the Emperor and courtiers as they dealt with the sudden sneak attack.

While evacuating the common people, the Imperial army located the assassins.

After Yan Mingting handed Zhao Yelan over to He Cuizhang, he jumped out to kill the assassins, slaughtering a dozen of them in a short while.

His intuition told him that these people were arranged by Zhao Xu.

Something came to mind, and he turned his head to look toward Zhao Xuan, only to see a man dressed as a person from the Western Regions with a veil covering his face sneaking past him.

His eyes darkened, and he picked up the bow and arrow from an assassin’s body. Aiming at that person with endless hatred in his eyes, he shot the arrow.

“Ah!” Zhao Xu had just clenched the knife in his hand and was about to approach Zhao Xuan, when his chest suddenly hurt. He looked down at the blood flowing from his torso, turned his head in a daze, and then knelt down weakly on his knees.

Only then did the people around discover his identity. Zhao Xuan said furiously: “It really is you!”

Yan Mingting walked up to Zhao Xu in a few steps, looked at his kneeling posture, and kicked him to the ground. Lifting the sword in his hands, he was about to give him another fatal blow, but was stopped by Zhao Yelan.

“Wait!” Zhao Yelan rushed in front of him, grabbed Zhao Xu by the collar, and asked forcefully, “Where is the antidote for the poison you used on the old general!”

Zhao Xu opened his mouth, and blood gushed out.

“Mengting…..” Yan Mingting slowly looked at Zhao Yelan with an astonished expression. “You know everything?”

However, Zhao Yelan didn’t have time to answer at all, and continued to press Zhao Xu: “Speak up, ah! Where is the antidote! Do you think I won’t skin you alive? Speak quickly!”

Zhao Xu spat out a mouthful of blood and suddenly laughed: “Ha, haha, it seems that he has also embarked on the road of his father’s fate. The antidote…….I don’t have one either, ah, hahaha. The antidote was only available to the Eighth Princess, didn’t he kill her? This is just life, ah!”

Zhao Yelan released his grip expressionlessly and looked at Yan Mingting: “Kill him.”

Yan Mingting raised the sword, and at last cut down his father-killing enemy. Blood spattered on his hands.

“Don’t get his dirty blood on you.” Zhao Yelan took out a handkerchief and wiped his hands.

“Hurry up and escort His Majesty back to the palace!” Eunuch Gao shouted.

The nearest dozen or so Imperial guards came forward to protect Zhao Xuan, and when they passed by Zhao Yelan, she suddenly smelled a faint fragrance.

Zhao Yelan was stunned.

“What is it?” Yan Mingting asked.

“Wrong, wrong.” Zhao Yelan frowned. “Zhao Xu has been hiding in Beijing, and neither we nor the Emperor found him, so where was he hiding?”

Yan Mingting was taken aback for a moment, starting to think about this question, but Zhao Yelan said with a pale face in the next moment: “Hongxiu House, he hid in Hongxiu House!”

There was a secret passage in Hongxiu House that outsiders were unable to find at all, and he had automatically ruled out this place when he sent people to search.

“And during the New Year, the curfew was strictly controlled. The Eighth Princess had private meetings with men, but all the men stayed home. Only one place was open.”

“Hongxiu House,” Yan Mingting said.

Recalling the familiar scent just now, a trace of panic appeared on Zhao Yelan’s face: “Quick! Gu Niaoniao is likely to be among those soldiers, go and stop her!”

As soon as he spoke, a scream sounded in the distance: “His Majesty! Come quickly, His Majesty has been assassinated!”

Yan Mingting rushed over immediately.

Zhao Yelan dragged his feet slowly, walking toward the chaotic crowd, but didn’t dare to go up and investigate when he approached until the people in front dispersed. He saw Gu Niaoniao.

Dressed as an Imperial soldier, Gu Niaoniao was already under control, and countless swords were aimed at her.

She also saw Zhao Yelan and threw away the bloody knife in her hand. Raising her lips, with a bloodstain on her cheek, she revealed a coquettish smile: “You’re here. I’ve left some of the best spices and tea leaves for you. Remember to go fetch them.”

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Chapter Eighty-Five <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Eighty-Seven

Liu Hengchang ran to the waterside pavilion for two days in a row, and only then did he understand the thick pile of medical records written by Liu Xian’an. He comprehended it with great difficulty, and regarded his family’s Second Young Master as an immortal doctor in his heart. He thought to himself, how can there be such a free and unrestrained person? Dissolute and informal by nature, he never formed secular friendships, but had a secret friendship with the supreme commander of the entire dynasty.

He judged that His Royal Highness Xiao Wang also admired the young master very much, otherwise he would not have sat in the waterside courtyard for an entire afternoon, closing his eyes to listen to the sounds of nature, his expression smoothing out in relaxation. Didn’t that just happen to be the rumored, “Every time a song is played, Zhong Ziqi always enjoys it?”^[1] A-Chang insisted on picking out a bit of bosom friendship from it, and felt very moved.

With the cooperation of Liu Hengchang and Master Liu, the plan went smoothly. At first, people only found that A-Chang had suddenly disappeared. It didn’t seem as if he was taken away temporarily, and left a lot of work without anyone to take care of it. They all ran to ask after Young Master Feng, but the answers they received were all very vague and secretive. With worldly affairs, sometimes it was worse to cover them up than to spread the word. The more it was covered up, the more people were incited to investigate, so there was soon word that A-Chang had embezzled a lot of money for himself through purchasing medicinal materials in the past few years. This time, the matter of the wild black dates was discovered, so he was exiled.

Everyone sighed. How could such an obviously hard-working young man be so short-sighted?

But once they had sighed, it was over. It was time to keep busy. Patients from all over the country were still waiting to see a doctor, and for the disciples of Baihe Mountain Village, even life and death were just a fleeting moment, let alone which people stayed or left.

Liu Hengchang, carrying a pack on his back, left Baihe City alone on a horse.

Black clouds roiled in the distance, full of thunder.

. . . . . . .

Compared to letting A-Chang go, the Master of the Village appeared to be much more entangled by the fact that His Royal Highness Xiao Wang wanted to take away his second son. It seemed like a lot of trouble, and Liu-furen did not want to agree. She had wanted him to be more active previously, but this time he was almost killed by kidnappers when he went out. What parents could rest assured?

Going to Wangcheng, not to mention the long journey, he might have to see the princess again after going there. Liu-furen was full of worries: “You and I are both clear on Xian’an’s temperament. If the princess wants to marry him, he will most likely say “that’s also fine,” but how can he be an Imperial son-in-law? There are so many rules in the royal family, who would allow him to lie down all day long?”

And the Master of the Village was also very perplexed. There was nobody in the country who didn’t know that His Royal Highness Xiao Wang was busy with military affairs, so he should have no time to travel around the jianghu – to be honest, he might even need a sedan chair to carry his son while traveling the jianghu, so why did he insist on taking him along?

The couple discussed for a long time without uncovering the reason, but the result of the discussion was that it was best for him not to go to Wangcheng.

So Liu-furen personally went to the waterside pavilion, wanting to instruct her son to pretend to be sick. However, upon entering the door, she saw several drawings of carriages laid out on the table, each of which looked more luxurious than the other. A-Ning was busy making a luggage list, which was so long that it looked like he intended to empty the waterside pavilion of all belongings.

Liu Xian’an had a piece of dried fruit in his mouth. He had talked so much with A-Chang a few days ago and his throat was a bit uncomfortable, but from Liu-furen’s point of view, this posture of lying on the bed and eating fruit was truly too lazy for words. She was so anxious that she sat on the edge of the bed and held his hand with worry and care, saying: “I should have arranged a wife for you earlier.”

Liu Xian’an replied: “That’s also fine, ba.”

Liu-furen laughed angrily: “Anyone would be fine?”

Liu Xian’an licked the plum pit with the tip of his tongue: “Anyone is fine.”

Liang Shu’s footsteps stopped outside the gate of the water pavilion.

“If you want to marry a wife, you have to be diligent, otherwise wouldn’t it be a disaster for other families’ girls?” 

Liu-furen asked A-Ning to bring a cushion and put it behind his waist.

Liu Xian’an explained: “It’s not that I want to marry a wife, it’s that I can marry a wife, but I don’t want to.”

Ignoring his nonsense, Liu-furen continued to ask: “After getting married, will you just lie down like this?”

Liu Xian’an replied, we can also lie down together.

Liu-furen imagined such a scene and her brain nearly burst. In fact, when she sought out her son, she had already prepared a few good marriages and wanted to discuss them with him so as to save him from being wanted by others. Although Second Young Master Liu was renowned for his laziness, it couldn’t be helped that he looked really good. His character was not too twisted or distorted, and there was still Baihe Mountain Village, so there were many well-matched ladies who were willing to marry him. 

But now, Liu-furen thought it was better to forget it, ba. A son who couldn’t control himself well, how could his wife be expected to control him? She feared that in the end, there would only be resentment, so she just said: “For what reason does the prince want to take you to the royal city this time?”

“It’s not a big deal,” Liu Xian’an said. “It’s just that I always had a headache a few days ago, and staying with the prince will make me feel much more comfortable.”

Liu-furen gave him a swat: “Nonsense, why didn’t you tell your father about your headaches? The prince is not a doctor, how could he heal your illness?”

Liu Xian’an sat up a little, and originally wanted to explain, but when he thought that to explain, he would have to reopen that vast and folding world in his mind and then describe it in a way that ordinary people could understand, he immediately felt very tired, ah. It was really too tiring, and completely unnecessary, so he lay back down again and gave a perfunctory: “En.”

Liu-furen asked: “How does the prince heal your illness?”

Liu Xian’an replied: “He makes me talk a lot.”

This sort of therapy would be unbelievable when a normal person heard it, and Liu-furen was even more disbelieving. She decided that her son was too lazy to speak and was talking nonsense. Liu Xian’an also didn’t make any excuses. He was originally just being lazy, so he pulled the blanket over his head and straightforwardly pretended to be asleep. He had often used this trick as a child, and it was still effective now. Liu-furen laughed angrily: “How old are you? If your father saw this, he would beat you again.”

Second Young Master Liu thought to himself, then I will want to go to Wangcheng even more.

Liu-furen tried hard to persuade her son for a long time, but failed in the end. Instead, she grew tired of hearing him say a bunch of nonsense. She still wanted to say a few more words, but A-Ning warned her in a low voice: “Madam, the prince is here.”

Liang Shu stepped through the courtyard gate. Liu-furen stood up and saluted, and her chest felt even tighter when she looked at this ancestor who was still lying down. With this sort of courtesy, how could he go to the royal city?

She simply expressed to the prince herself that she hoped to keep her son in Baihe Mountain Village. In order to make all this more reasonable, she was forced to find a job for him, so she only said that her eldest son was short of manpower and she had to send the younger son to help.

Before Liang Shu could express his opinion, Liu Xian’an began to have a headache when hearing this. This was mainly because his eldest brother was so serious that he rarely smiled. Standing there, he looked like a big statue of Buddha, his whole being filled with the mission to save the world’s common people. Liang Shu felt that Liu Xian’an could become an immortal anytime and anywhere, but in the eyes of the rest of Dayan’s population, the real immoral of Baihe Mountain Village should be Liu Xianche. Everyone respected and adored him very much. The most outrageous rumor was that a chair touched by the First Young Master could cure diseases.

When he was growing up, Liu Xian’an received a lot of blows from his older brother. He could take a life-or-death situation lightly, and felt that it was better than being beaten or eating a few meals less. Fortunately, Liang Shu did not intend to leave him here to marry anyone casually. He found a far-fetched excuse of “we were like old friends at first sight,” and insisted on taking him into his own hands.

Liu-furen was greatly distressed, and upon returning to her own residence, she released half a year’s worth of sighs to her husband. This…..there was an enormous difference between the two people. From temperament to attitude, there was nothing that could match. How did they suddenly become “old friends?” Where did “friends” come from, what kind of “friends?”

There was nothing Liu Fushu could do. 

Liu Xian’an, however, was happy. A-Ning was also happy, not because he was going out to play, but because he felt that when his young master was staying in the village, everyone regarded him as a lazy rice weevil. Although there were many people who loved and took care of him, that was not the real young master, ah! On the contrary, when he was with the prince, although he was a little tired, the young master always shined as a doctor. Everyone also respected him and relied on him from the bottom of their hearts, as was right.

Liu Xian’an did not quite agree with this view, and felt that the “him” everywhere was the real “him.” Thus, he patted the boy’s head and carefully taught him the functions of “useful” and “useless.” On A-Ning’s side, he gave a noncommittal “En, en, yes, yes,” while lying by the carriage window and enjoying the outside breeze.

His Royal Highness Xiao Wang had sent someone to buy this new carriage, and it was really big, ah.

It was so big that Second Young Master Liu could lie down either sideways or upright, and sometimes the prince would come in and lie down with him. At such times, A-Ning would run out and sit next to the coachman, and drive together for a while.

Then the boy discovered that the farther they were from Baihe City, the more frequently he would drive.

Liu Xian’an asked: “How is it on A-Chang’s end?”

“Yun You hasn’t come to the door yet, but we have already released the news. For them, A-Chang is currently their only option – a wandering doctor from Baihe Mountain Village is like fatty meat in the eyes of a pack of wolves. There is no reason for them to let him go.” Liang Shu said, “Once there is movement, A-Yue will send news back as soon as possible.”

Liu Xian’an nodded. Although autumn had recently come, the weather was still hot, especially during the daytime. The sun made people feel drowsy, and he started to doze off without saying a word.

Liang Shu picked up a piece of dried fruit, thought for a moment, and then swallowed it himself and tapped the other party with his fingers: “You have nothing to do, are you not ready to rebuild your world?”

Liu Xian’an made excuses and dawdled: “Headache.”

“I’ll call you out if you have a headache,” Liang Shu said. “Otherwise, if you keep it locked up without touching it, those old white-bearded men will all starve to death —” Having said that, he felt that them starving to death would be less of a hassle and could be considered a happy event, so he changed the analogy, “If you keep them locked up, those white-bearded old men will go crazy and start running around, and I can’t help you catch them.” Therefore, it was better to get it organized early, and stuff them into magnificent buildings and palaces one by one.

Liu Xian’an forced himself to sit up, and after thinking for a while, he began to frown. Liang Shu sat closer to him, and the sandalwood fragrance on his body was heavy and fragrant, with similar effects to tranquilizing medicine. 

“It’s not urgent, take your time.”

This voice reached the ears of Second Young Master Liu, and in a daze, he saw His Royal Highness Xiao Wang in another world.

Holding his long sword and leaning against a magnificent palace, he impatiently commanded all the ancient sages to line up neatly. No one was allowed to run around. Raising his eyes to watch from a distance, everything was neat and proper in all directions, even more orderly than the army in the desert.

Liu Xian’an thought in shock, so amazing, ah!

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[1] This is taken from the story of a friendship between two ancient people, Zhong Ziqi and Bo Ya. It was said that their friendship was so great that every time Bo Ya played his zither, Zhong Ziqi immediately grasped the meaning he was trying to convey with the tune. ⮐

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Chapter Thirty-Three << Table of Contents >> Chapter Thirty-Five

The next day, after waking up, Pei Yi was still enveloped in the lingering pain of drunkenness. He forced himself to get up and wash, and when he went downstairs, he smelled the aroma of breakfast—

Bo Yueming was a person who ate three meals a day in a timely manner, and had a regular schedule.

Although the two had not cohabitated for long, Bo Yueming had already memorized the sound of Pei Yi’s footsteps. He cast his eyes toward the stairs, and there was still a curtain of fog in his field of vision.

However, there were some faint, almost illusory spots of light.

Bo Yueming’s hand holding the coffee cup increased its strength, and he frowned in concentration.

“…….”

His two eyes were not in focus, but Pei Yi noticed the seriousness of his expression and stopped walking for a moment, trying hard to remember.

What was wrong?

When he was drunk last night, could he have done something he shouldn’t have done?

“Little Sir, why are you still standing on the stairs in a daze?”

Uncle Kai returned from outside and immediately ordered the servants beside him to scoop up porridge for Pei Yi in the kitchen. “Seeing that you were very drunk last night, Second Young Master deliberately didn’t allow anyone to wake you up this morning.”

Bo Yueming turned his eyes back, then lowered them and drank his coffee.

Pei Yi returned to his senses and went downstairs, sat slowly at the table, and a servant brought the breakfast tray to him.

There was a bowl of millet porridge, along with four light side dishes.

“…….”

Pei Yi kept silent, frowning slightly.

The state of his body was even worse than he had imagined. He had drunk a little more than one glass of red wine in total. A night had passed, but his head was still dizzy and uncomfortable, and he had even lost his appetite for breakfast.

“Little Sir, do you dislike porridge?”

Pei endured the dizziness and shook his head. He picked up a spoon and stirred the steaming millet porridge.

Bo Yueming took a sip of coffee, and ordered with apparent casualness, “Uncle Kai, go to the kitchen and get a bowl of hangover soup for Pei Yi.”

“…….”

Pei Yi stopped drinking the porridge.

Unexpectedly, Bo Yueming could be aware of his physical condition in detail even when he couldn’t see it?

Uncle Kai finally reacted, and smiled helplessly. “Little Sir is drunk. It’s been a night and he hasn’t recovered yet? I’ll go to the kitchen and get it right away. Fortunately, I listened to the Second Young Master’s words earlier and prepared it!”

Pei Yi stared at Uncle Kai’s back, and swallowed the millet porridge on the spoon in one gulp. The former king of alcohol capacity had now been reduced to one drink. It would be a lie to say that he was not depressed!

“Now you know how uncomfortable it is?” Bo Yueming’s lips hooked indistinctly. “Will you still drink in the future?”

“…….”

Pei Yi took another sullen sip of porridge. His mouth was well-behaved, but his heart became increasingly defiant—

Drink, ah!

How could he not drink?

How much fun would be lost in life without alcohol?

The wine wall upstairs could always help him practice his original drinking capacity!

Pei Yi grudgingly drank half a bowl of porridge, and Uncle Kai returned with a bowl of warm sobering soup. “Come, Little Sir, drink to sober up as soon as possible.”

Pei Yi had always regarded sobering soup as a medicine, so he was entitled to some reluctance. “Not thirsty. Not uncomfortable.”

“Don’t look so stubborn.”

Bo Yueming decisively headed him off, accurately grasping his small thoughts.

“…….”

Pei Yi was speechless.

If Uncle Kai wasn’t there, he would definitely have to use his hands to investigate Bo Yueming’s eyes more. He said his eyes couldn’t see? Was it possible to accurately perceive things at this level? Don’t pretend!

Just as he was thinking, Inspector came back from its adventures and jumped onto Pei Yi’s knees, bending over to sniff the scent of the sobering soup curiously. “Meow-wu~”

Uncle Kai urged with a smile, “Little Sir, drink quickly. Even Inspector is advising you to drink.”

Pei Yi had no choice but to force himself to drink half a bowl. However, once the hot and sour soup was eaten, it warmed the stomach and relieved fatigue, and even his drowsy brain reached a sliver of clarity.

Pei Yi sighed comfortably with a lingering softness in his tone.

The corners of Bo Yueming’s mouth twitched, and he set down the cup in his hand. “Go upstairs and clean up, and take the car with me to go out later.”

Pei Yi didn’t follow. “Ah?”

Uncle Kai reminded, “Did Little Sir forget? You made an appointment today to meet Ms. Shu and the others. The Second Young Master is going to the hospital for a routine eye check up, and it happens to be in the same direction.”

Pei Yi let out an “ah” and finally regained his composure.

No wonder Bo Yueming was patient enough to finish breakfast with him today. He wanted to go out together for convenience?

“There are some new clothes on the small sofa on the second floor, change into them before going out.” Bo Yueming’s tone was calm, without the slightest hint of urgency. “Go, ba.”

Pei Yi, who was worried about having no clothes to wear, was overjoyed.

In order to maintain the standard “foolish” personality, he still pretended to go upstairs at a slow speed.

After Pei Yi’s figure disappeared at the corner of the hallway, Uncle Kai approached Bo Yueming. “It is still Second Young Master who is careful. When buying suits and ready-to-wear clothes, he still remembers to buy clothes for Little Sir. The brands you chose must be very suitable for him.”

Bo Yueming’s eyes lit up with a fleeting light. “I didn’t choose them for him deliberately. I just didn’t want the Shu family mother and daughter to see and think he was being bullied by me.”

Uncle Kai silently smiled and didn’t speak further.

. . . . . .

It must be said that Bo Yueming’s aesthetics were very good. The brands he chose were all simple, but with a small design style. Even if he chose blindly, he couldn’t go wrong, and they fit Pei Yi’s external image very well.

Pei Yi changed into an outfit with an ink print, and it seemed as if his whole person was a little smarter.

He looked at himself in the mirror and felt that it was all pretty good. The only fly in the ointment was that his small body was a bit skinny.

If there was ever a fight in the future, it was likely that it would be difficult to win.

Pei Yi put a halt to his random thoughts and went out. Before leaving, he didn’t forget to rub Inspector’s little head. “Don’t run around. Wait for me to come home, understand?”

“Ao~”

. . . . . .

Near ten o’clock, the car stopped at the entrance of Baiyang Alley again.

The driver looked in the rearview mirror. “Second Young Master, Little Sir, we’re here.”

Bo Yueming gave a slight nod. “Uncle Kai, take Pei Yi with you, I have Lin Zhong by my side to help. I’ll call in the afternoon to meet up.”

Uncle Kai got out of the car.

Looking at the end of the alley, Pei Yi suppressed the inexplicable idea of inviting Bo Yueming to get out of the car with him, and untied his seatbelt to get out.

—Thud.

The sound of the closing door reached Bo Yueming’s ears, crisp and clear.

“…….”

Feeling that there was only a pocket of air left by his side, he subconsciously said, “Heartless little thing.”

After all, they were married in name, but the other was so stingy that he didn’t even say goodbye to him.

The driver in front thought he was hearing things, and asked with wide-eyed uncertainty, “Second Young Master, what did you say?”

“Nothing. Drive, ba.”

Before leaving, he received a voice message from his assistant, Lin Zhong, who was already waiting at the hospital gate. 

Bo Yueming’s tone of voice was still so tranquil that the driver immediately confirmed that he must have been hearing things just now! He quickly gave an affirmation and drove the car away from the alley.

. . . . . .

Pei Yi and Uncle Kai had only walked a few steps into the alley when Pei Yuan, who was guarding the door, quickly ran over. “Xiao Yi! You’re finally here, I was about to go to the mouth of the alley and wait.”

Catching the genuine joy in Pei Yuan’s eyes, Pei Yi’s heart warmed. “Sister.”

“Ai!”

When Pei Yuan heard this clear and distinct call, she was overjoyed and took her brother’s hand. “Come on! Sister will take you inside! Me and mom went to the vegetable market early in the morning to buy food, it will be ready in a moment!”

As soon as the group of three stepped into the house, the smell of food filled their noses.

“Mom, Xiao Yi is here!”

Shu Wan, who was busy in the kitchen, came out quickly with equal excitement on her face.

Ever since Pei Yi left with the housekeeper last week, she had been thinking about him the whole time, fearing that her anticipation would be in vain once more. Twice, she had wanted to go directly to the Bo residence to find him, but was fortunately dissuaded by Pei Yuan.

Shu Wan looked at the refreshed Pei Yi, deeply moved and happy. “How great, Xiao Yi looks much better than last time! You’re still a little thin, eat a bit more today!”

Pei Yuan offered a polite invitation, “Senior Housekeeper, would you like to stay for a light meal as well?”

Uncle Kai shook his head, not wanting to disturb the rare reunion of the three people. Bo Yueming had asked him to follow Pei Yi, but there was actually another matter he was tasked with asking about.

“Ms. Shu, Ms. Pei, have you thought of what we spoke about two days ago?”

Hearing this, Pei Yi turned his puzzled gaze to Uncle Kai.

Uncle Kai received this puzzled look and explained, “Little Sir, be at ease. If Ms. Shu and Ms. Pei continue to live here, I fear they will be threatened by the landlord, Zheng Bin, and it is not easy for them to defend their rights against rental agreement breaches.”

Pei Yuan followed his explanation, “Xiao Yi, the senior housekeeper helped us find a house. The rent is cheaper than here, but…..”

Uncle Kai understood the mother and daughter’s hesitation. “The Bo family has always had a wide range of contacts, so finding a house was not difficult.”

It was no trouble, let alone a debt of favor. The matter of finding a house was allowed by Bo Yueming.

“The environment and facilities around that house are better, and it is convenient for Miss Pei to go to work. Of course, it is closer to our Bo Manor, so it will be more convenient for you and Little Sir to spend time together in the future.”

Pei Yi had long planned to find a new house for the mother and daughter, and even secretly searched many housing listings online. Unexpectedly, Uncle Kai was one step ahead. 

Thinking of this, Pei Yi met the eyes of Shu Wan and Yuan Pei. “Moving, good. I see you a lot.”

Shu Wan heard her youngest son’s choppy but clear opinion, and her eyes reddened again. She looked around at the cottage that carried many years of her memories, and understood better than anyone else—

She couldn’t let her sensible daughter suffer anymore, and should also seize the opportunity to spend time with her son. Her husband could no longer come back, and she must continue to watch after the two children and continue to look forward.

Shu Wan was silent for a long time, and nodded at last. “All right.”

“Then I’ll contact the moving company for details, and I won’t disturb your family of three’s dinner tonight.” Seeing that the mother and daughter agreed, Uncle Kai made his excuses and left the house.

After Uncle Kai left, Pei Yi took out a white jade pendant from his pocket. “Here.”

Seeing the unfamiliar jade pendant handed toward her, Shu Wan was a little surprised. “Xiao Yi?”

Pei Yi said succinctly, “For money. I give it to you and Sister, use it.”

“How can this be done? Mom is not short of money!”

Shu Wang quickly pulled up the string of the jade pendant, trying to put it back on Pei Yi’s neck. “Is it something Grandma gave you? Come on, put it on and don’t lose it.”

Pei Yi stopped her and insistently declared, “Grandpa gave it. I don’t like it.”

This was the jade pendant that was stolen and taken away by the nanny. Pei Yi had carefully inspected its jade color, and it should be worth a bit of money in the market. He had long wanted to pawn it off for money, but never found a chance to go out alone.

Shu Wan paused. “The, the old man gave it to you?”

Pei Yuan took it and looked it over. “Let me see. What kind of treasure could the old man give our Xiao Yi?”

Shu Wan could only say, “Xiao Yuan, don’t be impolite.”

“I didn’t say anything excessive, Mom. Do you still want me to call him Grandpa?” Pei Yuan didn’t have a good impression of this blood-related elder, so she carefully looked over the jade pendant. 

Pei Yi saw the situation, and changed his target to persuade, “Grandpa’s. I don’t like it. I like money, give to you.”

Pei Yuan chuckled. “I didn’t know our Xiao Yi was a money-grubber!”

Shu Wan was also amused. “You can’t sell what the old man gave you?”

“Can!”

Pei Yi made a solemn vow.

He didn’t like this sort of jade ornament, so it was better to sell it than to keep it. At least some money could improve the quality of life of both mother and daughter.

Pei Yuan was well aware of her mother’s gentle character, so she took the initiative to agree on Pei Yi’s behalf. “Xiao Yi, leave this matter to Sister. But Mom and I don’t want this money. The thing is yours, and the money should be yours too.”

Shu Wan nodded silently.

Pei Yuan continued to communicate, “If you are afraid of losing it, then give it to Mom for safekeeping, and we’ll return it to you when you need it in the future, okay?”

Pei Yi approved of the Shu Wan and Pei Yuan family from the bottom of his heart. “Okay.”

No matter what, the money that was placed in their hands for the sake of the original owner would be used sooner or later.

Shu Wan and Pei Yuan exchanged glances and became increasingly sure of one thing—

Ever since Pei Yi left the Pei family’s tiger and wolf den, his condition had obviously improved by a lot!

In the past, he was reticent and couldn’t speak a word for a long time, and would go crazy when he was slightly stimulated. Now he had finally opened up and could communicate with them normally!

. . . . . .

At 2:30 in the afternoon, Uncle Kai came on time to pick him up.

The mother and daughter lost the reluctance they had last time, and smiled as they made an appointment with Pei Yi to meet again after moving. The pain of more than twenty years of separation had come to an end.

It was the driver from that morning who came to pick up Pei Yi and Uncle Kai.

Pei Yi originally thought that they were going directly back to Bo Manor, but the driver only drove for about ten minutes before stopping the car at the door of a coffee shop.

Assistant Lin Zhong walked out of the shop and opened Pei Yi’s car door. “Little Sir.”

Pei Yi didn’t get out of the car in a hurry. “Uncle Kai?”

Uncle Kai explained to him gently, “Don’t be afraid, Second Young Master still has some things to deal with and was afraid that you would be bored staying at the hospital. You and Lin Zhong rest in the shop for a while.”

“We’ll pick you up later when things are finished, okay?”

So that was the case.

It wasn’t a big deal.

Pei Yi loosened his vigilance, nodded, and got out of the car.

The coffee shop that Lin Zhong found was not far from the hospital where Bo Yueming was being examined, and the decorations were very tasteful and high-end. He feared that Pei Yi would not like a busy public environment, so he specially reserved a private box on the second floor.

“Little Sir, may I go downstairs and order you a cup of coffee and some cake?”

Pei Yi shook his head. “Coffee is bitter.”

“Okay, then I’ll order something else.” Lin Zhong understood Pei Yi’s taste preferences, turned around, and went downstairs.

The private box was isolated, with soft fabric and cushions, as well as wall panels, and the artificial lake behind could be seen through the window. The melodious music and coffee-scented aroma wafting in the air was quite soothing.

Pei Yi silently gave this coffee shop a high score in his heart, when suddenly, he heard an urgent sound coming from the box next door. 

“Mr. Yang! Think about it again, okay?”

Huh?

The familiar voice reached Pei Yi’s ears, instantly attracting his focus.

---

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Chapter Sixteen <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Eighteen

Juice?

He was blind, his nose wasn’t broken.

Bo Yueming could hear that Pei Yi was telling a fib, and a trace of helplessness flickered over his expression. “Yeah? Is the juice good?”

“…….”

Pei Yi felt that there was a hint of “teasing” in Bo Yueming’s tone, and his cheeks went slightly hot.

Uncle Kai saw Pei Yi’s silent, guilty appearance and smiled to smooth things over, “Second Young Master, I think there is quite a lot left in the wine glass in Little Sir’s hand, so he likely regarded it as juice and tried it.”

After all, he was only a little fool who was ignorant about things. It was understandable that he couldn’t tell the difference between grape juice and wine.

Bo Yueming could read between the lines and hear the protection in Uncle Kai’s words. He was originally afraid that Pei Yi would get drunk and make a bungle of things, separating from him and offending guests that shouldn’t be provoked. Now that nothing had happened, there was naturally no need to come after him too hard.

Bo Yueming didn’t take a stance, nor did he blame Pei Yi. “All right, put things down and let’s go back.”

Pei Yi endured grudgingly. “Oh.”

Bo Yueming tried his best to discern his tone, and said probingly, “If you really like to drink……juice, it’s all right to take the ones in the living room cabinet in the future.”

Drink as much as he wanted?

Pei Yi thought of the precious wines that filled that wall, and almost blurted out his answer. He pursed his lips, forcing himself to avoid Bo Yueming’s “trap.”

“Not tasty, want milk.”

The humming and chirping cuteness was mixed with a trace of inexplicable and unclear grievance.

En, the grievance of not being able to drink.

There was a touch of fun at the tip of Bo Yueming’s heart, and he feigned serenity, saying, “Okay, let’s go home.”

Uncle Kai gently supported his elbow and asked in a low voice, “Second Young Master, you’ve only been here for an hour, are you really going to go back like this? Don’t you want to greet the Old Sir?”

Bo Yueming turned around. “No need. Let’s go.”

The two had originally appeared as pawns, and there were two incidents in just one hour. Perhaps Old Mr. Bo would not have a good reaction if he saw him now.

Uncle Kai was wholeheartedly devoted to Bo Yueming, and didn’t forget to hint to Pei Yi, “Little Sir, keep up.”

Pei Yi had no objection, and silently followed behind the two of them.

. . . . . .

The insurance company had already been called to take pictures of the car.

Naturally, Bo Yueming didn’t need to worry about these trifles. Uncle Kai helped him sit in the back seat, and turned around to see that Pei Yi’s cheeks were unnaturally flushed.

“Little Sir, are you hot?”

“Ah?”

Focusing his eyes, Pei Yi shook his head and got into the car.

As soon as the car’s air-conditioning blew adequately, Pei Yi suddenly realized a serious problem—

He seemed to be a little drunk?

In the real world, he was the king of alcohol, but the original owner was obviously a good baby who didn’t drink.

It was just that after drinking more than one glass of wine, this little while, it suddenly went to his head? He didn’t know if his current physique could resist alcohol, or if he would get drunk and talk nonsense later!

Pei Yi’s thoughts were a mess, and he tried twice to put the seatbelt on.

Bo Yueming seemed to have noticed something, and frowned slightly. “Pei Yi?”

Pei Yi responded with a low hum, and he couldn’t hear any problems for the time being.

“It’s nothing.”

Bo Yueming withdrew his attention and instructed the driver to drive.

. . . . . .

The hotel was about a forty minute drive from Bo Manor. Bo Yueming didn’t speak, and uncle Kai and the driver sitting in the front row also kept absolutely silent.

Pei Yi gradually felt the drunkenness go to his head, and silently pinched his palm in an effort to stay awake.

It was just that the light in the car was so dim, the air-conditioning neutralized the heat of the wine, and the ups and downs of driving made him drowsy.

Pei Yi only felt that his eyelids were getting heavier and heavier, and then there was a deep, steady call.

 “Pei Yi.”

“Ah?”

Pei Yi, who had been sleeping restlessly, suddenly woke up. He leaned forward and was dragged back by the seat belt, becoming even dizzier.

“Little Sir, we’re home.” Uncle Kai turned around and informed him of the situation before opening the front door.

“……”

Home?

Where was home?

Pei Yi gazed into the darkness outside the window. His thoughts seemed to be entangled by invisible vines, unable to extend an inch further. “Wu.”

Bo Yueming heard this uncommon muffled sound and paused.

The unfastened seat belt in his hand was quickly withdrawn with a slight click, but in the relatively quiet environment, it was enough to draw Pei Yi’s attention.

Pei Yi looked over like a curious kitten.

In the dim light, he traced Bo Yueming’s profile bit by bit, and his brain, which was working a few beats slower, strained to recall some fragments.

The impulse to drink had just been unleashed.

Pei Yi tried to move in the low car, but could only move a step or two. Uncle Kai, who got out of the car first, opened the door on Bo Yueming’s side

Swish—

The sudden sound of the door opening startled the drunk Pei Yi. His body’s center of gravity was thrown off, and he leaned directly into Bo Yueming’s body.

“…….Hmm.”

“……..”

Extremely soft lips rubbed against his Adam’s apple.

Bo Yueming’s expression suddenly changed, and his first reaction was to fumble the car door closed again, blocking the possible gazes of Uncle Kai and the driver.

He didn’t like to be encroached on by anyone, nor touched, and naturally didn’t allow others to look.

“Pei Yi!”

Bo Yueming’s tone of voice was a bit heavy.

This was already the second time that Pei Yi had casually touched his Adam’s apple, and at this moment, a strange heat was rising.

As the chief culprit, Pei Yi hadn’t noticed yet. Relying on instinct, he continuously rubbed against Bo Yueming’s shoulder and chest in a dizzy state.

Because the suit’s fabric was cool, it made his alcohol-heated face very comfortable.

“…….”

Pei Yi simply huddled in his arms, clingier than the two cats he had come into contact with before.

Bo Yueming’s throat rolled heavily, and the hand that was originally going to push Pei Yi’s head fell, the fingertips lightly brushing the other’s hair as they landed steadily and accurately on the soft flesh on the back of his neck, where there was a small mole.

And then, Bo Yueming made a small provocation that he himself didn’t realize—

He pinched him in punishment.

As expected, the person in his arms uttered a little whimper like a cat meowing, and shrank his neck sensitively.

The corners of Bo Yueming’s mouth curled up, and he quickly shelved that incongruous behavior. “Pei Yi, we’re home. You need to get out of the car.”

A familiar voice rang in his ears.

Pei Yi’s alcohol-melted thoughts connected for a few seconds, and he quickly raised his head. “Bo, Bo Manor, get out of the car?”

Bo Yueming gave a hum of affirmation and determined, “You’re drunk.”

The competitive heart in Pei Yi’s bones broke out, and he denied it. “I’m not!”

Bo Yueming didn’t intend to talk about the truth with the little drunk cat in his arms, so he gave instructions one by one, “Then get off me, open the door, and get out of the car. Then go back to the room to rest.”

“Oh.”

Pei Yi attempted to straighten up, but he couldn’t open the door no matter what.

Fortunately, Uncle Kai, who was guarding the door, was instructed to open the car door, and reached out to help the crumbling Pei Yi. “Second Young Master, the Little Sir is……”

Bo Yueming had no choice but to say, “Drunk. Take him upstairs to the bedroom first, and get him some hangover medicine or soup.”

Uncle Kai supported Pei Yi. He was still worried about Bo Yueming’s inconvenient eyesight, and said, “Second Young Master, you……”

Bo Yueming loosened his suit tie casually. “No rush, just ask the driver to stay and help me.”

“All right.”

. . . . . .

A chime sounded at exactly nine o’clock in the evening.

Having just washed up, Bo Yueming fumbled out of the bathroom. After he fell in the bathroom last time, Uncle Kai had put down a thicker and more non-slip mat.

Bo Yueming could feel it, and also acquiesced to this behavior.

“Meow-wu~”

Inspector had gotten into the bedroom at some point, and bit the hem of his bathrobe, meowing softly.

Bo Yueming instinctively lowered his eyes. He obviously couldn’t see anything, but with Inspector’s cry, the scene in the car was automatically sketched out in his mind.

Drunk Pei Yi was softer than a cat.

His Adam’s apple itched inexplicably after taking a hot shower, and Bo Yueming rubbed it several times, which barely stopped the itching.

“Meow~”

Inspector was still calling out under his feet.

Bo Yueming guessed that it wanted to go back to the room to sleep, and after thinking about it, he took a step. “Let’s go, I’ll take you back to Pei Yi’s bedroom.”

“Ao!”

Inspector agreed and, tilting its head to bite his bathrobe, it tried to lead him out of the room.

With this little kitten helping to “find the way,” Bo Yueming walked the distance according to his memory, moving steadily to the door of Pei Yi’s room.

“Little Sir, it’s best to take hangover medicine before going to sleep. It isn’t bitter.” 

“Not drunk, won’t eat.”

Pei Yi’s unhappy resistance, along with Uncle Kai’s helpless persuasion, reached Bo Yueming’s ears.

Walking in front, Inspector pushed open the crack of the door and went in. Jumping promptly onto the end of the bed, it called out to Pei Yi coquettishly.

Uncle Kai noticed Bo Yueming standing at the door, and quickly got up. “Second Young Master.”

“What’s the matter?”

“Little Sir lost his temper. He insists he is not drunk, and is refusing to take the hangover medicine no matter what.”

Bo Yueming said without thinking, “Give me the hangover medicine, I’ll do it.”

Uncle Kai was surprised for a moment, but soon placed the medicine bottle into Bo Yueming’s hand. “One pill is enough. There is also warm water on the bedside table.”

Bo Yueming became aware of his unconscious decision, and pretended to be calm. “Uncle Kai, you must be tired too. Go back to your room early and rest.”

“All right.”

Uncle Kai was a discerning person, so he gave up the bedroom space without further ado.

The drunken Pei Yi completely ignored the conversation between master and servant.

His ankles were tickled by the cat fur, and he was sitting on the bed right now, dodging Inspector for a while to play.

“Pei Yi.”

Bo Yueming approached slowly, and didn’t come to a stop until his knees touched the edge of the bed.

Pei Yi raised his eyes to look at the tall figure beside the bed, and his blurry eyes seemed to have suddenly discovered something interesting. Without any scruples, he reached out his hand and pulled Bo Yueming to sit down.

“…….”

The defenseless Bo Yueming practically fell down on the edge of the bed. The medicine bottle in his hand made a rustling sound, and in the next second, Pei Yi’s cool fingertips had already touched his Adam’s apple.

“Here, it’s so red.”

He earnestly called his attention to it, with a bit of ambiguous teasing that only adults were aware of.

Bo Yueming moved his body away with a bit of rare embarrassment. “Don’t move around, do you still know who I am?”

“I know.” Pei Yi withdrew his hand and nodded, the title rolling off the tip of his tongue, “Er, Er-ge.”

Bo Yueming was taken aback. “Er-ge.”

He had originally thought the other party accidentally addressed him wrong in the banquet hallway, but anyhow, nobody had ever called him that.

“En.”

Calling his full name was too familiar, calling him Yueming was too intimate, and calling him Second Young Master was too strange. Calling him husband…..he wasn’t allowed.

Pei Yi went through the options in his head and gave a nasal hum. “Can’t I?”

Hearing his drunken tone, Bo Yueming blindly opened the medicine bottle and instructed him, “Call me what you want. You must take the hangover medicine now.”

Pei Yi firmly believed that he was not drunk. “I won’t!”

Bo Yueming poured a pill into the palm of his hand. “It’s fine not to take it. Then don’t stay in this room tonight, lest you drunkenly disturb me in the middle of the night.”

Inspector followed suit: “Meow-wu~”

Pei Yi hit a dead end.

He looked at a person and a cat who hand ganged up against him, and an inexplicable idea burst out in his muddled mind—

It really is an evil villain and his…..cat!

He, a cannon fodder, was temporarily defeated.

Pei Yi realized that his hand was on Inspector, so he took the initiative to grab Bo Yueming’s wrist, targeted the pill in his palm, and swallowed it.

Pressing his soft lips against the palm of the other’s hand, he quickly inhaled the pill, and at the same time, the tip of his tongue touched a small area of his palm.

The heat and moisture passed in a flash.

“……”

Bo Yueming didn’t expect Pei Yi to take the medicine like this. He had never felt that his sense of touch was so sensitive, and his breathing unconsciously stalled out.

Pei Yi swallowed the bitter pill dry, so accustomed to it that he didn’t even drink the warm water on the bedside table.

He looked at Bo Yueming, who hadn’t reacted, and reported, “Ate it.”

“En.”

Bo Yueming cupped his palms together and suppressed his surging emotions. “Hungry? Did you have anything to eat at the banquet tonight?”

Pei Yi shook his head. “Sleepy.”

“All right, then you go to sleep.”

Bo Yueming got up quickly, and it took a few beats before he found the door and left.

Pei Yi watched the door close on his back, and rolled up in the blanket to lay down, not forgetting to dazedly command Inspector, “Go!”

“Meow~wu!”

Inspector approached the head of the bed from the right side, saw its target, and pounced lightly to slap down its paw.

—Smack!

The room was plunged into darkness. What good little expert at turning off the lights.

When Bo Yueming left Pei Yi’s bedroom, his initial tranquility instantly vanished, and he hurriedly forward at a disordered pace, as if fleeing something.

He rubbed his palm vigorously with his fingertips, but couldn’t wipe away the wet warmth.

“Second Young Master?”

Uncle Kai’s call came suddenly, and Bo Yueming, who was still lost in thought, was so startled that he actually froze. “……Uncle Kai?”

“It’s me.”

Uncle Kai stepped forward to hold his elbow, as usual. “I feared that Little Sir would act drunkenly and refuse to cooperate, so I waited for you here in the living room.

Bo Yueming lowered his hands and resolutely didn’t leak any clues. “He’s already asleep. You go back to the room and rest, I don’t need anything here.”

Uncle Kai sent Bo Yueming back to his bedroom. “Okay. Second Young Master, then you should go to bed a little earlier.”

Bo Yueming nodded slightly, then stopped as he suddenly remembered something. “Uncle Kai.”

Having walked to the door, Uncle Kai stopped. “En?”

“Tell the kitchen not to buy mango products in the future, in case…..”

Bo Yueming closed the hands hanging by his sides, and enjoined with apparent casualness, “Pei Yi is allergic to it.”

---

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Chapter Fifteen <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Seventeen