CH 17

How to Make Him Happy

Xuan Long was very tired, and there was a dull pain in his stomach for some reason. After Yan Yuan left, he fell asleep before he could think about it too much.

When he woke up again, the sun was already setting outside the window. He sat up from the bed and found that his legs were damp, sticky, and uncomfortable, and there was a strong, cold scent around the tip of his nose.

But this time there seemed to be unusually large amounts of blood, and it had soiled the mattress, so he was afraid he would have to trouble the palace staff to change it.

"Master Han? Master Han?" There were three short, crisp knocks at the door outside the hall.

Xuan Long snapped out of his daze and, through the silk tent, turned his head to look in the direction of the hall door and spoke in a hoarse voice, "What is it?"

Xiao Dezi suppressed his excitement and said, "Master Han is finally awake. This servant has come to call you three times today, if you don't answer this servant, this servant wouldn't know what to do…"

The emperor had ordered that no one was allowed to enter the side hall without the consent of Master Han, so naturally Xiao Dezi did not dare to enter without permission. When the emperor left this morning, he had a stinky face and looked like he was angry with Master Han, so Xiao Dezi didn't act for fear that if he went to inform him, he would step on Yan Yuan's dragon whiskers and break his head.

After all, no one knew for sure how much the emperor valued this Master Han.

"Master Han?… If you are not feeling well, this servant will go and find an imperial doctor." Seeing that there was no response from the man in the hall, Xiao Dezi pressed himself against the door.

Xuan Long pressed on the faint pain in his abdomen and felt that it was not unbearable, "No need, please get some water."

"Ai, this servant is on his way."

Xiao Dezi moved very nimbly and returned in no time with others.

The door of the hall was thrown open and several eunuchs in Zhuqing Palace robes entered, pouring buckets and buckets of hot water into the wooden tub. Xuan Long sat on the bed and listened to the commotion outside, a little lost in thought.

They could not see him because the tent covered him.

Because of this, the palace staff became more and more curious about this Master Han, but they did not dare to look at him, so they filled up the water and left.

After cleaning up the blood from his body, the cloth wrapped around his chest was soaked through when he finished his bath. Xuan Long got out of the tub and raised his hand in front of his body. The white silk disappeared into thin air, revealing the hideous wound.

It was no longer bleeding, so he didn't bother with it. In a flash, a neat black robe appeared on his body, with a palm-wide belt that outlined his waist, and his waist-length hair dripping sporadically downwards.

Afterwards, Xiao Dezi was called in to change the mattress. When he lifted the quilt and took a look, a 'ho' sound came out of his throat and he said with wide eyes, "How can Master Han bleed so much again, the Emperor is really…"

Feeling self-conscious of his slip of the tongue, he swallowed back the words that followed.

In fact, it was not too much; a palm-sized blood stain, printed on the bright yellow dragon-patterned mattress.

But how is this different from abuse?

Xiao Dezi slandered in his heart, but did not dare to ask more questions. He looked for other happy topics and said cheerfully, "Master Han, don't you find it boring to stay in the house day after day? The palace is very spacious, so if you ever feel like it, you should go out for a stroll. I'm afraid you will be bored out of your mind if you're cooped up for too long."

There were carved openings on the mica screen. Xuan Long stood behind the screen, watching the eunuch's busy back through the openings, and remained silent.

He had been alone in the thousand-year-old pond for nearly ten thousand years and had long since grown accustomed to a dull and boring life. For him, it was the same everywhere he went alone, except when he was with Yan Yuan.

The world seemed to change when that person pestered him and smiled at him.

It became warm, so warm that it didn't seem too bad to be alive.

That kind of joy and pleasure… had only ever been given to him by Yan Yuan.

Remembering this morning's incident, Xuan Long asked in a low voice, "If someone is angry, how should I coax them?"

Xiao Dezi pulled the soiled mattress off and paused to say, "Why are they angry?"

Xuan Long was silent once again.

He didn't know why Yan Yuan was angry.

He just suddenly started ignoring him.

Xiao Dezi's eyes twinkled as he understood, then h said, "If the Emperor is angry… this servant really does not dare to speculate on the Emperor's heart. But… quarrels between husband and wife are inevitable, and although this servant has never eaten pork, he has heard a few pigs run away."

"A few days ago, I heard from Xiao Tongzi that his mistress was playing with him and wanted to separate from him, so he used his entire fortune and asked someone to buy a gold bracelet from outside the palace to give to his mistress. Xiao Tongzi's mistress was very happy and immediately made up with him happily." Xiao Dezi was a little envious when he said that. When he had saved enough money, he would also find a mistress of the palace to keep him company. The deep palace was too lonely.

"The feelings of ordinary people are so… but the Emperor, as the ninety-five supreme, naturally lacks nothing. This servant thinks that if you are sincere, you will be fine." (Angel: The ninety-five supreme, 九五至尊,  symbolises the authority of the Emperor.)

Xuan Long lowered his eyes in thought.

Sincerity…

What is sincerity?…

The inverse scale at the back of his neck had already been torn out and given to Yan Yuan. Other than that, he did not know how to prove his sincerity to the other party.

He couldn't say anything nice, and he didn't even understand why he was angry, so it was no wonder he was like that.

Perhaps he thought he was clumsy.

"Why don't you try your hand at making a little something to give to the Emperor?…" Xiao Dezi smoothed out the clean mattress and spoke to the dragon behind the screen, "Sincerely, just deliver it."

If the other person cares, even if he sends a feather, he will treasure it carefully.

If they didn't care and pulled their hearts out, the other party would still be afraid that the blood would stain their hands.

Xuan Long felt that Xiao Dezi had a point.

He had occasionally seen hand-carved figurines at a stall in the marketplace. The seemingly rough wood, after being skillfully carved by the vendor's hands, could bring the customer's appearance to life.

That night, Xuan Long disappeared from the palace.

The night market was full of lights and people, and the vendors were enthusiastically shouting. To Xuan Long, all of this was meaningless. He found the vendor who carved the wooden figures from memory. There were two or three people in front of the stall watching the craftsmanship of the owner's live carving.

Xuan Long found a spot neither near nor far away and watched in silence for a long time, until the street was clear and cold, then he turned to leave.

When he returned to the palace, he asked Xiao Dezi to find wood and a carving knife.

The first time he did it, he naturally could not be as skilled as the vendor, and he cut his hand before he made a few cuts. Fortunately, he did not need a person to sit in front of him in order to carve them, as the vendor did.

Yan Yuan's face had long been imprinted on his heart and all he had to do was close his eyes and his mind would be filled with that person's smile.

Xuan Long sat at the table, concentrating on tinkering with the wood, and when he looked up again, it was already dawn.

He raised his hand to massage his sore eyes and looked down to continue.

He wanted to finish the little wooden figure quickly and take it to Yan Yuan, telling him not to be angry anymore, even though he didn't know what he had done wrong.

But it didn't matter.

As long as Yan Yuan was happy, that was all that mattered.