CH 19

I'll Take it Seriously

Yan Yuan changed back to his old self, his soul-stirring peach blossom eyes were begging, with a hint of coquetry, harmless as always.

His portrait was once circulated to the people and he was crowned the most beautiful man in the capital by young girls who were not yet married; there were few people in the world who could beat his beauty.

He was a pretty boy, noble and peerless. (Angel: Pretty boy, 翩翩公子, is an idiom that means rich and noble children.)

Xuan Long looked at Yan Yuan for a moment, then withdrew his gaze and sullenly said, "I have never gotten along with anyone before. If there is something bad, you can say it straight. If there is something I can change, I will definitely change it."

Just don't be so erratic, so cold and so hot.

He seemed calm on the surface, but in fact he had been suffering a lot inside these days.

If Yan Yuan had bluntly said that he hated him, he would have left without saying a word, but this ambiguous attitude was what made him wonder what to do.

"You're not bad, I'm the one who's bad…" Yan Yuan grabbed Xuan Long's hands and guided him to turn around to face him, "I promise, I won't treat you that way in the future. A’Po, don't hate me, okay?"

Xuan Long looked at him quietly, "I have never hated you."

"I know, A'Po has always been the best to me." Yan Yuan smiled.

Seeing him smile like this, Xuan Long's turquoise eyes also showed a weak smile, but it was not obvious.

Yan Yuan rubbed Xuan Long's hands, but suddenly felt that the feeling in his palms was not right. When he looked down, he saw that the tips of those long, slender fingers were covered with many tiny scratches, which had already scabbed over, but perhaps because the wounds were too dense, they were a little red and swollen.

"What happened to your hand?"

Xuan Long pulled his hand back as an afterthought, "I did it accidentally."

Yan Yuan frowned, holding on to his hand and not letting go, "How could you get so many wounds by accident? What have you been doing these days?"

"Nothing." Xuan Long did not want to say more, "You don't have to worry, it will heal soon."

Yan Yuan wasn't too curious, as he had other things on his mind, so when he heard Xuan Long say that, he let go of his hand and grunted in feigned anger, "Then if it doesn't heal in a few days, I'll ask you about it." Then he picked up his chopsticks and continued to give Xuan Long food, his voice uncharacteristically gentle as he said, "Eat, you have to eat more, if you lose too much weight, I will be distressed."

Xuan Long did not want to make Yan Yuan feel distressed, so he obediently ate all the food in his bowl. It seemed that he ate the most when Yan Yuan was around.

After dinner, Yan Yuan ordered a black veiled hat for Xuan Long to wear and took him out of Qiankun Palace for the first time.

One man and one dragon sat in the carriage, the scenery outside the window changed from vermilion palace walls to cliffs. The carriage was travelling on a not so narrow path, swaying, and the night breeze flowed in through the fluttering curtain, extraordinarily leisurely.

Xuan Long did not expect such a place to exist in the palace and turned his head to ask Yan Yuan, who was at his side, "Where are we going?"

Yan Yuan held Xuan Long's waist and kissed the side of his face, his eyes smiling: "To a nice place, you'll love it."

The carriage swayed for half an hour and stopped at the top of the mountain. Yan Yuan put the black hat back on Xuan Long, and the two of them got off the carriage.

A place like a folk courtyard appeared in front of them, and when they entered, there were small bridges and flowing water, rockery and pavilions, and a half-moon in the sky dispelling the thick inky night.

The two of them stopped by a pond. Xuan Long did not understand why Yan Yuan had brought him here and was in a daze when he was suddenly embraced gently by a pair of arms from behind him.

Yan Yuan circled Xuan Long's waist and rested his chin on his shoulder, "This is Yanbing House, I will come and stay here for a few days in my spare time. You have been in the palace for so many days, I am worried that you will feel bored in the palace all day so I thought of bringing you here to take a break. Do you like it?"

In fact, Yan Yuan did not need to go to such great lengths. For Xuan Long, no matter where he was, as long as he had Yan Yuan by his side, it was the best.

"I am happy." It was true that his heart was moved.

The palace attendants had withdrawn at some point and they were the only ones left. Yan Yuan took Xuan Long by the shoulders and turned him around, first lowering his head and delicately kissing him on the lips, and then kissing him deeply. Xuan Long's waist was held extremely tightly, and he closed his eyes, clumsily but diligently meeting Yan Yuan's wet kiss.

"I have missed you a lot these past few days." As the air grew thin, Yan Yuan let go of him with a low gasp, his eyes staring darkly at Xuan Long's face covered by a dark gold mask.

It was a very heroic face, cold-looking because of its naturally icy turquoise pupils, and it was not at all associated with softness, but damn, Yan Yuan had reacted to just hugging and kissing this man.

Xuan Long's pale face was tinted with a bit of blood, his turquoise pupils dazzled in the hazy mist, and there was a bit of bewilderment in his coldness; he always shows such a defenceless expression in front of Yan Yuan.

He hadn't forgotten the purpose of the trip – whenever he had made love to Xuan Long, it was always extraordinarily easy to get him to comply with his requests, so he obeyed his instincts, grabbed his hand and placed it on… the indescribable.

"I miss you here too."

Before Xuan Long could understand what he meant, he was pulled up from the ground by Yan Yuan's hand. Yan Yuan raised his hand to undo his belt, and Xuan Long clasped his wrist: "I'm a little tired today."

He really was tired; his abdomen was aching, his back was covered in a cold sweat, and it was a little cold when the wind blew.

"I will make you comfortable." Hurt appeared in Yan Yuan's eyes, "Could it be that you're really angry with me?"

He simply grasped Xuan Long's weakness; knowing that he liked him and would definitely be soft-hearted, he repeatedly used such a method against him.

Sure enough, Xuan Long said, "No."

"Then take off your clothes." Yan Yuan said.

Xuan Long pursed his lips, his voice already hoarse, "I'm tired."

Yan Yuan’s face turned cold. He let go of Xuan Long and picked up the clothes on the ground before leaving, "Forget it, you don't care too much about me anyway. What kind of a spouse are you if you refuse to grant such a small request?"

Xuan Long looked at his back and his pale lips moved, wanting to call out to him, but the words didn't come out.

For he had always known that those who really wanted to leave could not be kept.

When he was young, his mother cut off his dragon horns and drove him out of the dragon clan. He begged her not to abandon him, but she still left without even looking back, leaving him with an increasingly distant back.

Just that. That's all.

Xuan Long's figure shifted slightly and he sat down against the pillar beside him in a cold sweat

Yan Yuan was sure that Xuan Long would come after him, but he did not expect to reach the courtyard door and not hear any movement from behind him, so he became even angrier. After waiting for a while, he angrily went back the way he came.

"You…" He couldn't help but say hurtful things, but as soon as he got closer, Yan Yuan froze.

Xuan Long was sitting on a wooden bench in the pavilion, his body leaning against a pillar, his long hair covering most of his face, and his dark robe almost melting into the night.

Yan Yuan sensed that something was wrong and felt panic for no reason, so he stepped forward with lighter steps: "What's wrong with you?… Are you uncomfortable somewhere?"

Xuan Long did not respond at first. Yan Yuan shook him several times before Xuan Long opened his eyes and looked at the person who had returned in confusion: "… Why did you come back."

"How could I really leave you behind, I'm just scaring you." Yan Yuan frowned and said sternly.

Hearing this, Xuan Long lowered his eyes and said nothing, his body leaning weakly back against the pillar.

The deliberate bullying just now was real, and so was the anxiety and sadness at the moment. Yan Yuan did not know why he had such complicated and hidden emotions. He bent over to pick up Xuan Long's legs and walked quickly towards the house, gritting his teeth, "How could I have forgotten that although you seem to be a cold-hearted dragon, you are actually so stupid that you don't know how to coax people!"

It was clear that his belly hurt, but his heart was warm. Xuan Long leaned on Yan Yuan's shoulder, his lips curved in a rare moment, and he said in a very low and dumb voice: "Then don't be easily angry with me in the future."

"And don't say you'll leave me behind either."

If you do, I will take it seriously.