CH 28

Extraordinarily Precious

The night was slightly cool, the candles in the palace were dimly lit, the wind blew the heavy and magnificent curtains, which fluttered and wavered.

Yan Yuan sat behind the desk, staring at the document in front of him for a long time, but he had not read a single word of it. His mind was filled with thoughts of what the imperial doctor had said before he left the palace.

The inner elixir is not like dragon scales which can grow again after they are gone. If he asked Xuan Long for it, would he be able to give it to him?

But compared to having his heart cut out, at least without the inner elixir, he could still live.

“A'Yuan..."

“A'Yuan..."

Suddenly, Ning Zhiyu's frightened and weak cry came from the inner hall, pulling Yan Yuan back to reality. He got up abruptly and ran to the inner hall, only to see Ning Zhiyu propping himself up on the bed and trembling as he rose.

Yan Yuan took a few steps forward to help him, "What's wrong?"

"I thought you had left." Ning Zhiyu leaned into Yan Yuan's arms, his head resting on his chest, and smiled weakly. "When I woke up and couldn't see you, I got a little flustered."

Yan Yuan understood and rubbed his chin against the top of Ning Zhiyu's head, softly saying, "Silly, if I said I would stay with you, I will stay with you, how could I go back on my word. Just now, I was reading a memorial outside the hall."

Ning Zhiyu was silent for a moment, "I just... had a dream."

Yan Yuan looked down at him, "What did you dream about?"

Ning Zhiyu smiled, his face so pale in the dim candlelight that it was almost transparent: "I dreamt that A'Yuan had abandoned me and fell in love with someone else."

Yan Yuan was stunned and said in a deep voice, "Nonsense."

Ning Zhiyu had always obeyed Yan Yuan and listened to his words, but this time he did not, and spoke with a raspy nasal tone: "There is no nonsense... I called you in my dream, but you ignored me and walked away holding hands with another man. I wanted to walk faster to catch up with you, but I couldn't catch up."

Yan Yuan could not help but feel guilty when he heard this. Since he and Ning Zhiyu were lovers in their previous lives, it was not surprising that their hearts were connected and that Ning Zhiyu could sense what was going on. Although he and Xuan Long were just playing a game, in order to achieve his goal more quickly, they had been intimate, so he felt more and more guilty towards the person in his arms.

He lowered his head and kissed Ning Zhiyu's hair, solemnly saying: “A'Yu, don't worry, forever and always, I will only have you in my heart, no other person or thing can enter my eyes. I love and cherish you so much, how could I leave you behind."

Ning Zhiyu looked up at Yan Yuan with a smile on his face, his fair hands cupped his face and he said softly, "Then would A'Yuan dare to swear to me?"

Yan Yuan smiled and raised a finger to scratch the bridge of his nose, "Why wouldn't I dare." He then raised his right hand, bunched his middle three fingers and sat upright, "I, Yan Yuan, swear today by the fate of the great dynasty, that if I fail Ning Zhiyu and abandon him in this life, I will lose my kingdom, lose my eyesight, and not be allowed to live well..."

Before the pledge was finished, Ning Zhiyu hurriedly grabbed his hand: "Don't say it, don't say it."

Yan Yuan's heart softened and he raised his hand to touch Ning Zhiyu's thin face. Ning Zhiyu grabbed his hand and said softly, "I don't want to live eternally, I only want this life. A’Yuan is so good, I dare not be greedy and take you for myself. As long as we can depend on each other in misfortune and good fortune, and grow old with white heads, it will be very good."

"Then you are really not greedy." Yan Yuan laughed, then stood up, leaned over and put his forehead against Ning Zhiyu's, and whispered. "But I am greedy, I just want you for myself, so that you will always belong to me. Whether it is in this life or the next, I only want you."

Anyone would be moved to hear such a promise.

The corners of Ning Zhiyu's lips curved up and tears flowed in his eyes as he slowly closed his eyes and took the initiative to kiss Yan Yuan's lips.

When Yan Yuan kissed Ning Zhiyu, he was extremely gentle, unlike the way he kissed Xuan Long, which was so rough that he seemed to want to swallow him, so the kiss seemed lingering and warm. Seeing that Ning Zhiyu was breathing a little heavier, he let go of him.

Ning Zhiyu's chest rose and fell a little rapidly, his pale face tinged with two clusters of light red, his eyes hazily looking at Yan Yuan: “A'Yuan..."

With such a beautiful person in front of him, how could Yan Yuan not be moved? His throat was dry and he raised his hand to wipe away the remaining tears on Ning Zhiyu's face, "It's late, go to sleep. I'll watch you sleep, and I'll go back to reading the documents after you've fallen asleep."

Ning Zhiyu froze slightly and said, "We haven't consummated our marriage until today, don't you want to..."

Yan Yuan sighed, "Of course I want to, but you are not well now, so I dare not touch you easily. If I accidentally break you, what should I do?”

“A’Yu, be good, go to sleep." Yan Yuan got up and supported Ning Zhiyu's shoulders, making a gesture for him to lie down.

Ning Zhiyu obediently laid down, and somewhat embarrassedly said, "Although I am useless, that kind of thing should still be possible..."

Yan Yuan flicked his forehead, “Silly A’Yu, there are still many days ahead, are you still afraid that I will run away in the future?"

Ning Zhiyu quietly looked at Yan Yuan, the corners of his eyes red: "But I'm afraid... I won't live past next spring."

This broken body is getting weaker every day, can he really grow old with Yan Yuan? It's all just talk.

In the end, he will not be able to stay with Yan Yuan for long.

"If you say any more silly words, I will really get angry." Yan Yuan sat down on the edge of the bed and raised his hand to fix the hair on Ning Zhiyu's forehead, "I am here, I will protect you, the King of Hell will not dare to take you, do you believe me?"

Ning Zhiyu smiled and nodded, “Mm. I believe everything that A'Yuan says."

Seeing him smile, Yan Yuan smiled along with him, "Alright, close your eyes. When you wake up in the morning, I will still be by your side."

......

At midnight, seeing that the ugly hour was about to pass and the day was about to dawn in another two hours, Xiao Dezi looked towards the empty red iron gate of Qiankun Palace, which was pitch black with nothing but the shadows of dark trees. He sighed and turned to knock on the door of the side hall, whispering to the person inside, “Master Han, the Emperor will not come. If you're hungry, can this servant have the kitchen heat up the food and bring it over to you? Waiting like this is not the way to go…" (Angel: Ugly hour is the period of time between 1 and 3 AM.)

Xuan Long was still sitting at the table. He stared at the wooden carving in his hands, and a faint loss surfaced in his icy turquoise demon pupils.

“A'Yuan must be too busy."

Xiao Dezi said to himself that he was indeed busy, busy with the Empress, but his mouth agreed, "Yes, the Emperor is certainly busy with his day-to-day duties."

Xuan Long's fingertips gently rubbed the little wooden man's face, as if looking at someone through it, "Then I will wait a little longer, in the morning, he should come."

If he slept, he would be so deep in sleep that A'Yuan would not be able to wake him up when he came, and if he left, he would not be able to see him again.

Xiao Dezi was so young yet worried that his hair was turning white. He pressed himself against the door and said sadly, “Young Master Han, if you starve yourself, the Emperor will have to strip away the skin of this servant, so just have some meals..."

Xuan Long did not answer, and gently pressed the small wooden figure against his chest, at the closest point to his heart, as if he was with Yan Yuan.

The world is too lonely and cold, and Yan Yuan is a faint flame. It is not warm at all, but because he has never seen a flame before, that little bit is warm enough.

It is also extraordinarily precious

Translator Notes

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.