CH 58

When the two reemerged from the alleyway, Qi Changyi’s mouth was clean, but a little swollen.

He had forcefully shoved Pei Zheng several times, but no matter what he did, the man in front of him wouldn’t budge.

Qi Changyi lowered his head and didn’t say a word, and also refused to go back under Pei Zheng’s cloak. He leaned against the wall, gasping for breath.

Pei Zheng didn’t force him anymore. He clasped that frozen little hand and placed it between his arms.

A gurgling sound suddenly came from Qi Changyi’s stomach, and his white earlobes immediately burned red.

“Hungry?”

Qi Changyi was unwilling to speak; he was angry at both Pei Zheng and himself.

Pei Zheng patted his hair, before leading him off to get dinner. Their tightly clasped hands were hidden under their wide sleeves.

After the morning court session today, the Emperor summoned Pei Zheng for a private meeting. The secret matters they had discussed pertained to the Empress; her clan was gaining too much power, and the Emperor needed to find a way to curb their influence as soon as possible.

The second princess Qi Bingzhi was the Empress’s only daughter. The Emperor summoned her as well and left her alone with Pei Zheng for a while. The Emperor’s intentions were crystal-clear to Pei Zheng.

The Emperor had given him immeasurable power and standing in the Imperial Court, so he would have to give up things and make exceptions in other areas.

Moreover, the last time he came here to ask to take Qi Changyi, this was the trade-off he had made with the Emperor.

In the past, Pei Zheng thought emotions were the most useless, pliable and disposable things in the world.

But that wasn’t the case now.

The night wind was like a bitterly cold knife, but after walking for a while, his body seemed to have warmed up somewhat.

Pei Zheng took Qi Changyi to Yi Pin Xiang, the largest restaurant in the imperial capital. He asked for a private room and ordered delicacies of every kind.

Qi Changyi was very hungry, yet he had no appetite for food. He only took two bites, before he refused to eat anymore.

Pei Zheng walked over, sat down beside him, and placed the small man onto his lap, before touching his slender1 waist.

“You’ve gotten thin. Eat more.”

As he spoke, he picked up something with his chopsticks and lifted it to Qi Changyi’s mouth.

Qi Changyi turned his head away, and whispered irritably, “I don’t want to eat anymore…”

Pei Zheng suppressed the anger in his heart. He was really getting far too arrogant and willful; in the past, he never dared to oppose any of Pei Zheng’s demands.

He turned the little prince’s face towards himself and pinched his cheeks with one hand, before sticking the chopsticks into his mouth.

“Chew it.”

Qi Changyi had no choice but to chew halfheartedly; it felt like he was eating wax. He managed to swallow with difficulty.

Pei Zheng fed him a few more mouthfuls in this manner. He only put down the chopsticks once he felt that the small man’s sunken belly had bulged slightly.

Qi Changyi hadn’t eaten a good meal in a long time. His stomach seemed to be riddled with holes; he was already accustomed to not having much to eat. He had eaten several candied haws just moments before, and had just now been forced to eat many filling dishes, so his stomach became even more uncomfortable.

The small man’s expression changed. He clutched his belly, and his skin was immediately coated in a cold sweat. He suddenly leaned over the edge of the table, turned his head, and retched.

Pei Zheng’s heart twitched. He had also eaten the candied haws and the dishes at the restaurant; he had only let Qi Changyi eat it once he made sure there weren’t any issues.

The sounds of dry heaving could be heard from under the table; it was as if Qi Changyi was trying to vomit up his entire stomach.

Pei Zheng patted his back and lifted him up, before having him take a few breaths. He was like a bag of bones; the small vertebrae of his spine jutted out.

After a while, Qi Changyi finally stopped wretching, and the churning in his stomach finally subsided. But his face was pale, and all of his energy had been completely sapped away.

Pei Zheng’s heart was aching. He took the little prince back into his arms and fed him some water to rinse his mouth.

The small body in front of him was so weak and void of vitality; who knew if it could recover its original strength?

No. He must recover.

Pei Zheng held his hand tightly. Although his body was weak, holding the small man in his arms calmed his heart.

It should be like this. It should always be like this. No matter what happened in the world, it would all be fine as long as this small man was by his side.

Perhaps it was because he already knew that his own marriage would be a means for the Emperor to strengthen his rulership, but Pei Zheng’s crazy possessiveness of Qi Changyi was growing wildly.

It melted into his flesh and blood, taking root in his heart and sprouting.

The sudden sound of gongs and drums echoed from outside; the street light parade had begun.

Qi Changyi shifted his body, and tilted his head to look out the window.

“Do you want to go?”

Qi Changyi looked up at Pei Zheng and nodded.

“Come here and give me a kiss.”

Pei Zheng’s body was straight as a brush; he was still a little taller than Qi Changyi, who was sitting on his lap.

Qi Changyi played with his fingers for a little bit. The lively, roaring crowd outside just sounded too fun. He hesitated for a long while. His earlobes were red as he closed his eyes and leaned over.

Pei Zheng deliberately dodged away, and the small man kissed the air. His eyes opened, and gave Pei Zheng an accusatory look.

Qi Changyi’s face had finally shown some signs of life. The corners of Pei Zheng’s lips curled into a smile.

In a single, quick movement, Qi Changyi raised his hand and pulled the back of Pei Zheng’s neck towards himself. Their lips slammed together, leaving their mouth slightly numb.

Pei Zheng was fine. He touched the corner of his lips; this bit of pain was nothing to him.

But immediately after knocking into the other, Qi Changyi’s eyes were swimming with tears. He covered his mouth, leaving only a pair of glistening, watery almond-shaped eyes. He looked at Pei Zheng, his gaze pitiful.

Pei Zheng’s eyes softened. He helped the small man up and stood as well, before opening the door and walking out.

Cheng Feng, who was standing outside the door, saw that the two of them were returning to the street, and felt a little worried.

“Master, there’s a street light parade tonight. There are so many people milling about, so it isn’t suitable for you and His Highness to walk around.”

Of course Pei Zheng knew that already, but the little prince seemed to be extremely interested in going. Besides, this was the imperial capital; with Cheng Feng and himself around, there shouldn’t be any issues.

“It’s fine. Just follow behind.”

With those words, he led the small man into the street.

Everybody on the wide path was crowded together, each holding lanterns in their arms, and chatting happily with one another. There was also a group of people in a circle; it appeared that they were watching some kind of juggling show.

Qi Changyi kept looking around with wide eyes. He had never seen so many people in one place before; there were so many different men, women and children. It was a fresh, new experience for him.

Cheng Feng had been following them the entire time. His gaze was vigilant; he gripped the hilt of his sword as he surveyed the crowd with his eyes.

A young girl who looked to be Qi Changyi’s age walked up to them. She was dressed in a pale yellow dress with flowy sleeves, and her cheeks were red.

“Y-young Master, I-I made this lantern myself. I-I’ll gift it to you.”

The girl held the lantern out to Qi Changyi. It was in the shape of a red lotus, burning fiery scarlet.

Qi Changyi reached out and took it. He admired it for a while, and a sweet smile bloomed on his lips.

“Thank you.”

“Does Young Master like it?”

“Mm, it’s very pretty. I like it a lot.”

The young girl’s face flushed even brighter. “I’m glad Young Master likes it…I don’t…I don’t know if…”

Her face was so red, she looked like a little apple. She looked at Qi Changyi’s elegant raised eyebrows and hesitated.

“What’s wrong? Your face is so red, are you sick?”

As he spoke, Qi Changyi reached out to touch the girl’s forehead. Her eyes widened in shock, and she stiffened, not daring to move.

But before that little palm could touch her, it was clasped by another, larger hand.

Pei Zheng was smiling, but it sent chills down one’s back.

“I wonder whose daughter you are. You’ve got guts giving your lantern to someone else.”

The young girl looked at Pei Zheng; he was young and had a pretty face, and he seemed to have a close relationship to Qi Changyi, so she thought he was one of Qi Changyi’s relatives.

“I-I saw that this Young Master was alone, so I thought about it, and decided to try asking him. I’ve never given my lanterns to anyone before; this Young Master is the first one…”

The girl was so frightened by Pei Zheng’s aggressive aura that she almost cried; her eyes had turned red.

This was actually a tradition; during the street light parade, if you saw a young master or young lady that you liked, you could give them their lantern. If they accepted it, it meant that they were willing to get to know you, and it would be the beginning of a love story.

That little master had already accepted her lantern; why was his older relative wearing such a terrifying expression? His eyes were knife-sharp, and were so cold that they were about to freeze her to death.

Pei Zheng listened to her words, and his smile deepened. He waved the hand that was holding Qi Changyi’s in front of the girl’s face.

“Who said he’s alone?”

The young girl frowned in confusion and thought for a while, until she was suddenly struck by a realization. She covered her mouth in shock, and stared at the two of them, and could even stammer out a word.

“You…you both…are…are…”

Pei Zheng placed his finger on his lips and made a “shh” sound. He plucked the red lotus lantern out of Qi Changyi’s hand and returned it to the girl, before he spoke in a low voice.

“As long as you understand. Don’t tell anyone, otherwise…”

With his finger, he made a slashing motion over the little girl’s neck. She was so terrified that her face turned pale, and she nodded vigorously, before she ran away, clutching the lantern in her arms.

The lantern that Qi Changyi was holding had been returned; his eyes were filled with disappointment.

Pei Zheng saw how glum he looked, so he pulled the small man away from the crowd and led him to a stall that was selling lanterns.

“Pick one.”

Light flickered back into Qi Changyi’s eyes, and he raised his head to look at Pei Zheng.

“You don’t want one? That’s fine.”

Pei Zheng was about to leave, but Qi Changyi suddenly latched onto his sleeve, “I-I want one.”

Qi Changyi was fascinated by the dazzling array of lanterns, and carefully admired each and every one.

Pei Zheng wasn’t in a hurry. He stood beside the small man, lowered his head and watched him.

“I want this one…”

Qi Changyi pointed at a paper lantern in the shape of a little rabbit. There was also small lotus flower on the top of its head. Most of the lantern was white; only the lotus was red.

Pei Zheng smiled. He had a good eye.

The two picked up the lantern and walked away. Just as the stall owner was about to stop them and ask them to pay, Cheng Feng stepped forward and tossed him a few silver ingots.

“Keep the change.”

With those words, he turned to follow the pair once more.

Qi Changyi cradled the lantern in his arms and admired it from all angles. He really liked it.

Pei Zheng had no way to hold his hand, so he could only follow closely, and keep him out of the bustling crowd.

But there were really too many people; it was inevitable that Qi Changyi would be squeezed between them.

A man suddenly came flying out of nowhere and crashed into Qi Changyi. The little prince’s light, small body was knocked backward, and the lantern in his arms fell to the ground.

“Sorry, sorry.”

The man uttered a few casual words of apology and tried to leave, but he was suddenly grabbed by the back of the collar. He opened his mouth and cursed, “I’ve got things to do! Who the fuck has the balls to grab me? Do you think you can stand up against my martial arts skills?!”

A cold voice sounded from behind him.

“I’ll pay for your dog life.”

Notes:

The title is actually “I can pay for your life” but that’s not dramatic enough for me

That poor girl, she represents all of us danmei fans who are thirsting over the gay men ;-;