CH 48

Chapter 48

The night was completely dark. The corridors of the mansion were full of rushing shuttle servants. They were busy lighting the lamp everywhere and very quickly, the light came closer and closer to looking like a vivid dim dreamland. 

Ni Lie fished the person out of the steaming bath tub, wrapped him in a dry bath towel, and carefully placed him on the bed. The moment he landed on the bed, the delicate brow of the person in front of him frowned.

Ni Lie’s eyes moved. He laid him down, took a piece of white silk, spread his legs and gently wiped them.

There was a wisps of blood on the white silk.

Li Yuanmin also saw it. He silently closed his legs, and curled up. His eyelids and the tip of his nose still had some faint pink color. The traces on his body were still there like an insecure infant in a swaddling or a fragile butterfly in the cold winter, that could easily break off its wing.

Ni Lie suddenly felt a sharp pain in his heart, squeezed the white silk tightly in his hand. He leaned down, touching his slightly damp hair: “Does it hurt?”

Li Yuanmin shook his head. Perhaps thinking that he showed too much of a reaction to cover it up and making it worse, he gently coaxed him: “There is only a little swelling.” 

He looked at the gloomy youth, pulled his hand that was full of callus over, pressed it to his red cheek, rubbed it, and comforted him:

“I’m fine. ”

Ni Lie’s size was not like the average person’s. He was afraid of hurting him every time they did it, so he was very careful. Even if he was deep in love, he did not forget to restrain himself by using his lips and tongue to carefully serve him, which made his excitement soften. Except for the first time, he had never suffered any more pain afterwards, but this time, it was crazy. 

Ni Lie’s usual cold heart was assaulted until it hurt, assaulted until it ached, making him feel very pained. But he was powerless against this kind of pain, he could only gently touch his black hair, half kneeling in front of the bed, looking at him.

Li Yuanmin sniffled and said dependently: “Hug me.”

Ni Lie hurriedly got up and moved to the bed. His forearm carefully passed through his slender waist, gently pressing the person into his arms.

The heat of the youth’s body made Li Yuanmin’s heart settle down. He buried his face into his arms, softly, as if in a dream world: “A Lie, you have to be obedient.” 

Ni Lie’s heart was almost crushed, he had never had such an intense image. There was no other moment that he was more eager to mature than this time. He wanted to be so strong that he was indestructible. He wanted to protect him behind his back, to tear all those people who looked at him with evil intention. 

But he was far from enough, now he was just hiding under his little wings, enjoying his gentle but firm protection.

He didn’t know how much he had hardened himself to finally force himself to say, “Yes.”

Li Yuanmin’s heart calmed down. He buried his face into Ni Lie’s warm neck, without wanting to lie to him anymore, he spoke in a muffled voice: “It hurts a little.”

Ni Lie paused, letting out a sound: “I know.”

Li Yuanmin added: “Your body is warm, it’s very comfortable.”

Ni Lie didn’t say anything else besides hugging him tightly.

***

Li Yuanmin kept himself in the backyard to recuperate for a few days, just like a leisurely crane in the clouds.

Ni Lie stayed by his side these past few nights. He was a big man, but was still like a child, nestled in his arms to sleep. Li Yuanmin’s heart was always made sour when he saw him like this. He would wake up in the middle of the night, always involuntarily kissing his forehead with his lips. He had prayed for this kind of day to last for a long time in his heart.

But the relaxed days could never last forever.

Today, Li Yuanmin sat in front of the carved bronze mirror and looked at the expressionless person inside for half a day, before letting out a long sigh. 

“Songzhu.”

A young servant came in and cupped his hands while waiting for orders.

Li Yuanmin said: “Ben Wang’s matter of going outside the mansion today, you must never tell Commander Ni, understand?”

Songzhu heard him speak in a careful tone, so he hurriedly replied, “This slave understands.”

Li Yuanmin shook his head and stood up, “Let’s go.”

More than two hours later, a carriage with the flag of the Guang’an mansion stopped in front of the Liangjiang Governor’s mansion.

Li Yuanmin, dressed in plain dress, opened the curtain and stepped out of the carriage. Xue Zaixing was already there. As soon as he saw Li Yuanmin come out, he immediately rushed forward, waved back the young servant before him before personally helping Li Yuanmin out. 

Li Yuanmin paused slightly, but still took his hand, got off the carriage, and spoke with a smile: “Is it proper to have the governor of two rivers and three provinces to be Ben Wang’s slave servant?”

Xue Zaixing’s eyes narrowed slightly, he also smiled with an unknown meaning: “It’s a blessing for me to be able to serve Your Highness.” 

Li Yuanmin smiled, silently pulled his hand out of his palm, and looked around.

“The Governor’s mansion is magnificent. It looks much more magnificent than the last time I came here.” 

“Seeing that new year is coming, I just tidied it up a bit.”

Xue Zaixing secretly rubbed his fingers as he replied, recalling the soft and tender feeling just now. His heart was itchy as if there were feathers in there.

The two people chatted and laughed as they entered the mansion.

Reportedly, it was a family banquet, but official families would not miss out on an opportunity to make connections. Generally, they would take this opportunity to feast in all directions, but today’s governor’s palace was quiet. If it were not for the red color on the lintel, Li Yuanmin would have thought that he had remembered the wrong date.

He immediately smiled and asked: “Could it be that Daren had only invited Ben Wang alone?”

Xue Zaixing smiled: “In the past year, there had been countless banquets of all kinds. I have long become quite afraid of it, so how could I personally seek out something so troublesome—— Naturally I can only invite my most intimate people.” 

He looked at Li Yuanmin: “Doesn’t Your Highness agree?”

Li Yuanmin laughed after him but didn’t say anything.

There were attendants in the middle of the hall. Li Yuanmin found that this banquet was probably not even a family banquet. There were only three people sitting at a square table, in addition to him and Xue Zaixing, there was Xue Zaixing’s ten-year-old little son, but there were two rows of maids waiting to serve. 

That child looked at Li Yuanmin warily, but at least there was still some etiquette as he bowed his head. Li Yuanmin took the well prepared red pocket from his sleeve and gave it to him, smiled and said a few polite words to him. 

He was the young lord of the governor’s mansion after all, so he was natural and unrestrained. He loudly replied. It’s just that his appetite was small so he left the table after eating a few mouthfuls of food. 

Xue Zaixing followed him before letting his mother-in-law take him away. He also took advantage of this moment to wave for other people to leave.  

There were only the two of them in the middle of the great hall, Li Yuanmin was on guard in his heart but his expression was the same as usual.

“Come, Your Highness, let us drink some wine.”

Xue Zaixing poured wine for him attentively.

Li Yuanmin looked at the wine glass that was glowing with cold light, his eyes slightly raised: “A good family banquet consisting of only the two of us drinking together in this cold and cheerless atmosphere, those who don’t know might think Ben Wang is eager to chase away other guests.” 

Xue Zaixing also poured a cup into his own wine glass, looked up, and smiled: “How can it be cold and cheerless, you will be hot after drinking a little of wine.” 

He pushed the wine glass forward: “Why don’t Your Highness have a drink? Could it be that you’re afraid I have put something in it?”

Li Yuanmin smiled and played along with him in a half truth, half false manner: “Exactly.”

Xue Zaixing burst into laughter, picked up his wine glass, and drank it all in one gulp.

Putting down the cup, his eyes were a little red. He looked at Li Yuanmin a few times, raised his hand, then clapped his hands together three times. A servant hurriedly pushed the door in, handed over a red sandalwood black box, before quickly retreating.

Xue Zaixing smiled and held out his hand, hinting to Li Yuanmin.

Li Yuanmin didn’t know what he meant, but he still reached over and opened the black box, which contained several secret letters.

Suddenly a feeling of uneasiness flashed in his heart.

He easily opened one with his hand, quickly glanced at it a few times, his brow frowned involuntarily. He immediately opened the remaining few sheets. The more he looked at it, the more frightened he became.

Although there was no name on the letterhead, Li Yuanmin had been with the Eldest Prince for many years in the Imperial School, so how could he not recognize his handwriting.

He didn’t expect this person’s suspicion to reach such a point. Looking at the words “if it is accurate, immediately kill him in secret”, Li Yuanmin had a thin layer of sweat on his back.

He swallowed, trying his best to calm his state of mind. He methodically retracted the letterhead back into the black box, not even forgetting to buckle it.

Looking up, Xue Zaixing had already poured himself wine to enjoy himself. A touch of self-restraint floated in between his eyebrows.

Li Yuanmin’s expression changed. He snatched the beast head wine jug from his hand, he knew the look in his eyes.

“Governor Daren’s grace is this great, how can I let you pour the wine? Why don’t you let Ben Wang serve you wine this time?”

Xue Zaixing only smiled. He allowed the wine glass to be grabbed from him, as if it should be the case. His thin purple lips were pulled, revealing a smile of unknown meaning: “Your Highness can be regarded as indebted to me for this big favor.” 

“It’s not just a favor, if Daren was a bit more ruthless and said a few more words to Eldest Imperial Brother, I am afraid that all the people in Ben Wang’s mansion would all have died. ”

He filled the wine glass in front of him with a look of gratitude on his face, “Ben Wang offers you this cup of wine.”

Xue Zaixing laughed and took the wine glass in his hand and poured it down in one gulp, extremely refreshing.

Li Yuanmin looked at the wet marks along the rim of the cup, quietly looked elsewhere, and drank it in one gulp.

In this way, one poured, two drank, and the few jugs of wine on the table were soon half empty.

Xue Zaixing seemed to have been affected by the wine and was a little bit tipsy. His speech became increasingly ambiguous. He even pulled over the seat on the side and sat next to Li Yuanmin.  

“Your Highness, how many times is it now that you have swindled me….” He leaned closer, took a deep breath of the faint aroma, and complained: “Fortunately, I have desperately tried to protect Your Highness in front of the Eldest Prince. But I have been thinking of Your Highness’s incense, even now, I still haven’t seen Your Highness sending it over. You’re too ruthless!” 

Li Yuanmin stepped back a little and reluctantly smiled: “Daren hasn’t drunk much and you’re drunk already?”

Xue Zaixing stared at his extraordinarily beautiful face with a slight pink color. At this moment he was so close that a wisp of delicate fragrance burrowed into his nostrils, inducing his teeth to move and something to burrow into his heart. His last bit of self-control immediately snapped.

He threw himself over and ruthlessly took the man into his arms. 

“Your Highness swindled me. In fact there is no such incense. This is the fragrance from your flesh!”

Li Yuanmin was horrified, he resisted the urge to throw a punch at him. Long before he came, he knew that it would not be so easy to escape this time, but he did not expect to be in such a risky situation. Those letters, those words — they were planned beforehand! His heart pounded, he suppressed the nausea that was bubbling in his heart, before lifting his arms to embrace his neck.

Xue Zaixing’s mind buzzed, he was immediately overjoyed. He got up and fished Li Yuanmin up like a lamb cub and walked toward the bedroom behind the screen. There was a big soft bed prepared beforehand there, a place for him to be wantonly slaughtered. 

The author has something to say: the second day of streaking!

Ciacia/N: Not to spoil but this is the turning point this translator ruthlessly turned against the author of this novel.

Ciacia has something to say: Author, don’t let me find you or else your end won’t be pretty *knife emoji* (•̪●)=/̵/’̿̿ ̿ ̿ ̿ ̿