CH 37

In his previous life, when Emperor Jinghe ordered Gu Yan to lead his army to the north, he had just celebrated his twenty-fifth birthday.

As soon as Gu Yan sent the eunuch, who came to pass the decree, out of the manor, he turned around and saw the man standing under the tree in the courtyard waiting for him. The man was tall and slender, but he was too thin, and his body wrapped in heavy clothes made him look fragile.

The man no longer donned his usual indifferent expression. His lips trembled as he asked in a low voice: “Do you really have to go?”

Gu Yan raised the Imperial decree in his hand: “His Holiness’s order, it can’t be disobeyed.”

“But you don’t have to go. You can plead with His Holiness, plead with the Empress Dowager. You…..” Huai Yuan took a deep breath and turned his head, his eyes were a little red, “It’s impossible to win this battle, this…..this is a trap. Your Majesty, can’t you tell?”

The Northern Barbarians and the Central Plains repeatedly fought, but the Central Plains were on the losing end. As a result, Emperor Jinghe was forced to agree to a truce with marriage.

Soon after the Northern Barbarian Prince Jia Xiedan arrived in Chang’an for marriage, it was revealed that he had long been in cahoots with important officials of the court, which caused the Central Plains to repeatedly lose battles.

In a rage, Emperor Jinghe put Jia Xiedan under house arrest and sent troops to the Northern Expedition.

Gu Yan straightened his clothes, smiled lightly, and took Huai Yuan into the study: “Indeed, this is a trap.”

“Someone didn’t want the battle to stop from the very beginning. The so-called truce is just a pretense to force me into the battlefield. Now the situation is critical and no one in the court is trustworthy. Emperor Jinghe chose me because of the situation. If I don’t go now, I’m a coward who treats the safety of my family and country as a joke.”

Gu Yan threw the decree on the table, sat down, and raised his eyes to look at him: “I would rather die at the northern border than be scolded behind my back as a coward.”

“But——”

“Huai Yuan,” Gu Yan interrupted him, “Why do you think I will definitely lose?”

Why?

Huai Yuan’s hand trembled lightly.

Because Gu Yan had never led an army before; because the Northern Barbarian army had won a series of battles, the morale of the Central Plains had been wounded; and because of years of conquests, the treasury was empty, and the army was short of rations.

Once he went, there would be no turning back.

However, Gu Yan said: “Huai Yuan, I will win.”

In that sentence, not only did he have a youthful spirit, but also the determination to recover his territory.

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From this one sentence alone, Huai Yuan understood that this man had already made up his mind and no matter what he said, it was impossible to persuade him to turn back.

Huai Yuan sighed lightly and didn’t say anything else. He reached into his pocket and took out a pouch. The pouch was sewn with fine brocade, embroidered with fine auspicious cloud patterns, and it was originally something that a person of his status should not have.

A flash of surprise passed through Gu Yan’s eyes, then he smiled and asked, “What is this? A protective talisman?”

Huai Yuan nodded and handed the item over: “To ensure your safe journey, victorious in all battles, and a triumphant return.”

Gu Yan took the item and the next day, he led his army out of Chang’an.

It wasn’t until much later that Gu Yan accidentally soiled the brocade pouch that he carried close to his body, and when he removed it to clean it, he found that there was no talisman in the brocade pouch, only a handful of fragrant seeds.

……

Gu Yan opened his eyes and didn’t come back to his senses for a long time. He hadn’t dreamed about these old events for a long time, maybe it was the meeting with Jia Xiedan last night that reminded him of the experience of leading the army in the Northern Expedition.

From the beginning to the end, it was not Jia Xiedan who colluded with the important officials in the court, but his elder brother Wu Jie. It wasn’t until Gu Yan broke through the Northern Barbarian camp and captured Wu Jie that he learned the truth about this matter.

When Jia Xiedan came to Chang’an, his original purpose was also to investigate the evidence of Wu Jie’s collusion with the officials that someone had tipped off to him. But just as he had arrived, he was framed and imprisoned. The person who asked him to come to Chang’an had set a trap from the very beginning.

The trap was aimed at both Jia Xiedan and Gu Yan.

Which was why Gu Yan contacted Jia Xiedan in advance in this life to help him complete this matter early, so as not to fall into the past ending again.

The scene of fighting on the battlefield was vivid in his mind and the bloody and fragmented scenes kept flashing in his mind. But finally, it was frozen in the scene of him sitting alone in the barracks, carefully opening the pouch and pouring out a handful of seeds.

Gu Yan had never seen that kind of seed before and since the battle was urgent, he also didn’t have time to find someone to ask what it was. Later, when the battle had subsided, he had forgotten about it and didn’t ask about it again.

What exactly was that?

Before Gu Yan could figure it out, the person beside him suddenly moved slightly. Gu Yan came back to his senses and his palm touched a soft body.

Gu Yan turned his head. Ye Zi was using his arm as a pillow and sleeping soundly. 

The youth buried his head in the quilt, only revealing a small piece of his pale nape; it carried a faint luster, like a piece of fine warm jade. The beautiful neckline meandered down, hiding all the soft and delicate texture in the dark, and it was obvious that he wasn’t wearing anything. 

He placed his hands on Gu Yan’s chest, his pale lips parted slightly, and he looked defenseless.

Gu Yan took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

He didn’t know if he should be happy or hapless. Ever since this person had secretly kissed him at the Summer palace, he had become confident. Every time before going to sleep, he would pretend to change back to a plant. But in the middle of the night, he would secretly change back and sleep in his arms. And before Gu Yan woke up, he would change back to his plant form and pretend that nothing happened.

……He probably thought he covered it up well.

But he didn’t know that Gu Yan was a light sleeper and was awakened by his movements every single time.

It was still early as Gu Yan hugged his own little plant and lay down for a while longer. He closed his eyes to recuperate. The early morning sunlight gradually shone into the room, Ye Zi frowned in the warm light and opened his eyes.

Ye Zi didn’t dare to move and stared at the person beside him without blinking. Gu Yan seemed to be still in a deep sleep as his breathing was smooth and long. Ye Zi blinked and leaned up to sneak a kiss from Gu Yan.

A dim light flashed in the room and the little green plant rolled down to Gu Yan’s chest.

Ye Zi stretched his leaves and body lazily before he stepped on Gu Yan’s collarbone and called out softly: “Your Majesty, it’s time to get up. If you don’t wake up, you’ll miss morning court.”

When Gu Yan didn’t move, Ye Zi bounced twice on his shoulder and stretched out his stalk to poke Gu Yan’s face: “Your Majesty, Your Majesty!”

Ye Zi was so addicted to poking that a hand suddenly reached out from behind, grabbed his stem, and lifted him up. Ye Zi shook as he met Gu Yan’s calm eyes.

Ye Zi was lifted up in the air and sheepishly collected his stem as he smiled foolishly at him.

“Good morning, Your Majesty.”

After saying these words, Ye Zi kicked away Gu Yan’s hand and ran into the washroom in a flash.

Gu Yan looked at his fleeing back and shook his head helplessly.

Once the two of them finished freshening up, the maids brought over breakfast. After the two of them finished eating, Gu Yan was ready to go to morning court. However, Ye Zi waved the servants away and stopped Gu Yan at the door to prevent him from leaving.

Ye Zi tilted his head and asked him: “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

Yesterday’s reward was deducted, but not today’s; he better not try and skimp. 

Gu Yan was amused by his calculating appearance as he gently but forcefully pressed him against the door panel and rewarded him. Ye Zi’s legs softened from his kiss and when Gu Yan left, he subconsciously tugged on his clothes.

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Since there was still some time left, Gu Yan allowed Ye Zi to cling to him as he asked in a low voice: “Are you going out today as well?”

Ye Zi nodded dizzily: “I’ll be strolling the streets of Chang’an with Jia Xiedan for show.” 

Gu Yan was a bit apprehensive and clicked his tongue: “I’m pretty sure him not being able to find any information isn’t just to delay time, but an excuse to get close to you. You can just give him perfunctory answers and remember to stay away from him.”

Ye Zi said: “Since Emperor Jinghe has given the order, I have to play with that person for another four or five days. If he still can’t find anything after four or five days, then it’s none of my business.”

Gu Yan softly coaxed: “Mnn, you’ve suffered.”

Ye Zi tugged on Gu Yan’s lapel, softly hinting in his voice: “Exactly, I’ve suffered a lot, I actually don’t want to go at all.”

Gu Yan laughed, lowered his head, and rewarded him with an extra kiss as a comfort.

A few days passed quickly, Ye Zi worked hard and accompanied Jia Xiedan to roam through the city of Chang’an, turning a deaf ear to the little tricks the other party was doing secretly. Early in the morning on the fourth day, an announcement came for Ye Zi, summoning him into the palace for questioning.

When the little eunuch who delivered the message came, Ye Zi was pestering Gu Yan to take a nap with him. But after listening to the servant’s message in a daze, the two of them understood what happened.

Ye Zi buried his head in the pillow, indignantly muttering: “After finally having a day off, why couldn’t Jia Xiedan pick another day?”

Previously, he was worried about accidents so he didn’t dare to beat up that man. But now, he seemed to find trouble for him every day.

Gu Yan sat up and his tone wasn’t very kind: “It’s probably because he can’t wait any longer. After all, he’s a young man with a quick temper.”

The houseboy urged him again and again, so Ye Zi had to get up. He was so sleepy that he even closed his eyes when putting on his clothes and after dressing up, he saw the little eunuch who had sent the message in the hall.

The eunuch greeted him with a smile on his face: “Your Highness, His Holiness has summoned you to the palace for questioning.”

Gu Yan put his arm around Ye Zi’s shoulder and deliberately asked: “Why is it so urgent?”

The little eunuch didn’t hide anything and said in a low voice: “I heard that yesterday His Holiness received a secret letter saying that in Chang’an City, there are people colluding with the Northern Barbarians. This matter is of great importance so His Holiness hastily summoned Princess Consort Rui to the palace.”

Ye Zi’s eyes moved slightly as he put on an expression of fear and whispered: “How can this be? But……but I don’t know anything, this……”

Gu Yan patted him on the shoulder and comforted him in a low voice: “It’s okay, I’ll go with you. Just tell His Holiness what you know.”

“Um……” The little eunuch seemed to have some difficulty, “His Holiness has only summoned Princess Consort Rui. Your Majesty, this…… “

Gu Yan frowned slightly.

When Emperor Jinghe gave the order, he had expected that Gu Yan would follow, so he ordered the eunuch to send Ye Zi away early in the morning. This matter had nothing to do with them in the first place and there was no need to displease Emperor Jinghe because of such a trivial matter. Ye Zi shook his head towards Gu Yan and followed the little eunuch out the door alone.

Ye Zi got into the sedan chair sent by Emperor Jinghe. Gu Yan watched as the sedan left and his gaze sank.

The sedan chair swayed and shook Ye Zi’s drowsiness away. He leaned in the sedan chair and adjusted his clothes, only to find that his inner coat was slightly bigger.

——He accidentally wore Gu Yan’s clothes again.

Ye Zi stared at the long sleeve and suddenly remembered that he had stolen Gu Yan’s clothes when he first transformed into a human at the Prince Rui manor. At that time, he was timid and was too scared to steal a piece of that person’s clothes. Unlike now, where he even dared to sneak into the man’s arms while he was asleep.

Ye Zi was having wild thoughts in the sedan chair: for a while, he thought that after the matter was over, he must give Jia Xiedan a good beating to vent his anger, and for another while, he remembered that he had been too hasty in leaving and didn’t even ask Gu Yan for today’s reward.

Not long after, the sedan chair landed.

Someone lifted the curtain to help Ye Zi out. As Ye Zi got off the sedan, he realized that this place was not the palace. The little eunuch who came to deliver the message disappeared at some point and there were only a few guards left around the sedan chair.

Ye Zi glanced around, raised his head, and his eyes calmly fell on the plaque of the building in front of him.

Zongzheng Temple.