Chapter 121: Consort Su and Empress Xie
“…”
When the bodies collided heavily just now, Ying Xi realized Ju’er was even more formidable than Su Xueyi.
Ying Xi was heated by the temperature radiating through Xie Qianli’s thin garment. His internal organs shook violently, almost triggering a fit of coughing.
But a pair of arms held him from behind, and a palm patted his back several times.
His body felt comforted, and the coughing subsided.
Ying Xi’s eyes grew red.
The palm resting against his back was warm and large. The physical sensation came first, followed by his consciousness.
Ying Xi’s heart fluttered.
Before he could catch Xie Qianli’s expression, Ju’er had already turned expressionless once more.
Thus, the joy of seeing Ju’er as he wished was mixed with a growing sense of instability. Ying Xi pressed his lips together.
He suppressed his thoughts and pushed both men away, as if moving two walls to open up a wide path.
The angle of Su Xueyi’s brows was razor-sharp.
He had been stabilizing the court for Ying Xi, his hard work behind the scenes unknown to others, while Xie Qianli—who had won on the front lines—was famous throughout the realm.
Su Xueyi felt it was unfair, yet he smiled despite his disgust. “Lord Su has a date tonight. Is General Xie also accompanying the future General’s wife for a stroll? Why hide her away and not let Su see?”
Su Xueyi had groundlessly assigned Xie Qianli a wife.
Of course, he didn’t have one.
But this topic was bound to trigger the Emperor’s curiosity.
Su Xueyi didn’t know he had just struck at Ying Xi’s heart. Ying Xi raised an eyebrow.
He scrutinized Xie Qianli’s outfit, noticing that Ju’er seemed a bit different from a few days ago.
Ju’er loved order and simplicity, but today he wore a dark black base embroidered with a gold qilin pattern. The metal bracers on his sleeves were exquisite and bright. Ying Xi was momentarily dazzled by the light reflecting off them.
His eyes ached slightly.
Why was Ju’er paying so much attention to his appearance?
He said he came to eat five bowls of wontons every night before going for a walk.
But the wonton stall hadn’t been out for days. Ju’er had spent the whole day moving tribute grain—who was he dressing up for?
“…” Filled with the frustration of being kept in the dark, Ying Xi’s heart felt stung.
Yet he intentionally laughed as if he were at ease. “If there truly is a beauty involved, it indeed shouldn’t be kept a secret.”
Xie Qianli’s heart constricted because of that laugh. He didn’t look at Su Xueyi, calmly striking back at the target, “Prime Minister Su has a beauty to meet; you should go and keep your date. This general is free tonight. Xiao Xi, I’ll protect you.”
The corner of Ying Xi’s mouth lifted unnoticed.
Su Xueyi swallowed hard, feeling that Xie Qianli’s “Xiao Xi” was blatant bragging.
His sharp tongue was hard to guard against, “Su’s date is, of course, the Master. Earlier, the Master and I toured half the festival together, and the Master even gave me two rattles. Isn’t that right, Master?”
The two little rattles bloo-blooed as they spun in Su Xueyi’s hand, shaking their heads smugly.
Ying Xi: “…” He was tired of cursing the man’s shamelessness.
Xie Qianli fixed his gaze on the rattles in Su Xueyi’s hand. His dark pupils seethed with intense emotion, looking as if they could burn holes through the drum skin.
He thought he was hiding it well, but he couldn’t escape Ying Xi’s eyes.
Ying Xi stretched out a breath of air, feeling a secret delight because Ju’er seemed jealous.
Ying Xi wanted to confirm more. “Keep them safe. I just gave them to you to play with.”
Su Xueyi was overjoyed. His heart felt like thousands of butterflies were flapping their wings, and he shook the rattles so hard they nearly flew away.
Every beat of the drum struck at Xie Qianli’s fragile defenses.
Xie Qianli’s dark, moist eyes lowered halfway, looking like a dejected, large animal.
“If the Master already has a date tonight, I can follow from a distance to protect you.”
He paused, then added, “If Xiao Xi finds me in the way, I’ll return to the General’s Mansion.” His voice trailed off at the end.
Ju’er never forced him to do anything, nor would he ever cling to him.
Ying Xi’s heart softened; he felt he was being quite cruel to the good Ju’er.
“Who has a date with him? I just ran into him,” Ying Xi said as he pulled at Xie Qianli. “Let’s wander together.”
The Dating System interface flashed again—
[Congratulations on unlocking achievements: ‘Master of Balancing,’ ‘Three’s a Crowd, and One of Them is Mine.’]
[System Reward: Charm +5000. Please continue your efforts to unlock advanced system functions.]
[System Drop: Sheep-gut Sheath x2. Sizes tailored to the characters. Wishing you a pleasant night.]
[Sweet Tub: Ahhhhhhhh—Are you going to summon both of them tonight???]
[Sweet Tub: I’ll be waiting under the bed!!!]
Ying Xi looked down upon the Mainframe’s unhealthy thoughts, certain that it was the Mainframe that had corrupted Sweet Tub.
But the five thousand charm points were real. They allowed Ying Xi to get close to Ju’er at the end of the festival.
Ju’er was very well-behaved tonight.
He was also quite useful for dealing with the peacock ghost.
The three of them watched the final shadow puppet play, with the audience sitting on long benches.
Ying Xi sat in the middle, the two men to his left and right. The peacock ghost was indeed restless, trying to steal a touch of his right hand under the cover of night.
Ju’er didn’t even blink as he intercepted the peacock ghost with divine precision.
Every time Su Xueyi tried something, Ju’er would thrust a trinket bought at the night market into his hands.
Su Xueyi’s hands were full of junk—all of which were the Emperor’s things, so he had to hold them properly. His arrogance was significantly dampened.
Ying Xi secretly enjoyed watching the peacock ghost suffer.
The frustration he felt when being pestered by the peacock ghost turned into a carefully controlled smile.
He thought to himself, Ju’er is always protecting me.
Why was Ju’er protecting him?
——”This subject will be forever loyal to You.”
Ying Xi’s heart went from subtle excitement back to drumming.
He had long ago stepped out of the plot being performed by the shadow puppets.
The musical accompaniment and the actor’s lines suddenly became a distant, muffled echo.
Ying Xi wasn’t satisfied.
Once, he had forced Ju’er to swear an oath—to adhere to his duty as a subject, to respect him, and to be loyal.
Now, Ying Xi glanced at Xie Qianli’s silhouette. The dog sat upright, hands resting on his knees—very respectful, very loyal.
The bright light from the shadow puppet lamp reflected off Ju’er’s skin, which was a deep wheat color—the color of the sun.
The same light made his own hand look as white as porcelain.
That hand was only half a foot away. If he just leaned his body, he could touch him. He could even feel the warmth of Ju’er’s body temperature.
Those hands were covered in thick calluses. Ying Xi feared Ju’er’s strength, yet he wanted Ju’er to grab him firmly!
He wouldn’t overstep any further.
Or did he simply have no such intention? What intention should he have?
Ying Xi was in a state of complete confusion.
He wanted to tease Ju’er until he went mad, until he was at a loss, until he released his true nature!
Ying Xi used his logic to suppress it.
“Mother, the shadow puppet play is about to end. Let’s sit quickly…”
“Slow down, be careful not to bump into anyone!”
A child passed in front of him. As he hopped toward a seat, the candied haws in his hand came close to Ying Xi, nearly poking him.
Ying Xi dodged to the side.
His pinky finger brushed against Xie Qianli’s thigh as the candied haws swept from his chest past his face.
Ying Xi grabbed Xie Qianli’s wrist to maintain his balance.
Xie Qianli’s gaze became disorganized. His eyes widened suddenly.
Through the bracers, Ying Xi felt immense power. The muscles in Xie Qianli’s forearm were jumping.
Ying Xi hurriedly let go, but the child was still searching. The candied haws swayed back and forth in front of him.
“Mother, there are no seats in front!”
“That empty seat is dirty!”
Xie Qianli said in a deep voice, “Stand still.”
The child immediately stopped, clutching his candied haws in a fright.
Xie Qianli turned his wrist over, palm up, supporting Ying Xi’s hand to let him sit steadily.
Their palms brushed quickly. The difference in color and shape between the two hands was stark.
The scraping of the calluses felt very real. Ying Xi’s heart gave a heavy thud, followed by a fuzzy, fluttering sensation. Even the skin between his fingers felt tingly and itchy.
He rested his fingers on his lap and curled them. He adjusted his breathing.
He longed for that hand to tighten, to grip him firmly!
Ying Xi’s throat bobbed with thirst.
Su Xueyi’s gaze fell on the small action of Xie Qianli supporting the Emperor. He let out a sneer, his mouth not stopping, “By the way, General Xie, you’re dressed so flashily tonight. You didn’t have a date; were you specifically waiting for the Master?”
Xie Qianli pressed his lips together.
A romance between ruler and subject was taboo and couldn’t be easily spoken aloud, especially in front of so many outsiders!
They both held the same thoughts, yet Su Xueyi had intentionally exposed him. It was truly ruthless.
Ying Xi looked away from the shadow puppet play and turned back.
Ying Xi scrutinized Xie Qianli’s outfit once again, as if finally understanding some coincidences.
His voice was cool, “You’ve been waiting for Me? Why?”
Ying Xi’s tone rose slightly at the end.
Perhaps Ju’er had waited for him every day, and it was his unceasing persistence that had earned those two “coincidental” meetings at the lantern festival.
Ying Xi felt a surge of joy. He had deeper expectations.
But they were too subtle, and the timing still wasn’t right.
Xie Qianli, because he cherished him, was overly cautious. His throat felt heavy.
After thinking about it, Xie Qianli threw Su Xueyi’s malicious topic right back at him, “The Master also denied having a date with you. How did you know the Master was coming to the festival?”
Su Xueyi hadn’t expected the other party to ask a question instead of answering.
Su Xueyi’s gaze was briefly disorganized. He steadied himself and smoothly made up an excuse, “I was taking a walk nearby.”
And thus, the mystery of “how Xie Qianli always appeared at the festival” was glossed over in the back-and-forth of the conversation, leaving Ying Xi with a lingering, confused sense of disappointment.
Did Ju’er really have something he was hiding?
“Young Master!”
“I’ve finally found you, Young Master!”
A guard who had come along had been sent by Yu Jing to weave through the festival searching for the Emperor.
Hearing the call, Ying Xi pulled his thoughts back. The shadow puppet play had just finished, and the audience was gradually dispersing. Ying Xi turned back slowly, “What is it?”
“Superintendent… Steward Yu saw that the festival is ending. The clouds are covering the moon, and it might rain. He sent me to ask if the Young Master is going home.”
Ying Xi looked up at the sky. Without him noticing, the oval moon of the seventeenth had already tucked itself behind the clouds.
Was the lantern festival of Chang’an too bright, always tricking his eyes?
Or was there someone at the festival he wanted to see, always making him forget the passing of time?
Ying Xi stood up. “Let’s go.”
“Your—” Yu Jing heard footsteps and opened the carriage door to welcome them. His voice changed as he saw them, “…Majesty?”
Two men followed obediently behind the Imperial Presence.
General Xie, and Prime Minister Su.
The two men helped Ying Xi into the carriage. The wind had picked up outside, and with autumn rain imminent, Ying Xi permitted the two to ride with him.
The two men each thanked him for the grace and entered the carriage, splitting to the left and right.
Each was dressed brilliantly, and each possessed a different air.
As the carriage started moving, Yu Jing’s mind spun along with the wheels. He felt more and more shocked.
—It seems His Majesty’s heart has finally bloomed. All the blossoms are falling in the Imperial court. He’s going to take all the court’s talents for himself!
Was the Emperor going to take Prime Minister Su?
Su the Worthy Consort?
Xie the Empress?
Would there be others in the future?
Once his train of thought was opened, he couldn’t easily stop it.
Yu Jing’s thoughts were racing. He practically matched every young official whose name he could remember to a suitable title.
Could it be that by being intimate with the court officials, the ministers could just return to their mansions when not “attending to the bed,” saving the harem a fortune in expenses?
His Majesty was truly too brilliant!
The Grand Superintendent marveled in his heart, yet his face didn’t dare betray a thing.
Even though Yu Jing hadn’t caught them in the act, Su Xueyi’s conditions were perfectly suitable.
First, he was beautiful.
Second, he was quite talented.
Finally, his family had declined, so he relied entirely on the Emperor.
He was practically a helpless, pitiful little thing. Perhaps His Majesty could even take this opportunity to display his masculine prowess on Su Xueyi.
To flip him over… and be the one on top!
Yu Jing tried to guess his master’s intentions, feeling he shouldn’t favor one side.
Lately, Yu Jing had always been bringing up General Xie, which was a bit unfair. He was afraid he might fail.
The carriage passed the Prime Minister’s residence first. Since Su was about to arrive home, Yu Jing felt he should help the Prime Minister a bit for the sake of future work.
“It is all thanks to Prime Minister Su’s ‘righteousness over family’ that the court was stabilized in time.”
“There has been much talk about Prime Minister Su in Chang’an lately, yet he still dared to wander the festival with Your Majesty. It shows he is full of sincerity,” Yu Jing said.
The wheel hit a small stone, making a clack.
The carriage interior was extremely quiet.
Chewing over Yu Jing’s unintentional words, and given how Su Xueyi’s appearance had been too coincidental—completely different from Xie Qianli’s prior notification about frequenting the festival.
A sense of Imperial majesty gradually loomed over Ying Xi. He said ethereally, “Indeed, his courage is not small. There are countless people who want to kill him right now. Prime Minister Su not only dares to come out for a walk at night, but he can also find Me with such precision. Truly, he is full of sincerity.”
Su Xueyi’s Adam’s apple bobbed back and forth.
The silence intensified the pressure until it became unbearable.
Su Xueyi said with difficulty, “This subject is guilty! This subject shouldn’t have pried into Your Majesty’s whereabouts without permission!”
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