Wang Dian dozed off for two days, and his cold had mostly improved.
Liang Ye was terrible at taking care of people. When he spilled medicine on his own collar for the umpteenth time, Wang Dian finally couldn’t stand it anymore. He snatched the medicine bowl and drank the large bowl in two gulps, gritting his teeth as he said, “Making me change clothes eight times a day, don’t think I don’t know what nonsense you’re thinking in your head.”
Liang Ye looked innocent as his warm palm covered Wang Dian’s waist, suggestively caressing it. “Zhen sees you’re almost better, so why don’t we—”
“Why don’t we go for a walk outside,” Wang Dian said with a forced smile, swatting away his paw. “Be human for once, Liang Ziyu.”
Liang Ye persistently took advantage of him, pulling open his damp collar and touching the small red birthmark on his chest. “Zhen wants to do it.”
“You don’t,” Wang Dian said. The skin exposed to the air clearly felt the chill, and he sneezed on cue, glaring at Liang Ye.
Liang Ye reluctantly tucked in his clothes, thinking he was being considerate as he said, “Then tomorrow.”
“…” Wang Dian automatically ignored him and, under Liang Ye’s burning gaze, changed into a clean undershirt. He got out of bed, preparing to put on his middle and outer robes.
As soon as his foot touched the ground, someone grabbed his arm. A strong force pulled him half a turn, and he ended up sitting on Liang Ye’s lap.
Wang Dian felt a bit dizzy from the turn. He looked up and glared at Liang Ye, warning him, “Don’t get sick.”
Liang Ye, unsatisfied, bounced his leg once, making Wang Dian cling to his shoulders. His face was full of provocation and defiance as he said, “Outside there’s nothing but snow and mud. What’s there to see? It’s better to look at Zhen.”
Wang Dian gave him a disdainful look. “I’m not interested in perverts.”
Liang Ye pondered for a moment, then suddenly said seriously, “You can sit like this and do it yourself—mmph.”
“If you dare say such things in broad daylight again, I’ll castrate you,” Wang Dian said, pinching Liang Ye’s mouth shut.
Liang Ye deliberately moved his leg. Wang Dian’s brows furrowed as he said coldly, “If you don’t want me to go out, just say so.”
“Zhen doesn’t want you to go out,” Liang Ye blinked, brazenly saying, “You’re not allowed to go anywhere.”
“Dream on,” Wang Dian said, grabbing Liang Ye’s cheek and giving it a hard pinch. “If you were really capable, you’d keep a good eye on me. Only fools tie people up and don’t let them go.”
“Don’t provoke Zhen,” Liang Ye snorted with a laugh. “Zhen originally planned to keep you bedridden every day, but softened my heart and let you off.”
Wang Dian’s mouth twitched as he sneered, “You didn’t even let me off when I passed out, you bastard. Don’t try to put on airs, you’re just a beast.”
Liang Ye felt no shame and messed up Wang Dian’s neatly worn undershirt. Wang Dian struggled with him for a while, working up a sweat. But Liang Ye was much stronger and seemed to be toying with him, wearing out most of Wang Dian’s strength. Angered, Wang Dian bit down on Liang Ye’s neck.
Liang Ye lazily leaned against the headboard, letting Wang Dian gnaw on him as he used the tassel from the bed curtain to tie a pretty knot around Wang Dian’s wrist.
Wang Dian looked down at it, his Adam’s apple bobbing. He instinctively wanted to touch his sleeve but stopped himself under Liang Ye’s mocking gaze. “What are you looking at?”
Liang Ye waved his own wrist in front of Wang Dian’s eyes. Without the Gu worm, his wrist was fair and slender, even the fine lines and blue veins carrying an alluring quality.
Wang Dian lowered his head and compared it with his own wrist for a while. Even the small branching veins and their pale blue color were identical.
Liang Ye looked along with him, picking up Wang Dian’s hand and examining it back and forth before seriously looking at Wang Dian’s face.
“It’s a bit creepy,” Wang Dian said, pushing Liang Ye’s face away. “You look like you want to eat someone.”
Liang Ye licked his lips. “Zhen is very hungry.”
“We just had breakfast. You ate three baskets of buns—” Wang Dian realized this hunger was different from the other kind. Some not-so-healthy guesses floated through his mind. “Did you used to do it to yourself before?”
Liang Ye gave him a complicated look. “Wang Dian, your mind is full of filth.”
Wang Dian raised an eyebrow, flirtatiously stroking Liang Ye’s cheek. “Baby, it’s only human nature.”
“Frivolous,” Liang Ye said. He had always been lenient with himself but strict with others. After criticizing Wang Dian’s evil thoughts, he still refused to let him get up.
Wang Dian was quite aroused by his teasing. Faced with Liang Ye’s so-called principles and bottom lines, he wasn’t so firm either. He pulled down the tassel from the other side of the bed curtain. The surroundings instantly became dark. He fumbled in the darkness and tied it around Liang Ye’s wrist.
At noon, sunlight penetrated through the thick bed curtains, barely sending in some light.
Wang Dian, with his eyes closed, patted Liang Ye’s face. Liang Ye grabbed his wrist and said lazily, “This doesn’t count.”
“If we really did it, we’d be wrecked,” Wang Dian said, kicking Liang Ye’s calf. “Get up, let’s bathe and then go out.”
Liang Ye whined and hugged him, refusing to move. Wang Dian unceremoniously kicked him off the bed.
Liang Ye sat on the ground, grimacing and glaring at him.
Wang Dian stepped barefoot on the hem of Liang Ye’s robe, embroidered with dark golden dragons, looking down at him. “Are you going or not?”
“Going,” Liang Ye wrinkled his nose, his gaze flickering. He swiftly picked Wang Dian up in his arms. “Zhen will take you to bathe first.”
—
The small city in Southern Zhao called Weisui was named after the Weisui River. It wasn’t particularly prosperous, but it was peaceful. Even in the depths of winter, it wasn’t too cold. As the New Year approached, the streets were lively. The aroma of fried food wafted everywhere, occasionally punctuated by the sound of firecrackers. Children in thick padded jackets ran by, laughing and shouting in the local dialect, waving willow branches.
This place wasn’t far from Qingcang County. The temperature was just right for Wang Dian. Wearing a thick robe, he wasn’t cold, and it wasn’t full of snow and mud as Liang Ye had claimed.
Wang Dian had been bedridden with a cold for several days and didn’t have much strength. Liang Ye, showing no restraint, didn’t stop until he achieved his goal. Wang Dian ended up falling for his tricks during the bath.
Wang Dian was somewhat annoyed and had been giving Liang Ye the cold shoulder.
Liang Ye pretended to fuss over him, but his eyes betrayed his satisfaction and smugness. He held out a small bird made of colored clay. “Look, doesn’t this resemble the little blue bird Zhen used to keep?”
“…” Wang Dian remembered the beautiful little bird he had killed with two fingers and felt a pang in his heart. He also recalled the prized horse that had died miserably in the outskirts of Shiyuan City. His face darkened even more, and he coldly uttered one word. “Scram.”
Liang Ye waved the clay bird in front of Wang Dian’s eyes, then happily admired it himself for a long while. Suddenly, he said, “But Zhen doesn’t really like keeping pets. Your horse, though good, was too fawning. Keeping it would have been an eyesore.”
He casually crushed the clay bird and tossed it on the ground, dusting off his hands. “There are plenty of good horses in the palace. Zhen will choose another good one for you.”
A vein pulsed on Wang Dian’s forehead, and his lowered voice carried a hint of anger. “Liang Ye!”
Liang Ye, who had been walking beside him, excitedly leaned forward to look at him, thinking Wang Dian wanted to “talk” again. But Wang Dian just pointed at the wooden skewer and clay pieces on the ground, saying with exasperation, “Can’t you stop littering?”
Liang Ye’s eyelids drooped in disappointment. He stepped forward, using a bit of internal force to crush the clay and skewer into powder, muttering, “Fussy.”
“That horse cost me three hundred taels,” Wang Dian said. “Adding my emotional damages, you can compensate me with five hundred taels.”
“Zhen will give you an even better horse,” Liang Ye said.
Wang Dian glanced at him. “I don’t want it. Seeing it would remind me of you. It’s distressing.”
He strode forward after saying this.
“Wang Dian!” Liang Ye called out, his voice slightly urgent, but a playful smile spread across his face.
Wang Dian walked quite fast until he saw someone roasting sunflower seeds by the roadside. He stopped to watch. Liang Ye, biting a freshly baked pastry and holding a paper package, squeezed through the crowd to stand next to Wang Dian. He stuffed the half-eaten pastry into Wang Dian’s mouth. “It’s red bean.”
Wang Dian chewed a couple of times and frowned. “It’s okay.”
“It’s not good,” Liang Ye said disdainfully.
“…If it’s not good, why give it to me?” Wang Dian glared at him.
“Who else would I give it to?” Liang Ye said righteously. “Southern Zhao’s pastries are too sweet and greasy.”
Wang Dian was a bit shocked by Liang Ye’s brazenness, but then realized it was typical of him. “Childish.”
Liang Ye’s mind wasn’t on the pastry. He was enthusiastically learning to crack sunflower seeds like the old man next to him. Hearing the old man ask for three jin, he extravagantly ordered ten jin.
“Just the two of us can’t finish that,” Wang Dian tried to stop him. “They’ll get damp if kept too long.”
“Zhen—” Liang Ye heard Wang Dian cough once and got the hint. “They’re really quite tasty. We can share them with others in the mansion.”
Wang Dian didn’t believe his nonsense. This guy was extremely possessive of his food; he wouldn’t share a bite with others even if it was going to spoil.
Under Wang Dian’s threatening gaze, Liang Ye reluctantly halved the order to five jin. He even tried to haggle like the old man, but Wang Dian dragged him out of the crowd by his collar.
Liang Ye grabbed a handful of freshly roasted seeds for Wang Dian, who didn’t want to eat in the cold wind and put them back. Liang Ye said incredulously, “You want Zhen to shell them for you?”
Wang Dian looked at him as if he were an idiot.
Reluctantly, Liang Ye shelled a seed and put it in Wang Dian’s mouth, looking at him expectantly.
“…” Wang Dian chewed woodenly. “Thanks.”
So Liang Ye began tirelessly shelling seeds for him, occasionally popping one into his mouth, each time catching Wang Dian off guard—making him want to hit Liang Ye.
Wang Dian passively ate the seeds while browsing, buying many small trinkets. Sometimes Liang Ye watched eagerly, other times he tugged at Wang Dian’s jade pendant tassel boredly, indicating his disinterest and urging him to move on. He was quite annoying.
“Young master, look at this handkerchief. It’s perfect to bring back for your wife. It’s the most fashionable style in Weisui City, even nobles in the capital use it,” the shopkeeper enthusiastically recommended to Wang Dian.
Wang Dian looked at the delicate patterns and waved his hand. “He wouldn’t like it.”
When Liang Ye heard the word “wife,” his expression soured. Especially when he heard Wang Dian say “she wouldn’t like it,” thinking he meant his deceased wife, he said coldly, “Who says I don’t like it?”
The shopkeeper was stunned by this chilling, murderous male voice, clearly not understanding. “Oh… this young master likes it… that’s… that’s good too.”
Wang Dian turned to look at Liang Ye. “You like it?”
Liang Ye nodded with a sour face.
“Then please get one for us,” Wang Dian said pleasantly to the confused shopkeeper. “It seems your craftsmanship is exquisite. My wife is usually quite picky.”
The shopkeeper finally understood, his face lighting up with a smile as he handed Liang Ye a handkerchief embroidered with pale yellow flowers. Liang Ye took it distastefully, glancing at it.
Wang Dian paid and continued walking. Liang Ye irritably poked his shoulder. “You even know what kind of handkerchief your wife likes?”
“…” Wang Dian turned to him exasperatedly. “There is no wife.”
“Zhen doesn’t believe your lies,” Liang Ye sneered, imitating the old man by spitting out a sunflower seed shell.
Wang Dian wanted to cover his face and pretend not to know him. He pulled Liang Ye along, walking quickly. “When I marry you properly someday, you’ll be the real wife, the first wife.”
Liang Ye visibly cheered up again. Seeing a group of people crowding to buy Spring Festival couplets, he insisted on joining the commotion.
“We’re staying at an inn. We don’t need to hang them,” Wang Dian said.
“Then we’ll buy a house to hang them in,” Liang Ye said, shoving his precious sunflower seeds into Wang Dian’s arms. He rolled up his sleeves and squeezed into the crowd of older women. Wang Dian tried to pull him back but was too late.
Then he heard a series of small gasps. Wang Dian turned away, unable to watch. After a while, he saw Liang Ye emerge with a stack of red paper, his face dark.
“What happened?” Wang Dian asked, taking the couplets from his hand and unfolding them.
“Someone groped Zhen’s bottom,” Liang Ye said, extremely displeased. “Several times.”
Wang Dian tried to think of the saddest thing in his life, his hands holding the couplets trembling slightly.
Liang Ye said darkly, “Zhen wants to kill them.”
“Let it go, let’s not sweat the small stuff. It was just a couple of gropes,” Wang Dian said, keeping a straight face. “Maybe they thought you were too handsome. It’s understandable.”
Liang Ye, rarely at a loss for words, gloomily looked back at the group of older women, receiving several flirtatious glances. Wang Dian quickly pulled him away.
Liang Ye saw Wang Dian’s upturned mouth corners and said ominously, “Is it funny?”
Wang Dian shook his head halfway, then couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter.
Liang Ye narrowed his eyes, displeased.
Sensing danger, Wang Dian slapped Liang Ye’s bottom. “Now it’s covered. It’s mine.”
Liang Ye lifted his chin, looking punchable. “Taking liberties with Zhen in broad daylight, how improper.”
Wang Dian held up two fingers. Liang Ye asked, confused, “What does that mean?”
“The debt you owe,” Wang Dian said. “The number of times you’ve misbehaved these past few days, minus the times I’ve slept with you before. Eight times.”
Liang Ye looked at him oddly. “Why are you keeping count?”
“Of course, to collect the debt with interest,” Wang Dian patted his lower back.
Liang Ye sneered, “Before, it was only because Zhen allowed it. Zhen is the ruler of a nation, how could Zhen be beneath someone—hiss!”
Wang Dian slowly withdrew his foot, smiling slightly. “Don’t ruin my mood. Shut up.”
Liang Ye’s face contorted. He wanted to hold his foot but couldn’t lose face, so he just glared at Wang Dian angrily. “Dream on.”
“Then may the best man win,” Wang Dian said with a smile. “Don’t cry when the time comes.”
Liang Ye suddenly leaned in and quickly bit Wang Dian’s ear, then straightened up as if nothing had happened. He taunted, “Clearly, the one who cried before was—”
Liang Ye stared at him in shock.
In public, under everyone’s gaze, Wang Dian held Liang Ye’s chin and kissed him.
The surrounding crowd immediately let out gasps of surprise. Some people with children dropped their vegetables to cover their children’s eyes. Some even started cursing, calling it scandalous and unbearable to watch.
Wang Dian didn’t care. He held Liang Ye’s head and gave him a deep kiss, satisfied to see Liang Ye’s entire face visibly turn red. He smiled provocatively.
Someone in the crowd screamed.
Liang Ye snapped out of his daze. He glared fiercely at Wang Dian, then grabbed their bag of sunflower seeds, peanuts, pastries, couplets, and other miscellaneous items with one hand. With the other hand, he grabbed Wang Dian, leapt onto a rooftop using his lightness skill, and hastily fled the noisy market.
