Hearing the name Si Nuo again, Guan Xingchen couldn’t help but recall that small wooden board painting the youth had shown him the first time they met.
“Have you confirmed everything?”
“Yes, Your Highness. Based on the contact information provided by Lu Cen, I accessed the background logs and verified that it is indeed Lord Si Nuo. There is no mistake. Now, we should…”
If it were anyone else, they would simply go and bring the person in for questioning. But this was Si Nuo, and that changed everything.
“Handle it according to standard procedure, but do not mention my involvement.”
Guan Xingchen clearly knew exactly what his adjutant was thinking. The adjutant hesitated, looking as if he had more to say. To the citizens of the Empire, Céil was a symbol of the royal family, but it also meant being a cursed line abandoned by the gods. The Céil family was undeniably powerful; every Emperor was the strongest esper of their time, protecting the borders as courageous gods of war. However, they were eventually defeated by mental instability.
Generation after generation fell into this curse of death. Now, only Guan Xingchen remained, and his own decline had already begun. He didn’t know how much time he had left before he, too, succumbed. A painter who could create works to soothe mental instability had finally appeared the adjutant didn’t want to let this opportunity slip. Even if the painter couldn’t cure their Highness yet, couldn’t they be nurtured and trained? But their Highness clearly didn’t want the painter to know about his condition.
“What are you agonizing over?” Seeing the adjutant standing still, Guan Xingchen looked up. “Even if you told him about my condition, he wouldn’t have the ability to cure me right now. Don’t put too much pressure on him.”
The adjutant suppressed his worries. “I understand, Your Highness.”
After leaving the apartment, the adjutant couldn’t help but wonder: if the central matching system had paired them together, did it mean Si Nuo was truly the key to curing their Highness’s mental instability? If that were the case, he absolutely could not let Si Nuo have any possibility of annulling the marriage.
To avoid startling Si Nuo, the adjutant went to the school alone, without any entourage, to find him. When he appeared outside the art studio, many in the classroom noticed. Although Zhang Yu didn’t know who the officer at the door was, he nudged Si Nuo, who was busy painting, to point him out. Si Nuo looked up instinctively and saw the adjutant.
…
Zhao Chunsheng, the instructor, had already spoken to the adjutant and then called out, “Si Nuo, someone is here to see you.”
As soon as they heard it was for Si Nuo, curious murmurs erupted in the classroom. “Who is that? Could that be Si Nuo’s matching partner?”
“Is Si Nuo’s match an officer?”
“He looks like he has a high rank, he’s a Colonel!”
Si Nuo didn’t expect the adjutant to come looking for him at such a time. Was there something wrong with Guan Xingchen? When he walked out, the adjutant smiled warmly. “Lord Si Nuo, I’ve come today to ask you about some official business. Would you mind if we went outside to talk?”
Official business? That didn’t seem to have anything to do with Guan Xingchen. What kind of official business could they have between them? With a flicker of suspicion, Si Nuo followed the adjutant out of school and into the hover-car waiting outside.
Inside the car, the adjutant brought up the subject of the “healing paintings.” Only then did Si Nuo realize why they had come. Without hiding anything, he nodded. “I am the one who paints them, but my current work is only effective for those with A to S-level mental power. It doesn’t work for anything higher.”
What Si Nuo said matched their investigation. The adjutant looked at the youth, who had just come of age and still carried a trace of youthful innocence. “Lord Si Nuo, would you mind if I rudely asked you to create a painting so we could observe the process on-site?”
“You don’t have to be so polite, of course I can. However, I didn’t bring—”
“Please, don’t worry, we have prepared the supplies. It is getting late, and His Highness hasn’t had lunch yet; why don’t we have lunch together?”
Without giving Si Nuo a chance to decline, the adjutant drove him straight to the First Military Academy apartments. Coming here a second time, Si Nuo’s mindset was entirely different.
Guan Xingchen, seeing them arrive from upstairs, pushed open the door to his study.
“Si Nuo.”
“Your Highness, I apologize for the intrusion.”
Guan Xingchen shook his head. “It is we who are begging for your assistance.”
The adjutant added, “Please wait a moment, Lord Si Nuo. I will have the supplies prepared. You may choose a scenic spot here.”
“Very well.” As Si Nuo responded, Guan Xingchen asked, “Would you like something to drink?”
“Anything is fine.” Si Nuo followed him inside. The first floor looked no different from his last visit. Guan Xingchen poured him a glass of juice. “Would you like to go upstairs and see? I’ve hung up the painting you gave me.”
Si Nuo naturally nodded. “I’d love to!” He was curious where the man had placed it. He had expected it to be in the study, but once upstairs, Guan Xingchen led him straight to the master bedroom and pushed the door open. He saw the painting hanging right above the headboard. He was somewhat surprised.
“It’s beautiful. I like it very much.”
Si Nuo felt his cheeks heat up. “Hanging it here… isn’t it a bit small?” Guan Xingchen’s bed was clearly a double bed, and while the painting was a perfect size for a single headboard, it looked quite small and awkward above a double bed.
“It does seem a bit small.” Guan Xingchen looked at Si Nuo, his dark eyes filled with expectation.
Si Nuo felt he understood what the man meant and laughed. “I’ll paint a larger one for you next time.”
Guan Xingchen looked away. “Good!”
The people the adjutant had sent returned quickly. “Your Highness, the supplies for Lord Si Nuo are ready.”
Si Nuo came back to his senses and said to Guan Xingchen, “I’ll head down now, Your Highness.”
Outside the apartment, he saw the easel set up on the grass, with paints, water buckets, and brushes all ready. Although the adjutant and the others wanted to observe, they stayed a fair distance away, as if afraid to disturb him. Si Nuo smiled at them. “You don’t have to stand so far away. You can come closer.”
The adjutant quickly replied, “This distance is fine, Lord Si Nuo. Please, paint at your ease.” Apart from wanting to provide Si Nuo with a peaceful environment, they were mindful of his relationship with their Highness and didn’t dare to crowd him.
Si Nuo saw that they were insistent, so he didn’t press the issue and nodded. “If you can’t see, you’re welcome to move closer, it’s fine.”
After checking his brush, Si Nuo looked toward the nearby grass, pine trees, and the blue sky. His hands were steady; looking at the view, it felt as though the painting was already formed in his mind. Each stroke he made was confident and full of spirit. At first, the men standing in the distance felt nothing, but as the colors on the white paper became more vibrant, their expressions began to change.
Si Nuo, immersed in his art, didn’t notice the condition of the people behind him. He felt he was in a great state today and was having fun.
Meanwhile, the men in the courtyard had unknowingly drifted closer. They felt their mental seas suddenly become serene and tranquil, as if bathing in warm sunlight. On a calm sea where water and sky merged into one, a gentle breeze stirred up a tiny, pleasant ripple.
When Si Nuo finished the final stroke and stepped back to look at his work, he nearly tripped over something behind him. Only then did he notice that the people who should have been standing far away had collapsed at his feet.
Si Nuo: “…” What is going on here?!
He looked up instinctively toward Guan Xingchen, who had appeared at the apartment door. “This really has nothing to do with me! I don’t know anything!”