After a bit of a commotion and finishing lunch, it was already the hour of Wei. Yan Yi washed the bowls clean, scooped out the remaining porridge from the pot, and drank it hastily. He had a big appetite; the amount that could fill Xie Jinning’s stomach was just a base for him. However, he didn’t plan to start a fire to cook more for himself. He put the smoked meat into the cupboard, cleaned the pots, bowls, and stove, then went next door to grab his backpack and wooden bow, heading towards the southern forest.
There was no fresh meat at home. The chickens had to be kept for laying eggs to sell, not for slaughter. To satisfy the needs of this pampered young master, he had to check the mountains. If he was lucky, he might catch some fresh wild chickens or rabbits.
Oh right, Yan Yi paused for a moment. He forgot to ask the boy’s name. Also, he didn’t know how his injuries were, or if he needed any medicine. With larger strides, Yan Yi thought he should hurry and return quickly.
“Xiao Yan, off to hunt again?” A middle-aged man approached from the foot of the mountain, carrying a bundle of firewood on his back. His skin was dark and ruddy, with an honest and simple face. He also held a few wild vegetables and some green spherical objects.
“Uncle Li,” Yan Yi nodded in response.
Seeing him with a bow, Li Yong chuckled, “You’re really something, using that wooden stick to take down those running and jumping creatures from afar. I can’t do it; I can only set small traps at most.”
Not knowing where his martial arts and archery skills came from, Yan Yi could only politely say, “Practice makes perfect. You’ll get it with more learning.”
“Ah, forget it. You taught me for so long last time, and I still couldn’t get it. I shouldn’t trouble you again.”
Li Yong waved his hand, not continuing the topic. He leaned closer to Yan Yi, winking, “Xiao Yan, I heard that the Xie family next door, that Xie Zhu, is actually a child from a wealthy family, right?”
Xie Zhu had left with some unpleasantness, causing quite a stir. The villagers all saw it. Last night, Xie Jinning’s carriage entering the village was also seen by some villagers who hadn’t slept yet. The village was small and isolated, so news spread quickly. It wasn’t surprising that Li Yong, living at the village entrance, knew about it.
Since they saw each other often, Yan Yi thought there was nothing he couldn’t say, so he replied, “That’s true.”
“So the one living in the Xie family now is the child raised by the wealthy family?”
Once the gossip box was opened, it flowed like a river, needing no response. Li Yong continued on his own, “Looking at it this way, that Xie Zhu kid really is… tsk. He was cold since he was young, not fond of getting close to people. People used to praise him for being calm and quiet, but who knew he was cold-blooded. Brother Xie and Xiao Fang raised him for so many years, gave him everything good, and he just left without any regard for feelings.”
“Tsk tsk, it seems rich people are like this. One doesn’t want a son, and the other doesn’t want a father. Truly, birds of a feather flock together.”
Yan Yi remained silent.
Li Yong sneered and asked, “Hey, how’s that young master? Did he cause trouble with you? Being raised by such people, I guess that kid isn’t anything good either. He definitely won’t stay in this place…”
Glancing at the sky, Yan Yi’s brows furrowed slightly, interrupting, “Uncle Li, Auntie made food and is waiting for you at home.”
“Ah, look at my memory,” Li Yong said, “I’ll head back first. You take your time hunting.”
“Alright.”
“Oh, by the way,” after walking a few steps, Li Yong turned back and pointed in a direction for Yan Yi, “The wild chestnuts over there are ripe. Boil them in water and peel them; they’re delicious.”
Thanking Li Yong, Yan Yi looked around, confirmed there were no prey in the area, and headed in the direction Li Yong pointed.
Not far away, after pushing aside layers of grass and vines, he found green chestnut balls quietly lying among the large dark green leaves, densely packed into a whole patch. Yan Yi tightened his sleeves. His palms were calloused and thick, not afraid of the prickly chestnut shells. He easily filled half his backpack. Estimating that these were enough for both the Xie family and himself, he stopped picking.
Fortunately, there were plenty of chestnuts, and he hadn’t even picked a third of them.
On the way back, he slowed his pace, calming his mind, not missing any clues. In the distance, there seemed to be a strange sound. His ears twitched slightly, and he slowly put down his backpack, silently approaching.
Under a tree more than a hundred meters away, a gray-brown wild chicken was cautiously looking left and right. Not sensing any human presence, it lowered its head to catch insects, its tail feathers shining in the sunlight, colorful and vibrant.
Pecking out a caterpillar from the grass, the wild chicken clucked twice, holding the insect in its beak, completely unaware of the hunter behind it, who was holding his breath, bow raised, ready to shoot.
As the sharp beak opened and the caterpillar entered its throat, an arrow whistled through the air, piercing the chicken’s neck, pinning it firmly to the tree trunk.
A clean kill.
Returning to the village, Yan Yi’s backpack was full. He first delivered some chestnuts and wild vegetables and fruits to the elderly in the village who had difficulty moving, then took the remaining catch back to the Xie family.
…
Xie Jinning was utterly bored that afternoon.
He wanted to get up and walk around, but after enduring the pain and pulling up his pants, he barely took a few steps before breaking into a sweat. His rear felt like it had been roasted and sprinkled with chili. Every friction between the fabric was a huge torment.
Xie Jinning had to give up, returning to the bed to lie down, but it was still uncomfortable. He called out a few times, but no one responded. Thinking that the person had probably gone out, he simply took off his pants and half of his underpants.
The cool air was just right to cool the wound. Xie Jinning exhaled a breath of turbid air, hugged the pillow, and buried his face in his crossed arms.
Bored to death, he turned his head to look out the window, but there was nothing to see, just a yellow wall embedded with stones under the blue sky.
“So annoying.” Xie Jinning counted a few stones before losing patience, starting to complain softly, “Bastard, jerk, leaving me here without a care, talking about responsibility, lying to me again!”
Moreover, if it weren’t for him, he might have already run away by now. How could he have been beaten half-paralyzed, lying on this half-hard bed counting stones?!
The more he thought about it, the more annoyed he became. Xie Jinning rubbed his face, feeling that his flesh was less than before. He sighed gloomily and took out the jade pendant from under the pillow.
The jade pendant was warm to the touch, its surface smooth and delicate. Xie Jinning carefully traced every detail with his fingertips.
A deer body with dragon scales, wolf hooves, and a cow tail, with a single horn on its head, carved in mutton-fat white jade, was a qilin.
Qilin, lin’er.
His pale pink fingertips suddenly paused, and Xie Jinning realized that there was a tiny crack where the qilin’s eye should be.
Thinking he had accidentally caused it, his heart raced, both anxious and hurried. After observing for a long time, he found it was an old wound.
Perhaps it was a wound caused when he carelessly tossed it back into the jewelry box. Over the years, this jade pendant had been pressed at the bottom of the box, rarely seeing the light of day, so no one noticed.
A flawed jade, a blind lin.
Was it to say… that everything had traces to follow?
A sour feeling spread from his chest. Xie Jinning stiffly forbade himself from overthinking, quickly blinking to dispel the mist in his eyes, pressing the jade pendant to his heart, and unknowingly fell into a deep sleep.
The sky gradually darkened.
In his sleep, he smelled a waft of meat aroma. Before opening his eyes, his nose twitched several times, and his consciousness gradually cleared.
Opening his eyes, fully awake, the first thing he felt was numbness. His arms had maintained the same position for too long, with his head resting on them, causing poor blood circulation and almost losing sensation.
Xie Jinning tried several times, only managing to slowly move his hands to his sides. He wanted to push himself up but couldn’t. His arms felt like they weren’t part of his body, completely out of control.
Finally regaining some strength, he endured the numbness and lifted his upper body. As soon as he rose a bit, his pupils contracted, and he fell back down.
“Ugh…”
His legs naturally clamped together, toes curled, and Xie Jinning buried his forehead in the pillow, breathing rapidly, not daring to move.
After digesting the porridge from lunch, only water remained. He had been lying on the bed all afternoon, and when he pressed on his lower abdomen just now, he almost…
It was simply too… too embarrassing!
His earlobes and cheeks quickly turned crimson, like a brush dipped in vermilion falling on a scroll. Xie Jinning bit his lower lip, and after enduring the tooth-aching urge to relieve himself, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Just as he was about to get up, the door suddenly opened. Yan Yi, holding a ceramic bowl, met his gaze, and both were momentarily stunned.
In the dimly lit room, the figure on the bed was the only bright spot.
The young man wore a water-green brocade robe, with black hair and snow-white skin, his features delicate and beautiful. The exposed skin was glossy and smooth.
Such a face was already eye-catching, but at this moment, his clothes were disheveled and wrinkled, his waist half-collapsed, the pale white flesh marked with red, covered in handprints.
Under the thick black lashes, his bright apricot eyes shimmered with tears. When he looked at someone while biting his lip, he inexplicably resembled a young courtesan, wronged and pleading after being mistreated, exuding a youthful yet deadly allure.
Yan Yi, usually proud of his keen senses, found himself at a loss.
Though holding a steaming bowl of food, he seemed to smell the sweet scent emanating from the young man.
Having just stepped over the threshold, he found himself unable to advance or retreat, caught in a stalemate.
Xie Jinning didn’t notice his odd behavior. He was staring intently at the ceramic bowl in Yan Yi’s hand.
The aroma invaded his nostrils dominantly, and Xie Jinning gulped, his tongue sweeping away nonexistent drool from his lips.
“Come in already, why are you standing at the door?”
Yan Yi lowered his gaze, quickly placing the tray on the table, turning his back, not daring to look again. Yet the details of that glance lingered in his mind.
His fists clenched at his sides, veins bulging on his forearms. He took a deep breath, exhaling heavily, his tone stern, “In broad daylight, why are you taking off your pants? It’s simply, simply shameless!”
Only when he mentioned it did Xie Jinning realize he had forgotten to pull up his pants. Though initially embarrassed, hearing this, he was directly amused:
“You were the one who hit me, causing my injury, and now you’re saying this to me? You’re simply too much. I’ve never seen someone as unreasonable as you!”
He was alone in the room earlier, so what did it matter about propriety? As long as he was comfortable, it was fine. This person was as pedantic as his old tutor.
No, how would a rustic villager know about propriety?
Xie Jinning’s thoughts were interrupted by the rich aroma of meat. He shook his head, dismissing the thought.
And Yan Yi, having been labeled with a big hat, wanted to explain but felt he couldn’t out-argue Xie Jinning, so he remained silent.
His chest heaved, shaking off the inexplicable thoughts in his mind. When he spoke again, his voice was hoarse, “Put on your clothes quickly, it’s time to eat.”
“Also,” with a hint of seriousness, Yan Yi said, “You’re being disrespectful. I’m over seven years older than you. You should call me ‘big brother.'”
“Got it, Yan Yi!”
Xie Jinning stuck out his tongue at his back, slowly starting to put on his pants.
The underpants were made of fine fabric, smooth and soft, but even a feather falling on Xie Jinning’s buttocks would make him tremble in pain.
Amidst the rustling of clothes and the boy’s muffled groans, probably from extreme pain, the image of that blood-stained, trembling soft mound flashed before Yan Yi’s eyes. He looked at his calloused palms, frowning in thought.
He had deliberately restrained his strength, yet still injured the boy like this. Was it because the young master’s skin was too delicate, or had his strength increased again?
Never mind, either way, it was his fault.
“Yan Yi!”
A call came from behind, and Yan Yi stiffened, “What is it?”
“I’m talking to you, turn around already!”
Only then did Yan Yi turn around, deliberately avoiding eye contact.
“Look at me.” Xie Jinning was impatient, “Are you a frog? I have to poke you to make you jump.”
At this point, Yan Yi realized that those slaps had completely reversed the dynamic between him and the boy.
Now, the boy wasn’t afraid of him at all, even taking the lead, not treating him as an older brother but more like a servant.
The key was, being ordered around like this, he didn’t even feel unwilling.
How strange.
“What are you thinking? Come over and help me.” Xie Jinning knelt on the bed, struggling to support himself, opening his arms to Yan Yi, “I can’t move, take me down.”
He ordered with confidence, raising his chin in a proud manner, as if being ordered by him was a great blessing.
Thanks to his good looks, though not fully matured, his features held a budding beauty. In a few years, he would surely bloom brilliantly, with unparalleled grace, captivating at first sight.
But that was if he still lived in that world of wealth and splendor.
Hetian Village had a variable climate, with the summer sun being particularly scorching and unbearably hot. Fortunately, the young master wasn’t sent back during that time, or he would have been sunburned, losing a layer of skin.
However, with such delicate and beautiful features, even if tanned, he wouldn’t be ugly.
Aunt Xie must have been a beauty in her youth.
Yan Yi walked to the bedside, and as soon as he supported Xie Jinning’s arm, the latter, eager to get off the bed, stumbled over the thin quilt, losing balance and falling into his arms.
The soft body, carrying a rich fragrance, fell into his embrace, the smooth hair brushing against his cheek and neck, the itch spreading through his veins, finally converging in his heart.
Yan Yi’s body tensed, his hand naturally wrapping around the slender waist.
Too thin. No matter how many times he touched it, he always had this feeling.
Xie Jinning landed solidly, his shoulder hitting the hard muscle, causing him to inhale sharply. His outstretched hand happened to press against the man’s chest, feeling the heat through the fabric.
Xie Jinning was naturally cold, with icy hands and feet. In winter, he needed a heated floor and several warming stones in the bed to sleep comfortably.
He felt a bit envious, but on the surface, he frowned, hitting twice, muttering, “How did you grow so hard like a rock, it hurt me.”
The places he hit burned as if on fire. Yan Yi almost lost control of his breathing, his hand sliding under Xie Jinning’s ribs, half-hugging him to the table.
The chestnut roast chicken on the table was still steaming, the soup surface shimmering with oil, just looking at it made one’s mouth water. Beside it, the black smoked meat was sliced thinly, mixed with fresh green wild vegetables, offering a unique flavor.
In a ceramic bowl were a few cornbreads, more yellow and coarse than those at noon, and a separate bowl of rice.
Considering the meals of the past few days, this was a feast.
Xie Jinning almost eagerly sat on the wooden stool, but immediately jumped up in pain, glaring at Yan Yi.
Just moments ago, he was eyeing the table with shining eyes, and now he was angry again.
Truly, food over people.
Yan Yi sighed inwardly, resigned, going to the bed to smooth out the crumpled quilt, folding it into a cushion size, placing it on the wooden stool.
He held Xie Jinning’s arm, patiently helping him adjust his posture, “Sit a bit forward, lean your body, put your weight on your thighs.”
Glancing at the rounded, full part under the waist, Yan Yi felt a prick, quickly releasing his hand, his throat tightening, “Is it better?”
Xie Jinning hummed uncomfortably, but his brows relaxed.
The posture was awkward, his chest almost touching the table, but with his thighs supporting him, it didn’t press on the wound.
He picked up the chopsticks, grabbing the chicken piece he had been craving, bringing it to his lips, turning to the man still standing dazedly, “Do I have to invite you to sit and eat?”
“…Got it.”
The aroma was enticing, and the taste didn’t disappoint. The chicken pieces were neatly cut, just the right size to fit in the mouth, stewed until tender and falling off the bone, juicy and rich. The chestnuts, boiled and peeled, were soft and sweet, with the chicken’s savory flavor.
Without any spices like star anise or bay leaves, the freshness of the ingredients alone was enough to make the meat flavorful and enticing. The smoked meat, sliced thinly, dispersed its saltiness, and with the crisp wild vegetables, it was refreshing and not greasy.
Even though the rice was clearly old, with a distinct grainy texture, Xie Jinning ate it well. He took a bite of chicken, then a mouthful of rice, his cheeks puffed, chewing with eyes slightly curved, looking satisfied.
Noticing this with the corner of his eye, Yan Yi felt relieved.
The new rice hadn’t been harvested yet, and there wasn’t much food at home. He was worried the young master wouldn’t like the old rice and would throw a tantrum.
Fortunately, he wasn’t too hard to please.
Swallowing the food, his small tongue swept over his lips, picking up the remaining rice grains. Satisfied and full, Xie Jinning didn’t hesitate to praise, “Not bad, it’s quite tasty.”
Not expecting the compliment, Yan Yi was momentarily stunned, his tone a bit airy, “…Thank you?”
He caught the chicken, cooked the meal, and was casually praised, yet he thanked him.
His amber eyes shifted, Xie Jinning smiled, “No need to thank.”
After a full meal, his cheeks flushed, the boy’s eyes sparkled, his smile bright, making the dim room seem brighter, his lips, coated with a layer of oil, opened and closed, shiny and tempting.
“If I could eat this every day, that would be even better.”