That night, Yun Zhensong was thoroughly intoxicated. With the night turning chilly and bodily heat leaving one prone to catching a cold, Qi Jianshuang carried him into the house and laid him upon the bed. Just as he turned to have someone change Yun Zhensong’s clothes, his sleeve was tightly gripped.
His hair ribbon had somehow come loose, letting his soft, dark hair tumble down in a disarrayed waterfall. Yun Zhensong’s flushed, white-and-ruddy face was deeply buried within it as he mumbled, “Cold… hold me to sleep.”
This fellow… is he naturally adept at acting spoiled?
Qi Jianshuang pondered for a moment before speaking with an amused, teasing tone to the drunken man: “Do you know who I am?”
“…Hongke.”
“What did you just say?”
He suddenly lifted his head, grievance flashing in his eyes as he pitifully repeated, “Cold, hold me to sleep.”
“Alright,” Qi Jianshuang said playfully, “as you wish.”
Facing a face like this, who could help but have their heart stirred?
A hangover brought magnified headaches; merely rolling over made Yun Zhensong feel as though a screwdriver had been jammed into his temple, churning and grinding against flesh and blood with a few brutal turns.
“Ah…” Yun Zhensong clutched his head with both hands, curling into a ball. Suddenly sensing something blocking his side still half-asleep and suffering from a splitting headache he instinctively curled his entire body against that source of rolling heat.
“What is it?”
A magnetic voice with a lingering, deep cadence drifted into Yun Zhensong’s ears.
Yun Zhensong’s eyes snapped open, his headache temporarily forgotten. He bolted upright in shock, staring dazedly at the scene before him.
Qi Jianshuang was lying on his side right next to him. Because the bed was rather narrow and Qi Jianshuang possessed a massive frame, his back was practically suspended half in mid-air, on the verge of tumbling off with the slightest roll. At that moment, he was pinching the bridge of his nose with a furrowed brow, looking at Yun Zhensong’s look of utter astonishment with a mixture of helplessness and resignation.
When it all came down to it, he had simply been too lazy to move away. Clearly, once Yun Zhensong had fallen sound asleep, his grip had slackened, but not only had Qi Jianshuang refused to leave, he had even closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around the young man’s slender, delicate waist. In his dreams, Yun Zhensong had gravitated toward this warmth and solid embrace, instinctively burrowing closer.
How could a hot-blooded man like Qi Jianshuang possibly endure such fondling? He had instantly withdrawn his arm, yet still refused to leave the bed, maintaining a half-lying, half-suspended posture as he dozed off fitfully through the night. Awakened by Yun Zhensong, his entire body was left aching, swollen, and stiff.
With his back to the morning light, Qi Jianshuang slowly sat up, casting his shadow over Yun Zhensong.
He raised an eyebrow. “If you claim to remember nothing of what you said and did while drunk, I’ll take my losses and let you do whatever you want with me.”
Tracing it back, I was the one who indulged you anyway.
Memories gradually crystallized amid the throbbing pain. He rubbed the bridge of his nose, offering an awkward, sheepish laugh. “…I remember bits and pieces, I suppose.”
Your courage is painfully small! You should have just let us consummate the real deal directly, saving me all this agonizing overthinking!
Qi Jianshuang narrowed his eyes. “Then are you planning to maintain this guarded posture?” If Zhensong weren’t so defensive…
Asking himself honestly, the very first time he laid eyes on Yun Zhensong, Qi Jianshuang had taken a fancy to his face. Through subsequent interactions, he discovered that Yun Zhensong couldn’t hide anything on his expression: joy, disappointment, sorrow, and anger were all written plainly across those bright, sparkling peach-blossom eyes, hooking Qi Jianshuang’s heart and stirring his protective instincts. It made him agree to many absurd requests—such as staying up late to watch the stars with him last night.
After experiencing this night, Qi Jianshuang finally saw through his own feelings: he adored Yun Zhensong’s face to distraction and craved his body. As for his heart, Qi Jianshuang didn’t plan on surrendering it just yet.
Yet he also refused to resort to coercion; matters of the bed required mutual consent.
Putting on a casual shrug, Yun Zhensong offered a dry chuckle. “Didn’t process it in time, haha.”
Aren’t you still owing me an embrace?
Both men harbored their own hidden agendas while maintaining calm exteriors and churning currents within.
Yun Zhensong urged, “You’d better sneak out quickly! If those two catch sight of you, even jumping into the Yellow River won’t wash this clean!”
Qi Jianshuang gave him a strange look, hesitating for ages without offering a reminder. He had assumed Yun Zhensong was simply being overly kind-hearted, given that he was someone capable of uttering phrases like “all people are created equal.”
“Too late.”
Before the words could fade, Yusheng pushed the door open gently, intending to wake his master, only for his eyes to be greeted first by Qi Jianshuang standing barefoot beside the bed!
He was half-dressed, exposing the scars across his chest, with fluid muscle lines clearly visible beneath thin layers of cloth.
Standing nine feet tall, he nearly blinded Yusheng’s eyes. Stunned into dumb silence, Yusheng slammed the door shut with a loud bang, his face flushing crimson as he shouted inside: “Sorry, sorry! I went to the wrong… wait a minute! No! This is my master’s courtyard!”
“Zhou Si!!” Yusheng bolted away at a dead sprint, his voice fading into the distance but remaining piercingly loud. “Zhou Si, get over here right now!!”
Just as Yun Zhensong thought his innocence was ruined for good, Qi Jianshuang casually remarked, “Warming the bed for the master.”
Lowering his own status so effortlessly left Yun Zhensong dumbfounded. “Huh?”
“Oh, you scared the life out of me.” Yusheng patted his chest, latching onto Zhou Si—who was on the verge of rushing in to beat up Hongke—and added, “Never mind then. Master, are you planning to sleep a bit longer, or wash up and have breakfast?”
Ah… so that kind of explanation worked, too.
“No more sleeping, there are still plenty of matters to handle today.”
With his earlobes burning red, Yun Zhensong avoided Qi Jianshuang’s placid gaze and hurried in mincing steps behind the screen. “You two get out first, I’ll change my clothes myself.”
Just as he found a moment of peace, the long-missing system abruptly went online.
【Greetings, Host. System 1224 is online and will now issue Task Three.】
Go ahead, let’s hear it.
【Task Three: Successfully sow seeds and thoroughly transform the saline-alkali land. Time limit: half a month.】
【Hint: This task is intimately tied to subsequent plot developments and must be completed during the optimal sowing window.】
【Difficulty: Three stars. Rewards are quite generous.】
His task for today was to inspect the saline-alkali land. At a normal pace, the irrigation ditches should already be completed, and the next step involved channeling water to flush out the salt. No matter what method was used, by the time the seeds hit the soil, the earth had to be guaranteed in prime condition; otherwise, the precious few seeds provided by the system would go to waste.
Tying his sash, Yun Zhensong casually posed a question in his mind: I’ve got a query. Is the sole purpose of your existence to dish out tasks and rewards? Why aren’t you tagging along constantly like other systems?
【Currently, 1224 is tracking six scripts across six hosts. Because the overall difficulty coefficient of the Q21 script is relatively low, the probability of tampering with the ending is minimal. Barring any catastrophic errors, this script progression will adopt a “free-range” approach.】
Free-range?
【Meaning: The host enjoys an immersive experience, high operational autonomy, and low regulatory control.】
I see, understood… So you won’t be dropping hints about character alignments, hidden foreshadowing, or plot trajectories?
【As your host experience points increase, more gameplay features will be unlocked.】
Fine then…
Following repeated coercion and temptation from the magistrate, the resting-on-his-laurels assistant magistrate finally reined in his laziness, leading a crew of apprentices and craftsmen to put the final reinforcement touches on the irrigation channels.
Yun Zhensong stood before the crowd, his wide blue sleeves rolled up and tightly bound, his cloth shoes caked in mud. He exhausted his eloquence explaining how to channel water for salt drainage and how to deeply plow and turn the soil, meticulously laying out the scientific principles behind it all. As long as it motivated them to work willingly, Yun Zhensong was ready to talk until his throat went dry.
He strove to use layman’s terms: “This slope faces a favorable direction and features flat terrain, especially with a sufficiently large area. If put to good use, it will yield harvests dozens of times greater than today’s crops. However, the catch is that the soil salinity is far too high. Our primary task right now is to successfully sow seeds before Grain Rain.”
“First, utilize the topography to channel water from the ditches into the cultivated fields, flushing out massive amounts of salt. At the same time, I’ve previously instructed the assistant magistrate to construct open drainage trenches below the slope to collect and store the overflow water for future contingencies.”
“Second, five days from now, we must execute deep plowing. The objective is to break through the plow-pan layer of the soil, turning hardened earth loose, which will provide the seeds with adequate air and root-growth space.”
Setting aside the actual operational difficulty, this speech alone was more than enough to bluff the crowd.
Yusheng handed over a water skin. Having long since parched his throat, Yun Zhensong tilted his head back and drank deeply, clear water trickling down his jaw into his collar, leaving a cool, damp trail.
No one knew who initiated the applause, but within a moment, the peasants clad in short garments and carrying hoes straightened up, their expressions marked by an unprecedented seriousness and reverence. Their response was enthusiastic, and they urgently urged Zhou Si to lead them to work.
Yun Zhensong called out to stop Zhou Si: “Zhou Si, stay behind for a moment. The assistant magistrate understands the specific operations; let him handle the management.”
“What is it, Master?” Zhou Si halted his steps, strode over to Yun Zhensong’s side, and stood quietly at attention to await instructions.
“I intend to release you to train troops. I know your ambitions don’t lie in the fields, but on the battlefield. Everyone has their own pursuits, and I should support you.” Yun Zhensong brushed a speck of mud from Zhou Si’s sleeve, patting his broad, sturdy shoulders with both hands. “You are not allowed to refuse.”
Zhou Si wore a complex expression; he was reluctant to leave his master’s side, yet deeply yearned to earn genuine military merit from the saddle of a warhorse.
Yun Zhensong curved his lips. “I understand your reservations. During this period, you’ve been training and leading troops alongside Hongke. Once you grow increasingly accustomed to it, I’ll have Hongke transferred to serve as my personal guard. Don’t miss me too much—we can still have dinner together in the evenings!”
“Go on then. I look forward to seeing the day you become a pillar of unyielding strength.”
Zhou Si made up his mind, dropped to his knees to pay formal homage to Yun Zhensong, and strode off silently toward the training grounds.
At that time, Zhou Si was merely sixteen.
“Master, it’s a good thing Big Brother Zhou is pursuing his ideals, but why do you look so heartbroken?”
“…I’m weeping tears of joy, happy for him.”
What kind of era was this? Every single day saw thousands of nameless corpses; once on the battlefield, life and death were left to the whim of fate. Zhou Si was still so young—why should he suffer such cruelty?
A fledgling eagle could not be tethered forever; he possessed fangs, iron claws, and wings capable of cleaving the open sky.
Yun Zhensong turned his head away to press the corners of his eyes, then turned back to offer Yusheng a gentle, smiling question: “And what about you?”
“Me?” Yusheng pinched his chin, thinking earnestly. “Does taking care of Master and Big Brother Zhou count?”
Yun Zhensong rubbed his soft crown of hair with a chuckle. “It counts! Our little Sheng’er’s pursuit is peace and reunion, after all!”
Hearing Zhou Si’s explanation, Qi Jianshuang let out a hearty laugh; Yun Zhensong’s little schemes were crystal-clear to him at a glance.
“Alright then, the student surpasses the master. Once I’ve whipped you into shape, these three thousand county soldiers will be under your command.”
Zhou Si still felt like an utter nepotism hire, leaving him deeply uneasy. “There’s no need for that. I’ll act as your second-in-command…”
“You brat, have you still not grasped your master’s deep intentions?”
Zhou Si furrowed his brows in puzzlement.
Qi Jianshuang narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest as he explained with casual amusement: “I’ve never cared about being some commander. As long as you have the capability to lead troops, whether these county soldiers answer to me or to you makes no difference to me. You’re young; though your martial arts fall short of mine, your greatest advantage is your youth and physical stamina. When it comes to leading troops into battle, what’s needed most is a vigorous, robust individual.”
“You are Yun Zhensong’s indispensable choice.”
Yun Zhensong and Qi Jianshuang shared a tacit understanding; a single glance and a few words were enough to make each other’s inner thoughts crystal clear.
Actually, Qi Jianshuang was rather surprised by how well he seemed to understand Yun Zhensong.