The forest was filled with the scent of blood.
Yan Song squatted down slowly, observing the person he had stepped on.
“Rumor has it that the Heir Apparent Yan is fierce and ruthless, not involved in worldly affairs. I won’t comment on the former, but as for the latter,” Hua Shisanlang, wearing a wedding dress stripped from a ghost bride, smiled foolishly with a face that looked both male and female, “Is the Heir Apparent Yan truly heartless? Why do I see you distracted, lost in thought, full of worries!”
Chang Chun covered the real ghost bride with a cloak, clasped his hands, closed his eyes, and recited a passage of the Rebirth Sutra, signaling the people from the Court of Justice to carry the body away for a proper burial. As he stood up and turned, he clearly saw the jealousy in Hua Shisanlang’s eyes.
“Someone like you can actually… Who is it! Who is it!” Hua Shisanlang craned his neck, trying his best but still unable to get close to Yan Song. Yan Song didn’t use much force under his foot, but he was born superior, worlds apart from these wild wanderers of the Jianghu.
“Rong Hua, the emperor values you so much, is he planning to make you his son-in-law? Don’t be fooled,” Hua Shisanlang said gloomily, “A consort has no power, it’s practically a death sentence! The higher the position, the colder it is. If you lose your power, everyone will rush to suck your blood and eat your flesh! Ah, it’s like a god falling into the mortal world, which is actually quite wonderful.”
This person was raving mad, yet Yan Song remained calm, “What kind of Gu did you use?”
He raised his left hand, revealing a shallow but very painful scratch on the back, unlike an ordinary wound.
“Love itself is like a Gu, peach blossoms are like dreams, but flowers easily wither, hence the ‘Peach Blossom Dream.’ It was originally used by a predecessor to take revenge on a fickle lover. If the person under the Gu has no desires, there’s no poison. But if they have desires, they will be tormented by longing and burning desires, constantly thinking of being close to their beloved, or else it will be like ants gnawing at their heart, unbearably painful, eventually dying from exhaustion. Those who are passionate and amorous suffer even more.” Hua Shisanlang’s eyes were filled with resentment, “This kind of Gu is useless to you, but now you’re trapped by your desires, you deserve to suffer!”
Yan Song frowned slightly at his words.
“Why aren’t you happy? Didn’t I make a wedding dress for you? You’ve been poisoned, so you have a reason to be intimate with your beloved, or is it,” Hua Shisanlang’s expression gradually twisted, “that someone like you, Heir Apparent Yan, actually has a day when you don’t dare to ask for something! Who is it, what kind of peerless person makes you so timid and speechless! This shouldn’t be you, you shouldn’t be like this, you—”
“I’m not familiar with you.” Yan Song interrupted.
“In the eleventh year of Cheng’an, there was a drought in Qinzhou. You were ordered to represent Changning County School to provide disaster relief. In the disaster shelter, you personally gave me a piece of plum candy! In the eighteenth year of Cheng’an,” Hua Shisanlang choked, “you joined the Ministry of Justice, went to Sichuan on a mission, and I took the government’s bounty to help you catch the thief!”
“You took the bounty voluntarily, and I gave you the reward. It was a fair trade, no need for gratitude or remembrance. As for the Qinzhou drought, many people died that year, I remember.”
Yan Song looked at Hua Shisanlang, his tone surprisingly calm, as if reminiscing with an old friend.
“I don’t like sweets, but my younger brother does, so I developed the habit of carrying candy with me. He was only seven that year, very attached to me, but the disaster relief was busy, and Qinzhou’s situation was difficult, I couldn’t take him with me. When I received the order, he cried a lot, tears and snot all over his face. I told him about Qinzhou’s situation, and he was worried, finally letting me go. Before I left, he packed a big box of plum candy for me, naively telling me that the disaster victims had been thirsty for a long time, and I could give them a piece to quench their thirst.”
At that time, Yan Dong sent him to the city gate, his eyes red but not crying or trying to keep him. He just held his brother’s hand with one hand and wiped his tears with the other. Yan Song, wearing the simple student robe of the county school, knelt on one knee to let his brother hug his neck.
“Don’t cry.” Yan Song patted the fluffy back of his head, “Stay home and study with Second Brother and Third Sister, wait for me to come back, and write to me about everything.”
“Okay…” Yan Dong obediently replied, his voice nasal from crying several times before. He rubbed his little face against Yan Song’s, squeezing out his chubby cheeks, “Brother, don’t let yourself get thirsty, drink more water, eat more candy, and write back to me quickly.”
Yan Song stared at the little red face in front of him, his tone solemn, “Alright, brother remembers.”
Later, when Yan Song arrived in Qinzhou, it was his first time seeing so many dead people. The twelve-year-old boy wasn’t fearless, inevitably feeling scared, so he thought of those amber-like eyes and the box of plum candy prepared just for him.
Thinking of this, Yan Song’s expression softened.
“I remember you.” Yan Song looked at Hua Shisanlang’s slightly widened eyes and said calmly, “It was my first time providing disaster relief, witnessing life and death, cannibalism, too many tragedies, so I remember many people I met that year, but you don’t remember yourself. You don’t remember saying ‘The Heir Apparent has a compassionate heart, surely blessed’ when you received the plum candy, don’t remember feeding water and food to the helpless elderly. Now you’re Hua Shisanlang, helping evil cults kill and torture for money, killing a passing bride to take her place for the sake of clothes that are easy to escape in—”
“She was going to die anyway!” Hua Shisanlang argued, “Her family arranged a ghost marriage for her for fifty taels, rather than suffocating in a wedding coffin, I killed her with one stab, helping her leave peacefully! Can she blame me? She can only blame herself for being born with a lowly life, born into the wrong family!”
He took a shuddering breath, lamenting, “So am I! If I were born a noble lady, could I be a match for you? We—”
“No.” Yan Song pinched Hua Shisanlang’s throat, looking at him with a cold, calm gaze for the last time, and said softly, “I have someone I love, far away yet close, always cherished and loved, nothing else matters.”
His voice was gentle, as if he had become another person. Hua Shisanlang’s vision darkened, his throat already crushed.
Yan Song released his grip and stood up, raising his hand slightly. Chang Chun quickly stepped forward to help him remove the finger guards. His last words were too soft for Chang Chun to hear, who said, “The ravings of a dying man, the Heir Apparent need not take them to heart. The matter of the Gu poison is not something to be publicized. I will privately arrange for a renowned doctor to come and examine you, to ensure it is harmless.”
“You think he was raving?” Yan Song looked at Chang Chun.
“Of course.” Chang Chun said, “I am always by your side, how could I not know if you have someone you fancy?”
Yan Song smiled at this, saying nothing.
It seems he hid it well.
“……”
It was that dream again. Yan Song opened his eyes, calmly looking at the carved bed canopy, then got out of bed.
He glanced at the incense clock, it was almost dawn. Chang Chun soon brought in the freshly scented robe, assisting him in dressing and washing.
The attendant quickly tidied the bed, and as he was about to leave, he noticed a dirty handkerchief on the bedside table. Although the Heir Apparent didn’t have a family, he was still a normal man. He didn’t dare to look too closely, picked it up, put it in the basket, and left.
*
In the Ren Medicine Hall, the small room’s wooden door was tightly closed.
Inside, Yuan Yuan withdrew his hand from the jade-like wrist, saying, “From the pulse, it’s a case of qi and blood stagnation.”
“Does qi and blood stagnation cause wet dreams?” Yan Dong asked softly.
“Insomnia and dreams are one of the symptoms, but wet dreams and nocturnal emissions,” the young doctor’s face was full of mischief, “perhaps it’s because you’re almost eighteen, and your spring heart is stirring.”
“Who’s spring heart is stirring!” Yan Dong recounted the dream in detail, feeling wronged, “I don’t even have someone I like, how could I have such a dream?”
Yuan Yuan rubbed his chin, “The dream is indeed strange, but having strange dreams for no reason isn’t strange in itself—truth be told, I dreamt I became the richest man in Dayong last night.”
“Did you poison all the rich people in Dayong?” Yan Dong mumbled.
“You just can’t stand to see me do well!” Yuan Yuan sighed, but with a benevolent heart, he decided to be magnanimous and not hold Yan Dong’s slander against him, “Alright, I’ll prescribe you a calming and soothing remedy, and as for the strange dream, see if it happens again.”
Yan Dong expressed that a heart ailment requires a heart remedy, and taking medicine wasn’t necessary.
“A heart ailment can lead to a physical ailment, don’t underestimate it.” Yuan Yuan knew Yan Dong didn’t like taking medicine, but he couldn’t force him, so he gave a few reminders and then picked up a fan to shoo him away, “If there’s nothing else, please leave, I’m busy.”
Yan Dong flattened the small pulse pillow, “There’s not a single patient besides me right now, are you busy eating sheep dung balls?”
Yuan Yuan recalled the delightful experience of tripping over sheep dung balls on the mountain road before, and couldn’t help but glare at Yan Dong, saying, “I’m busy preparing medicine for patients! Such a great tonic as sheep dung balls, I’ll leave it for you.”
“Isn’t that the work of an apprentice?” Yan Dong worried, “Have you fallen on hard times? Did the apprentice go to another family?”
“You really can’t stand to see me do well!” Yuan Yuan was heartbroken, explaining that the patient came from Zhifang Building, with a special condition, so he personally prepared the medicine, “This young lady was deceived by a man’s sweet words, secretly took an abortion pill, and collapsed bleeding at the back door of the clinic. I barely saved her life.”
Yan Dong said, “It seems the reputation of Doctor Yuan’s benevolence has spread throughout the streets, otherwise how would the young lady dare to come to your back door for medicine.”
Yuan Yuan knew the young lady deliberately chose his door, gambling that he was a kind person willing to help and keep quiet. He said, “It’s not difficult, we doctors only care about treating and saving people, where do we have the extra mind to harm others? But abortion pills are really harmful to the body, so I decided to help her with medicine for a while.”
At this point, Yuan Yuan sighed, feeling troubled, “There’s a doctor in Zhifang Building, she can’t come to the clinic often, and during the day, there are too many eyes, I don’t dare to find her. Fortunately, her room is on the second floor by the window, so I’ve been climbing the window at night to deliver medicine, almost got caught… Hey, wait!”
His eyes lit up, “You’re here just in time, help me quietly deliver the medicine later, can you?”
Zhifang Building is full of courtesans, if this matter spreads, the young lady would be punished and kicked out, which is the least of it, no other family would want her in the future. But for someone like Yan Dong, a noble young master, entering any brothel is normal, and he has plenty of people at his disposal.
Sure enough, Yan Dong said, “No problem.”
“Alright, then I’ll charge you one less percent of the consultation fee. By the way,” Yuan Yuan mentioned intentionally, “I’m planning to renovate the backyard, make a small courtyard, and pick a few clever and obedient ones from the beggar’s den to be apprentices.”
“You caught up just in time, I just donated to the relief hall of the Ten Thousand Buddhas Temple yesterday. The world’s tragedies are endless, it’s good to have fewer beggars freezing to death in the cold winter.” Yan Dong said, “I’ll cover the cost for you.”
“Young Master has a compassionate heart, surely blessed!” Yuan Yuan quickly prepared three days’ worth of pills and handed them to He Bao, “Remember, act stealthily!”
Yan Dong turned and left the clinic, instructing He Bao to deliver the medicine, while he stood there, debating whether to go for an exorcism.
Maybe it’s really just excessive worry causing it, Yan Dong hesitated for a moment, deciding to follow Yuan Yuan’s advice and see if that damn demon would come again.
“Forget it, let’s go back…” Yan Dong turned his head, catching a glimpse of the second floor of Guishui Hall across the street. Wasn’t that Yan Song standing behind the flower railing?
“Come up.”
Yan Dong couldn’t hear the voice, but he understood Yan Song’s words. He turned to leave, but his feet took him straight to the elegant room in Guishui Hall.
“Soy milk.” Yan Dong ordered from the menu, plopping down on the swing chair by the window, stubbornly staring straight ahead, refusing to look at Yan Song.
Seeing this, Yan Song walked over, looking Yan Dong up and down, “What’s wrong, coming out to see a doctor?”
“I haven’t seen Doctor Yuan in a while, checking on the wild junior brother for Sister along the way, can’t I?” Yan Dong said.
“Sure.” Yan Song nodded, “So, what’s wrong?”
Yan Dong mumbled, not speaking.
At fifteen, he had his first wet dream, holding his wet pants and going to Yan Song’s room, shocked, confused, and a bit embarrassed, saying, “After so many years, wetting my pants again is so different!”
Yan Song had just finished morning practice, coming out of the bathhouse, wearing a wide-sleeved robe, hair loose, looking lazy. Hearing this, he glanced at the underwear in Yan Dong’s arms, then at him, and actually laughed.
Perhaps that smile was too dazzling, that laughter too pleasant, Yan Dong was captivated, not thinking to blame this person for laughing at him, standing there like a wooden block, dazed, infatuated.
“Silly,” Yan Song tapped his forehead, teasing, “Our Dongdong is growing up.”
Later, Yan Dong learned what a wet dream was, and wasn’t too embarrassed, after all, this was the brother who had bathed and diapered him, no shame, no shame.
But this time was different.
First, he had a row with Song Fengmian, then he had a spring dream about a man, wasn’t this a bit of being strict with others and lenient with oneself? And thinking about the frivolous, wanton, lustful demon in the dream, then looking at the noble, abstinent, cold, and pure brother in front of him, it felt like saying it would dirty his ears!
“I feel blocked, came to check.” Yan Dong’s eyes shifted, lowering his head, frowning, lowering his voice, “It’s really nothing major, Doctor Yuan said it’s just excessive worry, qi and blood stagnation.”
Yan Song remained silent, Yan Dong felt bitter inside, thinking sadly: Now he won’t even comfort me, damn it!
Suddenly, a hand touched his brow, the fingertips warm, the pressure gentle.
Through the fingers, those eyes lifted, bright and watery, filled with sadness, grievance, fear, resentment… everything was crammed in there, crowded, blocked, with no way to release.
Yan Song finally sighed, bending down to squat and look Yan Dong in the eye, saying, “It’s my fault.”
Yan Dong’s nose tingled, all the emotions of these days were soothed by this simple sentence. He clutched the fabric of his knees, saying, “I don’t think you’ll ignore me if you have someone, I just can’t accept it.”
Yan Song looked at him, “Why?”
“I don’t know… maybe I’m a selfish ghost, not wanting to share my treasure with others.” Yan Dong blinked, seriously saying, “I’m afraid you and Song Fengmian are a pair in the original book, but I’ve thought it through, it’s okay if you are, since you can change my original fate, I can also break your original bond.”
Such willful and domineering words, yet Yan Song smiled, seemingly quite pleased, “Hmm, Dongdong is really smart.”
“So what I care about isn’t Song Fengmian, but your attitude.” Yan Dong reached out to poke Yan Song’s left shoulder, but the flesh there was firm and strong, after a few pokes, his fingers hurt. He withdrew his hand, clenching his fist, “You won’t even explain a word to me, do you have a guilty conscience?”
Yan Song did have a guilty conscience, but not the kind he thought, revealing it would surely frighten Yan Dong. He held Yan Dong’s hand, gently and slowly loosening those white fingers, saying with a righteous air, “I just don’t want you exposed to too many ghostly tricks.”
“I’m not an idiot.” Yan Dong said seriously, “I know why you’re hiding Song Fengmian.”
“Oh?” Yan Dong, like a teacher, gave a patient ear and encouraging guidance to the student deep in thought, “Why?”
Hiding and protecting a useless piece, what else could it be for? Yan Dong lifted his chin slightly, saying, “Because he’s from the Song family, and you’re standing with the Fourth Prince.”
Yan Song neither confirmed nor denied, “How’s my choice?”
“Absolutely right.” Yan Dong paused, “Of course, not explaining to me—absolutely wrong!”
Yan Song chuckled, and as he let go, he casually brushed the red jade ring on Yan Dong’s finger, then took a piece of paper from his sleeve and handed it to him.
Yan Dong opened his hand, smoothing the paper, it was the plain paper he had written and drawn on earlier, with Yan Song’s serious answer and a red private seal as promised.
Yan Song watched Yan Dong’s moved expression, taking the opportunity to plead, “I haven’t done anything to disgrace the family, nor do I like anyone else.”
Yan Dong stared at Yan Song, his mouth twitching, muttering, “Why didn’t you say so earlier? It’s just a matter of a word, you just want to make me angry.”
Chang Chun came in with a tray, seeing Yan Dong muttering about his emotions these days, but unable to suppress the corners of his mouth, and glancing at Yan Song’s focused gaze, couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.
The frog just jumped from the heat, but the one adding fuel and water softened first.
Halfway through.