Xue You had always thought that he had seen enough blood to be indifferent, even if it were to flow like a river before his eyes. But at the mere sight of the blood spreading across Xiao Yanshi’s waist, it felt as if his very heart had been fiercely carved out.
The foul, rancid blood covered Xiao Yanshi, making him look terrifying and disheveled, save for… those pair of bright, piercing eyes.
“Can you still manage?” Xue You wiped a smear of blood from Xiao Yanshi’s cheek, but inadvertently smudged it against the corner of his eye, instantly giving Xiao Yanshi’s face an eerily enchanting air.
“Naturally.” Xiao Yanshi pushed him away to stand firm, switching his dagger to his other hand.
Having had its prey snatched away once more before its eyes, the tiger’s fury only intensified, and it charged again. This time, Xiao Yanshi fought with a reckless disregard for his own life.
Seeing Xiao Yanshi’s back left completely exposed, Xue You whipped out his soft sword from his sleeve and charged in as well.
Xiao Yanshi moved with lightning speed, using the momentum to scramble up to a tree branch before plunging downward without a moment’s hesitation. Under the force of gravity, his dagger descended like a sharp arrow, burying itself deep into the tiger’s back, instantly cleaving its spine.
“ROAR!” Maddened by the agony, the tiger abandoned Xue You and charged straight at Xiao Yanshi; it was determined to crush this main culprit.
Understanding its intent, Xiao Yanshi darted backward, while Xue You turned his body with the sword, and the two exchanged a brief glance before striking simultaneously.
In a heartbeat, Xiao Yanshi ducked and brushed past the tiger’s body, while Xue You cleanly drove his sword tip into the back of the tiger’s neck. The two shared a profound tacit understanding; after a single strike, both leaped away.
Xiao Yanshi, ultimately not as agile as Xue You, felt the wound at his waist tear open more severely. The consequence of excessive blood loss was that his knees buckled the moment he landed, nearly bringing him to his knees.
Xue You seemed to have had his eyes on him the entire time; as Xiao Yanshi stumbled, he caught him firmly.
“How is it?” Xue You supported Xiao Yanshi’s spine while inspecting his wound.
“It’s fine, won’t die yet.” Xiao Yanshi exhaled a breath of turbid air. “Let’s go!”
Xue You looked back. With Xiao Yanshi’s dagger having severed its throat and his own sword having pierced its vital point, the massive creature could no longer support itself; it thrashed its limbs briefly before crashing heavily to the ground.
“You… when did you get hurt?!” Xiao Yanshi suddenly gasped. Before Xue You could answer, he grabbed his arm and checked him up and down. “And here too!”
Xiao Yanshi frowned, completely forgetting he was covered in his own injuries.
A warmth stirred in Xue You’s heart. Looking at Xiao Yanshi, who was clearly distressed, he offered reassurance: “It’s nothing, just minor scratches. A few days of recovery after we get back will be enough. As for you…”
He touched the back of Xiao Yanshi’s hand. “Heir, the moment I heard you had entered the mountain, I…” Perhaps carried away by emotion, his voice trembled, his eyes clouded with ripples of feeling. Xiao Yanshi happened to look up, nearly catching a flash of pain in his eyes. But it vanished in a blink, and Xiao Yanshi wondered if he had seen it wrong, especially since Xue You stopped mid-sentence.
Xiao Yanshi had been hoping to hear a confession. “Hm? You heard I entered the mountain, and then?”
Xue You looked at the curious Xiao Yanshi and suddenly found himself at a loss for words.
“Tell me,” Xiao Yanshi’s eyes were filled with a smile—to say he wasn’t expectant would be a total lie.
Thus, Xue You abandoned his reservations and avoided Xiao Yanshi’s direct gaze. “My heart was in turmoil, and I was unable to steady myself. I feared you might… suffer even the slightest harm.”
He had originally wanted to see the usually calm and composed Xue You in a state of agitation, but he never expected that, upon hearing these words, it would be Xiao Yanshi who panicked, subconsciously looking away. “Hm… I see…”
Back at the manor, a physician was already waiting.
He was young and spoke with blunt, unyielding precision: “If you don’t care about your lives, don’t ask me to treat you.” The young doctor poked at Xie Kaiji’s wound. “Troublesome!”
As he said, it took nearly three or four hours to treat their wounds.
“Rest well for the next few days. Don’t run around, don’t let the wind hit you, and avoid forbidden foods.” The little physician grabbed his medical kit and prepared to leave, but Xie Kaiji blocked his path. “Don’t be in such a hurry; why not stay at the manor for a few days?”
The little physician glared at him and pulled back his sleeve. “No!”
Heaven knows how miserable he was being carried at a breakneck speed for the entire journey. His waist felt like it was about to snap! It was all Xie Kaiji’s fault! And Xiao Yanshi’s!
“I heard you’ve been searching for a certain medicinal ingredient recently,” Xie Kaiji teased maliciously. “As it happens, I know where to find some. Do you want it?”
The little physician paused, turned his head, and glared at Xie Kaiji again. “Cunning!”
“Hahaha, so, do you want it or not?” Xie Kaiji loved teasing people, especially the little doctor, Huichun.
“I want it!” Huichun shouted, then stormed off in a rage. “I want to stay at the Qingshui Residence!”
“Stay wherever you like; the little divine doctor can even sleep on my head if he wants…” Xie Kaiji’s right leg was wrapped in bandages like a rice dumpling, but he still couldn’t resist being a bully. Xiao Yanshi kicked him. “Enough, if you keep provoking him, you’ll scare him away.”
“Just carry him back if he runs…” Xie Kaiji was utterly shameless. Xiao Yanshi shook his head. “It seems only that Prince can handle you.”
“Hiss!” Xie Kaiji sucked in a breath of cold air. “Don’t mention him; I reckon that Prince is far more terrifying than the tiger…”
“I’ll tell him you said that tomorrow.” Xiao Yanshi had been with Xie Kaiji long enough to be just as devious.
The two bickered as if no one else were there, while Xue You stood to the side, smiling, his thoughts a mystery. Once Xie Kaiji finished his barbs, only Xiao Yanshi and Xue You remained in the floral hall.
The sudden silence left Xiao Yanshi feeling an urge to scratch his wound, but midway, his hand was intercepted, caught, and held firmly, with no sign of letting go.
“Ahem, what is it?” Xiao Yanshi could talk circles around Xie Kaiji, but before Xue You, he felt like a mute.
“I heard the Heir and the Prince say just now that the little divine doctor is named Huichun?”
“Yes.”
“If I recall correctly, there was once a divine doctor named ‘Huichun’ in Liyang, rumored to be able to bring the dead back to life. There was almost no one he couldn’t save.” Xue You spoke tentatively.
Xiao Yanshi shook his head. “He’s not that miraculous; it’s all exaggerated. But it is true that his medical skills are far superior. While not as skilled as the imperial physicians in the palace, he has many excellent secret remedies and is truly gifted at treating difficult and rare diseases.”
“But I remember he should be twenty-five or twenty-six by now…”
“He is exactly twenty-six. It’s just that he suffered a catastrophe in his youth—he was terrified and then tortured, damaging his bones, so he looks only fifteen or sixteen.” Xiao Yanshi sighed. “His temperament is not like others, but he is soft-hearted. He refused just now, but he was merely talking; even if Xie Kaiji didn’t keep him, he wouldn’t leave today.”
“I see.” Xue You’s lips curved slightly.
As the conversation opened up, Xiao Yanshi shared everything. “Three years ago, Xie Kaiji and I were invited to an arms appraisal meeting. Huichun accidentally stumbled in and was taken for a saboteur, nearly beaten out… Xie Kaiji loves to meddle, so you could say he saved Huichun’s life.”
“After that, Huichun promised to help us with three favors… Three years have passed, and this makes the second.” Xiao Yanshi smiled. What he didn’t say was that even without the promise, given Huichun’s nature, he would have come today anyway.
Xue You looked at Xiao Yanshi’s profile, his heart stirred gently. “The Heir treats him as a friend, but what about me?”
“Ah?” Xiao Yanshi froze.
Ever since that moment of ambiguity, Xiao Yanshi had slipped away under a pretense.
He admitted he was a bit of a coward, but by heaven, with Xue You’s face that close and his tone so suggestive, anyone would have struggled to keep their composure.
The Heir’s heart thrummed. He pulled his hand back quickly and fled with mismatched steps.
For the next three days, Xiao Yanshi and Xie Kaiji requested leave together, hiding in the manor to avoid the trouble. At the same time, Xiao Yanshi consciously avoided Xue You. Even he himself didn’t understand why, as a betrothed couple, he was being such a coward.
On the day his wounds were completely healed, Xiao Yanshi couldn’t wait to chase Xie Kaiji away and chose a secluded hot spring to soak in at his leisure. Huichun had been watching the three of them closely, afraid one might bathe without his notice.
Xiao Yanshi endured for four days, but today, he couldn’t take it any longer. He whipped off his clothes and dove into the hot spring.
“Whew…” Steam billowed, the heat soaking into every bone and joint of Xiao Yanshi, leaving him feeling refreshed and clear-headed. He closed his eyes slightly, leaning against a stone on the bank, and let out a long breath of turbid air.
Footsteps echoed behind him.
At first, Xiao Yanshi assumed it was a servant bringing fresh clothes, but as the steps drew closer, he sensed a steady, powerful rhythm, not at all like a servant’s.
Startled, Xiao Yanshi opened his eyes and turned back, meeting a pair of deep, gentle eyes.
From Xue You’s perspective, Xiao Yanshi looked like a frightened rabbit.
“Y-you, why are you here?” Xiao Yanshi’s hair was half-wet, spreading against his neck. Having soaked for a while, his very eyes were tinged with moisture.
Xiao Yanshi always said Xue You was beautiful and alluring, but only Xue You knew that when Xiao Yanshi stripped away his murderous intent and set aside his blades, lounging idly in the water, he stripped away all of Xue You’s hypocrisy and composure, leaving only a malicious predatory instinct… a desire to swallow him whole!
“What are you thinking about?” Through the thick mist, Xiao Yanshi couldn’t see Xue You’s expression clearly, but he sensed the man’s unstable breathing.
“Let me help the Heir wipe his back,” Xue You instantly suppressed his predatory nature, returning to his usual gentle tone, but his words caused Xiao Yanshi to lose his cool instantly.
He stammered, “N-no, there’s no need…”
“The Heir can rest assured, I will not offend you…” Xue You tempted him with a voice both soft and impossible to refuse.
Xiao Yanshi bit his lip, “…” That’s not it! I’m afraid I’ll offend you!!