In recent days, the capital had been in an uproar over the Crown Prince’s fall from grace. Although Xiao Yi had warned Shu Fuyan not to go out if not necessary, Shu Fuyan still came to the Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor.
There was no other reason; he simply wanted to see Xiao Yi.
There were many things and people that, as long as Shu Fuyan wished to control them, could never escape the palm of his hand, but there were always exceptions—Xiao Yi, for example.
The steward led Shu Fuyan into the study, where Xiao Yi sat upright, reading a military treatise.
“General, Young Master Shu has arrived,” the steward said.
“Hmm.” Xiao Yi put down the military treatise, his expression slightly cold: “Didn’t I say not to go out lately?”
Shu Fuyan curved his brows and eyes: “This humble one is a person of the Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor. With General Xiao protecting me, others wouldn’t dare make a move.”
Xiao Yi felt a warmth at the tip of his nose. Shu Fuyan kept saying “a person of the Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor”—did he really think he had moved into the Xiao manor!
“Scholars are accustomed to flowery, deceptive speech,” Xiao Yi said unnaturally.
The steward retreated, and Shu Fuyan, standing on no ceremony, approached Xiao Yi.
“What this humble one says is true in every word.” Shu Fuyan tilted his head slightly, his ardent and scorching gaze colliding with Xiao Yi’s deep black pupils, setting off layers of ripples.
“Shu Fuyan, how come I didn’t notice your face was so thick?” Xiao Yi feigned anger, though in his heart, he agreed with Shu Fuyan’s words.
If anyone dared to touch a person of his Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor, Xiao Yi would certainly not sit idly by.
Shu Fuyan pursed his lips, placed his hand on Xiao Yi’s arm, and gripped his robes with slight force: “General Xiao, has this humble one overstepped?”
Shu Fuyan’s damp, peach-blossom eyes blinked and blinked, as if to say, Even if I have overstepped, I will still stick to you.
Xiao Yi rubbed his thumb against the crook of his thumb, his brows slightly furrowed; facing Shu Fuyan, he always inevitably found himself being led by the nose.
For someone like Shu Fuyan who knew how to attack the heart, it was truly a waste of talent to be just a musician for his Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor.
“Young Master Shu, it is truly a pity that you do not enter the imperial court,” Xiao Yi squeezed out this sentence after a long while.
Shu Fuyan’s expression changed slightly, but he quickly hid his emotions so Xiao Yi wouldn’t spot any clues.
“This humble one has shallow learning and is not fit to enter the imperial court.” Shu Fuyan was terrified, not knowing if Xiao Yi was testing him or making him nervous on purpose.
Xiao Yi had no intention of teasing him and casually poured a cup of tea for Shu Fuyan: “What brings you to the manor today?”
Shu Fuyan received the hot tea and said unhurriedly: “I came to play the zither for General Xiao.”
And, I missed you.
Xiao Yi’s ears quietly turned red. Did he look like someone obsessed with music?
Could he not live without Shu Fuyan?
Xiao Yi gave a light cough and beckoned: “As you wish.”
Shu Fuyan’s zither was left at the Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor, so fetching it was easy, but the study was too narrow and not suitable for playing here.
Shu Fuyan smiled faintly: “General Xiao, let us go to the front courtyard.”
The study was filled with heavy ink and hidden secrets; it was indeed not the place to discuss refinement.
Xiao Yi thought about it and nodded, leaving the study together with Shu Fuyan.
“Have you taken your medicinal baths?” Xiao Yi asked.
The two walked side by side; Xiao Yi was a head taller than Shu Fuyan. By lowering his head slightly, he could see the fine down on Shu Fuyan’s face through the shadow of the sunlight.
“I bathe every day.” Worried Xiao Yi wouldn’t believe him, Shu Fuyan added: “I also take the pills.”
He gently pushed up his sleeves; a section of his wrist was as white as porcelain, the skin delicate, with blue veins hidden beneath the wrist. He looked frail, but no longer sickly.
Xiao Yi withdrew his gaze with satisfaction. Being able to change the mind of someone who avoided doctors for fear of treatment to make them treat their illness well satisfied Xiao Yi’s desire for control to a great extent.
He liked Shu Fuyan following his pace, rather than resisting or guarding against him.
Arriving at the front courtyard, Shu Fuyan tested the zither’s tuning; there was no discrepancy.
Before long, light and leisurely zither music flowed slowly. The warm sun penetrated with a faint light, dropping from a corner of the eaves; the light and shadow bypassed the green branches, printing black dots beneath the mottled tree shadows.
Xiao Yi had never felt so at ease. Before his life, he had been busy with state affairs, dealing with a thousand things a day. Now, returning from the wars and back to Shangjing, he lived a misty, ethereal life. It was so beautiful it made him forget the pains of the past.
Xiao Yi craved this corner of peace. He knew this so-called leisure was not true self-contentment, but rather stemmed from the young master playing the zither.
Xiao Yi exhaled a long breath. If I cannot obtain him, then I will protect him well.
Within the capital, no one would dare make a move against Shu Fuyan again.
No matter whose person Shu Fuyan was, once he entered his Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor, he was his person.
No one was allowed to touch Shu Fuyan.
Xiao Yi drew his sword and strode across the square open courtyard.
The sword tip scraped the ground, making a screeching sound and leaving a scratch on the stone slab that penetrated deep into the inner layer.
As Xiao Yi began his sword dance, Shu Fuyan’s zither music inexplicably became fierce; as he plucked and hooked the strings, the sound beyond the music was entirely that of the overwhelming, majestic momentum of armored horses.
It was as if thousands of troops and horses were pressing across the border, trampling the barbarian lands and recovering the frontier fortress cities amidst the endless yellow sands.
Xiao Yi threw his whole heart into it, raising his hand to strike with the sword, stabbing toward the firmament. As he danced, his black robes fluttered, and his black hair swept wantonly through the air.
The long sword passed through the forested land, light and shadow intersecting. The fierce sword aura rolled up the rustling fallen leaves, the sound of the sword swinging with heroism, fearing that there was the momentum of a Kunlun jade shattering; his figure turned and flowed, every stance and move as smooth as a brush dance on a dragon.
The dance finished, and the long sword pointed horizontally, a graceful white flower landing on the tip of the sword.
That was the tender affection Xiao Yi bestowed upon Shu Fuyan.
“Excellent, General Xiao has a marvelous sword dance.” Shu Fuyan rose and applauded, carefully taking the flower from the tip of the sword.
“Many thanks, General Xiao, for your flattery.” Shu Fuyan put the flower into a fragrance sachet, his words and laughter gentle.
Xiao Yi was in high spirits, the gloom of many days swept away.
“Young Master Shu is too kind.” Xiao Yi inadvertently wiped away the sweat oozing from his forehead.
In the blink of an eye, he looked up abruptly and, caught off guard, collided with a trace of desire mingled in Shu Fuyan’s eyes.
Shu Fuyan shifted his gaze, his long lashes fluttering as he tacitly pretended as if nothing had happened.
Xiao Yi dimmed his eyes, thinking he had seen wrong. Shu Fuyan was a proper young master; how could he cast a covetous gaze at him?
“The sword dance General Xiao just played is not the sword dance of the Great Yu, is it?” Shu Fuyan was afraid Xiao Yi would bring up what happened just now, so he hurriedly used another sentence to distract his attention.
Xiao Yi softened his facial contours, squinting his eyes as he looked up at the sky: “Yes. It is not the Great Yu sword dance.”
Such beautiful sunlight one hundred years ago, he had once seen it on the land of the Great Yan.
In a flash, a hundred years of time had passed in the blink of an eye.
He hadn’t died completely.
Shu Fuyan could sense that Xiao Yi’s emotions were not right, but he didn’t know the reason; he had never seen the sword dance Xiao Yi had played. Logically speaking, Xiao Yi had guarded the frontiers for years and was used to the local customs there; it was not surprising that he would play the sword dance of the borderlands.
But Shu Fuyan had once been fortunate enough to see the barbarian sword dance, and it wasn’t as harmonious between hardness and softness as the one Xiao Yi had played.
Xiao Yi was hiding secrets.
Shu Fuyan understood.
“Young Master Shu, it is noon; I will not keep you.” Xiao Yi adjusted his robes and summoned the steward to send the guest out.
Shu Fuyan was dumbfounded—Xiao Yi was not keeping him for lunch?!
I said I came to play the zither, and I really came to play the zither!!!
Shu Fuyan felt frustrated; he hadn’t yet stumbled in front of anyone.
Xiao Yi was the first, and also the only one.
The steward trotted in, spread his palms, and sent Shu Fuyan off.
“Young Master Shu, please, the carriage is ready.” The steward smiled until wrinkles appeared on his face, a look of someone watching a good show.
Shu Fuyan clicked his tongue, his resentful gaze sweeping over Xiao Yi.
At least he has a conscience, knowing to prepare a carriage.
Xiao Yi rubbed the tip of his nose with a guilty conscience, standing tall and pretending nothing had happened.
Shu Fuyan maintained his cold young master image and did not want to bicker with Xiao Yi. He flicked his sleeves and walked away, coming and going like the wind, without a shred of lingering attachment.
Xiao Yi watched Shu Fuyan’s departing back, his heart suddenly sour and swollen.
Of course, he wanted to keep Shu Fuyan, but if his secret were exposed…
Would Shu Fuyan be afraid of him?
The world feared ghosts and gods, and detested evil spirits.
Xiao Yi did not dare to gamble.
The two were separated by a distance—now near, now far—which was, on the contrary, the most appropriate.
Not long after Shu Fuyan left in the Marquis of Zhenbei’s carriage, he met a low-key carriage coming from the opposite direction.
Others, upon seeing the symbol of the Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor, should have retreated three times over. But this carriage was different; it simply refused to yield the road.
“Whoa.” The driver pulled the reins to a stop: “Young Master Shu, someone is blocking the road.”
Hearing this, Shu Fuyan lifted the curtain to look. The driver on the opposite side had a proud expression, spirited and energetic, seeming not the least bit afraid of the Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor.
Although the person opposite did not show his face, Shu Fuyan roughly guessed who was sitting inside.
After all, within the territory of Shangjing, who would dare not give Xiao Yi face? It was likely some stinking rat that had fallen into the water, unwilling to accept its fate and attempting to struggle in its final moments.
“It is of no consequence; yield the road and let them pass,” Shu Fuyan instructed.
The driver hesitated if he yielded, what would others think of the Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor.
Just as the driver was struggling with the decision, the carriage opposite yielded.
Not only was the driver dumbfounded, but even Shu Fuyan’s eyes darkened.
“Let’s go.” Shu Fuyan dropped the curtain and sat back in his position.
The carriage wheels turned a circle and slowly brushed past the other carriage.
The curtain was blown up by the wind by a corner, and at the same time, the people in the carriages raised their eyes to look at each other.
In a short time, new hatreds and old grudges were ready to be triggered.
Watching Shu Fuyan’s carriage disappear into the distance, the Crown Prince smashed a fist against the inner wall of the carriage.
“Bitch!” The Crown Prince’s face was hideous: “I just said why he wouldn’t help the Eastern Palace seize military power; so it turns out he had long since hooked up with Xiao Yi.”
The Crown Prince was furious, his eyes bulging and bloodshot: “Xiao Yi, Shu Fuyan, you wait for me!”
Shen Liting sat to one side, not daring to make a sound. The Crown Prince had been keeping a low profile recently; although the matter of forming cliques for personal gain had been framed on others through the interference of his mother’s family forces, the Emperor was suspicious and had still confined the Crown Prince, furthermore taking back his rights to the Eastern Palace.
For a time, no one paid attention to the Crown Prince, and no one dared to visit the Eastern Palace.
The Crown Prince coming out of the palace this time was to privately find his old subordinates to re-establish contact, in an attempt to restore the brilliance of the Eastern Palace. He hadn’t found his old subordinates, but instead had obtained earth-shattering news.
The Crown Prince had always been suspicious. His actions were extremely secretive, and he could barely find any flaws; who could have caught him in the act and poked the Emperor?
Besides Shu Fuyan, whom he had threatened, the Crown Prince could not think of anyone else.
“It’s him, it must be him.”
“Shu Fuyan united with Xiao Yi to set a trap, attempting to replace me,” the Crown Prince roared in anger.
Shen Liting was terrified and did not dare to say another word.
If you asked him, if Shu Fuyan wanted to topple the Crown Prince, he would have a better chance of winning if he united with King Ji; involving Xiao Yi would not benefit Xiao Yi even if he trimmed the Crown Prince’s forces, but instead, it would benefit other Princes.
Xiao Yi’s name was not justified, and he could not sit in that position.
Shu Fuyan was even less likely to think about it.
But the Crown Prince was narrow-minded, blinded by anger, and could not think of this layer at all.
The Marquis of Zhenbei’s carriage stopped when it arrived at Shenzhu Residence.
Shu Fuyan got out of the car and entered the courtyard, pondering his plan to deal with the Crown Prince.
As he had expected, the Crown Prince would inevitably harbor hatred for him and Xiao Yi.
It was fine for the Crown Prince to target him, but he should never, ever have dragged Xiao Yi into this.
Thump. A heavy object fell to the floor in the room.
Shu Fuyan’s heart tightened; someone had broken into Shenzhu Residence.
“Who?” Shu Fuyan scolded.
“Don’t, don’t, don’t! It’s me.” Xi Zhe walked out of the room with a mischievous grin.
“Why have you come?” Shu Fuyan did not give him a good face.
Xi Zhe pouted, his eyes turning nimbly: “Young Master Shu, don’t forget, you are a person of King Ji’s manor; what does it look like to be going to the Marquis of Zhenbei’s manor all day long.”
Shu Fuyan steadied his heartstrings and walked inside past Xi Zhe: “I haven’t forgotten; did the Prince call you?”
Xi Zhe patted his arm, looking helpless: “Yes, the Prince wants to see you.”
Shu Fuyan tightened his fingers on the table.
After a long silence, he raised his head and said: “It is not convenient recently.”
Xi Zhe’s chin dropped; he tilted his head and glared at Shu Fuyan: “Young Master Shu, you haven’t gone stupid from sickness, have you?”
Xi Zhe looked strangely at Shu Fuyan, saying grumpily: “What kind of love potion did Xiao Yi feed you that you don’t even go home?”
To this, Shu Fuyan did not answer.
In his heart, King Ji’s manor had never been his home.
And neither was Shenzhu Residence.