Chapter 38 [VIP]

“Brother…?” A layer of cold sweat broke out on Xue Yi’s forehead. He was trapped in a nightmare, always dreaming of Lu Xuejin when she was young.

Young Lu Xuejin looked at him with concern, placed her hand on his forehead, and said to him, "Brother, please wake up soon. Father and I are very worried about you. Only when you wake up can we be at ease."

A deathly silence fell over the entire Xiyuan Palace. Led by Imperial Physician Jia, several doctors stared tremblingly at the Emperor on his bed. Several times, the Emperor's breath had ceased, and their hearts could no longer bear it.

"Why is it so serious this time? If His Majesty doesn't wake up, it will be even more dangerous."

Physician Jia: "If all else fails, we can only use that one herb."

“This…” Physician Gu said, “This is absolutely unacceptable. If His Majesty were to wake up and find out that you and I had taken banned drugs, it would be a capital offense.”

Imperial Physician Jia said, "If we don't use it, His Majesty might not survive the night. If we do, there might still be a glimmer of hope."

"This was my own idea. I will apologize to His Majesty once he wakes up."

Physician Gu stared wide-eyed, seeing that Physician Jia had made up his mind, and couldn't help but sigh and flick his sleeves.

“Your medical skills are superior to ours, so we will do as you say. If His Majesty is safe and sound, the entire Imperial Medical Academy will die without regret.”

After feeding Xue Yi a bowl of medicine, Physician Jia used acupuncture to insert needles into several acupoints beside the bed, and black blood flowed from Xue Yi's body.

Looking at the blood on the silver needle, Physician Jia said to Physician Gu, "His Majesty has residual poison in his body. Look at this blood, it's black with a sheen, as thick as mercury. I've only ever seen this kind of poison in the books of the Hu people."

Physician Gu broke out in a cold sweat. He lowered his head and wiped it away. "This... could someone have poisoned His Majesty?"

"This matter is not under our jurisdiction. We should report it to Lord Song Zhao and let him investigate," said Physician Jia. "From today onwards, His Majesty's meals will be the responsibility of the Imperial Hospital. All food and water that are sent to His Majesty must be inspected before they can be presented to him."

Physician Gu asked, "How confident are you?"

Imperial Physician Jia said, "This medicine is very potent. Only if His Majesty has extraordinary willpower can it bring the dead back to life."

The silver needles were withdrawn, and Imperial Physician Jia looked at the Emperor on the bed. He had just treated the Ninth Prince at Lu Xuejin's place two days ago. He treated all patients equally, never inquiring about their reasons or revealing any patient information. But for some reason… he felt that the timing of these two being imprisoned at the same time was too coincidental.

Outside the palace.

Several days passed, and there was still no movement from the palace. Qiu Fuze sent several groups of people to deliver messages to both him and Song Zhao, inviting them to his residence. Song Zhao ignored them, and Qiu Fuze did not reply.

Lu Xuejin carefully examined Murong Yue's wound. The arrow wound from last time had left a scar, and this time, as the wound was healing, a new scar had appeared. He touched it, and the boy immediately groaned.

"Brother." Murong Yue looked down at his own injury, then looked up at him and gave him an embarrassed smile.

The boy clutched the rag doll in his arms. Ever since he woke up and saw it, he had been holding onto it tightly and wouldn't let go. Originally, the rag doll was always with him, but now he took it everywhere. He placed it on the bedside table when he slept, held it in his arms when he ate, and even had to keep it in a separate wooden tub when he bathed.

Lu Xuejin looked at the rag doll that looked exactly like him, marveling at Ziyan's skillful hands. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Murong Yue constantly touching the rag doll's eyes, and he couldn't help but sigh.

"Your Highness, how about coming out with me today?"

Upon hearing that he was going out, Murong Yue opened his fan-shaped eyes, which were empty and dark. He caught the words "together" and reacted a beat late, his tense expression relaxing slightly.

Unable to speak. Murong Yue held his hand, unsure how to express his emotions, so he leaned closer, wanting to hear the child speak.

Murong Yue couldn't speak for a long time. After staring at his ear for a while, he gently touched it with his lips.

This level of physical contact meant nothing to him now. He glanced sideways and saw the boy kiss him. Before he could react, the boy's face turned bright red, and he was practically steaming while hugging his stuffed animal.

"Brother. Brother Changyou. Brother Changyou."

Lu Xuejin caught the child, and Murong Yue threw himself into his arms. He hadn't thought anything of it at first, but now, with the doll in tow, and the eyeballs imprinted on his chest, he maintained his composure and calmly held the excited child down.

"Your Highness, it's time to go. Let's go and come back as soon as possible."

He finished speaking, but Murong Yue didn't react. The boy hugged him tightly, looked up at him, his eyes shining beneath his thick eyelashes, staring at his lips.

This is something that must be done by family.

He could tell that the boy before him, though he didn't know which traits he had retained, was still intelligent. Whenever he knew the boy had a request, he would always demand some condition in return.

But this time, before he could react, Murong Yue couldn't wait any longer. The other's eyes reflected the pearl at the center of his lips. It was full and red, as alluring as forbidden fruit.

His lips stung, and their noses collided as Murong Yue bit down.

As soon as they met, their breaths mingled, and Murong Yue's face flushed red. His eyes became bright and thick, and his emotions became dense and sticky like a spider web. He kissed and licked without any order, as if he had eaten the sweetest fruit. His tiger teeth left teeth marks on the corner of his lips.

Murong Yue's aura eroded him, wanting to spread deeper. The light kiss could not satisfy him. His throat felt dry, and the place where the boy had bitten him felt painful and numb.

“…Your Highness.” He held him down, stopping Murong Yue’s movements. Murong Yue wasn’t satisfied yet, staring at him curiously, and kissed him twice more on the lips.

Lu Xuejin always prided himself on his calm and composed demeanor; his mind was serene and unmoved. Ironically, these very traits became a weakness that allowed the young man to take advantage of him. Every time he was quietly lost in thought, the Ninth Prince had already stolen several kisses from him.

"Alright, Your Highness, we should head out now." He sighed helplessly, his brown eyes rolling over to see Murong Yue raise the corners of his lips, pulling him down while clutching the doll tightly.

His heart softened again, and he couldn't say what he was going to say. He always felt reluctant to blame someone.

"Brother Changyou," Murong Yue murmured, word by word, and repeated.

"Chang. You. Chang. You. Chang. You."

A deep voice reached Lu Xuejin's ear. The Ninth Prince called his name, his pronunciation becoming clearer, and then gently kissed his ear.

The scenery of the mortal world was reflected on the lake like a mirror. The image of him kissing Lu Xuejin's ear appeared on it, which Murong Qing saw from the side.

Murong Qing: "Changyou? He treats you like family now. Do you want to go back?"

Murong Yue watched quietly. His infatuation with the young man had become instinctive, but outside this city of water and sky, beneath the hazy sky, lurked a huge shadow.

"..." Murong Yue, "I am at peace here, and there is nothing wrong with being with my elder sister."

He spoke quietly, watching as he instinctively licked and kissed the young man in the lake. The young man did not resist. He turned his gaze elsewhere, no longer looking at the person in the lake.

Murong Qing said to him, "Now that you're older, you have your own worries. Naturally, I'd rather you stay longer, but if these worries remain unresolved, they might become a health problem if they fester."

“Yes, that day will never come,” Murong Yue replied, watching small fish swim by in the lake, hiding deep among the lotus blossoms.

Murong Yue: "I'd like to stay here a little longer. Eldest sister, you can go back first."

Murong Qing didn't ask any further questions and said to him, "Go back early, I'll be waiting for you at home."

The man was gone, leaving him all alone in the world. This place reflected his own state of mind, a gray and colorless void. He stared at the small fish, which resembled an ink painting, and reached out to touch it. A large hole appeared in the fish's body, and its internal organs spilled out.

"elder brother."

Lu Xuejin walked a little further away, and the boy called out to him impatiently from behind. He picked up the book, then put it down again, and said to Murong Yue, "Your Highness, I'm looking for a book. If Your Highness is free, how about helping me look for it?"

“Find some ancient books about dissociative disorders,” he said.

Upon hearing this, Murong Yue turned to look at the bookshelf and began searching for the book he was referring to.

Every two books he flipped through, he would turn his head to glance at him. He noticed Murong Yue's burning gaze and was a little worried that the man's neck was about to break.

He browsed the entire bookstore but only found one book, while the boy was carrying several more. Several of them were military books, one was a miscellaneous book, and there were also two comic books.

Noticing his gaze, Murong Yue's eyes sharpened, and he asked.

"Brother. Brother—brother?"

"..." Lu Xuejin sighed and replied, "You can buy it. If Your Highness likes it, you can buy it."

The bookstore owner, observing the two men's strange behavior, didn't show it because they were customers, and instead smiled as he paid them.

"Please take care, you two."

Murong Yue followed closely behind him, holding the books in his arms with great joy. A smile appeared on his handsome, aloof face, and his eyes shone brightly.

"Chang. Brother. You. Brother. You. Chang. Brother. Brother. You. Brother. You. Chang. Chang. Chang. Chang."

"Brother Changyou, brother Changyou, brother Changyou, brother Changyou, brother Changyou. Brother—"

Murong Yue rambled on and on, and Lu Xuejin listened intently, but couldn't understand a single word. She could only vaguely glean some information from the boy's tone of voice.

"I understand, Your Highness." Lu Xuejin nodded as if she understood.

"Brother—" Murong Yue called out to him, then leaned over under the eaves and kissed him.

He paused, touching his cheek. The boy was holding a book, with an innocent smile on his face, his little tiger teeth faintly visible.

Next to the bookstore was a porcelain shop selling fish tanks. He saw his reflection in the clear glaze, and a smile unconsciously crept onto his lips. The little fish inside swam to and fro among the lotus leaves, seemingly wagging their tails in joy at his expression.

Just as he was about to speak, he suddenly caught sight of several figures out of the corner of his eye. Not far away, under the corner of the vermilion wall, Song Zhao, Xiao Shen, Yue Lanxin, and a little girl were walking together.

Upon seeing this, Lu Xuejin immediately fell silent, pulling the boy beside him to hide. From a distance, Xiao Shen and Yue Lanxin chatted and laughed, just as they had before. The little girl, less than ten years old, was being led by Song Zhao.

The girl must be Yue Lanxin's cousin. Li was originally a servant in the Yue Prince's mansion. Later, she was favored and married the Yue Prince's niece, and gave birth to a daughter named Li Guiqing.

He had heard before that Song Zhao treated Yue Lanxin exceptionally well, and no woman in the capital had ever caught Song Zhao's eye. His gaze fell on Li Guiqing, the little girl whose face was still very young, but who had willow-leaf eyebrows and phoenix eyes, and who seemed vaguely familiar.

In this palace, with her willow-leaf eyebrows and phoenix eyes, and her captivating beauty that could topple kingdoms, only the late Princess Liang possessed such grace.

"..." Lu Xuejin stared at the group for a moment, and only looked away after they left.

Murong Yue was behind him. The boy followed his gaze, glanced at the others, and then looked back at him.

Lu Xuejin: "Alright, Your Highness, let's go back."

Back in the courtyard.

Lu Xuejin was flipping through ancient books when Murong Yue sat opposite him, a rag doll facing him, and a comic book laid out in front of him, filled with clichéd ghost stories.

He saw that Murong Yue looked serious and kept clutching his doll while reading. After a while, the man moved his chair closer and closer to him.

When the person was right next to him, Murong Yue stopped looking at the comic book, leaned over to look at his book, and called out to him.

"Brother Changyou."

Lu Xuejin then looked at the person, "Is the book not good?"

"Brother." Murong Yue released the rag doll slightly, looked at him with his clear black and white eyes, and patted his leg with his slender hand.

Lu Xuejin pretended not to understand and asked, "Does Your Highness's leg hurt?"

The boy immediately shook his head, grabbed the doll, and placed it on his lap, letting the doll sit on his lap. Then he took a book and let the doll read it.

Lu Xuejin: "Does Your Highness also want to see the book I have here? Or would you like to hear a story?"

Murong Yue slightly opened his fan-shaped eyelids and stared at him intently. Seeing that he didn't understand for a long time, he made a low sound in his throat, and his jawline tightened involuntarily.

"elder brother--"

"Brother Changyou." The Ninth Prince called him again, his tone slightly displeased. He looked thoughtfully at the boy's anxious appearance and patiently guided him from the side.

"Your Highness, please speak slowly and patiently."

“If you tell me, I’ll turn into a doll and sit in your lap while you read a book. How about that?” he said.

Murong Yue's face immediately flushed red, his pupils widened like a kitten's, his lips parted, and a few trembling sounds escaped his throat. The lightning and thunder that day seemed to have shattered his vocal cords and blasted away his soul. The young man before him was like a snowflake flying in the sky, and he was always afraid that he would miss him and he would be gone in an instant.

"elder brother."

Murong Yue tried hard to speak, but he could only utter a few hoarse syllables, barely forming a coherent sound. The harder he tried, the more anxious he became, his face flushing red as he reached his neck, and he looked like he was about to burst into flames with anger.

"Brother..." Seeing the conflicted look in the boy's eyes, he was so anxious that he almost fainted.

Lu Xuejin couldn't help but sigh and said, "Your Highness, it's alright if you can't say it. Don't worry, if you can't do it today, we can continue practicing tomorrow."

"Don't worry." He touched the boy's finger bones and gently rubbed them.

This provocation ignited the fire burning within Murong Yue's chest. The crimson earring on the side flashed by, and then, unable to resist, she viciously bit his ear.

The damp, sticky breath fell beside his ear, and two flames burned in the boy's eyes, but the dark flames turned to ashes and vanished.

His breathing became violently erratic, as if he was enduring something.

He let Murong Yue hold his wrist, the heavy force forcing him to straighten his knuckles. When Murong Yue touched his earlobe, it felt like he had struck a ignitable spark in the other man.

The bright flames ignited again, and he was stunned. The boy then leaned in, pressed down on his wrist, and fell backward. They both fell onto the bed.

A note from the author: