Chapter 54: Moths to Flame

Half a month later——

Duke's Mansion.

“Cough cough… cough…”

Duke Wei put the medicine bowl aside, looking solemn.

"You said Yun Fei dug out the list of the alien king's plan?"

Ever since the palace coup, Duke Wei claimed to be ill and stayed at home, no longer attending court, so all news from the court was passed back through Huo Xiao.

"yes."

Huo Xiao's expression was equally serious.

"Now all states are arresting foreign human snakes. In the past two days, more than 200 people have been arrested and imprisoned in the capital. There are even more than 20 people hiding in the palace. Your Majesty is very angry."

"Are you sure they are really human-snakes carefully cultivated by the alien king? Are they not just used to make up the numbers?"

Duke Wei frowned, feeling suspicious.

"I'm not just making up the numbers. I took people to check it out myself. His Majesty even ordered the use of surveillance guards. The results are naturally all confirmed."

The Supervisory Guards were the personal guards directly under the Emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. They were not under the jurisdiction of anyone except the Emperor. They were responsible for supervising all officials. Their methods were ruthless, and in critical moments, they even had the right to execute first and report later.

"......"

While Duke Wei was thinking hard, the butler suddenly knocked on the door and came in.

"My Lord, the little prince is back."

Duke Wei was stunned for a moment, then stood up immediately, his expression showing a bit of anxiety and panic.

"Quick, put away my medicine bowl and open the window to let the smell go."

Then, he paused, lowered his head and sniffed the collar of his clothes.

"Forget it, forget it. Stop him, stop him, and let him go back to his room and wait. Tell him that I'm busy and can change his clothes and come over."

Huo Xiao looked at the Duke, who was always serious and calm, but was now like an ant on a hot pot in the study, running around anxiously.

[Sure enough, the Duke would only show this kind of behavior when facing the young prince.]

A quarter of an hour later, Duke Wei hurried to the room of his beloved nephew.

As soon as he entered the door, he saw the young man sitting lazily on a chair, eating sweet cakes slowly, but the look in his eyes made Duke Wei feel creepy.

"Isn't uncle busy? How come you have time to come to Huaiyan's room?"

Duke Wei's back stiffened.

"......Ahem, I was in the study just now, something happened."

"Then since my uncle is so busy this year, Huai Yan won't bother him."

Zhou Huaiyan stood up, took the handkerchief handed to him by the palace maid, wiped his hands, and bowed respectfully.

"I'll take my leave now."

“Hey!”

Duke Wei held him back, and the next second the housekeeper immediately received the Duke's gaze and retreated with the maids and servants around them.

"Well, I'm not busy now. Just tell me what you want to say."

Seeing that everyone else had left, Zhou Huaiyan didn't want to waste any more time, so he got straight to the point.

"Is uncle hiding something from me?"

"What are you hiding from me?"

Duke Wei frowned, as if he really knew nothing.

Zhou Huaiyan looked at him straight in the eyes. Now, almost a year had passed, and he had grown to 1.83 meters tall. He could basically look straight at the man he once could only look up to.

"Why didn't you tell me that my uncle was injured?"

"......"

Duke Wei's face froze, but he still tried to defend himself.

"Isn't it enough that I've been injured in my life? These are just minor injuries. They will heal in a few days."

"......"

Zhou Huaiyan had a blank expression on his face. He suddenly grabbed his right wrist, and his tone was filled with anger.

"Huai Yan, remember that your uncle usually uses his left hand? Why did he use his right hand to grab me today?"

"......"

Duke Wei was silent for a moment and sighed softly. His usually dignified face looked a little older at this moment.

"It's inevitable that you will get hurt when leading troops into battle. Even if I tell you, what good will it do? It will just make one more person worry."

Zhou Huaiyan stared at him for a long time before he spoke slowly.

"......If Huai Yan gets injured in the future, no matter how serious it is, as long as he doesn't die, he will definitely not tell uncle! Uncle can't help anyway, and it will be an extra worry for nothing."

"you--!!!"

Duke Wei was so angry that he almost died. He waved the boy's hand away, his beard trembling with anger.

"Zhou Huaiyan! You are getting more and more disobedient as you grow older. You are so disobedient!"

"......"

The young man closed his eyes, then suddenly reached out and hugged him, and he could clearly feel the man's thinness.

Jiang Yi was twelve years old when Jiang Min was born. Two years later, their father died on the battlefield and their mother also died of illness. Jiang Yi raised his younger sister Jiang Min all by himself, acting as both a father and a brother.

He loved Jiang Xun very much. Later, when Jiang Xun died, his love was transferred to Zhou Huaiyan.

In a few months, Zhou Huaiyan will be twenty years old, and Jiang Yi will be fifty-seven.

In this era, this age is already an age for enjoying retirement and having children and grandchildren around.

But Duke Wei still has to go to the battlefield, not only to fight against foreign races for national hatred, but also to fight for life and death with God. After all, fighting in a world of ice and snow, even keeping warm is a big problem.

Although the demon generals' initial achievements were brilliant, the war situation was unimaginably tragic.

Zhou Huaiyan still remembers the time when he ran into his uncle changing clothes when he was a child. The man’s entire body was covered with scars, without a single piece of healthy flesh.

"Uncle, can you... rely on Huai Yan a little more?"

"......"

Duke Wei's body stiffened slightly, but he finally sighed softly. He reached out and rubbed the boy's hair.

"Don't worry, I've fought all my life. Just saying the name won't scare those foreign thieves. This time, I'm just going to teach them a lesson."

"......"

——My uncle still refused to rely on him.

Zhou Huaiyan loosened his hand, then took out the forbidden dagger from his sleeve and handed it to him.

"Uncle, I have gathered my mother's old subordinates in Jiangnan over the past few years and formed a group of secret special forces. Although there are only 6,000 of them, they can resist ten thousand troops. Uncle, take them with you on this expedition..."

Bang--!

The forbidden dagger was thrown hard to the ground, making a crisp sound.

"Zhou Huaiyan!"

Duke Wei was furious. His tiger eyes were extremely scary when they were angry.

"What use would I have with just six thousand scattered soldiers?"

Now he had completely torn his relations with the emperor, but only because of the foreign army's southward advance, he was barely able to maintain a little peace on the surface.

Once he returns to the northern border, the emperor will certainly use Zhou Huaiyan as a restraint. If the foreign races have not invaded, Duke Wei even wants to take the child directly back to the northern border.

But the weather in the north is freezing cold, and Zhou Huaiyan's frail body can't stand it. In addition, the current situation is chaotic, so he has no choice but to stay in the capital.

Duke Wei had always known that Zhou Huaiyan had some secret plans, but the six thousand elite soldiers still shocked him greatly. After being shocked, he could not help but feel proud that his sister's son was such a genius.

He thought of the palace coup that happened. If Huai Yan had not discovered the clues and asked Ah Fei to stop him at the critical moment, he might have been burned to ashes and buried in the world by now.

This news was sent by the aunt of the Empress. Jiang Yi even found out that when Zhou Huaiyan was five years old, it was Emperor Zhou who arranged a death trap for him. If it weren't for the long-haired cat that saved the child's life, Zhou Huaiyan would not be alive today.

Jiang Yi closed his eyes, feeling the regret in his chest surging like a tsunami. If he had not persuaded his sister to marry the emperor, perhaps everything would be different today.

"With 300,000 iron cavalry in the North, why would I need your mere 6,000 scattered soldiers?"

"Uncle, this is different! The North said there are 300,000 Iron Cavalry, but that was only the peak combat power counted 20 years ago. Now, if we count them all, there are only 200,000 who can actually go to the battlefield, and there is also Qi Shoubang, that guy..."

Zhou Huaiyan wanted to explain, but Duke Wei was no longer willing to listen.

"Qi Shoubang is my adopted son, so he will naturally obey my orders!"

"......"

The Duke of Wei knew what he wanted to say, and he knew the situation in the Northern Army better than anyone else.

Once he leaves the capital, Zhou Huaiyan's life will be completely controlled by the emperor. Originally, he was still hesitating whether to secretly leave a part of the army to protect him, but the Northern Border Iron Cavalry is too big a target, and the capital is the emperor's territory, so it is impossible to hide.

But now, with these 6,000 elite soldiers, Zhou Huaiyan would be able to launch another palace coup on his own.

With his youthful intelligence, he was able to protect himself. In this case, how could Jiang Yi take away Zhou Huaiyan's life-saving trump card?

"uncle!"

Zhou Huaiyan is rarely so impatient.

If it weren't for the aftereffects of the snake poison in his body that disrupted all his plans, he would never be here now, having the most useless quarrel with his uncle.

However, Duke Wei obviously did not want to discuss this issue anymore. He bent down, picked up the forbidden dagger that had fallen on the ground, and put it back into the boy's hand.

"Huai Yan, do you think Yun Fei is trustworthy now?"

Now that Ah Fei is in great favor, and with the inclusion of him on the list of the Human-Snake Plan, he has basically gained six points of the emperor's trust, and even obtained a real part of the military power from the emperor.

The emperor wanted to divide the northern border, and sending Ah Fei to accompany Duke Wei to the war was a foregone conclusion.

"......"

But Zhou Huaiyan couldn't answer such a question for a while. He found that he suddenly couldn't see through that person.

He has clearly obtained a more honorable status and stands by the emperor's side. Whether he chooses to be the emperor in the future or continues to work for the foreign king, he does not need to come to him.

But for half a month, whenever the "addiction" came on, no matter where Zhou Huaiyan was, he would always find him. Then he would use the most intimate behavior to ease it.

After Zhou Huaiyan came back to his senses, no matter how he humiliated and abused her, she remained silent and endured it silently. At most, she would utter a few hoarse words when it was most unbearable.

——Zhou Huaiyan didn’t understand.

If Yun Fei just wanted to use the aftereffects of the snake poison to control him and humiliate him, there was no need for her to endure to that extent.

Now, in the eyes of the emperor and the foreign kings, Zhou Huaiyan poses no threat except that his life can control the Duke of Wei.

As long as he is alive, one breath is enough.

Zhou Huaiyan closed his eyes. In fact, he already had the answer in his heart a long time ago. However, he had unknowingly placed that person in too deep a position in his heart, which was why he was so unforgivable now.

"He... is indeed a member of the foreign king, but Huai Yan thinks that uncle can trust him to a certain extent."

The boy did not tell his uncle about the snake poisoning, so naturally he suffered no sequelae.

Duke Wei looked at him deeply, without asking why, and just answered with one word:

"good."

In fact, later, when he learned that the emperor was in danger of death and that Ah Fei had indeed stopped him outside the Xuan Zheng Hall on the order of the young man, Jiang Yi had already given him three points of trust. Adding the three points that the young man said now, it was a full six points.

The Sky-Breaking Halberd and the Forbidden Dagger are heirlooms passed down from generation to generation in the Jiang family. No outsider has ever been able to pick them up. But that day, when Duke Wei saw Ah Fei holding them and acting as ferociously as a tiger or wolf in the midst of the rebellion, besides being angry, he actually felt a bit of admiration.

After all, even he, at the same age, could not do what Ah Fei did. Like Zhou Huaiyan, the alien boy was also a genius.

Duke Wei sighed in his heart, who could have imagined that the weak and small foreign slave would grow up to such a terrifying level.

He looked at the boy in front of him who was as tall as himself, and felt relieved.

[I have to say, Huai Yan's vision is really excellent. ]

......

After leaving the Duke's Mansion, the Ninth Prince's carriage did not go directly back to the palace, but went to a villa on the outskirts of the city.

That was where Zhou Huaiyan recuperated when he was a child. He was afraid of cold, and his body had always been cold since he was a child, especially in winter, when he could not live without a fire.

Sometimes, even if you are not careful when taking a shower and get a little cold air, you will have a high fever the next day and it is common for you to be bedridden for months.

Therefore, Duke Wei specially had a villa built on the outskirts of the city and hot spring water was brought in. Zhou Huaiyan would stay there for a while almost every winter. However, last year, because Duke Wei returned to Beijing, he lived in the Duke's Mansion.

Sunset, nightfall.

Hongdou vaguely guessed what the boy wanted to do. Although she was hesitant to speak, she finally swallowed the words she wanted to say and just said softly,

"Your Highness, everything is ready."

"Um."

Zhou Huaiyan nodded casually, then stood up and was helped to change out of his thick outer coat. It was just the beginning of autumn, and while others were still wearing light clothing, he had already started to change into thick autumn clothes.

However, it was very hot in the hot spring room, so it was okay to wear only a single layer of clothes. Zhou Huaiyan changed into a red brocade dress. He always liked such bold and bright colors, which at least made people look somewhat rosy and not too weak.

The boy walked into the hot spring room.

There were several glass lamps lit inside, shining brightly, making the surroundings seem like daylight. The surrounding natural rocks overlapped one another, and in the cracks between the rugged rocks, clusters of roses were planted, blooming gorgeously.

There are no beams on top, but blocks of countless sparkling pearls, crystals and colored glass stones, which reflect the sparkling water and create strange and beautiful light and shadows.

Zhou Huaiyan did not walk directly into the hot spring, but sat on a white marble chair beside it. On the black stone table next to him were exquisite desserts and fruits, as well as a pot of fine wine and two wine glasses.

Zhou Huaiyan sat leisurely, waiting for someone.

His slender fingers played with a white jade blue-glazed wine cup, slowly savoring it. The ripples of water reflected on his delicate eyebrows and eyes. His lips were stained with wine, becoming even more rosy and gorgeous.

Although he was dressed neatly and there was no one around, his slow and leisurely drinking movements were inexplicably erotic.

"You followed me all the way here, and now you haven't come out yet. How long do you want me to wait?"

"......"

As the words fell, a tall figure gradually emerged from the dark shadows in the corner of the door.

Zhou Huaiyan glanced at him and ordered,

"Come here."

"......"

The alien boy hesitated for a moment, but still walked over slowly as he was told, and finally stood at a distance that was neither too far nor too close, so that the master could reach out and touch him, but not too close or even offensive.

——He still couldn't change his habits from his days as a slave.

Zhou Huaiyan glanced at the distance where he was standing, took a sip of wine slowly, and asked,

"What excuse did you use to come out today?"

"...murderous snake."

The other party answered in a muffled tone.

The young man uttered "Oh" softly, and his casual gaze moved from the other's toes upwards, across the knees, thighs, waist, abdomen, chest, and finally stopped on Yun Fei's face.

It must be said that there were some reasons why he insisted on keeping the person by his side.

Unlike Zhou Huaiyan's overly gorgeous and delicate face, Ah Fei's facial features are deep, three-dimensional, clear and handsome, just like the sexiest and most handsome mixed-race male model face in fashion magazines.

Moreover, due to martial arts training, he has a good figure.

"Come closer."

Zhou Huaiyan took out the forbidden dagger from his sleeve, slowly took off the silver scabbard, revealing the cold and sharp blade.

Ah Fei hesitated slightly, but still walked over, knelt on one knee, and leaned closer.

The cold blade landed on the side of his neck. The excessively cold temperature caused his warm skin to tremble slightly in reflex.

Zhou Huaiyan lifted his collar and slowly looked for a favorite point to cut.

The sharp and cold dagger lingered at the fatal throat, but the foreign boy showed no fear or uneasiness at all.

Zhou Huaiyan chuckled.

"Aren't you afraid that I will kill you?"

"I am still useful to you while I am alive."

In the past, Ah Fei would have said that her life belonged to her master and he could do whatever he wanted with her.

But now, he could only say such alienating words.

However, Zhou Huaiyan was quite satisfied with this answer. He applied a little force, and the thin and cold blade left a bloody mark at the junction of Ah Fei's neck and shoulder.

The boy felt the other's muscles tightening uncontrollably, but he tried hard to relax.

He reached out and peeled off the other person's shoulders, exposing part of his chest and neck, and carefully admired the bright red blood flowing down, sinking into the fabric and staining it dark red.

At this time, Zhou Huaiyan bent down as if condescending to suck the blood that kept flowing out of the wound.

This kind of picture is very similar to a modern movie about vampires.

In another half month, Ah Fei will follow Duke Wei to the war, and then the process of withdrawal will not be disturbed. Instead of repeatedly resisting the other party and failing, it is better to ease the situation first, and wait until Ah Fei goes to the northern border, Zhou Huaiyan will really start the process of withdrawal.

So now, I can still rely on you for a short period of time.

The boy had one hand on the other's shoulder and the other on the back of his head. If he wasn't sucking the blood from the wound, this posture would have seemed unusually intimate and ambiguous.

Ah Fei could clearly feel the feeling of blood being sucked, and the boy's Adam's apple rolling due to constant swallowing. He couldn't see such a scene, but just by imagining it, he felt his body boiling.

Being so close, Ah Fei couldn't help but want to hug him, or do something more intimate like before.

"Was it your idea to give the emperor a list of human-snakes, or was it their order?"

However, the boy's voice in her ear immediately brought Ah Fei back to reality.

"......mine."

In a trance, Ah Fei forgot to call herself. But Zhou Huaiyan didn't care about this. He just licked his lips and felt the pain that had just begun to sprout in his body gradually dissipate.

"That list is 70% true and 30% false, right?"

"yes."

Zhou Huaiyan slowly turned his head to look at the pair of emerald-like blue eyes, which reflected the halo of glass lamp and were extremely beautiful.

"Have they reached a preliminary cooperation with Qi Shoubang?"

"yes."

Ah Fei was not the least bit surprised that the young man had guessed all the arrangements of those people so accurately. He just focused on looking at Zhou Huaiyan's face.

At such a close distance, Ah Fei could even see the other person's long eyelashes, and even her own stunned expression in the black jade-like pupils beneath those eyelashes.

At this moment, his beloved Son of God looked more like a seductive demon.

"They want you to kill your uncle and take his place?"

"yes......"

Ah Fei suddenly came back to her senses.

"No, but I..."

“Tsk——”

The cool fingertips suddenly sealed his lips. At this moment, the handsome boy actually laughed softly.

"I know you wouldn't let them do that, right?"

"......yes."

Ah Fei stared at him blankly, knowing clearly in her heart.

——Zhou Huaiyan is lying.

The young man was only trying to deceive him and use him for his own purposes.

But Ah Fei had to admit that such temptation was indeed effective.

Zhou Huaiyan believed him, believed that he was not loyal to the foreign king, nor to the emperor. The young man even knew clearly that he was obsessed with him.

Ah Fei understood that these beliefs did not come from the boy's feelings for him, but from the other party finding out or inferring the truth.

However, Zhou Huaiyan did not forgive his deception, nor did he forgive his previous behavior that was almost threatening.

But now, she had to seduce him in order to protect her beloved uncle.

In the last palace coup, Ah Fei was seriously injured, and so was Duke Wei. However, the resilience and system of both parties are not at the same level now.

Duke Wei was old, and his injured left hand even made it difficult for him to pick up the Sky-Breaking Halberd. Zhou Huaiyan also discovered this.

That's why tonight, I came here specifically to wait for him, specifically to... seduce him.

Ah Fei stared at the boy's beautiful face, raised her head slightly, and tried to kiss the corner of his lips. However, the latter did not struggle and resist as violently as before.

Instead, she responded to him tenderly.

For the first time, Ah Fei tasted the sweetness of power.

It turns out that power is such a wonderful thing. No wonder everyone has risked their lives to pursue it, fighting for it until their heads are broken and their wives and children are separated.

The princes of each generation fought to the death for that throne.

"Help me..."

Zhou Huaiyan kissed him tenderly and even hugged him, as if all the sharp thorns had been retracted in this moment.

"Help me bring my uncle back... safely."

"good."

Ah Fei grasped his wrist bone and rubbed the softness on the inside with her fingertips.

Blah--

The two fell into the water.

What happened next was like a replay of New Year's Eve.

For the first time, Ah Fei felt such an excessively gentle boy. So gentle that she could clearly sense his purpose of soothing and seducing her.

But...so what?

Ah Fei still felt a kind of false happiness.

Maybe, if he can complete the task given by his master this time, this delusion may become reality.

...become a reality.

Ah Fei once found it particularly difficult to understand. When he was a child, every time he saw a moth flying towards a candle flame, he would always ask his mother,

“Can’t they feel the pain?”

"Why did you rush over without hesitation even though you knew you would be burned to death?"

The mother touched his head and smiled.

"Son, because it is light."

Ah Fei had pondered over the answer for several days, but still couldn't understand what her mother meant.

But now, he seemed to suddenly understand.

Ah Fei clearly knew the purpose of Zhou Huaiyan's doing this, but she still believed in him without hesitation, and then walked alone and moved forward according to the path designed by him.

Even if there was a candle flame ahead that was so fierce that it could burn him to death, he would not turn back.

Because, that is light.

As long as I can embrace the light, it seems that even if I am burned to death, it doesn't matter.

In the end, when Ah Fei was strangled by him and was forced to tremble all over in the suffocation of death, the boy traced his earlobe, his voice was low and hoarse, like the whispering of a lover.

"Listen carefully, if Jiang Yi dies, I, Zhou Huaiyan, will personally kill everyone."

"—bury him with him."

In a daze, Ah Fei heard the beautiful Son of God speaking a foreign language with a pure accent.

He said,

"That includes you, Helubei."

The author has something to say:

Gong Bao was stunned!