Chapter 57 Shame

After entering the city, Sui Xun asked his deputy general to reorganize the troops, and he rode back to the marquis's mansion with a few personal guards.

The peach trees outside the mansion had long lost all their leaves, and a row of small red paper lanterns were hung on the bare branches.

Sui Xun stopped his horse, glanced at the weird peach branch, and frowned.

Sui Yan was still sitting on the horse: "Brother?"

Sui Xun responded and reached out to pick Sui Yan up from the horse.

Sui Xun and Sui Yan stood at the door waiting for Duan Ming Chong. After a while, Sui Xun couldn't help but frowned and asked, "What's that thing on the tree? Did you ask someone to put it there?"

Sui Yan said: "I made it myself and put it there. It looks quite festive. Do you like it, brother?"

Sui Xun scolded: "You are neither fish nor fowl. Why don't you learn something good instead of messing around with all this nonsense?"

When Sui Yan heard this, he thought this was bad. Sui Xun looked cold as ice, but when he got into talking, he could rival Jun Jingxing. He hurriedly said, "Brother, you shouldn't need to go back to the border so soon after the New Year, right? How long can you stay?"

Sui Xun was not happy that he changed the subject, but still said: "This battle will keep the border peaceful for several years. I may stay in the capital next year and will not return to the border unless it is too urgent."

Sui Yan was delighted: "That couldn't be better!"

He was just feeling happy when Sui Xun suddenly changed the subject and said in a cold voice, "So, in these three years, have you found a girl you like? I've given you such a long time, don't tell me that you don't want to start a family yet?"

Sui Yan froze for a moment, thought about Duan Mingchong, and then said reluctantly: "I do want to, but people look down on me."

Sui Xun originally thought that Sui Yan was used to playing around and didn't want to get married and tie himself down, but she didn't expect that there would be such a thing and was immediately shocked.

He said in a daze, "You mean, which girl did you fancy, and you haven't won her heart after pursuing her for more than three years?"

Sui Yan lowered his head and said in a muffled voice: "Yeah."

Sui Xun was completely shocked: "You have good looks and status, but who is that girl that she doesn't like you?"

Sui Xun can say that there is nothing wrong with Sui Yan, but if others look down on her own brother, Sui Xun will be furious and think that person is really blind.

Sui Yan whispered, "She is more noble than me, and I heard she is getting married."

As he spoke, he lowered his head, looking as if he was hurt by love.

Sui Xun had never seen Sui Yan like this before. He was stunned for a long time before he said with difficulty: "Is it because you are too unreliable and make people think you are unreliable? Who is this girl? Tell me."

Sui Yan groaned, "Why should I tell you? Are you going to chop someone with a knife?"

Sui Xun shook his head: "No."

Sui Yan breathed a sigh of relief.

Sui Xun said: "It is still possible to kill the man who wants to marry her."

Sui Yan: “…”

Sui Yan lost his voice: "Brother!"

Sui Xun was actually just joking. He said, "Call me brother. My brother is both talented and handsome. He was personally conferred a title of Marquis by the Emperor. Why do you look down on him? I think you have poor taste. There are so many famous ladies in the capital. Why do you choose someone who doesn't like you? Oh, yes, another reason may be that you are notorious and no one in the capital likes you."

Sui Yan: “…”

For a moment, Sui Yan didn't know whether Sui Xun was praising him more or criticizing him more.

Sui Yan stamped his feet and said angrily: "Anyway, I don't want to talk about marriage now, so don't force me to ask anymore!"

Sui Xun said coldly: "Don't be childish with me! Don't you know how old you are now?"

Sui Yan couldn't believe it: "I look so hurt by love, and you are willing to let me get married at this critical moment? Am I still your biological brother!?"

Sui Xun frowned: "Don't change the subject and talk nonsense. Anyway, you..."

Before he finished his threats, Duan Mingchong's carriage arrived late and suddenly stopped at the Marquis's mansion.

Sui Xun had no choice but to whisper, "I'll settle the score with you tonight."

Sui Yan glared at him with red eyes.

Duan Mingchong got off the carriage and saw that the two brothers looked different from before. He was stunned for a moment and asked, "What happened?"

Sui Xun said, "Nothing, I'm just in a bad mood. Your Highness, please forgive me for making fun of you."

Sui Yan was so angry that he tore off his cloak and threw it on Sui Xun, saying angrily: "Get married, go get married by yourself!"

Having said that, he turned away.

Duan Mingchong looked at Sui Yan and Shang Wu's identical words and actions, feeling somewhat embarrassed: "This..."

Is it because the two brothers did not discuss the marriage arrangement granted by the emperor?

Sui Yan seems...too dependent on Sui Xun, right? Are all brothers from ordinary families like this?

Sui Xun forced a smile, without further explanation, and took Duan Mingchong into the mansion.

Sui Yan returned to the side courtyard angrily, opened the door abruptly, and saw Jun Jingxing sitting aside reading a medical book. There were several herbs on the table, and he seemed to be identifying them.

The anger on Sui Yan's face was extremely obvious. Jun Jingxing quickly put the book on the table and put the medicine on the table into the box with a very familiar gesture, for fear that Sui Yan would be angry and knock over his medicine.

He closed the box and said, "What's wrong? You were so happy when you went out just now, why are you so angry now? Your brother didn't come back, and he lied to you again?"

Sui Yan suppressed his anger and said, "Can you imagine that he has just returned for a short time and he is urging me to get married."

Jun Jingxing: "Oh, that's fine. If it's a good opportunity, I can get married on the same day as the Crown Prince."

Sui Yan: "Jun Jingxing!"

Jun Jingxing then remembered that Sui Yan had a crush on the prince, and hurriedly said, "I was wrong. I'm sorry."

Sui Yan then sat down.

Seeing him so angry, Jun Jingxing lowered his head and poured him tea. As he poured, he advised: "Now the news has spread all over the streets and alleys, and the prince has reacted like that. It's about time for you to..."

Sui Yan took a sip and suddenly said "Pooh!" "Too hot!"

Jun Jingxing had no choice but to brew it again.

"I heard the servants talking about this today. It is said that the young lady of each family has been finalized and is just waiting for the imperial decree to be issued and announced to the world."

Sui Yan: "Pah! Too cold! Brew it again!"

Jun Jingxing: “…”

No matter how dumb Jun Jingxing was, he could tell that he was picking on him, so he simply put the tea set on the table, took a deep breath and said, "Are you not sober again? I'll go make you some medicine."

Sui Yan was so angry that he was shaking all over, and he cried, "They are all talking without any hesitation. One of them is just stabbing people in the heart, and the other one is responsible for spreading salt on the side...they! They cooperate so well, why don't they go kill pigs?!"

Although Jun Jingxing was amused by his words, he was also at a loss when he heard his voice become hoarse: "Hey, hey, don't cry, it's not a big deal, you..."

Sui Yan glared at him and said, "I won't cry for those two stinky men. They are all bad people! It would be a waste of my tears to cry for them."

Jun Jingxing: “…”

Seeing how lively he was, Jun Jingxing had no choice but to swallow the consolation he had prepared.

Sui Yan drank a cup of tea and said, "My brother... my brother is the same. How can he treat his own brother like this? He came back and forced me to get married not even half a day later? He doesn't even have a little sister himself, so what right does he have to ask me?"

Jun Jingxing was afraid of offending him, so he had no choice but to agree: "Yes, yes, yes."

"I have never received love from my brother before. I just want to be coquettish and call him brother. What's wrong with that? Does he really want me to call him 'brother' in every sentence?"

Jun Jingxing: "Yes, yes, yes."

Sui Yan cursed: "They are all idiots!"

Jun Jingxing: "Yes, yes, yes."

Sui Yan glanced at him and said, "Don't agree too soon. You are one too."

Jun Jingxing: “…”

Jun Jingxing looked at him expressionlessly, thinking that he was wasting his feelings by feeling sorry for this kid.

Sui Yan took another sip of tea and said, "You just said that the Crown Princess has decided on a candidate. Which girl is she from?"

Jun Jingxing said: "I told you, you won't go to other people's doors to cause trouble."

Sui Yan said: "I'm not that embarrassed, tell me."

Jun Jingxing said: "The second young lady of Jiang Zhiyuan, Jiang Ning."

Sui Yan said "Oh", took a sip of tea expressionlessly, sat in the chair for a long time, and then suddenly let out a "Wow", which scared Jun Jingxing.

Sui Yan cried, "Jiang Ning is several years older than the prince, how can they be considered a good match? Does Duan Ming Chong really like those who are older than him? I am also older than him, why doesn't he consider me?!"

Jun Jingxing saw that he seemed to be ill again: "Lord? Lord, are you okay? Do you want to go to sleep for a while?"

Sui Yan was still talking nonsense, and Jun Jingxing was afraid that he was thinking too much, so he tried to persuade and coax him into bed.

Sui Yan lay in the quilt, staring at him blankly, and said in a hoarse voice: "I want my brother."

Jun Jingxing helplessly wiped the sweat off his forehead and said, "My Lord, how old are you now? Five years old and still clamoring for a brother?"

Sui Yan hesitated and said, "Since I was a child, I have never called them brothers."

Jun Jingxing was stunned for a moment.

Sui Yan murmured, "When I wanted to call out, I found that they were all gone."

Jun Jingxing didn't quite understand, so he could only persuade him: "General Sui should have accompanied the Crown Prince to the palace to report on his duties. I'll have him come to see you when he comes back later, okay?"

Sui Yan didn't know if he heard it or not. He whispered, "I want to make up for what I had before. Why doesn't he want me to call him brother?"

All the hatred not only in this life but also in the previous life will be avenged.

Sui Yan is not the type to act coquettishly towards anyone. He developed the habit of relying on himself for everything in his previous life, and it is difficult to change this in a short time.

After his rebirth, he had only two wishes. One was not to be as cunning as in his previous life and not to be involved in the chaos of seizing the throne. It would be enough for him to just live safely and smoothly. The other was for Sui Xun who was in this change.

Sui Xun should have died with his elder brother in the fierce battle at the border when he was ten years old, but for some reason he survived the disaster in this life.

Sui Yan had someone investigate this matter three years ago, but the conclusion given was ambiguous: the crown prince was assassinated at a young age, and Sui Xun, who was only a deputy general, was transferred by the emperor to the Eastern Palace for guarding, so he did not experience the vicious battle at the border where the entire army was almost wiped out.

Anyway, no matter what, Sui Xun's survival is the most gratifying thing for Sui Yan since his rebirth.

He didn't want to ask about anything else, he just wanted to make up for the brotherly love he missed in his childhood. However, Sui Xun never let him do that. Even when he called him brother, he would put on a stern face and ask him to call him brother instead.

The more Sui Yan thought about it, the more upset he became.

Jun Jingxing said helplessly: "It's just a name, don't take it so seriously."

Sui Yan used Jun Jingxing's previous words to retort him: "You don't have a brother, so naturally you don't understand me."

Jun Jingxing: “…”

Jun Jingxing had no choice but to say, "Okay, okay, I don't understand you, but I know your body very well now. If you keep nagging like this, you might go crazy. Just go to sleep first, okay?"

Sui Yan hummed, and after lying there for a while, he suddenly opened his eyes and said, "I want to sleep in my brother's room."

Jun Jingxing: “…”

Jun Jingxing put down the medical book in his hand and said helplessly: "Aren't you afraid that he will beat you out?"

He thought for a moment, then looked at Sui Yan with a stiff face, imitating Sui Xun's expression, and said in a low voice: "How disrespectful! How disrespectful!"

Sui Yan: “…”

Jun Jingxing: "Ah, I almost forgot."

He imitated Sui Xun again and said in a deep voice, "Call me brother."

Sui Yan couldn't help it and kicked him.

Jun Jingxing thought he had learned it quite well: "Anyway, your brother is like this, very fierce, you'd better stop messing with him."

Sui Yan hummed, then closed his eyes and fell asleep.

He originally thought that it would be morning when he woke up again, but when he opened his eyes again, it seemed that it was still dark outside the window. The candle on the bedside table was lit, dimly illuminating the figure sitting at the bedside.

Sui Yan stared at him blankly, and after a while he said, "Brother?"

Sui Xun had been sitting beside his bed for an unknown amount of time. Perhaps because of the candlelight, Sui Xun looked gentler than in the daytime. He reached out and wiped the cold sweat off Sui Yan's forehead, and said, "Did you have a nightmare?"

Sui Yan shook his head: "No, there are too many charcoal basins, it's a bit hot."

Sui Xun frowned, stood up and took out a charcoal basin from the room, then came back and said, "Okay, is it better now?"

Sui Yan nodded and said, "Brother, are you back so late?"

Sui Xun: "Well, I came to see you, and then I'll leave after just one look."

Sui Yan quickly reached out and grabbed his sleeve, whispering, "Don't leave so fast."

Sui Xun rarely saw this little bastard looking so pitiful and gentle. A rare smile flashed across his cold eyes, and he said softly, "Okay, I'll stay with you for a while."

He stuffed Sui Yan's hand into the quilt, and Sui Yan immediately grabbed his index finger to prevent him from leaving, saying, "The Emperor kept you here so late, is there something important?"

Sui Xun felt a little uncomfortable with Sui Yan's dependence on her, and pulled her hand back with a frown, only to see Sui Yan's eyes instantly turn red.

Sui Xun: “You…”

Sui Yan quickly turned his head away, took a few breaths quietly, then turned back and smiled reluctantly, "Nothing, brother, continue."

Sui Xun thought for a moment, then reached out to the quilt, clasped Sui Yan's slender five fingers, and then said: "I talked about some nonsense, and also rewarded you with some expensive novelties. Go and see if there is anything you like when you get up tomorrow morning, and take it and play with it."

Sui Yan held Sui Xun's hand, and his eyes narrowed immediately.

"Yeah, okay."

Sui Xun looked into his eyes, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "One more thing."

Sui Yan: “Hmm?”

Sui Xun suddenly didn't know whether he should say it or not.

When they were in the palace, Duan Mingchong told him about Sui Yan's sudden abnormal behavior after hearing that he was going to get married. He was worried that if he told him that he was going to get married, would he go crazy in the middle of the night?

Sui Yan waited for a long time but nothing happened, so he rubbed Sui Xun's palm and said, "Brother?"

Sui Xun thought about it and told the truth: "I will stay in the capital for a year or two. The emperor may think that you have grown up and are difficult to control, so he...arranged a marriage for me. He probably wants to use his female relatives to control me."

Sui Yan froze.

Sui Xun took a deep breath and said, "...the candidate has been chosen. You should have met Jiang Ning, the daughter of the current Jiang Zhiyuan. The decree should be issued tomorrow."

Sui Yan: “…”

Sui Xun was afraid that he would be upset, so he spoke softly, "Forget to return?"

Sui Yan shook off Sui Xun's hand, pulled the quilt up to cover his face, and didn't want to see anyone.

Sui Xun was startled: "Wang Gui, are you okay?"

He didn't want to say too much, for fear of irritating Sui Yan.

Sui Yan was lying in the quilt, his voice muffled and a little tearful: "It's okay."

Sui Xun: “Then you…”

Sui Yan collapsed and said, "Now I just want to kill that bastard Jun Jingxing."

Sui Xun: “…”

Sui Yan almost wanted to cry out loud. Why had he been so upset for the past few days?

No wonder Duan Mingchong said such good things to him. It turned out that he was talking about Sui Xun and Jiang Ning's marriage, which of course could not be better.

He recalled those sentences that he and Duan Mingchong had said to each other, which were completely inconsistent with each other. He then scolded Duan Mingchong for no reason and even overturned his teacup. He almost wanted to fall on the pillow and kill himself.

I don't think Duan Mingchong at that time thought that he was acting so crazy just for Sui Xun, right?

Would he think too much about some messy things?

Or maybe you think you are too childish and you are so angry that you don't want your brother to get married?

Sui Yan was about to groan with shame. He wanted to beat himself to death, and also wanted to kill Jun Jingxing who spread the false news. The two sides struggled, and his murderous intention reached its peak.

Sui Xun was worried for a long time before Sui Yan pulled off the quilt and looked at him, sobbing, "Brother, will the Crown Prince come over tomorrow?"

Sui Xun was confused: "Maybe, I'm not sure. What's wrong? What does this have to do with the prince?"

Sui Yan was speechless: "No, nothing, I just feel like I have lived so many years in vain."

Twenty-three years in the previous life, three years in this life, a total of twenty-six years have passed, and he has not yet figured out the truth of the matter and is already throwing a tantrum. Sui Yan even began to wonder if he forgot to bring his brain with him when he was reborn, which is why he did such a stupid thing.

Sui Xun wanted to say something else, but Sui Yan turned over and didn't want to communicate anymore. He was so depressed that he was emitting black air all over his body: "Brother, you can go back. Good night."

Sui Xun saw that he was indeed a little depressed. While wondering if she had done something wrong in raising the child, which led to Sui Yan becoming such a brother-crazy person, she tucked in the quilt for him, gave him a few words of advice, and turned around and walked out.

Sui Yan banged his head on the pillow for a long time before he fell asleep in a daze.

Early the next morning, Jun Jingxing, probably having heard the rumors, was afraid of being killed by Sui Yan, so he fled without waiting for Sui Yan to get up.

Sui Yan got up, took a stick, and searched the entire yard expressionlessly, but couldn't find Jun Jingxing. He was so angry that he almost bit the stick into pieces.

Haitang was sweating profusely behind him, "Young Master, Master Jun said he had something to do early in the morning and left the mansion early. You...what's wrong with you? Why are you so angry?"

Sui Yan was so angry that his breathing became unstable. He pointed at him with a stick and said, "Go and get him back for me! Now! Immediately! I want to kill him!"

Haitang hurried away and told Jun Jingxing to stay outside for a few more days to prevent her young master from killing anyone.

Sui Yan threw the stick aside angrily, almost breaking his steel teeth.

At this moment, a familiar voice came from the side.

"Who made our Lord Hou so angry so early in the morning?"

Sui Yan turned his head and saw Duan Mingchong in a brocade robe with dark patterns.

Sui Yan's heart skipped a beat and he turned around to run.

Duan Mingchong didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He took a few quick steps and grabbed him: "Why are you running again? Did I offend you in any way? I didn't mention anything this time."

Sui Yan's ears turned red, almost bleeding. He was too embarrassed to say a word and lowered his head, not daring to look up at him.

Duan Mingchong saw that he was shrinking his head like a quail and laughed softly. He stretched out his two hands and gently placed them on the sides of Sui Yan's face, gently holding his face.

What Sui Yan couldn't stand the most was Duan Mingchong's gentle movements, as if she was his most precious jewel. She immediately raised her head slightly following his movements without resistance.

Duan Mingchong stared at his slightly red cheeks and smiled softly, "Are you not hiding from me anymore?"

Sui Yan said hesitantly, "Your Highness, please forgive me. I was very rude a few days ago."

Duan Mingchong suppressed his laughter and said, "It's good that you know you're wrong. I thought I did something wrong to upset you."

Sui Yan felt even more guilty: "How is that possible?"

Duan Mingchong then put down his hand: "Then I feel relieved."

As soon as Duan Mingchong put down his hand, Sui Yan suddenly felt his cheeks were a little cold. He was a little dizzy because of Duan Mingchong's teasing, and he took the initiative to grab Duan Mingchong's hand and put it on his cheek, mumbling: "Hold it for a while longer."

Duan Mingchong: “…”