As soon as Xie Zhe finished speaking, he quickly excused himself, leaving only Xiao Yun and Xie Caiqing in the courtyard.
The Emperor stood behind Xie Caiqing, his left hand lightly pinching Xie Caiqing’s waist while his right hand lifted Xie Caiqing’s sword-wielding arm high.
Xie Caiqing’s arm was long and slender, stretched gracefully.
“Your Majesty… about yesterday…” Xie Caiqing said.
Xiao Yun responded patiently, “Hmm?”
“I thought about it after I returned,” Xie Caiqing bit his lip, “Your Majesty… should not look at such things anymore.”
“Why? Desire is human nature. What’s wrong with watching, so long as it doesn’t become an obsession that distracts from duty or harms the body?”
“But… it still has an effect,” Xie Caiqing said.
Xiao Yun was taken aback, then chuckled, “So you’ve been thinking about it since yesterday?”
“… It’s hard not to,” Xie Caiqing admitted, embarrassed. “Since returning yesterday, I’ve been distracted from everything else. I didn’t sleep well and performed poorly today.”
“You don’t want to think about it?”
“Of course not,” Xie Caiqing replied. “But I can’t help it. That’s what’s frustrating.”
Xiao Yun smiled lazily, “Let me teach you a method. It’ll keep you from wasting time on idle thoughts.”
Xie Caiqing’s eyes lit up slightly. “Please, Your Majesty, instruct me.”
Xiao Yun said, “Just go do it directly, top scholar.”
“…Your Majesty!” Xie Caiqing flushed crimson without warning.
“You won’t think about it anymore. You’ll sleep soundly in the arms of a fine lady, and the next day your work will be twice as productive. Isn’t that more meaningful than wasting time daydreaming?”
Xiao Yun held Xie Caiqing’s soft hand, his thoughts running wild as he sighed at his previous foolishness.
If only he had accepted him when Xie Caiqing first offered himself, by now the man might be docile and compliant. Instead, they were still stuck in this awkward limbo.
Xie Caiqing was silent for a moment, turning his face away. “Your Majesty always mocks your servant.”
Xiao Yun snorted, “I’m being serious, and you say I’m mocking you? Aren’t I being wronged?”
“Your servant admits guilt.”
“I heard there’s not a single female in the top scholar’s household. Why is that?”
“Your servant has not yet come of age.”
“But you can still take a concubine or chambermaid.”
“…I’ve never considered it.”
“Don’t you fear a lonely bed at night?”
Xie Caiqing smiled faintly. “Doesn’t Your Majesty also live with restraint, with no one in the harem, yet you don’t seem to suffer—”
“I do suffer.”
Xie Caiqing turned around in surprise, meeting Xiao Yun’s ambiguous gaze.
A sense of predation overwhelmed him—like a carnivore pressing in on prey. Xie Caiqing blushed furiously and dropped his gaze, as though trying to decipher the deeper meaning behind those words. His voice trembled slightly. “How… how could Your Majesty suffer from a lonely bed?”
The Emperor said nothing. His dark, oppressive gaze remained fixed on him—like a wolf in the night, watching its prey and waiting to pounce.
The top scholar felt a chill down his spine, his breath quickening.
“Y-Your Majesty?” he asked hesitantly into the heavy silence, growing more uneasy.
Suddenly, Xiao Yun gave a short laugh and took Xie Caiqing’s hand into his own palm.
His hand was large, the pads of his fingers and his palm calloused and strong, completely unlike Xie Caiqing’s softness. Though it was already April, Xie Caiqing’s fingertips were still slightly cold. Once grasped by Xiao Yun, the warmth seeped into him, setting his heart ablaze.
“Your Majesty?” Xie Caiqing stared at their interlocked hands, eyes filled with a trace of fear. He turned to look at the handsome man behind him, as if a terrible thought had suddenly occurred to him. His body trembled uncontrollably, palms sweating, and he slowly began to pull his hand away.
Xiao Yun didn’t use any force, letting him withdraw. “Not learning sword dancing anymore?”
The top scholar visibly relaxed and, slightly embarrassed, quietly pushed his hand back into place.
Xiao Yun looked down at that soft, obedient hand in his palm—utterly unaware of the danger it was in—and his gaze darkened subtly.
Not having come of age yet… all the easier to coax.
He held Xie Caiqing’s hand and pulled him closer into an embrace.
The top scholar’s body tensed in an instant, then gradually relaxed again, focusing intently on the sword in his hand.
Xie Caiqing leaned tightly against Xiao Yun’s chest. A faint scent teased at his nose, and strands of dark hair occasionally brushed against his lips and face.
Xiao Yun slightly lowered his head. Right in front of him was a delicate, fair neck that flushed at the slightest provocation.
He silently stared at it for a few seconds, then guided Xie Caiqing’s arm, helping him with the movements.
A palace maid passing by the corridor stopped involuntarily, holding her breath at the sight.
Beneath the locust tree, pure white blossoms tinged with tender green, the emperor in black daily robes held the elegant scholar clad in flowing white.
The golden threads on their garments occasionally glinted brilliantly in the sunlight.
The scholar’s body was evidently very light. Though his sword movements had grown more fluid, his posture still lacked coordination—slightly frail and awkward. It was the emperor, with his exceptional martial skill, who was practically carrying him—arms tightly around him, their bodies seamlessly pressed together. His left arm encircled the scholar’s waist, keeping his feet just brushing the ground without bearing his full weight. His right hand supported his, preventing injury from inexperience.
The scholar was graceful and ethereal, the emperor commanding and striking—together, they moved with heroic flair and a touch of transcendence. The glint of gold threads quickened with their movements, radiating opulence. They were both worldly and otherworldly, teetering on the edge, embodying a breathtaking tension between clarity and chaos, danger and harmony.
Neither immortals of the heavens nor mere mortals of the earth.
Petals drifted through the air. The scholar’s hair brushed the emperor’s face, and he smiled.
The maids’ hearts raced wildly, their faces flushing deep red.
If His Majesty were even a third as kind to his bedmates as he is to his officials, the women of the world would stop at nothing to be by his side. There wouldn’t be any need for all those pitiful, ridiculous sobs at the palace gates.
And yet he’d rather teach the top scholar swordplay than laugh and flirt with a favored concubine.
If only that scholar were a woman—they’d be the very picture of divine lovers.
What a waste.
Xie Caiqing, pressed tightly against Xiao Yun, focused intently on the lesson. Suddenly, his grip slackened in horror. “Your Majesty…!”
Xiao Yun effortlessly caught the falling sword.
“Your… Your Majesty…”
Xie Caiqing could no longer concentrate on the lesson. His entire body was taut, strung so tightly he felt like he’d snap. Something was on the verge of breaking.
His legs buckled without warning. Xiao Yun caught him quickly, tightening his grip. Xie Caiqing’s chest rose and fell rapidly, eyes wide, breath ragged. Darkness clouded his gaze. His face flushed red—then turned deathly pale.
Red. Pale. Shame. Shock. Terror.
“Your Majesty… please let go of this humble subject… I…”
He stammered, unable to finish the sentence. He tried to move forward but couldn’t—this was his first time feeling so utterly powerless.
A strange current, unsettling and terrifying, surged through his limbs. Behind him, Xiao Yun said nothing—just continued guiding the sword.
The air was thick and heavy, laced with an unnamed emotion.
Xie Caiqing’s heart was pounding out of his chest. His whole body felt numb, and he couldn’t help but become hyperaware of the man behind him.
He cursed him as a scoundrel—a shameless rogue. Never in his wildest dreams would he have imagined that, in broad daylight, in front of others, Xiao Yun would dare…
Suppressing his panic and shame, he realized—it had only been a day since Xiao Yun figured things out and decided to tell him this way.
Just one day. Not even a full day.
He had thought Xiao Yun would take it slow—coax him, trick him, put on a show, or at least fabricate some accident. Maybe wait a few more days before…
Perverted b*stard.
Xie Caiqing gasped, feeling the faintest brush against him, completely losing focus. His shame overwhelmed him, fingertips trembling.
How could he? How dare he? His elder brother had been right—he really is a beast. Despite all the reasons he shouldn’t—he ignored them all. He didn’t even bother to scheme or hide it. He just… he just…
He was going to kill Xiao Yun.
“Your… Your Majesty… This humble subject doesn’t want to practice anymore. Please let go of me, I beg you…”
Whether from fear or shame, Xie Caiqing’s eyes were red, on the verge of tears. He was trembling like a frightened, wronged little rabbit, ready to flee at any moment.
The man behind him remained silent, earnestly teaching him how to wield the sword. Xie Caiqing whispered, “Your Majesty…”
“Would you treat the Commander the same way? Or am I just being petty again…”
“Your Majesty… please say something.”
“Your Majesty, this subject… understands. After all this movement, it’s… natural. You don’t need to be embarrassed. I… I won’t tell anyone. Just please… let go of me…”
“I’m begging you, Your Majesty…”
Xiao Yun suddenly tossed the sword. The clang it made as it hit the ground made Xie Caiqing flinch violently.
He looked like he couldn’t handle even a moment more of this tension.
But Xiao Yun grabbed his face from behind, bringing his lips close to his cheek, and spoke in a low, hoarse voice:
“Feeling hot?”
The scholar’s eyes widened, his breath caught, his whole body turned rigid.
“Top scholar,” Xiao Yun murmured with a lazy smile, voice low and full of wicked delight, “do you know why I can’t sleep at night?”
The top scholar’s eyes flew wide open, the unbelievable truth crashing over him like a wave. He began to breathe hard, as if missing even a single breath might cause him to suffocate under the mounting pressure.
His eyes turned redder and redder. Faced with danger, his first reaction was fragile helplessness. It took a long moment before he began to struggle in panicked disarray.
Xiao Yun no longer restrained him. Xie Caiqing ran off without even turning his head—so fast, it was as if a hungry wolf was chasing him.
Xiao Yun sighed.
With this little rabbit, there were only two paths: eat or don’t eat.
The path of not eating wouldn’t work. Since he’d already chosen to eat, then no matter how scared the little rabbit was, he had to press forward.
As for everything else—he’d deal with it once it was in his stomach. That was better than letting the rabbit run around outside and get devoured by someone else.
…
Inside a private room of the Hanlin Academy, Xie Caiqing washed his face with clear water, finally cooling the heat on his cheeks.
He pulled out a pure white handkerchief from his sleeve, stiffly reaching around to wipe his lower back. When he brought it before his eyes, there was nothing on it.
He knew there wouldn’t be anything. He just wanted to wipe.
Fuming, he threw the handkerchief away, feeling grimy all over. A faint anxiety stirred in his heart.
This was the Hanlin Academy. It was impossible for him to ask for water to bathe.
Why was it still so early in the day?
He wanted to go home.
Xie Caiqing walked over, locked the door, and slowly undressed in front of the bronze mirror, removing his robes layer by layer until his upper body was bare.
He sluggishly and dejectedly turned around, holding the mirror to examine his lower back. When he saw the patch of pink-red skin there, he gritted his teeth in shame.
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