General’s Gown Chapter 21

Chapter 21 Blood-like Sunset Part 1

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Yan Changqing’s eyes widened, caught off guard, he didn’t expect Helian Rongchuan to say such things. He thought back to the sparkling Jiaolu River, Helian Rongchuan riding a small boat and falling lightly behind him. He held a reed in his mouth with a smirk playing at the corner of his mouth, and the bloody kiss at the bottom of the river that followed… 

So what he felt when he said sorry to Helian Rongchuan before he turned to the attacker without hesitation, he knew very well in his heart. 

But now, the more aware he became of his feelings, the more uneasy and ridiculous he felt. 

He touched a smooth hard object in his hand. He didn’t even look at it, raised his hand and hurled it at Helian Rongchuan. 

A bang and Helian Rongchuan’s eyebrows were instantaneously cut. A small gash and blood flowed down his cheeks. A small copper incense burner lay on the ground with a little blood on its edge. 

Yan Changqing’s eyebrows throbbed, and then he turned his head away. 

“Regret?” Yan Changqing said coldly: “If you give me another chance, I will kill you with my sword.” 

Helian Rongchuan smiled bitterly. In fact, he had already expected a response similar to this one. He expected Yan Changqing to lash out. However, he was still like a stunned young man who had been in love for the first time. Helian Rongchuan wiped his bloody forehead, reached for the medicine bowl, scooped up a spoon to his lips and blew softly: “No matter what, drink the medicine first, okay?”

A steaming bowl of medicine lay in front of Yan Changqing. Helian Rongchuan smiled and said, “This is the first time I’m serving someone medicine. Master Yan, can you look at me?”

Before he was done speaking, Yan Changqing knocked over the medicine bowl beside the table without even lifting his eyes. 

Helian Rongchuan seemed to have anticipated the fate of this bowl early on, and without frowning, he poured another one: 

“Master Yan is afraid of the bitterness? Don’t be afraid, I have prepared yummy candy. Just drink the medicine then you can suck on it later.” 

Ridiculous, did he treat him like a kid? 

Yan Changqing turned his head and closed his eyes, not wanting to look at Helian Rongchuan. But his chest was violently moving ups and down because of the anger and humiliation. 

The whole room fell silent. Yan Changqing was holding his body when he suddenly felt an itchy, warm touch on his right shoulder. He opened his eyes, and it turned out that Helian Rongchuan was gently kissing the arrow wound on his right shoulder through the white gauze. 

“You–!” Yan Chang’s face flushed, and he gritted his teeth, but he was tightly clamped by Helian Rongchuan and his shoulders were trembling. 

“Does it still hurt ?” 

Helian Rongchuan’s eyes drooped, looking at Yan Changqing’s right shoulder that was wrapped in layers: 

“I chose the thinnest arrow. The wound should not be deep. The arrow is not poisonous. But when the numbing medicine inside you from the arrow fades, you may feel a little pain.” 

Is it guilt that was revealed in those exquisite, amber-like eyes? Distress? 

Yan Changqing suddenly felt his blood run cold. 

“I’m sorry, I promise, this is the last time I will lie to you.”

His slender fingers gently stroked the strands of Yan Changqing’s dark and soft black hair that was bent at his neck. Helian Rongchuan sighed lightly and raised his head. He drank the concoction in the bowl, pulled Yan Changqing’s chin suddenly, and poured it into his mouth from his own. 

“–Mm!” Yan Changqing frowned, but couldn’t get rid of the kiss no matter how hard he struggled. There was no longer anything to fight back with. His heart was beating violently, and his humiliation and anger made him want to explode. But there was nothing he could do. 

Helian Rongchuan’s fingers clamped his jaw tightly, forcing him to open up and swallow the concoction mixing with their saliva. The medicine slid along the corners of Yan Changqing’s lips dripping, extending down his thin and protruding neck giving him an explicitly sensual look. 

A kiss that was almost suffocating, both gentle and domineering, entangled with irresistible lips and tongue. For a long time, Helian Rongchuan did not let go of him. Yan Changqing turned his head away pale. He panted violently, his eyes turned crimson with rage. He only hated that he didn’t have a sword in his hand so he could pierce Helian Rongchuan with it. 

Helian Rongchuan was not afraid at all. He stroked Yan Changqing’s black hair lightly with a gentle touch. It was amusing that this man had such a hard temper, but his hair was so soft. 

“This is the border village between the Yan Kingdom and Dongyun, named Xixia Village. If you must know, most of it still belongs to the Yan Kingdom.” 

Yan Changqing was taken aback. So he was still in Yan territory? In other words, he still had a great chance to escape? 

Helian Rongchuan walked to the door, paused, and continued: 

“If you want to kill me, take your medicine, heal your wounds, and I will give you a chance.” 

————————————- 

Yan Kingdom Imperial City. Wende Hall.

Yan Emperor Murong Xiu was on his way from the morning court. He hadn’t changed his court clothes which depicted dragon clouds and red, gold, and silver threads. He only took off the tall and heavy crown and kneaded his eyebrows sleepily. The shadows under his eyes had become much darker over the past few days. The young emperor, in front of hundreds of civil and military officials of the entire dynasty, had always looked majestic and sophisticated. Even in the face of arrogant and stubborn senior officials, he had never shown the slightest timidity. Only after court, did he occasionally show such fatigue and powerlessness. 

The great eunuch Liu Quan lowered his eyes, carrying a steaming azure-glazed teacup and cautiously stepped forward, saying: “Your Majesty, you haven’t slept for a few nights, and you haven’t eaten breakfast this morning. would you like to have breakfast now, or—?” 

As he glanced up at Zhang Jian, who was standing opposite the Privy Council. The meaning couldn’t be clearer. 

However, the second-ranking minister Zhang Jian didn’t pay attention to Liu Quan at all. He stepped forward and said a little hurriedly: “Your Majesty, you also heard it in the court today. Regarding the disappearance of General Yan escorting the snow temper stones back home, everyone…everyone is still waiting for your stance.” 

Murong Xiu took the teacup, took a sip, and without looking up said slowly: 

“Oh? Waiting for Zhen’s stance? I think you are just waiting for Zhen to adopt your stance.” 

A cold sweat broke out on Zhang Jian’s forehead, and he said hurriedly: “Chen dares not.” 

“You dare not.” Murong Xiu coldly snorted, “But those old stubborn officials dare.”

Zhang Jian hesitated and said: “But Your Majesty, the senior officials, they did say things that made sense. You…” 

The other half, Zhang Jian only dared to mutter in his heart but never dared to say it out loud. However, who didn’t know about it in court? The emperor was young and had only been on the throne for five years. The emperor finally found a few cronies and wanted to win the game, but it was unfortunate that the one who was the most popular and the most deterrent turned over in the gutter. 

Who would have thought that the invincible Silver-masked King of H*ll Yan Changqing would be appointed the title of third-ranking general Yunjun at the age of seventeen, and then he would disappear on the way home from escorting the temper snow stones? Even the twenty ships themselves, full of temper snow stones, had disappeared from the border overnight. 

As soon as the news spread back to the court, it atmosphere there erupted. The ministers talked a lot, but most opinions were overwhelmed by those of veteran ministers. One after another, they came to the same conclusion: 

General Yan was probably not missing but had defected.

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