Xueya felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over him. He looked at He Xulan in disbelief for a while before forcing a smile and saying, “Brother, are you joking with me?”
He Xulan’s eyes were very cold, much colder than last night. “Do I need to say it again?” With that, he took a handkerchief and wiped the skin that had just been kissed.
Xueya couldn’t force a smile anymore. He blinked quickly, turned his face slightly, exhaled, and said, “No need. This servant will go out now.”
He climbed out of He Xulan’s embrace, not looking back as he left. When he lifted the bead curtain too forcefully, one of the tassels hit his cheek, and the pain on his cheek made He Xulan’s hurtful words seem tangible.
On his way back to his room, Xueya angrily grabbed the teapot from the table, but after a moment’s thought, he put it down.
If he broke it, he didn’t know if he would be punished. Even if he wasn’t punished, he would have to clean up himself. How embarrassing.
So embarrassing!
He actually misunderstood that He Xulan liked him and even kissed He Xulan actively.
Thinking of this, Xueya also took out a handkerchief and fiercely wiped his mouth until his lips were red before stopping. He stared at himself in the mirror, as if staring at He Xulan.
“You’re all b*stards,” Xueya gritted his teeth and cursed. “One day, I’ll make you all beg me to look at you more.”
***
The self-indulgence only made Xueya feel listless for a day. The next day, he was full of energy again. After the Lantern Festival, it was still very cold in the capital. Xueya’s duties in Ningfu Palace were similar to those in Fengrui Palace. He brewed tea, burned incense, collected dew in the morning, and had an additional duty at night—night watch.
Night watches under Cui Lingjing were personally attended by the chief eunuch, while under He Xulan, they took turns. Generally, two palace attendants would stand guard outside the hall together until the third watch period, when they could sit on the prepared mats to rest, but not sleep deeply.
Xueya had never done night duty before and knew he was prone to sleepiness. The eunuch who was with him for the night was a young eunuch named Xiao Huazi. Xiao Huazi was clean and looked a year younger than Xueya. When he saw Xueya, he smiled with his eyes curved. “I’ve added an extra hot soup for you to keep you warm.”
“Thank you.” Xueya’s first impression of Xiao Huazi was very good because of this hot soup. Since they couldn’t sleep now and could only stand, Xueya wanted to talk to dispel his drowsiness. “Where are you from?”
“I’m from Peach Village, Xingcheng,” Xiao Huazi said. “How about you?”
“I’m from Qing County, a small bustling town near Linhai,” Xueya replied. “How old are you this year?”
“I’m sixteen,” Xiao Huazi said.
“Then I’m one year older than you. You should call me ‘Older Brother’,” Xueya said.
Xiao Huazi looked closely at Xueya, somewhat surprised. “I thought you were younger than me. I didn’t expect you to be older.”
“I may look young, but I’m actually not that young. By the way, how many people are there in your family?” Xueya, afraid of falling asleep, kept chatting to keep himself awake. Before long, he knew even the name of the dog his neighbor kept. Just as he was about to ask whether his neighbor’s daughter Lingling was engaged, a voice suddenly came from inside the hall.
“Someone come.”
It was He Xulan’s voice.
Xueya and Xiao Huazi exchanged a glance and decisively said, “It’s your turn.”
Xiao Huazi didn’t seem to mind that Xueya had swiftly passed the responsibility to him without hesitation. He nodded and turned to enter the hall. However, not long after, he came out again. “Xueya, the Empress Dowager is feeling unwell. Can you do a massage?”
Xueya lied, “I can’t.”
Xiao Huazi frowned at the news. “Then what should we do? The Empress Dowager has a headache and doesn’t want to trouble the imperial physician at this hour.”
D*mn him.
Xueya feigned concern and said, “What should we do then?”
After hesitating for a moment, Xiao Huazi said, “I’ll go ask He Shao who usually serve beside the Empress Dowager. You go into the hall and stay beside him. If the Empress Dowager is particularly uncomfortable, you can go and fetch the imperial physician.” With that, he ran off without giving Xueya a chance to stop him.
Xueya watched Xiao Huazi run off and then turned to look at the dark hall. He glanced at it and turned his face away. If He Xulan had a headache, it would be best if it were excruciating for him. Just as he was busy cursing He Xulan, a loud noise came from inside the hall, as if something had crashed to the ground.
Xueya was startled by the noise and immediately turned back. He stared into the hall, hesitated for a moment, and then turned back again.
Why hasn’t Xiao Huazi come back yet?
But not long after, He Xulan’s voice came from inside.
“Someone come.”
Xueya couldn’t pretend he hadn’t heard, or he would be punished, so he cautiously entered the hall. The hall was not lit, and he could only see the path by the moonlight coming through the windows. As he approached the bed in the inner hall, he stopped his steps. “Empress Dowager.”
A hand emerged from the curtain, lifting it slightly. He Xulan was reclining on the bed. Because there was no light in the hall, Xueya couldn’t see He Xulan’s expression clearly.
“Pour some water,” He Xulan ordered again.
Xueya obediently went to fetch water. However, because he couldn’t see well, he poured too much and spilled some from the teacup. He quickly poured some more water and carefully brought it to the bedside. He handed it over. “Empress Dowager, please have some water.”
The hand took the teacup, and not long after, it was handed back.
Xueya took it and placed the teacup back on the table. Suddenly, he heard He Xulan’s voice, “What were you talking about outside just now?”
Xueya hesitated briefly. “I didn’t say anything.”
“You didn’t talk to Xiao Huazi?” He Xulan’s tone was gentle, as if casually asking.
“I did, but we just chatted about where everyone is from, nothing else,” Xueya glanced back discreetly. “Empress Dowager, should I check if Xiao Huazi is back?”
“Come here,” He Xulan didn’t agree.
Xueya stood still for a moment, then walked to the bedside. He peeked through the slightly opened curtain at He Xulan inside. “Empress Dowager, is there anything else you would like to command?”
He Xulan’s tone remained gentle. “My head isn’t feeling quite right. Can you help massage it?”
Xueya pursed his lips. “I don’t know how.”
He Xulan was silent for a moment before saying, “Just try.”
“Alright then, I’ll try my best.” Xueya added, “If I’m clumsy, Empress Dowager, please don’t blame me.”
“No punishment.”
With He Xulan’s assurance, Xueya secretly bit his lip. He approached the bed, took the initiative to hook one side of the curtain with a golden hook, and looked at He Xulan again. “Empress Dowager, may I get on the bed?”
He Xulan looked at Xueya and nodded slowly. Seeing this, Xueya knelt on the bed and reached out to touch He Xulan’s head. His first touch was quite strong, almost as if he were using all his strength from infancy, then struggled a little more.
While Xueya exerted his strength, he asked weakly, “Empress Dowager, is this strength okay? I’m clumsy and don’t know if it’s good?”
He Xulan’s eyes darkened slightly. He grabbed Xueya’s wrist and pulled him closer. Because Xueya was kneeling, with a pull, he fell into He Xulan’s arms. Before he could climb up, he heard He Xulan say, “You’re very strong. Xueya helped me so much with the massage for so long. You must be tired.”
In the latter sentence, his voice was very low, “Brother will help Xueya massage.”
The first slap landed on his waist, and Xueya immediately let out a cry. After being hit three times, he tried to dodge, but there was no escape. Realizing that He Xulan was truly angry, Xueya could only beg for mercy, “Brother Empress Dowager, Brother, I was wrong, please… Ah, it hurts, it really hurts, Brother, I was wrong, sob…”
He tried to escape off the bed, but He Xulan didn’t give him the chance, and pleading for mercy was useless. Xueya, afraid of the pain, could only desperately grab onto He Xulan’s hands, pressing them down against his back. In doing so, He Xulan ended up on top of him.
Xueya, still slightly out of breath from the earlier struggle, noticed that He Xulan was trying to pull his hands away. He shifted his body, pressing down harder on He Xulan’s hands. “You said you wouldn’t blame me.”
He Xulan looked down at the person beneath him. “I’m not blaming you. I’m just treating you the same way you treated me.”
“I only pressed your head, but you pressed my waist, and also my hands and legs,” Xueya retorted.
He Xulan paused for a moment. “Then why don’t you press back?”
Xueya initially wanted to refuse, but the spots he had been hit still ached. Remembering how he had misunderstood things earlier, he begrudgingly agreed, “Fine.”
“Then get up,” He Xulan said.
Xueya, suspecting He Xulan just wanted to free his hands, responded, “I’m not getting up. I’ll press you like this.”
He reached out and pressed down on He Xulan’s waist with force, but He Xulan’s waist was firm, and Xueya’s hands were already tired from pressing He Xulan’s head earlier. His strength quickly waned, and eventually, he grew frustrated and withdrew his hand.
“Not pressing anymore?” He Xulan’s voice seemed a bit huskier than before.
Xueya turned his face away. “I’m done. My hands are sore.” After saying this, he lifted his upper body. “Empress Dowager, take your hands back.”
He Xulan withdrew his hands, but in the next moment, he pushed Xueya’s shoulders back down onto the bed. Caught off guard, Xueya was pressed back down. He froze for a second, then turned his face to look at He Xulan. The room was dimly lit, and he couldn’t see He Xulan’s expression clearly, but he knew He Xulan was watching him.
“Empress Dowager, I should be going now,” Xueya said in a suddenly quiet voice.
“Where are you going?” He Xulan leaned in. “To keep talking to Xiao Huazi?”
Xueya turned, seemingly trying to crawl away without directly answering He Xulan’s question, and said, “Xiao Huazi should be back by now.”
Just as he started crawling, he was pushed down again.
He Xulan said nothing. Xueya hesitated for a moment before suddenly turning and wrapping his arms around He Xulan’s neck. He leaned close to He Xulan’s ear, his lips brushing against it. “Brother, just admit it, you like me, don’t you?” He let out a light laugh. “You’re jealous, you care that I’m talking to Xiao Huazi. But you don’t have to be jealous. I don’t like him; I was just bored and chatting with him.”
He Xulan chuckled softly. “How could you possibly like him?”
Hearing this, Xueya frowned slightly, feeling that something was off in He Xulan’s words, but he brushed the feeling aside and continued clinging to He Xulan. “Brother, do you like me?”
He Xulan didn’t respond. Having made a fool of himself once before by assuming things, Xueya was determined this time to hear He Xulan admit that he liked him. So, he clung tightly to He Xulan, refusing to let go, even calling out his courtesy name. “Lingduan, Brother Lingduan, do you like me or not?”
