The last shred of rationality in Xueya’s mind kept him from lunging at He Xulan. He gritted his teeth, staring at him, and the fury within him grew exponentially.
Why was he not worth loving?
What was wrong with him?
If he wasn’t worth loving, why did He Xulan kiss him, touch him?
Suddenly, Xueya saw He Xulan turn to leave. He rushed forward, spreading his arms to block the doorway. “You’re not leaving! You need to explain this to me!”
He Xulan’s expression turned colder. “Haven’t I made myself clear?”
Xueya was trembling with anger. “You lied to me! You lied! Don’t you fear I’ll reveal the truth?”
At that, Xueya heard a soft chuckle from He Xulan. He froze, watching as He Xulan reached out and gripped his chin.
“You can try telling everyone. Do you know what your fate would be?” He Xulan’s tone was gentle, as if he had once again become that warm, affectionate older brother.
It was only at that moment that Xueya realized he had been completely deceived. He couldn’t reveal the truth. Even if he did, no one might believe him. And even if they did, it would be him, not He Xulan, who would pay the ultimate price.
He Xulan had known all along that Xueya wouldn’t dare expose them, which was why he felt free to torment him, using him as a pawn, even setting him up.
Xueya hated He Xulan!
***
He Xulan promised to spare Xueya’s life.
Xueya was demoted to the laundry bureau, where all the nobles avoided him, leaving him with endless piles of laundry. All of his belongings were confiscated, from the gold ornaments he had hidden, to the jade pendant gifted by Cui Lingjing. Even the beautiful skirts in his wardrobe were gone.
He changed into the lowest-ranking eunuch’s clothes and did menial labor for over half a year.
When winter arrived, Xueya’s hands could no longer tolerate the cold water. Hot water was scarce—barely enough for bathing, let alone for washing clothes. Every time he wiped his body with cold water, tears would fall uncontrollably, but now he could only cry in secret and never for long, afraid someone would notice.
The head of the laundry bureau, Liu Gonggong, despised crying. If he saw anyone crying, he would beat their hands with a board.
As the days grew colder, Xueya’s swollen, reddened hands were scrubbing clothes when he suddenly heard someone call for him.
“Xueya, someone’s here for you.”
Xueya froze at Liu Gonggong’s words, pulling his hands from the water and wiping them on his clothes. Nervously, he asked, “Liu Gonggong, who’s looking for me?”
“You’ll know when you go out. Hurry up,” Liu Gonggong said with an unusual hint of a smile.
Feeling uneasy, Xueya left the laundry bureau and saw someone he hadn’t seen in a long time. Liang Mu smiled as he approached. “Xueya, do you still remember me?”
Xueya stared at Liang Mu for a moment before nodding.
Liang Mu’s smile deepened. “I’m off-duty today, so I had some free time to come by. Have you eaten? I brought some pastries from outside the palace. Would you like some?”
He pulled a package from his coat, carefully wrapped in several layers to keep it warm.
“It’s sticky rice cake. Have a taste,” Liang Mu said as he looked around. Noticing the place wasn’t ideal for chatting, he asked, “Why don’t we go to your room to eat?”
Xueya glanced at the rice cake, his eyes fixated on it. Hearing Liang Mu’s suggestion, he shook his head. “There are ten people sharing the room, and some are resting now.”
Liang Mu frowned at this. “Ten people? How do you manage to rest? Is anyone bullying you here?”
“That’s how it is. Every room has ten people. No one gets special treatment.” Xueya lowered his gaze.
After a moment of silence, Liang Mu said, “There’s a small side room where the Imperial Guards rest nearby. It’s a bit dirty, but would you prefer going there?”
Xueya didn’t oppose the idea, but he glanced back at the laundry bureau. Liang Mu noticed and reassured him, “Don’t worry, I’ve already asked Liu Gonggong for half an hour off for you.”
Only then did Xueya follow Liang Mu to the small side room. Just as Liang Mu had said, the place was a bit untidy, but it was still much better than where Xueya had been staying.
As soon as they entered, Liang Mu busied himself cleaning the room. He washed the cups on the table several times before pouring Xueya some water. “It’s not very hot, but if you want, I can heat some for you.”
“No need,” Xueya said, taking the cup. As he did, Liang Mu noticed how swollen Xueya’s hands were and froze in place.
Xueya didn’t seem to notice Liang Mu’s gaze. He drank the water quietly. After a cup of warm water, his body began to warm up. He glanced at Liang Mu and asked softly, “Can I have another cup?”
“Of course,” Liang Mu quickly poured him more water.
“Thank you.” This time, Xueya drank more slowly, his eyes drawn to the oil paper-wrapped rice cakes on the table. Noticing this, Liang Mu unwrapped the sticky rice cakes.
But Xueya didn’t immediately eat. Instead, he looked at his hands. “I just washed clothes. My hands aren’t clean.”
“I’ll get you some hot water to wash your hands,” Liang Mu said, and hurried out. Soon, he returned with a basin of hot water and a towel.
As Xueya dipped his hands into the hot water, he gasped. It had been a long time since he’d soaked his hands in warm water. The heat made his hands both hurt and feel comfortable, and he couldn’t help but soak them for a little longer. Liang Mu watched from the side before gently suggesting, “Why don’t you eat first? I’ll fetch more hot water for your hands later, alright?”
Xueya thought that made sense and took his hands out of the basin. As soon as he did, Liang Mu picked up the towel beside the basin, ready to help him dry his hands.
Xueya didn’t move, watching Liang Mu. Meeting his gaze, Liang Mu paused and then handed the towel to Xueya instead. Xueya thanked him again and dried his hands before reaching for the sticky rice cake.
Liang Mu stayed with Xueya while he ate. When he had finished, Liang Mu softly said, “Xueya, if you want to cry, just cry. You don’t need to hold it in.”
At those words, tears instantly fell from the young man’s eyes.
Xueya blinked rapidly, his voice muffled. “I don’t want to cry.”
His head was gently patted twice.
“There’s no one else here, I won’t say anything. I’ll visit you often from now on, and you can tell me whatever you want to eat,” said Liang Mu.
Hearing this, Xueya slowly looked at Liang Mu. The young man before him didn’t seem any different from half a year ago, still full of energy. “Really? You won’t lie to me?”
Liang Mu nodded seriously, “I won’t lie to you. As long as I can come visit, I will. What would you like next time?”
“As long as you come to see me, that’s enough.” Xueya smiled at Liang Mu.
Liang Mu seemed to be momentarily stunned, then he turned his face slightly, “I’ll come.”
***
Liang Mu didn’t lie to Xueya. He frequently came to visit afterward, always bringing something for Xueya, from food to daily necessities.
He even brought ointment for Xueya’s frostbite.
Among the most valuable things he brought was a warm jade.
“If you wear this, it will keep you much warmer,” Liang Mu said.
Xueya looked at the warm jade in his palm, touched it for a while, then handed it back. “I can’t accept this, it’s too precious.”
Liang Mu shook his head. “It’s not that valuable. Almost all the guards have one in winter when it’s cold. I had a few extra at home, so I brought you one. Don’t worry, it’s not expensive. You can find it in the market.”
Xueya felt that Liang Mu was lying, but he was indeed afraid of the cold. As he hesitated, Liang Mu took the warm jade from his hand and put it on him.
When Liang Mu’s fingers brushed against his neck, Xueya flinched. He instinctively shrank back but quickly composed himself, standing still to let Liang Mu put the jade on him.
The jade was indeed warm. That small spot under his clothes felt much warmer. Xueya touched the warm jade through his clothes, and a smile crept onto his face.
Seeing Xueya’s delight, Liang Mu smiled as well. “Alright, let’s eat. After you finish, we can soak your feet for a while. I’ve asked Liu Gonggong for an hour’s leave for you.”
Xueya’s hand, which was still touching the jade, paused. He raised his eyes to look at Liang Mu. Liang Mu met his gaze, smiled a little awkwardly, and said, “Huh? What’s wrong?”
Xueya slowly leaned closer to Liang Mu, trying to kiss his cheek. But Liang Mu dodged. His expression turned flustered, and his voice came out different from usual. “I… I didn’t mean it like that, Xueya… You don’t need to do this.”
Xueya’s face instantly flushed red. He sat up straight without saying a word.
Thinking he had upset Xueya, Liang Mu quickly explained, “I’m not rejecting you, it’s just… Ah, I don’t even know how to say this, but I didn’t come to see you for that reason.”
“I understand.” Xueya lowered his head. “I won’t do it again.”
Liang Mu opened his mouth to say something but, in the end, stayed silent.
Another half-month passed, and the festival of Little New Year’s Eve was approaching.
Liu Gonggong, having been well-compensated by Liang Mu, was treating Xueya increasingly well. One day, he told Xueya not to wash clothes and assigned him a different task.
“You’ve been working here for over half a year without any major mistakes. Today, you’ll go with Xiao Fanzi and the others to deliver clothes.”
Hearing that he could deliver clothes, Xueya’s eyes lit up.
The job of delivering clothes was usually reserved for four specific people. These four hardly had to wash clothes and simply made deliveries. Xueya never thought this job would fall to him. Walking around was much better than washing clothes in the cold water of winter.
The first palace they delivered to was Fengrui Palace. Xueya wasn’t allowed inside, so he waited outside while Xiao Fanzi and another person carried the clothes in. As he waited, Xiao Fanzi came out, grabbed Xueya, and pulled him inside. “Come with me.”
Confused, Xueya followed. He soon heard angry voices and realized something had gone wrong.
“How could the laundry bureau be so careless? How could they ruin His Majesty’s belt? And you, why did you even send His Majesty’s belt to the laundry bureau? That place isn’t meant for His Majesty’s clothes!”
Xueya could hear someone sobbing.
“I didn’t mean to! I don’t know how His Majesty’s belt got mixed in. I swear I only sent our clothes.”
“Stop making excuses. Today, you’ll be punished severely.”
The sound of a board striking flesh echoed, and Xueya instinctively wanted to retreat, but Xiao Fanzi held him firmly.
“Xiu Gugu, our laundry bureau has always been reliable. You know this. But today, something strange happened. We had someone new with us, and now there’s this problem. The clothes were all carried by him.”
Shocked, Xueya looked up at Xiao Fanzi. He hadn’t even touched that basket of clothes. “I didn’t touch it.”
“Are you saying I’m framing you?” Xiao Fanzi looked at the other eunuch who had carried the clothes with him. “Wasn’t he the one carrying it?”
The other eunuch hesitated briefly but nodded, “Yes, it was him.”
Xiu Gugu glanced at Xueya before turning back to Xiao Fanzi. “The entire laundry bureau will be held accountable for this.”
Xiao Fanzi forced a smile. “Xiu Gugu, there’s no need to escalate things. If he’s responsible, then let him take the blame. If His Majesty is displeased, he can punish him alone. He’s the one who ruined the belt.”
“It’s not that simple,” Xiu Gugu frowned.
At that moment, they heard an announcement from outside.
It was Cui Lingjing, returning from court.
***
Upon returning to his palace to change into casual clothes, Cui Lingjing frowned when he saw the belt the maid had brought him. “Bring me a different one.”
They brought several different belts, but none pleased him. Finally, he asked, “I remember I had a belt with a plum blossom pattern.”
During his walk back to the palace, he had seen plum blossoms and recalled the belt with the same pattern. But that belt happened to be the one that had been ruined. When Xiu Gugu paled and admitted that the belt had been destroyed in the wash, Cui Lingjing’s face darkened.
Xiu Gugu immediately knelt on the ground, and in a panic, she blurted out, “It was a laundry worker called Little Xuezi who ruined it. His clumsiness caused this grave mistake.”
Xiu Gugu hadn’t originally served in Fengrui Palace; she used to work for the Imperial Consort Min. The senior maid in Fengrui Palace had reached the retirement age, so Xiu Gugu was temporarily transferred here.
Cui Lingjing’s eyebrows raised slightly when he heard the name “Little Xuezi.” “Little Xuezi?”
“Yes.” Xiu Gugu’s heart was pounding, but she tried to steady herself and said, “But this happened because Shuangli accidentally mixed His Majesty’s belt with the laundry. I’ve already punished her and contacted the Tailor Bureau to rush a replacement belt for His Majesty.”
Cui Lingjing turned around and asked, “Where is this Little Xuezi you speak of?”
