I, The Substitute, Am With The Main Character Chapter 92

After Xueya finished asking, he noticed that He Xulan was just looking at him without speaking. He grew anxious and almost cried, “Brother, you didn’t forget it, did you?”

He Xulan was silent for a moment before lifting Xueya, positioning him to face the small table in the carriage. Xueya immediately saw the familiar box under the small table, and finally, his heart settled.

Now at ease, Xueya slowly became aware of the overwhelming quietness inside the carriage—more specifically, He Xulan’s unusual silence. He turned his head and found He Xulan still watching him. Xueya blinked and, acting endearingly, nestled into his brother’s arms, saying, “Brother, I feel awful.”

He Xulan finally spoke, “Where do you feel awful?”

“Everywhere,” Xueya complained, “Brother, kiss me.”

He Xulan glanced towards the carriage curtain before gently cupping Xueya’s chin and giving him a soft kiss. After the kiss, Xueya buried his face in He Xulan’s chest. After a short while of resting, he suddenly remembered something important.

“Brother, where are we going?”

“To Kangwu County.”

Xueya hadn’t heard of that place before. “Where is that?” He then recalled what Liang Mu had told him, that Cui Lingjing ordered He Xulan to be sent to the temporary imperial residence. “Brother, aren’t we going to the temporary imperial residence?”

He Xulan stroked Xueya’s still pale face, “I have an uncle in Kangwu County. We are going to find him. Xueya, I didn’t go to the imperial palace and brought you out of the palace instead. Once Cui Lingjing finds out, he will definitely send people to hunt us down. The road ahead will be dangerous. Are you scared?”

In He Xulan’s mind, he expected Xueya to show fear at this revelation, but to his surprise—

“I’m not afraid.” Though Xueya’s voice was weak, it was firm.

He Xulan was taken aback and held him tighter until Xueya whimpered in pain, bringing him back to his senses, and he quickly loosened his grip. Shortly after, he lowered his head and gently kissed the boy in his arms again.

He had not anticipated that their relationship would be discovered, but once the deed was done, it was only a matter of time before the truth came to light. When he learned that Xueya had been imprisoned and that Cui Lingjing had fallen ill, He Xulan had forcibly left Ningfu Palace. However, he wasn’t able to see Xueya. By the time Cui Lingjing had recovered, he refused to meet He Xulan and instead summoned a group of ministers.

That very night, the imperial edict was issued, sentencing all of Ningfu Palace’s attendants to punishment and commanding that He Xulan be moved to the imperial residence in Qingchang.

Although referred to as an imperial residence, Qingchang was practically a cold palace, meant for imprisoning high-ranking royal family members until their death.

Thus, He Xulan had no choice but to take a gamble, exposing most of his hidden forces in the process. Liang Mu, Yi Yefeng… Cui Lingjing would soon realize that these people were his subordinates.

Once the bowstring is drawn, there’s no turning back.

***

Xueya had no idea what He Xulan was thinking at the moment. His thoughts were simple because he had absolute faith in his dreams. In his dream, He Xulan had led an army to breach the palace gates, and he would surely become emperor. If he was going to be by the future emperor’s side, what was there to fear?

He could almost see the gleaming gold calling to him.

With that in mind, Xueya snuggled deeper into He Xulan’s arms. Although his body felt uncomfortable, his mood was rather good, so good that he couldn’t help but smile, only to be caught by He Xulan.

Seeing He Xulan’s odd expression, Xueya quickly tried to suppress his smile. When that didn’t work, and He Xulan kept staring at him, Xueya had no choice but to use his discomfort as an excuse. “Brother, my head hurts.”

After traveling for about an hour, the carriage came to a stop. Xueya was left alone inside for a while and, feeling bored, he tried to get up to see what He Xulan was doing. Suddenly, he noticed that the clothes he was wearing weren’t the same as the ones from when they escaped the palace, nor were they the usual skirted robes he was used to.

This was a well-fitting set of men’s clothes.

When He Xulan returned with medicine in hand, Xueya impatiently asked, “Brother, the clothes I’m wearing?”

“I changed them for you. Now drink your medicine first.” He Xulan sat beside Xueya.

Seeing the bitter-smelling medicine, Xueya instinctively frowned and tried to avoid it, but He Xulan immediately pulled him onto his lap.

“You need to drink it to get better. Be good.”

Xueya had no choice but to force himself to drink the whole bowl. Afterward, he nearly gagged and searched everywhere for candied fruit, but because they had left in a hurry, He Xulan had only brought medicine, anticipating that Xueya might fall ill. He hadn’t thought to bring any sweet treats. Realizing there were none, Xueya felt a bit down and listlessly curled up in the carriage. Before long, he dozed off again.

When he woke up, it was already dark outside.

They were still on the road.

He Xulan noticed Xueya had woken up and poured him a cup of water. After finishing the drink with He Xulan’s help, Xueya, feeling more refreshed, said, “Brother, I’m hungry.”

Noticing how much thinner Xueya’s face had become, He Xulan thought for a moment before instructing Yi Yefeng to stop the carriage.

It was the dead of winter, making it hard to hunt for food. After searching the surrounding area, Yi Yefeng managed to catch a rabbit, but it wasn’t enough to feed all three of them. After dividing the rabbit into three portions, Yi Yefeng handed two to He Xulan, who only took one, saying, “Your body is different. You need to eat more meat.”

Afterward, He Xulan climbed back into the carriage.

Yi Yefeng’s sharp ears caught the sound of He Xulan softly coaxing someone inside the carriage.

The person being coaxed felt that the rabbit meat wasn’t enough but was eventually convinced to eat his entire portion.

After finishing his own meal in just a few bites, Yi Yefeng was about to put out the fire and prepare to continue their journey when He Xulan emerged from the carriage again, this time carrying someone with him.

As soon as the young man stepped out of the carriage, he shivered from the cold and quickly burrowed into He Xulan’s arms. Though dressed in men’s clothes, he still looked delicate, with pale skin and crimson lips.

“Brother, it’s so cold.” Xueya hadn’t expected the wilderness to be this freezing. The wind was so sharp it felt like it was cutting his face.

Hearing this, He Xulan fetched another cloak from the carriage and wrapped it around Xueya. As they passed by Yi Yefeng, He Xulan briefly explained, “Going to relieve himself.”

Xueya had never relieved himself in the wilderness before, and with so many layers of clothing on, it was quite difficult. After a while of struggling to undress, He Xulan handed him a lamp and said, “Let me help.”

Though they had done many intimate things before, this was the first time He Xulan had helped him relieve himself. Xueya was so flustered that he didn’t know where to put his hands and feet, let alone make a sound.

After waiting for a moment and noticing that Xueya still hadn’t gone, He Xulan turned his head. Seeing Xueya’s long lashes trembling, he chuckled softly and teased, “If you don’t go soon, you’ll freeze, and what if it doesn’t work anymore afterward?”

Frightened by these words, Xueya finally managed to go. Hearing the trickle of water, he was so embarrassed that he couldn’t even open his eyes. To make matters worse, He Xulan even helped him clean up afterward.