After sending off the envious Qi Hanmiao, Yin Wuzhi returned and swiftly laid down beside Jiang Wu.
He laid there quietly, listening to the sounds around him.
“Your Majesty?”
Jiang Wu ignored him.
“Your Majesty, you’re not asleep yet, are you?”
Jiang Wu was puzzled. How did Yin Wuzhi always seem to know if he was truly asleep or just pretending?
“Do you want to know how I can tell whether you’re really asleep or not?” Yin Wuzhi asked.
Jiang Wu had no interest in finding out.
“Of course, you wouldn’t care to think about such trivial things.”
Jiang Wu: “…”
He heard Yin Wuzhi laugh softly.
The deliberately hushed laugh was deep and, for some reason, sent a strange electric current straight into Jiang Wu’s ears, making him suddenly open his eyes.
What was that?
Just now, what was that?
There was a slight movement near his ear, and Yin Wuzhi leaned closer, speaking softly, “What’s wrong, Your Majesty?”
This time, Yin Wuzhi didn’t guess his thoughts correctly.
Jiang Wu’s eyes shifted toward him, and Yin Wuzhi, understanding, gently turned his head so they were face to face. Jiang Wu pressed the ear that had just felt something strange against the pillow, his expression tranquil, his gaze emotionless.
Yin Wuzhi’s hand remained on his cheek, his thumb lightly stroking the smooth skin. His gaze deepened. “Your Majesty once said that I was too thin-skinned…”
His fingers slid down from Jiang Wu’s ear to his finely sculpted jaw. “Like this, is this okay?”
Jiang Wu didn’t move or speak.
Yin Wuzhi tentatively leaned in, closer and closer.
His Adam’s apple bobbed. “Your Majesty.”
Jiang Wu made no sign of resistance.
Yin Wuzhi, watching him, held his breath and gently touched his lips.
This wasn’t the first time he had kissed Jiang Wu, but it was the time that made him the most nervous.
Both of their noses were so straight that when their lips met, to get any closer, they had to shift their noses slightly.
Their full lips were squished together.
Jiang Wu could feel the tip of Yin Wuzhi’s nose brushing against his, again and again. His head was gradually adjusted back to its original position, and someone leaned over him.
As their breaths intertwined, Jiang Wu began to realize that the space between their noses felt stiflingly thin.
He took a heavy breath through his nose—
Nostrils. Exhausted.
Yin Wuzhi quickly released him, his slender fingers gently combing through Jiang Wu’s dark hair, softly reminding him, “Breathe.”
Jiang Wu obediently did as he was told.
Unable to resist, Yin Wuzhi planted a kiss on the tip of his nose, then moved up his face, leaving a loud kiss on his forehead.
The sound was sudden, and Yin Wuzhi blushed slightly, discreetly shifting back to steal a glance at him.
Jiang Wu remained as calm as ever. Though usually appearing somewhat cold, at this moment, he seemed overly docile, almost excessively so.
Yin Wuzhi leaned in again and kissed the corner of his mouth with a loud smack.
Unlike the unintentional sound earlier, this one was deliberate, much louder, enough that Jiang Wu’s eyelashes fluttered slightly.
Yin Wuzhi observed the subtle twitch of his expression and then loudly smacked his lips again.
Jiang Wu: “?”
Smack. Smack. Smack, smack, smack—
Jiang Wu: “?????”
Seeing his increasingly bewildered expression, Yin Wuzhi finally couldn’t hold it in and burst into laughter.
Jiang Wu: “.”
His expression returned to its usual blankness.
All liveliness faded away into silence, and Yin Wuzhi reined himself in a bit. Wanting to maintain their closeness, he searched for something to talk about. “A few days ago, the Great Empress Dowager said she would no longer restrict Empress Dowager Yao from seeing Your Majesty. Today, I noticed that her guards have indeed been withdrawn.”
Jiang Wu closed his eyes again.
Clearly, he had no interest in the struggles between his grandmother and mother, nor did he care who won or lost. Yin Wuzhi continued, “If nothing unexpected happens, Empress Dowager Yao will likely come to visit Your Majesty.”
After all, the Great Empress Dowager had kept her away for so long, Yao Ji had every reason to come and visit.
Jiang Wu remained silent, but his mood visibly darkened.
He did not want to see Empress Dowager Yao. Even if it wasn’t due to the abuse his younger self had suffered, he still despised the woman. After all, he had personally endured her strangling him.
Yin Wuzhi noticed.
His gaze darkened, but his tone remained gentle. “Your Majesty needn’t worry. I’ll be by your side, watching her every move. She won’t harm you again.”
“Besides that, can Your Majesty help me recall what Empress Dowager Yao said to you the night before your neck was injured last autumn?”
After a long pause, Jiang Wu replied, “No.”
“Do you truly not remember?”
“Mm.”
Yin Wuzhi pressed his forehead against his, sighing softly.
He had hoped that Jiang Wu could somehow provoke Yao Ji into revealing what had happened back then. After all, aside from Jiang Wu, Yao Ji was the only one who knew the truth.
But then he remembered that conversation might have been the final straw that broke the emperor’s spirit. Yin Wuzhi couldn’t bring himself to ask any more.
At this point, nothing was more important than Jiang Wu’s well-being.
One step at a time.
With their foreheads pressed together, Yin Wuzhi’s warm skin touched Jiang Wu’s. He could clearly feel the faint pressure where their skulls met, separated only by a thin layer of flesh.
It felt strange.
But oddly comforting, in a way.
In a fleeting moment, Jiang Wu’s mind drifted back to the day when Yin Wuzhi had carried him from the warm pool.
Half-asleep, he had met the gaze of a woman, watching as she wept and pleaded through tear-filled eyes. “…We can’t go on like this. If the old ministers learn of our secret, they’ll never let you go. You must take control of all the power, or you won’t be able to save yourself or your mother.”
If the old ministers wouldn’t let him go, could Yin Wuzhi?
Even though his younger self had suffered, based on what Yao Ji had said, he too must have been involved in some dirty deeds.
“Yin Wuzhi,” Jiang Wu opened his eyes and said, “There’s a secret between me and my mother.”
The next day, as expected, Yao Ji came to see Jiang Wu. She brought with her a beautiful maid and a cat.
“Xue Yaer, go.”
The cat swiftly jumped onto Jiang Wu’s lap and meowed at him.
Jiang Wu didn’t even glance at it.
Yao Ji approached with a smile, sitting down beside him. She reached out to pet the cat curled up on his lap. “It’s been so long, yet Xue Yaer is still so fond of you.”
Her gaze roamed around the room until it landed on Yin Wuzhi. “Yin Shizi, would you mind stepping out for a moment? I’d like to have a word with His Majesty.”
“Yin Wuzhi doesn’t need to be avoided.”
“You still need to avoid it,” Yao Ji said. “I can’t stand seeing someone using their looks to serve.”
Perhaps this comment hurt the young general’s pride, because Yin Wuzhi walked out without looking back.
A cold glint flashed in Yao Ji’s eyes.
Then, she heard Jiang Wu say, “Isn’t mother the same?”
She didn’t quite catch on: “What?”
“You too use your looks to serve.”
In that instant, Yao Ji’s expression shifted dramatically, her face contorting for a moment before she regained control. “Jiang Wu, how dare you speak to your mother like this…”
“You’re nothing more than a tool that gave birth to me,” Jiang Wu said casually, his gaze clear as glass. “Just like how I am merely a tool that helped you become Empress Dowager. Between tools, is there really a need to differentiate between status?”
Yao Ji’s hand, which had been gripping the cat’s neck, suddenly tightened. The cat, Xue Yaer, hissed immediately and bit her hand in return.
Jiang Wu’s fingers twitched, and Yao Ji quickly withdrew her hand. Xue Yaer jumped off Jiang Wu’s lap and darted out of Taiji Hall.
Outside, Yin Wuzhi turned his head slightly, watching as the group Yao Ji had brought with her quickly chased after the cat.
“Does Empress Dowager Yao keep a cat?” he asked.
“Yes,” Qi Hanmiao replied. “Occasionally, there are rats in the palace. It’s said that Empress Dowager Yao is terribly afraid of them, so she keeps a cat to prevent them from coming near.”
Yin Wuzhi furrowed his brow as he watched the cat disappear. He murmured thoughtfully, “It seems that cat is used to roaming freely in Ziyun Hall.”
A soft laugh came from the delicate maid Yao Ji had brought. “The young shizi must not know Empress Dowager Yao well enough. That cat has always been kept in a cage in Ziyun Hall.”
There was a hint of pride in her words, and Yin Wuzhi, sensing something, glanced at her.
The maid’s heart skipped a beat, and she immediately lowered her head.
Then, remembering that she was favored by Empress Dowager Yao, she stubbornly straightened her posture again.
Qi Hanmiao also glanced at Yin Wuzhi and whispered, “This is the first I’ve heard of it.”
Inside Taiji Hall, Empress Dowager Yao had already stood up in silence. She said, “Do you hate your mother so much that you don’t care about our relationship at all?”
Jiang Wu lowered his gaze to his smooth hands, recalling his conversation with Yin Wuzhi the previous day.
When he mentioned that he and Yao Ji had a secret, Yin Wuzhi had almost reflexively asked, “What secret?”
“I don’t know what the secret is,” Jiang Wu had replied honestly. “But I can ask her and tell you.”
“…Tell me?”
“Tomorrow, if my mother comes to see me, I’ll tell her that you know our secret,” Jiang Wu had said. “Yin Wuzhi, you must be careful.”
If he could trick her into revealing the secret, that would be good. But if not, considering that the secret could endanger both his and Yao Ji’s lives, Yin Wuzhi might be in danger.
If Yin Wuzhi was fortunate, he might be able to use this lead to uncover something.
“Relationship,” Jiang Wu said. “At this point, I only have a relationship with one person.”
“Who?”
Yao Ji looked at him, but Jiang Wu kept his eyes closed, his eyelids not moving at all: “Yin Wuzhi.”
Yao Ji’s expression darkened. “Yin Wuzhi… Have you really been bewitched by that wretch?”
“I trust only him.”
“Do you even know how scheming he is, how cunning? He fooled the Zhao army into circles on the frontlines, and you actually believe him?”
“I’ve already told him the secret between you and me,” Jiang Wu said calmly. “And he swore to keep it…”
“Are you insane?!” Yao Ji suddenly grabbed his collar. “Jiang Wu, have you lost your mind? I told you all this to protect you, not so you could trade it for a little lover’s trust! This is a matter of life and death for both of us—how could you just tell Yin Wuzhi—!”
Jiang Wu was shaken to the point of dizziness. He slumped weakly and said gloomily, “He’s the one I care about most, so of course I trust him.”
“You’re insane!” Yao Ji’s eyes bulged with rage, her entire body trembling.
After a long while, she let go of him, and Jiang Wu, feeling faint, collapsed into the chair. It was unclear how much emotional preparation Yao Ji had done before she finally said, “Jiang Wu, do you no longer care about your mother at all…?”
“Mm.”
Yao Ji: “…” She said bitterly, “Is Yin Wuzhi really that much better?”
“He’s better than mother.”
“Jiang Wu!”
“Mother is not as good as Yin Wuzhi.”
Yao Ji felt as if he had stabbed her repeatedly. Trembling with fury, her tears began to fall. “Wu Er…”
“His voice is better than mother’s,” Jiang Wu said, opening one eye to look at her. “Even his crying looks better than mother’s.”
“You!”
“When you get angry, you do surpass him a bit.”
Yao Ji, tearful: “?”
“You’re uglier when you are angry,” Jiang Wu corrected himself. “But Yin Wuzhi isn’t ugly at all.”
“Mother is ugly. Annoyingly ugly.”
Can’t wait until next week to see more? Want to show your support? Come to my Patreon where you can get up to 5 more chapters of The Daily Life of a Depressed Salted Fish right away ! Or go donate at Paypal or Ko-fi to show your appreciation! :)
