Yin Wuzhi leaned against the stone bed and sat on the ground.
The uneaten rabbit leg Jiang Wu left was placed beside him. Yin Wuzhi closed his eyes, his face tilted up in exhaustion.
From Jiang Wu’s perspective, all he could see was his pale profile.
“Yin Wuzhi,” Jiang Wu said, not sleeping. “Aren’t you going to eat?”
Yin Wuzhi didn’t respond, and his breathing was raspy, as though he had an internal injury.
Jiang Wu’s eyes followed the lines of Yin Wuzhi’s face, down to his open hand.
His fingers were scraped raw from gripping the vines, bloodied and mangled.
During his long ghostly wanderings, Jiang Wu had seen wounds worse than this, sights even more disturbing, but back then, he only knew they should hurt. He hadn’t really understood what that meant.
Now, he suddenly realized these kinds of wounds were worrying.
He pushed himself up and sat. “Yin Wuzhi.”
Maybe he was completely exhausted. After all, Jiang Wu had rested at the bottom of the mountain, but Yin Wuzhi had been tirelessly working.
Jiang Wu got out of bed and left the cave.
A long passageway appeared in front of him, and on the opposite side, he saw another cave.
He stood there in a daze, thinking carefully about how Imperial Physician Gu treated his neck wound before stepping outside.
He wasn’t sure if there was water in the cave, but he didn’t want to waste time or energy looking. He remembered the lake they had fallen into, and figured he could find water there.
Behind him, he heard movement. Jiang Wu turned to find Yin Wuzhi following him like a shadow.
“You’re awake,” Jiang Wu said. “I thought you’d fainted.”
“Where are you going?”
“Water.”
“I’ll go find it.”
Jiang Wu looked at Yin Wuzhi’s pale face. Yin Wuzhi said, “Go back.”
“.”
“Are you incapable of speaking? Do I have to guess everything?”
“.”
Yin Wuzhi raised the torch, “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Yin Wuzhi.”
“Go back.”
“.” Jiang Wu glanced dejectedly at his hand. “Yin Wuzhi.”
Yin Wuzhi looked at his own hand, the fingers weakly splayed, and said, “I’ll deal with it tomorrow. I’m too tired today.”
“Yin Wuzhi.”
“…” Yin Wuzhi said, “There’s hot spring water in the cave over there.”
Jiang Wu followed him to that cave. On the way, Yin Wuzhi coughed several times, using the wall for support.
“You sit here, I’ll find it.”
“You don’t care about me, so why are you being so good to me?”
Because Yin Wuzhi couldn’t die; he still had to be emperor. If the truth was revealed, Jiang Wu wasn’t sure if Yin Wuzhi’s fate would change. He said, “Because I’m kind.”
Anyway, that’s what people are saying.
Yin Wuzhi let out a brief laugh, then quietly continued leading him forward.
Sure enough, Jiang Wu found a small hot spring pool in a cave, just as Yin Wuzhi had described. He used a fire starter to locate some discarded candles and lit them. In the glow, he found a vessel in a corner, scooped up some water, and poured it over Yin Wuzhi’s wounds. Yin Wuzhi’s hand trembled slightly as he remarked, “A rare experience indeed.”
Jiang Wu fetched more water and continued pouring it over his hand.
Yin Wuzhi briefly closed his eyes. He wasn’t sure whether Jiang Wu was here to treat his wounds or to murder him.
Jiang Wu, holding the vessel, rinsed three times, paused, and then rinsed twice more before stopping again.
Yin Wuzhi said, “That’s enough.”
Jiang Wu set the vessel down, saying, “There’s no medicine.”
With effort, Yin Wuzhi pulled out a small medicine bottle and handed it to him.
Jiang Wu took it and heard him say, “Use it sparingly.”
Yin Wuzhi, already struggling to keep himself upright, placed his hand on the ground by the edge of the pool, beads of cold sweat dotting his forehead.
Jiang Wu took his hand, rinsed the dirt off the back of it, and then sat down on the ground with his legs stretched out, placing Yin Wuzhi’s hand on his lap. He lowered his head and began applying the medicine.
He moved slowly with everything he did, often pausing to rest when tired. Yin Wuzhi leaned against a nearby rock, watching him through the flickering candlelight. His face remained lifeless, and his every movement appeared clumsy and stiff, as if he were a puppet being controlled by strings.
“Your Majesty, you still care about me, don’t you?” Yin Wuzhi said, “You do care about me, right?”
Jiang Wu, indifferent to how others viewed him, didn’t bother to correct the assumption.
He applied the medicine evenly and was searching for a bandage when he heard the sound of fabric tearing. Yin Wuzhi had ripped a piece of his clothing and handed it to him.
Yin Wuzhi looked as if he might faint at any moment, though it was unclear what was keeping him going.
Jiang Wu wrapped the hand and said, “It’s warm here.”
“You want to sleep here?”
“Mm.” Mostly because he didn’t want to move.
“The stone bed in this cave hasn’t been cleaned.”
Jiang Wu simply laid down on the ground.
Yin Wuzhi added, “It’s not uncomfortable?”
It was uncomfortable, but with no better options, it would do.
Jiang Wu was always like this. When things were good, that was fine; when they weren’t, it didn’t really matter.
Yin Wuzhi, exhausted, soon fell asleep. When he awoke, Jiang Wu was nowhere to be found.
He hurriedly got up, his face pale, and stumbled outside.
At some point, a heavy rain had begun to fall, its sound clearly audible inside the cave. Yin Wuzhi looked around in panic, a huge fear clutching his heart like a giant hand.
“Jiang Wu…” Unable to bear it, he shouted, “Jiang Wu—!”
In a larger natural hot spring, the person floating on the surface suddenly sank. A few moments later, he reappeared, grabbing a stone from the ground and smashing it against the rock wall.
Yin Wuzhi’s ears twitched, and he finally noticed some footprints on the ground. Staggering, he rushed toward the source of the sound, entering a larger natural cave, where he saw the beautiful emperor floating in the spring.
He stiffened his face and walked over. “When did you come here?”
Jiang Wu couldn’t recall the time, so he replied, “I don’t remember.”
“Why didn’t you wake me?”
“.”
Yin Wuzhi paused and then said, “I was very worried.”
Jiang Wu laid back down in the water, once again floating on the surface.
Yin Wuzhi approached and sat by the edge of the pool, quietly watching him.
The spring bubbled with warmth, and it was about the same size as the pool in the warm pavilion. The emperor floated quietly, his dark hair spreading out in the light blue water like a sea creature.
Yin Wuzhi recalled the day of the Noble Consort’s indulgence, his gaze darkening. “Your Majesty, cough, I’m not feeling well either.”
Jiang Wu: “?”
“I want to soak for a bit too.”
Jiang Wu glanced at his hand.
Yin Wuzhi said, “It’s fine.”
Jiang Wu lazily paddled in the water, giving him some space.
A quarter of an hour later, Yin Wuzhi had entered the water.
Jiang Wu continued to float peacefully, his pale white feet dangling in the water. He seemed to have a fondness for floating, his fingers and toes moving ever so slightly.
Yin Wuzhi reached out and grasped his moving toes.
Jiang Wu wiggled his toes again, slipping them free from Yin Wuzhi’s hand, and then closed his eyes in peaceful repose.
Yin Wuzhi watched him for a while before standing up.
The wind blew through the cave, making the candle flames flicker wildly, casting chaotic shadows on the walls.
The rain continued unabated, and the wind that passed through the corridor drowned out all other sounds.
Jiang Wu, feeling a bit tired, drifted off to sleep. When he awoke, he was fully dressed and lying on the stone bed. Glancing to his side, he saw the long-haired youth next to him.
Perhaps it would be more appropriate to call him a man—or a mad dog.
Yin Wuzhi turned his head to look at him. Jiang Wu met his gaze for a moment before closing his eyes again.
Despite spending many years as a wandering soul, he wasn’t foolish.
His body was now covered in wounds inflicted by Yin Wuzhi, and everything ached. He lowered his lashes, knowing that Yin Wuzhi was probably angry and deliberately taking revenge on him.
Jiang Wu thought carefully about what he had done to anger Yin Wuzhi.
It was when he fed him rabbit meat—when he handed the meat back to him, coaxing him to eat.
That’s when everything changed.
But he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what had changed.
The man came over to him again, offering him food.
Jiang Wu: “.”
No, he wasn’t going to eat anything from Yin Wuzhi again.
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