His world was like a glass of water with an effervescent tablet dropped into it, filled everywhere with gurgling, bubbling and popping sounds.
Gu Yun tightened his grip on the lantern handle. The smoothly polished bamboo joints offered no resistance, yet still pressed uncomfortably into his fingers, causing a faint pain. He slowly withdrew his gaze, not knowing where the other party had gone with the palace guards, nor how he had made his way back to his room.
By the time he came to his senses, he was already seated at the table. The lantern rested upon it, its light mingling with that of the lamp placed inside the room.
The brightness stung his eyes, a searing pain that made him shut them at once, almost bringing tears to his eyes.
After a moment, he fumbled to extinguish the lamp. Only then did he open his eyes again. The dim surroundings, like a mountain beneath moonlight, brought with them a sense of safety.
He looked at the lantern, thinking over what to do next.
Your Highness? Which Highness? As far as he knew, almost every member of the royal family was addressed as “Your Highness”.
“So late, and still not asleep?”
The old wooden door creaked open with a grating sound that set one’s teeth on edge. Someone pushed it open and entered with steady steps, walking behind him and bending down to wrap an arm around his waist.
Gu Yun caught a faint scent of blood. It had endured wind and exposure, yet still had not dispersed.
He turned his head slightly, feeling the breath of the person behind him brush against his cheek. It was calm, steady, warm and damp. Yet at this moment, it did not feel like an intimate entanglement of breaths, but something sticky and oppressive, like being caught in a web.
He quickly turned his head back and lowered it to pry at the other’s hands. “Let go of me. You smell, it’s unpleasant.” He gave himself a reasonable excuse for his rejection.
The young man lowered his nose to him, sniffing lightly. A low laugh seemed to rise from deep in his chest, soft and pleasant. “I don’t think so.”
Gu Yun said, “Why don’t you try someone else then?” As soon as he said it, he pressed his lips together. This other party was a member of the royal family; if he angered him, his head could be gone in an instant. How could he speak to him like that? Regret surged immediately, and he quickly softened his tone, adding, “Your Highness, the one you’re smelling is me.”
The young man let out another laugh.
Gu Yun was lifted, turned, and set down on the table. The lantern ended up resting against the table leg.
“Just because of a status, you’re afraid of me?” The man before him lowered his gaze and looked at him quietly.
Whether it was because he had stopped pretending, or because his identity had shifted and taken on a different weight, Gu Yun felt an overwhelming arrogance and pressure from someone of superior standing.
Trapped within the young man’s arms with nowhere to retreat, he lowered his gaze and looked at his own hand, so pale that faint blue veins were visible. “Your Highness.”
The young man gave a soft “Mm” and said, “Lift your head and speak to me.”
It was an order. Gu Yun obeyed almost without hesitation. The other’s gaze travelled over him. The lotus-purple clothing suited his complexion, making him appear pale with a healthy flush.
The man smoothed his clothes. “Have two more sets made in this colour later. It looks very good.”
He brushed aside a few strands of hair that had fallen across his eyes. In recent days, with better food and clothing, even his hair seemed to have gained a faint sheen. “Let it grow a little longer. Then tie it up with a ribbon.”
What could Gu Yun say? He could only nod.
The hand resting at his temple slid down, stroking his cheek, tilting his chin upward.
The young man bit his lip and ground it lightly twice. Seeing it turn from pale pink to a richer red, he withdrew slightly and pressed his forehead against Gu Yun’s. “What will you do about it in the future?”
In the future…?
Although Gu Yun had guessed that the other wanted to take him back home, it had only been speculation, not a final conclusion. Now, hearing it stated so plainly, his heart turned completely cold.
He opened his mouth, but before he could speak, something entered it. The other leaned in and kissed him.
Perhaps he had become used to being kissed so deeply, because he did not immediately resist, instead quietly waiting for it to end.
It was strange. How could anyone enjoy kissing? It was not comfortable at all.
Gu Yun let out a muffled, sticky sound and braced himself against the table, retreating slightly. A hoarse voice sounded beside his ear, mingled with low, uneven breaths: “You are willing to come with me, aren’t you?”
The word “no” was already at the tip of his tongue, but when he met those deep eyes, it sank heavily back down.
He cautiously asked “Lin Yue”: “They address you as Your Highness. Which Highness are you?”
“The former Ninth Prince. Now the Crown Prince. Surname Chao, given name Yan, courtesy name Ziyu.”
Gu Yun’s vision went black: “……”
The current heir apparent. Good. Good. Good. Hahahaha, he had tricked a major figure.
A Crown Prince of such stature would likely have exhausted his patience after being deceived once. The only reason he had not dealt with him yet was probably because of his one protective card: his appearance. But once his true gender was exposed, even beauty would be useless. Who would go to bed with a man?
If he found out his “girlfriend” was actually a cross-dressing fraud, he would run two miles just to block her, curse her out, and break up in one go.
Gu Yun thought: he would need a hundred heads to survive this.
“Answer my question.” His earlobe was pinched.
Gu Yun snapped back to himself, his gaze drifting. “Of course I’m willing to go with you.”
Go? As if. He would rather die than go.
Leaving aside the issue of gender, even if he were an ordinary woman, he would still not wish to enter the Eastern Palace.
Once inside the Eastern Palace as a concubine of the Crown Prince, her entire life would be bound to him. She would have to compete for favour with countless women, both named and unnamed.
If he was pleased, she lived well. If he was displeased, a thousand methods awaited her. Not only that, but there would be endless servants looking down on her, lining up to make trouble.
He did not despise servants; he was simply making an objective assessment of people corrupted by the feudal system.
He had once hesitated over whether to reveal the truth. Now there was no need. If he confessed now, he would be a fool. He needed the best course of action: find a chance and leave immediately.
In any case, he could already earn money. Not small sums either, but large ones. A shopkeeper earned two taels of silver a month, with no upper limit. He could manage a rouge shop; he should be able to manage other shops too.
Chao Yan leaned back slightly and looked at him.
Gu Yun felt a chill creep up his spine under that gaze. “…What is it?”
Chao Yan touched his cheek. “No need to force yourself.”
Gu Yun’s eyes lit up. He tried to restrain his excitement. “Your Highness means… you do not really want me to go with you?”
He lowered his head, covering his eyes with both hands, then lifted his gaze through the barely visible gaps between his fingers, pretending to cry.
“I did deceive you, but it was unavoidable. How could you just abandon me like this? Very well, if you do not want me, I will not force it. But if we part ways, you must leave me something. I do not want much. The clothes I wore, keep the house as well, and give me a string of copper coins…”
Before he could finish, Chao Yan pulled his hands away.
Gu Yun, still pretending to sob, was caught off guard and froze. A genuine choking sound escaped him, though still no tears came.
Chao Yan looked at him with a smile that did not quite reach his eyes. “Putting on an act.”
Unable to read his expression, Gu Yun leaned forward ingratiatingly and kissed him lightly.
“Tell me,” Chao Yan said, “what did you deceive me about?”
Gu Yun thought: you already know, and you are still asking. He pinched his palm and said, “I deceived you into thinking we were betrothed, that you were my husband. In truth, that is not so. I merely pulled you out of the river and wanted you to support me.”
In a sense, this was also a confession, just only a partial one.
He would have known the rest the moment he recovered his memory. Whether he confessed or not would not change much. In the end, it was not important. To put it bluntly, he was merely repaying a life-saving debt through labour.
“You are very bold,” Chao Yan said. “Anything else?”
Gu Yun quickly shook his head.
This was the second time. He had already shown full sincerity, yet still the other would not speak the truth, nor would he agree to go to the Eastern Palace. Did he think he was untrustworthy? That he would mistreat him? That life outside would be better?
Chao Yan’s smile faded completely. He grabbed the little liar by the waist and legs and lifted him.
Gu Yun startled, instinctively wrapping his arms around his neck and his legs around his waist. Then came a dull thud, followed by a sharp sting of pain at his backside.
His eyes widened as he stared at Chao Yan. After a moment, knowing he could not oppose the Crown Prince, he swallowed his grievance and wriggled downward.
Chao Yan held him firmly. Gu Yun remained limp, slumped miserably in the young Crown Prince’s arms.
“Think carefully before you speak. When I said you need not force yourself, I meant you need not force yourself to say what I like to hear. As for the Eastern Palace, you will come with me. If you cannot accept it, then find a way to accept it.”
Gu Yun thought: this damned Crown Prince is far too domineering.
The Crown Prince weighed him slightly in his arms and sighed. “Be obedient. Life in the Eastern Palace is good. I can take good care of you.”
……
The next day, the Crown Prince went out.
Gu Yun lay on the bed, touching his backside.
It had hurt for a while after the beating, but now it no longer hurt at all. When he removed his clothes and looked, there was not even a mark.
No wonder parents hit children on the backside. As the youngest child in his family, he had never been beaten before, though that was mostly because he never caused trouble serious enough to warrant it.
Fully dressed, Gu Yun opened the door slightly and peered through the crack.
The two attendants still stood upright like pillars outside the door.
The Crown Prince had not said when he would return to the capital, but it seemed it would be soon. After all, matters in Zhuyang County had already been settled, requiring only aftercare. He needed to find a chance to leave quickly.
But it seemed difficult.
The two attendants were diligent enough, and there were several others hidden in the shadows, though he did not know how many.
Yesterday, when Jiang san-niang brought Zhao-niangzi to beg him, they had appeared in an instant, confirmed everything was fine, and vanished again. He had not even managed to count them properly.
How was he, an injured man, supposed to escape under so many watchful eyes? And how could he do so without implicating them? He did not want to drag them into trouble.
Right, there was still Zhao-niangzi’s matter; he had not yet told Chao Yan.
His help for Zhao-niangzi was not only sympathy, but also a small measure of compensation.
Zhao Shuilai was guilty, but his wife and child were innocent. No matter what, they had been implicated. Though he only bore partial responsibility, he still wished to offer some form of recompense.
Zhao-niangzi would not know he was the murderer; anyone who could tell her had already been killed. As for the female kidnapper, whether she suspected him or not, Zhao-niangzi was unlikely to encounter her. Since Chao Yan had instructed the county office to handle her, and so many days had passed without word, she was likely already gone from Zhuyang County.
It seemed better not to help.
Lin Yue was Crown Prince Chao Yan. Given his current situation, helping would be equivalent to harming him.
Gu Yun asked one of the attendants to pass a message to Zhao-niangzi that he could not help.
After some hesitation, he also asked the attendant to tell Jiang san-niang not to be too kind.
From what he had heard of Zhao-niangzi’s actions, she was clearly no ordinary woman. Whether her motives were for herself and her child or for her husband, he could not say.
In any case, she targeted his enemies, so his impression of her was not particularly poor.
This time, if he did not help Zhao-niangzi, who knew what she might do next. He did not want Jiang san-niang to become involved.
Gu Yun felt overwhelmed, exhausted, and troubled. After a heavy-hearted breakfast at a restaurant, he sat by the river in a daze.
One tael or ten taels, it had nothing to do with him. He would eat that damned Crown Prince out of house and home!
Then… eat… he suddenly thought of a way to leave.
That evening, Chao Yan returned, and the two of them went to a restaurant for dinner. At the table, Gu Yun reached out his hand and asked for money.
“What do you need it for?” Chao Yan asked.
“I want to buy something. Not much, Your Highness. Ten taels.”
Chao Yan sipped his porridge and glanced at him indifferently.
Gu Yun held out his hand, fingers spread. “Five taels.”
Silence.
“Your Highness, you cannot give me nothing at all.” Gu Yun tugged at his sleeve, speaking in a strained, affected tone. His voice was naturally soft, and when deliberately drawn out like this, it was like honey, sticky and sweet.
“I want money. I want money. I want money. I will not only buy things for myself, I will buy things for you too, nice things. Just give me some money, I will love you forever.” He sounded like a child begging for pocket money from an elder brother.
Chao Yan, still wearing his previous clothes, reached into his sleeve, fished out a copper coin, placed it on the table, pressed it with his finger, and pushed it towards Gu Yun.
Gu Yun: “……”
I said you cannot give me nothing at all. And you give me a single coin?
You stingy brute!
He had never seen such a miserly Crown Prince. Though, admittedly, he had never seen another Crown Prince.
Angrily, he turned away, presenting his back to the “stingy Crown Prince”. Chao Yan’s eyes held a faint smile. He summoned Ning Fu, took a purse from him, and handed it to Gu Yun. He had not brought money with him when he went out.
Gu Yun’s anger vanished instantly. He rushed forward and hugged the Crown Prince. “Your Highness is so kind.” After a brief embrace, he ran off.
Chao Yan watched his departing figure and spoke quietly to the attendant assigned to protect Gu Yun.
