The atmosphere was heating up when Chichi suddenly came bounding in. The little deer circled their feet, pawing at the hem of Xin Yi’s robe and letting out soft, pleading whimpers. Xin Yi looked down with hazy, misty eyes. Bai Jiu’s thumb affectionately brushed over the curve of his brow before he finally let him go. Sensing Bai Jiu’s lingering dissatisfaction, Xin Yi’s face flushed a deep crimson. "I’ll... I’ll take him out," he stammered.
Bai Jiu chuckled. "Go on then."
Xin Yi scooped up Chichi and bolted. Long after he had vanished from sight, Bai Jiu remained standing in the same spot. It took a long while for his impulses to subside before he finally dusted off his robes and stepped outside, looking as calm and unruffled as a light breeze.
Xin Yi ran out of the room with Chichi in his arms. The evening wind was blowing warm. As he hurried through the winding corridor, he spotted Old Qu standing with his hands behind his back, watching some servants tend to the plants.
Seeing him approach, Old Qu couldn't help but call out, "Slow down, Young Lord, slow down." By the time Xin Yi reached him, his forehead was beaded with sweat. Old Qu continued, "We’ll be staying for a while, so you can take your time looking around. There’s no rush. Look at you, all drenched in sweat."
Xin Yi’s face reddened. He thought to himself that he had only run a few steps; the sweat was likely from his nerves earlier. He covered his nose with a fist and murmured, "I’ll remember that."
He was still young, and after being pampered in the manor these past few days, his skin had become fair and supple. With the damp hair clinging to his forehead, his eyes looked exceptionally bright and clear. The traces of childishness remained in his features, making his dimples appear even sweeter. Old Qu looked at him and felt the boy had transformed since he first arrived; his personality seemed much livelier now. Elders naturally doted on such children.
Feeling a surge of affection, Old Qu said, "Autumn is nearly here, and the mountain air gets chilly at night. You must wipe away that sweat, or you’ll catch a cold."
Xin Yi nodded obediently, pulling a handkerchief from his sleeve to wipe his face. Chichi, ever the attention-seeker, leaped into the thicket and began darting back and forth. Xin Yi let the deer play on its own. His eyes wandered through the greenery for a moment before he suddenly smiled. "There are sweet potatoes here."
Old Qu was surprised. "The Young Lord recognizes sweet potatoes?"
"I saw them often in Posuo," Xin Yi replied, pressing the handkerchief to his temple. "Back in the Prince of Ping's manor. I like them roasted."
Old Qu smiled. "Let’s roast a few tonight, then. His Lordship used to eat them often as well."
"His Lordship?" It was Xin Yi’s turn to be surprised. Then he remembered that Bai Jiu didn't come from a noble lineage, and he fell silent.
Old Qu didn't mind. He crouched down to pick through the sweet potatoes, saying, "That was a long time ago. Back then, His Lordship was about the same age as you, though he was even thinner. He was a proud one, too—always bumping his head against walls."
Xin Yi crouched down as well, gathering the sweet potatoes Old Qu had picked out. After hesitating for a moment, he said, "I know very little about His Lordship’s past... back then, I had only just learned how to run."
"His Lordship is the same age as your second brother," Old Qu remarked as he brushed away some soil. "It’s only natural you wouldn't know. Back then, His Lordship was still in Shanyin, studying under his teacher."
Xin Yi let out a soft "ah," clutching the sweet potatoes tighter. "My second brother was also in Shanyin back then, studying under Old Man Nansui."
"The Second Young Master was a dragon’s colt, a phoenix’s fledgling. He was exactly the kind of person that master would produce."
His second brother, Xin Jing, courtesy name Fengyuan. The name "Phoenix of Beiyang" had been personally bestowed by Old Man Nansui, and it had once resounded throughout the Great Lan Empire. After his second brother’s death, Old Man Nansui had closed his doors and refused to speak of disciples ever again. He didn't survive the first three years after the tragedy, passing away around the same time the Prince of Yan’s household fell.
A thought suddenly flickered in Xin Yi’s mind, but the words died on his tongue. He simply wiped the dirt off a sweet potato and said, "Old Man Nansui was a good teacher."
Old Qu patted the dust from his hands and stood up, rubbing his lower back. "I haven't tilled the earth in so long; my back can't take it anymore. I truly am getting old and useless. These sweet potatoes are fresh—shall we roast them now?"
"Alright."
The best part of roasting sweet potatoes was the moment the aroma wafted out from where they were buried in the charcoal embers. Xin Yi actually had quite a bit of experience in this. He dug them out at just the right time—the insides were sweet, soft, and fragrant. Even Chichi was so excited that its tail wouldn't stop wagging.
Bai Jiu was busy reviewing documents and couldn't use his hands, so Xin Yi broke off pieces to feed him. As Bai Jiu ate, his tongue brushed against Xin Yi’s fingertips. Xin Yi’s ears burned, but he managed to maintain a facade of calm. Once Bai Jiu finished one, Xin Yi stopped, remembering they still had dinner later.
"Good craftsmanship," Bai Jiu said, circling a section of a report with his ink brush. "When we return, I’ll have someone plant some at home."
Xin Yi thought of the courtyard in front of the study where the fish were kept and smiled. "That would be perfect. Plant them right by the study, next to the fish pond. It could be considered part of the scenery."
"That’s a good spot." Bai Jiu paused his writing and looked up at him. "That way, even when I’m wearied by paperwork, I can be fed every day."
Xin Yi replied, "We can't have roasted sweet potatoes every day. We’d have to plant some green vegetables and the like as well."
Bai Jiu thought for a moment, then pulled a sheet of paper from the side and handed it to him. "Start a vegetable garden. Plant whatever you want to eat."
Xin Yi froze, looking at him blankly. "Start a vegetable garden?"
Bai Jiu reached out to tilt his face up. "Let others plant the vegetables. You plant something else."
"What should I plant?"
Bai Jiu patted his head and smiled without a word. Xin Yi wanted to ask who would eat it, but he silently swallowed the question. "If we actually grow a whole tree of them... His Majesty might lose his appetite."
"I don't need a whole tree." Bai Jiu’s fingertip traced a suggestive circle near Xin Yi’s dimple. "Just grow a little bit more."
Xin Yi’s face gradually turned scarlet. "I’m already sixteen," he muttered. Bai Jiu’s gaze drifted down to a certain unspeakable place, a faint, knowing smile appearing in his narrow eyes. Xin Yi immediately shielded himself, his face burning hot to the touch. "That... that was the first time."
Bai Jiu arched an eyebrow and nodded. "My fault." Before Xin Yi could breathe a sigh of relief, he continued, "You are so beautiful it makes one hard even in their dreams."
Xin Yi’s gaze darted around in panic. He bit his lip and tried to hold his ground. "I'm a man, after all..."
"True enough." Bai Jiu lowered his head to continue his work. "At your age, it’s only normal to get hard."
Xin Yi covered his ears and tried to run, but Bai Jiu caught him by the collar and hauled him back to the desk. Sweeping the other items aside, Bai Jiu braced his hands on either side of the boy, his narrow eyes fixed on him with sudden intensity. "Your skin is so thin you won't even argue back? You’ll just let me bully you?"
"I... I can't win an argument against Your Lordship." Besides, he really had had a dream like that. He felt guilty.
"How terrible," Bai Jiu said tonelessly. "If I were to say something more... intimate regarding the bedroom, would you crawl straight under the bed?"
"Bed... bed-bed-bed—" Xin Yi bit his tongue in frustration at his own stuttering. "What kind of talk is that?"
Bai Jiu was silent for a long moment before he suddenly pulled the boy against his chest. Xin Yi was stunned. His hands hovered hesitantly for a while before he cautiously rested them on Bai Jiu’s waist, wondering what had brought on this sudden change.
Before the age of twelve, he had been the jewel in the palms of his parents and brothers. His brothers were not lewd men; even his third brother had kept his erotic books hidden away, and they hadn't had the chance to enlighten him on such matters before they were all gone. After entering the Prince of Ping's manor, there was no one to teach him these things. Aside from horses, he rarely even saw other people. It was true that he was innocent and endearing, but his temperament didn't entirely match that innocence. Yet, if one were to say he was deeply calculating or weathered by life, there were still blank spaces in his heart, left clean by a twist of fate. Thus, the innocence in his features was genuine, but the ruthlessness hidden in the depths of his eyes was also real. Both were parts of the unique person that was Xin Yi.
"Jingyuan, what’s wrong?" After waiting a while, Xin Yi felt a bit smothered against his chest and asked in a muffled voice. Bai Jiu leaned down to kiss the crown of his head before slowly whispering something into his ear.
Xin Yi’s face instantly turned scorching hot. But that was only the beginning. Bai Jiu continued to murmur indecent things into his ear. Xin Yi buried his head lower and lower until Bai Jiu finally stopped. "Where are you going? Any lower and it won't be proper."
Xin Yi silently shifted back up. By the time Bai Jiu pulled him away from his chest, the boy was as red as a boiled shrimp. Bai Jiu’s fingertip brushed the corner of Xin Yi’s mouth. "Little child."
It didn't matter if he didn't know, couldn't say, or didn't understand. Bai Jiu had time; he was willing to teach him slowly. Of course, from another perspective, His Lordship would only ever be willing to be the one doing the teaching...
The cook at this villa wasn't as good as the one at the manor, but Xin Yi, keeping the words "little child" and "grow a bit more" in mind, ate with an even greater appetite than usual. After dinner, the two went out for a stroll in the courtyard with Chichi trailing behind. Xin Yi took the opportunity to truly appreciate the maple leaves of Luyi Mountain. He turned to Bai Jiu and asked slowly, "Why did Your Lordship think to buy Marquis Huiyang’s villa?"
"The scenery is good."
"There are many villas in the capital with good scenery." Xin Yi was feeding a deer, his palm becoming wet from its licking. Before he could reach for his handkerchief, Bai Jiu took his own and wiped the boy’s hand clean.
"There is only one on Luyi Mountain."
"You could have built one yourself," Xin Yi murmured as his hand was being wiped. "Were you and Marquis Huiyang acquainted?"
"No." Bai Jiu squeezed his fingertips. "By the time I arrived in the capital, Marquis Huiyang was already gone."
"When did Your Lordship come to the capital?"
"His Lordship isn't going to tell you."
Xin Yi felt a bit discouraged. "Jingyuan."
"The winter of the forty-seventh year."
The maple leaves crunched beneath their feet. Xin Yi walked among the trees, his hand held by Bai Jiu. He remarked, "Mmh, then Jingyuan was still very young back then."
Bai Jiu paused. "Am I now old and fading?"
Xin Yi’s face reddened slightly. "No..." He hopped over a small stream. "Your Lordship... cough, Jingyuan is very handsome." Bai Jiu looked back at him and suddenly swept him up into his arms. Startled, Xin Yi said, "I could have jumped over that stream..."
Bai Jiu lifted him a bit higher. "Look to the south."
Xin Yi turned his head and was instantly dazzled by the undulating mountains painted in shades of maple. The lush maples covering the peaks seemed ready to set the capital’s pavilions and towers ablaze, gilded by the orange glow of the setting sun. In the sky, the cries of wild geese echoed as they flew in formation. It was a brilliant blend of splendor and solitude—the wondrous beauty of early autumn. His dimples deepened as he reached out a hand to point. "What a beautiful autumn view!"
"The maples of Luyi Mountain are peerless." Bai Jiu only looked at him. "An enchanting sight."
Xin Yi had no idea who Bai Jiu was actually referring to; he assumed he meant the scenery and nodded in agreement. His clear eyes scanned the horizon in wonder, feeling his spirit refreshed as the turbid air in his chest vanished.
Bai Jiu asked, "How is it?"
Xin Yi nodded, his eyes reflecting the fragmented sunlight. "I like it!"
Bai Jiu smiled. "Just the mountain scenery?" Xin Yi looked down at him. Bai Jiu’s narrow eyes were deep; amidst the dappled maple leaves, his gaze was as still and profound as a pool of water, clearly reflecting Xin Yi’s image. Xin Yi clutched his chest and shook his head rapidly. "No... not just the scenery."
Bai Jiu watched him silently, his gaze as steady as if he were appraising something. Xin Yi felt his heart stir. Emboldened, he uncharacteristically didn't look away, enduring his shyness to stare directly back at Bai Jiu.
"Do you like it?" Bai Jiu’s voice was devoid of ripples.
Xin Yi immediately covered his nose with his fist and nodded vigorously. Bai Jiu let out a soft laugh. Suddenly, Xin Yi reached out and threw his arms around Bai Jiu’s shoulders. Even though his palms were sweaty from nerves, he held on tight.
Bai Jiu remained still for a long moment before pressing a hand against the boy’s back. "There is a price for hugging me."
"Mm..."
Bai Jiu chuckled. "Little child."
Xin Yi lowered his eyes, feeling inexplicably dejected, but Bai Jiu stopped there. Though there were clearly things left unsaid, he said nothing more, simply allowing Xin Yi to hold him. It was as if he were giving Xin Yi a chance to regret his choice, yet he had already staked his claim long ago.
*He is a cunning man,* Xin Yi thought uneasily. The sky gradually darkened, and his hands on Bai Jiu’s shoulders grew cold. As he silently began to pull away, he heard Bai Jiu’s low voice in his ear.
"From the very beginning, you never had a choice."
He could only belong to Bai Jiu.
He had to belong to Bai Jiu.
The snake lay hidden to the side, its cold eyes watching the rabbit pursued by the hounds. Having caught but a scent of this rabbit, the snake could no longer let it go. The baying of the hounds followed all the way, while the rabbit ran blindly with its carrot on its back. The leopard’s drowsy eyes had yet to open, but the snake had already hissed and bared its fangs, slithering closer.
Watching its rabbit.
***
