As soon as Duan Qimo left, I drifted off in my chair. Truthfully, during the latter half of their conversation, I had been too exhausted to even open my mouth. Though a thousand thoughts and emotions were churning in my mind—wanting to join in and curse Duan Qimo’s absolute scoundrel of a brother, or at the very least tell her that Wen Jiang truly loved her—the ordeal I had endured, combined with the relaxation that came from Lord Wei’s embrace and touch, caused my spirit to slacken, and I fell asleep. I could only vaguely sense Lord Wei personally washing me and gently carrying me to bed.
I fell into a sweet, heavy slumber. Before I was even fully awake, I felt the soft, warm hollow of her shoulder beneath my cheek. My heart and throat felt flooded with happiness, and I couldn't help but lean in to kiss her. At first, they were just light, tender pecks, but soon they weren't enough. Even though I knew her sleep was precious, I couldn't restrain myself.
I missed her too much. During the days she was gone, I was fortunate to be kept busy with a whirlwind of affairs; otherwise, sitting at the desk where we once sat side-by-side, walking through this city where she grew up, seeing beautiful flowers or snow, hearing exquisite melodies or viewing fine paintings—even just spotting a strange cloud on the horizon—at what moment would I not have wished she was by my side, experiencing the shifting flow of this world and time with me?
It wasn't until my hand climbed to her neck that I noticed her lips curl in a nearly imperceptible smile, despite her appearing to be in a deep sleep. My mischievous and lustful heart both stirred, and I reached out to undo the sash at her waist. I tugged for a long while, but it wouldn't budge. This woman—why did she have to dress so strictly even for sleep!
I let out a huff of frustration, unaware of my own state, feeling my body grow hot as sweat began to bead. I looked up to see Lord Wei squinting at me with leisurely amusement. Uncharacteristically, she didn't stop me, adopting a permissive attitude that seemed to say, "Let's see how far you can go."
How could I endure this! I moved to roll out of bed to find scissors, intent on cutting her clothes to ribbons, but my hasty movement was interrupted as she pulled me back heavily into her arms. She whispered darkly against my ear, "You dare run."
It wasn't a question. Immediately, I was pinned by her. She handled me like a supple willow branch, expertly and gently bending my legs. Those words gave me a sense of familiarity that felt like a lifetime ago. I remembered under the bright lights of Chunan Tower, when she held me in her arms atop the horse, she had said, "You can't run." I had been ignorant then, but thinking back now, didn't the meaning carry the exact same weight? Alas, this person’s carnal desires had clearly awakened far earlier than mine.
"I'm sorry..." I said, flush with guilt and a reddening face. "I should have let you sleep longer..."
"I can sleep later," she replied, her voice tinged with a hint of a smile, but mostly a low rasp that lacked the patience for further words. "Why say sorry... just don't beg me in a moment."
For her, these were incredibly explicit words of provocation. They made me want to crawl into a hole from shame, yet my heart blazed with a fire so fierce it threatened to turn me to ash.
In the midst of the haze, my hand accidentally braced against her side, about an inch below her ribs. My fingertips brushed against something wet and viscous. I pulled my hand back and looked; I was both terrified and furious. No wonder she had tied her clothes so tightly—she was injured and hadn't told me!
I must have pressed on the wound, but she acted as if nothing had happened. She didn't even knit her brows, let alone show any intention of stopping. I hit her in a panic. "You're crazy! Now is not the time... to do... this... mmm..."
The end of my sentence was swallowed by her. She actually laughed, her handsome face appearing both tender and decadent, impossibly beautiful. She leaned into my ear and used that tone I could least resist—the one where everything was under her control—and whispered, "I know what I'm doing. Don't reject me."
The last few words were so low they were almost a threat. Stunned by her beauty for a fleeting second, I was flipped over by her. She forced me to lie prone so that I could no longer see the wound on her body. The sensation of smooth silk brushed against my back—intermittent, ethereal, itchy, swaying—as if it only touched the fine down on my skin, yet it seeped deeply into every limit of my body and soul.
Seeing my reaction, she was immensely satisfied and even uttered a piece of utter nonsense: "Mm, you really are a kitten."
The timing of those words was precise and cruel. I was in agony and deeply embarrassed, yet my heart was pathetically fond of it. I had no strength left and could only cry out in anger, "Wei the Third, you... you... you are shameless!"
She couldn't help but chuckle a few times, answering leisurely, "Why would I need face? Having A-Zhi is enough."
After that, we fell silent. Her kisses lost their usual discipline. Her free hand eventually came to rest by the side of my face, stroking me with infinite tenderness, telling me just how much she had missed me.
I was likely completely bewitched by her. Instinctively, I turned my head slightly, touching her fingertips. Her hand felt as if it were dipped in honey, each knuckle like a delicate jade bead, so fragrant and sweet that I wanted to consume them, to make her a part of my very body...
My mind was no longer clear; I was entirely unaware of what I was doing until the corner of my lip was stung by her suddenly withdrawn fingertip, followed by a frantic kiss that sealed my mouth. She seemed to have lost her reason because of me; the clash of lips and teeth made me feel a slight pain for the first time, yet I loved it—loved it so much I wished she would hurt me just a little more...
"Do you have any idea what you're doing?" she asked after the kiss, her breath ragged and her tone fierce. "You asked for this."
Her hands shifted. The one from before was excessively slick, and combined with her unusually volatile, almost out-of-control emotions, my body was nearly driven against the bedrail. At the last moment, she remembered to cushion me with her arm, preventing the cold, hard wood from bruising me.
That was the last shred of her rationality. Immediately after, all restraint and technique were cast aside. She had no patience for steps or schemes, relying entirely on instinct to give and take.
I inexplicably thought of those beautiful guqins. If silk strings, which are far tougher than fingertips, can snap under repeated plucking, then why was I being tuned so tightly by her, yet never ground down to the point of breaking?
I cried out her name in rhythmic whimpers, and she buried her face in the side of my neck, answering every call. By the end, I couldn't tell which tears on my face and neck, before my eyes and in my heart, were hers and which were mine.
When I was changing her bandages and applying medicine, my face was grim. I scolded her non-stop for a full quarter of an hour. She looked calm, listening with lowered eyes like a submissive, well-behaved child. Yet, whenever I reached the peak of my indignation, she would unexpectedly look up and smile at me, her lips curving crookedly—deliberately using her beauty to numb me, signaling that she "would dare do it again."
The fourth time she looked over with that roguish glint, I was so angry I threw the medicine box onto the floor and burst into tears, covering my face. Only then did she panic, hurriedly pulling me into her arms to comfort and stroke me.
"Do you care so little for yourself..." I was both scared and enraged, pinching and hitting her. "Why don't you just stab me a few times too? Wherever you're hurt, I'll be hurt, then you'll know how I feel!"
"It's my fault." She incessantly stroked and patted my head in distress. "I've already restrained myself a great deal. A-Zhi, do you know? I cherish my life more than anything now. Only by staying alive can I see you."
I rubbed my tears against her chest and said huffily, "Whether you see me or not, you have to live well!"
"Yes," she smiled. "This is a minor wound, a necessary price. See, hasn't it already scabbed over? It will be fine by tomorrow or the day after. I only kept it from you because I was afraid you'd find it ugly."
It was indeed a shallow wound. The medicine she used was of the highest quality; it never left scars. Her skin was so flawlessly smooth that even the heavens would be jealous. Perhaps because of that celestial envy, her life had been so full of hardships.
I felt a wave of frustration again. It was precisely because there were no traces left that I could never know how many life-and-death moments she had endured in that dark past, or how she had struggled to survive until now.
I cried for much longer than I had scolded her. Finally, with only a few lingering sobs, I found the strength to say, "Since you're hurt, recover properly. No more fooling around."
She toyed with my chin, staring at me with squinted eyes and a smile. "So this is called 'fooling around.' I'm starting to understand why everyone loves it so much."
"Wei Tian!"
"Mm."
"Believe it or not, I'll make you kneel in the study!"
"If I kneel once, can we fool around once?" she mused. "That's a good bargain."
Before I could jump up in anger, she reached for the tea on the table and held it to my lips. "Madam... your throat is hoarse from all that scolding during our 'fooling around.' Have a drink before you continue."
There was nothing I could do. I would just have to nurse this scoundrel back to health and then find a way to get even.
It wasn't yet five in the morning. In winter, the dawn comes late, and it was still hazy and dim outside. I was worried about my Senior Brother’s injuries, so I told Wei Qingming to sleep a bit longer while I got up to dress. She casually tied up her hair, threw on a worn household robe, and insisted on coming with me. I laughed and tried to push her back onto the couch, but she smiled faintly. "I can't sleep without you. Besides, Eldest Brother is indeed suffering; let's go see him."
Before I even saw Lu Kaifeng’s face, I saw Nie Xueqing’s silhouette. She was sitting at a small table in the room, checking accounts and verifying receipts. I teased her in a whisper, "Oh? Sister Qing is doing office work here?"
She gave a frank smile, then glanced at the person on the bed with a frown, sighing softly, "Just keeping watch. I hope he recovers in a day or two."
Wei Qingming had already reached out to check Lu Kaifeng’s pulse. She gently tucked him in, then picked up the warm medicinal soup nearby, identifying it by its scent. She nodded. "Master Xin Anping’s medicine is indeed excellent. Don't worry; once tonight passes, he will be mostly out of danger."
I was about to praise her with a honeyed tongue for her vast knowledge—even being an expert in medicine—but as the words reached my tongue, a bitterness rose in my heart. She hadn't formally studied medicine; she had simply become a doctor through her own long history of illness.
Lord Wei saw my expression darken and realized I was about to start crying again. She quickly pulled me into her arms with a smile. "I'm not just humoring you. Eldest Brother will be fine. Xia Ji didn't strike heavily." Then, a cold smirk touched her lips. "He was much lighter on him than he was on you."
I choked back my emotions in her arms for a long while, letting out a messy "Mm." Nie Xueqing suddenly stood up and walked over to her, saying seriously, "Since Kaifeng is in no great danger, I will leave tomorrow. Lord Wei, A-Zhi, I've troubled you both far too much during this half-month stay."
I knew it was because of Nie Xiaoyan’s offense toward Wei Qingming. Just as I was about to ask her to stay, Wei Qingming smiled faintly. "Why say such things? Please stay, Sister Qing. This garden was always intended to be shared with A-Zhi’s friends and family."
Nie Xueqing’s brows furrowed, a hint of anger appearing. "That girl Xiaoyan was too worried about A-Zhi’s safety and spoke without thinking. I spoiled her and let her lose her manners. I've already sent word to have her taken back to the ancestral home at dawn so the old masters there can teach her proper etiquette."
"She's just a young girl; it's inevitable," Wei Qingming replied with a smile. "It's the New Year season; why spend it traveling? This year’s Lantern Festival will be unlike any before; it would be a pity to miss it. Although Eldest Brother will recover soon, I imagine he will recover even better with Sister Qing here."
A look of surprise flashed across Nie Xueqing’s face. Even I felt that Lord Wei had become much easier to talk to after her long trip. Perhaps it was because I was safe and she was in a good mood, or perhaps she truly didn't care for unnecessary petty grievances. To the Lord Emissary, a verbal spat was a trivial matter. I even found myself wondering—could the real reason be that her ladyship had made some "Great Vow" to the Bodhisattva on her thousand-mile rush home? Something like, "If the Great Merciful and Compassionate Guanyin protects my kitten from danger, this humble believer will maintain a vegetarian diet and sow good deeds for a lifetime..." Tomorrow, I’d take her to Xianglan Temple to offer incense and see if she immediately knelt to fulfill her vow.
***
**Glossary**
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
---|---|---
大愿 | Great Vow / Sacred Vow | A solemn promise or aspiration, often religious (Buddhist) in nature.
胡混 | Fooling around / Messing around | Used here as a playful euphemism for intimacy.
辛安平 | Xin Anping | The name of the doctor.
夏伋 | Xia Ji | The character who injured Lu Kaifeng.
相蓝 | Xianglan | Likely referring to Xianglan Temple (相蓝寺).
上元 | Shangyuan | The Lantern Festival (15th day of the 1st lunar month).
令使 | Emissary / Official | Wei Qingming's official title/rank.
