Edited: 11.01.2023
Ye Zi has been in a daze since Gu Yan appeared. He looked at Gu Yan blankly and didn’t even pay attention to what the people around him were saying.
He thought that Gu Yan had been infected with the disease, which was why he rushed here.
But Gu Yan’s face was still full of color. He seemed to be in better spirits than Ye Zi was and looked nothing like someone who was seriously ill.
Ye Zi didn’t understand what was going on for a while. It was only when Gu Yi tilted his head and called out to him that he suddenly came back to his senses.
The group followed the Magistrate, Lord Ge, to his residence.
Ever since the epidemic broke out in Yi’an, crowded places such as inns and restaurants have closed their doors to customers. Gu Yan had been staying in a villa owned by Lord Ge in the city for the past few days since he came to Yi’an.
Lord Ge was now over fifty years old. He had been a county magistrate in Yi’an for decades and this was his first time meeting such a big shot. The arrival of Prince Rui previously made him panic, and now a higher-ranking Prince Jing had also arrived.
Lord Ge hurriedly invited the two Princes back to his residence. He brought out the best tea he had to entertain the two and was extremely attentive.
The three of them sat in the main room. Ye Zi followed Gu Yi and the chaotic thoughts gradually became clearer. The current situation didn’t allow for him to think wildly. No matter what went wrong with the previous news, at least Gu Yan was fine, and that was enough.
What was more troublesome now was the Mr. Li he met.
Li Yi, Gu Yi.
He never thought that the person he met outside Guangling City would be Gu Yi.
Gu Yi was the sixth son of the late Emperor and also the youngest of the bunch. He was a few years older than Gu Yan and still had yet to be married. Since Emperor Jinghe ascended the throne, Prince Jing, like his brothers, went to a fiefdom to live a stable life.
But Ye Zi still remembered that this Prince Jing was going to conspire and rebel in the future.
So why did he suddenly appear here?
Ye Zi was lost in thought for a moment until he heard Gu Yi suddenly say: “By the way, the servant next to me is looking for someone in Yi’an. I brought him here this time with the intention of finding them for him. Little Ye’er, why don’t you tell Lord Ge the name of the person you are looking for and ask him to find them for you?”
Gu Yan sat quietly drinking tea. He only frowned slightly when he heard the way Gu Yi addressed Ye Zi. Other than that, he didn’t show anything strange, as if he was indifferent.
Ye Zi looked at Gu Yan with a guilty conscience and then quickly lowered his head and said timidly: “I don’t want to trouble the magistrate.”
Lord Ge, however, immediately replied: “No trouble, how could it be trouble?”
For Gu Yi to specifically raise this matter, this young man should be quite favored by Prince Jing.
Lord Ge thought he understood Gu Yi’s attitude and formed a plan in mind. He said to Ye Zi diligently: “Young gentleman, you don’t have to be polite. You can tell me the name of the person you are looking for. In Yi’an County, there are a total of 14,800 people and every household is registered. I know each household like the back of my hand. If you can give me a name, I will definitely be able to find the person.”
Seeing how eager he was, Ye Zi didn’t know how to refuse. After hesitating for a long time, he finally made up a name: “The person I’m looking for is named L-Liu Sheng.”
Lord Ge had never heard of this name before and looked a little troubled. But he had just said he knew everyone so he was now in a difficult position and had to stall: “Liu Sheng……I remember that there are several people with this name in the county. How about I invite them here and the young gentleman can see if the person you’re looking for is among them?”
Ye Zi was about to refuse, but Gu Yi responded: “Sounds good, then I’ll be troubling Lord Ge.”
Lord Ge quickly waved his hands: “No trouble, no trouble, it’s a simple matter. By the way, Your Majesty Prince Jing must be tired from the journey, do you want me to take you to rest first?”
Gu Yi nodded: “Please.”
Gu Yan, who hadn’t spoken, suddenly opened his mouth: “Lord Ge is busy with his affairs, so it’s better for this Prince to show Sixth Imperial Uncle the way.”
“This……”
Gu Yi responded: “That sounds good. It just so happens that I haven’t seen my nephew, Zicheng, for a long time so it’s a perfect time to catch up with him.”
After hearing his words, Lord Ge no longer insisted and sent the two of them out of the main room respectfully. Gu Yan led Gu Yi and Ye Zi toward the inner courtyard.
Gu Yi’s other attendants had already been sent away to pack their bags. Ye Zi originally wanted to find an opportunity to slip away, but Gu Yi refused to let him do so and insisted on keeping him by his side. It was fine when they had Lord Ge with him before, but now that it was only the three of them, Ye Zi followed them uneasily with chills running down his spine.
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He originally thought that Gu Yan was ill and had no time to send a message to ask him as he desperately rushed here. Meeting Gu Yi was purely accidental, but Gu Yan didn’t know the truth.
That person was extremely petty and jealous, and he didn’t know how angry he would be.
However, Gu Yan didn’t look out of the ordinary. He expressed light concern about Gu Yi’s recent situation and the two casually chatted about family life on their way to the courtyard arranged by Lord Ge for Prince Jing and his entourage.
Gu Yan said: “Since Sixth Imperial Uncle has traveled a long way, I won’t bother you anymore.”
Gu Yi responded: “Alright.”
Gu Yan bowed toward Gu Yi, turned his head, and left the courtyard. From beginning to end, he didn’t look at Ye Zi at all.
Ye Zi couldn’t help but look a little disappointed.
This person……Even if he was pretending to not know him, his acting skills were too good.
Gu Yi brought Ye Zi into the room.
After closing the door, Gu Yi suddenly turned his head to look at Ye Zi: “Don’t you have anything you want to ask me?”
Ye Zi hesitated for a moment: “I didn’t expect you to actually be Prince Jing. This commoner has previously offended you, please forgive me, Your Majesty.”
Gu Yi didn’t seem to care about that: “When have you offended me? And if it wasn’t for you, I would have lost money outside of Guangling City. It was you who helped me and I promised to help you enter the city to look for your important person as repayment.”
Ye Zi pursed his lips and didn’t say anything.
Gu Yi’s eyes roamed around his face thoughtfully. He stepped forward and lowered his voice: “If you weren’t going to ask me anything, I was going to ask you something.”
“……Exactly who are you looking for?”
Although Prince Jing looked gentle and intellectual on the outside, and gave off the image of a kind person, when he forcefully asked him this question, he unconsciously revealed a sense of oppression that almost made him breathless.
Perhaps the Imperial family was born with the ability to make others submissive.
Ye Zi calmed his mind: “I have already told the magistrate.”
Gu Yi stared at him closely and curled up his lips: “No, what this Prince means is what kind of person is that person to you?”
“My……” Ye Zi closed his eyes and truthfully responded, “My most beloved person.”
“Most beloved person?” Gu Yi gently repeated and then forcefully asked again: “How long have you known him, why are you so devoted to him, is he doing the same for you?”
This person’s continuous questions put Ye Zi in a difficult situation. He turned his head and said stiffly: “Your Majesty, these don’t seem to have anything to do with you.”
A few traces of surprise flashed in Gu Yi’s eyes before turning into a bit of a smile.
He took half a step back, turned around to sit at the table, and said in a leisurely manner: “How does it not have anything to do with me? Isn’t it natural for this Prince to ask more about the person I’m interested in?”
Ye Zi was stunned: “Your Majesty, please stop joking around.”
“I’m only teasing you.” Gu Yi said, “You should go rest now. Since you rushed all the way from Chang’an, you probably hadn’t had a good rest for a long time, right?”
Ye Zi stayed silent and after getting permission, he immediately left Gu Yi’s room as if he was running away. There were many courtyards in this villa. Ye Zi wanted to find Gu Yan, but he didn’t know where the person stayed and was worried that Gu Yi would find out, so he had to give up for the time being.
Ye Zi returned to the room listlessly. As soon as he closed the door, someone suddenly pulled him from behind.
The familiar aroma of herbs instantly hit him. Ye Zi took half a step back and his spine struck against the door.
The hands that pressed down on him were trembling slightly and he didn’t know whether they were nervous or excited. Ye Zi was in a trance for a moment and was kissed hard on the lips by the other party.
The kiss was urgent and forceful without any manners. However, it was so fierce that it made him breathless.
Ye Zi was so dazed by the kiss that he forgot to breathe for a moment.
Only after a long time did Gu Yan release him.
Gu Yan took a deep breath to calm down his overly restless heartbeat. He pressed his head against Ye Zi’s forehead and whispered: “You missed me so much that you even chased me here?”
After being separated for more than a month, Gu Yan missed his little princess consort as much as Ye Zi had missed him.
He couldn’t recall at all how he had endured those times without this person before Ye Zi had transformed from an immortal plant.
God knows how much perseverance he had to use to force himself not to look at this person when he saw him outside the county government office, and to force himself to not immediately hold him in his arms.
As Ye Zi was hugged tightly by Gu Yan, the other person’s rapid and powerful heartbeat transmitted through his chest. Ye Zi opened his mouth and his vision suddenly blurred: “Zicheng……”
In his voice, there was a hint of crying.
Gu Yan was stunned and quickly let go of him: “What’s wrong? Why are you crying?……Were you bullied in Chang’an City? Good boy, don’t cry, talk to me properly.”
Ye Zi turned his head and wiped his eyes as he shook his head: “No, I wasn’t bullied. I’m just…..happy to see you.”
Gu Yan pulled him to the bedside and sat down, gently wiping the tears on his face: “Do tears of happiness look like this? Do you think I am a seven-year-old child who is easily deceived?”
“It’s really because I’m happy.” Ye Zi pulled Gu Yan’s hand and said softly, “I’m really happy to see that you’re fine.”
Gu Yan keenly sensed something in his words and asked: “What do you mean by seeing that I’m fine?”
Ye Zi pursed his lips and stayed silent.
Gu Yan calmly wiped his tears and changed the subject without pressing him any further: “Why did you come here with my Sixth Imperial Uncle?”
Ye Zi told him what happened outside of Guangling City.
After hearing this, Gu Yan pondered for a moment and lectured: “How can you be so gullible when you go out? If you get swindled by others, you will end up doing their dirty work for them.”
Ye Zi pursed his lips and retorted in a low voice: “I didn’t have the means to come in at that time. He said he could help me, so I believed it. Anyway……it’s not like he can beat me.”
Gu Yan cried and laughed: “Do you think having martial arts is enough? He is Prince Jing. Even if he doesn’t take action himself, he can still find countless ways to make you suffer.”
“That’s not what……” Ye Zi tugged on Gu Yan’s sleeve and explained, “I knew there would be danger and I was vigilant. But besides this, I really didn’t know how to come to you. I was really anxious and worried that something would happen to you so I didn’t have time to seek other methods……”
Gu Yan’s eyes moved slightly: “Worried about something happening to me?”
Ye Zi paused. He bit his lips and stayed quiet once again.
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Gu Yan wiped his face, poured a glass of water, and handed it to him as he asked slowly: “What did you think would happen to me? Who told you?”
Ye Zi sipped the tea as his eyes wandered about. Gu Yan looked at him calmly, waiting for his answer.
Ye Zi couldn’t stand this scrutinizing look from him and could only give up: “Fine, I’ll tell you. It’s because of my own stupidity. The Third Imperial Prince received news that there was an epidemic in Jiangnan and that after you brought people into Yi’an, you were never seen again. He also heard……..that you were also infected with the disease.”
Gu Yan immediately understood and sighed: “That’s why you hurried over from Chang’an?”
Ye Zi nodded.
“Fool, since I dare to bring people into this place, I naturally came prepared. If I couldn’t even do this properly, wouldn’t I be too useless?” Gu Yan touched Ye Zi’s hair and whispered: “Why are you such a fool and believe everything others say?”
Ye Zi lowered his head and said in an aggrieved manner: “I can’t help it, Miss Wan’er said that if one were to actually catch the disease, Dr. Pei could only delay it for a month at most. How could I have waited?…….”
“You even asked Miss Wan’er?” Gu Yan frowned slightly and asked: “What did she say to you?”
Ye Zi didn’t dare to look at him and whispered: “E-Everything…… “
Gu Yan took a deep breath, completely losing his temper because of Ye Zi. Since Pei Wan’er told him everything, he should also know that his leaves could be used as the cure.
Gu Yan thought for a while and reminded: “Pei Ge is currently thinking of a way to cure the epidemic so don’t mess around.”
Ye Zi quickly said flatteringly: “I won’t mess around. Anyway, there are so many people, how many leaves would I have to pull for it to be enough?……If I pull out all my leaves, you probably wouldn’t like me anymore.”
Gu Yan let out a light laugh: “Nonsense, I like you no matter what you become.”
He hugged Ye Zi a little tighter: “But one thing leads to another, I didn’t tell you about that incident because I was afraid you’d be foolish. I do want to save those people and I will try my best to save them, but I will never allow you to do anything to hurt yourself, understand?”
Ye Zi nodded obediently: “Understood.”
Ye Zi leaned in Gu Yan’s arms. Once his tense spirit relaxed, fatigue and sleepiness suddenly came over him. Noticing that the person in his arms had gradually become quiet, Gu Yan lowered his head and asked: “What’s wrong?”
Ye Zi couldn’t even open his eyes as he mumbled in a daze: “Zicheng, I’m so tired……”
Gu Yan said: “When I saw you just now, I felt that your expression was a bit off. How many days has it been since you last had a good rest?”
Ye Zi felt embarrassed when he thought of those stupid actions before. He didn’t want to say anything, so he buried his head in Gu Yan’s chest and tried to be vague: “…….I don’t remember.”
Gu Yan’s heart twitched as he asked: “Don’t tell me you haven’t slept from the moment you left Chang’an City?”
Ye Zi made up his mind not to answer. Closing his eyes, he said softly: “I’m fine, I’ll be fine after a nap. You should leave, in case Prince Jing finds out……”
Gu Yan felt angry and distressed at the same time, but seeing Ye Zi’s appearance, he couldn’t bear to get angry at him: “Do you think my Imperial uncle is someone who is easy to deal with? I’m afraid he has already noticed our relationship.”
Ye Zi was once again completely silent. Gu Yan looked down and saw that the latter was breathing smoothly and had fallen asleep peacefully in his arms.
He didn’t realize it at first, but after taking a closer look, Gu Yan noticed that this person had lost a lot of weight compared to a month ago.
Ye Zi’s lips were slightly pale. He had been taken care of by Gu Yan before, but the little flesh he had managed to gain on his body had completely disappeared and his waist had become too thin to hold.
In the past, Ye Zi always lectured Gu Yan about not ruining his own body, but now this man was ruining his own body much more than he did.
Gu Yan felt his heart ache. He took a few deep breaths, closed his eyes, and gently picked the person up.
With Ye Zi in this state, how could Gu Yan still leave him here by himself?
Gu Yan gently opened the door and carried Ye Zi out of the room. At a glance, he saw Gu Yi sitting in the courtyard. There was a pot of tea simmering on the stone table as Gu Yi was playing with a folding fan in his hand. He didn’t know how long he had been sitting there.
Gu Yan glanced at him but didn’t say anything as he directly carried Ye Zi out of the courtyard.
Gu Yan placed Ye Zi on the bed in his own room and gently removed his shoes, socks, and outerwear. He covered him with a quilt, lowered his head, and kissed him gently on the forehead before turning around to leave.
When Gu Yan returned to the courtyard, Gu Yi looked up at him, reached out, and poured him a cup of tea: “Have a seat.”
“Thank you, Imperial Uncle.”
Gu Yi smiled and asked: “When Zicheng stole someone from my courtyard, did he still have me, his Imperial Uncle, in his eyes?”
Gu Yan faintly responded: “Imperial Uncle, don’t tease me.”
Gu Yi said: “This is the first time I’ve seen you care so much about someone. But I heard that you’ve just married a princess consort not long ago and that you dote on him very much. There are also rumors in Chang’an that your Princess Consort Rui is a small demon that eats people without spitting out their bones and has bewitched you with his beauty.”
He paused and added: “And look, to think you’ve just fallen in love with someone new after being away for a couple of days? As the saying goes, first come, first served. I picked this little beauty from outside Guangling City. You can’t take him away from me.”
Gu Yan frowned before he laughed: “Imperial Uncle has already figured out the answer in his heart so don’t deliberately joke with Zicheng. He is indeed my princess consort, and I thank Imperial Uncle for taking care of him for me.”
“It’s a given.” Gu Yi nodded, “This little gentleman is kind-hearted and helped me outside Guangling City. I saw that he was very skilled in martial arts so I wanted to keep him for my own use, but I didn’t expect that someone had already gotten to him first.”
Gu Yan narrowed his eyes but didn’t reply.
Gu Yi immediately said, “Just kidding, I will never take away someone else’s love, not to mention that he is also my Nephew-in-Law.”
Gu Yan didn’t want to talk to him about this matter anymore and digressed: “Let’s not talk about this anymore. Since Sixth Imperial Uncle sent a letter to me, saying that you could help me cure this epidemic, I wonder what method you have?”
Gu Yi explained: “The epidemic here is not a disease, but a kind of flower called ‘coil orchid’ in the Western Regions. When the orchid is in full bloom, it will spread a fragrant pollen. Once this pollen is dissolved in water, it becomes colorless and odorless, and anyone who consumes it will become seriously ill. This disease is very similar to the usual typhoid fever, but it is different. This disease is also very contagious, ranging from coughing to severe palpitations, fever, difficulty breathing, and inability to breathe. If contracted, you would only have seven days to live.”
“I heard that you brought a doctor into Yi’an to try to cure this stubborn disease, which is why I came over to lend you a hand.” Gu Yi took out a small, slender wooden box from his sleeve and handed it to Gu Yan: “This is a powder grounded from a herb I found in the Western Regions, give this to that doctor who came with you and use it as medicine, then you will be able to cure the epidemic here.”
Gu Yan looked down at the wooden box. However, he didn’t reach out to pick it up and instead asked, “Why is Sixth Imperial Uncle suddenly helping me?”
Gu Yi smiled nonchalantly: “The people of the world are my dynasty’s subjects. I am not helping you, I am helping them.”
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“Then I’ll ask in a different way.” Gu Yan said, “Did Sixth Imperial Uncle really come here risking his life just to deliver this medicine to me?”
Ye Zi slept for a full day and night. Gu Yan was so anxious that he called Pei Ge several times to check Ye Zi’s pulse repeatedly. However, the conclusion every time was that the princess consort was just overly fatigued, which was why he was still asleep.
It wasn’t until the late afternoon of the second day that Ye Zi woke up.
He slept for so long that when he woke up, he felt even more tired. His whole body was so sore that he couldn’t even lift a finger. It took Ye Zi a long time to realize where he was now. He turned his head and saw Gu Yan very close at hand.
Gu Yan was supporting his head with his hand as he napped against the side of the bed.
Ye Zi stared at him blankly for a while, unable to look away.
When they were together, he wanted to be with this person all the time. Now that he hadn’t seen him for a long time, he couldn’t bear to look away.
He really missed him too much.
Gu Yan frowned and opened his eyes as if he felt something. He met Ye Zi’s gaze with a soft look in his eyes: “You’re finally awake. How do you feel now?”
Ye Zi spoke softly: “……I’m so hungry.”
“After sleeping for a whole day, how could you not be hungry?” Gu Yan poured a cup of warm water for Ye Zi and helped him up: “I’ll have someone bring some porridge for you, drink this for now.”
Ye Zi nodded: “Okay.”
Gu Yan turned his head out the door, ordered a few words to the subordinates outside the courtyard, and soon carried a small pot of rice porridge into the room.
The rice porridge was fragrant, glutinous, and soft. It was probably simmered over low heat to make it warm and appetizing. Gu Yan helped Ye Zi up, placed a soft cushion behind him, filled a bowl of porridge for him, and fed it to him one spoon at a time.
Ye Zi hadn’t eaten much in the past few days and was so hungry that he drank two bowls in a row. He still wanted more, but Gu Yan refused to give it to him. He watched helplessly as Gu Yan took away the remaining rice porridge and then watched helplessly as the man came back empty-handed, he was feeling extremely aggrieved.
Gu Yan took out a silk handkerchief and meticulously wiped Ye Zi’s mouth as he chided: “You almost starved yourself to death, are you going to stuff yourself until you bloat now?”
Ye Zi pursed his lips, not daring to talk back to him.
Gu Yan couldn’t bear to see how aggrieved he was, so he explained: “If you eat too much, your stomach won’t be able to bear it. Endure it for a while. When you regain your strength, I’ll have someone make something else for you.”
Ye Zi didn’t insist anymore and nodded: “Okay.”
Gu Yan helped him lie down: “Lay down for a while. You went way out of hand this time. Rushing here from Chang’an in just five days, did you want to die?”
Ye Zi hid half of his face in the quilt and said softly: “But……if something happens to you, what’s the point of living?”
The fire in Gu Yan’s heart dispersed at once. Bending down, he tenderly planted a kiss on his lips.
After a short while, Gu Yan let go of Ye Zi and asked softly: “Should I lay down with you for a while?”
That was exactly what Ye Zi had wanted and he busily moved to the side. Gu Yan undressed and lay down next to him.
Ye Zi softly asked: “How did you bring me back to your room, what about Prince Jing?……”
“Well, I wanted to hide the truth for a couple more days, lest more people find out and cause some trouble.” Gu Yan sighed, “But who knew that a certain little fool’s eyes would be fixed on me the moment he saw me? Since it couldn’t be hidden, I simply confessed.”
Ye Zi weakly retorted: “I wasn’t……”
Gu Yan raised his eyebrows: “You weren’t?”
Ye Zi shrunk his neck and resentfully said: “……I was.”
Ye Zi asked again: “Then what should we do now? Is there any movement in Chang’an?”
Gu Yan responded calmly: “I heard that Emperor Jinghe was extremely angry when he found out that you left Gu Xu and ran away, and wanted to bring you back to punish you for your crime of deceiving the Emperor. Princess Consort Rui, you have gotten into big trouble this time. Tell me, what should we do now?”
Ye Zi buried his head in Gu Yan’s embrace and no longer cared anymore: “Whatever, I don’t care anymore. Anyways, I will never leave you, even if they kill me, I won’t leave.”
Edited: 11.01.2023
Ye Zi has been in a daze since Gu Yan appeared. He looked at Gu Yan blankly and didn’t even pay attention to what the people around him were saying.
He thought that Gu Yan had been infected with the disease, which was why he rushed here.
But Gu Yan’s face was still full of color. He seemed to be in better spirits than Ye Zi was and looked nothing like someone who was seriously ill.
Ye Zi didn’t understand what was going on for a while. It was only when Gu Yi tilted his head and called out to him that he suddenly came back to his senses.
The group followed the Magistrate, Lord Ge, to his residence.
Ever since the epidemic broke out in Yi’an, crowded places such as inns and restaurants have closed their doors to customers. Gu Yan had been staying in a villa owned by Lord Ge in the city for the past few days since he came to Yi’an.
Lord Ge was now over fifty years old. He had been a county magistrate in Yi’an for decades and this was his first time meeting such a big shot. The arrival of Prince Rui previously made him panic, and now a higher-ranking Prince Jing had also arrived.
Lord Ge hurriedly invited the two Princes back to his residence. He brought out the best tea he had to entertain the two and was extremely attentive.
The three of them sat in the main room. Ye Zi followed Gu Yi and the chaotic thoughts gradually became clearer. The current situation didn’t allow for him to think wildly. No matter what went wrong with the previous news, at least Gu Yan was fine, and that was enough.
What was more troublesome now was the Mr. Li he met.
Li Yi, Gu Yi.
He never thought that the person he met outside Guangling City would be Gu Yi.
Gu Yi was the sixth son of the late Emperor and also the youngest of the bunch. He was a few years older than Gu Yan and still had yet to be married. Since Emperor Jinghe ascended the throne, Prince Jing, like his brothers, went to a fiefdom to live a stable life.
But Ye Zi still remembered that this Prince Jing was going to conspire and rebel in the future.
So why did he suddenly appear here?
Ye Zi was lost in thought for a moment until he heard Gu Yi suddenly say: “By the way, the servant next to me is looking for someone in Yi’an. I brought him here this time with the intention of finding them for him. Little Ye’er, why don’t you tell Lord Ge the name of the person you are looking for and ask him to find them for you?”
Gu Yan sat quietly drinking tea. He only frowned slightly when he heard the way Gu Yi addressed Ye Zi. Other than that, he didn’t show anything strange, as if he was indifferent.
Ye Zi looked at Gu Yan with a guilty conscience and then quickly lowered his head and said timidly: “I don’t want to trouble the magistrate.”
Lord Ge, however, immediately replied: “No trouble, how could it be trouble?”
For Gu Yi to specifically raise this matter, this young man should be quite favored by Prince Jing.
Lord Ge thought he understood Gu Yi’s attitude and formed a plan in mind. He said to Ye Zi diligently: “Young gentleman, you don’t have to be polite. You can tell me the name of the person you are looking for. In Yi’an County, there are a total of 14,800 people and every household is registered. I know each household like the back of my hand. If you can give me a name, I will definitely be able to find the person.”
Seeing how eager he was, Ye Zi didn’t know how to refuse. After hesitating for a long time, he finally made up a name: “The person I’m looking for is named L-Liu Sheng.”
Lord Ge had never heard of this name before and looked a little troubled. But he had just said he knew everyone so he was now in a difficult position and had to stall: “Liu Sheng……I remember that there are several people with this name in the county. How about I invite them here and the young gentleman can see if the person you’re looking for is among them?”
Ye Zi was about to refuse, but Gu Yi responded: “Sounds good, then I’ll be troubling Lord Ge.”
Lord Ge quickly waved his hands: “No trouble, no trouble, it’s a simple matter. By the way, Your Majesty Prince Jing must be tired from the journey, do you want me to take you to rest first?”
Gu Yi nodded: “Please.”
Gu Yan, who hadn’t spoken, suddenly opened his mouth: “Lord Ge is busy with his affairs, so it’s better for this Prince to show Sixth Imperial Uncle the way.”
“This……”
Gu Yi responded: “That sounds good. It just so happens that I haven’t seen my nephew, Zicheng, for a long time so it’s a perfect time to catch up with him.”
After hearing his words, Lord Ge no longer insisted and sent the two of them out of the main room respectfully. Gu Yan led Gu Yi and Ye Zi toward the inner courtyard.
Gu Yi’s other attendants had already been sent away to pack their bags. Ye Zi originally wanted to find an opportunity to slip away, but Gu Yi refused to let him do so and insisted on keeping him by his side. It was fine when they had Lord Ge with him before, but now that it was only the three of them, Ye Zi followed them uneasily with chills running down his spine.
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He originally thought that Gu Yan was ill and had no time to send a message to ask him as he desperately rushed here. Meeting Gu Yi was purely accidental, but Gu Yan didn’t know the truth.
That person was extremely petty and jealous, and he didn’t know how angry he would be.
However, Gu Yan didn’t look out of the ordinary. He expressed light concern about Gu Yi’s recent situation and the two casually chatted about family life on their way to the courtyard arranged by Lord Ge for Prince Jing and his entourage.
Gu Yan said: “Since Sixth Imperial Uncle has traveled a long way, I won’t bother you anymore.”
Gu Yi responded: “Alright.”
Gu Yan bowed toward Gu Yi, turned his head, and left the courtyard. From beginning to end, he didn’t look at Ye Zi at all.
Ye Zi couldn’t help but look a little disappointed.
This person……Even if he was pretending to not know him, his acting skills were too good.
Gu Yi brought Ye Zi into the room.
After closing the door, Gu Yi suddenly turned his head to look at Ye Zi: “Don’t you have anything you want to ask me?”
Ye Zi hesitated for a moment: “I didn’t expect you to actually be Prince Jing. This commoner has previously offended you, please forgive me, Your Majesty.”
Gu Yi didn’t seem to care about that: “When have you offended me? And if it wasn’t for you, I would have lost money outside of Guangling City. It was you who helped me and I promised to help you enter the city to look for your important person as repayment.”
Ye Zi pursed his lips and didn’t say anything.
Gu Yi’s eyes roamed around his face thoughtfully. He stepped forward and lowered his voice: “If you weren’t going to ask me anything, I was going to ask you something.”
“……Exactly who are you looking for?”
Although Prince Jing looked gentle and intellectual on the outside, and gave off the image of a kind person, when he forcefully asked him this question, he unconsciously revealed a sense of oppression that almost made him breathless.
Perhaps the Imperial family was born with the ability to make others submissive.
Ye Zi calmed his mind: “I have already told the magistrate.”
Gu Yi stared at him closely and curled up his lips: “No, what this Prince means is what kind of person is that person to you?”
“My……” Ye Zi closed his eyes and truthfully responded, “My most beloved person.”
“Most beloved person?” Gu Yi gently repeated and then forcefully asked again: “How long have you known him, why are you so devoted to him, is he doing the same for you?”
This person’s continuous questions put Ye Zi in a difficult situation. He turned his head and said stiffly: “Your Majesty, these don’t seem to have anything to do with you.”
A few traces of surprise flashed in Gu Yi’s eyes before turning into a bit of a smile.
He took half a step back, turned around to sit at the table, and said in a leisurely manner: “How does it not have anything to do with me? Isn’t it natural for this Prince to ask more about the person I’m interested in?”
Ye Zi was stunned: “Your Majesty, please stop joking around.”
“I’m only teasing you.” Gu Yi said, “You should go rest now. Since you rushed all the way from Chang’an, you probably hadn’t had a good rest for a long time, right?”
Ye Zi stayed silent and after getting permission, he immediately left Gu Yi’s room as if he was running away. There were many courtyards in this villa. Ye Zi wanted to find Gu Yan, but he didn’t know where the person stayed and was worried that Gu Yi would find out, so he had to give up for the time being.
Ye Zi returned to the room listlessly. As soon as he closed the door, someone suddenly pulled him from behind.
The familiar aroma of herbs instantly hit him. Ye Zi took half a step back and his spine struck against the door.
The hands that pressed down on him were trembling slightly and he didn’t know whether they were nervous or excited. Ye Zi was in a trance for a moment and was kissed hard on the lips by the other party.
The kiss was urgent and forceful without any manners. However, it was so fierce that it made him breathless.
Ye Zi was so dazed by the kiss that he forgot to breathe for a moment.
Only after a long time did Gu Yan release him.
Gu Yan took a deep breath to calm down his overly restless heartbeat. He pressed his head against Ye Zi’s forehead and whispered: “You missed me so much that you even chased me here?”
After being separated for more than a month, Gu Yan missed his little princess consort as much as Ye Zi had missed him.
He couldn’t recall at all how he had endured those times without this person before Ye Zi had transformed from an immortal plant.
God knows how much perseverance he had to use to force himself not to look at this person when he saw him outside the county government office, and to force himself to not immediately hold him in his arms.
As Ye Zi was hugged tightly by Gu Yan, the other person’s rapid and powerful heartbeat transmitted through his chest. Ye Zi opened his mouth and his vision suddenly blurred: “Zicheng……”
In his voice, there was a hint of crying.
Gu Yan was stunned and quickly let go of him: “What’s wrong? Why are you crying?……Were you bullied in Chang’an City? Good boy, don’t cry, talk to me properly.”
Ye Zi turned his head and wiped his eyes as he shook his head: “No, I wasn’t bullied. I’m just…..happy to see you.”
Gu Yan pulled him to the bedside and sat down, gently wiping the tears on his face: “Do tears of happiness look like this? Do you think I am a seven-year-old child who is easily deceived?”
“It’s really because I’m happy.” Ye Zi pulled Gu Yan’s hand and said softly, “I’m really happy to see that you’re fine.”
Gu Yan keenly sensed something in his words and asked: “What do you mean by seeing that I’m fine?”
Ye Zi pursed his lips and stayed silent.
Gu Yan calmly wiped his tears and changed the subject without pressing him any further: “Why did you come here with my Sixth Imperial Uncle?”
Ye Zi told him what happened outside of Guangling City.
After hearing this, Gu Yan pondered for a moment and lectured: “How can you be so gullible when you go out? If you get swindled by others, you will end up doing their dirty work for them.”
Ye Zi pursed his lips and retorted in a low voice: “I didn’t have the means to come in at that time. He said he could help me, so I believed it. Anyway……it’s not like he can beat me.”
Gu Yan cried and laughed: “Do you think having martial arts is enough? He is Prince Jing. Even if he doesn’t take action himself, he can still find countless ways to make you suffer.”
“That’s not what……” Ye Zi tugged on Gu Yan’s sleeve and explained, “I knew there would be danger and I was vigilant. But besides this, I really didn’t know how to come to you. I was really anxious and worried that something would happen to you so I didn’t have time to seek other methods……”
Gu Yan’s eyes moved slightly: “Worried about something happening to me?”
Ye Zi paused. He bit his lips and stayed quiet once again.
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Gu Yan wiped his face, poured a glass of water, and handed it to him as he asked slowly: “What did you think would happen to me? Who told you?”
Ye Zi sipped the tea as his eyes wandered about. Gu Yan looked at him calmly, waiting for his answer.
Ye Zi couldn’t stand this scrutinizing look from him and could only give up: “Fine, I’ll tell you. It’s because of my own stupidity. The Third Imperial Prince received news that there was an epidemic in Jiangnan and that after you brought people into Yi’an, you were never seen again. He also heard……..that you were also infected with the disease.”
Gu Yan immediately understood and sighed: “That’s why you hurried over from Chang’an?”
Ye Zi nodded.
“Fool, since I dare to bring people into this place, I naturally came prepared. If I couldn’t even do this properly, wouldn’t I be too useless?” Gu Yan touched Ye Zi’s hair and whispered: “Why are you such a fool and believe everything others say?”
Ye Zi lowered his head and said in an aggrieved manner: “I can’t help it, Miss Wan’er said that if one were to actually catch the disease, Dr. Pei could only delay it for a month at most. How could I have waited?…….”
“You even asked Miss Wan’er?” Gu Yan frowned slightly and asked: “What did she say to you?”
Ye Zi didn’t dare to look at him and whispered: “E-Everything…… “
Gu Yan took a deep breath, completely losing his temper because of Ye Zi. Since Pei Wan’er told him everything, he should also know that his leaves could be used as the cure.
Gu Yan thought for a while and reminded: “Pei Ge is currently thinking of a way to cure the epidemic so don’t mess around.”
Ye Zi quickly said flatteringly: “I won’t mess around. Anyway, there are so many people, how many leaves would I have to pull for it to be enough?……If I pull out all my leaves, you probably wouldn’t like me anymore.”
Gu Yan let out a light laugh: “Nonsense, I like you no matter what you become.”
He hugged Ye Zi a little tighter: “But one thing leads to another, I didn’t tell you about that incident because I was afraid you’d be foolish. I do want to save those people and I will try my best to save them, but I will never allow you to do anything to hurt yourself, understand?”
Ye Zi nodded obediently: “Understood.”
Ye Zi leaned in Gu Yan’s arms. Once his tense spirit relaxed, fatigue and sleepiness suddenly came over him. Noticing that the person in his arms had gradually become quiet, Gu Yan lowered his head and asked: “What’s wrong?”
Ye Zi couldn’t even open his eyes as he mumbled in a daze: “Zicheng, I’m so tired……”
Gu Yan said: “When I saw you just now, I felt that your expression was a bit off. How many days has it been since you last had a good rest?”
Ye Zi felt embarrassed when he thought of those stupid actions before. He didn’t want to say anything, so he buried his head in Gu Yan’s chest and tried to be vague: “…….I don’t remember.”
Gu Yan’s heart twitched as he asked: “Don’t tell me you haven’t slept from the moment you left Chang’an City?”
Ye Zi made up his mind not to answer. Closing his eyes, he said softly: “I’m fine, I’ll be fine after a nap. You should leave, in case Prince Jing finds out……”
Gu Yan felt angry and distressed at the same time, but seeing Ye Zi’s appearance, he couldn’t bear to get angry at him: “Do you think my Imperial uncle is someone who is easy to deal with? I’m afraid he has already noticed our relationship.”
Ye Zi was once again completely silent. Gu Yan looked down and saw that the latter was breathing smoothly and had fallen asleep peacefully in his arms.
He didn’t realize it at first, but after taking a closer look, Gu Yan noticed that this person had lost a lot of weight compared to a month ago.
Ye Zi’s lips were slightly pale. He had been taken care of by Gu Yan before, but the little flesh he had managed to gain on his body had completely disappeared and his waist had become too thin to hold.
In the past, Ye Zi always lectured Gu Yan about not ruining his own body, but now this man was ruining his own body much more than he did.
Gu Yan felt his heart ache. He took a few deep breaths, closed his eyes, and gently picked the person up.
With Ye Zi in this state, how could Gu Yan still leave him here by himself?
Gu Yan gently opened the door and carried Ye Zi out of the room. At a glance, he saw Gu Yi sitting in the courtyard. There was a pot of tea simmering on the stone table as Gu Yi was playing with a folding fan in his hand. He didn’t know how long he had been sitting there.
Gu Yan glanced at him but didn’t say anything as he directly carried Ye Zi out of the courtyard.
Gu Yan placed Ye Zi on the bed in his own room and gently removed his shoes, socks, and outerwear. He covered him with a quilt, lowered his head, and kissed him gently on the forehead before turning around to leave.
When Gu Yan returned to the courtyard, Gu Yi looked up at him, reached out, and poured him a cup of tea: “Have a seat.”
“Thank you, Imperial Uncle.”
Gu Yi smiled and asked: “When Zicheng stole someone from my courtyard, did he still have me, his Imperial Uncle, in his eyes?”
Gu Yan faintly responded: “Imperial Uncle, don’t tease me.”
Gu Yi said: “This is the first time I’ve seen you care so much about someone. But I heard that you’ve just married a princess consort not long ago and that you dote on him very much. There are also rumors in Chang’an that your Princess Consort Rui is a small demon that eats people without spitting out their bones and has bewitched you with his beauty.”
He paused and added: “And look, to think you’ve just fallen in love with someone new after being away for a couple of days? As the saying goes, first come, first served. I picked this little beauty from outside Guangling City. You can’t take him away from me.”
Gu Yan frowned before he laughed: “Imperial Uncle has already figured out the answer in his heart so don’t deliberately joke with Zicheng. He is indeed my princess consort, and I thank Imperial Uncle for taking care of him for me.”
“It’s a given.” Gu Yi nodded, “This little gentleman is kind-hearted and helped me outside Guangling City. I saw that he was very skilled in martial arts so I wanted to keep him for my own use, but I didn’t expect that someone had already gotten to him first.”
Gu Yan narrowed his eyes but didn’t reply.
Gu Yi immediately said, “Just kidding, I will never take away someone else’s love, not to mention that he is also my Nephew-in-Law.”
Gu Yan didn’t want to talk to him about this matter anymore and digressed: “Let’s not talk about this anymore. Since Sixth Imperial Uncle sent a letter to me, saying that you could help me cure this epidemic, I wonder what method you have?”
Gu Yi explained: “The epidemic here is not a disease, but a kind of flower called ‘coil orchid’ in the Western Regions. When the orchid is in full bloom, it will spread a fragrant pollen. Once this pollen is dissolved in water, it becomes colorless and odorless, and anyone who consumes it will become seriously ill. This disease is very similar to the usual typhoid fever, but it is different. This disease is also very contagious, ranging from coughing to severe palpitations, fever, difficulty breathing, and inability to breathe. If contracted, you would only have seven days to live.”
“I heard that you brought a doctor into Yi’an to try to cure this stubborn disease, which is why I came over to lend you a hand.” Gu Yi took out a small, slender wooden box from his sleeve and handed it to Gu Yan: “This is a powder grounded from a herb I found in the Western Regions, give this to that doctor who came with you and use it as medicine, then you will be able to cure the epidemic here.”
Gu Yan looked down at the wooden box. However, he didn’t reach out to pick it up and instead asked, “Why is Sixth Imperial Uncle suddenly helping me?”
Gu Yi smiled nonchalantly: “The people of the world are my dynasty’s subjects. I am not helping you, I am helping them.”
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“Then I’ll ask in a different way.” Gu Yan said, “Did Sixth Imperial Uncle really come here risking his life just to deliver this medicine to me?”
Ye Zi slept for a full day and night. Gu Yan was so anxious that he called Pei Ge several times to check Ye Zi’s pulse repeatedly. However, the conclusion every time was that the princess consort was just overly fatigued, which was why he was still asleep.
It wasn’t until the late afternoon of the second day that Ye Zi woke up.
He slept for so long that when he woke up, he felt even more tired. His whole body was so sore that he couldn’t even lift a finger. It took Ye Zi a long time to realize where he was now. He turned his head and saw Gu Yan very close at hand.
Gu Yan was supporting his head with his hand as he napped against the side of the bed.
Ye Zi stared at him blankly for a while, unable to look away.
When they were together, he wanted to be with this person all the time. Now that he hadn’t seen him for a long time, he couldn’t bear to look away.
He really missed him too much.
Gu Yan frowned and opened his eyes as if he felt something. He met Ye Zi’s gaze with a soft look in his eyes: “You’re finally awake. How do you feel now?”
Ye Zi spoke softly: “……I’m so hungry.”
“After sleeping for a whole day, how could you not be hungry?” Gu Yan poured a cup of warm water for Ye Zi and helped him up: “I’ll have someone bring some porridge for you, drink this for now.”
Ye Zi nodded: “Okay.”
Gu Yan turned his head out the door, ordered a few words to the subordinates outside the courtyard, and soon carried a small pot of rice porridge into the room.
The rice porridge was fragrant, glutinous, and soft. It was probably simmered over low heat to make it warm and appetizing. Gu Yan helped Ye Zi up, placed a soft cushion behind him, filled a bowl of porridge for him, and fed it to him one spoon at a time.
Ye Zi hadn’t eaten much in the past few days and was so hungry that he drank two bowls in a row. He still wanted more, but Gu Yan refused to give it to him. He watched helplessly as Gu Yan took away the remaining rice porridge and then watched helplessly as the man came back empty-handed, he was feeling extremely aggrieved.
Gu Yan took out a silk handkerchief and meticulously wiped Ye Zi’s mouth as he chided: “You almost starved yourself to death, are you going to stuff yourself until you bloat now?”
Ye Zi pursed his lips, not daring to talk back to him.
Gu Yan couldn’t bear to see how aggrieved he was, so he explained: “If you eat too much, your stomach won’t be able to bear it. Endure it for a while. When you regain your strength, I’ll have someone make something else for you.”
Ye Zi didn’t insist anymore and nodded: “Okay.”
Gu Yan helped him lie down: “Lay down for a while. You went way out of hand this time. Rushing here from Chang’an in just five days, did you want to die?”
Ye Zi hid half of his face in the quilt and said softly: “But……if something happens to you, what’s the point of living?”
The fire in Gu Yan’s heart dispersed at once. Bending down, he tenderly planted a kiss on his lips.
After a short while, Gu Yan let go of Ye Zi and asked softly: “Should I lay down with you for a while?”
That was exactly what Ye Zi had wanted and he busily moved to the side. Gu Yan undressed and lay down next to him.
Ye Zi softly asked: “How did you bring me back to your room, what about Prince Jing?……”
“Well, I wanted to hide the truth for a couple more days, lest more people find out and cause some trouble.” Gu Yan sighed, “But who knew that a certain little fool’s eyes would be fixed on me the moment he saw me? Since it couldn’t be hidden, I simply confessed.”
Ye Zi weakly retorted: “I wasn’t……”
Gu Yan raised his eyebrows: “You weren’t?”
Ye Zi shrunk his neck and resentfully said: “……I was.”
Ye Zi asked again: “Then what should we do now? Is there any movement in Chang’an?”
Gu Yan responded calmly: “I heard that Emperor Jinghe was extremely angry when he found out that you left Gu Xu and ran away, and wanted to bring you back to punish you for your crime of deceiving the Emperor. Princess Consort Rui, you have gotten into big trouble this time. Tell me, what should we do now?”
Ye Zi buried his head in Gu Yan’s embrace and no longer cared anymore: “Whatever, I don’t care anymore. Anyways, I will never leave you, even if they kill me, I won’t leave.”
