Chapter 28

Bu Nian stood at the center of the dim chamber with his hands clasped behind his back, dressed in dark robes. His eyes were lowered. No one knew how long he had been waiting.

Before long, the hidden mechanism clicked into motion. A concealed door slowly opened, and a figure clad in night gear stepped through.

The man was about the same height as Bu Nian, his face wrapped in black cloth. When he saw Bu Nian already waiting inside, he walked quickly toward him and pulled the mask down, revealing a warm, sincere face. It was Helian Qiufeng.

“Grand General.”

Bu Nian raised his eyes, as if returning from deep thought.

“You’re here.” His tone held neither formality nor distance, and there was no trace of hostility. “The matter with the Zhongzhou Governor was handled well. But it ended up dragging your father into trouble.”

“Just a small ruse. Not worth mentioning. To help the General accomplish his goal is the Helian family’s honor. I wouldn’t call it a burden.”

Bu Nian gave a slight nod, “This current state of things won’t last long. Gan Yan has been holding himself back for too long. Now that he holds power, he’s far too ostentatious. He pushes through every edict and petition as if the emperor didn’t exist. The young emperor has been enduring it for now, but in another year or two, once he comes of age, he’ll want to take back that authority.”

He paused.

“But a jackal never gives back what it swallows. Gan Yan won’t allow that to happen.”

Helian Qiufeng said, “His Majesty has always been close to you, General, and has long held reservations about Gan Yan. Gan Yan can’t be unaware of that. If I were him, I’d probably lose my composure soon.”

Bu Nian’s lips curved slightly. “Let’s hope so.”

The topic came to a pause. Helian Qiufeng went on to report a few classified matters he had obtained from Gan Yan’s side. Once he had finished, seeing that Bu Nian had nothing further to instruct, he prepared to take his leave.

He had just raised his arms to make a cupped-fist salute when Bu Nian spoke again.

“Lian Ai said he’s pledged himself to Gan Yan. He means to stand against me.”

Helian Qiufeng froze, as if someone had struck his pressure point.

He dropped his hands, face full of disbelief. “What?”

He thought of how Lian Ai had slipped into the capital and refused to return home no matter what. At the time, it had only seemed odd. Now everything made sense.

“That boy has gone too far.”

Bu Nian had been in a foul mood earlier, itching to take a whip to that disobedient little creature and beat out his anger. But after a night of cooling off and sobering up, the anger had subsided. His mind had returned to its usual clarity.

“Let it be. Let him go.” Bu Nian rubbed his thumb and forefinger together behind his back. “I can protect him for a time, but not for a lifetime. If he really proves useful to Gan Yan, then I suppose that’s his ability.”

Bu Nian sounded unconcerned, but Helian Qiufeng could not bring himself to feel the same. Over the past year, he had truly come to treat Lian Ai like a younger brother. But Bu Nian was the one the Helian family had pledged to follow. This matter touched too many sides, and there could be no room for error.

“But he doesn’t know how much effort the general had put into him. If he does something that endangers you…”

He paused. If Xiao Ai ran off and tried to assassinate the General without warning, the whole matter would become impossible to untangle.

“How about I tie him up and bring him back?”

Bu Nian shot him a glance, his voice low.

“If he wants to kill me, I’m right here. Let him come.”

Helian Qiufeng saw the look on his face. His expression was cold, indifferent, and beneath it, there was a flicker of pride and contempt. His tone was steady and defiant, every word carrying the edge of spite.

This was something between the two of them, and Helian Qiufeng knew it wasn’t his place to interfere. In the end, he answered with a quiet “Understood,” sighed inwardly, and took his leave.

Helian Qiufeng had pressing duties in Zhongzhou and could not remain in the capital for long. He had originally planned to take Lian Ai back with him when he left, but now the situation had become complicated.

After returning to the inn, he turned the matter over in his mind, growing more uneasy by the minute. In the end, he called Lian Ai in and asked him directly about pledging loyalty to the Prince Regent.

“I know you only want to do something for the family, but father and I… we only hope you can live a peaceful life. We don’t want you caught up in all this.”

There were too many things Helian Qiufeng couldn’t explain. To Lian Ai, his words came across thin and hesitant, his persuasion weak.

Lian Ai stood there quietly, like a student being lectured.

“You don’t let me get involved. You just want me to stand by and watch while all of you get hurt, while you bleed, and I can’t do a thing to stop it. That’s not a life I can accept.”

He stared at the floor. His voice was calm, but the resolve behind it was unshakable.

“I won’t hide it from you, big brother. If you tell me to go home now and live like a carefree little young master again, that’s no longer possible. Unless you drug me and turn me into someone who only knows how to eat and sleep, I’m not going back.”

Helian Qiufeng hadn’t expected him to be this firm. His throat tightened, and for a moment, he couldn’t say a word.

“What nonsense. How could I ever do something like that?” he scolded.

After a moment, he sighed and said, “Since you want to stay, I won’t stop you. But you must not act recklessly. Things aren’t always as simple as they seem. No matter what the Prince Regent or Her Highness asks you to do, you are to tell me immediately. Understood?”

There was no point bringing Lian Ai home if he couldn’t keep an eye on him there either. Better to leave him in the capital and let the General watch over him. Besides, with the way things stood at the Prince Regent’s estate, they wouldn’t make a move against Lian Ai anymore. As long as he behaved himself, nothing should happen.

Over the past year, Lian Ai had been so well-behaved that it gave Helian Qiufeng a false impression. Compared to that brat Zuo Lingyu, he seemed far less of a headache. Helian Qiufeng even thought that if the capital ever fell into chaos, and the General and the Prince Regent were about to fight, he could simply come, knock Lian Ai out, and send him back to Zhongzhou in a carriage.

Lian Ai thought for a moment, then said, “What if Her Highness asks me to assassinate the General?”

Helian Qiufeng replied at once, “Inform me immediately. You are not to act on your own.”

“I understand,” Lian Ai nodded obediently. “Stay away from Bu Nian. Don’t provoke him. Is that it?”

Helian Qiufeng gave a light cough. “As long as you understand. I just don’t want you getting hurt again.”

Lian Ai gave a quiet hum and said no more.

Helian Qiufeng left the capital the next morning. He had thought Zuo Lingxue wouldn’t care whether Lian Ai pledged loyalty or not. The Helian family had already sided with the Prince Regent. Any further declarations of loyalty from Lian Ai would seem excessive, like a child desperate not to be overlooked, clinging to his own sense of worth.

What he hadn’t expected was that Zuo Lingxue would summon Lian Ai almost immediately and assign him an important task.

“This is Numbroot Powder. It has no color or taste. Three days from now, Bu Nian will go to Queling Mountain to pay respects to his parents. Apply this to your skin. Find a way to make him ingest it. I want him captured alive. He must surrender his military authority.”

Zuo Lingxue handed him a small porcelain box.

“Yes,” Lian Ai replied, taking it carefully and holding it tight in his palm.

—

Queling Mountain was not far from the capital. It sat beside water and backed against the mountains, facing the imperial city in alignment with auspicious fengshui. It was also the site of the Bu family’s ancestral graves.

Lian Ai set out a day before Bu Nian. He spent the night in a small town at the foot of the mountain. Before dawn the next morning, he brought the paper offerings and ritual goods he had prepared and began his climb.

There were many graves scattered across the slope. He searched for a long time before finally finding the tombstones of the old General and his wife. Remnants of last year’s incense still remained, but the offerings had long been picked clean by animals from the mountain.

Lian Ai took out a clean cloth, rolled up his sleeves, and wiped down both tombstones. Not until every speck of dust was gone did he rise, wiping the sweat from his brow. Then he began pulling up the weeds around the mound, speaking as he worked.

“Old Master, Madam, I’m tidying your house a bit. So you can rest more comfortably.”

By the time he was done, a light sweat had formed across his back.

He lit the candles and arranged the offerings. Then he knelt before the tombstones and, in silence, began burning the paper money sheet by sheet. Once everything had turned to ash, he picked up three sticks of incense, lit them by the candle flame, and bowed three times toward the grave. Then he placed them into the censer.

Bu Nian came up the mountain with Bai Shu and the others, carrying boxes of offerings. Just as they arrived at his parents’ graves, he saw the scene before him.

He stopped in place, staring with disbelief, almost absurdity in his expression.

“What are you doing here?”

Lian Ai patted his hands clean, stood up and stepped aside. His arms moved behind his back, fingers tightly twisted together.

“Paying respects to the old General and Madam.”

Bu Nian’s brows furrowed deeper. His tone grew cold.

“And with what identity?”

Lian Ai froze. It took him a moment to realize what Bu Nian meant.

He had once been the old General’s bedslave. Then, somehow, he had become Bu Nian’s. Now he belonged to no one, and had even less right to be there.

After a pause, he pressed his lips together.

“Just a common subject of Great Qi who admired the old General’s name.”

Bu Nian let out a cold snort.

“A fine admirer. If my father knew this in the afterlife, I’m sure he’d be thrilled. All the more since you were his bedslave for a few days.”

Lian Ai’s face went pale. His hands behind his back twisted tighter.

He said nothing, and that only made Bu Nian’s expression darken further. He looked away altogether, unwilling to even see him.

Bai Shu, carrying the offerings, reached the grave and paused when he saw what Lian Ai had already placed there. He turned back and asked, “General, what should we do with these?”

Around his neck hung a delicate safety charm. The ruby tassel swayed softly below it.

Lian Ai had just turned his gaze aside when he heard Bu Nian’s cold voice.

“Throw it all away.”

Lian Ai could no longer stay there. He turned around and hurried down the mountain. His steps were uneven and rushed.

Bai Shu had just lifted a plate of oranges to toss it when his wrist was suddenly caught by Bu Nian.

“General?” he jumped in surprise, freezing on the spot.

Bu Nian glanced at the spotless tombstones and the weedless grave mound. He could tell Lian Ai had done it all himself, and his mood grew even more tangled.

“I’ve changed my mind. Leave them.”

That was all he said.

Lian Ai descended the mountain and returned to the inn at the base town. Unlike the capital, this town had only one inn, and it housed just two upper rooms. Lian Ai knew Bu Nian always stayed overnight at the foot of the mountain after visiting Queling Mountain, so he had come early to secure one of the rooms.

If nothing unexpected happened, Bu Nian would be staying in the room right beside his.

Zuo Lingxue had told him they would act at the second watch, when people were in their deepest sleep. He still had plenty of time to prepare.

He had risen early the past two days. Wanting to gather his strength, he lay down fully clothed to rest for a while. But even with his eyes closed, sleep would not come.

He simply lay there in silence for several hours.

Suddenly, movement came from the floor below. His eyes snapped open, and he sat up straight, fully awake.

He heard several people coming upstairs. A moment later, Bu Nian’s voice followed.

“Bring the food and hot water to my room.”

The door next to him opened, then closed shortly after.

The scent of food drifted in after the time it took for one stick of incense to burn. Another stick’s time passed, and a servant brought hot water for bathing.

While Bu Nian bathed on the other side of the wall, Lian Ai did the same.

Only he washed more carefully. He scrubbed himself thoroughly, inside and out.

When the bath was finished, he stood up in the now lukewarm water. Droplets slid down his body, trailing from his neck to his collarbone, over his chest, and finally fell against two pink nipples. Further down, the water clung to the golden nipple rings, gathering at the fine chain that connected them. There, it pooled before falling into the tub, forming a small ripple in the quiet surface.

He stepped out of the tub and walked naked to the bronze mirror. Raising his hand, he touched the scar on his forehead. Then he picked up a gold forehead pendant from the table, matching the chain on his chest but inlaid with a teardrop-shaped blood jade at the center, and tied it across his brow.

His fingers moved downward from his forehead, brushing over his lips, his throat, his collarbone, and the chain that lay across his chest. It was like he was tracing the surface of a fine porcelain piece, admiring every inch of it. Finally, his hand came to rest on a square lacquer box beside the mirror.

When he lifted the lid, a faint floral scent slowly filled the room. He dipped his finger into the pale cream inside. It was thick as tallow, softening with the warmth of his skin.

He rubbed it across his body, spreading it carefully over every part. Then he placed one foot on the stool, scooped out a generous amount of the balm, and slid his fingers between his legs. As he did this, there was no trace of embarrassment on his face. It was as natural to him as eating or drinking.