Camellia 128

From the tone alone, one might think Seolyeong had declared some wicked threat, but in truth, nothing could have been further from it.

Having blurted out his crude words, he himself began to salivate and discreetly swallowed the rush of warmth in his mouth.

Tang Yujae, who had been silently watching his adam’s apple move with such liveliness, let out a light laugh.

“Why are you laughing? Do you think I can’t do it?”

Now fully out of the man’s arms, Seolyeong snapped in a rather testy voice. Yujae shook his head.

“No. I laughed because I think you could.”

By now, dawn had broken. Soon, the sun would rise on a new day. Once that pale vermilion glow reached the top of his bride’s head, those camellia-red eyes would shine even more beautifully.

Tang Yujae spoke with sincerity.

“Stop while you still can. Let go while you’re able.”

Life always offers chances, chances to avoid pain, to avoid weariness. He hoped his wife might seize one of them and live a life without either.

After all the twists and trials he had endured, surely he deserved a little peace now. A quiet life to soothe the storm that was his very being.

Moved by the gravity in the air, Seolyeong finally spoke.

“And if I don’t want to?”

A hint of irritation laced his sharply arched eyes.

“I did warn you. I told you, I’m just as stubborn as the Pengs, and once I fall in love, I’ll become the most patient man in all the world.”

He ground his teeth and gave an indignant huff. Tang Yujae frowned faintly, as if the memory escaped him, which only made Seolyeong raise his voice in disbelief.

“I said my love would be as hot as a thermal spring and as unmoving as a stone mountain! That you’d better be prepared, because it would be the kind of love that ruins your entire life!”

He repeated the same words he had once hurled during their quarrels. But even now, the man’s response was lacking.

“Did you?”

“Yes, I did!”

“Well, if you say so.”

“Aaargh! How can you answer so half-heartedly?!”

“Don’t shout so close to my ears, Ahyeong. You’ll burst your husband’s eardrum.”

Tang Yujae rubbed the ear Seolyeong had just shrieked into, then turned his back and clasped his hands behind him.

“Are you heading back to the inn?”

“Mm.”

“You’re not going to comfort me any further?”

“I’ve done enough.”

Seolyeong had nothing to say to that. He considered stopping him to check his expression, but quickly gave up on the idea and quietly trailed behind.

As they walked back to their lodging without a single word, Seolyeong’s thoughts churned.

‘Are you really pushing me away out of concern for me? Or is my love simply too burdensome, so you’ve resorted to such petty cruelty to stamp it out?’

He could find no answer, and the uncertainty only grew heavier. Even now, he struggled to suppress the urge to reach out and take the man’s hand. He wanted to press his own warmth against that cold skin, to soften it, to warm it.

Even if the man were destined to die soon, it didn’t matter. If his love were something that could be extinguished by the fear of death, it would never have begun in the first place.

***

Gossip ran wild through the streets. Rumor had it that a major disturbance had broken out within the Namgung clan. Apparently, it centered around Namgung Wook, and while the details were vague, Seolyeong could guess what had happened.

‘He must’ve confronted his father about abusing the children. Of course. If someone who dreamed of being a scholar turned a blind eye to such depravity, he’d have no right to study the classics in the first place. Honestly, I’d love to go and kick that man’s face in myself.’

But his current position prevented him from meddling in the affairs of the martial world. Every time he recalled that, his chest would stir uneasily and he would sigh over and over.

At that very moment, the one who had stirred up the Namgung clan during the grand martial tournament, Tang Yujae, was leisurely browsing market stalls. At Seolyeong’s request, he had agreed to help choose trinkets for the attendants of Yeohwa Hall.

“Come here for a moment.”

Having finished picking out gifts for the girls, Seolyeong called him over, masking his unsettled mood. Despite the cold, Tang Yujae walked toward him at an unhurried pace, wearing nothing more than a long cloak, no fur coat.

People around them kept stealing glances in their direction, pretending not to. Their gazes were filled with suspicion and unease, as though wondering, What sort of lunatic is that? Having disguised his original appearance to avoid catching the attention of women, Yujae now drew stares as if he were something uncanny.

“I think this would suit you well. Shall I buy it for you?”

Lifting a pair of dark green earrings, Seolyeong held them up to his husband’s ear. He had once seen Tang Yujae’s eyes flash with that exact green when he unleashed a surge of heavy Qi.

At the time, it had simply been terrifying and grotesque. But now he realized, the man was a descendant of the Tang clan. Emitting such a glow might be only natural.

Tang Yujae replied indifferently,

“What silver do you have to buy anything?”

Seolyeong leaned in and whispered.

“In a marriage, there’s no such thing as your wealth or mine. Your wealth is mine, and mine is yours, husband.”

“I don’t need anything. You go choose a few things for yourself.”

They said the closer one came to death, the more one should shed, not accumulate. Seolyeong, who only wanted to share a bit of warm time together, pouted with an openly sulky expression. The Sect Leader’s indifferent face was so exasperating, it made him want to throw a punch.

Setting the accessory down, he muttered with a scowl.

“Fine. Let’s just return to Yeonhu Mountain. You turn away from spending time like ordinary lovers so easily, I can’t help but feel suspicious. To be honest, I wonder if you ever truly thought of me as your lover at all.”

A glimmer of unease flickered across his lovely face, something he couldn’t completely hide.

Ever since hearing those words to let go of such a fleeting love, he had been in turmoil. To Tang Yujae, it seemed his wife always chose the harder road, even with the easier one right in front of him. It made him sigh.

“A lover isn’t some grand, lofty thing, not like you think.”

With a light flick, he tapped Seolyeong’s forehead and continued, as if telling him to commit it to memory.

“It just means enjoying each other in moderation. If you expect grand treatment without maintaining the right distance, you’ll only end up disappointed.”

Even though it was sound advice, Seolyeong only grew more sullen.

“…And how would you know that so well?”

As far as Seolyeong knew, the only former lovers his husband had were those two warriors from the Peng clan. But now he was beginning to suspect that if he looked deeper, he’d find well over two hundred women buried in that man’s past. Just listening to the way he spoke was enough to get the idea.

“So you’ve just gone around changing lovers whenever you got bored, taking only their bodies and keeping your distance?”

Tang Yujae considered ignoring his nagging spouse altogether, but instead, he suddenly pulled him close and shifted him behind his back.

Caught off guard by being shielded like that, Seolyeong blinked and called softly, “Husband?”

Yujae’s gaze had locked onto a man who had landed before them without warning.

“Huff… huff…”

Panting heavily, the man was someone Seolyeong recognized. Looking past his husband’s shoulder, he jabbed Yujae’s back with a finger and sent a whisper through sound transmission.

─Is that not Namgung Wook?

The man wore a silver-embroidered headband and chapped lips. He spoke, moving them slowly.

“I’ve been looking everywhere for you. I heard you left the manor and couldn’t stop worrying. I feared you might’ve already departed the city.”

Though he had always seemed well-mannered and charming, Seolyeong found his handsome face strangely displeasing now. His clear eyes remained fixed on Tang Yujae, but it was clear he had no idea who he was really speaking to.

If he knew he was standing before the Sect Leader of the Cheonma Divine Sect, would he still be able to look so bright-eyed? He’d probably run for the hills in sheer terror.

But then Seolyeong froze at what came next.

“O one who makes flowers bloom even in midwinter. I came to ask, without shame, why you intend to leave now after revealing my father’s transgressions. Why have you taken it upon yourself to dispel the darkness in the martial world? I cannot fathom your intent, no matter how I try.”

So he knew. Namgung Wook knew his husband’s true identity.

But how?