TL: Hua
As dusk approached, the rain curtain turned gray and hazy. Yuan Fang held an umbrella over himself and Pei Xiting, strolling slowly to the Huai River bank and finding the drooping willow tree.
Beside the road was an inn with white walls and black tiles. A black wooden plaque read “Willow Bank” with vigorous and forceful characters.
“The calligraphy looks familiar,” Pei Xiting squinted slightly. “It seems to be from the same person who wrote the wine flag in front of the Roasted Rabbit Champion restaurant on Baiyou Mountain.”
Yuan Fang said, “Look at the man on the bamboo chair at the entrance and the waiter sweeping the floor; they are both martial artists.”
“Yo, gentlemen, are you here for a meal or a stay?” The owner got up from the bamboo chair, fanning himself with a large bamboo fan, walked to the eaves, took a look at the two, and paid extra attention to Pei Xiting before asking, “Are you Third Young Master Pei?”
Pei Xiting said, “That’s right.”
“Please come to the backyard,” the owner said. “Young Master You has already chosen the place; you can stay next to him.”
Pei Xiting followed him in and casually asked, “How did you recognize me?”
The owner, leading the way, said, “Young Master You described you as having a moon-like face, willow-leaf eyebrows, ‘eyes like pools of autumn water,’ and a handsome appearance that’s recognizable with just one glance.”
Upon hearing this, Yuan Fang glanced at Pei Xiting and said, “I didn’t realize Young Master You, who is usually taciturn, is quite good at praising people.”
Pei Xiting smiled faintly and said, “He’s just stating facts; how is that praise?”
Yuan Fang stopped engaging with him.
Walking from the corridor to the backyard, there is a beautiful small courtyard with wisteria trees planted in it, delicate and beautiful, like a roll of romantic purple clouds outlined on a rain curtain.
You Zong was not there. The owner led the two to two rooms next to each other and said, “If you need anything, just ask the waiter in the front.”
Pei Xiting thanked him and instructed Yuan Fang to unpack their luggage. “You don’t have to stay here and guard me. If you want to go out and have fun, go by yourself.”
The Longhe Division’s office is in Yejing, but considering its authority, it’s impossible for it to only operate in the capital. It must have branches everywhere. The man and the waiter were all lean and agile, just like the Longhe Guards in Yejing. Moreover, You Zong directly mentioned the name “Willow Bank,” indicating that this inn is special and must be a place trusted and familiar to Lord You.
In conclusion, this is likely the Longhe Division’s territory.
Yuan Fang shook out his clothes, hung them in the closet, and went out for a walk.
Pei Xiting leaned back in a bamboo chair to rest. The sound of rain outside was hypnotic, and he soon became drowsy until a beautiful singing voice penetrated the rain curtain and gently reached his ears. He tilted his head and groggily opened his eyes only to notice that it was completely dark outside.
The melody was “Song of the Yue Boatman,” and the voice seems to have been soaked in osmanthus honey, sweetening one’s very heart.
Suddenly, a zither sound rang out, like flowing water cascading down, merging into a mountain spring, becoming one with the dripping rain.
It was unexpectedly “Clear Dew on the Lotus Pond.”
Pei Xiting immediately rose and left the room, following the sound through the corridors. The “shop assistants” along the way did not stop him.
Behind the back door was a bluestone path, a quietly flowing river, and a green single-decked boat drifting from the rain, pausing slightly at the shore.
Without hesitation, Pei Xiting stepped onto it. He walked across the wooden planks, passing through the fragrant gauze wafted by the male entertainer, and went straight to the cypress zither table. The person playing the zither had evenly shaped eyebrows and downcast eyes, features as beautiful as a painting.
Pei Xiting sat down at the zither table, looking at the hands playing the instrument, wishing he could tie them up and examine them inch by inch, clearly and thoroughly, their shape, length, skin color, muscles, veins, and knuckles… He breathed shallowly, his sigh blending with the male entertainer’s singing, but his gaze was a thousand times more direct and bold than the singer’s. The zither playing stopped, leaving only the lingering vibrations of the strings.
The Crown Prince raised his eyes to look at Pei Xiting. “What exactly are you craving?”
Pei Xiting propped up his chin and said, “Your hands.”
“They don’t taste good,” the Crown Prince said.
“But they are beautiful.” Pei Xiting extended his right hand, placing it in the air above the Crown Prince’s left hand, comparing them. “Your hands are wider than mine, and they have calluses.”
The Crown Prince did not reprimand Pei Xiting’s boldness; instead, he flipped his hand over, coming up from under that slender, white hand, and lightly touched the back of Pei Xiting’s hand with his index finger. “Turn it over.”
Pei Xiting obediently complied, the back of his hand gently resting on the zither surface.
The small red mole on his palm was exposed under the dim flower lantern light. The Crown Prince’s expression did not change as he lowered his index finger and covered it.
“Zii…” Pei Xiting’s wrist trembled, accidentally brushing against the zither strings. The zither hummed, causing the Crown Prince to look up at him, saying calmly, “What’s the matter?”
“It itches.” Pei Xiting looked directly into the Crown Prince’s eyes, with a hint of grievance in his tone. “I only twitched a little, but the singing was off-key in several places. Why didn’t you say anything?”
Hearing this, the male entertainer’s heart skipped a beat. He quickly averted his gaze and continued to sing earnestly.
Chun Sheng was a famous entertainer from the Huai River bank. He was used to seeing high-ranking officials and wealthy young nobles, but today he had truly witnessed what nobility and refinement looked like. Although he had been pampered and had developed a sense of pride, he could tell that this guest was someone of great importance, not someone he could hope to get close to. All he wished for was a short spring breeze[mfn]Aka one night stand.[/mfn], but unexpectedly, a troublesome person appeared halfway, one who looked like a thousand-year-old fox at that!
Were these two flirting with each other in the dark, making him just a decoration and a cover?
The resentful and unwilling gaze from behind carried a sour taste. Pei Xiting’s eyebrow twitched slightly, and he suddenly laughed.
The Crown Prince looked over, puzzled, only to see Pei Xiting turn his hand and stroke the zither strings, seemingly beautifully but actually without any order.
It was indeed an excellent zither, unable to produce discordant sounds, but the Crown Prince still picked up his folding fan and pressed the back of Pei Xiting’s hand with the fan tip, saying, “Don’t ruin it.”
“It’s Wenshui, and I’m Wenjuan, like brothers with the same name. How could I bear to ruin it? As for why I’m laughing, I’m laughing at you. You always put on an aloof, uninterested-in-beauty act at home. Yet when traveling outside, you even order a male entertainer to sing for you.” Pei Xiting gently turned his hand, using his palm to cushion the fan tip. His index finger traced the handle of the fan and slid it down again. With a gentle touch, he smiled and said, “How amazing is that?”
The Crown Prince did not stop Pei Xiting’s small movements. He said, “Just listening to a song. As long as it suits my taste, who sings it and where I hear it doesn’t matter. What distinction is there between elegant and vulgar, pure and impure?”
Pei Xiting was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, “I like you more and more.”
The Crown Prince paused, only to see Pei Xiting’s eyes crinkling with laughter, without any hint of seduction or ambiguity, as if those words were just admiration and exclamation, with no other meaning.
“It’s you who is quick to label people. Fortunately, you’re not an imperial censor or a judicial official; otherwise, the court would have countless wrongful cases.” Having said that, the Crown Prince gently raised his fan tip and lightly tapped Pei Xiting’s palm, as if punishing him.
Pei Xiting’s fingers curled inward, the tap sending a wave of itchiness through his heart. He couldn’t help but sit up straighter and said, “With a wise and discerning Crown Prince like His Royal Highness in the court, Daye’s foundation is as solid as a rock. Even if I were such an official, I would only break my head against it and wouldn’t be able to stir up any storm.”
The Crown Prince said, “It seems you have quite some respect and love for the Crown Prince.”
“Not only respect and love, but also admiration,” Pei Xiting sighed, saying with feigned seriousness, “If I could but glimpse at his jade countenance, I don’t know how happy I would be.”
The rain outside the boat, the wick of the flower lantern, seemed to be reflected in his pupils, watery and bright, with a startling brilliance.
The Crown Prince’s fingers tightened slightly, and he subconsciously lowered his folding fan. As his hand fell, the prayer beads slipped down but were caught by his grip.
“What evening is this that I take a boat into the stream?
What day is this that I get to share a boat with my prince?
Shy am I for having taken to you; I fear not the shame of denunciation.
My longing is intense and without let, with thoughts only for my prince.
The mountains have trees, the tree branches, my heart has spoken to my lord, my lord does not understand.”[mfn]Song of the Yue Boatman’s lyrics. English translation by Stevenson and Wu I found it on Wikipedia. If you are interested in the song, here’s the link. Nice song btw[/mfn]
His recitation clashed with the male entertainer’s singing. The same words, one low and one high, but the Crown Prince only clearly heard his gentle, low narration.
The prayer beads were warm from being rubbed. The last two lines of the song appeared in the Crown Prince’s mind. He felt that Pei Xiting, who was so lacking in propriety, bold, and reckless in his words, deserved some punishment.
“Come here,” the Crown Prince said.
Pei Xiting stood up and walked to the Crown Prince.
“Turn around,” the Crown Prince said.
Pei Xiting obediently turned his back.
The Crown Prince glanced at Pei Xiting’s knees but did not make him kneel. He simply said, “Lie down.”
Where to lie down? Pei Xiting thought for a moment, then took a cushion and sat on it, saying with confusion, “Is this alright?”
The Crown Prince did not answer. He turned sideways, dipped his brush in ink, and used the tip of the brush to part Pei Xiting’s hair, revealing his slender back. “Here are two words for you. If you answer incorrectly, I’ll change it to twenty lashes. Remember that?”
Oh no, he’s angry. Pei Xiting thought, obediently saying, “I remember.”
“Continue singing.” The Crown Prince did not look at the male entertainer, his gaze focused on Pei Xiting’s back as he made the first stroke.
That back trembled, causing the stroke to be poorly written. The Crown Prince withdrew his hand and said calmly, “I never write poorly. How many changes of clothes did you bring?”
That tingling itch was still drilling into his heart. Pei Xiting pursed his lips, suppressing it, and said with a smile, “Then write somewhere else.”
The Crown Prince tapped Pei Xiting’s shoulder with his fan, making him straighten his back, and then made the first stroke again.
This time, Pei Xiting was prepared and did not tremble again, but he could still clearly feel the soft yet firm brush tip brushing against his back, horizontal strokes, diagonal strokes… through two layers of thin clothing, like an irritating caress.
The Crown Prince put down his brush. When he asked a question, Pei Xiting did not answer immediately, nor did he straighten his back, as if concealing something.
From behind, the Crown Prince saw Pei Xiting’s flushed ears and tense jawline. He used his folding fan to lift that beautiful chin, forcing Pei Xiting to lean back and look up at him. “Answer,” he said.
Pei Xiting’s face was also red, even more vibrant than the hibiscus flowers adorning the painted boat. The rain outside seemed to have fallen into his eyes.
“Silence,” Pei Xiting said hoarsely, “the two characters are ‘静口’ (jìng kǒu—keep silent).”
The Crown Prince looked into those watery eyes and asked, “Do you understand the meaning?”
Pei Xiting nodded, feigning innocence, and said, “I know I was wrong. I won’t talk nonsense in the future.”
The folding fan rested on Pei Xiting’s chin, tapping it warningly. The Crown Prince said, “Since you like ‘Song of the Yue Boatman’ so much, go back and copy it a hundred times. Present it to me before I return to the capital.”
“A hundred times? My hand will be ruined. How will I paint then?” Pei Xiting turned to face the Crown Prince, looking up at him. “Can I copy it after we go back?”
The Crown Prince said, “Two hundred times.”
“…” Pei Xiting said, “Then you have to compensate me for a set of clothes. This one I just bought today at Hundred Brocades House. As the saying goes, ‘Plum rain enters the curtains; damp clothes are frequently dried by cypress fire.’ Clothes are very hard to dry at this time.”
The Crown Prince glanced at Pei Xiting, suddenly recalling a set of clothes he had casually glimpsed in a street-side shop when passing by earlier today.
“I’ll give them to you tomorrow,” he said.
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Love the speed and translations, +++likes.
i got sick right after you mentioned the speed hahaha