Su Cen held Huzi in his arms, only then realizing how badly the small frame was shaking. He had always treated Huzi as a little adult—taking care of Er Ya and even having cared for him before—but now he realized Huzi was just a child, a child who had witnessed something so bloody during the day, a child who cries, fusses, and gets scared.
Su Cen rubbed Huzi’s back soothingly for quite some time before the boy finally calmed down. When he lifted Huzi up to look at him, he saw that the boy was already asleep, exhausted from trembling.
After placing the two children side by side, Su Cen finally remembered why he had summoned them in the first place. But since the children had finally fallen asleep, there was no reason to wake them. He tucked them in, looked at the now fully occupied bed, sighed silently, and quietly left.
Before leaving, he instructed the guards outside, “These two children will stay in my room for now. Don’t send them back yet. Add two more people at the door to guard them—these children are important witnesses, we must ensure their safety.”
After pacing outside indecisively for a while, Su Cen, with nowhere to sleep, thought about sneaking back into Li Shi’s room, hoping to slip back into bed unnoticed while Li Shi was asleep.
However, as soon as he pushed the door open, he saw that Li Shi was already awake, sitting up in bed reading a book, completely ignoring him.
Su Cen stood at the door, unsure whether to stay or go. After some internal struggle—he couldn’t argue with the bed; if he left, he’d have to sleep on the floor—he approached with a thick-skinned, ingratiating smile: “I’m back.”
Li Shi turned a page in his book, unmoved.
Su Cen had no choice but to brazenly climb onto the bed himself. Just as he crawled onto the foot of the bed, Prince Ning finally reacted—raising his noble leg and kicking Su Cen off the bed.
Su Cen tumbled down headfirst with a thud—solid and real—landing first on his backside, then his back. He was completely dazed. After a moment, he finally thought to look up at Li Shi. But the culprit didn’t even lift an eyelid, acting as if it had nothing to do with him, as though someone else had delivered that kick.
“Prince?” Su Cen, having learned his lesson, didn’t dare climb back onto the bed recklessly. He leaned forward and tugged at Li Shi’s sleeve. “Are you angry?”
Prince Ning finally gave some response, raising the corner of his eye and saying: “If you left, don’t come back. Get out.”
Su Cen was stunned for a moment, then stood up and lifted his leg to leave.
Li Shi threw the book in his hand at the door. Did this man think this was a brothel, coming and going as he pleased?!
He personally got out of bed to extinguish the lights and lock the door. As if he couldn’t sleep without him!
Before he could swallow his anger, he heard a rustling sound at the door, pushing a few times without success before giving up. A moment later, the window creaked open.
First, bedding was thrown in through the window, then the person himself jumped in. Li Shi silently watched as the man, familiar with the surroundings, entered the room, first picking up the book lying on the floor and putting it away, then quietly spreading his bedding beside the bed, removing his clothes and lying down—his manner that of a habitual offender.
After lying down, Su Cen sighed with satisfaction. After all, sleeping on the floor was sleeping on the floor, no matter where.
Before falling asleep, he softly said to the person pretending to sleep on the bed: “Don’t lock the door in the future. What if something happens and Qi Lin and the others can’t get in?”
Li Shi almost laughed in anger, thinking to himself: if you can get in, how would Qi Lin and the others not be able to?
Su Cen slept hazily until midnight when he suddenly felt his body lighten. The rigid stone floor beneath him disappeared, replaced by soft embroidered bedding. The scent of sandalwood surrounded him as he was embraced.
Then a hand with slight calluses reached through his waistband and settled on his two buttocks.
Su Cen was now fully awake. He silently realized why the old fox had become so kind—his desire had awakened. As he bent his body to escape, he received a moderate slap on his bottom. “Don’t move.”
Su Cen immediately dared not move, afraid of being kicked off the bed again.
That hand kneaded his buttocks with moderate pressure, but remained well-behaved, not crossing any boundaries.
Su Cen remembered that when he was kicked off the bed, his buttocks hit the ground first. So the old fox had had a guilty conscience and feared he might develop bruises, now helping to improve circulation.
Su Cen laughed softly in the darkness.
The dignified sword-like eyebrows furrowed, and his bottom immediately received another slap. Su Cen grimaced in pain, but his eyes looked at Li Shi with a smile. “Would you say this is what they call ‘one night as husband and wife, a hundred days of affection; quarreling at the head of the bed, making up at the foot’?”
Li Shi finally couldn’t hold back his smile. He gripped both buttocks and pulled Su Cen closer, who immediately felt something hard and hot pressing against him.
Li Shi pressed himself on top of Su Cen, “I think ‘a moment of spring night is worth a thousand gold’ is more fitting.”
The next morning when Su Cen awoke, he first went to check on the two children. Er Ya was awake, sitting on the bed playing with the colorful tassels hanging down. Seeing Su Cen, her eyes brightened as she jumped off the bed and called out “Big brother.”
“Where’s Huzi?” Su Cen asked.
“Brother Huzi went to get food,” the little girl was in much better spirits after a night’s sleep and began pestering Su Cen with questions. “Big brother, is this your room? Where did you sleep last night since we took your room? This bed is so comfortable, I’ve never slept in such a nice bed before. Can I stay and sleep here for a few more nights?”
“You can sleep here as long as you like,” Since the room would be empty anyway, it might as well be put to good use. Su Cen sat on the edge of the bed, pulled Er Ya to his side, and pinched her little pigtails. “About yesterday, are you still scared?”
The little girl nodded, then shook her head, “Brother Huzi said he would protect me, and that you would protect us too, big brother. So I’m not so scared anymore.”
“Big brother will protect you both.” Su Cen replied solemnly, smiling gently at her. “Can I ask you a few questions? Will you answer them?”
Seeing Er Ya nod, Su Cen asked: “Did you really see that official kill someone yesterday?”
Er Ya looked at Su Cen somewhat awkwardly: “Actually, I… didn’t see anything.”
Su Cen frowned: “But Huzi clearly said you both saw it.”
“Brother Huzi saw it, I didn’t,” Er Ya tugged at the hem of her tattered clothes with one hand. “At that time, Brother Huzi was in the tree catching cicadas. He saw it, while I was standing at the bottom of the tree. I wanted to climb up too, but Brother Huzi wouldn’t let me. Later, Brother Huzi said someone had died, killed by that official. By the time I finally climbed up the tree, there was no one there anymore, only the corpse hanging from the tree branch.”
“So only Huzi saw what actually happened.” Su Cen frowned in thought for a moment, then looked up and smiled at the little one before him. “But yesterday you were so frightened that you fainted.”
“I did not!” Er Ya’s little face turned red. “I was just very sleepy yesterday and took a nap. I wasn’t scared! I wasn’t even afraid when I saw you hanging from the cliff, how could I possibly faint at the sight of a corpse!”
“Very sleepy?” Su Cen frowned slightly and asked Er Ya: “So you fell asleep, not fainted?”
Er Ya nodded: “I don’t know what happened. Yesterday afternoon I was extremely drowsy, couldn’t even keep my eyes open, and slept until this morning.”
“What did you eat yesterday?”
Er Ya thought for a moment, counting on her fingers: “Corn buns, spinach soup, Brother Huzi also caught a bird that we secretly roasted and ate, and I drank some mung bean sweet soup… that’s all.”
Su Cen asked: “Was there anything you ate that Huzi didn’t?”
Er Ya pressed her lips together in thought, “The mung bean sweet soup! There’s only one bowl every afternoon, and Brother Huzi always lets me have it.”
“Where did you get the sweet soup?”
“From the porridge tent.”
“Who was responsible for distributing it?”
“It was…”
“Er Ya!” Before she could finish, Huzi entered from outside, carrying two bowls of noodle soup. “Quick, help me with these! They’re burning hot!”
Er Ya quickly ran over to help. The two of them sat at the table with their bowls of noodle soup, wolfing it down.
Huzi ate quickly, finishing his bowl in no time. Su Cen tugged at Huzi’s sleeve, gesturing for him to come outside.
Huzi glanced at Er Ya, who was still eating with her head down, before getting up and following Su Cen outside.
“I want you to tell me the truth,” Su Cen knelt down and held Huzi’s thin shoulders. “Did you really see Lord Liang kill that person?”
Huzi pressed his lips together and looked at Su Cen: “He killed him.”
Su Cen narrowed his eyes slightly, pinching Huzi’s fingertips that were reddened from the hot bowl. “But Liang Fang has already fled. Who are you still afraid of?”
(advanced chapters available on kofi)
![Flying Dust [Fei Chen]](https://www.freenovels.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/9k.png "Flying Dust [Fei Chen]")
