‘Beauty is in the eye of the beholder? What’s got into him…’
The very thought of this remark brought Ling Zhang’s heart fluttering and his cheeks burning, and his composure was lost. He was a little annoyed by the fact that every time Yuwen Tong began to flirt with him, he would flee out of embarrassment, which was fairly shameful. Ling Zhang believed that he needed to bring some credit to himself, but he found it too embarrassing to flirt in the way Yuwen Tong did. ‘I’m better than that hooligan-like marshal.’
“Young Master?” Xia Feng, who had just walked inside to deliver Ling Zhang’s midnight snack, was taken aback when he saw Ling Zhang’s facial expression change from timidity to a smile and then to a frown. He was worried whether there was anything wrong with his young master. ‘Was the battle last night too much for him?’
“Are you okay? Did the battle last night scare you too much? I’ll go and get Physician Lin here to feel your pulse!” asked Xia Feng anxiously while quickly walking over carrying the midnight snack.
On hearing the panic-stricken voice of Xia Feng, Ling Zhang was too embarrassed to keep savoring that remark of Yuwen Tong’s, his heart no longer fluttering, his cheeks no longer burning. He put on a sulky face and replied calmly, “I’m fine. There’s no need to send for Physician Lin.”
‘If Physician Lin comes here at this late hour of the night only to find that he has a wasted trip, he will no doubt burst into anger no matter how good-tempered he is,’ Ling Zhang thought.
Upon seeing that Ling Zhang had returned to normal and his expression was no longer shifting, Xia Feng gave a gasp of relief. He steadily placed a platter of midnight snack in front of Ling Zhang. “I’m glad to hear that you’re okay, Young Master. Please have some midnight snack.”
Watching the elaborately prepared midnight snack, Ling Zhang nodded.
Though he had just had dinner with Yuwen Tong not long ago and was not really very hungry, he still found the sweet-smelling midnight snack irresistible.
“I was out there fighting last night. Was everything all right at home?” asked Ling Zhang, who conveniently picked up a smooth, tender radish ball and put it into his mouth.
“At first everybody was startled when they heard the noises. Some of them intended to go outside and check but were stopped by Captain Wang and others. With the presence of Second Master, servants soon calmed down and closed all doors. They guarded the mansion carrying sabers and staffs on their own account. Some gangsters taking advantage of the occasion when everybody was in panic came here and asked for money. We kicked their asses and chased them away.”
Ling Zhang was somewhat surprised to hear that his servants had had the balls to do such things.
“All of you did a good job. Issue a proclamation tomorrow morning — because of their meritorious service, every servant shall be rewarded with three taels of silver, four for every supervisor, and ten for every security guard. The money will be from my personal savings.”
Xia Feng’s eyes slightly lit up, but he still appeared poised and calm. “Thank you for your generosity, Young Master. I’ll see to it tomorrow morning.
By the way, Steward He asked whether Wu Er’niu should be dismissed or not.”
‘Wu Er’niu? I almost forgot him.’
“Dismiss him. It would be a waste of food keeping him here.”
‘Dismissing him would also spare me the risk of seeing him and getting angry. And I might change my mind when I get angry,’ he thought.
Xia Feng answered, “Yes, Young Master.” After Ling Zhang finished the midnight snack, he took the platter and left.
The moment Xia Feng walked out of the room, Ling Zhang heaved a sigh of relief and the sulkiness on his face dissolved. And the matter that he had been keeping himself from thinking about popped into his mind again. The more unwilling he was to think about something, the harder he found it was to forbear from doing so.
What Yuwen Tong, that hooligan who had dared to take liberties with him, was doing at this moment, for instance…
“Are you missing me?”
As if on cue, Yuwen Tong’s voice was heard, which taken Ling Zhang aback, but when he looked in the direction of the doorway, he found that Yuwen Tong was really standing there. He had no idea when Yuwen Tong had arrived, since he had not heard any sound of it.
“Don’t overthink it. It’s something sensible that I was thinking about,” Ling Zhang replied without a second thought. Of course he wouldn’t tell Yuwen Tong that he was thinking of him, because Yuwen Tong would definitely start talking nonsense if he knew.
A regretful expression appeared on Yuwen Tong’s face. “I miss you every day. You are not even willing to think of me?”
Ling Zhang fell speechless with embarrassment.
‘What’s got into Yuwen Tong today? Why does he keep flirting with me?’
“What is it that you came here for?”
Upon seeing that Ling Zhang ignored his question, Yuwen Tong decided that this time he was not going to let Ling Zhang change the topic easily.
“Without your presence, the Green Bamboo Mansion feels cold and cheerless. I’ve been living in the Green Bamboo Mansion alone all this time and I cannot do it any longer. I think you should move into my place after we arrive in the capital city. Have your security guards live in the house next door.”
‘Is this guy insatiable? At first he asked me to live in the residence of Yuwen family. Now he wants me to move in with him?’ Ling Zhang looked Yuwen Tong deeply in the eyes and commented, “We are not a married couple yet.”
“Then we’ll get married first when we’re in the capital city.”
“Who said I’d marry you?”
“How can we move in together if we don’t get married first?”
“Who said I’d move in with you?”
“We are engaged, which means that sooner or later we’ll get married and move in together, so why not make it happen earlier? Why waste time waiting?”
“I disagree.”
“Why? Are you worried that anybody would try to stop us?”
“I haven’t figured out whether I want to marry you or not.”
“… Are you dumping me after stealing my heart?”
Ling Zhang grabbed the paperweight on the desk and hurled it at Yuwen Tong, who easily caught it.
Ling Zhang’s face slightly flushed from anger and embarrassment, which made him look like a piece of beautiful jadeware in the candlelight. No, even beautiful jadeware wasn’t as charming as he was.
When Ling Zhang glared at him with his sparkling eyes, Yuwen Tong almost failed to catch the paperweight, staring fixedly at Ling Zhang.
Ling Zhang had hurled the paperweight at Yuwen Tong to prevent him from talking nonsense, but unexpectedly, it seemed to be having the opposite effect. Yuwen Tong was gazing at him unblinkingly, as if there were a flower on his face.
Ling Zhang fell speechless with embarrassment.
As if the chair had become hot suddenly, he felt that neither sitting there nor standing up was the right thing to do. His heart was fluttering, his face burning worse.
“Have you seen enough?!” Ling Zhang slowly dropped the words one by one in a threatening tone of voice.
After hearing this, Yuwen Tong slightly moved his ardent gaze and walked over, paperweight in hand. He didn’t put it down but gently played with it. “I’d never see enough of you.”
For some reason, watching Yuwen Tong playing with the paperweight, Ling Zhang felt his cheeks burning even worse. He stretched out his hand, snatched the paperweight from Yuwen Tong’s hand and placed it back onto the desk. “Did you come here at such a late hour of the night merely to derive pleasure from embarrassing me with these remarks?”
“Well, if this is what you believe, I feel wronged. And I think you also have a bias against me. I’m not doing this because it pleases me. You know the real reason.”
Ling Zhang didn’t know how to reply.
“I’m going to bed.”
“You think you can sleep after waking up just a few moments ago?”
Ling Zhang felt that it was better to lie in bed awake than to stay here listening to Yuwen Tong’s nonsense. ‘This guy is so not a gentleman!’
“I know you can’t sleep. Come. Let’s go for a walk.”
Ling Zhang looked at him in puzzlement. “Where are we going?”
“Somewhere we can feast our eyes on the stars and the moon.”
Ling Zhang fell speechless with embarrassment.
‘What’s the good of seeing stars and the moon? I have a lot of arrangements to make.’
Though believing so, when he collected his thoughts, he was already lying on a rooftop with Yuwen Tong, stars and the moon right above them in the night sky.
Yuwen Tong also brought a pot of wine. “Have a try. Yao Yi brought this here from the capital city. It’s the latest batch of Pear Blossom Wine made by the Fragrance Winery. It’s a little strong, so don’t drink it in gulps.”
Ling Zhang took the pot and had a sip of it. Mellow taste of the wine pervaded his mouth and the intense fragrance instantly spread through his throat and nasal cavity. He swallowed the wine and exhaled deeply. All that the wine touched was burning, but not in an unpleasant way.
“Well?”
“Not bad.”
“The owner of the Fragrance Winery used to be my grandfather’s subordinate. When I was defending the border, he would have a batch of wine delivered to me every year. A few days ago, after hearing that I was going to return to the capital city, he sent some wine to my residence and said that he would deliver more to our place the day we get married.”
Ling Zhang couldn’t help but take another sip. Maybe because the wine was delicious, he didn’t bother to remind Yuwen Tong once again that he had never agreed to marry him but just languidly responded, “Um.”
Yuwen Tong twisted his face aside to look at him. “Are you really getting sleepy?”
“No. It’s just that these stars and moon turn out to be a pretty enjoyable sight.”
Added to this was the state of utter relaxation he was in.
“Thank you.”
“For what? Why are you thanking me on this occasion?”
“If it weren’t for you, I really don’t know how long it will take me to bring down Zhang Chong. The assistance you provided for me was the sole reason why everything went so smoothly. You once said that you were returning the favor, but I have to say what you repaid us far outweighed what you owed to us.”
“You’re quite the mathematician, aren’t you? Actually I was not merely repaying the favor. You’re also part of the reason why I did all this.”
“Thanks.”
“You really want to thank me?”
Yuwen Tong suddenly turned his upper body aside to look at him.
Ling Zhang twisted his head and looked back. “Certainly.”
“Then close your eyes.”
Ling Zhang stared at Yuwen Tong for a while and then did what he’d just been asked to.
The next moment, he sensed Yuwen Tong getting closer to him and with that his upper lip was gently bitten. And then his both lips were clamped by another two. His upper teeth were parted with the lower ones by a soft but determined tongue which seemed to be inviting his tongue to a dance.
Mouths of both of them were filled with fragrance of wine. The Pear Blossom Wine intoxicated both the drinker and the one who kissed the drinker.
This was the longest and also the most intoxicating kiss the two of them had ever had. Supporting himself on two hands with Ling Zhang below him, Yuwen Tong shielded off the cold night wind, the warm air about him making Ling Zhang feel as if he was wrapped in a comfy quilt.
Of course, what was really heady was the kiss. Gradually, Yuwen Tong’s gentle tongue movement grew intrusive, and Ling Zhang’s cooperative one fell passive, as if by some kind of subconscious, tacit agreement.
It was not until after quite some time that lips of the two of them were slightly parted.
Yuwen Tong watched Ling Zhang, a serious look on his face. “Marry me.”
Ling Zhang quietly gazed at him. Due to the long kiss, there was faint tears in his eyes, accompanied by reflections of starlight and Yuwen Tong. Seeing this, Yuwen Tong succumbed to the temptation and couldn’t help but lower his head and kiss him again.
After a while, Ling Zhang slightly moved his lips away, took a few deep breaths to steady his breathing and then replied, “I’ve been doing some very careful thinking about it. I don’t want to rush into any decisions that I might regret making in the future. Since I’ve already given you my promise to go with you to the capital city, why don’t you give me some more time and let me think it through?”
“All right. I’ll wait for you to figure all this out,” responded Yuwen Tong, looking him deeply in the eyes. He would not take no for an answer and would make sure Ling Zhang replied to him in the affirmative. Hopefully, Ling Zhang wouldn’t keep him waiting for too long.
“Are you ready to do it again?” Ling Zhang gave him a push. He found it very difficult to calm down with Yuwen Tong gazing at him like this.
Yuwen Tong curved the corners of his mouth and lowered his head. “Let’s do it again.”
Then they had another kiss, which was even longer than the one they had just had. It lasted so long that Ling Zhang suspected that Yuwen Tong wouldn’t stop until daybreak. When the kiss finally came to an end, he kept his arms around Yuwen Tong, unwilling to loosen them.
“Just maintain this position, and you may sleep if you want. I’ll carry you back.”
As regards where he would carry him and then sleep with him, that would be up to him.
