UCTOOT CH61

“…………”

Shi Shu’s eyes went wide: “Don’t you feel grossed out?”

Having said that, he set down his bowl: “I don’t want to eat anymore. Eat it yourself.”

Shi Shu genuinely couldn’t stomach another bite, constantly feeling as if something were stuffed in his mouth, worse than the stench of raw fish. By the time he finished, cleared the bowls, and carried them downstairs, the travelers were still playing cards, though the man who had asked for lunch was nowhere to be seen, leaving only Laifu gnawing on an extra steamed bun.

Shi Shu asked, “Did that man who wanted lunch earlier leave?”

The station attendant replied, “Left. He ate and took off right away, looking like he was in a hurry.”

Filled with suspicion, Shi Shu went upstairs to find Xie Wuchi. Xie Wuchi’s fever had not broken yet, and he looked like he was about to fall asleep: “When I went out to buy supplies today, I ran into someone rather strange.”

Xie Wuchi let one hand dangle by the bedside: “Strange how?”

Shi Shu: “Muttering to himself in front of the stele inscription of Shukang Prefecture, looking like he intended to find you. But given your delicate situation right now, who knows if he’s an admirer or what, it might bring trouble, so I didn’t tell him.”

Questioned further, Shi Shu relayed the details. Xie Wuchi raised a brow slightly, his expression contemplative: “Alright.”

“Should we track him down and bring him back?”

Xie Wuchi’s eyes seemed clouded with mist, saying, “No need. People in the Eastern Capital know I was exiled to Taiyin Prefecture. If he wants to find me, we will meet sooner or later. I have a premonition it will be before long.”

Shi Shu didn’t dwell on it: “Fine. Ever since you made a name for yourself, countless people have wanted to meet and confer with you. After all, conversing with a brilliant mind yields more value. If we don’t meet, so be it.”

Seeing nothing was amiss, Shi Shu said, “Then get some rest first and see if your fever breaks this afternoon. Xie Wuchi, can you show a little backbone and get healthy?”

“I’ll try.”

Xie Wuchi lay down to sleep. Shi Shu went downstairs to the stables to check on Laicai munching on beans and fodder, and watched them play cards for a bit. When he entered the room that night, the man was sound asleep. Blowing out the candle to share the bed, Shi Shu had just lifted the quilt and climbed in when Xie Wuchi stirred like a corpse brought back to life, reaching out to grasp his hand.

“Bro, you scared the hell out of me!”

Here it went again! Shi Shu tussled with him in the dark. After a life-or-death grapple, his robes were pulled open to press flush against his, forced to entangle seamlessly against the man’s frame, their body heat weaving and transferring across bare skin, his legs pinned into the bedding.

“…”

Shi Shu stared up at the canopy, letting out a breath.

“Xie Wuchi, do you really have a fever? You have endless strength.”

Xie Wuchi’s voice was raspy: “I like it.”

Shi Shu: “I understand that being sick makes you emotionally vulnerable, but I suspect some ex-boyfriend spoiled you into this bad habit. Letting you hold someone to sleep every night, even biological parents wouldn’t coddle you like this.”

Xie Wuchi’s breath brushed his ear: “I have none.”

“How many more days do you plan to hold me? Keep this up and I’m heading downstairs to sleep with Xu Erlang.”

Barely had the words left his mouth when the grip around Shi Shu’s wrist tightened: “You won’t go. He is not as good as me.”

Shi Shu: “…Xie Wuchi.”

What did it feel like to have a 190 cm man insist on holding you naked while you slept? Especially when his orientation was completely bent. Shi Shu’s scalp prickled with goosebumps, his shoulder pressed against his chest, internally cursing out of nowhere: damn, how did he train to get pecs this huge?

The kind where if he took off his shirt to film a video, the comments would be flooded with: “I want to lick him.” That kind.

Shi Shu propped his forehead, lying in his arms just like that. Outside the window, torrential rain poured down, washing over the chill of late autumn.

Sometimes one could never anticipate the next turn in life; for instance, over half a year ago, he never would have imagined hugging another man stark naked in ancient times.

People truly change. Shi Shu’s thoughts drifted aimlessly to his parents. At first, it always felt profoundly heartbreaking, but looking back now, living happily, bravely, and optimistically wherever he was could be considered a comfort to them.

A moist warmth grazed Shi Shu’s earlobe, Xie Wuchi’s breath condensing into damp mist against the skin. Pressing his palm to Xie Wuchi’s forehead, it was scorching hot. Perhaps from sheer discomfort, the man nuzzled into Shi Shu’s neck, holding him tighter to ease the ache.

“Xie Wuchi.”

“Whose child are you anyway, acting so pitiful here?”

Barely had Shi Shu muttered this and turned his face when Xie Wuchi, sensing movement through his stupor, leaned down to kiss Shi Shu’s lips. Naturally and with practiced ease, he pressed a few kisses against his mouth, then their lips and teeth tangled into a deep kiss.

“……………”

Xie Wuchi definitely had an ex-boyfriend; he was way too experienced.

Refusing to talk about his past all this time, could it be that someone was waiting for him back in the modern world? So he just wanted to be friends with benefits?

Holy crap, you gay guys really play wild.

Shi Shu’s hands were gradually gathered and pinned behind his back by a large hand. Whenever Xie Wuchi kissed someone, he either held their neck or pinned their arms behind them, adopting an all-controlling posture to savor his prey with calculated poise.

Dizzy and lightheaded, his lips kissed over and over with hands pinned behind him, Xie Wuchi’s other hand cupped his chin, kissing, pausing, then pressing down again. It lacked his usual feverish hunger, replaced by an inexplicable, lingering tenderness that felt strange to Shi Shu.

Shi Shu remained lucid throughout. After kissing him several times as if setting the stage step by step, Xie Wuchi transitioned into a deep kiss of lips and tongues. Carried by an uncanny intimacy, it made his scalp tingle.

Even Shi Shu could sense that he was being boiled like a frog in warm water.

Done for. My life is truly settled like this.

Kiss on, then. Kiss me to death.

Unfit for anyone else anyway.

Shi Shu turned his head, looking at him, and asked to confirm out of basic morality: “Xie Wuchi, you are single right now without any romantic partner, right?”

Xie Wuchi: “None.”

“…”

Why did that feel so hard to believe? This peacock.

Shi Shu: “If you have a partner and still mess around with me like this, can you get struck by lightning?”

Xie Wuchi chuckled softly: “Very well. Come, inspect me.”

Saying so, he captured Shi Shu’s lips again, pecking at them. Perhaps due to the fever, his temperature ran much hotter, rubbing against Shi Shu’s lips, parting them to lick wetly at his tongue, stirring dizzy ripples as they tangled together.

Shi Shu’s rational mind was still working. Previously, after a kiss with Xie Wuchi, he would bolt away like a startled bird. But perhaps because they were currently in bed and it was bedtime with nothing else to do, they carried on this inexplicable kiss far longer than before.

Shi Shu stared at the seductive face before him.

He could still remember sternly warning Xie Wuchi months ago not to cross boundaries, but now it was like his words had been eaten by dogs. Thinking of this made him feel his life was hopelessly ruined again.

Shi Shu murmured dejectedly, “Stop.”

In return, his cheek was stroked as their noses brushed together: “Be good.”

Be good my foot. Who talks to another grown man like that?

Just as Shi Shu prepared to wriggle free, movement stirred outside. Having finished playing cards, the escorts and eunuchs were heading to sleep, floorboards creaking underfoot, with a few voices sounding right at the door.

“Lord Xie and his brother, already asleep?”

“Asleep. Let’s see if his fever breaks tomorrow. Eunuch Li said we must hit the road tomorrow, otherwise we use the rods.”

“Take a look.”

“…”

To monitor the convicts’ movements at all times, their door was not permitted to shut. Footsteps distinctly stopped outside, confirming the prisoners were still inside the room.

The night was pitch-black. The guards groped in the dark without lanterns, seeing only the mounds under the bed curtains, two pairs of shoes beneath the frame, and the closed windows, the occupants appearing sound asleep.

A chill raced down Shi Shu’s spine, his mind racing at top speed. Yet unexpectedly, Xie Wuchi showed zero restraint, taking his lips into his mouth to lick deeper, seeming even more excited. His mouth was stimulated into slick heat, pressed together in a feverish fervor entirely divorced from the scene outside, letting out the wet sounds of exchanging saliva.

“……………”

Shi Shu’s back went cold, his scalp tingling with tension. He thought: Are you getting off on this again, Xie Wuchi? Two people presumed to be biological brothers doing shameful things like this under the covers.

You truly get more thrilled the more perverse it is.

Shi Shu listened gingerly to the noises outside. Moments later, the footsteps receded.

Shi Shu breathed a sigh of relief as their lips parted with a glistening thread of moisture. Heated breath from the fever washed over him; dark brows arched slightly, wearing a look of pure satisfaction.

Looking at him, Shi Shu pondered for a long while before uttering only: “Dear gege, you are truly something else.”

Before long, Xie Wuchi finally drifted into a deep sleep, holding him, eyelashes casting faint shadows, nose straight. Sensing the straight leg resting across his thighs, Shi Shu gritted his teeth, gently supporting his chin so Xie Wuchi could maintain a comfortable position as he slept soundly.

Mutual understanding needed no words.

How could he and Xie Wuchi ever part ways, even if their current relationship was utterly bizarre?

***

Xie Wuchi’s high fever broke somewhat, but his stamina remained low, walking and pausing under an umbrella as they marched. On the third day, the fever finally cleared completely.

Shi Shu had never walked on foot for such an extended period. He could have ridden a horse, but he insisted on marching alongside the group. For this reason, he got along quite well with everyone.

A few times he truly struggled to take another step, but a long march was much like his endurance training in sports; only by persevering and pushing past physical limits to challenge his willpower could he feel satisfied.

Still, Shi Shu’s stamina was exceptional. Most of his energy was probably spent raiding bird nests along the way, climbing trees, and running back and forth. Sometimes being worn out like a dog was entirely self-inflicted, leaving the entire party looking at him with admiring eyes.

“Lord Xie, this younger brother of yours…”

“Hard to put into words…”

Usually, when they said this, Shi Shu had just swept up a ridge like a gust of wind, gazing out at the scenery in the distance.

“Has your esteemed brother forgotten that this is an exile?”

The eunuch remarked with barbed sarcasm: “His Majesty’s purpose on this journey is to temper Your Lordship’s mind and body, allowing you to reflect upon the errors of the New Policies. Does your younger brother not act a bit too frivolous?”

Xie Wuchi’s gaze focused, watching Shi Shu jog down from the hilltop, biting a reed in his mouth, holding another to hand to him: “One for each of us.”

Xie Wuchi opened his palm to catch it, daily receiving the random trophies Shi Shu brought over from time to time: sometimes reed blossoms, dried leaves, a bird feather, or perhaps a pigeon egg.

Xu Erlang received a pile of souvenirs as well: “The contrast between you two brothers is truly night and day.” One was emotionally inscrutable, distant and aloof; the other smiled brightly, appearing without a single scheming bone in his body.

Xie Wuchi merely said:

“Let him play.”

Clouds drifted, and seasons shifted.

The weather grew steadily colder. The closer they drew to the northern frontier, the terrain shifted from lush tree-shaded paths and verdant fields to sparse earth mounds and barren yellow plains. Withered trees stood desolate, dust swept up by gales from the ground, the sky turning a somber, pale yellow.

That day, atop a bare hill, Shi Shu was watching columns of carriages and horses passing at the foot of the slope. Unawares, a light snowflake settled upon his eyelashes; rubbing his eye, it melted into icy coolness.

Shi Shu suddenly dashed forward: “Did you see that? It’s snowing! It’s actually snowing!”

Marching from the Eastern Capital to Taiyin Prefecture, from late autumn, they had actually walked all the way into winter.

Large flakes of snow fluttered down, quickly dusting Xie Wuchi’s hair: “This is not the first snowfall.”

Shi Shu: “Is the New Year coming soon?!”

Xu Erlang sighed: “Indeed, it’s almost the New Year already.”

Shi Shu: “Can we skip marching on New Year’s Day?”

“Who marches on New Year’s? Even convicts get to rest on holidays. Stranded in a foreign land, we must celebrate the New Year too.”

Several escorts chuckled: “I wonder how things are back home.”

“With me away this year, my mother has to prepare New Year supplies alone, and her back is bad.”

“Alas…”

Walking and chatting through the snow, the snowfall thickened before long. After marching for another half an hour, a light blanket of snow coated the earth. The northern wind whipped flurries of snow like razor-sharp blades slashing against their faces. Shi Shu turned his head to shield himself from the gale, stepping beside Xie Wuchi to brush the snow from his face: “It’s getting colder and colder. How are you holding up?”

Two months.

Dust and snowflakes swirled across Xie Wuchi’s frame, catching on his dark eyelashes. His complexion looked far worse than when he was in the Eastern Capital, his eyes seeming even darker. Clattering, the iron chains around his ankles dragged through the snowy sand, like a prisoner, like a god or demon.

In his pupils were reflected the gloomy sky, as well as the gale-swept dust, overgrown weeds, and bitterly cold, desolate borderland, observing it with keen interest. Lost in thought, he only snapped back upon hearing Shi Shu’s words, looking at him.

Xie Wuchi’s eyes were always cold; sometimes one had to wait a moment before discerning a different warmth.

Xie Wuchi: “I am fine.”

A sudden shiver of dread rose in Shi Shu’s heart; he always felt this mental state of his was cause for concern.

If Xie Wuchi complained often, sighing and grumbling every day, he would at least seem human. But he hadn’t uttered a single complaint throughout the entire three thousand li. Even Shi Shu had moments of crying fatigue, while Xie Wuchi marched laden with cangue and chains without ever uttering the word “hardship.”

Those eunuchs tried writing daily observation logs on Xie Wuchi, but came up empty-handed.

“Truly terrifying.”

He was a man who showed zero emotion and never vented his temper on others.

In this regard, Shi Shu genuinely admired him; he was a real man.

Just as Shi Shu was about to speak, the sharp whistle of horses sounded from behind. The wild, unbridled tone was utterly unlike the mounts of pampered scions in the bustling streets of the Eastern Capital, carried along the gale through the blizzard.

Shi Shu turned around to see several tall chargers leading ahead, mounted by inspectors wielding long whips. Trailing behind were columns of laborers pushing carts, backs hunched, trudging through the snow with difficulty. Bundles of grain and fodder were loaded onto the carts, numbering nearly a hundred men, the wheels groaning under the crushing weight.

Shi Shu said in surprise, “This is already the scene of the borderlands!”

It was his first time seeing border soldiers, as well as this expanse of swirling yellow dust. Unlike the prosperity of the Eastern Capital, it carried absolute coldness and lethal gravity.

Amid swirling snowflakes, the group moved slowly forward, linked like ants, shouts echoing from the front.

“Who told you to stop! Stand up!!”

“The frontline at South Tea River is waiting on grain and fodder! No resting today! Any delay will be punished by military law, taking your worthless lives!”

“Move! No resting! Crack!”

A whip lashed across a young man’s back, tearing flesh open. While Shi Shu watched in horror, Xu Erlang nudged his arm: “When your brother is exiled to Taiyin Prefecture, he’ll have to do this kind of labor.”

“What?”

“Either hauling grain, building city walls, clearing corpses on the frontline, building sheds, or managing logistics for warhorses, grain, and baggage. It all depends on how the inspectorate in Taiyin Prefecture arranges it. Pay more money, and the work is lighter.”

The eunuch behind them coughed: “Ahem, ahem, ahem!”

Xu Erlang: “Looks like it will be tough.”

Shi Shu: “Isn’t this even harsher than exile?”

Xu Erlang: “What did you think? After being exiled, hardly anyone survives. They all die on the frontier alongside the soldiers, filling the ravines with their bones.”

Shi Shu felt the biting, extreme chill: “So cold.”

Shi Shu could not help asking again: “Are they all convicts?”

Xu Erlang said, “Not all of them. With so many people, most are likely ‘vengeance laborers.'”

Shi Shu: “‘Vengeance laborers’?”

Xie Wuchi’s gaze shifted, taking over for Xu Erlang’s muddled explanation to clarify more accurately: “Similar to ‘northern slaves.'”

“Twenty years ago during Emperor Aizong’s reign, the iron hooves of the Min overran three circuits and six prefectures of Dajing in succession, namely Yong’an, Chuituo, and Dasheng, the ancestral cradle of the dynasty. Over a million Dajing subjects were forced into servitude under foreign conquerors. Many refused to be slaves to foreign tribes, so they fled across the river from the fallen regions into Taiyin and Changping Prefectures, drafted as military households or corvée labor. Those conscripted as soldiers were named the ‘Qiu Army,’ signifying shared hatred and vengeance against the foe. As for those who did not join the army, they became ‘vengeance laborers,’ men serving as bondsmen and women as maids, toiling for the frontier armies while awaiting the day their homeland would be reclaimed.”

Shi Shu’s pupils contracted: “So that was it…”

“Never underestimate a person’s desire to return home.”

Shi Shu looked at the people before him. Sure enough, with no retreat left, these laborers showed little complaint on their faces, pushing the grain carts through the wind and snow. Looking closely, Shi Shu saw that in the bitter winter cold, their hands and feet were covered in cracked fissures, their faces raw with chilblains, puffs of white mist rolling from their mouths with every breath.

“No wonder frontier poetry always depicts hardship and desolation. Who wouldn’t suffer here?”

It felt as though the faces here were far more weathered and resolute.

Exhaling a breath of cold air, Shi Shu tucked his freezing hands into his sleeves, barely able to endure the cold: “Let’s move, let’s move. The snow is falling thick; let’s reach the post station early to rest.”

Upon arriving at the post station, the cangues were removed and the chains unlocked. In the bitter cold, Shi Shu tethered Laicai in the stables, and when he returned, a crowd was rushing the station attendants for hot water, shoving and jostling in hurried steps, with several eunuchs even arguing until their faces turned red.

Xu Erlang said with a laugh, “Those eunuchs need to wash their backsides, otherwise they stink. You know, when they aren’t castrated clean, they leak urine, so they have to scramble for hot water to wash every day.”

“Is that so.”

“Of course. I know everything.”

Shi Shu watched for a moment, then walked over to Xie Wuchi’s side.

He stood there impeccably poised, watching the winter snow in the courtyard with a contemplative look. Even though he had been afforded little dignity over the past two months, his spine remained straight, carrying an aloof, commanding posture.

Tugging him into an empty room, Shi Shu rolled up Xie Wuchi’s sleeves: “Come on, come on, today’s inspection begins. Let me see if you’ve got frostbite.”

Over these past two months, Shi Shu had discovered Xie Wuchi’s stubborn trait: he possessed the sort of stoic nature that wouldn’t utter a peep even if gravely injured or had his core shattered. But with winter arriving and variables multiplying, Shi Shu feared an injury would go unnoticed, so he checked his hands and feet regularly.

Shi Shu checked his ears first: “No frostbite.”

Then he lifted his hand: “Mild frostbite on the index finger. Not a big deal. We’ll wash the gloves, dry them over the fire, and put them back on tomorrow.”

Shi Shu had never cared for anyone before, relying on childhood memories of how his parents cared for him to imitate the process. He tugged at Xie Wuchi’s trouser leg: “Take off your boots and let me see. None here either.”

Confirming that the handsome man had no disfiguring injuries anywhere, Shi Shu said with relief: “Alright, this is good. Xie Wuchi, hold on for just a few more days and we’ll reach Taiyin Prefecture. Your freedom is within reach.”

Thinking of that, Shi Shu felt joyful.

Enduring wind, frost, rain, and snow across a long march spanning three thousand li, having each other’s constant company made even reaching this bitter borderland of Taiyin feel not so terrifying upon reflection.

Taking a sip of water, Shi Shu said as if having survived a disaster: “Seeing those laborers earlier and imagining you living like that was genuinely terrifying. But it’s fine. Luckily I came with you, so if you do forced labor, I’ll just do it with you.”

Xie Wuchi looked at him.

Shi Shu said, “Isn’t the New Year coming up? This will be our first New Year here, so without having to march, let’s celebrate it properly. Last time in Qian’an Prefecture you promised to treat me to a victory feast upon returning to the Eastern Capital, and we still haven’t eaten it. This time we can finally have it, right?”

Xie Wuchi lowered his eyes, seemingly at a loss for words.

Shi Shu nodded, understanding his thoughts: “Consider it a celebration for successfully walking these three thousand li. The road ahead will all be smooth.”

Shi Shu patted his shoulder and stepped outside, intending to fetch hot water to wash Xie Wuchi’s hands, feet, and body. Xie Wuchi followed behind him. It had always been Shi Shu trailing Xie Wuchi, yet right now the man was quiet and subdued, forming a sharp contrast to his usual self.

It was Shi Shu’s first time visiting such a remote northern frontier, where the wind sliced like a blade against the skin and even using the privy was freezing cold. When he went to draw hot water, only half a bucket remained, as the leftover firewood had to be saved for cooking tomorrow.

After using part of the half bucket to wipe down their bodies, the rest was saved to wash their feet. Xie Wuchi said, “Wash together, or it will get cold.”

“…”

Shi Shu’s heart skipped a beat as he poured the remaining water into the basin.

Two pairs of feet stepped into the same wooden basin. Shi Shu did not dare utter a sound as Xie Wuchi’s toes seemed to rest over the instep of his foot, ripples swaying while their skin brushed together.

Shi Shu could only wash his feet with feigned nonchalance, turning his gaze away from Xie Wuchi. After finishing a moment later, he emptied the basin and dried his hands.

Standing in the doorway watching the snow in the courtyard, Shi Shu had a faint feeling that Xie Wuchi’s longing for him extended far beyond stolen kisses. Lately he did not always hold him to sleep at night; whenever Shi Shu disagreed, Xie Wuchi could generally respect his wishes.

It was merely an inexplicable atmosphere lingering between them. But since Xie Wuchi had suffered so much physically and mentally on this journey, Shi Shu had not scrutinized it closely. He was easygoing by nature, prone to forgetting things easily.

Still, he found it truly difficult to get over the fact that Xie Wuchi liked men.

While Shi Shu pondered, the wind and snow picked up outside the post station, and someone walked in looking like a gray mushroom, shaking snow from his clothes: “Have mercy, my lords, spare a bite of food…”

The station attendants in the northern frontier were slightly more compassionate, likely understanding that some people were just one meal away from freezing or starving to death, so they handed him a steamed bun upon hearing him.

Shi Shu watched as the man sat down by the entrance, wolfing it down noisily.

Crouching by the steps watching idly, Shi Shu saw Laifu suddenly dart over to the man. Just as Shi Shu thought Laifu might bite him, the stranger instantly recognized the dog: “Huh? Wangcai? How is it you again?”

Shi Shu stepped closer: “How do you recognize my dog?”

The man looked up, his face battered by wind and snow: “You, you, you! Last time at the post station in Shukang Prefecture, we met!”

Shi Shu remembered: “Oh, so it was you. You were reading the plague monument there. Weren’t you heading to the Eastern Capital? How did you end up in Taiyin Prefecture?”

“I asked around, of course…” The man paused for a second, then spoke in a tentative whisper: “Odd changes, even stays…”

Shi Shu hadn’t caught it at first, but processing the words, his pupils dilated wide, staring fixedly at him.

The icy air hung still as Shi Shu blurted out: “Holy shit.”

The other man: “Holy shit?”

“Holy shit!”

“HOLY SHIT!!!”

Blood rushed straight to Shi Shu’s head in a dizzying wave, as if witnessing a miracle. He immediately whipped around, waving his hand toward Xie Wuchi: “Come here, come here, come here!”

No way, for real?! In this world, there were actually other transmigrators.

While Shi Shu called for Xie Wuchi, the stranger had already confirmed his identity through those few curses, lunging forward to latch onto Shi Shu’s legs, wailing: “Are you Xie Wuchi?! Are you?! Gege, I searched so hard for you! Valence one: hydrogen, chlorine, potassium, sodium, silver! Valence two: oxygen, calcium, magnesium, barium, zinc! Odd changes, even stays, look at quadrants for the sign! The shirt costs nine pounds fifteen pence!”

“Family, you’re family! I never thought there would be another one of my kind!”

Amid the vast snow and frontier pass, Shi Shu’s heart was overflowing with excitement. He had never imagined running into another modern soul here, and was just about to clap him hard on the shoulder in response.

Footsteps drew near behind him as Xie Wuchi said, “Let go.”

Du Zihan didn’t hear clearly, and the next second his arm was wrenched back, crying out: “Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!”

Letting go, Shi Shu hurriedly said, “Don’t hurt him, he’s a modern person too.”

Xie Wuchi: “I heard.”

Du Zihan hastily explained: “Bro, I’m not a bad guy! My name is Du Zihan, I’m really named Zihan! I’ve been searching for you guys all along. I knew that controlling plagues and launching New Policies could be done by ancients, but doing it with such sheer efficiency was definitely not ordinary!”

Shi Shu discreetly checked the others in the courtyard. The eunuchs’ gazes were converging on them, so he crouched down: “How long have you been here?”

“Arrived in early spring this year, been here for a full year! I could cry!”

With a face full of agonizing grief, Du Zihan said, “I had a friend before, but he couldn’t take it and committed suicide. Ever since then, it’s just been me all alone…”

Shi Shu turned to look at Xie Wuchi. Xie Wuchi’s dark eyes stared back at him quietly.

Du Zihan grabbed Shi Shu again: “Are you Xie Wuchi?! As expected, I’m a genius!”

Shi Shu said, “I’m not Xie Wuchi. He is.”

Wiping away tears, Du Zihan glanced at Xie Wuchi, then back at Shi Shu, saying, “Wait, does transmigrating require passing a face-check too?”

Shi Shu: “You look decent too. I don’t know how the two of us transmigrated either; anyway, I only ran into him three months after arriving.”

Du Zihan said, “Alright, let’s talk somewhere else.”

Turning around, Shi Shu saw the eunuchs crowding over, looking keen to eavesdrop. Shi Shu fabricated an excuse claiming they were fellow townsmen, and only then did they file into the room together.

Shi Shu poured Du Zihan a cup of water, unable to calm his surging emotions. He had practically resigned himself to fate, but now another transmigrator had suddenly appeared.

Shi Shu tilted his head. Xie Wuchi stood by the window, showing no warmth toward this newcomer. Turning his thoughts over, Shi Shu said to Du Zihan: “Have a seat. We’ll step out to fetch some food.”

Tugging Xie Wuchi, he added: “Come on, you come too!”

Stepping outside toward the kitchen, Shi Shu asked in a whisper: “What do you think of this new transmigrator? I can accept him, but I don’t know if you’re willing. Also, regarding your matters, if you don’t want me revealing anything, I won’t say a word.”

Xie Wuchi: “Say nothing. Observe first.”

He was always prudent, which Shi Shu understood well: “Alright, don’t worry, I won’t speak carelessly. I will definitely keep your secrets.”

Having said that, he saw Xie Wuchi’s profile framed against the snowy reflection, his eyelashes lowered and nose straight, seemingly rather displeased.

Shi Shu: “What’s wrong, Xie Wuchi? You look unhappy.”

Xie Wuchi lifted his eyes, looking at him: “I dislike anyone intruding between you and me.”

“…”

Shi Shu: “Huh?”

Xie Wuchi turned and walked out the door. Sensing trouble, Shi Shu quickened his pace to follow him inside.

Du Zihan was sitting on a chair in the room rubbing his hands for warmth. As Xie Wuchi’s robes swept through the doorway, he excitedly slapped the table: “Big Boss Bro! I know your story…”

Xie Wuchi looked at him calmly: “Did I permit you to sit?”

Shi Shu’s heart skipped a beat, heat flushing behind his ears as he turned to look at him: What are you saying, Xie Wuchi? You’re actually taking this attitude with a new friend?

Du Zihan stood up, stammering in fright: “Uh, I…”

Xie Wuchi spoke slowly word by word so he could hear clearly: “I will be blunt. You want to follow me, but I have no use for worthless deadweight, nor do I have the patience to play at being friendly and pure. This is no longer the modern world. If you want to follow me, you must obey. If you cannot obey, get lost.”

Du Zihan’s face flushed crimson, unable to speak for a moment. Shi Shu’s fair face looked back and forth in surprise, ripples stirring in his heart.

“Hey, don’t be so tense…” Shi Shu tried to smooth over the atmosphere. “Xie Wuchi, what are you…”

Unexpectedly, Du Zihan nodded: “Alright, I’ll sleep in the woodshed. Thank you for taking me in. Thank you.”

He immediately gathered his bundle and stepped outside. Shi Shu’s eyes followed him, a thousand thoughts rushing through his mind.

Why?

What on earth was different?

With a sudden turn of thought, Shi Shu was reminded of long ago when he had first met Xie Wuchi.