Chapter 43

Ye Shu's first reaction upon hearing those words from Xiao Huan was to wonder — had Jin Wang sent this person to test him?

He couldn't be blamed for the suspicion. Though Jin Wang had stopped doing that lately, the man's track record of such schemes was considerable, and Ye Shu had to be careful.

With that thought, Ye Shu looked the young man over again.

Kun-sovereigns often took on a certain delicacy of bearing due to their constitution, but the young man before him was not like that. Xiao Huan came from a family of martial traditions and had trained since childhood. His features were clean and spirited, and with that righteous, earnest expression, he was simply too straightforwardly honest to be suspected of deception.

If this were all performance, the man's acting would have to be something truly extraordinary.

Still, Ye Shu didn't dare trust him outright. He weighed his words for a moment and said: "Young Master Xiao, calling His Majesty that is perhaps not appropriate."

"What's not appropriate about it?" Xiao Huan gave a cold snort. "If my father hadn't helped him back then, would that throne be his? And now that it is, what does he do — turn around and clear out his old allies. Wasn't that exactly how he did away with Elder Brother Ye Shu?"

Ye Shu's eye twitched. He caught the implication in Xiao Huan's words. "You're saying… Chancellor Ye was wrongfully killed?"

"What else could it be?" At the mention of that name, Xiao Huan grew even more incensed. "Elder Brother Ye Shu treated him so well — he would never have betrayed him. Once the bird is gone, the bow is put away. Once the hare is dead, the hound is cooked. That dog emperor deserves everything coming to him."

The more Ye Shu heard, the more confused he became. He asked: "But the dog— ahem, His Majesty seems rather alright at the moment?"

Xiao Huan directed a look of deep compassion at him.

"Don't worry — I'm not trying to deceive you." Xiao Huan's voice softened a little, and he spoke with sincerity. "I know that after Elder Brother Ye Shu died, that dog emperor sought out someone who looked very much like him and brought you here to torment day after day. With the way he treats you, it's no wonder you're so afraid of him."

Ye Shu: "…"

Was this really the persona he had taken on in everyone else's eyes???

Ye Shu pressed his fingers to his brow. "Young Master Xiao, I think you've misunderstood. His Majesty treats me very well. He hasn't… tormented me."

Xiao Huan went quiet.

He looked into Ye Shu's eyes for a long moment, and then let out a gentle sigh. "He humiliates you like that and you still speak well of him. You're too kind-hearted."

Ye Shu: "…………"

"You look so much like Elder Brother Ye Shu — that's fate at work." Xiao Huan stepped closer and said warmly: "Come away with me. Come back to the fief in the south. That dog emperor owes my father a great deal. Even if he finds out where you've gone, he won't dare come demanding you back."

"…From now on, no one will harm you."

The young man's expression was genuine — it was almost difficult to turn him down.

Leaving had once been what Ye Shu wanted more than anything. He didn't belong here, and staying at the tyrant's side had always meant worrying for his life. If Xiao Huan had come a few months earlier, Ye Shu wouldn't have hesitated.

But now…

The hand hidden inside his fox fur moved to his abdomen. His eyes lowered slightly.

He… didn't seem to want to leave as much as before.

"You still don't trust me, do you?" Xiao Huan said. "Then take a few days to think it over."

"The year's end is approaching. The eve of the New Year is ten days away — His Majesty will be hosting a banquet at the palace for the court ministers. At three quarter marks past midnight, I'll be waiting beneath the tree in front of Chongde Gate. If the consort has made up your mind, come and find me."

Xiao Huan said: "I mean this sincerely — please think it over carefully. That dog emperor has you here as a stand-in. Even setting aside the way he treats you now, if one day he truly were to be good to you, how would you know it was for your sake — and not for the person in his heart?"

Ye Shu went still.

The alley was poorly lit, and the high palace walls blocked even the moonlight. Xiao Huan didn't notice that Ye Shu's face had gone somewhat pale.

Xiao Huan leaned against the palace wall. His eyes dimmed faintly. "You don't know this, but I've been regretting it constantly these past days. If I had known it would come to this, I should have insisted on taking Elder Brother Ye Shu away back then. The capital eats people alive and spits out nothing. I shouldn't have left him here at that dog emperor's side."

"Anyway — think it over carefully."

He patted Ye Shu on the shoulder, turned, and walked into the dark alley. He was soon gone.

Ye Shu returned to the bedchamber alone.

The night grew deep. In the empty hall, the lamps gradually dimmed. Ye Shu lay on his back staring upward, lost in thought.

Xiao Huan hadn't meant anything by his parting words — yet they continued to echo in Ye Shu's mind.

— "If one day he truly were to be good to you, how would you know it was for your sake — and not for the person in his heart?"

Ye Shu had always understood this, in truth. Jin Wang's treatment of him was all because of the original host.

To survive, he had even deliberately made use of Jin Wang's feelings for the original host.

Back then it had been a matter of life and death — there had been no room for overthinking.

But what about now?

He was in no danger for his life anymore, yet he was still exploiting this.

Some lies were easy to say. Taking them back was far harder than one imagined.

Those were words Jin Wang had once said to him — and how true they were for himself as well.

Ye Shu rolled over and buried his face in the pillow.

It was all because Jin Wang had been treating him so well lately — so well that he had almost forgotten his own identity. So well that he had almost begun to think… that the fondness Jin Wang spoke of was meant for him.

The lamps went out completely. Moonlight took the place of candlelight, and the hall grew all the clearer and colder.

He didn't know how much time had passed before the window made a faint creaking sound.

Ye Shu opened his eyes.

The wind was strong tonight — he had probably forgotten to close the window.

Ye Shu still wasn't accustomed to being waited on. Yongshou Palace had no one staying through the night, and these small things were usually his to handle himself.

He let out a sigh and slowly got up from bed.

— And looked straight into a pair of bright eyes shining in the darkness.

"!" Ye Shu was just about to cry out when a hand clapped firmly over his mouth.

A second arm pulled him around the waist. The newcomer pressed against his lips and said in a low voice: "Don't shout. It's me."

In the moonlight, Ye Shu made out the face before him.

Who else could it be but Jin Wang.

Ye Shu: "…"

Seeing Ye Shu calm down, Jin Wang released him.

An awkward silence fell between them.

Ye Shu suddenly felt a headache coming on. He asked: "How did you get here?"

"I…" Jin Wang looked somewhat ill at ease. He gave a small cough and assumed an air of dignity. "I came to check on you. Is that not allowed?"

Ye Shu was suspicious. "Without announcement, without using the door, in the dead of night climbing through a window? And what on earth are you wearing — is that a night-infiltration suit?"

Jin Wang stared at the small patch of moonlight on the floor and didn't answer.

Ye Shu had a faint dawning realization. He said, disbelieving: "Have you been coming to my bedchamber like this every night?"

Jin Wang said vaguely: "…Not every night."

Ye Shu: "…"

He had known it. A leopard never changed its spots — a dog emperor never dropped his outrageous schemes.

Was there any hope for this person to act like a human being for one day???

Seeing Ye Shu's expression cloud over, Jin Wang quickly explained: "I didn't do anything to you. I just held you while you slept for a few hours and left before dawn. You're usually asleep by this hour — I had no idea you'd still be awake tonight…"

"Wait — it's this late. Why aren't you asleep yet?"

"I… I couldn't sleep." Thinking about what he had been turning over in his mind just now, Ye Shu's expression softened a little. He turned and walked back to the bedside.

Jin Wang quickly followed, helping him lie down. "What's keeping you awake? Are you unwell?"

"No…" Ye Shu said quietly.

Jin Wang looked down at him, a hint of amusement floating in his eyes. "Thinking about what I said to you today?"

Ye Shu didn't answer.

Jin Wang pulled the blanket up around him and said gently: "If that's what it is, don't dwell too much on it. I've said — I'll give you time. You don't need to sort it out immediately."

Ye Shu murmured a vague response.

Jin Wang finished tucking in the blanket, but didn't leave. He sat on the edge of the bed and looked at him in quiet silence.

Ye Shu looked up and met his gaze.

Jin Wang's expression was perfectly guileless.

Ye Shu sighed and shifted over. "Come up then."

This was perhaps the first tyrant in all of history who had to read the mood of his own consort before being allowed into bed.

Ye Shu found himself reflecting on exactly when this person had turned into this. The man in question, however, seemed entirely untroubled — he happily stripped off the infiltration suit, climbed up, and pulled Ye Shu into his arms.

The whole series of movements was practiced and efficient. One could only wonder how many times it had been rehearsed.

Ye Shu had fresh doubts about whether "not every night" was actually true.

The hall went quiet. Nestled in a familiar warmth, Ye Shu finally began to feel drowsy.

Jin Wang suddenly spoke. "A Shu — when I didn't keep my promise today, were you upset?"

Ye Shu opened his eyes. His voice was small. "Actually… I wasn't that upset."

This person had crept into his room while he was asleep. He ought to have been furious. But somehow, he just couldn't muster any anger.

Thinking about the sovereign of a nation, for the past half a month, dressing himself up in disguise every night deep into the dark hours, slipping past all watchful eyes just to spend a few hours with him and leave before dawn…

There was no spark of anger left in Ye Shu at all.

Jin Wang gently stroked his hair, and spoke as though in a sigh. "I just worry."

Ye Shu's eyes moved.

"I always worry that I'll wake up and you'll be gone again. Every moment you're not in front of me, I worry for that entire moment." Jin Wang said. "It isn't that I don't trust you. I just… can't stop myself from thinking like this."

Ye Shu said: "The palace defenses are so tight — where does Your Majesty think I could run to?"

"Walls can keep people in, but they cannot hold a person's heart." Jin Wang laughed at himself faintly and shook his head. "Let's not talk about this. Sleep — I'll stay with you."

Ye Shu murmured his assent and buried his face in Jin Wang's chest. But this time, drowsiness didn't come.

A moment later, Ye Shu called out: "Jin Wang."

"Mm?"

"If one day you found out I had deceived you — what would you do?" Ye Shu lowered his eyes. "Would you… kill me?"

Jin Wang went quiet.

He tilted Ye Shu's head up and looked directly into those eyes. "I deceived you before. Do you want to kill me?"

Ye Shu shook his head. "No."

"There you have it."

Ye Shu tested: "But what if — the deception were something very serious?"

Jin Wang's hand settled on his lower belly. A fingertip tapped lightly. "More serious than this?"

Ye Shu answered without thinking: "Of course."

"In that case…" Jin Wang was quiet for a moment. "I still couldn't kill you."

He gave an impish smile and leaned close to Ye Shu's ear. "I would do what I did before — chain you to the bed, torment you day and night, until you couldn't get out of bed. You haven't truly experienced the full range of my methods. I guarantee that once you've had a taste, you'd never dare have a second thought."

Ye Shu gave a full-body shudder.

Jin Wang gave the back of his head a light pat. "All right — stop thinking in circles. Go to sleep."

"But——" Ye Shu still wasn't reassured. He rolled over to sit up, just about to speak, when his whole body went rigid.

Jin Wang sat up too, his voice tense. "What's wrong?"

Ye Shu looked down at his abdomen. Even his voice was trembling. "He he he he he — he just… moved?"