EHW Ch21

Gu Fangzhi finally sobered up a little.

He reached out to push away the spoon pressed to his lips. “Yue, ”

“What is this?” Gu Fangzhi looked horrified. “What kind of thing is this sticky? It clings to your throat and won’t come off even if you scrape it, what is this, phlegm-edition eight-treasure porridge?”

After saying it, Gu Fangzhi disgusted himself so much that he gagged again.

Pei Xin: “…………”

He wanted to throw up too. Could someone come save him?

After retching, Gu Fangzhi finally noticed a vague figure in the room from the corner of his eye. Turns out Pei Xin had arrived at some point and was standing at a moderate distance, expressionlessly watching him.

The little eunuch supporting him from behind trembled and said anxiously, “Lord Gu, this is Shufeng Jie Biao broth. It was prescribed by the imperial physician His Majesty sent, Lord Gu hasn’t been drinking it, so this servant kept it warming on the stove, and it thickened… It’s not… not… not…”

Those last few words, the eunuch simply could not force out.

Gu Fangzhi could tell the eunuch was trying to remind him.

So he decisively loaded a save.

Time rewound to the moment Gu Fangzhi had just woken up.

This time, he gently pushed away the spoon, eyes holding five parts confusion and five parts frailty, and “accidentally” glanced to the side.

“Your Majesty…?”
Gu Fangzhi said softly, “Why has Your Majesty come? Did you come to visit your humble subject?……”

He paused, then said in a tearfully grateful tone: “This minister thanks Your Majesty for your concern. For such a trivial fever to disturb Your Majesty, this is my grave sin.”

After saying that, he even made a show of wanting to get out of bed.

Pei Xin: “……”
Go ahead and act.

Pei Xin gritted his teeth. “Teacher, dispense with formality.”

Gu Fangzhi thanked him, then nudged the little eunuch behind him. “Quickly, bring a chair for His Majesty.”

Yang Luhai laughed. “Lord Gu may not know, His Majesty hates chairs. Hates them very much.”

Gu Fangzhi: “?”

Hates chairs?
Didn’t he sit perfectly fine before? When did that become a new eccentricity?

Pei Xin opened his mouth, wanting to explain, but found himself utterly speechless. “…………”

He still remembered that he originally came here to laugh at Gu Fangzhi.
How did one cup of tea’s time pass and he ended up the one bullied half-to-death by Gu Fangzhi’s sorcery?

Pei Xin admitted he regretted coming.

Unfortunately, Gu Fangzhi had a reload button, and he didn’t. Pei Xin clenched his teeth, forcing out each word one by one: “Teacher, rest well. I shall return.”

Gu Fangzhi politely tried to keep him: “Your Majesty is leaving already? Not going to sit… stand a little longer?”

Pei Xin really didn’t want to speak.

But he was the emperor, if he didn’t want to speak, someone else would speak for him. Yang Luhai said, “Lord Gu is thoughtful. His Majesty truly only came out of concern for Lord Gu’s health… His Majesty truly is extremely fond of you.”

Pei Xin: “……”
? He is not.
Yang Luhai, how on earth did you see that His Majesty “likes Gu Fangzhi very much”??

If anything, it should be Gu Fangzhi who likes him, right?
Possessing such powerful sorcery, yet still choosing to stay by his side, advising him, pushing him to be diligent.

…Although the process was indeed painful.

But Pei Xin said nothing.

Tonight he had already lost the ability to feel joy in speaking. He waved his hand, letting his external voice module, Yang Luhai, exchange a few polite words with Gu Fangzhi, then he turned and went back to the front hall.

But even after returning, Pei Xin didn’t dare go to sleep.

He was afraid Gu Fangzhi would cause some bizarre chaos again. What if he ended up like the previous times, finally asleep, but suddenly back to before he slept? Or if his nightmare finally ended, only to have to redo it from the beginning?

Worried about having to rewrite memorials, missing food and water, getting scalded during medicinal baths, having carved jade patterns vanish, after a long chain of such anxieties, Pei Xin chose to read.

Flipping through the storybook, he said, “Yang Luhai. Go check if Gu Fangzhi is asleep.”

Yang Luhai complied and sent someone.

Not long after, Yang Luhai came back: “Your Majesty, Lord Gu is not asleep. He said he was hungry and got up to eat, truly wonderful news!”

Pei Xin secretly felt lucky he hadn’t slept yet.

He flipped two more pages, then said again, “Go see if Gu Fangzhi is asleep.”

Yang Luhai sent someone again, returned and reported: “Your Majesty, Lord Gu is still awake. He is boiling water to wipe himself down.”

Pei Xin made a soft sound.

He had already reached the end of the book, and seeing Gu Fangzhi still wasn’t asleep, he picked up a second one.

But the second book was boring, just the same old tales of men and women. As Pei Xin kept reading, the characters blurred together.

In the dim candlelight, Pei Xin’s profile looked a bit tired.

His features were sharp, but under the warm glow they softened. His lashes cast thick shadows over his eyelids.

Yang Luhai, knowing His Majesty’s sleep was always poor, quietly reminded him, “Your Majesty… perhaps it is time to sleep?”

Pei Xin snapped awake. He didn’t answer the suggestion. Instead he said, “Go check what Gu Fangzhi is doing.”

Yang Luhai: “……?”

Even knowing full well His Majesty was giving Gu Fangzhi exceptional favor, he had no idea why Pei Xin was so fixated on him.

…Was this some kind of midnight relay marathon?

Was His Majesty training them to become thousand-li horses?

Before long, the little eunuch returned, finally bringing exciting news:

“He’s asleep! Lord Gu is asleep!”

His tone was as excited as announcing: “The madam has given birth! A big healthy boy!”

Pei Xin immediately tossed the book aside and went to bed.

In his sleep, Pei Xin felt cold.

And his posture… was wrong.

Who in their right mind slept standing up?

Pei Xin’s soul withered for a moment. He didn’t dare open his eyes, hoping it was a hallucination.

Yang Luhai’s thrilled voice sounded by his ear: “Your Majesty! He’s asleep! Lord Gu is asleep!”

Pei Xin opened his eyes, the book in his hand had stopped exactly on the page where the scholar and young lady were embracing, exchanging heartfelt vows.

Scholar: “Under the cold moonlight, the night grows deep. Fireflies flit through the corridor. Though I must leave, my heart cannot bear it; may tonight’s dream stretch long.”

Young lady: “Alas, the night is never long enough, not long enough to pour out my heart to you.”

Pei Xin: “…………”

His night was long enough. More than long enough!

He wished he could donate half of it to those two!

 

***

Four days later, Pei Xin prepared to return to the capital.

These past days, Pei Xin had kept Gu Fangzhi inside with the excuse “Teacher has only just recovered from the cold and cannot be exposed to wind.”

Gu Fangzhi had originally wanted to practice horseback riding during these days, but that was ruined.

Looking at the tall horse before him, he took a deep breath and was just about to climb on when a voice called behind him: “Lord Gu, His Majesty requests your presence.”

Seeing he wouldn’t have to mount the horse only to be thrown off again, Gu Fangzhi answered cheerfully, “Coming.”

He arrived before Pei Xin’s carriage. “Your Majesty, this minister has arrived.”

Pei Xin’s voice came from inside: “Enter.”

Gu Fangzhi stepped inside.

Perhaps because Pei Xin was alone in the carriage, he had no proper posture, leaning lazily on the cushions, one leg propped up, the other bent so the foot rested over the opposite instep.

Gu Fangzhi reminded him, “Be careful of spinal curvature.”

Pei Xin: “…? What?”

Gu Fangzhi corrected, “This minister means: ‘May Your Majesty be well in all things.’”

Pei Xin closed his eyes. “……”

He thought, Gu Fangzhi has gotten bold.
He wouldn’t even bother using sorcery to fool him anymore, just directly treated him like a deaf man.

Pei Xin felt exhausted but said nothing. He casually grabbed a memorial to calm himself. “Sit.”

Gu Fangzhi obeyed.

As he turned, he noticed faint shadows under Pei Xin’s eyes.

Gu Fangzhi asked, “Your Majesty has worked hard these past days? Those foreign envoys must have been troublesome?”

Hearing that, Pei Xin twitched the corner of his mouth, did Gu Fangzhi have the face to ask?

Everyone, Qin Xuan, Gu Fangzhi, all of them, believed he had been diligently working for the country.

In truth, he was simply being tormented.

These days, he specifically excused Gu Fangzhi from accompanying him to the hunting grounds. Who knew that left alone in his room, Gu Fangzhi could still cause such chaos?

Anyone else being put to sleep one second and thrown into hunting the next, bathing one moment and writing memorials the next, after several days of this torment, people would praise Pei Xin for maintaining his youthful complexion.

Pei Xin didn’t bother explaining, just made a meaningless sound: “Mm.”

Gu Fangzhi flattered him, “Your Majesty is indeed a wise ruler.”

Then he moved to sit opposite Pei Xin.

Pei Xin’s legs were long, too long. Even though Gu Fangzhi carefully tucked his own legs in, the moment he sat, his knee brushed Pei Xin’s.

Knowing ancient emperors cared strongly about etiquette, he worried Pei Xin would feel offended and tucked his legs in further.

But Pei Xin seemed to misunderstand, thinking Gu Fangzhi had left space for him. He stretched his leg out even more, not only touching knees but brushing the tip of Gu Fangzhi’s shoe.

Gu Fangzhi shrank further back.

Pei Xin extended his leg again.

Gu Fangzhi: “……”

Holding a memorial, appearing serious, Pei Xin couldn’t help the small smile lifting his lips.

Whenever Gu Fangzhi was annoyed, the space between his brows tightened and his face loudly displayed three words: “Not Happy.”

Pei Xin told himself he wasn’t childish enough to bully someone with little leg-bumping games. It was simply that Gu Fangzhi had tormented him too much these days, he deserved to get back a little.

Seeing Gu Fangzhi shrink back again, Pei Xin subtly stretched out his leg further.

Gu Fangzhi: “Tss, ”

He lost his temper, slammed his leg against Pei Xin’s: “If your legs are that long, wrap them around your own waist! You brat.”

Seeing Pei Xin’s shocked expression, Gu Fangzhi felt immensely satisfied.

He burst out laughing, then quickly held it in, reloading his save back to the moment just before, then curled meekly into the corner again,

Acting like a bullied little victim.

Pei Xin: “……”

His fingers twitched. Suddenly his palm felt itchy.

Not just itchy, tingly, even electric. Pei Xin had never felt that before. It was strange.

Just as he was squinting, thinking about it, Gu Fangzhi suddenly jabbed his knee hard again, then used sorcery, resetting back to innocence, acting like nothing had happened while staring quietly out the window.

Pei Xin: “……”

Now he knew why his palm felt itchy.

It was because…He really wanted to hit someone.