EHW Ch77

This is the extra story about Eldest Brother Gu Yunchuan and Lu He, Lu He is the top, Gu Yunchuan is the bottom.

It’s a younger top x older bottom pairing, with seductive scenes and suggestive talk, so please proceed with caution

(1)

For a period of time, Gu Yunchuan often dreamed of the days when he still had his right arm.
Back then, the late emperor was still alive, and he was a valiant general of the Great Qi.

People either admired him or feared him, Gu Yunchuan didn’t care much. His only concern was guarding the southern borders.

He had fought in countless battles. Most he won; a few he lost.

The victories didn’t bring him much joy, but the defeats… they were devastating.

He lost supplies, fortresses, soldiers, the lives of his men and civilians, and something of his own that would never return to him:

His sword arm.

Though, he never considered that a true loss. It was the price for his comrades’ lives.

He didn’t want to hate, so in his dreams, the man who severed his arm always took on different faces, the countless enemies he had once met, merged into one.

That man charged at him on horseback, blade gleaming. The sword stuck in the bone and didn’t pull out right away.

Nor did it press down to finish the cut, instead, it twisted slowly in the flesh, grinding side to side, watching Gu Yunchuan’s face turn white from pain before pressing harder.

And that was when Gu Yunchuan would always wake up.

He’d sit up drenched in sweat. The sounds of war drums, screams, and the metallic scent of blood would fade away.

Nights at the Gu residence were usually quiet, but not tonight.

He had three younger brothers.

The second brother shared the same mother but not the same heart: calculating, greedy, obsessed with profit. If he hadn’t caught him last time, he’d have embezzled money meant for famine relief.

The third and fourth brothers were born of other women and had only recently been brought back to the household. Because of old family feuds, they weren’t close to him either.

The third, Gu Huaiyu, had inherited some of their father’s business sense, opened a shop with the inheritance, expanded it, and now owned several branches.

Running a business meant socializing; drinking was unavoidable.

And tonight’s commotion came from Gu Huaiyu returning home drunk.

Gu Yunchuan threw on an outer robe and ordered in a deep voice,

“Send Huaiyu a bowl of hangover soup.”

Huaiyu was being half-carried by servants, but when he heard the voice, he raised his head.
He had eyes much like Gu Yunchuan’s, narrow and long, but where Gu Yunchuan’s were gentle, Huaiyu’s tilted slightly upward, sharp and defiant.

Huaiyu muttered stiffly,

“No need.”

Then a small figure darted out of the room. The child paused briefly in front of Gu Yunchuan, looked up at him timidly, then ran past and called out brightly,

“Brother!”

(2)

Gu Yunchuan returned to his room.

He had spent most of his life away from home. His time with his family was scarce, and he was not a particularly gentle or patient man.

His younger brothers treated him like a stranger, whether they avoided, feared, or resented him, he thought it was understandable.

Still, sometimes, Gu Yunchuan couldn’t help but feel a quiet sense of melancholy.

As a general, as a son, as a brother, he never felt like he succeeded at any of them.

(3)

One day, Gu Yunchuan received a letter from the soldiers stationed at the border.

Most of them were sons of poor families, joining the army for simple reasons, poverty, hunger, survival. They just wanted a full meal, to earn a little to send home.

Few among them could read, so the letter began by explaining that it was written by someone on their behalf,

“This letter was dictated and written by another.”

The scribe’s name was Lu He, a new recruit.

Gu Yunchuan had met him only two days before losing his right arm.

He remembered the man well, a tall, dark-skinned young soldier with striking blue eyes and sharply defined features…

Lu He had deep-set features.

When he first joined the army, because of his mixed foreign blood and unusual appearance, he quickly became a target.

Several soldiers surrounded him, insisting he strip so they could “see what’s different” between him and the people of the Central Plains.

In Gu Yunchuan’s army there were strict rules, no harassing or extorting civilians,
no visiting brothels or abusing women and children, and, importantly, no bullying fellow soldiers.
Veterans knew these rules well and never dared make trouble under his command.

But such incidents still broke out among the new recruits.

Gu Yunchuan frowned and stopped them, ordering the offenders to be punished.
Then he reached out a hand to pull Lu He up.

Lu He took the offered help, still showing a few bruises on his face, and smiled at him.

“Thank you, General.”

Looking at him, Gu Yunchuan was reminded of his third brother, Gu Huaiyu, about the same age, still just half a boy.

He noticed the young man’s accent carried a strange rhythm, a faint foreign lilt.

Gu Yunchuan shook his head.

At that time, he never imagined Lu He could even write, let alone write well.

(4)
The letter itself was simple.

The soldiers grumbled that the food had been bad lately, the weather too cold, and that they missed him.

Gu Yunchuan read the letter over and over, until he noticed a small line written on the back of the third page, in Liaoyue language.

To decipher intercepted reports, Gu Yunchuan had learned bits of many tongues, though only the battlefield basics.

But the words here were simple enough that, by guessing, he could make out the meaning:

General, I miss you very much. Please write back to me.

Had he forgotten that Gu Yunchuan had lost his right arm?

Of course, he could write with his left now, but his handwriting was crooked and ugly, he couldn’t bring himself to torture anyone’s eyes with it.

Smiling, Gu Yunchuan placed the letter carefully into a wooden box, then told a servant,

“Go buy more quilts and send them to the camp.”

(5)
If he had to compare himself to something, Gu Yunchuan thought he was like a tree.

Its branches not lush, but its trunk broad and strong.

It stood there quietly; passersby never looked at it long.

No one noticed that the great tree was actually lonely, and hurt.

(6)
After the late emperor’s death, his usually cold second brother seemed like a changed man.

The eyes that once only sought profit now shone with warmth;
the silent mouth now spoke gently, calling,

“Big brother~”

Even the third and fourth brothers were softened by his influence, and the Gu household began to feel like a real home.

Gu Yunchuan was quietly delighted.

He busied himself with the small details of domestic life, ordering the kitchen’s daily dishes,
reminding servants to add or remove clothes for his brothers as the weather changed.

It was such ordinary happiness, yet for the first time, he finally felt it was his.

(7)
When the second brother went to Liangshan, Gu Yunchuan worried and went with him.

Along the journey, his brother fretted over his shoulder injury, tending to him constantly, holding the reins, feeding the horses, volunteering for every chore.

One snowy night, Gu Yunchuan’s severed shoulder ached terribly.

He lay drenched in sweat, making not a sound, but his brother still heard him.

Half-asleep, the younger man got up, massaged his shoulder, then tucked a still-warm hand-warmer into his arms.

Gu Yunchuan’s heart softened completely, and yet he felt a pang of shame.

“It should be the elder brother who takes care of the younger,” he murmured.

The second brother said, “I’m also someone’s elder brother. I even act as an older brother to His Majesty these days. I just praised him for being sensible, and now I’ve said something so disrespectful.”

When Gu Yunchuan felt a bit better, the two brothers lay back down on the bed together.

Gu Yunchuan chatted idly,

“Once the war settles, it’ll be time to find you a match.”

The younger man grew shy, pulled the quilt over his head, and threw the words back at him instead:

“Big Brother, you’re not married yet.”

Gu Yunchuan patted him through the blanket but didn’t reply.

Unlike Gu Huaiyu, who, like many young men in the capital, claimed gallantly that he would never marry in his life, Gu Yunchuan actually longed for a small home of his own.
But he was a cripple; who would be willing to marry him?

Or perhaps, just as he had lost his right arm, which emperor would ever let him back onto the battlefield again?

(8)

Liangshan was in the north, while Gu Yunchuan was usually stationed in the southwest.
The environment of the two military camps differed greatly, even if both were armies.

Still, there were similarities, just enough for Gu Yunchuan to be struck by nostalgia.

While walking through the camp with his younger brother, he was pleasantly surprised to run into someone familiar: Lu He.

It turned out that Lu He had been transferred to the northern army, which explained why the later letters Gu Yunchuan received had not been in Lu He’s handwriting.

Years had passed; Lu He’s face had grown hazy in Gu Yunchuan’s memory.
But he still remembered those blue eyes, clear and bright like the color of the sky.

Lu He remembered him too.

He looked at Gu Yunchuan with respect and greeted,

“General.”

(9)

While the second brother was in secret talks with the emperor and several others, Gu Yunchuan, who now held no official position, was not allowed to join them.

He went to look for Lu He, who was practicing with a spear.

The heavy silver spear whistled through the air as he swung it.
His arms were lean and powerful now, no longer the frail limbs of a few years ago.

When he noticed Gu Yunchuan’s arrival, Lu He’s expression lit up, his blue eyes gleaming.

“General!”

Gu Yunchuan said, somewhat awkwardly,

“I came… just to take a look.”

He had been stripped of his rank after losing his arm and failing to win a battle; beneath his affection was still a trace of shame.

Lu He handed him the silver spear. When Gu Yunchuan reached out, his fingertips brushed against Lu He’s cold ones.

Lu He smiled, revealing small canine teeth.

He was strikingly handsome, his neutral face carried a hint of wild fierceness, like a wolf.

But when he smiled, he was more like a loyal dog close to its master.

“General’s hands are cold.” Lu He said.

They talked for a while longer.

Gu Yunchuan learned that Lu He was now the vanguard of a small unit.

He knew well that in the army, rank only came from merit, and merit was bought with blood.
In that process, the young man must have lost much.

“Congratulations” didn’t feel right, so Gu Yunchuan only sighed softly.

“You’ve worked hard.”

As they spoke, snowflakes began to drift down from the sky.

Lu He asked,

“General, would you like to sit inside my tent?”

Gu Yunchuan actually wanted to return, he worried his younger brother might come looking for him.

But Lu He’s bright eyes were full of reverence and longing, so Gu Yunchuan nodded.

“Alright.”

Lu He’s tent was tidy.

Once Gu Yunchuan stepped in, Lu He busied himself, lighting the brazier, pouring water, preparing tea.

Gu Yunchuan sat on the edge of the bed, watching him move around, meaning to tell him not to fuss, when Lu He turned and asked:

“Would you like some cí bā (glutinous rice cakes)? I’ll make them for you.”

Gu Yunchuan, realizing he was indeed a bit hungry, said simply,

“Alright.”

(10)

The tent gradually warmed.

Lu He had been bustling about for quite a while, but the cí bā (glutinous rice cakes) never came.
Instead, drowsiness began to creep up on Gu Yunchuan.

He closed his eyes, half-asleep, half-awake, when suddenly he felt something soft and warm press against his lips.

A moist heat slipped into his mouth, brushing gently against the tip of his tongue.

Gu Yunchuan swallowed hard a few times, and that soft, warm thing seemed to grow even more eager, probing deeper.

He opened his eyes, and saw Lu He’s back, standing at the table.

The young man turned around, his smile still that of a tamed hunting dog.

He stepped forward, crouched beside the bed, and leaned against the edge as he spoke softly:

“General, you’re awake? You must be tired from the journey, right? Still hungry? Do you still want to eat cí bā?”