10

The poison that Jiang Yue spoke of had a pleasant-sounding name, "Full Moon and Blossoms."

As the name implies, the antidote-bearer must feed the poison with blood, and the person afflicted by the poison must engage in intimate relations with the antidote-bearer on every full moon night. If they fail to do so, they will suffer the excruciating pain of thousands of worms gnawing at their heart. Over time, once the worms have eaten through the person's internal organs, they will rot and die.

Thus, almost everyone who falls victim to this poison has no choice but to comply.

The creation of this poison originally came from the Miao people, who invented it to win the affection of their desired person. Over time, the Han people began using it in various power struggles and deceitful schemes.

As a result, despite its elegant name, during the reign of the late emperor, the officials in the Dian and Qian provinces launched large-scale crackdowns, and only a few Miao people, who hid deep in the mountains, still possessed this poison.

Liu Chouer was one of the few survivors.

The reason why Jiang Yue, who was the Governor of Qianzhong at the time, decided to spare Liu Chouer and bring him to Chang’an was because he intended to use him in the future. And clearly, that future had arrived.

Liu Chouer was not foolish, and he would not submit to false kindness. Jiang Yue coldly curled the corner of his mouth: "If you knew who I wanted you to poison, you wouldn't refuse."

Liu Chouer looked at him with disdain.

Jiang Yue continued: "That person is your enemy's son."

Liu Chouer stopped in his tracks.

"So, if you hand over that poison, I will have a way to avenge your family, who died unjustly." Jiang Yue stood at the door of the firewood shed, speaking indifferently and firmly.

The cool autumn sunlight, following the rain, streamed through the narrow gap between him and the doorframe, falling onto Liu Chouer by the firewood pile. He turned around. His oddly shaped eyes, glowing faintly in the gap, emitted a cold and mysterious light.

---

"Achoo—"

In Prince Xiangding's residence, a crisp sneeze.

Jing Xuan rubbed his nose. "Why have I been sneezing so much lately? It feels like someone is secretly plotting behind my back, trying to harm me."

Gu Fang sat at the desk beside him, slightly raising his head, signaling the nearby guard to close the window, then handed Jing Xuan a cup of hot tea. He then returned his gaze to the documents, his tone leisurely and provoking.

"With every autumn rain, the cold increases. In a few days, it will be the Mid-Autumn Festival, yet Your Majesty is still wearing so little. Does Your Majesty want to harm yourself?"

"Why would I wants to harm myself? I'm still young, strong, and healthy. Unlike you, with your old bones and stiff limbs, naturally afraid of the cold."

Jing Xuan complained defiantly, but his hand tightened around the hot tea.

"And you know that with every autumn rain, the weather grows colder. Have you prepared those things I asked for?"

After three days of preparations, it was finally time for Xie Buzi to fulfill his bet.

Because Gu Fang had specifically sent someone to explain his use of the Silver Crane Guards at the Golden Jade Pavilion, and secretly made some arrangements with them, everything proceeded smoothly.

Although the people at the Golden Jade Pavilion thought the "concubine" disguised as a man looked quite convincing, upon further thought, with her striking beauty and delicate, slender figure, it seemed reasonable to assume she was a woman.

The voice was also crisp and clear, completely unlike the deep, hoarse voices of men, sounding pleasant like a yellow oriole, and she was delicate and naive, not unpleasant to be around.

It truly seemed like a flower that only someone like Prince Xiangding, reserved, deep, and meticulous, could have raised.

The head of the Golden Jade Pavilion was no fool. They might not be able to determine a person's past by their appearance, but the connections revealed by their gestures and demeanor were unmistakable.

Thus, they immediately smiled and said, "Your Highness truly treats your people well. We will make sure the Madam is satisfied."

In just three days, thirty thousand taels of silver were gathered, packed into thirty carriages, and exchanged for thirty thousand silver notes from Xie Buzi.

The Golden Jade Pavilion and Xie Buzi’s wealth were so vast that even a foolish, bankrupt emperor like Jing Xuan couldn’t help but take advantage of the situation. It was almost inevitable.

Clearly, Gu Fang and he were birds of a feather. Flipping through the documents, Gu Fang responded, "Naturally. If I didn’t exhaust myself, how could I ever justify the efforts Your Majesty has taken to appease me?"

"So, when do you plan to change clothes Your Majesty?"

After speaking, he raised his eyes.

A group of stern-faced guards, full of murderous intent, entered carrying stacks of intricate garments.

"...."

Just a moment ago, Jing Xuan was still feeling proud...

Can't I just appear in men's clothing?" Jing Xuan stubbornly refused, arguing his case.

Gu Fang, with a calm and composed expression, said, "If Your Majesty is not afraid of being recognized by the officials at the event, I certainly don’t mind."

Jing Xuan: "...."

Gu Fang, looking at the documents on the desk said, "Moreover, all these troubles are the result of Your Majesty not heeding my advice, defying your teacher’s orders, and leaving the palace secretly to visit the gambling den, causing all this complicated conflict. Therefore, if Your Majesty does not wish to make amends, I will have to punish you by making you practice archery for a hundred more rounds. After all, your body is not in the best condition."

Gu Fang paused, glanced at Jing Xuan, and calmly commented, "Indeed, you still need to strengthen your body."

Since childhood, Jing Xuan had been weak due to premature birth. Even after growing up, he had been delayed in his military training, and though he eventually grew taller, he was still thinner than Gu Fang by two sizes.

Jing Xuan: "..."

Gu Fang was looking down on him!

"What’s wrong with my body? Who says my body isn’t good? My body is perfectly fine!"

As Jing Xuan spoke, he slammed the tea cup onto the table, grabbed the large bow propped up on Gu Fang's desk, nocked an arrow, pulled the string, aimed...

Hm?

It won’t budge?

What’s going on?!

Why is this bow so heavy?!

Ah! My hand's cramping!

In just a split second, Jing Xuan quickly went through this change. It looked like he was about to be toyed with by this giant bow.

Then, the next second, someone came from behind and supported him. Strong and powerful arms encircled him, fingers covering his hands, and then the bowstring was pulled back and an arrow shot with lightning speed, piercing a lantern outside the courtyard with a sharp whoosh.

The sound of paper tearing, bamboo bones falling to the ground, and killing intent rising in the air.

Jing Xuan was stunned.

He had seen Gu Fang manipulating power in the court many times, but he had forgotten that when Gu Fang was just in his teens, he had already become the famous "Jade-faced Cold Prince," whose name struck fear in the northern lands.

He was like a god of death.

So if one day Gu Fang wanted to harm the emperor...

"I originally thought that Your Majesty’s actions this time would be enough to make amends, but now it seems that for the next three months, it would be best if you get up early every day and practice archery for ten rounds."

Jing Xuan, who always hated waking up early and hated exercising: "??"

"This is a fifteen-strength bow! Not to mention Your Majesty, even the average guard, how many can draw it back effortlessly?" 

Jing Xuan knew Gu Fang always followed through with his words, and he immediately panicked. "And I am the emperor! You, a prisoner under house arrest in the royal residence, what qualifications do you have to punish me?"

Jing Xuan gritted his teeth, about to turn around and angrily scold him.

But Gu Fang had already grabbed his hand and casually nocked another arrow. "You are the emperor, I am your subject. I am your teacher, you are my student. You are the noble one, I am the lowly one. I am the elder, you are the younger. And we are also mutual lovers, intertwined in complex relations. Therefore, in our discussions, we should each follow our roles. Moreover..."

He paused, drawing the bowstring.

"Zhangtai Alley, Golden Jade Pavilion, is a place full of chaos, with much strife. Though Your Majesty is intelligent, you still don’t understand the depths of the world's evil. So, places like that, I hope you will avoid them in the future."

He spoke, then released the arrow. Another lantern exploded mid-air and fell to the ground.

"Otherwise, if Your Majesty encounters some misfortune, I fear it would end like that lantern. Both jade and stone destroyed."

Gu Fang held the bow, lowering his hand. His tone was lazy, but every word he spoke carried a chilling indifference that stunned Jing Xuan.

What?

Mutual lovers?

Losing a beloved?

Both jade and stone destroyed?

"... Gu Fang!"

Jing Xuan was furious, about to turn around and shout, but in that moment, he caught sight of the red marks on Gu Fang’s neck.

That was from when he had pressed his sword against him, and Gu Fang had stepped forward without hesitation.

At that time, he had also said that if Jing Xuan was willing, he would never be afraid to die for him.

"..."

Why does this person always talk about life and death?

And why can he always say such melodramatic, nauseating, and pretentious things with a straight face?

Jing Xuan shoved Gu Fang away. "You’ve become addicted to acting, huh? You love acting so much why don’t you go to the brothel and become an actor?"

He angrily reddened, glaring at Gu Fang, clearly frustrated and annoyed with Gu Fang’s constant theatrics.

Gu Fang, however, lowered his gaze. His words made the wind passing through the hall feel gentle.

"But if I say that every word I speak is not all an act, how would Your Majesty respond?"

The faint and warm breath, passing through a short distance, softly landed on Jing Xuan's ear, cheek, eyelashes, and lips, carrying the warmth of another person, intertwining into an indescribable and unexplainable confusion and warmth.

No one in the hall moved, as if time had frozen in that moment.

Only Jing Xuan could hear his heart beating, along with the sudden gust of wind that passed by, and the dry branch in the courtyard that had been on the verge of breaking for a long time. With a crack, it finally broke in sync.

When the branch fell to the ground, Jing Xuan suddenly came to his senses. "Gu Fang! You think I'm amusing, don’t you? With your poor acting, even a fool wouldn’t believe it. I’m going to the west of the city to oversee Xie Buzi. You just stay here and be confined to the palace!"

Jing Xuan said this and turned to grab the clothes that the guards were holding, but his movements became frantic, unsure of what to do.

Gu Fang did not say much more, only hiding the faint smile in his eyes, casually suggesting, "The red one looks good, it suits your complexion."

"Looks good, my ass!"

Jing Xuan suddenly remembered the absurd dream he had earlier because of Gu Fang’s behavior. He felt that no matter what, he would never wear red attire again in this lifetime.

He grabbed a simple and elegant light blue dress and rushed to the back hall.

After changing into the dress and putting on a headscarf, he didn’t even spare Gu Fang a glance. He quickly entered the carriage of Prince Xiangding's residence.

Now, he was Prince Xiangding’s favored concubine, so naturally, he had to travel under his name. However, the one driving was still Hua Ting, dressed as a servant.

After all, the royal residence was still under house arrest, and extravagant outings weren’t permitted. The Silver Crane guards were still being punished at the training grounds.

Once he entered the carriage, Hua Ting immediately said, "Your Majesty, we’ve found Liu Chou’er."

Jing Xuan immediately sat up straight, lifting his headscarf. "Where is he?"

"At his house. He said he often sells counterfeit medicine, so when he saw the officials, he got nervous and ran away. But after hearing the rumors these past two days and realizing it wasn’t related to him, he came back. So, should we go after him?"

"Of course! Why wouldn’t we go?"

"Now?"

"Yes!"

Jing Xuan didn’t think twice. If the dream earlier had been absurd, now his heart was filled with even more uncertainty.

That Gu Fang, he was clearly a bastard!

For so many years, he and all the officials had been deceived by his false image!

He couldn’t allow himself and Gu Fang to end up in such a relationship!

Before Jing Xuan could even think about why the usually self-disciplined and restrained Gu Fang suddenly changed his ways, the carriage had already stopped at the end of Zhangtai Alley.

Jing Xuan didn’t care about that anymore. His breathing quickened, his heart racing as he lifted the hem of his dress and jumped out of the carriage, heading straight for Liu Chou’er’s courtyard. He pushed open the gate and asked, "Do you have any medicine that can make a man impotent?"

Liu Chou’er, who was grinding medicine in the courtyard, looked up, startled. "Ah? Aren’t you the concubine of Prince Xiangding? What do you need that medicine for..."

"It’s for him!" Jing Xuan gritted his teeth. "Anyway, you already lost to me, so whether you have the medicine or not, you must get it for me!"

Liu Chou’er: "???"

He had been in the business of fireworks for seven or eight years and had only ever heard of people asking for medicine that would make a man stronger. He had never heard of anyone wanting medicine that could make a man impotent.

"Wait, you..."

"Don’t ask!" Jing Xuan, having had an intense argument with Hua Ting before, was experienced and quickly interrupted. He tightened his fingers, gritted his teeth, and scolded, "If you ask, it’s because Prince Xiangding sings and feasts every night, indulging excessively, strong and vigorous, with overflowing vitality, nine times a day, turning back and forth, tormenting me until I can’t bear it!"

For a moment, it seemed like Liu Chou'er had learned some royal secret he shouldn't have known.

"..."

His pupils shook violently.

🌸 Hey everyone! 🌸

I was super excited to translate all 31 chapters but I’ve got to finish up my university registration, and I’ve already accepted the offer, but the website will only be open until March 8th. I still need to get some documents like my medical checkup and ID printed, and with everything going on, it’s a bit of a scramble. 😅

Next week, I’ve got orientation from March 14th to 20th, and my official student registration starts on April 5th, so this month is going to be really busy. 📚

If I’m not able to update this month, I’ll definitely try to catch up next month, but it’ll likely be only on weekends. If you can’t wait, you can always grab the chapters yourself on JJWXC. 💻

Thank you so much for your understanding and patience! I really appreciate it! 💖

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