“Happy New Year, Your Majesty.”
The last day of the month of twelfth was New Year’s Eve, it was also the night where families gathered for a meal.
The lanterns and firecrackers were lit up early in the palace, illuminating the decorated site, bright even looking from a distance.
A prosperous and bustling scene.
This was a rare day without a curfew. The palace workers put on thick winter clothes and set off fireworks or admired the lanterns together under the eaves in front of the corridor. The lanterns in the palace were naturally different from those available to the common folks—lotus cups crafted from jadeite, eight gem colored glass lamps, and frames carved from red wood, all of which were treasures that could not be seen outside.
Everyone’s face was filled with joy. His Majesty once ordered that from the first day to the third day of the Lunar New Year celebration, anyone in the palace could go out to visit their families, which was unprecedented in the previous dynasty. Many people looked forward to reuniting with their relatives tomorrow.
The so-called tyrants known by everyone in the world had actually given many kinds of orders.
Even in the coldest place, it would inevitably become lively on this day.
It was just that the same excitement would never reach the one inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
On previous New Year’s Eve, Ji Yue gave the workers in his palace a holiday, allowing them to go out and enjoy the lanterns and flowers. Even Li Fuquan was dismissed.
While he himself prepared two sets of bowls and chopsticks and sat alone in the palace hall, watching the table of food, and sometimes, letting the food get cold without taking a bite.
Reunion meals are only delicious when eaten with family.
He no longer had a family, so he could not taste the flavor, and if he did, there would only be bitterness in his mouth.
The King of Qin was said to be powerful, unparalleled, and undefeated in the seven lands. His name brought fear to anyone. But one thing that people always forget is that this famous tyrant King was only twenty-one years old this year.
A young man who had just reached his coming of age at twenty.
On the day where every family reunites, the King removed the burden as heavy as the world off of his shoulder and allowed the loneliness to crush in like a tide. Everyone knew that it was lonely at the top, but only when one really stood in this high position could they truly know the darkness behind the brilliance.
Li Fuquan once leaned behind a pillar and saw such a scene—fireworks lit up the world outside, the world came to life, and everyone was smiling and celebrating.
But the true Son of Heaven was not happy.
The young man in the palace hall lowered his beautiful eyes and stared at the unused bowls and chopsticks. In this solitary space, his face was void of emotion.
The scene was too heartbreaking to watch.
The heavy defense around His Majesty’s heart was too tight. Li Fuquan failed to enter it even after ten years.
He knew that he was an ordinary person who was neither smart nor sharp. How could he understand what His Majesty was thinking, and ways to gain His Majesty’s complete trust?
He couldn’t.
But maybe…Wei Lian could.
_
“Is His Majesty not back yet?” Wei Lian held back his restless claws from the table of delicious food. When he saw Li Fuquan enter, he immediately put down his chopsticks and forced himself to sit upright.
He had been sitting here for a little more than an hour, he would be growing mushrooms from his head soon.
The food was getting cold, but the King of Qin was still nowhere to be seen.
Wei Lian did not care in the slightest about where the King of Qin was at. But according to the rule, he could not eat before the King, so he had to suffer from hunger.
…This is even something a human would do!
Now allowing him to eat on such a festive night. It was like telling someone to not live anymore!
The corner of Li Fuquan’s eyes twitched, pretending not to see the empty spot on the plate where a dumpling used to be. “Not yet, Young Master.”
“Did His Majesty really summoned me to the Hall of Mental Cultivation for a reunion meal?” Wei Lian’s eyes narrowed with suspicion.
Li Fuquan immediately replied, “This servant dare not pass misinformation using His Majesty’s name.”
But the tone he used contained a hint of uncertainty.
He posed this suggestion to His Majesty last night, why not summon Young Master Wei on this year’s New Year’s Eve to bring some life?
At that time, His Majesty was eating dinner and looked as if he was lost in thought, so he offhandedly made an affirmative response.
…Was that really an affirmative?
AT that time, Li Fuquan treated the response as a yes, but now it seemed…
“It seems that His Majesty has forgotten about me.” Wei Lian sighed softly.
Li Fuquan: “…”
This was very awkward.
He invited the person here, but now the situation has become like this. Instead of doing Wei Lian a favor, he offended the young master.
When Wei Lian got up, Li Fuquan hurriedly said, “Young Master, please wait. This servant will send someone to find His Majesty.”
That said, with the palace so big, the question became whether the King could be found.
Li Fuquan did not know when His Majesty had left the Hall of Mental Cultivation without taking a single attendant. He sent someone to check the imperial study earlier, but His Majesty was not there.
“Don’t bother.” Wei Lian lowered his eyes. “I know where he is.”
_
The Cold Palace.
If there was any place where the New Year Eve’s liveliness wouldn’t shine, it would be here.
Almost every corner of the palace was decorated with lanterns and red silk, except for the cold palace, which remained white and miserable. White banners swung with the night breeze, making the place like a mourning hall.
There were too many dead souls in the cold palace as countless people were buried here, many of the ash remains were scattered into the dry well. Not even a roll of straw mat was bestowed for the dead. It was so cold and miserable that even the wind sounded like wailing. There were rumors that this place was haunted by ghosts. Some palace workers would hang white banners here to comfort the dead, attempting to bring peace to the spirit.
The white banners have been hanging for many years with no one to remove or replace them, so they were mostly tattered.
It was very depressing in this cold and empty courtyard.
The King of Qin was born and raised here. Yun Ji was framed when she was pregnant with him and lost grace with the previous King. It was only because of the royal child in her stomach that she escaped death, but she had been living in seclusion here since.
The late King had many sons and daughters, missing just one was not an earth-shattering deal.
Since then, it seemed everyone forgot about the mother and son, until Ji Yue turned nine, when the late King fell seriously ill, and many princes were either dead or injured during the struggle for the throne. In the end, the ambitious Queen Dowagers took advantage of the chaos and picked the forgotten Ji Yue in the cold palace as her puppet.
She thought she had picked a harmless rabbit that could be slaughtered anytime, she would never have thought that what she released was an invincible lone wolf.
The King of Qin took the throne and issued a decree to release all the consorts left in the cold palace from the previous dynasty to return home and be supported by their relatives.
If there were no descendants, there was no reason for them to stay in the palace.
So now, the cold palace was uninhabited, empty and quiet. Common cowardice palace workers dared not come near here at night.
The lone Wei Lian walked down the desolate path. None of his footsteps made a sound as he pushed open the rotten wooden door.
The young master with hair that reached his waist, robe as white as snow, and an appearance that could startle the world, stood under the moonlight.
In this severe winter, the chilling wind blew, in the dead of night, outside of the cold palace.
A feral cat’s call from an unknown origin. It was like an infant crying, ear-penetrating.
The suffocating feeling could make anyone feel uneasy.
With no trace of fear on his face, Wei Lian stood in the rustling courtyard with his eyes closed, listening to his surroundings and trying to locate where the King of Qin was.
Few seconds later, he opened his eyes, walked straight to a simple building and pushed the door.
It was cramped and narrow with a panoramic view of the inside.
Such a small room could not hold too many things. Examining around, there was a table and a pair of chairs, and a single person.
A candle was burning on the table. Its flame flickering and illuminating a clear silhouette on the mottled wall.
On the table were congee with side dishes, all light in flavor. Two sets of bowls and chopsticks facing each other. Wine jars scattered over the floor. It was obvious that someone had been drinking.
The young man leaning on the chair was holding a bottle of wine with his well-defined fingers. His eyes were shrouded in intoxication that only enhanced his charming face. When he heard the sound of the opened door, he raised his eyes without putting down the wine cup in his hand.
The youth dressed in white entered through the door. What poured into the room was the cold breeze and white snow, mixed with the sound of roaring wind. He quietly gazed at the black-cloth young man in the room with an expression as fresh and cold as moonlight.
Like an immortal who descended from heaven.
Ji Yue smiled. His movement only paused for a moment, then he continued to pour wine without a care in the world. His tone was relaxed and loose, “Why are you here?”
“If this subject didn’t come, this subject would starve to death.” The youth replied.
Wei Lian closed the door, blocking out the cruel wind and cold snow from further invading the room.
Ji Yue raised his eyebrows and said with mockery, “Why such intense resentment? What’s wrong? Was not seeing us made Wei-lang starving from losing the desire to drink and eat?”
“Your Majesty is really an eminent person with a short memory.” Wei Lian said lightly, “Yesterday, Eunuch Li informed this subject that you requested our presence at the Hall of Mental Cultivation. This subject waited for an hour, only to watch the food turn cold.”
He stressed the last sentence, emphasizing how outrageous Ji Yue’s behavior was.
Yesterday?
Ji Yue pondered for a moment.
Yesterday at dinner, Li Fuquan seemed to have suggested something to him.
But it flew out of his other ears.
During that moment, he was trying to figure out why the food tasted so different between eating alone and eating with Wei Lian. Otherwise, why would he lose his appetite, finding everything he ate less tasty than before.
He did not even pay attention to Li Fuquan’s suggestion as he offhandedly agreed, since Li Fuquan would handle anything.
Who would have thought the request was for Wei Lian to come.
Thinking of this, Ji Yue felt that he needed to explain himself.
“We did not forget.” Ji Yue defended himself seriously.
Wei Lian made a sound of acknowledgment, waiting to see what the other man had to explain himself with.
“We did not remember this in the first place.”
Wei Lian: “…”
“Your Majesty!” Wei Lian was angry now.
He was furious for real!
His stomach had been complaining for so long, and this King of Qin did not even take it to heart in the first place. Moreover, he couldn’t vent on the source of his anger, because the source of his rage was the King of Qin.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
It was too infuriating.
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Al Tef vgbqqfv tlr rwlif. “Uea la vbkc.”
Wei Lian turned deaf ear to the threat and grabbed himself a piece of vegetable.
Ji Yue stopped the other’s movement with his own chopsticks. The pitch of his voice was lowered by an octave, “Wei Lian, this set of bowl and utensils was not meant for you.”
Wei Lian raised his head and asked calmly, “If Your Majesty rather give it to one who will never return than this starving subject?”
He knew who the King of Qin had arranged the extra set of bowl and chopsticks for each New Year’s Eve.
The emotion on Ji Yue’s face faded slightly. “Since you know who it is for, you should understand—” why you are not allowed to use these.
“This subject does not understand.” Wei Lian looked at the other person.
Ji Yue’s eyes turned cold.
The next moment, he heard Wei Lian murmuring in a soft voice, “This subject had never met the Queen.
“Therefore, this subject can’t understand Your Majesty’s reminisce feeling.
“But this subject believes if Your Majesty’s mother was still alive, she would not want to see Your Majesty dwelling on the past.”
Ji Yue froze, and the emotion in his eyes dissipated into a deep, dark pool. “You—”
Then Wei Lian interrupted him, “This subject is starving.”
“…” Ji Yue removed his chopsticks, his gaze somewhat helpless.
“Fine, eat.”
Wei Lian ate without holding back.
He ate very civilly. Despite complaining about his hunger, his movements still maintained the innate elegance of the royal family, which was very pleasing to the eye.
It was as if he was feasting on a delicious delicacy instead of a tasteless meal.
Ji Yue watched the way the other person was eating and suddenly, he found his appetite.
On a lively New Year’s Eve, the tyrannical and unjust King of Qin and the country of Chu’s hostage prince—two men of vastly different status—sat together in a shabby room in the cold palace, eating the blandest congees and side dishes with great pleasure.
It was a sight to behold.
They have dined together many times in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, eating luxury, fine liquor and delicacies from all over the world, but none could match this evening’s comfort meal.
“How did you figure out where we are, and how did you know that we prepared the second set for our mother?” Ji Yue was interested.
Wei Lian raised his eyes in surprise. “Were these so hard to guess?”
Ji Yue smirked. “No, but others could not guess it.
“The only one who knows is Wei-lang.”
Wei Lian lowered his head and continued eating. “Then everyone is a fool.”
Ji Yue added for him, “And you are the smartest?”
“No exactly.” Wei Lian corrected humbly, “One of the smartest.”
Ji Yue smiled brightly, “Wei Lian, you are really—”
Wei Lian finished, “A clever man.”
“…Wei Lian, if one day the six countries unite and send a large army to attack the country of Qin, you can definitely defend the Qin’s city gate tower by yourself.”
“What made Your Majesty say that? This subject is not knowledgeable on war.”
“There is no need for you to be on the battlefield. You just need to stand there, and your thick face can shield the city wall.” Ji Yue knew how to toss a brick to attract the jade when joking. “It is guaranteed to be indestructible, even troops of one hundred thousand could not break through it.”
When he finished, he drank another cup of wine.
When Wei Lian saw the mess of wine jars on the ground, he thought that the King of Qin had already drunk quite a few cups before his arrival. If the King got drunk, with no one around, didn’t it mean he would be the one who needed to carry the other party back?
No way, he couldn’t, he did not want to do any physical labor.
As he was about to snatch Ji Yue’s cup away and asked the other to stop drinking, Ji Yue had already noticed his attention on the cup and showed a bigger reaction, “You are not allowed to drink!”
Wei Lian: “?”
Who wanted a drink?
Wei Lian was puzzled for a moment. He pondered for a moment. Instead of taking the cup out of the King of Qin’s hand, he took the wine jar on the table.
Whatever the case, he must not let the King of Qin drink any more.
Ji Yue acted as if he was faced with a moral enemy, grabbing the wine far from the table and holding it in his arms. “Don’t touch! You stay far away from it.”
The last time Wei Lian drank one cup, he got so drunk that he pressed Ji Yue down and conducted bad deeds. This time, if the youth drank one more, he would definitely flip heaven upside down.
Ji Yue once again imagined that picture, with a shudder, he even pushed his chair back a bit to increase the distance.
Wei Lian: “…”
He made a gesture of ‘do as you wish’.
Ji Yue was afraid that Wei Lian would have a second thought about the wine, so he emphasized, “These are all ours. You are not allowed to touch a single drop, do you hear?”
Wei Lian glanced at the pile of wine jars on the ground and asked sincerely, “Are you not afraid of getting drunk?”
Ji Yue held the wine jar. “What do you know? We are martial arts practitioners, so we can use our internal energy to cleanse the alcohol.”
This was why he was confident enough to claim that he could stomach a thousand cups of wine without getting drunk.
Otherwise, he would have fallen down drunk if he really drank a thousand cups of wine.
Wei Lian thought for a moment. “Oh.”
You are amazing, you are great.
Ji Yue narrowed his eyes, “What kind of tone was that? Do you not believe it?”
Wei Lian: No, I did not mean that.
Ji Yue put the wine jar back on the table and announced grandly, “Then we will show you!”
Wei Lian: “…”
It appeared that the King of Qin was already drunk.
He did not bother to stop it, since the other party had boasted that he could use his internal energy to cleanse the alcohol. No need to lose his mind over this.
He knew that this was a way for the King of Qin to vent his emotions.
Everyone should have a way to vent their negative emotions. The King of Qin shouldered the burden of the size of his country and its people, it was hard to estimate how much harder it was than ordinary people. The sorrows and burdens piled up in his heart were thousands of times heavier.
As the ruler, he kept his emotions close to his heart, not allowing anyone to see through his weakness. Always be vigilant, walking on the edge of the blade that was as thin as ice.
No one could stand living long-term like this.
If the rage wasn’t poured out in silence, it would just slowly kill the person. Even Wei Lian, who endured silently for a long time, was at the end of his patience as he slaughtered his tormentors.
The King of Qin needed to maintain his composure for three hundred and sixty-four days in a year, and the remaining one day of vulnerability was reserved for his mother.
So, it was not hard for Wei Lian to guess.
The only person the King of Qin could trust was his biological mother, Yun Ji, who had given him warmth in his childhood, brought comfort to his soul and allowed him to shed his hard outer shell for a moment, revealing his soft inner self to release his suppressed emotions.
However, his mother passed away eleven years ago.
He had to rely on a second set of unused bowl and chopsticks to pretend that his mother was still beside him.
A ruler could not show weakness to anyone, but a child could be weak in front of their mother.
Heaven and earth were like a furnace, bringing suffering to all living beings. Even someone as powerful as the King of Qin possessed a fragile side.
There were too many heartless people in the world. Wei Lian was not afraid of someone with human warmth, even less disgusted by it.
To his surprise, the King of Qin did not seem to mind showing this secret side in front of him.
To be honest, he was a little afraid he would be silent for knowing too much.
_
After three rounds of drinking, Ji Yue was slightly tipsy judging by his face. They nearly swept the table clean of food, but the volume was not much anyway.
Wei Lian was naturally sober, since he didn’t touch a single drop of wine. He inspected the empty dishes before him and chuckled. “Your Majesty has always been picky on food, but to stomach today’s mediocre meal. This subject can’t tell if Your Majesty had been faking his appetite in the past.”
“What is there to pretend? We had worse things before, but that was from having no other choices.” Ji Yue softly swirled the cup of wine in his hand and said frankly, “If one has choices to live a good life, why pick to eat inferior meals?”
Wei Lian completely agreed with this.
Because he himself was the best example.
People are naturally more talkative when under alcohol’s influence. So, having a rare chance of seeing such a pleasing looking person tonight, Ji Yue suddenly had the desire to talk on subjects he had held back for quite some time.
“Is she really not coming back?” Ji Yue asked in a quiet voice.
Wei Lian knew who the other was referring to and replied, “Your Majesty knew this answer better than this subject.”
The King of Qin was not one to escape reality, otherwise, Wei Lian wouldn’t have been allowed to use the extra bowl and pair of chopsticks so easily.
He actually knew that the person was gone, and there was no way to return to the past. He just could not let go of that part of the thought.
“We do not believe in ghosts and gods.” Ji Yue chuckled. “We heard of the rumors that the cold palace was haunted, which gave birth to this idea that if our mother’s soul is still here, does it mean she is by our side? She was wrongly killed. It was believed that the people who died in tragic circumstances would linger in their final resting place. We thought she might be lonely, so we often came here to visit her.
“We invited a specialist to help her find peace. If there are ghosts in the world, we do not want her to stay in the world of living. She was betrayed by that person in this life and suffered. She should live better in her next life.”
Wei Lian quietly said, “May the Queen Dowager be blessed with great fortune and have happiness and peace in her next life.”
Yun Ji had long been posthumously named as the Queen Dowager by the King of Qin. It was only natural that Wei Lian addressed her as such.
“We were born in the cold palace. We experienced true hunger and could not afford to be a picky eater.” Ji Yue half covered his eyes and said calmly, as if he was telling someone else’s story. “The palace workers often forgot to bring water and send food. Mother would dig the moss in the ditch for food. We drank mother’s blood before, and also melted snow in winter. It tasted really bad. How could something appear so pure and clean to be so filthy inside, like those people’s hearts.”
He didn’t even share this with Li Fuquan.
Li Fuquan would never truly understand the high and mighty King of Qin’s unpleasant past, but Wei Lian could.
To him, Wei Lian’s upbringing was the same as his.
As Wei Lian quietly listened, he poured himself a cup of strong wine.
Ji Yue immediately warned, “You’re not allowed to drink!”
Wei Lian said, “This subject is not drinking, but only with a cup of filled wine could I be able to enjoy hearing the story.”
Ji Yue: “…”
“We are stopping.”
Wei Lian furrowed his brows. “Don’t be like that, the mood is finally fermented for the story.”
Ji Yue sneered, “Wouldn’t it be better to bring you a plate of melon seeds?”
Wei Lian’s eyes brightened. “Really?”
Ji Yue gritted his teeth. “No!”
Wei Lian glanced at him and unhurriedly said, “Then in exchange for Your Majesty’s story, allow this subject to tell one as well.
“How this subject drank this certain milk when he was four years old. During that time, no one looked after this subject. Then one day, when this subject was so thirsty, this subject saw a wooden cart filled with milk, so this subject secretly took some to quench my thirst. It was the best drink this subject ever had.
“It was not until later that this subject found out that the cart of milk was sent to father’s current favorite concubine to use as a bath.”
“It’s funny how some people couldn’t even get a drop of water, while others could bathe in milk.” Wei Lian spoke in a light-hearted tone, as if he was telling a funny story, but the words in the story would bring anyone sadness.
Ji Yue glanced at him and retold, “In the past, we looked forward to snow days in winter the most. Mother would always build a snowman and start a snowball fight with us. Even when we were freezing cold, we were very happy. Life in the cold palace was hard to endure, but that was also our only joy. Unfortunately, that fun was gone.”
Later, Yun Ji finally could not bear having a woman’s best years spent in the cold palace. She slowly went mad from the torment. Afterward, it changed to Ji Yue taking care of her. And then, Yun Ji was pushed down the dried ancient well, making Ji Yue motherless.
That was why during their first encounter, Wei Lian escaped death using the excuse that he missed playing in the snow with his mother.
It poked Ji Yue’s soft spot.
Wei Lian’s expression remained unchanged. “This subject also likes snow days. Burying a person alive in the snow is a very effective way to kill quietly.” He had killed someone using this method.
Ji Yue: “…” That’s pretty scary.
When Wei Lian sensed Ji Yue’s gaze, he quickly blinked and changed the subject, “This subject was kidding. What this subject meant to say is when this subject was a child, this subject would also play in the snow with sister. One of the few joys this subject remembered.”
He did not lie. Wei Xiang was his only companion when he was a child. When Wei Lian was young, she brought him warmth.
But after Wei Xiang grew up and distanced herself from him, they rarely met eye to eye, let alone played together.
Ji Yue drank another cup. “There was no concept of time in the cold palace, so we could not tell the present time. The excitement outside rarely entered the cold palace. Only when we saw the palace’s bright lights in the distance ,and traces of instrumental sound, did we know there was a festival outside, but we did not know which it was. Afterward, when we came out of the cold palace, we lost interest in those festivals.”
Wei Lian quickly followed, “This subject never celebrates festivals. Because during them, there are few that one wants to celebrate with, but many one can celebrate with.”
The art of words was always subtle. The former referred to the group the person wanted to celebrate the festival with, while the latter referred to the group the people could celebrate with but with conflicting views.
Translation, few friends and many enemies.
This was true for Wei Lian, as well as for Ji Yue.
The two exchanged eyes.
There was a moment of silence in the dimly lit room. For a moment, the two men with outstanding appearance were quiet. Suddenly, a burst of uncontrollable laughter broke out at the same time.
Ji Yue laughed so much that the wine cup in his hand fell onto the table. The remaining wine inside spilled out of the cup with a splash. The laughter overflowing from his throat was an uncontrollable joy. Wei Lian’s eyebrow curved as he covered his lips with his wide sleeves. His gentle low chuckled was particularly pleasant to the ears.
“Wei Lian, it’s so rare to see a son of royalty like you in this world.”
Being a royal bloodline, but living worse than beggars. Wasn’t that just the biggest joke?
It was like they were having a ‘who had the saddest life’ contest, the most ridiculous thing in the world to have a contest over. But after saying that, it felt like a heavy burden was lifted off as one part of the suffocations residing in the heart was relieved.
Wei Lian stopped laughing and said, “You are already a king.”
Ji Yue sneered, “If we had not succeeded in bringing down the former Queen Dowager, we would still remain as a joke to this day.”
“But that ‘what if’ isn’t true.” Wei Lian sighed. “What this subject has, isn’t that enough of a joke?”
From a son of royalty to a male pet, his life was still more miserable.
Ji Yue glanced at him. “You don’t need to put out such self-mockery. We know what kind of crazy man you are deep in your bones, more than anyone.”
Wei Lian feigned a confused expression. “Oh?”
Ji Yue raised his eyebrows.
Wei Lian cast a glance at the other person and said honestly, “Fine, this subject still thinks of himself as very powerful. There are many royal princes in the seven countries, and the real fools would have died a long time ago.”
To be alive was to be victorious.
Ji Yue laughed and said, “That’s more like you.”
Wei Lian was struck dumb.
At that moment, a gust of wind poured through the window and blew out the candle on the table.
The room suddenly became pitch black.
It didn’t matter if the candles were out. They both knew martial arts, so they had excellent night vision.
This still didn’t stop Wei Lian from playing his persona.
“Your Majesty, this subject is afraid of the dark.” Wei Lian said with a very calm voice. “Let’s get out of here.
Ji Yue: …We did not hear a trace of fear in your voice.
“Grow up.” Ji Yue mocked. Then he grabbed Wei Lian’s hand and led the youth out of the cold palace.
Ji Yue walked the other back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation like he did it a million times. He had long forgotten that he and Wei Lian had long lived in different residences. Unexpectedly, Wei Lian took his hand and headed in the other direction.
Ji Yue was caught off guard and asked while walking, “Where are you taking us?”
“Your Majesty told this subject three reminiscences. Eating, playing in the snow and celebrating the festival. Not eating one’s fill during childhood, without a companion for snow and not participating in festivals.” Wei Lian bent down, got up and said with a smile, “ If these are your regrets, then these are also this subject’s regrets. In this case, why not fulfill them?”
Ji Yue asked, “Fulfill them?”
“Correct. Out of the three, we only have a meal together.” Wei Lian quietly let go of the other person’s hand and slowly backed away. “Then the next thing is naturally…play in the snow!”
The youth in white slammed a snowball that he had just made while he was bending down at Ji Yue, then turned and ran away.
Ji Yue was caught off guard and was smacked with a snowball, and a cold aura spread around him. “Wei, Lian!”
He also grabbed a handful of snow from the ground and went after Wei Lian, throwing at the running man without saying a word.
Wei Lian did not care that he was covered in snow as he countered the attack with another snowball.
“Wei Lian, you stop right there!”
“That depends on Your Majesty’s ability to stop me!”
The two were like a cat chasing a mouse, each intended to playfully harm each other, a period of joy that neither of them wanted to end. If there were spectators, their jaws would have fallen to the ground—His Majesty and Young Master Lian play such a childish game like snowball fight, how unbelievable.
There are people who retain their childlike innocence even after years of experiences.
They were forced to act like sophisticated adults in their childhood, but they could also retain a valuable childlike innocence even after they had grown up. They were just missing a partner who could act crazy and cause trouble with them.
Both have regrets, but together they were complete.
Perhaps, this was the reason how their love began in this world. Two of them were not aware of it, but heaven and earth already have the proof.
In the end, it was the ‘delicate and weak’ Wei Lian who ran out of strength first and was caught by Ji Yue, who dragged him by the wrist and was dumped on by snow.
“Your Majesty, don’t! Cold—” Wei Lian laughed as he begged, “Your Majesty, please have mercy on this subject…”
What came out of Wei Lian’s mouth was perfectly normal, but Ji Yue had been having certain dreams these days. Hearing such words sent shivers down his spine, and his momentum died down.
“Now you know how to beg for mercy? Didn’t you have a great time just now hitting us with snowballs?” Ji Yue hummed, but still helped the other brush off the snow off his clothes.
“You are too strong. This subject is tired and does not want to play anymore.” He said, panting lightly. His cheeks were slightly flushed from the strenuous running, creating this lovely sight.
Ji Yue flashed a victorious smile.
Even when he was a child with nothing, he could have such pure and simple happiness like winning a game of snowball fight with his mother during winter.
Later when he sat above the world, conquering all four directions victoriously, he no longer felt such happiness as before.
But now, Ji Yue has finally regained that old joy.
Perhaps, when he acquiesced to Wei Lian using the bowl, he tacitly recognized that he had an additional weakness.
_
Whack!
Ji Yue’s smile froze on his face.
Wei Lian took advantage of his distraction and threw the snowball he had hidden from view.
“This subject never admits defeat.” Wei Lian showed a shy smile before running away.
Ji Yue: Wei Lian, you are finished.
As he was about to give chase, he saw the youth ahead of him stumbled for a second from running too quickly and tripped, then he fell into the snow, Ji Yue immediately picked up his feet to perform light movement skill and leaped forward, catching the youth into his arms.
…Then from not being able to stand steady on the slippery snow, the two tumbled into a cluster mess.
On instinct, Ji Yue protected the back of Wei Lian’s head, changed their position in midair and used himself as a cushion.
He firmly believed in his strong body against this insignificant fall. While the other party’s body was so weak, how could his frame remain whole after such a fall?
This was the excuse Ji Yue gave himself for his instinctive protected behavior.
Wei Lian fell into Ji Yue’s arms, while Ji Yue fell heavily into the snow.
He hissed from his back hitting the cold, while remained firm on protecting the person in his arms.
He stared expressionlessly at the youth against his chest. “Still not getting up?”
The moment Wei Lian raised his head from his arms, Ji Yue saw an unparalleled face dusted by the moonlight. When the youth raised his eyes slightly, the glow behind him was as bright as if he was cloaked by the star and outfitted by the moon.
Ji Yue’s heartbeat suddenly contracted.
Like a seed sprouting from the ice surface, a flower blossoming from the snow.
Ji Yue didn’t even react when Wei Lian got up from his body.
Wei Lian stood up and gazed down at the other. “Is Your Majesty comfortable lying in the snow?”
Ji Yue huffed, “So comfortable that we do not want to get up.” He would never admit that he was in a trace from looking at Wei Lian. He still wanted to keep his reputation.
Wei Lian’s voice was clear and crisp, with a hint of tease, “Then Your Majesty should spend the night here.”
Ji Yue immediately got up. “You are in no position for us to listen to you.”
He used his internal energy to dry his clothes that were soaked by the snow and the chill air, and Wei Lian’s clothes while he was at it.
Wei Lian smiled softly.
Such a duplicity person.
“This subject is tired from playing in the snow.” Wei Lian said sluggishly, “This subject wants to return and sleep.”
Ji Yue was stunned and brought up, “What about the third thing?”
Wei Lian pretended to be confused. “What third thing?”
“…” Ji Yue stressed, “You said it yourself, celebrating the festival together.”
“This—not a very important thing, this subject was left by himself for years, so this subject never celebrates this. It is not necessary to do so this year.” Wei Lian casually said, looking unconcerned.
Ji Yue’s face darkened. “We are not considered as human? Didn’t you say together—” He was feeling slightly aggrieved.
Wei Lian gazed at him.
Ji Yue was feeling a bit uncomfortable by the stare and turned his face. “Why are you looking at us like that?”
Wei Lian chuckled softly. “Your Majesty is actually looking forward to spending New Year’s Eve with this subject?”
Ji Yue denied, “No.”
Wei Lian turned around to leave. “Then this subject will be returning to sleep.”
“Yes, we are!” Ji Yue was defeated by the youth. He went forward and pulled on Wei Lian’s sleeve, showing his childish side. “You’re not allowed to return.”
Wei Lian lowered his eyes. “Then why aren’t you following this subject?”
This time, Ji Yue indeed followed Wei Lian’s lead like a good child.
“Where are you heading now?” After following Wei Lian for a long time, they still haven’t reached their destination, so Ji Yue got curious.
Wei Lian replied, “Not sure.”
Ji Yue: “???”
“Is this subject’s first time celebrating New Year’s Eve with another person. Since this subject has never participated in one before, this subject doesn’t know what to do.” Wei Lian said sincerely.
Ji Yue asked, “So what are you doing right now?”
“Strolling around aimlessly.”
Ji Yue: “…”
God damned the Grand Queen Dowager strolling around aimlessly.
Ji Yue stopped, not taking a further step.
Wei Lian glanced at him.
Ji Yue said bluntly, “From our experience, the palace workers always go to admire the lanterns and fireworks.”
“We know a good place being the closest to heaven to see the whole palace’s lanterns and to get the best view of the fireworks.”
He grabbed Wei Lian’s hand without looking back. “We will take you there.”
_
A teetering tower raised a dangerous height of thirty meters, where one could feel like plucking the stars off of the sky.
The Star-Catching Tower is the highest building in the palace, with nine floors. Just a glance, anyone could tell it was a pagoda of nine tiered towers. It was a place where imperial astronomers would often observe the stars at night and predict the fate of the country.
Wei Lian gazed at the flight of stars as far as his eyes could see and mumbled without changing his expression, “Your Majesty, why don’t we go back?”
He did not want to climb that number of stairs.
It was true that this distance was no issue using light movement skill. However, he couldn’t do that, so he would have to walk up one stair at a time…
It was better to go back to bed.
“Pfft.” Ji Yue puffed out a laugh. “Lazy fox, you’re not leaving.”
Wei Lian: “?”
When did he become a fox?
In Ji Yue’s eyes, Wei Lian was a black-belly and cunning fox who was occasionally adorable, but lazy most of the time.
Wei Lian didn’t even have time to understand what was in Ji Yue’s head to compare him with a fox, because an arm wrapped around his waist, and before he knew it, he was lifted up into the air and into Ji Yue’s arms.
“Hold on tight. Close your eyes if you’re afraid.” Ji Yue warmly reminded the youth. Wei Lian could feel the hot breath against his ear as they brought hotness to it.
He quietly wrapped his arms around Ji Yue’s neck.
The next moment, Ji Yue gathered his internal energy and jumped into the air, with a graceful and smooth posture.
They were rising upward.
Their distance from the ground was getting larger and larger.
Wei Lian could hear the whistling wind as he glanced down calmly, looking at the frightening height.
Fortunately, he was not afraid of heights.
“Don’t be afraid.” Ji Yue reassured.
Wei Lian was not afraid, he even had the leisure to enjoy the scenery.
However, since the King of Qin said so, Wei Lian gave some face.
In his performance, he closed his eyes, pretended to be very afraid by burying his face into Ji Yue’s arms and tightened his arms around the neck slightly.
Ji Yue stepped lightly on his toes on each layer of the tower, and in a few jumps, he brought Wei Lian to the very top.
“Alright.” Ji Yue said, “You can open your eyes now.”
When Wei Lian opened his eyes, he found that they were not standing in the pavilion on the ninth floor.
…They were standing directly on the eaves of the ninth floor.
Underneath Ji Yue’s feet were neatly stacked black tiles.
The view down from the top could make anybody with a faint of heart dizzy.
Wei Lian decisively held Ji Yue’s hand, and leaned closer. He was practically on top of Ji Yue. “This subject does not have the strength to stand steady—”
The corners of Ji Yue’s lips seamlessly raised as he calmly said, “Then sit down.”
Sitting down felt much better. Despite the fact that Wei Lian was not afraid in the first place.
The two of them sat side by side on the roof, feeling the cool breeze blowing through them as they gazed out into the horizon.
At this height, one could really take in the entire palace and the lights in the distance.
Green tiles and red walls, a small bridge over a flowing stream that was hidden from view, it felt surreal looking out from the pavilion roof. The top of the palace roof tiles was covered in heavy frost and snow, and the plum blossoms were in full bloom on the branches.
The playful figures of the palace workers were like little dots, decorated this majestic kingdom and fell into the two’s view.
Following the winding road from the palace to the city gate, one could see the people outside the palace, if just barely. The market was bustling with performers juggling for the audience, vendors shouting to make the sales, and children gathering and setting off firecrackers on the street. The whole town was out and about. Every house was decorated with couplets, perfect pictures of jubilation.
The distant mountains were hidden into the night, leaving only their quiet silhouettes and outlining the vast landscape.
This place was the land of living.
The two took in everything from above and had this moment of silence with each other.
Wei Lian calmed his mind and looked down with his heart in turmoil.
This was like nothing he had ever seen.
He suddenly raised his voice that was mixed with a trace of excitement, “Look, fireworks!”
Ji Yue followed the other party’s line of sight and saw a firework rising into the sky, blooming in the night, an exquisite splendor.
Countless fireworks followed. They were like a dazzling sea of flowers, decorating the entire starry sky.
The sequence was overwhelmingly magnificent.
River of stars, curtain of night, countless colorful lanterns, spectacular bright fireworks.
These things actually happen every year. They were nothing new, and Ji Yue had long been tired of seeing them.
He had never thought they would be so beautiful as now.
When the youth in white beside him was concentrating on the fireworks, Ji Yue quietly turned his head and took in Wei Lian’s profile.
The youth was very good-looking. His facial features were exquisite at all angles, a complete interpretation of the word beauty.
Wei Lian tilted his head slightly, and the golden halo of fireworks was reflected on his cheek, enhancing his charming face. The long hair was blown by the oncoming breeze and seemed to be riding the wind. The youth’s smiling eyes were curved and shined, like thousands of stars and fireworks had fallen into them.
Ji Yue was slightly out of breath.
Why did he still feel drunk when he had already dispelled the alcohol?
Wei Lian noticed the other’s eyes and suddenly turned his head. His starry eyes met the other person’s gaze.
Both men were startled.
It was like they were back when they first met, Ji Yue cast a glimpse of the graceful figure in the snow.
Missing the good husband, gentle like a jade, house they formerly reside, brought nothing but grief .
A few moments later, Wei Lian showed a smile and dropped a whisper in the clamor of fireworks.
“Happy New Year, Your Majesty.”
Ji Yue pursed his lips.
This to him was his first real New Year’s Eve, and the first time someone had said Happy New Year to him.
Many people wished him a happy life, and good fortune, but what he really wanted to hear was just simple happiness.
He waited for twenty-one years.
Just waiting for someone like Wei Lian.
After a long time, he smiled softly and replied in a low voice.
“Happy New Year.”
Thank You for the chapter ｡✰✧(♡´❍`♡)✧✰｡
Im crying they are meant for eachother 😭
Thank u for the chapter ❤️