Chapter 430 Extra: Yue Zhengqi x Nie Zhiyao 2

Chapter 430 Extra: Lezheng Qi x Nie Zhiyao 2

Nie Zhihuan had hidden a groom in the back courtyard. Nie Zhiyao was now weak and unsteady, barely able to stand without support. The downside of having cut ties with his family became apparent—after being separated from the household, the servants, who judged people by their status, all pretended not to see. Even when the Nie family's eldest daughter rushed over, someone dared to block her way.

When Lezheng Qi was summoned, she had no time to be glad he'd arrived so quickly, and said urgently, "Brother-in-law, hurry inside and check on him—Yao'er was just helped in there."

No matter how handsome a person is, being too dull and weak makes them unlikable, let alone a son-in-law who had married into the Nie family. A live-in son-in-law was naturally treated as inferior in his wife's family home.

After their marriage, Lezheng Qi had returned to the Nie residence with Nie Zhiyao several times. Most of the time he was unwelcome—not just by Old Master Nie, but even the two elder sons-in-law who had married into the family didn't bother to acknowledge him.

At this moment, the eldest daughter didn't expect him to be of much use either. If he could stall for a bit so she could get away, that would do. Surely Nie Zhihuan wouldn't dare to escalate things.

The next moment, she gaped in utter disbelief as Lezheng Qi kicked aside the two men blocking his path with two swift kicks and stormed into the courtyard without any obstruction.

Nie Zhihuan was weak, having only just managed to get the man inside. Before he could get out a single harsh word, he was shoved aside by Lezheng Qi.

"You... you're Fourth Brother's husband?" Nie Zhihuan was seeing Lezheng Qi's face for the first time, and was so stunned he was momentarily dazed. In that brief span, Lezheng Qi had already scooped up the limp figure collapsed on the bed.

He didn't spare even a single glance at the simpering youth he'd pushed aside. The docile appearance of the person in his arms awakened a strange feeling in his chest. He schooled his expression, his face turning cold as ice once more.

Nie Zhiyao's head rested against Lezheng Qi's shoulder, eyes half-lidded, gaze unfocused. His snow-white cheeks were flushed with an unnatural pink, breathing rapid, hot breath puffing against Lezheng Qi's neck in short bursts. All the strength he had left was used to grip Lezheng Qi's collar, terrified of being let go.

"Take... take me home." He wasn't so out of it that he didn't recognize people, but his body was truly in agony—waves of scorching heat spreading through him, clouding his mind into a fog. The last shred of sanity reminded him that he was married, that he had a husband. Even if he had to sleep with Lezheng Qi, it was better than sleeping with a stranger.

Still knows who I am? Not bad.

Lezheng Qi's neck had been flushed red from the heat of his breath. Nie Zhiyao's voice was too soft—no one else could hear it. Nie Zhihuan only saw that the man who had been as cold as ice suddenly curled his lips into a smile. His already striking features softened with that hint of warmth, like a hundred flowers in full bloom—so stunning it was impossible to look away.

Nie Zhihuan was still a naive youth, and in that instant he was utterly captivated by Lezheng Qi's face. Even the anger from being shoved aside moments ago evaporated, leaving only bitter resentment.

What makes Nie Zhiyao so special?

The groom had been hiding behind the screen, not daring to make a sound. Only after everyone had left did he dare to come out. "F... Fifth Young Master."

"Get lost!"

The groom scrammed, cursing his bad luck inwardly. He had been trying to suck up to Nie Zhihuan, but not only had his flattery failed, his scheme had fallen through too—he'd gotten nothing but a cold glare for his trouble.

Back at the stables, he was still cursing his misfortune—until that very night, when he was thrown into a sack, dumped over the wall, and beaten black and blue. He couldn't get out of bed for two weeks.

But that's a story for later. For now, let's get back to Lezheng Qi, who ignored the shocked and panicked expressions of the Nie family, didn't care if the guests would laugh at the spectacle, and carried Nie Zhiyao straight out of the house and back to their own home.

By the time they got home, Nie Zhiyao was truly out of his mind. He had never felt so agitated. The moment he was set on the bed, he grabbed Lezheng Qi's collar recklessly and started slobbering all over Lezheng Qi's face like a puppy.

Lezheng Qi couldn't help but laugh. Even knowing the man on top of him was out of his mind, he still held his squirming face in his hands and asked, "Who am I?"

Nie Zhiyao didn't even realize he was speaking. He recklessly pressed his mouth against Lezheng Qi's, their lips and tongues meeting for only a moment—brief enough to make one want to lose oneself in it and forget everything else.

Lezheng Qi was afraid he'd flip out when he woke up, so he braced him with one hand and sat him up halfway, letting out a sigh and making a show of defending himself. "Nie Zhiyao, you came to me of your own accord."

Nie Zhiyao's answer was to tear open his own collar, revealing a large expanse of pale, pink-tinged chest.

Lezheng Qi's gaze turned dangerous in an instant. He grabbed Nie Zhiyao's chin, his pale eyes darkening with desire, his words dripping with a heat that could melt a person. "You think I'm dead?"

Lezheng Qi loved flowers, but this was his first time tending one. Delicate blooms require constant care—plain water isn't enough; they need nectar. He was clumsy at first, provoking the flower's displeasure, so he grew cautious and careful, gradually finding his rhythm...

Nie Zhiyao lay in bed for an entire day, furious enough to curse. But he couldn't bring himself to throw a tantrum, so he only lashed out with petty provocations while Lezheng Qi applied his medicine. Lezheng Qi bore it all without complaint, never talking back even when cursed at, which only made Nie Zhiyao angrier—he called him a mute.

The next morning when Nie Zhiyao woke up, another bottle of medicine sat by the bedside. Lezheng Qi must have slipped in before heading to his post to apply it for him. His touch had been gentle enough not to wake him, but Nie Zhiyao was still annoyed.

He sat up on the bed with a dark face, barely managing before collapsing back onto his stomach. And in this moment of misery, his tactless fifth brother had the audacity to come calling.

"Not seeing him..." Nie Zhiyao paused mid-sentence, then changed his mind. "Let him in."

"Yes." A Mi knew his master was in a foul mood, but in his own opinion, this was actually a good thing—surely the two of them couldn't sleep in separate beds forever? He was still waiting to help his young master raise children! His master's husband might be a bit useless and unambitious, but at least he was handsome?

He couldn't even imagine how adorable the children of his master and the young master would be!

"So this is where Fourth Brother lives now? I've never been to this side before. It's freezing cold out—why isn't there even a heated alcove in the room?" Nie Zhihuan walked in with two attendants at his side, a smile at the corners of his eyes and brows, but his words were laced with barbs.

Nie Zhiyao had suffered greatly because of him, and right now he could eat the boy alive. He leaned weakly against the bedding, smiling without warmth. "I heard Father has arranged a fine match for Fifth Brother. The Li family is waiting for the dowry you'll bring to fill their coffers—I'm sure they'll build you a grand heated alcove."

Civil officials looked down on merchants, yet Nie Fu was desperate to climb the social ladder. Both his daughters had been married off to minor officials in the capital—low-ranking, but at least as legitimate wives. As for Nie Zhiyao, the legitimate son who was a xiaoge, he had long been earmarked to serve as a concubine in some high-ranking household.

Nie Zhihuan, as a concubine-born son, could never catch the eye of those above him no matter how favored he was at home. Even a fourth-rank official taking a concubine wouldn't consider him—he didn't have the standing. But he could marry lower and be a proper wife.

The Nie household was ruled by Old Master Nie's single word. Neither wife nor concubine had any say in their children's marriages. He had long treated his children's unions as stepping stones for the family's advancement. Though the book trade sounded refined, it was far less lucrative than salt, cloth, or sugar. The sons of imperial merchants could sit for the civil examinations, but his concubine-born son had only managed to pass the first level as an entry-level scholar—after all these years, he couldn't even pass the county exam to become a xiucai. He needed other plans.

Nie Zhiyao's broken engagement had already offended someone, so the Li family he'd secured for Nie Zhihuan was a fifth-rank official's household that Old Master Nie had painstakingly cultivated.

Nie Zhihuan was luckier than Nie Zhiyao. The fifth-rank official had no interest in taking concubines, and it was his second legitimate son who was looking for a xiaoge to marry. There were other reasons behind it that Old Master Nie may or may not have known, but he still eagerly paraded Nie Zhihuan before the Li family.

Nie Zhihuan wasn't bad-looking, and he did catch the eye of the Li second young master. The two families had already reached a verbal agreement, just waiting for the formal betrothal and the three letters and six rites.

Under normal circumstances, Nie Zhihuan would have gloated endlessly in front of Nie Zhiyao. A fifth-rank official in the capital—what did that mean? Even if the Li second young master was a useless waste, he could still rely on his father's connections to buy a minor post. With a high-ranking official father looking after him, everyone would have to address Nie Zhihuan as the Li family's young master's husband.

Most of his former friends had married jinshi who came to the capital for examinations, then scattered to remote places to live out their lives, trapped there forever. But he was different—he could live out his days in glory as an official's consort in the capital.

But after seeing Lezheng Qi, Nie Zhihuan had changed. He even wished he could trade places with Nie Zhiyao—he'd gladly live in a small house with Lezheng Qi. So when Nie Zhiyao brought up his marriage, he fidgeted with his hair, a little uncomfortable. "Fourth Brother should stop talking about such things. My engagement isn't finalized yet."

Nie Zhiyao raised an eyebrow, baffled by the shy expression on his face, and felt a flicker of boredom.

Pointless. Nie Zhihuan had drugged him without a thought, but he couldn't retaliate in kind. Besides protecting his two sisters' reputations, he still needed the Nie family's connections to pave the way for his business. He absolutely couldn't afford to anger his father over a moment of spite.

"Leave. I don't have time for you." Nie Zhiyao's face turned cold as he dismissed him.

Nie Zhihuan's eyes darted around the room, occasionally stealing glances toward the bedroom. "I came all this way, Fourth Brother—why be so cold? We're still brothers. If Brother-in-law sees this, he might think you can't tolerate your humble younger brother!"

He shamelessly lingered at Nie Zhiyao's home until Lezheng Qi returned from his post. The moment he coyly uttered the words "Brother-in-law," Lezheng Qi had already swept into the main hall like the wind and scooped Nie Zhiyao, who had been quietly reading, into his arms.

Nie Zhiyao slapped him without a second thought. "Are you insane?"

Lezheng Qi turned his head with a cold sneer, tempted to just dump the man on the ground. But mindful of his condition, he held back and carried him into the bedroom, setting him on the bed. "Rest properly. Don't sit up too long."

The moment he was on the bed, Nie Zhiyao turned his back to Lezheng Qi. For all his intelligence and strong will, he was still a xiaoge raised in a proper, disciplined household. Having suddenly slept with Lezheng Qi, he felt both awkward and restless—just looking at the man irritated him.

"Brother-in-law, Fourth Brother is probably just in a bad mood. He's been lying around all day without moving much—don't be angry. He loses his temper at home all the time." Nie Zhihuan sidled up to Lezheng Qi, eyes fixed unblinkingly on the tall, lean man before him. This was his second time seeing Lezheng Qi, and he could see him even more clearly than yesterday. In all his life, he had never seen a more handsome, striking man than Lezheng Qi.

But this man had just carried Nie Zhiyao. They were so intimate—and that drug, it must have been Lezheng Qi who had relieved it for Nie Zhiyao.

At that thought, Nie Zhihuan's face twisted again. He wasn't married yet, so he didn't yet understand why Nie Zhiyao was so weak—he assumed it was just the lingering effects of the drug. If he knew the truth, he'd surely be even more furious.

Lezheng Qi didn't spare him a single glance. He stood in the shadows, his heart consumed by a sea of blood-deep vengeance that never ceased, day or night.

"My husband can throw tantrums at me all he likes—what's it to you?" Lezheng Qi said coldly, then immediately called for A Mi to show the guest out.

A Mi had been listening nearby, feeling a satisfaction he couldn't quite put into words. "Fifth Young Master, you should head back now. It's getting dark—if you're too late, I'm afraid the master will scold you."

Nie Zhihuan's face flushed crimson, nearly in tears from fury. He shoved A Mi hard and ran out, his attendants scrambling after him.

Le Zhengqi walked into the kitchen with a cold expression. The cook, hired from outside, greeted him respectfully, "Master."

"What did he eat today?" There were only two masters in the household, so he was naturally asking about Nie Zhiyao.

The cook replied, "The young lord's consort only got up at noon and had half a bowl of rice porridge."

Le Zhengqi instructed, "Make his favorite steamed shad for dinner, and cook the rice until it's soft."

A shadow guard dropped down from the sturdy ceiling beam, hooking his feet around the solid rafter to support himself. "Master, His Highness wants you to come for a meeting tonight."

"I know." An invisible, heavy weight pressed down on Le Zhengqi's shoulders, and the rare flicker of warmth he'd felt quickly faded.

The cook, as if she hadn't heard their conversation, silently prepared the evening meal. When cleaning the fish, she brought the knife down swiftly, chopping the whole head off in one stroke.

Le Zhengqi's shadow guard was young and talkative. He quietly picked up the fish head that had fallen to the ground, still gaping, and tossed it into a nearby basin. "Aunt Cheng, take it easy, will you? Watching you chop meat and fish is more terrifying than watching someone get killed."

Aunt Cheng shot him a glare without a word, then deftly arranged the fish for steaming. The young lord's consort didn't like fish heads—thought they were ugly—so she just chopped it off before steaming.

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