Ch39 - Forgot to Say

Jing Shao stared blankly as Mu Hanzhang toppled over and felt his heart clench fiercely. Using his qinggong, he suddenly flew forward and gathered Mu Hanzhang up in his arms in one movement.  “Jun Qing, Jun Qing…” The body in his embrace was completely soaked with sweat, which seeped into his clothes. His sweaty, handsome face was as white as a sheet.

“Move him to the couch!” Emperor Hong Zheng didn’t let the Empress, who was in a half-crouch to give her salutations, get up. He pointed to where the phoenix couch was cool under the veranda, and motioned for Jing Shao to place Mu Hanzhang on it. On the other side of the veranda, An Xian said, “Fetch the imperial physician!” 

Jing Shao carefully put Mu Hanzhang on the phoenix couch, took cool herbal tea from a servant, and brought it to the other man’s cracked lips, slowly feeding it to him. Miao Xi picked up a fan from the side and wiped away her tears as she fanned Mu Hanzhang.

“Imperial Father…” Jing Shao picked up his Wang Fei’s hand, his eyes red with rage. He turned around to look at Emperor Hong Zheng behind him. He hadn’t finished speaking when Mu Hanzhang suddenly pinched his palm, so he immediately stopped talking and turned back to look at the person on the couch.

In Emperor Hong Zheng’s eyes, Jing Shao was already extremely angry. Jing Shao wanted to say something, but considering his identity, he couldn’t denounce his Imperial Mother, and thus could only hesitate and swallow his words – he looked the very definition of someone who had been wronged! Emperor Hong Zheng frowned, sat down in a chair brought by a palace servant, and looked at the Empress who was half-crouched awkwardly on the side. “What happened here?”

“Answering Your Majesty, Chenqie called Cheng Wang Fei over for a chat today. But this child’s words offended Chenqie, and he didn’t even know to repent, so Chenqie had him kneel and reflect for a bit… Chenqie at the time didn’t know that Cheng Wang Fei’s male body would actually be this feeble…” The Empress hadn’t expected Cheng Wang to bring the Emperor over. Whatever she said in the beginning was correct: as the Mother of the country, she had the authority to punish Mu Hanzhang. It was just that today, he knelt until he fainted, and the Emperor had just so happened to witness it; it looked as if she was deliberately picking on Mu Hanzhang, thus treating her stepson with severe resentment.

Emperor Hong Zheng gave the Empress a profound look. He was very clear on today’s affair. She would usually use her authority to rein in one or two of his favored concubines. In order to maintain peace in the harem, he turned a blind eye and ignored it. However, Cheng Wang was about to set out for battle, and the Empress was actually treating the Cheng Wang Fei so harshly, which clearly showed that she was trying to make trouble for him!

“Jun Qing, where does it hurt?” Jing Shao saw the person on the couch slowly open his eyes, and he quickly drew close to ask the question in a low voice.

Mu Hanzhang looked at Jing Shao and pinched his palm again, shaking his head lightly to warn him not to say anything disruptive.

Jing Shao blinked, took the wet cloth towel which the palace maid handed to him, and gently wiped Mu Hanzhang’s cheeks and forehead, keeping silent. Emperor Hong Zheng also refused to respond to the Empress’s words. It was quiet in front of Fengyi Palace, with only the sound of cicadas in the distance. 

The imperial physician appeared in a timely manner, breaking the oppressive atmosphere. The white-whiskered physician examined Mu Hanzhang’s complexion and took his pulse, but remained silent. He took some pills out of his medicine box to give to Mu Hanzhang. Then, he turned to Emperor Hong Zheng and said, “Reporting to Your Majesty, I checked Wang Fei’s pulse. It was the summer heat entering his body, plus his poor blood flow, which caused him to faint. Now that he’s woken up, there won’t be any major problems once he takes this pill to dispel the heat and rests for a day. It’s just…”

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“It seems that Wang Fei’s meridians are weaker than those of a normal man, and his body is not as robust,” the doctor said honestly. “Chen will prescribe a course of medicine; have him drink it again in the evening, otherwise the summer heat won’t be dispelled. I’m afraid that if it remains inside him, he’ll have dizzy spells.”

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Jing Shao still wanted to say something, but was stopped by the person in his arms.

Mu Hanzhang struggled mightily to sit up halfway. “Thanking Imperial Father for your consideration.”

Emperor Hong Zheng waved his hand and said to Jing Shao, whose fury was still obvious on his face, “The matter you mentioned earlier, Zhen agrees to it; later, I will make sure to take care of it.”

“Yes!” Hearing this, Jing Shao bowed, picked up his Wang Fei, and turned away to leave. 

When Jing Shao and his wife left, Emperor Hong Zheng finally looked at the nervous Empress. “As the Mother of a country, your way of handling matters and your bearing can’t even compare with those two of the younger generation. Doing it like this, how can Cheng Wang feel at ease leaving the Cheng Wang Fei in the capital?”

When the Empress heard these words, she abruptly lifted her head. “Your Majesty, when one goes away, one’s wife and children are always left in the capital. This has been a rule since ancient times!”

“You still know the rules?” Emperor Hong Zheng snorted coldly, picked up a cup, and threw it down in front of the Empress. “What did Zhen say in the study this morning? Did it all just go in one ear and come out the other?!”

“Your Majesty! Chenqie…” Only then did the Empress realize that while she had gotten some delight out of her schemes, they had already brought her trouble. Moreover, she had left a bad impression on the Emperor, demonstrating that she was unable to see the bigger picture. Cheng Wang Fei was a man and couldn’t bear heirs. The day before yesterday, the Empress had urged the Emperor to have Cheng Wang take a second wife and have an heir, thus tying Cheng Wang down and preventing him from changing his mind. Although the Emperor had agreed, he also said that Cheng Wang was strong-willed and couldn’t be forced to do so. 

Emperor Hong Zheng kneaded the skin between his eyebrows and pointed at the Empress kneeling on the floor. “Go to Empress Yuan’s grave and reflect upon yourself for three days! Think on what you said on the day you were crowned, yet you still treat Jing Chen and Jing Shao like this today?” Done speaking, he tossed his sleeves and departed.

After exiting Fengyi Palace, Emperor Hong Zheng looked back at the gold and green tiles behind him and sighed lightly. If Empress Yuan was still around, the Imperial Palace and court would surely be less turbulent…

—

“It’s alright. Don’t worry.” After taking a bath, Mu Hanzhang changed into a soft undershirt. He leaned against the head of the bed and looked at Jing Shao bustling around. He couldn’t help but say that sentence to console the other man. 

“Drink the medicine.” Jing Shao was still frightened by what the imperial physician had said about dizzy spells. He had to supervise Mu Hanzhang to make sure he finished all the medicine.

Mu Hanzhang was helpless, and could only take the medicine bowl and tilted his head back to drink it all. He had yet to taste the bitterness before he was handed a bowl of clear water. “The medicine won’t work if you take honey afterwards; since you can’t have honey, have a sip of water instead.”

Mu Hanzhang looked up at Jing Shao, who wore a serious expression. His heart felt warm and itchy. Jing Shao was obviously an irritable and thoughtless man, but where Mu Hanzhang was concerned, he was so careful.

Jing Shao looked at Jun Qing, whose complexion was still a little pale, and his heart was very distressed. He fetched the medicinal oil before slowly rolling up the legs of Jun Qing’s trousers. Bruises had already formed on his fair knees from kneeling for so long. Blisters had also formed because of the scalding heat of the stone slabs, and Jing Shao couldn’t help but frown. 

“You can’t rub medicinal oil on this, or the blisters won’t go down.” Mu Hanzhang looked at the swollen blisters, which felt itchy and extremely painful. He couldn’t help but use a finger to scratch them.

Jing Shao looked at those beautiful knees that had turned so green and red. Unable to offer much help, he leaned down slowly, pressed soft kisses to the injured areas, and then lay over his Wang Fei’s legs to hug his waist, feeling very pained.

Mu Hanzhang reached out and touched Jing Shao’s head. “I’m not that delicate. By the way, what matter did you discuss with Imperial Father today?” This was the so-called “teaching one’s son in the presence of others and teaching one’s wife behind the doors” – Imperial Father obviously hadn’t wanted to rebuke the Empress in front of them, but that “agreement” he had given before they left was obviously compensation for Jing Shao.

“Oh, we’re going into battle next month, and I want to go to the army camp tomorrow; I want to get acquainted with the military officers first.” Jing Shao buried his face in that soft shirt and greedily breathed in the faint fragrance coming off his Wang Fei; this kind of fresh, clear and warm scent made him want more. 

“You’re going… tomorrow?” Mu Hanzhang was stunned. He thought it would be half a month before they had to separate. He hadn’t expected this to happen so fast.

“En.” Jing Shao sat up and saw that his Wang Fei’s complexion didn’t look right. Thinking he still didn’t understand, he explained, “It’s customary to get acquainted with the soldiers first before going on a campaign, so that there won’t be any trouble on the way. Right now, the army is only fifty li away from the capital, and Imperial Father has allowed me to go, which truly is an unexpected fortune.”

Mu Hanzhang heard the excitement in his words and slowly lowered his eyes. “Leaving this time… who knows when you will return…” Did Jing Shao never think about how they would have to separate? Mu Hanzhang pressed his lips together tightly, and not wanting to see Jing Shao’s expression, he turned his eyes away; in this, he was still like a child who was unable to understand the pain of parting at all.

Jing Shao’s eyes widened. He had never thought of leaving Jun Qing! Furthermore, given all the chaos in the capital, it wasn’t safe. In his previous life, Jun Qing’s condition had worsened. Jing Shao couldn’t relax at all. What was more, if he couldn’t see his Wang Fei for even a single day, he feared he absolutely wouldn’t have the motivation to fight at all! But… he had always thought that his Wang Fei was aware of this; unexpectedly, it turned out that he himself had forgotten to mention it, hadn’t he? 

“Jun Qing…” Jing Shao looked at his Wang Fei whose eyes were downcast as he grieved by himself. The glow of the setting sun highlighted the side of his handsome face, his long and delicate eyelashes creating fan-shaped shadows. He was extremely lovely, and Jing Shao’s heart couldn’t help but skip a beat. He hugged the other man. “Jun Qing, I’m going to the military camp tomorrow. I’m afraid in the future… Let’s enjoy ourselves tonight.”

Mu Hanzhang pursed his lips slightly, silent for a moment. Then, he slowly reached for Jing Shao. His physical strength could never match Jing Shao’s. The latter often wanted to do it many times in one night, but sometimes Mu Hanzhang couldn’t bear it. Furthermore, it wasn’t good for both their bodies to do this kind of thing too much. Thus, unless it was a special circumstance, Mu Hanzhang normally wouldn’t let Jing Shao do it more than two times a day.

They would be parting soon, so in this case, he would indulge Jing Shao.

Jing Shao felt the person in his arms acquiesce, and naturally, he wouldn’t be polite. He stripped Mu Hanzhang of his clothes in two or three moves. Afraid that the other man would bump his knees, Jing Shao settled between his Wang Fei’s legs and leaned over that handsome, slightly melancholy face to plant soft and sweet kisses all over it. 

“En…” Lying on a jade mat, Mu Hanzhang could only reach out to hold onto the round pillow under his neck. No matter how many times he did this kind of thing, he always felt an unavoidable pain when Jing Shao entered him.

Jing Shao kissed the sweat off the forehead of the person under him, nibbled on the slightly turned neck, and moved slowly and gently. After waiting for Mu Hanzhang to get used to it, he gradually sped up.

Mu Hanzhang gripped Jing Shao’s shoulders tightly and let the stiff, scorching rod pound into his body. A little more, a little more, so that he could remember this feeling… so that he wouldn’t be able to forget during the months or even years until he would see Jing Shao again.

Mu Hanzhang shivered, wanting to avoid the increasingly powerful movements. He was afraid that he wouldn’t be able to bear the unceasing strokes that brought him such continuous and fearful pleasure. However, the thing in his body seemed to realize his intention, and it ground non-stop against that place inside him that drove him crazy. 

“Ah… I can’t… wu…” He didn’t know how much time had passed, but Mu Hanzhang had already been unable to bear it for a while, his slender legs trembling uncontrollably.

His lower body had become so scorching hot that it was almost painful, and it made him frown. His body twitched incessantly, and little Jun Qing that was sticking to his lower abdomen released its essence. Jing Shao felt that no matter how much they did it, it wasn’t enough. He rested for just a little while, and little Shao was full of energy once again.

Still trembling slightly, Mu Hanzhang felt the change in the little guy inside his body, and he couldn’t help but wrinkle his brow. He implored in a slightly hoarse voice, “…No more…”

“It’s the last time, I promise.” Jing Shao kissed his teary eyes. 

Mu Hanzhang looked at him and thought about how, when he opened his eyes tomorrow, they would have to separate. He exhaled lightly and slowly nodded.

The author has something to say:

 Cough cough cough! Listen to me ~ during a period of censorship (river crabs), we must be low-key!!! Never read it aloud!!! Everyone, let’s read it together hehe, haha~