The moment Gu Xiaodeng saw Su Mingya arrive, he stuck to him like glue. The attendants on both sides wished they would go their separate ways, but since Su Mingya, who held the dominant position, kept engaging Gu Xiaodeng in conversation, they couldn’t overstep their bounds.
Gu Xiaodeng rolled up the book in his hands into a makeshift megaphone, walking along light and quick, suppressing the urge to skip, chattering away with him nonstop.
Su Mingya responded now and then. Having seen countless beauties, he had simply never encountered a temperament like this. He listened with keen interest, and by indulging him, he ended up letting him follow all the way to his residence.
Gu Xiaodeng stood in front of his standalone courtyard and let out a “Wow.” “Young Master Su, the place you live is so impressive. Compared to what the rest of us have, it’s like the difference between the finest mansion and a firewood shed!”
Upon hearing this, Su Mingya studied him seriously for a moment, confirming that he really wasn’t being sarcastic—this was genuine admiration and curiosity.
After his exclamation, Gu Xiaodeng straightened up and gave him an embarrassed grin. “I haven’t seen much of noble families or high society. Young Master Su, don’t mind me making a fuss over everything.”
His awkwardness, in Su Mingya’s eyes, was a different kind of vulgar charm. It was precisely its commonness that made it endearing. “Would you like to come in and sit for a while?”
Gu Xiaodeng nodded without an ounce of politeness. “Yes, yes, yes.”
Su Mingya smiled.
You couldn’t blame Gu Xiaodeng for his silly exclamations. He really hadn’t expected Su Mingya’s dwelling to be so elegantly refined—a courtyard nestled within a bamboo grove. It was mid-February, the bamboo was fresh and green, and beyond it, there seemed to be a few peach trees mixed in. By March, it would truly be a scene of a few peach blossoms peeking through the bamboo.
Su Mingya strolled into the small courtyard. The grass was even, the flowers scattered; dark bricks and cyan steps, flowing water nudging bamboo slats, a clear breeze pushing open the door. Gu Xiaodeng craned his neck, following him into his main hall. Inside, he saw an array of unique antiques, so exquisitely arranged and full of whimsical charm that one felt he hadn’t come here for arduous study, but purely for a holiday.
He kept exclaiming “Wow,” finally sensing something of the extravagant luxury befitting a wealthy noble family. He had visited the courtyards of the Gu family—An Ruoyi’s and Gu Jinyu’s. They were just big, just sprawling, but not refined. They flatly, plainly told you it was a place to reside, not a place to live.
Su Mingya led him to a table and sat down. He himself had brought nothing, yet everything here had already been properly and perfectly arranged. He was no ordinary noble; it was only natural that the Gu and Su families made a grand show of preparing everything for him.
On his first time leaving the Su family’s sphere, Su Mingya’s mood was exceptionally light, a slight tipsiness as if he’d drunk wine. Sitting upright, he sized up Gu Xiaodeng across from him, not a trace of impatience from being pestered by this mundane chatterbox. He appreciated his garrulousness, enjoying his joy with considerable relish.
Gu Xiaodeng could also sense the unspoken delight in the person before him, which made him even happier. He swiftly decided to make him his first little friend at this academy.
They talked for a long while until servants brought in water. Gu Xiaodeng carefully received the exquisite cup, wanting to admire the patterns on it, when he saw Su Mingya lightly fold back his sleeve. On his pale wrist were two old chains—one string of Deep Red Buddhist Prayer Beads, and one string of Mountain Ghost Coins. Gu Xiaodeng found Su Mingya’s hands unbearably beautiful and stared fixedly, gawking like a libertine.
Su Mingya sensed his burning gaze but wasn’t offended. Generously, he folded his sleeve up even more. “Are you interested in the bracelets?”
“I’m more interested in how they look on your hand.” Gu Xiaodeng praised sincerely. “So beautiful. They make even your hand tendons look good, as if drawn in a painting.”
It was Su Mingya’s first time hearing someone compliment his hand tendons. Amused despite himself, he extended his hand in front of him, letting him look his fill. “But these two bracelets aren’t just for decoration.”
“I know.” Gu Xiaodeng’s heart drifted ethereally in the clouds. He was someone who liked hugs and physical contact, and having not been close to anyone for a long time, it was like catching a bare blade. With a soft pat, both hands captured Su Mingya’s. “The string of Buddhist Beads is for protection and peace. The Ornamental Coins string is for warding off evil. Your family cherishes you very much.”
Su Mingya’s hand stiffened within his palms. The pulses of both wrists pressed together.
“Before, I was the son of a peddler. We also sold these kinds of auspicious trinkets. Traveling here and there, passing famous mountains and great temples, my father would find masters to consecrate them. Once the rituals were properly done, those ornaments became in-demand items for peace of mind, impossible to get at any price. Many families would seek them for their children.”
Gu Xiaodeng felt his hand was cold, so he enveloped it in a warming hold.
“My father originally wanted to get a string for me too, but the master said my spiritual altar was clear and bright, that I had blessings and vitality and didn’t need it. At the time, I just thought the chain was pretty, threw tantrums wanting one. So my dad put a red bean string on me, wishing me rolling romantic luck. Really, what was he thinking, I was still so young, I wasn’t thinking about flirtations. That scoundrel of a dad, humph.”
Su Mingya was learning to adapt to the contact, looking at him gently. “So are you still wearing it now?”
“No, after wearing it for three or four days, I took it off.” Gu Xiaodeng smiled. “It looked nice but felt constricting. I still prefer being relaxed and free. Young Master Su, wearing those two chains, there must be inconvenient moments when you sleep or eat, right? But once this auspicious charm is put on, your family probably won’t let you take it off. Tying down your pretty wrist to soothe your family’s hearts.”
Su Mingya watched him for a moment. The hand he had originally intended to withdraw remained in his warming grasp. He raised his other hand to part his collar, pulling out a red rope necklace with a different kind of talisman from his neck. With a touch of helplessness, yet also a touch of pride, he showed it to him. “They’ve tied this on me, too.”
Gu Xiaodeng leaned closer to look, nodding affirmatively. “Beautiful! Your family loves and values you especially.”
Su Mingya couldn’t help but sigh with a smile. “Being valued too heavily isn’t necessarily a good thing. This is my first time leaving the Su family. If not for my Second Sister’s vigorous encouragement, my parents would have kept me under their control until who knows when. And even my Second Sister—this morning, when I stepped out the door, she was actually so worried and sorrowful that she wept uncontrollably… I thought to myself, is this really necessary? The Gu family isn’t at the ends of the earth from the Su family, and my Second Brother-in-law is practically half a member of the Gu family. Getting on a carriage, it’s just a ride of three or four cups of tea. Why send me off like it’s some tragic life-or-death farewell?”
“Happy troubles!” Gu Xiaodeng was infected by his mood, eyes curving as he pursed his lips, envy and joy mingling. “Your family is truly wonderful.”
Su Mingya blinked slowly, the smile still hanging at the corners of his eyes and brows, but he silently closed the conversation box.
His family treated him very well indeed. It was just that because the treatment was so good, it appeared abnormal among the noble houses of Changluo. Growing up to this day, other than the Su family members, he had almost no close friends his own age.
And he couldn’t possibly spend his entire life cloistered within the four walls of the Su family compound.
Today, he had only just put half a foot beyond the Su family’s threshold. The moment he stepped out, still hesitant about how to befriend his peers, this little fellow from the Gu family had actively run up to him.
He treasured it, and he also scrutinized it.
Su Mingya returned the conversation topic to him. “Right, you said you’re now called Shanqing. Why is that?”
Gu Xiaodeng’s eyes still held their smile, but his nose wrinkled. “It’s just… they thought my original name was too rustic, so they wanted something more elegant to properly match the Gu surname. I quite like the name Shanqing, but… it was the Fourth Young Master who gave it to me, not His Royal Highness the Prince or the Princess Consort.”
Giving a name was a major affair. Even if he were to have a so-called new name presentable enough for society, it should properly come from his birth parents. As it turned out, his naming rights had been directly deferred by his mother to a brother. Picking apart the familial affection within, it inevitably caused sorrow.
Gu Xiaodeng simply chose to believe that An Ruoyi wanted him to be closer to Gu Jinyu, to have more bonds, rather than that she couldn’t even be bothered to name him.
Upon hearing this, Su Mingya narrowed his eyes. “Jinyu gave it to you? It seems your feelings for each other are quite strong.”
“He takes quite good care of me.” Gu Xiaodeng smiled. “But I’m insignificant, I can’t help him with anything. I haven’t seen him in quite a while, I wonder if he’s resting now.”
“You don’t know where he’s gone?” Su Mingya looked at him. “The Gu Heir left Changluo at the beginning of February to take a military post in the Outer State. He entered the Military Camp, and Jinyu accompanied him. Presumably, they’ll be staying in the Outer State for several months before returning.”
The smile vanished from Gu Xiaodeng’s face. Shock stretched his eyes and mouth wide open. “Ah? Ah!”
He truly knew nothing. He hastily clasped Su Mingya’s slightly cold hand, imploring him to tell more about the current situation of his two brothers.
Gu Pinghan and Gu Jinyu had already been gone for over ten days, and he was only now stupidly learning this.
Su Mingya gently told him. Gu Pinghan was originally supposed to use his outstanding Autumn Examination results, ranking among the top, to take a position in Changluo. But for some unknown reason, his performance had fallen short, so he could only follow the facts of his examination ranking for his career assignment—he must go to the Military Camp in the Outer State for his post. Gu Jinyu accompanying him was a surprise, unknown if it was arranged by the Prince Zhenbei, or for some other reason.
Gu Xiaodeng gazed upwards, thinking. “It must have been His Royal Highness who arranged it. When does he have the autonomy to decide his own matters anymore?”
“Who knows? Though he is young, he is highly regarded by the imperial heirs in the palace.”
Gu Xiaodeng’s curiosity was instantly piqued. He leaned closer, tilting his head to look at him. “Young Master Su, I’ve heard that your Eldest Sister is the Imperial Noble Consort. Your family loves and cherishes you so much, that must include your sister, right? So do you often get to enter the Imperial Palace? Have you seen what Jinyu is like in the palace?”
Gu Xiaodeng meant no harm. He had always been intensely curious about Gu Jinyu’s life as a study companion in the palace. He’d asked Gu Jinyu before, but that brat couldn’t elaborate, only giving a vague overview. Gu Xiaodeng once remarked that he was toiling like an ox and a horse in the palace—at that time, Gu Jinyu hadn’t refuted it, showing that his life in the palace wasn’t as glamorous and smooth as others imagined.
Gu Xiaodeng worried that on one hand, he was treading on thin ice in the Imperial Palace, and on the other, he faced the stigma of being a non-biological child at home—like last year when he got a severe beating from Gu Pinghan. Living in such cracks was far too arduous.
Gu Xiaodeng’s question crossed a boundary, but Su Mingya’s manner towards him remained amiable. “I do indeed enter the palace frequently. I’m not unfamiliar with the three imperial heirs whose ages are closest to mine. Over the past half year, I’ve encountered Jinyu in the palace far more times than outside. He is a flawless, comprehensive study companion; otherwise, the Crown Princess wouldn’t have selected him out of a thousand people back then. The courteous treatment he receives in the palace surpasses other study companions. It’s an unusual closeness.”
Gu Xiaodeng listened to the account of Gu Jinyu’s life in Su Mingya’s gentle narration. It sounded like that tree branch was extremely cautious in the palace; the higher the praise, the more difficult it implied. Beyond this, Gu Xiaodeng also sensed a subtle emotion in Su Mingya’s voice.
He didn’t bottle it up. When Su Mingya paused, he asked, “Young Master Su, do you envy him?”
Su Mingya’s expression shifted. The subtle, hidden emotion was suddenly caught, momentarily leaving him blank.
But Gu Xiaodeng had asked so frankly not to stab him in the heart. “I think, if Young Master Su and Jinyu swapped bodies, the frail him might not possess your current noble and pure aura, and the robust you might not achieve his current diligent accomplishments. As you are now, you are both the most unique. No one can replace either of you.”
Su Mingya looked at him somewhat dazedly, growing increasingly silent.
Stared at until his ears turned red, Gu Xiaodeng broke into a silly laugh. “Anyway, anyway, I just meant to say… there are a thousand kinds of people in the world, so naturally there are a thousand kinds of good. Young Master Su is wonderful just as he is. Wonderful enough to envy yourself. There’s no need to compare yourself to others on different paths. As the saying goes, comparing yourself to others only brings misery. Let’s not make things hard for ourselves.”
It took Su Mingya a moment to recover. He coughed lightly, then chuckled.
Gu Xiaodeng let go of his hand, resting his chin on his hands as he smiled brightly at him, knowing why he laughed. Happy, he swung his legs under the table.
Who knew Su Mingya’s cough wasn’t to cover embarrassment, but because his Asthma Affliction was truly acting up.
After watching him for a moment, Gu Xiaodeng realized something was wrong. Servants rushed to Su Mingya’s left side, while he flashed to Su Mingya’s right. The left side, practiced and steady, fed him pills. The right side, flustered and somewhat undignified, smoothed down his back, bending a knuckle to press the acupoints for easing breath as soon as they were found.
Su Mingya swallowed a pill bitter to the tip of his tongue. The moment his Adam’s apple bobbed, he was nearly startled into choking by the strange, intimate touch on his back. No audacious outsider had ever dared to touch him so intimately. His soul stiffened, yet his body relaxed under the acupressure.
Frowning, he turned his head to look at the brash and clumsy Gu Xiaodeng. And wasn’t Gu Xiaodeng looking right back at him?
Su Mingya stared into his bright, shiny eyes, his mind buzzing with the thought: This is simply taking liberties.
Gu Xiaodeng kept his gaze fixed on Su Mingya’s entire appearance, watching his subtle, light pants and tremors, from his quivering eyelashes to his Adam’s apple. His heart was utterly quiet, holding only a single thought.
A sickly beauty, pitiful and tragically beautiful. Astonishingly, breathtakingly good-looking.
I have never in my life seen such an astonishing picture.
