Gu Xiaodeng stared blankly as this figure, conjured out of thin air, lifted his robes and seated himself in the page boy’s place. In his daze, he wondered if he was seeing an illusion. Only that morning, he had been musing about not knowing when he’d see him again—how was it that this person now appeared within arm’s reach?
Gu Jinyu had arrived so silently, and this seat was the farthest back. The other students had not even noticed that a twenty-sixth scion of nobility had appeared in the lecture hall.
Gu Jinyu was dressed in vermilion-ink robes with a golden sash, his hair still bound up in the high ponytail from the day before. When he wasn’t smiling, he was as cold and sharp as a blade fished out of icy water.
He turned his head toward Gu Xiaodeng and made a gesture for silence. Perhaps because Gu Xiaodeng’s stunned expression was amusing, the corner of his lips lifted, and the blade thawed.
Gu Xiaodeng came back to his senses. Overjoyed and surprised, he almost wanted to grab his sleeve, but Gu Jinyu was wearing a tight-sleeved riding outfit. So he settled for the next best thing and latched onto his sash, mouthing silently: “Why are you here?”
Gu Jinyu didn’t answer, just watched him.
At the lectern, the elder instructor was delivering an impassioned lecture: “The Four Decrees of Emperor Xuguang and the Lionheart Empress: First, the prohibition of trading and consuming tobacco. Second, the prohibition of circulating Army-Breaking Cannons. Third, the prohibition of inequality between men and women. Fourth, the prohibition of enmity against Foreign Tribes.”
Gu Xiaodeng caught the last line just in time. Subconsciously, he turned his head to look at Ge Dongchen in the first row up front, his mind inopportunely recalling those green eyes from last night.
“The Four Decrees continue to this day and remain in accordance with the current dynasty. The latter two should not be difficult for everyone to understand, but the first two are comparatively grand in scope. Fortunately, today we have welcomed an involved party who has personally experienced the first two decrees. With him here, we have a vivid enough example for everyone to understand.”
The old instructor smiled and stroked his graying beard, then pointed toward the back of the lecture hall: “Gu Jinyu, please come up and speak.”
The crowd in the front rows immediately turned their heads to look toward the back. A clamor arose when they saw Gu Jinyu truly present.
Gu Jinyu sat steadily in the spot of Gu Xiaodeng’s page boy. He clasped his hands and offered a distant student’s salute to the old instructor. “The lectern is where the sir teaches. It would be best if this student speaks from below.”
The old instructor smiled and stroked his graying beard, nodding in approval. The students in the lecture hall all turned around, their gazes focusing in unison on Gu Jinyu—and unavoidably catching sight of Gu Xiaodeng in the very last row as well.
Even Guan Yunji, who could be considered on fairly good terms with Gu Jinyu, was thinking furiously: Just what antics had Gu Xiaodeng pulled to make Gu Jinyu sit down beside him?
Suddenly bathed in the scrutiny of a crowd, Gu Xiaodeng was deeply uncomfortable. He hurriedly let go of the hand clutching Gu Jinyu’s sash and sat up straight in a daze, looking at him.
Gu Jinyu cast him a glance. He then clasped his hands and offered a level greeting to the other students, saying courteously, “Jinyu has the honor today of being schoolmates with you all. If my speech is poor in any way, I hope my schoolmates will be generous in their forgiveness.”
The students hurriedly returned the salute, though the familiar young masters in the first row merely waved a few fingers with a smile.
Gu Jinyu remained seated, sitting properly next to Gu Xiaodeng. He then began to vividly recount his experiences over the past three-odd months accompanying the army in the Outer States.
He had gone to Cangzhou in the Southwest. Not long after arriving, they had clashed with martial outlaws and bandits, and the conflict with the army broke out. The cause was tied to the Four Decrees’ prohibition of tobacco and Army-Breaking Cannons. The bandits had been secretly trafficking tobacco among the populace and attempting to circulate raw materials for Army-Breaking Cannons. After the army seized the goods, fierce fighting erupted between the two sides.
Gu Xiaodeng was closest to him. Even though Gu Jinyu’s tone was exceptionally calm, Gu Xiaodeng listened with his heart pounding in fear. Noticing Gu Jinyu’s suddenly shortened ponytail—now only reaching his neck—he guessed that during the fighting between the two forces, Gu Jinyu had encountered the bandits as well. Most likely, an enemy blade had sheared his hair crown, cutting off half of his hair.
He listened and took notes. Yesterday, he had only spoken a few words with him. Now, hearing Gu Jinyu speak at length, he noticed that Gu Jinyu’s voice had changed. It was a bit lower than before—clear, cool, and slightly hoarse. Its sound inexplicably resembled the feathers shed by Blossom Ashes, giving one an itchy sort of feeling.
Gu Jinyu emphatically described the dangers of tobacco trafficking in Cangzhou, and then mentioned: “It is an iron law of the Jin Kingdom: any who enter official service and become court officials must not touch tobacco. Violators will lightly be dismissed from office; in heavy cases, their entire clan will be imprisoned, with calamity extending to three generations of their nine clans—”
From the front row, Guan Yunji abruptly shuddered without warning.
Gu Jinyu spoke for a long while before finishing his part as the “example.” Finally, he offered another level salute. “The Four Decrees are of profound significance. I hope all my schoolmates will cherish their wings, conduct themselves with rectitude and dignity, and not abandon the days to come.”
The students hurriedly returned the level salute. Only Gu Xiaodeng, who had been listening as if entranced by a storyteller, reacted as Gu Jinyu finished speaking by clapping his hands together. He opened his mouth, about to cheer a hearty “Bravo!”—but realizing the setting was wrong, his open mouth simply took in a large gulp of air, and he swallowed the “Bravo” back into his stomach.
Ge Dongchen laughed out loud from the front row. At the same time, Su Mingya cleared his throat lightly. After clearing it, he began to clap. The entire hall then followed suit and applauded with great vigor, the grand swell of sound covering up Gu Xiaodeng’s comical blunder.
With that, Gu Xiaodeng happily continued clapping openly and righteously. A summer breeze gusted through the back door, rustling the notebook lying at the corner of his desk. In that notebook, besides the record of Gu Jinyu’s account, there was also a heartfelt summary he had jotted down on a whim:
“Tianming 13th Year, midsummer, May. Moved by Jinyu’s eloquent talk. Gu Senqing—truly like a forest deep and unknown, like a frost blade cold and keen. Born on the same year, same month, same day as me, yet worlds apart from me.”
The line “Born on the same year, same month, same day” had been heavily crossed out.
After the morning lecture ended, a swarm of students flocked over to converse with Gu Jinyu. Afraid of both being an eyesore and delaying Gu Jinyu’s socializing, Gu Xiaodeng pulled his legs up and slipped out through the back door.
…The greater reason was that his stomach was growling fiercely from hunger, and he was in a hurry to eat lunch.
Brothers had plenty of chances to meet. A rumbling stomach could not be delayed.
The Restraint Pendant at his waist jangled and clattered noisily with his hurried steps. The sound grated on Gu Xiaodeng’s ears, so he muttered under his breath and slowed down. He reached out to untie it, but the knot Feng’en had tied was too unique—not technically a dead knot, but the next thing to it. He couldn’t undo it at all, so he had no choice but to grip it and walk stiffly, arm and leg on the same side.
He hadn’t gone far when he heard a faint cough. His ears pricked up sensitively, and turning around, he saw Su Mingya walking under a parasol.
Every time Su Mingya appeared in his field of vision, he looked like an immortal painting untouched by worldly dust.
At that moment, the others were probably all busy crowding around Gu Jinyu. There were no other pedestrians on the main path. Su Mingya walked while coughing, a figure of frail bones standing aloof from the world. Just watching, Gu Xiaodeng feared the May summer sun would melt him away—and if he melted, he might just float back up to the heavens.
Gu Xiaodeng ignored his rumbling belly and couldn’t help but walk over. Afraid of disturbing this celestial being, he called out softly, “Young Master Su.”
Su Mingya was lowering his head, covering his mouth, muffling a stuffy cough. Hearing the voice, he lifted his head. His complexion was pallid and unwell, and the area around his eyes was flushed red from coughing, tinted as if smudged with rouge—utterly lovely.
Gu Xiaodeng saw that his page boy was solely focused on holding the parasol, so he went over and extended his hand. “Young Master Su, are you alright? Let me massage the pressure points for you. Once your breaths are smooth, they won’t be this labored.”
Su Mingya lowered his eyes, looking at the hand he reached out. Though the main path was now empty, it was still an open public place. Enjoying pleasant conversation with Gu Xiaodeng in his own Bamboo Courtyard was one thing; openly befriending him in public was another.
But Gu Jinyu’s appearance today, and his unusual behavior, had changed his perspective.
Su Mingya lifted his eyes to look at him and smiled apologetically. “Then I will trouble you, Xiaodeng.”
“No trouble at all.” Gu Xiaodeng grinned and took Su Mingya’s arm. His other hand reached around to Su Mingya’s back, feeling for the acupressure points to knead and press. “I’m the one causing trouble. The sun is so bright—I’ve come to share the shade of your parasol, Young Master Su.”
Su Mingya lifted his eyes to look at him. The parasol wasn’t large enough. Gu Xiaodeng’s fair, luminous face was split into light and dark halves by the sunlight. He was grinning his silly grin, not even noticing the temperature difference on his skin.
This bright, open fondness was something he only showed in front of him.
Right then, Gu Xiaodeng’s stomach let out a rather loud, drawn-out “growl.” Su Mingya couldn’t help a light laugh. Then immediately after, he saw behind Gu Xiaodeng, in the distance, a figure in vermilion-ink robes appear. Though far away, he knew: Gu Jinyu was watching this little dolt, whose face was now flushed red with embarrassment.
Su Mingya’s breathing eased. Lowering his head, he whispered into Gu Xiaodeng’s ear: “Xiaodeng, thank you for your effort. I feel much better now. Since you’re hungry, and my Bamboo Courtyard is the closest to the academy, why not come to my place for lunch?”
Gu Xiaodeng’s clear eyes instantly lit up. Delight radiated from him without pretense. “Alright!”
“Shall we go then?”
“Yes!”
Gu Xiaodeng stopped gripping his Restraint Pendant. Let it clatter if it must. Let his stomach be flat if it was. He only focused on trotting along beside Su Mingya.
Far off in the other direction, Gu Jinyu narrowed his eyes and watched until he could no longer see Gu Xiaodeng and Su Mingya’s silhouettes. Then he turned his head and asked the two fellows beside him, “Since when did he get so close to Su Mingya?”
Ge Dongchen laughed. “How would I know? In this entire academy, I’m the one who can get closest to your little cousin, of course. I know nothing about him. Rarely have I ever come within three feet.”
Nearby, Guan Yunji heard this and cursed furiously in his heart: Three feet?! Last night, you clearly wished you could have stuck your tongue all the way in!
