Chapter 49: “Chancellor, You Smell So Good” Part 3

Gu Huaiyu looked at the man chopping wood. For some reason, Pei Jingyi’s gaze had fallen upon the sliver of Gu Huaiyu’s calf peeking out from the deerskin.

There was nothing special about that skin—shrouded in rough fur and painted with the warm, rosy glow of the firelight—but it looked as translucent as fine crystal.

Pei Jingyi’s eyes were deep, glowing with a dark, unsettling light. Gu Huaiyu inwardly shook his head, dismissing him as the candidate.

Pei had the prestige and the means. The Northern Frontier Army was utterly devoted to him. He was the best choice to pull Great Chen back into a single thread.

But his ambition was too great.

Even now, just looking at a leg, his gaze was predatory. Whatever he was plotting in his heart was surely a dark secret.

Such a man would never be content to remain a subordinate forever. If given too much power and opportunity, he would only accelerate the death of the rotting leviathan that was Great Chen.

Neither Yuan Zhuo nor Pei Jingyi was suitable.

For a moment, Gu Huaiyu couldn’t find his “thread.”

As the night deepened, the wind howled outside, and the cold seeped through the cracks in the wooden planks.

Though the fire was bright, it was only a small orb of heat, warming only the immediate ground.

The rest of the cabin remained freezing. Gu Huaiyu huddled within the rough, pungent furs, resting his chin on his knees. His fingertips were still trembling from the cold.

Pei Jingyi lit an oil lamp and poked at the fire. “It will probably take a day or two for the Iron Eagle Guard to find us here.”

Gu Huaiyu narrowed his eyes, his gaze scrutinizing. “Since when is my Iron Eagle Guard so familiar with you? To the point that they can even track your methods of walking backward through the snow?”

Pei Jingyi tossed another log into the stove. “Since I’ve been acting as the Chancellor’s servant, I had to find something to do.”

“I inspected the vulnerabilities in the Iron Eagle Guard’s formations and established a set of signals known only to our own people.”

“Just like in the army—ambushes, breakouts, getting lost in the snow… we’ve rehearsed all these scenarios.”

Gu Huaiyu nodded slowly. A man with the talent of a Grand General was being wasted on the Iron Eagle Guard. “You even rehearsed walking backward?”

“Of course.”

Pei Jingyi spoke with certainty, arching an eyebrow at him. “They won’t immediately think we did the opposite of what’s expected, but since we’ve practiced it, they’ll find their way here eventually.”

Gu Huaiyu stopped questioning him. He pulled the fur blanket tighter and lowered his eyelids to stare at the dancing flames.

Suddenly, a large shadow fell over him. A tall, radiating body enveloped him from behind.

Pei Jingyi sat down behind him with his legs spread wide. His inner thighs pressed against Gu Huaiyu’s sides, his knees bent and feet planted, effectively trapping the man in his arms like a taut bow.

His hips pressed warmly against Gu Huaiyu’s lower back, his chest flush against the Chancellor’s spine until they were almost one.

Gu Huaiyu watched the fire, his eyes half-closed. He didn’t even look back. “You are overstepping.”

Pei Jingyi acted as if he hadn’t heard. He tightened his arms, pulling the other man deeper into his embrace. He buried his nose against the snow-white nape of the neck and took a deep breath.

“Chancellor, you smell so good.”

Gu Huaiyu felt a chill wash over him. He was too cold to muster the strength to scold him. The chill didn’t come from the wind whistling through the door—it was a cold that seeped from his very bones.

It was the precursor to an outbreak of the Cold Poison. It felt like thousands of fine needles slowly piercing his spine and burrowing into his internal organs.

He bit his lip, suppressing his discomfort as he whispered, “Since you know so much, tell me… who was it that tried to assassinate me today?”

Pei Jingyi looked down at him, testing the waters. “Doesn’t the Chancellor know his own enemies?”

“There are too many people in court who want my head to count.”

Gu Huaiyu closed his eyes, his breathing shaky. “How could I possibly remember them all?”

Pei Jingyi had to admit there was logic in that. His smile faded. “To know the exact hour you go to offer incense in disguise on the fifteenth of every month, and to have fostered a group of suicide soldiers for years…”

“This person doesn’t just know your schedule; they have sufficient patience and immense hatred.”

As he spoke, the person in his arms began to tremble violently. Pei Jingyi grabbed Gu Huaiyu’s face and turned it toward him. That face was now so pale it was almost transparent; his lips were colorless, and his wet eyelashes were fluttering.

The sight made Pei’s heart tighten, and he nearly cursed aloud.

“Are you that cold, Chancellor?” His voice was strained, half-teasing and half-serious. “Do you want me to turn around and hold you properly?”

For some reason, when Gu Huaiyu heard this, his tongue flicked over his lips. He gave a very slight, very soft nod.