Chapter 51: Under His Command Part 2

Gu Huaiyu lowered his eyes, a cold smirk playing on his lips. “I am going to count to ten. If you aren’t standing there with your clothes in order when I finish, you can find out for yourself what happens.”

Pei Jingyi’s tall frame shuddered with a thrill that bordered on terror. Yet he couldn’t stop; if anything, he moved even faster than before.

Gu Huaiyu had no idea how excited the man was. He coldly spat out a number. “Ten.”

“Nine.”

“Eight.”

Pei Jingyi had grown up in military camps; at his age and with his vigor, he had done this countless times. He could finish with his eyes closed, but never had it felt so uncontrollable, so exhilarating. Every number Gu Huaiyu spoke felt like a branding iron against his spine, making his entire body tremble.

“Six.”

“Five.”

Pei Jingyi’s breathing was completely shattered. His vision blurred from overstimulation. He had never imagined that being ordered around like this—having his base instincts controlled by a superior—could be so intoxicating.

“One.”

The moment the final number fell, he arched his back violently. Every muscle in his body pulled taut as a groan of near-agony escaped his throat.

Before Gu Huaiyu even turned around, his nose caught the heavy, musky scent in the air. His face darkened instantly, and he frowned in disgust. “Reeking.”

Pei Jingyi lay on the floor, his muscles still twitching slightly from the afterglow. It was too good… a thousand times better than the hurried releases in the barracks.

A satisfied smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. His voice was utterly wrecked. “The Chancellor isn’t stinking. You must be fragrant.”

Gu Huaiyu had never heard such a disgusting “compliment.” He clenched his fingers inside his sleeves. If Pei Jingyi weren’t so useful, he would have taken that head off and used it as a trinket long ago.

“Get out!”

Pei Jingyi’s heart hammered against his ribs. Hearing that voice, he remembered how he had been forced to finish—counted down, commanded, and suppressed. Just the thought of it made his breathing heavy again.

He pushed himself off the ground slowly, adjusting his clothes to hide the lingering “trouble.” Just as he stepped over the threshold, he closed the door behind him and walked into the shadows of the wooden hut. Leaning his back against the wall, he ripped his belt open again.

God damn, he’s going to be the death of me…

***

Just as Pei Jingyi expected, the Iron Eagle Guard finally located the hidden hut in the woods by noon the next day.

Yun Niang was the first to burst inside, her face pale with fright. Seeing Gu Huaiyu sitting calmly on the bed, her eyes reddened as she rushed forward, nearly throwing herself into his arms. “Lord Chancellor, you scared me half to death…”

Their relationship was more like siblings than master and servant. Gu Huaiyu patted her shoulder, his tone as calm as ever. “What’s the rush? Am I not perfectly fine?”

Yun Niang looked him over. Though his clothes were rumpled and his hair was as white as snow, his eyes were clear, and his complexion was actually better than usual. There was even a hint of color in his pale cheeks. She finally let out a sigh of relief.

She quickly turned to give orders. “Quickly! Bring the Chancellor’s boots and cloak!”

Outside the hut, the Iron Eagle Guards gathered. They were all covered in snow, and seeing Gu Huaiyu unharmed, a suppressed sense of relief washed over them. After all, when they had found his abandoned boots and cloak at the end of the mountain path, they had feared the worst.

Gu Huaiyu sat motionless on the bed while Yun Niang knelt before him, putting on clean socks and boots. Another attendant carefully brushed and bound his long white hair, securing it with a jade pin.

Someone else handed him a hand warmer, and layers of fur cloaks were draped over him. In an instant, the man with the body of a chronic invalid regained the imposing aura of the Lord Chancellor.

Pei Jingyi leaned against the doorframe, his arms crossed, watching him with burning eyes.

Gu Huaiyu didn’t give him a single glance. He looked at the commander of the Iron Eagle Guard and lifted his chin slightly.

The commander dropped to one knee, bowing his head. “There were twenty-three assassins.”

“Twenty were killed on the spot. The remaining three swallowed poison hidden in their mouths. We failed to extract the identity of the mastermind. I have failed in my duty and beg for punishment.”

Gu Huaiyu’s fingertip tapped the gilded exterior of the hand warmer. Not even his brow twitched. “Twenty-three assassins, and you couldn’t keep a single one alive…”

He suddenly let out a soft chuckle, but the sound made the commander’s spine go rigid. Cold sweat soaked his undershirt.

“Forgive me, my Lord!” The commander slammed his forehead against the floor. “It was my incompetence!”

Gu Huaiyu adjusted his cloak, his jade-white fingers emerging from the mink fur as he waved them dismissively. “They are all dead; what use is punishing you?”

He paused, then gave a faint, chilling command. “Drag the bodies to the vegetable market. Skin them and slice their flesh. Let their allies see what happens to those who sell their lives for their masters.”

The commander immediately accepted the order. “Yes! I will see to it at once!”

Watching him like this, Pei Jingyi felt an unbearable itch in his heart. He couldn’t help but lick his canine tooth.

Gu Huaiyu rose slowly, his mink cloak trailing on the floor. An attendant rushed forward to lift the hem of his robes, ensuring the fur wouldn’t touch the snowy slush. Another servant laid out a gold-woven carpet, thick and soft, stretching all the way to the steps outside.

Outside the door, a black, gold-painted carriage topped with a carved dragon motif was already waiting.

Gu Huaiyu reached the carriage and suddenly paused. He finally turned to look at a certain someone.

Pei Jingyi stepped forward and knelt in the snow, offering his back as a stepping stool for the carriage.

Gu Huaiyu wasn’t going to let him off so easily. He leaned down and whispered into the man’s ear, “Pei Du, care to guess how I’m going to play with you?”

Pei Jingyi leaned in, his eyes eager as he licked his lips. “How does the Chancellor want to play?”

Gu Huaiyu reached out and grabbed the carriage reins. The reins were made of top-quality oxhide, soaked in tung oil to make them incredibly tough. With a flick of his wrist, he looped them directly around Pei Jingyi’s waist and yanked them tight!

“My Lord?!” Yun Niang gasped.

The Iron Eagle Guards turned pale with shock, but no one dared step forward to stop him.

Pei Jingyi let out a muffled grunt as he was constricted. Instead of hiding, he grabbed the reins and wrapped them around himself twice more, letting the rough leather sink deeper into his flesh. “Is the Chancellor going to walk me like a beast?”

“You can drag me however you like, Chancellor. But you have to let me lie down. It doesn’t matter if my backside gets rubbed raw…”