“Hmm? I could have that with the Chan—”
“You could have such a deep bond with His Majesty.”
Gu Huaiyu looked up from the reports, his gaze sharp with a warning, playful smile. “His Majesty is currently isolated and without aid. If General Pei were to pledge his loyalty now, you would become the Emperor’s sole pillar of support.”
Pei Jingyi was revolted by the suggestion. He leaned against the desk, looming over the Chancellor. “Why must you provoke me so?”
“Did I?”
Gu Huaiyu picked up a new report. As his eyes scanned the page, his expression suddenly froze. “…He actually gave it up?”
Pei Jingyi leaned in to look. It was a report from the border: Eastern Liao had repatriated the Great Chen officials they had captured over the years. Furthermore, they were returning the Annual Brides along with the children they had borne in captivity.
Even more shocking was that the special envoy had presented a map of the northwestern horse pastures.
Gu Huaiyu couldn’t quite grasp Yelü Chi’s intentions. He frowned slightly.
But could Pei Jingyi not guess?
He gazed down at Gu Huaiyu’s face, letting out a low, mocking chuckle. “With powerful enemies stirring without and internal threats eyeing you within…”
If he didn’t claim this transcendental man soon, he feared the pack of hungry wolves would snatch him away.
Gu Huaiyu set the report aside and rested his chin on his hand, lost in thought. “Now that the internal threats have been purged, no faction in court can oppose me. Next, we must settle the external troubles.”
His mind was filled only with the fate of the nation. He pushed the box aside. “The wars that must be fought will be fought. Those returned by Eastern Liao need to be received and resettled.”
“Have Shen Jun come see me.”
Pei Jingyi couldn’t stand the gloomy Shen Jun, but he knew the priorities. For matters this tedious and detailed, Shen Jun was the only choice.
He turned to leave, stopping a servant in the hall. “Go, invite Lord Shen over.”
Before Shen Jun could arrive, however, the hot-blooded Top Scholar could no longer restrain himself. He burst through the gates and stormed toward the study.
Xie Shaoling walked with such speed that his wide sleeves snapped in the wind.
Behind him, Liu Erlang followed, panting for breath. “Lord Xie, please slow down! I must announce you—”
Xie Shaoling didn’t stop. He marched to the study door, only to be blocked by a tall, imposing figure.
Pei Jingyi leaned against the doorframe, slowly looking the boy up and down.
Xie Shaoling’s cheeks were stained with dust, and his eyes were rimmed with red. He looked nothing like the refined, noble prodigy of the past.
He had no time for Pei Jingyi’s games. He stared past him at Gu Huaiyu, his voice dry and stubborn. “Chancellor, I have something to say.”
Gu Huaiyu looked up from his reports and made a slight gesture with his hand.
Pei Jingyi stepped aside, tilting his head. Seeing Xie Shaoling’s emotional state, he tossed out a remark: “I’ll be right outside. Call me if you need anything.”
The moment the doors closed, the light from outside was cut off, leaving only the two of them in the room.
Xie Shaoling stood in the center of the study like a solitary crane. His eyes were bloodshot, and his Adam’s apple bobbed as he struggled to speak, yet he remained silent.
Gu Huaiyu set his papers down and sat up. “Are you here to ask about the Treatise on Statecraft?”
He was considering how to explain the matter when the youth suddenly lunged forward—
Thud!
Xie Shaoling dropped heavily to his knees. He buried his face in the folds of Gu Huaiyu’s crimson robes, his voice muffled and trembling. “I knew long ago that the Treatise on Statecraft was not written by Qin Zijin. I do not blame you for keeping it from me.”
Gu Huaiyu raised an eyebrow in surprise. If he wasn’t here for that, why the look of a jilted lover?
He reached out to pull Xie Shaoling up by the arm. “What has happened? This Chancellor will see justice done for you.”
Xie Shaoling gripped the edge of the robes tightly. He took several sharp breaths, his head still bowed. “Do you remember the day of the Qionglin Banquet…?”
At his reminder, Gu Huaiyu finally remembered—the day Xie Shaoling had petitioned the Emperor to marry “Master Plum.”
He couldn’t help but chuckle, reaching out to ruffle the boy’s dark hair. “What were you planning back then?”
Xie Shaoling suddenly grabbed his hand. He used his sleeve to fiercely wipe his red eyes. When he looked up, his gaze was burning like a torch. “I was serious.”
He pulled Gu Huaiyu’s hand and pressed it against his own chest. Beneath the youth’s thin frame, his heart was pounding frantically, as if it were trying to shatter his ribs.
“This heart…” Xie Shaoling looked him in the eye, his voice wavering but resolute. “May Heaven and Earth be my witness.”
Gu Huaiyu’s fingertips remained pressed against that violently thudding heart.
He narrowed his eyes, his gaze shifting between the boy’s bloodshot eyes and the robes he had crumpled with his grip.
Witness what?
His sincere desire to marry Master Plum?
For a moment, he didn’t understand the logic behind it, and a look of confusion crossed his face.
Then, a moment later, he jerked his hand back, his brow furrowing deeply. Was Xie Shaoling a “cut sleeve” as well?!
I gave you food and shelter out of kindness, yet you want to undo my belt?!
Seeing this reaction, Xie Shaoling’s face turned deathly pale. Yet he remained stubborn, looking up at him. “I would never dare desecrate you. I only spoke because I heard rumors of General Pei and…”
How could Gu Huaiyu not know what Pei Jingyi had been saying? He felt a mix of shock and fury. He was shocked that there were two men harboring such “hobbies” around him, and furious that Xie Shaoling was actually plotting to marry him.
On the surface, however, his expression remained frozen, as if he were in a daze, revealing nothing.
After a moment, he let out a slow, soft breath. His gaze returned to its usual chilling calm.
He reached out, his finger hooking under Xie Shaoling’s trembling chin, tilting it up as if inspecting a piece of curios. “I am aware of your feelings.”
He slowly traced the boy’s jawline. “However, romantic entanglements are nothing more than a decoration to me. If I am to truly value you, it will never be because of your ‘love.'”
Xie Shaoling’s breath hitched. He stared at Gu Huaiyu, unmoving.
“If you truly wish to gain my favor, then show me your worth. Go and accomplish a few great deeds for me.”
Gu Huaiyu leaned in close, whispering casually into his ear. “When the time comes, I shall judge for myself whether this heart of yours—the one ‘Heaven and Earth may witness’—is truly worth a second look.”
What youth wouldn’t be galvanized by such words from the one they loved?
Xie Shaoling felt as if liquid fire had been poured into his chest. His blood boiled, and even the redness in his eyes faded.
He wiped his face hard with his sleeve, suddenly filled with an inexhaustible energy. His eyes sparkled as he looked at Gu Huaiyu. “I shall go to the Bureau of Military Affairs at once! I will make you see the truth of my heart!”
