Chapter 29: I Am Favoring You, Why Have You Not Expressed Your Gratitude? Part 2

Even in a kneeling position, his tall frame carried an oppressive aura. He shifted forward a few steps until he was at Gu Huaiyu’s feet, his broad shoulders nearly brushing against the Chancellor’s knees.

Gu Huaiyu didn’t flinch. Instead, he leaned back slightly with a relaxed grace and rested the sole of his boot on Pei Jingyi’s thigh. He applied a moderate pressure through the thin silk of the General’s robes, slowly and deliberately grinding the dust from his sole into the fabric.

“General Pei, do these knees of yours only kneel for the dead, or do they only kneel between the legs of beauties?” Gu Huaiyu drawled. “Hmm? Why are you kneeling at my feet now?”

Pei Jingyi subtly shifted his knees a few inches apart, using the movement to mask a dangerous surge of adrenaline. He looked up, the darkening shadows in his eyes threatening to consume the man before him.

Seeing his silence, Gu Huaiyu leaned in closer, pressing him. “What? Has the silver-tongued General Pei turned mute?”

He was so close that the small brown mole at the corner of his eye seemed to tremble with his lashes under the candlelight. Lower still were those moist, soft lips, their curves incredibly delicate. Pei Jingyi’s gaze locked onto him with blunt, unshielded intensity.

Though Pei Jingyi often appeared unrestrained and debauched, he was not actually a man driven by lust. Having climbed his way up from the military camps, he was fluent in the crude banter of soldiers, but he had never truly been moved by anyone. To remain untainted in the murky waters of Great Chen, he had relied on two words: self-restraint.

But now, those two words had suddenly lost their power.

“Is Your Lordship not a beauty?”

The moment those words escaped his lips, Pei Jingyi was surprised by the raspiness of his own voice.

Gu Huaiyu’s eyes narrowed into a dangerous slit. He looked down at the kneeling man. “What did General Pei just say?”

Pei Jingyi’s throat tightened. He licked his dry lips. “I asked… is Your Lordship not a beauty?”

How could the Lord Chancellor allow others to comment on his appearance? Gu Huaiyu had given him a chance, but a fool who couldn’t take a hint needed to be taught a lesson. With a sharp snap, his finger flicked the lamp cover aside.

The candlelight flickered across his jade-like face. He slowly tilted the candlestick, letting a drop of scalding wax fall onto Pei Jingyi’s sharp jawline.

“A few years ago, a blind official from the Hanlin Academy said this Chancellor possessed a face of jade and lips of vermilion.” He raised the candlestick an inch higher, and a drop of wax hit Pei Jingyi’s cheek like a bead of blood. “I had his tongue pulled out and fed to the dogs.”

What Gu Huaiyu loathed most was the word “beauty.” Those who lacked vision only saw his appearance and forgot that he was the Master of the Chancellery—the one man below only the Emperor, holding the reins of the central government. They forgot that with a single stroke of his pen, he could grant titles or command the slaughter of thousands. To them, he was just “jade and vermilion.” It wasn’t praise; it was a provocation, an attempt to use “beauty” to diminish his “authority.”

“However, the General’s tongue…”

The wax meandered down Pei Jingyi’s face, but the General did not move. He simply stared straight at Gu Huaiyu, his gaze burning with startling intensity.

Gu Huaiyu set the candlestick back on the table and gently replaced the gauze cover, no longer looking at Pei Jingyi. “I am still reluctant to cut it out. I have a use for it.”

Only then did he glance at the General. That handsome face, now mottled by the heat of the wax, showed a tragic flush where the skin had been scorched. Small blisters were beginning to seep blood along his jawline, yet those eyes remained fixed on Gu Huaiyu.

“I am favoring you. Why have you not expressed your gratitude?”

Pei Jingyi tilted his face up, his eyes never wavering. His voice was utterly hoarse. “My thanks to Your Lordship for his… favor.”

“Get out.” Gu Huaiyu raised his leg and kicked him in the abdomen. He clearly felt a tremor go through the man. “I have no need for you to keep watch.”

Pei Jingyi stood abruptly, his hand pressing down on the hem of his robe. This man, who was usually as upright as a pine, stooped his back slightly for the first time. He even stumbled half a step as he turned. He left quickly, vanishing out the door in an instant.

Gu Huaiyu simply assumed he was being sensible. If he had lingered any longer, the wax would have dripped on more than just his face.

***

The fine snow fell all night. As the first light of dawn broke, Yun Niang entered the bedchamber carrying a copper kettle. The room was already toasty. Behind two layers of screens in front of the soft couch, several young maids moved gracefully and quietly, helping Gu Huaiyu dress.

Yun Niang draped a mink-lined cloak over his shoulders and reported softly, “Top Scholar Xie is still kneeling outside the door. He hasn’t moved all night.”

Gu Huaiyu nodded slightly and patted the back of her hand, indicating he was aware.