After the Pitiful Little One Seduced the Feudal Big Daddy - Chapter 5

Actually, his brother had always been like this cold and curt. Pei Xuan had long since grown accustomed to it. But this time, something felt different. Pei Xuan couldn’t be sure, as his memories of his brother had always been fragmented.

From the time he could remember, his brother was rarely at home. When Pei Xuan was five and his brother fifteen, the elder Pei had already entered official service in Yu Province. For a long time afterward, his brother was constantly moved across the country. He only returned home during the New Year to report his duties, and even then, he would stay for only a few days before heading back to the local provinces.

Later, when Pei Xuan was eight, his brother finally returned to the capital. Yet he spent every day buried in the affairs of the court—attending audiences, participating in politics, and working from dawn until late into the night. By the time Pei Xuan was ten, his brother had become the Chancellor and moved directly into the Chancellor’s Manor, rarely returning to their private Pei Residence. Even when he did visit, he would barely say a few words to their grandmother before rushing off again due to various government affairs.

It was only in recent years, as their grandmother’s health worsened, that his brother increased his time at home to care for and comfort her. Even so, he spent most of that time working in the study, making it difficult for him to be close to Pei Xuan or the Dowager.

Reflecting on every childhood meeting, Pei Xuan felt a sense of distance. He also felt a lack of understanding he didn’t understand why his brother had to be so tirelessly busy. It wasn’t until a few years ago, in his teens, that he finally learned the reason behind his brother’s relentless work: their father’s death in battle and their mother’s subsequent suicide in grief.

Yet, he still didn’t quite realize what the loss of their parents truly meant for them, for the Pei clan of Hedong, and for the entire Wei Dynasty. It was only last year, listening to the various achievements of his brother from the mouths of the Academy’s masters and scholars, that Pei Xuan began to understand the sheer weight of the responsibility that had fallen onto his brother’s shoulders overnight.

The commander had fallen, and Yu Province was in chaos; the Pei clan had declined, and the court was in turmoil; the northern tribes were watching like tigers, and the peace of the nation was at stake.

…Perhaps any other person would have been unable to bear it. Only his brother only Pei Yanzhi had succeeded.

Pei Xuan looked at his brother. The bright candlelight from behind cast several shadows across Pei Yanzhi’s face, making his features appear even deeper. His brow remained motionless, yet he looked as if he were frowning, radiating a natural majesty that commanded instinctive awe. Coupled with the intuition that his brother’s tone was different this time, Pei Xuan felt a surge of panic.

Fortunately, admitting fault was his greatest strength. Pei Xuan quickly collected himself, knelt beside his brother, lowered his head, and whispered, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have lied.”

He stole a glance at his brother’s expression, carefully defending himself: “I was afraid you would be angry… so when I saw you reading Xie Yunqing’s essay, and remembered bumping into him when I left the Academy, I said we were friends because he left a strong impression on me.”

After he spoke, Pei Xuan saw his brother’s brow truly furrow. The temperature in the study immediately dropped several degrees. Pei Xuan shivered and hurried to explain in more detail: “I know you must admire scholars like Xie Yunqing…”

But just as he started, his brother’s frown deepened. Pei Xuan realized this wasn’t what his brother wanted to hear, but his brain couldn’t quite figure out what to say instead. He simply decided to tell the whole story of bumping into Xie Yunqing, start to finish.

He thought he was just rambling in desperation, but unexpectedly, his brother’s brow began to smooth out. However, that strange chill in the study didn’t dissipate.

Pei Xuan pressed on: “I saw him clutching a bundle, looking quite despondent. I don’t know if something happened to him. Also, he seemed to be in pain from where I hit him, but he endured it. I don’t know if it’s serious…”

His brother, though sitting, was still taller than him. He looked down at Pei Xuan with deep, dark eyes that held a trace of coldness. This nearly scared Pei Xuan to death. After a while, he tentatively spoke again: “I’ll take him to see a doctor tomorrow…”

His brother neither agreed nor disagreed. But Pei Xuan felt he had finally found the right direction. He squinted at his brother and said cautiously, “And I’ll ask him what exactly happened…”

His brother slowly withdrew his gaze. Pei Xuan felt a spark of joy and immediately pushed his luck: “And I’ll ask him if he’s willing to be my friend!”

His brother stopped looking at him entirely and returned to the essay, acting as if he wouldn’t acknowledge him again. But to Pei Xuan, this was a massive reprieve—he knew it meant his brother wouldn’t pursue the matter further. Pei Xuan scrambled to his feet, bowed hastily, and bolted out the door like a puff of smoke.

The next day was the horse-riding and archery class at the Academy. For most students, this was the best day next to their holidays, as they weren’t confined to lecture halls or libraries but could practice freely on the training grounds.

But for Xie Yunqing, this class was anything but free; it was an ordeal. Yu Chen often sought him out for trouble during this time. And he couldn’t avoid him.

The Imperial Academy consisted of four colleges: Chongzhi, Lunxue, Bowen, and Daizhi. New students started in Chongzhi. After the annual exams, those with top scores entered Bowen, those in the middle went to Lunxue, and those at the bottom remained in Chongzhi. Both of the latter had to keep testing until they reached Bowen; those who failed to advance after three exams were expelled.

Once in Bowen, daily essays and conduct were factored into the final assessment. Those who passed could enter Daizhi, granting them eligibility for government selection exams. Since the exams hadn’t happened yet, both Xie Yunqing and Yu Chen were in Chongzhi. Unlike other classes, this one wasn’t divided by dormitory; the entire college practiced together.

Thus, every archery class, Xie Yunqing was certain to encounter Yu Chen—unless Yu Chen didn’t show up.

Xie Yunqing hid in a corner of the training ground, trembling with fear. He prayed that Yu Chen wouldn’t come today or would have no interest in bothering him. After about fifteen minutes, there was no sign or sound of Yu Chen. Xie Yunqing gradually lowered his guard.

He peeked out from his corner and cautiously scanned his surroundings. Once he confirmed it was safe, he crept to the very edge of the archery range, grabbed a bow and arrow from the bamboo basket, and tried to recall the techniques from his books. He worked hard to hit the bullseye or simply to get the arrow to fly.

Archery was Xie Yunqing’s weakest subject. The Academy had no dedicated master for it, and unlike other students, he neither had a lack of interest (which would make his failure irrelevant) nor family elders to teach him. He didn’t want to give up, but he had no one to guide him. He could only learn from books.

But archery was different from writing essays. No matter how much he practiced, he saw no improvement. He held the bow, trying time and again. The arrows either fell a few steps away or simply hung off the string after a few wobbles.

On his last attempt, he seemingly used too much force. A sharp, violent pain suddenly exploded in his left shoulder the exact spot where Pei Xuan had hit him yesterday.

Last night, because he was preoccupied with the noble and the pain hadn’t been that severe, he had forgotten to check the injury, let alone apply medicine.

“Don’t get discouraged. You’ve just placed your hand in the wrong spot.”

Just as Xie Yunqing lowered his hand and bit his lip to endure the pain, a familiar voice sounded from ahead. He looked up, startled. Standing before him was Pei Xuan.

Knowing it was archery class, Pei Xuan had come to the grounds early to find Xie Yunqing. Logically, with Xie Yunqing’s looks, he should have been easy to spot even in a crowd. But strangely, Pei Xuan searched for a long time without finding him.

Did he not come today? Just as Pei Xuan was about to give up, his peripheral vision caught a small figure emerging from a very remote corner. Even across a distance of a third of the field, Pei Xuan was certain it was Xie Yunqing. In the entire Academy—or the entire capital—there was no one else who looked like him, someone so beautiful that simply standing there felt like they were glowing.

Pei Xuan suddenly remembered a comment he’d heard once: If not for Xie Yunqing’s tendency to hide and his cold, aloof personality that avoided conversation, people would be lining up from the Academy to the city gates just to be near him.

That comment had been somewhat frivolous. Pei Xuan himself had never been interested in the “male-male romances” popular in elite circles, so those words hadn’t left a special impression. It wasn’t until today that it dawned on him: Xie Yunqing actually seems quite similar to his brother. They shared the same outstanding looks and otherworldly aura, as well as the same icy, unapproachable demeanor.

Thinking of his brother made Pei Xuan shiver. But he hoped Xie Yunqing wouldn’t be as difficult to get along with. After all, he had promised his brother he would befriend him. With an unknown sense of trepidation, Pei Xuan walked toward him.

After witnessing Xie Yunqing’s repeated failures at the target, Pei Xuan finally found an excuse to approach. If nothing else, he was very good at archery—his brother had taught him personally.

Without waiting for a reaction, Pei Xuan familiarly took the bow and arrow from Xie Yunqing’s hands. He turned, drew the bow, and whoosh the arrow hit the bullseye.

“Did you see where my hand was?” Pei Xuan turned back with a touch of pride he couldn’t hide, but his expression turned to horror the moment he saw Xie Yunqing’s face. “What’s wrong? Does it hurt somewhere?”

Pei Xuan dropped the bow and rushed over, noticing Xie Yunqing’s left shoulder trembling slightly. His voice softened as he realized, “It’s the spot where I hit you, isn’t it?”

Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed Xie Yunqing’s wrist and began pulling him toward the exit. “It’s my fault for forgetting. I should take you to a doctor first.”

Xie Yunqing was still in pain and his reaction was slow. By the time he came to his senses, he had been pulled a long way and was only a few steps from leaving the grounds.

However, at that exact moment, Yu Chen walked in.

Seeing Xie Yunqing and Pei Xuan together, Yu Chen froze. The sight seemed to challenge his understanding of the world. But he quickly recovered his usual overbearing, arrogant demeanor.

“And here I was wondering why you dared to keep running even after hearing my voice.” Yu Chen looked down at Pei Xuan’s hand on Xie Yunqing’s wrist and gave a disdainful sneer. “So, you’ve managed to climb onto Pei Xuan’s lap, have you?”

Pei Xuan frowned. “Yu Chen, what nonsense are you spouting!”

Ignoring him, Yu Chen strolled up to Xie Yunqing. He leaned down and whispered into the boy’s ear, “Choosing him is worse than choosing me. After all…”

“I am not a useless waste.”

Pei Xuan suddenly shoved Yu Chen. “Who are you calling a waste!”

Yu Chen was pushed back two steps. A flash of coldness appeared in his narrow eyes. After smoothing his collar, he looked directly at Pei Xuan and mocked, “So you actually heard it clearly this time? I’m talking about you, Pei Xuan. The useless waste of the Pei clan of Hedong.”

Pei Xuan’s chest heaved violently. He let go of Xie Yunqing and took a step toward Yu Chen.

“What, you want to hit me?” Yu Chen continued to taunt him.

Pei Xuan stopped in his tracks, gritting his teeth. “You think I don’t dare?” But before Yu Chen could reply, Pei Xuan calmed himself down. He turned slightly away, no longer looking at Yu Chen, and heaved a great sigh. “Forget it. I won’t lower myself to your level. Cui Ji said it right you’re a pitiable person too.”

The previous confrontation hadn’t changed Yu Chen’s expression much, but Pei Xuan’s sudden concession caused his face to turn ugly in an instant. Before the words had even fully landed, Yu Chen lunged forward and swung his fist toward Pei Xuan.

“Hiss—”

The sound of pain followed the sound of the wind. But it wasn’t from Pei Xuan.

Xie Yunqing had thrown himself in front of Pei Xuan. He took the full force of Yu Chen’s fist with his left shoulder.