My Frail and Vicious Little Husband - Chapter 4

When Su Ce awoke, he found the room shrouded in dim light. He wanted to get up but felt sore all over, though thankfully, he had regained some strength.

Outside the window, the ceaseless pitter-patter of rain tapped not only against the green tiles but also, it seemed, upon the parts of Su Ce’s heart that were most afraid.

He got up wrapped in his quilt, his voice still slightly hoarse as he called out, “Yushu.”

Perhaps because someone had been waiting outside the hall for a long time, the moment he heard Su Ce’s voice, Fu Ning brought in a bowl of fish porridge.

Su Ce took the steaming bowl, stirred it a few times with a spoon, and took a cautious sip. Perhaps it was because he had been ill, but he felt the taste of his favorite fish porridge was unexpectedly bland, not at all like before.

He drank it slowly for a quarter of an hour, leaving half the bowl, then looked up at Fu Ning: “I can’t eat any more.”

Fu Ning gave a soft acknowledgment, took it from Su Ce’s hands, and turned to present the other bowl of medicinal soup. Seeing the latter’s face full of resistance, he watched as Su Ce curled up on the bed, turning his back on him.

“My Lord, it is time to take your medicine.” Seeing no movement from Su Ce, who had his eyes closed tightly as if fast asleep, Fu Ning repeated the words Xiao Huai had left behind before he departed.

Su Ce seemed to compromise, turning over and staring at Fu Ning with eyes that betrayed no emotion.

In the end, he struggled slowly to rise from the bed, snatched the bowl from Fu Ning’s hands, and downed it in one go, as if out of spite.

Furthermore, knowing Fu Ning as he did, he knew Fu Ning would never say such things on his own; not only was he a gossip, but he was also a snitch. Therefore, these words must have been forced upon him by that heartless man, Xiao Huai. Yet, Xiao Huai was precisely the type of person who followed through on his threats.

Su Ce was unhappy and wanted to lie back down, but having slept too long during the day, he was now wide awake.

He simply rose, draped his cloak over his shoulders, and shuffled into the neighboring study.

Beneath the eaves, the rain fell like a curtain, and the cold wind, carrying dampness, made Su Ce shiver uncontrollably.

Pushing open the door, the study was even darker than the bedchamber. This study was where Xiao Huai handled urgent matters. It had few ornaments, save for the Four Treasures of the Study and a small collection of books on the shelves. There was no heating charcoal provided, so Su Ce was forced to pull his cloak tight, grab a book at random, and nestle onto the daybed.

By the time Fu Ning arrived with the palace servants to bring heating charcoal, Su Ce still clutched the book in his hands, his head resting against the wooden window frame, though his eyes had already closed once more.

At dusk, when Xiao Huai entered the room, he saw Su Ce curled into a ball, a book fallen by his feet, his hands resting on the desk to prop up his cheeks, a red mark imprinted on his face.

He lightened his footsteps as he walked to Su Ce’s side, slowly squatted down, and looked up at him.

Perhaps it was because Xiao Huai had been staring for too long that Su Ce felt uncomfortable; his eyelashes fluttered slightly. Xiao Huai thought he was about to wake up and hurriedly stood, ready to scold him for why he was sleeping here.

However, Su Ce only turned his head, presenting the back of his head to Xiao Huai, and fell back asleep.

Xiao Huai sighed. The hand that had been suspended in mid-air, ready to shake Su Ce awake, finally settled, and he lifted him securely into his arms.

He weighed him slightly and found Su Ce to be unnervingly light, as if, apart from the weight of his bones, the flesh he had finally managed to gain had wasted away again due to his illness.

Xiao Huai had always believed that Su Ce, this person, was very difficult to care for.

Perhaps this movement startled the sleeping Su Ce. He opened his hazy eyes, rubbed his face against Xiao Huai’s chest, and asked in a low, husky voice: “When did you get here?”

“Just now.”

Su Ce took a deep breath, reached his hands toward Xiao Huai’s armpits, and muttered: “Liar, there is clearly no chill on your body.”

However, his voice was too small for Xiao Huai to hear clearly.

Dinner proceeded as usual; Su Ce sat on Xiao Huai’s lap, being fed spoonful by spoonful.

Su Ce was truly puzzled: didn’t Xiao Huai get tired from eating like this? He clearly had hands and feet of his own, but Xiao Huai seemed to be immersed in this atmosphere.

Yet, he dared not ask, which led to him looking distraught and hesitant all evening.

Xiao Huai, annoyed by his demeanor, tossed the spoon into the bowl with a “bang.”

He turned Su Ce to face him, eye to eye, and asked with some dissatisfaction: “If you have something to say, say it. Why make such a bitter face here?”

“I didn’t…”

“Didn’t you? Then who are you giving the cold shoulder to?”

Su Ce was already ill, and under Xiao Huai’s rebuke, the tears, following the dam of grievances in his heart, instantly flowed down. He pushed Xiao Huai hard with his hands: “Why are you being so fierce? So what if I’m giving you the cold shoulder? What else can you do besides threaten me? I’m not eating!”

With that, he bolted into the bedchamber without looking back, leaving Xiao Huai alone in his place.

Immediately after, Su Ce heard Xiao Huai’s footsteps following. He didn’t need to look to know that Xiao Huai must be baring his teeth with that expression—not ugly, perhaps even pleasing to the eye: “Su Ce! Have I pampered you too much lately? You actually dare to shout at me!”

“What have you pampered me with? You only know how to bully me!”

Xiao Huai pulled Su Ce out of the covers, looked at him with a sinister gaze, and flashed an ill-intentioned smile: “Since you feel I’ve bullied you, then let it be as you say. Seeing as you are so delicate and frail, you won’t need to leave the palace from now on, lest my good intentions be met with ingratitude, wouldn’t you agree?”

Su Ce’s body stiffened upon hearing this, his expression instantly becoming panicked. His arrogance and defiance vanished, and he lightly scratched Xiao Huai’s palm with his fingertips: “I’m sorry, I… I didn’t mean that.”

“Then what did you mean?”

Xiao Huai looked at Su Ce, who was staring at him with eyes that were bright to the point of being excessively pure, and suddenly felt he was inexplicably ridiculous. He sighed to himself: Xiao Huai! Xiao Huai! He has clearly lost his memories, his mind is not right, and with only you left around him, relying solely on you, how could you treat him this way?

Seeing Xiao Huai remain silent, Su Ce lightly scratched his palm again. Finding no resistance, he grew bold, climbed onto Xiao Huai’s neck, and kissed him with a hint of eager flattery.

Xiao Huai enjoyed Su Ce’s long-missed initiative, but that didn’t mean he had forgotten that he was still ill.

It wasn’t until their breaths had tangled for a long time and Su Ce’s lips were swollen and sore from being sucked on that he finally pushed Xiao Huai away, his voice timid: “Are you not angry anymore?”

Xiao Huai snorted through his nose, signifying that the matter had passed.

Su Ce felt a sudden relief. When Fu Ning brought the medicinal soup, he didn’t dawdle or push it away as before, drinking it in one go while pinching his nose. Then, he wrinkled his face and exclaimed: “So bitter, so bitter.”

But Xiao Huai didn’t even cast him a glance before heading inside to bathe.

Su Ce was somewhat annoyed for having sulked with Xiao Huai, yet clearly, he was the one who was more aggrieved—he hadn’t said anything wrong!

He silently cursed Xiao Huai in his heart: Stingy person!

By the time Xiao Huai came out, Su Ce was nearly asleep, but he became wide awake the moment the bed sank under Xiao Huai’s weight.

He moved closer to Xiao Huai, smelling the familiar scent of bath beans on him, and reached out to hug him: “I took my medicine obediently last night and today. Although you yelled at me earlier, I apologized to you. According to our agreement, you cannot forbid me from going out of the palace to play. After all, you are the master of a country; you must keep your word.”

Xiao Huai was truly amused to the point of anger, turning over to create a gap between his back and Su Ce’s head: “I’m saying, you’re sick and you can still remember this, but when I tell you to eat a few more bites every day, why can’t you remember that?”

Unexpectedly, Su Ce turned over and pretended to yawn: “Oh, sleepy, sleepy. Husband, goodnight!”

That night, neither of them said another word.

Not until Su Ce felt Xiao Huai’s steadily rhythmic breathing spraying on his neck did he gently shift his posture, looking back at the sleeping man for a moment.

Suddenly, he raised a hand to trace his sharp eyebrows and straight bridge of his nose, whispering: “You’ve lost weight too! How do you have the nerve to lecture me? What have you been so busy with lately? It rained today and you didn’t even come back to accompany me.”

Seeing Xiao Huai frown slightly, Su Ce hurriedly withdrew his hand, as a genuine sense of drowsiness overcame him.

The next day, when Xiao Huai rose, he placed a hand on his forehead to test the temperature, and seeing that the high fever had receded, he left with peace of mind.

As a voice rang out from the stage, Su Ce’s head slammed into the table. He reached out to rub his aching forehead, stealing a glance out the window at the people outside, thankful that no one had seen him.

To his surprise, there was still a persistent person staring right at him.

This truly was a case of meeting a rival on a narrow road!

Today, the play being performed was The Butterfly Lovers. Su Ce didn’t particularly like this play, and because Yushu wasn’t by his side, he closed the window after only half the performance, planning to leave early.

As luck would have it, just as he was about to depart, that person stood in front of the back courtyard, blocking his path.

“I unintentionally offended you last time, and I wish to ask for your forgiveness.” Qin Zijin bowed to him in apology.

Then, a strange voice came from behind: “This young master, if you do not forgive him, I believe he will continue to wait for you here for at least another half a month.”

Su Ce couldn’t help but be shocked. It was only a small matter, and it was his own fault, yet someone had been waiting for him for so many days. If it weren’t for the fact that he was bored stiff in the palace and had been so obedient to Xiao Huai in every way for the past few days—coaxing him until Xiao Huai finally gave his consent—he didn’t know how long this person would have had to wait before seeing him.

“I didn’t take the matter from last time to heart. Now that I think about it, it was all a misunderstanding, and you were not intentionally offensive, young master. That is an overstatement.” Su Ce was stunned for a long time before he managed to say these words.

A smile appeared on Qin Zijin’s face, and he gave Du Bai a look.

Du Bai immediately understood, draping an arm over Su Ce’s shoulder: “Since it was all a misunderstanding, we can consider ourselves friends now, can’t we? Why not go to the tavern for a few cups?”

Su Ce looked troubled and waved his hands repeatedly, but he couldn’t withstand Du Bai’s genuine enthusiasm. Under their insistence, he eventually appeared in the tavern.

Su Ce called this “being unable to refuse a warm invitation” it must have been an invitation he couldn’t refuse.

He was forced to drink two cups of wine that Du Bai passed to him.

Before long, he felt his head becoming heavy and his body light, his vision appearing as if covered by a layer of moisture, making it impossible for him to see the expressions on their faces clearly.

Perhaps because his behavior was too unusual, Qin Zijin felt that something was amiss, shook his arm, and called out twice: “Su Ce? Su Ce? Can you hear me?”

To prove that he could hear them, Su Ce instinctively wanted to nod, but the moment he leaned back, it sent his whole body falling into sleep.