Sickly Jade - Chapter 14

“You!”

Ye Shaoyun, instantly overcome with shame and anger, raised a palm and slapped the Crown Prince fiercely across the face.

Smack!

Qi Chu’s face was turned to the side by the blow, but the ferocity in his eyes did not diminish in the slightest. “National Preceptor, well struck!”

“Nonsense! Who taught you to speak like that?!”

Qi Chu was irrational yet full of misplaced confidence. “No one taught me; this is what I think in my heart. My thoughts are filthy, and your reprimand is justified! But I am only like this toward the National Preceptor alone.”

“Waste of space!” Ye Shaoyun couldn’t help but curse.

No sooner had the words left his lips than his mouth was heavily blocked. Qi Chu kissed him fiercely and savagely, as if he couldn’t wait to tear him apart and swallow him whole.

His breath had been stolen for too long, leaving Ye Shaoyun feeling quite uncomfortable. His chest heaved violently, anger surged into his heart, and a burning sensation erupted in his stomach. He could only strike out forcefully at the Crown Prince’s chest.

Qi Chu released him, but he did not stop there, his gaze and hands simultaneously moving downward.

“Qi Chu! Do you truly intend to do this?”

Qi Chu did not make a sound, and his hands did not pause in their work. After completing the simple preparations, he leaned up to kiss him again.

“Ah!”

Ye Shaoyun couldn’t help but let out a sharp cry. His movements to strike out gradually lost their strength, and his body grew rigid.

As expected. Absolutely no improvement.

He had thought he wouldn’t have to endure this anymore; it was his own wishful thinking.

Qi Chu looked down at the tears pooling in the National Preceptor’s eyes, frowning. “Relax.”

Ye Shaoyun gasped, reaching out to grab the Crown Prince by the hair. “You tell me how to relax?!”

Qi Chu felt the pain, yet he did not release his pressure. “The National Preceptor is never willing to teach me, yet you despise me for doing a poor job. What would you have me do?”

“If you don’t know what to do, then go die!” Ye Shaoyun’s skin was naturally thin; he had mostly just been going along with Qi Chu. He knew it was wrong and didn’t want to invest heart into this kind of matter, but Qi Chu didn’t treat him as a human being, and he, in turn, had lost his patience.

Qi Chu was startled, his expression gradually turning aggrieved, and he asked very seriously: “Does the National Preceptor want me to die?”

Ye Shaoyun: “…”

Just as he thought Qi Chu was about to start acting sentimental again, the other party suddenly turned fierce, and he shut his mouth.

An hour later, Ye Shaoyun lay limp on the couch, half his body nearly slipping off the edge.

【Life Force -2】

Qi Chu tidied himself up simply and pulled the man into his arms on the bed. Regardless of whether the National Preceptor was willing or not, he kissed him on the forehead as if they were a loving, devoted married couple.

It took Ye Shaoyun a long while to recover his strength. He let out a long breath and pushed Qi Chu’s embrace away. “Is Your Highness satisfied now?”

He couldn’t remember how many times he had submitted to the Crown Prince. Every experience had been poor, but this one was especially terrible; his bones felt as if they were about to fall apart.

Qi Chu’s alcohol-fueled buzz had faded significantly. “I’m sorry, Yun’er. I was too impulsive.”

Ye Shaoyun’s eyes were devoid of spirit. “Your Highness wasn’t impulsive; you did it on purpose.”

A moment later, he slowly closed his eyes.

Qi Chu raised a hand and placed it gently on his shoulder, as if smoothing out his breath. “I wasn’t… National Preceptor, please do not be angry. Next time, I will not be like this.”

Ye Shaoyun knew he had no regrets, so he couldn’t be bothered to pay him any mind, treating it as having been bitten by a dog.

“If there is nothing else, Your Highness may go.”

The air remained heavy for several seconds before Qi Chu slowly sat up, testing the waters: “Would the National Preceptor be happy if I took a concubine?”

Ye Shaoyun, with his back to the Crown Prince, slowly opened his eyes.

There was no emotion detectable in Qi Chu’s voice. “Tomorrow, His Majesty is holding a grand ceremony at the Beacon Tower. Many high-ranking officials will be accompanied by their families, and His Majesty has ordered me to choose from among them.”

A moment later, Ye Shaoyun spoke slowly. “Oh. That is a good thing. Does Your Highness have a candidate in mind?”

Qi Chu’s laugh was cold. “Perhaps the National Preceptor should choose for me tomorrow. You choose someone who satisfies you, and I shall treat her well in the future—how about that?”

Ye Shaoyun: “Is Your Highness serious?”

“I couldn’t be more serious.”

Ye Shaoyun: “The daughter of the Prime Minister has been waiting for you; why not marry her directly?”

“I am not taking a wife.”

“Then do as you please; there is no need to ask me.”

Choosing a wife meant choosing the daughter of a powerful official to consolidate power. As for whom Qi Chu wanted to take as a concubine to satisfy his personal desires, he was not interested.

Qi Chu turned and asked: “Will the National Preceptor be jealous?”

No sooner had the words left his lips than Ye Shaoyun’s form trembled slightly. Silence fell heavily in the room for a long time.

Qi Chu waited but received no answer, his gaze lowering quietly. “I understand. The National Preceptor will not.”

Ye Shaoyun still made no sound until the person beside the bed stood up and footsteps began to sound. Only then did he speak: “Your Highness must prioritize public affairs. Do not let His Majesty be disappointed in you.”

“So, the National Preceptor cares more about public affairs.”

Sometimes he truly couldn’t understand what the National Preceptor actually cared about. He had supported him to his current position he originally thought he cared about reputation, yet he wanted to abandon everything and leave the capital. After being dragged back, he was left with this cold indifference.

Qi Chu found him increasingly unfathomable.

“After laboring for so many years, what is it that the National Preceptor truly wants?” he asked.

He did not believe that anyone in this world would pay a price unconditionally. As long as he knew what the National Preceptor wanted, he would find a way to keep him by his side.

Ye Shaoyun spoke slowly: “I want glory, wealth, freedom from want, and to live a long and healthy life.”

Although he had reached a high position in the capital and risked his life for his goals, his ultimate aim had always been simple and vulgar.

And now, he didn’t bother to hide it.

Qi Chu: “Just that?”

“Yes.”

“Then why didn’t you tell me? Were you afraid I couldn’t provide these things to you? Or is it that you have already obtained what you wanted, so you intend to stop?”

Ye Shaoyun: “Precisely. Qi Chu, you are of no use to me anymore.”

Mu Yun had originally come to deliver the hangover soup, but seeing the palace doors tightly shut, he retreated on his own.

Qing Yi stood guard outside the palace, his eyes as dead as a corpse.

Mu Yun pulled Qing Yi a bit further away. “What is wrong with you lately? Why are you so listless?”

The two had entered the manor together and served as attendants together, often looking out for one another.

Qing Yi lowered his head, no emotion visible in his eyes. “If one day I am… driven out of the manor by the Master, you must serve the Master well.”

He spoke in riddles. His current situation meant being driven out was the lighter outcome. With the relationship between the Crown Prince and the Master so strained, and being suspected by the Master, he knew the Master’s character should the day come that the Master truly didn’t want to keep him, he would be quietly executed.

Mu Yun was usually a bit thick-skinned and didn’t pay much attention to such trivial matters. He didn’t understand why Qing Yi was saying this so suddenly and hurriedly asked: “What happened? Why would you say that?”

Qing Yi asked: “Has the Crown Prince looked for you?”

Mu Yun looked blank. “The Crown Prince? He has never looked for me.”

Qing Yi sighed and lowered his head. He probably knew why the Crown Prince only looked for him—someone with Mu Yun’s temperament couldn’t hide things, unlike himself. He hated his own meticulous nature for the first time.

A year ago, Qi Chu had used the pretext of taking care of the National Preceptor’s daily life to have him keep an eye on the National Preceptor’s movements.

He had originally thought it was ordinary concern, but not until the day His Highness saw the report and asked him to monitor the National Preceptor’s actions did he realize he had nowhere to retreat.

He hadn’t intended to betray the National Preceptor. He never imagined that one day, these two inseparable people would develop such a rift, turning his loyalty into a death warrant.

The argument inside the palace grew more intense. Whatever the Crown Prince had said, a stove basin was thrown out from inside.

“Get out!”