Chapter 81#
World 4: You Are the Snow on the Branch#
Ye Li and A Niu were led by a servant to a side room. The room was furnished with clean bedding and had snow-white paper on the windows. A faint fragrance, characteristic of dried flower petals, wafted through the air.
“Here are your changes of clothes. There’s a small bathroom out back with a wooden tub. You can go there if you want to bathe. Be at work tomorrow at Mao hour (5-7 am). Don’t be late!” The servant tossed four sets of dark blue servant uniforms onto the bed, his attitude impatient.
Previously, A Niu had thought this man was a contemptible bully, but now he was all smiles and compliance.
“Yes, yes, we’ll be on time. Thank you for showing us the way, we’ve troubled you.” A Niu warmly saw the man out. After returning, he sat on the bed, dazed for a moment, then suddenly began to rub his face vigorously.
Ye Li took off his outer shirt and paced around the room bare-chested, slowly examining it.
Sweat covered his knotted muscles, sliding down his broad back to his narrow waist. His powerful physique exuded an unusual ferocity. Although Ye Li was a prince, he had studied martial arts diligently from a young age and was a god of death on the battlefield.
This was also why he dared to venture alone into the disaster area, a den of tigers and wolves.
After surveying the entire room, he turned to look at A Niu and was taken aback.
“Why is your face so red?”
“Brother Ye, I’m ashamed!” A Niu scraped his cheek hard, speaking with both embarrassment and guilt. “Whenever I think of that child crying and hugging our legs, I feel so damn ashamed!”
Ye Li: “…”
Even the darkest skin couldn’t hide a face suddenly flushed with shame. An indescribable sense of humiliation welled up from the bottom of his heart.
Suddenly, Ye Li remembered the look Qin Qing had given him as he left—a look of ridicule, mockery, and the disdain of “you’re nothing special.”
The fiery, adoring gaze from their first meeting would probably never appear again.
Ye Li couldn’t sit still any longer. He immediately put on his clothes and said in a low voice, “I’m going to see Qin Qing and ask him to bring Xiao Dengzi back.”
“Go ahead, Brother Ye.”
A Niu stood up to open the door for Ye Li, feeling a great sense of relief. He was glad he didn’t have to do such an embarrassing thing himself. What a damn relief!
Ye Li waited outside the study. Inside, he could hear Qin Qing talking with a woman.
The woman’s name was Tao Ran. Last year, she had been selling herself on the street to pay for her father’s funeral when Qin Dehuai took a liking to her and bought her as a concubine. Because of her beauty and gentle temperament, she was particularly favored and had taken over the management of the marquis’s household shortly after arriving.
Qin Qing’s mother had passed away many years ago, and Qin Dehuai had never remarried.
However, no matter how favored Tao Ran was, she had to yield to Qin Qing. Qin Qing had only to say, “I want to manage the household,” and Qin Dehuai immediately ordered Tao Ran to hand over the account books.
Before this, Qin Qing had already inspected the cellar. It was filled with vegetables, but no silver.
“Young Master is like a person of ice and snow, why would you involve yourself in such worldly affairs?” Tao Ran’s delicate voice drifted out from the window crack.
Ye Li was standing far away, but with his superior martial arts, he could still hear clearly.
A person of ice and snow…Ye Li looked up at the sky, imagining a winter scene of falling snow, his eyes vacant. Snowflakes were pure white and soft, floating down. You’d want to catch them in your palm, but they would melt at the slightest touch.
A person like ice and snow probably can’t exist for long, can they?
Ye Li frowned deeply, then banished all distracting thoughts.
But in just a moment of distraction, the image of Qin Qing’s almost transparent face being completely swallowed by the shadows in the carriage reappeared in his mind. Ice, snow, and the moon’s reflection on a lake were all fragile things. Could a person be the same?
Ye Li took a few steps forward, moving even farther away. He didn’t want to hear these conversations that always made him think strange thoughts.
But his exceptional martial prowess made it impossible for him to escape the continuous stream of sound. It was Qin Qing’s voice, very light, very slow, with a hint of lazy sleepiness.
“I am a worldly person, so naturally, I must manage worldly affairs. You’ve worked hard these days, Auntie. Please explain these few expenses.”
“This money is for incense and oil offerings to the Qingxu Temple.”
“One hundred taels every month?”
“Yes. If we don’t give it, Daoist Wuwei comes to ask for it himself. He is the living immortal of Jiangbei City, and the annual rain-praying ceremony depends on him. We can’t refuse to pay this money.”
“How many boys and girls were offered to the Dragon King this year?” Qin Qing let out a cold laugh.
His expression must be very mocking, just like how he mocked me. Thinking of this, Ye Li frowned.“Almost every month, two pairs of young boys and girls are drowned. I gave him this extra money in the hope that he would kill fewer children,” Tao Ran’s voice was filled with suppressed anger.
“The more money you give him, the more children he will drown, because he knows he can use your kindness to extort more money. Your actions are useless; giving more money only feeds his greed. I will handle this matter. You stay out of it.”
Qin Qing’s tone was still weary, but it carried a reassuring strength.
So young, yet so mature.
Ye Li had originally walked away, but now, hearing Qin Qing’s voice, he unconsciously walked back, even closer than before.
The two servants guarding the study door looked at him warily.
“What was this money used for?” Qin Qing asked again.“I came across some destitute women and children on the road and bought them back to at least give them something to eat,” Tao Ran asked nervously, “Young Master, our marquis’s household isn’t short of this little money, is it?”
“The marquis’s household isn’t short of this money, but how many people can you save by buying them one by one? You can’t buy all the refugees. Alright, the accounts are more or less in order, no major issues. You may go.”
The young man’s weary voice had become hoarse, likely from exhaustion.
With a creak, the study door was pushed open from the inside.
Ye Li looked up and saw a beautiful girl of seventeen or eighteen walking out of the study, a look of relief on her face, followed by several accountants.
Seeing Ye Li’s handsome face, the girl was stunned for a moment, then her expression turned cold. “So it was you who took Xiao Dengzi’s job? Do you know he has a family to support?”
Ye Li: “…”
Ye Li bowed silently, not offering a single word of defense. Having done such a foolish thing, any explanation would only make him more of a laughingstock.
The girl glared at him fiercely and left with a flick of her sleeve.
“Come in,” Qin Qing’s slightly hoarse voice came from the study. He must have heard Tao Ran’s questioning and guessed who the visitor was.
Being confronted by a beautiful girl like Tao Ran, Ye Li could remain expressionless and indifferent. Yet now, just hearing a wisp of Qin Qing’s voice through the closed door, his face couldn’t help but burn.
He stood at the door, took a deep breath, and then, suppressing his shame, pushed the door open and went in.
Behind the desk, Qin Qing was wearing an ice-blue gauze robe, lazily nestled in a large armchair. His long, smooth, black hair was untied, cascading down like a waterfall. His body, fresh from a bath, exuded a faint mist of water vapor, which was wrapped in a sweet, delicate fragrance.
No wonder Tao Ran had said he was like a person of ice and snow.
The sweltering heat of the summer night seemed to cool down the moment he saw Qin Qing. Ye Li forced his gaze away and only then noticed another man in the study, a middle-aged man with a flowing beard.
“This is Xu Qingfeng, the best painter in Jiangbei City. Just describe what your sister looks like to him, and he can draw a portrait that’s eighty to ninety percent accurate,” Qin Qing introduced while stroking the chubby cat in his arms.
With an outsider present, Ye Li didn’t know how to bring up the matter of Xiao Dengzi.
He cupped his hands in a salute, said his thanks, and then began to fabricate a description of his so-called “sister.”
It wouldn’t be too late to plead for Xiao Dengzi after the portrait was finished and Master Xu had left.
Just then, Tao Ran unexpectedly returned, standing outside the door and asking worriedly, “Young Master, Xiao Dengzi is still kneeling outside. What should we do…?”
“Tell him not to worry. No one can replace him. He can come to work as usual tomorrow at Chen hour (7-9 am).”
As he said this, Qin Qing’s eyes, brimming with light, flickered a light, mocking glance at Ye Li. The fat cat in his arms even shot him a contemptuous look in the same manner.
The master and pet were truly alike in their disdain.
Ye Li, who was slowly describing his “sister’s” appearance, suddenly faltered. His face, which had just cooled down from embarrassment, was now burning hot again.
So Qin Qing didn’t need him to plead for Xiao Dengzi at all. No matter what, he wouldn’t let anyone take Xiao Dengzi’s livelihood. This was true kindness, unlike Ye Li’s false benevolence.
Ye Li lowered his head, his emotions churning like a great wave.
It was laughable that he had looked down on this young marquis several times, repeatedly despising him as foolish, stupid, and willful, only to find that he himself was the truly ridiculous one.
Ye Li composed himself, enduring the burning sensation on his face, and continued to describe his sister’s appearance.
Master Xu listened attentively, and with a few strokes of his fine goat-hair brush, a lifelike face began to emerge.
“…Her nose is a bit round and upturned—”
Ye Li faltered again, because Qin Qing had suddenly taken one of his large hands and was playing with it, turning it over and over. His long, slender fingertips gently traced the web between the thumb and forefinger, the pads of his fingers, and the calluses on his knuckles, sending a tingling, itching sensation through him.
Ye Li’s arm trembled, and he froze completely. If anyone else had touched him like that, he would have immediately drawn his sword and chopped off their hand.
For a moment, Ye Li thought Qin Qing was making an indecent advance, but in a flash, he suddenly understood. Qin Qing was investigating his identity! He was suspicious!
Sure enough, Qin Qing let out a light laugh and said with certainty, “These are not the hands of a laborer. I imagine you’ve never known the feeling of an empty stomach, have you?”
The incident with Xiao Dengzi had ultimately exposed Ye Li’s ignorance. He was here to investigate the disaster, but he was born of noble birth. Although he was full of love for the people, how could he truly empathize with their suffering?
Fortunately, he had fabricated his identity early on: “My parents sent me to Wudang Mountain when I was six. I heard that my hometown was in trouble, so I hurried down the mountain to find my family, but I lost my sister on the way. My hands have indeed not done manual labor; I have been practicing martial arts.”
Qin Qing played with the calloused hand, his eyes, full of shimmering starlight, scanning Ye Li’s face inch by inch.
He had not yet dispelled his suspicion. He was still probing.
Ye Li subconsciously held his breath, but his heart began to beat faster. A slight touch from Qin Qing was enough to throw his mind into disarray.
Finally, Qin Qing released the rough hand and leaned back in his chair, holding the chubby, arrogant-looking cat.
“Perhaps in your eyes, kneeling to be someone’s footstool is an extremely humiliating act.”
Qin Qing said slowly with his eyes lowered, “But in Xiao Dengzi’s eyes, being able to keep a respectable job, to support his family with his own labor, and not to be reduced to begging on the street and fighting with wild dogs for food, is the only dignity he can have.”
Ye Li clenched his fists, his heart filled with shame. His flushed face felt like it was about to emit smoke.
Fortunately, Qin Qing kept his eyes down, staring at the tabletop, and didn’t look at him, which made him secretly sigh with relief.
“One must first live before one can have dignity, do you understand?” Qin Qing asked in a tired voice.
Ye Li understood, but he was born noble, so his standard of living was much higher than that of ordinary people. He couldn’t immediately put himself in the shoes of the common people and understand their difficult way of life; he had been a bit presumptuous.
He was very ashamed, but Qin Qing’s next sentence made him feel extremely uncomfortable and unwilling.
“Forget it, why am I telling you this? You wouldn’t understand anyway.” Qin Qing rubbed his temples, his face full of weariness.
Getting closer, he realized that the Ye Li he had once admired most was actually nothing special.
Ye Li clenched his fists tightly, suppressing the violent turmoil in his heart, and forced a smile. “I think I can probably understand what the young marquis is saying. I was reckless today. I will apologize to Xiao Dengzi tomorrow.”
Why do you speak to me in such an annoyed tone? I can understand everything you say! I just can’t be honest with you about it!
I’m not as stupid as you see, nor as ignorant as you imagine. I just haven’t settled down yet…
Thick veins and blood vessels bulged on his clenched fists, a sign of Ye Li’s suppressed frustration and unwillingness. For a moment, he really wanted to reveal his identity.
He really disliked Qin Qing’s current weary attitude towards him, and even more so his cold, mocking gaze.
His image in Qin Qing’s heart had probably changed from an omnipotent hero to a stupid, ignorant brute.
Ye Li endured and suppressed his feelings until he finally calmed down.
Master Xu asked from the side, “What does your sister’s mouth look like?”
Only then did Ye Li come back to his senses and continue describing his sister’s mouth in an extremely dry tone.
Qin Qing sat silently to the side, his head turned away, quietly looking at a bouquet of gardenias in a vase. The gardenias were very fragrant and sweet, but they couldn’t cover the unique, pleasant light fragrance on his body.
He stroked the fat cat in his arms intermittently, and no matter what Ye Li and Master Xu said, he didn’t turn his head to pay attention to them.
He was truly tired.
Ye Li felt extremely uncomfortable, but he couldn’t say why. He used to hate this person’s clingy gaze, but now that he was no longer in his sight, he felt anxious and unwilling, restless.
After an unknown amount of time, Master Xu suddenly spoke, “Young Master, the portrait is finished.”
Qin Qing snapped out of his daze and turned his head to look at the painting on the table.
A round-faced girl of eleven or twelve was vividly depicted on the paper. Her features were somewhat delicate but also unremarkable, the kind of face that would be hard to find in a crowd.
“Your sister looks nothing like you,” Qin Qing said, holding up the portrait to compare it with Ye Li.
Ye Li, who had been talking nonsense, lowered his head in embarrassment.
“The world is in chaos now, with refugees everywhere. I have to be honest with you. Even a grown man would have a hard time surviving alone, let alone a young girl like this. If she is still alive, our Tai’an Marquis’s household will definitely help you find her. If we can’t find her, then you must prepare for the worst,” Qin Qing said bluntly.
Ye Li naturally understood this and sincerely thanked him. If he were the real Ye Li, and not Li Suye, he would probably be very grateful to Qin Qing.
Qin Qing was neither stupid nor debauched, completely different from the rumors.
“Master Xu, thank you for your hard work.”
Qin Qing handed over five taels of silver.
Master Xu accepted it with many thanks and left happily.
Qin Qing clapped his hands, and the steward waiting outside the door immediately came in, respectfully took the portrait, carefully rolled it up, stored it in a polished long bamboo tube, and hurried off to the major trading houses, escort agencies, caravans, boat fleets, and post stations to have it copied and posted everywhere
Rest assured, I will do my best," Qin Qing promised Ye Li, who was standing by the desk. His weary expression had completely faded, replaced by a serious one.
He seemed delicate, but he actually had a strong sense of justice.
If only I weren’t Li Suye, but the real Ye Li, I wouldn’t be so conflicted and uneasy…Ye Li bowed and expressed his gratitude.
Qin Qing pushed open the door and slowly walked into the night, still holding the fat cat.
“I know I’ve caused you a lot of trouble these past few days,” he said slowly.
Ye Li quickly replied, “Not at all, Young Master, you’re overthinking it.”
Qin Qing continued, “I made you tea and burned your hand. I swept the floor for you and dropped your basin. I fed your horse and almost got you killed. It’s natural for you to dislike me.”
Ye Li pressed his lips together, not daring to reply. He knew that no matter how he explained, Qin Qing wouldn’t believe him. Qin Qing was meticulous and had a clear insight into the ways of the world. He actually knew everything, he just kept it to himself.
He must have been deeply aware of how impatient Ye Li had been with him.
A flush of shame crept up Ye Li’s face. He couldn’t bear to recall his previous coldness towards Qin Qing.
Qin Qing stopped by a bush of blooming jasmine and sighed softly, “I will find your sister for you to repay your kindness for saving my life. Then we will be even. Please don’t mind my willfulness and mischief. I haven’t taken your impatience and annoyance to heart either. Once the marquis’s household finds your sister, you can take her and leave. I will give you a sum of money so you can settle down somewhere.”
He gave Ye Li a deep look and then disappeared into the shadowy flowers with his fat cat.
A hot breeze blew past, shaking the branches and scattering a sweet, rich fragrance.
Ye Li smelled the thick fragrance, his body enveloped in the hot wind, but he felt a chill in his heart.
If only he were the real Ye Li…The real Ye Li would surely not be able to resent such a generous and considerate young marquis.
Ye Li couldn’t sleep all night. He woke up before Mao hour the next day and practiced boxing in the courtyard for a long time.
He thought Qin Qing would soon call him for duty, but he waited until noon before being taken to the front gate.
Qin Qing was already standing at the gate. Xiao Dengzi was squatting on the steps, grinning and chattering excitedly. Yesterday’s despair had now turned into complete, relaxed joy.
Catching sight of Ye Li, Xiao Dengzi’s smile faltered for a moment before he respectfully called out, “Brother Ye.”
Ye Li walked over and said in a low voice, “I’m sorry about yesterday.”
“It’s nothing, it’s nothing. The young marquis said that no one can replace me from now on. This is my job alone.” As Xiao Dengzi spoke, he bent down and arched his bony back.
Looking at the protruding vertebrae on the boy’s back, Qin Qing suddenly couldn’t bring himself to step on it.
The him of yesterday and the him of today were, after all, different.
“Kneel down and use your knee to help me up,” Qin Qing said.
Without a word, Xiao Dengzi got up and, mimicking Ye Li’s action from the previous day, bent one leg and offered his knee. How could this thin leg compare to Ye Li’s strong and powerful one?
Qin Qing stood there, his palms sweating. He was afraid of breaking Xiao Dengzi’s leg.
Fortunately, Ye Li was standing nearby. On a whim, he reached out his hand to Ye Li.
Without thinking, Ye Li grasped the slender, fair hand and gave him a boost with his strong arm.
With this upward lift, Qin Qing lightly touched Xiao Dengzi’s knee and floated into the carriage. He looked back and saw Xiao Dengzi smiling happily, and his heart relaxed. He then bent down and sat in the carriage.
The chubby cat was always in his arms.
“Why do I feel like Ye Li has become more obedient today?” 996 said uncertainly. “That rebellious aura around him seems to be gone, and he seems a bit down. What did you do to him?”
“Just as you saw, just keep pushing his buttons. He’s arrogant, so I’ll be even more arrogant.”
Qin Qing covered his legs with a thin blanket and whispered wearily.
“Your soul is injured. Go to sleep, don’t worry about Li Suye,” 996 patted Qin Qing’s chest.
The current Qin Qing was constantly tired, his face wearing a weariness of the mortal world. This was a physiological depression that he couldn’t adjust himself.
Facing such a weary face, the uncomfortable feeling surfaced in Ye Li’s heart again.
The two sat opposite each other, silent all the way.
The carriage swayed into Liu Family Village. A Niu stuck his head out and asked a villager on the roadside, “Ma’am, how do we get to Liu San’s house?”
“Turn north twice up ahead and you’ll be there. His house has hides hanging under the eaves, you’ll know it when you see it,” the skinny, barely clothed old woman pointed ahead.
A Niu thanked her and continued to drive the carriage forward.
Ye Li finally couldn’t hold back his curiosity and asked, “Young Master, why are you looking for Liu San?”
“You wouldn’t understand even if I told you,” Qin Qing said, stroking 996’s fur.
Ye Li: “…”
He really wanted to say: I understand! I understand everything! I’m just pretending not to! You can tell me all your thoughts, and although I can’t communicate with you, I can listen attentively.
But he couldn’t say anything, he could only endure. Besides, even if he did, would Qin Qing believe him after what happened last night?
Ye Li let out a heavy breath, turned his face to the window, his brows furrowed so tightly they could kill a mosquito.
996 looked at his frustrated face and burst out laughing, “Hahaha, Qin Qing, get him! Keep getting him, it’s always satisfying!“Liu San was talking with a young man by an open window.
The man was dressed in a light green long robe, his smooth black hair tied casually in a bunch with a white silk ribbon, falling over his left shoulder. His handsome, elegant face was illuminated by the bright sun, truly a man of distinguished appearance, like orchid and jade tree.
“If we take this mountain, we can build an easily defensible fortress.” The man dipped his fingertip in some tea and drew a simple map on the table.
“This chaotic era must be ended by us. The imperial court is already corrupt,” the man said, looking straight at Liu San, his words like a clap of thunder.