Chapter 15#
Which One Is the Real You? Chapter Number: 7221054#
The capital had no curfew, and the night was exceptionally lively.
There were wonton and steamed bun stalls, billowing with hot steam. There was an old man shaping sugar figurines, surrounded by a group of children whose cheeks were red from the cold. And there were hawkers selling candied hawthorns, calling out as they walked.
Lanterns hung everywhere along the streets, and many large lantern boats drifted on the moat, the sounds of string and wind instruments drifting out from time to time, with the graceful figures of dancing girls faintly visible.
It was even more bustling than in the daytime.
Rong Yu and the other two sat in the carriage. Mo Shu lifted the curtain to look outside, his eyes unable to take everything in, letting out exclamations every now and then.
“Master, look! Someone’s performing sword swallowing over there!”
Not far away was an acrobatic troupe, banging gongs incessantly. There were also acts of fire-breathing and breaking stones on one’s chest, and the crowd erupted in applause and cheers.
Rong Yu had no mind for acrobatics—his heart was set entirely on the iron-eating beast.
He turned his head to look at Chu Tan. “How much longer?”
Chu Tan caught a hint of urgency in Rong Yu’s usually calm and indifferent eyes, and a smile flickered unbidden in his own. “It’s just on Yangliu Street.”
“Mm.” Rong Yu sat back up straight with an expressionless face, but his two hands were clasped together, faintly betraying his anticipation.
Just then, the carriage came to a stop, and the driver announced in a loud voice, “Master, there are too many people up ahead—the carriage can’t get through!”
Further ahead was the main street, where the crowd grew denser. Rong Yu’s carriage was wide and spacious; forcing it through the flow of people would risk injuring pedestrians, and worse, startling the horses and endangering the master inside. So the driver didn’t dare press on.
Thus, the three had no choice but to get out. Mo Shu draped a thick cloak of red fox fur over Rong Yu. The fiery red fox pelt lent his whole appearance a touch more liveliness, as if matching the festive mood of the holiday.
Meanwhile, the driver unloaded the wheelchair from the carriage. Mo Shu went to fetch the blanket and hand warmer, and was just about to carry Rong Yu over when he turned back—and saw that Chu Tan had already picked the young man up. He was holding him like a child, one hand supporting his bottom, the other bracing his back.
Mo Shu froze. He looked at Rong Yu, and sure enough, his face was utterly gloomy, his peach-blossom eyes filled with murderous intent as he glared coldly at Chu Tan.
Chu Tan paid no heed to his master’s icy gaze. He set the young man down in the wheelchair, then very naturally took the blanket from Mo Shu and tucked it securely over Rong Yu’s legs.
He then took the hand warmer and was about to place it in Rong Yu’s hands when Rong Yu snatched it away with immense disdain, refusing to let him touch it, and even shot Chu Tan a vicious glare.
Chu Tan didn’t even blink. He even thoughtfully smoothed Rong Yu’s cloak for him.
Mo Shu: “…” His face really is thick.
The three walked on, with both sides of the street bustling and lively. Suddenly, they heard a hawker’s cry: “Masks! Masks! Get your masks here!”
Rong Yu glanced sideways, and the shopkeeper immediately latched onto him.
“This young master, why not buy a mask? It’ll bring you good luck—may you find a wonderful match!” The shopkeeper, seeing the finery of the group’s clothing, immediately plastered a smile on his face as he pushed his wares.
Behind him, several rows of all kinds of masks hung from a rack. Rong Yu looked around and realized many people were indeed wearing masks.
Today was the Lantern Festival, effectively ancient Valentine’s Day. It was the one day of the year when young men and women could set aside propriety and go out together for a stroll. Unmarried youths would also dress themselves up and take to the streets, hoping to run into their destined one.
Wearing masks was also an important custom of the Lantern Festival. With the mask to conceal their identity, women could dress in men’s clothing, and men could wear skirts and gowns. People could fully let loose, boldly be themselves, and laugh and play with complete abandon.
Seeing how enthusiastically the shopkeeper was pushing his wares, Rong Yu casually pointed to a fox mask. Mo Shu picked out a simple silver one, leaving only Chu Tan without a choice.
Chu Tan looked at Rong Yu. “How about you pick one for me, Master?”
Rong Yu wore the fox mask, its red-and-white patterns outlining his peach-blossom eyes so they appeared even more vividly alluring, while his delicate lips and chin were revealed beneath the mask. His cloak of red fox fur complemented the fox mask perfectly. Even seated in the wheelchair, he could not hide his languid, noble bearing.
Hearing Chu Tan’s request, Rong Yu’s gaze wavered between Chu Tan and the mask rack for a moment, then pointed to the beast mask at the very top.
The beast mask was black, somewhat resembling a wolf in shape, carved with intricate patterns and bearing two fierce fangs.
Chu Tan was tall and handsome, and many young women around had been stealing glances at him. But once he put on that fearsome mask, the ladies were so startled they immediately hurried away.
He didn’t seem to mind. He bent down, closing the distance to Rong Yu. “Take a look, Master—is it handsome?”
The beast mask not only covered his brows and eyes, but also hid the left half of his face. Rong Yu looked at the excellent line of his jaw and his thin lips on the exposed right side, and replied with a question instead of an answer. “Tell me, is that mask of yours a wolf or a dog?”
Chu Tan touched the mask. “What does Master think?”
Rong Yu looked directly into his deep, dark eyes beneath the mask. “I think it’s a dog.”
Chu Tan smiled faintly and leaned close to Rong Yu’s ear, murmuring softly, “Then I’ll be Master’s dog.”
The atmosphere around them was boisterous, voices swelling everywhere; yet between the two of them alone, it was eerily quiet, as if even the breeze had paused at their side and everything around them had slowed down.
That feeling of being invaded and pressed upon came rushing back once more. Rong Yu’s brow twitched sharply. He reached out, grabbed Chu Tan by the collar, and shoved him back to create distance, staring at him without backing down, his Adam’s apple bobbing nervously.
After a long moment, Rong Yu lightly patted Chu Tan’s collar, a red smile curving beneath his mask. “Then be a good dog.”
The three made their way through the crowd and soon arrived at Yangliu Street. At a glance, they spotted an open space not far ahead, surrounded by layers of onlookers, with exclamations and admiring gasps coming from within from time to time.
“Master, that must be it!” Mo Shu pushed the wheelchair over quickly.
When the people saw that they were not ordinary folk—dressed like noble young masters—they immediately parted to make a path.
In the open space were many animals: monkeys jumping about, parrots that could sing songs and recite poetry, dogs that could roll iron hoops… and an elephant, its trunk raised high, with a lithe figure standing atop it, dancing.
The crowd clapped and cheered.
Rong Yu finally found the iron-eating beast he had been pining for. It was locked inside a huge cage, hugging a massive winter bamboo shoot and gnawing on it.
Just as Chu Tan had said, the iron-eating beast was round and plump, its fat, spherical body taking up a whole heap where it sat. Its black-and-white fur was fluffy all over, and on its head were two round, thick ears that looked extremely soft to the touch.
Rong Yu quietly rubbed his fingers together.
Many around were looking at the animal with curiosity. Iron-eating beasts were rare; previously, it was said only that a minister had presented one to the emperor as tribute—common folk had never seen one.
“That beast is huge!”
“It’s like a bear!”
“It does look a bit silly—hasn’t made a sound this whole time, only knows how to eat.”
The animal tamer explained from the side, “This beast is called an iron-eating beast, and we found it in Shu. Don’t let its docile appearance fool you—when it gets angry, it’s extremely ferocious. It runs fast and has incredible strength. When we first captured it, we lost more than ten men.”
“Whoa!” At that, the crowd immediately took half a step back.
The tamer tossed a basin of winter bamboo shoots into the cage.
The iron-eating beast leisurely picked one up, held it with its claws, and peeled off layer after layer of the outer skin with its teeth, eating only the tender core inside.
“This beast is picky about its food!”
“Haha, how fun—it even knows how to peel!”
Everyone marveled. The tamer smiled, took off his hat, and began collecting tips from the watching crowd.
Most of the onlookers were common folk, giving a coin or two at most. Even the wealthier ones gave no more than a small piece of silver.
When it came to Rong Yu, he signaled with his eyes, and Mo Shu took out a large silver ingot and placed it in the hat.
The tamer quickly thanked him, bowing and scraping while spouting auspicious words. Mo Shu then led the tamer aside to speak privately, returning half a quarter of an hour later. He shook his head at Rong Yu.
Rong Yu had already guessed as much. This iron-eating beast was the circus troupe’s living signboard—how many people came by reputation for a glimpse of it? As long as it was there, the flow of customers would never stop. Naturally, they would never agree to sell it.
Still, Rong Yu felt rather regretful. This was a panda, after all. In his previous life, he hadn’t even been to the zoo more than a couple of times, only ever watching giant pandas in videos. Being able to see a giant panda this close was already very lucky—it was just a shame he couldn’t buy it and take it home to touch it with his own hands.
Rong Yu stared at it without looking away for a long time, his face red from the cold, yet he couldn’t bear to leave. Chu Tan reached out and touched his icy cheek with a finger, but Rong Yu didn’t even acknowledge him.
Chu Tan said in a low voice, “Master, your face is very cold.”
Mo Shu tightened Rong Yu’s clothes. “Indeed, your face is all red. If you like watching it, Master, we can come again tomorrow—but please don’t catch a chill.”
Rong Yu pressed his lips together, reluctantly withdrawing his gaze. “Let’s go.”
Leaving Yangliu Street, they returned to the bustling main thoroughfare.
As far as the eye could see stood a three-story tavern, one of the tallest buildings on the street.
The tavern was buzzing with noise, guests coming and going in an endless stream. Even from far away, one could hear the voices and laughter within.
On the second-floor terrace, a beautiful woman in a veil was playing the zither, while beside her a woman in red danced gracefully, attracting many passersby to stop and watch.
Two long strings of lanterns hung from the tavern’s eaves, and a huge fish lantern hung from the rooftop, radiant and dazzling. The plaque below bore three golden characters—“Xile Tower.”
Mo Shu smiled. “Master, it’s our family’s tavern.”
Rong Yu raised his eyes to glance at it, then suddenly coughed twice, his cheeks growing a few shades paler.
Mo Shu’s expression changed at once. “Young master, you’ve caught a chill—let’s go inside to warm up.”
Before Rong Yu could nod, Chu Tan had already pushed him inside without any argument.
The first-floor hall was extremely lively at the moment, hosting a lantern fair. Many scholars and talented men had gathered to guess lantern riddles, compose poetry, and match couplets.
After listening for a while, Rong Yu initially had no interest—until he heard the shopkeeper say that the first prize was a jug of fine Qionghua Dew.
Qionghua Dew was a famous liquor from Yangzhou. In the original owner’s memories, his mother, Lady Yang, had mentioned it several times, praising it as the most delicious brew in the world.
Rong Yu licked his lips. The green plum wine at the manor had already made him unable to put it down; he truly wanted to taste how wonderful the world’s best brew could be.
So he promptly threw himself into the heated contest.
A few lantern riddles were naturally no challenge for Rong Yu, and though composing poetry wasn’t as effortless for him as it was for the ancients, he could still hold his own, giving back as good as he got without falling behind in the slightest.
Moreover, as time passed, Rong Yu grew more and more excited. Literary inspiration surged in his mind, flashes of ideas striking one after another, and occasionally the lines he produced won even the literati’s unreserved applause and praise.
Rong Yu was elated, a flush rising to his cheeks—not from the cold this time, but from excitement.
His tongue ran like a blossoming lotus. Perhaps having talked until he was thirsty, he licked his lips from time to time, making his shapely, diamond-like lips even more moist and red, like a flower tempting one to pluck it.
Chu Tan had never seen Rong Yu so spirited and high-spirited. With the layer of lifeless gloom cast off, his whole body radiated brilliance, impossible to look away from. Even the mask couldn’t hide the sparkle in his eyes—he truly was like a cunning, clever little fox.
Chu Tan’s gaze shifted slightly. The fingers hanging at his side couldn’t help but curl, and a curiosity rose in his chest, stronger and stronger with each passing wave. Once again, he realized that this young master had a fatal allure for him. He couldn’t stop observing him, peering into him.
Chu Tan stared unblinkingly at Rong Yu’s fair profile.
—Which one is the real you, after all?
【Author’s Note:】
One more chapter coming up soon