Chapter 56#
Want to Taste His Lips#
“Your falling into enemy hands was not accidental, but due to Yan Jin Yu’s interference. Seven years ago, a commoner family abducted you, do you remember? Yan Jin Yu was the son of that family, who was swapped and became the eldest grandson of the Yan clan. He resented you and wanted to kill you. His past was well-concealed, I couldn’t find evidence or witnesses, so I couldn’t touch his position, but I couldn’t let this grudge go.”
Sang Chiyu’s brows furrowed even tighter.
Su Ruhui continued, “So I tied him to the mine and severed his Achilles tendon.”
Sang Chiyu’s expression hardened, “Nonsense.”
“I stood up for you, but you blame me for being reckless.” Su Ruhui shook his head, “Brother Sang, Brother Sang, you’re so disloyal. Now that I’ve confessed to you, severing the Achilles tendon of a noble family’s son is no small crime. If you want to take me to the yamen, I’ll surrender without a fight.”
Su Ruhui stretched out his hands in front of him, waiting for his arrest.
Sang Chiyu stared at his hands for a moment and said, “I’m no longer in the Pioneer Guard, this matter is not my concern.”
This meant turning a blind eye, so it seemed Sang Chiyu didn’t dislike him as much as he thought. Su Ruhui decided to take their relationship a step further, “How many times have we faced life and death together? It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say we’re sworn brothers, right? I propose we become sworn brothers. From now on, you call me ‘ge’ (older brother), and I’ll call you ‘di’ (younger brother), how about it?”
Sang Chiyu looked at him expressionlessly.
Su Ruhui realized he had said it wrong and corrected himself, “From now on, I’ll call you ‘ge’, and you call me ‘di’.”
Sang Chiyu looked at him, his eyes cold as water. He said, “Su Ruhui, why do you like to call everyone your brother?”
The atmosphere fell silent, somewhat awkward. The smell of old dust lingered in their nostrils. The two looked at each other, so close, yet seemingly separated by an iron plate. Just then, a series of hurried footsteps entered the library, accompanied by the heavy breathing of a woman and a man. The man closed the door, and the library immediately became a few shades darker.
Sang Chiyu and Su Ruhui, standing in the corner of the library, were startled at the same time and instinctively held their breath.
“My dear, be gentle,” the woman’s voice cooed.
“I haven’t touched you in so long, how can I resist?” The man panted, “Quick, let me see, have your breasts grown since I last saw you?”
Obscene words continued, interspersed with the sounds of bodies colliding. Although it was deep winter, the room was unbearably hot, as if it were midsummer. Su Ruhui was very embarrassed, but dared not move. The library was narrow, and they were only separated by a few bookshelves from the two illicit lovers. Fortunately, the bookshelves were packed, so they couldn’t see Sang Chiyu and Su Ruhui.
To avoid making any sound, Sang Chiyu and Su Ruhui remained still, standing in this cramped passage. Sang Chiyu did not meet Su Ruhui’s gaze, seemingly deliberately looking away to watch the tiny dust motes dancing in the sunlight. Su Ruhui could see Sang Chiyu’s ears, which were completely red.
Time passed like years. Su Ruhui’s legs went numb, and he wanted to move his limbs, but Sang Chiyu suddenly grabbed his wrist. Perhaps it was because he was usually so unreliable that Sang Chiyu thought he was about to do something outrageous again. Su Ruhui immediately stopped moving. Sang Chiyu held his hand, and the sounds of the two continued unabated. Sang Chiyu felt as if he was holding a ball of fire, burning his hand, and quickly let go.
The two were so close, their eyes met.
Su Ruhui saw Sang Chiyu’s lips, thin and pale red, with a translucent luster like vermilion glaze. Su Ruhui only realized today that Sang Chiyu’s lips were so beautiful; the singing girls and dancers in the market couldn’t compare to him in the slightest. It was over, Su Ruhui realized his illness was getting worse. He not only wanted to drink Sang Chiyu’s leftover soup, but also wanted to taste Sang Chiyu’s petal-like lips.
Is it normal for one person to want to taste another person’s lips?
At that time, Su Ruhui hadn’t had time to carefully examine the wild, rampant desires and emotions growing in his heart. His first reaction was that if Sang Chiyu knew, he would definitely draw his sword and cut him down.
Su Ruhui was young and didn’t want to die yet, so he tried his best to suppress this shameless thought. But as he looked at the lips so close to him, a part of his heart still stirred restlessly.
Such beautiful lips would look great with lipstick. Su Ruhui wanted to give Sang Chiyu the finest lipstick from Tianxiang Pavilion.
For a moment, his mind went astray, and Su Ruhui said in a voice only they could hear, “Brother Sang, do you want to try wearing lipstick?”
As soon as these words came out, Su Ruhui knew he had messed up and wished he could slap himself hard. Asking a man to wear lipstick, wasn’t that an insult? Clearly, Sang Chiyu thought the same. The aura around him immediately became like the biting cold wind of the snow realm, chilling to the bone, making Su Ruhui shiver.
Su Ruhui looked at him pitifully and whispered, “I didn’t mean anything else. The weather is dry, I just want you to moisturize your lips.”
He wanted to say something else to change Sang Chiyu’s impression of him. However, Sang Chiyu’s face was cold, and he pinched Su Ruhui’s cheeks, preventing him from speaking. Su Ruhui was held by his cheeks, like a steamed bun, unable to move.
The two finally finished their business but didn’t leave, instead whispering to each other.
“Susu, are you really going to marry Su Ruhui?” the man asked.
Sang Chiyu was startled, looked at Su Ruhui, and subconsciously released his hands from his cheeks. Su Ruhui’s fair cheeks bore two bright red finger marks, and he also had a very shocked expression.
The timid and shy girl from the banquet was actually having an affair with someone here?
“What can I do?” Susu giggled, “Who told you you’re useless, just a stable boy. And my secret art is so useless, unlike Jiang Xueya from Yunzhou, who is equal to men.”
“Su Ruhui is an impotent silver-plated spearhead, are you really going to marry him?” the man asked, feeling wronged.
“You believe his words? He talks nonsense and ruins his own reputation, he just doesn’t want to marry me.” Susu said, “I have no choice. Grandaunt said to put an aphrodisiac in the ginseng soup tonight and give it to him. Once the deed is done, while he’s unconscious, he won’t discover that I’ve lost my purity.”
“With Sang Chiyu there, can your grandaunt’s plan succeed?”
“Why not? Sang Chiyu hates Su Ruhui so much, he’ll leave as soon as dusk falls, and won’t bother with him.”
The two exchanged sweet nothings for a long time before finally leaving, clinging to each other. The room returned to silence, and the sunlight had shifted, no longer reaching the dim library. Su Ruhui and Sang Chiyu stood in the dim, obscure shadows, their breaths mingling. Sang Chiyu turned sideways, standing a little further from Su Ruhui.
Su Ruhui tugged at his sleeve, lamenting, “I can’t believe my grandaunt would resort to such a vicious scheme. What should I do? I am a chaste and upright man. If my purity is taken by deceit, I might as well hang myself.”
“You can avoid it,” Sang Chiyu seemed completely unmoved by him.
“Can I avoid it for a while, or for a lifetime?” Su Ruhui covered his face, “Brother Sang, only you can help me now.”
“…” Sang Chiyu pulled his sleeve back and said, “Su Ruhui, you did this on purpose.”
Su Ruhui raised his face, stunned, and said, “What do you mean, on purpose?”
Sang Chiyu was calm, stating plainly, “Everything here was your arrangement.”
Su Ruhui forced a dry smile. Sang Chiyu was quite perceptive and difficult to fool. Indeed, the stable boy who was having an affair with Susu had already been bribed by Su Ruhui to lure Susu to the library for a secret rendezvous, deliberately making them encounter them. However, Su Ruhui hadn’t intended for the stable boy and Susu to actually do anything here; everything that happened afterward was the stable boy’s own initiative. Su Ruhui just wanted Sang Chiyu to know that his situation in the Dantain family was dangerous.
It would be best if Sang Chiyu couldn’t bear it and rescued him from the Dantain old mansion.
“Grandaunt’s plan to keep me here is true, it’s not my arrangement,” Su Ruhui said, “I really have no other way. The Dantain family watches me like a thief every day. If this continues, I’ll have to castrate myself for freedom.”
“I’m only supervising your studies,” Sang Chiyu said.
Su Ruhui said, “Uncle’s order is for you to supervise me to focus on my studies. Grandaunt is constantly causing trouble, seriously hindering my studies. According to Uncle’s order, you should remove all obstacles that are unfavorable to my studies.”
Sang Chiyu: “…”
Dusk had arrived, and Sang Chiyu should leave. He looked at Su Ruhui and turned to walk out.
How heartless, he really didn’t care about his life or death. Su Ruhui felt depressed.
Sang Chiyu’s figure stopped a few steps away, “Follow me. Their surveillance will become stricter and stricter. Now is the best time to leave.”
Su Ruhui’s eyes lit up, “I knew you wouldn’t abandon me! Do you have a Wuxiang Famen talisman?”
“No.”
This guy had been poor since childhood, so Su Ruhui didn’t have much hope for talismans. Su Ruhui asked, “Then how do you plan to take me away?”
“Fight our way out,” Sang Chiyu said.
Well, that was very much in line with Sang Chiyu’s brutal style.
Su Ruhui followed Sang Chiyu out of the courtyard and onto the wooden water corridor. The setting sun reflected in the shimmering water, like sweet rouge poured into the glistening expanse. Su Ruhui and Sang Chiyu’s reflections were enveloped in the enchanting rouge, the two following each other, step by step.
They headed directly for the main gate. The people monitoring them noticed something was wrong and rushed to report it. Before long, a nanny led a group of maids and blocked the center of the water corridor, bowing and saying, “Young master, it’s late. Please go and rest.”
“Sang Chiyu and I are going to the night market,” Su Ruhui poked his head out from behind Sang Chiyu, “Isn’t it allowed to go to the night market? Do you want to bore this young master to death?”
“The Old Ancestor has given an order,” the nanny seemed submissive but was very assertive, “The Star Official Grand Examination is approaching, and the young master needs to focus on his studies.”
Sang Chiyu asked, “Even with me supervising, it’s not allowed?”
The nanny bowed to Sang Chiyu, “This is the Old Ancestor’s order, Young Master Sang, please don’t make things difficult for us servants.”
Sang Chiyu was not a talkative person, nor did he like to talk nonsense.
“Excuse me,” he suddenly drew his sword.
The sword light was dazzling, like lightning splashing out from the black iron scabbard. This was the first time Su Ruhui had seen Sang Chiyu draw his sword seriously. The fierce sword light cut across his eyelids, making it almost impossible to open his eyes. Su Ruhui’s unspeakable little thoughts withered even more, like dogtail grass clinging to his heart. Su Ruhui was thick-skinned, but he couldn’t withstand Sang Chiyu’s sharp blade.
And facing such a fierce sword, those nannies and maids did not retreat. The moment Sang Chiyu drew his sword, they swarmed forward!
Su Ruhui hadn’t expected that the Dantain clan was so determined to trap him that even the old maids who usually served them were secret art practitioners.
The secret arts of these servants were all of the “beast transformation” type, with sharp claws growing between their fingers and ferocious fur appearing on their faces. Sang Chiyu didn’t even blink. The sword light wove a net of light, as if snowflakes were falling, and the maids fell into the water corridor like dumplings. The path cleared, Sang Chiyu turned around, grabbed Su Ruhui’s wrist, and ran forward. As he ran, Su Ruhui set off fireworks to contact Jiang Xueya’s escorts waiting outside the mansion.
The wind whistled past their ears. Su Ruhui looked at the back of Sang Chiyu’s head, somewhat dazed. Time seemed to slow down at this moment. Flying petals drifted past them, and the sunset was incredibly brilliant at this moment.
“Brother Sang,” he couldn’t help but speak, “We look like we’re eloping.”
Sang Chiyu’s left hand, which was pulling him, stiffened for a moment, then suddenly let go. He gripped his sword with both hands and blocked an attack from a guard in front.
The news of Sang Chiyu and Su Ruhui escaping the mansion quickly spread throughout the old residence. Su Ruhui’s maternal grandmother dispatched all the guards on duty in the mansion, rushing towards the library. Sang Chiyu was like an unstoppable blade, fiercely cutting into the surging crowd. Su Ruhui picked up a sword from the ground and blocked the pursuing soldiers from behind.
Even with a continuous stream of guards coming to intercept them, they couldn’t stop Sang Chiyu, this ominous star. The corner gate of the courtyard was tightly blocked. Sang Chiyu kicked it hard, and the entire red lacquered gate collapsed, crushing the wailing guards beneath. Sang Chiyu stepped over the gate and leaped into the ant-like sea of people.
Su Ruhui followed, using both hands and feet, and knocked out a guard who was trying to crawl out from under the gate.
The first hanging flower gate, Sang Chiyu cut through with one strike.
The second screen door, Sang Chiyu burst through.
The third main gate, Sang Chiyu didn’t force his way through. He stepped on the wall, leaped onto it in a few steps, then leaned over and grabbed Su Ruhui’s hand, pulling him up. While climbing the wall, a small crown of the wooden carving in Su Ruhui’s arms was exposed. Sang Chiyu glanced at the small wooden carving and asked, “What is this?”
Su Ruhui felt inexplicably guilty and pressed the wooden figure back into his arms.
“It’s a hidden weapon!” Su Ruhui said.
Outside the wall was the street. Su Ruhui jumped down from the wall. Jiang Xueya’s escorts were already waiting outside the mansion. Two tall horses snorted, and dry rations and water bags were already prepared on them. Su Ruhui and Sang Chiyu both mounted their horses and galloped towards the city outskirts.
Regaining his freedom, Su Ruhui was in a great mood. Hooves trampled the setting sun, the young man in bright clothes on a spirited horse, enjoying the beautiful spring.
“Sang Chiyu,” Su Ruhui called out loudly, “Can you stop hating me?”
Sang Chiyu galloped his horse, not looking sideways.
“No,” he said.
Su Ruhui chattered on, “Think of something!”
Sang Chiyu glanced at him, his clear, cold voice faintly carried by the wind.
“Think for yourself.”
Su Ruhui laughed heartily, “Alright!”