Fu Shen furrowed his brow, making muffled sounds in his palm and nudging him with his knee.
Yan Xiaohan moved his hand away.
Fu Shen’s cry shot to the sky: “Get off me! You’re pressing on my back wound! It hurts!”
Yan Xiaohan realized he had no way to deal with him: if he called him clever, he would become stubborn; if he called him mature, he would act childish.
— His temperament was truly troublesome.
However, even though he was so rebellious, Yan Xiaohan hoped he could hide well, not demanding change, and not wanting to do anything to him.
Upon reflection, he understood Fu Shen’s feelings about wanting to help the Jin family’s descendant.
Unable to get up on his own, Fu Shen slowly climbed up from the grass slope. As the hot-blooded passion subsided, he calmed down and realized he had been somewhat reckless.
He was not radically inclined, but his “path” was different from others. Being young and naive, he always carried a proud attitude, not yet having learned to hide his edge.
Yan Xiaohan stood up first, not looking back, saying, “Let’s go.”
Before taking a step, he felt a sudden tightness on his wrist. Looking down, he found Fu Shen had grabbed his sleeve, hanging his head, looking somewhat pitiful.
Oh. He had finally come to his senses.
Yan Xiaohan narrowed his eyes, amused, maintaining a calm expression, and asked flatly, “What?”
Fu Shen: “I… My words were inappropriate earlier and angered you.”
I’m sorry.”
Yan Xiaohan said nothing, keeping a cold face.
Fu Shen honestly said, “I admit my mistake. I was wrong. You can hit me, scold me, or punish me as you see fit.”
“Enough,” Yan Xiaohan said coolly. “You’re not wrong; the wrong ones are us treacherous people.”
Fu Shen lowered his head, truly remorseful and humbling himself for the first time to apologize, but the other party was not moved.
“I never considered you a treacherous person, only…”
Only what?
Only that different paths do not make common cause, only that he firmly believed Jin Yunfeng was wrongly accused, only that “a gentleman cultivates the Way and establishes virtue and does not change his principles due to adversity.”
He couldn’t continue and let go of Yan Xiaohan’s sleeve. Dejected, he said, “I’m sorry.”
The sliding hand was suddenly caught and fell into a dry, cool palm.
Yan Xiaohan crouched in front of him: “Wasn’t it you who just said you’d accept being hit, scolded, or punished? I say a few words to you, and you can’t take it? Is your apology so insincere, hmm?”
Fu Shen inexplicably blushed, his heart filled with complex emotions, not daring to look up.
Yan Xiaohan thought about it and felt quite guilty. This noble young master had already suffered through being injured and falling off a cliff, experiencing hardships he’d never encountered before.
Fu Shen didn’t know what to say, so he repeated, “I’m sorry.”
Yan Xiaohan clicked his tongue, “Where’s the sincerity?”
He lifted Fu Shen’s chin with his free hand, making him look directly at him: “Look up. Without even a proper address, who are you apologizing to? The previous one doesn’t count. Start over. What should you call me?”
He originally just wanted Fu Shen to call him “Brother Yan” and apologize, then he wouldn’t trouble him further. Unexpectedly, Fu Shen misunderstood, and after a long silence, timidly and softly said, “…Brother?”
Yan Xiaohan’s entire heart melted at this call, unconsciously tightening his grip on Fu Shen’s hand.
“You… I…”
Yan Xiaohan was also tongue-tied, lifting Fu Shen from the ground, brushing off the grass and dirt, saying with complexity, “…Let’s go.”
Fu Shen hadn’t quite processed this: “That’s… it?”
“That’s it, my young master,” Yan Xiaohan looked down at him, sighing silently in his heart, slightly curving his lips, “Call me again, and I might just abandon darkness for light because of you.”
Fu Shen waved goodbye to him, watching the Flying Dragon Guard’s figure disappear at the end of the mountain path.
Turning around, he discovered Yi Siming standing with his arms crossed, staring at him thoughtfully, and speaking with a sarcastic tone: “Tsk tsk tsk, you’ve just met and you’re already reluctant to part? Look at how eager you are, wishing you could tie him to your waist and follow along. How pathetic.”
Fu Shen retorted: “He at least rescued me from the mountain ravine. What did you do? While you were leisurely drinking tea, I could have been dead. And you dare to ‘tsk’? Shameless.”
Yi Siming: “…Impressive. Not bad for someone rescued at the risk of life, to the point where I can’t even criticize you. Alright, let’s go. The physician has been waiting inside to examine your wounds.”
After this incident, everyone lost interest in hunting. They stayed one night at the mountain villa and agreed to return to the capital. The woman and infant were taken away and arranged by Yi Siming. Fu Shen stayed two more days, waiting for his back wound to scab over before riding his horse down the mountain.
Before leaving, he deliberately circled back to the wild orchid slope, hesitating for a long time before finally not having the heart to pick a flower. He sighed into the wind and rode away.
The next day, he returned to the Ying Guo Mansion and was thoroughly scolded by Fu Ting Xin.
Fu Shen, being young, didn’t take his back injury seriously and lay in bed for two days before rising, once again full of energy.
However, the situation in the capital was not good. The scope of the treason case was expanding, not only investigating Han Yuan Tong’s faction but also implicating the An Wang faction and even Jin Yun Feng’s disciples and associates. The Emperor seemed determined to make an example of Jin Yun Feng to warn An Wang. Fu Ting Xin and others’ memorials disappeared without a trace, and the court was tense with everyone on edge.
Although Fu Shen had not entered the court, he could gather some information from Fu Ting Xin, which left him both worried and anxious. He was concerned about not yet telling his second uncle about rescuing Jin family members, fearing his unilateral actions would trouble Fu Ting Xin. He was also worried that as long as the case remained unresolved, they would not be free.
Lost in thought, a servant suddenly delivered a calling card, requesting him to dine at the “Jing He Lou” west of Chun Ming Bridge at noon.
Fu Shen took the card, seeing his name written in red on the envelope, with an elegant small regular script inside, signed by “Left Divine Martial Guard Middle General Yan Xiao Han”. He jumped up, quickly changing and grooming himself, barely concealing his excitement.
Fu Shen sat in the steady carriage, carefully opening the long box. Upon seeing the contents, his heart suddenly began to race.
It was an exquisitely carved purple sandalwood bow!
On that day in Baoyan Mountain, Yan Xiaohan had chopped off Fu Shen’s bow. Later, after falling off a cliff and traversing together, they had shared hardships and he had forgotten about the incident, having no intention of seeking compensation. Who would have thought that Yan Xiaohan had kept it in mind all along, looking for an opportunity to make amends.
Fu Shen’s heart felt sour and soft; his throat seemed to be blocked. He gently stroked the smooth surface of the sandalwood bow, noticing a few seal script characters carved at the end – the name of this bow.
Changyuan Sunset.
He steadied his emotions, closed the lid, and looked at another large box. This time, instead of wanting to cry, he found himself unable to stop from laughing – the box was filled with dried mushrooms, pine nuts, hazelnuts, and chestnuts.
He truly remembered everything, both kindness and silly words.
