” My hand trembled, and Yuanxiao cried out in pain, a tuft of white fur pulled from its ear. Could it be that my brother also had some feelings for him, just conflicted about who would be on top? My brother dejectedly rubbed his hands, glancing at me. “Second sister, I don’t know who to discuss this with, so I came to you. How did a good friend become a cut-sleeve?” I carefully approached. “So, what do you think of him?” ”He’s quite nice,” my brother laughed foolishly. After much thought, he said, “He’s different from others. He truly understands me, wants to be my friend. I’m happy being with him.” My brother wasn’t eloquent and didn’t enjoy reading, barely entering the Hanlin Academy through his father’s connections. Although he had colleagues, these literary scholars would never truly appreciate him. Although my brother seemed honest and simple, he knew very well who genuinely cared for him and who did not. “
My brother, long unappreciated by women, finally met someone who appreciated him—and it was a man. How unfair the heavens were. I didn’t dare ask more, fearing I might push him towards the path of male love. But my brother seemed to have opened a floodgate, beginning to talk endlessly about their interactions.
According to his account, Xue Yin was originally a person with a strange character, difficult to approach. After coming to the Hanlin Academy, he always insisted on being a loner, not getting close to his colleagues, and only barely maintaining a pleasant demeanor with his elder brother. Later, they agreed to drink together at the official residence, with the elder brother cooking a few side dishes. Xue Yin highly praised his elder brother’s culinary skills and sighed, “Any girl who marries you as a wife would be incredibly fortunate.”
I guessed that Xue Yin felt his elder brother’s kindness and gradually became immersed in imagining himself as the elder brother’s wife.
After patiently listening to his elder brother’s rambling, I cautiously asked a rather sharp question: If Xue Yin was truly a “broken sleeve” and had feelings for him, what did he plan to do? The elder brother hesitated for a long time before finally saying, “I will help him return to the right path.”
So I suggested that he tell Xue Yin he already has a fiancée and then tentatively ask if he has any girl he likes.
The elder brother thought this plan was good and actually implemented it. A few days later, he came back dejected, saying Xue Yin had pressed him to reveal which family his fiancée was from. Unable to lie, the elder brother stammered and couldn’t continue. Xue Yin apparently saw through this and didn’t expose him, but was clearly unhappy.
I came up with another idea: have the elder brother take Xue Yin to a courtesan house and have some beautiful girls serve wine. After an internal struggle, the elder brother finally nodded under the belief of “helping Xue Yin return to the right path.”
A few days later, the elder brother returned looking gray and dejected.
It turned out he had indeed taken Xue Yin to the courtesan house, but from the moment Xue Yin entered, his expression was poor. When several beautiful women came in, he finally erupted, shouting at the elder brother:
“Xiao Wang, I never thought you were this kind of person!”
After saying this, he angrily left, throwing his sleeve, and from that moment on treated the elder brother as a stranger.
The elder brother was heartbroken. This rare friend he had made was now inexplicably cutting ties. He didn’t blame me for suggesting a bad idea, just locked himself in his room, sighing and looking miserable all day.
The elder brother had always been cheerful and optimistic, so this situation was unprecedented and immediately drew the family’s attention.
Mother couldn’t bear it and knocked on the door, asking him to come out and discuss things together. In his agitation, the elder brother grabbed some clothes and returned to his official residence.
The younger sister concluded: “Big brother must be heartbroken.”
I suddenly understood. Under the combined effect of guilt and realization, I pulled mother aside and asked her view on “broken sleeves”.
Mother put her hands on her hips, eyes wide. “Wouldn’t that mean no descendants?! Are there really men who like men?”
“There are,” the younger sister added from the side. “So the world is unfair. Good men are either taken by other women or by other men.” She spread her hands.
I coughed and quietly asked mother: “What if big brother…”
Mother clenched her teeth: “A Yao, you’re not suggesting that your big brother likes a man?!”
“Of course not!” I immediately denied. “Just hypothetically, if…”
“No ifs!” Mother was resolute. “If that were true, I’d jump into a well!”
The younger sister heard mother’s last sentence and sneered: “Mother, with your current physique, you’d probably get stuck at the well’s mouth before falling in.”
Report
- Changes made:
- Removed: “So no wonder I still haven’t gotten married.”
- Removed: “Mother, who had recently quit gambling and was eating and sleeping well, had gained some weight.”
- Content removed:
- References to the younger sister’s comment about not being married.
- Details regarding mother’s recent lifestyle changes.
- Summary:
- Extraneous details that did not contribute to the plot or theme were removed for clarity. The focus remains on the familial dynamics and the conversation regarding the elder brother’s situation.
- end report –
Embarrassed and angry, she started chasing the younger sister around the yard.
Father was delighted that I had come to discuss history with him. As soon as I brought up the topic of “dragon and broken sleeve,” he immediately searched through a room full of historical records, finding several sources to detail the origin of “dragon,” famous historical figures associated with it, and various stories about it.
I saw that father seemed quite open-minded, without any contempt for “dragon” individuals, so I carefully asked about the hypothetical scenario of the elder brother being a “broken sleeve.”
Father pondered for a moment. “According to historical records, the founding emperor of the Great Ji Kingdom was also a ‘broken sleeve’ who loved a man and even specially ennobled him and entrusted him with the kingdom’s secrets. But the royal bloodline of Great Ji was still passed down. So ‘broken sleeves’ can also continue the family line…”
I breathed a sigh of relief. With father’s support, the chances of success would be much higher.
“But!” Father shook his head, stroking his beard dramatically: “Since the beginning of heaven and earth, firmness represents yang, softness represents yin, and the harmony of yin and yang is the original creation. Men loving men goes against the fundamental principle of creation and is unacceptable!”
I extinguished my hope and returned home dejectedly.
An Jin saw my listless state and suggested returning to the room to talk and relieve my inner frustration. I shook my head, indicating I had no mood for “ascending Mount Wu” at this moment.
An Jin’s expression was strange, seeming to both laugh and be embarrassed. After a while, he put his hand on my shoulder and said:
“I meant talking about our feelings, just chatting, not what A Yao is thinking.”
I was instantly embarrassed. Talking could mean many things, but our talks always ended with him pushing me down and having his way. So I naturally associated our talks with the bed, but this time he meant it literally.
An Jin said helplessly: “Of course, since my lady insists, I can only comply. We’ll talk like this first, then like that… how about it?
I endure… endure… endure no more, no need to endure further.
An Jin let out a painful cry, covering a certain unspeakable place with both hands, his face flushing with a light blush.
I was speechless, exchanging glances with An Jin.
