Translator: Dj2203
Editor: Dj2203
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Old Mrs. Zhuang, with her frail arms and legs, naturally couldn’t keep up with Qi Wang’s entourage. And as darkness fell, the hooting of owls could be heard everywhere, sounding like the calls of evil spirits, which was quite frightening.
So Grandma Zhuang returned quickly, her face full of regret and anger.
“My second son has really changed. How could he treat me like this! I loved my eldest and second grandson the most when they were little, but now that they’ve grown up and become independent, they don’t even recognize me as their grandma anymore. Heartless bast**ds, I’ve been so good to them…”
As Grandma Zhuang walked, she talked to herself, her mind beginning to reminisce about the past, but then she suddenly froze.
She couldn’t remember! She couldn’t recall at all how kind she had been to the second son’s family back then. How could that be?
In her memory, she must have loved her second son very much, and even more so her two exceptionally intelligent grandsons. Why was it that when she tried to recall them, her mind went blank, as if a part of her life had been inexplicably lost?
Grandma Zhuang walked slower and slower, her head throbbing more and more with each thought, until she seemed completely bewitched. Even in her most foolish and ignorant state, she knew this was definitely not normal. How could she possibly forget her youngest son and eldest grandson, with whom she spent every day and night?
Everyone said that the youngest son and eldest grandson were the old lady’s lifeblood. How could she forget her own lifeblood and inexplicably start doting on Zhuang Tian’er?
Grandma Zhuang crouched down, clutching her head, and groaned in pain.
Just then, someone called out from under the big banyan tree at the village entrance: “Is that Old Lady Zhuang over there?”
“It’s me,” Old Mrs. Zhuang said weakly as she stood up. She commanded herself not to recall the past, and her throbbing head instantly returned to normal.
This is very abnormal! Grandma Zhuang was horrified and quickly ran towards the banyan tree from which the voice had come from.
When she got closer, she found that the villagers had not yet left and were gathered under the tree chatting.
“Grandma Zhuang, do you know why Qi Wang values the scholar so highly?” someone asked, trying to start a conversation.
“I don’t know, I was wondering the same thing!” Grandma Zhuang was completely baffled.
“Let me tell you, your scholar is even more powerful than Master Xuan Zhenzi of Qingtian Temple…” This man was also a dockworker and was well-informed, so he embellished Zhuang Li’s great achievements over the past two days.
The villagers, who had already heard these stories, listened with great interest and continued to exclaim in amazement.
Grandma Zhuang was stunned, completely unaware that her husband was also squatting in the shadows, smoking his pipe while looking horrified.
Finally, the man lowered his voice and concluded, “Your scholar is truly a god descended to earth. Catching ghosts, summoning souls, and seeing through the past and future— those are all divine abilities. Only he can cure Qi Wang’s illness, and after he’s cured, Qi Wang will definitely take him to the capital and make him the imperial advisor! Even Xuan Zhenzi has been banished to the eighteenth level of hell by the scholar; who in this world dares to touch him? I always hear Zhuang Lao Er say that his two sons are reincarnations of the God of Literature, but I think Scholar Zhuang isn’t the God of Literature; he’s the King of Hell.”
Everyone around looked both horrified and fearful.
Someone muttered, “It’s said that Yama, the King of Hell, can see through all demons and monsters. That day, Scholar Zhuang said Zhuang Tian’er was an evil spirit—”
The man didn’t dare finish his sentence, because he inexplicably thought of the gruesome death of Lu Dan.
At the time, they only thought that Zhuang Lao Er’s family had been punished by heaven and deserved their bad luck. Now, looking back, they suddenly realized that God could not possibly punish a person with such a strange and evil method. Doesn’t God usually just strike people with lightning?
To incite someone to hang themselves was the work of a vengeful ghost!
Thinking of this, everyone who had gathered under the tree to chat held their breath and fled in panic, never again uttering the name Zhuang Tian’er.
While an elderly woman couldn’t bear it any longer. As she was leaving, she pulled Mrs. Zhuang aside and whispered, “I just realized after thinking about it carefully that there are many things that have been wrong with you over the years.”
“You used to dote on your second son’s family the most, especially your two grandsons. You would have given them the stars in the sky, if you could. But then, I don’t know why, you changed. You always talked about Zhuang Tian’er and became worse and worse to your two grandsons.”
“The two scholars would be peacefully reading in their room, and you would go over and inexplicably scold them. They didn’t want Zhuang Tian’er to come in and disturb them while they were studying, and you almost tore down their door. Think about whether your actions were reasonable.”
“No matter how well-behaved or sensible your granddaughter is, she will belong to someone else’s family and eventually marry out. Your two grandsons are the true pillars of your Zhuang family. In the future, changing the family’s status and rising above others will all depend on them. You don’t treat your two grandsons well, but instead, you disturb their studies day and night because of your granddaughter. They contracted strange illnesses with headaches and hand pains, nine times out of ten, it must have been because of you.”
“To put it bluntly, no matter how successful Zhuang Tian’er is, what can she achieve? She’s just a peasant girl. Can she possibly marry a nobleman? At best, she can only marry a scholar. If you hadn’t separated the family, Zhuang Tian’er would have had a chance to rise to prominence and become a phoenix when both scholars rose to high positions. Now that you’ve separated, she’ll be a sparrow for life.”
“To put it bluntly, your family’s wealth and prosperity don’t come from Zhuang Tian’er at all; they all depend on the two scholars. How could someone as shrewd as you be so easily fooled by a mere girl? Think about it carefully.”
The old woman shook her head, sighed, and walked away. It seemed she was one of the few who hadn’t been brainwashed.
After walking a distance, she suddenly muttered “evil spirit” and then ran away as if she were frightened. Only after saying those words did she realize with a start that Zhuang Tian’er truly was an evil spirit that bewitched people!
As Grandma Zhuang watched the old woman’s retreating figure, a storm raged in her mind. How could she not understand these simple truths? She could spoil her granddaughter, but she couldn’t let her outshine her grandsons, much less disturb their studies just because her granddaughter complained a few times.
She understood all these principles! Then why was she always led by the nose by Zhuang Tian’er?
Grandma Zhuang stood there trembling, when she heard a painful groan coming from under the banyan tree. Then Grandpa Zhuang emerged from the shadows, holding his head, which was throbbing with pain, in both hands.
The two looked at each other, then their faces turned pale. They wanted to say something, but their throats tightened, robbing them of their words.
The two walked home, their steps uneven. As they approached the gate, they heard Zhuang Tian’er and Zhuang Haisheng laughing and joking inside the house, and they both shuddered.
….
In the swaying carriage, Zhuang Li was sitting opposite Qi Wang, looking the man up and down.
Qi Wang sat upright, holding his breath and not daring to move. He had never been this nervous, not even when facing his father, the Emperor.
Suddenly, Zhuang Li sat up halfway, brought his head close to Qi Wang’s head, and gently sniffed down Qi Wang’s hair with his upturned nose, spraying hot breath on the other’s cheeks, ears, and neck.
Qi Wang’s muscles were tense, but his bones were soft and yielding.
He looked at the young man, his dark eyes clouded with suppressed emotion, and asked in a hoarse voice, “What are you doing?”
“You smell strongly of medicine; you seem to be injured.” Zhuang Li looked up at Qi Wang and ordered, “Take off your clothes so I can take a look.”
With just this one sentence, Qi Wang was pulled out of the whirlpool of pleasure.
The throbbing, tenderness, and tingling sensations that lingered in his heart all transformed into the fear and dejection of having to face reality. Qi Wang clenched his fists and sat motionless, frozen in place.
Zhuang Li braced one hand against the carriage wall behind Qi Wang’s head, pulling him into his arms, while unbuttoning his robe with the other hand. He then chuckled softly and huskily, “You don’t want to take it off? Fine then, let’s play a game. I’ll take off one garment, and you take off one. How about that?”
Qi Wang’s stiff body was attacked by an even more intense agitation, and his tightly clenched fists suddenly loosened, his palms constantly oozing moisture.
He quickly pressed his restless hands onto his knees and quietly wiped away the hot sweat with a bright yellow cloth.
Zhuang Li slowly unbuttoned one of his own buttons, revealing his slender neck like a white swan. Then he unbuttoned one of Qi Wang’s buttons, his fingertips gently caressing the pulsating veins on the side of the other’s neck.
The iron will forged by slaughter and political intrigue crumbled completely under the gentle caress, like a butterfly’s kiss. He, who had always been unyielding and resolute, was easily controlled by the boy, his mind and body taken over.
He trembled as he received the boy’s caresses, knowing full well that his greatest secret was hidden beneath the fabric, yet he was utterly powerless to resist the boy’s probing.
He watched, almost suffocating, as the boy unbuttoned their clothes, slowly revealing their bodies. The difference was that the boy was fair, intact, and beautiful, while his chest was wrapped in a thick layer of gauze, slowly seeping with black blood and emitting a nauseating odor.
Zhuang Li, whose clothes were half-open, was stunned. He had thought his lover was just suffering from severe insomnia, but he hadn’t expected that the symptoms were caused by excruciating physical pain.
In that instant, he was almost brought to tears by the sudden pang of sorrow. The blood-soaked gauze corresponded to his heart, and it was emitting a foul odor, indicating that the wound had been festering for years and had never healed.
No wonder his lover couldn’t sleep day and night, no wonder he had become so thin. A heart injury such as this was fatal; how did he manage to get through all these years?
Zhuang Li stared at the blood-stained gauze, his eyes red-rimmed. He had completely withdrawn his fingertips, no longer daring to touch his lover’s body. He hadn’t expected the problem to be so serious.
“What exactly happened?” he asked, looking up.
“I was poisoned by a needle a few years ago, and it couldn’t be removed. It’s embedded in my flesh and slowly festering. Don’t worry, the imperial physician has already prepared an antidote pill, which I take every day, and I’m in good health,” Qi Wang said, adjusting his robes as if to appear relaxed.
Zhuang Li, however, understood how serious the problem was: “The poison needle will travel through your body, you know? One day it will travel into your heart! In fact, you are facing death every moment right now.”
Qi Wang lowered his eyes and remained silent. His palms, which were originally covered with sweat and burning hot, now felt like he was holding two blocks of ice, freezing him until he gradually lost consciousness.
He closed his eyes and sighed helplessly.
Zhuang Li held his cold hand and comforted him, “With me here, everything will be alright. We’ll be fine once we pull out the poison needle.”
“I don’t want to pull it out.” Qi Wang opened his eyes and stared intently at the young boy, his eyes full of affection.
The poisoned needle was so close to his heart that if the imperial physician’s wrist had trembled slightly when it was pulled out, he might have died instantly. In the past, he had not been afraid of death, so he ordered the imperial physician to take the gamble.
Back then, the imperial physicians dared not gamble and repeatedly kowtowed and begged for mercy, which only made him extremely angry, wishing he could operate on himself; but now that the imperial physicians dared to gamble, he was afraid.
Upon seeing the boy, he knew he couldn’t afford to lose. How could he bear to leave a world filled with such a beautiful and captivating being?
“Forget about the poison needle, just let me get a good night’s sleep every night. I’ll live one day at a time, there’s nothing wrong with that,” Qi Wang said almost pleadingly.
“I don’t think this is a good idea. I’ll remove the poison needle for you tonight.” Zhuang Li made the decision swiftly and decisively.
If he doesn’t come, his beloved will surely die a terribly painful death. He must find out exactly how that poisoned needle was inserted!
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