When Qi Mingyue snapped out of his thoughts, he saw Chief Liu standing on the side. He appeared to have not noticed his distraction but when he recalled what he had been thinking about, he coughed uncomfortably before recovering his usual expression as if nothing had happened. He drew out his weapon and after bowing in ceremony, he faced Liu Yi.
The weapon in his hand was very weird, it looked like iron but actually wasn't. Its texture under the sun appeared translucent and it reflected the sunlight. It was three fingers wide and four feet long, but it did not have a definite shape. If not gripped properly, it would drop on the ground like a long strand of silk.
At this time, this silk-like thing was sandwiched between his index and middle fingers, his elegant movements were like a graceful dance with a silk ribbon. The band which appeared to entangle light itself, made a sharp sizzling sound as its shape stretched tight into a cryptic and incoherent shape.
Liu Yi's figure flickered between this dangerous band of light and his appearance did not change at all. He was still empty-handed and even exchanged dozens of moves with Qi Mingyue without wielding a blade.
Seemingly soft but with a spiteful of energy, its figure changed freely under the guidance of his fingertips. Qi Mingyue stared at it, revealing a gentle look but the corner of the mouth was curled in habitual cold mockery. Of course, he remembered the weapon used in the past, it was similar to this. It was a thorn shaped like a steel cable and was flexible, changeable and could be moved at will. It was very convenient to use and hide, but he didn't expect to find an even more desirable weapon here. For a sharp weapon that suited his own preferences, he couldn't help but give it a try, wanting to see what kind of form it could change into in his hand. It would become even more gorgeous after being stained crimson...
A trace of murderous intent unconsciously emanated from his whole body as he fell into the memories of the past. The sharp weapon in his hand also flashed a colourful halo under the sun, which made it look even more stunning. With the bright golden colour lining his warm, jade-like face and an unpretentious smile on his lips - he was tempting. His black hair swayed along with his movements against the wind and the shadows cast by it showed a strange charm under the brightness of the sun, making Liu Yi feel as if he was suddenly facing the devil.
His heart immediately tightened and he hastily shouted, "Your Royal Highness, control your intent!" He reached out his hand and immediately grabbed the other end of the light blade. The blade stretched to its utmost limit, made a low buzzing sound and shook between both of their holds.
Qi Mingyue snapped back into attention and immediately began to regulate the swirling blood qi in his chest.
When he calmed down, he stood still in place. Liu Yi frowned slightly, "Has Your Royal Highness been in a trance and not able to concentrate recently?" He had never seen him like this. At first, he thought he was being like this because he got Yi Hu[1], felt pleased, and his mind got immersed in fighting. However, as it progressed, he realised His Highness had gone off the deep end, sunk into his mind and had lost his awareness, which wasn't normal for him.
[1] The name of the silky weapon. Interestingly, it actually translates to "Charming fox".
Indeed. Usually, it was because he thought of Father Emperor's wanton desires that made him distracted sometimes and miss moves during practice, but this time, he suspected that there was another reason. He thought a little and his face turned serious, "It seems that I have to visit the Empress soon."
Seeing that he had reached a conclusion, Liu Yi no longer talked. He handed over Yi Hu to Qi Mingyue. At this time, it had become soft and silky again.
After taking the blade, Qi Mingyue wrapped it around his waist.
Yi Hu was like a soft sword, it could be wrapped around the waist at will and was thin and soft. When injected with internal force, its strength was comparable to any famous sword, no different from iron. Its temperature was cool in summer and made people very comfortable and was also convenient to carry around. He didn't know where Father got it from, there seemed to be many secret treasures in the palace.
Provided the situation, today's practise could only be ended here. Liu Yi gave him a little salute and said: "His Majesty previously transmitted a message. He asked for Your Highness to return to Xuantian Palace to have dinner with him after practising martial arts."
Nodding his head, Qi Mingyue returned to Xuantian Palace with Liu Yi.
When he reached to the outer hall, he didn't see Qi Xutian's figure. Upon asking the palace servants, he came to know that he was still reading memorials in the Imperial Study. Looking at the sky, it was getting late, so he took a bath, changed his clothes and went to the Imperial study.
Outside the Imperial Study Room, the guard standing in front of the door saw the Second Prince coming and did not block his entrance. Everyone in this palace knew that as long as the Second Prince wanted to go, he was allowed to go. Furthermore, his presence didn't need to be confirmed or announced. The Second Prince was probably the only one in the world to receive such trust and favour from the Emperor.
Qi Mingyue pushed the door open and saw Father Emperor with a lazy look as he leaned against the chair and wrote something on the memorial. When he saw him coming in, he smiled and stopped writing.
Without saying anything, Qi Mingyue walked straight to meet his gaze, sat down beside him, relaxed his mind slightly with his eyes closed, and fell into his arms. Qi Xutian stretched out his hand and brought him close, wrapping his body in his arms, "Tired?"
"Just suddenly felt that it was not real." With his eyes closed, he found that since he fell asleep due to Nian Chen, he was a bit absent-minded and often felt that he was in a dream. This strange feeling made him a little irritable, he hated the feeling of being out of control.
Qi Xutian naturally discovered his anomalies in recent days, all of which came after Nian Chen. When MingEr woke up that day, it was like nothing had transpired. He didn't mention the things in his dream, thinking nothing it wasn't anything major, but unexpectedly, the next few nights, there were nightmares which made Qi Mingyue clutch his sleeves as his hands and feet trembled. And when he woke up the next day, he was completely ignorant of this. Seeing this, Qi Xutian could not help but start to worry. It appeared that its influence hadn't completely passed.
Therefore, in order not to let him have the opportunity to fall into his nightmares again, he kept pressing MingEr under him for several days, repeatedly teased and provoked him to be intimate and made him work hard to suppress his lust. Only then was he be able to fall asleep and stay calm throughout the night.
Considering the reason Father asked this question, Qi Mingyue opened his eyes slightly, "Father knows?"
"My eyes always look at you, how can I not know?" Qi Xutian compassionately caressed his body that had grown somewhat thin recently, "You're in a trance these days but if this continues, I'm afraid that gradually, you won't be able to distinguish reality from dreams. It should be caused by the power of Nian Chen." It was all because Jiang Yao wanted to spy and sate her curiosity about their relationship that his MingEr was like this, it made him regret that the punishment that day was too cheap.
He hooked his arm around Qi Xutian's neck and kissed him softly on the lips, "Don't worry, Father, Mingyue isn't such a weak person. No matter how powerful Nian Chen is, there will be a way to crack it. As long as my heart is firm, I think it will get better in a few days, but before that, I still plan to go to Ranxin Pavilion."
"I will accompany you. If I hear you sleep-talking while dreaming again, I would be unable to resist the urge to kill Jiang Yao."
"I don't know... what did I say while dreaming?"
When he asked this sentence, Qi Mingyue was shaken for a moment and this did not escape Qi Xutian's eyes. "It's just a very vague syllable that I didn't hear clearly. Are you willing to tell me all the things about your past that you don't want to recall?"
Willing to tell? He just didn't think about it. He thought he didn't care about it, as a result, it still left a mark on his subconscious and resurfaced because of Nian Chen. "It's just some memories of my childhood, of both my parents, of the organization, and those of my missions. There were a lot of dead people..."
As he spoke in a low voice, Qi Xutian stared at his calm face, feeling distressed because of the indifferent look in MingEr's eyes. He listened as MingEr continued speaking impassively, "Actually, it wasn't much, but it was a little too heavy for my younger self at that time. It was hard to handle and I didn't want to think about it. As time went on, I got used to not thinking about it and didn't look back into it. I thought it was all forgotten but Nian Chen made me recall it all again... my parents who died in front of me, all the faces of my comrades who died in front of me, the enemies who died at my feet. I guess my memory is pretty good."
With a mocking chuckle, he closed his eyes, snuggled into Qi Xutian's arms, and sighed, "It's not too sad. Father doesn't need to hold me so tightly, I'm fine. Now, in your arms, I'm spoiled."
He didn't ask too much about his past. Qi Xutian heard his seemingly unfeeling words and understood that his growth in his past life was all about continuous death and training. When he was a young child, how much suffering and blood had he suffered through? Thinking about it, it was all because of Jiang Yao that he recalled his past. His face sank, "Although I spoil you, my MingEr still suffered through those things. Tomorrow, you can go to Ranxin Pavilion and understand why the effect of this Nian Chen is so long-lasting and difficult to break. Your past, I can't control it but this time... it seems that the price she paid that day was too little."
Seeing him with a cold face, it appeared that he intended to punish the Empress again. Qi Mingyue smiled lightly, "It's not necessary. If you accompany me to Ranxin Pavilion, you will hold her responsible again. That's not good for the Empress. Furthermore, she's a person under your command. This incident was also unintentional, there's no need for you to be so serious. I'll go there by myself to ask for clarification."
"You really don't want me to accompany you? You are so afraid that I will hurt her life. When did you start to care about the concubines in the palace? Although she is indeed the Empress and a person under my command, MingEr needs to know that she must pay for her mistakes." His MingEr seemed to be afraid of hurting Jiang Yao's life. Qi Xutian raised the chin of the young man in his arms and looked into his eyes intently as if trying to explore why he protected her so much.
"I really like her." He raised his head and looked into the eyes that were intensely inquiring and said his true feelings from the bottom of his heart.
Thinking of the ambiguous scene he saw that day and hearing his words again, Qi Xutian showed a bloodthirsty smile to Qi Mingyue for the first time, and asked softly, "You like her? How much do you like her? She used to be a woman of your Father and groaned gently under many men. Do you still like such a woman?"
After listening to his words, Qi Mingyue revealed a surprised expression. He hadn't expected that Jiang Yao, who had such a cheerful and casual deposition, would have such a past. Hearing the meaning of his Father's words, he analysed Jiang Yao's behaviour. According to her temperament, it wasn't difficult to imagine that many of the men mentioned by Father Emperor must have long since met their death. "If I didn't guess wrong, she was saved by you? From a brothel? Or..."
"MingEr really cares about her a lot. Since you want to know, I will tell you everything." Qi Xutian closed his eyes, hiding the crazy killing intention brewing in them, "She was born in a Wulin Family but her family was in trouble and her relatives were killed by their enemy family. She was cruelly assaulted by several men and was almost killed by them. If it wasn't for me, she wouldn't have survived. After that, she offered herself as a pillow seat, I took her in as an attendant beside me and when she invited herself to the palace, she was given the Empress' position." Qi Xutian said with a chuckle. "Anyway, she can't have children in this life and is just useful to balance those in the harem. Being in the palace, it's also very convenient to send messages for me and deliver information. She can control the situation in Jianghu at any time. She is willing and I can naturally use her with a peace of mind. Do you think she is very good?" He said with a dangerous and cold smile. Although his voice was soft, it could make people shudder.
"This was your true intention?" His Father Emperor was such a man. Qi Mingyue looked at the bloodthirsty iciness in his eyes and his murderous intention which made him a little breathless. It seemed that no matter how useful Jiang Yao was, Father Emperor was willing to give her up and it was all due to his words.
"You regret it? Do you regret telling me that you like her?" Looking at his body, Qi Xutian finally calmed his murderous intention and relaxed his arms around him but the darkness in his eyes was still brewing. Inactive and cold, as if staring at his prey, he watched the young man in his arms and waited for his answer. Then, he would rush forward and pounce on him to discipline him for saying words that he shouldn't say.
"Don't worry, Father. I like her but the person in my heart is you. I like Jiang Yao but only as a friend." Father Emperor was indeed an unpredictable, fickle and ruthless person but towards the real him, he did not have any displeasure or disgust. Even if Father was like this, he still indulged him all the time and in all kinds of ways. How could he not be happy? After all, Qi Mingyue was a selfish person. Whoever treated him well and made him happy would naturally be the person he would go to. As for the life and death of others, he didn't care much.
After listening to his words, the coldness in Qi Xutian's eyes suddenly disappeared but he bit Qi Mingyue's neck. He then licked the bite mark on his thin and white neck, he licked away the small beads of blood. Then he gently kissed the spot with a smile containing a hint of danger, "If MingEr says something like that again, I may not be able to bear it for long and go kill the person you speak of. Then I would tie you to the bed and love you from top to bottom until you cry and beg under me. You won't be able to get out of bed for days and won't dare to say that you like others later."
Frowning at his words, Qi Mingyue secretly decided to pay more attention to it in the future. It would be better to stimulate his Father less. Touching the bite mark on his neck, he murmured, "It seems that you are really hungry." He had originally come to have dinner together but Father seemed more interested in him.
"Who made you look so delicious? But I can only look and can't eat, I'm really hungry. When do you want to give me a taste?" His fingers lingered on his neck and slowly slid inside Qi Mingyue's lapels.
Qi Mingyue chuckled, leaned closer and brought his lips over to Qi Xutian's neck to lick and kiss, "If Father really can't wait, then just wait for the power of Nian Chen to pass. I will let Father have a taste."
Sticking out his tongue, he sucked on the finely-textured honey-coloured skin, leaving a few crimson kiss marks. In fact, he was also very interested in his Father's body but his own body was young, sensitive and inexperienced. Even if Father agreed, he couldn't imagine himself pressing Father under him. Moreover, even if it came about, he wouldn't be able to stand it for long and end it hastily which wouldn't make Father feel pleasure. That wasn't something he was happy to see.
The small tongue in the neck made Qi Xutian groan and with a smile, he looked at Qi Mingyue charmingly, "Do you really mean it? I have endured for a long time, you don't know..." Qi Xutian grabbed his hand and led it downwards, the erect member under his hand made Qi Mingyue chuckle lightly, "You're like this just from a kiss? Why didn't I realise you were so patient? You won't have to wait for long."
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