IRBSC 101

Chapter 101

As the Western Xia envoy was escorted by the army to meet the emperor, he had already understood the reason behind the situation.

Li Angshun maintained a calm expression, without any struggle, following the soldiers. Upon entering the palace, the assassins he had instructed to bring Chu Wei to him for a conversation were kneeling in a sorry state, with colorful bloodstains on their clothes.

When Li Angshun saw them, his expression suddenly changed. He wished he could grab them by the collar and shout angrily, “How dare you wield your blades against him? Who let you go after the emperor?!”

But he ultimately didn’t say it, instead kneeling on the ground with a dark face.

Gu Yuanbai’s previous gentle expression when facing envoys had disappeared, and he spoke in a deep voice, “Li Angshun, the seventh prince of Western Xia.”

Li Angshun looked up and didn’t see any wounds on him, confirming that the people he had sent hadn’t harmed the Emperor of Da heng.

It’s good that he’s unharmed, he couldn’t help but think.

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The Western Xia prince felt puzzled.

He didn’t seem to hold any grudges against Gu Yuanbai.

Gu Yuanbai hardly flinched. “Take him away.”

The Western Xia prince turned around with a grim face and left. Chu Wei was truly a disaster. It was all because of him that they ended up in this situation.

The appearance of Emperor of Da heng clearly showed that he didn’t believe Li Angshun’s words.

After everyone had left, Gu Yuanbai asked, “What time is it?”

“It’s almost sunset,” Tian Fusheng replied.

Gu Yuanbai got up and glanced at him. Tian Fusheng had already packed up the letters and would send them to the northern border the next morning.

The Emperor remembered something and said, “Return all the things that have nothing to do with the border war, like the handkerchief and the note, to me.”

Tian Fusheng immediately responded, “Yes, I will arrange that.”

Gu Yuanbai lowered his eyebrows and made his way back to the palace.

It was satisfying to use the Western Xia envoy as a punching bag, suppressing his anger. But now, in the quiet of the night, when no one was around, that anger of being played surged back up.

Every move Xue Yuan made seemed like he was baring his heart to Gu Yuanbai.

But now, upon closer inspection, well…

Gu Yuanbai rarely allowed himself to be played with, whether in the past or now. After becoming the ruler of Da Heng, Xue Yuan was the first person to play with him.

With his strong suspicions, Gu Yuanbai almost believed that Xue Yuan truly liked him. However, at this moment, the connection between the original story’s top and bottom suddenly appeared in Gu Yuanbai’s mind, reminding him that the world he was in was a book.

The two main characters in the original story seemed destined for each other.

Interesting.

Xue Yuan was truly fascinating.

Gu Yuanbai spent the night feeling a bit fiery. When he woke up the next day, his throat was sore from the heat, and swallowing tea was a bit difficult. But as he lay in bed, closing his eyes to rest, Gu Yuanbai suddenly understood.

It’s fine, the two destined kings can be together, that’s fine.

But Xue Yuan better have some self-awareness. He better know what he can and cannot do. Since he had started something with Chu Wei, he shouldn’t come to Gu Yuanbai pretending to be innocent, playing with him secretly while entertaining him?

Gu Yuanbai was a decent person in society, and more importantly, he had been patronizing Xue Yuan all along. He didn’t deserve to be pursued relentlessly after being played with once. But Xue Yuan better give Gu Yuanbai an explanation. If there was no explanation, if he dared to openly send those affectionate letters to Gu Yuanbai, then Gu Yuanbai clenched his fist.

He wouldn’t be missed if he died.

Tian Fusheng was busy packing things up and tremblingly said, “Your Majesty, the jade finger ring that Sir Xue sent—”

“Return it,” Gu Yuanbai’s eyebrows were blocked by the mist of the tea, preventing him from seeing his expression. “Throw it back to him, let him keep it for his future bride.”

Gu Yuanbai didn’t plan on continuing to patronize Xue Yuan.

It’s not interesting.

*

Winter passed quickly, as if it had been just a blink of an eye.

In January, during the cold winter month, about twenty days before the Lunar New Year, the final batch of letters sent from the capital to the northern border finally reached the hands of the generals.

The people at the post station had snow-covered faces, and their layered clothes couldn’t keep out the cold. They shivered and said to General Xue, “General, this is the last time we’ll come to deliver letters before the New Year. If you want to send any more letters, you’ll have to wait until after the holiday. I’ll come back to collect them then.”

These letters were routine correspondence, not reports about the war on the northern border. General Xue smiled and said, “Alright, I’ll remember.”

After the people from the post station left, someone came forward to check and exclaimed, “Why are all these things addressed to Xue Jiuyao?”

Xue Yuan had been casually standing to the side, not expecting to receive any replies. But upon hearing this, his eyelids twitched, and he quickly stepped forward to see for himself. Sure enough, on top of a large package, there was a note with the words “Xue Yuan” written on it.

Was this whole package intended for him?

Xue Yuan became uncertain. It would already be good enough if Gu Yuanbai replied to his letter. But with this situation, could it be that the item he had been yearning for had also been sent to the northern border?

This burden was so noticeable that everyone gathered around Xue Yuan. Mixed with jealousy and a hint of vinegar, they said, “Impressive, young man. How much did your family send you in letters?”

General Xue, holding just a few thin letters in his hand, felt embarrassed. He looked at Xue Yuan with disdain and asked, “Sent by your mother?”

Xue Yuan’s eyelids twitched several times. His emotions were a mix of disbelief and excitement. Holding the burden, he said, “I’ll go and take a look.”

Xue Yuan hurriedly returned to his own tent, taking three steps at a time, and tightly closed the door. Excitedly, he began to unpack the package. It couldn’t be possible for Gu Yuanbai to send him individual letters. Was this heavy package even filled with the clothes Gu Yuanbai personally wore?

Were there any used handkerchiefs? Silver chopsticks that had touched his lips?

Before opening it, Xue Yuan could almost smell the fragrance that surrounded Gu Yuanbai.

Elegant, luxurious, Xue Yuan felt as if he could drown in this scent.

This was definitely something sent from the imperial palace.

A smile appeared at the corner of Xue Yuan’s mouth, his eyebrows raised in delight. As soon as he opened the bundle, a jade finger ring rolled out.

Xue Yuan’s gaze focused, and he quickly reached out to catch the rolling ring.

This jade finger ring looked extremely familiar. Wasn’t it the gift he had given Gu Yuanbai?

A sense of unease rose in Xue Yuan’s heart. He clenched the ring in his hand and rummaged through the package. Everything inside was familiar; they were all the letters he had sent to Gu Yuanbai.

There was a piece of clothing, but it was Xue Yuan’s own. It was the clothing Gu Yuanbai borrowed from him on that rainy day at Xue’s residence.

Xue Yuan tightly gripped the clothing, his brow furrowing deeply. He buried his face in the fabric and took a deep breath, as if he could still smell Gu Yuanbai’s scent, the cold dampness of that rainy day.

Why were the things he had given to Gu Yuanbai being sent back?

Did Gu Yuanbai not like the sight of the severed head? Was he scared?

Indeed, Xue Yuan thought, Gu Yuanbai had always found his hands dirty when Xue Yuan tried to peel lychees for him.

Although he thought that way, the anxiety in his heart grew deeper. Xue Yuan’s jaw tightened, taking out each item from the burden one by one.

Finally, at the very bottom, he found a letter from Tian Fusheng.

In the letter, Tian Fusheng informed Xue Yuan that he had written down the two sentences that the Emperor had spoken to him and sent them to Xue Jiuyao, with a warning not to write any letters to the Emperor that didn’t tackle border conflicts. If even a single word related to romance was mentioned, there would be consequences. The second sentence was that since Xue Yuan had once asked for this jade finger ring, the Emperor had sent it back to him and instructed him to give it to his future wife.

Tian Fusheng tried to soften the language in the letter, but he directly quoted the Emperor’s words.

After reading the letter, Xue Yuan was dumbfounded.

He held the clothing the Emperor had worn, looked at the envelopes filled with his heartfelt words scattered on the ground, and became completely bewildered.

He lowered his head and read Tian Fusheng’s letter five or six times, even reading it backward, but he couldn’t understand why Gu Yuanbai would say such things.

Could it be that the language in his letters was too bold and daring, thus angering Gu Yuanbai?

But he had been bold and daring long ago. When he rushed back to the capital, didn’t he become intimate with Gu Yuanbai? He touched him, kissed him, and Gu Yuanbai even made him bow down and serve him. Would a person like that get so angry over explicit words in a letter?

On the return journey, he was escorted for thousands of miles, so what happened now?

The more Xue Yuan thought about it, the more his expression turned grim. The veins on the back of his hand bulged, and the jade finger ring in his palm made an unbearable creaking sound.

He was awakened by this sound, and he lowered his head to open his hand. Thankfully, the emerald jade finger ring hadn’t broken, still translucent and heavy in his palm.

Xue Yuan put the jade finger ring on his hand. His palm was larger than Gu Yuanbai’s, and his finger bones were slightly bigger. The jade finger ring that fit loosely on Gu Yuanbai’s thumb was now worn on another finger by him.

Xue Yuan stood up, his features suppressed.

Who spoke to Gu Yuanbai?

Who said bad things about Xue Yuan to Gu Yuanbai?

Who exactly said what, that made Gu Yuanbai go to such lengths to return these things?

Xue Yuan’s heart surged with hidden waves, the more he thought, the deeper it became.

Who?