C163 — Kill that top scholar (30)

Bringing back another rabbit meant there were now two in the courtyard. Shen Jue thought simply: two rabbits could keep each other company. But that afternoon, he was left dumbfounded.

Because he saw one rabbit riding on top of the other.

Wen Yurong glanced over and then looked at Shen Jue, who was clearly frozen in place. He couldn’t help but suppress a laugh. “That’s just what rabbits do. That’s why I only bought one the first time.”

Shen Jue pressed his lips together and turned to instruct the servant to lock both rabbits in the cage. After that day, he never touched the rabbits again. If they ran toward him, he would immediately walk away and ask the servant to put them back in the cage.

After this happened several times, the rabbits seemed to get smarter and stopped approaching him.

Ever since going out that one time with Wen Yurong, Shen Jue found it hard to stay cooped up in the house. So every evening when Wen Yurong came home, he would ask if they could go out again.

Curfew in Jinling started late, around the end of the Hai hour (roughly 11 p.m.), much later than in the capital, so after dinner, Wen Yurong still had time to take Shen Jue out.

As night fell, the day’s heat gradually faded. Shen Jue and Wen Yurong walked side by side along the banks of the Qinhuai River. Wen Yurong originally wanted to hold his hand, but Shen Jue complained about the heat, so he let go.

Shen Jue’s health had improved a lot lately. He no longer had to wear thick fur even in summer. Though he still dressed a bit warmer than most people, it was already a significant improvement.

On the Qinhuai River, many boats floated by, the sound of string instruments and singing girls drifting faintly ashore. The soft night breeze made passersby stop in their tracks, and even Shen Jue paused to listen.

Wen Yurong wasn’t very interested, but still stood beside Shen Jue quietly.

After a while, Shen Jue began walking again. But as they moved forward, he suddenly bumped into someone. Even though it was Shen Jue who walked into the person, the impact made him stumble back a few steps. Fortunately, Wen Yurong caught him in time.

“Are you alright, brother?” the person he bumped into asked quickly.

Shen Jue shook his head, stood upright again, and walked around the man with Wen Yurong without another word.

The person left behind turned to watch their backs for a moment, then gave a faint smile. “So it really is him.”

The person Shen Jue bumped into was none other than Shen Wei, the legitimate grandson of the Prince of Jinling. Some time ago, he had heard from his grandfather that the emperor might have gone missing. Though the news had been suppressed, they had spies in court.

When something happened to an emperor, no matter how hard it was concealed, traces always surfaced. His grandfather had always been sensitive to affairs in the capital and updated the emperor’s portraits yearly. So Shen Wei had seen many paintings of the emperor, and when his cousin casually mentioned that strange man, he immediately suspected it might be the missing emperor.

He didn’t report it to the Prince of Jinling right away. Instead, he had his own men investigate quietly. Today, he confirmed the route Wen Yurong and Shen Jue took on their walks and deliberately arranged to bump into Shen Jue.

He hadn’t recognized the man by his face — but by his scent.

In the palace, the emperor’s chambers and garments were always perfumed with ambergris (dragon musk). In the Wei Empire, only the emperor was allowed to use it. The scent was strong and lingering — even if someone stopped using it for months, traces would remain.

When he collided with that man just now, he caught that scent. What was more, when it happened, the young man beside Shen Jue glanced at him. The look was subtle, but Shen Wei could still detect the flash of surprise in his eyes.

How could someone who didn’t know him be surprised?

Shen Wei projected his own thinking onto others. He figured that since his grandfather had a portrait of the emperor, the palace must have portraits of his grandfather and himself as well.

He never expected that the emperor everyone was searching for was actually right under their noses. Shen Wei smiled to himself, deciding that he must handle this matter carefully.

…

Shen Jue noticed Wen Yurong had been a bit distracted for a while and looked at him curiously. “Yuze, what’s wrong?”

Wen Yurong paused, then said, “Nothing.” He glanced up at the sky. “It seems a bit late. Let’s head back.”

“Alright.”

After returning, Shen Jue went to bathe, while Wen Yurong went to the study. But by the time Shen Jue was ready to sleep, Wen Yurong still hadn’t come back.

After waiting for a while with no sign of him, Shen Jue went to sleep alone. But just as he was dozing off, he was suddenly awakened.

Wen Yurong had returned, still damp from his bath. Seeing Shen Jue turn around, he immediately realized he had disturbed him.

He looked at Shen Jue’s sleepy face, remained silent for a moment, then reached out and gently touched Shen Jue’s cheek. His hand, accustomed to holding a brush for years, had thin calluses on the pads of the first three fingers. Shen Jue’s body was nurtured by countless rare things from the palace, so even though he was past thirty, his face remained remarkably tender.

Wen Yurong only touched him for a while before Shen Jue’s cheeks flushed slightly.

Then, unexpectedly, Wen Yurong leaned in and kissed Shen Jue’s forehead.

Shen Jue didn’t move or speak, just waited for him to pull away. But Wen Yurong’s lips slowly trailed downward, and just when they were about to touch Shen Jue’s mouth, Shen Jue dodged.

He placed his hand on Wen Yurong’s shoulder, voice still heavy with sleep: “Yuze, I’m sleepy.”

From above, a soft sigh was heard, then Shen Jue was pulled into an embrace.

“It’s alright now. Sleep,” Wen Yurong said gently, without any hint of disappointment at being refused.

Shen Jue settled comfortably in Wen Yurong’s arms and closed his eyes. Usually, when Shen Jue woke the next morning, Wen Yurong was gone. But this time, he found Wen Yurong still lying beside him and paused in surprise.

He propped himself up and looked at the young man next to him. “Aren’t you going out today?”

Wen Yurong hummed, then said, “You should sleep a little longer, I’m going to prepare breakfast.”

He got up and left. Shen Jue watched him go before lying down again.

That entire day, Wen Yurong stayed home with Shen Jue. When Shen Jue asked to go out, Wen Yurong refused, citing the hot weather. But toward evening, Wen Yurong suddenly asked if Shen Jue wanted to live somewhere else for a while.

Shen Jue looked at the two rabbits in their cage and then asked, “Where are we going?”

“To Guanzhong. I heard there are many delicious foods there,” Wen Yurong said gently. “Don’t want to leave those rabbits? We can bring them along.”

But Shen Jue shook his head. “No, Guanzhong is pretty far, and it’s a tough journey. They might die if we bring them.”

“Then we’ll leave them here. I’ll have Xiaoyuan continue to take care of them.”

Xiaoyuan was the servant’s name.

That night, Wen Yurong told Xiaoyuan they would be traveling far and asked him to stay at home to look after the rabbits. Xiaoyuan nodded quickly and gestured a few times.

“I heard there’s a famous doctor in the northern deserts. I’ll take him there to see. I’ll leave some money for you, enough for your living expenses. Don’t worry,” Wen Yurong said as he changed the destination while talking to Xiaoyuan.

Early the next morning, Wen Yurong packed his bags and set out with Shen Jue. However, they didn’t leave the city right away. Wen Yurong first took Shen Jue to an inn. There, in front of Shen Jue, Wen Yurong changed his face—using a disguise—and then also disguised Shen Jue’s face before they headed to the city gate.

At the gate, the inspection was strict. No one was allowed to leave by carriage; everyone had to get off and line up to exit one by one. Shen Jue and Wen Yurong stood near the back of the queue and noticed the guards in front holding up a portrait while questioning people.

Wen Yurong saw this but kept his expression unchanged. He just squeezed Shen Jue’s hand briefly, then let go. Shen Jue glanced at him and leaned in, whispering, “It looks like they’re looking for someone.”

“Maybe someone stole something in the city,” Wen Yurong replied casually, then turned his face to brush aside some stray hair from Shen Jue’s cheek. “Hot?”

“Not hot,” Shen Jue said. “Just a bit thirsty.”

Upon hearing this, Wen Yurong immediately tried to find the water pouch. He got back on the carriage and searched, but couldn’t find it.

“Did you find it?” Shen Jue asked from outside.

Wen Yurong hesitated before getting off. He looked at Shen Jue. “No. Once we get out of the city, I’ll get you some water, alright?”

As he spoke, his eyes stayed locked on Shen Jue.

Shen Jue just gave a soft “hm” in reply and turned his face away.

The line moved slowly because every person had to pass through three separate inspections. As time dragged on, some people began to grumble quietly, but no one dared complain too loudly. The sunlight grew stronger, and Shen Jue’s pale face gradually flushed red from the sun.

When it was finally their turn, even before the guard could inspect their faces, Shen Jue suddenly collapsed.