Li Fengqi was a martial artist, with a naturally robust and fiery constitution. Having soaked in a medicinal bath that evening, the heat-inducing properties of the herbs were radiating from within, making him akin to a natural furnace, drawing others to seek his warmth. In his drowsy state, Ye Yunting instinctively sought out the heat, nestling close to him like a little silkworm cocoon wrapped in his quilt. His body leaned against Li Fengqi's chest, his forehead resting precisely against Li Fengqi's shoulder.
Only two layers of bedding separated the two of them. Li Fengqi could even feel the faint, cool breaths from Ye Yunting's nose.
Such an intimate posture caused Li Fengqi, who had always disliked physical contact, to instinctively recoil. He clenched his jaw, glanced sideways at Ye Yunting, and tensed his arm, attempting to create some distance.
However, as soon as he moved, a gap opened between the bedding. A piercing chill seeped in through the opening, causing the sleeping Ye Yunting to shiver slightly. Frowning, he mumbled something indistinct, then, still wrapped in his quilt, wriggled even closer to Li Fengqi. Finding it still not warm enough, he arched his back, his cold hands and feet clumsily seeking entry into Li Fengqi's bedding.
Li Fengqi's bedding was, of course, warm. First, his hands and feet found their way in, and upon feeling the warmth, his whole body soon followed, burrowing in until he was pressed against the warm body, finally settling down to sleep contentedly.
He slept quietly, remaining still in one position after finding the heat source.
This left Li Fengqi alone, lying rigid, enduring torment.
The body pressed against him carried a slight coolness, and the occasional touch of skin was smooth and cool, like a piece of fine cold jade—sleek, delicate, and cool to the touch. Held in his embrace, it gradually warmed with his body heat.
Li Fengqi took a deep breath, forcing himself to close his eyes and ignore the tantalizing, ambiguous illusion.
...
Ye Yunting had an unprecedentedly good night's sleep.
He suffered from a constitution prone to coldness; his hands and feet were always icy in winter. Back at the Duke's estate, Ji Lian would always warm two hot water bottles for him to place in his bedding. Sleeping with one at his feet and one in his arms allowed him to sleep soundly through the night.
But since coming to the Prince's residence, the weather had grown colder day by day. Not only were there no hot water bottles, but to maintain their deception, he had deliberately exposed himself to the cold and caught a chill. In these past few days, he had hardly slept a peaceful night.
Only last night did he finally sleep sweetly.
Waking from a pleasant dream, Ye Yunting sighed contentedly before poking his head out of the warm bedding to check the time. If it was still early, he could sleep a little longer.
But this movement brought him into contact with a warm body.
"!!!"
Startled, Ye Yunting's muddled thoughts instantly cleared. His eyes widened in alarm as he turned his head, his gaze colliding directly with Li Fengqi's, who had noticed the movement.
Li Fengqi stared at him for a few moments, his expression inscrutable. "Awake?"
"...?" Ye Yunting blinked slowly, his eyelashes fluttering like butterfly wings. He glanced at Li Fengqi, then surreptitiously peeked to the left with the corner of his eye. Seeing the mostly empty other side of the bed and the quilt piled up there, his fair ears flushed a burning red.
He curled his toes, carefully shifting his body backward a little. His eyes darted around awkwardly as he forced a smile. "I'm awake."
Looking at Ye Yunting's reddened ears and his evasive eyes that dared not meet his, the frustration that had clogged Li Fengqi's chest after a sleepless night dissipated entirely. He gave a noncommittal "Hmm," observing Ye Yunting leisurely before slowly speaking. "Then I'll trouble the young master to fetch me a clean set of underclothes."
"Why do you need to change?" Ye Yunting asked instinctively.
He had changed into clean underclothes just last night after the medicinal bath.
Li Fengqi gazed at him, a faint, ambiguous smile playing on his lips. "Sleeping together was rather warm. I perspired."
When Ye Yunting first burrowed into his bedding last night, his cool body was quite comfortable, providing some relief from the heat. But as time passed, Ye Yunting grew warmer and warmer, while Li Fengqi, affected by the medicinal properties, felt increasingly restless and feverish. After suffering half the night, he was drenched in sweat.
It was just an offhand question, but the answer he received was mortifying. This time, Ye Yunting's cheeks flushed red as well. He sprang up from the bed as if startled, hastily slipped on his shoes, and hurried out. "I'll go get them for you right away."
Hearing the commotion, Ji Lian looked up from the outer room. Seeing his young master standing before the wardrobe in just his underclothes, rummaging through it, he couldn't help but chide, "Young master, you're not fully recovered yet! Why are you running around without your robe again?!"
Ye Yunting didn't even look up. "I know, I know. I'll put it on right away."
Hidden behind the wardrobe door, he used his cool hands to try and cool his burning cheeks.
Li Fengqi had kindly shared half the bed with him, yet he had overstepped, taking advantage and burrowing into the other's bedding. It was truly too presumptuous.
Coupled with the thought of their nominal relationship, the embarrassment felt even more acute.
As comfortable as the carved canopy bed was, he would sleep on the daybed in the outer room tonight!
Clutching the underclothes, he dawdled his way back. Handing them to Li Fengqi, he pursed his lips and, still avoiding eye contact, explained, "I don't sleep very well. Please don't mind what happened last night."
Li Fengqi took the underclothes, glanced at him, and the corner of his eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly. "The weather is cold, and there's no charcoal fire in the room. If you're afraid of the cold, it's fine if you want to huddle together for warmth."
Upon hearing this, Ye Yunting thought to himself, It's not that I wanted to huddle with you; it was unintentional while asleep.
But then, remembering the wonderfully warm bedding, he had to concede. Alright, if possible, I really wouldn't mind huddling together. After all, it was truly warm.
However, he kept these thoughts to himself and merely said aloud, "My chill isn't fully cured yet. Tonight, I'll squeeze in with Ji Lian in the outer room, so I don't pass my illness to you, Your Highness."
Hearing this, Li Fengqi raised an eyebrow slightly and looked at him, but ultimately said nothing more.
...
After a good night's sleep, Ye Yunting's chill had improved significantly.
But to the outside world, he still had to appear sickly, drinking bowl after bowl of medicine. Fortunately, he wasn't the only one suffering this ordeal; Li Fengqi had to drink medicine alongside him—in addition to the medicinal bath every three days, he also had to take decoctions three times daily.
To maintain their cover, Ji Lian brewed their medicines together, so the two of them took their medicine at the same time.
Whenever Ye Yunting was tormented by the bitter decoction to the point of retching, seeing Li Fengqi down a bowl of dark, murky medicine without changing expression made him feel his own ordeal wasn't so bad after all.
After all, the Yong'an Prince's medicine smelled even more bitter than his.
Two days passed like this. Ye Yunting's chill was almost completely better, though his constitution had indeed suffered some damage; his face still looked pale and bloodless.
After a meal one day, Ye Yunting, wrapped in a thick cotton robe and clutching a hot water bottle Ji Lian had asked a maid to purchase, discussed with Li Fengqi how to quickly relay information from the capital to the northern border.
Ye Yunting had been preoccupied with the dream he had during his feverish unconsciousness, suspecting it might have been events from a previous life. Since recovering from his illness, he had been pondering how to prevent the tragedy from occurring.
Because he needed to fetch medicine for an illness, Ji Lian was permitted to leave the princely estate once every five days. Three days had already passed, and the day after tomorrow, Ji Lian would be able to go out again. At that time, he could make contact with Li Fengqi's men and have them find a way to deliver the secret letter to the Northern Frontier as quickly as possible.
But the difficulty now lay in the fact that Li Zong's precautions were extremely thorough; he had already secretly severed all channels for sending letters to the Northern Frontier. It was highly likely that Li Fengqi's men would find no opportunity to deliver the letter at all, or by the time the letter was sent, it would already be too late.
Ye Yunting always felt they couldn't just passively wait. They had to find a way to avoid the emperor's eyes and ears and get the letter out quickly.
"The three prefectures around the capital belong to the Yunrong Military Command. All the passes and courier stations along the routes are staffed by Li Zong's trusted followers. The roads to the Northern Frontier at this time must be heavily guarded at checkpoints; my men would have a hard time evading his watch." Li Fengqi's finger traced over the three prefectures—Lu, Ji, and Zhong—on the map, his tone grave. "If we risk sending someone in disguise, detouring from Zhong Prefecture to Fan Prefecture, then passing through Jiali Prefecture to head west to Yuzhou, that might be feasible. But the detour is long and the journey would take more than half again as much time."
"Delay invites trouble." Ye Yunting stared at the map, deep in thought. "Is there really no way to slip past Li Zong's watch?"
Li Fengqi shook his head. A tiger fallen on the plains is bullied by dogs. If there were a way, his letter wouldn't still be undelivered.
Ye Yunting propped his chin on one hand, frowning as he sank into anxious contemplation.
Meanwhile, Li Fengqi, who was brewing tea, suddenly tilted his head to listen. After a moment, his expression turned peculiar. "It seems someone outside is calling for you."
The voice was full of vigor, piercing through the layers of rooftops to reach Li Fengqi's ears.
"Calling for me?" Ye Yunting was puzzled.
He leaned out and called to Ji Lian outside: "Is someone calling for me?"
Ji Lian, hearing this, also listened carefully. It truly did sound as if someone was calling the young master's name. He said, "I'll go out and check," and pushed the door open to go outside.
Once outside the courtyard, the shouting became even clearer, cries of "Ye Yunting, you come out here!" and "Do you really think you've flown up the branch just because you became a princess consort? You don't even come home anymore!" and so on.
The more Ji Lian listened, the stranger his expression became. That voice... it sounded like Second Young Master Ye Wang.
The Second Young Master of the State Duke's manor, Ye Wang, had been spoiled and willful since childhood, doted on and coddled by Lady Yin. Now sixteen, he was already a notorious good-for-nothing in the capital. Cockfighting, dog racing, brothels, taverns—there was nothing he didn't do, no place he didn't dare to go.
Second Young Master Ye Wang and Eldest Young Master Ye Yunting lived like two polar opposites within the State Duke's manor.
Ye Wang lived up to his name ('wang' meaning reckless), relying on the influence of the State Duke's manor and the Yin family to live boldly and without scruples. Meanwhile, Ye Yunting lived secluded in a corner of the manor, neglected and forgotten, having barely stepped outside the main gates a few times in his life.
But oddly enough, this spoiled and willful second young master, ever since learning he had an elder brother, had taken a peculiar liking to coming to stir up trouble for Ye Yunting.
Ye Yunting had a gentle temper and didn't want to offend him and invite more trouble. Back in the manor, whenever Ye Wang came looking for a fight, Ye Yunting would simply go along with him. Yet every time, Ye Wang would only grow more furious, fly into an inexplicable rage, and then storm off in a huff.
The next time he came, the same cycle would repeat. Over and over, never tiring of it.
Ji Lian had thought that coming to the princely estate would finally allow them to escape this troublesome figure. He never imagined Second Young Master Ye would be so brazen as to cause a scene right at the main gates of the estate.
