Chapter 112: Be… Gentler

December 28, 2022Merchie

Those, soft, tender lips opened and closed, but because of Pei Zheng’s robe, his breaths couldn’t even reach the wound. But Pei Zheng still felt them tickling his heart.

He reached out and readjusted Shen Shijiu’s mask, covering his little face once more.

Shen Shijiu looked up at him, “My Lord, you don’t want me to blow on you anymore?”

Pei Zheng pressed Shen Shijiu’s lips with his finger, “Not now.”

The currents of people beside them began to flow again, heading toward the mouth of the river not too far away; there was hardly any space on the riverbank for people to place their lanterns.

Pei Zheng held Shen Shijiu by the hand as they continued forward within the crowd.

When they reached the riverbank, their view of the surrounding area had cleared up quite a bit. Pei Zheng had been staying in the Imperial City for so many years now, yet he had never been to this place before.

There were quite a few people standing on both banks of the river, holding river lanterns. There were already many lanterns floating in the river. The small glowing flames gradually drifted into the distance, like fiery flowers blooming over the water.

Everyone else had lanterns to place in the river, but Shen Shijiu was empty-handed. He stared eagerly at the giggling people placing lanterns into the water beside him, his eyes filled with envy.

At this moment, a boy selling river lanterns ran up to the two of them, and poked them, “Big Brother, do you guys want a river lantern, why don’t you buy one?”

This boy looked very cute. His cheeks were round, and he blinked his big eyes. He was very short; he didn’t look any older than five.

Shen Shijiu looked at the river lanterns in the boy’s hands, before he glanced at Pei Zheng.

“You want one?”

Shen Shijiu nodded obediently, “I do.”

But Pei Zheng felt through his cuffs, and realized that he hadn’t brought money with him.

But unexpectedly, Shen Shijiu took a few copper coins out of his sleeves, and passed them to Pei Zheng.

Pei Zheng smiled, bent over, and gave the copper coins to the boy, before picking a red lantern from his basket.

The boy was overjoyed, and bowed to the two of them, “Thank you, Big Brother.”

Then, he skipped away.

Pei Zheng looked at the river lantern in his hand. Coincidentally, it was shaped like a lotus flower. He spread Shen Shijiu’s palm out, before placing the lantern onto it.

Shen Shijiu’s eyes lit up, and he whispered, “It’s so pretty!”

“Go on and place it in the water.”

“Mm!”

Shen Shijiu pulled Pei Zheng to the riverbank. Pei Zheng was afraid that he would stumble in, so he wrapped an arm around Shen Shijiu’s waist.

Then, Shen Shijiu carefully placed the lantern in his hand into the water. He copied the person beside him, closing his eyes and clasping his hands to make a wish.

But his brain was still fuzzy; any thoughts he had spilled directly out of his mouth.

“I wish, that His Lordship will recover quickly, and that he won’t get injured again in the future…”

His voice was very soft and quiet, but Pei Zheng heard everything clearly.

Pei Zheng’s grip around Shen Shijiu’s waist tightened, and the small man’s back was pressed into his embrace.

I wish for the little fool in my arms right now, to have a smooth, easy future, to not have to suffer, and to live the rest of his life in peace and joy.

An extremely loud “peng” sounded, and a spectacular, colorful firework suddenly exploded in the sky, blooming over their heads.

Shen Shijiu was startled, and his body visibly shook. His foot slipped; if it wasn’t for Pei Zheng holding him in place, he would’ve definitely slipped into the river.

Pei Zheng half-carried him, and walked several steps away from the riverbank, before putting him down.

Several more “peng”s sounded again, and the Imperial City was lit up by fireworks. The colorful lights were dazzling and beautiful.

Shen Shijiu was extremely excited; it was his first time participating in such a grand celebration. His head was raised toward the sky the entire time, his glowing eyes flashing with light.

Pei Zheng stared at the side of his face the whole time. He watched as his eyes curved, and as the corners of his mouth were raised. When Pei Zheng saw how happy he was, he knew that he had made the right decision to bring him out tonight.

Under the splendid fireworks that filled the sky, and beside the river that was sparkling with stars and firelight, there were many young men and women embracing each other with abandon. There were even a few brave couples who removed their masks and kissed.

People of the Celestial Dynasty always abided by rules and proper etiquette. Only on this night did people dare to follow their hearts and engage in public displays of affection.

Shen Shijiu also saw a couple embracing and kissing beside him. He was so embarrassed that he didn’t dare to look at them. He tugged on Pei Zheng’s sleeve, covered his mouth, and whispered, “My Lord, they’re doing shameful things, look…”

Shen Shijiu pointed at the couple with his other hand.

Pei Zheng smiled, and pulled his hand back, “I saw.”

He didn’t let go of the hand he was holding, and simply pulled the small man away from the crowd at the river. They came to a tree on the bank. Pei Zheng placed his hand on the trunk, and had the small man lean back against his palm.

The fireworks above their heads were still popping. Under a tree on the riverbank, a beautiful couple1 pulled their masks down halfway, before their lips pressed together.

The fireworks went off for a bit before stopping. The quiet crowd became lively and noisy once more, and slowly dispersed in every direction.

Pei Zheng let go of the small man. When he saw those misty eyes, and those bright, brilliant red lips, he pulled the mask back over Shen Shijiu’s face.

Shen Shijiu’s head had been fuzzy since the beginning; now he was stumbling around in confusion, and barely managed to stand

He looked at Pei Zheng, his gaze aggrieved, “My legs are limp…”

At these words, a smile reached Pei Zheng’s eyes, and he coaxed in a low voice, “It’s all my fault, I’ll help you, okay?”

Shen Shijiu nodded his little head, and allowed Pei Zheng to place his palm on his waist.

The crowd was already less dense than before. The pair were just about to leave, when a group of people suddenly surrounded them.

These people were all wearing masks, so their faces were undistinguishable. But the head of the pack was a man wearing a mask with a painted face; it was clearly that rich young master that had lost the archery competition earlier.

It seemed that his embarrassment had turned to rage; he found himself a few helpers, and was here to seek revenge.

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The rich young master was dragging a fat man along with him. He pointed at the two and said hatefully, “Big Brother, they were the ones who bullied me earlier. They made a fool out of me in front of so many people. Huh, why are there only two of them, where are the other three? They were all in the same gang!”

That fat man was also wearing a mask, but it was obvious that his fleshy face was about to burst out from under it.

After scanning the two people standing across from him, the fat man clicked his tongue twice, “It’s just them, they don’t seem to be much of a threat. They don’t even have a servant with them. It doesn’t seem like something I2 need to deal with.”

Then, he waved his hand, and the attendants surrounding them charged forward.

Pei Zheng twisted sideways, and dodged a sneak attack, before he sent the assailant flying with a strike of his palm.

But the moment he exerted some strength, Pei Zheng clearly heard the wound on his left shoulder blade tear open.

Since it was already torn, there was no point in holding back.

Pei Zheng took advantage of the attendants’ hesitation, and retreated under a tree, before he placed Shen Shijiu against it.

Then, Pei Zheng quickly struck down the rest of the attendants. They had all lived cushy lives; they were all show and no substance.

The fat man and the rich young master watched, and were a bit stunned. They never expected that the person in front of them had concealed his wugong. Pei Zheng stood in front of the pair, his eyes chilly as he looked at them.

However, behind Pei Zheng, an attendant had crawled in out of nowhere, and suddenly charged toward the tree where Shen Shijiu was standing.

That rich young master saw how powerful this man was, and had been planning to make his escape. He didn’t expect his stupid attendant to attempt another sneak attack.

Pei Zheng seemed to sense this. He turned, and sent a gust of spiritual wind toward the attendant approaching the tree.

A dagger was only a few centimeters away from Shen Shijiu’s eyes, when it suddenly diverted direction, and sliced across the mask over his face. Then, the attendant wielding the dagger collapsed to the ground, motionless.

Shen Shijiu’s eyes widened, and his mouth was half-open. He was so startled that it took a long time for him to return to his senses.

With a soft patter, a warm liquid flowed down his cheek, and dripped onto his plain robe, blooming into a blood-red flower.

Shen Shijiu blankly touched the mask over his face, but it had already been sliced in half, and had fallen to the ground. The fair, beautiful face beneath it was exposed, but there was now a long, bloody slash on part of his cheek.

A searing pain came from his cheek. Shen Shijiu’s tears instantly rushed out. He looked toward Pei Zheng in the distance, his gaze filled with aggrievement.

Pei Zheng saw the blood that was seeping out of the small man’s face, and his fingers clenched until his knuckles cracked. He reached out and grabbed that rich young master’s neck. Then, Pei Zheng tore the young master’s mask off, and crushed it in his hand. He held a sharp fragment of the mask, and was about to slash the young master’s face.

The fat man at the side had also gotten a full view of Shen Shijiu’s face. He frowned and thought for a long while, before he suddenly slapped his forehead, and looked at Pei Zheng in shock.

If the person under the tree was the same person he had been forced to apologize to last time, then the man in front of him could only be…

The fat man ripped the mask off his face. He was indeed that fat lord who had once been forced to apologize to Shen Shijiu at the Prime Minister’s Manor.

The fat lord clutched Pei Zheng’s arm and fell to his knees, “Lord P-”

He couldn’t even shout his name before he was silenced by an icy glare from Pei Zheng, and hurriedly corrected himself, “Y-Young Master Pei, Young Master Pei, a great man like you shouldn’t hold grudges for petty mistakes. Please don’t take it out on my little brother, it was our fault for not recognizing you, please, have mercy on us!”

Pei Zheng looked him coldly, and his brows creased slightly.

I… don’t know this man.

Then, Pei Zheng waved his arm, pushing the fat lord to the side, before he sliced into the young master’s face with the mask fragment. Disregarding the young master’s sobs and wails, Pei Zheng made a deep cut that stretched from one cheek to the other. It would definitely leave a scar.

The young master’s voice was hoarse from crying, and his face was covered in blood.

Pei Zheng acted as though he couldn’t hear it. He grabbed the young master and walked to the riverbank, before kicking him into the water.

Then, Pei Zheng turned to look at the fat lord who was still kneeling on the ground. The fat lord took the hint; he hurriedly ran to the riverbank and jumped into the water himself.

The two people in the river struggled and flailed about, attracting the gaze of the surrounding bystanders.

Everyone pointed at the two of them, and those who had witnessed the entire debacle clapped and cheered. This pair of brothers were usually terrible, and did many evil deeds. Today, someone had finally cracked down on them.

Pei Zheng quickly walked back toward the tree. The small man had already cried until his eyes were hazy with tears. After he saw Pei Zheng, he hiccupped incessantly through sobs.

“M-my Lord… He… cut me…. bleeding… It hurts…”

Pei Zheng lifted his little chin slightly, and carefully examined the wound on his face under the light of the surrounding lanterns.

The wound wasn’t deep. Fortunately, Shen Shijiu’s face was covered by the human skin mask, which had reduced the damage, so it probably wouldn’t leave a scar. It was only because it was bleeding that it looked a bit scary.

Pei Zheng carefully wiped the blood off his face. However, the human skin mask was no longer fitted snugly over the skin near his wound. Also, blood had seeped into the gap between the mask and his skin, which made it look a bit too prominent.

The tears at the corners of the small man’s eyes were still dripping like bright crystal beads.

Pei Zheng leaned toward his wound, and gently blew on it.

“Don’t cry, I’ll blow on it for you, all right?”

Shen Shijiu wiped his tears. It was obvious that he wanted to cry some more, but he tried his best to hold back his tears. He pouted, “Okay… be… gentler…”

 

Notes

Man

This is not too important, but sometimes, instead of using the word ‘blow’, Pei Zheng and Shen Shijiu say ‘呼呼’ (huhu), which is the sound of blowing. AND FOR SOME REASON I REALLY WANT TO CALL IT A BLOWIE BUT I CAN’T BECAUSE THAT’S WEIRD

Every time in my head, it’s just:

“My Lord, you don’t want a blowie anymore?”

“Not now.”

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I’M SORRY BUT I JUST NEEDED TO GET THAT OFF MY CHEST, THIS THOUGHT HAS EXISTED AND PERSISTED SINCE CHAPTER 56 OR SOMETHING

Thanks for reading~

1.一对璧人 (yī duì bì rén): ‘a jade couple’, meaning that the couple is very beautiful and well-matched.

2.He addressed himself as “this fat lord” here.

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