Aren’t People in Ancient Times Supposed to be Reserved?
Once Su Yang was back at his residence at Iris Island, he felt his stomach rumbling with hunger and ordered Lian Jiu to prepare some late-night snacks.
It was close to midnight, and the light in Gu Feidi’s room was still on. After some thinking, Su Yang knocked on his door and asked, “Are you still up?”
After a while, Gu Feidi opened the door in his middle robe and said with a smile, “How could I sleep before the host returns?”
Su Yang was amused by his old-fashioned behaviour. He grabbed Gu Feidi’s wrist. “You stayed up so late, so you must be hungry. Come and have some food with me. Tomorrow, I will take you around the Sanctuary.”
Without resisting, Gu Feidi let himself be dragged to the main house by Su Yang.
The night was colder in the wasteland in autumn.
Su Yang had someone start up the silver charcoal brazier. The servants left the room after placing the food and a jar of wine on the bedroom couch table. The two were wrapped in thin blankets as they enjoyed the snacks under the candlelight.
Gu Feidi mentioned nothing about detoxification. Instead, he praised the thinly sliced marble pork marinated in honey, leading to their discussion about all kinds of cuisines.
On the topic of exquisite food, ancient culture had more sophisticated methods. On the topic of ample food, naturally Su Yang from modern society would have more knowledge. As a result, food was something they could talk about on and on without end.
Gu Feidi watched the rare chance of words pouring forth from Su Yang’s mouth like a rushing river. He smiled and raised his wine cup, and took a sip of the wine with an osmanthus flower fragrance.
The wine was slightly sweet and not in much intensity, but Gu Feidi’s eyes gradually became blurred. It was not long before he supported his cheek with one hand and closed his dazed eyes.
Su Yang: “...”
What was going on?
Gu Feidi drank with Xu Yunzhan all the time in House of Jade. Was his alcohol tolerance really that low?
Gu Feidi swayed as if he was about to plunge into the dishes in front of him, Su Yang quickly reached out and supported the intoxicated man.
Seeing that Gu Feidi was drunk and unconscious, Su Yang sighed helplessly and summoned a servant from Lotus Hall to clean up the dishes.
He leaned over, put one arm under the sleeping man’s legs and the other supporting his back. As he was planning to drop the luggage back to the guest room, the charcoal brazier under his feet made a crackling pop sound. Mesmerised by the dancing fire, Su Yang realised that Gu Feidi’s room wasn’t heated. Right now, late at night, the entire room must be freezing.
So he changed his destination and carried the man straight to his own bedroom.
—His bed was big enough, anyway. Spacious even with two people.
Gu Feidi was completely out of it. He stayed unmoved even after Su Yang wiped his face, untied his hair, and took off his clothes.
Su Yang was also slightly annoyed. After washing his face and rinsing his mouth, he pushed Gu Feidi far to the other side of the bed without pushing him off and went to sleep.
Feeling the tiny buzz from the wine, Su Yang soon fell asleep and his breathing became slow and soft.
Gu Feidi slowly opened his eyes and turned facing toward Su Yang. Through the faint candlelight from the outside of the bedroom, he could see Su Yang’s delicate silhouette.
After a long time, he reached a hand out from the quilt and quietly caressed Su Yang’s ear. With his cool fingertips, he softly brushed along Su Yang’s cheek to neck. His gentle hand travelled from the shoulder to the arm slowly until he finally reached the sleeping man’s warm palm.
He gently grasped Su Yang’s hand and closed his eyes. He didn’t need to hide his affectionate smile in this dark room.
Osmanthus wine was sweet, but not at all intoxicating.
But the fuzzy feeling from drinking didn't need to be from alcohol.
Tonight was a dreamless night.
Early in the morning, beautiful and graceful birdsong woke Su Yang.
As the sun came up, the temperature in the valley slowly rose. Dewdrop condensed, and the flower fragrances became more refreshing.
Su Yang opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was Gu Feidi’s sleeping side face.
The sunlight entered from the window and gently poured on the young man’s face. Starting at the centre of his brows, and passing from the root to the bridge of his nose. The golden light sketched out a fine curve. The tip of his nose was delicate, and below was a pair of moderately thick lips. Tracing to the lower jaw and to the curve below, and stopping at the firm lump in the throat.
The sleeping man’s Adam’s apple was very lovely and there was even a tiny mole beside it. It was so cute. Why didn’t he notice it before?
In the morning light, Gu Feidi’s eyelashes shivered slightly as he slowly opened his eyes.
He turned his face and quietly looked back at Su Yang with his dark eyes that were like a deep lake.
Su Yang forgot to look away, so his eyes met Gu Feidi’s.
Gu Feidi lowered his gaze slightly to look at Su Yang’s lips. His Adam’s apple trembled slightly and a lazy smile appeared on his face. He turned his body to the side toward Su Yang and moved a bit closer.
“Su Yang.” His voice was a little hoarse, but his tone was smiling.
They weren’t that far from each other in the first place. Now Gu Feidi turned to his side. Their cheeks were less than a third of a meter apart. They were so close that they could see their own reflection in the other’s eyes.
Gu Feidi closed his eyes and swallowed. He leaned his body slightly as if trying to get closer to Su Yang.
Until Su Yang could feel the other’s warm breathing on his face. This woke him up completely as his whole body shivered.
He abruptly lifted the quilt over and sat up. Now it was his time to swallow his saliva.
—Am I crazy? Am I out of my mind?! Just now, he thought that Gu Feidi was going to kiss him!
When he faced the other again, Gu Feidi had moved back and was laying on his back. Su Yang watched him raising his hand and pressing down on his eyebrows. A clear sign of hangover and headache on the young man’s face.
“Er, like, you were drunk last night,” Su Yang quickly explained. “That…I let you sleep here for the night because I was afraid that you might catch a cold sleeping in your unheated room.”
Gu Feidi uttered an “Oh” but said nothing else. His eyes remained close as he pressed on the bridge of his nose.
Su Yang laughed at Gu Feidi’s suffering. “I will leave you to sort out your headache. I will freshen up first then…”
He speedily picked up the clothes on the hanger beside the bed and, in the blink of an eye, he was behind the folding screen in the bedroom's corner.
Gu Feidi listened to Su Yang’s footsteps and only opened his eyes once he was sure he was alone on the bed.
He wiped his face dejectedly and released a long sigh.
They took turns washing and changing into a clean set of clothes. After breakfast, Su Yang informed Mei Shisan and Lian Jiu that he would be taking Gu Feidi out within the Evil Sect’s Sanctuary to see the scenery and they were to stay on Iris Island. Following them was not required.
There were petal retainers patrolling and guarding within the Sanctuary so there was nothing harmful within the border. Mei Shisan nodded his head and went back inside of the house with Lian Jiu behind him.
To travel from Iris Island to the sinkhole’s cliff, Su Yang and Gu Feidi walked across the suspension bridge side by side.
Seeing that there was no one around, Su Yang lowered his voice and said to Gu Feidi, “I have some ideas on how to detoxify you, but we need to make some preparations first. Once I complete my plan, I will take you to the treatment spot. However, we will probably stay there for a long time, so we need to prepare food and water.”
Gu Feidi turned to look at Su Yang and asked, smiling, “Since you are sure that you can treat me, why are you daring enough to take me around your Sect for a stroll?”
Su Yang didn’t understand the question. “What?”
Gu Feidi clarified, “Are you not afraid of me memorising the landscape here and revealing it to the Central Plains Wulin?”
Su Yang smirked, “Not at all.”
Gu Feidi grinned at him and asked, “Or…you have the confidence to imprison me here for life?”
“Of course not. I said nothing about imprisoning you. Quit it with your foolish imagination.” Su Yang felt irritated as he turned towards Gu Feidi. “You are free to go once the poison is gone from your body. There are many things waiting for you at the Central Plains Wulin. For what reason would I be detaining you here?”
Gu Feidi lifted his hand to hold the rope of the suspension bridge. Staring back at Su Yang, he hesitated for a moment and uttered, “Once I am back at the Tengyun Pavilion, my father might arrange for my marriage soon…”
Something suddenly shattered inside of Su Yang’s heart.
Marriage?
No, that couldn’t be.
Someone called dibs on Pu Lingyun already. Who else can Gu Feidi marry?
What was in the script? Wait, that was not right. Gu Feidi didn’t return to the pavilion right after the Evil Sect’s Forbidden Ground arc…
Gu Feidi didn’t go back to the Tengyun Pavilion right away because there was no method to remove the Poisonous Gu in the Forbidden Ground. The poison was temporarily suppressed, so Gu Feidi took Pu Lingyun to the snowy mountain to find the Miracle Doctor.
But now, if Pu Lingyun wasn’t the one who detoxified Gu Feidi…That flag will not be set.
Therefore, Gu Feidi would return to his pavilion and skip the next plot point.
Even without Pu Lingyun, Gu Feidi being a single Young Lord—there would always be other martial arts families that would love to marry their daughter to a bachelor like Gu Feidi. Who knew, there might even be a Zhang Lingyun or a Li Lingyun out there.
Anxiety and a twitchy feeling of unknown origin clouded his heart, but he pressed them down. He curled his lips and tried to act happy. “That’s good. There’s nothing wrong with getting married…”
With that, he turned around and continued walking on the suspension bridge.
Gu Feidi abruptly came forward and grabbed Su Yang's wrist to pull him back. Su Yang tried to pull his arm free as he unknowingly released his internal energy at his feet.
The suspension bridge swayed side by side with their movements.
Su Yang was startled as he quickly extended his hands to steady himself with the rope, and looked up at Gu Feidi.
Gu Feidi firmly grasped the rope and stared at Su Yang without blinking.
After a moment, Gu Feidi lowered his head. The stubbornness on his face faded away slowly, and his calm expression returned.
“I said it before. If I want to spend the rest of my life with someone. I must find someone who I want to care for and to protect for all of my life.” He maintained. “So I will not accept my father’s arrangement and marry someone else.”
Su Yang laughed. “I never knew a stick-in-the-mud like you would advocate love freely.”
Gu Feidi was confused. “Stick-in-the-mud?”
Su Yang scoffed, “That’s what you are. When I got up this morning, you were sleeping soundly upright, just like standing at attention.”
With an eyebrow raised, Gu Feidi asked, smiling, “Then how should I sleep? Holding you?”
Su Yang gaped at Gu Feidi like he was an alien. He would never expect to hear these kinds of words coming from Gu Feidi’s mouth.
Weren’t people in ancient times supposed to be reserved??
How could this kind of teasing dialogue between best buds develop between him and Gu Feidi?!
However, Gu Feidi was obviously still not bold enough. He was the one teasing, yet he was the one with reddened ears.
Su Yang was unhappy about how the tables had turned, so he joked, “You can hold me if you want! This suspension bridge is so long and shaking so much. I am scared. Hold me while we cross the bridge?”
Raising an eyebrow, Gu Feidi took a step in Su Yang’s direction.
Suddenly feeling a sense of danger, Su Yang dodged Gu Feidi’s line of sight with a smile, quickly danced around his threat, and walked across the bridge while gradually increasing his speed.
Gu Feidi shook his head in acceptance and ran after his guide.
Besides the two islands in the middle of the sinkhole lake, there were also many buildings on the cliffs around the sinkhole wall.
There lived many people and their families who managed the farmland and procurement under the jurisdiction of the Evil Sect, which gradually took shape into a settlement of a decent size. In order to provide convenience for these people’s lives, commerce was established throughout the settlement. Making daily necessities such as food, cloth, oil and salt accessible to everyone.
As the Young Master of the Evil Sect, Su Yang didn’t have to go shopping in person. He only had to give an order from the Iris Island and someone would naturally acquire and present what he needed.
On this trip, taking Gu Feidi out to enjoy the scenery and go shopping was a cover-up. He was, in fact, out to observe the terrain.
The entrance to the Forbidden Ground was on the Bamboo Garden Island, where the Sect Leader resided. Not everyone could enter the residence at will. Even he, the Young Master of Evil Sect, would need petal retainer supervision when wandering around that island.
Which made things complicated. So this time, he needed Gu Feidi with him. Being an enemy of the Evil Sect, Gu Feidi’s identity would make this troublesome. If not handled properly, it might lead to future problems that would be difficult to solve. It might even endanger Gu Feidi’s life.
With the Sect Leader in seclusion, the one with the highest martial arts skill was Su Yang. But with Gu Feidi as a temporary dead weight, it was best to try not to cause more complications.
Su Yang took Gu Feidi to stroll around many shops in the settlement. They ordered a lot of honey, milk, and dried fruit, and Su Yang sent their purchases back to the Iris Island’s kitchen. For preparation.
After that, they made a half-circle on the road along the cliff and came to a platform nearest to the Bamboo Garden Island. Su Yang stopped for a rest.
He placed his hands on the platform railings, gazed toward the intricate suspension bridges and plank roads used to connect four locations around the sinkhole. Feeling defeated, he sighed with frustration.
Gu Feidi, standing beside Su Yang, also looked up with him at the uncanny craftsmanship of the buildings and bridges before him.
After a moment, he smiled. “I keep getting a sense that you have a different motive on taking me out for sightseeing today.”
Feifei was going to kiss? I’m really waiting for Susu to realise his heart