Wei Zhenfeng stopped talking, and Zhao Mian, who couldn't see his expression, felt inexplicably flustered.
Reading people's expressions is his strong point. By seeing Wei Zhenfeng's face and hearing Wei Zhenfeng's voice, he can judge the other person's current mood.
But now Wei Zhenfeng not only did not speak, he did not even move. Apart from the boy's strong heartbeat and a part of him, he could not feel anything.
If Wei Zhenfeng really dares to do something that crosses his bottom line, he will drag Wei Zhenfeng with him to die!
Zhao Mian couldn't stand the torment of the unknown, and just when he wanted to turn around to look at Wei Zhenfeng, Wei Zhenfeng took the initiative to help him turn around.
He finally saw Wei Zhenfeng's expression.
The immaturity of the boy had completely faded away, and what remained was the lust of an adult man, which was infinitely magnified by two teardrop moles. There was a heavy look in his eyes, which was blocked by his overly long eyelashes, but his pupils were unusually bright.
It was beautiful, so beautiful that he didn't seem to be in so much pain.
He couldn't help but tense up.
Wei Zhenfeng felt Zhao Mian's reaction, frowned, and tried his best to remain calm and businesslike: "Hold me tight."
Zhao Mian didn't want to be so obedient, and his body was stiff and didn't move. It was not until Wei Zhenfeng showed a dissatisfied look and urged him in a special way that he reluctantly raised his hands and hugged the boy's neck.
As the night deepened, the dew became heavier, and a light layer of frost fell on the stone wall. On this cold autumn night, only a hot spring, a bonfire, and two young men were warm.
Wei Zhenfeng tidied the two of them up a bit, then took a step with his long legs and returned to the shore carrying the already unconscious Crown Prince.
Both of their clothes were soaked, but Wei Zhenfeng's clothes were at least still wearable, while Zhao Mian's were already in tatters and he had to use his hands to hold them up to hide the marks on his body.
Wei Zhenfeng took a blanket from inside the house and covered Zhao Mian with it. After leaving the hot spring, the cold wind blowing on the soaked body was enough to easily make a person sick.
He kept throwing bamboo tubes into the campfire, and the fire grew bigger and bigger. The warmth of the flames dispelled the chill of late autumn.
Wei Zhenfeng raised his eyes and looked at Zhao Mian who was unconscious.
His long hair stuck to his face, and half of his lips were as pale as paper, while the other half were covered in blood. He huddled up into a small ball, still frowning in his sleep, not knowing whether it was because of the cold or the pain. His thin body bathed in the firelight seemed like it would break into pieces in the next moment.
Even if it is broken, this person's mouth is probably still hard.
Wei Zhenfeng thought.
The fire quickly dried their clothes. Wei Zhenfeng carried Zhao Mian back to the hut, put him on the bed, and then went back to his room to sleep.
Many things that happened that night were not what he had expected.
But he survived, along with Zhao Mian.
Wei Zhenfeng lay on the bed, raised his hand and looked at his wrist in the moonlight. After shedding a layer of black skin, he could see the thin red line on his original skin color.
The male and female Gu would attack on the fifteenth of every month. If he and Zhao Mian still couldn't find the antidote within the next month, wouldn't they have to...
Wei Zhenfeng recalled the scene at that time.
It’s hard to describe in four words.
The feeling in Zhao Mian's body has surpassed his cognition. He finally understands why some people love to indulge in love. For him, he can understand this love, but not to the extent that there are things as happy as this.
What really made him unable to get over it for a while was Zhao Mian’s expression at that time.
The usually domineering Crown Prince was almost forced to collapse by him, and his delicate and noble face showed an attitude of submission and weakness. Finally, in a rage and frustration, he revealed his inner feelings in a wronged manner.
The softer the body, the harder the mouth. In the end, even the mouth can't be hard anymore.
The next morning.
Living away from home for a long time has made Wei Zhenfeng develop the habit of light sleep, and he wakes up as soon as Zhao Mian walks in.
He opened his eyes a little, and saw a thin figure stumbling towards him.
The two of them had just experienced a Gu attack, and Zhao Mian was the one who suffered it. He had clearly fainted last night, but he was still able to come to him early in the morning with a "disabled body but strong mind". He must be trying to do something bad.
Seeing how hard he was walking, his back was not straight, and he had to hold on to the wall while walking, Wei Zhenfeng had a bad feeling.
He maintained his sleeping position, closed his eyes, and listened to Zhao Mian's footsteps getting closer and closer, and finally stopping beside his bed.
He could feel Zhao Mian's gaze on his face. He seemed to be looking at him for a long time, his breathing became rapid, and then -
Wei Zhenfeng suddenly opened his eyes and quickly and steadily grabbed Zhao Mian's hand holding the dagger.
Still coming? Doesn't this guy learn his lesson?!
Wei Zhenfeng's eyes were filled with anger, and he was about to explode—
Snapped.
Zhao Mian used the other hand that was not holding the dagger to hit him hard on the cheek. Zhao Mian's action was too sudden, and he had no time to react as his attention was focused on the dagger.
What a good move!
The second time Zhao Mian slapped him, Wei Zhenfeng wanted to tie him up and give him a good lesson. But he changed his mind and thought that at least Zhao Mian just wanted to beat him up and didn't really want to kill him.
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was so unwilling that he even gave up sleep and dragged his half-disabled body to give him a slap in the face.
Unfortunately, the Crown Prince's strength in slapping someone was obviously not as strong as last time. The slap he gave with all his strength didn't even leave a mark on his face. It was still quite miserable.
Wei Zhenfeng looked at Zhao Mian expressionlessly, clenched and unclenched his fists, and then said calmly: "Forget it, I won't bother with you."
When Zhao Mian woke up, he felt sore and tired, his head was dizzy, and his body was alternating between hot and cold, but he still remembered what happened last night clearly.
Since Wei Zhenfeng likes to force him to tell the truth so much, he will tell it to his heart's content today.
Anyway, Wei Zhenfeng had seen him in all his miserable and ugly looks, so what was the point in him maintaining the demeanor and dignity of a crown prince in front of him
"I've clearly made up my mind and I'm ready, why are you going crazy on me?" Zhao Mian wanted to use his usual high-handed voice to denounce Wei Zhenfeng's evil deeds, but when he opened his mouth, only a hoarse whisper came out, "Just because your name is Wei Zhen'Feng', you can go crazy at will?! You even threatened me, too presumptuous, are you really not afraid of death?"
Wei Zhenfeng: “…”
Wei Zhenfeng's anger at being slapped instantly disappeared by half.
Teenagers' tempers are usually like this, coming and going quickly. Another teenager's sincere confession plus an inexplicable homophonic joke can make him want to laugh a little.
Of course he knew that he couldn't laugh at this time, otherwise it would irritate His Royal Highness the Crown Prince even more.
Wei Zhenfeng thought about it, raised his hand hesitantly, and gently placed it on Zhao Mian's trembling shoulders.
Zhao Mian said hoarsely: "Don't touch me."
Wei Zhenfeng took his hand away: "Then sit down."
Hearing the word "sit", Zhao Mian's face became even uglier, and he murmured: "How can you let me sit..."
Wei Zhenfeng was stunned for a moment, glanced at Zhao Mian's waist, and suddenly felt guilty: "Why don't you just lie down. Come on, I will personally serve you, Your Highness, to go to bed."
Zhao Mian was stunned when he heard the words "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince". He had a severe headache, so much so that he almost lost the ability to think: "You almost made me cry again?"
Wei Zhenfeng thought he had heard it wrongly: "What?"
Once the door was opened, Zhao Mian could no longer stop his accusation. He had been pretending for too long, in front of his father, the Prime Minister, the civil and military officials, and his friends and subordinates.
He was so tired, he was so sleepy, he really... didn't have the energy to pretend anymore.
"I can't cry. I'm the prince, and princes can't cry." Zhao Mian said softly, "I can't act like a spoiled child or cling to others."
Wei Zhenfeng felt that something was not right with Zhao Mian's words, but he could not think of anything else at the moment: "Are you okay? Are you sleepwalking?"
Would a normal Crown Prince say something like this
Zhao Mian saw double of the boy in his vision. He closed his eyes and shook his head, trying to wake himself up. But when he opened his eyes, he saw only darkness, and his legs lost the strength to support his body.
"Zhao Mian?"
Wei Zhenfeng was quick to catch the Crown Prince who was about to faint on the ground. Even through the clothes he could feel the incredible heat from his body, and even his breath was hot.
Wei Zhenfeng's expression changed slightly: "Your body is so hot, you are sick."
He immediately picked up Zhao Mian, put him on his bed, and covered him with a quilt: "I'll go boil some water."
Zhao Mian huddled in the quilt, revealing half of his head: "Your Majesty."
"Um?"
Zhao Mian said in a muffled voice: "Why don't you take the antidote by yourself?"
Wei Zhenfeng said casually: "We played together when we were young, and I gave you a gift when we were young. I thought that maybe we were friends."
friend
Although Zhao Mian was not sober, his instinct to speak ill of his country was still there. He pulled the corner of his mouth and used the last bit of his strength to sneer: "You Beiyuan people... will sleep with your friends?"
Wei Zhenfeng: "… Go to sleep."
Zhao Mian couldn't bear the fatigue and fell into a deep sleep on Wei Zhenfeng's bed.
In a trance, he seemed to leave the bamboo forest, return to the Nanjing Palace, and return to his home.
His body shrank, only as small as when he was five or six years old.
He was crying, crying very sadly. He forgot why he was crying. He often cried when he was young. He cried when he got hurt while practicing martial arts, cried when he was scared by a prank, and cried when he broke the wooden horse that his father made for him on his birthday.
There were too many possible reasons, and he didn't know which one caused him to cry again. In order to investigate clearly, he walked out of the palace.
He saw two figures, two figures he was extremely familiar with, they were his young father and prime minister.
He was so excited that he ran towards the two of them, but his steps became hesitant as the conversation became clearer.
My father and the prime minister seem to be arguing.
The fathers rarely quarreled. The last time they quarreled was about choosing a companion for the prince. What was it about this time
"Mianmian said he didn't want to live in the East Palace alone, why did you insist on him moving out?" The look in his father's eyes when he looked at the prime minister clearly said, "Are you his biological father?" "He is only five years old."
The Prime Minister said, "The Crown Prince should live in the East Palace. He is not young at five years old."
The father said, "I used to live with my parents until I was eighteen."
The prime minister said helplessly: "You can't always use the customs of your hometown to teach the future king of a country."
The father probably felt that the prime minister's words made sense. After thinking it over, he compromised with a difficult tone: "How about I take half? Mianmian is also half my hometown person. How about letting him move to the East Palace when he is nine years old?"
This time, the Prime Minister did not intend to give in as usual. He said in a deep voice: "Zhao Qi."
When the emperor heard the prime minister calling him by his full name, he was stunned and said, "What can I do for you, Prime Minister Xiao?"
The Prime Minister said, "Marquis Anyuan entered the palace today and ran into Minmin in the Imperial Garden."
Marquis Anyuan is a veteran among the military generals of Nanjing. He has fought for Nanjing for many years. His face is covered with large and small old wounds from adulthood, and he has lost an eye. His appearance can really be described as unsightly.
"He likes Mianmian. Before returning to Beijing to report on his work, he specially searched for skilled craftsmen in the northern border and made a bow for Mianmian. However, when Mianmian saw him..."
The father guessed what would happen next: "Mianmian was frightened and cried?"
"No, he almost did it, but he held it back." The Prime Minister said calmly, "He lowered his eyes and didn't dare to look at Marquis Anyuan. His voice was as low as a mosquito. He took the gift from Marquis Anyuan and hid behind me."
Father: “…”
"Do you think this is a good thing, Xi'er?"
The emperor was speechless after being asked this question. His eyes dimmed and he fell into extreme confusion.
The stalemate between the two made Zhao Mian unable to bear it any longer. He ran towards his father and hugged his father's legs.
The father lowered his head to support him and asked in surprise, "Mianmian?"
"Father, I was wrong. I am sorry to the old marquis. I will go and apologize to him. I am willing to move to the East Palace. I will never cry again. Please don't quarrel with father." He grabbed his father's dragon robe, tried to raise his head, and promised his father and the prime minister, "I will not act like a spoiled child anymore. I will try my best not to be clingy. Father, please don't be angry..."
He met the prime minister's gaze, and he didn't know if it was an illusion, but he actually saw a hint of pity in it.
The father quickly leaned over and hugged him in his arms, saying with great distress: "No, no, no, Mianmian, if you want to cry, you can cry. If you want to act coquettishly, you can act coquettishly. If you want to cling to people, your father will always be with you... As for the rest, we can talk about it when we grow up."
He buried his head in his father's arms, smelled the unique ambergris on his father's body, nodded, and quickly shook his head.
From then on, he never cried again for the next twelve years.
(End of this chapter)