Chapter 49.2 (Part 2) (1/2)
Chapter 49 (Part 2) Original and most updated translations are from volaretranslations.
Nightfall.
“Boooring.” I held a book between my fingers, heaving a sigh as I leaned on my chin, s.p.a.cing out. My eyes stared at the lamp light as one hand waved the flame back and forth. The window was shut tight, leaving only the sound of waving bamboo like the sea.
This uninhabited junk of a place had no place for strolls or anywhere to go. I could endure that, I could even deal with the lack of music, but there ought to be other diversions….curses, there was nothing on the bookshelves but medical texts, not even one of those popular p.o.r.nography books.
The candle flame gave a sputter, sending the odor of hot wax into the air. I withdrew my hand from the heat, tossing aside the book in my hands as I swept the tabletop of peanut sh.e.l.ls. My brows furrowed as I banged the table angrily and stood up.
“Ahhhhhhhhhh, I can’t live like this anymore!”
A spark of something called ‘discontentment’ burned in my chest. Lofty and unyielding, I waved aside my sleeves and strode out the doors. By the time I reached the back corridors, half of my arrogant bl.u.s.ter vanished when I realized no one was in the courtyard. Besides the sound of wind through the bamboo, there was nothing else. Even the usually noisy parrot stared at me dispiritedly from a branch…his eyes gleaming. A thrill of horror ran through me as I backed up three steps.
The despicable bird was looking at me like I was a thief. A wild wind swept through the withered branches as girl and bird stared face-to-face in a silent battle.
“Hungry. Food, food,” The parrot’s claws stepped on the branches as it leapt a few times, retracting its gaze in a show of conciliation while it lowered its head to peck at its feathers, as if blinding searching for bugs to eat.
Ever since the day Fang Hua randomly took me in, he’d given me a giant pile of candles, each brand new and wrapped in white paper packaging. But he…rarely used them. Sometimes, he’d stand outside my room to take advantage of the light. After I’d shut him out, he’d use the moonlight as a guide to walk back, his retreating figure ever desolate and lonely…
I stamped my feet a few times until I warmed up, thinking hard. It’d be good to take the chance and convince him not to be so economical. When I returned to the palace, I’ll get the emperor to give him some silver. With the nights so dark, how was a person to pa.s.s their days?
I earnestly nodded to myself before rus.h.i.+ng back into the room, crunching my way past peanut sh.e.l.ls. Squatting on my heels, I crawled under my bed until I found a candle and proudly patted it a few times. Then I walked to Fang Hua’s door by moonlight and lightly knocked a few times.
“Are you asleep?”
There was the faint sound of a bed creaking, followed by the rustling noise of someone putting on their clothes.
“I’ll open the door shortly.”
“How about you keep lying down, I’ll let myself in,” I replied carelessly, taking a hairpin out of my hair to insert between a crack in the door. I jiggled it up and down a few times before pus.h.i.+ng it open. The moment I raised my eyes, I saw a figure still in shock.
“That…” he seemed to be smiling, before leisurely adding, “So it’s true that no manner of door can stop you, no matter how good the quality.”
“Heh, heheheh,” I smirked, laughing until I suddenly stopped. My expression s.h.i.+fted, and I stared astonished at my nimble hands. What had happened…when did I become a thief? The movements were so clean and easy, smooth and dextrous. How strange. A soft cough sounded from the darkness. I knitted my brows and groped forwards with my hands.
“Are you feeling unwell? There’s nothing urgent about your health, right.”
There was silence for quite a while.
“Aiyo!” A weird cry fell from my lips.
He hurriedly spoke, “It’s dark here, be careful where you walk…”
“I hit a chair.”
He seemed to be laughing lightly.
My hands fumbled their way along the table as I cried, doing my best to open my eyes wide. I still couldn’t see a thing with everything so gloomy.
“Why not light a lamp?”
“…”
Where’s the flint?”
He hmm’d for a long time, as if thinking it over.
I gave up on relying on him but felt everything in the dark until my hand came in contact with a wooden cupboard in a corner. Its surface was hard and slippery, and a spark lit in my brain as I felt along the wood until I forced open a door. Reaching in, I touched a small object that should’ve been flint. My face lit up in joy as I grabbed the candle from my robes and ignited the tip.
Turning around, I saw the waiting Fang Hua looking at me with rapt attention. The expression in his eyes was like someone using every second of his remaining life to look at me, as if missing a glance would be missing a view. As if he couldn’t get enough of me, even if he stared for an entire lifetime…
I stood stunned until a scalding hot sensation hit my arm. I nearly knocked over the candle as I placed it on the table, head lowered to readjust my sleeves after the accidental drop of wax.
Sheesh, it was embarra.s.sing to have him stare when it was just the two of us in a room.
The sound of coughing traveled over. When I looked up again, Fang Hua was calmly reclining on his side, his expression a little tired. Was what I saw before an apparition? Shaking my head to cover my awkward face, I took the chance to look around.
The room was simple and unadorned, but tasteful. Besides a bed, the only thing that caught my eye was a dressing table. On it were a bronze mirror and a smooth, glossy wooden comb. It was curved like a crescent moon, and most of the red lacquer had faded. Various other items and things were scattered about a small makeup box, a thin collection that seemed to indicate the owner’s decline in wealth.
Why were there female items in this room?
Fang Hua’s hair hung loosely about him as he covered his mouth with his sleeve to stifle the sound of coughing. I withdrew my gaze to rush to the table, pouring a cup of water before handing it over. His ashen face looked sickly with that light smile as he accepted my cup with both hands. Those ice cold fingers held my own and gave me an unexpected feeling of alarm.
I withdrew my hands, splattering quite a bit of water on his robes. His expression turned dejected.
“Why are you so cold?”
“It’s of no consequence. The weather’s chilly, so I feel a bit cold.” He looked up at me with a smile.
I felt a little shamefaced as I changed the topic. “Are you the only one living here?”
“There was once another person who lived with me for ten years,” his tone was light as a warm smile crept on his features, as if he was losing himself to memories. The hazy yellow light shrouded him in a gentle, mild glow, showing a tender expression on such a calm and collected face. My heart stirred slightly, and I sat next to him on the bed.
Quietly, I asked, “Was it the emperor?”
His reaction was like someone woken from a dream, and his face turned complicated as he looked at me. Lowering his head, Fang Hua coughed a few times before taking some deep breaths. Slowly, he spoke. “He’s lived here as well, when he was younger.”
“What was he like back then? Did he always make serious faces?”
He laughed a few times, raising a hand to pat my sleeves before pressing down. “He wasn’t like this in the past. At that time, compared to you…” His words stopped as he turned away, pulling at the bedcovers. Desolation filled his eyes when he spoke again. “Compared to anyone, he was much more well-behaved. Actually, the one who always kicked up a row was my foster son. Zichuan was very frightened of him and didn’t dare to talk back. He used to serve him tea and pour him water like he was treating an esteemed elder.” There was a soft smile on his face, as if he couldn’t free himself from reminscencing about former days. That was a story only between himself and Han Zichuan.
Meanwhile, I was only a bystander from beginning to end, listening to him talk.
“With three people living here, it must have been lively,” I looked around with a grin. “What did the emperor like to eat when he was little? Which room did he sleep in?”
The hand on my sleeve tightened. His fingers were long and skinny enough to highlight the bones, so it hurt when he gripped me. Aiya, I wanted to draw back but I couldn’t move. Instead, I gave him a surprised look as he slowly smiled back, though it made him look particularly miserable when he gazed at me.
He said, “Let’s not talk about him, all right…?” It sounded like he was begging me, a bit. At that instant, my heart felt like something had suddenly rammed into it.
“I…I’m….sorry…” I was a bit depressed.
You and him are already separated, I shouldn’t keep bringing up your past with him and making you speak of sad things.
Yet he only wore a gentle smile as he patted me, expression relaxed. The look in his eyes was warm enough to melt an entire river of ice. This was a well-bred, warm and cultured man. Why couldn’t such a perfect person find his own true love…
“That’s right…” After staring blankly for a while, I hastily helped to tuck him under the covers. “You’re sick, so why isn’t there any sign of your foster son?”
“He won’t come.”
“Why?”