A solitary grave stood in the vast emptiness of Linhan Palace. The tomb itself was empty, with only a name carved on the stone. Not even a blade of grass grew around it. Dawn wind cut sharply through the air. The Third Prince’s tall figure had stood there motionless for several shichen. His hair had come loose, the hem of his robe lifting in the wind. At last, an expression appeared on his carved features.
“Mother…” he called softly. The Third Prince slowly knelt and bowed three times before the grave marker.
“Your son is unfilial. To save the child of your enemy, I am abandoning you.”
…
A thin line of blood slid from his forehead to the corner of his mouth. The Third Prince touched it with his tongue, and something violent and bloodthirsty entered his eyes.
“Mother, whoever made me lose you will repay that blood debt in full.”
As the last darkness of night withdrew, the Third Prince rose and headed back toward the courtyard.
The courtyard had never seemed so crowded, yet never so quiet. It was crowded because imperial physicians, maids, and guards filled the space outside the bedchamber. It was quiet because not one person dared make a sound. Even a leaf landing on the ground could be heard.
The Third Prince passed through the crowd. Everyone’s heart seemed to leap into their throat. A few people dared steal glances at him, but none could make out his expression.
He pushed open the door. Two people knelt in the main room, both with eyes red from crying. The Third Prince showed no sign of panic and walked steadily toward the bed.
Mu Xueshi looked exactly as he had when the prince left: complexion warm, expression peaceful. The Third Prince gently removed the thin film from his face, dismissed every servant, and stared at him without moving.
The silver coin rested inside the Third Prince’s sleeve. Before long he felt heat against his arm. He took the coin out and opened his palm. In the dim light, it seemed to be faintly glowing.
After a whole night swallowed by darkness, Mu Xueshi finally felt as though he had landed somewhere solid. It was almost like waking from an ordinary dream. He opened his eyes and found himself still inside his own body.
The first thing Mu Xueshi saw was the concern in the Third Prince’s eyes. The second was the glowing silver coin lying in his palm.
Despair? Mu Xueshi did not feel much of it. Perhaps from the final moment before he lost consciousness, he had already known his time here was nearly over.
“Is this some kind of talisman for possessing a body?” the Third Prince asked quietly, looking at the coin.
Mu Xueshi understood what he was thinking. It was not that the Third Prince lacked insight. The truth was simply too absurd. No ordinary person would leap directly to the idea of souls crossing between worlds.
Mu Xueshi did not want to discuss the coin or think about it at all. He no longer had the strength to care how it had come to him or how it had ended up in the Third Prince’s hands.
He sat up slightly and settled comfortably into the Third Prince’s arms. In a light, joking tone he asked, “Where did you go last night?”
The Third Prince smiled faintly. “To find treatment for you.”
Pain cut across Mu Xueshi’s chest. He could not understand why even someone as proud as the Third Prince would invent a pleasant lie to comfort him.
Forget it. He’s a man too. I should understand that he has his reasons. Mu Xueshi thought. And soon enough, none of this pain will have anything to do with me. All I have to do is survive the time I have left carefully enough that not a single moment becomes a regret.
“I want to go out and play for a day.” Mu Xueshi looked up at the Third Prince.
The Third Prince lowered his gaze and saw the pleading in those transparent eyes. Refusing that face was almost impossible. Yet after closing his eyes and thinking for a moment, he still shook his head.
“Your body has only just recovered. You need to rest. We can postpone going out…”
“No!” Mu Xueshi pouted. “You promised me that after the Eight Homage Festival you’d take me out once. If you refuse now, I’ll go find my master.”
With that, Mu Xueshi stubbornly tried to climb out of bed.
“You dare.” The Third Prince’s face darkened instantly, his gaze pinning Mu Xueshi in place. The temperature in the room seemed to fall.
Of course Mu Xueshi was frightened. If he had not already accepted the possibility of dying, he would never have dared say something so openly defiant.
Seeing Mu Xueshi freeze in confusion, the Third Prince’s gaze softened slightly. He stroked Mu Xueshi’s hair, though his tone remained firm.
“From now on, you are not allowed to go out with anyone without my permission. Every violation will be punished.”
From now on? Will there really be a ‘from now on’?
Sorrow passed through Mu Xueshi’s eyes. The instant he noticed the Third Prince watching him, he hid it and replaced the expression with stubborn resentment.
Seeing Mu Xueshi refuse to behave, the Third Prince pretended to be angry, pushed him down onto the bed, and lay beside him while holding him close.
“Close your eyes and rest properly,” the Third Prince ordered without expression.
Mu Xueshi finally obeyed. Lying there in the Third Prince’s arms was not a bad thing. At least he could look at him carefully and carve that face into memory.
The Third Prince’s eyes were only half closed, but he could still feel Mu Xueshi’s burning stare. Mu Xueshi had not meant anything sensual by it, yet the tenderness in his gaze was so intense that the Third Prince misunderstood.
The Third Prince slipped a hand beneath Mu Xueshi’s underclothes and touched the smooth skin there. Mu Xueshi’s breathing gradually quickened, and desire entered the way he looked at him.
The intimate mood deepened quickly. Mu Xueshi’s body still carried traces left by the Third Prince, and the Third Prince responded to his unusual warmth by drawing him into a far more passionate embrace.
Compared with before, Mu Xueshi was far more responsive this time and did not resist when the intimacy became complete.
The Third Prince let Mu Xueshi take a more active position for a while. They kissed and held each other closely, and Mu Xueshi moved with the prince’s guidance, his expression dazed with pleasure.
The Third Prince soon lost patience with the slow pace and shifted their positions again, pressing Mu Xueshi back into the bedding as the encounter became more intense.
Mu Xueshi cried out from the sudden discomfort and flushed deeply with embarrassment, instinctively trying to push the Third Prince away.
The Third Prince paused only briefly before continuing. Mu Xueshi gradually became numb to the pain and focused instead on the pleasure in the Third Prince’s expression. Without realizing it, that happiness infected him too.
A sudden surge of pleasure overwhelmed Mu Xueshi. After several broken sounds, his body went limp and his mind briefly emptied.
After bathing, the Third Prince carried Mu Xueshi back to bed and coaxed him to close his eyes. The Third Prince had not slept the previous night and was tired as well. Holding Mu Xueshi made him feel secure, and soon he closed his own eyes.
Mu Xueshi waited until the Third Prince’s breathing became steady, then slowly opened his eyes and stared at him. Remembering what had just happened, the sweetness in his heart was swallowed by sorrow. The same things might happen again in the future, but he would no longer be the person beside the Third Prince.
Would the Third Prince dress that person too?
Would the Third Prince hold that person on horseback and let him sleep in his arms?
…
Realizing his breathing had become blocked, Mu Xueshi hurriedly squeezed his eyes shut. One tear escaped anyway and slid from the corner of his eye into the hair at his temple.
One shichen later, daylight had fully arrived outside. Mu Xueshi looked toward the window, then turned back and found the Third Prince already awake.
“Did you sleep well?” the Third Prince asked with the hint of a smile.
Mu Xueshi nodded. The peaceful smile on his face softened the tension between the Third Prince’s brows. The prince knew perfectly well that Mu Xueshi was lying and still could not bear to scold him.
…
“I know how to ride now, so I don’t have to share a horse with you anymore.” Standing beside the stable, Mu Xueshi looked at the Third Prince with great pride.
The Third Prince smiled slightly and handed him the reins, wearing the expression of someone waiting to watch a show.
“Hmph!” Mu Xueshi pointed his little finger toward the ground and returned the Third Prince’s contempt with his own.
He jumped onto the horse neatly, looked back and raised an eyebrow at the Third Prince, then snapped the reins. The two horses raced away together.