Ink Burns

Chapter 314 All People

"Dragon Devourer?"

Shui Guang was a little stunned: "These are the Roc and the Hou? They eat dragons?"

Xu Quyan nodded: "They feed on dragons. True dragons, fallen dragons, and jiaolong are all welcome; they are all devoured and eaten."

A behemoth that eats dragons!?
dragon?
What is a dragon?!

The dragon is the Son of Heaven!

The dragon is the emperor!

What's the difference between eating dragons, eating dragons, eating dragons, and treason?!

Is this kind of carving allowed in the imperial court?
Shui Guang admitted that she was a little tipsy, but not this drunk: the royal family had many taboos. For example, in the entire capital city, apart from the city walls, the tallest building was Linde Hall. No one could surpass it. Even the mythical beasts guarding the entrance of Linde Hall were much taller than the others. If it involved usurping the imperial family, the punishment was at least the extermination of nine generations of one's family, and there was no upper limit!

In such a hierarchical place, would they allow ornaments with this kind of pattern to appear?! Especially on someone serving the emperor?! Aren't they afraid that while they're working, someone might accidentally drop it and see it, and their whole family would be killed?!
Startled, Shui Guang's drunkenness subsided considerably. She grabbed the jade pendant and hurriedly stuffed it into Xu Quyan's arms. Although no one was around, she kept her voice extremely low: "Are you out of your mind?! You dare to carry this thing on your person? If someone finds out, you'll be torn apart by a chariot!"

Shui Guang's hands are small and fleshy. A girl with solid hands may have a touch of cunning, but her thick palms also reveal a natural purity.

Now, my hand is clasped in Xu Quyan's slender, bony hand.

"So, if no one notices, I can carry it on my person?" Xu Quyan asked with a half-smile.

Shui Guang paused, stunned for a moment: "If we don't get caught, then we can just take it with us. What's the big deal?"

"Aren't you afraid that I will disrespect the imperial family and the emperor?" Xu Quyan asked.

Shui Guang scoffed and laughed: "Wearing a jade pendant is disrespectful? Kneeling down and kowtowing to wish him a long life is respectful? —Isn't he the son of heaven? How can he be so fragile?"

Shui Guang brushed a stray strand of hair from her temple: "In the end, those on the dragon throne are no different from us! We are all mortals with flesh and blood, yet we have to be supported by thousands of rules and regulations, hiding ourselves in a fog of illusion, so that we can show a few false golden bodies in the mirage!"

Xu Quyan listened quietly with his head down, then suddenly raised an eyebrow, released his grip, and the jade pendant was firmly held in Shui Guang's hand.

The old red string that held the jade pendant together was loosely tangled, as if it had been untied and re-woven.

He stared at the water for a while, and after a long pause, he finally spoke: "If one day I kill the emperor and am hunted down by the entire court, and I beg you to take me in, would you—take me in?"

What kind of question is this?

Shui Guang thought for a moment, then nodded firmly: "That's for sure."

Xu Quyan asked, "Why don't you ask me why I wanted to kill the emperor?"

Shui Guang frowned, puzzled, and said, "You are my good friend. As long as you don't lie to me, you can do whatever you want. If you want to kill someone, in your eyes, it means that person deserves to die—you kill him and that's it. You didn't even ask me why I wanted to kill Xue Chen, did you?"

Xu Quyan paused for a moment, then smiled with relief.

Long ago, he was deeply captivated by the strange and contradictory feeling of the water: the girl who grew up in the mountains and forests, like bamboo deeply rooted in the earth, broke through all obstacles and grew vigorously upwards, full of vitality and interest.
At the same time, bamboo is also the most cruel plant. Its roots are extensive and incredibly hard, and anything that stands in its way will be pierced through. There was even a cruel torture in the previous dynasty called bamboo torture, in which a person was tied to a thick, live bamboo and left suspended above the upward-growing bamboo shoot. If it was springtime, the bamboo shoot could pierce through a person's skin, internal organs, and bones in just a few days.
Naïve, yet cruel.

Even unlike her seemingly cold and indifferent elder sister, Shui Guang was much more ambiguous about right and wrong than Madam Xue Xiao!

Xue Xiao and his wife were merely "villains" with a bad reputation, but deep down they still had the blood of propriety, righteousness, integrity, and a sense of shame flowing in their veins.

Shui Guang, however, is very much like him: the word "life" can only be judged by "one's own mind," and right and wrong, merit and demerit all originate from "one's own heart."

Xu Quyan smiled, his body motionless, but his gaze was intense and focused on the girl in front of him.

The fireworks had long since ended, and the New Year's bells rang from Hanshan Temple outside the city's east side. Like a mist stirring up thick clouds, snowflakes fell softly, covering the two people's heads with a thin layer of white, downy snowflakes in an instant.

Red walls and golden tiles, two people with white hair.

Xu Quyan felt that the meaning was very good, so he did not reach out to brush the snow off Shui Guang's head. Instead, he reached out and tucked the stray hairs behind her ear, lowered his head slightly, and almost touched Shui Guang's nose with his hot breath. The snow on his face was about to melt away.

The girl's lips, neither too thick nor too thin, but slightly pouting, were right in front of her.

Xu Quyan stopped there and did not move forward.

Shui Guang was a little confused.

Why is this young eunuch Fang standing so close? Is he trying to kiss her?
She was so grateful to him that she offered herself to him simply because he said he would "allow him to stay."
If you're truly moved, why not give her ten thousand taels of gold, plus a tall house?
Shui Guang remained still, but her eyes were focused on Xu Quyan's slightly pale lips.

That guy has such a beautiful mouth.

Like a half-opened flower, pale and tense, it seemed like a forsythia buried in the snow, quietly waiting for spring to bloom. Well, Little Eunuch Fang certainly doesn't look like Wu Min. If it weren't for ten thousand taels of gold and a tall house, a kiss would barely settle the accounts.

Shuiguang's eyes widened, and she stretched her neck, then rammed into it.

Their lips met, but it didn't feel like a kiss; it felt more like a rough collision.

"Hiss—" Shui Guang covered her mouth, her teeth hitting her lip so hard that it bled a little. Apart from the pain, she didn't feel anything else.

Xu Quyan suddenly burst into laughter.

Spring has arrived.

Xu Quyan was thin, but still a head taller than Shui Guang. Even though the young emperor had been controlled for more than a decade, he had become accustomed to the high position of power. He decisively stepped forward, abandoning "Xiao Fang's" silence and gentleness, and placed one hand on the back of Shui Guang's head, leaning down.

Their lips touched again, carrying the chill of winter and the anticipation of a new year, mixed with the smell of blood and alcohol, gradually intertwining and merging.

Shui Guang stared wide-eyed in disbelief, her hand suddenly gripping the hem of her clothes, crumpling the fabric into a mushy mess in no time.

Her lips parted, she gasped for breath, her eyes wide as she stared intently at Xu Quyan, and suddenly asked, "Have you ever kissed another girl?"

Xu Quyan was taken aback, unsure how to respond: "I am, I am family, I am family—" He then added, "I am already twenty-six. In the common world, if I start early, my offspring will be ready for marriage."

Before Xu Quyan could finish speaking, Shui Guang let out a long breath and patted her chest as if to relax: "That's good. You kissed so well. I thought you had practiced with the eunuchs and become skilled."

Eunuch?

Practice makes perfect?

A surge of foul air erupted from Xu Quyan's chest!

The qi flow was disrupted, affecting the heart, lungs, throat, and nasal cavity, causing a temporary disruption of the qi circulation.

Xu Quyan coughed until his eyes turned red, clutching his chest with one hand, and fell into a violent coughing fit.

When a patient with asthma has a sudden attack, it is an emergency. In addition, Xu Quyan had been drinking alcohol today, and had been exposed to the cold wind and frost on the roof beam. The kiss just now had penetrated his heart and blood. This attack came on suddenly and fiercely!
Shui Guang immediately reached into Xu Quyan's sleeve pocket: "Patients with asthma need to carry a herbal sachet to relieve asthma and promote breathing."

"No, no." Xu Quyan shook his head rapidly.

These days, his condition has been quite stable. He rarely indulges in superstitions: today is New Year's Eve, and he doesn't want to spend the New Year with the smell of illness and medicine, so he hasn't worn it.

No! ?
Shui Guang was momentarily flustered!
No! ?
Since there are no sachets to relieve asthma, the only way to quickly alleviate the symptoms is through acupuncture!
She never carried silver needles with her!

Shui Guang pushed Xu Quyan into a more secluded alley, pulled his outer garment off his back, and pressed several acupoints, including Feishu, Lung Meridian, Dazhui, and Jianjing, with great force until a thin sweat appeared on his forehead. Only then did Xu Quyan's violent coughing and wheezing gradually subside!
Only then did Shui Guang notice that there was a burn on Xu Quyan's smooth back, about the size of half a shoulder!

It was clearly an old wound, quite old, about the size of two palms put together. New flesh had grown out, forming a horrifying lesion, with varying shades of red standing out starkly against the skin.

Shui Guang stood there, stunned.

Despite his weakness, Xu Quyan calmly put on his clothes.

Shui Guang wanted to ask a question, but didn't speak rashly: "After spending some time in the palace, you'll know that it's a hell that doesn't treat people like human beings. The subtle and hidden methods can torture people beyond recognition. Don't be fooled by Xiao Fang's current status as a powerful eunuch. Who knows where he was tortured a few years ago?"

Thinking this, a dull, indescribable pain welled up in Shui Guang's heart.

Xu Quyan turned around, slowly opened his arms, and gently hugged Shuiguang. His voice was very soft, with a slight hoarseness after panting: "I have kissed other girls before—but believe me, from now on, I will never kiss again."

Shui Guang was still in a daze, and it took her a while to come back to her senses: "Oh, okay."

Eunuchs are human beings too, and as human beings, they have feelings.

It's nothing.

Shui Guang slowly raised her hand and gently embraced Xu Quyan.

Even if he's a eunuch, it's not a big deal, is it?

At least, she never felt sorry for any other man.

　A chapter packed with information

　　(End of this chapter)