Shen Qingzhuo was startled by the boy’s excessive reaction and was a little confused: “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing!” Xiao Shen felt his heartbeat suddenly become rapid, “boom, boom, boom,” like a drum beating in his chest. He was at a loss for a moment and looked away.
Shen Qingzhuo was completely unaware of the emotions surging in his disciple’s heart. He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand and explained in a way that made things more obvious: “I don’t know where I got the red ink from.”
At this moment, Xiao Shen’s senses were still focused on the slippery touch left on his fingertips, and he replied absentmindedly, “Oh…”
Shen Qingzhuo quietly breathed a sigh of relief and then said, “Now that the child in Concubine Yuan’s belly is gone, your Imperial Grandmother will probably target you again.”
Judging from Emperor Guangxi’s current health, it would be extremely difficult to give birth to another prince.
Unless the Crown Prince has an heir, the most suitable puppet was still the Seventh Prince.
Xiao Shen: “Oh.”
“Hmm?” Shen Qingzhuo finally noticed that his disciple was absent-minded and flicked his forehead with his finger. “Master is talking to you, and you are distracted?”
“Ah?” The youth came to his senses suddenly and apologized immediately, “I’m sorry, Master, I was thinking about something else just now.”
Shen Qingzhuo: “What are you thinking about?”
Unexpectedly, the youth’s face suddenly turned red, and he looked around in panic: “I didn’t think about anything.”
Shen Qingzhuo: “……”
“I will take care of the Empress Dowager.” Seeing his master frowning, Xiao Shen hurriedly said, “Don’t worry, Master. The most urgent thing is to heal your injuries first.”
“Alright.” Shen Qingzhuo exhaled slowly, tiredly rising up. “I am a little tired. Master will take a short rest.”
“Alright!” This time his little disciple responded very straightforwardly, “Master, rest assured. I will be watching over you outside.”
Shen Qingzhuo lay down on the bed with his clothes on, emptied his mind, closed his eyes, and tried to fall asleep.
He doesn’t know how long it has been, but the wound on his right arm was still hurting. He could vaguely see a flash of sword and blood in front of his eyes, and a strange and noisy sound came to his ears.
He did not sleep well. The whole world in his dream seemed upside down, chaotic, weird, and suffocating.
Until someone seemed to grab his hand.
Warm and powerful hands firmly grasped his sweaty palms and continued to gently soothe and knead them.
Gradually, the bizarre scene faded away from him, his breathing became steady and gentle, and he finally fell into a deeper sleep.
He slept until afternoon.
When Shen Qingzhuo opened his eyes, his gaze was not yet fully focused, and his expression held a hint of dazed fragility.
“Master, you’re awake!” A familiar young voice woke him up completely, and his hazy eyes became clear.
Xiao Shen came in with a bowl of medicine, put it down, and carefully helped him up from the bed. “The medicine has just been boiled, Master, drink it while it’s hot.”
The boiled Chinese medicine gave off an astringent and fishy smell. Shen Qingzhuo covered his mouth and nose in disgust. “Why is it worse than yesterday’s medicine?”
“I went to Imperial Medical and asked the imperial physician to change the prescription.” Xiao Shen picked up the medicine bowl and said, “After drinking the medicine, the pain won’t be so severe anymore, Master.”
Shen Qingzhuo leaned back in resistance, the hair on the back of his head rubbing against the headboard. “It smells too bad.”
Xiao Shen put the bowl to his lips. “Master, pinch your nose and drink it all in one gulp!”
Shen Qingzhuo turned his face away and avoided his hand.
“It wasn’t like this when Master coaxed me to drink the medicine.” Xiao Shen opened his dark eyes and repeated naively, “You always said that good medicine tastes bitter. A true warrior dares to face the bitterness of medicine. If I don’t drink the medicine, you won’t like me anymore, and so on.”
Shen Qingzhuo: “……”
Good guy, his disciple is no longer under his master’s control and has learned to use his words to stop him as well.
“Come on.” Xiao Shen imitated the way his master usually coaxed him and whispered, “Master, be good, ah~”
Shen Qingzhuo’s face was slightly hot, and he weakly defended himself: “The medicine I usually coaxed you to drink was not this bitter.”
Xiao Shen stared at him intently, then suddenly brought the bowl back to his lips and took a big sip directly from the edge of the bowl.
After taking this sip, his handsome eyebrows knotted unconsciously.
Shen Qingzhuo was stunned: “Why are you…”
The youth replied in a serious tone, “I’ll suffer with Master.”
Shen Qingzhuo’s eyebrows twitched slightly. He never expected that his little disciple, who was so afraid of hardship, would drink the medicine so readily just to coax him into drinking it.
“Alright, Master will just drink it.” He was too embarrassed to refuse, so he took the bowl of medicine, concentrated and held his breath, and drank the medicine in one go.
“Wu.” Just after he finished drinking the medicine, before the bitter taste in his mouth had time to spread, a candied fruit was stuffed into his mouth.
“Master is so obedient.” Xiao Shen looked at him with a smile, praising him in an indescribable tone, and then unconsciously put his finger into his mouth and sucked it.
The fingertips that held the candied fruit were sticky with sweetness and a hint of moisture, perhaps because they had accidentally touched his master’s tongue.
With candied fruit in his mouth, Shen Qingzhuo asked incoherently, “I’m a little hungry. Is there anything to eat in the small kitchen?”
Xiao Shen woke up as if from a dream and replied, “There is, there is! I’ll bring it over right away!”
His eyes fell on his blushing earlobes, and Shen Qingzhuo stretched out his hand with some concern, “Why is your face so red? It can’t be that you have a fever, right?”
“No, no, I’m fine!” The youth suddenly stood up and almost ran away, leaving his master with a puzzled look on his face.
His disciple seems to be blushing too often recently. Is there something wrong with his body?
Just as Shen Qingzhuo had expected, more than ten days later the Empress Dowager summoned the Seventh Prince in private.
As soon as Xiao Shen stepped into the Changshou Palace, the head maid who served the Empress Dowager came up to him and said, “Your Highness the Seventh Prince, you are here.”
The friendly tone and natural attitude made it seem as if the Seventh Prince was a frequent visitor to Changshou Palace.
Xiao Shen pretended to be flattered, and under the guidance of the palace maid, he entered the inner hall and knelt down respectfully to greet: “Grandson greets Imperial Grandmother.”
The Empress Dowager, dressed in elegant clothes, was sitting at a small table drinking tea. She raised her eyes after hearing the voice and said, “Shen’er is here ah, no need to be polite.”
“Thank you, Imperial Grandmother.” Xiao Shen stood up and stood there stiffly, looking a little at a loss.
“Come, come closer.” The Empress Dowager waved to him gently, holding the golden handkerchief in her hand, and said in a gentle voice, “Let Grandmother take a good look.”
He hesitated for a moment, and after the Empress Dowager urged him again, he timidly walked up to her.
“Good child, you have grown this big already.” The Empress Dowager caressed his cheek lovingly and couldn’t help but sighed, “When Grandmother first saw you, you were only twelve years old, very small.”
Xiao Shen seemed to be touched by these words, he kneeled down beside the Empress Dowager’s legs and said gratefully, “My master told me that I was able to move out of the cold palace because of Grandmother’s plea to my Emperor Father. Grandson would like to thank Grandmother. Grandson will always remember it in his heart!”
After saying that, he leaned over and kowtowed.
The Empress Dowager personally helped him up and said, “From now on, Grandmother will protect you, and no one will dare to bully you again.”
Xiao Shen’s eyes lit up, and he blurted out, “Really?”
“How could what Grandmother said to you be false?” The Empress Dowager’s eyes became more kind. “As long as you are a good child, Grandmother will love you.”
A layer of mist suddenly appeared in his dark eyes. Xiao Shen tried to restrain his excitement hard and choked up and said, “Grandson has never been protected like this since he was a child, Grandmother…”
The Empress Dowager wiped the non-existent tears from her eyes with a handkerchief and said, “Good child, you have suffered for so many years.”
“Grandmother…” Xiao Shen lowered his eyes and sobbed.
“Let’s not talk about these unhappy things.” The Empress Dowager patted his back comfortingly, “What kind of cakes Shen’er likes to eat? Grandmother will have someone make them and send them up.”
After a while, the exquisite and sweet cakes were placed on the table.
Xiao Shen stared at the cakes in front of him, and without the initial restraint, he grabbed some with his hands and stuffed them into his mouth. He choked after taking two bites.
“Slow down.” The Empress Dowager reminded in a gentle voice, “Drink some tea and eat slowly.”
Xiao Shen patted his chest and was about to drink the tea, but he gasped because of the heat and almost knocked over the teacup in his panic.
“Grandmother, am I too clumsy?” He looked at the Empress Dowager anxiously.
The Empress Dowager smiled and said, “You have been in the cold palace for many years, and Qingzhuo has taught you very well.”
“Master…” When mentioning Shen Qingzhuo, he pursed his lips unconsciously.
“Why, is your master not treating you well?” The Empress Dowager keenly caught his expression and asked with concern.
“He punished me all the time.” Xiao Shen complained vaguely, then affectionately ran to the Empress Dowager’s side, hugged her arm, and shook her. “Only Grandmother is good to me!”
The Empress Dowager smiled and patted his hands, saying lovingly, “Come visit Grandmother often in the future.”
At this time, the palace maid opened the curtain and walked in, “Niangniang, Young Master Qi is here.”
“Let him in.” The Empress Dowager gestured, “The one who comes is your cousin, he also works in the palace. In the future, you cousins should get closer to each other.”
Xiao Shen nodded obediently: “Alright, Grandmother.”
At Youshi15-7pm, Shen Qingzhuo stepped out of the main gate of the Beizhen Fushi.
He was wearing a bright red Feiyu uniform and an Xiuchun Sword on his waist, which made his lips and teeth look even redder and his waist look like a willow. With every frown and smile, he controlled life and death. No one could tell that he couldn’t even pull out the sword on his waist.
“My Lord, now that you have been promoted to the Zhenfu rank, why don’t you petition His Majesty to move you into a more decent house?” Asked the Jinyiwei, who followed behind him.
This man’s name is Kong Shang, and he is the sixth rank captain of the Jinyiwei. Now he follows Shen Qingzhuo and is responsible for protecting Lord Zhenfu’s safety.
Shen Qingzhuo paused for a moment and said calmly, “I’m used to living in Jiyue Pavilion, so I won’t change for the time being. Besides, that is the residence bestowed by His Majesty. If I were to ask for a new house after my promotion, His Majesty would think that I am getting carried away.”
Kong Shang quickly said, “My Lord is right. The humble will learn from you.”
Shen Qingzhuo smiled faintly, lifted up his robe, and got into the sedan chair.
The Beizhen Fushi was located in the southwest corner of the imperial city, west of Chengtian Gate, and across the street from Dongchang on the east. Everyday, after finishing his work, he would take a sedan chair back to the palace.
After the sedan chair was lifted up steadily, he sat in it and closed his eyes to take a nap, but heard a shout from outside: “How dare you? Who dares to stop Lord Zhenfu’s sedan chair?”
Shen Qingzhuo opened his eyes and lifted the curtain. “What’s the matter?”
Kong Shang replied, “My Lord, a young eunuch blocked our way and said he had something important to report to you.”
“An eunuch?” Shen Qingzhuo stood up and got out of the sedan chair, only to see a young man in eunuch’s clothes kneeling in front of the sedan chair, staring at him straight.
Shen Qingzhuo looked at the other party’s unfamiliar face and inexplicably felt that the cold eyes were somewhat familiar. He asked, “Who are you, and what do you want to report?”
The young eunuch replied in a hoarse voice, “I want to serve you, my Lord.”
As soon as this voice came out, Shen Qingzhuo’s heart suddenly skipped a beat.
He frowned and coldly said, “This lord doesn’t need you to serve, go wherever you need to go.”
After saying that, he turned back to the sedan chair without mercy and said, “Lift the sedan chair.”
However, the young eunuch continued to kneel silently in front of the sedan chair and refused to give way.
Kong Shang quickly drew out the Xiuchun Sword from his waist and said, “If you don’t get out of the way, don’t blame me for being rude!”
The young eunuch looked at him indifferently, without any sign of fear.
“Wait.” Just as Kong Shang was about to take action, a clear voice came from the sedan chair: “Forget it, let him follow.”
The young eunuch then stood up and followed them silently.
After about an incense stick of time, Shen Qingzhuo stepped into the gate of Jiyue Pavilion.
He sent away the maids and eunuchs who were waiting on him, sat on a chair, took a sip of hot tea, and then looked at the young eunuch standing in front of him and said, “What do you want to do?”
The young eunuch did not shy away from his gaze and said, “I will serve you, My Lord.”
Shen Qingzhuo suppressed his anger and asked, “Do you know how much risk I took to secretly send you away?”
The young eunuch: “I know.”
“Then how dare you come back?” Shen Qingzhuo couldn’t help himself and raised his hand to throw the teacup out.
With a “crash”, the teacup broke into pieces beside the young eunuch, and the flying porcelain pieces pierced his face. He raised his hand and pulled it off with an expressionless face.
The young eunuch replied woodenly, “I have nowhere to go.”
Shen Qingzhuo stood up angrily, pointed at him, and cursed, “Where the sea is wide, the fish can leap about; where the sky is high, the birds can fly, where in the world has no place for you to go? You just want to come back to hurt me!”
The young eunuch lowered his head and repeated, “I have nowhere to go.”
“You!” Shen Qingzhuo took a deep breath and reminded himself to be careful. He had finally rescued the person, so he shouldn’t get angry and make himself sick again.
He sat back in his chair, calmed down, and asked, “Is this face of yours real or fake?”
The young eunuch raised his head and said, “It’s fake.”
Shen Qingzhuo frowned. “What about the face from before?”
The young eunuch: “It’s also fake.”
Shen Qingzhuo slightly widened his eyes. “How many faces do you have?”
The young eunuch was silent for a moment, then replied, “An assassin doesn’t need a face. No one has ever seen my real face.”
They were just a sword, a sharp weapon for killing people. It doesn’t matter what they look like.
“Fine.” Shen Qingzhuo stopped dwelling on this question. “Then let’s talk about it. You said you want to serve me. What can you do for me?”
The assassin replied without hesitation, “Kill people.”
Shen Qingzhuo frowned. “Besides killing people?”
The assassin was silent for a while, then replied, “I will do whatever Master wants me to do.”
Shen Qingzhuo leaned back and said, “Don’t call me that, I haven’t agreed to let you stay yet.”
Why did he even call out master?
The assassin kneeled on one knee. His throat, which had been injected with chili oil, had not yet recovered to normal, but his tone was unusually firm. “I have no place that I come from and no place to return to. I can be your knife, your sword, anything for you.”
Shen Qingzhuo stood up and paced, pondering over and over again.
After thinking for a long time, he finally nodded. “You can stay, but I don’t want you to be an assassin. I want you to be my secret guard.”
The assassin looked up at him and said, “Yes, Master.”
Shen Qingzhuo walked up to him and said coldly, “If one day your identity is exposed…”
Assassin: “I will die to pay my sins and never burden Master.”
Shen Qingzhuo sneered: “Do you still remember how you were arrested and imprisoned?”
“I’ve improved already.” The assassin replied seriously, “I promise that next time I’m caught, I won’t leave anyone alive.”
Shen Qingzhuo: “……”
He sighed and emphasized, “The duty of the secret guard is to protect the master. I will not let you go out and kill people.”
The Secret Guard: “Yes, Master.”
Shen Qingzhuo lowered his eyes and looked at his ordinary face, which was so ordinary that it would be forgotten after a glance. He couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Is that a human skin mask on your face?”
Modern people’s makeup skills are sometimes comparable to plastic surgery, but he doesn’t understand how ancient people changed their appearance.
The secret guard shook his head: “No.”
Shen Qingzhuo raised his hand and touched the place on his face that was pierced by the fragments with his fingertips. “It’s quite novel. If possible, teach me when you have time.”
Before the secret guard could reply, a thunderous shout came from the door: “Master? What are you doing?”
Shen Qingzhuo froze and turned around hesitantly, only to meet his little disciple’s shocked and angry eyes.
The author has something to say:
Shen Qingzhuo: What’s going on? I feel like I’m being caught by my dog at home for walking a dog outside…
The Little Wolf Cub: Master can only touch my dog’s head, you can’t touch other dogs!
T/N: You guys might not be curious but I just want to clarify that the ‘master’ XS addresses SQZ and the ‘master’ that others address him are different. XS’s ‘master’ refers to a teacher. I thought teacher sounded too modern xD so I used master instead, while the other ‘master’ means sth like owner.
