“I know I was wrong, Master.” Xiao Shen replied in a low voice, and the palm of his hand that was hit quickly became red and swollen.
His master thought that he was using great force, but his strength was not great to begin with, and he was also dizzy from anger. The ruler hitting his palm only made a scary sound, but it didn’t actually hurt that much.
But he still gritted his teeth, straightened his back, and pretended to be in great pain. Otherwise, when his master was tired of beating him, he would be even more angry if he saw that he had not received the lesson he deserved.
Besides, his master would not bear to really hurt him, and he would definitely feel sorry for him later.
Sure enough, after two more “pah, pah”, Shen Qingzhuo tightened his fingers, and the long ruler stopped above his palm and did not fall down for a long time.
In the past few years, he has used the ruler only a few times.
Firstly, Xiao Qi was well-behaved and obedient and was diligent and eager to learn. He often completed the tasks he assigned to him ahead of schedule, and he did not need him to hit him with a ruler. Secondly, his educational philosophy was that reasoning was more effective than corporal punishment, and he would never resort to physical punishment if the problem could be solved verbally.
The last time he hit his little disciple on the palm of his hand was because he was staring at his face and was distracted during a lecture. He didn’t know anything when asked. At that time, he had a ruler in his hand, so he hit him lightly twice as a punishment.
This is the first time he gets so angry like today.
Shen Qingzhuo breathed rapidly, his chest rising and falling, and he asked in a cold voice, “What did you do wrong?”
“My mistake was…” Xiao Shen carefully opened his eyelashes, staring at his master with a pair of anxious puppy eyes, his eyes red. “My mistake was that I was so angry that I whipped the palace attendant.”
“Right and wrong, rewards and punishments are clearly defined. As the master of Changle Palace, you do have the right to deal with the palace attendants.” Shen Qingzhuo took a breath and tried to make his point clear. “Your mistake was not in punishing the palace attendants, but in torturing them with such vicious and cruel whipping.”
He has always been committed to training his little disciple into a wise ruler, so he not only taught him to read and write, but he also taught him military strategies and the art of being an emperor. He also taught him to respect life and always have compassion for his people.
The road to becoming an emperor was filled with millions of corpses and thousands of miles of blood. He will have to bear all the inevitable intrigues and unscrupulous means.
It would be enough for one of them, the master or the disciple, to have his hands stained with blood.
But the scene just now made him think of the tyrant in the original world who was cruel and murderous.
So what is the significance of everything he is doing now?
“I was wrong… I really know I was wrong, Master.” Xiao Shen still raised his red and swollen hands high and admitted his mistake with a choked voice, “I will never let Master down again…”
Next time he will definitely hide well and never let his master find out.
Shen Qingzhuo lowered his eyes and looked into those wet eyes, with extremely complicated emotions surging in his heart.
After three years of living together day and night, he didn’t believe that he could have made a mistake, nor did he believe that his careful teaching was ineffective.
Thinking of this, he slowed down his tone and asked, “What exactly are you doing today?”
Xiao Shen lowered his eyelashes and whispered, “That young eunuch was not very polite in private, and I heard him speak ill.”
“He has a dirty mouth?” Shen Qingzhuo frowned. “What heinous words did he say that made you want to beat him to death?”
“It’s just…” Xiao Shen bit his back teeth, unwilling to explain too clearly. “It’s just some dirty words, Master would better not listen to them, so as not to pollute your ears.”
Shen Qingzhuo was about to ask if it was just a small matter when a thought suddenly flashed through his mind, and he asked hesitantly, “Could it be… about me?”
Xiao Shen pursed his pale, thin lips and said nothing.
If his master had not come today, he would not only have beaten that young eunuch to death with a barbed whip but would also have pulled out his tongue so that he would no longer be able to gossip in the eighteen levels of hell after he turned into a ghost.
“Forget it. I won’t ask any more questions.” Shen Qingzhuo guessed a lot in his mind and leaned against the door frame limply. “Master believes that the palace attendant did something wrong; otherwise, you wouldn’t do it for no reason.”
“Master…” The youth who was kneeling on the ground raised his head again, his tone was filled with unspeakable grievance and pity. “I was so angry today that I didn’t even realize what I was doing.”
Shen Qingzhuo remained unmoved and asked another question: “Who gave you that whip with barbs?”
“Whip…” Xiao Shen was stunned for a moment and replied vaguely, “It’s… come from…”
“What did you say? Speak louder.” Shen Qingzhuo frowned in dissatisfaction. “Speak clearly, word by word.”
Logically speaking, this kind of long whip with barbs is not common in the palace. It is usually a weapon and torture instrument used by the Imperial Guards and the Jinyiwei. There are also only a handful of guards who are accustomed to using whips.
Seeing that he could not fool him easily, Xiao Shen had no choice but to reply in a serious manner: “It was given to me by Zou Peng of the Jinyiwei.”
“Zou Peng?” Shen Qingzhuo didn’t expect to be related to this Lord Zou. “When did you guys meet? Why did he give you the whip?”
“It happened two days ago.” Xiao Shen confessed everything. “I happened to meet him when I went to pay my respects to Emperor Father. Emperor Father suddenly got excited and asked Lord Zou to teach me a few moves.”
Shen Qingzhuo narrowed his eyes slightly. “Lord Zou has shown his good will to you?”
“Anyway, he did a good job on the surface, but I don’t know what he was thinking.” Xiao Shen curled his lips “He showed off a few tricks in front of me and finally gave me this long whip.”
“You should have told me this earlier.” Shen Qingzhuo sighed, “Do you know the purpose of your Emperor Father’s behavior?”
Xiao Shen shook his head honestly.
“In just a few months, Master has jumped two levels and become equal to Lord Zou of the Jinyiwei. Master is also in charge of the Beizhen Fushi. Who among the civil and military officials in the court would not be jealous?” Shen Qingzhuo’s eyes darkened as he analyzed slowly. “However, His Majesty knew that the relationship between you and me as master and disciple was not harmonious, but he still asked Zou Peng to instruct you. What do you think your Emperor Father meant?”
Xiao Shen suddenly realized: “Emperor Father will not allow you to be the only one in power.”
“If nothing unexpected happens, Master’s career as a commander in the Jinyiwei will end.” Shen Qingzhuo raised his hand and pinched his nose with his fingertips. “The king’s mind is hard to predict. This is why I have been slow to report the progress of the case.”
He must obtain foolproof evidence to ensure that he can suppress the Eastern Palace in one fell swoop and there is no possibility of resurgence before he can take action.
Otherwise, given Emperor Guangxi’s suspicious nature, he would certainly suspect that he and the Empress Dowager were secretly colluding to frame the Eastern Palace just to bring down the Crown Prince.
Xiao Shen moved his knees and subconsciously asked, “Master, is there any new progress in Pan Chong’s case?”
“Weren’t you present when Miss Yan Luo from Zuixiang Fang spoke last time?” Shen Qing glanced at him. “It won’t be difficult to uncover the secrets of the Eastern Palace if we follow the clues.”
Xiao Shen said “Oh” and asked weakly, “And… Master, how long do I have to kneel?”
When he was interrupted just now, Shen Qingzhuo almost forgot the reason why he made his disciple kneel. The depression in his chest was relieved a lot, and he ordered in a low voice, “Promise Master that you will correct your mistakes as soon as you realize them.”
Xiao Shen nodded repeatedly like a chick pecking at rice, his eyes filled with sincere regret.
He absolutely can’t call him master again because he would be sad if he discover his true face.
“Get up.” Shen Qingzhuo stood up straight and sighed, “I hope you really know your mistake.”
“Realer than gold ah—” Xiao Shen said as he stood up. However, after kneeling for a long time, his knees became weak, and he staggered and fell on his master.
Fortunately, Shen Qingzhuo was leaning against the door frame and managed to catch his little disciple.
“Master…” The youth hugged him and wouldn’t let go, rubbing against him coquettishly, “Master, don’t be sad, Xiao Qi will be obedient.”
“You…” Shen Qingzhuo felt his heart soften as he was rubbed and hugged by him. He stroked the youth’s round head and threatened him softly, “If you are caught by Master again, Master will not like you anymore.”
***
After the master and disciple talked it out, Shen Qingzhuo ordered people to carry the half-dead young eunuch away for treatment.
Afterwards, he gathered the eunuchs and palace maids of Changle Palace together for a reprimand.
Since the incident had its reasons and the punishment had been imposed, he couldn’t let his little disciple be punished in vain.
The palace attendants all kneeled in the hall, trembling and not daring to breathe.
“Not only is it strictly forbidden to gossip behind the master’s back, but the affairs of Changle Palace stay within Changle Palace. Once you leave Changle Palace, everyone should keep their mouths shut.” Shen Qingzhuo stood with his hands behind his back and said in a light tone, “If one day this young master hears a word from Changle Palace outside, no one present will escape punishment.”
Led by the eunuch in charge, the palace attendants all kneeled down and said, “The servants understand.”
“Good that you all understand.” Shen Qingzhuo waved his hand, “Retreat and do what you need to do.”
“Yes, Young Master.” The palace attendants retreated in an orderly manner.
Shen Qingzhuo turned around and sat on the chair, intending to rest for a while.
“Is Master tired?” Xiao Shen moved sideways to the sir’s side like a crab. “Would you like to stay for dinner, Master?”
Shen Qingzhuo glanced at him sideways, neither saying yes nor no.
“Since Master didn’t say anything, I’ll take it as your consent.” Xiao Shen ran out, “I’ll go see what delicious food the kitchen has prepared!”
Shen Qingzhuo smiled helplessly and raised his hand to support his jaw.
After dinner, it was already dark.
“I’ll just lay on the floor, I won’t disturb Master from resting.” The youth looked serious, almost swearing to heaven, “Master has been tired all day, don’t walk around, I’ll feel bad.”
Unable to resist his little disciple’s constant nagging, Shen Qingzhuo finally agreed to stay overnight.
He came to Changle Palace today because he missed his little disciple, although a big incident happened in the middle.
After taking off the blood-stained clothes and washing off the dust and fatigue, Shen Qingzhuo closed his eyes and lay down in the bathtub for a nap.
While he was half asleep, he heard the sound of water splashing in his ears, as if someone were squeezing into the bathtub.
He was startled and tried to open his eyes, but it was as if his eyelids were blocked by glue and he couldn’t open them.
A hot breath hit his face, followed by a strange man’s hoarse laughter: “Master, let’s take a bath together…”
Master? Could it be Xiao Qi?
Shen Qingzhuo was even more surprised. The man actually lifted him up from the water and turned him to sit astride his legs.
He had never experienced anything like this before. He felt indescribably shocked. He wanted to shout to stop the man or break free from his restraints, but his whole body was hot and limp. He couldn’t muster any strength and could only let the man do whatever he wanted…
That’s not right, this is not Xiao Qi. Xiao Qi should be guarding outside the door at this moment. How could he allow a strange man to break into his bedchamber?
The next moment, that hot big hand actually touched his…
“Get out!” Shen Qingzhuo shouted angrily and suddenly opened his eyes. Only then did he realize that he had been dreaming while lying in the bathtub.
He breathed a sigh of relief, and without thinking too much about how strange the dream was, he quickly got up and stepped out of the bathtub.
“Master?” The youth, who was guarding the palace door, heard the noise and immediately pushed open the door. He bumped into his master, who was putting on his clothes behind the screen, and turned around quickly. “I think I heard Master’s voice. What happened?”
Shen Qingzhuo put on his undergarment, blushed slightly, and replied calmly, “Nothing, you heard wrong.”
He can’t say that he fell asleep in the bath and had an extremely weird and… embarrassing dream, right?
Xiao Shen felt relieved: “Then it’s good.”
After a while, he walked around the screen and said politely, “Master, sit down. Can I massage Master’s legs?”
Shen Qingzhuo thought of the last time he tried to massage his feet in vain. He nodded slightly, wrapped his wet hair with a white towel, and sat on the edge of the bed.
Xiao Shen immediately knelt down at his feet, wrapped his warm palms around his straight and slender calves, and kneaded them with moderate force.
“Does your palm still hurt?” Shen Qingzhuo asked softly, enduring the numbness coming from his calf, “Do you blame Master for hitting you?”
“No blame!” The youth answered straightforwardly, “Master doing this all for my own good. I am willing to accept the punishment.”
Upon hearing this, Shen Qingzhuo couldn’t help but feel mixed emotions. Such a well-behaved and lovely little disciple, he will never find one even with a lantern1It’s a metaphor of being rare., right?
Seeing that his little disciple was serious, he took off his white towel and spread it on the jade mat, then lay down with his long black hair spread out, concentrating on enjoying the unique service.
Sleepiness invaded him again, and in a daze, Shen Qingzhuo felt as if a hand was climbing up his calf.
“Xiao Qi, stop making trouble…” He muttered unhappily, thinking that his little disciple was being naughty again.
As a result, the man smiled deeply and asked in his ear, “Stop making trouble and just… do it, alright?”
Having said that, the hand fiercely folded his legs in half and pressed them against his chest.
Shen Qingzhuo’s scalp numbed with pain. He raised his foot without any hesitation and kicked the man who was bullying him hard.
“Ah!” With a scream, he opened his eyes again and found that his little disciple, who was massaging his legs seriously, was kicked upside down by him.
Shen Qingzhuo: “……”
The author has something to say:
The Wolf Cub: I haven’t even kissed my master on the face yet, and that bastard did something evil, but the one getting kicked was me? This is not fair!
The Master: Cough, cough… Injured you by mistake…
By the way, the things in the dream are really forced love, everything has cause and effect, but the timeline development is different this time, so don’t be impatient, my dears!
T/N: Help, I love when the original Xiao Shen appear :3
