Chapter 113: The Past
In a tea room on the second floor of a teahouse in the county town, Qiu Henian, dressed in a gray-blue robe with his hair tied up and wearing a crown, clasped his hands and bowed respectfully to the person standing by the window, addressing him as “Uncle.”
The man, about fifty years old, with a white face and clear wrinkles around his forehead and corners of his eyes, exuded a scholarly elegance tinged with a sternness. This person was Qiu Yan, the imperial envoy sent by the current emperor.
Qiu Yan’s gray pupils stared at the young man in front of him.
His thin lips moved slightly as he said, “You still address me as Uncle.”
Qiu Henian stood up straight, lowered his hands, and said, “It’s a matter of junior etiquette after many years of not seeing each other.”
Qiu Yan’s face darkened.
“Even though I forced you to relinquish your military achievements to Qiyuan, used your subordinates’ lives to coerce you into taking poison to erase your memory, and caused you to live as a poor blacksmith in a remote village, don’t you resent me?”
Qiu Henian remained calm.
He looked at the other person and said, “They have raised me. If my parents hadn’t taken me back then, perhaps I would have died from wild dog bites one night or from the severe cold of winter.”
His eyelids drooped for a moment before he continued, “I’ve considered these years as repaying this kindness.”
Qiu Yan’s gaze was sharp.
“When you were in prison, I had someone send you a letter. Did you read it?”
Qiu Henian nodded.
“I read it.”
Qiu Yan said, “Now that you know, forcing you to give up your achievements back then was not solely my decision. It was your father’s dying wish, and the person who concocted the poison was an old family servant loyal to the Qiu family. Why don’t you hate them?”
Qiu Henian fell silent for a while before saying, “I did hate them.”
Which means he no longer hates them now.
Qiu Yan narrowed his eyes and asked again, “Knowing such news, uncertain about life or death in prison, why didn’t you simply give up? If you’re grateful for their saving you and raising you, why not use your life to repay them? Or are you too afraid of death?”
Qiu Henian looked up at him and asked, “Do you want to see me walk to my death, head severed from my body, in the execution ground?”
Qiu Yan gritted his teeth.
“What’s wrong with that? Qiyuan is already dead. What use are you alive for?”
Qiu Henian said, “I don’t want to die because there are still people in this world who cannot lose me, people I cannot let down.”
Qiu Yan sneered, “People come and go; how do you know that without you, they won’t live happier lives?”
Qiu Henian suddenly smiled and said, “Didn’t you see him in the capital? If he tries everything, and you still refuse his request, he will fight you to the end.”
Qiu Yan’s eyes twitched. He turned his back, facing the window.
The room fell silent for a while. Qiu Henian spoke softly again, “The person you owe the most is not me, but someone else.”
Qiu Yan shifted his body, and after a while, his straight spine bent down.
He sighed deeply and said, “This time when I return, I’ll make a trip to Nanhui County and apologize to him in person, letting him decide what to do.”
Qiu Henian said, “Because of your selfishness, you caused him to leave his hometown for many years. There’s no chance for his family to reunite again. How could a casual apology make up for that?”
“Let him decide? You are an official of the court. What can he possibly do to you?”
Qiu Yan clenched his hand tightly by his side, veins bulging.
Qiu Henian looked at his back and bowed to him.
“Thank you for coming to rescue me this time. From now on, my fate and the Qiu family have nothing to do with each other.”
…
In the teahouse, a tall and handsome young man walked out. As he crossed the threshold, his expression was heavy. He looked up at the sky, sighed lightly, as if relieved of a heavy burden or bidding farewell to someone or something.
Afterward, his face gradually relaxed. He glanced at both sides of the street, found his direction, and began to walk.
…
Years ago, the two brothers in the Forbidden Army, Qiu Qiyuan acted boldly and recklessly, while Qiu Henian remained calm and measured.
As early as the first few years they served in the army, their father Qiu had already seen that Henian was not an ordinary person, and Qiyuan’s dream of becoming a general was bound to fail.
The old family servant who had been with the family since childhood was skilled in using medicinal poisons. Qiu’s father casually mentioned that if there were a medicine that could command people without harming their lives, it would be perfect.
After some time, the old servant informed his master that while there was no medicine that could command people without harming them, he had concocted a drug that could erase memories without causing harm. However, its effects needed testing.
At that time, Qiu’s mother was already in poor health, and Qiu’s father took care of her day and night, unable to leave. He gave the drug to his elder brother Qiu Yan when he came to visit.
Though not explicitly stated, Qiu Yan understood his brother’s intention.
Qiu Yan’s wife had passed away early, and he had not remarried or had children since. He treated Qiu Qiyuan as his own son.
Towards Qiu Henian, his attitude was much colder compared to his younger brother and sister. In his view, since Qiu Henian had received such great kindness from the Qiu family, he naturally should devote himself to the Qiu family.
Qiu Qiyuan was very ambitious and unwilling to be inferior to anyone, especially not to his childhood playmate who had been adopted into the family. Qiu Yan and his wife hoped their adopted son would become successful, and so did Qiu Yan.
They did not intend to do anything harmful, nor did they think they would ever need such a drug.
Later, Qiu Yan was transferred to the north to serve as an official. It was also that year when he received news of the deaths of his younger brother and sister, and he received the last letter from his brother sent by his men.
The entire letter was filled with greetings and instructions, with the last sentence asking, “Do you still have that drug?”
That year, Qiu Yan was transferred from the north to the south to assume his new post.
Qiyuan and Henian deliberately came from Fengyu Pass to the road he had to take.
By a twist of fate, the two saved Qin Liangchuan, who had almost been killed by bandits. When Qiu Yan saw this person who had been rescued, he immediately thought of testing the drug on him. He spoke to them for a while and then sent the two away.
Afterwards, he ordered his subordinates to carry this man and then travel with him.
At the time, Qiu Henian already felt something wrong, and after walking out, found an excuse to separate from the early and return to the forest to watch.
Among Qiu Yan’s subordinates was a powerful martial artist who, after realizing what had happened, did not respond and instead quietly told the master.
Qiu Yan then gave his men instructions, “Let’s get down the mountain quickly. There may be people in town who know this person. When the time comes, let’s hand him over to his family, and then we’ll be able to rest assured of our journey.”
After saying this, the next Qiu Henian did not suspect anything, and quietly left.
Qiu Yan, halfway to the drug, was stunned and knew that he did not want to die.
—
As Qin Liangchuan woke up, he only remembered his own name and nothing else.
On the road, Qiu Yan hesitated several times, considering sending Qin Liangchuan back, but in the end, selfishness prevailed, leading to a grave mistake.
Once the fighting started, Qiu Henian indeed became more courageous in battle, and the higher-ups intended to promote him.
Qiu Qiniang found out and got angry; from then on, they hardly spoke to each other.
Later on, during a surprise attack mission, they had to cooperate and traveled together with the main forces.
During this operation, Qiu Henian sneaked alone into a military tent of the Desert Wolf at night, killed five or six people who were in discussion, and the one who escaped was killed by Qiu Qiniang who arrived shortly after.
From this surprise attack, they gained abundant military achievements.
After that surprise attack, the Desert Wolf rapidly weakened and fled beyond the border.
After two years of fighting, everyone celebrated all night long, waiting for future rewards and recognition.
At that time, when Qiu Yan was promoted and returned to the north, he visited Fengyu Pass and learned about these events. He secretly arranged his powerful martial servant in dangerous places.
He used the life of his subordinate who was still outside as leverage, forcing Qiu Henian to drink the poison.
The one who killed five or six people in the tent became Qiu Qiniang, and the one who killed one person became Qiu Henian.
The foster parents named the child they picked up “Henian,” hoping he would live a long life.
Their biological child was named Qiniang, hoping he would soar high and have a brilliant future.
The futures of these two children could be considered as fulfilling their parents’ wishes, “each getting what they wished for.”
…
In mid to late June, the weather became increasingly hot. Qingyan wore a thin shirt in the outer room, washed the muskmelon sent by Liu’s wife, peeled it, cleaned out the seeds with a spoon, cut it into pieces, and arranged them on a plate.
He carried the plate into the inner room. Miaomiao smelled the sweet scent of muskmelon and followed him closely, meowing incessantly. Qingyan sat down at the table, and it jumped onto the table, sniffing around the plate, its little paws trembling with excitement.
Qingyan smiled and gave it a small piece, placing it on the table. Miaomiao licked it with its little cat tongue and started eating.
Qingyan propped his head with one hand, picked up a piece of muskmelon, and started eating too.
The muskmelon had been next to the water jar in the room, absorbing the coolness of the water vapor. It tasted sweet, cool, and refreshing, very delicious, causing him to squint his eyes with pleasure.
When Qiu Henian pushed open the door of the outer room, through the open doorframe into the inner room, this was the scene he saw.
His husband lazily leaned against the table, with his hair casually pinned at the back of his head due to the hot weather, wearing only a thin shirt. His arm’s sleeve slipped down, revealing his fair and tender forearm.
He crossed his legs casually, his lower legs and ankles exposed outside his clothes, his pregnant belly quite obvious under the thin shirt. His beautiful eyes held a smile as he watched the calico cat eating, with traces of muskmelon juice on his lips.
Qiu Henian quietly watched for a while before deliberately stepping heavier and walking towards him.
Qingyan heard the sound and looked over, showing a pleasantly surprised smile.
“You’re back!” he said.
Then he quickly stood up, took his outer robe, hung it up, and went to the basin to wash a cloth to wipe his face and hands.
After Qiu Henian wiped himself clean, Qingyan took his hand and made him sit at the table, picked up a piece of muskmelon, fed it to him, and asked, “Is it sweet?”
Qiu Henian looked at his lips and replied with a soft “Hmm.”
Qingyan then naturally sat on his lap, and Qiu Henian looked at him, wrapping his waist and buttocks with one hand, pulling him closer.
They ate muskmelon together and chatted. Qingyan asked about his meeting with Qiu Yan, and Qiu Henian briefly recounted his conversation with him. He also narrated everything that had happened in the past from beginning to end.
After finishing the story, the contents of the plate were long gone, and Miaomiao had finished the melon. Feeling bored as they continued talking, it went to play elsewhere.
After listening to Qiu Henian’s story, Qingyan sighed sorrowfully and said, “At the time, I guessed that Qiu Yan was probably the one who poisoned you, but I didn’t expect it to be for such a reason. Human greed is truly frightening.”
Qiu Henian said, “On the way back from the county, I went to Fragrant Melody Pavillion and told Aunt Li about the past.”
Qingyan looked up at him. “What did Aunt Li say?”
Qiu Henian said, “Although this matter was not my fault, it did indeed start because of me. Otherwise, she and Uncle Qin would still be living well now. I apologized to her, and she just said it was fate and didn’t blame me.”
Qingyan knew Qiu Henian always disliked owing others. At this moment, he must be feeling uneasy. He turned around, got up, and knelt in the empty space beside his leg chair, hugged him, and held him in his arms.
Qiu Henian rested his face against his chest, listening to Qingyan’s steady heartbeat, and closed his eyes.
After a while of intimacy, Qiu Henian opened his eyes, raised his head, and kissed the lips he had been longing for.
He gently nibbled Qingyan’s tender and plump lips with his teeth, and Qingyan hummed softly, opening his mouth.
After kissing for a while, Qiu Henian’s large hand moved from behind his head to his neck, pulling open one side of his collar to reveal the beautiful neck line, collarbone, and the small mole with fresh color.
The man stared at the mole for a while, lowered his head, and kissed it.
It had been a long time since they had done this, and even though his hand was filled with wetness, Qingyan still felt a bit of pain and shed tears.
Qiu Henian kissed his tears and his lips for a while, waiting for him to adjust before continuing.
Fearing that his body might still be weak and unable to bear it, Qiu Henian stopped after Qingyan felt good once.
Qingyan wanted to help him, but Qiu Henian held his hand down.
…
In the evening, Qiu Henian killed a black chicken, stewed oily chicken soup, and cooked chicken noodle for Qingyan.
The noodles were delicious, but Qingyan didn’t eat much of the meat. He had been drooling over the two chickens every day, but now that they were cooked for him, he found the meat too dark and unappetizing. Qiu Henian coaxed him, and he reluctantly ate the two chicken legs.
Qiu Henian finished the remaining meat in a few bites.
After dinner, Qiu Henian took out a ruler and measured a corner under the door of the outer room.
Qingyan asked what he was doing, and Qiu Henian said, “I’m making a cat door for Miaomiao. It’s hot, and it wants to play in the yard or come back in, so it’s convenient either way.”
Qingyan became interested and casually moved a small stool over to sit beside him. Qiu Henian glanced at him, got up, replaced the uncomfortable stool with a high-backed chair, and added a cushion, letting him sit again before continuing his work.
Qiu Henian had large hands but was very skillful. He did this kind of work meticulously. The cat door he sawed out was square and neat. He also took the trouble to find a pair of spare two-way hinges from the neighboring room, used the sawn wooden board as the door panel, and installed it.
After finishing, Qingyan called Miaomiao twice and gently guided the calico cat back and forth through the cat door twice. Miaomiao understood what was going on and tentatively meowed, then went out through the cat door by itself.
Qingyan found it amusing and laughed, pushing open a crack in the door to watch Miaomiao playing in the yard.
Qiu Henian came up behind him, looked outside through the gap for a while, then leaned close to his ear and asked softly, “Does it still hurt?”
Qingyan turned his head, raised his eyes, sparkling.
“What if it still hurts?”
Qiu Henian lowered his head to kiss his eyebrows and eyes, his voice low, “If it still hurts, let me massage it for you.”
Qingyan turned around, lifted his hands to hug his neck, rubbed his cheek against his neck, and mumbled vaguely, “No need, you’re up to no good.”
Qiu Henian hugged his waist, his eyes filled with pleasure, his lips curved in a smile.
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
Qingyan sat behind him, choking back tears, saying, “I knew something was wrong. You were keeping this from me!”
Qiu Henian quickly sat up, adjusted his clothes, but Qingyan stubbornly pulled them open again several times, crying harder.
