SGSHE113

Xing Ming spoke with some difficulty: “Isn’t your goal to go to King Li’s manor?”

Jing Heguang blinked, feeling he understood the situation.

Perhaps…just as he had once suspected the system, Little Yellow Peach, his younger brother Xing” was now suspicious of him.

The original owner was a soldier from Wu’s who had risked his life to infiltrate Wucheng, surely, he couldn’t be here just for sightseeing, he must have come here with ‘ulterior motives’.

But Heaven could bear witness: his intentions were incredibly pure!

He were focused entirely on the person standing right in front of him.

Jing Heguang tightened his grip on Xing Ming’s shoulders and spoke firmly: “I don’t want to go to King Li’s manor, I want to take you away!”

Xing Ming was dumbfounded, his jaw practically dropped in shock.

However, since Jing Heguang rarely played by the rules, Xing Ming managed to snap his jaw shut and get his brain working again.

Xing Ming thought in astonishment: Jing Heguang was actually saying he wouldn’t go to King Li’s manor.

What a fool!

He had risked his life to break into Wucheng, was he really going to return empty-handed?

Was he truly content to just walk away with nothing but a lowly actor like him?

Looking at Jing Heguang, only one thought crossed Xing Ming’s mind: What a fool.

Yet, this fool valued him above all else, so much so that Xing Ming couldn’t bring himself to preach about being a gentleman or a saint.

The harshest thing Xing Ming could manage to say was, “I’m not going with you.”

Afraid Jing Heguang wouldn’t believe him, he added a defensive, pointed question: “Where would we even go? To the capital, a journey taking a year or more, where your family would never agree to it? Or to your post, where I’d be kept like a pretty pet bird, waiting for you to come home?”

Reality is always a messy, complicated affair. So many romances have crumbled under the weight of life’s mundane details.

But Jing Heguang was confident, for he knew exactly what mattered most.

He would certainly fulfill his obligations to the original owner’s parents, but he would never abandon his beloved for their sake.

Jing Heguang released his grip on Xingming’s shoulders and took hold of his hand instead.

“We won’t return to the capital just yet, I’ve already secured the defense maps for Wucheng and the surrounding cities. If we contact the main army quickly, we can rescue the people of Wucheng sooner and prevent any further complications.”

“You needn’t worry about my parents—”

Xing Ming cut him off mid-sentence.

Xing Ming furrowed his brows and raised an eyebrow. “General Jing! What kind of situation is this, bringing an actor back to the military camp?”

In a military camp, what difference was there between an actor and a courtesan? Neither belonged there, their presence would only unsettle the troops!

As he spoke, a look of mockery playing between his brows, Xing Ming tried to pull his hand away.

But Jing Heguang held on tight, refusing to let him break free.

Jing Heguang countered, “What do you mean, ‘what kind of situation’? Is it wrong to bring my general’s spouse back with me? We are married, after all, we just tied the knot! You don’t need to worry. While marriages between men aren’t common in the army, they aren’t unheard of either, it’s nothing strange. As long as we treat the union seriously, you’ll be my legitimate military spouse, entitled to army rations.”

After explaining this, Jing Heguang added, “younger brother Xing, just tell me: do you agree to come with me or not?”

As he asked, he shamelessly wrapped his arms tightly around the other man.

He watched Xing Ming closely, thinking that if Xing Ming dared to say “no”, he would simply silence him with a kiss.

Seeing Jing Heguang lean in, Xing Ming wisely tilted his head back and spoke rapidly, “And what if I don’t agree?!”

Seeing him lean back to dodge the advance, Jing Heguang chuckled.

Relying on his superior strength, he reached out, cupped the back of Xing Ming’s head, and planted a quick kiss on his lips.

“Your previous answer doesn’t count. Let me ask again: will younger brother Xing agree to come with me?”

Xing Ming glared at him, but Jing Heguang was grinning cheekily again, an expression that was infuriating yet left one helpless.

Xing Ming frowned: “I won’t—”

Jing Heguang leaned in closer, planted a quick peck on his cheek, and asked again, “Do you agree?”

“Just say yes. What good is there in staying here? If war breaks out, it’ll be dangerous. How can I fight properly if I’m constantly worried about you?”

“Let me tell you a story. There was a senior soldier in my camp who got into an argument with his wife. He kept getting distracted by thoughts of her during battle, and in a moment of carelessness, he lost his life. If you stay here, I’ll be so anxious I might as well just hand my head over to the Jin army on a platter…”

Jing Heguang sighed theatrically.

Xing Ming found it amusing: “I can tell you’re lying just by looking at you.”

Jing Heguang gave a mischievous smile and raised his eyebrows, mimicking the way Xing Ming had done just moments before.

“So, did you fall for it?”

Having heard that Jing Heguang had already secured the city defense map, Xing Ming felt reassured knowing he wouldn’t jeopardize the greater mission.

It was a relief.

He wouldn’t become an obstacle to so many people returning to their homeland.

He didn’t know how Jing Heguang had obtained the map, but the fact that King Li’s manor remained quiet suggested he hadn’t attracted any attention.

If they left early, before King Li’s manor even took notice of the, they wouldn’t be on the list of suspects. That made the opera house much safer.

A thorough investigation wasn’t realistic anyway. Former subjects of the Wu’s died in the Jin territory every day.

Those reduced to slavery suffered even worse fates, their lives worth less than those of pigs or dogs.

How could he not be tempted by the chance to leave?

It was just that he had previously feared that if they all left, those remaining behind would face brutal slaughter.

With dozens of people in the opera house, it was impossible for everyone to leave Wucheng.

As long as he could stay with Jing Heguang a little longer, he wouldn’t be afraid, even if it meant going to the military camp and facing ostracism.

A flush crept up Xing Ming’s face. “Since nothing I say counts anyway, why bother asking? You might as well just tie me up and take me with you.”

Saying that was tantamount to agreeing. His tone was awkward, clearly, he felt embarrassed about contradicting what he had said just moments before.

Jing Heguang leaned in close, pressing his nose against the side of Xing Ming’s neck, and teased, “You smell so good.”

Xing Ming, of course, didn’t realize this was a famous catchphrase, a mere two words that perfectly encapsulated what he had just said.

Xing Ming replied, “It’s the same bath soap, isn’t it?”

They shared the same bar of soap.

Jing Heguang chuckled. “Did you just tell me to tie you up and take you away?”

Xing Ming was skeptical. “You’d actually tie me up?”

“But you said it yourself, you’d listen to me. If I don’t tie you up for the journey, I’ll just tie you up right now.”

“No—mph.”

Jing Heguang pulled off his own belt, pinned the other man down to bind his hands, and resumed their journey.

The price he paid was a couple of feeble kicks to his backside.

***

Two days after Qixi, the scheduled opera troupe was supposed to arrive at King Li’s manor to set up their stage, the time for their arrival was set for the afternoon.

By afternoon, the steward of the King’s Li’s anor had waited quite a while without seeing any sign of the troupe, so he sent someone to hurry them along.

It was only then that they discovered the troupe’s leader, master Xing, had run off with the new bodyguard!

They had vanished that very morning, terrified, countless members of the troupe had fled as well, leaving behind only a deaf old man and two small children.

The steward reported the matter with a string of curses, and a replacement troupe was hastily arranged.

With King Li’s birthday approaching, the manor was in a frenzy of activity and had no time to dwell on the runaway opera troupe leader.

Even King Li himself merely remarked, “So Xing Ming really does fancy men,” and let the matter drop.

Xing Ming was handsome, after all, and plenty of people admired that face.

Yet, such were the customs of the Jin Country: for two men to get entangled romantically meant facing vicious scorn and utter disgrace.

A person’s reputation was everything, no one could afford such a scandal, not even King Li.

Two days later, the opera house was sold off for a pittance, and the old man and the two children disappeared as well.

***

While uncle Yu was making his escape with Chun Fen and Li Xia, Jing Heguang and his companion were out in the desert, eating sand.

They were mounted on two horses, wrapped up tightly against the elements.

The horses had been commandeered from the Jin people.

Jing Heguang had put his divine strength to use the moment they left the city, and it proved even handier to wield out in the wild. Jing Heguang tossed two stones, and the animal, which had been trying to hide by sticking its rear end up, collapsed at the mouth of the burrow, motionless.

“Dinner is sorted!” Jing Heguang said.

He was bundled up so thoroughly that only his eyes were visible, yet the delight in them was unmistakable.

Xing Ming was wrapped up even more tightly.

With the hunt over, the next step was to find a place to cook.

They needed firewood and a suitable spot to rest for the night.

Stepping out into the open, Jing Heguang was reminded of the harshness of the desert and began to regret not having prepared more thoroughly.

While roasting the meat, Xing Ming uncovered his face, and Jing Heguang noticed that his younger brother had tanned, he was suffering right alongside him.

Jing Heguang tore off a cooked leg and handed it to Xing Ming, along with one of the fruits he had snatched earlier.

“Make do with this for now, things will get better once we reach our destination.”

Xing Ming took the items and set the fruit on his lap. “This isn’t bad at all, meat at every meal! Li Xia would be thrilled.” Li Xia was young but loved meat dearly.

Thinking of the people back at the opera house, Xing Ming looked toward the direction of Wucheng. “We’ve been out for three days now. I wonder how uncle Yu and Chun Fen are doing?”

Jing Heguang gave him a hug. “Don’t worry. According to our plan, uncle Yu and the others should have left the opera house by now too.”

Xing Ming nodded and held the fruit out toward Jing Heguang’s lips. “You eat this. I haven’t really seen you taste any.”

This time, it was Jing Heguang’s turn to lean back and dodge. “I’ll eat some once we manage to snatch a few more.”

Wucheng was arid, there were only a few types of fruit-bearing trees, and even fewer varieties in season. Being able to get these few pieces was a stroke of luck for the pair.

However, the supply was limited. Jing Heguang calculated that there was barely enough to last Xing Ming until they reached their destination.

But if he didn’t eat, Xing Ming certainly wouldn’t eat alone. Xing Ming might have been fooled once or twice before, but he wasn’t about to fall for that again.

He knew that Jing Heguang’s talk of snatching more supplies was unrealistic, while there might be people elsewhere, this stretch of desert was sparsely populated. The odds of running into a person were about the same as running into a ghost.

Xing Ming asked, “So, should I throw it away?”

Jing Heguang smiled, kissed the corner of Xing Ming’s mouth, which tasted faintly of cumin, and said, “You eat it, I’ll just drink water. You’ve never had to endure this much wind and sand in your life.”

Xing Ming raised his hand as if to toss it.

Jing Heguang was confident: knowing his younger brother Xing’s habits, he certainly wouldn’t bear to throw it away.

Throwing it out would be a waste, hardly worth it.

Sure enough, Xing Ming didn’t throw it away, instead, he angrily bit off the skin and shoved the fruit toward Jing Heguang’s mouth.

“If you won’t eat it, I’m going to force-feed you.”

Jing Heguang took a tiny bite and coaxed him, “I’m eating it, see?”

Xing Ming looked at the minuscule nibble Jing Heguang had taken, frowned, bit off a proper chunk himself, and shoved it straight into Jing Heguang’s mouth.

Jing Heguang: …

There was no refusing that.

Thus, as they traveled, Jing Heguang came up with other ways to scavenge, preying not only on small animals but also raiding their burrows.

Some animals had a habit of hoarding food, and thus fell victim to Jing Heguang’s plundering.

Logically, one rarely encountered people in the desert, yet on the fifth day…

The two of them had the misfortune of running into a hunting party, and not just any party, but a group of soldiers from the Jin country.

The opposing group numbered twenty-five, a full squad, and every one of them was mounted on horseback.

The spot where they met offered no cover. The moment they looked up, both sides spotted each other immediately.