DIHBSG chapter 21

The person before him had so easily laid bare his secret.

Xiao Yinghuai’s eyes darkened. Just as he was about to speak again, there was a soft thump as half of a warm, soft cheek landed against his palm.

Song Jian had fallen over.

His eyes were half-closed, his face resting in the man’s broad palm, his breathing slow and even.

Xiao Yinghuai frowned. Instinctively, a trace of displeasure at having his personal space invaded arose within him. Yet the next second, the person before him lightly nuzzled against him again, soft and obedient like a kitten.

While mumbling, “Your Majesty… Your Majesty… s’good~”

“S’good~”

Xiao Yinghuai should have taken this opportunity to ask more questions, but instead, as if possessed, he asked, “What did you drink?”

Song Jian drowsily twitched his nose.

“The one Zuixian Tower gave… premium Daughter’s Red wine… love drinking it~”

Xiao Yinghuai glanced at his flushed cheek and ear.

Then asked, “How much did you drink?”

Song Jian was silent for quite a while. Just when Xiao Yinghuai thought this fool had fallen asleep in his palm, Song Jian suddenly sat upright stiffly again.

He blinked blankly, then held up a hand. “F-five cups.”

“Because… my poetry… wasn’t good…”

Silence lingered for a moment.

“Wuu QnQ~”

Xiao Yinghuai inexplicably wanted to laugh. “Feeling wronged again?”

“You don’t need to know how to write poetry to be My personal guard.”

Song Jian didn’t say anything, his eyes glistening with tears.

Xiao Yinghuai lifted his chin slightly and called in a lowered voice, “Song Jian.”

“Mmh, hm?”

“I believe I told you before, don’t always put on such a pitiful look to make me pity you.”

Song Jian seemed not to have processed his words. Instead, he leaned closer.

After leaning closer, he asked something completely unrelated.

“Your Majesty, what’s your name?”

Xiao Yinghuai paused and didn’t answer.

Song Jian hugged his leg and flopped down shamelessly. “I’ve already told you mine, but you still won’t say… That’s not fair at all…”

“Not fair~”

“Not fair, not fair~”

“Xiao Yinghuai. My name.”

Song Jian’s cheeks were warm and red. He was halfway through muttering “not fair,” then suddenly went quiet.

He looked up. “Xiao what?”

Xiao Yinghuai: “…”

“Oh, Xiao Yinghuai.”

He hugged the man’s leg even tighter and muttered, “Your name sounds so hard.”

Xiao Yinghuai let out a snort of laughter and grabbed the back of his collar as though picking up a kitten. “Who allowed you to call My name directly?”

Song Jian swayed unsteadily, sounding completely justified. “Nope! Absolutely nope!”

“Where I’m from, names are meant to be called!! This is! Feudal nonsense!”

Xiao Yinghuai’s head started to ache from all his shouting, and he wanted to shut him up again.

Pinch—

“Q3Q”

“Wah~”

Xiao Yinghuai narrowed his eyes. “Quiet.”

Song Jian let out two muffled “wu wu” sounds before protesting, “That hurt…”

Xiao Yinghuai said, “If you’re afraid of pain, then talk less. Who taught you to be this noisy?”

Song Jian pursed his lips and looked at him innocently.

Only after the person before him had fallen completely silent did Xiao Yinghuai let him go.

“If you ever come to stand night watch after drinking again, I’ll throw you to the dogs.”

After saying that, Xiao Yinghuai stood up. “Stay honestly on the beam. Don’t disturb me.”

However, the moment he took a step, his leg was hugged once again.

Song Jian: “Xiao Yinghuai, I don’t want to sleep on the beam.”

“…?”

Song Jian: “Don’t want to sleep there, don’t want to sleep there, don’t want to sleep there…”

“And… Hei Dashuai and I are good friends. He won’t bite me…”

Just then, Gong Defu came in from outside and happened to witness this utterly horrifying scene.

“Xiao Yinghuai Xiao Yinghuai Xiao Yinghuai…”

“Ah~ Aah~~ Aaaah~~~”

Song Jian clung tightly to the man’s leg, being dragged along like a lump of jelly.

“Xiao Yinghuai Xiao Yinghuai Xiao Yinghuai Xiao Yinghuai…”

Gong Defu let out a shrill scream. “Aaaaaah——”

He was nearly scared out of his mind and rushed forward with his orchid fingers raised.

Dark clouds covered Xiao Yinghuai’s face as he shot him a glance. “So noisy. Get out!”

Gong Defu ran in a circle while going “ah ah ah,” then turned and ran right back out.

Xiao Yinghuai pulled the man up from the ground, carried him to the Western Warm Chamber, and tossed him onto the bed in one motion.

Song Jian rolled around on the soft, comfortable bed, nuzzled against it a few times, then stuck up his butt and stopped moving.

Xiao Yinghuai stared at him, and an absurd thought arose in his heart.

Who exactly was whose personal guard?

—

When Song Jian woke up the next day, his head felt heavy and muddled.

Half-squinting, he rolled over and called, “Chang Ying… Chang Ying…”

“What’s the cafeteria serving today…”

No one answered him even after a long while.

Song Jian rolled over again, half his body wriggling toward the edge of the bed. “Chang Ying… This lord is hungry… Bring me something to eat…”

“…”

At this very moment, in the Golden Throne Hall.

Xiao Yinghuai frowned, propping his chin on one hand, his expression dark with displeasure.

A minister stepped forward with a slight bow and reported, “Your Majesty, it has been more than six years since Your Majesty ascended the throne. At present, the position of Empress remains vacant in the palace. Your Majesty should consider a suitable candidate as soon as possible.”

Xiao Yinghuai frowned even more deeply. “If you have nothing to report, then lower your voice. I can still pretend not to see you.”

“This humble minister speaks only for Your Majesty’s sake…”

Before he could finish, the nearby Lin Hechang interrupted loudly, “Your Majesty! This humble minister wishes to report on the flooding in Changning.”

The minister who had just spoken about appointing an Empress became anxious. “This official hasn’t finished speaking…”

Xiao Yinghuai impatiently said, “Lin Hechang! You speak!”

Lin Hechang immediately stepped forward, shouldering his colleague aside as he held a booklet in his hand.

“Your Majesty, this is the flood report sent back from Changning. It states that the lower reaches of the Ning River had already begun reinforcing the dikes half a month ago, and the local officials also evacuated the residents along both banks in time…”

…

When Song Jian came out of the Western Warm Chamber of Yanning Palace, he happened to run into Gong Defu. Smiling, he greeted him, “Good morning, Eunuch Defu.”

Gong Defu looked as though he’d seen a ghost. Clutching both hands together, he cried out, “Aaaaaah!”

Song Jian was startled. “What’s wrong?!”

Gong Defu cried out a couple more times, looking as though he couldn’t bear to watch. “Oh my! Oh my, oh my, oh my!”

Song Jian found it even stranger. At this hour, Gong Defu should have been in the Golden Throne Hall.

He blinked. “Could it be His Majesty—”

Gong Defu hurried over. “Oh my, Ancestor, please don’t mention His Majesty anymore. This old servant was nearly scared to death by you.”

Completely bewildered, Song Jian scratched his cheek as fragmented memories slowly surfaced.

“…”

“…”

Oh.

Right.

His boss seemed to be called… Xiao Yinghuai.

Song Jian pressed his lips together and asked Gong Defu, “Why does our His Majesty have such a hard-sounding name like Xiao Yinghuai…”

Before he could finish speaking, Gong Defu covered his mouth in horror. “Lord Song, how dare you call His Majesty’s name directly?! Aaaaaah!”

Song Jian: “…”

This scene felt a little familiar too.

But he hadn’t meant to scare Gong Defu on purpose. His mouth had simply slipped. He hurriedly nodded. “I won’t say it anymore, I won’t say it anymore. I won’t call him that next time.”

After Gong Defu let go of him, Song Jian even made a zipping motion across his lips.

“Don’t worry, don’t worry!”

Gong Defu was practically on the verge of tears.

Nineteen was exactly the age for causing trouble.

Song Jian actually couldn’t remember clearly what he had done that night. Anyway, no one came looking to trouble him. It was just that Xiao Yinghuai would sometimes look at him rather strangely.

But after thinking it over, Song Jian figured that wasn’t unusual. Didn’t every boss look at people like that? Small case, small case.¹小case is Chinese internet slang that mixes the Chinese word 小 (“small”) with the English word case. It means “no big deal,” “nothing to worry about,” or “piece of cake,” and is commonly used in a lighthearted, casual tone.

He honestly worked for a few days. Then one day, Xiao Yongning came to the Tiancha Division looking for him and asked him to accompany her shopping.

Song Jian was lying spread-eagle atop a wall, basking in the sun. Hearing that, he lazily replied, “Shopping for what, Your Highness? What do you want to buy?”

Xiao Yongning said, “Don’t ask. It’s something very important! Without it, I’ll die! Just tell me, are you coming with me or not?”

Song Jian opened his eyes. “That serious?”

Xiao Yongning nodded vigorously. “Mm!!”

Song Jian said, “All right, then! We’ve shared a meal together, so we’re friends now. For a friend, I’d go through fire and water without hesitation!”

Xiao Yongning grinned. “Hehe.”

That very afternoon, he secretly left the palace with Xiao Yongning. Following her all the way, they arrived at a… bookstore?

The entrance to the bookstore was packed with people as far as the eye could see.

Deeply shocked, Song Jian asked, “What are they selling?”

Xiao Yongning’s eyes were full of determination. “Qi Jingzhi’s new illustrated storybook, 《The Chronicles of Young Master Xiang》. The first hundred people get a Young Master Xiang folding fan and wooden carving.”

Song Jian: “??”

So they were here to fight over limited-edition merchandise??

He had just opened his mouth. “But—”

Xiao Yongning had already grabbed him and rushed forward. “Quick, quick, quick! There’s a gap!! Charge, charge!!”

Dragged along by Xiao Yongning, Song Jian charged headfirst into the bookstore.

…

After coming out with “The Chronicles of Young Master Xiang”, Song Jian’s eyes had gone completely unfocused.

He glanced at Xiao Yongning, who was hugging the illustrated storybook and its merchandise with complete satisfaction. “Is it really that good?”

Song Jian vaguely remembered the name Qi Jingzhi. When he had first transmigrated here, Chang Ying had told him Qi Jingzhi had once painted his portrait. It couldn’t be said to look exactly like him—it was simply completely unrelated.

So Song Jian remained skeptical about his illustrated storybooks.

Xiao Yongning said, “Of course! Once I finish reading it, you’ll be the first person I lend it to.”

Song Jian said, “Oh.”

Xiao Yongning was in an excellent mood and even bought him a gift. It was a sachet that could also be used as a money pouch, embroidered with an exquisitely beautiful pattern.

Song Jian hung it from his waist and patted it. “Thank you, Your Highness!”

Xiao Yongning folded her arms. “Actually, I’d still rather you call me Xiao Ba…”

As the two were talking, a burst of shouting suddenly came from somewhere behind them.

“Are you blind, you dog-eyed fool?! How dare you bump into this young master?! Do you know who this young master is??”

Song Jian and Xiao Yongning both turned to look.

“My father is Cheng Yujin, Minister of Works! One of His Majesty’s most trusted favorites! Offending this young master means offending my father! Offending my father means offending His Majesty! Offending His Majesty is a capital crime!”

The loudly shouting young master was dressed in luxurious brocade robes. But Song Jian’s first reaction was to look at Xiao Yongning.

He thought to himself, Your Highness, saying your son is a ‘Semi-Truck’ young master might be a bit premature.

Because this one is the real Semi-Truck one.

The person being grabbed by the Semi-Truck young master was dressed in filthy clothes. He shrank back timidly, constantly covering his face with his hands as though afraid someone would recognize him. In a low voice, he begged, “I know I was wrong, I know I was wrong. Please let me go…”

The Semi-Truck young master said, “Kneel on the ground, bark like a dog three times, then crawl through this young master’s legs. Then this young master will consider letting you go.”

“Please let me go… Please let me go… I won’t dare do it again…”

The man kept one hand over his face while protecting something against his chest with the other, though it was impossible to tell what he was hiding.

Seeing this, the Semi-Truck young master said, “What are you sneaking around with? Could it be you’ve stolen this young master’s belongings? Move your filthy hand away. Let this young master inspect it!”

As he spoke, he reached over to grab it.

The man was so frightened that he desperately backed away. At the critical moment, the Semi-Truck young master suddenly let out a scream, clutching his head as he staggered backward in pain.

“Who?! Who dares sneak attack this young master?!”

From behind the crowd came a clear, youthful voice filled with laughter.

“Oops, sorry. My aim isn’t very good. I was aiming for your hand, but accidentally hit your head.”

The Semi-Truck young master looked over and saw a young man in black-and-gold robes embroidered with python patterns leaning casually off to the side, lazily tossing a few pebbles in his hand.

Song Jian’s little dimple appeared as he pursed his lips.

“Hehe~”

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  小case is Chinese internet slang that mixes the Chinese word 小 (“small”) with the English word case. It means “no big deal,” “nothing to worry about,” or “piece of cake,” and is commonly used in a lighthearted, casual tone.