Realms In The Firmament

“No. It is going to be fine.” Ye Xiao comforted her. Yet an inauspicious feeling was aroused in his heart too. Although he didn’t know why, that feeling was real.

Ye Xiao thought for a while and said, “Who is the bodyguard of the prince?”

“The Leopard.” Su Ye-Yue said.

Leopard was the nickname of the bodyguard.

“Is he dependable?” Ye Xiao asked.

“Absolutely! Uncle Leopard has been fighting by my father’s side through fire and water. He has been through many battles by my father’s side. He has always been loyal! He could give up his life for my father! He is the most trustworthy man in my family. We never treated him as an outsider.” Su Ye-Yue nodded, “What did you ask this for?”

“I am a bit disappointed. What I need is not a man who will die for your father. I need someone who can survive for your father.” Ye Xiao took out two jade bottles and put them into Su Ye-Yue’s hand. He spoke quietly, “I have made a dan bead for your father… It can save one’s life. It brings people back from death. However, I don’t think he will have take it for himself… This time, you give these two dan beads to Leopard secretly. Just tell him that these are something that can save people’s life… Ask him to keep it secretly. If something bad happens… Put them into the prince’s mouth… There are only two of them. Use them only on the prince. Do you understand?”

Su Ye-Yue heard that and her eyes lit up. She was a bit cheered up now.

She knew how amazing the supreme dan bead Ye Xiao brought to her house the other day. Now he gave her two this time. She surely knew how important these dan beads were.

“Wow! Thank you! Xiao Xiao, you are so nice!” She grabbed Ye Xiao and hugged him immediately. And then she kissed him on the cheek. And then she blushed.

Ye Xiao was kissed. That was a marvelous feeling. He couldn’t help but feel a certain burning sensation rising up inside his heart. The aftertaste of that soft kiss made him feel like he had taken some of ‘that’ kind of liquor again. A private part of his body suddenly turned up…

“When my father returns with victory, I will let my mother tell my father…” Su Ye-Yue’s face was all red with her hands grabbing the lower hem of her clothes. Her voice was like the sound of an ant that nearly couldn’t be heard, “To arrange our wedding… By then… Xiao Xiao… Promise me you won’t tease me…”

“Wedding?” Ye Xiao was shocked.

He was lost immediately.

He was sure what the feeling in his heart was though. He felt a bit sad, a bit terrified, a bit guilty and a bit helpless.

He didn’t feel any expectant nor surprised feeling though.

In his head, there appeared a high-hearted figure with snow white clothes.

There were piteous eyes staring at him through the mist.

It was like she asking him, “Ye Xiao, why can’t you marry me?”

Years ago, these words were like thunder striking into Ye Xiao’s heart.

“You obviously love me. Why can’t you marry me?”

It was obvious.

The high-hearted girl like the moon in the sky who could make everybody else look like vulgars actually laid down her figure and asked him that. Ye Xiao could feel her determination.

Apparently, she had given up her self-pride.

However… How could he get married when he was cultivating that kind of martial art?

When he turned his back to her, he could hear two drops of tears falling onto the floor.

- Pak dak. -

And then the five words that had been haunting him sounded.

“Ye Xiao, I hate you!”

At this time of day, these five words and the way that white-dressed girl speak those words were still lingering in Ye Xiao’s dreams every now and then.

…

He was lost in thoughts so he didn’t even answer Su Ye-Yue.

“Do I want to marry Su Ye-Yue?” Ye Xiao asked himself in his heart.

She was vivacious and pretty. Her body and her face were both in the top range in the Qing-Yun Realm.

However, Ye Xiao was inconsistent, tangled and resisting.

In fact he did like Su Ye-Yue.

But he knew that this kind of emotion was not about the relationship between lovers! It was more like the kind to a little sister.

He was doting on her like a brother to his sister.

But if there was no other girl in his heart, he would agree to marry Su Ye-Yue though. At least he won’t refuse it.

He was a virgin. He didn’t know anything about things between lovers at all. It was possible that he sleepwalked to his marriage.

When he thought about ‘marriage’, ‘wedding’ and ‘wife’ now, he didn’t think of Su Ye-Yue.

He would think of a girl dressed in white. And he would think of the pain and the sorrow...

At the moment, when he heard what Su Ye-Yue said, he didn’t feel happy. Instead, he felt troubled.

He was lost in all kinds of emotions. The only thing he could be sure at the moment was that he didn’t really love Su Ye-Yue!

At least not now.

“Nerd. Why don’t you say anything?” Su Ye-Yue lowered her head and squinted at him. Her eyes were full of love. She said, “Do you like me that much to become a nerd?”

Ye Xiao smiled embarrassedly. He rubbed his nose and didn’t know what to say really…

What could he possibly say anyway. He couldn’t say he love her. That was lying to her. He didn’t want to do that. He couldn’t say he didn’t love her either. That was hurting her. Looking at her sincere face, he just couldn’t do it. He actually didn’t know what to say, as nothing would be appropriate at the moment…

While he was feeling embarrassed, the king came out. Prince Hua-Yang was with him. It seemed they had talked about something and then they just left with Eunuch Wang…

They actually gave Ye Xiao a feeling of sneakiness.

“Hmm. The king came out secretly too…” He finally had something else to say. So he changed the topic. It worked perfectly on Su Ye-Yue overtime.

Su Ye-Yue twitched her lips and saw her father coming over. She hurriedly hid the bottles in her clothes. She knew that these supreme dan beads would never be used on Prince Hua-Yang if they were in his hand…

“Wait there, you two. Ye Xiao, don’t leave after the drink.” Prince Hua-Yang told Ye Xiao with a low voice. Then he turned around and entered the hall.

In the hall, along with the return of Prince Hua-Yang, it became boisterous again.

“Why is my dad unhappy all of a sudden…” Su Ye-Yue asked worriedly.

She knew her father so well.

Ye Xiao casually answered, “I am afraid… It must be the private conversation earlier.”

“Private conversation? What was it about? Oh… Is there anything wrong with the battle?” Su Ye-Yue got nervous.

“Hey… How could I know. It must be something bad to us though!” Ye Xiao answered.

After a while, there were people leaving.

The officers were all gone.

The generals were all drunk. At the latter half of the night, the last several generals finally left.

Lan Lang-Lang and Zuo Wu-Ji were carried back to their places. These two lords were like sheep falling into a crowd of tigers… It took only a short time and they were already so drunk. The food weren’t all served yet, but they were already lying under the table…

The crown prince had looked around before he left.

Apparently, he was looking for Ye Xiao. He saw Ye Xiao today, yet he found the young man was quite important in the northern army’s eyes. Guan Zheng-Wen had said that Ye Xiao would die in a few days. If Ye Xiao really died, it might bring something bad to the crown prince himself though!

The crown prince’s eyes were full of concerns.

Yet he didn’t see Ye Xiao and he just left…

In fact, even though he had seen Ye Xiao, he would just talk to him and try to make it look like he had nothing to do with Ye Xiao’s death. That’s all.

“Ye Xiao, come over here.” Prince Hua-Yang showed up on the stairs.

He didn’t even look drunk at all.

Ye Xiao got over with Su Ye-Yue hurriedly.

He thought Prince Hua-Yang wanted to say something, but he just stood there staring at them for a while. He didn’t say anything right away.

After the princess came out, Prince Hua-Yang started to talk, “There is one thing you two must remember. You too, my lady.”

The other three nodded seriously.

“This time, if I win the war, it will be fine. But if anything bad happens…” Prince Hua-Yang looked at the princess with cold eyes, “There will be no funeral for me. Yue-Er shouldn’t observe mourning [1]. Don’t follow any traditions. Yue-Er and Xiao Xiao will get married as soon as possible! And then sell this palace and all of you live in the house of Ye.”

The princess was shocked. She raised her head and looked at Prince Hua-Yang nervously.

Princess Hua-Yang wasn’t an ordinary woman. She had noticed that there was something wrong when she saw her husbands face. She had prepared for bad news. Yet when she heard what Prince Hua-Yang said, she was still astonished. Was the situation really that bad?

Prince Hua-Yang’s words didn’t seem like the talk before departure, it was like his last words in his life!

Su Ye-Yue covered her own mouth before she screamed out.

Her slim body was shaking. Her eyes were filled with disbelief as she looked at her father, as if a thunder struck the lands in a sunny day!

…

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[1] In ancient China, people observed a three-year mourning period after their parents’ passing, during which they lived in seclusion and hardly ever went out.

3rd guaranteed chapter of the week.

Translated by: Rain

Edited by: Arch

From XianXiaWorld