WHEN MO XI arrived at the main hall, Gu Mang was waiting there. "I spoke to him this morning. He didn't really respond, but he's not running away anymore," Li Wei said. "It seems he's settled in, so I'll give him some work to do starting tomorrow."
Mo Xi's tall, stern silhouette remained still and silent in the doorway. His face showed no sign of cheer. After a while, he asked coolly, "Why is this person in my chair?"
Mo Xi took his meals at the yellow rosewood table in the hall. Although two chairs were usually placed on either side of it, one was always empty: no one had ever sat in it. A clueless servant had once tried to take it away and provoked Xihe-jun's deepest displeasure. The servants had two guesses about the presence of this chair—first, that the seat was saved for Princess Mengze, and second, that the lord was such a perfectionist that the table had to look symmetrical. Not even Li Wei knew which was the truth.
The other seat, at the head of the table, had always belonged to Mo Xi. Yet at this moment, it was occupied by Gu Mang, who clearly had no qualms about usurping the head of household's place. He turned to shoot Mo Xi an unconcerned glance.
Mo Xi's face was cold as frost. "Get up."
Gu Mang said nothing; he didn't move a muscle. Li Wei coughed and hastily strode over to Gu Mang. "Quick, get up—the lord's angry."
Gu Mang frowned. He didn't understand this phrase "the lord"; after all, Luomei Pavilion only had "clients" and "managers." He looked at Mo Xi and assumed that Li Wei had addressed him by name. "Are you called Lord?"
Gu Mang's pristinely blank expression infuriated Mo Xi. In lieu of a response, he stepped over and stared Gu Mang down. "I told you to get up."
Gu Mang still didn't budge, so Mo Xi reached out to yank him from the chair. Before he had so much as touched Gu Mang's lapels, however, the man leapt out of the chair and stood warily beside it.
Although Mo Xi loathed Gu Mang, he wouldn't go out of his way to humiliate him. He was aloof and righteous by nature; he wouldn't do anything overly depraved unless pushed to the brink. He certainly wouldn't stoop to Murong Lian's level and send Gu Mang to a brothel. Still, he was grumpy from just having woken up, so he had even less patience for Gu Mang than usual. Li Wei feared the two of them would get into a spat and cause another scene, so he rushed in to admonish Gu Mang. "Look at you! Of all the places you could sit in this massive residence, you had to choose Xihe-jun's place of honor! Who do you think you are? You'd better pay attention and learn the rules from me! Stupid!"
Mo Xi frowned in annoyance "Take him away."
"Yes, my lord."
But Gu Mang refused. "I want to sit here." As he spoke, he pulled out the chair on the other side of the table, planning to take a seat.
Mo Xi's gaze flickered, as if that action had stabbed at some secret in his heart. "You can't," he snapped. "You can't sit there either." He paused briefly. "Why do you want to be here?"
Gu Mang pointed at the table. "Food."
Mo Xi was speechless.
"I've seen it," said Gu Mang. "Every day, food appears here. People bring it to you. Very tasty." He calmly met Mo Xi's chilly gaze. "I'm waiting."
"You're waiting here for food?" Mo Xi asked, his expression stormy.
Gu Mang nodded.
Mo Xi watched him silently for a moment. Then his lips curled into a sneer. "Gu Mang, who do you think you are?" He turned around and sat down. When he spoke again, he didn't even look up as he adjusted the silver weapon compartment hidden in the trim of his sleeves. "Li Wei, get him out of here."
"Right away, my lord." Li Wei paused before asking hesitantly, "What about the food?"
"Doesn't he still have a pile of corn in his cellar? He can scram back there and chew on that."
This time, Gu Mang spoke up before Li Wei could respond. "It's gone."
"Hm?" asked Mo Xi.
"I ate them all."
Mo Xi looked up. "You hauled back two baskets of steamed buns, four or five ropes of sausage, and seven pancakes."
"All gone. I don't know anyone in the dining room. Too many people. I won't go in," Gu Mang said haltingly, his eyes cold and clear. "Can only come here."
"Why can you come here?" Mo Xi asked after a moment.
"Because I know you. You gave me water." Gu Mang paused. "You taught me 'life worse than death.' You also bought my—"
Gu Mang was interrupted by the crash of a wine cup smashing into the wall. Mo Xi's eyes gleamed darkly. "Shut up."
Gu Mang did as he was told. Li Wei stood by helplessly, eyes flitting between the two. For the first time, he was at a loss as to how to smooth things over. Mo Xi sat at the table with his arms crossed and his expression icy. He gazed at Gu Mang inscrutably. After a spell, he raised his chin and asked, slowly, "Do you remember anything else?"
Gu Mang cocked his head in thought. In the end, he shook his head.
Mo Xi lowered his lashes and scoffed. He looked up again. "Then get lost."
But Gu Mang didn't get lost. He quietly stared at Mo Xi's face, his eyes neither beseeching nor subservient. When he spoke again, his voice was flat and dispassionate, as though simply informing Mo Xi of an objective fact. He stood right in front of Mo Xi, his gaze so frank as to be impudent, and insisted obstinately, "I'm hungry."
The two locked eyes in a contest of wills. In the end, Mo Xi spoke first. "Fine. But you spent two years at Luomei Pavilion, so you should understand that meat pies don't fall from the sky. If you want to eat, then you need to work for it."
Mo Xi leaned forward slightly, his sharp gaze bisecting Gu Mang's pale visage like a flashing blade that cracked his shell and aimed for the tender flesh beneath. His voice was deep and slow. "Gu-shixiong, I'll give you a chance to speak up for yourself. Tell me, what can you do for me?" Black eyes stared into blue, glinting with repressed hatred. "What do you want to do for me? What are you able to do for me? If you can convince me, I'll give you what you want. Just say it."
Gu Mang looked at him in silence. A moment later, he held out an outstretched hand.
Mo Xi's expression shifted. "What does this mean?"
"You can beat me. I won't die." Gu Mang's face was devoid of emotion. "But I get a meal for every beating. No beating without food."
Mo Xi paused. "This is another one of Luomei Pavilion's rules?"
"Yes."
Mo Xi rose and turned his face away before he spoke. "Remember— this is Xihe Manor, not Wangshu Manor, and most certainly not Luomei Pavilion. I have no interest in abusing you."
"What are you interested in doing to me, then?"
A strange expression rippled faintly across Mo Xi's handsome face, as if he were recalling some unspeakable thing from the past. He quickly regained his composure and answered with icy arrogance, "How would I know? Why don't you offer your services?"
Gu Mang was bewildered. "Offer..."
"It means just say it yourself," Mo Xi replied grimly.
Gu Mang thought for a moment, then tried to submit another of his possible uses. "Then, do you like to curse at people?"
Why is it either beating or cursing? Feeling wronged, Mo Xi retorted, "Do I fucking look like that kind of person?"
Li Wei remained silent.
Gu Mang pondered for a long while this time. When he spoke again, he sounded confused. "I don't know. I don't know what else I can do." He stared at Mo Xi with those infuriatingly earnest blue eyes. His elegant face, usually as calm as still water, now seemed anxious. "But I don't want to go back to Luomei Pavilion. I don't want to go back."
Seeing him like this enraged Mo Xi for more reasons than one, but he didn't even know where to start. While he tried to tamp down his anger, Gu Mang piped up again: "I also know how to sleep and eat. Are you interested?"
Faced with Mo Xi's silence, Gu Mang continued, "I also know..." He racked his brain for what further utility he had, until his face turned red from the effort. He couldn't come up with anything. Once he had been so strong and so clever, the most incredible young general in Chonghua. He was like a blazing flame that sparked with endless inspiration, power, hope, and love. In Mo Xi's eyes, there was practically nothing the General Gu of the past couldn't do. But his souls had been destroyed, his mind broken, and his fire extinguished. Now, this man was only the scorched earth left behind after General Gu had burnt out.
"I don't know anything else," Gu Mang said eventually. He looked up at Mo Xi in resignation. "That's all I can do."
Gu Mang had the precise expression of a beggar child who hoped desperately to buy a piping-hot steamed bun, and had fumbled through his clothes to discover only a single grubby cowrie shell. He didn't know if it was enough, but he still held out his only coin as he bit his lip in worry.
"Do you want to use me?" On further thought, Gu Mang decided he'd better address Mo Xi by what he thought was his name. "Lord?"
Mo Xi, who was still playing with the hidden weapon compartment in his sleeve, nearly cut his finger open. He couldn't muster a reply for a long while. There was an itch in some corner of his heart that wasn't quite right. He indistinctly knew what this feeling was, and that it was dangerous, so he quickly looked away from Gu Mang. "Don't call me random names. You knew me in the past. My name is Mo Xi," he said with a dark expression. After a moment's thought, he added brusquely, "Forget it—you should call me Xihe-jun."
Mo Xi fastened the weapon compartment shut and stilled briefly. He turned back to Gu Mang. "Listen up. Xihe Manor isn't like Luomei Pavilion. No one will beat you or curse at you here. But because you're a criminal, you don't get a choice in most things. If you want to eat, you have to earn your keep."
"But I don't know—"
"You used to know all these things," Mo Xi said. "If you don't remember, Li Wei will teach you again. Behave and do as he says. As long as you finish your work, you can come get your food."
"I get food if I finish my work?"
"Yes, but you can't slack off. Understood?"
Gu Mang nodded.
"Then go." Mo Xi glanced at the water clock on the side table. "Once you've done your work for today, you may come here for the evening meal."
"My lord, will you be needing another chair?" Li Wei hastily asked.
"Why would I?" Mo Xi shot him a tired look. "Isn't there an empty one right here?"
Li Wei was at a loss for words. But haven't you been saving this ownerless chair for Princess Mengze all this time, like the rumors say? Still, he acquiesced, despite his confusion, and readied himself to leave with Gu Mang in tow. Before they reached the door, however, Mo Xi called him back again. "Wait. Come here."
"What is it, my lord?"
Mo Xi looked thoughtfully at Gu Mang, then said to Li Wei, "Go to the dining hall and tell the head cook I have some requests for tonight's dinner." He spoke a few more words to Li Wei in a low voice, and then said lightly, "That's all—just do as I say. You may go."
The first task Li Wei gave to Gu Mang was very simple yet thoroughly exhausting—chopping firewood. "Xihe-jun is a cultivator, but most of the staff in our manor are ordinary humans. They can't summon a fireball with a wave of their hand, so we're still sorely lacking in firewood for the winter." Li Wei pointed at the small mountain of wood before them. "Chop all of this. You won't get dinner until you finish."
Gu Mang stared at the pile of logs, then looked at Li Wei without making a sound.
"Do you understand?" Li Wei asked. "If you don't, then ask!"
At Gu Mang's silence, Li Wei rolled up his sleeves and made a few chopping motions. "Chop. Firewood. Do you understand? Cut up all this wood."
Gu Mang didn't seem to fully comprehend his meaning, but he had grasped the most important word: cut. Without saying yes or no, he picked up the axe stuck in the ground and turned to Li Wei to confirm. "Cut these?"
"Yes, cut these."
"All of them?"
"All of them."
"Can't eat until I cut it all?"
"You can't eat until you cut it all."
With that, Gu Mang turned and began to chop firewood without another word. Such work required little technique, but demanded a great deal of time and effort and was deeply dull besides. No one in Xihe Manor liked doing it, but Gu Mang had no complaints. With his lips slightly pursed and sweat beading on his long lashes, he threw everything he had into each swing of the axe, as if he held a deep grudge against these particular logs. His enthusiasm was unflagging: with every log that disappeared from the pile, he got closer and closer to his meal.
By the time the sky had darkened, the mountainous pile of timber had become a great heap of firewood. Gu Mang tossed the axe aside. Without even bothering to wipe the sweat from his brow, he went straight to the hall to collect his reward for the day.
Although it was snowing heavily and wretchedly cold outside, the main hall shone bright with candles. Dishes, kept warm beneath thick lids, were arrayed on the rosewood table. A clay pot of soup simmered on a small stove, wisps of steam escaping to curl into the air.
Mo Xi sat there, waiting for him.