Eight days went by; other than a trip made by the Zuoyue Bureau to deliver some medicine over, not a sound was heard.
If Feng Xiao hadn't met Cui Buqu outside the TongHua gate as promised, he would have thought that the other had forgotten about it.
Cui Buqu was sitting in the horse carriage reading a book at that moment. After meeting Feng Xiao, he behaved differently than he did before; he was gentle and polite, going so far as to put his hands together to greet Feng Xiao and ask after him.
"I haven't seen you for eight days, how does Commander Feng fare?"
For a split second, Feng Xiao almost thought that someone else was masquerading as Cui Buqu.
They stared each other in the eye.
Cui Buqu's expression was incomprehensible.
Ah, this was the fitting expression he knew, Feng Xiao thought, only did he get onto the horse carriage in reassurance.
"It's not going too well." He sighed faintly, reaching out his palm, "Look, the scar has not completely healed. It still hurts vaguely during rainy days."
"In the past eight days, the weather in the capital was undeniably sunny, there was not a single rainy day." Cui Buqu reminded him.
Feng Xiao recalled that the other man has a photographic memory, but despite this fact, his expression remained unchanged. "That's right. Even though there were no rainy days, after the wound closed, it still hurt every night and made it very difficult for me to sleep. When I think about that fight again, I recall that the opponent's martial arts are indeed strong to the point of exceeding my expectations, and I never would have thought that he would dip his sword with poison."
Cui Buqu stared at his opened palm, verifying that there really were a few light scars; they would definitely vanish in time, but with Feng Xiao's degree of narcissism, how would he tolerate such flaws on himself?
"This favor of you saving my life, I will keep it in my heart and never forget it." Cui Buqu said gently.
Feng Xiao blinked. He felt that Cui Buqu was not himself today, but after his speaking adversary said that sentence, he did not continue.
"What follows next?"
Cui Buqu, "What should follow next?"
Feng Xiao was dissatisfied, "In the past eight days, I never saw you coming to thank me yourself."
Cui Buqu said innocently, "Because I've been investigating the whereabouts of the culprit who had wounded you."
Feng Xiao, "Have you found him?"
Cui Buqu shook his head, "Since that night, the culprit has never shown himself. He has vanished completely. Thankfully, however, I have managed to discover something else, so at the very least I have done my part in your case, Commander Feng."
Feng Xiao, "What did you discover?"
Cui Buqu smiled, "It would be impossible for the poison in your body to clear out in just eight days and leaving not a single trace. So, I have found a very skilled physician and from him, I learned a form of acupuncture. I guarantee this will help Commander Feng to neutralize your poison with no side effects whatsoever."
As he finished speaking, he pulled out a pouch from his bosom and took out a needle.
Feng Xiao: "…"
It really was a needle.
However, that needle was as long as three inches and as thick as one's little finger.
Once this needle pricked him, he feared that not only would it remove the poison, it would remove his life as well.
Feng Xiao twitched the corner of his lips, "I have never seen such a thick needle. I wager you have surely spent no little amount of manpower to have it manufactured within these few days?"
Cui Buqu replied to him kindly, "When one is gravely ill, the medicine used must also be equally strong. Commander Feng, don't pretend to hide your condition from your doctor. Come, I only need to prick you a few times."
Feng Xiao remained silent for a while, then, "How did you come to realize it?"
He claimed his own theatrics to be quite convincing. When they met, he was careful to distort his voice into a state of someone who was still weak from recovery, as well as ensuring his pale skin was still vaguely pale. If Cui Buqu wanted to check his pulse, he would even discover how weak it was. These were the preparations he had made prior. There was no need for Cui Buqu to be suspicious.
Who could have guessed that he was still exposed.
Cui Buqu casually threw the needle away and laughed coldly, "Has Commander Feng himself forgotten that the one who fought you that night abandoned his sword before fleeing the scene? If you were poisoned, then how can there be nothing on the sword?"
After Zhangsun Bodhi arrived at the venue, the sword was given to him. Although they haven't managed to discover where the sword originated from, the poison on the blade would surely be questioned by a naturally meticulous Cui Buqu.
Feng Xiao touched his nose, blaming himself for being careless. When he faked his injuries that night in order to make Cui Buqu forget what happened in the horse carriage, he had forgotten about the existence of the sword.
"However, the fact that I was wounded for you and saved your life was surely not faked!"
Cui Buqu laughed coldly, "Had it not been for that, how would I still be sitting here and speaking nicely to you?"
Feng Xiao wasn't quite satisfied, "Regardless, I've saved you once. Could you not be gentler with me?"
Cui Buqu really did smile more gently, with a voice slow and soft, "If not for me, wouldn't Commander Feng also perish in the Qingli Garden that night? So many members of royalty and nobility were present. Even if you can escape on your own, you could not have evaded the questioning that would come afterward. For this matter, it's a draw for both of us."
Feng Xiao broke into a cold sweat, "Forget it! Let us just fall back into our previous relationship!"
Cui Buqu grinned faintly. He really was eager to stop pretending, "I have something I wish to ask of Commander Feng."
This was the Cui Buqu he was familiar with.
Feng Xiao's heart calmed down, he waved his fan, "Ask away, I don't mind."
Since he was already exposed, Feng Xiao no longer put on the frail act. His body slanted within the soft lush cushions on the horse carriage and returned to his usual lazy manner—the Commander Feng who always snubbed all the rules.
Cui Buqu glared at him, "On the horse carriage that night, why did you behave inappropriately towards me, Commander Feng?"
Feng Xiao played dumb, "That assassin pierced his sword through the bottom of the carriage. If I hadn't carried you and rolled away, how would you have avoided it on your own?"
Cui Buqu squinted, "And the incident before avoiding the attack?"
Feng Xiao swallowed slowly, "Before avoiding the attack, I was listening to the movements of the assassin."
Cui Buqu could no longer hold back, he shouted, "You were obviously taking advantage of me!"
Feng Xiao pretended to be surprised. "Right! I remember now. That was also for the purpose of deceiving the assassin, so I was left with no choice. Master Taoist Cui, surely you can understand my reasoning?"
He was full of excuses spoken with innocence. After he finished speaking, he even gave Cui Buqu a toothy grin, trying to prove that he had no ulterior motives.
As both of them glared at each other, Cui Buqu snorted coldly, no longer questioning further. Instead, he picked up his book and resumed reading it, minding his own business.
Feng Xiao watched Cui Buqu's ear twitching and he suddenly smiled.
When he kissed him that night, as Cui Buqu's struggles transitioned from surprise to fury, yet finding that he was unable to escape from Feng Xiao's grasp, his ears had turned red the same way they had now—tingling slightly, with the corners of his eyes painted by little bit of red, and his lips quivering with moisture. It had been undeniably cute.
This also meant that even if Master Taoist Cui looked calm on the surface now, his heart was actually burning in fury as he tried to devise ways to torture and pit Feng Xiao.
Even if the book he was reading now was 'Dao De Ching', what was read in his head was the 'Thirty-Six Strategems'.
Feng Xiao realized that he discovered a little secret from the other party, so he couldn't help feeling happy for himself in secret.
Cui Buqu paid him no attention. Not even his eyelids were raised.
Both men squatted on different corners of the horse carriage, each enjoying their own peace and quiet, laying their schemes low for the time being.
...
Qiao Xian's wounds had not fully recovered, so Cui Buqu did not allow her to come with him. This time, he brought two Zuoyue guards instead and Feng Xiao had been even more casual than himself, for he brought no one at all, coming all alone. Just like that, the four of them equipped themselves lightly as they traveled West from Daxing City. The horses traveled by day and stopped when night fell, so they arrived very quickly in Anping City outside the county of Boling.
During that period of time, the Northern and Southern Dynasties were divided. However, after the excellent governance of Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou from the former dynasty, Yuwen Yong, added with the power of the Emperor of the current dynasty—the Sui Empire that ruled the Northern territories—everything has most likely settled down. If one were to take the official path there, they would find their journey to be smooth, with no robbers or bandits in sight.
The sky already darkened. The city's gates were closed. If they wanted to enter the city, they would have to wait until tomorrow morning. It was fortunate that even suburbs would have posthouses for people who were unable to hurry back to stay the night. As days passed, teahouses were set up near it and a small number of families grew into a few dozens of families, gradually forming a new village. During nightfall, it would be extremely crowded.
Once they arrived outside the posthouse, the employees would come out with a welcoming aura to take their horses. The two Zuoyue Bureau guards entered to register themselves for the stay. Cui Buqu and Feng Xiao sat at the teahouse outside, a cup of green tea each sitting in front of them, watching the sunset in the distant mountains and listening to the bustling noises within the city. This was certainly a special way for one to spend leisure time.
The teahouse wasn't huge. With a seat each, it was difficult to avoid cramping together. Feng Xiao could very easily nudge Cui Buqu's ribs.
Cui Buqu was drinking tea. He was jabbed by Feng Xiao on in itchy spot and practically spat his tea out.
Feng Xiao laughed at him, "So you are ticklish!"
Just as Cui Buqu wanted to pour the cup of tea in his hand all over Feng Xiao's head and clap the cup on it, he heard a questioning voice next to him, "This place is very cramped. There is not much space. Could my Lords please move to the left?"
The voice was as clear as oriole fresh out of the valley, there was no need to look to know that this voice belonged to a young maiden.
Cui Buqu replied with an "En", before he shifted himself towards Feng Xiao, only then did he raise his head to see the person that came.
The moment he looked, he was stunned.
Author's Notes:
Happy Qixi dears, I promised a little treat:
[A small scene unrelated to the story]
After many years, on the seventh day of the seventh month.
On the day where Niu Lang and Zhi Nu meets, in the world of mortals, lovers also came together.
Feng Xiao prepared a gift for Cui Buqu—a paper fan.
On one side Feng Xiao painted a portrait of himself and on the other side, he painted Cui Buqu.
This way, whenever Cui Buqu was missing him and he wasn't by his side, he could open the fan to see him.
Feng Xiao was confident that Cui Buqu would definitely love a gift like this.
From the day before yesterday, he was also waiting for Cui Buqu to give him a gift.
However, he would not ask about it on his own accord, because this would expose him for being too impatient and too initiative.
Yet, to avoid his royal highness forgetting due to how busy he was, he still sent Pei Jingzhe to take a detour and remind him of it.
With how intelligent Cui Buqu is, he would get the hint.
However, Cui Buqu has not divulged anything. When both of them ate out together, the other did not even hint anything, he couldn't even remember that Qixi was only a few days away.
Feng Xiao really felt a little nervous now.
He ordered Pei Jingzhe to investigate Cui Buqu's intentions.
On the morning of Qixi, Pei Jingzhe came to report that the Zuoyue Bureau ordered a carton of mandarin oranges.
Feng Xiao suspected, it couldn't possibly be that Cui Buqu assumed he could eat an entire carton of mandarin oranges just because he had seen him eating them at Princess Leping's Thousand Lanterns Banquet, surely?
Forget it. That bastard Cui would never be willing to waste his time on relationship matters. It was already hard enough to make him admit that he had feelings for himself. This sort of understanding, concern, and gentleness would require patience to be pried open. For now, he was willing to accept those mandarin oranges.
In the end, Pei Jingzhe reported that Cui Buqu has distributed all those mandarin oranges to the members of the Zuoyue Bureau.
Feng Xiao is gradually sinking into a very bad mood.
He finally couldn't stop himself and immediately ran to the Zuoyue Bureau. When he met Cui Buqu face to face, he asked, "Where's my gift?"
Cui Buqu did not feel surprised at all, "I've prepared it."
Feng Xiao brightened, and told himself: this bastard Cui did have a heart after all.
However, he only saw Cui Buqu taking out a big bowl of mandarin oranges shreds.
"I realized you loved playing with these, so I purposely bought an entire carton of mandarin oranges and ordered their shreds to be peeled before they were eaten. Here, take them, they would be enough for you to create a few pictures."
Feng Xiao: "..........."
Which bastard was the one who invented Qixi?! I'm going dig a grave for him!
Dao De Ching: a Chinese classic text traditionally credited to the 6th-century BC sage Laozi.
Thirty-Six Strategems: a Chinese essay used to illustrate a series of stratagems used in politics, war, and civil interaction. Its focus on the use of cunning and deception both on the battlefield and in court has drawn comparisons to Sun Tzu's The Art of War.