Chapter 73
Note: Early chapter release, thanks to Sakuradahl's support on Ko-Fi
Mu Cai lay on a bench, beneath the dense leaves of the small peach tree.
Even though it was deep autumn, the courtyard was not cold, but instead showed signs of warming up, in stark contrast to the bleak autumn wind outside. This was because Qin Zhongjin had set up a gathering energy formation in the courtyard. Inside this independent compound, yin and yang were in balance, making the temperature quite pleasant, warm in winter and cool in summer.
Ever since his trip to Yongdi a month ago, Mu Cai had been even lazier than before. Qin Zhongjin was right. Although the previous house energized him and seemingly enhanced his spectral qualities, he felt more excited when he was there, unlike the comfort and tranquility he experienced here.
He lay sprawled out on the couch, gazing thoughtfully at the blue sky. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Qin Zhongjin approaching.
With his eyes closed, the striking red sword scar in the center of his forehead was very noticeable. The buttons of his housecoat were done to the chin. Even in his own yard, he was very meticulous, fully dressed without exposing a glimpse of his own body.
In sharp contrast, Mu Cai was dressed in a red, light-weighted gown. The wide sleeves, undone front, and lightweight fabric created a sense of casual elegance. With one raise of his hand, the wide sleeve would fall, revealing his snowy arm. A slight loosening of the waistband would reveal a delicate collarbone. When he moved, his robe swayed slightly, revealing his slender ankles.
Their dress styles and notions differed significantly, but they never criticized each other on this aspect. To a certain extent, they shared an uncanny understanding of each other.
Seeing Qin Zhongjin coming, Mu Cai immediately perked up and sat up from the couch. Nowadays, Qin Zhongjin occasionally brought news of Zhang Rongfa's family. He didn't care how a reclusive homebody like him, residing in the capital city, could know so much about their family affairs. He just enjoyed listening.
According to Qin Zhongjin, Zhang Rongfa had married his mistress a week after divorcing his ex-wife. Unlike his hardworking ex-wife, the new wife was no easy woman.
Using tears and sensitivity as weapons, the petite new wife would manipulate Zhang Rongfa to her will, taking advantage of her six- or seven-month pregnancy. She sabotaged Mother Zhang and created discord between them. Mother Zhang was a robust and fierce woman with less patience than the cunning new wife. Repeatedly framed and accused, she fell short on explanations and often resorted to swearing out of frustration.
Before taking the petite wife into his house, Zhang Rongfa had experienced his mother’s temper for a long time and knew how horrible it could be. On one side was his delicate and pitiful little wife carrying his son, and on the other was an old, angry woman with a bloated stomach and discolored skin. Zhang Rongfa promptly relegated his mother to reside in a small house in the backyard while he enjoyed the big house with his petite wife.
Although Mu Cai had heard parts of this "household chaos and mother-son estrangement" drama, he felt it was not juicy enough. Seeing Qin Zhongjin just walked in from the courtyard, he promptly turned his gaze over, hoping for a sequel.
The beauty in red sitting on the bench had eyes shining like the morning stars. His gaze followed Qin Zhongjin without fail. His delicate lips were slightly pursed, and his brilliant eyes sparkled with anticipation and joy. This radiant demeanor was stunningly beautiful, causing Qin Zhongjin's normally steady and even pace to falter.
Even though Qin Zhongjin knew that what Mu Cai truly anticipated was not him but the news he could deliver. However, seeing his eager expression, the emotionally-rich tool man Mr. Qin hastened his steps and sat next to Mu Cai.
After all, who could resist a person like Mu Cai gazing at them so?
Qin Zhongjin took the initiative to convey the news, "Mother Zhang has passed away, and Zhang Rongfa is seriously ill; he's now in the intensive care unit."
The news was quite sudden, shocking Mu Cai who was still immersed in the family drama narrative 'wicked people naturally suffer'. He hurriedly said, "What happened? Tell me quickly."
As he spoke, Mu Cai involuntarily grasped Qin Zhongjin's arm resting on the couch, trying to urge him in this manner.
His arm felt firm and muscular, totally unlike the thin figure portrayed when clothed. But Mu Cai reasoned that if Qin Zhongjin was indeed a weak scholar as he seemed, how could he support him for so long without getting tired? Having been seriously ill in his childhood, Mu Cai had a frail constitution and envied such a muscular build, lightly pinching and feeling the arm without noticing that the arm's owner had stiffened up.
Soon, a slender powerful hand reached out to hold Mu Cai's restless hand. The hand was large and easily covered Mu Cai’s own, fingers interlocking, and brought his thoughts back.
With a grave voice, Qin Zhongjin said, "Mother Zhang has been incessantly cursing her son and daughter-in-law since she moved into the small house. Zhang Rongfa, who was already reluctant to donate money for charitable acts, stopped doing it altogether upon seeing his mother's vitality despite her reducing belly."
He did not finish, but Mu Cai already knew the consequences. Mother Zhang, with a little ghost in her belly that had not been completely eliminated, stayed in the vast ghost-raising formation. Naturally, her illness quickly relapsed, and she died on the spot.
However, Mu Cai still did not understand how Zhang Rongfa was critically ill. If he was haunted by a little ghost, he should know the remedy and not let himself reach this stage. Could it be possible that he was really sick?
Qin Zhongjin, sensing what Mu Cai was thinking, asked directly, "Do you remember when we went before and Zhang Rongfa was constantly sweating?"
Mu Cai nodded. He definitely remembered. When they were staking out in Mother Zhang's room, Zhang Rongfa was sweating profusely, and the smell was so strong that Mu Cai had to bury his face in Qin Zhongjin's shoulder.
Qin Zhongjin continued, "His sweating was excessive, far beyond that of a normal person. Meaning, his body had already collapsed due to too much Yin energy, he just didn't know it. And he arbitrarily cut off the charity, which was his only salvation, accelerating his own demise.”
Upon hearing this, Mu Cai was very pleased with this outcome.
Some might say his thoughts were naive and childish. But Mu Cai still held his own view, believing that those who committed heinous acts would eventually be punished for their wickedness. And what he heard now was indeed a straight case example.
With Mu Cai's satisfaction, his face softened.
Seeing Mu Cai taking a slow breath and lying back down on the couch, his expression turning lazy again, Qin Zhongjin was reminded of a cat basking contentedly in the sun. A ticklish feeling crossed his heart, and he couldn't help but ask: “With all the information I've given you, what reward can you offer me, Cai Cai?”
Mu Cai was somewhat surprised.
Previously, when he wanted Qin Zhongjin to help the horribly frail woman, he offered to grant him a request. However, Qin Zhongjin merely asked to hold him in his arms, essentially giving him a favor for free. Unexpectedly, the man was now savvy enough to begin bargaining for the information.
However, after giving it some thought, Mu Cai realized that Qin Zhongjin was a perennial profit-chaser in his previous life, and the last time was actually an aberration. Besides, this time, he truly had inconvenienced him considerably, so it was only fair for Qin Zhongjin to ask for compensation.
Upon this consideration, Mu Cai readily agreed: “Alright. What reward do you want?”
Without the slightest pause, Qin Zhongjin responded: "I'd like you to run your fingers through my hair."
Last time at Zhang Rongfa’s house, when he lifted Mu Cai, the latter’s fingers had softly skimmed his hair at the back of his head. Even a month has passed, the sensation of electric-like tremor was still fresh in his memory, and he yearned to feel it again from the bottom of his heart.
Facing Mu Cai's startled gaze, his voice also lowered, seemingly carrying a hint of grievance: "Is that okay?"
A thought occured to Mu Cai out of nowhere. He suddenly felt that Qin Zhongjin was like the little peach tree in front of him. Although the latter wasn't making cute faces with big round eyes, the similar sense of not being able to refuse hit him all the same.
Though the other party's request was somewhat odd, it was nevertheless quite simple to fulfill. Mu CAi was not one to be uncooperative either. Without hesitation, he reached out his hand, tentatively touching the top of the other person's head.
The moment Mu Cai's fingers touched the top of Qin Zhongjin's head, the latter obediently lowered it a bit, allowing Mu Cai to touch his head more comfortably. The more Mu Cai observed this action, the more he felt as if he were petting a gentle large dog that never refused its master's touch and even seemed to anticipate it greatly.
With a slightly odd feeling, Mu Cai continued to touch Qin Zhongjin's head a few more times.
His cold fingers moved through Qin's thick, black hair, and the soft fingertips would occasionally graze the top of Qin's head, causing his body to shudder anew.
However, Qin Zhongjin did his best to suppress these reactions.
He didn't want Mu Cai to notice his thoughts, because he sounded a bit like a pervert.
The hair under Mu Cai's touch wasn't very soft, it felt coarse. The sensation of the hair ends scratching against his palm produced a strangely satisfying feeling. The more Mu Cai touched it, the more immersed he became, unable to resist even when his palm started to feel slightly hot and pricked.
One of them was immensely enjoying the petting, the other was being stroked to an indescribable extent. The atmosphere reached a delicate balance, which was soon broken by the arrival of an assistant.
The assistant bowed his head slightly, making sure not to catch sight of the icy expression on the elder's face and said professionally, "Sir, Master Han has invited you to his mansion tomorrow. He says a new batch of relics from the Da Liang Dynasty has arrived. May I know your thoughts, sir?"
Mu Cai was grateful for the timely appearance of the assistant. Even though he'd derived great pleasure from stroking Qin Zhongjin's hair, his slightly aching arm needed some rest. With the assistant's appearance, he finally had a logical excuse to stop and rest his arm, convincing both Qin Zhongjin and himself.
Qin Zhongjin remained expressionless. Although he was quite discontent at heart, the assistant was indeed discussing official matters. The event at Han Dan's place was one that he had arranged. After Qin Zhongjin discovered he couldn’t unearth the truth from historical records about his past life, he began turning his attention to the royal relics from the Da Liang Dynasty.
On hearing Han Dan's name, Mu Cai lost interest and reclined on the couch. However, Qin Zhongjin turned to him and asked, "Cai Cai, do you want to come with me? I've always felt there's something peculiar about you, so I had someone collect some relics to find clues. You might see something that looks familiar."
Under normal circumstances, Mu Cai would never go, as he greatly disliked Han Dan. But, as Qin Zhongjin had mentioned, Mu Cai had recently realized that the memories he possessed from his original self might not represent the entire truth. In order to navigate the plot more effectively, he needed to seek clues from various sources. At this juncture, Han Dan was immaterial to the dedicated Mu Cai.
Without any second thoughts, he agreed, “Okay, I will go with you. But I have a condition."
Without waiting for Qin Zhongjin to ask, he stated plainly, "As you know, I don't like your friend. When I go there, I won't be pleasant to him. You need to think this through properly."
Qin Zhongjin suddenly smiled. He had a high nose, thin lips, and a prominent brow, looking quite cold. But when he smiled, though one couldn't see his eyes, his face was as if the ice and snow had melted, revealing a gentle curve at the corners of his lips, “Alright, I’ll abide by your wishes."
The assistant wisely excused himself, not wanting his presence to overshadow the interaction.
Mu Cai, seeing that there was nothing left to do, was about to close his eyes and rest for a while. Suddenly, the man beside him leaned over like a curious canine, "Cai Cai, will you stroke my hair again?"
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Author's note:
Cai Cai: My hand for petting dogs is shaking slightly.
To those little angels who expressed interest in an extended version yesterday, please remember that the internet is not a lawless territory. wink
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