Chapter 24: Calling the Young Master

In the evening, Cao Xi and Li Feng began preparing ingredients for tomorrow. Cao Xi put fish balls into the pot while Li Feng filled the stove with firewood. The two worked in harmony, while Qin Zhao felt annoyed.

After they finished making fish balls and dividing the dishes, they sat under a jujube tree, joking and laughing, while Qin Zhao struggled with his books. Frustrated, he simply tossed the book into the room, sat down next to Cao Xi, and helped her organize the skewers.

“Are you done with your studies?” Cao Xi asked, turning her head to Qin Zhao.

“Yeah, I’m done,” Qin Zhao replied coldly.

As Qin Zhao’s cold demeanor silenced the laughter, the number of skewers increased. It was only when the evening deepened that Cao Xi excused herself to take the skewers to the kitchen to wash.

Li Feng watched Cao Xi’s retreating figure and said, “You manage to keep someone by your side and don’t stop him from doing what he likes.”

Qin Zhao’s face flushed with anger; he couldn’t deny it, nor could he tell Li Feng that Cao Xi didn’t like him. He couldn’t find any retort, as he had seen Cao Xi admire Li Feng’s good looks.

Feeling aggrieved, Qin Zhao watched with dissatisfaction, while Li Feng felt relaxed. He turned to Qin Zhao and said, “I’ve tidied up.”

Li Feng added, “Cao Xi, I’m going back. Tomorrow morning, we’ll have skewers together.”

Cao Xi replied, “Alright, Brother Li.”

Qin Zhao glared at their interaction, then after glancing at the pile of wood shavings, he shouted to Cao Xi, “Cao Xi, let Brother Li finish cleaning up the wood shavings; he won’t help you anymore.” After saying this, he met with Li Feng’s displeased gaze.

Cao Xi hurriedly said, “I got it,” then turned to Li Feng, “It’s getting late; the night road isn’t safe, so be careful.”

Cao Xi saw Li Feng off at the door, locked it, then turned to find Qin Zhao cleaning up the wood shavings. She walked over and asked, “What’s wrong? You don’t seem in a good mood?”

“Nothing,” Qin Zhao mumbled.

Having finished with the kitchen tasks, Cao Xi was about to ask. Without any hesitation, she turned around, making Qin Zhao even angrier. He swept the dust away with a loud rustling sound.

Cao Xi had finished what she needed to do, and the wood shavings were now neatly stored, but there was no sign of Qin Zhao. This was quite unlike his usual habits.

Cao Xi felt puzzled but as usual walked to Qin Zhao’s bedroom. She found him lying on the bed with his back to her — this was the first time she had seen him in such a low mood. It was as if he had suffered through some disaster and hardship; his fiery retorts seemed to have been dulled.

Cao Xi slipped off her shoes and climbed into bed, pulling at his clothes and asking, “Are you asleep?”

Qin Zhao’s ears twitched, but he didn’t turn around; he pulled back the clothes that Cao Xi had grabbed. He tried to take them back but gave up.

Cao Xi moved closer to Qin Zhao to hug him, but he dodged her.

Cao Xi was baffled, wondering what was happening. During the night, Qin Zhao usually liked to cuddle with her to sleep, so it was strange that he was avoiding her now.

“What’s really going on?” Cao Xi poked Qin Zhao’s back.

“If you keep asking, I’ll just go back to my room to sleep,” he said, and with that, he lifted the blanket to get up.

Feeling the space between them growing, Qin Zhao hurriedly turned to sit up.

“Don’t you dare!”

Since Cao Xi was lying too close, she couldn’t possibly escape, and instead, kicked the bed with her leg.

“Are you deceiving me?” Qin Zhao looked aggrieved, his eyes reddening, the emotions from dinner bubbling over like a volcano.

Seeing him cry, Cao Xi immediately sat up, pressing her hands on his shoulders and asking seriously, “Who bullied you at the academy? Tell me.”

“Nobody, it was you, you bullied me,” Qin Zhao said before bursting into tears.

Cao Xi was flustered, feeling panic set in.

“It’s my fault, it’s all my fault.” Cao Xi didn’t even have time to think about what exactly had happened, continuously apologizing and helping him wipe away his tears.

Seeing him cry was new to Cao Xi. They had been through so much together; he had never cried like this, not even when

“Did you lie to me?” Qin Zhao looked wronged, his eyes red, his emotions building up like a volcano ready to erupt.

When Cao Xi saw him crying, he immediately sat next to him, pressing his hands on Qin Zhao’s shoulders and sternly asked, “Who bullied you at the academy? Tell me.”

“There is, it’s them, they bullied me,” Qin Zhao sobbed, suddenly crying loudly.

Cao Xi was flustered, his steps in a panic, his mind in chaos.

“It’s my fault, it’s my fault,” Cao Xi, not thinking clearly, kept apologizing, wiping away Qin Zhao’s tears.

This was the first time Cao Xi had seen him cry. The two of them had been through so much together, from enduring hardships to being beaten in the temple, and yet, he had never cried before.

“It’s them, it’s them, they’re liars!” Qin Zhao cried harder, his emotions erupting. Cao Xi hurriedly pulled him into his embrace, patting his back, but the crying didn’t stop.

Cao Xi gently held his face, intending to kiss his cheek, but in his flustered state, he accidentally kissed the corner of Qin Zhao’s lips, causing the crying to immediately stop.

Tears still filled Qin Zhao’s eyes, and he looked at him in disbelief. “You…!”

Cao Xi felt awkward and scratched his nose, glancing at Qin Zhao. The accusing look in his eyes left Cao Xi speechless.

After a pause, Cao Xi mumbled, “It wasn’t intentional.”

Qin Zhao, with a tearful voice, retorted, “It wasn’t intentional? Then why did you look at me like that? Are you trying to pretend it’s not on purpose?”

Though he knew it was his fault, Cao Xi let out a long breath, relieved that the situation wasn’t as bad as it seemed.

Cao Xi asked softly, “Did I hurt you? It was just a misunderstanding, right?”

He couldn’t dare reason with him, because the sound of his crying was too heartbreaking.

“Isn’t this worth my anger?” Qin Zhao raised his voice, making Cao Xi even more flustered.

Cao Xi quickly reassured him, “I’m sorry, I won’t look at him again. It’s just… it was never meant that way.”

Qin Zhao shot him a sidelong glance, thinking Cao Xi had thick skin, looking at him with a pitiful expression. “Fine, whatever. As long as you don’t keep looking at Li Feng, I’ll let it go.”

Qin Zhao locked eyes with Cao Xi and asked, “If Li Feng and I fell into the water, who would you save first?”

This question completely threw Cao Xi off guard. He’d never imagined being asked something like this.

“You’re really thinking about this now? What’s so hard to figure out? Who’s more important to you? Li Feng’s a liar, how could you even consider him?” Qin Zhao’s tears started again.

Cao Xi was about to slap himself for not keeping his thoughts focused. In this situation, hesitation could cost him dearly.

Trying to recover, Cao Xi quickly spoke, “I would save you, because you’re the most important to me. No one else matters. I’m not gonna let you drown in front of me.”

Qin Zhao froze for a moment, not expecting this answer. The question was something he had overheard at the academy, and it just came to mind to ask it.

As his emotions slowly calmed down, Cao Xi helped him lie down on the bed.

“Qin Zhao, you don’t need to cry over this. Unless you don’t want me anymore, I’ll never abandon you. No one in this world is more important to me, don’t doubt that.” Cao Xi stroked his cheek gently.

Qin Zhao sniffled, his emotions softening. “It’s not intentional, I forgive you. I’ve been acting like this because I wanted to get closer to you.”

Cao Xi smiled at him, the tension easing. “Just don’t stare at Li Feng anymore. Don’t let him have any ideas about you, wait for me to grow up.”

Qin Zhao grasped his hand and pulled it to his chest.

Cao Xi could barely respond, still overwhelmed by Qin Zhao’s sudden declaration.

Qin Zhao, with a teasing look in his eyes, muttered, “Hm, you’re getting off easy.”

Cao Xi was stunned. Did he really just hear that? He couldn’t believe his ears, but Qin Zhao had clearly said it.

Was this child really thinking about marriage already?

Qin Zhao, noticing Cao Xi still in shock, pressed, “Don’t you want to?”

Qin Zhao’s voice had a bit of a challenge in it, shaking Cao Xi back to his senses. “Qin Zhao, if you want to marry me, I’ve already agreed… I just think we should wait until you’re older. We’ll talk about this again then.”

Cao Xi was now trying to brush off the topic, hoping Qin Zhao wouldn’t notice his awkwardness.

Qin Zhao pointed to his lips where he had kissed him, disbelief still in his eyes. “You’re a liar.”

“You’ve kissed me, hugged me, and even… even slept with me. And now you don’t plan to marry me?” Qin Zhao was genuinely upset, so agitated he didn’t even realize the unintended meaning behind his words.

In his heart, all Qin Zhao wanted was to hold onto Cao Xi and stop anyone else from taking him away.

Cao Xi suppressed a laugh. “Fine, fine, I’ll marry you when you grow up.”

It was only then that Qin Zhao realized what he’d just said, his face flushing a deep red. He hurriedly corrected himself, “I mean, you’ll marry me!”

“Sure, I’ll marry you,” Cao Xi said, not thinking much of it. He had no idea that tonight’s conversation would one day serve as the most compelling evidence Qin Zhao would use to bind him. In the future, even if Cao Xi wanted to deny it, he’d have no way out.

Unbeknownst to him, this casual promise gave Qin Zhao immense courage, driving him to rise from a white-robed youth to a first-rank official. He braved countless obstacles, all just to create a safe haven for Cao Xi.

“Do you still want to hear a bedtime story?” Cao Xi deliberately shifted the topic.

“Yes. But from now on, you’re not allowed to call me Qin Zhao anymore,” Qin Zhao replied firmly.

“Then what should I call you?”

“Call me langjun (husband-to-be). After we’re officially married, you can call me fu jun (husband),” Qin Zhao said, diving straight into Cao Xi’s arms and burying his flushed face against Cao Xi’s chest.

Cao Xi looked down at Qin Zhao nestled in his embrace and thought to himself, This is it. The feudal boundaries have been completely shattered. He’s even taking the initiative to throw himself at me now.

When Qin Zhao didn’t hear a response for a long time, he lifted his head and glared at Cao Xi. “Well? Are you going to tell the story or not?”

Cao Xi quickly wrapped his arms around Qin Zhao and said, “Where did we leave off last time?”

Qin Zhao replied, “The part where Sun Wukong got expelled by his master and returned to Flower Fruit Mountain to reign as king.”

His memory was surprisingly clear. Cao Xi nodded and picked up the story where they’d left off, recounting it slowly, word by word.