The next day, at the third quarter of the hour of Si (around 9:45 AM).

Today, Xie Shiguan woke up late. Shen Que had been waiting under the eaves for several hours before finally seeing a maid come out from the hall. It was the new maid from Silla, Wuhua, from the other day.

She seemed to still remember the embarrassment from that day, so she didn’t dare to lift her eyes. Her curled eyelashes drooped slightly, revealing a very pretty eye socket contour. “Greetings, sir.”

“His Highness just got up and wants you to go in and do his hair.”

A hint of surprise flashed across Shen Que’s face, but he didn’t ask much, fearing that the person inside was waiting impatiently. So he quickly followed her in.

The incense burner in the hall was almost burnt out, leaving only a faint lingering scent.

Shen Que wasn’t sensitive to incense; he could only distinguish between strong and weak scents. But if you asked him to say what was added to the incense burner, he couldn’t really tell.

However, he had been with the King of Yan for over ten years and was used to the incense he usually burned. So if he sniffed carefully, he could still detect some differences.

Last night, Xie Shiguan must have added something else to the agarwood he burned before sleeping, but he couldn’t figure out exactly what it was.

As he walked further, turning past the screen partition, he reached the prince’s living quarters. Inside, on the dressing table, stood a mirror with a gold shell and a design of auspicious beasts, birds, and flowers. In the mirror, a person was reflected, looking sleepy and yawning lazily.

Although the maids surrounding him were all strikingly beautiful, as soon as Shen Que caught a glimpse of that half face in the bronze mirror, with its long, narrow phoenix eyes and a small, shallow mole on the bridge of the nose, he felt that these beautiful maids instantly paled in comparison.

Xie Shiguan seemed to have seen him in the bronze mirror too. He slowly turned around and gave him a nonchalant glance.

Shen Que hurried over, taking the comb. But having stood under the eaves for several hours, his hands and feet were numb from the cold. When he picked up the comb, his hands trembled involuntarily, and his knuckles were stiff.

Xie Shiguan noticed and suddenly reached out, gently supporting the back of his hand. The touch was very cold, like a stone.

“Why are you so cold?” he asked.

“The weather is really cold,” Wuhua, who was holding a tray nearby, answered softly for him. “Sir has been standing under the eaves outside for several hours, wearing thin clothes. When I called him in just now, he looked so dazed that I was afraid he might have frozen.”

After she spoke, several little maids nearby covered their mouths and giggled.

Xie Shiguan was always lenient with the girls in his room. Hearing them laugh, he didn’t scold them.

The prince turned his head and instructed another maid to hand a newly heated hand warmer to Shen Que. “Take this hand warmer to warm your hands. In the future, just wait in the side hall; there’s no need to stand under the eaves.”

Shen Que was a bit hesitant to accept it. The cover of the hand warmer was made of cloud brocade, a gift from the Sage in the palace. Even though he was no longer a slave, he was just a nominal sixth-rank official in the Ministry of War. Such a fine item was not something he deserved to use.

Moreover, His Highness usually didn’t pay special attention to him, so this rare warmth made him a bit uncomfortable.

He hesitated to accept it, but the maid handing it to him was quite bold. She forcefully placed the hand warmer in Shen Que’s hand and said, “Take it, sir. With your cold hands, be careful not to freeze our prince’s hair!”

These maids had been with Xie Shiguan for a long time and could tell he was in a good mood today. His whole demeanor was relaxed, so they dared to make a few playful remarks to amuse him.

Sure enough, hearing the maid’s cheeky tone, Xie Shiguan wasn’t angry. He laughed and scolded, “Your courage is growing. You dare to make fun of your master. Be careful, or I’ll have your tongue cut out and served with pig’s tongue as a snack for your sisters.”

Hearing this, the maid was immediately frightened and quickly begged for forgiveness. “Your Highness, I was just talking nonsense because I wasn’t fully awake. Even if you gave me a thousand guts, I wouldn’t dare make fun of you.”

Xie Shiguan was always smiling, whether in a good mood or not, making it hard for people to tell when he was serious or joking.

Last time, a maid made a mistake, accidentally stepping on Xie Shiguan’s toes. He didn’t seem angry at the time, still smiling.

But just when the maid thought she had escaped punishment, two household servants from the punishment department barged in that night. She was caught off guard, dragged out of her room, and had her tongue pulled out silently, then sent to an outer residence.

The other maids in the room saw this and were terrified, learning to be cautious with their words, thinking carefully before speaking.

But today, the prince was genuinely in a good mood. He waved his hand, letting the maid step aside.

Then he looked carefully at Shen Que. Today, Shen Que wore a dark green brocade official robe, with a golden carp leaping over the dragon gate embroidered on the chest. A leather belt was fastened at his waist, with a curved knife and a black gold sandalwood plaque hanging from it, and a short tassel of bamboo green color dangling from the official plaque.

His posture was upright, the leather belt accentuating his narrow waist and slender back, making him appear even taller.

Finally, Xie Shiguan’s gaze fell on his lips. His lips were slightly pursed, with smooth, rounded lines, like the lotus seat of a Guanyin statue or the reflection of a mountain in a lake.

But such beautiful lips had a crack at the corner, a dark red, slightly swollen mark.

Xie Shiguan knew very well who caused it, but he pretended not to know, pointing at the corner of Shen Que’s mouth and smiling, “Got a heat rash?”

Shen Que quickly touched the corner of his mouth, lowering his head slightly. “Maybe the charcoal fire was too strong at night, and the heat got to me.”

Xie Shiguan watched him lie so seriously, his gestures flustered, and his mood inexplicably improved. He leaned back in his chair, laughing as he instructed Wuhua, “Wuhua, have the kitchen make more snow pear soup in the afternoon and send it to A Que to cool down the heat.”

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Shen Que’s face flushed slightly.

He couldn’t help but recall last night when that person… forced him to use his hand, then complained he was clumsy, taking forever to get it done. Then he threatened him, saying he had to choose between using his mouth or the back, making him pick one.

He hesitated, unwilling to comply, so the person made him kneel, grabbing his long hair…

Later, the person didn’t care if he could take it, and hearing his muffled sounds, the person became even more enthusiastic.

In the end, the sheets on the bed were crumpled into a mess, and the person’s stuff dirtied his inner clothes, using his torn-off outer robe to wipe it clean.

It was the first time in his life Shen Que had suffered such humiliation, leaning against the foot of the bed, covering his mouth, feeling a mix of grievance, helplessness, and hatred.

He saw that person, satisfied, leaning against his pillow, then turning over, casually taking down the peace amulet hanging at the head of the bed.

“This is the peace amulet you got from the Ten Thousand Buddhas Temple,” he lazily stared at the small cloth bag, “Why didn’t you give it to Shen Luo?”

Shen Que covered his mouth, refusing to answer.

Lin Xie crawled over, smiling as he pulled away his hand, not minding the dirt, and kissed the injured corner of his mouth, shamelessly licking it.

“I just told you, and you forgot again?” Lin Xie, having vented his anger, was in a much better mood, speaking in a gentle tone, “Don’t show me a sour face, understand?”

“Besides,” he said righteously, “since you can’t speak with this mouth, you should find another way to make a living, do something else, right?”

Shen Que finally raised his head, glaring at him fiercely.

Lin Xie laughed, “I said, don’t glare at me. If you glare at me, I’ll do it again. Tomorrow, you won’t be able to speak, and you might not even be able to eat. Do you believe it?”

Shen Que certainly believed it, and he believed it very much, so he had to withdraw his gaze, swallowing his grievances.

“You’re being very obedient,” Lin Xie was satisfied, reaching out to stroke his black hair. After a slight pause, he continued to ask, “What did I just ask you?”

Shen Que slowly raised his hand, moving woodenly, “This was for someone else, but it got stained with blood…”

It couldn’t be given away anymore.

“Someone else? Who else?” Lin Xie continued to press, “Besides me, do you have other lovers?”

Shen Que was silent, pushed by him, then raised his hand again, “Your mind is full of filthy things. I have nothing to say to you.”

No matter how much he pressed, Shen Que refused to speak. Only when he was thoroughly annoyed did he point to himself, “I got it for myself, okay?”

Lin Xie didn’t believe him. He had just said it was for someone else, and now, when pressed, it became for himself.

“If you won’t say,” Lin Xie stuffed the peace amulet into his leather belt, very shamelessly, “then I’ll just assume it was for me.”

After saying that, he didn’t care whether Shen Que agreed or not, turning and leaving with the peace amulet through the main door.

After taking a step outside, he turned back, whispering a reminder, “I’ll come again in a few days when I’m free. Don’t lock the door at night.”

Shen Que didn’t listen to him. As soon as he left, Shen Que ran barefoot to the door, bolting it shut, then moved two wooden chairs to block it firmly.