His highness's Allure - Chap 114
Pei Zheng slowly placed his hand beneath Shen Shijiu’s body, and with a bit of strength, flipped the small man over.
Shen Shijiu was now lying on his back. A few strands of hair were stuck to his chin, and his collar was a bit loose. And at this moment, the brilliant red lotus tattoo on his collarbone slowly began to appear.
Pei Zheng’s movements were very gentle as he stripped off Shen Shijiu’s outer robe and pants. Then, he lifted him up and placed him toward the inside of the bed.
The small man opened his eyes halfway in a daze, and stared up at Pei Zheng. It was obvious that his mind was clouded with sleep.
“My Lord…”
These two words were like a soft hum in Pei Zheng’s ears.
Pei Zheng’s grip tightened, and he squeezed Shen Shijiu’s waist, which made the sleepy man purse his lips in discontent.
“You’re squeezing me…”
Pei Zheng let go, and gently rubbed the area to comfort him, “Does it hurt?”
The half awake man shook his head, “No…”
At this moment, Shen Huan, who was in the compartment room, suddenly moved; it seemed that she had turned over, and kicked something onto the floor, before she promptly fell back to sleep.
Pei Zheng glanced toward the compartment room, and raised his brows, “Your shifu?”
Shen Shijiu nodded obediently, “Shifu‘s… sleeping in there…”
Pei Zheng understood; Shen Huan was so worried about how far her disciple’s relationship with him had gone, she even had to sleep nearby to keep watch. It was a pity that she slept too well.
He placed his index finger on the small man’s lips, signaling for him to be quiet.
Shen Shijiu gave an knowing nod, and he spoke in a breathy voice, “I know… don’t… wake… shifu… up.”
Pei Zheng was overwhelmed by the cuteness of his serious expression. He smiled, and whispered back, “That’s right.”
Then he stroked the small man’s head, and undid his hair.
A handful of thick black locks fell behind his back like a waterfall, which made his skin look white as snow, his face resembling a delicate flower. That pair of eyes stared innocently at Pei Zheng.
Knowing that his consciousness was still hazy, Pei Zheng’s breathing became a bit disordered.
“Are you still dizzy?” Pei Zheng removed the strands of hair that were stuck to his face.
Shen Shijiu was completely muddled. He nodded, then shook his head, then nodded again.
Pei Zheng found this funny. He took the man’s little chin and gave it a wiggle, “It seems like you really are quite dizzy.”
Shen Shijiu also wiggled his head, “Yeah, I’m really dizzy, it’s sleepy time1….”
“Sleepy time?”
Pei Zheng could tell that the small man really was quite dizzy and sleepy; his long lashes were fluttering, and his eyelids were trembling.
He bent down, and leaned into the small man’s ear, “Then kiss me before you go to sleep, okay?”
Shen Shijiu nodded obediently. He puckered his mouth, but his eyes were already closed.
Pei Zheng only placed a soft kiss upon his lips, before he heard his breathing slowly even out.
He grabbed the blanket at the side and wrapped Shen Shijiu with it, before Pei Zheng also turned over and climbed onto the bed.
***
It was almost noon of the next day when Shen Shijiu finally stirred.
He combed a hand through his messy hair and sat up. His eyes were half-open, as he opened his mouth in a wide yawn.
Why was his head hurting? What had happened last night? He only remembered that he had gone to Yi Pin Xiang and had a good meal, but then what? He seemed to remember that there was a big crowd, and there were river lanterns and fireworks, but what else?
He was only wearing his inner robe. He got off the bed, his long hair covering most of his face, sat next to the table, drank a mouthful of water, and wiped the droplets at the corner of his mouth with his cuff.
His hand suddenly brushed against the wound on his face, and he felt a twinge of stinging pain.
Shen Shijiu touched his cheek; how did he get this wound?
He hurried searched through the room for a bronze mirror.
He made quite a bit of noise, which roused Shen Huan, who was in the compartment room.
When Shen Huan opened the door and walked out, she saw Shen Shijiu hugging a bronze mirror, sitting in front of the table. His expression was serious as he held the mirror at various angles.
When he saw Shen Huan, Shen Shijiu hurriedly called out, “Shifu!”
Shen Huan responded, “It’s so early, what are you doing, Disciple?”
Shen Shijiu pointed at the bronze mirror, “Is this the new mask you made me?”
Shen Huan immediately snapped awake. She had forgotten that Shen Shijiu had never seen his true face before- because she had lied to him- telling him that he was disfigured and thus had to wear a mask all the time.
“Uh, Disciple, your master has something to tell you.” Shen Huan cleared her throat, “This, what you’re looking at right now isn’t a mask, it’s your real face. That’s right, you aren’t disfigured, you really are this pretty.”
Unexpectedly, Shen Shijiu showed hardly any reaction. He only “oh”d, before he put the mirror back.
Shen Huan was confused, “Disciple, what’s wrong, are you still unsatisfied with this face?”
Shen Shijiu shook his head, “No, shifu.”
“Then why aren’t you even the slightest bit happy about it? You’re not shocked at all?”
Shen Shijiu thought for a bit, “I don’t know either, but I think I remember it…”
Shen Huan suddenly became nervous; could it be that her little disciple had regained his memory?
“What do you remember?”
Shen Shijiu’s little forehead wrinkled slightly, “Shifu, I can’t recall… my head hurts…”
Shen Huan walked over and patted his little head, “All right, all right, good disciple, don’t think about it anymore. Quickly, put on your clothes, it’s getting chilly. It wouldn’t be good if you caught a cold.”
Shen Shijiu nodded obediently, and walked to the side of the bed to put on his clothes.
Shen Huan found that to be strange, “Wait, I thought you didn’t take off your clothes last night. And you didn’t take off your shoes either. And your hair, who undid it for you?
Shen Shijiu stood obediently by the bed, and looked at his outer robe that was placed beside it, before he looked back at Shen Huan.
“Shifu, this disciple doesn’t know either.”
Shen Huan waved her hand, “Forget it, you were so drunk that you just fell right to sleep. If it weren’t for your master sleeping in here and looking out for you, I’m afraid you wouldn’t even know if someone crawled into your bed in the middle of the night.”
When he heard these words, a few fragmented memories flashed through Shen Shijiu’s mind. Someone had helped him take off his clothes, untie his hair, and had even squeezed his waist a bit too hard…
At this moment, there was a knock at the door of the little pavilion.
“Master Shen, Young Master Shen, are you awake?” It was Li Yu’s voice.
Shen Huan opened the door.
Li Yu stood outside the door and said, “His Lordship is in the main hall at the front garden, and invites the two of you to join him for lunch.”
After he finished speaking, a few maids came in from behind Li Yu, each of them carrying robes and hair accessories.
The maids walked up to Shen Shijiu’s side, and began to dress him and do his hair.
He wore a white embroidered robe. Half of his hair was swept up, while the rest fell loose over his shoulders. Although there was a wound on his cheek, it couldn’t sully his bright beauty. Shen Shijiu looked just like a noble young master who lived a life of luxury, and had been pampered his entire life.
Shen Huan couldn’t help but be a bit stupefied by the sight; was this really the little disciple that was always following her around?
He really did look like a dignified Royal Highness.
Li Yu led the two of them through the courtyard, and they arrived at the main hall. They hadn’t even walked inside, before they smelled the waves of fragrance wafting out.
Pei Zheng was sitting at a table which was laden with delicacies, yet he had not lifted his chopsticks; he had been waiting for the two of them.
Shen Huan unceremoniously plopped into a chair, and Shen Shijiu also sat down, though he was still sitting a bit far from Pei Zheng.
Pei Zheng drummed his fingers against the table.
What, you refuse to acknowledge me now that you’re sober?
No problem, I’ll just sit closer.
Pei Zheng stood up, and slowly walked toward where the pair of master and disciple were sitting.
Shen Shijiu sensed an oppressive force closing in on him, and gripped his sleeves in unease.
Then, that oppressive force stopped behind him, and Pei Zheng sat down; their bodies were practically touching.
Shen Shijiu’s breathing was laced with nervousness.
“Are you hungry?” Pei Zheng asked softly, as though he were afraid of scaring Shen Shijiu.
Shen Shijiu nodded, “A… little…”
“Are you still dizzy?”
Shen Shijiu shook his head, “Not anymore.”
“Do you still remember what happened last night?”
Shen Shijiu tried his best to recall, but he still shook his head, “I don’t remember…”
Then he added, “I only remember a little bit…”
Shen Huan had already stuffed her mouth full of food, and knocked on the table in irritation, “Lord Pei, can you wait for my disciple to finish eating before you question him? Since when do people need to be drilled first thing in the morning?”
Pei Zheng picked up a pair of chopsticks, took Shen Shijiu’s hand, and passed them to him, “Eat first.”
Shen Shijiu obediently took the chopsticks, nodded, before beginning to help himself to the various dishes.
He still ate the same way as before, stuffing his cheeks until they bulged, before chewing carefully. Then his throat would bob, and he would swallow the food.
Pei Zheng only ate a little, before he set his chopsticks down, and watched the person beside him eat.
“Is it good?”
Shen Shijiu’s eyes curved, and he nodded.
Shen Huan piped up from beside him, “It’s delicious! Did the Prime Minister’s Manor hire a different chef? It’s way tastier than before, it tastes like the food we had at Yi Pin Xiang last night! Anyway, it’s really good!”
Li Yu had been standing beside the table, serving them, and spoke up at this moment, “That’s right, this was made by the chef of Yi Pin Xiang. Our lord bought Yi Pin Xiang.”
Shen Huan, who was drinking soup, suddenly coughed, and her eyes widened slightly, “H-he bought it?”
Although she knew Pei Zheng was rich, Yi Pin Xiang was the biggest restaurant in the Imperial City and certainly couldn’t be bought for any small sum of money, let alone in such a short amount of time. It probably would have required such an insane amount of money that it would knock the restaurant’s boss unconscious.
Li Yu didn’t see anything wrong with it, “That’s right, besides Yi Pin Xiang, His Lordship owns many shops, liquor stores, antique shops, casinos, cosmetics stores-“
Li Yu counted for a long while before he finished, “Especially the antique shops, they hold many priceless treasures. And those are only the shops in the Imperial City. His Lordship also has assets in many cities near Jiangnan and Heyuan-“
“S-stop talking…” Shen Huan felt a slight pain in her chest.
Her current self and her little disciple could be classified as broke and penniless. But Pei Zheng, who was sitting beside them, looked to be only in his twenties, was sitting on a mountain of wealth and assets.
Moreover, he was also an important minister of the court, the kind with almost unlimited power. If a man like him wanted to do evil deeds, who could stop him?
Shen Huan turned her head and snuck a glance at Pei Zheng, and saw that he was staring at her little disciple. His eyes were slightly narrowed, and he seemed to be in a very good mood.
After the meal, she was left with a bellyful of complicated feelings.
When they finished eating, the servants came to clear the table.
Shen Huan also prepared her medicine case; she was going to apply medicine on Pei Zheng and Shen Shijiu’s injuries.
After one night, the wound on Shen Shijiu’s face already looked a bit lighter. Soon, this scratch would be nearly invisible.
Just as Shen Huan was about to take off Pei Zheng’s outer robe to apply medicine, Li Yu ran through the door, wearing an anxious expression.
“Master Shen, you need to hurry and take a look at Guard Feng! He just fell off of the roof, his legs seem to be broken!”
Shen Huan’s mouth dropped open; she was incredibly shocked, “Guard Feng fell off the roof? You’re talking about Cheng Feng?”
Li Yu nodded, “I am! You must hurry, otherwise it’ll be too late! You can leave the rest to Young Master Shen.”
Shen Huan’s face was still full of disbelief; was it actually possible for Cheng Feng to fall off of the roof?
Shen Shijiu was also very worried, “Shifu, you should go take a look, I can handle it here!”
Shen Huan followed Li Yu and hurriedly ran out.
Shen Shijiu’s gaze shifted, and he happened to look right into Pei Zheng’s slender, narrowed eyes. He couldn’t stop his little heart from beating a bit faster.
Pei Zheng was sitting in a chair, while Shen Shijiu stood before him.
A small hand reached toward Pei Zheng’s shoulder, and his voice was soft as he spoke, “My Lord, I’m going to apply the medicine now.”
Pei Zheng “mm”d in response.
Thet pair of little hands reached into Pei Zheng’s black lapels. When Shen Shijiu pulled the outer robe off his shoulders, Pei Zheng suddenly reached out and grabbed Shen Shijiu’s slender waist.
“You still haven’t told me,” He chuckled, “What do you remember from last night?”
Notes
Happy New Year everyone~ may this year be filled with peace and prosperity, and I hope that everyone will be able to fulfill their goals and desires! 新年快乐~
I see what you’re doing, Li Yu (¬‿¬)
Thanks for reading~
1. What he actually said here is “我想睡觉觉”, which is a cute way of saying ‘I want to go to sleep’
