Chapter 55: Another Winter

Chapter 55: Another Winter

In the 24th year of the Zunde reign, Jin Ridun, the Chanyu of the Xiongnu, passed away.

Crown Prince Yuan Qi of Great Rong brought ten thousand taels of gold and silver to pay his respects.

Winter solstice was just around the corner.

The weather had been unusually cold lately, so classes at the academy had been called off.

But Chen Shuoan, the owner of the academy, arrived early in the morning. With no kids around, he threw himself into cleaning.

He was dead set on building a new kind of academy—one that put parents at ease, made kids happy, and kept teachers motivated.

Chen Shuoan was sweating buckets when the door suddenly swung open, and a bone-chilling draft sliced through the gap, making his eyes sting with tears.

He hunched over and tiptoed to the door, wondering who on earth would brave this weather to come to the academy.

Chen Shuoan eased the door all the way open and found Su Qingwan standing there in the snow, wrapped up like a burrito.

His eyes wandered down a bit.

At her feet was a little white puffball of a kid—the young master of the Su family.

Su Yan couldn't even open his eyes against the wind, but his face was dead serious, and his little lips kept mumbling like he was possessed by the ghost of study: "I want to study... I want to study."

Chen Shuoan: "..."

Did you eat some bad cold noodles or something?

If you've lost your marbles, go see a doctor!

Chen Shuoan was totally thrown by this duo, and he stammered weakly, "It's, uh, it's break time, right?"

Su Qingwan's nose was red from the cold, and she gave a tight, forced smile, like Su Yan had completely drained her patience.

"Qingle, I'm really sorry."

"Su Yan was dead set on coming to you for tutoring this morning, saying the break is the perfect chance to get ahead of the curve."

Chen Shuoan: "..."

That's some next-level thinking?

What's all this hustle for? Trying to win a "Goody Two-Shoes" award?

He let out a helpless cough. "Alright, you two, come on in."

Su Qingwan stepped in softly with her fur-lined boots, dragging the little snowball in with her.

Chen Shuoan headed inside, stealing a glance at Su Qingwan's elegant silhouette, when it suddenly clicked.

"Isn't today the day the Crown Prince heads out to the Xiongnu? You didn't go see him off?"

Su Qingwan brushed the snow off Su Yan, her red lips curling into a pout and her brows knitting tight. "Hanging out with him is less fun than hanging out with kids."

Chen Shuoan zipped his lips, figuring the male and female leads were hitting that relationship slump.

He'd never even been in a relationship, so he had no clue how to comfort her and quickly switched topics: "I don't think kids should be doing extra tutoring during break. You really shouldn't be coming to me for this—at least, not ideally."

Don't mess with my time off.

Even teachers need a break.

Su Qingwan looked up at him with tired eyes and let out a sigh. "Honestly, being with you is way more comfortable."

"I don't have to think about anything; my brain can actually chill out."

Chen Shuoan: "..."

I'll just take that as a compliment.

He fired up the underfloor heating and sat next to Su Yan, watching him practice his writing, while Su Qingwan chattered away beside him, spilling all the tea about Yuan Qi.

Chen Shuoan was loving every second of it, just missing a bag of popcorn to complete the vibe.

He thought to himself, feeling pretty smug.

He'd actually managed to carve out a whole new survival route as a background character.

He'd become besties with the female lead.

————

The sky was gray, the winter wind was howling, and the cold cut straight to the bone.

Chen Shuoan pulled his mountain-green velvet robe tighter, tucked his left hand into his wide sleeve, and trudged toward the Li residence, one hand clutching a food bundle and the other gripping an umbrella.

Ice pellets were falling from the sky, and Chen Shuoan listened to them rattle against his oil-paper umbrella, half-convinced he was about to drop dead on the spot.

A few days back, Li Wei had come back to the capital from Jiangnan, planning to invite Chen Shuoan over for a proper drink. But the very night he got back, he came down with a fever.

Chen Shuoan braved the wind and snow, dead set on bringing his good buddy some warmth in this freezing weather.

Like chomping on a roasted duck leg right in front of him, for example.

After finally making it to the Li residence, a maidservant led Chen Shuoan to Li Wei's room.

He glanced around. In the big courtyard stood a tree, and perched on its branches were a bunch of bright red birds, hopping around and pecking at the overripe persimmons dangling from the twigs.

Chen Shuoan saw these birds every winter—they were a common sight in the capital, all plump and crimson, like tiny trembling furballs.

Too bad he was clueless and had no idea what they were called.

Noticing the sparkle in his eyes, the maidservant let out a soft laugh. "Young Master Chen, why are you still such a kid at heart? They're just red bullfinches—what's so interesting about them?"

"Red bullfinches?" Chen Shuoan couldn't help but laugh.

Something this cute and it's called a red bullfinch?

They walked up to the red-painted door, and the maidservant leaned in to knock softly.

"Young Master, Young Master Chen is here to see you."

A string of muffled coughs came from inside, enough to make anyone think the guy was dying of consumption.

Chen Shuoan stepped in, holding the warm, fragrant food bundle, and said with a grin in his voice, "Brother Li, how you holding up?"

Another round of violent coughing followed.

"Quack, quack... quack..."

Chen Shuoan: "..."

?

Did you come down with the flu or bird flu?

"Tsk, don't talk. It's a pain to listen to."

A voice came from behind the bed curtain—deep and low, with that painfully familiar mocking edge.

Chen Shuoan's ears twitched, his doe eyes flying wide open as he recognized it as that bastard Qin Zhonglian's voice.

He instantly chucked the pouch of crispy duck at the bed, nailing Li Wei right in the sweet spot, earning another sharp, duck-like squawk from the patient.

Qin Zhonglian cracked up laughing.

"Qingle! Missed you like crazy! Get over here and give me a hug!"

He dropped into a horse stance, arms wide open, ready for Chen Shuoan to jump into his arms, planning to swing him around a few times.

The next second, that guy grabbed his face and yanked hard.

Chen Shuoan's eyes were bloodshot, his hands gripping with all his might as he roared, "Bro, these years up in Shuobei really did a number on you! Your skin's so rough I could call you uncle!"

Qin Zhonglian hurt but loved it, wrapping his big arms around Chen Shuoan and pounding his back hard.

Chen Shuoan, with his delicate skin, couldn't endure such torment, wailing pitifully in his grip.

"Quack..."

Li Wei was bawling his eyes out.

Being left out was his lot in life, and he knew it.

Chen Shuoan squirmed out of Qin Zhonglian's smothering hug, sniffled, then punched him hard in the chest: "When'd you get back? Why didn't you say anything?"

"This morning. I heard Li Wei was sick and hightailed it over here."

Chen Shuoan nodded, a smile spreading across his face: "Good. Zhang Chenggong's already on his way to Li Wei's place."

"Zheng Yuanzhi sent me a letter yesterday—he'll be back in the capital in five days."

A smirk tugged at the corner of Qin Zhonglian's mouth: "New Year's is coming up. We really ought to get together."

He walked over to Li Wei's bedside, picked up the food pouch from beside the pillow, and mischievously waved it under Li Wei's nose: "Tsk, tsk, you poor thing."

Li Wei: "..."

You wanna die?

Chen Shuoan was cracking up at their antics, proudly declaring, "I made that myself."

Qin Zhonglian raised an eyebrow slightly: "You've got that skill?"

"Yeah, I stir-fried two ducks—gave one to Chen Gangpao, but it wouldn't touch it. Weird."

Qin Zhonglian: "..."

Li Wei: "..."

Not even a dog would eat that?

Qin Zhonglian eyed the pouch, leaned in suspiciously, caught the faint burnt smell, and grimaced.

It'd be weird if Chen Gangpao actually ate it, huh?

He gave a forced smile: "Save it for Zhang Chenggong. He's always been into that stuff."