Chapter 465 Cross-Dressing Expert

Chapter 465: The Crossdresser

Cheng Ge's hand patted his back slowly, one pat at a time, very gentle, very soft.

"I'm here..." His lips brushed against Yun Xunyu's ear, "I'm here..."

The candle flame flickered, casting shadows on the wall as time slowly passed.

After what felt like an eternity, the trembling finally began to subside.

Yun Xunyu's breathing grew steadier. Cheng Ge opened his eyes and looked down at the person in his arms.

He gazed at him for a long while.

Then he closed his eyes again and gently kissed his forehead.

"...Sleep."

………

The next day, at noon.

The door opened softly, and Cheng Ge walked out.

He wore the same clothes from last night, wrinkled and rumpled, with bloodstains on the hem.

His hair was disheveled, dark circles under his eyes, looking utterly drained, as if his soul had been sucked out of him.

Several people stood in the hallway.

Lin Nanshu was the first to look up, opening his mouth, but no words came out.

Cui Ji stood beside him, lips pressed together in a thin line, saying nothing.

Zhou Yinyun leaned against a pillar, his whole body tensing when he saw Cheng Ge come out.

Zhou Zhan stood at the far end, wanting to call out to him, but the name "Muyu" got stuck in his throat and refused to come out.

No one knew what to say to him.

Ask him how Yun Xunyu was? The physician had already answered that question the night before.

Ask him if he was all right? The way he looked, how could he possibly be okay?

Silence fell over the hallway.

Zhou Mingqi stood at the front of the group, looking at Cheng Ge, and didn't ask anything either.

He simply said, his voice as steady as ever.

"Eat first. Your health matters most."

Cheng Ge looked at him, hesitating for a moment.

Then he nodded.

"...Alright."

He followed the others to the dining hall.

Food was set out on the table, steaming and fragrant.

Cheng Ge sat down, picked up the bowl and chopsticks.

He ate quickly, bite after bite, but it tasted like cardboard.

When the bowl was empty, he set it down gently on the table.

The room went quiet. Everyone was watching him.

Cheng Ge looked up and met Zhou Mingqi's gaze.

"Your Majesty," he said, his voice hoarse but clear, "I'd like to go to the Hanlin Academy and take someone."

………

Zhou Ming was dragged out of the Hanlin Academy by two men grabbing him under the armpits.

His feet left the ground, his whole body dangling in midair, legs kicking wildly, but he couldn't break free no matter how hard he struggled.

The two men were tall and burly, carrying him like a chicken being carried to slaughter.

"A Ge! A Ge!"

He shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice cracking with tears.

"Don't do anything rash! Let's talk this out—!"

Cheng Ge didn't even look at him, turning and walking away.

The two men hauled Zhou Ming behind him, through the main street, through the alleyways, all the way to Prince Cui's residence.

Zhou Ming, dangling in midair, craned his neck to look back at Cheng Ge, his panic growing with every glance.

Cheng Ge didn't look back, just kept walking forward, his pace neither fast nor slow, as if he couldn't hear the commotion behind him at all.

The gates of Prince Cui's residence loomed closer, and Zhou Ming's voice grew more frantic.

"A Ge... A Ge, don't do this to me..."

"What the hell are you going to do?!"

Cheng Ge stepped up the stairs. The doorman, seeing him return with two men hauling someone behind him, froze for a moment before hurriedly opening the door.

Cheng Ge stepped through the doorway, and behind him came Zhou Ming's desperate shout: "A Ge—!!"

The gate slammed shut behind him, and Zhou Ming's feet finally hit the ground.

But before he could even breathe a sigh of relief, Cheng Ge grabbed the back of his collar and dragged him inside.

"A Ge! A Ge, take it easy! I'll walk! I'll walk on my own!"

Cheng Ge ignored him, dragging him into a room and shoving him aside.

Zhou Ming stumbled a few steps, banging into the edge of the table, hissing in pain.

Cheng Ge closed the door, dimming the room. Only a few slivers of sunlight slipped through the window cracks and fell to the floor.

Zhou Ming looked at him, a chill running down his spine. "A Ge... what are you planning to do?"

Cheng Ge walked up to him and stopped, his eyes boring into him like he was trying to see right through him.

"Where is Bai Yuxing?"

Zhou Ming blinked. "Who?"

Cheng Ge didn't repeat himself. He just stared at him, like he was staring at a corpse.

Cold sweat instantly broke out on Zhou Ming.

"I... I don't know..." His voice kept getting weaker. "A Ge, I really don't know..."

Cheng Ge stepped forward. Zhou Ming stepped back, his back slamming into the wall.

"A Ge, listen—" He threw his hands up, like he was surrendering.

"Even if you asked me a hundred times, I still wouldn't know! How the hell am I supposed to know?"

Cheng Ge cut him off, barking, "Then fucking think!"

Zhou Ming was about to cry. "A Ge! Even if you killed me, I still couldn't think of anything!"

Cheng Ge immediately turned to the door. "Guards."

The door opened, and two big, burly guards walked in. Zhou Ming's eyes went wide.

Cheng Ge looked at them, his tone as casual as if he were talking about the weather. "Castrate him."

Zhou Ming: "!!!"

His face went white in an instant, his legs nearly giving out as he almost dropped to his knees.

"Holy shit—!!!" His voice cracked. "How could you do this—!!!"

Cheng Ge's expression didn't change. Zhou Ming watched the two men close in on him, his whole body shaking like a leaf.

"Wait wait wait—!!!" He scrambled backward, pressing his back hard against the wall. "I'll think! I'll think, okay?!"

Cheng Ge raised a hand, and the two guards stopped. Zhou Ming gasped for air, his forehead slick with cold sweat.

He looked at Cheng Ge, at that face dripping with menace.

He finally realized Cheng Ge wasn't kidding—he would actually cut his balls off!

"Bai Yuxing..." His voice was still trembling. "Bai Yuxing... let me think... just let me think..."

Zhou Ming's brain was racing, but the more he panicked, the less he could think. His mind was completely blank.

"I... I can't think of anything..." His voice trembled, his heart sinking further into panic. "A Ge, I really can't think of anything..."

Cheng Ge didn't say a word. He just raised his hand.

The two guards immediately lunged forward, each grabbing one of Zhou Ming's shoulders.

"Stop! Stop—!!!"

Zhou Ming's eyes went wide as he struggled backward, but the two hands were like iron vises, pinning him in place.

One hand moved down and started undoing his belt. "Holy shit—!!!"

Zhou Ming's face went completely white, his voice cracking. "A Ge!! A Ge, you've lost your damn mind—!!!"

Cheng Ge didn't flinch. He just stood there, watching Zhou Ming, his face completely blank.

Zhou Ming felt a chill down below as one of them pressed a blade against him. The tip was ice-cold, the sensation so sharp it made every hair on his body stand up.

Zhou Ming froze, forgetting to even breathe. The blade tip pressed against his skin, moving slowly.

His mind went blank, leaving only one thought screaming through it: I'm done, I'm done, I'm so fucking done—

A faint sting came from down there.

Very light.

But enough to scare the living daylights out of him.

Just as he was bracing for the worst—

"I remember—!!!" Zhou Ming screamed until his throat gave out, his voice shrill and shaking.

The blade stopped. Cheng Ge raised his eyes.

Zhou Ming gasped for air, his whole body trembling, cold sweat streaming down his face.

He looked at Cheng Ge like a drowning man grabbing at his last lifeline.

"I... I remember now..." His voice was still shaking, shaking uncontrollably. "Bai Yuxing... Bai Yuxing he..."

The blade was still pressed there. He didn't dare keep talking, afraid of being too slow.

"Talk." Cheng Ge said, his voice hoarse.

Zhou Ming's Adam's apple bobbed. His voice still trembled. "He's... in a brothel... he might be in a brothel..."

Cheng Ge's eyes flickered. He rose abruptly, and the blade left Zhou Ming's body.

Zhou Ming went completely limp. If the guards weren't holding him up, he would've slid to the floor.

He gasped for air, his heart still pounding, the feel of the blade still lingering on his skin.

"I'm not sure either..." He quickly added, scared Cheng Ge might flip out again. "Really not sure..."

Cheng Ge's expression shifted, and Zhou Ming's heart nearly stopped in fear.

"No no no—!" He rushed to explain, talking a mile a minute. "You can't blame me for this! The book wasn't even finished when you found it!"

Zhou Ming swallowed hard and went on, "But I did write an outline...

There was a character with some seriously impressive medical skills... but I hadn't gotten around to naming him yet..."

Cheng Ge gave him a sidelong look. "How do you know he's at a brothel?"

Zhou Ming shrunk back. "Because this character... I gave him two big hobbies..."

His voice got quieter and quieter. "One was gossiping... and the other was wearing women's clothes..."

Cheng Ge: "..."

Zhou Ming quickly added, "So he likes to hang around brothels... disguised as a courtesan, collecting gossip..."

Cheng Ge's lips moved slightly, thinking to himself that no wonder so many people had spent so much effort searching without success—so this guy was a crossdresser.

Cheng Ge stared at him. "Which brothel exactly?"

Zhou Ming glanced at Cheng Ge, hesitating before speaking. "It's probably... probably the Cuiyun Tower."

Cheng Ge blinked. "Probably?"

"Because..." Zhou Ming's voice grew quieter. "In the outline... when you were sold to the brothel, you encountered him..."

Cheng Ge: "..."

Zhou Ming quickly added, "He's probably a regular there... goes all the time..."

Cuiyun Tower, at night.

The main hall was brightly lit, the sound of strings and flutes filling the air.

Guests sat in small groups, with their arms around the girls, drinking and laughing.

On the stage, a dancer swayed her hips, singing a little tune, a picture of pure indulgence.

Just then—"BANG—!"

The main door was kicked open, almost flying off its hinges.

Everyone turned to look.

Standing at the entrance was a woman—no, a woman of formidable build.

She wore coarse clothing, sleeves rolled up to her elbows, revealing arms thicker than most men's thighs.

In her hand, she held a gleaming butcher knife, water still dripping from the blade—whether it was rinse water or something else, nobody could tell.

Her gaze swept across the hall and finally landed on the stairway.

Upstairs, Ling Feng was stumbling down, his clothes slightly disheveled, clearly having just bolted out of some room.

"Ling—Feng—Feng—!!!"

Her voice was so loud that dust from the ceiling beams shook loose and drifted down.

Ling Feng's legs went weak, and he nearly tumbled down the stairs. He grabbed the railing to steady himself, his face as pale as paper.

"H-Honey... darling?"

The woman marched over, each step thudding heavily against the floorboards.

Guests scrambled to either side, afraid of being nicked by that butcher knife.

"There you are!" Wufeng grabbed Ling Feng by the collar and hoisted him up from the stairs.

"I slave away at home butchering pigs to scrape together money for your schooling, and you! You take my hard-earned meat money to come fool around here?!"

Ling Feng's face went white, and he frantically tried to pry her hands off. "Wife! Let's talk this over back home! Don't cause a scene here!"

"Make a scene?!" Wufeng's voice jumped another octave. "I'm making a scene?! You sneak around behind my back to cheat on me, and you say I'm making a scene?!"

The crowd gathered around, ready to watch the fireworks.

"Whose old lady is this?" someone muttered quietly.

"Didn't you hear? The butcher's missus!"

"No wonder this man's out sneaking around..." another whispered. "This wife's arms are thicker than my thighs—could you handle that?"

"Exactly. A man who frequents brothels likes a soft voice and a supple waist. This wife can't act cute to save her life."

"Shh—keep it down. That knife ain't no joke."

Wufeng threw Ling Feng to the ground, planted her hands on her hips, and shouted up the stairs, "Where's that hussy?! Come out!

Let me see which vixen has my man so bewitched he won't even come home!"

Everyone, upstairs and down, turned to look.

At the top of the stairs on the second floor, a willowy figure slowly descended.

The person wore a flowing rose-red gauze dress, but his waist was so thick it stretched the fabric taut.

He swayed with every step, each footstep making the floorboards creak.

A handkerchief was clutched in hand, half-covering the face, eyes darting seductively—the very picture of charm and seduction.

"It's your humble servant..."

The voice was as rough as sandpaper on stone, yet deliberately pitched high—sharp and grating, making everyone's skin crawl.

Everyone turned to stare.

The figure stepped under the light, lowered the handkerchief, revealing a face—

Thick brows, a square jaw, a chin with patchy stubble, tall and broad, standing there like an iron tower.

Everyone: "..."

The hall went dead silent for three seconds.

The man who had just said "soft voice and supple waist" had his mouth hanging open wide enough to catch flies.

Jiyue hid behind Ling Feng, tugging at his sleeve, voice as rough as a broken gong yet still trying to pitch it high. "Ling-ge... your poor little wife is so scared..."

Ling Feng's body stiffened, goosebumps spreading from the back of his neck down to his lower back.

Everyone: "..."

The knife in Wufeng's hand gave a little shake.

"So it's you," Wufeng raised the knife, pointing the blade straight at Jiyue. "You're the one who's stolen my husband away and kept him from coming home?"

Seeing this, Ling Feng immediately spread his arms wide, shielding Jiyue behind him. "Wife! Let's talk this out! Don't be rash!"

Jiyue stuck half his face out from over Ling Feng's shoulder, pressing the handkerchief to his mouth, blinking his eyes like a startled fawn—except this fawn was a bit hefty, hefty enough to take down a tiger.

"This humble one..." his voice was rough and trembling. "This humble one had no choice either..."