Chapter 470 Twin Branches

Chapter 470: Entwined Boughs

Yun Xunyu lay on the ground.

He had rolled off the daybed at some point, his body curled into a tight ball, lying twisted on his side amidst the broken porcelain shards.

His robes were disheveled, his collar gaping open, revealing large patches of fever-flushed skin.

His white hair spread across the floor, a few strands clinging to the sweat and blood on his face.

His fingers gripped a piece of broken porcelain on the ground, clenched so tightly that his palm was already cut open. Blood seeped through his fingers, mixing with the spilled tea on the floor.

His body was trembling.

Not a slight tremor—his whole body was convulsing, from his fingers to his toes, from his back to his chest.

The three young women huddled in the corner, clinging to each other, their faces white as sheets, their bodies trembling.

One of them had a torn sleeve; another's hair bun was half falling apart.

A third was clutching her wrist, a trace of blood seeping through her fingers—whether from a porcelain cut or something else, it was hard to tell.

"He... he suddenly... suddenly..." the oval-faced girl's voice shook so much she could barely speak, tears streaming down her face.

"We barely got close, and he fell off the daybed... and then... then this happened..."

The round-faced girl took over, her voice shaking too: "We really can't... we can't take this job..."

With that, she tugged at her companion's sleeve, and the three of them, holding onto each other, stumbled toward the door.

"Master, please find someone else... we... we're leaving..."

Before she even finished speaking, the three had run out.

Cheng Ge didn't stop them, didn't even glance their way.

From the moment he stepped through the door, his gaze was fixed on Yun Xunyu.

He crouched down. Yun Xunyu was lying on broken porcelain, several shards pointing upward, pressing into his back and arms and drawing blood.

Cheng Ge reached out to steady him, touching that burning skin—so hot it made his fingers recoil.

Yun Xunyu's eyes were still closed, but his brow was furrowed as if it might split apart, his lips opening and closing, opening and closing, his breath washing over Cheng Ge's face in scorching waves.

His fingers still gripped that piece of porcelain, clenched desperately, his palm already a bloody mess.

Cheng Ge pried his fingers open, one by one.

Yun Xunyu's fingers were stiff as iron pincers. Cheng Ge had to pull several times before they finally gave way, pulling the shard out and tossing it aside.

The porcelain piece was covered in blood, and Cheng Ge's hands were stained as well.

He lifted Yun Xunyu from the broken shards, gathering him into his arms.

Yun Xunyu's body twisted and struggled in his embrace, as if something were tearing him apart from the inside.

His back arched again and again, then fell. Each arch seemed to use every ounce of his strength; each fall seemed like something had slammed him hard to the ground.

"Qingqing..." The voice was squeezed from the depths of his chest, so low it was barely audible. "Qingqing..."

Cheng Ge's eyes immediately welled up.

He frantically wiped at the sweat and blood on Yun Xunyu's face, but the more he wiped, the more sweat and blood seemed to appear.

He held Yun Xunyu tighter, so tight it seemed he wanted to press him into his very being.

"I'm here... I'm right here... I've got you..."

Yun Xunyu's hand clutched at his sleeve, gripping so hard his knuckles went white.

His lips kept moving, over and over: "Qingqing... Qingqing..."

Cheng Ge lowered his head, burying his face in Yun Xunyu's hair.

That white hair brushed against his cheek, soaked through—he couldn't tell if it was sweat or tears.

His tears fell, vanishing into the white strands.

When the three young women ran out, the door had been left open. The night wind poured in from outside, making the curtain sway before it settled back down.

Cheng Ge heard people talking in the courtyard, their voices so low he couldn't make out the words.

He heard none of it.

He knelt on the ground, holding Yun Xunyu in his arms, feeling that body convulse and tremble in his embrace, as if it might come apart at any moment.

Yun Xunyu's face pressed against his chest, scorching breath against his robes, one breath after another, as if trying to burn straight through him.

Cheng Ge didn't move. He just held him, so tightly, as if to press him into his very bones.

Bai Yuxing's voice came from behind: "Master Cheng, this can't go on.

The gu poison has already reached the heart meridian. If we don't find a way to suppress it soon, he won't make it through the night."

Cheng Ge didn't turn around, just asked: "Is there another way?"

Bai Yuxing glanced at Yun Xunyu's condition and hesitated.

"There's no other way." His voice was low, so low it sounded like a sigh.

Cheng Ge remained kneeling, holding Yun Xunyu, not turning around.

His voice was hoarse, but each word was clear: "Leave. Close the door for me."

Bai Yuxing stood at the doorway, looking at that stiff, unyielding back.

He opened his mouth, as if to say something, then thought better of it. He turned and walked out, closing the door behind him.

The moment the door shut, the faces of the men in the courtyard all turned grim.

The courtyard was utterly quiet, save for the night wind passing through the corridor.

Bai Yuxing looked at one, then the other, the corner of his mouth twitching up slightly before he quickly suppressed it.

He sat down on the steps and pulled a handful of melon seeds from his sleeve.

He cracked one open, spitting the shell onto the ground with a faint, sharp crack.

Inside the room, Cheng Ge remained on his knees, holding Yun Xunyu in his arms.

Yun Xunyu was still trembling, the shivers seeping from the marrow of his bones, impossible to stop.

"Qingqing... Qingqing..."

Cheng Ge lowered his head, pressing his forehead against Yun Xunyu's. It was burning hot.

He pressed his lips to the corner of Yun Xunyu's eye, where a fine scratch marked the skin.

His lips traced down along that scratch, sliding over his cheekbone, across his cheek, to the corner of his mouth.

Yun Xunyu's lips were trembling, chapped skin scraping against his own lips—rough, scorching.

"It's me." His voice trembled as he pressed his lips to Yun Xunyu's, breathing the words into his mouth. "I'm here."

Yun Xunyu's body jolted suddenly, his fingers clenching more tightly.

Cheng Ge didn't pull away, but pressed his lips more firmly.

He felt Yun Xunyu's lips quivering beneath his, felt that scorching breath against his face.

Felt something flowing between them—warm and wet.

He pressed his hand to Yun Xunyu's chest.

That skin was burning, and beneath it something was beating—rapid, urgent, as if about to burst out.

He laid his palm there, feeling that something move, pulsing beneath his hand, alive.

His voice was soft, as if coaxing a child. "Your husband will help you."

That something beat faster still.

Yun Xunyu's body arched suddenly, a stifled grunt escaping his throat, shaking violently.

Cheng Ge held him down, palm pressed to his chest, feeling that something thrashing wildly beneath his hand, like a beast trapped in a cage.

He lowered his head, lips against Yun Xunyu's, inhaling that scorching breath into his own mouth.

Cheng Ge's hand moved from Yun Xunyu's heart, following the path of his veins, inch by inch.

The sensation was strange—something moving beneath the skin, warm, slick, with an indescribable itch.

Cheng Ge didn't move, only pressed his palm closer, as if guiding it, or welcoming it in.

Yun Xunyu's body began to tremble again, more violently than before.

His fingers clutched Cheng Ge's collar, nails nearly digging through the fabric into his flesh.

His lips parted and closed, over and over, exhaling scorching breath onto Cheng Ge's face.

That breath carried a strange sweetness, as if something were brewing within him.

"Qingqing... Qingqing... I can't..."

Yun Xunyu's eyes were still closed, but his brow furrowed deeper, as if enduring something, or refusing something.

His fingers released Cheng Ge's collar, moving to push against his chest—so lightly it felt like a caress.

Cheng Ge took his hand, pressing that burning palm against his own cheek.

"Why not?" His voice was soft, lips against Yun Xunyu's palm. "If I say it's fine, it's fine."

Cheng Ge laid him down flat on the couch. The bedding was already soaked through with sweat, clammy.

Yun Xunyu's white hair fanned out across the pillow, wet with sweat and blood, strands clinging to his pale cheeks.

His chest rose and fell violently, that flushed mark spreading from his heart to his collarbone, to his neck—as if something were burning inside him, pushing all his blood to the surface.

Cheng Ge reached up and undid his own collar. His robe fell to the floor with a soft sound.

He leaned down, drawing Yun Xunyu into his arms, pressing that burning face against his bare chest.

Yun Xunyu's breath hit his skin—scorching, rapid, like a blazing fire.

His hand slid from Cheng Ge's shoulder down to his waist, fingers curling as if grasping at something, or at nothing at all.

Cheng Ge lowered his head, lips against Yun Xunyu's ear. "Didn't you say... you wanted to be joined with me as one?"

Yun Xunyu's fingers tightened suddenly.

Cheng Ge felt those fingertips dig into the flesh of his waist, the pain made him suck in a sharp breath.

But he didn't pull away, only pressed his lips to the shell of Yun Xunyu's ear, repeating the words. "Joined as one."

His voice was so soft, as if reciting a line of poetry. "Didn't you say... you wanted to be joined with me as one?"

Yun Xunyu's eyes were still closed, but his lashes trembled violently, like butterfly wings fluttering in the wind.

His lips moved, as if saying something, or saying nothing at all.

Cheng Ge couldn't make it out, only catching a few broken breaths, forced from deep in his throat—hoarse, burning.

He lowered his head, forehead against Yun Xunyu's forehead.

That forehead was still hot, but no longer with that searing heat—now a warmth alive with life.

Yun Xunyu's breath hit his face, rapid, erratic, as if struggling against something, or craving something.

Yun Xunyu's hand shifted, sliding from Cheng Ge's waist up to his shoulder.

The force was so light, as if testing him. Cheng Ge didn't flinch, just watched him.

Yun Xunyu's fingers tightened slightly, drawing Cheng Ge toward him.

The pull was gentle, yet carried a stubbornness that wouldn't take no for an answer.

Cheng Ge leaned forward into the pull, their noses nearly touching.

Yun Xunyu's breath brushed his ear—scorching, rapid, carrying that indescribable sweetness.

"...Qingqing... joined as one..."

Cheng Ge's tears fell, landing on Yun Xunyu's face. He reached out, wrapping his arms around him, holding him back.

Yun Xunyu's arms wrapped around his waist, gripping tightly, as if afraid he might run.

His lips pressed against Cheng Ge's neck—that kiss was not a kiss, but a bite, a gnaw, a ripping born of despair and longing.

Cheng Ge felt Yun Xunyu's teeth sink into his flesh, the pain drawing a muffled grunt from him, but he didn't pull away.

"I'm here." His voice trembled. "I'm here, I'm right here."

Yun Xunyu pressed his lips against the teeth mark, rubbing gently, as if confirming something.

His hand slid up from Cheng Ge's waist, coming to rest on his back.

Cheng Ge laid him flat on the bed. The curtain slipped down from the edge, wrapping them in a dim, shifting light.

Yun Xunyu's white hair scattered across the pillow, soaked with sweat and blood, strands clinging to his pale cheeks one by one.

His lips parted slightly, and the breath he exhaled struck Cheng Ge's face, so hot it burned away all his reason.

"...Qing Qing... Qing Qing... mine..."

His hand threaded into Yun Xunyu's white hair. The strands were cool and silky, tangling around his fingers like a soft cloud.

Yun Xunyu's hand immediately clenched tight—deathly tight, like grabbing at a lifeline.

Cheng Ge closed his eyes, feeling the body against his, the heartbeat racing like it might burst.

His hand slid from Yun Xunyu's hair down to his shoulder, then his back, then his waist.

Yun Xunyu's lips moved from his, coming to rest by his ear.

Cheng Ge pried his fingers apart one by one, sliding his hand into his, interlacing their fingers together.

The curtain fell over them, shutting out all the light.

The curtain swayed gently over them, like wind-rippled water.

————

In the square before the hall, civil and military officials lined both sides, their robes and caps solemn and neat.

The early spring sun rose from the east, gilding the eaves of Fengtian Hall in a brilliant golden glow.

The ridge beasts perched on the upturned eaves, casting long shadows that fell across the white marble balustrades.

The balustrades were carved with cloud patterns, layer upon layer, spreading out from both sides of the marble ramp, stretching to the far end of the square.

The distant palace walls, crimson as blood, enclosed the entire imperial city within. The wall tops caught the sun, glowing a deep, somber red.

Wind blew in from the Meridian Gate, sweeping across the empty square, making the bronze bells at the hall's corners tinkle.

The crisp sound rang out, echoing between the walls—as if from far away, yet right at one's ear.

Cheng Ge stood below the danbi.

He wore the brand-new official robe, silver-thread embroidery at the cuffs, the collar sitting neatly against his neck.

The fabric draped over his shoulders, every seam hugging his frame perfectly.

The Ministry of Rites had sewn the robe overnight, and the fit was surprisingly exact—as if cut for his body.

His gaze climbed the danbi, over the nine steps, the dragon-carved imperial path, and the layered ranks of ceremonial guards.

Zhou Mingqi sat at the top of the steps.

He wore court robes of bright yellow, embroidered with five-clawed golden dragons. The tassels of his crown swayed in the sunlight.

The twelve strings of tassels hung down, hiding his brows and eyes, leaving only a composed jaw and thin-lipped mouth visible.

Behind him, the screen of mountains, rivers, sun, and moon gleamed, bathing the whole danbi in a thin golden haze.

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