Chapter 11: This Lord Was Merely Playing Along with Him

Chapter 11: This Prince Is Merely Playing Along with Him

He had Yan Huaixuan take a seat, then walked behind him. Wrapping his fingers in his sleeve, he began to massage Yan Huaixuan's shoulders.

Unexpectedly, Yan Huaixuan's body was all hard muscle. The moment Shen Lian applied pressure, the already sore fingers shot through with searing pain.

He couldn't help but let out a stifled groan.

The next moment, his hand was caught by Yan Huaixuan. Shen Lian stumbled and fell into Yan Huaixuan's arms.

Startled, he scrambled to get up. "Forgive me, I'll get up now."

But the moment he put pressure on his fingers, the stabbing pain returned. Shen Lian tried to push himself up a few times, only to slip back down.

He was about to try again when Yan Huaixuan let out a low grunt.

"Don't move."

Only then did Shen Lian realize where his hand had landed.

He looked down and saw his hand pressed right against the man's long, shapely legs, at the...

Yan Huaixuan's brow furrowed too. He'd assumed Shen Lian was doing it on purpose again, but then his gaze met Shen Lian's swollen, crimson fingertips.

He paused, then hauled Shen Lian up by the collar.

"Stand properly."

Shen Lian instinctively straightened up and tried to withdraw his hand, but Yan Huaixuan caught his wrist and raised it.

"What happened to your hands? Did someone put you through finger-crushing torture?"

All ten fingers were red and swollen—looked just like they'd been tortured.

Shen Lian pursed his lips. "No."

"It's just... I fell."

For some reason, he'd always been able to act coy with Yan Huaixuan before, but now, he didn't want Yan Huaixuan to know his hands were wrecked from copying the *Book of Rites* for three straight days and nights.

Seeing how stubborn he was, Yan Huaixuan's gaze went cold. "You are deceiving This Prince."

Shen Lian paused. "Your Highness is overthinking things."

He tried to pull his hand back but couldn't budge it.

Shen Lian frowned and looked up, meeting Yan Huaixuan's cold eyes.

"Are you sulking?"

"Is it because I pushed you away that night?"

Truth was, Yan Huaixuan didn't know why he'd suddenly pushed Shen Lian away. He should've been playing along, but Ye Zhang's face had flashed through his mind.

He suddenly wondered—if Shen Lian kissed so casually, did he do the same with other men?

The thought that Shen Lian's gentle, obedient demeanor might have been shown to other men too.

A nameless emotion stirred in Yan Huaixuan's chest, but before he could catch it, it slipped away.

A flicker of confusion crossed Yan Huaixuan's clear, cold eyes.

Before he could ponder it further, Shen Lian interrupted, "How would this concubine dare be angry at Your Highness?"

Yan Huaixuan heard him say "this concubine" again—so cold and distant, nothing like A Lian.

"Then why were you up all night copying books?"

Shen Lian was taken aback. He turned and saw Yan Huaixuan holding the books he'd hidden under the table.

A thousand thoughts raced through Shen Lian's mind at once.

Yan Huaixuan was really losing it tonight, suddenly showing up to ask why he was copying books.

But Shen Lian quickly settled on the best answer.

Right in front of Yan Huaixuan, tears slowly welled up in Shen Lian's eyes. Full, glistening tears pooled perfectly at the rims without spilling, giving him a defiant look.

Yan Huaixuan was even more thrown. "I just asked a question. Why are you crying?"

Shen Lian paused, then said in a low voice, "I've never been liked since I was young, all because my mother was a courtesan who married into the household, and the principal wife looked down on me because of it."

"All of Father's other children could go to the clan school and make something of themselves."

"Only my mother and I were shut away in the most remote courtyard, raised like daughters. My mother... she came from a brothel, was abandoned by my father, and had a terrible temper. The courtyard was remote, and the servants only brought us one meal a day."

"I had to please my mother just to get a bite to eat."

The system said, "I didn't know about any of this? Didn't your mom pass away?"

Shen Lian looked away. "Made it up."

The system suddenly caught on: "Keep going."

Shen Lian tugged at the corner of his mouth, but fragments flashed through his mind.

"Dad, why won't you let me go to school?"

"Dad! Why do sis and bro get to go to school?"

"Because we're broke! You think my medical bills don't cost money? That bitch of a mother of yours ran off with some other guy. Damn it, if I'd known, I'd never have married her!"

"Dad, please, I can work and study at the same time."

Shen Lian had only been faking it at first, but now his throat genuinely tightened. His eyes went red, and he lowered his head, voice hoarse. "If I had the chance, who wouldn't want to study and make a life for themselves?"

Yan Huaixuan's brow furrowed slightly. He hadn't expected Shen Lian to have such a background.

A tear the size of a bean dropped onto his hand, burning his skin like a scald.

Shen Lian hastily wiped his tears away, but his voice was still hoarse. "I know that Your Highness, though you don't say it, actually despises me."

He suddenly bit his lip and looked at Yan Huaixuan timidly. "But I've been working hard to learn. Your Highness, can you give me a chance?"

Yan Huaixuan paused. He looked at Shen Lian's swollen, red eyes—eyes that should've been bright and beautiful, now wet and glistening, wary like a young animal.

As if the second Yan Huaixuan said no, Shen Lian would burst into tears again.

Most cultivators in the cultivation world would rather eat their own teeth than show weakness. He'd never met anyone like Shen Lian—full of schemes, yet able to cry so pitifully.

Yan Huaixuan, however, blurted out, "I don't dislike you."

Shen Lian was taken aback, his eyes widening in surprise. Just as he was about to break into a smile, he thought of something and asked cautiously, "You're not just saying that to make me feel better, are you, Your Highness?"

Yan Huaixuan replied coolly, "I'm not."

The moment he finished speaking, Shen Lian flung himself into his arms.

Yan Huaixuan's cold brows furrowed slightly. "Shen Lian!"

Shen Lian beat him to it, "How dare you!"

Yan Huaixuan: "..."

Yan Huaixuan: "You can't—"

Shen Lian: "Act out!"

Seeing Yan Huaixuan's less-than-pleased expression, Shen Lian let out a light laugh. "Your Highness always says the same two things every time. I've got them memorized."

Yan Huaixuan pushed him away, frowning. "Weren't you just crying your eyes out, begging me for a chance? And now look at you?"

Shen Lian put on an innocent face. "But since Your Highness doesn't mind me doing this, that must mean you like it."

Yan Huaixuan: "...Not disliking is not the same as liking. Don't put words in my mouth."

Shen Lian paid him no mind—he was the type to take an inch and run a mile. He raised his hand and held it up in front of Yan Huaixuan.

"I've been copying nonstop for three days and three nights. I'm so tired, and my hand is killing me," Shen Lian said, then added with a hint of grievance, "You noticed as soon as you walked in, didn't you? And you still made A Lian rub your shoulders on purpose."

"I thought Your Highness was a proper gentleman, but it turns out you've got your own tricks up your sleeve, just to mess with me."

Yan Huaixuan was rendered speechless. He'd said one thing, and Shen Lian came back with ten.

And his mood changed faster than the weather.

But—Yan Huaixuan looked at Shen Lian's dramatic act, so different from the sickly, lifeless state he'd been in before Yan Huaixuan came in.

For some reason, he felt a weight lift off his chest.

Shen Lian observed Yan Huaixuan's expression and added, "So now that I'm done copying, will Your Highness teach me to read?"

Yan Huaixuan gave a slight nod. "Very well."

This was, after all, what he had promised.

Shen Lian broke into a sweet smile. "Great."

Yan Huaixuan left him a jar of ointment and rose to leave. "Come find me tomorrow at the hour of Chen, dressed properly."

Shen Lian immediately nodded obediently.

Ling Yun was puzzled. "Master, why did you give him the ointment? Earlier, I even saw you use your spiritual power to treat his cold. He's not worth it."

Yan Huaixuan paused mid-step.

Before he could answer, Ling Yun looked at Shen Lian, who was still watching them from afar with joy written all over his face, and suddenly had a revelation, answering his own question.

"I understand now. Master is just playing along with him. With just a small show of kindness, Shen Lian took the bait. If he ever learns the truth later, his dao heart is bound to break."

Yan Huaixuan paused for a moment before letting out a quiet "Mm."