So these days, Bai Lu has been waiting anxiously for news. Since Bai Lin returned home from the palace, for some reason, Prime Minister Bai Weihai suddenly claimed to be ill and took leave, not showing up at court for several days.

Bai Lu was scared, fearing that if Bai Lin’s temper flared up, she might hit the old man.

So, anxiously waiting for five or six days, Bai Weihai finally appeared at court one morning.

Bai Lu specifically leaned against the door of the great hall, peering inside, using his eyes with a vision of 1.5, finally seeing that Bai Weihai was fine, his face not injured or swollen, only then did he relax a little.

As if nothing happened, after discussing state affairs with the courtiers, Chu Ya deliberately mentioned the matter of Bai Lu becoming the Empress.

He wanted to test how far Bai Lin had persuaded him. If Bai Weihai still fiercely opposed it, then he would have to use his own methods.

Unexpectedly, as soon as this was mentioned, Bai Weihai’s expression changed. His eyes showed a mix of emotions, his lips trembling. After a long silence, he sighed deeply, bowed to the Emperor, closed his eyes, and said, “It’s all up to Your Majesty’s decision.”

Why did the rigid and stubborn old man suddenly yield publicly? What secret means did his family’s precious daughter use? The reasons behind this bizarre event, was it the loss of morality or the distortion of humanity?

On this point, Chu Ya and Bai Lu had different views.

Chu Ya pondered, “Bai Weihai has always cherished his only daughter. Perhaps Auntie persuaded him and changed his mind.”

Sitting in a chair beside the dragon case, Bai Lu sweated profusely. “No, you don’t understand your mother-in-law. My mom would never reason with anyone. She must have taken advantage of the old man when nobody was looking!”

“…” Chu Ya didn’t comment on this. He felt Bai Lin was quite easygoing and treated him, her sudden son-in-law, well enough. She wouldn’t resort to violence, and moreover, Bai Weihai was just her nominal father.

Seemingly understanding Chu Ya’s thoughts, Bai Lu patted his shoulder, saying solemnly, “You don’t know the true face of my mom. She can do anything to ensure I marry a good man…”

Chu Ya: “?”

However, Bai Lu underestimated his mother’s methods and the extent of her rogue behavior. As the saying goes, if you have no shame, you are invincible. But Bai Lin wasn’t so crazy as to lay hands on an elderly person. She just employed some unsavory tactics.

Chu Ya sent Ling Feng to the Prime Minister’s residence to gather information, and soon discovered the truth.

It was said that since Miss Bai returned to the residence, she locked herself in her chamber, refusing to eat or drink, crying, making noise, and threatening to hang herself, demanding that Prime Minister agree to Emperor’s decision of crowning a male heir, or she would starve herself to death.

Of course, reliable sources revealed that during those days of fasting, Miss Bai was secretly provided food stolen from the kitchen by her personal maid.

But Bai Weihai was unaware that his precious daughter was fasting, which kept him busy and troubled. He quickly took sick leave, trying to persuade her at home. In the end, he had no choice but to agree to Bai Lin’s request and fulfill her wishes.

However, after Prime Minister relented, Bai Lin didn’t immediately enter the palace. She simply sent a maid over to convey a message, saying she wanted to stay in the Prime Minister’s residence and accompany him for a few days.

Bai Lu probably understood her intentions.

Actually, from the beginning, Bai Lin felt guilty about occupying the body of the Prime Minister’s daughter. Although Bai Lu advised her, saying she probably died of illness and she possessed her body, Bai Lin still felt uneasy.

So Bai Lin wanted to put on her daughter’s skin, accompany the Prime Minister, and enjoy the family happiness of having children.

Bai Lu didn’t urge her to return to the palace. He even secretly hoped she could stay a few more days at the Prime Minister’s residence, perhaps prompting the Prime Minister to remember his daughter was of marriageable age and hasten to arrange a marriage with a noble young man. Let her experience the feeling of being pressured to marry.

With the Prime Minister’s issue resolved, it was time to deal with another old minister.

That old minister was similar in age to Prime Minister Bai Weihai but was a military officer, titled as the General of Valiant Cavalry.

His reason for opposing the male heir was simple and crude: since ancient times, it has always been the rooster that crows in the morning and the hen that hatches the eggs. There has never been a hen crowing in the morning or a rooster hatching eggs.

Bai Lu listened and commented, “Your gender discrimination speech would be scolded for three days and three nights in modern times.”

The General of Valiant Cavalry was much more difficult to deal with than the Prime Minister. Bai Lu couldn’t beat him, and reasoning with him was futile. Moreover, he didn’t have the “family ties” like with the Prime Minister.

Unless Bai Lu could really give birth to a child, he couldn’t pass this barrier at all. So Bai Lu simply laid down his cards and completely left the difficult problem to Chu Ya to solve.

He estimated that even Chu Ya would need at least half a month to persuade the General of Valiant Cavalry. So he planned to enjoy his few days of unmarried life before the wedding, such as going out of the palace with Geng Qing.

But then, after three days, while Bai Lu was planning how to sneak into a brothel without being discovered by Chu Ya, Chu Ya brought back news: the General of Valiant Cavalry had also been persuaded.

Bai Lu was stunned. “How did this happen so quickly? Did you hit him?”

“…” Chu Ya looked at him helplessly. “Do you think everyone is like you, resorting to violence?”

Later, Chu Ya explained carefully to him, and Bai Lu finally understood. Chu Ya’s move was called “fighting fire with fire.”

It turned out that the General of Valiant Cavalry’s wife was a former servant. Many years ago, when the General of Valiant Cavalry was young and rebellious, he strongly resisted the arranged marriage arranged by his family, not only refusing to marry but also taking a servant girl from the household as his concubine.

Over time, what started as a rebellious act turned into genuine feelings for this lowly-born concubine.

Later, he fell seriously ill, and it was this servant girl who tirelessly took care of him, almost without sleeping at night. It was then that the General of Valiant Cavalry’s heart softened, and he promoted the servant girl to the position of his wife, and he never took any other concubines afterward.

Chu Ya seized this only soft spot of the General.

Although it was a bit unethical, it was well known that Chu Ya had never been ethical. He issued a decree in front of the civil and military officials, requiring the General of Valiant Cavalry to divorce his wife, on the grounds that the maid was of lowly birth and not a proper lady to match the great general.

The General of Valiant Cavalry panicked and pleaded that his faithful wife had been with him for decades, always behaving properly and never transgressing. How could he divorce her?

Chu Ya just smiled and said, “Since the General can intervene in my marriage matters, as the Emperor, I naturally have the right to be concerned about your family affairs. You say a man cannot become an Empress, then I say a maid cannot become a legal wife. What do you think?”

The General of Valiant Cavalry was defeated and didn’t dare to interfere with Chu Ya’s marriage matters anymore. Chu Ya also kindly revoked the decree afterward.

Bai Lu felt chills down his spine upon hearing this, unable to help rubbing his arms and muttering lowly, “You can’t provoke anyone, you’re too insidious. After we get married, you can’t deal with me like this!”

Chu Ya smiled and didn’t say anything.

Bai Lu became anxious. “Are you agreeing or not? Why do I feel like I’m not getting married but walking into a fire pit?”

Chu Ya kissed his face and vaguely replied, “Let’s see how you behave in the future.”

Bai Lu: “I’m getting more and more scared…”

The two most vehemently opposing old ministers in the court calmed down, and the other scattered voices of opposition soon disappeared. Chu Ya patiently waited for a few days and once again proposed making Bai Lu the Empress during the morning court, and no one dared to speak up anymore.

Chu Ya didn’t make them too sad either, promising that after marriage, he would select at least three young children from the imperial family with close blood relations under the age of five to be raised and educated in the palace, ensuring the continuity of the imperial lineage.

After making this promise, the mood of the courtiers improved somewhat, and their attention turned to the young princes and princesses of the imperial family, secretly considering who had better qualifications.

Proper rewards and punishments, this was a management method that Chu Ya had mastered since he was a teenager.

In short, Chu Ya swiftly cleared all obstacles and paved the way for Bai Lu, beginning to prepare for the series of procedures for appointing an Empress.

In ancient times, even marrying a wife required three letters and six gifts, matchmakers’ words, and it was very troublesome, not to mention becoming the Empress. Bai Lu found all these rituals exhausting, so he simply ignored them.

“Just let me know when it’s time for the wedding night.”

After saying this, Bai Lu left these matters behind and went to enjoy himself.

Chu Ya couldn’t help but smile wryly. This was marriage, not a job interview. How could the bride wait for a notification to return?

However, he also knew that Bai Lu was impatient with these formalities, so he didn’t force him to stay and observe these cumbersome formalities. Fortunately, Bai Lin was very enthusiastic and came over to help. After all, she was marrying off her son, and she was more concerned than anyone else.

When the first light snow fell from the sky, it was their wedding day.

Bai Lu couldn’t remember the specifics of that day anymore, how he entered through the noon gate, how he received the imperial edict, how he went to the ancestral temple to worship his ancestors, all these memories were blurred.

But one thing he remembered very clearly was that whenever he stood with Chu Ya, the other party would tightly hold his hand, as if fulfilling the promise of holding hands and growing old together.

The snow in the sky was also falling very beautifully, the thin snowflakes were crystal clear, like a gift from heaven to this wedding.

After completing the exhausting rituals, when there were only the two of them left in the bedroom at night, Bai Lu finally heaved a sigh of relief, took off the cumbersome ceremonial attire, and changed into loose and comfortable clothing.

He didn’t feel any fluctuations in his heart now. As long as he could be with Chu Ya, he didn’t really care about the title of Empress. But judging from Chu Ya’s appearance, he seemed quite happy, staring at him intently all the time.

Sitting at the table, untangling his hair in front of the mirror, Bai Lu suddenly remembered something distant and turned to look at Chu Ya. “Actually, I’ve always wanted to ask, how were you so sure that Lin Xiao’an was me when we first met? Just because of that song?”

Chu Ya shook his head slowly. “Not just because of that, but also because I knew you would come.”

Bai Lu was taken aback. “Why?”

Chu Ya smiled. “As it’s our wedding night, I’ll tell you a secret. Actually, in my previous life, before I died, I heard a voice.”

“A voice?”

“Yes, that voice asked me in my mind, if there were another life, what would you want to do?”

Bai Lu widened his eyes slightly. “That’s impossible, are you trying to fool me? How could there be such a magical thing?”

Chu Ya just smiled without answering. Bai Lu couldn’t tell if he was teasing him or if he had truly heard such a divine revelation before his death. Bai Lu hesitated and asked, “So what did you reply at the time?”

Chu Ya smiled and looked deeply into Bai Lu’s eyes, softly saying, “I gave a very despicable answer. I said I want to have you forever.”

Author’s Note:

Ended it in a rush because I’ve been really busy lately, and also, the outline was written a long time ago, so I couldn’t remember many details, making it very difficult to write…

Don’t need to shower me with praises for the ending, just don’t beat me up (laughs).

When I have some free time later, I plan to start a story similar to an infinite flow, as I am more suitable for writing modern stories. Ancient-style writing is too exhausting (sobs).

T/N:  Not me low-key thinking he’d answer something like wanting power to protect Bai Lu lol. Anyways, Our story ends but I have written some spicy spin-off of Chu Ya and Bai Lu, which I will link here once I complete it.

If a guard performed meritorious service, and the reward was directly to be made a certain high-ranking concubine, wouldn’t that be confusing? If meritorious service could lead to becoming a concubine, then the concubines in the palace wouldn’t need to compete for favor anymore. They might as well take up swords and go to the battlefield to gain merit and establish their careers.

Killing a hundred enemies earns the title of a concubine, killing a thousand earns the title of a noble concubine, killing ten thousand earns the title of Empress, guaranteeing the unification of the empire within three years.

Ironically, even though the Chu Dynasty wasn’t as oppressive or biased against women as in historical times, and marriage and marriage customs were relatively relaxed, being a feudal society, there was still some favoritism towards men over women. It was virtually impossible for women to go to war and achieve military merit.

However, when it came to the matter of appointing an Empress, it had become a requirement for it to be a woman, reversing the bias in favor of men.

When Chu Ya mentioned this matter during the morning court session, it immediately met with strong opposition from the courtiers.

Two highly respected old courtiers opposed it vehemently. In their eyes, appointing a male Empress not only violated customs but also went against morality, ignoring the norms and inviting divine punishment!

If it were just appointing a male consort, and His Majesty still favored other consorts and left descendants, it might have been acceptable. But considering the current situation, Chu Ya clearly intended to disband the harem after appointing an Empress.

How could a male Empress give birth to royal heirs? These two courtiers, who had been waiting anxiously for someone to give birth, finally had a wise and decisive monarch, and they didn’t want to see Chu Ya’s bloodline cut off in this generation.

These two eager-to-see-heirs old courtiers were not young anymore. Chu Ya originally intended to conceal this from Bai Lu and make a decision without consulting him, finding a reason to let them retire peacefully.

But after some thought, Bai Lu had become more astute now after experiencing many things. Though his intelligence hadn’t significantly improved, deceiving him would only lead to endless trouble. So Chu Ya decided to ask Bai Lu’s opinion first.

After pondering for a moment, Bai Lu asked, “Who are these two people? They must be important to the court. You can’t just dismiss them, you heartless boss.”

Chu Ya smiled helplessly, “It’s no coincidence. One of them is the current Prime Minister.”

“Prime Minister?”

Bai Lu didn’t react at first, but after a few seconds, he suddenly realized, “Wait a minute! Prime Minister? Isn’t that my mom’s current dad?”

The current Prime Minister, Bai Weihai, was sixty-eight years old. Bai Lin was his youngest daughter, with several older brothers. Being the youngest daughter, Bai Weihai doted on her excessively, treating her like the protagonist in a drama.

Bai Lu calculated their ages in his mind and couldn’t help but admire silently: Being able to father children at fifty, truly still vigorous in old age! The sword is still sharp even in old age!

But this situation was truly messed up. The generations were all mixed up. To summarize: My mom’s dad, who is also my maternal grandfather, is trying to prevent me from marrying my boss? It sounds like the plot of a fantasy drama.

Chu Ya tentatively asked, “So, what do you plan to do?”

He was very worried that Bai Lu might give up becoming his legitimate partner because of these obstacles, as Bai Lu didn’t seem to care much about these titles himself. He always felt that as long as they were together with open hearts, what did the rest matter? Titles were unnecessary, and he even found marriage troublesome.

But Chu Ya was different. His lifelong wish was to make Bai Lu his lawful lover, to stand shoulder to shoulder with him in a legitimate, indisputable identity, and he was willing to do whatever it took for that.

Bai Lu looked at Chu Ya and, as their eyes met, for once, he understood his intentions.

Bai Lu sighed softly and grasped Chu Ya’s hand with his palm. Though his hand was small, his fingers were delicate, and his palm couldn’t even fully envelop Chu Ya’s hand, the warmth transmitted between their skin was overwhelming, pulling one from the loneliness of deep autumn into springtime.

Chu Ya smiled, “Okay.”

With this smile, Bai Lu immediately locked onto it, unable to resist kissing him on the cheek in broad daylight, taking advantage of the moment, and then immediately sitting up straight again, solemnly saying, “I’ll try to handle the Prime Minister’s side. You just focus on dealing with the other one.”

Chu Ya hesitated slightly, “Can you handle it?”

Chu Ya loved him, but it didn’t stop him from doubting Bai Lu’s intelligence and abilities.

“I can’t.” Bai Lu said without hesitation, speaking frankly, “But my mom can.”

Chu Ya: “…”

When in doubt, call for mom. This was an eternal truth. Without delay, Bai Lu immediately went to the Lotus Pavilion to find his dear mother.

At this moment, Bai Lin was enjoying the autumn sunshine alone in the maple forest, leisurely eating grapes and admiring the red leaves.

She caught sight of Bai Lu and waved happily, calling him over, then took a plate of fresh, plump grapes and handed it to him.

Bai Lu waved it off, “Thanks, Mom, I’m not hungry.”

“I want you to peel them for me. I didn’t bring any maids with me today.”

Bai Lu: “Oh…”

He sat on the stone bench opposite Bai Lin, wiped his fingers with a handkerchief, and began to peel the grapes for her. As he peeled, he cautiously said, “Mom, I want to discuss something with you.”

“Hmm? What’s the matter?”

“Well, there hasn’t been anything major recently, so I and Chu Ya are planning to get married…”

“Oh, getting married…” Bai Lin’s hand, which was holding the grapes, suddenly stopped, her almond eyes widening instantly, her voice rising several degrees, “Married?!!”

Bai Lu rubbed his stinging ears and said, “Yes, he wants me to be the Empress.”

“Ah, this is a big happy event!”

Bai Lin’s face was covered with a thick layer of joy, and the smile in her eyes was about to overflow. She reached out and patted Bai Lu’s arm, urging him, “Indeed my son, you must hurry up and get things done, so you don’t have to worry about it anymore. How about you two go to the bridal chamber tonight!”

“No, it’s not…” Bai Lu hesitated, “We can’t get married yet because someone opposes it.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Bai Lin’s face suddenly changed from joyful to fierce. Her cheerful demeanor turned into a fierce one. She slammed the table and said angrily, “Who?! Who dares to obstruct my precious son from hooking up with a good man! I’ll smash their head!”

Bai Lu whispered, “It’s Dad.”

Bai Lin: “??? What are you talking about, silly child? Your grandpa has been dead for many years. Even if he knows from the underworld that his grandson is marrying a good man, he’ll be so happy he’ll jump out of his grave and toast with joy. How could he oppose it?”

Bai Lu explained helplessly, “It’s my current ‘grandpa’, the Prime Minister, Bai Weihai.”

As soon as he said this, Bai Lin understood, and her expression became somewhat troubled. “Even if he is my nominal father, how can I smash his head? Let me go back and talk to him, my dear.”

“… Mom, you’re a girl now. Can you stop thinking about smashing people’s heads all the time? If You are like this…”

 You won’t be able to get married in the future.

Bai Lu didn’t dare to say the second half of the sentence, fearing that if he did, he would be the one getting smashed. He sighed and reminded her, “Well, you must persuade him properly, talk to him with reason, and never resort to violence.”

Bai Lin patted her chest confidently, saying, “Don’t worry, Mom is best at reasoning.”

First, according to the previous plan, Chu Ya assigned Bai Lu an impressive identity as a trusted imperial spy. Then, he embellished Bai Lu’s foolish act of following enemy assassins into their hideout into a heroic story of “a brave imperial spy infiltrating the enemy’s lair alone, gathering vital intelligence, and ultimately aiding the military in successfully wiping out the bandits.”

Chu Ya revealed this information in the court, causing quite a stir. Bai Lu, unaware of this development, continued his routine of changing into guard attire and patrolling the palace every day.

As he entered a certain grand hall’s courtyard, Bai Lu noticed a few young eunuchs nearby, sweeping and watering the flowers. He approached to greet them, but as soon as they saw him, they became nervous.

Their expressions turned respectful, their bodies straightened, and they bowed deeply, addressing him as “Daren.”

“Daren?”

Bai Lu was surprised by this unprecedented form of address. In the past, he was always referred to as “Master Bai.” Occasionally, someone might address him as “Captain Bai,” which was already a mark of respect. How did “Daren” suddenly come about?

One of the young eunuchs, holding a broom, looked at him with admiration and asked, “Daren, is it true that you are His Majesty’s spy, who once infiltrated the bandits’ lair alone and brought back top-secret intelligence?”

Before Bai Lu could respond, an older eunuch beside him slapped the younger one’s head and reprimanded him, “How dare you question Daren Bai Lu’s abilities? His Majesty himself confirmed it in court!”

“Wait a minute…” Another young eunuch whispered, “I heard that Daren Bai Lu single-handedly stormed the enemy’s camp and captured the bandit leader.”

Yet another young eunuch raised his hands dramatically and declared, “No, no! You all heard wrong. It was Daren Bai Lu who single-handedly infiltrated the bandits’ lair, fighting seven times in and out, striking decisively, and annihilating hundreds of bandits!”

Bai Lu: “???”

How did these rumors spread, and why were they becoming more and more exaggerated? While it was true that he had some martial arts skills, he was neither a deity nor a legendary warrior like Lu Bu or Zhao Yun. Where did this talk of fighting seven times in and out come from?

Chu Ya, the mastermind behind these rumors, was sitting in his study correcting memorials, paying no attention to how Bai Lu was being glorified as a hero in the palace. In fact, he deliberately contributed to spreading these rumors.

Chu Ya hoped to portray Bai Lu as a powerful and meritorious figure, thus diverting attention away from his past as a songstress in the pleasure quarters and preventing people from gossiping behind his back, accusing him of using his charm to gain favor.

Though this might be seen as an abuse of power, Chu Ya didn’t see anything wrong with it. Since he had taken his duties as emperor seriously, he felt obligated to protect Bai Lu using the power he wielded, shielding him from any harm.

As Chu Ya was thinking about Bai Lu, he looked up and saw him entering the study, dressed in a black guard uniform, gracefully parting the beaded curtains with one hand.

Chu Ya put down his brush and smiled, “You’re back early today. Feeling tired?”

Bai Lu didn’t feel out of place at all. He casually sat in a corner of the spacious dragon desk, picked up Chu Ya’s tea cup, took a few sips, and cleared his throat.

There was a plate of snacks next to the tea pot, divided into four compartments containing preserved fruits, dried nuts, pastries, and soft candies.

Chu Ya didn’t like these sweet snacks himself and hadn’t touched them at all. However, he always made sure they were available in case Bai Lu came to visit him in the study and wanted something to munch on.

Sure enough, Bai Lu picked up an almond pastry and popped it into his mouth, chewed a few times, swallowed, then took a sip of tea, smacked his lips, somewhat dissatisfied.

Chu Ya chuckled, “You just had a snack and some tea, so the bitterness from the tea might linger. How about eating some fruit to freshen your palate?”

“Maybe later. I have something to ask you. Have you heard about the strange rumors circulating in the palace recently?”

Chu Ya pretended not to know, “What rumors?”

“Don’t pretend. You spread them during the court session, remember?”

Chu Ya remembered that he had indeed discussed this plan with Bai Lu before, so he quickly changed his tune, “Right, it was me. But it’s all for the sake of ensuring your smooth ascension to Empress. How have the rumors spread?”

Bai Lu snorted, “They’re making me out to be a deity now.”

Chu Ya tried to console him, “Isn’t that a good thing? With a greater reputation, people will respect and fear you more, and you’ll hear fewer idle gossip.”

“But it shouldn’t be exaggerated to this extent. It makes me feel uneasy. What if someone I provoke challenges me to a duel?”

Bai Lu paused for a moment, then continued, “Of course, I’m not afraid. Even in my past life, I could handle five opponents at once. But look at my small arms and legs now. Compared to ordinary people, I might be able to hold my own in a fight, but against trained fighters, I’ll be like a lamb to the slaughter.”

Lin Xiao’an’s delicate and graceful figure and charming face were the envy of women and the object of men’s pity. Admired as a top courtesan at the Moon Pavilion, Bai Lu was utterly disgusted. His slender arms and legs were useless for any heavy lifting or physical exertion.

Bai Lu dreamed day and night of regaining his six-pack abs, hoping they would return to him soon.

He had indeed tried to change, even setting up a daily exercise routine. But Lin Xiao’an’s body… how should he put it? It was like that of a natural songstress, no matter how hard Bai Lu trained, no matter how diligent he was, he just couldn’t gain muscle. At most, he became a bit stronger and more robust, no longer as frail as before.

No one even noticed these slight changes in his body. The only praise he received for his efforts was when Chu Ya said his backside felt good recently, very elastic.

At that time, Bai Lu immediately kicked him away, proving with force that not only were his back elastic, but his leg muscles were also strong and resilient, and his temper was fierce.

Awakening from his reminiscence, Bai Lu worriedly pinched his own arm and sighed, “How can a man’s arms be so thin? If I lose in a fight and end up injured and bleeding, it’s not a big deal, but losing face is.”

Chu Ya reached out and patted his hand, reassuring him, “Don’t worry, I won’t let anyone have the chance to provoke you.”

This problem could be easily solved. Whoever wanted to challenge Bai Lu would first have to pass Chu Ya’s test. After dealing with them until they were half-dead, Chu Ya would then hand them over to Bai Lu. Surely, they wouldn’t be a problem then?

Chu Ya was extremely pleased with his brilliant idea.

Chu Ya gently interrupted him, “A-Bai, you didn’t mishear. I did say that just now.”

“But, but…” Bai Lu became increasingly confused, “Why would the Emperor establish such a bandit organization? Isn’t he the Emperor?”

Chu Ya smiled and patiently explained bit by bit, “Have you ever heard people say that His Majesty is a very unpredictable person?”

Bai Lu hesitated for a moment, “It seems like I’ve heard people talking behind his back, but they seemed to be referring to His Majesty before?”

“Yes, that’s because before I crossed over, this Emperor did indeed have two completely opposite personalities residing within him.”

Chu Ya looked at Bai Lu, hinting, “Modern people should find it easy to understand what that means, right?”

Bai Lu pondered for a moment and suddenly realized, “Split personality?”

“Yes, the original Emperor was a typical case of dissociative identity disorder. His main personality was a virtuous and wise monarch, but his alternate personality was a malicious and malevolent individual.”

Such scholarly terms appearing in such an ancient atmosphere seemed very out of place and discordant. But just as ancient people could get cancer, it wasn’t impossible for an Emperor to have a split personality.

“But how did you know?” Bai Lu couldn’t understand, “When you crossed over, didn’t the Emperor’s original personality disappear? How would you know about his past?”

“Because I saw their ‘correspondence.'”

Chu Ya pulled open the bottom drawer and took out a half-meter-long box made of anti-corrosion wood. Opening the lid revealed neatly stacked thread-bound volumes, varying in age.

Judging by the extent of decay of these books, Bai Lu estimated that even the newest one had a history of three years, and the one on top seemed to be from a much earlier time, perhaps about ten years old?

Bai Lu carefully opened the cover of one of these books and saw that the first page only had three words written on it:

Who are you?

Bai Lu stared at this sentence in confusion. Who was asking this question? Who was being asked? Why was it written in the book? Was it meant for someone to see?

He flipped to the second page, where someone had answered the question from the previous page, and the handwriting was completely different. The strokes on the first page were neat and regular, while the handwriting on the second page was wild and unrestrained, the strokes appearing particularly bold.

The second page read: Who are you again?

Chu Ya explained from the side, “This is when the Emperor, at the age of fifteen or sixteen, first became aware of the existence of his alter ego within his body and began to communicate with it through messages.”

“I speculate that perhaps the Emperor grew up in an overly repressive and harsh environment. He lived a life of strict adherence to rules and regulations, seeking liberation subconsciously, which led to the emergence of a second personality that was reckless and defiant.”

Chu Ya picked up a notebook and continued, “From these conversations, the two personalities of the Emperor get along harmoniously. During the day, the main personality governs the body, diligently handling state affairs, while at night, the alter ego takes over, indulging in pleasure in the harem.”

“But gradually, the alter ego became increasingly dissatisfied with seeking excitement through women alone. This personality was a troublemaker who thrived on chaos, so he began to cultivate his own followers and secretly left the palace at night. It was probably around this time that he established the Sky-Wolf Sect.”

“Of course, the existence of the Sky-Wolf Sect was soon discovered by the main personality, but since they shared the same body, neither could do anything about the other. The main personality had to compromise, only leaving reminders in the messages…”

Chu Ya flipped to one of the pages and pointed to the words on it, “Let the alter ego conceal his appearance and voice, so as not to cause trouble for the Emperor.”

Bai Lu looked at the page in surprise. “This is too fantastical, unbelievable.”

Chu Ya smiled helplessly. He didn’t understand where Bai Lu’s unwarranted jealousy and hostility were coming from, but he didn’t pay much attention to it. He indulged him, looking at him gently and asking, “So, A-Bai, do you want to be the Empress now, or the Lady of the Manor?”

A single sentence left Bai Lu speechless, his ears turning red as if shrouded in a layer of heat. He kicked Chu Ya’s leg in embarrassment. “Stop talking nonsense. When did I agree to marry you?!”

“Hmm…” Chu Ya pondered for a moment, remembering their previous conversation. “Once in bed, you said you would.”

“…I said I would?! Are you kidding me? Even if I did, wasn’t that because you kept pestering me? You were forcing me into marriage!”

Feeling a bit guilty, Chu Ya gently coaxed him, “I’m sorry, A-Bai. Do you want to marry me now?”

Bai Lu raised his chin proudly. “Depends on my mood. When I’m in a good mood, I’ll marry you.”

Then, he added sternly, “But we need to establish some ground rules in advance. First, you can’t withhold my salary for any reason. If I feel unwell after doing it, it counts as a work injury, and you have to compensate me.”

Chu Ya agreed, “Okay.”

“Second, after we’re married, I won’t insist on calling you ‘husband,’ so you don’t have to care about what I call you. I’ll just call you by your name.”

“Okay.”

Bai Lu raised a third finger, “Third, and most importantly, during arguments after we’re married, we can use physical force, we can fight, but you have to let me use only one hand, and no weapons allowed!”

Chu Ya chuckled, “Even if we argue, I won’t harm you.”

Bai Lu looked at him coldly. “Do you not feel guilty saying that?”

“…,” Remembering past events, Chu Ya felt a little guilty for a moment, then quickly reassured him, “I won’t do it again in the future! Even if you really make a mistake, I will reason with you properly.”

Bai Lu nodded satisfactorily. “That’s acceptable.”

“But…” Chu Ya tentatively asked again, “Can I be a little rougher with you in bed? Just a little, within the realm of pleasure, and I won’t hurt you, I promise.”

Bai Lu: “??? Are you sick? Are you awakened to some weird fetish? Although people’s bed preferences are free, I suggest you go see a doctor and treat your brain!”

Chu Ya could only sadly put away those adult things, deciding to first win Bai Lu over. As for the set he had Shen Chuyun make, he would bring it out after they were married and everything was settled.

Author’s Note:
I’ve been so busy lately, so I have to switch to updating every two days. By the way, I’ll take this opportunity to catch up on the overdue side story.

He was still wearing the revealing attire he had put on to sleep, but Chu Ya draped a small woolen cloak over him to ward off the chill of the autumn night breeze.

Bai Lu stood by the screen in the study, watching as Chu Ya manipulated a landscape painting by a famous artist, then suddenly heard a low, rumbling sound of heavy objects moving nearby, accompanied by some fine dust rising into the air.

Following the sound, Bai Lu saw a hidden door appear on the left wall, about one and a half times the height of a person and wide enough for one person to enter. The inside of the door was dark, making it hard to see clearly.

Bai Lu was dumbfounded. Despite having rummaged through the study so many times before, he hadn’t discovered this hidden door. How many mechanisms were installed in this study? With so many secret chambers accessible to outsiders, wasn’t this a paradise for extramarital affairs?

Bai Lu couldn’t help but comment, “Do you spend your free time playing escape rooms here?”

Chu Ya smiled, “After all, this stuff is important. It needs a safe place to be stored.”

He then walked towards the hidden door and disappeared inside.

Bai Lu quickly followed suit, only to realize with dismay that he didn’t need to duck to enter the door due to his height…

The secret chamber was very dark, with Bai Lu unable to see his hand in front of his face. Chu Ya lit a candle in the corner with a tinderbox, allowing Bai Lu to see the interior clearly.

The chamber wasn’t large, but it was more than enough to accommodate the nearby Emperor. However, it was clearly not a rendezvous hideout for affairs, but rather a secret vault where Chu Ya stored important items.

Bai Lu saw that each of the three walls was lined with bright lacquered cabinets, stacked neatly with piles of documents. Some of the pages had turned yellow and brittle, and with a slight flick of Bai Lu’s finger, they crumbled into bits and floated in the air along with the dust.

Chu Ya warned, “Don’t touch them randomly.”

Bai Lu thought these documents must be state secrets that outsiders couldn’t see, so he obediently withdrew his hand.

Chu Ya continued, “These things haven’t been cleaned for years and have accumulated a lot of dust. You just took a bath, don’t get your hands dirty.”

Bai Lu: “…”

He casually flipped through some of these old items, “What do you want to show me? Just these old books that are probably older than me?”

“Not those, it’s this.”

Chu Ya opened a drawer below and took something out from inside.

Bai Lu took a closer look and saw that it was a completely black mask, carved with the simple and concise outline of a demon.

This was clearly the mask Xuan Gui usually wore.

Bai Lu’s mind was not quite clear before going to bed, so he hadn’t connected the dots yet, and asked in a daze, “Did you catch Xuan Gui already?” Chu Ya ambiguously replied, “More or less.”

“Really, so fast?”

Feeling delighted at the news of his enemy’s capture, Bai Lu’s drowsiness vanished instantly, and he became alert. He hurriedly asked, “Where did you lock him up? Take me to see him quickly. I want to give this pervert a good scolding!”

Chu Ya carefully phrased his words in his mind before cautiously saying, “He’s right here in this secret chamber.”

“Right here?”

Bai Lu looked puzzled. He glanced around, realizing it was just a small room of about ten square meters, where you could see everything at a glance. The three walls were all cabinets, and one wall had the hidden door and a candle embedded in it, with no place to hide anyone.

Bai Lu stared at Chu Ya with annoyance, “Are you kidding me? There’s no one here. Could it be that Xuan Gui is really a ghost that only I can see?”

“He is indeed here.” Chu Ya closed his eyes, prepared to face the consequences, and said in a low voice, “It’s me.”

Bai Lu was momentarily dumbfounded, “Huh? Huh? Huh?!”

Bai Lu widened his eyes in disbelief, raising his voice, “It’s you?! You’re Xuan Gui?! You’re Xuan Gui?!”

Chu Ya nodded, “Yes, it’s me.”

Bai Lu was completely stunned. It felt like his brain had turned into a bowl of mush, his thoughts in disarray. Then, he suddenly realized a very serious matter.

He, Bai Lu, a young man of integrity, kindness, and enthusiasm, had scolded Chu Ya in front of Xuan Gui, and scolded Xuan Gui in front of Chu Ya. And it turned out they were the same person. He had cursed at him twice in different roles? Bai Lu’s face turned pale. No wonder Xuan Gui seemed somewhat angry when he cursed at Chu Ya earlier, and Chu Ya wasn’t too happy when he cursed at Xuan Gui…

Now Bai Lu just wanted to say one thing to Chu Ya: Thank you for not killing me, my dear husband!

Chu Ya cautiously gauged Bai Lu’s expression and tentatively asked, “You’re not angry, are you?”

Bai Lu echoed, simultaneously asking, “You’re not angry, are you?”

Chu Ya: “??”

He couldn’t understand, “Why would I be angry?”

“Well…” Bai Lu awkwardly scratched his face with his finger, avoiding eye contact with Chu Ya.

“Well, when I was brought to the Sky-Wolf Sect, didn’t I say a lot of bad things about you? Later, in the bedroom, when Xuan Gui… you took out the knife and asked if I would kill you, I said I would…”

Hearing Bai Lu’s explanation, Chu Ya smiled relievedly, “So that’s what you were worried about. A-Bai, I was really happy to hear your answer at that time.”

“Huh?”

Bai Lu didn’t understand. Generally speaking, hearing hurtful words from one’s lover firsthand would not make one happy. Even if it was understood to be necessary, there would still be some lingering resentment.

Chu Ya took Bai Lu’s hand, gently rubbing his fingers, then leaned over to kiss his forehead, gently saying, “For me, I would only be angry if you surrendered yourself in the enemy camp. I’m glad to see you put your life first in a critical situation, rather than endangering yourself for those lofty but empty words.”

Bai Lu felt warm in his heart, awkwardly turning his head away and muttering softly, “Of course, I’m not stupid.”

Chu Ya couldn’t help but chuckle inwardly. He knew that the previous Bai Lu would never have said such contradictory words, as he had no worries or burdens back then and would never submit to anyone.

But now, Bai Lu was different. He cared about Chu Ya, made a pact to grow old together, and would definitely not break that promise.

Bai Lu withdrew his hand from Chu Ya’s palm, breaking free from the sticky atmosphere of intimacy. He returned to his initial question, “You said you’re Xuan Gui.

How did you become the head of the sect?”

“Oh, that.” Chu Ya casually explained, pointing to his chest with his index finger, “Because the Sky-Wolf  Sect was established by this Emperor himself.”

If you love what Abyss is doing, then consider showing your support by sponsoring a cup of ko-fi for them and get a special mention! 

After the candid conversation they had during dinner last time, theoretically, their relationship should have improved, even becoming inseparable. However, it wasn’t the case. Instead, things between Chu Ya and Bai Lu became a bit awkward.

Bai Lu probably felt embarrassed after impulsively expressing embarrassing affectionate words, fearing ridicule from the other party, so he preemptively ignored Chu Ya. As for Chu Ya, he was probably moved but didn’t know how to respond perfectly, so he remained silent.

They were like two people who had stripped away their pretenses, being honest with each other but also feeling extremely embarrassed.

Now, sitting together in the carriage on their way back, they awkwardly avoided each other’s gaze, the atmosphere uncomfortable and reserved, reminiscent of their first love, unable to relax around each other.

Even someone like Bai Lu, who had a carefree and unrestrained personality, was quite reserved in the first few weeks after confirming their relationship with Chu Ya, unlike now, where he would either scold or curse at Chu Ya.

Chu Ya, on the other hand, was even more reserved, behaving like a young lady. Unlike now, where he intentionally said suggestive words to seduce him, back then, Chu Ya even had to write a formal invitation to ask Bai Lu out for dinner, and it had to go through layers of approval. On the day of the date, he had to arrive an hour early and rehearse the date scenario in his mind five hundred times.

To freely push him down on the bed anytime, anywhere? To tease him until he cried during intimate moments? To use kinky props? The Chu Ya from a few years ago wouldn’t even dare to think about it. He would consider it good enough if Bai Lu didn’t have to fill out a “Post-Activity Comfort Experience Form” after getting out of bed.

The first time Chu Ya and Bai Lu slept together, he would get nervous and stop if he saw Bai Lu furrow his brows slightly, asking if he hurt him. Unlike now, where he acted like a beast.

In short, because of that heartfelt conversation, they fell into a kind of awkward atmosphere reminiscent of their first love. The carriage gently swayed, the crisp sound of horse hooves outside making the silence inside the carriage even more pronounced.

After a while, Chu Ya, feeling that as a man, he should take on the responsibility of breaking the deadlock, picked up the teapot beside him and gently asked, “A-Bai, are you thirsty?”

Bai Lu also wanted to ease the atmosphere, so he cautiously responded, “A bit…”

As he spoke, he held out his teacup, waiting for Chu Ya to pour tea for him.

Chu Ya lifted the teapot with one hand, tilted it slightly, and then… there was no water in the pot.

The atmosphere suddenly became so awkward that Bai Lu felt like he could dig a three-bedroom house with a living room on the floor with his toes and then hide in the gap.

In this situation, Chu Ya could only pretend to be calm, pouring out (air) tea without changing his expression, calmly putting down the teapot, and coughing lightly. “Sorry.”

Bai Lu: “Sorry for what?”

He casually threw the teacup aside, picked up a novel from the wooden tea table, and started reading.

In this era, due to the development of printing technology, literary works were abundant. People sought entertainment in times of peace and prosperity. So, there were various folk operas, picture books, novels, including martial arts novels that Bai Lu had read a dozen or so. Others included stories about gods and buddhas, love stories, detective stories, and so on. In short, there was a variety of literature, even including erotica, but they were strictly regulated by the government and circulated only underground.

Bai Lu used to enjoy reading these things to pass the time. However, this time, after reading two or three pages, he started feeling restless and kept glancing at Chu Ya, who was lost in thought.

After about five or six minutes, Chu Ya suddenly spoke up, abruptly asking, “Was what you said true that day?”

Bai Lu furrowed his brows slightly. “What?”

“You said you liked me no matter what I looked like?”

Bai Lu snapped the book shut, his face heating up. He denied vehemently, “I never said anything like that!”

As soon as he finished speaking, Chu Ya’s face suddenly turned sad, his eyes filled with desolation, as if melancholy background music played in the air.

Bai Lu’s small guilty conscience was instantly struck, feeling both guilty and annoyed. He grumbled impatiently, “Alright, alright, it’s almost the same anyway!”

Chu Ya’s heart suddenly warmed, melting the frozen snowfield. His eyes filled with a gentle smile as he softly said, “I feel the same. No matter what you become, I’ll still like you.”

Bai Lu glanced at him unfavorably. “Even when I fight back?”

Chu Ya paused for a moment, then cleverly responded, “Well, in that case, it’s every man for himself.”

Bai Lu kicked him with his foot from behind the small tea table. “You’re just taking advantage of the fact that I’m not in my prime now. If it were in my past life, I’d have the ability to handle you!”

Chu Ya indulgently chuckled. “So in this lifetime, you can only be bullied by others, right?”

Bai Lu was struck by the sensitive spot, feeling both embarrassed and angry. “I take back what I said earlier! I don’t like you looking like this at all, you jerk!”

By evening, they finally returned to the palace. Before dinner, Bai Lu went to Lotus Pavilion to greet Bai Lin and brought her some specialties. Bai Lin invited him to have dinner together, so Bai Lu stayed at Lotus Pavilion for another hour. By the time he returned to Bailu Palace, it was already dark, almost time to go to bed.

The maids had already tidied up the bedroom and left. Bai Lu stood by the wardrobe, changing his clothes, and casually asked, “Is there still no news from that side? When will they catch Xuan Gui?”

Chu Ya hesitated for a moment, seeming to be struggling with something internally. Then he seemed to have made up his mind and sighed softly, “Let’s wait until tomorrow. I’ll tell you the result tomorrow.”

“?” Bai Lu stared at him incredulously, “Tomorrow? How do you know there will be results tomorrow? Why don’t you tell me now?”

“It’s very late today. I’m afraid if I tell you now, you won’t be able to sleep, so let’s sleep first.”

“…” Bai Lu looked at him as if he were a fool, “Are you sick? You’re speaking half-heartedly, and now I definitely won’t be able to sleep!”

Not only would he not be able to sleep, but he also felt like beating Chu Ya to relieve his anger.

Chu Ya sighed, knowing that if he didn’t tell the truth today, Bai Lu wouldn’t let it go.

Even if he forced him to sleep by pressing him down on the bed, Bai Lu would still stare at him with those eyes until dawn, until he couldn’t bear it anymore and told him the truth.

Chu Ya had to compromise. “Alright, come with me, I’ll show you something.”

As drowsiness overwhelmed him, Bai Lu shifted to a more comfortable position by the edge of the pool, intending to rest for a while. However, as soon as he closed his eyes, he unexpectedly fell asleep.

When Chu Ya entered the bathhouse, he saw Bai Lu leaning against the edge of the pool, deeply asleep.

Chu Ya shook his head helplessly. “Isn’t he afraid of choking on water?”

He walked over to the pool, bent down, and gently lifted Bai Lu out of the lukewarm water. The hem of his robe unavoidably got wet, but Chu Ya didn’t mind. He grabbed a loose bathrobe and wrapped Bai Lu in it before taking him back to the bedroom.

Bai Lu, still half-asleep, felt the soft and comfortable bed beneath his back as he was placed on it. He immediately relaxed, his slightly furrowed brows smoothing out.

In his sleepy state, he blindly groped around and found a pillow to hug tightly, sighing contentedly.

Chu Ya couldn’t help but chuckle silently. Was Bai Lu awake or still asleep?

He removed Bai Lu’s bathrobe, pulled up the covers, and glanced at the sky outside the window. It was almost noon. When Bai Lu was supposed to bathe earlier, Chu Ya had him eat something simple first and had the army physician check his pulse and injuries.

Now there was no rush to wake him up for lunch, so Chu Ya decided to let him sleep until the afternoon, then have him wake up directly for dinner. Today was cool, and the game from yesterday was already prepared, so he planned to let Bai Lu enjoy a barbecue dinner, although it wasn’t the healthiest option, it was one of his favorites.

Chu Ya was now brainstorming ways to please Bai Lu while he slept.

Bai Lu’s abduction by the Sky-Wolf Sect had caught him off guard, and hearing about the deaths from Chen Hu had left Chu Ya at a loss. Bai Lu was angry, whether at his coldness or his concealment, it was difficult to handle.

Chu Ya had been the emperor for nearly three years and had never encountered such a difficult situation. He didn’t know where to start or what to do. It was truly worrying.

As Chu Ya had expected, Bai Lu slept until the afternoon.

He was indeed tired, having been shocked and frightened all night, mentally and physically exhausted. After a good night’s sleep, he felt relaxed all over, his mind much clearer, and his muscles still a bit soft from just waking up. So, he lazily lay in bed, not wanting to get up.

Bai Lu half-opened his eyes, intending to take a nap, but as he turned over, he saw Chu Ya standing silently at the bedside, staring at him like a ghost.

“?!?”

Bai Lu was startled and sat up abruptly, hitting his head on the wooden bedpost with a thud.

“Ouch…”

Rubbing his sore head, Bai Lu glared at Chu Ya resentfully. “What are you doing standing there? Don’t you know it’s frightening to stare at people like that?”

“I thought you were about to wake up, so I came over to check.” Chu Ya reached out and touched the back of Bai Lu’s head, relieved to find no bumps or wounds.

He handed Bai Lu a warm damp towel and gently said, “First, wash your face. Dinner is almost ready.”

Bai Lu raised an eyebrow suspiciously, but still took the towel and wiped his face. Indeed, he felt much more awake afterwards. He tossed the towel aside, pushed Chu Ya away, and got out of bed.

“Don’t bother with this act. Even if you try to please me, I won’t forgive you for a while.”

Chu Ya smiled and followed him, standing behind him and helping him straighten out his messy hair. “I don’t have any ulterior motives. I just want to be gentler with you after you’ve had a fright. It’ll make you feel better.”

“Whatever, I don’t know you that well.” Bai Lu rolled his eyes, “You’re just feeling guilty, that’s why you’re trying to please me.”

He knew Chu Ya too well. Although he was usually very good to him, whenever he showed excessive kindness like this, it meant he had done something wrong and was trying to cover it up.

Bai Lu immediately concluded that besides the eleven people who had died, Chu Ya was hiding something else from him.

Bai Lu looked at Chu Ya’s expression in the bronze mirror on the table, trying to find a clue from that handsome face, but Chu Ya remained calm. Apart from his overly gentle smile, there was nothing unusual about him. After staring at him for a while, Bai Lu almost got seduced by his beauty.

He quickly looked away, coughing awkwardly. “I’m hungry.”

Chu Ya handed him the clothes he needed to change into and helped him put them on. Then they went out together.

It was the most comfortable time of autumn, with clear skies, warm sun, and a gentle breeze. Bai Lu sat in the pavilion like a master, waiting for the chefs to bring him the grilled food.

Chu Ya sat opposite him, serving him a bowl of sweet lamb milk soup and a cup of refreshing jasmine tea.

Despite his attentive care, Bai Lu still didn’t pay much attention to him. Chu Ya thought for a moment and tentatively said, “When we return, I thought of taking this opportunity to make you a deep-cover spy, adding some military achievements to your name. Once you have accomplishments, I’ll promote you to a first-class guard.”

After saying this, Chu Ya carefully observed Bai Lu’s reaction. He was still nonchalantly eating, not even looking up.

Chu Ya pondered for a moment, then tried another approach. “Once your position rises, I’ll double your monthly stipend?”

“…,” Bai Lu still didn’t respond. He finished his food, took a sip of tea, then looked at Chu Ya with a steady gaze. “You’ve been trying to please me like this, but it’s meaningless. All I want is an apology from you. From yesterday until now, you haven’t even said sorry to me once.”

Chu Ya was taken aback for a moment, then quickly realized his mistake. He hurriedly said, “A-Bai, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to deceive you…”

Bai Lu raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t mean to?”

“Well, I intentionally hid it from you.”

Chu Ya looked into Bai Lu’s dark eyes and, for once, deeply reflected on himself. “Because I was afraid. I was afraid that you wouldn’t accept my dark side. I always wanted to present a perfect image of a lover to you, rather than a cruel, cold-hearted villain.”

He finally confessed his thoughts, feeling a mix of relief and anxiety as he waited for Bai Lu’s response.

After a long silence, Bai Lu reached out and touched the ring finger of Chu Ya’s left hand, where the wedding ring should have been.

“We’ve known each other for so many years?”

Chu Ya hesitated. “Almost five years.”

“I’ve known you for so long, and I’ve long known what kind of bastard you are. But I’m still willing to be with you. Do you know why?”

“Because you’re you.”

Even if he changed his appearance, his voice, his identity, he was still the same person. Bai Lu could love him decisively in this lifetime for one reason only: he was Chu Ya.

The carriage drove in smoothly. Bai Lu looked out of the window and saw Chu Ya and Ling Feng standing by the steps waiting for him from a distance. Before the carriage could stop, Bai Lu opened the door curtain and jumped out of the car, walking quickly towards Chu Ya.

Chu Ya tenderly stretched out her hand to him, wanting to hold him in his arms and comfort him. Unexpectedly, when Bai Lu came closer, Chu Ya could clearly see the menacing expression on his face. The next second, Bai Lu snapped open the door. Chu Ya’s caring hand grabbed his collar and walked inside, saying solemnly: “Come into the house with me. I have something to ask you.”

Chu Ya seemed a little confused, “What’s wrong, A-Bai, are you not injured? Are you angry because I didn’t go to save you personally?”

“Shut up and come in with me!”

Without looking back, Bai Lu walked in, and Chu Ya looked at the back of his swollen head, feeling uneasy.

Once inside, Bai Lu kicked the door closed, then grabbed Chu Ya’s collar and pinned him against the wall, tilting his head up and kissing him forcefully.

Chu Ya: “??”

Although he didn’t know the intention behind this kiss, he wouldn’t refuse such an opportunity. Chu Ya hugged Bai Lu’s waist, slightly lowered his head, and responded to his passionate kiss.

As their tongues intertwined and the ambiguous atmosphere filled the air, Chu Ya’s emotions surged. While kissing Bai Lu, he reached out to caress his back and was about to undo his belt.

Suddenly, Bai Lu opened his eyes, grabbed his arm, and said coldly, “Stop.”

After speaking, he pushed Chu Ya away and continued walking inside, sitting on a chair by the table.

Chu Ya felt somewhat wronged, “You embraced me as soon as you came back. Isn’t it because you want to be with me?”

“Cut it out! I kissed you just now to thank you for saving me.” Bai Lu pounded the table, motioning for Chu Ya to come over, “I’m here to question you now!”

Chu Ya had some bad guesses in his heart, but he didn’t want to surrender yet, so he had to pretend to be innocent and asked: “Questioning? What crime am I guilty of?”

“Stop pretending. I’ve already heard from Chen Hu that all his connections in the harem have been removed. Was it you who did it?”

Bai Lu thought for a moment, then suddenly realized something, “That epidemic? Could it be that all the people who died were…”

Chu Ya cursed Chen Hu in his heart for being too talkative and regretted not dealing with this trouble earlier.

He carefully explained: “A-Bai, those were all bad people. I was afraid you couldn’t bear it, so I didn’t tell you.”

Bai Lu glanced at him sharply, “Bad people? Among those who died, were any of them deceived into using Wushi Powder? Were any of them forced or threatened by others to assist in the trade?”

Chu Ya hesitated for a moment, “No…”

“Tell the truth!”

“Okay, a few, but not many, I promise!”

Bai Lu glared at him fiercely.

But emotionally and logically, he shouldn’t argue with Chu Ya over a few unrelated strangers. However, Bai Lu couldn’t swallow that anger in his heart. It seemed that Chu Ya never treated him as a partner who could work together. He always treated him like a useless child, keeping him in the dark, safe but closed like a greenhouse.

Could it be that just because he had a low status in life and a delicate appearance, he forgot that he was once an independent man?

Bai Lu didn’t want to argue with him, but today he didn’t want to deal with him either. He walked to the door, preparing to leave Chu Ya alone tonight. He was very angry now, the kind of anger that could make him dream of killing someone.

But Chu Ya would rather risk his life than sleep alone. He immediately caught up to him to intercept him. Coincidentally, two people came in from outside, dressed like soldiers. Bai Lu stopped and looked at them suspiciously, “Are you leading the troops to eliminate bandits tonight?”

The two men hurriedly replied, “Your Highness, we are just spies in the army, returning quickly to report on the situation.”

Bai Lu calculated the time in his mind, estimating that they attacked as soon as he left, so he asked again, “How did the fight go? Did you catch the leader?”

The two spies hesitated, as if they didn’t dare to casually reveal military secrets, so they looked at Chu Ya inside as if seeking permission.

Chu Ya nodded, “It’s okay, just tell me.”

“Yes, Your Majesty, the group of bandits did not expect our sudden attack and were caught off guard. We found a large amount of Wushi Powder raw materials and stolen gold and silver in the warehouse. There were old bones hidden in the wine barrels in the backyard, and several beautiful women were found in the secret room. According to them, they were forcibly abducted by the bandits, but we’re not sure if they can be believed. What are your orders, Your Majesty?”

The women in the bandits’ den claimed to be captured, which was not convincing. They might also be members of the Sky-Wolf Sect. Chu Ya always acted decisively and resolutely, preferring to kill by mistake than to let go. He was just about to order to eradicate them completely when he suddenly caught Bai Lu staring at him from the corner of his eye. He felt a sudden change in his heart and immediately changed his words:

“Investigate their backgrounds carefully, and make sure there are no mistakes before sending them back home. Find a place for the homeless to stay. If there is anything suspicious, report it.”

The spies nodded, “Understood.”

Bai Lu asked anxiously, “What about the leaders? Have they been caught?”

“Your Highness, the second leader Chen Hu and several of his henchmen were captured by our men, but the first leader is missing, and we are still tracing him.”

Letting the bandit leader escape was a serious dereliction of duty, and he should apologize on the spot. However, Chu Ya, who was always strict, didn’t seem to be very angry. He just lightly ordered, “Let the troops continue to search, and we must find the person.”

The two spies followed the order and left. Bai Lu curled his lips angrily, “You actually let that big pervert get away!”

Chu Ya gave him an especially dark look, “Pervert?”

“Yes!” Bai Lu immediately became indignant when he mentioned it, “That person is too much of a pervert! He locked me to the bed with iron chains and even touched me! Just like you, no, even worse than you!”

Chu Ya was hit with one accusation of being a pervert after another, his expression becoming increasingly dark and even a bit frightening.

Bai Lu shrank slightly and rubbed his arms, feeling the air around him turning cold. He muttered softly, “I want to take a bath. I need to scrub the places touched by perverts fifty times to disinfect them…”

Chu Ya: “……”

The author has something to say

I’ve been too busy recently, so I can only update two thousand words first, alas…

Bai Lu secretly tied a knot in his belt, gaining a thirty percent sense of security. Then he raised his head and smiled awkwardly, “Master, what’s good about a man’s body? No chest, no buttocks, widows are tasteless…”

Xuan Gui: “…bland and tasteless.”

“Oh, right, bland. So you shouldn’t look, I’ll tidy up right away.”

While Bai Lu was speaking, he grabbed his clothes and tried to hurry to put them on. But as soon as his hand lifted, Xuan Gui accurately grabbed his right wrist. Bai Lu subconsciously struggled and instinctively raised his foot to kick his lower abdomen.

Just as he kicked, Bai Lu suddenly realized his situation. If he resisted now, he might provoke Xuan Gui. His life would be in danger.

So Bai Lu quickly reduced his strength. The kick was intended to push him away, but it turned into a flirtatious move, rubbing against his waist. Extremely ambiguous.

Bai Lu cursed inwardly. What kind of drama was this of resisting but welcoming?

Sure enough, Xuan Gui chuckled lowly, pressed down on him, and pinned him to the bed with his wrist, “Are you trying to seduce me? I thought you were some virtuous woman.”

With that, he used his free hand to touch Bai Lu’s bare shoulder, his fingers sliding over his chest, even reaching into his clothes.

Bai Lu exploded in that moment. Although he didn’t have much sense of chastity, he definitely didn’t want to be taken by some unknown man. He pushed and shoved Xuan Gui’s sturdy chest without mincing words, “This, this, this isn’t right. I’ve been taken by that dog emperor several times, and it’s not clean anymore. Don’t be indiscriminate…”

His wrist was suddenly squeezed hard, causing pain. Bai Lu couldn’t help but groan, not knowing which words offended this unpredictable big boss again.

Bai Lu looked at Xuan Gui’s black evil mask and felt fear from the bottom of his heart. His wrist was held tightly, and he couldn’t break free. What if he really lost his virginity today? Chu Ya wouldn’t be happy if he found out…

At that moment, Bai Lu’s expression suddenly became uneasy, and his body trembled slightly. Xuan Gui looked at him steadily for a moment, then suddenly released his fingers, letting him go, stood up, and tidied his sleeves casually.

“It’s getting late. You stay in this room tonight. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

Xuan Gui turned around, and just when Bai Lu thought he was leaving, he suddenly heard the sound of metal clashing in his ear. He turned his head and his face changed drastically.

Xuan Gui pulled out a thick iron chain from somewhere and directly handcuffed Bai Lu’s left hand. After confirming that it was secure, he smiled, “Don’t think about escaping. Sleep well tonight. I’ll come find you tomorrow.”

Bai Lu felt uneasy. Who could have thought that this ordinary bed would have such a mechanism? He hurriedly forced a smile and tried to persuade, “Master, what are you doing? I belong to the Wolf Sect in life and death. How could I think of escaping? This is unnecessary. Please unlock it…”

“Do you think I can’t see through you?” Xuan Gui reached out and brushed Bai Lu’s hair, tucking the strands behind his ear before continuing, “You’ve already been tempted by the emperor, right, traitor?”

Bai Lu’s heart sank, his body stiffened, and his expression froze. By the time he reacted and wanted to explain again, Xuan Gui had already turned around, blown out the candle, and left the room, locking the door behind him.

Bai Lu listened to the sound of the door locking outside, his heart sinking to the bottom. He had thought of escaping while Xuan Gui was away, but with the chain and the locked door, how could he escape?

He tossed and turned on the bed, trying to break free from the iron chain, but all his efforts were in vain. In the end, he realized that the only way to escape was to hang himself with the iron chain and reunite with Chu Ya in the afterlife.

Finally, Bai Lu gave up struggling, lay down on the soft bed, and fell asleep deeply.

He didn’t know how long he had slept, maybe just half an hour. Suddenly, he was awakened by a faint sound in the darkness.

At first, he was half asleep and didn’t realize what the sound was. He just felt annoyed by the noise. After a few seconds, his consciousness cleared a little, and he vaguely recognized that it seemed to be calling his name.

“Bai Lu, Bai Lu…”

The voice was very familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere. Could this all be a dream, and he was still sleeping in the camp?

“Bai Lu… we’re here to rescue you!”

“?” Bai Lu suddenly woke up, sat up abruptly, his chest heaving heavily, staring nervously in the direction of the sound.

There were two blurry figures at the door, one thin and delicate, the other tall like a wall.

Bai Lu cautiously asked, “Geng Qing?”

The figure outside answered, “It’s me. Wait a moment, I’ll come in to save you.”

Bai Lu was about to say that the door was locked from the outside, but then he heard a crack, as if something had been forcibly pulled apart. Then Geng Qing slowly pushed open the door from the outside, sneakily sticking his head in, “Is there only you inside? No ambush?”

“…No.” Bai Lu looked incredulously at the head, “How did you unlock the door?”

Geng Qing smiled proudly, “I brought a lock-picking tool.”

“Lock-picking?” Bai Lu thought he had brought some amazing universal key, but the next moment he saw Geng Erhua revealing his majestic figure behind Bai Lu, grinning foolishly, his thick fingers still holding half of the iron chain.

Bai Lu: “Oh.”

Indeed, a simple and rude lock-picking tool.

Geng Qing brought Geng Erhua to the bedside. Bai Lu extended his left hand, shaking the chain on his wrist, “Deal with this.”

Erhua, the little comrade, was very efficient. Without a word, he reached out with both hands, grabbed the chain, and pulled it apart. The thick iron chain was easily torn apart by his fingers.

Bai Lu couldn’t help but envy. Look at those muscles and that strength. How many men dream of having them!

Geng Qing patted Erhua’s arm and said with satisfaction, “Well done, Erhua is amazing.”

Then he turned to Bai Lu and lowered his voice, “We need to leave quickly.”

Bai Lu quickly got off the bed and walked outside with them. He asked, “What about you two?”

“I’ll lead the way first and get you out of here. The soldiers will come in afterwards to attack the bandits.”

“I’m here to lead the charge. I’ll rescue you first, and then the officers and soldiers will attack later.”

Bai Lu stepped out of the threshold, and when he saw the intricate roads outside, he felt a little worried, “This place is like a maze, and the direction is difficult to distinguish. How do we escape?”

Geng Qing was very confident, “You have to worry too much. I had already figured out the shortest escape route when I came in.”

He stretched out his index finger and tapped his head, “Keep them all firmly in mind here.”

Bai Lu was shocked. He thought Geng Qing was just an ordinary little guard like him. Chu Ya had said before that he was a genius in arranging troops. Is that why he was so sensitive to the terrain?

Bai Lu himself was already at a loss in this deep courtyard. After entering the gate, he turned countless corners. Some of the courtyards were laid out exactly the same, like a ghost building a wall, so that he couldn’t even tell the direction now.

Geng Qing seemed to be familiar with the road and led Bai Lu towards a side door without hesitation. The route he chose was very good. He almost didn’t encounter any guards along the way. After walking for about a quarter of an hour, Bai Lu saw the outer wall of the house.

Geng Qing stood by the wall, stretched out his hand behind him and showed it: “Look, the secret escape route!”

Bai Lu looked down and saw that there was a large hole more than half a meter high in the corner of the wall. The soil next to it was still very wet. It must have been recently dug.

“Secret passage? This is just a dog cave, right?”

“Brother, at this time, don’t worry about these details.” Geng Qing pushed Bai Lu’s shoulder and urged: “Get in quickly, it will be terrible if you are discovered later.”

Bai Lu: “…You used the word ‘drill’ so fluently. Sure enough, you also think this is a dog hole, right?”

But now the dog’s life… no, human life is at stake, life-saving is important, no matter what the hole is, as long as you can escape, it is a good hole.

Bai Lu leaned down to get through, but suddenly looked back at Geng Erhua worriedly, “Can my little brother squeeze through?”

Geng Qing patted Geng Erhua’s arm and said briskly: “Don’t worry, there is absolutely no problem, because this hole was made by Erhua lying on the ground.”

Bai Lu: “???Awesome!”

The three of them crawled out of the dog hole one after another. Bai Lu stood up and patted the dirt on his body. He looked into the distance and saw the faint outline of a carriage under a big tree under the dim moonlight.

Geng Qing sent him to the car and said, “Hurry up and get in the car. The driver will take you back to His Majesty.”

Bai Lu raised his feet and stepped on the car stool, then turned around hesitantly and asked, “What about you two?”

“The suppression of the bandits will begin in two quarters of an hour. I have to report the status of the guards in the bandits’ den to the Commander.”

“Suppress the bandits?” Bai Lu subconsciously looked into the distance. Only then did he realize that there were silhouettes of people in the woods to the south. They were actually ambushing many soldiers. It seems that this time Chu Ya planned to take down the Sky Wolf Sect Sect once and for all. .

But there was one thing Bai Lu didn’t quite understand. How could Chu Ya find his whereabouts so quickly? Was it because of the undercover agent he mentioned before?

Just as Bai Lu was thinking about it, the coachman suddenly flicked his whip, and the two horses were so well-trained that they didn’t even bark, and started galloping with all four hooves.

Bai Lu sat in the slightly bumpy carriage and looked outside through the narrow window. It was dark in the woods to the south, and it was hard to see how many people were hiding.

He wanted to stay and help, but he felt that according to Chu Ya’s scheming mind, he should be well prepared, and staying by himself would only cause chaos.

The most important thing is that he wants to see Chu Ya as soon as possible.

For some reason, Bai Lu vaguely sensed a hint of killing intent and chill in the other party’s laughter, and couldn’t help but shiver, stuttering, “Uh… well, let me think.”

A few seconds later, Bai Lu began to embellish Chu Ya’s bad deeds.

“This guy is simply despicable. The first time we met, he insisted on dragging me to bed. I refused… of course, if sacrificing my beauty for the organization, I would be willing. It’s just that my brain didn’t catch up at the time, so I was very unwilling. But he still forced me. Isn’t that unreasonable? He’s simply a bully! A bandit! Oh, sorry, I forgot we are also bandits…”

Xuan Gui: “……”

Bai Lu heard a faintly grinding teeth behind the mask, continuing, “What else? What else did he do to you?”

“There’s more…”

Although Bai Lu had a low education, poor grades, and wasn’t very articulate, when it came to speaking ill of Chu Ya, he could talk non-stop for three days and nights without repeating himself.

“Let me tell you, Master, you don’t know, Chu Ya is mentally abnormal! Do you know what it means to be mentally abnormal? It means the brain isn’t the same as a normal person’s. Have you ever seen a normal person preparing a bunch of…?”

Bai Lu paused for a moment, feeling embarrassed to say the word ‘sex toys.’

“Also, he’s very picky and a bit of a clean freak. His study has to be cleaned every day, no speck of dust can be on the shelves. Once I accidentally spilled soup on his documents in the study, he scolded me!”

Xuan Gui: “The Emperor didn’t throw you out of the gate to be beheaded and quartered, which is already considered lenient.”

Beside him, Chen Hu became more and more uneasy. His voice suddenly raised, “Since you can freely enter and exit the Emperor’s study, how is it possible that you didn’t find any secrets? Were you lying just now?!”

Bai Lu was suddenly caught off guard by the question. He thought Chen Hu looked like a simple-minded person with well-developed limbs, but he turned out to be quite sharp.

Xuan Gui coldly said, “He is no longer your man, and you have no right to interrogate him anymore.”

Chen Hu protested, “But!”

He originally thought Lin Xiao’an was useless, so he readily handed him over to Xuan Gui. But from their conversation just now, it was possible that Lin Xiao’an had intentionally concealed something. Could it be that Xuan Gui had realized it from the beginning and demanded this person from him?

Seeing the doubt in Chen Hu’s heart, Xuan Gui asked with deep meaning, “Or does Second Master think it’s better for Lin Xiao’an to tell me the information he knows alone? Could it be that Second Master has some plan that he doesn’t want me to know?”

The two factions of the Sky Wolf Sect had always been at odds, but they had never openly discussed it. Xuan Gui’s pointed question was also a warning to him, so Chen Hu had no choice but to stop speaking, just glaring at the other party fiercely, wishing to tear him apart and feast on his flesh and blood.

Xuan Gui didn’t mind, standing up leisurely and smoothing out the wrinkles on his clothes with slender fingers before walking towards the door.

The people he brought with him followed closely behind. Bai Lu hesitated for a moment, feeling it was safer to follow Xuan Gui, so he quickly caught up with the tail of the group.

Just before stepping out of the door, he glanced back sneakily and saw that Chen Hu’s face had turned as purple as a pig’s liver, probably not pleased with the Second Master for a long time.

Bai Lu wasn’t pleased with him either. Who made him hit and kick him just now? Now his body still hurts.

Taking advantage of having a new “patron,” before closing the door, Bai Lu arrogantly raised his middle finger at him and cursed him silently in his heart before quickly leaving.

However, Chen Hu was stunned, quickly asking his subordinates, “What does this mean?”

His subordinates were also puzzled, stuttering for a long time before hesitantly saying, “Maybe… it’s some kind of signal? Could it be related to the information Lin Xiao’an found out?”

Chen Hu couldn’t just leave it at that, quickly calling for pen and paper. “Quickly, hurry up! Write down the signal just now, I need to analyze it carefully!”

“Yes!”

Meanwhile, Bai Lu, unaware of the “eternal mystery” he unintentionally left behind, walked along with Xuan Gui’s group deeper into the courtyard, looking around, hoping to find an opportunity to escape.

The internal routes of this mansion were complex, with one courtyard after another. It would probably be difficult to figure out the entire structure even if he stayed here for a month.

Bai Lu was clear about his own intelligence. He knew he probably couldn’t escape on his own. Did he have to wait helplessly for Chu Ya to come and rescue him?

Thinking about this, Bai Lu felt ashamed.

Originally, he was supposed to play the hero and save the beauty, but if he couldn’t save the beauty and ended up needing the beauty to save him, when he met Chu Ya later, who knew how he would mock him.

Lost in thought, Bai Lu didn’t notice that the people in front had stopped, and he continued walking forward, only to bump into Xuan Gui’s solid back.

Xuan Gui stood tall in front of a tall house door, turning around to look down at him.

With his mask on, Bai Lu couldn’t tell if he was angry or not, but for some reason, he felt a cold killing intent emanating from Xuan Gui, directed at him.

But he hadn’t done anything wrong. He just said a few bad things about Chu Ya to survive.

Xuan Gui instructed the people around him, “You all can leave first.”

Then he personally pushed open the door and turned to Bai Lu, “Come in.”

Bai Lu walked in cautiously. It wasn’t dark inside; the lights were on. Inside, there was a large bed, several bookshelves, a tea table, some hanging paintings, and not much else. It was a very ordinary room, not as terrifying as Bai Lu had imagined.

At that moment, the word ‘training’ popped out of Xuan Gui’s mouth, and a room full of torture instruments appeared in his mind.

Xuan Gui closed the door and they were the only two left in the room. The candlelight on the table was dancing brightly, and the candle in the corner exuded a faint fragrance.

When he was alone, Bai Lu felt the pressure from the other party. He couldn’t help but feel uneasy. He took two steps to the table, preparing to pick up the iron candlestick and hit him if Xuan Gui tried to harm him.

Who would have thought that Xuan Gui just sat at the table indifferently, picked up the teapot, poured himself a glass of water, and asked in a calm tone: “Listen to what you just said, do you hate the emperor?”

Bai Lu hesitated for a moment, “Yeah…yes.”

“Is that so?” Xuan Gui suddenly pulled out a dagger from his waist, placed it on the table without hesitation, and asked, “If you have the chance, will you kill him?”

of course not!

Bai Lu has never fallen in love with anyone in his life. Chu Ya is the only man he can risk his life to protect and is willing to live and die with him. Even if he says he hates him, he is suspicious of him in his heart and doubts his love for him. deception, but these are nothing more than that kind of love. It is impossible for Bai Lu to be an enemy of Chu Ya, even if he is a evil person.

But now if he speaks his mind, he may be killed by Xuan Gui as an alien. Bai Lu is not afraid of death, but he doesn’t want to die either. He has made an agreement to live to ninety-nine with Chu Ya.

So Bai Lu nodded against his will, “I will.”

The momentary surrender is for the sake of future reunion, and the words of surrender are not really what you want to do. You would rather die than surrender and commit suicide. In the end, the two of them are separated by Yin and Yang, which is a big fool.

Bai Lu thought with luck, fortunately Chu Ya was not here, if he heard it, their relationship would probably break down.

After hearing this answer, Xuan Gui chuckled, seemed very happy, and praised without meaning, “Well said.”

Bai Lu sneakily glanced at him, thinking that Xuan Gui seemed to really hate Chu Ya. Was he trying to form an alliance with him?

While he was guessing, Xuan Gui suddenly pointed to the bed inside and ordered, “Take off your clothes and sit on the bed.”

Bai Lu’s alarm bells went off in his head. He couldn’t believe this guy was asking him to do that. Did he think Bai Lu was that easy?

Seeing Bai Lu not moving, Xuan Gui urged, “What are you standing there for? Hurry up, I’ll apply medicine for you.”

“Apply medicine?”

“Yeah, didn’t you get kicked just now? Does it still hurt?”

Then Xuan Gui paused, his tone becoming playful, “What do you think I’m going to do?”

This tone sounded familiar. Bai Lu diverted his gaze, pretending to be calm. “Oh, I thought you wanted me to help you make the bed…”

He couldn’t quite figure out Xuan Gui’s intentions, so he stood still. “I have nothing to do. No need for medicine.”

Xuan Gui smiled, “Do you not want to undress in front of me? There’s medicinal wine in the cabinet by the bed. Apply it yourself behind the curtain. Don’t worry, I won’t peek.”

Bai Lu sincerely said, “Actually, I’ve always wanted to ask you if you can see through that mask. Don’t you bump into things in the dark?”

“… Go apply the medicine. Don’t make me say it a second time.”

Bai Lu hurried to obey, first pulling the curtain closed, then rummaging through the drawer at the bedside. He found a bottle of medicinal wine. Smelling it, it was indeed ordinary medicinal wine.

What’s this Eldest Master’s plan? Did he really want to recruit him?

Feeling proud, Bai Lu undressed while wagging his tail. Look at this, look at this, this is what it means to be recognized for one’s talent. He must be a rare talent to be considered by even the leader of the Sky Wolf Sect. It’s just that Chu Ya, that ignorant person, PUAing him all day long, saying his brain doesn’t work well.

Bai Lu took off his clothes and saw that the area on his waist where he had been kicked was already bruised. That surname Chen was really despicable, even his subordinates could be so ruthless!

He was very familiar with the use of medicinal wine. After all, he often got injured in his previous life, and he didn’t always have money to go to the hospital. He basically just bought a bottle of medicinal wine to rub on his wounds.

Bai Lu poured some medicinal wine into his hand, rubbed it to warm it up, and then slowly applied it to the bruise, rubbing hard to disperse the blood.

As he was doing this, the curtain suddenly lifted from the outside, and Xuan Gui stood by the bed, looking down at him with interest.

As for how Bai Lu could feel Xuan Gui’s interest through the mask, it was because Xuan Gui’s gaze was too obvious, directly falling on Bai Lu’s bare shoulders and chest without any disguise.

Bai Lu immediately grabbed his clothes and hastily covered himself, angrily asking, “What are you doing? Didn’t you say you wouldn’t peek?!”

Xuan Gui nodded, “Yes, so I’m watching openly.”