HMIME Chapter 48: Loving You Makes Me Feel Happy

Sometimes, Chu Ya’s sweet words were so overwhelming that it took Bai Lu, a grown man, several days to come back to his senses. He had lived for so long, and besides his mother, Chu Ya was the first person to love him so deeply, to the point of giving his whole heart.

This caught Bai Lu off guard. Every night, when it was quiet, he would ask himself three philosophical questions about love: Who am I? Do I love the person beside me? How much do I love them?

Although he did end up getting back together with Chu Ya mainly because Chu Ya’s teasing made him so uncomfortable that he couldn’t resist, this matter seemed to proceed too smoothly. It made Bai Lu feel a bit guilty. He even doubted whether his love for Chu Ya was as deep and genuine as Chu Ya’s love for him.

Bai Lu just felt comfortable being with Chu Ya and enjoyed their time together. But he felt like he hadn’t done anything substantial for Chu Ya, hadn’t really helped him.

In this relationship, he seemed to have never made an effort. He had always just passively accepted. Wasn’t this too cunning of him?

For once, Bai Lu couldn’t sleep. He tossed and turned in the spacious dragon bed, unable to fall asleep. Finally, he lay flat on his back, sighing softly as he looked at the golden canopy above, feeling a thousand worries in his heart.

Chu Ya, being sensitive to his voice, immediately woke up. Without opening his eyes, he reached out and habitually wrapped his arm around Bai Lu’s waist, pressing his fingers lightly, “What’s wrong? Is your back hurting? I’m sorry, did I overdo it before bed?”

“…” Bai Lu’s worries vanished. He pinched Chu Ya’s back in annoyance, “Can you stop worrying about my back all the time? I’m not that fragile. Just because I got intimate with a man once doesn’t mean my back hurts!”

Chu Ya opened his eyes, “So, your tears weren’t because of the pain, but because it felt too good?”

Bai Lu sat up abruptly, grabbed the nearby golden silk pillow, and viciously smashed it into Chu Ya’s face. “Today, I’ll play the role of an assassin and let us both perish together!”

Chu Ya laughed and moved the pillow away. He pulled Bai Lu into his arms and said, “This isn’t perishing together, it’s dying for love.”

“Get lost! Who wants to die for love with you? If you die, I’ll find someone else immediately, and I’ll even put a lucky charm on your grave!”

Chu Ya couldn’t help but chuckle, “You’re so heartless.”

“…” Bai Lu turned his head away, his expression complicated. He muttered softly, “You know you’re scared, that’s why you shouldn’t die before me…”

Chu Ya was momentarily stunned but quickly understood what Bai Lu was worried about. His gaze softened, and he leaned over to kiss Bai Lu’s forehead, whispering gently, “Don’t worry, I’ll stay with you until the end.”

He couldn’t leave before Bai Lu, leaving him alone in this lonely and dangerous world. For Chu Ya, that would be too cruel. He would rather wait until they were both old and gray before letting Bai Lu leave his embrace with peace of mind.

This was his promise, and Chu Ya’s promises were never unfulfilled.

Bai Lu understood his intentions. In the end, the one who loved each other to the very end would suffer the most. So, for Chu Ya to still be happy at the end of his life, willing to live a little longer than him, was something Bai Lu truly appreciated.

Reflecting on himself, Bai Lu realized that he couldn’t reach such a level. He couldn’t bear the thought of losing Chu Ya or endure such pain. So, he might really become a deserter in life, selfishly abandoning Chu Ya on the path of life and leaving first.

If love could be compared, Bai Lu had already lost just by this one point.

Bai Lu retreated into the blankets, cautiously lowering his voice as he asked, “Have you ever doubted me?”

“Hmm? Doubt what?”

“Doubt if I truly love you…” Bai Lu covered his face with the blanket, curled up into a ball, and muttered from under the covers, “Don’t you feel it’s unfair? I haven’t done anything for you, yet you’re so good to me. Don’t you feel like you’re at a disadvantage?”

Chu Ya didn’t expect Bai Lu to have such thoughts. In his memory, Bai Lu had always been carefree, easygoing, and rarely bothered with such trivial matters. So, to see him so anxious and insecure was unusual.

Should Chu Ya feel happy? After all, this confident Bai Lu was now as uneasy as a little girl because of his love.

But Chu Ya didn’t feel joy, he only felt heartache.

Chu Ya had no intention of letting Bai Lu feel pain or discomfort in this relationship. He just wanted Bai Lu to be happy and full of vitality every day.

If Bai Lu suffered because of his love, then things were out of balance.

Chu Ya also crawled into the blankets, wrapped Bai Lu in his arms, and gently stroked his back, comforting him, “You’ve got it all wrong, A-Bai. To me, loving you is already a very happy thing.”

“You think you’ve given less than me, but it’s not about counting. Equal give-and-take isn’t love; it’s a transaction. Have you ever seen any couple keeping track of their gains and losses?”

“I love you, so I don’t need your repayment. Or rather, having you by my side is the greatest reward.”

Chu Ya held Bai Lu’s hand in the darkness, squeezing his fingers. “Don’t worry, just relax and wait. I’ll make you the empress.”

Bai Lu’s face suddenly flushed, feeling hot and embarrassed. Fortunately, Chu Ya couldn’t see his face now. He instinctively leaned back and muttered in response, “I haven’t agreed to marry you yet. Have you… bought the ring?!”

“…What ring? This era doesn’t have rings.” Chu Ya knew he was just joking, so he laughed and continued, “How about I prepare a few boxes of betrothal gifts for you and send you a few houses? Then we can have the matchmaker come, and the bride’s family can welcome the groom?”

Bai Lu didn’t understand, “What matchmaker? What’s the process of marriage in this world?”

Chu Ya smiled, lifted the blanket to reveal his head, tucked Bai Lu in, and then gently patted his back, explaining the wedding ceremony to him.

His voice was calm and pleasant, intentionally kept soft. As Bai Lu listened, he became drowsy. Eventually, he fell asleep peacefully in Chu Ya’s arms.

With seven days left in the month, all eleven people involved in the Wushi powder incident were finally cleared, but the epidemic couldn’t stop yet. After all, this “disease” had suddenly appeared and had a strong momentum. If it suddenly disappeared when everyone was at a loss, it would be too abrupt and would raise suspicions.

So, Chu Ya instructed Si Zhu to create another poison, similar but not identical to the previous one. It would still cause dizziness and headaches within three days, and fever and coughing up blood within five days, but it wouldn’t be fatal. Plus, with the right combination of herbs, it could be cured.

Si Zhu spent a day poisoning six servants and then, with the help of a familiar imperial physician, distributed the antidote, claiming to have developed a miraculous cure for the epidemic just before the end of the month. With these six people cured, the “epidemic” ended perfectly.

No one suspected any conspiracy behind this. To outsiders, the deaths seemed unrelated, as if it were a sudden natural disaster that, though unfortunate, was timely controlled.

Bai Lu didn’t suspect anything either. He was so intoxicated by Chu Ya’s sweet words that he laughed secretly every day. How could he doubt Chu Ya again?

In fact, Bai Lu was falling into a trap. He thought Chu Ya was so gentle with him, so he should be gentle with everyone.

But in reality, that wasn’t the case. Chu Ya carefully hid his dark side from Bai Lu and drew him closer step by step.

As time passed, this small “epidemic” was gradually forgotten, like a corpse buried underground decomposing slowly and being forgotten by people.

The hottest days of summer had passed, and the sky gradually cleared up. The scorching heat in the air dissipated, and a refreshing autumn breeze brought a golden hue to the treetops.

Bai Lu’s long-awaited firearm production encountered a bottleneck. Some small parts were difficult to make, and the craftsmen said it wasn’t impossible to make them; they just needed time to figure it out.

After all, it was a dangerous weapon, and if it wasn’t made properly, there was a risk of a backfire.

Bai Lu, as a considerate employer, comforted them graciously, “It’s okay, take your time. Do you need a whole day? Is today enough?”

The craftsmen: …Why, won’t you live until tomorrow?

Of course, they only dared to think this in their hearts and never dared to say it out loud unless they found life boring and wanted to rush to the underworld to have tea with the King of Hell.

One of the leading craftsmen cautiously said, “Master, one day may not be enough. We need at least seven days.”

“One work.”

Two days.

The craftsmen attempted to negotiate, “…Five days?”

“Four days.”

The craftsmen were getting annoyed, “Four and a half days!”

The unscrupulous employer, Bai Lu, looked at the shiny knife in the craftsman’s hand and decided to step back, “Alright, deal. I’ll come to pick it up when it’s done.”

It turned out that human potential was infinite. Throughout history, humans had shown remarkable explosiveness in the face of death – ancient craftsmen made firearms in four days, while modern students solved a thousand questions overnight.

Bai Lu counted the days and finally came to pick up the goods. He finally saw the firearm he had dreamed of.

The gun was black and gold all over, about half a meter long, and exquisitely crafted. It could load two bullets at a time, and the compressed air from the explosion of gunpowder inside the closed chamber would fire the lead bullets, resulting in tremendous close-range lethality.

Bai Lu tested it at the shooting range. The gun had a significant recoil, causing his arms to go numb, and the gunshot was deafening, startling countless birds from the roof.

The lead bullets hit the wooden target several meters away, smashing it to pieces, with wood splinters flying everywhere.

Bai Lu exclaimed, “So cool!”

Geng Qing, who was watching on the side, was also amazed, “This thing is too powerful, even stronger than a heavy crossbow.”

Bai Lu proudly raised his chin and touched the smoking muzzle with his hand, “Of course, times have changed… Oh damn! It’s hot!”

Geng Qing: “…”