Chapter 5

His brows drew together tighter and tighter.

Fu Nangui asked in a low voice, “How is it?”

“This is a little complicated. I’ll speak with you privately.”

They sent me back out.

I stood outside the door for a while before I finally came to my senses.

Wait—was I actually ill?

If I was, they should tell me! Why tell Fu Nangui? Was he my father?

I’d meant to find Qingyun and ask him what was going on, but he’d disappeared at some point.

I had no choice but to seek out Fu Nangui.

He was wearing only his inner robe, leaning against the bed. His injuries had softened the sharpness of his face, leaving him even more handsome. For a moment, I stared at him, dazed.

I asked about my condition.

Fu Nangui replied, “Poor sleep and too many worries have caused delusions. It’s nothing serious.”

Oh, really? The evasive look on your face is practically spilling onto the floor.

The thought that I might have a serious illness kept me tossing and turning that night.

I woke in the middle of the night and saw that Fu Nangui was gone.

My sleepiness vanished at once. I got up and felt around the room.

I’d already searched it many times. This time, I was just bored. The shelves were full of military treatises and travelogues.

I casually pulled out a book. With a click, the bookcase slid slowly to one side, revealing an entrance to a secret chamber.

I knew it!

What powerful official wasn’t greedy for money?

Golden light glittered inside. I was certain it had to be full of gold and jewels.

I was about to go in when I heard footsteps outside the door. I hurriedly shut the secret entrance and climbed back onto the bed to pretend to sleep.

Before long, someone lay down beside me.

Looks like he hadn’t noticed anything.

I had just let out a sigh of relief when my ear suddenly warmed—Fu Nangui was leaning close.

His lips lingered by my ear for a few seconds, as if he were hesitating, before he gently kissed me.

The kiss was feather-light, like a fleeting dream that touched me and vanished.

If I hadn’t still been awake, I never would have known he’d secretly kissed me that night.

I don’t know how much time passed.

I opened my eyes in the dark.

I pulled the blanket over my face, with only one thought in my mind.

“Brother, when you come back, stay far away from Fu Nangui. Protect your backside…”

10

At first light, I decisively packed my things.

Seeing this, Fu Nangui asked coolly, “You’re leaving?”

“My health has recovered. It wouldn’t be right to keep imposing on the manor. Besides, the Censorate has a mountain of work waiting for me.”

That much wasn’t a lie.

My work had piled up over the past few days. I’d had to work overtime for three days straight to clear it.

In the end, another question occurred to me.

“Which is worse: being known to favor men, or being accused of embezzlement and accepting bribes?”

My colleague looked at me strangely.

“First, favoring men isn’t a crime. Second, while it isn’t a crime, the consequences could be far worse than embezzlement.”

It was true. If word spread that Fu Nangui liked men, the fact that no one would marry their daughter to him would be the least of his problems.

The civil and military officials would look down on him and mock him. Worse, when he went to war, his soldiers might no longer respect him, and his enemies might no longer fear him.

In this era, an unconventional sexual orientation was treated like a plague that everyone avoided.

For Fu Nangui—a decorated commander with power and status—the consequences were more terrifying than an accusation of greed.

With his achievements, if he’d pocketed some silver…

At worst, they would dock his salary. It wouldn’t threaten his position.

Even though Fu Nangui supposedly liked my brother, whenever I remembered how he’d held me while I pretended to be ill, or how he’d taken a blade for me in a moment of danger…

I couldn’t bring myself to ruin him.

The next day, I secretly went to the palace to report to the emperor.

“You’re saying your earlier report was wrong? The Regent doesn’t like men? He’s embezzled money?”

I nodded vigorously.

“Exactly! There’s a huge secret chamber in the Regent’s room! I suspect it’s full of money!”

The emperor gave me a dangerous look.

“You suspect?”

I shivered.

“No—Your Majesty, I’m certain. It’s full of money!”

“Good. Today, Lord Pei, you’ll lead the officials of the Censorate to the prince’s manor and seal that chamber!”

“Me? Today?”

“Of course. I’ve been studying the Art of Sovereignty for so long. Naturally, I know to strike first before the opportunity slips away.”

The young emperor looked thrilled.

I, on the other hand, went pale.

What would Fu Nangui think when he saw me later?

Anger? Heartbreak?

Just imagining his reaction made me feel as if my heart were being squeezed. I could hardly breathe.

But an imperial command could not be disobeyed.

When I led my Censorate colleagues, historians, and imperial guards to the Regent’s manor with the emperor’s decree, Fu Nangui was away.

I let out a quiet breath of relief.

Though I’d brought a whole crowd with me, the steward didn’t stop me when he saw me.

“Lord Pei is here. Please, come in.”

I was startled. “You’re not going to ask why I’m here?”

The steward answered respectfully, “The prince gave orders: whenever Lord Pei comes, no one is to ask questions. The entire manor is open to you. You may go wherever you please.”

Everyone turned to look at me.

I didn’t notice. My heart was full of guilt.

Being a traitor felt awful.

If the emperor hadn’t forced me, threatening my life and my family’s property, I’d have tried to bring Fu Nangui and my brother together after the way he’d treated me.

My colleagues kept urging me on, so I had no choice but to lead them to the secret chamber.

The mechanism was still in the same place.

The first to open the secret entrance, I stepped into a long corridor lit by dim candles.

A colleague walking beside me asked, “I heard the Regent favors men. You stayed at his manor for days—didn’t you notice?”

“No!”

I instinctively defended Fu Nangui’s reputation.

“How could the prince possibly like men? He’s straighter than anyone! If he liked men, then I would…”

Everyone around me suddenly stopped, staring at the sight before us in disbelief.