Work Text:
Esteemed Monarch Yan Suizhi is fond of continuously updating his royal edict denouncing all sorts of heinous behaviors from his extremely capable imperial concubine.
The fond helplessness that accompanies each look early in the morning as he flips a hand and burrows into the duvet, instead of joining a certain someone’s masochistic endeavor of sweating at the treadmills. The first-class sternness at which said concubine mercilessly feeds him tasteless gruel and ginseng the moment he catches a whiff of a common cold. The insistence that he take a break from reading anything case-related for at least one day every week.
There’s many more in his ever-growing list, that it’s triple the amount of cases that Nan Lu has attracted over the past six years. He’s about to jot another down to his list, but he’s stopped when Imperial Concubine Gu Yan reaches out to hold his hand and kiss his fingers. It’s a habit that has formed ever since they’ve gotten together, and it still hasn’t lost its electric quality.
“You should rest more.” Gu Yan adjusts the controls to a more comfortable mode, the hovercar shifting seamlessly to accommodate his adjustments. One of the new hybrid models established by George Manson’s new business, completely chopping himself away from the contorted roots of his family’s tree of businesses and going towards something that they haven’t yet corrupted. “And make sure to take the medicine prescribed by Doctor Lin.”
Only in respect to his status as a revered Dean does he resist the urge to stick his tongue out at these words. Gu Yan speaks from a perspective of care, however. Nan Lu has just finished a high-profile interstellar pirate case, immediately followed by a series of seminars held at Maze University. A trip to Yan Suizhi’s parents’ cemetery, before flying out to a once-abandoned planet that has been requisitioned to become a new interstellar hub.
Inside joke between the involved parties call it the “First Class Planet”. It’s meant to house an archive of all information and knowledge databases, a bid that more businesses and planets have been ascribing to recently. There are those not in favor, of course, wanting to hoard information and questioning the safety of having all these intel pooled in one place. But with so much technological advancements in recent years, security is also evolving to be the best it could ever be.
Gu Yan’s hacker friend has been coaxed into joining as part of the ‘defense’ instead of the one that cracks the security wall open. Several of their contacts and friends are also involved in this project. Joe is one of the biggest stakeholders—and as he has reminded everyone who’d care to listen; Ke Jin and Gu Yan—and with Ke Jin in better health, Joe has practically turned the planet into a big reunion event for all of his dearest friends.
Get-togethers planned by Joe are known for being comfortable, enjoyable, and very much spelling trouble for those picky with their food, but a glutton once they’ve established that they liked certain meals.
Impending danger to his stomach lining aside, one other thing greets them as soon as they step out of the space shuttle that brings them to the port.
Joe looks more wilted than the tragic state of plants that have receive Yan Suizhi’s botanical care. In the distance, it’s obvious that the party has already started, but this silly young master has gone on to receive them despite them not sending out word as to their exact arrival time. From the looks of things, it’s not out of prescience on Joe’s side; the droop on his shoulders speak of huddling in the port area to wait for them, while possibly reading scriptures meant for alien eyes.
“I need your help,” Joe says to the two of them, looking more downtrodden than a wet poodle. “I need a way to convince Ke Jin to not ask me to move out.”
Esteemed Monarch Yan looks at his husband with a look that asks, “How did you ever get a friend this foolish?”, to which his husband indifferently and wordlessly asks back with a, “How could I have ironed out this one into a wise piece of steel?”
Young Master Joe’s temperament has always been to speak his mind freely with those that he considers friends. As such, his thoughts are splayed out freely for them to witness; said thoughts are too blinding with their heavy stupidity, that Yan Suizhi couldn’t help but take a step back to disassociate himself with such a thing. Gu Yan is a much better friend to the hapless Joe, so he generously stays rooted on his spot, utterly speechless.
Joe’s already chatty on a normal day. His supply of words explodes fourfold whenever Ke Jin is involved, which means that he rambles on for several essays’ worth of explanations that would have been considered as force-feeding dog food to his listeners, if not for the fact that he’s utterly oblivious to it all. In fact, he’s so oblivious to the state of his relationship that he ends this audible essay with a, “Now that Ke Jin’s health is so much better, and his memory has more or less been patched up entirely, the excuse I gave him to squeeze into his home doesn’t hold. What if he asks me to move out? Especially now that he’s spending a lot more time with Zhao Zemu.”
Gu Yan is used to hearing nonsense. If there’s a universal ranking as to who has the biggest supply of superfluous bullshit, his husband would occupy the top ten spots by himself. That said, it still takes him several moments to compose himself amidst these attacks to his common sense.
Calmly, “Zhao Zemu’s establishing a new organization that focuses on providing affordable rehabilitation and psychological counselling.”
In the same way that George Manson has excised himself away from his family’s generations’ worth of businesses, Zhao Zemu has done the same. Starting fresh with an entirely new field, focused on giving back.
They’ve only seen Zhao Zemu once since after the end of his five-year incarceration. Trials and tribulations have a way of tempering a man—his eyes had been sharp and determined back then, that it’s not surprising he’s managed to overhaul everything in the span of a year.
“It’s a worthwhile endeavor,” Joe agrees, a proud tone towards the childhood friend that he’s starting to rediscover points of connections with. He just looks very unwilling that the point of connection seems to include Ke Jin recently. “I’m sure Ke Jin is proud of him and keen to help too.”
Esteemed Monarch Yan has endured drinking Doctor Lin’s medicine to prepare his stomach for a lot of merriment. He would usually tickle his sense of schadenfreude by idly watching such a strange performance, but he doesn’t want to let that medicine’s bitter taste go in vain. Therefore, he opens his mouth and lets out something that’s straightforward enough that it could directly pierce through the other’s brain fog.
“George Manson and Zhao Zemu have been together for years,” he drops the bombshell and scratches his husband’s palm using his pinky. “Young Master Joe, Ke Jin is one of my smartest students. Do you actually think that he’s silly enough to not understand your feelings for him?”
Absconding off with his imperial concubine, Yan Suizhi thinks that he could jot this down as one of his venerable deeds. He grins at his mint essence, “I saw you pout a little bit when I mentioned Ke Jin just now. Don’t worry, you are still my favorite mint essence amongst all my students.”
“I am not such a child to have such petty jealousy.”
“That you’re declaring it means that you’re actually jealous.”
A childish conversation truly unworthy of being held by two infamous First-Class Lawyers take place. Thankfully for the ears of the galaxy at large, the planet they’ve just landed on is still pretty empty, sparing them of eavesdroppers who might have dropped dead from shock at hearing their dialogue.
“I bet that Young Master Joe would make a fool of himself and announce a grand confession in the middle of dinner later,” Yan Suizhi licks his lips in anticipation of a nice show. “You can bet that he’d keep his cool and confess in private.”
Gu Yan doesn’t bother renegotiating the terms of the bet, and immediately delivers winnings to his husband’s mouth.
They take thirty minutes to reach the reception area, a place that would have been reached in five, if the bet payment didn’t take place.
Despite the good karma he must have farmed while helping out Young Master Joe’s love epiphany, it seems that this day is bound to be a day of dealing with fools. Joshua Dale delivers his head right to the chopping block, making a beeline for them before they could enter the hotel that Joe has reserved for their use.
“I need advice as to how to woo someone,” Joshua Dale asks this with the air of someone about to be given the death sentence.
There’s no question as to who he’s referring to. As a lawyer, Yan Suizhi’s memory is top-notch. Still, he nods perfunctorily and proves his excellent memory, “Ah. That brat that splashed water on my leg.”
Joshua’s face turns green, before his death-sentenced body stiffly turns to Gu Yan, “Forget I asked you.” He’s obviously besmirching Yan Suizhi in front of his loyal concubine, showing off the bravery of youth. “If I used your methods, I’d end up angering Chester to death, and then I’d be single for life.”
Eyebrows arched, “Have you forgotten that I’m married to Gu Yan?”
“It’s definitely Lawyer Gu who chased you,” is very decisive, so Yan Suizhi decisively whacks the brat’s arm in return.
With a shake of his head, he wags a finger at this non-believer. “I might as well as open up my court for all of my foolish retainers.”
He spends five minutes drilling imperial knowledge to this fool, upon which they’ve been fetched by Little Rosie who’s not so little anymore. Laura and Eunice are with her, pampering the young lady who has shown signs of being quite the genius during one of the cases that had tangentially touched the Cloud Herb Orphanage.
Satisfied with doing his part in imparting knowledge to the less fortunate, Yan Suizhi is in an excellent mood. He’s bursting with magnanimity, his words carrying a touch of softness, that directly frightens those around him.
“You’re about to send your ex-landlord to cardiac arrest,” Gu Yan tells him, pressing a raspberry to his mouth.
“Husband Gu, you are too childish for flaunting that title,” he replies after licking non-existent juice from the pads of the other’s fingers.
One of his passions include educating his darling students, and the fruit of his six years of teaching is that his mint essence has grown a layer of thick skin. It’s nothing like the impervious obliviousness of others, but it’s at least enough to make Gu Yan fool around with him in public. Of course, nothing that he ever teaches Gu Yan ends up being completely for his benefit, because he eventually has to push the mint leaves away so he can regain some dignity and not have shaking legs by the time they have to go on for some diving.
Imperial Concubine Gu is diligent in moving away to prepare their diving suits.
Yan Suizhi waits on his throne surrounded by various snacks to his liking. Such an assortment of food attracts all sorts of curious subjects. Once Rosie scampers off, Miss Fitz drops by and has no compunctions with using her polished claws to steal away several strawberries.
As a magnanimous monarch, Yan Suizhi simply waits for her to say her piece.
With a pained fake-sob, Fitz watches Gu Yan look over at their spot every-so-often, as if donating his gene segment has also evolved his lungs’ breathing requirement to both oxygen and Yan Suizhi’s presence.
“Dean Yan,” she implores, employing all of her unawarded best actress skills, so she can look pitiful instead of rosy and full, “I beg of you to please spare some luck towards poor single souls like me, I really couldn’t take it.”
“Was it not you who’s supposedly gone on a date with Hersey and made the poor man facepalm so much, that it’s rumored that to this day, there’s still a palm imprint on his forehead?”
She looks like she’s about to berate him for participating in gossip unkind to her image, but she seems to have remembered his identity. She raises a hand and solemnly declares, “I refuse to discuss such a thing without my lawyer present.”
Yan Guizhi gazes back and winks at Gu Yan, who’s now being drawn into a conversation with Adams and Salah Wu. “Your lawyer might not even be aware that he’d be representing you to ward off the charges.”
Gossiping about friends is part of the delights that he partakes whenever he has some time. It makes for excellent betting at the end of the day with Gu Yan, as they try to outdo each other on who can procure a more explosive news. Bens would probably choke on his coffee if he ever hears this part.
Fitz hurriedly waves her hands and immediately tosses her friend like he’s a piece of hot coal. “No, no, no, he’s your lawyer, Dean Yan!”
He nods, satisfied. With the grace of someone reading an imperial edict, “My mint essence might be especially fond of possessing a face with alarming signs of nerve insensitivity, but I assure you, Miss Fitz: he is the one who’s carrying this load of romance, and I’m just here to enjoy his efforts.”
If Mervyn White could hear this bunch of nonsense, he’d probably spit out a mouthful of blood. Who was it that called him at odd hours of the day, prefaced with a solemn, “I need your assistance on an important matter”, only for it to be revealed to be a bald-faced lie? Especially since the next words are something to the effect of, “I’m unsure as to what kind of graphite should I use to fully draw the intricacy of my mint essence’s eyelashes. It’s a matter of planetary importance.”
Thankfully, his ex-landlord is merrily laughing along with retired Chief Justice Gu, all while pointing to where Doctor Lin is pulling Jack White’s hand to get him away from trying to perform an odd experiment on one of the food on the buffet table.
Fitz could only bravely take on this damage from the tidal wave of dog food, and slink away like a soldier that has experienced mortal injury.
When Gu Yan walks back to him, he hands him a drink, and a soft kiss to his cheekbone. Yan Suizhi updates him about the conversations that happened while they were separated for a grand total of fifteen minutes. He pats his mint essence’s excellent jawline and praises himself, “Just now, I did really well in complimenting you, so I require a full presentation, thirty minutes long, extolling my virtues.”
The kiss that follows is directly to his mouth, plugging the rest of his words.
In the distance, there’s Joe running towards where Ke Jin is chatting with George Manson and Zhao Zemu; his face looks red-hot, like steel being hammered, as he loudly proclaims how much he loves Ke Jin and hopes to continue their state of ‘having moved-in together’.
“You won the bet,” Gu Yan tells him, and kisses him again.
Above them, starlight starts to filter through the clouds, the universe just within their reach.
-
end