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Cui Buqu’s hands tensed in his sleeves as the carriage hit a bump on the road. On his wan face was a dim expression. With deeply furrowed brows he let out a long exhale. He was on his way to the Jiejian Bureau…again, for the second time today. As he got out of the carriage and made his way inside he could feel the weight of everyone’s gaze on him. Their hushed voices bounced off the walls with each step he took in the narrow corridor. A certain loudmouth’s face came to mind and Cui Buqu’s mouth twitched in a jeer. Heh. That boy should fear for his life as much as he fears for his salary getting deducted. I should have silenced him for good then and there! Just outside the Jiejian Bureau by a patch of flowers, Pei Jingzhe sneezed and had the ominous feeling that he should avoid going back to the bureau for the foreseeable future.
Cui Buqu steeled his expression and continued walking. He had come to the Jiejian Bureau looking for Feng Xiao, but earlier today his meeting hadn’t gone quite as planned. According to Ming Yue, Feng Xiao wouldn’t be back until later that day. Thankfully, Cui Buqu also had some business to attend to and could kill time while he waited for Feng Xiao to return. Personally coming to the Jiejian Bureau not once but twice in a day was beyond abnormal for Cui Buqu, especially since declining Feng’er’s many invitations and visits was a part of his normal routine. At first, he considered not coming at all, after all, every moment spent away from Feng’er was as precious as the jade of Heaven’s Lake itself; however, after carefully calculating all possible outcomes and weighing his choices he decided it was better to get this over with and just like bitter medicine drink it in one go. After all, at this point what did it matter when even the stray dogs on the streets probably heard the news.
The fewer people who know the better, he had initially thought this morning as he walked along the street casually glancing at the merchant stalls. The atmosphere was lively. The laughter of children filled the street and the warm, gentle breeze was tinged with the scent of lilies. But the noise was giving Cui Buqu a headache and the spices that wafted through the air from the food stalls mixed with that sickly sweet scent turned his stomach. The scent of lilies had also filled the air that night, but right now it was making him nauseous. He turned into the nearest alleyway fighting the urge to throw up.
“Commander! Is something wrong?” A familiar voice called out to him from behind.
Qiao Xian had been walking down the same street when she saw him. She had initially been conflicted on whether to greet him or leave so that he wouldn’t see her when she noticed that something was wrong with him. This time without hesitation she followed him and fearing that his old illness might have returned she immediately grabbed his wrist and checked his pulse. In his dizziness, Cui Buqu looked up from his hunched-over position and saw her face turn from green to white, and then to red.
“Th-his…this. Y-you,” she stuttered her eyes wide.
Aside from Cui Buqu himself, she was the most familiar with his health and knew from her initial observations that this wasn’t the same as in the past when his illness would flare up, but rather this was something she was familiar with from others, she just never imagined that her Commander Cui…She looked at him and he turned his head away. She took this as confirmation.
“WHERE IS HE! I’LL PLUCK EVERY LAST HAIR FROM HIS HEAD! HIS SCALP SHALL NEVER KNOW PEACE!”
Cui Buqu immediately grabbed her before she had any chance to cause trouble. Tasting a sourness in his mouth, he was unable to say anything for fear that something unpleasant might come out, so he shook his head instead.
“But, but Commander! How could he! He knows that you’ve only recently regained your strength and yet…that lecher!”
A slurry of colorful words soon spilled out from her delicate lips. Instead of stopping her, Cui Buqu let her vent her anger. He quite enjoyed listening to her drag Feng Xiao’s name through the mud. Feeling satisfied, he then calmed her down and assured her he’d take better care of himself. He knew Qiao Xian was only concerned about him and of all the people who could have found out, he was thankful that it had been her because she was a quiet girl who wouldn’t gossip. He didn’t feel particularly shy about this matter; Cui Buqu was just an aloof person, the less others knew about him the less they could use against him. Anyway, he thought as he walked to where he was meeting up with Zhangsun Bodhi and Guan Shanhai, at least she had been able to clear up any lingering doubts he had. This had been just a small hiccup in his day, the rest should go as planned, he just had to hand over the letter he had written for Feng Xiao and then be on his way. A letter personally delivered by him had less chance of being intercepted by anyone else and would assure him that Feng Xiao was the only one who would see it.
“…”
“…”
Guan Shanhai and Cui Buqu looked at each other, a blank expression painted on both their faces. In his hand was the letter that Cui Buqu had written for Feng Xiao. He had placed it in his sleeve but as he was exiting the carriage it must have slipped out and there it lay spread out on the floor as if inviting Guan Shanhai to peek. Even if he tried not to read it, those concise and blunt words that only took up a quarter of the page were hard to miss when he bent down to pick it up. He immediately diverted his gaze as he handed the letter back trying to play it off as though he hadn’t seen what was written, but it was no use once Zhangsun Bodhi came over and subconsciously glanced down at it as well.
“…”
The three of them stood frozen outside the Jiejian Bureau like stone statues.
“Uhh, you don’t want to be late for your meeting Commander Cui.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll wait right here for you.”
Stuffing the letter back into his sleeve he sighed, talking in person was best after all he thought. Regardless, it was only a matter of time before his subordinates would find out, he reasoned. As soon as he got back to the Zuoyue Bureau he’d clear up this matter. It was just a minor inconvenience after all.
It was quiet inside Feng Xiao’s quarters. He had initially thought no one was here but then he saw the silhouette behind the large screen in the middle of the room and called out to him as he sat on the other side. Feng Xiao’s silhouette hesitated then nodded in response. Cui Buqu’s hands fidgeted with the teacup on the low table. For some reason, the other’s silence had made him a little nervous. The atmosphere felt strange and for the first time he felt himself getting cold feet. He couldn’t help rambling a bit as he watched Feng Xiao’s silhouette from the other side of the screen. Haaah. He gave himself a mocking smile, feeling like he was being ridiculous for beating around the bush. After a deep breath, he went for it.
“Feng’er, the truth is I came here because I’m”
*Caw Caw*
*Clatter*
The sound of things crashing to the ground rang out in the room as he saw the other scramble over from behind the screen.
“Commander Cui, you’re what!”
With his hands grasping at the side of the screen, mouth agape, and his eyes wide in shock, Pei Jingzhe’s he’d poked out from the other side. Surprised at the sudden turn of events, Cui Buqu clenched his chest and almost fell back. Pei Jingzhe immediately ran over trying to help him up.
“No, Commander Cui, I-I didn't mean to deceive you. I was hoping that if I stayed quiet you would soon leave and then nobody would know I was in here.”
His hands fumbled to hold up Cui Buqu as he stuttered out an excuse. Cui Buqu winced at Pei Jingzhe manhandling him and tried to push him away.
“Oh, no your stomach! Is your stomach alright!” He said anxiously as his hand tried to reach for Cui Buqu’s belly.
Cui Buqu felt his blood boil. The situation was like someone trying to pet a hissing cat.
“Get off of me!”
“Ahem…”
They both froze and turned in the direction of the noise. Ming Yue stood at the door with a stack of books in hand looking down at them. Cui Buqu was certain that he had heard everything but thankfully Ming Yue was tactful and didn’t bring it up. After ensuring that he would properly reprimand Pei Jingzhe he told Cui Buqu that Second Commander Feng had to step away for a moment and should be back in the afternoon.
And here he was back again. He had briefly considered coming back another day, but since he was already out he might as well do it today. He looked at the clouds that were beginning to darken as he thought about the events of today. Bad luck comes in threes, but he had never believed in that to begin with. The copper bell chimed on the veranda. Cui Buqu was lost in thought looking at the clouds. He felt like things would have been easier if it had been a one-night stand with a stranger. He let out a mocking laugh as he rubbed his temple.
The clouds had gathered like this on that night as well. It started raining as they stepped out of the banquet the Emperor held. Unable to make it far they took shelter at a nearby inn. Perhaps feeling pity for him Feng Xiao had sat next to him to pass him some qi. The saccharine scent of the lilies was overpowering. They both had had a little too much to drink, his eyes were bleary and his body felt hot. Enveloped in that sweetness he didn’t resist and instead sank in deeper.
*Cough*
He cleared his throat and tried not to think about that night anymore as a faint dusting of pink colored the tips of his ears. Suddenly his ears perked up as he heard the sounds of a huge commotion spilling over from the main courtyard.
“Qin Miaoyu, where are you? Hurry and grab these!”
Cui Buqu recognized Feng Xiao’s voice and upon entering the courtyard he couldn’t help but take a step back as a feather landed on his head. Various crates were scattered on the floor as members of the Jiejian Bureau tried to sort through them. He soon spotted Qin Miaoyu running around the courtyard with a chicken in arm as she frantically grabbed at the others that were flailing around in the pond. His eyes scanned the area again until he spotted Feng Xiao. He was a crane amongst the chickens. Feng Xiao was covering his nose and swatting away the feathers that were flying everywhere, a look of disgust on his face. Cui Buqu raised his arm and tried to get his attention but he was too busy instructing the others on what to do. Cui Buqu walked down the steps with some difficulty. The day had felt unusually long and he felt fatigue begin to wash over him. When he reached the last step Feng Xiao turned over and their eyes met. Amidst the clucking, they gazed at one another. Cui Buqu could feel his heart give a faint jump when Feng Xiao flashed him a smile but that beautiful face distorted once more when some bird droppings landed on the spot next to him.
“Qin Miaoyu!”
Cui Buqu didn’t know where to begin, the situation was less than ideal and he wanted them to talk in a quiet place, but he knew that Feng Xiao was needed here, so he motioned for them to move to a corner of the courtyard.
“Where do I put this crate?”
“Second Commander Feng the chickens are laying eggs what do I do?”
Every time Cui Buqu raised his voice to talk he was immediately interrupted by someone calling for Feng Xiao.
“Ququ what was it that you needed to tell me?” Feng Xiao finally directed his attention back to him.
Ok, I can do this, easy, the other three times were just practice, unplanned and unwanted practice.
“Do you remember that night, after the emperor’s banquet?”
Cui Buqu’s face was stern as he looked at Feng Xiao which made Feng Xiao want to tease him. He bent down and grabbed the bottom of Cui Buqu’s chin to look up at him. “A-Cui, did you like it so much that you wanted another taste,” he said in a low flirtatious voice, “and you came all the way here just to proposition me, how shameless.” He covered his face as though he was a shy maiden.
Cui Buqu felt his patience drain. “What I’m trying to say is that,”
“Second Commander!”
“Just set it aside, I’ll look over it in a bit.” Feng Xiao’s attention had once again drifted to the others.
“What I’ve been trying to tell you is,” Cui Buqu tried again.
“Where’s Pei Jingzhe?”
“Feng’er”
“That lazy boy! The moment there’s work to do he runs off!”
"Feng..."
“A-Cui, just hold on for a bit”
“Commander!”
“I’M PREGNANT”
The two’s voices overlapped. Feathers that had been flying everywhere just a moment ago lightly settled onto the floor as everything stilled. The reverberation caused ripples in the water as a hush fell onto the courtyard. Everyone’s attention turned over to them. All this excitement had truly exhausted Cui Buqu. He had meticulously planned how this would go, but one after the other things just hadn’t gone as planned and even now as he stood there with his hand smacked against his forehead he couldn’t tell if Feng Xiao had actually heard him or not.
Feng Xiao stared at him confused.“What did you just say?” He hesitantly asked.
With his last remaining strength, Cui Buqu turned around and began to walk away. This was too tiring, he had technically done what he needed to and now he should leave and never show his face here again. Yes, that was it, he thought as he quickened his pace. It wasn’t that he was embarrassed now that everyone knew that he had fooled around with Feng Xiao. His face was just heating up because he had been outside under the sun for too long.
“Wait, QuQu!”
He started sprinting as he heard Feng Xiao behind him.
“Did you say what I think you said? Say it one more time, I wasn’t paying attention. Please!”
“Forget it!” Cui Buqu spat out.
Outside the sun began to set as Guan Shanhai waited for Cui Buqu by the carriage. He tried not to think about the letter he saw earlier, it wasn’t any of his business. But still, the thought of him and Feng Xiao, doing that… Just then, the front gate burst open and a blushing Cui Buqu came storming out followed by an animated Feng Xiao.
“Tell me!”
“Let go!”
Guan Shanhai was at a loss, this was most likely a lovers' spat, should he look away, should he help his Commander? Feng Xiao clung to Cui Buqu as Cui Buqu swatted at him.
“My child has no other parent!” Cui Buqu pushed Feng Xiao’s face away.
“A-Cui, what do you mean! I’m right heeeere!”
This day had really been too tiring.