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On the ox cart, Xie Lian asks the youth about Hua Cheng.
The way the youth moves seems… strange, to Xie Lian. Almost as if it hurts him to move. Xie Lian notices this, and files it away for later. Sometimes it hurts Xie Lian to move, and he prefers for people not to notice, or to pretend that they didn’t notice.
The conversation moves on. Xie Lian learns that Hua Cheng is allegedly blind in one eye.
"And he’s lazy," the youth continues. "He doesn’t move a muscle to fight, just uses his spiritual devices. He flies around on a throne."
"I’d like one of those thrones sometimes," Xie Lian comments. "Maybe he has bad luck and keeps getting painfully injured… What is it?"
The youth just shakes his head.
They talk for a long time. Xie Lian watches "San Lang" move, and grows more and more concerned. The poor boy’s movements are growing more and more sluggish, and Xie Lian even catches a hint of pain in his expression before he hides it. Of course, then they’re distracted by a group of ghosts, but by the time they escape, Xie Lian is convinced. It may not be his place, but he needs to step in.
He pretends to read San Lang’s palm. "You have a strong character," he starts, "extremely stubborn. Your future is bright and full of success, but you make things harder than they need to be. You should aspire to be lazier."
He looks up. "How’d I do, Hua Cheng?"
Hua Cheng laughs happily. "How’d you figure it out?"
"I’ll tell you if you stop hurting yourself," Xie Lian says sternly. "Where’s that throne?"
Hua Cheng looks caught out. "I’m fine," he mumbles.
"You are not!" Xie Lian scolds. "Believe me, I know what hidden pain looks like. I don’t know what you’re trying to do here, but you can do it after you rest. If I have to carry you into Puqi Shrine, I will."
Then he remembers himself. He’s scolding a Ghost King. Maybe he shouldn’t do that?
But Hua Cheng laughs. "Gege, would you really? What if I’m really heavy?"
"I’m really strong," Xie Lian counters. "I bet I could carry you for a week straight."
"Bet accepted," Hua Cheng says, looking surprised by his own words.
"Okay," Xie Lian says. "Wait! My bag of scraps. And the cart driver!"
The cart driver, rudely woken up, heads home. The bag of scraps floats into the shrine, carried by several silver butterflies. And then Xie Lian is standing there with a very content-looking Ghost King in his arms, feeling lost.
"So… what do you normally have people do," Xie Lian says awkwardly, "when… um."
"No one ever carries me," Hua Cheng says, widening his eyes innocently. "Gege is my first."
Xie Lian splutters. He didn’t have to say it like that! He distracts himself by following the bag of scraps in to the shrine.
"So you’re really going to let me just carry you around," Xie Lian checks. "For a week?"
"Unless gege gives up," Hua Cheng chirps.
"What happens if I give up?" Xie Lian asks, out of curiosity.
"I’ll summon my throne, I guess, and sit in that instead," Hua Cheng says grumpily, his mood flipping in an instant. Xie Lian throws his head back and laughs. What a ridiculous person. A bet with a notorious gambler king, with no consequences.
Since Hua Cheng isn’t helping at all, Xie Lian just does whatever. He gets them ready for bed, helping Hua Cheng out of his outer robe. He watches carefully for signs of pain, but Hua Cheng is even less helpful in that area.
He rolls out his single straw mat and sets Hua Cheng down, suddenly anxious that it’ll give him bedsores or something… well, probably he can just heal them. It’s not like he’ll give a straight answer if Xie Lian asks, or like Xie Lian has anything better to offer.
Xie Lian huffs, lies down, and blows out the candle.