Imperial Weight Chapter 23
Translated by Sylver (ko-fi)
Chapter 23
After that conversation with Little Phoenix about "who pursued whom first," Xingyi took it to heart. From then on, he kept thinking—if he really had to take the initiative to pursue someone, how should he go about it?
He was someone almost indifferent when it came to matters of romance. He visited Little Phoenix a few times in a businesslike manner. Hearing that he wanted to go out and play, he took him out. When Little Phoenix sprained his ankle, he had him rest properly in his own tent. Little Phoenix was obedient and sensible, and Xingyi himself wasn't much of a talker either. Sometimes when the two of them were together like this, they could go an entire day without saying a word.
Yet somehow, even like this, that little guy managed to fall for him. Xingyi couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he tried. After pondering for a long time, he could only come to one conclusion: the person was just too foolish, which gave him such good fortune—obtaining such a pillow companion who was the best in the world.
As for how to make amends, he actually didn't know specifically what to do.
After much deliberation and consulting many people, he finally settled on the most traditional four words: cater to their preferences.
Whatever Little Phoenix liked, he would do accordingly. That should make his little consort happy.
After having this thought, Xingyi used his private authority for the first time, having people transport several cartloads of cherries from Liaoyang, thousands of miles away. Little Phoenix liked eating cherries. This fruit was still quite rare in Jiangnan, though Xingyi had tasted them before and always found them too sour.
The cherries from the north ripened in May or June. Once picked, they were stored in ice cellars to freeze, then sold in autumn and winter for nobles and officials to make cherry soup. Now he had cleared out all the inventory in Liaoyang in one go, causing quite a few people to come asking about prices, thinking he was going into private business.
When the cherries arrived, Little Phoenix was very happy. Although that batch of cherries had been frozen too long and the quality wasn't great anymore, being able to eat his favorite food in the dead of winter meant Little Phoenix didn't care about such things. Every night he would cook a cup of sweet and sour cherry and lily soup, using it to stimulate his appetite so he could eat an extra bowl of rice. Xingyi would sometimes drink a bowl with him, and occasionally found it quite good.
He thought this was very nice.
He had obtained the food Little Phoenix loved to eat. What remained were other matters. Xingyi planned to take Little Phoenix out to play again sometime, but he could never settle on an exact time.
After returning, his official duties weren't exactly leisurely. Although there were no urgent military affairs across the country, he was still responsible for training and maintaining troops in Jiangling, preparing for future military needs. Every day he would rise before dawn and go to the wilderness over ten li away, only returning in the evening. Winter days grew dark early, and every time he returned, he would see Little Phoenix waiting at the door holding a lantern. Regardless of whether it had snowed, when he got tired from waiting, he would sit on the threshold, chin propped on his hand, gazing at the sky.
Every time Xingyi pulled him up, Little Phoenix's hands were invariably ice-cold. At first, afraid that Little Phoenix would catch cold, he strictly forbade the servants from letting him out. But Little Phoenix informed him that from childhood to adulthood he had basically never been sick, had hardly taken any medicine, and his health was exceptionally robust.
Really exceptionally robust indeed.
Later, Xingyi himself caught a cold and developed a fever. Little Phoenix energetically brewed medicine for him, watching the fire through entire nights. He stayed up for two nights straight yet still remained in good spirits. Not only that, Little Phoenix lectured him. "Husband, the physician told me that each time you work up a sweat from drilling the troops, you rush to ride your horse back while still facing the wind, and that's how you caught cold. From now on, don't be in such a hurry to return."
Xingyi said hoarsely, "If you don't wait for me in the future, I'll come back slowly."
Little Phoenix looked at him for a while and thought about it. "Alright then. I won't wait for you, but you also shouldn't rush back like this. From now on, just bathe there, change your clothes properly, and take the carriage back."
After Xingyi recovered from his illness, thinking of Little Phoenix's promise, he hesitated for a while before truly not rushing home. Instead, he bathed and changed clothes properly, then rode back to Jiangling City in a carriage with his deputy. The place where they drilled troops was on a mountain. Previously when Xingyi rode on horseback, he hadn't felt the journey was long. This time, switching to a warm and sturdy carriage that jingled and jostled all the way, after a long while he stuck his head out to look—they were still halfway up the mountain, not yet descended.
And the moon had already risen early.
The people inside the carriage couldn't grasp the time. The deputy tried to explain to him. "Sir, we've only been descending for less than the time of one incense stick. There's no need to be so anxious."
Xingyi raised his chin, gesturing for the deputy to look at the sky. "Before we started descending it wasn't yet dark. Now the moon is already up. It's been at least two hours."
The deputy: "......"
Xingyi said, "Stop for a moment. I'll ride my horse back myself."
Their carriage was hitched to a double shaft with two fast horses running in parallel. Before the deputy could voice any objection, Xingyi had already lifted the curtain and gone to the front, nimbly detaching one set of harnesses and leading away one horse by himself.
He retrieved the saddle and bridle from behind the carriage, mounted the horse with a boost, clamped his legs tight around the horse's belly, and with a whoosh galloped away.
The deputy and the coachman were left looking at each other in bewilderment.
The deputy said seriously, "I swear, the time we've been descending absolutely does not exceed the burning of one incense stick!"
The coachman spread his hands. "Who can fathom the thoughts of officials?"
......
Xingyi galloped his horse all the way. After descending the mountain and reaching the flat market town, he moved even faster, swift as the wind. People came and went in the city, lanterns were just being lit—it was still the liveliest time after dusk. Xingyi didn't notice anything amiss. When he arrived at the residence, before anyone could react, they watched wide-eyed as he entered the gate without even greeting anyone, heading straight for the eastern courtyard.
At the door, there was no young man holding a lantern waiting for him.
That little rascal really wasn't waiting for him anymore.
Xingyi couldn't quite describe what this feeling was. When Little Phoenix waited for him in the snow, his heart ached. But when he didn't wait, he felt disappointed and lost. Only when he pushed the door open and saw Little Phoenix seriously absorbed in eating his meal did the unsettled stone in his heart finally drop.
Xingyi calmly coughed once and said, "I've returned late."
Only then did Little Phoenix come back to his senses, lifting his head from the table full of delicacies, somewhat surprised. "Weijian, how did you return so early? Did you ride your horse back again?"
"Early?" Xingyi was stunned.
Actually, his deputy hadn't been wrong—it really had only been less than one incense stick's time. He had thought it was already very late, so he'd rushed on horseback at full speed, yet arrived even earlier than before.
Little Phoenix threw his chopsticks to the side and pressed his lips together. "I'm angry, Weijian. Very seriously angry. You don't keep your word. Every time you return so quickly, and Ping Mountain is all cliffs and precipices along the way. What if you lose your footing and fall off? What would I do then?"
Xingyi hurried to placate him, but Little Phoenix refused to calm down no matter what he said. The little guy huffily served him rice and poured tea, then climbed onto the bed by himself, facing the wall and ignoring him.
Xingyi had no choice. After eating, he washed up early and went to bed, embracing Little Phoenix from behind and coaxing in a low voice. "I won't do this again, alright?"
Little Phoenix said, "Hmph."
Xingyi said softly, "I was in such a hurry to return because I have good news to tell you. I asked His Majesty for leave, and he granted me half a month's rest. I want to take this opportunity to take you out to see more places."
This time Little Phoenix wasn't as resolute. "......Hmph."
Xingyi kissed his neck. "Are you willing?"
The two of them grew intimate for a while, and in the end neither could hold back. Little Phoenix was pressed down by him in a daze and taken again and again, lingering and dispelling fatigue, their breaths warm. Xingyi kissed his forehead, making him call out "husband" and his courtesy name over and over. Little Phoenix obediently called them all, stirring his desire more and more. Still, in the end Xingyi, mindful that they had to rise early the next day, forcibly restrained himself, then coaxed Little Phoenix to sleep.
He held him, gently touching Little Phoenix's long eyelashes with his finger, saying tenderly, "Go to sleep."
Upon hearing these words, Little Phoenix suddenly seemed to remember something. He struggled in his embrace, face scrunched up as if about to cry. "......Wait, Weijian, you cheated. I was still angry with you."
------
"You said you want to pursue the Emperor? What? So it was you who wasn't wearing clothes in the great hall that day! Boss! It really was you! Wuwuwuwu, you scared me to death. I take back what I said before—now I approve of this match! Completely approve! To think it was you, Boss! Boss, you have a great figure!"
The Golden-Winged Bird excitedly flapped its wings. The breeze it created sent the fluffy little round ball on the snowy ground rolling several times, planting head-first into the snow.
Little Phoenix's little claws flailed about. He extended his small wings and struggled for quite a while before managing to flip himself over from the snow, then coughed bashfully. "It was me."
The Golden-Winged Bird revealed a mysterious smile. "Then do you even need to pursue him? I think the Emperor... hehehehe, he, hehehehe, should really like you, hehehehe......"
Little Phoenix tried hard to dispel the rumor. "Actually it's not like that. It's just that I suddenly transformed and didn't have any clothes to wear, so it ended up like this."
Saying this, he lowered his head dejectedly. "Later he told me to transform back, but I couldn't learn how. I can only occasionally transform back, then occasionally become human again. Actually I think my human form looks quite good, but Weijian doesn't want it."
The Golden-Winged Bird cursed indignantly. "Trash Emperor! Big pig's trotter! After seeing you like that he still won't take responsibility. Hmph, why pursue him, Boss? I think it should be the other way around, otherwise it's too unfair."
Little Phoenix pondered for a while. "But in the mortal world, he was the one who actively pursued me. In this life, if I actively pursue him, that seems acceptable too. That way it's even."
The Golden-Winged Bird thought about it. "Fair enough. But things being as they are, I think this is just a natural progression. Do you know what the rumors outside are like now? Maybe it's better you don't know. Actually, this is advantageous for you. When everyone thinks you're together, maybe the Emperor himself will think you're together too."
Little Phoenix used his little wing to touch his round, plump belly, half-understanding. "Oh...... but isn't this bad? Weijian might get angry, after all I haven't successfully pursued him yet."
The Golden-Winged Bird patted his little head affectionately. "Boss, rumors cease with the wise. Don't try to clarify. Think about it—people who become immortals must all be wise, so what is there to worry about? Instead, spend more time thinking about how to pursue the Emperor. Strike while the iron is hot, pursue relentlessly! A phoenix who can't win over the Emperor is not a good phoenix!"
Little Phoenix was inspired. "Good! I'm a good phoenix!"
He cupped his round little head with his small wings and thought for a long time. What he finally came up with was no more than four words: cater to his preferences.
These past few days he had been working hard to learn to control his transformation, but things didn't go as desired. Xingyi discovered a pattern: during the daytime when Xingyi was awake and suppressing the power of the Star Disc, Little Phoenix could transform into human form. But when Xingyi fell asleep and the Star Disc operated freely, Little Phoenix couldn't suppress that power himself and could only transform back into bird form with a poof.
This pattern wasn't especially accurate, but it applied most of the time.
Xingyi looked at the young man on the bed, thoughtful. "That is to say, when I'm awake I can't touch you in bird form because you're generally a living person at that time. When I'm asleep I could touch you, but I can't feel it because I'm already asleep."
Little Phoenix listened with full concentration.
Xingyi's eyes held a hint of amusement, though his face still maintained an indifferent expression as he came to this conclusion. "A little bird that can't let its master touch its feathers is not a good little bird. Might as well throw it away."
Little Phoenix immediately climbed to his side, lifting a strand of his own hair for him. "Touch, touch. You can touch a person too. My hair feels very nice."
Then he blushed suspiciously: "O-other places, you can touch too. I especially permit only you, Weijian, to touch. This is a special privilege for my husband."
Xingyi: "......"
He rubbed his temples.
Actually, up to now, he still hadn't quite processed the fact that his little bird had suddenly transformed into a living person. The barrier was still open. Little Phoenix had become skilled at climbing through the window, and Xingyi was too lazy to care, just letting him curl up in his embrace to sleep every day.
It was just that some habits were hard to change.
For example, in the past, during that dazed period right after waking up, Xingyi would rub Little Phoenix.
This habit had deep roots. Little Phoenix would stand on top of his head singing, his tones going from low to high and back again, urging him to get up. From then on, Xingyi could no longer shift blame for missing morning court to "my little phoenix is too clingy and won't let me go to court." Instead, he was woken by Little Phoenix every day, and his attendance rate at court was forced to increase several times over what it used to be.
Upon hearing of this matter, the Jade Emperor was so delighted his tears flowed freely. He believed that Phoenix Ming Zun and Yue Lao had done excellent ideological work. He even increased Yue Lao's salary and sent a thank-you letter to Phoenix Ming Zun.
Xingyi wanted revenge on Little Phoenix every time, but would immediately forget. He could only habitually catch this little bird every morning before waking, engaging in a chase-and-catch battle. This battle generally ended with Xingyi's victory. He would hold Little Phoenix in his hand and mercilessly rub and squeeze him until Little Phoenix begged for mercy with teary eyes—only then would he be satisfied.
The next day he would be woken by Little Phoenix again, then squeeze this fluffy little round ball once more.
This particular day, Xingyi forgot about Little Phoenix's transformation. Today he slept until he woke naturally, but his mind was still somewhat drowsy. Not wanting to get up, he subconsciously reached to the side, wanting to confirm whether his phoenix alarm clock had malfunctioned.
With this touch, he felt the hair on Little Phoenix's forehead, and going down a bit more, soft and tender cheeks. Xingyi felt the texture wasn't quite right and subconsciously voiced his question, "What's wrong with you? Are you sick and losing feathers?"
Little Phoenix was also half-asleep, being pinched and touched all over. He was half-dreaming. "Not sick, Weijian. Don't move. Because you're my husband, I especially permit you to wake me before I get up, but this has a limited number of times."
Xingyi evaluated with his eyes closed. "How bold of you, daring to speak to me like this. If you're not sick, where did your feathers go? Do you want to be plucked and roasted over charcoal, hmm?"
He touched for a long time more. Going up, he touched hair—it was indeed soft, but the feel was different from down feathers, still not quite right. Going down, it became increasingly smooth. When he touched the bridge of the nose, it felt hard; when he touched the lips, it felt too soft.
Then continuing downward......
Xingyi suddenly became completely awake, startled.
His hand trembled, then quickly withdrew. Then he opened his eyes and looked to the side as if nothing had happened.
Little Phoenix covered his loose collar, secretly peeking at him, his eyes blinking. This was exactly what "still holding the pipa, half-concealing her face" described. Little Phoenix looked at him for a while, somewhat shyly. "Husband, you're so forward."
Xingyi: "......"
Xingyi took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
He felt that things couldn't continue developing like this.
Little Phoenix's side was still manageable. Although this little fat bird was quite naughty and disobedient, a pinch or squeeze could bring him into line—he wasn't worried about that. But this bird had transformed and kept climbing onto his bed every day. Several palace attendants had caught them a few times. If it was already like this within Fuli Palace, there was no need to mention what people outside would say.
Xingyi pulled Little Phoenix in front of him and said, "These past few days, the side hall has been tidied up. You'll sleep there."
Little Phoenix immediately became teary-eyed—this naughty bird, whether as a small bird or as a person, was well-versed in all sorts of tactics. His tears came on command. "I'm very pitiful. I'm afraid of the dark and also afraid of ghosts. You know us little birds all have very small courage."
Xingyi's words came to an abrupt halt. "I'll sleep there."
Little Phoenix lowered his head to fiddle with his fingers.
Xingyi looked at him like this, sighed, and reached out to rub his head. "I know you want to be my Empress—it's Empress, right? But this kind of matter needs to be taken slowly, planned long-term. I'm an old immortal who's lived tens of thousands of years. You haven't even grown your full feathers yet—you're just a little guy covered in soft down. You shouldn't be dating so early. Only knowing about puppy love all day long—I won't let such an unambitious phoenix become my Empress."
Little Phoenix's eyes brightened. "So you're saying, as long as I accomplish some career achievements, I can marry you home?"
While coldly wrapping up his loose collar, bundling him up tightly with only his head showing, Xingyi said, "We'll see."
So that night, Xingyi went to sleep in the side hall alone.
The second night, Little Phoenix followed and ran to the side hall, sneaking in to sleep when Xingyi wasn't paying attention, then was picked up by Xingyi and thrown back into the main bedchamber.
The third night, Little Phoenix behaved himself and didn't run around. But Xingyi found the bed in the side hall uncomfortable, tossing and turning sleeplessly all night. In the morning, he returned to his own bedchamber and saw a snow-white little fat bird sleeping sprawled out in the very center of his bed.
He expressionlessly picked up this little fat bird and placed it to the side, then lay down to sleep. Just as he entered dreamland, Xingyi vaguely sensed that Little Phoenix had transformed back into human form. But this time he didn't think about anything. In his exhaustion, he directly pulled the person into his embrace to prevent this little troublemaker from moving around again.
These small movements went unnoticed by others. In outsiders' eyes, they had separated for three days with no opportunity for intimate contact.
Xingyi was temporarily satisfied with this situation. He casually grabbed a palace maid for inquiry. "I've slept separately from Little Phoenix for three days. You must be clear about this—you should understand by now that he and I don't have that kind of relationship. What are people saying outside these past few days?"
The palace maid bowed and said, "They say that a few days ago you were excessively wanton and exhausted the young master so much he couldn't get out of bed, so the young master chased you to sleep in the side hall."
Xingyi thought he had heard wrong. "Say that again?"
The palace maid was very innocent. "Your Majesty, give up. Ever since you heated up the spring water that time, everyone has been saying you were frolicking like mandarin ducks in the water, intimate as glue. This matter can't be cleared up."
Xingyi couldn't speak for quite a while.
The palace maid continued to supplement. "Also, when you went down the mountain to find Little Phoenix that time, everyone also knows that you turned all those evil-doing demons into flying ash because they touched your beloved. And Yue Lao discovered when he was bored that there was an extra star in the sky that looks very much like Little Phoenix, so everyone knew again—this shows how deep your feelings run. Then there was that incident in the great hall a few days ago... Well, you don't need to be embarrassed. Tanlang told us all about it. I heard it was very intense—even the ornamental pillars were toppled."
The little palace maid studied his expression and carefully said one last sentence. "Although I don't believe it, but...... Your Majesty, you must take care of your health recently. Phoenix Yuanyuan just transformed and is probably especially delicate. You......should exercise restraint."
