The wind knocked on the window, brushing past them. The butterfly silver chain on the hand that Qi Buyan held of He Sui’an swayed slightly, grazing her hand.
Qi Buyan, with his eyes quietly closed, exuded a touch of gentleness that did not quite match him. However, it didn’t feel out of place. Instead, it made one want to believe that this was his true self: kind and gentle.
But she knew it was an illusion.
He was neither kind nor gentle.
He excelled in refining Gu, was vengeful, and lacked almost all normal human emotions. His ability to empathize was minimal, and he was unbound by worldly manners or moral integrity, exhibiting a detachment from humanity.
For some reason, she felt very familiar with Qi Buyan. It wasn’t the familiarity that comes from spending a long time together, but an indescribable sense of familiarity.
She had felt this way inexplicably since the first time she met him.
But she didn’t think much of it.
Everyone is entitled to their own personality. As long as it doesn’t harm others, there is no need to change to please anyone.
The most important thing was that Qi Buyan had never harmed her. Although He Sui’an had lost her memory, she was still He Sui’an at her core, with her thoughts and views largely unchanged.
Qi Buyan treated her well.
He Sui’an also wanted to treat him well.
For instance, He Sui’an could try to fulfill Qi Buyan’s needs as long as it didn’t violate her principles. Besides, for some reason, she somewhat enjoyed being close to him.
She lowered her eyes and looked at Qi Buyan for a while.
If she neither rejected him nor occasionally found herself immersed in enjoyment, did that mean she somewhat liked being close to Qi Buyan? Or was it still just a pure, physiological pleasure?
His appearance was too striking, always making people subconsciously want to get closer. Actually, He Sui’an didn’t understand these things. She had probably never encountered such a situation before.
Forget it.
She didn’t want to think about it.
Every time she thought deeply, her head would hurt.
Qi Buyan, not getting what he wanted, was about to open his eyes. Just before he did, He Sui’an leaned over and kissed him. He immediately felt the softness and slight coolness, a sensation and temperature unique to her.
Her breath was warm, entering Qi Buyan’s mouth through their connected lips. He instinctively opened his mouth. As the kiss deepened, the bridge of his nose brushed against her cheek.
Their lips and teeth interlocked.
Their breaths tangled inseparably.
Still sitting, Qi Buyan couldn’t help but raise his hand to hug He Sui’an, who had bent down to kiss him. A few strands of her hair fell, brushing against his skin.
The young man still had his eyes closed, his long, thick eyelashes seemed as if they could fall onto He Sui’an’s face, trembling lightly as they kissed. It was strange; today, being kissed by He Sui’an excited and thrilled him more than usual.
This emotion built up layer by layer.
Previously, when Qi Buyan was kissed by He Sui’an, or when he kissed her, he felt a sense of pleasure.
This was something he had known for a long time.
It wasn’t surprising.
What was surprising was why each of their kisses, and even their more intimate touches, caused his excitement and pleasure to progressively increase.
Excitement and pleasure shouldn’t remain unchanged, or gradually diminish?
When Qi Buyan refined Gu or killed people, it was clearly like this. The first time he successfully refined a Gu, the first time he killed someone, he was very excited; as the times he refined Gu and killed increased, the excitement gradually decreased.
Now, the excitement of refining Gu and killing people stayed at a constant level, neither increasing nor decreasing.
However, with He Sui’an, it was different. As their intimate moments increased, he only experienced rising excitement and pleasure.
Today, at this very moment, Qi Buyan was somewhat lost in her kiss.
His fingertips tingled intensely.
It felt as if some emotion was binding him.
What was this emotion, unprecedented and unfamiliar, yet making Qi Buyan unable to stop? He trembled slightly, but instead hugged He Sui’an’s waist tighter, bit by bit accepting her kiss.
A blush spread across his face.
Qi Buyan gently entangled his tongue with He Sui’an’s as she kissed him. He slightly opened his eyes, a hint of confusion over this unknown emotion in his moist eyes, then closed them again.
With his eyes closed, the expression of enduring the kiss made Qi Buyan look like a devotee on a pilgrimage. He could almost hear his own heartbeat.
Thump, thump, thump.
The rhythm seemed a bit different.
He Sui’an bent over, cupping Qi Buyan’s face, kissing him while he raised his neck, holding her waist, looking up to be kissed by her, like a white bowstring about to snap.
*
Chang’an enforced a curfew from the fifth drum to the third drum. The curfew started at midnight each day, during which the common people were not allowed to go out without permission.
Only on special days would Chang’an temporarily lift the curfew; otherwise, everything remained as usual.
It was now the hour of Hai.
There was one more hour until midnight.
Red lanterns were hung in strings above the streets of Chang’an, thousands of lanterns burning brightly. Colorful ribbons fluttered around the lanterns, lighting up the night. The streets were still bustling, filled with a constant flow of people.
Inside the market, there was a vibrant scene of singing and dancing, toasts being exchanged, shadows swaying, and various sounds traversing the eight streets and nine alleys, showcasing the unique flavor of Chang’an.
He Sui’an didn’t stay at the inn.
She and Qi Buyan went to the main street of Chang’an.
Staying in the inn room all day and night with nothing to do, it was better to go out and see the prosperous night view of Chang’an and get to know the city.
As they passed by a restaurant, someone invited them in for food and drink, saying it was their young master’s birthday, and their lord and lady were so happy that they were hosting a three-day and three-night banquet.
No invitation was needed.
Anyone passing by could go in and eat freely.
Their lord and lady had a son in their old age and doted on him immensely. They heard from a Taoist priest that hosting a banquet could accumulate blessings, so they decided to host it for three days and three nights.
A birthday banquet with such a lavish feast would obviously cost a lot of money, but they didn’t care about the expense for their son, renting the largest restaurant in Chang’an and preparing the best dishes.
He Sui’an touched her flat stomach.
“It’s free, we might as well eat,” she said, pulling Qi Buyan inside. “Let’s go in and take a look.”
The servants guarding the restaurant, seeing their outstanding looks, specially led them to seats at the front, hoping to bring good luck to the newly turned six-year-old young master.
The restaurant was crowded, with a small part being relatives of the host family and the majority being strangers passing by who heard about the open banquet and decided to join.
Today was the first day of the banquet, and many people came to join in the excitement.
Lord Han and Lady Han appeared in the mid-air pavilion of the restaurant, holding their son’s hand.
They looked incredibly happy.
Qi Buyan, sitting at a table opposite the pavilion, glanced at them and then at the little boy they were holding. The boy, dressed in a round-collar brocade robe, was smiling and acting spoiled towards his mother.
He averted his gaze without any emotion.
He Sui’an peeled a sunflower seed and held it to Qi Buyan’s mouth. “Want to try?”
He took the seed from her palm and suddenly asked, “They said this is a birthday banquet? So, they are celebrating the day he was born?”
He Sui’an paused.
She said, “Yes, a birthday banquet is to celebrate someone’s birth, their arrival.”
“Is that something worth celebrating?”
He Sui’an picked up a piece of white fish and placed it on a porcelain plate for Qi Buyan. “Of course, your birth and mine are both worth celebrating. By the way, when is your birthday?”
Qi Buyan picked up the bamboo chopsticks and tried the fish she had served him. “I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
As soon as He Sui’an finished speaking, she remembered something. Perhaps Qi Shu and Bian Yichen had never celebrated his birthday, nor had anyone mentioned it to him, so he only knew his approximate age and not his exact birthday.
After a moment of contemplation, she said, “It doesn’t matter if you don’t know. I see that five days from now is a good day. From now on, we’ll consider that day your birthday, and I’ll give you a gift.”
Qi Buyan looked up. “Five days from now?”
April 19th.
Every year on that day, Qi Shu would secretly give him a piece of candy without Bian Yichen knowing. She wouldn’t smile, and her attitude was just like any other day.
Whether or not he got candy didn’t matter much to Qi Buyan, as he wasn’t particularly fond of sweets. But he found it peculiar and thus remembered the day.
And now, He Sui’an had chosen this very day.
What a coincidence.
Qi Buyan finished the fish, put down his chopsticks, and looked at He Sui’an. “Why did you choose April 19th, five days from now?”
He Sui’an didn’t know either. When they were talking about his birthday, the date April 19th suddenly popped into her mind.
She hesitated. “Do you not like it?”
He shook his head. “It’s not that.”
He Sui’an quickly added, “If you have a preferred date, we can use that day as your birthday. It doesn’t have to be April 19th.”
“No, let’s use the date you mentioned, April 19th, as my birthday,” Qi Buyan accepted her suggestion. He didn’t care much about birthdays but was a bit curious about the gift she mentioned.
The dishes were served.
They didn’t discuss the birthday further, and He Sui’an tried each dish with her chopsticks.
Amid the bustling crowd of the banquet, He Sui’an glanced at a table in the upper left corner, where a young man in black was sitting. His hair was tied with a silver crown, and a compass hung at his waist.
The young man in black had his back to He Sui’an, so she couldn’t see his face. But looking at his back, she was reminded of Shen Jianhe, who had ventured into the ancient tomb with them in Fengling Town.
She stood up, wanting to get a closer look.
Before leaving Fengling Town, Shen Jianhe had left a letter, asking the innkeeper to pass it to them. He wrote that if fate allowed, they would meet again and he would treat them to a drink. If not, they would part ways in the martial world.
He Sui’an still remembered those words.
Seeing her stand up, Qi Buyan put down his chopsticks. “What’s wrong?”
He Sui’an glanced back at Qi Buyan and explained, “I think I saw Senior Shen.” She wanted to point him out, but the young man in black was no longer there; someone else, dressed in purple, had taken his place.
Could she have mistaken him?
Impossible. The young man she saw was wearing black, while the current person was in purple.
Because this was an open banquet, when one seat was vacated, the next person would occupy it. So she likely hadn’t mistaken the clothing, but whether it was Shen Jianhe was uncertain.
Qi Buyan’s reaction to hearing “Senior Shen” was indifferent. He looked in the direction she pointed but didn’t see anyone either.
He Sui’an didn’t dwell on it.
After eating and drinking her fill at the restaurant, she left and strolled along the street.
A carriage passed by them, its side curtain lifted by the wind. He Sui’an instinctively glanced inside and saw Xie Wenqiao, who had changed out of his red official robes into casual attire.
A small table with a lamp was placed to Xie Wenqiao’s left, while he held a dossier in his right hand. His refined eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and he quickly flipped through the pages, his expression growing increasingly grim.
This dossier was about the defeat of the Weicheng army a few months ago and the tragic massacre of General Jiang’s family.
The dossier had ended up in Xie Wenqiao’s hands.
