“That commandery prince of ours is quite the character. He holds the line when facing enemies on the battlefield and performs acupuncture when off it. He filigrees leather sachets in his spare time and is a deft hand even in the holy ground of the kitchen....”

These affairs encompassed so many things that weren’t fit to be spoken. In the end, Gu Yun said nothing. He pried open Chang Geng’s hand, donned his armor, and tied up his hair. The general had a heart—what a pity it was cast from iron.

What Gu Yun hated most weren’t the foreigners on every border, but these baldies.

As the cool air hit him, he started in shock—Wait. Hadn’t Prince Yan sent him south to keep an eye on Marshal Gu? How had he gotten conned into haring off to the southwestern border within an hour of his arrival?

There wasn’t a damn thing wrong with him at this point. But he couldn’t resist making the most of his injuries around Gu Yun. Chang Geng put on a great show of clinging to Gu Yun as he exited the carriage, then used his momentum to bonelessly throw himself into Gu Yun’s arms.

There was no way he could return to purely viewing Chang Geng as a junior he was close with as he did before.

A cord inside Gu Yun’s heart quietly drew taut and he couldn’t help but begin to stealthily observe Chang Geng. But rather than dispel those indescribable misgivings, the longer he watched, the more panic-stricken he became.

Sha Po Lang (杀破狼) Thai Edition — Book 1, 2 and 3!

Gu Yun was overjoyed to have obtained such prime blackmail material on Shen Yi for the low price of nothing. Suddenly his lower back wasn’t sore anymore, and he even began whistling a tune that bore a striking resemblance to his flute playing as he urged his horse toward the city.

“If all else fails, I’ll personally take to the battlefield and seduce them. I may not be able to fell a million mighty troops, but twenty or thirty thousand should be no problem. Isn’t that right, Xiao-Cao?”

It wasn’t that Chang Geng was incapable of keeping his cool—but Gu Yun’s unexpected embrace just now was like an open flame, setting all the inconceivable expectations in his heart on fire in an instant.

I'm starting a #Danmei Bookclub!!! We're set to start with Stars of Chaos/Sha Po Lang by Priest! Our first official meeting will be December 6th at 5pm EST! More details in replies!

“Last time, you told me you would be fine with anything I asked you to do.” Chang Geng paused, hand outstretched to open the door. His fingers curled slightly in midair. “I don’t want you to leave; I don’t want you to force yourself to do anything. All I want is for you to be well.”

Gu Yun’s head hurt so badly he wanted to bash it into a wall, but Chang Geng’s tender little face was just too adorable. Laughing through the pain, he reflected that pranks made quite an effective painkiller.

Gu Yun must have used all the strength in his body to hide how anxious and terrified he was.

Chang Geng held little Gu Yun and ran until he was gasping for breath. He wanted to shout at that indifferent old man watching from the side—I saved a nation on the brink of destruction from the late emperor’s ineptitude. What makes you think I can’t protect Gu Yun?!

Standing on the city wall, Chang Geng took the full brunt of the explosion. The bit of light armor he had equipped for makeshift protection was no use against this crushing shock wave. The enormous force of the blast crashed against his chest; he spat blood, and his vision flickered.

Shen Yi sighed. "If it were me, I wouldn't have recognized you there. It's all because your yifu has been thinking about you every day. At this point it's turning into a complex; he can't stop himself from taking a second glance whenever he sees someone who looks like you..."

When he knew he had no one to rely on, he would grit his teeth and will himself to become a cool and collected adult. But faced with that tiny spark of warmth he so desperately yearned for, that pretense of strength shattered to pieces, revealing the soft childishness inside.

There was not a single sleeve on which he could tug as a child. Now, even though he had grown enough to hold up the skies unassisted, he seemed to still have some regrets and had decided to make up for them all via Gu Yun.

Gu Yun’s back was soaked in cold sweat. It was then that he discovered a critical issue. His vision and hearing, which should have been clearing up again by now, had not recovered in the least.

There’s no shortage of killjoys in the army; waxing poetic to soldiers about blooming flowers is to cast pearls before swine. Thus, I thought it would be better to seize the opportunity before me and picked this for you to enjoy…

“If you sit on this thing, will you start laying golden eggs?” Gu Yun quipped. Shen Yi coughed a few times, signaling to his marshal to please cut the crap.

It had just snowed, and the flower petals were coated in a thin, translucent layer of frost. The longer Chang Geng looked at them, the more he liked them, and eventually he couldn’t resist the urge to snap off a few branches. His first instinct was always to save things for Gu Yun.

In the course of the endless exchange of favors that characterized the political sphere, officials often heaped praise on each other. And when they praised Marshal Gu, it was almost always in words that celebrated his selflessness in working to exhaustion for the good of the nation.

But, like many things, knowledge made it no easier to accept—every person knew they would die one day, yet when it came time to close their eyes at last, who wouldn’t be reluctant to go?

He casually raised his small teacup, holding it with three fingers, and clinked it against General Tan’s in a toast. “Brother, Prince Yan isn’t providing wine and wants us to make do. I’m not the boss of him, so you’ll have to settle for this.”

Shen Yi fell silent. He didn’t understand how after a four-year separation, Chang Geng understood Gu Yun better than before. Everything he said was true.

Who knew where he had picked up those soft and misty tones, but as the words my man poured into Gu Yun’s ear with their dragging tail, a shiver ran down his spine.

“Don’t worry, Dage. From now on, I’ll follow you no matter what. If you become a great general, then I’ll be your personal guard. If you become a government official, then I’ll be your attendant. If you become the emperor, then I’ll be your eunu—mmph!”

Gu Yun was unfazed—this wasn’t his first time getting cussed out. He curled his fingers, and with a well-practiced flick, a burst of wind smacked the bird across the beak. The myna tumbled off its perch, feathers scattering across the floor of its cage.

This was a bold-faced reminder directed at Gu Yun—I'm not honoring my filial obligations to you, I'm doting on you. Don't lie to yourself.

Yao Zhen let out a ringing laugh. “Perhaps I’ve been a coward in the past, but what have I to fear with the marshal at my side?” Despite his confident declaration, Governor Yao found himself regretting his words soon enough as he struggled to keep down his gorge on the swaying deck of the ship.

Gu Yun reached a hand out to him and said softly, “Yifu was wrong, okay?” He had no idea how his words pierced this youth’s frozen and splintered soul. His intentions weren’t particularly sincere.

This placidity was contradictory, yet neatly suppressed that trace of edge he'd had since birth. When he smiled, he even looked a bit sweet. Gazing through his glass monocle, Gu Yun was briefly dazzled by the sight.

It was only when people were roaring drunk that such natural differences became apparent—some would cry and wail, while others would at most tap their chopsticks and break into song.

Since his injury, it seemed Prince Yan had no intention of preserving any dignity around Gu Yun. Whenever they were alone, he’d pipe up with an It hurts, kiss me any chance he got.

빼뺴로 데이~

With his hems flying behind him, Chang Geng looked every inch the elegant young master. Gu Yun clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction. This is it for me. Next time I return to the capital, I’ll be lucky if I have half as many young ladies throwing handkerchiefs.

Standing in the light reflecting off the snow outside the window, he was about to smooth Chang Geng’s blanket into place when he realized the child’s sleep was not particularly peaceful. The boy was in the throes of a nightmare.

“We can’t continue fighting like this,” Gu Yun said out of nowhere. Shen Yi heaved a sigh. He suspected that for all his rambling just now, Gu Yun hadn’t “heard” a thing. Practice lip-reading, my ass, he thought. More like I’m the one giving my lips a workout.

Gathering even more courage than he’d needed to defy the emperor, he forced the words out. “Is there something you’re not telling me? Some unspeakable secret?” Chang Geng gulped down several anxious breaths, then asked in a low voice, “A secret of what kind?” “…Of the romantic kind.”

Torn between anger and genuine concern, Gu Yun leaned down with a gloomy look and gave Chang Geng a kiss fueled by burning fury in the shadow of the curtain.

“Marshal Gu is a pillar of the state. Pull one thread, and the whole will unravel. How would this monk dare harbor any ill intent?” Chang Geng’s hand did not move from his sword. “But you did in fact lead my yifu here on purpose.”

Gu Yun cocked his head and listened. Even a woman giving birth might not scream with such agony.

Gu Yun raised one eyebrow and smiled down at him from above. He whistled for his horse, and the well-trained animal trotted directly over to him. Chang Geng’s heart pounded in his chest. That smile from Gu Yun had nearly sucked his soul from his body.

Xu Ling watched blankly as the marshal carried that spray of flowers into Prince Yan’s room, rubbing his perfume-filled nose in shock. Marshal Gu really is so attentive to His Highness.

Chang Geng pressed a light kiss to his mouth, then gently tugged at Gu Yun’s lip, working it between his own as his dark lashes fluttered at variance with the artificial stiffness of his face.

Whether it was desire for wealth, for power, or for something else—all were fetters around one's body. The deeper one sank, the tighter these bonds would dig into one's flesh.

Resolving to steal a moment of private joy in the fleeting course of life, he pulled out a fresh piece of letter paper and shamelessly tended to personal affairs during work hours.