The night was getting darker and the snow rustled as it floated down. The temperature was dropping quickly. Lu Yan made his horse fork off, clamping its stomach with his heels. As his impatient master disappeared on the horizon, the little steward who cared for the stables turned his wide eyes towards Yang Zong, bowing in fazed respect.
“Is the curfew not in effect? Why is the Young Master leaving at such a time, in such weather?”
Yang Zong sighed, very unhappy to be forced to lie.
“Official affairs do not sleep.”
***
The cold wind whistled its way into Lu Yan’s sleeves. When he arrived at Chengyuan, Chang’an was already deserted. One would have been hard-pressed to imagine it was inhabited at all. The moon was high in the sky, covered by a flimsy trail of night clouds.
Snowflakes piled upon one another on the path leading to Lanyue Pavilion. Lu Yan’s steps were quick and decisive, making the snow creak and leaving behind a clear trail. An instant later, Moyue who had been busy with cleaning the snow with a bamboo broom saw Lu Yan approach. She straightened up at once.
“This humble slave greets the Young Master!”
Lu Yan handed the medicine he had brought along to Moyue.
“Heat it up immediately”, he ordered without a second glance to the servant.
Then, he strode into Lanyue Pavilion as the supreme master that he was.
The candlelight inside the residence swayed ever so gently and the snowflakes flew into the entryway on Lu Yan’s steps. As he opened the door to the bedroom, a most pitiful scene caught his eye. There was a shivering silhouette curled up in the bed. Shen Zhen. Such a small and slender figure. Truly an image to break one’s heart.
Lu Yan silently walked in, coming to sit on the edge of the bed, fishing her body out from below the covers so he could evaluate the situation. Brushing her hair behind her ears, he observed her with attention. Sweat glistened on her forehead. Her small face was pale. And her body hot.
Her eyes still closed, her lips parted slightly as if she wished to say something. However, her voice was too low. To hear her, Lu Yan had no choice but to lower his head.
“Cold.”
Her whisper was a true indication of her weakness. Lu Yan slowly looked around the bedroom. Four charcoal crates were burning. Two more could easily be added, but it would not change the situation. Shen Zhen suffered from a cold that had nothing to do with the temperature in her dwelling. He looked down at her, in something very much akin to worry. Not knowing what to do with her, or with himself for that matter, Lu Yan simply caressed Shen Zhen’s small face with his thumb.
This sickly girl was like a fragile begonia blossom. Unable to bear wind, rain or unkind touch. Seeing as she shivered without control, Lu Yan carefully pushed the edges of the cover under her figure to make sure she was fully covered. Calling Tangyue in, he started his interrogation.
“For how long has she been burning this badly?”
“She did not have such a fever yesterday. Miss Shen only told us she felt dizzy and wished to sleep. However, when this humble slave came to serve dinner, she found the Miss in a state of confusion, talking nonsense. And then, after a while, she passed out.”
Lu Yan bowed his head in contemplation. She had had such a high fever for a whole night and day. It could not go on.
“Get hot water”, Lu Yan ordered.
Hearing the hardness in his voice, Tangyue shot Shen Zhen a worried glance. Whether she considered it safe to wash the patient, as Lu Yan obviously wished, was of no importance. The master had given his orders.
“Yes”, Tangyue quickly assented.
That evening’s sky was heavy with clouds, while fog slithered around Lanyue Pavilion. If one were to look through the window, one would see a hazy moon hiding in the darkness. Shrouding itself like some shroud a love affair.
Tangyue came back after a while, carrying a heavy basin of water. Dipping a veil into it, she announced:
“Young Master, this humble slave is coming over.”
Lu Yan immediately got up, giving Tangyue the place by Shen Zhen’s side. The servant removed the quilt and busied herself with her mistress’s clothes. After the shirt had been removed, only a plain, white chest bandaging remained on Shen Zhen.
The soft fragrance that reached her nose made Tangyue take a deep breath. She had served many a person, but never such a heavenly beauty. Shen Zhen body was so white it was no exaggeration to say she put snow and frost to shame. Tangyue carefully wiped Shen Zhen’s arm with the hot kerchief. The temperature was so comfortable it provoked a whimper out of the patient.
Lu Yan’s mouth flattened in a displeased line as soon as he heard Shen Zhen’s moans. Strangely, he had thought she only produced such wanton sounds in his presence. The realization that others were graced with the same honor was not palatable to him.
The next scene that unraveled in front of Lu Yan’s eyes was even more seductive. Tangyue started wiping Shen Zhen’s fair body, going from her white feet and working up. As the servant uncovered more and more skin, Lu Yan realized just how flushed Shen Zhen had become, as if she had partaken in vigorous exercise.
Each of the servant’s touches elicited a new sound from Shen Zhen. Lu Yan, standing on the side, had his eyes darken, his body stiffen and a rush of heat was making him feel uncomfortable. Licking his dry lips, he could not help sneer at himself.
Wonderful. Truly wonderful.
When she had her eyes opened, they shone with a light purer than that of any woman in this world. Her eyes always seemed to be rippling with the most unadulterated emotions. However, as soon as she closed her eyes … As soon as she closed her eyes, she became a whole other person. This carnal allure she so willingly exhibited in this situation, where was she hiding it during the day?!
As Tangyue’s hands prepared to untie the bandaging that covered Shen Zhen’s chest, Lu Yan swallowed his saliva with difficulty, the blue veins on his hands protruding faintly. He could not take it any longer.
“Get out”, he barked at Tangyue who froze at once.
However, she knew who the master was. She quickly let the piece of fabric she had used to wipe Shen Zhen fall into the basin of hot water, bowed and ran out. Leaning onto the room’s door from the outside, she took in a trembling breath. For the first time of her life, she had been titillated by a woman’s seductive body. Who would have ever thought?!
Lu Yan, seated by Shen Zhen’s side, twisted the veil in the water with something akin to anger. However, as soon as the fabric touched Shen Zhen’s skin, his movements became careful and gentle, wiping each and every place Lu Yan could not bear having others touch.
Nonetheless, maybe he exerted too great a strength, because his movements elicited resisting groans from Shen Zhen. Lu Yan felt the palm of his hand getting hotter and hotter, much hotter than the kerchief in his hand. As sanity prevailed, Lu Yan quickly dressed Shen Zhen, covering her fully with the quilt. The medicine had in the meantime been prepared and brought into the room.
With one arm, he pulled Shen Zhen in, having her head rest against his shoulder, while he scooped medicine into a spoon and slowly fed it to her. But Lu Yan had never been taught to care for the sick and he had no patience. Quickly, he fed spoonful after spoonful, not giving the liquid a chance to slide down her throat. Naturally, it all ended with Shen Zhen choking in distress.
She coughed a few times. After a while, she opened her eyes, fazed and frightened. It took her a few he blinks before she could make out who it was.
“Your Lordship?”
Shen Zhen’s beautiful eyes widened as she realized who was seated by her side. Her voice was also very hoarse, an indication she was quite sick indeed.
That instant when a person just woke up was when she was most helpless. Seeing the confusion in her eyes, Lu Yan was left wondering what had taken over him for him to rush over in the middle of the night, like some lovesick greenhorn.
Lu Yan demanded that she lay on a soft pillow.
“It’s only been a day since I left. And here you are, making yourself sick. For shame, Shen Zhen!”
The intent to blame was audible enough. Shen Zhen had barely woken up and was groggy, unable to put an order in her thoughts. Speechless, she lowered her head and coughed. Lu Yan handed her the bowl of unfinished medicine.
“Can you drink it by yourself?”
Shen Zhen took the bowl from him, whispering a quiet Yes. However, she had not eaten for a day and night. She was also weakened by a strong fever. There was no energy left in her body so she was left trembling, unable to even lift a spoon. Seeing her distressed look, Lu Yan felt an itch to turn the white jadeite ring on his finger. After a while of hesitation on both parts, he grabbed onto the medicine bowl and took it back.
He scooped a spoonful of medicine, deciding to feed her and get it over with. As their eyes met, Shen Zhen decided not to push his hand back and play a game of cat and mouse. He brought it to her lips while she opened her mouth obediently. Cooperation had tacitly been agreed upon between the two of them. Lu Yan had no patience for the wiles of spoiled children. And Shen Zhen did not particularly wish to provoke him in her present state.
A bowl of a most nasty concoction was quickly bottomed out. As the saying went, one had to know one’s limits. Some forces were not to be provoked. Lu Yan was one such force. Thus, Shen Zhen dutifully drank her medicine. Once that ordeal was over, she cleared her throat.
“Thank you, Your Lordship”, she slowly enunciated with a hoarse voice.
Suddenly, as if remembering something, she covered her mouth with her hand. Lu Yan raised his eyebrows examining her in surprise.
“What’s wrong?”
“I fear I might transmit the disease to Your Lordship”, Shen Zhen whispered from behind her hand.
He pried her fingers away from her face.
“It does not matter.”
After a pause, he continued, feeling somewhat out of place:
“Drink your medicine and take a rest.”
Hearing his veiled orders, Shen Zhen laid down unquestioningly. In order not to cause trouble to so many people, she had no choice but do everything she could to get better. In that optic, she closed her eyes.
Lu Yan got up to blow out the candles in the room. Seeing her being so obedient, he came back to caress her back gently. This tenderness of men, especially Lu Yan’s tenderness, even if bestowed in trickles was meant to be felt. And Shen Zhen did sense it.
Turning around, she did not fall asleep. She rather opened her eyes wide. As time passed by, the rhythm of the strokes of Lu Yan’s hands on her back started matching that of Shen Zhen’s heartbeats, as if the two movements fit with one another.
After a long while, he abruptly spoke.
“Shen Zhen, sleep now. Once you wake up tomorrow, write a letter and I will have it sent to Madam Li.”
The Madam Li he was talking about was Shen Zhen’s eldest sister, Shen Ran. As soon as his words reached her, Shen Zhen felt tears prickling her eyes. She wanted to cry to relieve her stress but remembered the rules he had set. Thus she was left enduring the discomfort.
Waiting for her breathing to become even, Lu Yan was left staring out of the window, contemplating the problem at hand. In fact, he himself could not tell why he was going against his own resolutions considering the Li household.
Maybe it was because Shen Zhen was so closely associated to his disordered dreams. Maybe he felt pity at the idea he had made her a mistress at such a young age, not giving anything substantial to her in return. Maybe he just wanted her to have sweet dreams.
He was left pondering this prickly question.
