Chapter 3: Kneeling Punishment

 

Wei Lian thought for a moment, his eyes lowered as he replied: "Timely snow falls on good harvest years; the snow is auspicious. Wei Lian is happy to come out and appreciate the snow."

He is still not clear about the king's moods, and therefore his words were extremely careful to prevent his head from falling to the ground.

To speak some words of fortune is always not wrong; people like to hear them.

Who knew that the person on top softly ordered, "Cut off his tongue." 

Wei Lian: ???

Why does this person not play a card of common sense?

Wei Lian promptly bowed down his head. His voice was still considered steady as he asked, "Did Wei Lian say something wrong?"

Some of Ji Yue's interest built up at that.

If the other was horrified by his words and started to cry, then he would be a weak pretty flower vase. Ji Yue would definitely be to lazy to bother, and let his guard cut off his tongue. But Wei Lian's face didn't change. He dared to ask why, and acted with propriety, knowing when to step up and when to back down. This type of courage made people admire him.

Because of his interest, Ji Yue was willing to explain. Otherwise, the people that he had killed were countless. If everyone wanted a reason, how can explain enough?

"Snow falls on good harvest years. The harvest is in the Qin Kingdom's year. You are a citizen of Chu. The Chu just lost a battle, and sent you as a hostage. You probably hate Qin to the bones, yet you say your heart is happy. Is that not a crime of deceit? For treason against the king, cutting off your tongue is nothing."

Ji Yue added with a quiet chuckle, "If you say something like since I came to the Qin Kingdom, then I am a Qin person, Gu (I) would also dislike a person who abandons his home country with his glib tongue."

"Prince Lian, you can try give Gu (me) a reason to leave behind your tongue."

A couple of sentences had cornered Wei Lian with no retreat, and tossed the difficult question back at him.

Wei Lian revised his answer and said: "Wei Lian has committed a crime; there was indeed deception. The Chu Kingdom's weather is cold; snow would fall year round. Wei Lian would often play with mother in the snow as a child. Now alone at Qin, (I've) seen the snow, but (I've) not seen mother, and therefore is somewhat sentimental."

It is not wise to wrangle with the king. Wei Lian directly admitted guilty, but definitely couldn't stop there.

Otherwise his tongue had to be cut off for treason.

He needed to arouse the king's sympathetic side.

The King of Qin is cold, and his mother is his only weakness. Otherwise, this type of king wouldn't often visit the cold palace on snowy nights. Most likely when the king was young, he had also felt the happiness of a family with his mother. It's just that the person has died, and now he could only look at the old scenes and familiar items to remember that person.

Wei Lian couldn't say that he was thinking of the enemy kingdom. The Qin and Chu are enemies. If he said that, then he would be raising the king's killing tendencies.

He could only be thinking of mother.

Even though he never met his birth mother and the number of times he played with his adoptive mother all contained schemes with no true emotions, who cares?

It's ok if he can lie past the King of Qin.

His thoughts circled thousands of times, but in reality only one breath of time had passed. Wei Lian bowed his head on the ground, giving an appearance as if saying the king can punish him however he likes.

After Wei Lian finished speaking, the king was silent for a long time.

"Seen the snow, but not seen mother....." Ji Yue seemed to have some laments, "The things are still here, but the people no longer are. That is a very accurate phrase."

Wei Lian's heart was relieved; it looks like he managed to pass this trial.

If it was an accurate phrase, then his tongue had some use to stay.

Ji Yue slightly smiled, "Since Prince Lian likes the snow so much, then you can kneel here until the snow stops. Li Fuquan, move." (TL: Ji Yue's gonna regret this)

Li Fuquan heard this and shouted "Up——"

The dragon sedan was lifted up again. The noisy group of guards passed by Wei Lian, and quickly left him behind.

Wei Lian lowered his eyes, looking respectful and subservient.

Wei Lian's inner mind: Ji Yue exploded. 

_

It was the first time he met with the King of Qin of the legends, and Wei Lian was kneeling the entire process. If he wasn't lowering his head then he was kowtowing on the ground to ask for punishment. He never even saw the king's features.

His voice was certainly nice to hear, except the words he spoke were all inhuman.

Wei Lian knelt in the snow; in his inner mind, thousands of knives have hacked Ji Yue into pieces multiple times already.

Contact with the King of Qin was, as expected, dangerous to his life.

The king is definitely more cold-blooded, crueler, and moodier than the legends say.

Anyone who walked close to the gate of hell like this would be frightened into an entire body of cold sweat.

Wei Lian wasn't. Wei Lian was very calm, except that he wanted to kill a person with a surname of Ji and a first name Yue, that was all.

The Qin palace is filled with observers, and Wei Lian didn't know how many pairs of eyes were spying on him from the shadows, so he didn't dare take it lightly.

To not arouse suspicions, he didn't even use his inner energy to protect his body.

The fact that he knew martial arts cannot be revealed.

This is his bottom card. What Wei Lian needed to act as is a helpless and weak prince. Only his intelligence and his talents can let the king treat him differently. If he was both strong and intelligent.....then he can wait to die.

The King of Qin would not raise a tiger to threaten him.

_

He knelt deep into the night.

Without inner energy to protect him, Wei Lian's body was not much different from an ordinary person's, at most being a bit stronger.

Two hours passed by, and his face somewhat paled.

His knees ached.

The cold air entered his body and chilled his bones. Wei Lian lightly coughed a few times. The corners of his eyes had already turned red from freezing.

Endure.

Only by eating the bitter of the bitter can one be on top of the top. (No pain, no gain)

Wei Lian doesn't want to eat the lizhi from eight hundred miles away anymore. He just wants to be on top of Ji Yue's grave to whip his corpse.

The soft moonlight sprinkled down and covered the snow in a silver light.

When Wei Lian thought he was about to faint, a familiar black dragon sedan came into view.

Wei Lian lowered his eyes and straightened his back again.

_

Ji Yue sat in the cold palace as usual. He initially wanted to stay for an entire night, but he suddenly thought of a particular person.

He hasn't clearly seen what the youth looked like. He only remembered a beautiful long neck and a slightly pointy chin.

Think he was called Wei Lian.

If he rested here, then he would have to kneel in the snow for an entire night.

Ji Yue originally shouldn't have cared, but then he thought of this for no reason.

The snowy night is so cold.

The night that mother died, beside the well, there were a pair of footprints that were messy.

Mother was pushed down the well by another person.

The culprit was the queen, who was also the queen dowager he presented the white sash to.

The queen dowager needed a puppet king to be her son, so that child didn't need his birth mother.

His mother died because of that kind of reason.

Snowy nights became the coldest place in Ji Yue's heart.

After kneeling for an entire night, if his legs didn't cripple, there would still be lasting symptoms left behind.

He didn't need to harass a child who was thinking of his mother.

Ji Yue uncommonly produced a bit of human sympathy. He put on his cloak, got in the sedan, and set for return.

_

Sure enough, Wei Lian was still kneeling there.

The young man's body was thin, and snow had fallen on his hair. He was wearing his fox fur shawl, and it seemed as if he was going to be one with the snow.

His figure was unstable, but his back was still straightened.

As if he were a proud and unyielding winter plum blossom.

It's a pity that even if there really was a plum blossom in this snowy and windy weather, it's branches would still break and fall into the mud, covered in ice and snow.

Ji Yue gestured his hand to stop the sedan and commanded Wei Lian: "Raise your head."

Wei Lian obediently tilted his head up. The moonlight allowed both of them to clearly see each other's appearance.

Both were startled.

Wei Lian once imagined the king's looks.

The king's reputation among the people wasn't great. He started wars multiple times, and caused many people to lose their homes. There were many grievances. Among the citizens, he was the Yama who stopped children from crying at night. (TL: they were too afraid to cry) They all thought he had a harsh and fierce appearance that looked like an angry god or an evil spirit.

The nobles of the six kingdoms claimed the King of Qin was handsome, but also said that he had a somber aura and his eyes were as sharp as knives, so no one dared to look at him directly.

Yet in reality, he didn't look like an angry god or evil spirit, and nor was he somber or frightening.

He was only a very good looking youth.

The solemn black robe he wore couldn't cover his youthful features. His ink black hair were like clouds (TL: silky like a cloud), his black eyes were shining like stars, and his face looked as if it was carefully crafted and lovingly bestowed by the heavens.

His eyes carried laughter and looked as if all the stars in the sky gathered in those pair of bright pupils.

Who could of thought that this was the King of Qin.

Ji Yue noticed Wei Lian's astonishment and took a sweeping view.

Ji Yue knew the Chu Kingdom sent a beauty (TL: sounds more androgynous in Chinese), but didn't think his full view would be so stunning.

Under the moonlight, the youth's pallor was white as snow. He had ink black hair like clouds and snow-like skin that aroused pity.

The corners of his eyes were slightly red, and his lips that were closely shut was white from freezing, looking somewhat sad.

The group of attendants all fell into a trance, their heads filled with four words.

Unrivaled beauty on earth.

How is he a human.....this clearly a bewitching spirit that was born from the snow, only then could he have such an alluring and poignant beauty.

Who couldn't be moved by such beautiful appearance? 

_

"Come up," Ji Yue said.

Wei Lian momentarily froze, and then slowly got up, his legs moderately trembling.

When he stepped on the foot rest, Wei Lian lost his balance, and his entire body started to fall.

A warm embrace caught him just in time.

Ji Yue chuckled as he held his hands, "Why are you so cold?"

Wei Lian thought: Try kneeling in the snow for two hours and you would also be this cold, thank you very much.

Wei Lian's face looked startled, and his voice was quivering from the cold: "King....."

Ji Yue untied Wei Lian's fox fur shawl that was covered in icy snow, and covered his back with a thick woolen blanket. He gently said, "Lean on Gu (me)."

Wei Lian: Since you say it like that, then I'll help myself.

His entire body was icy cold, so when he stuck himself over, it was like sticking on a big block of ice.

Ji Yue's face didn't change as he tightly held him.

The king's personal sedan couldn't hold two people. Wei Lian weakly shrunk into Ji Yue's arms, greedily drawing in the warmth of his body.

King of Qin's embrace was very warm.

Wei Lian got a warm stove and didn't want to let go.

As for whether his freezing body would transfer the cold to the king, Wei Lian isn't going to take into consideration. He couldn't wish for more if this dog of king could freeze into an ice sculpture and break into thousands of pieces to vent his hatred.

Ji Yue lowered his eyes and saw the youth's pale white face and the curl of his slender and long eyelashes from his tightly closed eyes.

He usually took action depending on his mood. He is hugging the person in his arms now, but maybe a few moments later, he would throw them off in the middle of the road.

Looking at the way the youth obediently relied on him, Ji Yue thought his mood was rather good.

It can last until he brings the youth back to Yang Xin Court.

Li Fuquan sneaked a glance at the youth in his majesty's arms, and secretly sighed at his Majesty 's unpredictable thoughts.

Front foot he let the person kneel in the snow for two hours, then back foot he brought the person back to his bedroom.

However, Prince Lian really is a gorgeous beauty. If he wasn't something who lost his stick long ago, his heart would also be moved by looking at him.

Li Fuquan thought about whether he should make some preparations. If his Majesty decided tonight to favor Prince Lian.....ah, no Wei Shijun, then he needed to order people to prepare fragrant water for bathing as well as lubricants.

When he was still thinking, they had already arrived at Yang Xin Court. Wei Lian dazedly wanted to get down. When he stood up, his knees flared up in pain, and he sat back down. 

Wei Lian lightly hissed a breath of air and furrowed his eyebrows.

Ji Yue noticed, and suddenly lifted him up sideways (princess carry). He widely strode and stepped into Yang Xin Court.

Wei Lian was stunned and quickly hugged Ji Yue's neck, not daring to say phrases like "let me down."

Otherwise with the king's temperament, he would probably really throw him down, the let-him-drop-immediately kind.

Li Fuquan saw his majesty personally carry him in, and he re-evaluated Wei Lian's importance.

Looks like Green Bamboo Court will have fortune after tonight.

Author's note: 

Ji Yue: Prince Lian, , you can try give Gu (me) a reason to leave behind your tongue.

Wei Lian:【calm】I need it to kiss with your Majesty.

The king: dead.

The Gong (top) is really a tyrant, moody in the beginning, sometimes pampering wife sometimes bullying wife, therefore there will be killing the king in the crematorium. But this is a sweet novel!!!

【Every death battle whose goal isn't to kill the other is all love】

Translator's Note:

Explaining Author's Note-

Usually it is chasing the wife in the crematorium which indicates how difficult it is to chase back your lover after you do stupid things to hurt them. The lover would usually be running away too. Well, in this case, Wei Lian would try to kill the king instead of running.

Sweet novel means no angst in romantic relationship, not sure about everything else though.

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