The atmosphere was warming up when Chichi suddenly ran in, circling around their feet, tugging at Xin Yi's robe hem, and whimpering. Xin Yi, his eyes hazy, went to look, and Bai Jiu's thumb affectionately caressed his brow, then let him go. Xin Yi sensed Bai Jiu seemed displeased, and flushed, saying, "I'll take, take it out."

Bai Jiu smiled, "Go on." Xin Yi picked up Chichi and ran off. After he had run out of sight, Bai Jiu remained standing there. Only much later, when his impulse had subsided, did he brush off his robes and calmly walk out.

Xin Yi ran out the door, holding Chichi. The evening wind was warm. He rushed out of the veranda and saw Old Qu standing with his hands behind his back, looking at a plant. Seeing him run over, Old Qu couldn't help but say, "Young master, slow down, slow down." By the time Xin Yi reached him, his forehead was already covered in sweat. Old Qu said, "I've been waiting for a while, young master; you could have taken your time looking around, no need to rush. Look at all this sweat on your head."

Xin Yi's face flushed. Thinking he had only run a few steps, and it was likely from nervousness earlier, he covered his nose with a fist and said, "I'll remember."

He was still young, and these days the manor had nourished him to be fair and soft. When his hair on his forehead got damp, his eyes appeared especially clear and bright, with lingering childishness between his brows and even sweeter dimples. Old Qu looked at him and felt he had changed since he first arrived; his personality was also more lively. Old people naturally liked such children and felt more tender towards them. He said, "It's almost autumn, and it gets cold easily in the mountains at night. You must wipe off your sweat, otherwise you'll catch a cold later."

Xin Yi acknowledged, took a handkerchief from his sleeve, and obediently wiped. Chichi, excited by people, darted into the bushes and scurried around. Xin Yi let it play by itself. His eyes lingered in the bushes for a while, then he suddenly smiled, "There are sweet potatoes."

Old Qu was surprised, "Young master still recognizes sweet potatoes?"

"I often saw them in Posa City, even in the Prince of Ping's manor," Xin Yi said, pressing his handkerchief to his temple. "I like to roast them and eat them."

Old Qu just smiled, "Let's roast a few tonight, His Excellency also used to eat them often."

"His Excellency?" This time it was Xin Yi's turn to be surprised. He then remembered that Bai Jiu was not of noble birth and stopped speaking.

Old Qu didn't mind. He squatted down, picking out sweet potatoes, and said, "That was a long, long time ago. Back then, His Excellency was the same age as the young master, even a bit thinner than you. He was also arrogant and often got into trouble."

Xin Yi also squatted down, holding the sweet potatoes Old Qu had picked out. After a moment of hesitation, he said, "I know very little about His Excellency... I was just learning to run back then."

Old Qu said, "His Excellency and your second elder brother are the same age. It's normal that you wouldn't know, young master." As Old Qu spoke, he pulled at the soil, saying, "His Excellency was still in Shanyin back then, under his teacher's guidance."

Xin Yi gasped, hugging the sweet potatoes tightly, and said, "My second elder brother was also in Shanyin back then, studying under Elder Baishi."

"The second young master was a dragon colt and phoenix chick, truly a person taught by that esteemed individual."

His second elder brother, Xin Jing, courtesy name Fengyuan, was given that name by Elder Baishi himself back then. The title "Beiyang Phoenix Chick" also spread from there, a crowning glory for Great Lan. After his second elder brother died, Elder Baishi stopped taking disciples, but ultimately didn't make it past the first three years, perishing at the same time as the Prince of Yan's Manor.

Xin Yi's heart suddenly stirred, a thought emerging, but he didn't voice it. He just wiped the sweet potato and said, "Elder Baishi was a good teacher."

Old Qu patted off the dirt, stood up, and supported his waist, saying, "It's been a long time since I tilled the soil, and my back isn't what it used to be. I am indeed old, not very useful anymore. These sweet potatoes are fresh, shall we roast them now?"

"Alright."

When roasting sweet potatoes, the most wonderful part is when they're buried in charcoal ash and slowly baked until fragrant. Xin Yi really had a knack for roasting sweet potatoes; when he dug them out, they were perfectly done, sweet, soft, and aromatic inside, making even Chichi excitedly wag its tail.

Bai Jiu was reviewing documents and couldn't touch them, so Xin Yi broke off some and fed it to him. As Bai Jiu ate, his tongue brushed Xin Yi's fingertip. Xin Yi's earlobes warmed, but he managed to act quite composed. After Bai Jiu finished one, Xin Yi remembered there would be dinner later, so he stopped feeding him.

"Good craftsmanship." Bai Jiu drew a circle with his ink brush and said, "Go back and have someone plant some at home too."

Xin Yi thought of the courtyard in front of his study where fish were kept, and smiled, "Then it would be perfect to plant them next to the study, near the fish pond. It would be a kind of scenery too."

"Good place to plant them." Bai Jiu stopped writing, looked up at him, and said, "That way, even when burdened with official duties, I can be fed every day."

Xin Yi said, "We can't roast sweet potatoes every day. We'd have to plant some vegetables and such."

Bai Jiu thought for a moment, then pulled a piece of paper from beside him and gave it to Xin Yi, saying, "Start a vegetable garden, plant whatever you want to eat."

Xin Yi paused, looking at him slightly bewildered, and repeated, "Start a vegetable garden?"

Bai Jiu raised a hand and gently held his face, "Have someone else plant the vegetables. You plant something else."

"What should I plant?"

Bai Jiu patted his head, smiling without a word. Xin Yi thought to ask 'Who would eat it?', but then silently swallowed the words back. He said, "If a whole tree of it grew... Your Excellency wouldn't be able to eat it all."

"Not an entire tree." Bai Jiu's fingertip suggestively drew circles near Xin Yi's dimple, "Just grow a little bigger and it'll be fine."

Xin Yi's face gradually reddened. "I'm already sixteen," he said. Bai Jiu's gaze shifted downwards to an unspeakable place, a subtle smile in his narrowed eyes. Xin Yi immediately blocked himself, his face already burning hot. He said, "That was, was the first time."

Bai Jiu raised an eyebrow, nodding, "My fault." Before Xin Yi could even take a breath, he heard Bai Jiu continue, "So beautiful that it makes one hard even in dreams."

Xin Yi's gaze was flustered. He bit his lip and forced out, "Men, right..."

"Exactly," Bai Jiu said, lowering his head to continue drawing on the desk. "It's normal to get hard at that age." Xin Yi covered his ears, about to run, but Bai Jiu grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back to the table, pushing aside the other items. Bai Jiu propped his hands on either side of Xin Yi, his narrowed eyes staring at him seriously, "So thin-skinned, you don't even argue back, just let me bully you?"

"I, I can't argue with Your Excellency." 'And he really had that dream, feeling guilty.'

"Oh dear," Bai Jiu said indifferently, "If I say any more intimate things, won't you just burrow under the bed?"

"Bed, bed bed, bed—" Xin Yi bit his stuttering tongue in annoyance, "What kind of talk is that?"

Bai Jiu was silent for a moment, then suddenly pressed him against his chest. Xin Yi was startled, his hand hesitated for a long time before cautiously resting on Bai Jiu's waist, unsure of what had just happened.

Before he was twelve, he was the apple of his parents' and brothers' eyes. His elder brothers were not dissolute men; even his third elder brother hid his 'little yellow books' securely. Before he could even be enlightened in such matters, everyone was gone. After entering the Prince of Ping's Manor, no one taught him these things; aside from horses, he rarely even saw people. You could say he was indeed innocent and likable in appearance, but his temperament was somewhat inconsistent with that. Yet if you claimed he was scheming and weathered by inner experience, he was by some twist of fate left with some empty, clean spaces. Therefore, the innocence in his features was truly innocence, but the ruthlessness hidden in his eyes was also truly ruthlessness—all uniquely Xin Yi's.

"What's wrong, Jingyuan?" After waiting for a while, Xin Yi felt a bit stifled against his chest, so he asked muffledly. Bai Jiu lowered his head and kissed the crown of Xin Yi's head, then slowly whispered something into his ear. Xin Yi's face instantly became steaming hot, and yet this was only the beginning. Bai Jiu kept whispering improper things into his ear, and Xin Yi buried his head lower and lower, until Bai Jiu stopped and said, "Where are you going? Any further down won't be appropriate."

Xin Yi silently moved back up. When Bai Jiu finally pulled him out from his chest, he was entirely red, like a scalded shrimp. Bai Jiu's fingertip brushed Xin Yi's lips and he said, "Child."

Not knowing, not being able to say it, not understanding—none of it mattered. Bai Jiu had time and was willing to teach him slowly. Of course, from another perspective, His Excellency would only be happy to teach him himself...

The cook in this residence wasn't as good as the one in the manor, but Xin Yi was remembering the phrases "child" and "grow a little bigger," so his appetite was even more extraordinary. After dinner, the two went for a walk in the courtyard, with Chichi following behind. Xin Yi took a moment to admire the maple leaves of Luyi Mountain, then slowly said to Bai Jiu, "How did His Excellency think of buying the Marquis of Huiyang's residence?"

"The scenery is good."

"There are many residences with good scenery in the capital," Xin Yi said, feeding a deer. His palm was licked wet. Before he could reach for his own handkerchief, Bai Jiu had already wiped it clean for him with one.

"There's only one like it on Luyi Mountain."

"Then you could build another one yourself," Xin Yi murmured as Bai Jiu wiped his hand, "Does His Excellency know the Marquis of Huiyang?"

"No," Bai Jiu said, squeezing his fingertips, "When I came to the capital, there was no longer a Marquis of Huiyang."

"When did Your Excellency come to the capital?"

"Your Excellency won't tell you."

Xin Yi said with some discouragement, "Jingyuan."

"The winter of the 47th year."

Maple leaves crunched underfoot. Xin Yi was led by Bai Jiu, walking among the maple trees. He said, "Hmm, Jingyuan was still young then."

Bai Jiu's footsteps paused, "Am I already old and faded now?"

Xin Yi's face flushed slightly, "No..." He jumped over the stream, "His Excellency... Cough, Jingyuan is very handsome." Bai Jiu looked back at him, then suddenly scooped him up. Xin Yi was slightly surprised, "I can jump across this stream..."

Bai Jiu lifted him higher, "Look south."

Xin Yi turned his head and was immediately captivated by the rolling hills gradually painted with maple leaves. The majestic maple leaves covering the mountains, seemingly about to ignite the pavilions and towers of the capital, were bathed in the orange glow of the setting sun, creating a feeling of passionate intensity. The calls of geese crossed the sky, brilliance and solitude merging into one, a wondrous aesthetic of early autumn. His dimples deepened. He reached out and lightly pointed, smiling, "What a beautiful autumn scene!"

"Luyi Mountain's maples are unparalleled," Bai Jiu said, only looking at him, "Breathtakingly beautiful."

How could Xin Yi know who he was really talking about? He simply thought Bai Jiu was referring to the scenery, so he nodded in agreement. His clear, bright eyes gazed around in amazement, feeling refreshed and invigorated, the stale air in his chest dissipating like smoke.

Bai Jiu asked, "How is it?"

Xin Yi nodded, his eyes filled with fragmented sunlight. He said, "I like it!"

Bai Jiu smiled, "Just the scenery of the mountain?" Xin Yi lowered his head to look at him. Bai Jiu's narrowed eyes were profound, and amidst the mottled maple leaves, his eyes were as deep, serene, and silent as a pool of water, clearly reflecting Xin Yi's appearance. Xin Yi covered his chest and quickly shook his head, "No... not just the scenery."

Bai Jiu watched him quietly, calmly, as if scrutinizing him. Xin Yi felt a flutter in his heart from being watched, and a touch of boldness. For once, he did not shy away from the gaze; he endured his embarrassment and looked straight back at Bai Jiu.

"Do you like it?" Bai Jiu's voice was unruffled.

Xin Yi immediately covered his nose with a fist and nodded vigorously. Bai Jiu let out a laugh. Xin Yi suddenly reached out and hugged his shoulders, even though his palms were already sweating from nervousness, he held Bai Jiu tightly.

Bai Jiu was quiet for a moment, then pressed a hand to his back, "Hugging me comes with a price."

"Mm..."

Bai Jiu smiled, "Child."

Xin Yi lowered his eyes, inexplicably feeling a little dejected, but Bai Jiu stopped there. He clearly had more to say, but said nothing, just letting Xin Yi hug him, as if giving him a chance to regret, yet having already decided his claim over him.

'This was a cunning man.'

Xin Yi thought awkwardly. The sky gradually darkened. His hands, resting on Bai Jiu's shoulders, felt a little cold. Xin Yi silently loosened his grip, wanting to withdraw his hands, but then heard Bai Jiu whisper into his ear.

"From the very beginning, you had no choice."

He could only be Bai Jiu's.

He must be Bai Jiu's.

The snake lay hidden nearby, its cold eyes constantly waiting for the rabbit being chased by a fierce dog. This rabbit, merely having caught a scent, could not stop. The fierce dog's barks pursued it all the way, and the rabbit ran blindly with carrots on its back. The leopard's sleepy eyes had not yet opened, but the snake already hissed, revealing its venomous fangs, slithering closer.

The rabbit, watching it.