This sighing voice was so different from Su Jingmoâs usual tone. It was less combed and less cynical.
Qin Cheng didnât know how to feel when he heard this sentence. He seemed to feel the complex emotions in Su Jingmoâs words. But he couldnât figure out what it was.
Suddenly, Qin Cheng felt a wave of sadness all over his body, making his heart ache in pain. He walked quickly to Su Jingmoâs side.
As he stared at Su Jingmo, who had never looked at him since saying that, Qin Cheng was at a loss for words.
âI-I donât know what to sayâŚ.â
Qin Cheng grabbed Su Jingmoâs hands, which were different from his own warm hands. Qin Chengâs fingers froze in the cold of winter, but Su Jingmo was different. His hands were long and beautiful, but they were also cold and lifelessâŚ.
This kind of touch made Qin Chengâs heart feel bad. Even though he was clearly touching this manâs hands, it seemed like he wasnât touching a thing. Just like touching the void. It reminded Qin Cheng that Su Jingmo was different from himâŚ.
With this in mind, Qin Cheng couldnât help himself from holding Su Jingmoâs hands even tighter.
âI canât control myself. If I were more rational and sober, I wouldnât have gotten close to you. I shouldâve stayed far away from you. As far as possible.â
Qin Chengâs words pulled Su Jingmo out of his thoughts. As Su Jingmo slightly narrowed his peach blossom eyes, he smiled jokingly as usual and said: âItâs not too late to stay away now.â
After saying that, Su Jingmo tightened his lips and quickly stepped back, trying to pull his hands away. However, he didnât know that Qin Cheng would clench his hands in a tight grip. After sensing that Su Jingmo wanted to break free, Qin Cheng stepped even closer to him, raising his arms to hug him.
This made Su Jingmoâs eyes darken. He had been an Emperor for nearly 10 years, and before he became an Emperor, he was the Emperorâs son, a wealthy Prince of the Imperial family. He has been a reckless man all his life. No one had really broken into his world like Qin Cheng did, regardless of his feelings, and no one dared to force him like thisâŚ.
At this thought, Su Jingmo raised his hand to push Qin Cheng away, but he unknowingly and accidentally touched Qin Chengâs wounds. Qin Cheng made a muffled sound and Su Jingmo froze.
Qin Cheng hugged Su Jingmo tightly, knowing that he was trying to push him away. But he didnât expect that Su Jingmo would touch his waist right where his injury was. The slight pain made Qin Cheng instinctively take a breath, but he found that because of his own low cry, Su Jingmo had stopped moving.
Su Jingmoâs hair gently swept across the tip of Qin Chengâs nose, making Qin Cheng purse his lips. Since the two of them were the same height, Qin Cheng simply relaxed his body, gently leaning his chin against Su Jingmoâs shoulder.
Feeling Su Jingmoâs body turning slightly stiff, Qin Cheng raised the corners of his lips slightly, in the arms of this invisible manâŚ.
Su Jingmo has been at the top of the world since childhood, and he was used to it. Naturally, he wouldnât like someone to face him like this, but maybeâŚ. he has changedâŚ.. Otherwise, why wasnât Su Jingmo resisting?
âHiss-! Donât move. It hurts.â
Although he didnât feel that kind of painâŚ.
However, Su Jingmo also stopped struggling, because of Qin Chengâs words. Because of this, Qin Cheng was able to hear Su Jingmoâs shallow sigh.
Qin Chengâs words and actions really put Su Jingmo in a situation in which he didnât know whether to laugh or cry. He could see that Qin Cheng was pretending so he would allow him to hug him. But there was also a trace of his own âemotionsâ he was trying to ignoreâŚ.
Su Jingmo wasnât a living person. Heâs a ghost. Of course, he can âfeelâ where Qin Chengâs wound is, and he already knew that his actions wouldnât hurt him. But when he heard Qin Chengâs hurting breaths, his heart couldnât help but worry. Although his life hadnât been long, he had met too many people due to his high positionâŚ. Many of these people admired his appearance, but those people were extremely different from Qin Cheng. This manâŚ. only thought of âhimâ from beginning to end. He even got himself hurtâŚ.. Of course, he doesnât know any martial arts, and heâs obviously just a scholarâŚ.
Itâs just thatâŚ.
"
"
Su Jingmo gently closed his eyesâŚ. â Itâs just a hugâŚ. just give it to himâŚ. â
However, Su Jingmo didnât know that while Qin Cheng hugged him, the smile on his face was unprecedentedâŚ.
Not knowing what to say, Qin Cheng reached out to hold the glasses on the bridge of his nose, and then hugged Su Jingmo even tighter. Just standing there, not talking, for a long timeâŚ.Such a silence gave Qin Cheng the best idea of his lifeâŚ..
The air in the tomb wasnât very smooth, but due to the slight cold it didnât feel oppressing either. When both of them werenât speaking, it showed how exceptionally quiet this tomb was. They could only hear the sound of water droplets falling on the stone floor somewhere.
Su Jingmoâs tomb was indeed very beautiful. Even though it was unknown who choose this place to become an Imperial Mausoleum at that time, or who made it so beautiful, when Qin Cheng raised his head to look at the roof of the tomb, and when he first stepped in a few months ago, Qin Cheng always felt that even though this tomb was gloomy, it didnât feel as cold as the other tombs he had seen. This was because of the colorful murals on the walls, and the treasures embedded in them.
However, in theory, mountain murals that were buried thousands of years ago, should deteriorate quickly and lose all colors, due to the sudden contact with the outside air. Therefore, every time an archeologist enters a tomb, they will bring a camera with them to take pictures before the mural weathers.
Itâs just that the murals in Su Jingmoâs tomb didnât seem to be affected at allâŚ.
Qin Cheng wondered who inlaid these warm-colored treasures back then and who used what methods to keep the murals from disappearingâŚ.
When he thought of this, Qin Cheng felt some kind of blockage in his heart. He was actually feeling a bit jealousâŚ.
He also wanted to give Su Jingmo something of his ownâŚ..
At that moment, Qin Cheng couldnât help thinking of the black jade hairpin in his bag. At that, Qin Cheng couldnât help but glance at the top of Su Jingmoâs head. All he could see was Su Jingmoâs long dark hair. His hair was tied in a top-knot, fixed with a white jade dragon pattern hairpin. It looked simple at first glance, but it was overflowing with the Emperorâs aura. Qin Cheng was able to recognize a treasure when he looked at it, and with a single glance, he could see that the hairpin Su Jingmo was wearing was probably worth a lot of moneyâŚ. Now, Qin Cheng didnât know if he wanted to give Su Jingmo that black hairpin. If Su Jingmo were to see itâŚ.
With a soft sigh, Qin Cheng buried his head in Su Jingmoâs neck. As the cold breath ran into the tip of his nose, for some reason, Qin Cheng felt that the person in his arms had a faint fragrance. He didnât know if it was an illusion, but even though the fragrance was kind of faint, it made Qin Cheng fall in love with it.
Qin Cheng tilted his head to sniff lightly. The shallow smell seemed to be stronger, continuously spreading into Qin Chengâs nose, into his lungs, and engraving itself onto his heartâŚ.
It felt like something was overflowing in his heart. As Qin Cheng tightened his hands, he closed his eyes and kissed Su Jingmoâs temples.
âQin Cheng!â
Su Jingmo shouted when he felt the slight hot breath on his temples, causing him to change the expression on his face.
They were so close to each other that Qin Cheng could naturally feel Su Jingmoâs body trembling. Seeing that this man wanted to break free, Qin Cheng hurriedly softened his body and leaned against Su Jingmo. Slightly âweakâ, he said: âDonât move, donât move. My waist still hurts. It wouldnât be good if the stitches open.â
After hugging each other for so long, Su Jingmo became somewhat impatient. With a cold âhmmâ, he said: âThen why donât you let Zhen go, and go see a physician? Will it cure your wound to hold Zhen like this?â
Qin Cheng knew that Su Jingmo had found out he was pretending to be hurt, but Qin Cheng didnât intend to let him go regardless. It wasnât easy to get such an opportunity to hug him like this. If he were to let go now, who knows when heâd be able to hold Su Jingmo in his arms again?
Qin Cheng didnât reply either. After staying silent for a while, he finally said: âI wonât let go. I wonât let you go for the rest of my life.â
Qin Chengâs words left Su Jingmo stunned for a moment. Through Qin Chengâs shoulder and neck, he looked at the white marble gates. The upper side was decorated with carved ornaments that looked exactly the same as the decorated front doors of his Palace when he was still alive. They were just in the opposite directionâŚ..
He was born to represent Heaven, as a ruler above everyone elseâŚ.
âFor the rest of your life?â Su Jingmoâs voice sounded much colder now. âThatâs your lifetime. As for mine, it disappeared thousands of years ago.â
Su Jingmoâs words were so cold, that if others could hear him, they would be startled and break into a cold sweat. How did his voice sound? It was clearly the voice of a ghostâŚ.
"
"
However, Qin Cheng wasnât that kind of person. As soon as Su Jingmo said this, he only felt a dull pain in his heart.
âIâve thought about it. Iâve thought about everything. Itâs not a blessing to stay for an eternity in this tombâŚ. I canât destroy the formation in this tomb, and in my heart, I donât want to do it either. What will happen if this formation gets destroyed? Will you enter the circle of reincarnation, or will you turn into a-âŚ..?â
Qin Cheng didnât want to say the word âashâ, let alone want it to happen. After taking a pause, Qin Cheng continued: âIf itâs for your own good, I should help you leave this tomb. ButâŚ.. I canât imagine you not remembering me. I donât want to lose you. As you said before, itâs impossible for me to know who I was in my previous life, and I canât know who youâll be with in your next reincarnation. But I canât accept it, nor do I dare to think about it! You might as well stay in this tomb, at least, that way you will remember me. At least, Iâll be the only one who can get close to you!â
Qin Cheng was very emotional, and he slightly loosened his grip on Su Jingmo. As Qin Cheng took Su Jingmoâs hands, he stared into Su Jingmoâs eyes to say to him: âWhen I went to Pingyao, and my life was in danger, I thought that I was going to die several times. But I didnât want to die, and I wouldnât allow it either. I wanted to survive, desperately. After all, if I had to die, at least, I didnât want to die in that tomb!âŚ. Su Jingmo, do you know why?â
Su Jingmo could vaguely guess what Qin Cheng wanted to say, and he couldnât stop himself from frowning: âI donât want to knâ.â
Just before he could finish his words, Qin Cheng cut him off.
âBecause if I have to die, I would rather die in this tomb. That way, I could stay with you for 10 years, 100 years, 1000 yearsâŚ. That way, I would be with you all the timeâŚ. However, Iâm still unwilling to die. After all, I promised my colleague that I couldnât go see him until I discovered everything.â
âI donât think I wouldâve realized how much I love you without having faced deathâŚ. I love history, I love archeology, and I love exploring the unknown with my hands and seeing it with my own eyes. ButâŚ. I love you moreâŚ.â
The word âloveâ was said so simply and casually, but anyone could tell that it came from the bottom of his heartâŚ.
Qin Chengâs love was so heavy that Su Jingmo couldnât say any negative words, let alone reject him. It wasnât only because of Qin Chengâs earnest affection, but also because of that âwordâ. The man in front of him was making his heart trembleâŚ..
For the first time, Su Jingmo didnât avoid Qin Chengâs gaze, but he didnât reply either. He simply squeezed Qin Chengâs hands, smiled slightly, and asked: âWhat day is today?â
Qin Cheng didnât know why Su Jingmo was asking this, but since Su Jingmoâs little gesture made Qin Cheng happy, he replied after thinking about it: âToday should be 20th of the 9th Lunar Month <sup>1</sup> .â
â20th day of the 9th Lunar MonthâŚ. The Hanlu <sup>2</sup> has already passedâŚ. It seems that the weather is about to change tooâŚ.â
âYes, itâs starting to get coldâŚ.â
Su Jingmo looked at Qin Cheng, smiled and didnât speak. As he stepped forward, he gently leaned on Qin Chengâs shoulderâŚ.
âI remember that the 29th of the 9th Lunar Month <sup>3</sup> is my birthdayâŚ.â
He was weirdly trying to express: In a relationship, you should take things slowlyâŚ.
Ohhhhhhhh is SJMâs frozen heart finally melting with QCâs love?? đđđâ¨â¨â¨
Good job QC! Your crush is falling for you đ đ
.
(âŠÂ´â`âŠ) đ
Footnotes
<ol>October 14 (2014) in the Gregorian calendar. <b>ĺŻé˛</b> <b>hĂĄn lĂš</b> ; The traditional Chinese Calendar divides a year into 24 Solar Terms. Hanlu is the 17th solar term. It begins when the sun reaches the Celestial Longitude of 195Âş, and it ends when it reaches the longitude of 210Âş. This shows the change of weather, welcoming a colder one. In 2014, the Hanlu happened on the 15th of the 9th Lunar Month (October 9 in the Gregorian Calendar). In the Gregorian calendar it goes from 8th to 23th of October each year (approx). October 23 (2014) in the Gregorian calendar.</ol>