Sitting in the Imperial Library, just off the shoulder of the palace, Tao Hua blinked a few times. He tried to focus on the book ahead of him. The words doubled every so often with each heavy lull of his lids. It was evident sleep had evaded this exhausted princess, and for obvious reasons that left his mind still befuddled.
For starters, Shan Si couldn't wash hair, and he was far too rough. It practically drove all of Tao Hua's worries away and replaced them with nothing but frustration and pain.
And talk about persistent! This man—this overly brooding excuse of a judgmental prince, exiled once, terrible at redemption, was more affectionate than any Prince Charming he'd ever read in a fairytale.
At every urge, Shan Si would tip Tao Hua's head back and kiss him, many times over, and all while getting soap in his eyes! It was just awful.
Though Tao Hua had to admit that a sadness loomed as soon as they parted—suds and all—was kind of worth it.
But as soon as that excruciatingly terrible experience ended, and they ate, there were sleeping situations. They'd slept many times over, even to the point of causing Tao Hua's heart to leap with anxiety.
But none of it was comparable to the terror he felt in this moment. He'd got his wish granted, but the fucking genie forgot to give him the supplies necessary to handle it. So, Tao Hua was adamant in that bed, sitting on his knees and shoving a quilt between them.
Each time Shan Si shoved it away, Tao Hua would push it back, and this continued for a good ten minutes until Shan Si finally gave in and lay down. However, the moment Tao Hua slunk into his small cocoon, that's when the surprise attack would hit, and the predator would engulf him even before having the chance to become a butterfly.
Shan Si had tugged him into a tight embrace—one that stiffened his arms to his sides and refused to let him escape—leaving Tao Hua completely helpless. At one point, he just pretended to pass out from exhaustion, and when Shan Si's breathing finally slowed, that's when his eyes sprang open.
For the rest of the night, he stared straight at the wall, still trying to process what had happened. However, it seemed that what mostly resonated in that little mind of his were the things said to him; I don't like people touching what's mine, I've finally found something that made life worth living, I'm quit fond of the colour blue.
And most importantly, This means I can do whatever I want from here on out.
Which meant he'd have to either run away or finally accept that he was worth the effort.
Tao Hua's entire body sank into that embrace, flushed crimson red. He was so undeniably happy that happiness converged into a sadness. It was the sadness of a man who hadn't gotten one of those obnoxious kisses before bed.
Thinking about it, just as Shan Si discussed matters in their notes about the curse, Shendi, and all else, Tao Hua's eyes widened and brows furrowed.
If this is the norm now, Tao Hua panicked, frantically bouncing his leg and rapidly tapping the book ahead of him. He recalled being woken up in the morning by Shan Si, exactly how one would imagine! Kisses, even letting Tao Hua sleep in a few more hours than what Shan Si deemed respectable. I…I need to find books.
So, he slapped his hands on the table, pushed himself to his feet, startling Shan Si, and announced, "I'll go find more books!"
Bewildered, Shan Si just stared at him, before gently placing a hand on his arm and preventing him from leaving. "We've checked through the library. Don't you think it's better we look over what we have first?"
"Mmm…" Fumbling with his fingers and holding them to his chest, Tao Hua stared down at them. Though he had tried hiding it, there was no getting past Shan Si's knowing gaze, watching as Tao Hua's ears flushed.
It was rather entertaining.
"Once we finish with this, you can look through the library to your heart's content. Whatever book you want, we'll check it out," Shan Si reassured him, watching as Tao Hua sped up his hand motions. "Do you mind doing that for me?"
"Oh." Tao Hua immediately sat down, still hiding his face behind his hair. He nodded quickly, aware that he'd been caught. "Okay."
"I've checked these over many times in the past, and three times now. It's all simple information, things we already know, summarised as if it were only a blip in time," Shan Si said, pushing the book toward Tao Hua. "Perhaps a fresh set of eyes might help."
"Oh, yes, okay," Tao Hua kept nodding. He reached a trembling hand toward the book, leaning over it to read. His eyes kept scanning the same paragraph time and time again, and it wasn't until his fifth time that he felt a hand graze his cheek.
His breath hitched.
"If it helps, I won't do anything for the time being," Shan Si held his fist to his cheek, tucking Tao Hua's hair behind his ear. "Would you like that?"
No.
Tao Hua sank into his shoulders. "Yes."
The lie was caught instantly, matched with the quick lift of a satisfied Grin. Shan Si turned to his book, eyes scanning the passages on it and then flipping it. "I've looked through this again and it's all the same information about the relics. Powerful devices granted by the gods—but what gods, even? We're mice avoiding a world set in traps."
Tao Hua extended his arm to reach for the book Shan Si was reading, but hesitated and immediately retracted it, stuffing both between his thighs in retaliation.
Of course, Shan Si noticed, and with a small laugh, he also offered him the book, using the chance to cosy himself just an inch closer.
"Thank you." Tao Hua leaned forward, reading through the passages. Shan Si watched as Tao Hua immersed himself, the red draining from his body and replaced by fixation. In his eyes, it was both adorable and useful, and he admired it for a set amount of time.
Propping both his elbows up and hands under his chin, Shan Si quietly asked, "Find anything of use?"
"Most of it is what we already know," Tao Hua replied, justifying Shan Si's concerns, but shortlyu after he subconsciously clutched Shan Si's sleeve. Tugging it, he asked, "They started popping up two hundred years ago…or within that timeframe, right?"
"The Madam is correct." Shan Si's head tilted, his smile tugging more and more watching Tao Hua. "Just after the fall of Jianlai."
"Do you think the curse isn't just with Jianlai?" Tao Hua glanced up at him. "Maybe all of Zhonglai?"
Shan Si kept his smile. "Right. Keep going."
Tao Hua's forehead wrinkled. Why was Shan Si acting as if he already knew the answers? Why not just tell him so they could better expedite their research?
The sound of creaking echoed through the library, with the incessant squeaks of a chair's feet scraping across the wooden floor. Shan Si had pushed himself toward Tao Hua, leaning into his space, enough for their shoulder's to touch.
His head tilted just enough for him to lock eyes with the peach coloured beauties laden with suspicion.
"You knew this already?" Tao Hua asked, somewhat offended. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"What use could the information serve?" Shan Si asked. "I don't have any proof to support the claim, and all of my theories just turn it into a mess. I'd like to hear what conclusion you figured out as an outsider."
"…" Tao Hua couldn't argue with that and if was as if Shan Si had placed his trust in him, trying to prove Tao Hua capable. So, he turned his head away from Shan Si and back to the pages.
"Keep going," Shan Si urged.
"All of these relics appeared after the fall of Jianlai, throughout Zhonglai, but not in Jianlai?"
"The gods hate us," Shan Si mildly laughed.
"Are you sure?" Tao Hua looked over at him. "Why…why would they hate you?"
"How sweet." Cheeks melting into his lower lashes, Shan Si let out a light sigh, holding out his hands. "They've got blood on them."
Toward the hands, Tao Hua glanced at those long and slender fingers, unwavering and splotched with cuts, calluses, and the proof of hard work. Then, Tao Hua lifted his hands.
They weren't any different other than the hard word.
His lashes lowered. "Then what about Shendi?"
"What about it?" Shan Si reached over, his hand under Tao Hua's, caressingly it lightly.
Tao Hua fixated on the embrace. "The gods favoured Shendi."
"A god favoured Shendi."
Still, Tao Hua's brows pinched, and subconsciously he gripped onto Shan Si's hand. Gritting his teeth, he turned back to the book and toward the passage about an old land graced by the gods.
The more he thought about Shendi and the fallen God, Jingyi, the less he found made sense. A primordial God annihilated by something long before the fall of Jianlai. For a land blessed by the heavens, why hadn't the heavens rescued them from their imminent demise?
In all of their research, it was growing more and more clear that the heavens didn't give a shit. The fall involved most of Zhonglai and their war against Shendi, so why was it Jianlai who was the sole arbiter of this judgement?
Was he just being biased because he felt something toward this man, or was he actually onto something?
Lowering his lashes, Tao Hua tapped his finger a few times.
"What is it?" Shan Si asked—this entire time, he kept his gaze locked. "You have that look on your face."
"What look?"
"The same one you have when reading."
Glancing away, Tao Hua's cheeks somewhat heated before removing his hand from Shan Si's.
"Shan Si," he frowned. "I…really am sorry, but I don't think the heavens have anything to do with it. I think whichever entity abolished Jingyi might also be responsible for the distribution of the relics and tied in with the curse. But there's only one immortal throughout our entire research who was deemed worthy of the title in Jianlai…um, at the time. One that wasn't present in Jianlai during that time of distribution."
Shan Si paused. He looked away and down at the table. "You still think it was Zhuan?"
Tao Hua nodded, his face contorting with guilt.
"…Then, I'll trust you with this matter," Shan Si said gently. "I've failed for two hundred years. My word isn't absolute; perhaps I'm just stuck in the past. Are you suspecting she hadn't met her fate?"
Glancing up at him, Tao Hua noticed how his expression softened, even through his persistent smile.
"I don't know if she did, but I get this nagging feeling that she didn't," Tao Hua said, turning back to his own book. "That somehow she might still be alive—or was. It's just an intuition, so I don't know if she's responsible or not. But if maybe we could figure it out, maybe even find her, then there might be a chance to break the curse."
"Well…then let's start with her songs," Shan Si said, as if he'd been avoiding this for many years since. "That's all that's truly left of her. I still have a few of them memorised."
Chapter end.