ITOTIABSAM | The Tyrant in the Deep Palace | 58
There's a birthmark on Gu Cong's body.
In the first life, it was shaped like a whirlpool by the other party, adorned with a touch of gold. In the second life, although it wasn't deliberately carved again, it still followed a similar pattern.
But by then, Xie Ye had already confirmed Gu Cong's identity from other details of their interactions, accepted his confession, and when he saw it on the bed again, he just touched it briefly without saying much.
At this moment, due to Xiao Hao's poor physical condition, Xie Ye was especially impatient.
His dark phoenix eyes were deep and obscure, firmly fixed on the man who was placing his hand on his belt. He thought, if the consciousness of this world dared to play a joke on him by using Gu Cong, then he wouldn't mind exerting a little more effort to turn both the protagonist and the supporting roles upside down.
Unlike the previous two worlds, in this world, Xi Junyu and Pei Yi genuinely wanted to kill him, and they had even started poisoning him.
To have the penetrating gaze of those in power sweep over you inch by inch was an indescribable feeling, and Gu Cong experienced it firsthand.
Before entering the palace, he had been subtly warned by others in jealousy or sympathy. Now, the emperor sitting in front of him, who looked barely of age, was so cold-blooded and cruel, with unpredictable mood swings.
From eunuchs and palace maids to officials and generals, even his birth mother, it was rumored that there was no one the current emperor dared not kill. Everyone respectfully called him "Your Majesty" to his face, but behind his back, he was known as the tyrant.
At the coronation ceremony, he barely reached adulthood. Plus, having been sick since birth and kept secluded in the deep palace all his life, not engaging in archery or martial arts, he really did look like a youth. So, in front of this "tyrant," there was now an additional word: "little."
Little tyrant.
But Gu Cong felt that only the first word was true.
Even though he had just witnessed the scene of the emperor ordering someone to be dragged out for execution, he didn't feel any fear. Unreasonably, it was as if he had been enchanted by spirits.
As he thought about his situation and hesitated about how far he should undress, Gu Cong's movements naturally slowed down. But the young emperor grew impatient, furrowing his brows and impatiently saying, "Hurry up."
"Do I have to help you?" he added irritably.
Wanting to interject but not daring to, 1101 remarked internally, "They say making someone undress on the first meeting can seem really creepy."
But who could blame the fact that the host of this world was an emperor?
The green outer robe fell to the ground and piled up, followed by the snow-white inner garment. Just as Gu Cong reached for the waistband of his pants, he suddenly heard a voice, "That's enough."
Xie Ye had already seen what he wanted to see.
"This is...” Gu Cong began to explain, seeing the other person focusing intently on the large birthmark at the junction of his collarbone and shoulder, near his heart, but he was interrupted.
"I don't like that title," Xie Ye said abruptly.
What title? "This servant...” Gu Cong attempted to explain, but he was cut off.
"I don't like that title," Xie Ye repeated firmly.
What title? A servant?
But the one just now who was respectfully addressed Eunuch Shun just now...
...He was dragged out.
Thinking he had found a reason to anger the emperor, Gu Cong quickly acquiesced, "Your Majesty, this birthmark... It's natural."
It was precisely because of this that he ended up being passed over and assigned to the remote and unprofitable summer palace.
As for being chosen to come to the capital a few days ago, it was purely accidental. He heard that the emperor had previously kept a foreign dog, which he cherished dearly. When that dog died unexpectedly, the emperor flew into a rage and caused quite a stir.
And he happened to have a pair of eyes with unusual and unique colors.
"In the future, without my permission, you are not allowed to kneel to anyone, nor are you allowed to change your name."
As Xie Ye imagined what life was like for him before he arrived, he became extremely angry, wanting to smash something immediately. He pinched his palm with his fingertips to calm himself down. "I have a headache. Come over and massage my head."
Throughout history, not even a palace attendant who had just taken office dared to touch the head of an emperor, let alone a physician or a consort.
Moreover, the person in front of him was the notoriously difficult-to-please little tyrant. If it were anyone else, they would probably be trembling in fear, thinking they had offended some taboo and begging for forgiveness on the ground.
But Gu Cong was someone with a big heart.
With every gesture, he completely forgot to pick up his clothes, stepping forward and onto the wooden steps where the bright yellow dragon boots were placed. "I... Gu Cong is being rude."
Having lost his parents at a young age, and spending his coming-of-age ceremony hastily, he only knew his name, without any titles.
Seeing the young emperor nodding with his eyes closed, he bent down and reached out, gently pushing aside the smooth black strands of hair, and placed his fingertips on the acupuncture point beside the emperor's eyebrow.
It was a strange sensation, even completely opposite to his own. Raised in luxury and pampered with the finest things, the skin of the young emperor was soft and smooth, with a temperature much lower than his own, cool to the touch. It felt like the silk he had once helped to arrange, but even lighter and thinner, as if it could be easily damaged with just a little force.
This was certainly not an exaggeration.
Gu Cong could clearly sense the throbbing of the blood vessels beneath his fingertips, as if something was being suppressed with each beat.
1101 exclaimed, "How could this be? There's no sign of calming down in either the mental fluctuations or the body data. Wasn't he supposed to be a panacea reincarnation?"
Being a doctor for his own chronic illness, Xie Ye knew his headache hadn't subsided at all. It throbbed, as if there were insects drilling into his head.
"Did we get the wrong person?" If the necessary conditions were wrong, the whole system would be bewildered. "Could it be Pei Yi? The headache doesn't occur when the Little Emperor is with him."
"But his name, appearance, and birthmark..." What was the world consciousness up to?
As if deliberately making things difficult for the host and opposing the host, outside the palace chamber, Li Dezhong, who had been waiting without leaving, bowed and announced, "Your Majesty, Imperial Attendant Pei has arrived."
Usually, when the Little Emperor said he wanted to rest, no one dared to disturb him, even if it were a major event. However, in recent months, Pei Yi, the adopted son sent to the palace by the Minister of Rites, was an exception. He is elegant and handsome, he didn't resort to any tricks. Just by standing there and exchanging a few words, he piqued His Majesty's interest, leading to him spending the night in the Mingguang Hall.
— It was the same hall where Xie Ye currently resided.
Such an honor, never seen before. Initially, no one took this matter too seriously, thinking that Imperial Attendant Pei had simply lucked out, appearing at a time when the Little Tyrant was in a good mood. It wouldn't be long, perhaps just a few days or at most half a month, before he would end up like many others who had tried every means to climb into bed with His Majesty, becoming new fertilizer for the Imperial Garden.
Who would have thought that even after the flower season had passed, Imperial Attendant Pei would still be alive and well?
Inside the chamber, Xie Ye was obediently having his head massaged by Gu Cong, who stood beside him. Or perhaps it was better to say he was composed, showing no sign of agitation despite being brought before the Little Tyrant.
He must have been briefed on the existence of "Imperial Attendant Pei," yet he remained calm, his hands continuing their task while the pile of clothes lay haphazardly on the ground, his breathing steady and unchanged.
After a while, there was a voice from outside the chamber. "Your Majesty."
Just two simple words, but because of the speaker's enunciation, tone, and rhythm, they sounded exceptionally soothing and gentle, with a unique cadence that seemed to seep into one's heart, instantly clearing Xie Ye's mind.
1101 was bewildered. "Their soul fluctuations seem to be..."
But Pei Yi is the protagonist written in black and white in the original work? What's going on here? One has a birthmark, the other can heal. Who is the real one?
It didn't dare to speak the latter words aloud, afraid of worsening its host's headache. The next moment, Xie Ye raised his eyes and looked towards the palace door, his expression unreadable. "Come in."
"As you wish."
The heavy palace doors were pushed open, yet there was absolute silence, not a sound was heard. Pei Yi had been in and out of the Ming Guang Hall many times since entering the palace, so he was not nervous.
He wore a neatly pressed white robe, with a jade pendant hanging from his waist like sheep fat. His hair was neatly tied, not like a court attendant, nor like a dark guard, but rather like a gentleman raised in a noble family.
Still, extremely gentle and warm.
No wonder, 1101 sighed, no wonder Xi Jinyu chose the Minister of Rites to endorse his identity, it perfectly matched.
However, Pei Yi's inner feelings were far from as calm as his surface appearance. The instinct carved into his bones allowed him to instantly grasp the scene in the hall: scattered outer garments, inner garments, all in blue, the attire of a court attendant. And a man he had never seen before standing next to the tyrant, shirtless.
The tyrant's attire was far from serious either, barefooted, with a loose neckline, revealing a large expanse of collarbones, most of which were covered by strands of hair, almost but not quite.
Noticing the other's gaze momentarily falling on his side, Xie Ye reached out and pulled the thicker silk canopy to his left, covering Gu Cong alone, and said slowly, "Who allowed you to raise your head?"
Pei Yi, accustomed to his own privileges in the palace, was first stunned, then reacted quickly, kneeling down without a word.
—Even when the tyrant truly went mad, whether begging for mercy or remaining silent, there was a possibility of being thrown out to feed the dogs.
But in most cases, the tyrant preferred silence.
Was it because of that unfamiliar court attendant? Pei Yi quickly reviewed his actions and words since entering the room.
These days, the tyrant had never been close to him, not even a simple physical contact like hand touching hand had occurred. Pei Yi thought it might be a misunderstanding from the rumors outside and quietly reported it to his master.
But today, why did the tyrant change his attitude again?
1101 was even more puzzled: "You're sure about this?"
Without considering any further?
You should remember that the person beside you no longer has the healing skills like the golden finger.
Looking faintly at the kneeling Pei Yi, whose pain had temporarily subsided, Xie Ye raised an eyebrow, "Do we need to think about it?"
The setting of the original protagonist happened to coincide with Gu Cong's. Perhaps the world consciousness could take advantage of the moment when he took over Xie Ye's body to sneak in, pry into his memories, strip away Gu Cong's soul traits, and change the protagonist's soul fluctuations;
But just like the system, which was confused by various data, the other party was probably also a fool who only understood data, forgetting that there was something completely unexplainable by science between people—feeling.
Gu Cong's feeling was right, while Pei Yi's feeling was not, it was as simple as that.
Even if the identities of the two were reversed, with Gu Cong as the protagonist and Pei Yi as the attendant, his answer would not change.
And he would not, as the world consciousness expected, choose to abandon the other person just because Gu Cong lost his ability to heal himself.
It was more fun to let the exposed traitor stir under his nose and leisurely enjoy the sight of the protagonist's kneeling posture. Xie Ye finally spoke lazily, "What's the matter?"
"I've brought Lily and Mung Bean Soup." There was no hint of wanting to defend or plead for himself, nor was there any sense of grievance or anger. Pei Yi lowered his eyes and casually pushed the wooden food box beside him, revealing his scalded fingers:
"Today's sun is scorching, and heatstroke is easy to come by."
"Lily moistens the lungs and calms the nerves, while mung beans have a sweet taste that relieves annoyance. I thought... Your Majesty might want to try some."
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