The man who once had to cover his eyes with his hands while being carried on a stretcher now shamelessly pretended to faint, and before fainting, he had deliberately bathed and changed into his sleeping clothes to avoid dirtying the bedding when he was carried to the bed, lest it upset his cleanliness-loving wife.

Having considered everything so thoroughly, what could Jiang Zhiyi do but take him into the bedroom?

Li Dafeng took Bao Jia away, leaving behind medical instructions: the patient’s body and mind were fragile and should be treated gently.

Jiang Zhiyi looked at Shen Yuance lying motionless on the bed and stepped forward to pinch his nose.

“Ouch—” Shen Yuance opened his eyes, earnestly rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Didn’t the medical instructions say to treat me gently?”

A man who could endure real blades and arrows without making a sound was now hissing over a pinched nose.

“You’re all in cahoots! I don’t even want to talk about you two!” Jiang Zhiyi looked down at him condescendingly.

Shen Yuance smiled as he took her wrist and pulled her down: “Then why did you let me in?”

Jiang Zhiyi fell awkwardly on top of him and poked his chest with her finger: “Isn’t it because I was afraid someone would soak in a vinegar jar all night and turn sour?”

“So you did call him that when you were little?” Shen Yuance raised an eyebrow.

“I didn’t even remember until Elder Sister mentioned it… What can I do? I can’t go back and change how I spoke, and besides, calling someone ‘brother’ as a child is completely different from calling someone ‘brother’ now. Be reasonable!”

“Well then,” Shen Yuance looked down at her, “however many times you called him ‘brother’ before, call me that many times tonight, and I’ll consider us even. That’s reasonable enough, isn’t it?”

She knew this would happen.

“He’s thousands of miles away, busy with affairs of state. Does he know you’re here, counting these old debts?”

Bedroom pleasures need not be known to outsiders.

Jiang Zhiyi smiled as she pushed against his chest to get up, but just as she had risen halfway, the arm around her waist tightened, and Shen Yuance’s fingertips traced her lower back: “Where are you running off to?”

Jiang Zhiyi trembled all over from the tickling sensation and fell back, her limbs going soft: “…I need to bathe first.”

Shen Yuance flipped her over and picked her up horizontally, striding toward the bathing room: “Perfect. I was afraid you wouldn’t be able to finish calling me ‘brother’ all night, so we’ll start counting from bath time.”

“Are you shameless?” Jiang Zhiyi lightly punched him. “Now you’re being clingy and pestering!”

Shen Yuance paused, his expression contemplative: “Back when you were clinging to me in the capital, I heard someone say that when an unlikable person clings to you, that’s called being clingy and pestering, but if you find her adorable, then it should be called—”

“Called what?”

“A little clingy darling.”

Jiang Zhiyi tilted her head back and blinked: “So did you find me adorable then, or not?”

“What do you think?” Shen Yuance lowered his head, looking down at the person in his arms. “Little clingy darling.”

Jiang Zhiyi smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck: “Fine, I’ll allow you to be clingy and pestering in return, little clingy darling.”

*

On an autumn night heavy with dew and frost, the bedroom that had been lively half the night fell into silence. The two embraced in bed, with Jiang Zhiyi nestled in Shen Yuance’s arms, her features peaceful and her breathing deep in this warm embrace.

Shen Yuance’s chin rested on the crown of her head, gradually falling into deep sleep with each of her breaths.

After an unknown amount of time, a flash of light suddenly appeared in the darkness. Shen Yuance’s eyes flew open, and through layers of mist, he saw the dappled, fragmented light of summer flickering before his eyes. As his vision gradually cleared, he beheld a mansion with green tiles and vermilion ridges, with carved beams and painted rafters. The plaque above the gate bore three large characters: “Prince Duan’s Mansion.”

Shen Yuance stood before the gate, raising his hand to lightly touch the mask on his face, seeing the reflection of his childhood self in the bronze door rings.

From inside the gate came bursts of cheerful laughter, involuntarily drawing him closer.

Shen Yuance pushed open the heavy vermilion door with both hands and stepped across the threshold, walking step by step toward the source of the sound. He saw a group of children of similar age competing in arrow-throwing games in the courtyard.

Among them, a boy in luxurious brocade clothing held a feathered arrow. With a slight narrowing of his phoenix eyes, he cast the arrow in his hand, landing it precisely in the mouth of the vase.

Beside him, a girl in a goose-yellow dress with bright apricot eyes clapped and cheered: “A-Yan brother is so amazing!”

Shen Yuance looked at the two in their bright attire, then lowered his head to glance at his dust-stained fitted clothes, and stopped in his tracks.

The girl seemed to notice him and asked the others: “Oh, who is that?”

Everyone looked in the direction the girl was pointing, each showing a puzzled expression.

“Are you also here to compete with A-Yan brother in arrow throwing?” Little Jiang Zhiyi tilted her head as she looked at him.

Shen Yuance met her bright eyes and nodded: “Yes.”

The boy called A-Yan brother pointed to a pile of treasures before him: “Then pick a prize for yourself. If you win against me, the prize will be yours.”

Under everyone’s gaze, Shen Yuance walked forward and looked over those unfamiliar treasures and curiosities one by one, then shook his head: “I don’t need these.”

“Then what do you want?” Qi Yan asked him.

“If I win against you,” Shen Yuance glanced at little Jiang Zhiyi beside him, “she cannot call you ‘A-Yan brother’ anymore.”

“Why is that?” Little Jiang Zhiyi was startled, tilting her head and blinking rapidly. “How I address A-Yan brother—what does that have to do with you?”

“No particular reason,” Shen Yuance looked at her. “This is simply the prize I want.”

Qi Yan frowned: “Then what if you lose?”

“I won’t lose.”

“Don’t boast! My A-Yan brother has never lost to anyone!” Little Jiang Zhiyi pouted and put her hands on her hips.

“If that’s the case, why are you afraid to compete with me?”

“Let’s compete then. A-Yan brother, we’re not afraid of him!”

“Then if you lose, you must remove this mask, agreed?” Qi Yan pointed at his mask.

“Agreed.” Shen Yuance stepped forward and took a bundle of feathered arrows from an attendant’s hand, looked at the arrow vase, and then turned his back.

The crowd burst into an uproar, but before they could discuss further, Shen Yuance had already lightly pinched an arrow between his fingers and thrown it backward with a fluid motion.

With a “dong” sound, the arrow entered the vase, eliciting countless exclamations of amazement from all around.

“First central hit, twenty points!” the scorekeeper announced loudly.

Shen Yuance picked up a second arrow, weighing it in his palm, and again casually tossed it backward.

“Consecutive central hit, ten points—!”

All the children widened their eyes at this effortless, casual throwing, and the scorekeeper’s voice grew increasingly enthusiastic. With several successive arrows, each arrow scored no less than ten points.

“He can score full points with his back turned? Does this person have eyes on the back of his head?”

“Where did he come from, daring to cause trouble at the Prince’s mansion?”

“Wearing a mask—could he be some kind of demon?”

—The boys gathered around and discussed among themselves.

Seeing that Shen Yuance was about to fill the vase with arrows, someone, as if disbelieving, ran forward, moved the arrow vase, and changed its position.

Shen Yuance’s ear twitched, and the last arrow in his hand spun between his fingers, rotating once. He smiled and threw it backward with an upward flick of his hand.

With a “dong” sound, the tail of the arrow entered the vase.

“Reverse hit, one hundred and twenty points—!” the scorekeeper’s shocked voice rang out.

Everyone collectively gasped in astonishment, staring at the arrow vase.

Shen Yuance turned around and looked at the girl whose mouth had formed a perfect circle: “Will you accept your loss?”

“A-Yan brother, this, he—” Jiang Zhiyi looked toward Qi Yan for help.

“I have lost.” Qi Yan pressed his lips together, glanced at Shen Yuance, and then turned to leave the courtyard.

The group of children hurriedly followed him.

Jiang Zhiyi also seemed to want to follow, lifting her little embroidered boot, but then seeming to remember him. She stopped in place and said to him: “Fine, A-Yan brother accepts his loss, and I accept mine too!”

Shen Yuance raised an eyebrow: “Yet you still call him A-Yan brother?”

Jiang Zhiyi’s little face wrinkled: “Then what should I call him…”

Shen Yuance pondered carefully, thinking for a long time, and suddenly clicked his tongue: “Never mind.”

“Never mind? What does that mean?”

“It means—” Shen Yuance sighed, “you can still call him A-Yan brother.”

“…You’re a strange person. Why are you now permitting me to call him that?”

“Because—”

Because in the world he had left early, the only person left who could protect her and shelter her from wind and rain was Qi Yan.

If these calls of “A-Yan brother” could give her protection in a world without him, he would rather she had this bond with Qi Yan than have her exposed to the elements.

Shen Yuance raised his hand and rubbed her soft hair: “Because having one more brother means having one more person to protect you.”

Jiang Zhiyi seemed startled by his action and retreated, but halfway through, she seemed to realize he meant no harm. She paused, hesitating: “…But doesn’t this mean you won for nothing today?”

“If you call me ‘brother’ once, then I won’t have won for nothing.”

“Then what family are you from, brother?”

“My surname is Yuan, and my given name is simply the character ‘Ce’.”

“Then—” Jiang Zhiyi blinked her bright eyes as she looked at him, “A-Ce brother?”

Shen Yuance looked at the tiny Jiang Zhiyi before him and smiled.

“A-Ce brother!” A woman’s voice, distinct from a child’s, suddenly sounded in his ear, and a soft hand touched his cheek.

The mist before his eyes and the bright summer light suddenly dispersed. Shen Yuance slowly opened his eyes to see Jiang Zhiyi’s black hair cascading onto his chest. Turning his head, he saw that daylight had already brightened outside the window.

Jiang Zhiyi felt his cheek, then checked his forehead, sighing with relief: “How could you sleep so deeply? I was almost about to ask my brother-in-law to come check your pulse.”

Shen Yuance returned from the distant dream, finally remembering where and when he was, and pulled her into his embrace: “It’s nothing. I was having a dream.”

Jiang Zhiyi found a comfortable position in his arms and snorted coldly: “What dream did you enjoy so much that you wouldn’t wake up even though I called you many times?”

Shen Yuance lowered his head, looking at her with a smile: “Naturally, it was because you were in my dream as well.”