Chapter 8: Dawn

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Cheng Ruoyi tapped the food box with a finger and said, “Come on, Lord Yan, after all, this meal is coming out of your own pocket, isn’t it?”

As he spoke, he glanced again at the food box and couldn’t help but smile. “Wang Tower, huh… That’s the finest restaurant in the capital city. No matter how prestigious the town’s security bureau is, I doubt the execution meal for prisoners is usually so luxurious.”

Yan Kuang did not respond but did not refuse either. He stepped forward, sat down, and pushed a bowl of plain porridge in front of Cheng Ruoyi, then casually picked up some pickled vegetables with his chopsticks.

“Oh, Lord Yan, your taste is quite strong.” Cheng Ruoyi, seeing his teasing go unanswered, had no choice but to focus on eating. With just a bowl of porridge and some steamed buns and pastries, he felt his stomach ease considerably.

Yet, the atmosphere was oppressively heavy, making it hard to breathe.

Suddenly recalling something, Cheng Ruoyi broke the silence, “Hey, Lord Yan, you mentioned seeing cats in the courtyard before... how many were there?”

Yan Kuang thought carefully and replied, “About five or six.”

Cheng Ruoyi pondered, “Five or six, huh… That means Old Hua had kittens, but it seems a bit few.”

“Four or five kittens in a litter is still too few. Your heart is quite cruel. So it’s not your own?” Yan Kuang glanced at him and spoke gravely.

Cheng Ruoyi was speechless. “Ah…?! Those were the other two big tabbies in the courtyard besides Old Hua — Heizi and Huihui!”

Yan Kuang’s expression grew more complex. “Old Hua, Heizi, Huihui… such unique names. It seems the top scholar’s talents don’t extend to naming.”

Cheng Ruoyi was even more speechless. “No… what else, Lord Yan? Take Old Hua, for example, it’s a calico cat and quite old, so calling it Old Hua fits perfectly. Should I call it something like ‘Colorful Shirt,’ ‘Brocade,’ or ‘Chaotic Clouds’? Those don’t sound like cat names at all! Don’t you think if that were the case, it’d be like a brothel madam calling out to her girls?”

Yan Kuang was silent for a moment, then unexpectedly burst out laughing.

...

“You… you can laugh?”

Cheng Ruoyi was stunned. He had only meant to mouth off a little to ease the suffocating mood but never expected to make this cold-faced judge laugh.

He couldn’t believe his eyes. This grim reaper-like face could actually smile. When he laughed, his eyes seemed to brighten, and the usual stormy frown between his brows softened for a moment… somehow, he looked better.

Seeing Cheng Ruoyi’s dumbfounded expression, Yan Kuang, unusually playful, got up and approached, causing Cheng Ruoyi to tilt backward in surprise.

Seeing this, Yan Kuang couldn’t help but smile again but then spoke seriously to explain, “There’s a reason I’m usually like that. But now, since you’re neither a court official needing my polite pretense nor a prisoner needing my intimidation, why can’t I laugh with you?”

Cheng Ruoyi nodded repeatedly. Indeed, he was about to die soon; the fact that Yan Kuang was willing to treat him sincerely at the end was, well… a kindness?

“Good, laugh… laugh more, it suits you… ah—!”

Suddenly, with a loud “bang,” Cheng Ruoyi fell backward to the ground, wincing in pain.

He had been lost in thought, and when Yan Kuang approached, he leaned back and lost balance.

Yan Kuang immediately sobered, frowned, and hurried over to pull him up and help him back onto the bed, then reached out to undo Cheng Ruoyi’s clothes.

“Hey! Lord Yan, what are you doing…” Cheng Ruoyi exclaimed.

Yan Kuang’s movements were practiced, and in no time, he had removed the clothes Cheng Ruoyi had barely managed to put on.

“You fell and got hurt. Let me apply medicine and ease the pain.” He said as he took a bottle of ointment from the bedside table.

“Ah… oh.” Cheng Ruoyi replied dazedly.

Yan Kuang thought to himself that thanks to the elixir, Cheng Ruoyi’s wounds were indeed healing quickly. The wound on his back had closed but still looked gruesome. Yan Kuang poked at his back and then smeared some ointment evenly over it.

Cheng Ruoyi sighed in helplessness, “I’m not a wooden stake, Lord Yan. I can feel it when you poke me.”

Yan Kuang applied the ointment with his fingertips, “Does it hurt?”

Cheng Ruoyi rolled his eyes, “So, Lord Yan not only laughs but also jokes…”

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“Wait.” Yan Kuang rummaged under the bed and pulled out the confiscated parcel, then took out a fan. He fanned Cheng Ruoyi seriously, “It’ll cool down, and the pain won’t feel so bad.”

The breeze brushed over his back, and Cheng Ruoyi felt the wound cool as if the pain indeed lessened.

But something felt… strange? Cheng Ruoyi’s mind was complicated, so he changed the subject abruptly. “Lord Yan, I didn’t look closely before… how much did you actually confiscate?”

“Just this one parcel. The rest were all seized, and I didn’t take a single coin. Oh, and you don’t have anything valuable anyway,” Yan Kuang said.

…What kind of person is this!?

A professional at poking people’s lungs? Or is this one of the torture methods at their interrogation bureau?!

Cheng Ruoyi felt both annoyed and amused, his shoulder trembling as he clenched his fist.

Yan Kuang looked puzzled, “Why are you trembling? Does it hurt that much?”

Cheng Ruoyi took a deep breath, “Hoo… When one can discharge desire, the mind calms; when the mind clears, the spirit follows…”

Yan Kuang couldn’t help laughing again.

With the pain eased, Cheng Ruoyi turned around and pushed Yan Kuang’s fan away in a huff, “Lord Yan, I’m about to die soon, and you’re enjoying this so much?”

What was said without intention was heard with meaning. Yan Kuang paused, then picked up his clothes and draped them over Cheng Ruoyi.

“Cheng Ruoyi,” Yan Kuang called.

“Hmm?” Cheng Ruoyi adjusted his clothes and responded.

Yan Kuang hesitated a moment, as if finally making up his mind.

“Go out for a walk?”

Cheng Ruoyi thought he misheard, but the four words were spoken clearly, distinctly.

He pointed at himself in surprise, “I… can?”

Yan Kuang’s tone was firm, “Yes. Pull your hood low, no one will recognize you.”

A sudden thought sprang to Cheng Ruoyi’s mind, but he didn’t dare dwell on it. He bit his lip and hesitated, “…Lord Yan, if something happens, you’ll be responsible.”

Yan Kuang’s expression didn’t change, “Yes, I’ll take responsibility.”

Cheng Ruoyi was stunned, then after a moment’s thought, whispered, “It’s not appropriate… If you want to go for a stroll, you should go alone.”

Yan Kuang said no more. He bent down and placed a hand on Cheng Ruoyi’s waist, lifting him up.

The sudden spinning made Cheng Ruoyi miserable; this nearly made him vomit the meal he had just eaten.

After a while, he regained his composure and hurriedly patted Yan Kuang, “Lord Yan… I can walk on my own.”

Yan Kuang ignored him, carrying him behind a screen, kicked a brick that triggered a hidden passage, and entered with him.

Torches along the wall lit up one after another, like two fiery scythes flashing in the night sky. Cheng Ruoyi kept his head down and couldn’t see; only their shadows crossed and swayed under the flickering light, growing longer and farther away.

Yan Kuang strode to the secret passage’s exit and gently put Cheng Ruoyi down. “Walk yourself?”

“Ah… okay, okay.” Cheng Ruoyi steadied himself, but suddenly his vision darkened as if something blocked his eyes.

Then he heard the creak of a door opening.

Yan Kuang whispered in his ear, “Close your eyes, open them slowly.”

Cheng Ruoyi shut his eyes. The warm breath and rich voice near his ear stirred his heart as the object blocking his sight moved away, allowing light to seep through his eyelids.

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Very bright. So bright that Cheng Ruoyi almost wanted to cry.

His wrist was grasped, and the tall figure led him out of the passage. Behind them came the sound of stone walls closing.

The hand on his wrist released him. Cheng Ruoyi realized this was the same hand that had covered his eyes moments before.

Having not seen sunlight for so long, Cheng Ruoyi felt like a ghost slipping out of the underworld, utterly uncomfortable in the daylight. Frowning, he lifted his head, then lowered it again, struggling to adjust to the light. As he slowly opened his eyes, a tear rolled down his face.

After the rain, the clouds had completely cleared, revealing a sky washed clean and blue.

Suppressing his apprehension, Cheng Ruoyi took two steps forward and inhaled the bustling scents of the human world.

He had been imprisoned in the Supreme Court before, then transferred to the town’s security bureau. Though it had been less than half a month, returning to the world felt like entering a different lifetime.

“Let’s go, don’t just stand there—it looks strange,” Yan Kuang reminded.

Cheng Ruoyi snapped back to reality, pulled his hood lower, and said, “Hey, Lord Yan… isn’t it strange to be covered up so tightly?”

Yan Kuang walked on, indifferent, “Then pull it off. No one who knows you would be wandering around this street.”

Cheng Ruoyi looked around. The secret door was hidden in a narrow alley by the street. Since the security bureau was just behind, people generally dared not come near.

“Fine, I’ll just cause less trouble for you…” Cheng Ruoyi lowered his head, pulling his hood down further, and followed Yan Kuang out of the alley. Only different shoes passed by: heavy ones, light ones; straw sandals, brocade ones.

Yan Kuang led him at a much slower pace than usual. Seeing Cheng Ruoyi’s awkwardness, he couldn’t help but say, “You look like a thief. If I saw you on the street, I’d definitely catch you and send you to the magistrate’s office.”

“Lord Yan…” Cheng Ruoyi quickly corrected himself, “Am I not a thief now?”

Yan Kuang didn’t reply but suddenly took his hand and pressed a small pouch into it.

“Hold this silver for me. I’m going to buy some things.”

Cheng Ruoyi silently held the palm-sized pouch of silver, watching Yan Kuang take out a small silver piece and approach a pillow vendor’s stall.

Taking the chance, Cheng Ruoyi finally looked up and saw the long-missed capital city.

The bustling traffic, the thriving scene remained unchanged.

Cheng Ruoyi smiled. This bustling city… really was beautiful, just as it had been the first time he came.

When he first arrived in the capital, it was at night.

Lights flickered endlessly, illuminating the city through the night with no shadows in sight. People came and went; laughter, cheers, and street cries mingled together in lively harmony.

He himself then wore a simple blue robe, holding an umbrella, step by step entering this splendid dreamscape.

Such a beautiful capital could accommodate the destitute but could not accept his own two feet.

He had clearly come in properly.

Yan Kuang had already bought the pillow and put the pouch of silver inside it.

Cheng Ruoyi cast an inquisitive glance.

Yan Kuang explained, “I only have one pillow. Yesterday, it was for you to rest your head on. Didn’t you notice?”

Cheng Ruoyi said frankly, “Eh… I thought Lord Yan didn’t need a pillow by nature.”

“You’re quite imaginative,” Yan Kuang said, stuffing the pillow into Cheng Ruoyi’s arms. “Hold this for me; I still have other things to buy.”