Tranquil clouds rolled above like a wooly blanket, as if Heaven was gently tucking the capital in for the approaching night.

Xi Lang halted just outside the gates and studied the sixth prince’s residence. He couldn’t believe that his deepest desire was finally coming true.

Though he was but a common soldier turned imperial guard, after Xi Lang poured his all into making a name for himself during the recent rebellion and personally saved the emperor’s life, the emperor finally relented and decreed a marriage between him and the sixth prince, You Jinfeng. They were to be wed in a month’s time and Xi Lang couldn’t wait.

Eyes gleaming with anticipation, Xi Lang stepped through the gates.

As soon as he crossed the threshold, the old steward rushed to him eagerly. “Lord Xi, you’re back!”

Xi Lang smiled and wondered if the old man was that moved by his return.

But the steward grabbed his arm and implored, “His Highness has been acting strangely. Please, check on him!”

Frowning, Xi Lang patted his wrinkled hands absentmindedly. “Don’t worry, I’ll see to it.” What could his quiet and well-behaved princeling be doing to worry his steward like this?

Xi Lang headed towards You Jinfeng’s chambers. Pausing before the doorway, he looked up and spoke to the hidden guards in the rafters, “Thank you for protecting him in my absence.” He then entered his lover’s private chambers and walked to the bedroom.

You Jinfeng sat at the low table, as neat, poised, and frostily handsome as ever. His posture was upright and his bearing noble. With his usual stoic face, the prince was…playing with raw rice?

Xi Lang blinked and looked around.

Random things lay scattered around You Jinfeng—piles of strange stones, remains of flowers plucked bald, astrological charts, and different kinds of fortune-telling equipment.

Xi Lang sighed. “Ah-Feng, what are you doing?”

You Jinfeng turned to him, as expressionless as ever, and took a moment to register his presence. Then he leaned his face towards Xi Lang in a silent request for affection.

Xi Lang chuckled softly. After the rebellion kept them apart for so long, his beloved must have missed him a lot. He went to You Jinfeng and pressed soft kisses to his cheeks and forehead.

You Jinfeng tapped his lips. “Here too.”

With amused indulgence, Xi Lang obliged.

Leaning back, You Jinfeng looked at the table and said, “I’m counting a handful of rice to see if it’ll add up to an auspicious number.”

Xi Lang was bemused. “Why?”

You Jinfeng pressed his lips together. “The court astrologer finished looking at our eight characters and said the match could either be highly favorable or bring misfortune. Apparently, the answer can only be inferred by studying the signs Heaven shows us during the days leading up to the wedding. But everything I’ve tried either cancel each other out or has ambiguous results.”

Xi Lang’s mouth twitched. “Ah-Feng, for once, an imperially sanctioned marriage is between two people who love each other. What greater sign of auspiciousness could there be that our marriage will go well?”

You Jinfeng’s eyebrows twitched together in the shadow of a frown. “I want to be sure.”

Xi Lang felt helpless at the troublesome way his fiancé’s fastidiousness was manifesting. It’d be a miracle if his little prince didn’t become an anxious wreck by their wedding day.

Trying to distract him, Xi Lang crouched beside him and said, “Putting that aside, won’t you give your future husband a kiss after I’ve finally returned?”

You Jinfeng’s attention immediately turned to Xi Lang. He dutifully wrapped his arms around his lover, his gaze intense and fixated. Xi Lang pulled You Jinfeng towards him. The heat from his beloved’s breath brushed his cheek as the gap between them closed.

Their mouths met, gently at first, then turned fierce.

Lips sucked each other, turning slick and swollen. Their tongues thrust deep into the soft and moist recesses of their lover’s mouth, entangling tightly. Teeth nibbled gently or bit down playfully, followed by gasps and hisses. Passion flared, fed by their yearning while apart.

Xi Lang pulled You Jinfeng onto his lap and their bodies swayed as they each attempted to press even closer to the other, as if to merge into one.

You Jinfeng’s fingers dove into Xi Lang’s robes, roving restlessly. Xi Lang’s hands rubbed his lover’s thighs before sliding up under his clothes. He found the edge of his pants and pulled them down. You Jinfeng gasped as rough palms slipped up and down his bare sides and massaged his buttocks.

Eyes darkening, You Jinfeng leaned back and said huskily, “The oil is in the usual place.”

Xi Lang set him down and marched to the carved nightstand with determined purpose. He returned quickly, a jade bottle in hand.

You Jinfeng pulled his lover down and plunged his tongue between those inviting lips again. He massaged the bulge growing between Xi Lang’s thighs with a palm.

Groaning, Xi Lang quickly slicked his fingers and reached down with familiarity to press a finger into the valley between his beloved’s buttocks. You Jinfeng stilled, hands clenching on his lover’s shoulders. The finger slowly sank into him and wriggled to expand his passage, then moved in and out. You Jinfeng’s body softened and he panted, eyes glazing over. Another finger joined the first, then another, until he was stretched and full.

The fingers withdrew and You Jinfeng shifted restlessly. Painfully aroused, he rose up to position himself over Xi Lang’s rigid length. Biting his lip, he held his lover’s shaft in place with a hand and slowly lowered himself onto it. As the thick head pried his body open and burrowed in, his muscles trembled tautly.

Xi Lang moaned, hands kneading his beloved’s hips and urging him down faster. His lips enclosed one of the buds on You Jinfeng’s chest and the prince shuddered. His free hand cupped the back of Xi Lang’s head as he clenched his jaws and bore down harder. Xi Lang’s fingers found his other bud, pinching and rolling it. You Jinfeng let out a heated groan full of unsated lust and rammed himself down impatiently.

They both gasped as their bodies fully connected.

Need ratcheting up, Xi Lang swept a hand over the table to clear it and pushed You Jinfeng onto it. You Jinfeng sucked in a breath as his back touched the cool wood. He closed his legs around his lover’s waist as Xi Lang bent over him, elbows bracketing his body. Their gazes met, each boiling with lust.

Gritting his teeth, Xi Lang gripped his lover’s thighs and pulled out completely, then thrust in all the way to the hilt. You Jinfeng arched up with a cry. Xi Lang withdrew and plunged forward again and again, hips swinging in a hectic, primal rhythm. The muscles in his back, arms, and thighs bunched. As his thick member drove in and out of the slippery passage, the tight inner muscles pulsed around him with living heat. You Jinfeng twisted and groaned, hands clutching tightly onto his lover’s arms.

Xi Lang panted and increased his pace, relentlessly pounding into his beloved. His gaze thirstily devoured the various expressions breaking past You Jinfeng’s usual calm—passion, urgency, greed…

Incited by the look in his lover’s eyes, You Jinfeng snarled and pulled him down to bite and suckle his lips. Xi Lang hissed and drove into him harder. The tight passage below squeezed and wrung his shaft ravenously even as You Jinfeng’s mouth devoured him above. The thick squelch of coupling and the sound of flesh slapping against flesh rang out loudly.

Reaching between them, Xi Lang roughly stroked You Jinfeng’s dripping member while simultaneously angling his thrusts a particular way.

The overwhelming sensation of his pleasure point being hit added to the stimulation from the front and stars exploded behind You Jinfeng’s eyes. He bit Xi Lang’s shoulder to stifle his cries as the orgasm ripped through him all at once. His shaft erupted and slickness coated their bellies, warm and sticky.

Xi Lang sloppily patted him in comfort as he neared his own peak.

You Jinfeng’s tense body slowly loosened as he eased into the blissful haze of the afterglow. As Xi Lang desperately worked his hips faster and faster, You Jinfeng took the erect nubs on his chest between his fingers and kneaded them.

Pleasure building upon pleasure, Xi Lang clenched You Jinfeng to him and shouted as the climax crashed over him. You Jinfeng nuzzled his lover as hot jets of release spurted into him. Trails of the thick liquid slowly dripped from his entrance and over his buttocks. Xi Lang shuddered, muscles taut, before slowly relaxing.

Limbs tangled, slicked with sweat, and smeared with release, the couple lay there in silence. Their breaths gradually settled and they reluctantly parted.

You Jinfeng looked around at the mess they created and sighed. “The steward will not be pleased.”

Xi Lang stretched and grinned. “It was worth it.”

Struck into a daze by that smile, You Jinfeng trailed his fingertips over Xi Lang’s lips, then nodded. “Yes, it was… I’m glad you’re back.”

And Xi Lang finally felt enfolded in the warmth of home.

∼◦❉◦∽

After having his passage cleaned out and wiping himself down, You Jinfeng rested on the bed with curtains closed. Xi Lang stood outside in a loose robe, watching the servants fill a large tub with warm water.

The old steward looked at the scattered rice and the shattered cup being cleaned up with a resigned expression. “So, things ended up broken again. I should’ve known.”

Xi Lang said innocently, “You know how fierce His Highness gets.”

The steward sighed. “Yes, I do.”

You Jinfeng peeked out of the curtains, appearing wronged as he looked at Xi Lang.

Xi Lang bent to peck him between his brows.

You Jinfeng’s imperceptibly scrunched forehead softened and he quickly hid behind the bed curtain again. Xi Lang laughed softly.

The room was swiftly cleaned up and a bath was arranged. After washing up and dressing, You Jinfeng and Xi Lang snuggled together on the bed. Their earlier exercise had tired them both and exhaustion gently settled over them, lulling them to rest their eyes.

You Jinfeng was the first to fall asleep. As he purred out little snores, Xi Lang gazed at him fondly and reminisced.

The first time they met was while on a military expedition to quell the southwest uprising. Just nineteen at that time, You Jinfeng had led the forces while the twenty-two-year-old Xi Lang served as a captain and advisor under his command.

During the expedition, You Jinfeng handled his duties methodically and competently. He never failed to keep the citizens in mind—even the rebels, since, in his own words, “They might be rebelling now but they will still be our people when all’s said and done.”

You Jinfeng had been both firm and kind, and his leadership was stable enough that no one saw the need to question his methods, including Xi Lang. However, unlike the others who bowed their heads with reverence, intimidated by this stony-faced prince, Xi Lang found him curious.

What did this sixth prince ponder when he dazed off into space? Did he feel lonely with no one willing to talk to him as an equal? What was he thinking when he stared at the world quietly with those big, blank eyes?

So, Xi Lang decided to ask.

Turning away from the tree he had been gazing at, You Jinfeng glanced at Xi Lang. He pointed to a particular tree branch. “There are chicks in that nest.”

Xi Lang looked at it. “So they are.”

“They’ve been there since hatching. That’s all they know,” the prince stated.

Xi Lang nodded. “Mhm.” Where was he going with this?

You Jinfeng peered at Xi Lang, then turned to the nest again. “Do you think the chicks believe that they are the ones on level ground and the rest of us are standing underground in a large pit around their nest?”

Xi Lang, “……?”

You Jinfeng sighed. “Some things have no answers.” He then walked away, as stately and composed as ever, leaving a baffled but intrigued Xi Lang behind.

From then on, Xi Lang made sure to talk to You Jinfeng more often, finding his odd personality charming.

Every time Xi Lang gave him his undivided attention, You Jinfeng would stiffen and look away. Xi Lang had thought it was annoyance at first, but then he noticed the redness creeping up the base of You Jinfeng’s throat and realized it was fluster. And by the time Xi Lang realized what it meant for his eyes to keep wandering low enough to notice the flush, it was already too late for him.

They soon finished suppressing the uprising with minimal violence. When they were about to depart, the parents and older relatives of the hot-blooded youths involved in this mess knelt in rows before You Jinfeng.

Xi Lang still remembered how You Jinfeng had blinked at them confusedly and asked Xi Lang, the only one he was close to here, “Why do they bow?”

Xi Lang had smiled. “They want to thank you for handling this matter without being thoughtlessly harsh on their children.”

You Jinfeng’s brows pinched together faintly. “But that’s my duty. Why thank me for it?”

An old man at the front heard it and looked up. He reached towards You Jinfeng’s foot to hold it reverently. “Your Highness, not many would have shown us common folk such consideration. Thank you, thank you! My child was able to get out with his life because of you!”

You Jinfeng took back his leg and chided, “Don’t touch my boot. It’s dirty.” He paused as if wondering how one should act in such a situation, then leaned down to awkwardly pat the old man’s shoulder. “I’m going now. Lecture your son well.” He surveyed the rows of bowed heads. “Take care, all of you.”

As You Jinfeng turned his horse and galloped away, soldiers trailing behind, the kneeling people were left gazing after him with gratitude and worship.

Xi Lang had looked with pride at the You Jinfeng riding in front of him. This prince was worth his devotion.

Soon, Xi Lang transferred from the army to serve as an imperial guard at the palace. After spending time accompanying You Jinfeng, he learned to read his non-expressions. He noticed the prince’s growing fondness for him even as Xi Lang fell deeper in return.

You Jinfeng’s father had imperiously sulked about it in the beginning. But after Xi Lang proved his worth by rendering outstanding service during the rebellion and You Jinfeng passive-aggressively put pressure on him, the emperor finally relented.

And now, Xi Lang and You Jinfeng were to be married. He couldn’t believe his good fortune.

Outside, the first monsoon shower had begun falling with a soft shush. The air blowing into the bedroom was moist and cool.

Pulling the quilt up to cover You Jinfeng better, Xi Lang kissed the tip of his nose. The prince scrunched his nose in his sleep. Chuckling, Xi Lang smoothed his beloved’s hair affectionately.

Rather than worry about what the court astrologer said, he hoped You Jinfeng would instead anticipate their marriage.

Eyes drooping as hazy ideas swirled in his mind, Xi Lang drifted to sleep to the comfortable sound of pattering rain.

∼◦❉◦∽

Four weeks before their wedding—

Hand-in-hand, Xi Lang and You Jinfeng were heading to You Jinfeng’s study. The breeze was brisk and pleasant. It had rained again yesterday, leaving clear puddles littering the ground outside, and now they trapped the pure blue sky in their crystalline depths.

Spotting a particularly big puddle, Xi Lang dragged You Jinfeng to it and crouched down. “Come, Ah-Feng, I’ll show you how I used to make boats as a child.”

After a servant brought papers, Xi Lang folded them into neat little boats. Filling them with wildflowers growing at the side, he set the boats afloat on the puddle for You Jinfeng’s amusement.

Leaning forward, You Jinfeng watched the boats sway to and fro, intrigued.

Plucking another wildflower, Xi Lang deftly wove a little ring out of its stem, the flower blooming where a gem would be.

After Xi Lang put it on his lover’s finger, You Jinfeng studied it with quiet wonder. “I didn’t know you could do this.”

Xi Lang grinned. “As a basket weaver’s son, I can finally show off my childhood skills to my lover.”

You Jinfeng’s eyes shone as he turned his finger this way and that admiringly.

Suddenly, red-crowned cranes descended into the puddle.

Water splattered outward and the couple quickly retreated. The scene turned chaotic as the cranes’ flapping wings disturbed the water and capsized the paper boats. The birds eventually stilled and looked around.

As You Jinfeng stared at them in surprise, the cranes fluttered their wings again and took off into the sky, leaving as abruptly as they arrived.

You Jinfeng asked absently, “Since when have there been cranes here?”

Looking happy, Xi Lang replied, “For a bird representing longevity and fidelity to appear so inexplicably, it’s almost like an auspicious sign from the heavens!”

Confused, You Jinfeng peered at the sky as if expecting more cranes to randomly drop down.

Not minding his skepticism, Xi Lang pulled him by the hand. “Come, didn’t you have correspondences to take care of in your study?”

Nodding, You Jinfeng let his lover lead him, occasionally casting a suspicious gaze above.

But Xi Lang was hardly done with his tricks yet.

Three weeks before the wedding—

Xi Lang and You Jinfeng were walking leisurely in the estate’s grounds. The morning air was crisp and cool. Dry leaves crunched underfoot while the earth below was soft and moist. There was no rustling from the trees along the path since most were bare, though some wore foliage in warm colors.

“It’s a good thing we’re having our wedding in autumn,” Xi Lang remarked. “Look how so many of the trees are decked in auspicious red.”

You Jinfeng surveyed their surroundings thoughtfully and nodded in silent agreement.

They strolled into a small garden and continued appreciating the serene morning scenery speckled with glittering dew.

Suddenly, they spotted orchids blooming brightly in the distance.

You Jinfeng blinked. “Those flowers…are they really blooming now?”

Xi Lang acted surprised and said contemplatively, “You know, among the flowers of the four seasons, orchids represent spring, and spring signifies new beginnings and love. For them to bloom now as our wedding approaches…could it be some sign?”

You Jinfeng hummed and peered harder at the flowers. “I wonder if it’s really…” He began striding towards them to examine them closer.

Xi Lang quickly hugged him from behind and nuzzled the crook of his neck. Immediately distracted, You Jinfeng turned to his lover.

Xi Lang smiled seductively. “After seeing nature celebrate our love in such a miraculous way… it’s so cold outside, why don’t we go warm each other up and do our own share in celebrating our love?”

You Jinfeng swallowed. “It’s morning.”

Xi Lang leaned further in and whispered, “It’s still very early. We can have some fun, clean up, rest, and then pretend we just woke up late.”

You Jinfeng’s gaze sharpened. He dragged Xi Lang all the way into bed and Xi Lang happily sacrificed his body. So happily, in fact, that he even forgot why he had wanted to distract his lover in the first place.

Two weeks before their wedding—

You Jinfeng and Xi Lang sat at the table for lunch, having fish with their rice.

As Xi Lang heaped the choicest morsels into You Jinfeng’s bowl, he noted, “The quality of the fish this time is pretty good.”

Swallowing a bite of it, You Jinfeng nodded. “Yes, it’s very tender.”

The maidservant serving them smiled brilliantly. “The cook said that the fishes caught today were especially fat, and there were exactly nine of them. Not a single one more like this could be caught no matter how much they tried!”

Xi Lang exclaimed, “Nine fishes?! Isn’t it said that nine sounds like everlasting while fishes represent longevity and unity? What auspicious signs!”

You Jinfeng poked a chunk of fish in his bowl. “Maybe it’s a coincidence.”

Xi Lang vehemently refuted, “Ah-Feng, how can such a coincidence happen exactly on the days leading up to our wedding? It must be a sign.”

You Jinfeng stared at the fish, then nodded slowly. “Perhaps.”

Seeing the prince beginning to believe, Xi Lang and the servant exchanged a conspiratorial smile.

One week before the wedding—

As streams of morning light slid in through the windows, You Jinfeng was carefully combing Xi Lang’s hair. Xi Lang lay in the chair, relaxed and sighing with pleasure. The hushed silence and the implicit companionship were soothing and serene.

When You Jinfeng was done combing, he looked around but couldn’t find his lover’s hair tie.

Xi Lang pointed to a place across the room. “I think I saw it there.”

You Jinfeng went to get it. As he passed the windows, he noticed that the shadows cast by the branches outside made a strange pattern on the floor, almost like…a character.

“What’s wrong?” Xi Lang asked.

You Jinfeng hesitantly pointed to the shadows. “I think it looks like a character.”

Xi Lang got up. “Oh? How curious. What does it say?”

You Jinfeng tilted his head this way and that to study the pattern. When he made it out, his mouth twitched in an almost-smile. “It resembles rui (瑞), the character for ‘auspicious’.”

Xi Lang smiled brightly. “Really? How great! We’re just receiving blessings all around, aren’t we?”

You Jinfeng turned to kiss Xi Lang’s forehead and hummed in agreement.

Xi Lang’s eyes curved happily. Aha! Just a little more and his princeling would be fully convinced!

Time quickly passed and the wedding approached. There were many things to be done and the imperial palace bustled with preparations.

The evening before the wedding, You Jinfeng and Xi Lang slipped out in secret to escape the hecticness and take a stroll through the streets.

You Jinfeng looked around at all the people chaotically running around and shouting, pushing and shoving. He warily pressed closer to Xi Lang.

“Are you nervous?” Xi Lang asked.

You Jinfeng fidgeted. “Well, it isn’t very orderly here at all.”

Xi Lang chuckled. “I meant about the wedding.”

Blinking, You Jinfeng looked up at him. Facing that intent expression of Xi Lang’s that said he was listening to him, facing the only person who always seemed to enjoy listening to him… You Jinfeng looked down, his hand reaching up to grab to Xi Lang’s robes to steady himself.

Watching his lover fiddle with his lapels as if avoiding the question, Xi Lang smiled ruefully. He hugged You Jinfeng. “It’s alright if you’re still anxious. If you want to call off the wedding, that’s alright too. I can wait till you’re ready. If you’re never ready, that’s fine as well.”

You Jinfeng looked up in surprise. “It’s…alright?”

“Mn.” Xi Lang nodded.

You Jinfeng bit his lip, then shook his head. “No, I want to marry you. I want you to always be with me.”

Xi Lang was taken aback. His lover was so reticent that his declarations of affections always caught him off-guard. But they were so sincere in their simplicity that they nevertheless melted his heart.

Sneakily kissing You Jinfeng’s cheek since they were in public, Xi Lang said, “Then we’ll marry, because I want to always have you with me as well.”

You Jinfeng’s eyes curved with quiet joy as a flush spread up his neck.

Xi Lang chuckled and pulled him forward, continuing on their walk.

“Special service today! Buy some fresh and sweet red bean buns and get a gift! I’m celebrating my sister’s marriage today only; you won’t get the extra gift if you come back tomorrow!”

Smelling his favorite red bean paste, You Jinfeng looked over with interest. People crowded around the food stall in question, voices raised and elbows flying as they tried to dig their way to the front.

You Jinfeng hesitated.

“Come, I won’t let anyone bump into you,” Xi Lang assured and pulled him towards the stall.

The other customers saw the quality of their clothing and begrudgingly made way, wary of offending any nobles.

Xi Lang paid for the food and the buns he bought filled his hands, so the stall owner cheerfully placed a small packet in You Jinfeng’s palm instead. “Honored customer, please remember to wish my sister good fortune!”

You Jinfeng nodded seriously. “I will.”

The couple resumed walking while eating the warm buns. You Jinfeng looked like he was concentrating very hard on fulfilling his promise to the stall owner.

Xi Lang finished his buns and dusted his hands. “Ah-Feng, open what the stall owner gave. I’m curious.”

You Jinfeng did as asked. Inside the packet was a red concentric knot that was believed to bring prosperity and good luck to a marriage.

Xi Lang made a sound of surprise. “How appropriate that we randomly received a love knot in red right before our wedding!”

You Jinfeng stared at the knot, thumb rubbing over it. Slipping it back into the packet, he tucked it into his sleeve and hugged Xi Lang. “Yes, now I can’t wait for us to be married.”

Xi Lang was ecstatic. His ploys finally did their job!

Hugging You Jinfeng back, he expressed sincerely, “Yes, me too.”

After strolling a bit more, You Jinfeng and Xi Lang parted at night.

Xi Lang rushed back to his house to continue preparing for the wedding on his end. The next day, You Jinfeng came with the wedding procession to escort him to the palace for the ceremony.

Throughout the wedding, Xi Lang beamed with incandescent joy and kept gravitating towards You Jinfeng. Meanwhile, You Jinfeng kept staring at Xi Lang with deep eyes, transfixed, as if nothing on this day was worth looking at more than his beloved.

Despite all the ribbing the lovestruck couple attracted from their friends and family, by the end of the day, no one doubted their affection for each other.

When night descended, the newlyweds entered the wedding chamber and exchanged wedding wine. The candle flames swayed gently, casting the room in warm and intimate shadows.

With comfortable familiarity, Xi Lang and You Jinfeng moved to ease the heavy red robes and ornaments off each other. Every layer of clothing dropped was another layer of need added. By the time they were left in just pants, their hands inevitably wandered and the atmosphere heated further. Breaths mingled as they grew closer and closer, until their lips softly touched. The lingering bitterness of the wine was no match for the sweetness of their husband’s lips.

Xi Lang gently slipped his tongue into his beloved’s mouth and You Jinfeng wrapped his own around it. As their lips interlocked, their bodies pressed together as well. Their hands slid up and down over the other’s skin, quietly exploring the familiar territory. Their tongues danced with increasing vigor, issuing slick sounds. They drank in their beloved, sucking and licking until they ran out of breath.

When they parted, panting, their dark eyes only reflected one another.

You Jinfeng framed his beloved’s face with his hands. “Xi Lang, thank you.”

“Hm?” Xi Lang licked his lips and murmured.

You Jinfeng elaborated, “Thank you for loving me enough to work hard in creating all those auspicious signs this past month. It makes me happy that you care about me so much.”

Xi Lang froze, eyes widening. “Y-You knew?!”

You Jinfeng leaned up to touch their foreheads together. “Yes.”

Xi Lang looked aghast. “How?!”

You Jinfeng traced Xi Lang’s frown with a fingertip. “Before the cranes flew down that day, the puddle reflected how the servant hiding on the roof was struggling to untie the cranes, then flung them into the air. It confused me why he did that.”

Xi Lang, “……!”

You Jinfeng continued, “When we saw the orchids blossoming, one of them had come loose, flown out, and got tangled in a bush. We later happened to stop close to it. I noticed that the flower appeared to be made of paper and wanted to take a closer look, but you distracted me and I grew suspicious.”

Xi Lang, “……!!”

You Jinfeng went on, “Though I held onto my suspicions, I wasn’t really sure if the catch being exactly nine fishes was a coincidence. And I didn’t know how anyone would go about making branches spell out the character for auspicious or have a street stall randomly gift us a love knot.

“So I asked my hidden guards and they told me how you discussed the story of the fish with the maidservant beforehand, how you painstakingly climbed the tree to sew the branches together into that character, and how you arranged for the stall to sell what I liked to attract my attention and then give me that specific packet containing the knot that you worked hard to weave yourself. If not for the hidden guards telling me, I would have had a difficult time finding all that out.”

Xi Lang, “……!!!”

Xi Lang was red with embarrassment at being so thoroughly found out. He glared out the window and growled, “Your damned hidden guards should have minded their business.”

Outside the window, a deliberately bared hand extended down from the eaves and waved at Xi Lang cheerfully before withdrawing back into the shadows.

Xi Lang stomped grumpily to the windows and banged them closed while muttering, “What are you hanging here for? To peek in on our wedding night? Perverts! Betrayers! Betraying perverts!”

Turning, Xi Lang sheepishly averted his gaze from You Jinfeng’s. “Ah-Feng, I…I’m sorry for faking those auspicious signs. I know you must once again be worried about what the court astrologer said now…”

You Jinfeng came over to wind his arms around him. “Look at me.”

When Xi Lang did, he witnessed the unexpected sight of You Jinfeng smiling, his eyes shining with quiet joy.

Xi Lang stared, enchanted.

You Jinfeng spoke, “I’m not worried anymore because I already received the biggest sign that our marriage will be good. With how you kept trying to ease my mind with such dedication, showing how much you cherish and respect me, how can I doubt the success of our marriage?”

Xi Lang blushed and hugged him. He tucked You Jinfeng’s head under his chin and pressed a kiss to the top of his lover’s head. “You are worth it. And you were the one who showed the depth of your love first by searching for auspicious signs to make sure our marriage will go well.”

You Jinfeng cupped Xi Lang’s nape and whispered, “But you showed me that all the auspicious signs in the world can’t replace the strength of how firmly we choose to love each other. As long as we keep making that choice, not much can get in the way of our bond. You were the one who made me realize that.”

Xi Lang’s arms tightened around him. “Then I suppose all my hard work was useful in more ways than just making a fool of me for my husband’s amusement.”

You Jinfeng smiled wider and rubbed his cheek against Xi Lang, whispering, “Husband…” Yes, despite everything, they were husbands now. Finally.

Xi Lang leaned back, eyes deep. “Not yet. We still have one last step remaining before we will be fully married.”

You Jinfeng blinked and nodded, all too eager to finish binding Xi Lang to him. “It’s my turn this time,” he declared.

Xi Lang nodded happily. “Then I’ll leave it to you to take us into husbandhood.”

You Jinfeng eagerly pulled Xi Lang towards the bed. The pair tumbled into it and what clothes remained flew out. You Jinfeng pushed Xi Lang down, hand roving over his lover’s skin demandingly. Hungry touches soon turned to more kissing, then into enthusiastic and frenzied lovemaking. The couple uninhibitedly sank into their desire for their beloved with no plans to cease throughout the night.

With great passion, Xi Lang and You Jinfeng thus finally consummated their marriage, creating a union that would hold strong for a lifetime.