Ten Years of Books

 When Juan Jie first met Wei Zijie, Wei Zijie was still a child. With wrinkled red skin, like a monkey, he laid in Juan Jie's arms without crying or making a fuss. That pair of big watery eyes seemed to be able to read people's minds, staring at Juan Jie.

This child was pitiful. His father had disappeared long ago, his mother afflicted with grave illness, yet she insisted on bearing him despite knowing she wouldn't survive past the night after giving birth.

As her most powerful shadow guard, he took upon himself the responsibility of caring for this child out of loyalty to his madam. He'd expected it to be quite difficult, but unexpectedly, the child was remarkably well-behaved, neither crying nor making a peep—just sleeping when fed. With a wet nurse attending to him, there were no major issues.

When a child was one month old, the ancients were superstitious. In order to seek good luck, he placed a sword, a jade seal, a string of copper coins, and a scroll on the bed to see what path the child would choose in the future.

He didn't expect the usually quiet child to suddenly have red eyes. Tears flowed down his face, and he didn't choose anything, desperately burrowing into Juan Jie's arms.

Juan Jie's heart softened. After coaxing Wei Zijie to sleep, he put away the things one by one. From then on, he never mentioned this matter again.

As time passed, the child grew more and more beautiful, like a small tree sprouting and growing branches. With a delicate white jade-like face and slender limbs, he looked more like a girl.

Strangely, this child was really obedient. He never had the arrogance of other children his age. He studied seriously and practiced martial arts. Even if his talent wasn't too bright, that pair of calm eyes and the aura around him always gave Juan Jie the illusion that this child wasn't an ordinary person.

Gradually, Juan Jie loved this child more and more.

And Wei Zijie did not disappoint, successfully passing all stages of examination and achieving modest success in martial arts. However, despite diligent training, the delicate skin of a maiden remained firmly affixed to his body.

Juan Jie had originally wanted to take care of this child for the rest of his life, but unexpectedly, the heavens did not comply with his wishes. Wei Zijie's jade-like appearance had already become famous by the time he was sixteen, attracting the adoration of many young ladies in the capital. Even the princesses deep in the palace were secretly in love with him.

While Juan Jie was worrying about this matter, Wei Zijie's beautiful eyes curved as he said, "Originally there was nothing, where could dust alight?"

As he chanted, his handsome appearance directly entered Juan Jie's heart. Only then did Juan Jie understand that the once obedient baby in his arms had now grown into a graceful youth.

Vaguely, he felt a sense of loss. If he wanted to bring Wei Zijie to live in seclusion, Juan Jie's strength was more than enough.

Juan Jie was ranked in the top three of Jianghu. If the imperial court really came looking for him, it wasn't as if he couldn't protect the young master.

But today, it was not up to him to decide.

Wei Zijie was already engaged to a member of the imperial family. If the young master was not willing, then Juan Jie had a way to resolve it.

Unfortunately, Wèi Zijie also happened to fall in love with the princess, creating the perfect match made in heaven—enough to make others green with envy.

Juan Jie's situation became more and more awkward.

That little bit of attachment in his heart had not been noticed in the beginning, but now, it was already impossible for him to end it even if he wanted to.

He wondered whether things would have been easier if the object of his affection had been someone more suitable—a girl from a similar social standing, perhaps. But what made it all the worse was that the person he liked was a man nineteen years younger than himself, which filled him with guilt until he nearly lost his mind.

What made him gnash his teeth even more was that Wei Zijie did not realize that anything was wrong.

He still treated him like an elder, and occasionally when he was in high spirits, he would even act spoiled, tease him, and run to his 'master's room'.

He didn't know what the other was thinking, but Juan Jie was already burning with desire at this time. He could only secretly circulate his internal energy to endure, and his strong body that had been training for many years was boiling hot.

Yet Wei Zijie remained oblivious to his feelings. The youth's own body temperature tended to be on the cooler side, like a snake's, and he would always instinctively burrow into Ju Guojie's embrace, icy coldness enveloping him as if they were doing so for warmth, just as they had done over a decade ago.

Time flew by swiftly. The day of the young man's wedding finally arrived.

Juan Jie handed over the task of protecting him to others, and hid in the corner of a bustling restaurant, drinking himself dead drunk.

He did not care about using his internal energy to expel the alcohol, as if he was torturing himself.

He thought that if he was drunk, perhaps he would not think so much.

But he was wrong. Drunk, his mind was in a daze, filled with Wei Zijie's figure.

The other person's beautiful appearance when he was just born and when he got married, all of it randomly appeared in Juan Jie's mind.

The final image froze on that day, Wei Zijie's red lips slightly parted, and said to him —

"Originally there was nothing, where could dust alight?"

He almost kissed him.

A wave of tearing headache and dizziness pulled him back in time.

Pulled back to reality, he dimly saw himself falling to the ground, his hands and feet weak, unable to stop this embarrassing situation from happening.

Fortunately, not many people recognized him.

The center of his life was almost entirely placed on the young man. Looking back, in these seventeen years, there was only one person's figure left in his eyes.

Although the young man was not extraordinarily intelligent, he was very humble and diligent.

A person with this kind of personality, coupled with a good appearance and a good family background, if he did not hold a high position, it would be shocking.

Now the young man was an official in the court, and his achievements were remarkable. Even more commendable was that Wei Zijie was deeply supported by the people, and was truly a good official.

Being highly regarded would always make people jealous.

Wei Zijie's hands were not stained with blood, but Juan Jie was clearly more suited for this job. Because of this, Juan Jie was secretly hated by many people.

But he came and went without a trace, and those who wanted to frame Wei Zijie hated him but had no way to take revenge.

Just like that, a few years passed. Even if they lived in peace, it was inevitable that their enemies would grow larger and larger.

Juan Jie did not want the young master to get involved in this mess, but seeing that the young master handled it with ease, he restrained his thoughts and silently did his duty. The court's internal disputes were complicated, filled with factions vying amongst each other, and managing such affairs could hardly be described as simple or straightforward.

Juan Jie was a martial arts expert, but under the heavy encirclement, he was also injured. Not to mention the heavy workload, even if his bones were made of iron, he could not endure this kind of torment.

He asked for a doctor, but the doctor only gave him a meaningful glance, and lightly said, "Lovesickness turned into illness."

Enduring Wei Zijie's curious gaze, Juan Jie's face was cold, and he did not say a word.

There will always be a chance that something come to light.

Juan Jie's identity would inevitably be exposed, and his enemies would follow the vine to find clues. Fortunately, Juan Jie's identity as a shadow guard was not easily exposed, but as the storm grew, it seemed like they would not give up until the real culprit was caught.

In the end, the matter developed to the point that it alarmed the imperial family.

Helpless, Wei Zijie found Juan Jie and had a talk.

"Master, you…"

Juan Jie stopped him with a cold face, knowing what the young man in front of him would say.

"No need to say anything, I will do it. With your current skills, you are comparable to the capital's imperial guards, I do not need to worry."

Wei Zijie sincerely knelt down, and heavily kowtowed three times to Juan Jie.

His snow-white forehead was red, and Juan Jie's heart ached. But he could not stop him, this was too much for Wei Zijie's conscience.

Blood dyed the hall red.

Juan Jie's internal energy was crippled, his martial arts lost, and the tendons in his arms and legs were cut in front of everyone.

Wei Zijie and the Emperor pretended to put on a play, only letting the civil and military officials to witness the tragic fate of the "assassin".

After locking him in chains, they brought him back to the Wei Manor. Looking at Juan Jie's miserable appearance, the bloodstained black robe drooping over Juan Jie's trembling body, Wei Zijie was calm in front of outsiders, but as soon as he closed the door, he cried in front of Juan Jie. While crying, he treated Juan Jie's injuries, and it was Juan Jie who comforted him from time to time.

After recuperating in the dark room for several months, Juan Jie knew that with his own abilities, he could no longer work by Wei Zijie's side. Thus, according to the plan, he was sent to a small village.

Fortunately, the villagers were simple and honest, and his life was not bad.

Other than constantly thinking about that person who was far away in the capital, everything else was fine.

His happiness had already become a thing of the past.

Even if they occasionally met in dreams, these moments could not be truly touched upon or relived.

In the last moment of his life, Juan Jie seemed to see a white light spread out in front of him, making him tear up instinctively. The elegant blue-clothed youth stood within this light, smiling as he beckoned Juan Jie forward. He stepped closer, watching the youth throw himself into his embrace.

It seemed this would be how it ended. 

That's how it all ends.

I guess that wraps it up. If you find any mistakes please let me know in the comments section, and if you liked this novel please leave a review on Novel Updates. Support me on Ko-fi