Chapter 20

Stubborn Mushroom.

Shi Changyuan sighed and slowly released Lin Ling, sitting up.

"Aren't you sleeping anymore?"

Lin Ling turned over to face Shi Changyuan, pulled the blanket over himself, and buried his whole body beneath it, leaving only two large, round black eyes exposed.

"Mm, more or less."

Shi Changyuan looked at Lin Ling, then out the window. "The snow outside is getting quite deep. Does Lin Ling want to go take a look?"

At once, Lin Ling became interested.

Shi Changyuan had someone bring out the thickest cloak and wrapped Lin Ling in it before letting him go outside.

At that moment, the world between heaven and earth was a sheet of white.

Lin Ling ran out with a cheer, leaving a trail of footprints across the pristine snow. He even tried to pile the snow up.

The mushroom spirit somehow taught himself how to build snowmen. He made two, though neither their heads nor bodies were very round due to his lack of skill.

They were ugly.

Lin Ling looked them over and, from among the two equally unattractive snowmen, reluctantly picked the slightly better-looking one. Pointing at it, he announced to Shi Changyuan, "This is the one I made of you!"

Shi Changyuan smiled helplessly.

"Oh, right. You rarely get a day off today. What are you planning to do?"

Looking at Lin Ling's cheeks, red from the cold, Shi Changyuan seemed to think of something. "A rest day means taking time to rest and bathe."

"Though bathing doesn't really require setting aside an entire day."

He looked at Lin Ling and asked, "Perhaps Lin Ling would like to soak in the hot springs with me?"

Chapter 20

As the human emperor, Shi Changyuan naturally had several imperial residences with natural hot springs. However, the Shi Changyuan of the past had not known what enjoyment was.

Forget enjoyment—he had not even known how to balance work and rest. Before Young Master Lin appeared, Shunde could not help but worry whenever he saw Shi Changyuan keeping himself stretched taut, never allowing himself even a moment to breathe.

Though the outside world had many misunderstandings, as Shi Changyuan's close attendant, Shunde knew that having such a ruler was a blessing for the nation and a blessing for its people.

Thus, when Young Master Lin appeared, Shunde had some idea of Lin Ling's origins. Yet his appearance was not a bad thing. Whether he was human or demon, he would be the second master Shunde was meant to serve.

"Young Master Lin, once you have changed, go out through this passage. The hot springs are outside, and His Majesty is waiting for you. His Majesty also instructed that you not linger, lest you catch a chill."

Lin Ling hurriedly nodded to show that he understood and that he would not.

The two had just entered the inner room to change. Lin Ling had still been looking around, admiring the imperial residence's completely different style, when he turned around and saw Shi Changyuan taking off! His! Clothes!

Startled, Lin Ling squeezed his eyes shut and darted about blindly. In the end, he discussed it with Shi Changyuan inside and told him to change first, while he would go in afterward.

Lin Ling heard the person inside laugh, then agree.

Lin Ling took off his outer robe, draped himself in the small blanket Shunde had specially prepared for him, and rushed toward the hot spring pool.

The hot spring pool was located in a hollow, and even the temperature within the imperial residence was much warmer than outside.

Once Lin Ling left the inner room, he found himself in an open-air courtyard. A bluestone path ran through it, with many shrubs and Xiangfei bamboo planted along the sides at staggered heights. Combined with the mist from the hot spring, it looked almost like the realm of immortals at first glance.

"Achoo—" Lin Ling sneezed.

If only it were not so cold.

The little blanket Shunde had given him could not cover his legs at all. They felt freezing!

"Lin Ling?"

Shi Changyuan's voice came from behind a huge rock.

Following the direction of the voice, Lin Ling went around the Xiangfei bamboo before him and saw a peerlessly handsome man resting with his eyes closed amid the drifting steam of the hot spring. Hearing footsteps, he immediately opened his eyes.

"Lin Ling, come here."

Shi Changyuan slowly walked toward Lin Ling and held out his hand.

His inner robe was soaked through and clung tightly to his body, revealing a physique that made Mushroom envious.

"Whoa."

Rather than jumping straight into the hot spring, Lin Ling sat at the edge of the pool and soaked the lower legs his little blanket could not cover in the water. Then he poked Shi Changyuan's upper arm and gave it a squeeze.

"So hard. It feels like one punch could kill Little Mushroom."

Shi Changyuan smiled. "I would never have the heart to do that."

Lin Ling blinked, catching the key point—

He could kill him, but he would not have the heart to.

"Fine, I get it. You're really strong. You said before that you weren't that good at fighting. You were just lying."

Shi Changyuan smiled. "I fought in every direction in my earlier years. Without some skill with my fists and feet, I would not have survived on the battlefield. Still, I'm better at horseback archery and military strategy."

"I'll take you to visit the military camp another day."

Lin Ling looked at Shi Changyuan and suddenly asked, "Is fighting in wars dangerous?"

"Why do you ask?"

Lin Ling raised a hand and pointed at Shi Changyuan's chest. Even beneath his inner robe, it was very obvious.

Shi Changyuan froze for a moment, then smiled. "Yes, but there will not be any more wars after this."

"As long as I am alive."

Lin Ling seemed to see through Shi Changyuan's attempt to downplay it. He stared at Shi Changyuan's chest again and again, feeling miserable.

"Can you hug me?" Lin Ling held out his arms. "Just for a little while."

The moment he finished speaking, Lin Ling was pulled into an embrace.

"It doesn't hurt anymore," Shi Changyuan comforted him.

Feeling the endless warmth radiating from Shi Changyuan's body, Lin Ling nodded. Just as he was about to say something, he suddenly felt the arms around him pull him down toward the depths of the pool.

"Ahh—"

Lin Ling shrieked in fright and was instantly dragged out of those sorrowful emotions.

"You're awful!!!"

Lin Ling, blanket and all, was soaked through from head to toe, his hair included.

And Mushroom could not swim. Not knowing how deep the pool was, he flailed and grabbed about in panic. Fortunately, Shi Changyuan never let go of him, though he did receive a few scratches as a lesson.