I became the God Brother of the Regent King after Transmigration!-Chapter 285 - 211: Abs Abs

Once the shopkeeper refilled the hot water, Rong Heng put away his little book and placed a military book on the table, tapping it with his finger: "Read it more."

Gu Lan angrily said, "You just think I’m uncultured, don’t you."

Rong Heng smiled without saying anything, casually took off his outer robe, and walked into the washroom.

Gu Lan grumpily flipped through a few pages of the military book; just as she felt a bit sleepy, she heard Rong Heng calling her.

"Gu Lan—"

"Didn’t bring your underwear?" Gu Lan rubbed her eyes and asked boldly.

Rong Heng paused, didn’t deny it, and helplessly said: "It’s in the ochre compartment of my bundle."

Gu Lan rummaged through it and heard Rong Heng add: "It’s clean."

That’s when she noticed Rong Heng’s bundle actually had several colored compartments, with tight stitching and an attractive design.

Brother Hang is really a meticulous guy; maybe next time I can ask him to embroider a sachet for me.

She took Rong Heng’s clothes to the door of the washroom: "Brought it."

"Thank you."

Rong Heng stretched an arm out from the door, his skin white as porcelain, the lines of his arm smooth and firm. In the misty washroom, it was alluring like a finely crafted piece of art.

Gu Lan swallowed and involuntarily reached out to touch Rong Heng’s arm.

So smooth.

"Rong Heng, you’re so fair." Gu Lan handed him the clothes, sighed, and returned to sit by the window, reminiscing about Brother Hang’s arm.

"..."

Inside the washroom, Rong Heng looked at his arm, blushing for a whole quarter of an hour.

After a long time, Rong Heng finished dressing and came out, only to find Gu Lan had already fallen asleep on the desk, resting her arms under her head.

Rong Heng slowed his steps, gently sat down in front of her, and quietly watched her.

Before, during breaks in the Imperial Family study, Gu Lan would sleep just like this.

She clearly had her own desk, but she’d rather turn her chair and lay on my desk, every time sleeping particularly soundly. Until the teacher resumed the lecture, she would always wake up at the right time and check if she drooled.

Those times seemed like they happened just yesterday, yet it also felt like they’d been together for a very long time.

Rong Heng leaned closer to Gu Lan’s ear and whispered:

"Lanlan, you’re drooling."

"Drooling? Impossible!"

Gu Lan started and woke up suddenly, raising her head and hitting Rong Heng’s chin.

With a "crack," Rong Heng’s teeth and tongue collided, a bit of blood dripped from the corner of his lips.

Gu Lan, now awake, saw Rong Heng’s fair face blushing, his ink-black hair covering his eyes, dripping water from the tips, looking at her with grievance.

"Brother Hang, what happened! How did you get hurt!" Gu Lan hurriedly said.

Rong Heng spat out some blood, covered his bitten tongue with his hand, and pointed at Gu Lan: "What do you think..."

He almost had to bite his tongue off out of necessity.

Gu Lan: "I just dreamt someone told me I was drooling."

She wiped the corners of her mouth, clean and tidy, saying to herself it was impossible she was drooling.

"Did you bite your tongue? Never mind, just apply some medicine yourself." Gu Lan smiled and blinked.

Rong Heng nodded, walked sadly to the bedside, and sat down: "It’s fine, I brought it on myself."

Gu Lan handed him a clean towel: "Dry your hair before you sleep."

Rong Heng was about to say thank you for the concern, but Gu Lan added: "In the Marquis Mansion, Zijin used to dry it for me, sigh, I miss her."

Rong Heng’s fists clenched tightly.

After some time, when Gu Lan was already lying down, Rong Heng blew out the lamp and silently lay down beside her.

"Gu Lan, are you asleep?"

Rong Heng called her name.

Uncertain if Gu Lan was asleep, her body emitted a very warm heat, a faint sweet scent lingered in the air, making his heart race.

Gu Lan, her back turned to Rong Heng, lazily replied with her eyes closed: "Not yet."

Her bedding had a somewhat damp smell, which was irritating.

In his own bed, Rong Heng gathered his courage, and in a tone as calm as still water, he asked: "Then can I hug you?"

"..."

Gu Lan was silent for a moment, then said: "What sort of decorum is this, two grown men getting all handsy."

Rong Heng curled his fingertips: "Oh."

The disappointment in his voice almost turned tangible.

He thought gloomily, since Gu Lan had just accepted him, he couldn’t push too hard and scare him away.

Just at that moment, Rong Heng’s quilt was lifted, and Gu Lan buried half his body and head inside!

Young Master Gu confidently said, "But, we’re just sharing a bed, not really getting tangled up."

The sudden warmth and the abrupt pull at his clothes and quilt made Rong Heng dare not move, his body stiff as a board.

Having already shared a bed with Gu Lan twice, Rong Heng told himself with feigned composure that there was nothing to be nervous about.

But the last two times, once was after a whole night of strange dreams, and the other was when Gu Lan, drunk and sleepwalking, had been discovered only when morning came.

Thinking back to that dream, Rong Heng felt unsettled again.

Now,

the person he liked was right beside him.

Rong Heng felt if he still did nothing, he wouldn’t be much of a man.

He quickly embraced Gu Lan, and the warmth, like placing a small stove in his arms, made him let out a comfortable sigh.

Gu Lan burrowed about Rong Heng’s chest like a puppy, until he found a comfortable position where Rong Heng wouldn’t notice anything unusual, then finally settled down, saying, "My quilt smells bad, Brother Hang, you smell better."

Rong Heng’s breath deepened slightly, opening his eyes in the dark, deep light swirling in them, he quietly, tentatively asked, "Gu Lan."

"Hmm?"

"Do you have abs?"

Gu Lan regrettably said, "—Don’t ask such sad questions, good night."

She used to have six-pack abs like a strong man,

but now they were gone.

Rong Heng’s idea of feeling a brother’s abs was thus smothered in its infancy.

Unsure of how long had passed, Young Master Gu peacefully fell asleep under Rong Heng’s quilt.

Rong Heng moved his numb body slightly, yet his eyes only grew clearer in the night.

His eyes having adapted to the darkness, he cautiously lowered his head and gently kissed Gu Lan’s forehead.

"Lanlan, don’t leave me."

Rong Heng mumbled, contentedly closing his eyes, the air lingering with Gu Lan’s faint osmanthus fragrance.

No sugar was needed,

his sweetness,

was already placed in the palm of his hand.

The next morning, the two left the inn and set off on the road again.

With only the wind and dew for meals, riding on horseback for days again.

As they got closer to the Southern Border, the humidity and temperature in the air increased, with fewer forests and more rivers, the number of refugees on the official road also grew.

Previously, under orders from Rong Shuo, Tang Zhan had returned to the Capital City to plead with the Emperor to open the granaries, but the Southern Border was truly far from the Capital, and now the famine was not yet over, although it had not reached the point of people eating others’ children, if not for Rong Shuo’s control, it might have.

Yan Country had won several major battles last year but drained the treasury without gaining much.

Gu Lan squinted, looking at the ragged disaster victims in the distance.

Prosperity makes the people suffer, destruction makes the people suffer, it’s probably just like this.

Many people were moving their entire families toward the Capital, or in the opposite direction, trying to sneak into Wei Country.

It was said that Wei Country was wealthy, though the common people didn’t understand much, they thought it would be better to have enough to eat and live well in Wei Country than in Yan Country.

On the official road, after leading the horse for half a day, Gu Lan walked forward while Rong Heng, ahead, treated a young man who had broken his leg and whose wound was inflamed.

"Actually, the people of Wei Country aren’t necessarily better off than those in Yan Country," Rong Heng said quietly, after applying medicine and bandaging the wound.

The young man asked in confusion: "Why? I heard that Wei Country is full of gold, and the people eat meat every meal."

Gu Lan came over, recalling his experiences and the materials he had read along the way, he said:

"In Wei Country, there are many nobles awarded titles and lands, and the so-called wealth of Wei Country is in the hands of high officials and imperial relatives. The lands of Wei Country are fertile, the produce abundant, so the various oppressive taxes on common people increase... Thus in Wei Country, the people at the bottom live not as well as those in Yan Country."

While Wei Country is rich, that wealth is never for the ordinary people.

The young man with the broken leg, listening to their words, said half-knowing:

"Thank you both, young masters, for saving my life. I’m from Lu State, and if not for the famine taking my family, I wouldn’t have left my home to roam here.

I won’t go to Wei Country, I just want to go to Yinzhou, I’ve heard it’s the most prosperous city in the Southern Border, and the Prince is there, so I want to go make a living."

"It seems Yinzhou is indeed the center of the Southern Border. Many people we met on the way are heading there."