Chapter Text
Before he had stepped off the boat onto the wooden deck, Xue Yang thought he wouldn’t recognize the city beyond his own lifetime. He never had the luxury before to travel on the Yangzi River into Kuizhou, but he indulged in his riches for the experience. Now that he was walking through a city he had never set foot in, he knew exactly where everything was. Every street was mapped out exactly as he remembered it, but none of the familiar faces knew his own.
“Gongzi, welcome! Please, would you spare just a moment to look at my stall? Customers are scarce, and-“
He grinned cruelly at the old man pleading for his attention behind the worn-down excuse for a vendor stall. “You’d be so shameless as to ask a cultivator such as myself to waste my time? Don’t you figure I have better things to do than humor you?”
In his prior life, he remembered kicking down countless stalls just like that one. He considered doing the same, but he truly did have better things to do. He was a genius who had set a motion of revenge in place many years ago before he was born and it was time to collect his reward.
The old man had said something in return, but Xue Yang couldn’t be bothered to care what it had been. Instead, he smoothed out the white sleeves of his clothing and stalked through the dusty streets of Kuizhou.
Ever since finding out the truth of his pathetically perfect life and the life he lived before, Xue Yang fantasized about what Xiao Xingchen must have endured. After leaving the Celestial Mountain, Xue Yang paid handsomely for any information he could find about Xiao Xingchen. For a while, he thought the man was dead, which made sense although a bit too boring for Xue Yang to accept.
Xiao Chen was his name in that life, apparently. He never became a cultivator and was never loved enough to receive a courtesy name, either. Reduced to such a cute name, too!
Finding information about him was much easier after that, but nothing could have prepared him for the day he found out where the man lived.
Xue Yang stopped in front of the building, rosewood eyes focused on the hanging sign that swung in the autumn breeze. It was one of only two brothels in Kuizhou, arguably and wonderfully the lowest quality of the two if you asked Xue Yang.
He found himself laughing quietly under his breath, a delighted smile that bared his sharp canines. The irony was absolutely delicious- riveting! Xiao Xingchen. Who in that world would know of his name in such a way? Who could laugh with him that the so-called Bright Moon and Gentle Breeze who renounced worldly evils would be reduced to nothing more than living in a whorehouse?!
Xue Yang had laughed until he nearly cried when the news was told to him. The universe was clearly on his side and knew exactly how to entertain him, didn’t it?
If Baoshan Sanren knew where he had gone, she would probably slap him upside the head and scold him for it. “Haven’t you done enough to that man? Why do you insist on poking your finger into the open wounds of others,” she would ask.
If she didn’t want Xue Yang to play with his own toys, then why would she wind them up and hand it to him by sharing the truth?
He imagined too many times how Xiao Xingchen must be like and let the image rule over his mind for the thousandth time. His mind pictured the cultivator in hideously cheap silk garments that were an ugly off-white color. Were his cheeks soaked with blood or had he forgotten how to cry long ago?
He had also imagined what he would do when he found Xiao Xingchen- completely and helplessly hollowed out into a shell of who he was. Xue Yang fantasized how he could kill him, even. Would it be funnier to kill him with no explanation, or kill him while laughing at his failures?
Xue Yang couldn’t stand it much longer- he deserved to see the absolute ruin and downfall of Xiao Xingchen. He walked inside and smiled brightly at the front desk attendant, who had immediately perked up at the shabby bell that sounded when the door opened.
“Good afternoon, Cultivator!” She greeted with a bow.
Being in such a good mood, Xue Yang leaned his arm on the counter with his best smile and tilted his head cutely at her. “As to you. I’m hoping you can help me find someone in particular?”
“Oh!” She frantically looked through what Xue Yang assumed was a schedule for the workers. “We have plenty of beautiful women available, I am certain I can help you find one that suits your tastes.”
Xue Yang laughed. “I don’t want your cheap whores. You think I couldn’t find someone to fancy me without coming here? I’m only looking to talk to someone in particular. Xiao Chen, is he here?”
The lady blushed a bit in embarrassment, but looked back at the book and let her finger follow one of the columns. “Yes, he is free right now. I can take you to him now if you’d like?”
Xue Yang nodded. “How much for a conversation, then?”
“If you are not looking for any of our services, then there is no need to pay. If you change your mind, you can pay A-Chen directly.” She explained, walking around the counter and leading Xue Yang into the hallways.
The sun hadn’t even settled behind the horizon, yet Xue Yang could already hear some of the rooms clearly had customers in them. Giggling, moaning, and inaudible conversation made his lip curl in disgust; it wasn’t something he had heard before, but he remembered another life where it was a common occurrence in Lanling Jin Clan.
“Just one moment, let me make sure he is decent for company.” The lady said, hand settled on the door at the end of the hall. Xue Yang nodded and leaned against the wall nearby to listen. He couldn’t hear what they had said, but he felt a rush of excitement when a man’s voice joined the conversation. Ah, Daozhang… he thought, the name giving him a sick satisfaction. He could recognize that voice in any lifetime, even through the impressively thick walls.
The woman returned not long after, a pleasant smile on her face. “Thank you for being patient. He is ready for you.”
Xue Yang grinned, his smile lacking the warmth it had when he was talking to her initially. “Fantastic.”
Let’s see what’s left of you, Daozhang Xiao Xingchen.
After the woman left, Xue Yang finally pushed through the door. He didn’t know what to expect and felt oddly nervous to find out. His eyes looked across the room as if they were magnetized to Xiao Xingchen’s location. He all but froze with his hand still on the door.
Bright periwinkle eyes were looking at him from the shabby vanity table he was sitting in front of, an ink brush rested perfectly between two fingers in wait. He smiled, but it was different from the warm one Xue Yang had in his memories. He set the brush down gracefully and stood to bow in Xue Yang’s direction. “Good evening,” those heavenly eyes looked up from the bow as if he didn’t know how to properly greet a cultivator. “How can I be of assistance ?”
Xue Yang’s mouth ran dry, eyes widened in the initial shock of it all. Even with Xiao Xingchen bowing, he could tell the man was still just as taller as he was in the previous life. His hair was completely down and draped carelessly off of his shoulders and down his back. He was definitely thinner in muscle than before as well, likely from never training.
He looked away to close the door and lock it, wanting nothing more than to avoid the cold gaze on him. Why hadn’t he considered Xiao Xingchen wasn’t blind in that lifetime?
Xue Yang turned back to him and looked down his own nose as if showing Xiao Xingchen was beneath him. “Xiao Chen,” it wasn’t a pleasant greeting from a friend, but a greeting of malice. “What is someone like you doing in a place like this?” He hadn’t planned what he would say to Xiao Xingchen, but he wouldn’t have chosen that if he had.
With a small amused laugh, Xiao Xingchen straightened from his bow. He answered only with another question to point out the hypocrisy, “What is someone like you doing visiting a place like this?” He walked carefully closer, but stopped when Xue Yang took a step backward. He offered a smile to ease the man’s tension. “You called me by name. Do I happen to have met this Daozhang before?”
Xue Yang felt panicked. He was supposed to be standing over Xiao Xingchen laughing at his misery, not backing up like a cornered lamb under the intimidating glare of a hungry wolf. “What did you say?” His words made Xue Yang even more uneasy, causing his lip to curl in disgust. “Never call me Daozhang,” he threatened.
“How am I to address you if you’ve yet to tell me your name?” Xiao Xingchen challenged.
Xue Yang hated that he had to lift his chin to look at Xiao Xingchen, so he moved around the man to sit at the table instead. “Xue Yang is my name. Well, Xue Chengmei.”
Xiao Xingchen was weary of the cultivator in white and black robes, offering only tentative smiles that were laced with caution and uncertainty. It made Xue Yang uncomfortable and he couldn’t quite place the reason behind it yet. Xiao Xingchen sat across from him and relaxed his cheek in his palm.
Xue Yang’s eyes darted down to that hand, but found it had all of its fingers intact along with the other hand that was resting on the table.
Shame. He had hoped Xiao Xingchen would have suffered the same injury, but maybe Xiao Xingchen didn’t care for sweets as much and avoided the tragedy altogether.
“You say you are here for a conversation, but I can’t help notice your eyes drifting. Xue-Gongzi, you wouldn’t happen to be avoiding admitting to that lovely lady you want the company of a man, would you?” Xiao Xingchen’s voice made Xue Yang focus, eyes now to the sly smile stretched across Xiao Xingchen’s lips.
It took a moment for what Xiao Xingchen was saying to catch up with Xue Yang. When it did, his fist clenched and his eyes narrowed at the accusation. “Hah! Are you that desperate for money? You’d be so lucky for someone with any ounce of respect to willingly touch you.”
Xiao Xingchen had the audacity to chuckle at the response, but the words clearly made no impact. “Very well. A conversation, then. What can I answer for you?”
He had to get back on track.
He was supposed to be rubbing Xiao Xingchen’s failures in his face, dammit!
Xue Yang looked around and took in the surroundings for anything of interest. There were flimsy lanterns for decoration, scrolls and other pads of paper, and a few talismans on the nearby prayer table accompanied with incense. He grinned to himself. “Talisman? You’re a cultivator as well?” He knew the answer, but he wanted to rub it in.
“I am not. I was born with a weak core, so there is no clan who would take me in. In my free time, I cultivate on my own the best I can in hopes I can nourish it into something more.” Xiao Xingchen explained.
The answer wasn’t satisfactory.
“You can’t cultivate your core to be better. Why not demonic cultivation, then? That’s about the only chance you’d have compared to a core like mine.” Xue Yang retorted.
Xiao Xingchen didn’t react negatively and instead stood to retrieve one of the talismans. “That’s an amusing thought, but I am quite content with my current path.” He put the talisman in a pile with others and instead knelt to light an incense stick for them. “I must admit, I am quite envious to have a cultivator in my presence. Are you part of a clan nearby?”
Xue Yang should have been having a good time with that confession, but his lips immediately fell into a frown. How could he admit jealousy so easily? The man who would have said some shit like ‘one should not be envious of those who are more fortunate’ or something stupid like that just willingly offered his jealousy?
That man… he wasn’t Xiao Xingchen.
At least, that was not the Xiao Xingchen he had once known.
It was an unsettling realization, one that burned his throat like acid. He stood up suddenly and cleared his throat, fist to his lips. “I have to go.”
‘Xiao Xingchen’ was confused at the sudden change, but the words “is everything okay” never seemed to reach Xue Yang’s ears as he left the room.
Xue Yang didn’t go back to the brothel after that. Instead, he let his anger fester towards Xiao Xingchen as the days slipped into winter. If he truly had swapped their fates, why was ‘Xiao Xingchen’ still pretending to be so righteous? How could he dare to play mind tricks, did he know about his past as well?
He needed more than anything for Xiao Xingchen to break- some hint that proved his life was utterly miserable, or Xue Yang would have to make it that way himself.
That was his motivation when returning to Kuizhou and asking once again for a conversation with the so-called Xiao Chen.
“I apologize… We are busy around this time and I don’t think Xiao Chen would want to waste his time on an unpaid conversation,” the lady politely explained.
Xue Yang glared at her and wanted to scream at her face, but he settled for an irritated humph. “Won’t you just ask him? I will only be a quick three minutes, alright?” If she knew what was best, she would heed his request before she found a sword in her mouth!
“Um… I can try. One moment…” She left Xue Yang and disappeared down the hall without letting him back. An annoying amount of time passed before she returned once again with a smile, hand holding open the divider. “Come on back, he said he has time to spare.”
Xue Yang followed her, though he remembered which room it was. He dished for leverage in the meantime. “Could you tell me how long Xiao Chen has lived here? Did he get sold here?”
The lady shook her head. “If you have questions, I suggest asking A-Chen himself. Have a good night, Gongzi.” She knocked on the door herself, then quickly went back down the hall.
Xiao Chen opened the door, but had to look down from where he was originally looking.
That in itself pissed Xue Yang off.
“Oh, it’s you again.” Xiao Chen bowed politely, then rose again. “Would you like to come in, or is this a quick question?”
Xue Yang pushed past him into the room. “How many customers do you get here?” He asked, not caring how invasive it would come across as. He was desperate for any fuel to throw in Xiao Chen’s face.
Instead, Xiao Chen locked the door and turned to tilt his head curiously. “Are you interested in being one? I can assure you there is no health risk, if that is what you are worried about.”
“What? No. How many customers?” Xue Yang sat lazily on Xiao Chen’s bed with a foot propped on the edge so he could rest an elbow on his knee. He acted like someone who had lived with Xiao Chen long enough to comfortably make himself at home; in one life, that would have been true.
Xiao Chen remained standing, but noted the strange behavior from his odd guest. “A decent amount. Most of my clients come here for conversation, actually… I’m often told I listen quite well.”
Xue Yang hated that answer, but he would have hated any answer that wasn’t backed with tears. “You like working here?”
“Of course,” Xiao Chen nodded, “the staff as well as myself are very close and look out for one another. We are like family here and I get to choose which clients I allow in my room, so it’s pleasant.”
Xue Yang was quick with his response, stabbing directly where he knew it should hurt. “Don’t you have parents and a real family? The only type of person who would willingly work here is someone who wouldn’t have another option.”
Finally, Xiao Chen frowned. The sight made Xue Yang smile, eyes focused on the man staring back at him.
“I’m sorry, but if you are looking to spend any more of my time, then I will have to bother you to pay for our services.” Xiao Chen moved to the dresser and lit an incense as he did the last time. It may have been for the relaxation qualities, but Xue Yang was certain he was avoiding eye contact.
With a carefree sigh, Xue Yang reached into his billowing white sleeves and pulled out a coin pouch. “Does this cover for a conversation, then?”
Xiao Chen looked over his shoulder and down to the outstretched hand before making his way over to inspect. He took the money and turned it over in his palm. “This could get you a lot more than a conversation, Xue Chengmei. Just how much is my time worth to you?”
The wording implied Xue Yang cared about the man’s time in any regard, which needed to be corrected immediately. “Are you so pathetically poor you think that’s a lot to me? I asked if it would be enough. Now tell me why you stay here.”
There was an uncertainty on Xiao Chen’s face, periwinkle eyes scanning the cultivator’s face for traces of intention, but he ultimately put the money aside into his own pouch. Doing so, he was by the drawers rather than in front of Xue Yang’s knees. “Very well, if you must know, I do not have a family of my own. I’m afraid this isn’t a pleasant story for most, but it is mine nonetheless. Simply put, I stay here because it offers me a roof over my head that doesn’t leak along with a steady income of payments and food… I can cultivate in my spare time, so I don’t mind the work.”
“And you’re happy about this? I thought you wanted to be a cultivator. How can you say you like your life when you were born to be NOTHING?” Xue Yang snapped.
Xiao Chen glared over at Xue Yang, but didn’t return the same anger. Instead, he met the man with confusion. It wasn’t that he was necessarily wrong, but he somehow knew exactly what to say to upset him. He sighed and walked back over to Xue Yang, a hand underneath the man’s chin.
Xue Yang flinched at the touch, yanking his head back despite ultimately losing to Xiao Chen’s determination.
“Xue-Gongzi,” he uncharacteristically complained, “can’t you just use all of that money for another type of service?” Xiao Chen had one knee on the bed beside Xue Yang from having to lean in order to capture his chin. He gave his best softened expression and let his eyes settle on the man’s lips. “Seriously, what joy do you get out of hearing about my upbringing?”
Xue Yang snatched the wrist into his hand and unforgivingly yanked it away. “Do not touch me,” he barked. “I paid for a conversation, so do your job.”
Xiao Chen stood once again. What a curious man, he thought, maybe it would be worth the entertainment to humor him. “Very well then. What was the question again, I seemed to have forgotten?”
There was no way he had forgotten so easily, but Xue Yang couldn’t remember either. He knew it was clever, but damned if he could recall! “Forget it. Just tell me more about your life.”
“If you wish.” Xiao Chen sat down on the same bed, but a distance away in order to allow Xue Yang some space after seemingly offending him before. “I’m not sure where exactly I was born or who my parents were, but I ended up here in Kuizhou either way. I lived on the streets until I was old enough to work. Not that I lived anywhere after I could, but I was at least able to make enough money to feed myself.”
Xue Yang interrupted once he had a question. “How did you get food before?”
“I mostly waited for restaurants to throw out their leftovers until I learned how to fish in the river. I secretly watched some fishermen prepare their own meals until I learned how to do that myself.” Xiao Chen explained. “Most of what I know is from watching others.”
“You’ve never had anyone abuse you?” Xue Yang asked, back in his original position where he could rest an arm across his own knee. “Never trusted someone like a stupid naive little fool just to have them run your finger over with a cart?”
Xiao Chen raised an eyebrow at the oddly descriptive question, but lifted his unharmed hands anyway to show they were intact. “Nothing like that, but I have definitely had my share of the rest.” He assumed his guest would ask more about that, so Xiao Chen made himself cozy at the end of the bed while he spoke. “I learned to scavenge for food because I was met with violence when I asked politely- I only watched to learn because I knew I would be hit for my curiosity.”
His legs were still off the bed, feet on the floor, but the rest of him was laying on his side to face Xue Yang and head rested on his arm. Xue Yang had never seen Xiao Xingchen lay in such a way… it was disturbing.
Xue Yang let his face distort into disgust when looking down to Xiao Chen. He was somehow still smiling gently while looking up at him. “And yet, you let those same people pay to fuck you?”
“I would prefer if you didn’t say it in such a vile way, Xue-Gongzi. As I mentioned before, I have say in who I do and do not entertain. Aside from that, I can be however picky I want with who I get intimate with.” Xiao Chen explained calmly. He knew he didn’t owe any type of explanation, but the cultivator was at least an interesting conversationalist.
Xue Yang bent his arm at the elbow so he could prop his head on it without having to apply too much effort to look at Xiao Chen. “What type of brothel allows that type of service?” Xue Yang snorted at the thought as if Xiao Chen had been caught lying.
“One that cares about its people,” Xiao Chen easily responded. “Besides, I said I am picky- not that I refuse all together.”
In their last life, Xue Yang hadn’t given it much thought, but he would have sworn Xiao Xingchen died a virgin. The man pretended to be so righteous and pure, how could anyone have thought about sullying his good name? Now, he was the one who hadn’t slept with anyone thanks to that forsaken mountain he cultivated on.
He had swapped their fates to destroy Xiao Xingchen’s life, so why did it seem he was the only one suffering? “How many?” He asked before he could consider it to have been irrelevant.
“How many?” Xiao Chen repeated through an amused chuckle. “Do you know how many people you’ve slept with, Daozhang?”
Xue Yang’s face dropped and his eyes darkened to show his hatred. He hadn’t expected the response and was growing increasingly tired of not being able to predict every little thing Xiao Chen would do. “I told you never call me that.”
It wasn’t going his way in the slightest and it wasn’t fucking fair.
It was Xiao Chen’s turn to drop his expression, but not in fear as Xue Yang wanted it to be. “You haven’t, have you?” Suddenly, Xiao Chen sat up and energetically sat on his own legs tucked underneath. “Xue-Gongzi, is it because of your cultivation path? Do your teachings forbid you from such a thing?”
Xue Yang moved his body over in the direction away from Xiao Chen. Why wasn’t he afraid of the look that would send a normal passerby into panic?! He would dare get so close without considering what could be the consequence? Even worse, his eyes were twinkling like a kid who had been offered candy. “Why do you care,” Xue Yang sneered, lifting his sleeve like he was creating a boundary Xiao Chen couldn’t cross. “It’s not like I would tell you about my teachings even if I could, so fuck off.”
Xiao Chen had noticed the man was tense, maybe he had gotten upset again at the way the conversation was going. To spare his embarrassment, Xiao Chen sat back on his heels to allow space. “I won’t bring it up again.”
How did Xiao Chen still have the fucking audacity to think himself better? Even with their swapped fates, he believed that Xue Yang was a lesser person?
“Is there anything else you want to know?” Xiao Chen asked to give Xue Yang a pass.
Xue Yang ran a hand through his hair with an exhale. He felt aggravated that Xiao Chen was giving him nothing to work with. How was he still so composed? Xue Yang resorted to the only thing he knew to scare someone who wasn’t afraid of his looks and painfully grabbed Xiao Chen’s wrists, pushing him to the bed to pin him in place. “How are you so fucking happy about this pathetic life of yours?! Why aren’t you crying? Anything!”
He was shouting, but Xiao Chen kept his usual detached expression as he allowed it to happen. Xue Yang squeezed his wrists tighter and brought their faces closer, eyes dark and full of resentment. His ponytail that he had grown out longer than in his past life hung down beside his head and pooled on the bed next to Xiao Chen. “Tell me, how much is it for you to drop the virtuous act? I’ll pay whatever it is.”
Xiao Chen let a silence fall after Xue Yang’s request and took the time to study the man’s face. He should have been frightened- the man was clearly stronger than he was and had a strong core, but part of him thought it knew that this Xue Chengmei wouldn’t hurt him beyond repair. “What good would crying do, Xue Yang?”
Using his birth name was meant to be a subtle insult to his honor, but the name made the cultivator visibly flinch and it cracked the anger for just a moment. Xiao Chen noticed, but let it go. “Will crying cultivate me a stronger core? Will crying change the years I lived on the street scavenging for scraps?” He waited a few moments until Xue Yang’s eyes were locked on his own again. “I do not know what it is you are looking for, but I’m afraid you won’t find whatever it is in me.”
Xue Yang gritted his teeth, but ultimately sighed. He kept his hold on Xiao Chen’s wrist, but let his head fall onto the man’s shoulder. The bridge of his nose pressed against the corner of Xiao Chen’s neck and Xiao Chen thought at first that the cultivator was crying. Instead, he heard gentle yet painful laughter.
A wave swept over him from his last life. He missed being so close to Xiao Xingchen, but he missed more than anything to have his Daozhang. This man wasn’t him and wasn’t even aware what he had lost- no- what had been taken from him. A product of his own creation, and he hated it.
The laughter subsided, but Xue Yang didn’t remove his head from where it was resting. “Xiao Chen, do you believe in fate?”
Xiao Chen was relaxed under Xue Yang, not finding a need to worry at the time. “I do, I suppose. Actually, there was a man once who claimed he was a shaman who told me about my own fate.” Xiao Chen paused and looked away from the spot on the ceiling he had been dissociating at and instead looked away from Xue Yang to the draping in the corner of his bed.
He didn’t exactly believe the man and assumed it was an adult poking fun at an unfortunate kid, but the story stuck with him ever since. “He said someone had swapped my fate before I was born. I’m sure it was just a lie to make a poor child feel better, but I do sometimes wonder what my life would have looked like if it had been different...”
Xue Yang smiled wide and completely let it slide that Xiao Chen didn’t automatically trust that man like he would have in his past life. It was much better that Xiao Chen shared such a story to give Xue Yang a brand new motivation.
That truly despicable Xiao Chen… he wanted to be Xiao Xingchen so bad, then Xue Yang would make certain he suffered for it!
He pulled his head away enough to look at Xiao Chen’s face. He had looked at Xue Yang again with his bright eyes focused passively. Xue Yang indiscriminately released one of the wrists and put his fingers over Xiao Chen’s eye, making him close the one.
“What are you doing?” Xiao Chen asked carefully, using his newly freed hand to gently wrap his fingers around the hand that was touching him.
“You stare a lot… it’s unsettling.” Xue Yang said, rotating his hand sideways to cover both of the eyes instead.
Xiao Chen chased the hand with his own and laughed at the explanation. “Most people tell me I have beautiful eyes, y’know.” He smiled and allowed his hand to drop away from the one determined to stay planted over his eyes. “You’re an interesting man, cultivator. Who is your teacher?”
“Baoshan Sanren.”
“Baoshan Sanren? I’ve only heard rumors about her. Is it true her disciples must never leave the mountain or they will be unable to return?” Xiao Chen spoke normally despite Xue Yang over him and depriving him of sight.
Xue Yang watched his lips move as he spoke and kept his expression uninterested. “That’s right. I have no reason to go back there, so there is no problem.”
“Hm.” Xiao Chen gently grazed his fingertips from Xue Yang’s hand and up his arm until it reached his face. “Cultivator, tell me, why did you come here to see me? Do I know you from somewhere?”
It was a completely normal question, but one Xue Yang didn’t have a normal answer to. The hand covering Xiao Chen’s eyes moved only to forcibly take away the hand touching his face, which meant he was being stared at once again. “Who knows,” Xue Yang dismissed. “Maybe I was bored, maybe it was fate.”
Xiao Chen laughed lightly and twisted his hand in Xue Yang’s to interlace their fingers. “And you’re certain you didn’t come here for something in particular? You seem quite comfortable on top of me, Xue-Gongzi.”
As expected, Xue Yang quickly got off of the man with a grimace. “Filthy whore, don’t touch me.” Xue Yang smoothed the sleeves of his white robes as if wiping his hands off. Xiao Chen sat up with a smile, finally having been released.
He saved Xue Yang from the embarrassment of pointing out he had been the one to touch him first and instead left the decision in Xue Yang’s hands. “What do you suppose we do, then?”
Xue Yang stood up and fixed his robes, mildly annoyed by how they felt on him at the moment. “Nothing, I have to go.” Xue Yang announced.
Xiao Chen smiled and tilted his head, body leaned back against his arms on the bed. “Alright.”
Neither of them said goodbye as Xue Yang walked away, maybe because they both had the feeling they would meet again.