You've Got Mail: A Cautionary Tale

Chapter 37 — The Mutual Destruction of The Brothers Is Troubling The Advisor

Edited by DancingDolphinsYo

Starting from the first day of the New Year, Wu Xingzi had been unable to get out of bed for five days straight.

There was no need to even think about visiting friends and walking around the village. He could not even entertain Auntie Liu, Ansheng and a few closer neighbours who had come by.

Guan Shanjin had stopped them all at the door, dismissing them with a few sentences. As for Wu Xingzi, he was sleeping in the bedroom next door at that time, not knowing whether it was night or day. When he finally woke up, he was once again pressed against the bed and fucked savagely.

In Guan Shanjin’s words, this was to help improve his memory. However, Wu Xingzi only felt that his brain was about to be fucked stupid, and it was even worse for his poor hips, seeing how they could barely straighten out.

He was now truly afraid of the Great Southern Garrison General’s stamina. Wu Xingzi convulsed throughout the fucking as he cried and apologised tearfully, “I was wrong… I was wrong… Please have mercy on me! Please let me off!”

“So tell me, what were you wrong about?” Guan Shanjin remained calm and composed, fiddling with Wu Xingzi’s little cock. As it had ejaculated too many times, the tip now looked like a little shrunken head, very pitiful. Nearly a layer of skin was about to come off from the friction.

Sniffling, Wu Xingzi truly did not know what exactly had he done wrong. He only remembered that he had too much to drink on the night of New Year’s Eve, and after the second cup of wine, he remembered nothing.

By the time he had woken up, his hips were aching, his legs were weak, and his entire body, including his bones hurt. Just like usual, Guan Shanjin had cleaned him up and made him comfortable, and was sitting by the bed as he read and waited for him to wake up.

Noticing that Wu Xingzi was awake, Guan Shanjin spoke gently, “Not too long ago, Auntie Liu and her family had come over to visit for the New Year. I’ve sent them back.”

“Eh? Why didn’t you wake me up?” Wu Xingzi was surprised. He wanted to get up from the bed, but found that he could not move even a single finger. “Huh? W-w-what’s going on?”

Did he become disabled?

“Hmm? It’s nothing much, just that last night we’ve gone slightly overboard.” Putting down the book, Guan Shanjin gently cupped Wu Xingzi’s cheeks. “Are you hungry? I’ve made some porridge. Have a little?”

“Yes yes yes.” As expected, Wu Xingzi’s stomach felt unbearably empty. Only then did he realise that the sky outside was turning to dusk, and he had pretty much slept half the first day of the New Year away.

Alcohol does people harm! Wu Xingzi secretly peeped at Guan Shanjin. He was dressed in a crimson robe, and as he was in the bedroom, he did not have his hair tied up in a bun. His thick, silky hair was instead simply gathered up behind his head, and the lines of his excessively charming face were now gentled. The original fierceness had faded away quite a bit, and now there was an additional touch of gentleness to his face.

This was the first time Wu Xingzi had seen Guan Shanjin with such a demeanour. He blushed as he stared, and unknowingly, he was fed an entire bowl of porridge.

Wu Xingzi could not recall the taste of the porridge. After Guan Shanjin fed him three large bowls, he then removed his robe and got into bed. With narrowed, alluring eyes, Guan Shanjin smiled at Wu Xingzi. “Are you full now? Still feeling weak?”

“Uhh…” A chilling wave rose from his feet to his head. Wu Xingzi did not dare answer lightly, instead he placatingly smiled back.

“Seems like you’re fine now.” Guan Shanjin caressed Wu Xingzi, nibbling on his lips. He continued huskily, “Since you like pengornises, I’ll fulfil your wishes.”

Huh? Ah!

Before Wu Xingzi could understand the meaning of his words, his hips were lifted up, and he was impaled once again. The sky shifted in colours, turning dark, and Wu Xingzi cried out until his throat was about to give up. His stomach was completely filled with Guan Shanjin’s come, looking as though he was pregnant. Guan Shanjin even deliberately rubbed his tummy, making Wu Xingzi spasm on the bed like a fish out of water. It seemed as though his soul had departed his body.

And this was only the first day! The next few days were pretty much spent like this. Kept warm and sex-satiated, Wu Xingzi did not even have a chance to think about anything.

Now, it was already the sixth day of the New Year. Wu Xingzi had just been freshly fucked again, and he was drowsily sprawled across the bed. As for Guan Shanjin, he was completely revitalised. Having prepared a basin of water, he was wiping Wu Xingzi clean.

After cleaning up the old quail nestling in the bed, Guan Shanjin slapped the plump buttocks, that seemed to have grown a little larger in size from the kneading, in satisfaction. All the gloom within him finally dissipated. No matter how lively his “brothers” in that case were, they would never be able to compete with him who had come to life.

Groaning from the slaps, Wu Xingzi could barely keep his eyes open, but he still begged for mercy pitifully. “I was wrong… Please let me off…”

“I can let you off. We’ll talk once you’re awake.” Kissing his cheek, Guan Shanjin cleaned himself up as well and got into bed, hugging Wu Xingzi to sleep.

It took Wu Xingzi another two days before he was fully conscious. When he woke up in the morning, the person next to him had disappeared. In his bed, there were two hot water bottles to keep him from getting chilled. Guan Shanjin had always been good at taking care of people. He was meticulous and considerate, and never made others feel that he was too clingy.

The room was filled with the scent of the two of them, and also a vague trace of the aroma of fish soup. As Wu Xingzi sniffed the air, he rubbed his belly. Slowly pulling his clothes on as he got off the bed, he inexplicably felt as though he was separated from the world the moment his feet had landed on solid ground.

Probably because he had been lying in bed for too long, Wu Xingzi was unable to hold himself up, and his legs kept feeling weak.

After trying a few more times, Wu Xingzi could finally stand up, tottering about. The first thing he did was not to wash his face and change his clothes, but to make his way to the cabinet where he hid his pengornis drawings with faltering steps. Opening the cabinet, he took out the rattan case. He wanted to take the opportunity to examine the sachet within.

Maybe there’s still a chance that I can change it?

“Hmm? It doesn’t seem right?” After opening the lid of the rattan case, Wu Xingzi gave a rare frown, his expression turning solemn. Carefully, he took out the sachet. Its positioning was not quite right, as it was lying directly on top of the pengornis drawings. Placing it like this, the drawings might be stained with the colour of the sachet, so he had always placed the sachet by the side of the case.

Could it be that Guan Shanjin had moved it when tidying up the house? As Wu Xingzi speculated, he held up his treasured pengornis drawings, feeling sorry for them. Examining them one by one, he checked to see if they were dirtied. Fortunately, the fellows were all undamaged.

Just as he heaved a sigh of relief, Wu Xingzi now again gasped in shock. With his eyes opened wide, he stared at the oiled paper package within, his face paling by a few shades.

Inside that package were his ten most beloved pengornis drawings, including Guan Shanjin’s. He was extremely particular about the way the oiled paper was folded.

First, the paper had to be smoothed out, and not a single bump was allowed, so as to prevent it from choking the pengornises within. Next, the lines of the folds had to be as straight as a ruler, so that the pengornises would not be distressed. Finally, the portion used as the seal had to face up, and slid inwards towards the package. It could not be folded under the pengornis drawings, because if it was placed like this for too long, the drawings would, as well, become crumpled, and the pengornises would no longer be able to stand upright.

Now however, the oiled paper in front of him was very neat, but the seal was facing down. Before he could think carefully about how this paper packaging had gotten flipped, Wu Xingzi, with a pained heart, hurriedly took it out of the case. Only after he had meticulously repacked the drawings did he then sigh in relief, and then he decided to examine whether there were other mishaps with his top ten pengornises.

“Not bad, you’re just able to get off the bed, and you’re running straight for your darlings?” Guan Shanjin’s voice was gentle and full of amusement, but Wu Xingzi was so scared that all the hair on his body stood up.

“Uhh… These… These… These are books left behind by my father.” Wu Xingzi hurriedly put the oiled paper packaging down, pushing the rattan case into the cabinet. Turning his head around, he smiled placatingly at Beauty Guan. “I-I’ve always… had the habit of reading the books my father left me as I stayed up over the New Year’s Eve. This year, I got drunk, so I didn’t read any, and I miss them.”

“Hmm?” Guan Shanjin folded his arms, smiling at him with narrowed eyes. “Continue spinning your tale, I’m listening.”

How am I going to continue spinning?! Wu Xingzi withered.

“How… How did you find out?” Wu Xingzi had never been good at telling lies. Now that he had been caught, he could only admit it immediately with an ashen face. In his heart, he knew today bode ill for his box of darlings, and his heart was truly aching!

“It’s a long story, do you want to calm yourself down with a bowl of fish soup first?” The thick, aromatic scent entered the room through the open door. As usual, Wu Xingzi’s stomach let him down, immediately gurgling away. He was also starving to the point of death, and he could not stop swallowing his saliva. Naturally, Guan Shanjin noticed all of this.

“Sure sure sure.” Nodding his head incessantly, Wu Xingzi closed the doors of the cabinet and walked over to Guan Shanjin. “Let’s finish the entire pot of soup!”

Any moments of delay is still a delay!

Amusedly staring at that face that could never hide its expressions, Guan Shanjin could not help but lean down and kiss Wu Xingzi. “Just drink as much as you want. You’ve been exhausted over the past few days, you now need to nourish yourself.”

Upon mentioning the past few days, Wu Xingzi reddened instantly. “Ah, my back is still aching. Today, you… better not…”

“Don’t worry, we have to return to Bastion City in a couple of days. I’ll let your back off for the moment.” With a swing of his arm, Guan Shanjin directed Wu Xingzi to the dining table. Other than the fish soup, there were also a few light dishes, as well as some white and plump looking mantous.

Wu Xingzi gulped down his saliva. Without any consideration for Guan Shanjin, he buried his head in the food and started eating. He had had nothing but porridge over the past few days. Although there were variations, and they all tasted good, they still could not compare to proper rice and dishes.

The fish soup was a milky white. With the adornment of some sliced scallions, it looked extremely mouth-watering.

The first mouthful was fresh, thick and sweet, feeling as though he was drinking the fish itself. At the bottom of the bowl, there were tender slices of fish, and they melted with the slightest pressure of the tongue. Going down the throat along with the fish soup, Wu Xingzi’s entire body warmed up.

The meal made Wu Xingzi look very radiant, and he pretty much forgot about the disaster of Guan Shanjin discovering the pengornis drawings.

Seeing that he was done eating, Guan Shanjin tidied up the table. Cleaning and wiping everything, he then spoke to Wu Xingzi. “Come, let’s talk about your box of darlings. Take them all out.”

“Uhh…” Wu Xingzi rubbed his nose. He sat up straight, as though he was a stick in the chair. “It’s actually nothing much. T-they’re just… the replies from the pigeon express.”

“I know.” Guan Shanjin sat across him, his long fingers tapping lightly on the table. “Wu Xingzi, if you’re not going to take them out, I’ll take them out. Think about it, once those things land in my hands, what would happen to them?”

This was an open and undisguised threat!

Wu Xingzi’s face paled, swiftly glancing at Guan Shanjin in despair. With drooping shoulders, he spoke dejectedly. “I-I’ll go take them out right now. D-don’t, you can’t…”

Hurt my darlings!

“Go.” Watching Wu Xingzi’s desolate figure, Guan Shanjin repressed his laughter and reminded him. “Don’t try to hide anything secretly. You’ve already let me see every drawing inside. For every missing drawing, I’ll tear one up to accompany it, got it?”

That slender figure shuddered violently, he was clearly terrified by those bloodthirsty words, or maybe it was due to his timidness after his thoughts had been read. In any case, the old quail hunched further down, walking unsteadily into his bedroom and fiddling about for a while before coming out. Hugging his rattan case, Wu Xingzi tried to put on a brave face.

When he placed the case down on the table, Wu Xingzi’s eyes vaguely glistened with tears.

“T-they’re all here.” He had thought for a very long time, and finally, he still ended up hiding Guan Shanjin’s pengornis. How could he have the face to admire that drawing right in front of the pengornis owner? This also naturally meant that there would be an innocent pengornis that would have to suffer in the cruel hands of the Great Southern Garrison General… Wu Xingzi’s heart could not hurt anymore, and he could only console himself. How many pengornises are there in the world? To be able to fall in the hands of the Great Southern Garrison General, it’s also a blessing passed down from his previous life!

How could Guan Shanjin not be able to read the expressions on Wu Xingzi’s face? Wu Xingzi had definitely hid away Guan Shanjin’s pengornis drawing.

“They’re all here?” Guan Shanjin deliberately repeated the question, only to see Wu Xingzi tremble violently. Even his lips were pale, and this image made Guan Shanjin’s heart ache by just looking at him, so his wicked intentions lessened quite a lot. Reaching out and pulling Wu Xingzi into his arms, he soothed him a little, before patting the old fellow’s hips and flipping through the pengornis drawings one by one.

It had to be said that the techniques of the Peng Society’s artist were excellent. Every drawing was lifelike. Compared to the hazy dim glow of the candles, the late morning sun threw every detail of the pengornis drawings into light.

They truly had their own individualities, each attractive in their own way.

“You like these people?” After going through the forty drawings, Guan Shanjin reached out towards the package that were missing two.

“Uhh…” Wu Xingzi’s chest tightened, only able to watch as Guan Shanjin’s exquisite hand undid the packaging. It was blank inside his head.

“Hmm?” Guan Shanjin kneaded his waist. “You like them? Or not?”

“I… think I like them?” This was a counter question, and it made Guan Shanjin burst out laughing. Like flowers blooming in spring, Wu Xingzi was unable to drag his eyes away.

“You, yourself, don’t know if you like them or not?” Wu Xingzi was really too adorable, and so Guan Shanjin pressed a kiss to the corner of his lips. “Then, these few drawings that have been specially wrapped up with oiled paper, you must really like them a lot, right?”

“Yes, yes…” Just like this, the truth was teased out of Wu Xingzi. He quickly covered his mouth, but it was too late. Not knowing that he had long sold himself out on New Year’s Eve, he was now blinking furiously in fear, staring straight at Guan Shanjin’s hand that was flipping through the pengornises.

Guan Shanjin snorted. He wanted to give Wu Xingzi a fright. If he did not properly deal with this old fellow right now, he would probably continue his bad ways, and not give up on them. As such, he picked up the pengornis covered with pock marks, waving it in front of Wu Xingzi. “So it turns out that you like this sort of ugly things?”

“Umm… Yes, yes… I’m just curious…” With lowered eyes, Wu Xingzi replied cautiously. How could he dare say that these ten pengornises were the ones he had fantasised about, using over and over again in the long, countless nights? However, at least he did manage to use the Prince of Lanling one.

“Curious?” Guan Shanjin sneered. He still remembered what Wu Xingzi had said that night! How was this old fellow only curious? If the actual thing was right in front of him, he would definitely have lunged over to it and started using it! What a lewd, slutty thing.

Feeling annoyed, no matter how Guan Shanjin looked at this pockmarked pengornis he disliked it tremendously. He gave up pretending, and right in front of Wu Xingzi, he tore the pockmarked pengornis into shreds.

“Ahhh….” Shivering, Wu Xingzi gasped. Before he could recover from the shock of having the pengornis being torn into pieces, a coin was shoved into his hand.

“Huh?” He looked blankly towards Guan Shanjin, his brain still muddled.

“Isn’t each pengornis drawing worth a coin?” Seeing Wu Xingzi nod stupidly, Guan Shanjin smiled. “So, can I continue?”

Continue what? What is there to continue?

Wu Xingzi’s eyes widened as he pressed his palm against his chest. Amidst the chaos, he watched Guan Shanjin take out another pengornis drawing, once again tearing it into bits.

“Ahhhh…” He received another coin. Staring at the coin, Wu Xingzi felt dazed. Feeling as though he was about to start crying, he shuddered. “D-don’t tear any more of them!”

“What about two coins?” Another drawing was torn.

“No no no…” Wu Xingzi shook his head non-stop.

“Five coins?” One more was destroyed.

“Please… Stop…” Wu Xingzi’s heart was hurting, and his eyes were red.

“Ten coins?” Seeing that Guan Shanjin was about to tear another one, Wu Xingzi lunged over, and the coins in his hand scattered on the ground.

His heart hurt so much that his entire body was trembling. Ignoring his fear, Wu Xingzi tightly held onto Guan Shanjin’s hand, pleading repeatedly. “These are only drawings, why are you taking them seriously? There’s no need! Please let them off!”

“They’re only drawings, why are you taking this seriously? So what if they’re torn?” Guan Shanjin retorted using Wu Xingzi’s words, making him choke and unable to speak. Finally, tears rolled down Wu Xingzi’s face.

“Why are you crying now?”

“I… I…” don’t know either. Wu Xingzi was crying very sorrowfully. Sprawled across Guan Shanjin’s arm, tears and snot and saliva were smeared all over his face. Choked sobs were coming from his throat, and he sounded a little hoarse.

He too knew that these were only drawings, and the key point of making friends through the pigeon express was not these drawings of pengornises. However, for Wu Xingzi, these drawings were incomparably important. During the times when he had no one by his side, it was these pengornis drawings that had accompanied him. Once Guan Shanjin left, it would still be these pengornis drawings that would accompany him. Days and years and thereafter, as long as he kept these drawings well, they would be able to accompany him for life.

Wu Xingzi had originally decided to depart this world at the age of forty. It was these pengornis drawings that saved him from his despair. His nature was to never desire nor demand for anything, but that did not mean that he was able to tolerate the loneliness of the past twenty odd years… He was really, truly, very lonely.

“I won’t tear any more of them… I’ve gone overboard.” Sighing, Guan Shanjin kept the pengornis drawings back into the rattan case and focused on consoling the person in his arms. Each low, thin cry was like a needle stabbing into his heart. He had only heard such cries on the battlefield before. Those despairing soldiers, when they missed their home, their family, they too would cry lowly, like this.

“I was wrong, don’t cry anymore.” Pressing Wu Xingzi’s face into his embrace, it was rare that Guan Shanjin would feel regretful.

Wu Xingzi still continued crying. He did not scream loudly, nor did he resent him with disenchantment. He only cried quietly, his bitter, acrid tears soaking Guan Shanjin’s chest.