Bai Liang opened his eyes to find himself in the courtyard of a traditional house. He lay on a rattan couch with the blue sky roofing him and rolling white clouds shading him from the glaring sunlight. Not sensing any danger around him, he closed his eyes back and told Xue Liang to transfer him the world's information and unlock his body's memories.
This world was set in ancient times, similar to his original world. The difference was, there weren't any cultivators or immortals. Instead, there were martial arts practitioners who incorporated qi into their bodies and used them in raw physical fights. Thanks to that, the restriction on him was significantly loose compared in the previous world.
Another difference was the genders in this world. In addition to males and females, there was a gender called ghers. Ghers looked like any ordinary man from the outside, but their physique allowed them to conceive and give birth. They could be differentiated from males by the cinnabar mole on either their face, ears, or neck.
Ghers appeared a few thousand years ago when an emperor first fell in love with a man. He gave offerings and pleaded to the gods for 1,001 nights to grant his lover the ability to conceive so that he could crown him as his empress.
The body he was using now was a gher called Lan Jing, the second son of the prime minister. Not many people knew of his existence since he rarely came out of his courtyard. It wasn't that he was sick or anything, he just didn't want to get involved with whatever his family was scheming. Because of his passive attitude, his family also didn't bother with him as long as he didn't make any trouble for them.
The male protagonist of this world was the empire's imperial prince, Tian Qing-Shan. He was destined to be the next emperor but the prime minister planned to overthrow the current emperor and make his first son the next one instead, wanting to end the reign of the Tian bloodline.
No wonder Lan Jing didn't want to participate in it. Anyone with a spare brain cell wouldn't.
The male protagonist's fated one was a gher called Yu Shen-Jia, the firstborn of the minister of justice. He would accompany the protagonist throughout his struggle and become the future empress.
After ordering Xue Liang to monitor all the important people, Bai Liang propped himself up and stretched his back. He went to his bedroom and changed his lounge robe to a proper one. Both his master and Han Yi-Shen liked him wearing white, so he chose a white robe with a red gradient and delicate spider lily brocades at the sleeves and hem.
He brushed his hair and styled half of it up with a white jade hairpin. Lan Jing was older than Su Yan by a couple of years and, his appearance was closer to his original body than Su Yan was, particularly his peach blossom eyes. His cinnabar mole was on his right earlobe and shaped like a blood-red diamond.
Grabbing the red parasol next to the dressing table, he promptly headed out. He passed by Lan Qi-Yuan, Lan Jing's older brother, in the main courtyard. Although Lan Jing was disconnected from his parents, his brother kept protecting him. Lan Qi-Yuan refused their father's suggestion to marry Lan Jing to the second prince despite its advantages for their plan and convinced their father to leave Lan Jing alone.
The last person Lan Jing thought of in his death was Lan Qi-Yuan. Bai Liang wondered if he could relieve that regret.
"Ah-Jing, where are you going?" Lan Qi-Yuan stopped him.
"A stroll. My body needs to move or else I'll become a cripple. Does Brother need me to buy you anything?"
"You don't need to dress up this much just for a stroll."
"I'm only dressing appropriately. Brother isn't telling me to go out with plain cotton robes, are you?" Bai Liang sighed and walked away. "If there's nothing else, I'm leaving."
"Come back before dinner."
"I know."
Bai Liang headed out of the house and strolled along the city. He could detect the 2 people following him and knew they were bodyguards Lan Qi-Yuan assigned to watch over him. It was bothersome but he let them be.
He idly stopped by some stores and looked around. Although the modern world was convenient, the ancient set, sceneries, and crafts were more familiar to him and made him feel a little homesick. Unfortunately, he could no longer return to his world anymore.
Passing by a tavern, he thought for a moment and decided to have lunch there. The servant showed him to a private booth on the second floor and retreated after taking his order. He watched the people come and go outside when his soul rippled.
He paused and quickly straightened his back in anticipation. Looking around the street, his eyes were soon locked on a tall man, clad in a black and silver robe. His face was a resemblance to Han Yi-Shen, and he exuded a sharp aura that carried strength and authority. His broad, lean physique and sword-like eyebrows matched Han Yi-Shen while his willow leaf eyes were mirror copies of his master's.
He took out his handkerchief and stretched his hand out the window. A strong breeze blew by and stoled the handkerchief out of his fingers.
Huo Zhang sensed someone was watching him and looked up only to see the wind bringing a white handkerchief towards him. He caught it before it strayed to others and once he lowered his hand, he met the most beautiful eyes his gaze ever landed upon.
The enchantress smiled at him and retreated inside, teasing him to come by. He looked at the handkerchief in his hand and unknowingly raised it to his nose to take a whiff. The subtle sweet scent of an unknown flower captured his senses and bound his heart.
Bai Liang calmly waited in his booth. If that person was his master, he wouldn't be able to resist his invitation to find out who he was.
The door was knocked, and a servant came in to deliver his order. Unsurprisingly, behind him was none other than the man he was waiting for. He let him in while the servant left and closed the door.
Huo Zhang noticed the cinnabar mole on the person's right ear, and his eyes lingered briefly before stepping forward and showing the handkerchief in his hand. "I believe this is yours."
"Indeed, it is." Bai Liang reached out to take it.
He slowly brushed against Huo Zhang's fingers, and the man caught his sinful hand without dropping his handkerchief. Huo Zhang narrowed his eyes. "Do you know who I am?"
This was the first time someone dared to seduce him so brazenly.
"No." Bai Liang tilted his head and curled a playful smile. "But this one is willing to find out over a meal."
Huo Zhang looked at the empty seat and slowly let go of the delicate hand to sit down. Bai Liang raised the teapot and poured him a cup of tea. "This one's name is Lan Jing."
Bai Liang noticed a flicker in Huo Zhang's eyes and raised his eyebrows slightly. What connection did they have this time?
"Huo Zhang," Huo Zhang carefully studied Bai Liang's reaction.
Bai Liang knew Huo Zhang was expecting him to know who he was. Unfortunately, the revelation given to him was in accordance with the world's original trajectory without his master's existence. Even in the previous world, Han Yi-Shen didn't exist in the revelation.
"Then, this one will politely call you Master Huo." Bai Liang decided not to dwell on it and find out over time. He gestured at Huo Zhang to eat at his leisure. "Does Master Huo pass by this tavern often?"
Huo Zhang picked up his chopsticks. His eyes couldn't help but be drawn to Bai Liang's plump lips, moving ever so slightly from chewing his food. "No, I had some matter around this area earlier in the day."
"It seems that we are fated to meet today." Bai Liang smiled charmingly. "Where should this one wait to meet Master Huo again then?"
Usually, Huo Zhang wouldn't even consider answering that question from someone he just met. Moreover, knowing who this person was, it was even more unthinkable to answer him. But his heart was defying his mind. He couldn't raise his guard against him which made him suspect he was truly being bewitched.
"Blue Moon Pavilion," he ended up answering. "Wait for me there."
"Certainly." Bai Liang handed him his handkerchief. "This one will faithfully wait."
Huo Zhang accepted it and stared at it with thoughtful eyes.