On the way to Hangzhou, Li Xinyuan became so restless that he couldn't stop himself from pulling out his seven-stringed guqin and playing it, mostly for his own amusement.
Aside from Hu Lijing, he preferred to not have any other attendants. So in the absence of the said male, he was alone, left to stew in his thoughts as a mindless melody spilled out of his guqin as he strummed the chords.
His sword laid by his side, ignored but carefully left, as he sat with the guqin on his lap.
The musical instrument was beautiful, made of pure white jade with swirls of grey around it, slender and lightweight, easy enough to carry and store away when not needed.
Calming music filled with healing Qi poured out as the man sat, head slightly bowed and eyes half-lidded whilst the rays of sun peeked through the window and fell on the side of his breathtaking face as if to steal a glance at his ethereal beauty.
Pale porcelain white skin, elegant and refined brows, stunning phoenix eyes and beautiful black-rimmed irises in the colour of molten gold with long lashes, a high bridged nose and a defined sharp jawline paired with plump, reddish pink lips.
A face beautiful enough to fell countries and gaze like an aloof phoenix soaring in the vast sky, a single glance from him was more than enough to hook the recipient's very soul and leave them yearning for more.
Long, silky hair, black like the deepest and darkest of moonless nights, falling just below his waist, half pulled into a simple bun secured by an elaborate jade crown on his head.
All in all, Li Xinyuan had to describe his appearance himself, with a single glance at the mirror, he would give a simple evaluation:
'Any fujoshi's — with a thing for the historical genre — wet dream condensed into one single man destined to be pushed down.'
Nothing else.
Even for Li Xinyuan himself — who had the same exact face in his life prior to transmigration — this face was too beautiful.
Back in his days, he had exercised a lot and learned a lot of martial arts, one, to defend himself against kidnappers and two, to not feel way too feminine.
But the latter was until he had his sexual awakening which ultimately led him to carry his appearance — androgyny — with elegance and some pride.
Did he want to be pushed down? By the male lead?
Hm, he didn't mind. Not at all, really. While he did prefer being on top… Who said he couldn't do that from the bottom?
Wait, hold up, he was starting to get carried away. Again.
Hurriedly shaking off unnecessary thoughts about the male lead while berating himself for even thinking about these kinds of things, Li Xinyuan coughed to himself, feeling a little embarrassed as he put away the guqin and adjusted his posture to start meditating.
Unnecessary thoughts? Shake them off by cultivating, easy.
If he could break through the realms of cultivation, he wouldn't need to worry about his martial arts. To some extent, that is.
Why was his martial arts shitty when he had been training even in his last life? That was because the clan's martial arts were fundamentally different from the martial arts he practised outside the novel.
With a sigh, Li Xinyuan calmed his mind and started focusing on his cultivation, circulating the Qi in the atmosphere into his body and dantian as he did so.
As such, hours passed and their entourage drew closer to Hangzhou.
…
"Hm? A strange book that people cannot seem to read, even scholars?" Li Xinyuan asked, cocking his head to the side as he stared at his attendant who had just returned from Hangzhou. "And its cover has a strange illustration?"
"Yes, Master." Hu Lijing nodded, somewhat serenely whilst twisting his fingers as he frowned. "I briefly debated the merit of sneaking into the auction house to see what all the fuss was about. But then I didn't do so in the end."
Li Xinyuan paused, the hand that held a book stiffened at that man's words as he slowly put the book down on his lap and raised his head to give him a look, an impressively deadpan look.
"Wow," he intoned, dryly as he gave Hu Lijing a once over. "Want me to applaud you? Or perhaps you would like a cute little flower as a token of appreciation for not letting your impulse win?"
At the sarcasm that practically dripped in his voice, Hu Lijing resisted the urge to roll his eyes for the nth time that day as he looked away.
"No, thank you, Master." He shifted on his seat and tossed a small ball of flame at Li Xinyuan, all too casually. "I'd much rather prefer if we sped up to make it to the auction, lest someone else should get their hands on the book or whatever it is."
Li Xinyuan smoothly drew a white and grey hand-held fan from his left qiankun sleeve as he snapped it open, blinking slightly while swatting the ball of flame out of the window.
He was getting used to being treated like this by the man who was supposed to be his attendant. He didn't really mind Hu Lijing's behaviour, he didn't particularly feel the need to make him change his ways either.
Moreover, he preferred the current dynamic he had with Hu Lijing. It more or less made him feel like they were friends rather than just master and servant.
"Oi," he reprimanded in a faint tone. "Watch where you toss these little balls—"
"—Pft."
Li Xinyuan shot him a cold glare. "—Of fire. Seriously, how old are you again? It's so hard to believe your age when you act like this. One of these days you are going to cause a forest fire. And believe me, that day I'll throw you off a cliff."
Hu Lijing let out a snort, muttering something under his breath. He must have thought that Li Xinyuan couldn't hear him.
Li Xinyuan's ears pricked as he snapped the fan shut and pointed it towards the man. "I heard you, don't you think otherwise. Seriously you are so annoying."
Hu Lijing did not pout. He didn't pout, absolutely, as he folded his arms on his chest, turning his nose up and face away from the surgeon as he spoke.
"You are annoying with how much you nag, Master."
At his words, Li Xinyuan clicked the fan open and hid a small smile behind it, blinking his eyes prettily.
"Aw. I'm sorry—" he cooed mockingly, causing Hu Lijing to throw yet another flame at him "—Hey! Act your age, ah!"
"..." Hu Lijing looked like he wanted to say something in retort but held himself back as he fell silent. "Just—" his voice turned louder as he called out to the coachman. "—speed up!"
With that, he looked away, clearly not wanting to say another word to Li Xinyuan.
The surgeon preened behind his fan, batting it slowly, he looked out of the carriage, taking it as his win.
…
At an auction house, in Hangzhou.
"The most special and awaited part of today's auction is here!" The host announced, his Qi-infused voice spreading through the hall.
On the second floor, sitting near the rails, Li Xinyuan squinted his eyes to get a clear look at the book that was brought under the light.
As he observed the book, his eyes widened.
"What the fuck?" He asked himself, staring at the book wide-eyed.
"It is a mysterious book that our merchants procured from the West! Believed to be a book that tells of the future if ciphered, it has been brought to us. Yet none of the scholars so far have been able to decipher the meaning hidden in these texts! Now, we shall begin the auction with a starting price of 100 liang!"
Li Xinyuan leaned forward, under the bewildered eyes of Hu Lijing, he snapped the fan shut and threw his hand up. Infusing his own voice with Qi, the surgeon announced.
"10 gold ingots!"
Silence fell all over the hall.
By his side, his attendant stared, mouth ajar. "Master, what in the world??"
Li Xinyuan ignored him, nervously gnawing at his lower lip as he all but glared at the book.
It was this damned novel. The illustration on the cover and the title were all the proof he needed.
But why the fuck was it in Russian???