4 An Invitation to Scheme

It was another busy day for the academicians of the Hanlin Imperial Academy. These were the scholars that had performed well in the imperial examinations. They had many roles, such as drafting important documents, compiling the history of the current dynasty, and interpreting the great classics. Although this might seem trivial compared to the great tasks carried out by the officials at court, none of the young candidates who had been selected for this job minded. Their ranks weren't high and most of them weren't yet allowed to attend the emperor's court, but there was no doubt that their futures were already brighter than their peers.

Why was that so?

One word: Connections.

Being in the Hanlin Academy meant being the cream of the crop. The alternative was to be sent out of the capital. In which case, they would have to slog hard for a minute chance that efforts would be noticed. But this group of elite scholars in the academy already had the attention of powerful ministers hoping to recruit them into their factions. These ministers might even become their mentors and train them in the art of politics. And if they were lucky enough and outstanding enough, it wouldn't take them long before their name reached the emperor himself.

Principal Graduate Wu Bin was one such academician of the Hanlin Academy. He held the position of Compiler, which was of 'Lower Six' ranking. This was the traditional post bestowed upon the principal graduate of the imperial examinations each year. All the other new entrants would only be of 'Upper Seven' and lesser ranking, so normally, the role of Compiler would be enough to garner the envy of all.

However, in Wu Bin's case, this position had raised some doubts within both the court and the literati. More than one person had expected the emperor to grant an exception and promote Wu Bin to a higher designation, on the basis of his outstanding academic performance. This would have given him a significant advantage over everyone else in his generation.

The Hanlin Academy positions directly above Compiler were that of the Reader-In-Waiting or Calligrapher-In-Waiting. Both of these were 'Lower Five' ranked. This sounded just one rank above 'Lower Six', but in reality, the difference was a chasm.

'Lower Five' was the minimum rank requirement to attend the emperor's court, thereby unlocking new opportunities to amass more influence. But even better than that, both positions were secretarial and granted their bearer the chance to be in the emperor's immediate presence. Their task was to assist the emperor with reading or writing documents.

Wu Bin was among those people who believe he deserved to start out at 'Lower Five'. Secretly, he resented the emperor for overlooking his exceptional talents. He had only met the emperor once during the final part of the imperial examinations, where he and the other two top scorers had been called up to present themselves before the emperor.

He hated to admit it, but he had been intimidated by the aura the man on the throne had exuded. It was part of the court rules that no one should raise their heads in imperial presence or meet the emperor's eyes unless commanded to. So all Wu Bin had seen was the black and gold hem and trimmings of the emperor's official court attire. But he had felt the weight of the emperor's scrutinising gaze and it had made him break out in cold sweat.

Despite the stress, he had answered the questions outstandingly well. Certainly good enough for praise from the other examiners. And the emperor had granted him the title of Principal Graduate and acknowledged his remarkable intelligence. So why then, hadn't he made an exception for Wu Bin? It wasn't like there were other better candidates.

In the courtyard where Wu Bin worked were rows of tables set out in parallel. His peers sat around him, each one working on their individual tasks. He looked down on most of them for being less accomplished and hated being reduced to their equal. Not everyone in the Hanlin Academy was competitive. Some were merely content with the academic atmosphere of the place, preferring a career as a lowly but peaceful official. But Wu Bin wasn't satisfied. He craved the power and prestige that could only come from being right at the top.

The so-called 'below one individual but above tens of thousands'. Wu Bin was more ambitious than his father, who had been jealous of Prime Minister Yan but never dared covet that title for himself.

Wu Bin had that courage. And he knew he had that capability.

Become prime minister while fucking the ex-prime minister's son. What a grand plan he had indeed.

At the thought of Yan Yun, a flash of impatience passed over his refined features and he tightened his grip on his brush.

His little rabbit had been behaving oddly these couple of days. Yan Yun would still complete his manservant duties faithfully and would call him 'Big Brother' when they were alone in private, but he was no longer as unreserved with his affections as before. At first, Wu Bin had thought Yan Yun was being coquettish on purpose and it had been a refreshing change from his usual eagerness to please. He had been pleased, interpreting this as a sign that Yan Yun's feelings for him, which he was certain existed, had reached the point where he was ready to offer himself up for Wu Bin's pleasure. It had all been going according to Wu Bin's plan and was missing just one final push.

So Wu Bin had indulged him and put in the extra effort to woo him with charming promises. He had expected to have Yan Yun writhing in his sheets by now.

But after multiple failed attempts to elicit even so much as a proper love confession from Yan Yun, Wu Bin wasn't as confident anymore. He couldn't pinpoint exactly where his mistake lay, but he usually had a strong intuition and it was telling him that there was something about Yan Yun that had changed.

Perhaps something had caused him to have a change of heart. Whatever it was, it was unlikely to be a new romantic interest. As Yan Yun's master, it was effortless for Wu Bin to control his movements and minimise his contact with any outsider men. And Yan Yun had never shown an inclination towards the pretty maids that tempted even Wu Bin, who preferred boys. He couldn't think of any competitor for Yan Yun's adoration.

Maybe Yan Yun felt like Wu Bin had been neglecting him lately? It was true that before that idiot Liang Ming overdid things and forced Yan Yun to jump into the lake, Wu Bin had been spending a lot of time clocking in extra hours at the academy. Political advancement was more important to him than his little game with Yan Yun, who was nothing more than just entertainment.

Or so he had thought. But now that Yan Yun was playing hard to get, he found that his waning interest had been piqued again.

Wu Bin's off-day was soon approaching. He couldn't wait to enjoy Yan Yun's gratitude when he offered to take him out into the city. Maybe, if the time was ripe, he would even be able to coax some favours in exchange.

——————————

Yan Zheyun was at his wit's end. It had been a week since he first woke up in this ridiculous novel and he still had no idea how to get back to his original world. Or if there even was a way, for that matter.

And of course, Wu Bin—affectionately nicknamed Scumbag 1 in his head—existed solely to make his life miserable.

After his slight emotional breakdown that night, Yan Zheyun had quickly collected himself. Going to pieces now wasn't the solution, not when he had a lot of other things to worry about. As such, he had gritted his teeth and set his grief aside. He promised himself that one day he would have the luxury to miss his family. But for now, he had to dedicate his energy towards survival.

The job of a manservant did not come easily to him, even though he had Yan Yun's memories. Their privileged upbringing was one thing they shared in common. It was just as excruciating for Yan Zheyun to lower his head in servitude and tend to the menial tasks of taking care of Wu Bin's living arrangements. In fact, it was probably worse, because Yan Yun, at least, wasn't foreign to the idea of servants and masters. Yan Zheyun came from a society where slavery was a distant concept in history textbooks.

To top it all off, these menial tasks required him to come into close contact with Wu Bin. The last straw had been this morning, when he had assisted Wu Bin with disrobing from his nightclothes. The only thought running through his head had been [don't look, it'll kill your eyesight and glasses probably haven't been invented yet]. But Wu Bin had somehow managed to interpret Yan Zheyun's bland expression as a come-hither look because he had dived in suddenly for a kiss.

Yan Zheyun had turned his head just in time, but that slimy mouth had landed on his cheek regardless.

It was a shitty way to start the day.

After making sure that Wu Bin was off to court, Yan Zheyun proceeded to fill a basin up with water from the well and scrub at that patch of skin till his face was raw.

He looked mournfully at his reflection. Instead of his cold phoenix eyes, a wide fawn-like gaze stared back at him, long dark eyelashes fluttering like little fans every time he blinked. This host body was also blessed—or cursed, depending on the perspective—with a delicate nose, fair porcelain skin, and small, cherry lips. Yan Zheyun personally wasn't feeling particularly ingenue at the moment, but that was the natural aura of the face in the water. Try as he might, Yan Zheyun couldn't conceal it.

Even while contemplating murder, the reflection showed that Yan Zheyun still looked like a pretty little thing that didn't know the ways of the world. It was the kind of face that invited sin. That, coupled together with a lithe, nubile body, meant that the original Yan Yun drove men mad just by existing. He seemed to incite the basest of their desires, an ugly possessiveness that made them want to seize him and toy with him until he broke in their hands.

…basically, Yan Zheyun hadn't been surprised even when he had first seen his new body. It was what he had expected of a BL harem novel. In fact, it was already better than what he had expected of a BL harem novel frighteningly titled 'Hurt Me in a Million Ways'. At least, he consoled himself, he still had the right number and type of reproductive organs. The first time Yan Zheyun had had to relieve himself, he'd nearly burst a kidney because he'd been too scared of what he might see upon removing his trousers.

"You there."

A girl's voice interrupted his musings. Yan Zheyun looked up impassively as Liang Hui's favourite handmaid and confidante, Dongmei, strolled into the inner courtyard of Wu Bin's residence. Wu Bin's chief maid, Mingyue, was the girl who had brought Yan Zheyun the foul medicine on the first day. She was following behind Dongmei with a frown. And when she caught sight of Yan Zheyun, she shot him a worried look, which set off warning bells in his head.

Yan Zheyun had met Dongmei a couple of times over the last few days, but always just in passing. Still, she had worn a disdainful expression whenever she so much as glanced at him, and he could feel her calculative gaze dogging his footsteps as he took his leave.

[She who has come, comes with ill-intent.] He had been keeping as low a profile as he could, only venturing out of Wu Bin's residences when his responsibilities called for it. It helped that because he was a child of a criminal, he wasn't allowed to accompany Wu Bin to the Hanlin Academy. The academy was situated within palace grounds and no one in the Wu Family wanted to risk their opponents catching sight of the 'Yan Traitor's Son' and bringing it up in court.

Yan Zheyun couldn't think of anything that he had done recently that might incur the wrath of Liang Hui.

But…from what he knew of Liang Hui, he could hazard a guess.

"Big Sister Dongmei," he greeted with a polite nod. "Might this small one know why you are looking for him?" He purposely used the diminutive self-address 'This Small One' to elevate her status but it didn't look like she particularly appreciated it. Flattery wasn't going to work on her then.

"Madam wants to see you," she said coldly. "You better be prepared to answer for your actions."

"This small one is foolish and doesn't know what he has done to offend Madam." He contemplated falling to his knees for better effect but quickly dismissed the idea. Given the societal expectation for slaves to kowtow at the drop of a hat, he already anticipated bruises around his patella for the foreseeable future. Best to avoid accumulating them as much as he could.

Dongmei sneered. "Let's see if you can keep up this innocent pretence under Madam's interrogation." With a wave, she dismissed Mingyue and walked back out, fully expecting Yan Zheyun to follow her.

He intended to anyway. He had initially kept his distance from Liang Hui because he hadn't decided how best to approach her. But now that she was offering him the opportunity to make use of her on a silver platter, well. How did that idiom go again?

Ah yes. 'Polite rejection was a poor substitute for obedience.'

It was only right of him to accept her invitation, wasn't it?