HE With the Cold Male Protagonist C39

Chapter 39: Retaliation, The Carpenter’s Trade

Lu Lizhi calmly brushed at the nonexistent dust on his shoulder.

Jiang Baiye watched the inexplicable gesture. When he saw him withdraw slightly afterward, as if it were nothing but a casual act, a wave of indescribable disappointment welled up in his chest.

Just then, Lu Lizhi suddenly leaned in again and bit down hard on his shoulder!

Jiang Baiye drew in a sharp breath. Numbness—numbness straight to the heart. This was no mere bite to his shoulder. No, it was biting right into his heart.

Even through the thin layer of cloth, Jiang Baiye could feel the increasing pressure of those teeth. Yet it wasn’t enough—far from enough…

He should strip off his clothes and let him bite directly.

Let him bite until satisfied, until blood flowed, until he could watch crimson stain those enticing lips, blood sliding down their corner, soaking them with dark, violent red—desecrating that holiness, staining it black…

Lu Lizhi, pleased with his dazed, uncomposed expression, turned briskly with a smile, intending to leave.

But the smile froze abruptly.

Behind them, who knew when, a crowd had gathered.

Granny Li stood clutching a basket of freshly picked vegetables, Uncle Luo still holding his whip, Jiang Dazhu bent halfway with a small stool in hand, caught in the act of setting it down. All of them stared, wide-eyed, directly at him and Jiang Baiye, shock written across every face!

Sweat instantly dampened Lu Lizhi’s palms.

Jiang Baiye, about to touch the spot he had just been bitten, sensed something amiss. He looked up to find every gaze locked on them, as though time itself had frozen. He gave a cough. “Father, how did your sales go today?”

Jiang Dazhu jolted back to himself. That fleeting thought he had almost grasped vanished like smoke, impossible to catch again. Stunned, then realizing something, he immediately lifted the stool to strike.

“You bullied Lizhi again? He’s your teacher, has been teaching you for so long, and you don’t know the meaning of respecting your master! Stinking brat, I’ll beat the life out of you!”

To drive Lizhi to bite in desperation, this rotten boy must have done something utterly shameless, to force such a refined and noble man to this point!

Jiang Baiye dodged the blows while thinking, Respecting one’s teacher? I’ve already kissed him, even shared a bed.

Uncle Luo, seeing him get beaten while grinning with blinding brightness, wore a knowing look, as though he had just uncovered a great secret.

Well then—better tell his wife to stop dreaming about marrying their daughter into some equal-status family.

Meanwhile, Lu Lizhi followed Granny Li home. She caught his sleeve, her expression peculiar. “That boy… did he bully you?”

Lu Lizhi thought bitterly, why does everyone believe he is the one being bullied, not the one doing the bullying?

When he realized what Granny Li meant by “bully,” his face instantly drained of color. He shook his head vehemently, expression solemn.

But Granny Li trusted only what she had seen. She hesitated, then said earnestly, “No matter what, you must protect yourself.”

With that kind of body, that kind of secret, that difference… who knew what situations might arise, what gazes might fall upon him?

Lu Lizhi only found it absurd. He was a man. Even if he liked men, he would never…

No—he would not like men, nor women either. No one at all could ever come close to him!

Some secrets would die with him, rotting and sealed away, never to see light again.

Back at home, Jiang Dazhu happily produced two hundred copper coins. “This is today’s earnings. Everyone says my buckets and basins are sturdy. I gave away spoons as bonuses, but nothing else sold. Maybe I should just make those from now on!”

With money came confidence—especially for a man. Being able to earn by his own craft made Jiang Dazhu radiant.

“But those fine stools, those new-style recliners, brush holders, and boxes—aren’t they more profitable than buckets and basins? Why not try the county?”

“Go straight to the prefectural city, make door-to-door sales,” Jiang Baiye suggested. Jiang Dazhu faltered instinctively. “Door-to-door sales?”

“For instance, on East Street in the prefectural city, some idle shopkeepers or bosses might want a folding recliner like this. Even if not for business, they have the money to buy it for their homes.

“Brush holders could be sold to bookshops. But it’s best to focus on one type that’s popular—if you make a bit of everything, it wastes energy and sells poorly. You’ll never form a personal brand.”

Madam He looked strangely at her suddenly energized son. Hadn’t he been listless and distracted these past days? Was his illness gone?

Noticing her gaze, Jiang Baiye only smiled more broadly. “Send two recliners to Doctor Sun and Doctor Meng. Besides goodwill, they’ll act as advertisements in their shops. If customers find them novel, attractive, and comfortable, the doctors can recommend them. Word of mouth will spread, and more buyers will come.

“In time, once more people know your craftsmanship, you could even lease a shop—display and sell your works while taking custom orders. The business would grow larger, you could hire apprentices, even buy bonded servants or slaves, so you’d have reliable help to handle more orders.”

Why buy servants instead of recruiting skilled craftsmen like he himself had? Because his father wasn’t suited for scheming and intrigue. Jiang Baiye didn’t want him dragged into such filth. His father might be overly gentle, but that gave him one great strength: a pure focus.

Once he worked, he would pour himself into it, delving deeper than others could, perhaps even carving out renown one day.

Jiang Dazhu gasped sharply. “This… this is thinking too far ahead!” After all, he was a man who could rejoice for half a day over selling two buckets.

“Could it really happen?”

Jiang Baiye nodded. “As long as Father keeps honing your skill, even without a shop, customers will come knocking, seeking your work.”

Jiang Dazhu’s eyes reddened with excitement, yearning rising within him. If so, could he truly achieve what Chang Sui spoke of—soaring, gaining success and fame?

He couldn’t let his son’s words be mocked. He couldn’t keep shaming him. “All right, Father will work hard!”

He plunged straight into the room Jiang Baiye had set aside as his workshop. It was filled with lumber and tools, wood shavings littering the floor, as well as measuring devices, chisels, and files Jiang Baiye had crafted after modern models.

Next, he only needed to teach his father how to read drawings. Then he could sketch out the furniture from his memory of later times, and his father could build them with ease.

So thinking, Jiang Baiye decided perhaps he could describe the designs to Lu Lizhi, let him draw them out. They would look far more vivid and accurate, and his father could replicate them more easily.

He was about to head out when his mother stopped him, stern-faced. “Off to disturb Lizhi’s studies again?”

Jiang Baiye instantly wilted, like a battered flower. “I was going to ask him for something proper.”

“If it’s not about studying, it isn’t proper!” To Madam He, it was outrageous enough that her unruly son refused to study; to drag down the excellent student next door was intolerable. She flatly barred him from leaving.

Thus Jiang Baiye spent the whole night without seeing Lu Lizhi, growing restless as madness. He tossed and turned, mind racing—did that bite carry deeper meaning? Real brothers wouldn’t do that. But perhaps it was only Lizhi venting anger?

Anxious, yearning, burning.

The next day, Jiang Baiye had to fetch the craftsmen He Lin had found and gather them with Ding Yue for instruction. His father had already risen early to load the wagon with wooden wares for sale.

Jiang Baiye knocked on Lu Lizhi’s door. At last, sounds stirred within the courtyard. Even the most ordinary noise now made his chest feel hot. When the door opened and he saw that clear, moonlit figure, all his chaotic thoughts from the night vanished.

Lu Lizhi paused briefly, lowered his gaze, and walked straight toward the wagon, giving no chance for words.

“Wait, Lizhi—you’re going to sell storybooks again?” Jiang Baiye noticed the case in his bundle.

Lu Lizhi nodded. They were written earlier. He needed to save up for the pens, ink, paper, brushes, annotated Four Books and Five Classics, exam essays, and the heavy costs of travel.

He had nearly seventy taels saved, but deemed it far from enough. What if readers soon tired of storybooks? He had to seize the current craze to earn as much as possible.

After the county exam, he could write essays or paintings to exchange for money. If he passed as a xiucai, he would enter a government academy, where rules were strict and private activity scarce.

But only by enrolling could he qualify for the provincial exam. And self-study had already grown exhausting. He had to enter school.

Standing at the wagon, Jiang Baiye smiled. “But when did I say I was taking you to the prefectural city?”

Lu Lizhi blinked at him, finally lifting his eyes. Jiang Baiye stretched out a hand with gentle persuasion. “Give them to me. My father’s cart can’t carry more passengers. I’ll sell them for you.”

Lu Lizhi’s eyes widened slightly, as though saying, Then why knock on my door?

“It’s just… my shoulder aches. I think I saw several bite marks last night. Not sure if they’re swollen…” Jiang Baiye murmured with meaning. Seeing Lizhi’s eyes dart away, ears flushing red, his heart itched unbearably.

Still, he held back. Best not corner the rabbit, lest it bite him again and deny everything.

Yes, Jiang Baiye could see that tendency. So he reined in the thoughts spilling from him, biding his time carefully. He mustn’t frighten him away.

In the end, Jiang Baiye was nearly certain—this was not impossible. His mood soared.

Lu Lizhi stepped down from the wagon, relieved that he had not pressed further. He himself did not know why he had acted that way yesterday. Uncontrollably, perhaps… Handing the storybook over, his fingers clenched at the thought—it was Tales of Romance (Volume II).

“What is it?”

Lu Lizhi shook his head. After all, he never read his own books. He handed them over calmly and stood at the gate, watching Jiang Baiye ride away. The troubles plaguing him for days seemed to fade with his departure.

Back in his room, Lu Lizhi tugged down his robe, revealing his pale, porcelain-like shoulder. He glanced at the deep bite mark, tinged bluish-purple. The thought that he, too, had left a mark on Jiang Baiye made him clutch at his belt in shock.

Could they really pretend nothing had happened?

As Jiang Baiye reached the village gate, he suddenly reined his horse sharply. “Father, you take the reins—I have something to do.”

“What?” Jiang Dazhu, dozing inside, was bewildered. “I can’t, I don’t know how!”

Jiang Baiye pushed him forward. “If you want to do business in the future, you’ll need another wagon. Practice now, you’ll learn in time.”

“But I—”

Jiang Baiye thought of what He Lin had said about Tales of Romance. It hadn’t appeared in the original story. Could it be tied to him?

He couldn’t hold back any longer. He strode into the wagon, opened the bundle Lu Lizhi had given him…