Silent Lover - Chapter 158: Medicinal Powder

Hong Lian’s flippant tone made Song Qing feel disgusted…

He wasn’t sure if he was angry because Hong Lian had twisted his relationship with Shen Yu or because he had compared himself to the person in the painting…

Ultimately, Song Qing blamed himself more for calling out “Lian’er” uncontrollably while being intimate with Hong Lian. Why did he say that name in a moment of passion? And how could he mistake someone like Hong Lian for him?!

Was it because of that nearly identical thumb-sized peach blossom mark?

No, they were worlds apart. Lian’er, like Yu’er, loved to read, spoke slowly and politely, unlike Hong Lian, who had been hardened by the brothel life—rough, rude, and with words as sharp as arrows…

“Master Song, stop hiding it. Let me take a look and see who this little demon really is, that makes you miss him so much.”

“Don’t speak of him like that!” Song Qing reprimanded sternly.

“Alright, alright, not a little demon then.”

Hong Lian muttered under his breath, “Then a little shameless thing…”

When Song Qing handed him the scroll, he did so with great care, as if afraid of damaging even a corner. Hong Lian snatched it disdainfully.

“Oh my, he really does look a bit like Xiao Yu’er.”

Hong Lian commented while holding the painting up to the light. It wasn’t that the facial features resembled Shen Yu’s, but the refined and scholarly air, and the similarly delicate and slender build, gave off a scholarly elegance…

No wonder Song Qing kept to himself in the prince’s residence, never allying with anyone, yet showed special care for Shen Yu from the beginning…

Hong Lian brought the painting closer, pressing his finger against the face of the shorter child, as if trying to see it more clearly…

Rip.

A soft tearing sound, and Hong Lian’s sharp fingernail poked a hole through the paper…

“Oh no.”

He’d made a mess of things.

Song Qing practically leapt up from his seat. When he snatched the scroll back and saw the new tear on it—a hole right through the child’s face—his blood boiled with fury.

“You!!!”

Song Qing raised his hand, and Hong Lian instinctively shut his eyes. He had never seen Song Qing so angry. Except on the battlefield, Song Qing had always been a quiet and kind-hearted person, yet now he looked ready to kill…

But the hand never came down. Song Qing’s entire body was trembling, his restraint evident…

“Master Song, the paper was already so thin, and it’s from many years ago. I just touched it, and it tore…” Hong Lian swallowed nervously.

Song Qing’s eyes were bloodshot, a mix of anger and sorrow…

It was the only way he could remember Lian’er. Time had blurred his memory, and even though he recalled Lian’er’s appearance vividly, he couldn’t describe it precisely anymore. The painting was his only link to those memories.

Now, Hong Lian had destroyed it…

“Uh… If you take it to a restoration master, it can still be fixed…”

Fearless as he was, even Hong Lian looked a bit apprehensive as he poked his finger.

“Get out!!”

Song Qing roared, and Hong Lian ran away. He was the kind of person who avoided danger, and with Song Qing’s fury at its peak, he wisely fled. While his life might not be at risk, any injuries would still hurt…

“Phew.”

Hong Lian wiped the sweat from his forehead and swayed down the street, finally finding a tattoo shop after wandering for a while…

“Master, the last tattoo you did was too ugly. Help me change it, or cover it up.”

Hong Lian exposed his shoulder and complained.

The tattoo artist glanced at it, irritated. “Do you think this is a pleasure house where you can mess around? That’s a birthmark, dammit!”

Hong Lian threw a silver ingot onto the counter, glaring. “I said it’s a tattoo, so it’s a tattoo!”

The silver silenced the artist’s temper, and he smiled broadly.

“I can’t completely cover it, but I can obscure the original shape.”

“Fine, fine.”

The artist added, “It might leave scars…”

Hong Lian hesitated for a moment. “It’s still better than this thing.”

As the artist worked, he muttered, “It’s actually quite pretty, like a flower. Most people wouldn’t even tell if it’s a tattoo or a birthmark.”

When Hong Lian returned to the Commander’s Residence, he carefully avoided Song Qing’s room, but was met by a stormy-faced Song Qing in his own chamber…

“M-Master Song?”

Hong Lian’s eyes darted around. His wardrobe had been opened and rummaged through. Song Qing’s chest heaved, his gaze fiercer than a tiger’s.

“I want to know what this is!!”

Song Qing yanked Hong Lian over, holding a small yellow paper packet in his hand…

“Ah—”

Hong Lian winced as his shoulder was scraped by his clothes, inhaling sharply from the pain.

“T-That’s… why are you going through my things?!”

Song Qing gritted his teeth and roared, “Stop playing games! What is this? Where did you get it?!”

Hong Lian pouted. If Shen Yu could feed it to him, why couldn’t he? But he didn’t dare say it aloud…

“From the market.” Hong Lian replied indifferently. “They sell it in all the brothels.”

Song Qing was furious beyond words. Hong Lian’s nonchalant and frivolous attitude continued to provoke him. And he had been back to the brothels?

“So that’s why every time you seek me out, I… It turns out you were using such despicable means?!”

Song Qing finally understood why he lost control around Hong Lian, even mistaking him for “Lian’er”…

Hong Lian’s thick eyelashes veiled his eyes, obscuring his gaze. Song Qing couldn’t see his expression, only hear his low, sly reply.

“My allowance isn’t enough, so if I can entice Master Song just once, I get several hundred taels of silver. I had no other choice…”

He lived and ate at the Commander’s Residence, how could he lack money? It was purely greed!

“Beyond redemption! Truly beyond redemption!”

Song Qing, utterly disappointed, threw the packet at him and strode away. The packet opened, scattering powder all over the floor.

After Song Qing left, Hong Lian touched his shoulder—scratched raw by Song Qing’s grip and now bleeding…

“Heh.”

Hong Lian forced a smile, crouching down to sweep the powder into a pile with the dirt…

“What a waste. I didn’t even get to use it.”