Translator: Flying Lines
When Chen An left the General, he finally got to see Ding Sheng who’d also been captured before.
“Uncle Chen! Are you all-right? Did they hurt you?” Ding Sheng had been striding to and fro in a small room with guards posted at the door. As soon as he saw Chen An, he lit up and rushed over.
“Was I someone so easily hurt?”
Chen An opened his arms and gave Ding Sheng a hug. Then they sat down and he related the conversation between him and the ancient version Lu Feng to Ding Sheng.
“Uncle Chen, do you mean to say the emperor of this world looked like you, and had the same name?” Ding Sheng was apparently much surprised and said, “do you think this could be a parallel universe? I read some scientific articles about it. They say there are multiple parallel worlds, and the same person lead different lives in these different worlds.” While Ding Sheng talked excitedly, he got a pinch from Chen An.
“Does it hurt?” Chen An asked.
“It surely does.” Ding Sheng massaged his arm: Chen An had used some strength. Ding Sheng asked in concern: “Uncle Chen, are you okay?”
He looked at Chen An in worry, thinking Chen An must be having a hard time accepting that they were in a parallel universe and that they saw someone who looked like Lu Feng but were a general.
Chen An shook his head: “I’m okay.”
“Uncle Chen, I know. So many things happened in the past few days, and it’s very difficult for you to accept. I find things hard to accept, too, at least for now.”
Ding Sheng held Chen An’s hand and offered consolation: “But wherever we are, at least we are not alone; we still have each other.”
Chen An attention was diverted by Ding Sheng’s words. In fact, a moment ago the idea struck him that he should try and see whether he was dreaming, that’s why he pinched Ding Sheng; he didn’t expect the young man to read so much into it.
“I’m never going to leave you!” The man of justice said these words with bright, pure eyes, in which Chen An’s face was reflected.
Chen An felt Ding Sheng’s sincerity not only from the hands holding his, but also from Ding Sheng’s eyes.
Chen An turned into a smile, how many people have said that they were not going to leave him? No matter how many, he was moved every time he heard it, and felt his heart filled with warmth.
He remembered Changle’s words. It was true that he now had people taking care of him. Though he didn’t have Chen Yang and the others by his side right now, he still had Ding Sheng.
No matter when or where, he was never alone.
“I’m marking your words.” Chen An showed a light-hearted smile, and opened his arms to Ding Sheng, “give me a warm hug first.”
Ding Sheng promptly embraced Chen An, his chin gently touching the man’s shoulder and cheek. With the unprecedented intimacy, the young man felt a strange yet fascinating feeling rising in his chest.
“Uncle Chen, I feel like you are a magnet while I’m the metal. I don’t know why, but I just want to be with you.” Ding Sheng said honestly; he just wanted to hold Chen An for a long, long time.
It felt so good, kind of like when he hugged his mum at home, but there was an extra element of excitement.
“Does this mean you have become more dependent on me in this strange environment,” Chen An paused and slowly disentangled from Ding Sheng’s embrace, squinting at the young man with a gin, he asked, “or does it mean you actually like me?”
If it were Ivanov, the hairy bear would probably say: baby, I do not like you, I love you.
If it were Lu Feng, Mr. Iceberg would gaze at him without saying anything, but looking as if he was going to swallow him.
If it were Chen Yang…
Well, Chen An wasn’t sure what Chen Yang felt towards him. Sometimes he felt Chen Yang just regarded him as family, but sometimes there was this peculiar look in Chen Yang’s eyes when he looked at Chen An.
“Like you?” On hearing Chen An’s words, Ding Sheng actually thought about it, and after a moment, he said seriously: “There is the possibility.”
Ding Sheng’s answer made Chen An lift his eyebrows, and he looked at Ding Sheng, amused: “I’m the Old Fox, remember? Do you think it appropriate for you to like me?”
In his previous life, Ding Sheng followed him for three years. After his rebirth, they’ve become quite involved. He’d thought a person who valued justice like Ding Sheng did would want to stay away from him, not to mention like him.
Ding Sheng grinned at Chen An: “why not? Liking you won’t be too bad; I can follow you wherever you go until you decide to come back to the right path.”
After pausing for a moment, Ding Sheng added: “Besides, didn’t you say we were here to atone for past sins? If heaven considered it appropriate for me to be by your side, there must be reasons. I think, this is why I was sent here with you.”
Ding Sheng’s look softened as he gazed at Chen An: “Uncle Chen, I will get you back to the world we came from.”
“And you, too.” Chen An felt warmth rising in him at Ding Sheng’s words, and he gently took Ding Sheng’s hands in his, “since we came here together, we will go back together when the time comes.”
And if they could not leave, they would stay here with each other.
The guard, who stood outside the door, saw through the crack between the door Chen An and Ding Sheng in an embrace. After thinking for a moment, he hurried to the General and told him about it.
“Do you mean to say, that the man named Chen An embraced his companion?” Lu Feng’s hand holding a tea cup stiffened when he heard the report.
“I saw it with my own eyes! As soon as they met, they were locked in each other’s arms. And it seems they were quite intimate too; they not only hugged, but also…”
“That’s enough; say no more.” Lu Feng interrupted the guard before he could tell more about the details, “Go now and report to me when anything else happens.”
“Yes!”
The door was again closed with a creak. Lu Feng’s mind went back to what the guard just told him. He shut his eyes forcefully, but still, he could see in his mind’s eye Chen An and Ding Sheng embracing, and even see the two in bed together.
“Bang——”
The cup was crushed to pieces in his hand. Lu Feng opened his eyes and shook off the spilt tea, agitated.
Looking down on his tea-stained hand, he remembered in the past, when he returned from a battle, the emperor would bandage his wound for him with an earnest look on his face, half kneeling before the bed.
An autumn wind was blowing outside, bringing a sudden chill with it.
…
…
Chen An was not particularly fond of the long gowns and robes of this place; it felt like wearing women’s clothes. He was not going to fight a bunch of bandits dressed in fancy clothes.
He was therefore dressed in a short garment that the General provided on the top, his own trousers which he’d washed clean, and his boots that were more suitable for walking. Chen An felt he was making a pretty good mix of the ancient and modern, too.
Since they were going to fight the bandits, the ‘gods’ couldn’t do without their ‘divine instruments’. Chen An and Ding Sheng’s weapons were taken from them when they were captured; before they set out, Chen An asked the General for their weapons.
“Here are the things you asked for.”
Lu Feng had his people bring the strange, black items; when they took these from Chen An and Ding Sheng, Lu Feng had people examine these things.
They’d never seen anything like this before. And even when these things were laid right before their eyes and closely examined, they could not figure out how to use them. They just felt these things were rock-hard, and in strange shapes; and wondered how they were forged.
“You can’t learn it at a moment’s notice. These were divine instruments forged in our stove after years and years; you mortals couldn’t possibly do it without divine powers.” Chen An lied without a blink.
“Yeah!” Ding Sheng chimed in from aside.
Lu Feng cast a glance at Ding Sheng, and snorted. He then made a threat: “Remember what I said; if you can’t prove your powers,” Lu Feng turned, and pointing at Ding Sheng, he snapped, “I will kill him first!” Then he turned to Chen An: “And kill you when we get to the imperial city!”
“Kill, kill, kill, do you ever get tired of saying the word?” Chen An didn’t find this Lu Feng as lovable as his own, and he retorted with a sneer, “General, shall we set off if everything is settled?”
The majority of their things were still kept by Lu Feng; Chen An and Ding Sheng just picked some weapons, including a portable rocket gun, two machine guns, some grenades, several guns and bullets.
If the guns were not loaded, pulling the trigger won’t do much; and they kept the rocket gun and ammunition separate.
Judging from the fact that Lu Feng returned part of their weapons to them, the General and his men had not figured out what destructive powers these black things held.
But with the battle with the bandits approaching, these people were in for a surprise.
“Ding Sheng, these bandits committed all sorts of crimes; killing them would be doing justice, not doing evil, right?” Chen An needed to consult his envoy of justice before he did it.
“Right.”
The answer was what Chen An waited for; he had no more worries.