A/NÂ Merry Christmas 2021 everyone!!!! Or happy holidays if you don't celebrate!! Hope y'all have a great day!!
Whenever the king was in his study, Liu Qingyuan stood guard by his side. He'd always ignore his teasing and pestering which, unfortunately, spurred more of it. The days quickly blended into a routine.
It was early afternoon and the king had returned to his rooms to change. Liu Qingyuan waited outside, surrounded by court ladies. He ignored the younger maids' glances. He'd been the subject of speculation ever since the banquet.
The doors opened, revealing Jiang Zhilan who now wore something more fitted. The skirt was shorter, revealing pants underneath and the sleeves were fitted. "Let's go," he said happily. Liu Qingyuan followed him to a field where more men were waiting, dressed in simpler forms of the king's attire.
"Your majesty!" They greeted heartily, falling into bows. Jiang Zhilan reciprocated by smiling brightly and waving.
"This," The king turned to Liu Qingyuan, "Is my cousin, Jiang Yu," he pointed to another man, "General Fu's son, Fu Wei. Councillor Zhao's sons, Zhao Yang and Zhao Feng..." He introduced all the men to Liu Qingyuan who inclined his head in greeting. "This is my bodyguard, Liu Liu Qingyuan." He was still trying to figure out what the king was trying to do.
"Okay! Let's play!" The men cheered in unison, heading out to the field. A couple court maids had stopped by the path, whispering in anticipation of the game. Liu Qingyuan stayed by Eunuch Shuang, finally noticing the erected goal posts. Ah, so they were playing Cuju.* "Aren't you coming?"
(*Cuju -Â Chinese ball game similar to soccer)
The king turned back, shooting an expectant look at Liu Qingyuan. He bowed his head in apology. "No thanks, your majesty." Jiang Zhilan grinned at the challenge. He approached him.
"Come on, it'll be fun."Â Liu Qingyuan kept silent, eyeing the growing crowd of spectators for the game. He didn't want to make a scene and draw even more attention to himself.
"Your majesty..."
"Ey, come on!" He bumped Liu Qingyuan's shoulder, and leaned in. "Do it for me, huh?" He teased, shooting him a wink. Liu Qingyuan blinked at him, bewildered. He cleared his throat, looking down at the light touch to his arm. Eunuch Shuang smiled up at him.
"This way, Mr. Liu."
"I-but I didn't-" Flustered, Liu Qingyuan glanced back at Jiang Zhilan's cheeky form as Eunuch Shuang led him away to change.
By the time he came back, abet fidgeting with the sleeve of his 'uniform', a small crowd of spectators had congregated. Liu Qingyuan sighed, thrusting his sword into Eunuch Shuang's arms. "Take care of it."
"Ah. Yes, Mr. Liu." He bowed accordingly. Liu Qingyuan eyed him. He seemed awfully compliant today. When Shuang caught his gaze, his smile fell. "What are you looking at?" Ah, there he was.
Liu Qingyuan approached the huddle of players. The king turned, tossing him a red strip of cloth. "Tie that to your arm, you can be part of Wei's team." Liu Qingyuan noticed the king himself had a blue cloth round his arm. His eyebrow twitched. They were opponents then.
The two teams lined up in parallel rows, eyes glued on the ball an Eunuch held. Behind him, a gong rang out, the ball was thrown and all became chaos.
The general's son snatched the ball, pushing past the blue team. But Zhao Feng tackled him, shouting at another teammate to steal the ball.
"Here!" Jiang Zhilan shouted, and his teammate kicked the ball to him. He scooped it up from the ground with his foot, spinning rapidly and kicking the ball half-way across the field towards red's goal. Liu Qingyuan lingered on the edge, observing the scene. Zhao Yang received the ball with a bump to the chest, kicking it towards the red goal. Liu Qingyuan darted forward, pushing into Zhao Yang's side. They went tumbling to the ground. He scrambled up, diving for the ball but arms wrapped around his waist, yanking him back. "Yu ge!"
Jiang Zhilan's cousin, Jiang Yu rushed forward, sending the ball spinning into the goal with a hard kick. The arms around his waist released him and Liu Qingyuan flopped onto his back, watching the king cheer above him. Jiang Zhilan looked down, triumph on his face. He patted Liu Qingyuan's shoulder. "Try again next time!" He teased, rushing away to start the next match. Liu Qingyuan narrowed his eyes. Oh, it's on.
This time, Jiang Zhilan got the ball. The red team congregated into a wall so he couldn't rush past like Fu Wei had done. Instead, he ran back towards his own goal, spinning to kick the ball over his opponent's heads and to his waiting teammates. But Liu Qingyuan had lingered at the back and quickly intercepted the ball, running away before anyone really processed it.
"Here!" Liu Qingyuan side-stepped a tackling player and kicked the ball to one of his teammates who then passed it to Fu Wei. Fu Wei kicked it up into the air, using his martial arts and the ball rocketed through the goal. Liu Qingyuan slowed from his run, becoming aware of the cheer from the spectators. The big wood slab for his team has been changed. It now read 'one'.
They lined up again, this time Liu Qingyuan was entirely focused. The feeling of his heart pumping excited him. Cuju was only played as training back in Gongzhuan. Such that it wasn't really a game. This was fun.
Liu Qingyuan was the one who stole the ball this time. He immediately passed it to his teammate, waiting as everyone chased the ball. The ball was intercepted by Zhao Yang, stolen by Fu Wei who was then tackled by Jiang Zhilan. Liu Qingyuan rushed forward, reaching the ball before Jiang Yu did. He danced around him with light steps. Liu Qingyuan ran towards the blue goal, turning abruptly and kicking the ball at his pursuer. It bounced off Zhao Feng's chest and spun into the air. He ran towards him, leaping up and delivering the ball to the goal with a harsh kick. The crowd for the red team erupted in cheers and Liu Qingyuan allowed a little smile to twitch it's way onto his lips. Fu Wei collided with his back, cheering noisily into his ear and slapping his shoulder. Liu Qingyuan locked eyes with the king, who gave him a bright smile in return, his eyes scrunching up into slits. He quickly looked away.
They played back and forth, Liu Qingyuan's team sometimes winning, sometimes losing. He was panting and sweating but he also felt alive. Not from the physical exertion, but the spirit. Liu Qingyuan had gradually become his team's MVP, his previous training helping him be light-footed and slippery to catch.
The two teams were tied , and this last match would determine the winner. Liu Qingyuan narrowed his eyes at the king's smirking form standing across from him. The blue team had plotted something, he knew it.
When the gong rang, Liu Qingyuan darted forward for the ball but a weight crashed into his chest sending him backwards into the grass. He grunted, trying to push the person off but they latched onto him like an octopus.
"Aii!" They tumbled around in the grass, Jiang Zhilan's eyes glittering with mirth. Every time Liu Qingyuan got free, Jiang Zhilan would latch back onto him like a clingy pest. It wouldn't do to kick the king. Liu Qingyuan couldn't see the game beyond their scuffle, but like everyone else, he had a strong desire to win.
With a swift movement, he flipped them over, prying Jiang Zhilan's arms from himself and slamming them onto the grass. "Stay!" he growled.
Laughter slipped through Jiang Zhilan's breathless pants. "You're too late~" Liu Qingyuan looked up to see the blue side scoring, and the stands erupting in chaos. Blue had won.
"Aii..," he groaned in defeat, letting go of Jiang Zhilan.
"Ah, get off, you're heavy!" Hands pushed at his stomach and Liu Qingyuan looked down, quickly getting up.
"Sorry."
"Whatever~ Help me up." He sat like a child on the ground, arm outstretched. Liu Qingyuan glared at him before grabbing his hand and pulling him up.
"Thanks," He smiled. They walked over to join the teams. Jiang Zhilan stared happily for a moment at the side of Liu Qingyuan's face. He was more open today; that was good to see. His smile grew wider and he skipped ahead. Liu Qingyuan watched him. Now that he wasn't running anymore, he could feel the exertion catching up to him. The spectators flooded across the field, the ladies swarming around the men.
"Liu gongzhi!" Hai Rong rushed up to him. "Here!" She shoved a handkerchief in his hand.
"Ah...thanks?" He wiped the sweat from his face.
"I saw you playing, and you're really good! It's a shame you didn't win. Better luck next time! I know you can do it!"
"Ahh..." Liu Qingyuan looked around awkwardly. He didn't really know how to talk to people, that was, unless it was to get mad at them.
"What," Jiang Zhilan approached them. His gaze narrowed on the purple cloth in Liu Qingyuan's hand and he snatched it. "What's this?"
"Your majesty," they both greeted. Hai Rong bowed gracefully but Liu Qingyuan only inclined his head. Jiang Zhilan eyed him but didn't comment. The rebellion intrigued him.
Ever since he was young, practically everyone obeyed his commands. He wanted to work for something for once in his life, but every court maid, eunuch or employee of the palace offered it up within seconds. He didn't need to save up money because he had the royal treasury. He didn't need to earn a toy or work for an object because "everything under the heavens was his". Hell, if he asked, shop owners would probably give it to him for free! (Granted, that's bad for the reputation).
All his life, everyone complied to his demands. He wanted to play soccer? Sure! He didn't want to study? He'd get scolded but his servants would be the ones punished for not being able to change his mind. Jiang Zhilan had long ago stopped trying to test how far he could go, simply because with every new boundary found non-existent, it disheartened him further. Perhaps, despite being born with a silver spoon in his mouth, Jiang Zhilan wanted to work for something, to be able to feel the joy it brought to have something that was entirely his own.
"Your majesty?" Liu Qingyuan's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
"Y-yeah?" He looked around. Hai Rong had left (albeit a bit confused) and everyone else was dispersing. He shoved the handkerchief in his pocket as Eunuch Shuang tottered up to them, handing Liu Qingyuan his sword and taking his place behind the king.
"Let us head out."
"Did you have fun?" Jiang Zhilan turned, looking intensely at Liu Qingyuan's face for any sign of emotion. Liu Qingyuan just turned his head away as they walked. The king smiled. That was answer enough.