xie lian's a bit overzealous to get going.
well... overzealous would be an understatement.
the guoshi has barely let xie lian go when the crown prince rushes out the room the fastest he can go while still maintaining his graceful image, with mu qing and feng xin following close behind. everything the guoshi has just said seems to be all but forgotten about as he rambles on to mu qing about everything he needs to pack and oh, yeah put my sword in there as well, and--you--would you mind carrying my talisman box too?
"yes, your highness."
what else is he supposed to say?
'no, your highness, actually i'm still severely injured from the eighty lashes and my body is under constant stress, so yes, i would mind carrying a large wooden box'?
it seems that after what amounts to thirty minutes of running back and forth, grabbing things from xie lian's room and the royal holy pavilion, xie lian finally seems to remember that mu qing is still recovering from his injury.
"mu qing, that was a lot of work you've just been doing in your condition, don't overwork yourself. you should take a break."
took you long enough to realize, mu qing snaps in his head. he doesn't say it though, and instead shakes his head.
"there's no--"
he pauses, remembering what xie lian asked him to do earlier in the infirmary.
he looks up, seeing xie lian raising an eyebrow at him, warning.
"if your highness insists," mu qing accedes.
xie lian smiles and takes the boxes mu qing is currently carrying, personally carrying them to the carriage. he gestures to a place to sit down for mu qing and the servant boy reluctantly obeys.
he sits on that ledge, and, well--it feels wrong. wrong to sit there, merely to sit there and to rest, and no matter how much he cursed and grumbled and demanded to rest internally, having it actually happen is a whole other matter. mu qing sits there, unsure what to do, feeling wholly exposed without a need to constantly suck it up and go onto the next task. mu qing sits there, with ample time to just... think.
and rest.
it's not something he's used to.
not something he'll ever get used to, he thinks.
but he watches as his highness, smile on his face, scrambles to get everything he needs onto a small carriage, he feels... oddly pleasant. his back burns now, more than it did while he was doing work-- for some strange reason. it's bleeding too, he thinks, feeling the wetness on his clothes.
perhaps that's why his highness told him to take a break.
because the blood on his clothes might stain his belongings.
it's the only rational justification anyways.
a few minutes later, feng xin joins him in sitting on that ledge.
mu qing turns to him and raises an eyebrow.
"what are you doing here?" he asks.
feng xin scoffs and points to his broken arm.
mu qing sighs.
"his highness told you to take a break too?" mu qing continues. he feels... oddly talkative right now, now that he has nothing better to do.
feng xin nods, looking back up at xie lian.
"i insisted on not resting, but he forced me to, telling me that if i don't rest, he won't bring me," feng xin replies.
