Work Text:
Luo Binghe felt a quiet sort of anxiety as he strolled through the halls of his palace, trailed by servants bearing large, ornately carved boxes made of perfumed wood and shell inlays of bamboo. He hadn't felt this sort of wriggling anticipation since he'd first been accepted as a disciple at Cang Qiong awaiting that disaster of a first tea ceremony. This time will go better, he thought as he rounded the corner to Shen Qingqiu's rooms. This time Luo Binghe was confident things would be well. Afterall, this was not the same Shen Qingqiu.
He hadn't been around when the change happened- absent in pursuit of a new treasure for a poisoned wife because it seemed all he did anymore was collect wives for his harem and step in when the infighting became too severe. The physicians assigned to keep Shen Qingqiu alive had come to him days after the mysterious coma with fretful glances and hands. Come and see him, they said, there's been a change and we suspect qi deviation. Which frankly, given the state of Shen Qingqiu's core, should not have been possible. Indeed, it hadn't taken Luo Binghe long at all to realize this was an entirely different person within Shen Qingqiu's skin. The sort of person who looked at him in awe and kindness when he thought Luo Binghe wasn't looking. This new person was not Shen Qingqiu, had never been Shen Qingqiu before this. Though a serious attempt at the pantomime had been initially made, it utterly lacked the venom inherent to Shen Qingqiu's very being. Honestly, Luo Binghe preferred this new version. He touched the single braid left snarled in his hair thoughtfully.
Arriving at the doors to the new chambers he'd situated his guest in, Luo Binghe took a bracing breath and gestured the servants forward.
–
"Oh," muttered Shen Qingqiu, eyebrows pinching together and the slightest downturn of lips as he surveyed the now open boxes arrayed on the bedsheets before his propped up form. "Oh. Binghe- that is- Emperor Luo, this is too fine a gift for this master."
Inside each box lay a finely crafted limb of transparent red jade, hauled painstakingly from a river of lava deep within the Demon Realm and purified by smiths hidden beneath the glaciers of the North Desert. Within grew slender stalks of the rarest bamboo in all the realms, cultivated by Luo Binghe's own hand and infused with his blood mites and energies until they were spiritually awakened. Now they grew within their jade housings, ready to power the limbs through absent thought as seamlessly as a natural-born limb would move.
Luo Binghe's stomach sank in alarm and his fingers itched to fidget with his braid again. He could smooth this over, he had to.
"Such delicate beauty deserves to be matched."
An array of emotions flurried across Shen Qingqiu's face and for a moment, he looked very far away.
"Alright." He sighed in defeat. "Help this master with them then? The arms first I think."
Luo Binghe's brilliant smile was a sight to behold.
–
The act of giving a gift and the act of actually putting new limbs to use were two different things entirely. Especially when the recipient was as thin faced as this new Shen Qingqiu was. If anyone other than the physicians were in the room as the limbs were attached for his practice, Shen Qingqiu perched on his bed serenely with no interest in standing or grasping or any other limb-related action that might belie his progress. This, of course, was a problem for the physicians as they were consistently having to scare away maids or wives or other onlookers trying to catch a glimpse of Luo Binghe's gift in action.
Progress was slow until Luo Binghe decided to take matters into his own hands. He would start small. The more he learned how this new Shen Qingqiu's mind worked, the more fascinated he became.
"Would Shizun care to take tea with this disciple?"
Ignoring the slight blanching of Shen Qingqiu's face, Luo Binghe laid out the tea set on a small tray and bore it to the bed himself, taking care to look the part of a diligent disciple.
"Ah, Binghe that's-"
Luo Binghe held the cup securely out to his companion, allowing the tea's delicate almost floral aroma to entice Shen Qingqiu.
The jade made a small ringing sound as it came into contact with the porcelain of the cup, as refined as the man himself. Everything was going well until the tea cup came near to Shen Qingqiu's lips and his grip loosened, sending the cup and its steaming contents across the bed spread and Shen Qingqiu.
"Shizun! Are you hurt?"
Embarrassment colored Shen Qingqiu's face a fine shade of pink, high on his cheekbones as he looked away from Luo Binghe through his lashes.
"This master is fine," his voice was tight.
Luo Binghe offered up his own cup, the picture of patience and understanding.
"Here, try this one then."
–
Progress was slow, such things often were, but gradually Shen Qingqiu progressed. With Luo Binghe taking the reins of his rehabilitation, it was only natural that Shen Qingqiu should start to lean toward him like a flower to the sun. It was nearly everything he wanted- this strange and ethereal version of his Shizun so close to the kinder version he'd nearly had in his grasp- but Luo Binghe could be patient. Coaxing this Shen Qingqiu took grace and practice and in their time together, he could utilize one and train the other.
A long-fingered hand curled around his elbow, drawing Luo Binghe back into the present moment. They were taking a stroll around the gardens today- slow and stilted to match Shen Qingqiu's halting but steady confidence in his new limbs- and Shen Qingqiu often paused to point out the various flora and fauna decorating the cultivated space. Privately, Luo Binghe suspected it was to catch his breath though he did seem rather animated when talking about the various uses of some plants or the dangers of a particular animal. It brought a fetching sparkle to Shen Qingqiu's eye and a pleasing glow to his countenance. If Luo Binghe were to be so bold, he might even suspect his companion was happy.
Shen Qingqiu leaned more heavily against Luo Binghe's side as they climbed the slope of the bridge overlooking the carp pond. The warm weight of him seared itself into Luo Binghe's synapses, a fond memory to turn over in the night and examine from all angles. They crested the top of the bridge and Shen Qingqiu flitted away from his side to ooh and aah over the giant crested carps swimming fat and lazy below them, hoping for treat pellets.
"Ah, Binghe! That one there looks like a crested carp but is actually a loong carp, you can tell by the second set of whiskers tucked back behind the first. It's said that they can breathe out whirlpools when upset. And you just have one right here in the garden! Fascinating!"
Shen Qingqiu spun quickly back toward Luo Binghe, losing his footing and balance in the process. Luo Binghe closed the distance quickly, unnoticing of the way his pulse spiked, and wrapped an arm around Shen Qingqiu's waist to steady him.
"Shizun, please be more careful," Luo Binghe pressed his fingers to the pulse point of the prosthetic, analyzing the delicate qi where it entwined with Shizun's own to search for any fault or injury.
"I'm alright, this master is fine." Beneath Luo Binghe's fingers, the jade palm twitched with the gentle curling of Shen Qingqiu's digits.
Impulsively, Luo Binghe pressed a kiss to that palm before ushering Shen Qingqiu on. The slighter man stiffened, uncertain, before allowing himself to be guided deeper into the foliage. Luo Binghe would count it as a win before spinning his next web to snag this new Shizun in his game of courtship. He wisely said nothing of the way Shen Qingqiu kept glancing up at him from under his lashes or the way jade fingers rubbed at the palm of his hand in quiet contemplation. In Luo Binghe's vast experience, Shen Qingqiu now strolled around the garden like someone waiting to be kissed. All in due time, he mused as he held Shen Qingqiu's waist over less than even terrain. If his grip was tighter than required, grasping at the lithe muscles beneath, that was Luo Binghe's own business. All in due time.