Author: 哔哔 (Bi Bi) / Jin Gang Quan
Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/
Chapter 1
“He’s awake.”
Before he could even open his eyes and fully come to, this was the first thing he had heard. It was a man’s voice, soft and unhurried, gentle and calm, and it made him unable to resist opening his eyes to see who the person behind that voice was.
So he struggled, forcing his eyes to open. The first thing he saw was heavy bed curtains hanging all around. Someone sat at the bedside, intently watching him.
That person had fair skin and handsome features, brows and eyes like a painting, like a landscape sketched in ink. Long, black hair cascaded down with the tips curled over the fine silk quilt.
He felt one of the man’s hands resting on his wrist. Then the man asked him, “Are you alright?” It was the same voice as before.
He opened his mouth to speak, but his throat was so hoarse he couldn’t make a sound.
The man released his wrist and stood. He saw the man was dressed in a loose, soft white robe that made his ink-black hair stand out even more. The man didn’t linger in the room, walking straight out. Only a maid remained inside, coming to the bedside to look at him with worry.
After a moment, an old man came in to take his pulse. Then he sat at the table, wrote out a prescription, handed it to the maid, and packed up and left as well.
His throat suddenly seized with pain and itchiness. He couldn’t hold it back and started coughing hard. He lifted a hand to cover his mouth, and only then did he notice his hand was pale and slender, the nails clean and rounded, and there wasn’t even a single callus on his palm. When he lowered his hand, he accidentally pressed on the hair by his pillow. He picked up a lock between his fingers and stared at the pitch-black long hair for a moment in a daze. Only then did he realize he wasn’t himself anymore.
He’d originally been a gambler. He’d had no mother since childhood. After graduating middle school, he’d drifted around with his father, who loved to gamble, and later he never learned any real skill. He often made a living cheating at gambling tables with other people.
That day, he and two others had colluded at the card table to swindle money from a middle-aged man. He hadn’t expected the scam to be exposed. The man was a wealthy influential figure and sent people to come after him. His last memory before losing consciousness was someone smashing a brick into the back of his head. When he woke again, he was lying in this bed.
He figured he’d died and somehow reincarnated into the body of someone from ancient times. He just didn’t know what dynasty or era this was, or what household’s young master he’d become.
Luckily, there was a little maidservant in the room named Qingqing. He pretended he’d lost his memory, claiming he didn’t even know his name. Qingqing told him his name was Huo Fenghua. Everyone here called him Young Master Huo, but his true status wasn’t any kind of “young master” at all. He was merely one of the masters of this residence’s male concubines.
This was the General’s Manor. The master of the manor was naturally a general, but the first person he’d seen when he opened his eyes hadn’t been the general. It had been the general’s properly married male wife, named Su Zeyang. The servants all called him Young Master Su.
One Young Master Su, one Young Master Huo. Lying in bed, he couldn’t help laughing out loud, wondering whether, the next time they met, he should call him “older brother1” or “older sister2.”
1[Gege] (哥哥)
2[Jiejie] (姐姐)
Huo Fenghua. Now he was Huo Fenghua. He didn’t have many strengths, but if there was one, it was probably being adaptable. After learning the general was away leading troops and not in the manor, he decided to accept things as they came. He stayed in bed, ate and drank well as he was waited on, and after two days he had enough strength to get up. He opened the window, sat on the cushioned daybed, and looked at the scenery outside.
In the courtyard outside there was a servant sweeping. The servant looked young, small and skinny, and the clothes on his body were still a bit loose.
As the young servant swept, he suddenly turned his head and saw Huo Fenghua leaning by the window watching him. His face immediately turned red. He turned around with his back to him, his movements becoming flustered.
Huo Fenghua found it amusing. He was just about to tease him a little when someone behind him reached out and shut the window for him, saying, “Young Master, you haven’t recovered yet. You’ll catch a chill.”
Huo Fenghua turned back with a smile. “It’s not like I’m confined due to postpartum. You think I can’t handle a little breeze?”
His personal maid Qingqing shrank her neck at his response and said, “It’s Young Master Su’s instruction. I wouldn’t dare disobey.”
Propping his cheek with one hand, Huo Fenghua thought of Su Zeyang. Since the day he woke and saw Su Zeyang once, he hadn’t seen him again. What remained in his memory was someone like an immortal, not the least bit delicate or weak. He couldn’t understand why such a person would be willing to marry a man as a wife.
As for the master of this General’s Manor, Feng Tianzong, he was out leading troops and wouldn’t be back anytime soon. Huo Fenghua didn’t miss him either. He’d never planned on being a man’s concubine. No matter what had happened before, before General Feng returned, he would recover and leave this manor. After that, he probably wouldn’t need to meet them again.
That afternoon, Huo Fenghua went out into the courtyard and walked around for a while. When he tried to leave through the courtyard gate, he was stopped and sent back. The young attendant who stopped him was extremely rude, saying Young Master Su wouldn’t allow him to go out and that he should stay inside and recuperate properly.
Later, Qingqing told him that attendant was Su Zeyang’s personal servant, named Liu Yong.
Huo Fenghua didn’t understand. “That General’s wife sure has an overbearing air. Is he taking advantage of the General being away to bully me on purpose?”
Qingqing said, “Young Master Su isn’t that kind of person.”
Huo Fenghua thought about it, looked at his own refined but weak appearance in the bronze mirror, and said, “Then it must be because the General favors me and that wife is jealous.”
“Peh!” Qingqing couldn’t help spitting. “The General and his wife have a great relationship. Don’t you go talking nonsense.”
Seeing even a maid treat him like this, Huo Fenghua figured he really wasn’t favored. And when he heard that his earlier coma had been because he’d thrown himself into the lake to commit suicide, he couldn’t make sense of it at all. If General Feng didn’t even like him, why bring him into the manor in the first place?
But none of that mattered. He was leaving anyway. Once he left, there’d be no more entanglements.
During these days of confinement to recuperate, the only person Huo Fenghua could talk to was Qingqing. He wanted to learn more about himself, but Qingqing always spoke vaguely.
Sometimes he felt it wasn’t because she was ignorant, but rather she didn’t dare say. He pressed her for a long time, and in the end the only thing he learned was that he originally wasn’t from this country.
Right. This was the Xuanming era of the Donglin Kingdom, a dynasty that wasn’t recorded in any history. Maybe it was a parallel world. And Huo Fenghua was from the Xichou Kingdom. Xichou and Donglin had been in constant conflict for years. A few days ago, Grand General Feng Tianzong had marched west, struck straight into Xichou’s capital Caiyun City, and destroyed Xichou.
Huo Fenghua couldn’t understand it. As someone from Xichou, why would he be willing to marry the enemy who’d destroyed his country and become a male concubine? Of course, there were many things he couldn’t understand but there was no need to rush to understand them. What he needed to focus on was how to leave this General’s Manor.
Huo Fenghua spent each day drinking broths and tonics, and even he felt his complexion had improved greatly. On the fourth day, Qingqing came early to knock on his door and wake him to wash up, saying that today was the first day of the month and, according to the Feng family rules, they needed to pay respect to the ancestors.
She hurried him through rinsing his mouth and washing his face, then had him sit at the table while she gathered up his long hair and tied it into a topknot.
Huo Fenghua asked, “Can I cut my hair?”
Qingqing looked shocked. “What are you saying? The body, hair, and skin are received from one’s parents—”
“Okay,” Huo Fenghua said, lifting a hand to cut her off. “I get it.”
In ancient times there were rules like this. For the sake of living here more conveniently in the future, he’d naturally have to get used to certain annoying customs.
With his hair and clothes neatly arranged, Huo Fenghua pushed the door open and went out. Liu Yong was waiting outside again, inviting him to go to the ancestral hall to offer incense to the ancestral tablets.
On the surface, Liu Yong was respectful, but in truth he wasn’t polite to him at all. Huo Fenghua didn’t care. He followed behind Liu Yong toward the outer courtyard.
This was the first time, after taking over this body, that he’d left his small courtyard. The outer courtyard was much larger, with flowers and trees, rockeries and lakes—everything really. Looking up, he saw a clear sky and dispersed clouds. Beyond the green tiles and upturned eaves, distant mountain silhouettes were visible. The air was clean and bright. For Huo Fenghua, who’d spent his whole life in a big city, this kind of scenery was truly rare.
He couldn’t help slowing his steps.
But as soon as he slowed down, Liu Yong tensed and asked, “What are you trying to do?”
They were walking on a winding wooden bridge over the lake. He lowered his head and saw his reflection in the water and immediately remembered what Qingqing had said about him throwing himself into the lake. Only then did he realize Liu Yong was afraid he was about to jump in and dry to drown himself again. So he smiled, lifted a hand, and patted Liu Yong on the back.
“Nothing. Don’t be scared, little brother. If you survive a great calamity, you’re bound to have good fortune later. I’m not seeking death again.”
Liu Yong looked at him with a startled expression, probably not used to his way of speaking. He froze for a moment, then turned back around and continued leading the way.
When they reached the ancestral hall, Huo Fenghua saw Su Zeyang again.
Su Zeyang was still dressed all in white. His black hair was tied into a topknot, yet a few strands still fell from his temples and hung over his chest. Standing there, his posture was straight, hands folded before him. When he saw Huo Fenghua enter, he didn’t speak. He only turned, lit a stick of incense, knelt to worship, then rose and placed the incense into the burner bowl on the altar.
From behind, Huo Fenghua sized up Su Zeyang and thought this “General’s wife” truly was a beauty. Huo Fenghua didn’t consider himself gay, but beauty transcended gender. It was simply pleasing to the eye, so he couldn’t help looking a few more times.
After offering incense, Su Zeyang stepped aside and said to the dazed Huo Fenghua, “It’s your turn.”
Huo Fenghua came back to himself, stepped forward, took the incense the steward handed him, and imitated Su Zeyang, lighting it and kneeling. He knew when to yield and when to stand tall. Kneeling to a Grand General’s ancestors wasn’t a big deal. He just didn’t have much sincerity in his heart. When he stood and went to place the incense into the burner bowl, Huo Fenghua couldn’t resist sneaking a look at Su Zeyang’s profile. His arm lifted, and he accidentally knocked the burner bowl to the ground.
The ceramic burner bowl shattered into pieces, scattering ash everywhere.
Behind Su Zeyang, Liu Yong shouted, “You!” Then he realized he’d overstepped, quickly shut his mouth, and only glared fiercely at Huo Fenghua.
Su Zeyang didn’t get angry. With a calm expression, he glanced at Huo Fenghua and asked the Feng household steward, “Uncle Lu, according to the family rules, how should this be dealt with?”
Steward Lu Xi was over sixty. He stroked his grizzled beard and said, “If one is not sincere or respectful to the ancestors, the punishment is to kneel in the ancestral hall.”
Su Zeyang asked, “For how long?”
Lu Xi said, “Until he sincerely admits his fault.”
Hearing that, Huo Fenghua immediately knelt on the kneeling cushion and loudly said, “I was wrong!” He thought he sounded sincere enough that Su Zeyang would forgive him.
But Su Zeyang only looked at him and said, “Without my permission, you’re not allowed to leave.”
Huo Fenghua froze. He wanted to argue a little, but when he saw Su Zeyang’s solemn expression, he could only close his mouth again and bow as if sincerely at fault.
Su Zeyang then turned and left the ancestral hall.
After that, Lu Xi also led the others out one by one. The last person reached out and shut the main doors to the ancestral hall, leaving only Huo Fenghua behind, kneeling alone in the dim, empty hall.
Huo Fenghua let out a heavy sigh, feeling quite frustrated. The candles on the altar were still burning, casting light on the Feng family ancestral tablets behind them. The faint, flickering shadows swayed restlessly, and it was oddly frightening. He wasn’t the real Huo Fenghua, and he’d never even met his so-called husband. He felt no sense of belonging to this “Feng family” at all. Instead, he felt like all these Feng ancestors were staring at him, as if they might recognize him as an imposter. After wrestling with it in his mind for a long time, he couldn’t keep kneeling. He rose from the cushion.
He walked softly to the tightly closed main doors of the ancestral hall and tried the door. He found it wasn’t locked from the outside. He opened a narrow crack and saw no one guarding outside, so he opened the doors and walked out.
Huo Fenghua made up his mind to leave the Feng household.
He deliberately took secluded side paths the whole way, afraid of being spotted. He wasn’t familiar with the manor’s layout, but his sense of direction was decent and he didn’t loop back. At last, he found the secluded back gate of the General’s Manor.
The back gate was bolted from the inside, and no one was guarding nearby. Huo Fenghua didn’t know whether anyone had seen him, but since no one came out to stop him, he opened the back gate and fled.
Outside the back gate was a narrow alley with high walls that lined both sides; probably two estates built right up against each other. He hurried out of the alley, and after walking not far he saw pedestrians on the street. He turned back to glance at the General’s Manor’s green high wall, then headed straight toward the crowded main road.
Inside this ancient body was a modern soul. He’d been here for quite some time already, but he’d been trapped in the General’s Manor with no chance to come out. This was his first time walking through a lively street like this.
He couldn’t help looking around. Everything felt novel, and he wanted to move closer to look at it all. Then he caught the smell of steamed rice cakes from a roadside stall and finally felt hungry. He went over to look, and when he heard the vendor say one rice cake cost only two copper coins, he reached into his clothes to search himself. Only then did he realize how penniless he was. He hadn’t brought a single coin with him.
His hand found a jade pendant hanging at his waist. Qingqing had helped him put it there this morning. He didn’t know its origin or value, but it definitely wasn’t worth only two copper coins. So he looked up and asked the vendor where the nearest pawnshop was.
The vendor pointed him in a direction. On the way to the pawnshop, Huo Fenghua saw a gambling house by the road and immediately stopped.
He stood at the entrance and stared for a while. Then he turned and slipped into the pawnshop next door, slapped the jade pendant down on the counter, and said, “Pawn this!”
The pawnbroker lifted his head, and when he saw the emerald-green, crystal-bright jade pendant, his eyes lit up. He didn’t speak, only picked it up and rubbed it carefully.
Just from its quality, Huo Fenghua could tell it was valuable. He asked, “How much can I get for it?”
The pawnbroker examined it for a long time, then said, “I’ll pawn it for twenty taels of silver.”
“Only twenty taels?” Huo Fenghua was instantly disappointed. He didn’t know current prices, but he’d assumed it would be at least one or two hundred taels. Twenty sounded far too little.
The pawnbroker said, “I can’t offer more.”
Huo Fenghua sighed to himself and reached a hand toward the counter. “Give it to me.”
He pawned the jade pendant for twenty taels of silver. He tucked the silver and the pawn ticket into his chest and left the shop. Standing at the roadside, he looked left and right. He first went to the corner and bought a meat bun to eat. Before he’d even finished it, he casually grabbed a passerby and asked, “Is there a gambling house around here?”
That passerby looked him over, and seeing his neat clothes and handsome face, raised a hand and pointed him toward a direction.
Huo Fenghua followed the directions all the way until he reached the pleasure quarters. Since it was still early, the street was cold and quiet. Looking down the way, all the doors were shut tight. Only two gambling houses at the ends of the street had their doors open, and lively shouting spilled out from behind cloth curtains. As a gambler himself, he knew a gambling house probably never closed day or night.
With a small smile, Huo Fenghua reached into his chest to feel the silver, then walked with steady steps toward one of the gambling houses.
Kinky Thoughts:
I was in the mood for a threesome novel, and a friend recommended this to me. It’s not often I encounter a danmei that has a threesome (and quite explicit to boot). So yes, be sure you’re at the appropriate age to read this.
I also happened to like another work by this author (The Star Around The Sun) so I decided why not give this a go. Besides, I often get asked, why is my alias Kinky, but I never actually do any projects that are kinky? So hopefully a threesome is kinky enough.
Regarding the title of this novel. It’s [Feng Shuangfei] (凤双飞) which translates to A Pair of Phoenixes Flying Together (or something along those lines). But there’s a hidden meaning behind the title.
On the surface of the title, it’s meant of a symbolism of a romantic pair (two phoenixes flying together), but removing the phoenix from the title, and you get [Shuangfei] (双飞), which, in terms of slang, refers to a threesome (lol). You can guess who the two phoenixes are referring to and who the third party is.
Anyways, happy reading.
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