Xie Lian was highly aware of the king's presence the moment he opened the door, even though he kept his eyes closed, and his body still. He heard the king pause, before he properly entered the room. Xie Lian listened to his steps until the king stopped where he remembered the divan being located. He heard the sound of him sitting down, and could feel himself becoming increasingly nervous.
There was a long stretch of silence, during which Xie Lian could positively feel the man staring at him, before the king finally said "begin", and the music started playing.
In order to gauge the music first, Xie Lian didn't start right away. Instead he let it play for a few beats until he was sure that this slow tempo was what the piece was really going to be like, before he finally opened his eyes and started moving. He forced himself not to look at the king for now, and instead tried to immerse himself in the dance.
He still didn't quite know what exactly he was doing when it came to dancing, but thanks to the Guoshi's efforts, he at least knew how to move in some ways. He danced with much less bum shaking than Miss Fang had taught him, and instead focused on moving as gracefully as he could, even when lifting his leg or twirling. When he felt like he was halfway through the dance, he allowed himself a glimpse at the king, but only for long enough to take note of his expression as well as his clothes.
His expression didn't tell him much; if Xie Lian had to describe it, he would say it was relaxed. His clothes were all black, and slightly more decent than usual, with a comparatively small part of his stomach exposed.
Xie Lian didn't have any trouble at all catching his eye this time, for obvious reasons, but he decided he was going to pretend to be extra shy today. After all, he was an omega, and the king was an alpha, and this was the king's entertainment room. Who knew what sort of wicked plans the alpha had for this unassuming omega?
Xie Lian thought this was a good start for the narrative he wanted to go with in his head, while he danced. Starting as a shy omega and developing into a confident one would be his theme of the evening, he decided.
Eventually the music came to a stop, and Xie Lian paused, closed his eyes, and waited for the music to start up again, or to be dismissed.
Everything was silent for a few long moments, and only Xie Lian's slightly laboured breathing could be heard inside the room. It was wearing on Xie Lian's nerves a little bit, if he was honest.
Eventually however, the king spoke.
"Gege, why won't you look at me?", he asked in a deep voice, and almost sounded cranky.
Xie Lian opened his eyes then, and looked at the slightly displeased king.
"One more dance. Look at me this time."
Xie Lian inclined his head slightly, and kept his eyes on him. The king's request didn't quite fit his intended narrative yet, but he figured he was still allowed to look away from time to time. Which he did, somewhat often. Xie Lian could tell that, whenever he looked away from the king, he started frowning, and the longer he didn't look back, the deeper the frown became. Once Xie Lian had noticed it, it was hard to suppress his laughter. He managed it though, and enjoyed teasing the king like this for the whole duration of his dance.
When Xie Lian was done with the second dance as well, the king sighed.
"Come over here, sit", the king said, and Xie Lian figured being a private dancer wasn't as easy as Mei NianQing had made it out to be, and his whole job did not simply consist of being 'easy on the eyes'.
At least Xie Lian had a little bit of practice when it came to talking to the king.
So he walked over and knelt on the floor, since it had worked out rather well for him last time he'd done it. He positioned himself right next to the one leg the king had hanging off of the divan, before he hesitantly looked up at him. After all, he wasn't sure if this was still going to be a part of his performance, but he decided to stay in character for now.
"Xie-gege", he started. "Do you perhaps dislike dancing for me in private?", the king asked, and he seemed indeed a little concerned.
"Not at all Your Majesty. I prefer this over dancing for you at banquets", Xie Lian answered honestly.
The king hummed.
"Then why is it that you can barely even look me in the eye today?"
Xie Lian couldn't help it, and smiled at the king cheekily.
"Can't I, or won't I?", he teased, to which the king raised his eyebrow, suddenly looking very much amused.
"Oh I see, so we're playing that sort of game. It's my fault for not noticing", he snickered. "Well then, now that I'm caught up, dance for me again. I'll enjoy your playing around more this time", the king promised, and even patted Xie Lian's head, which took him completely off guard.
For a moment, Xie Lian could only blink, because, well, what was that?!, but he came back to himself rather quickly, and nodded obediently before standing up. When he was about to go back to his space, the king suddenly grasped his hand, stopping him.
"Dance closer to me this time", the king ordered, before he let go of his hand again.
Thus, Xie Lian only walked three steps away from the divan, before he got into position again.
However dancing this close to the scrutinising eye of the king was a whole different feeling, Xie Lian immediately realised when he felt like the king's gaze was positively burning a hole through him. He didn't even have to pretend to be unable to look him in the eye this time, because he really was strangely intimidated by dancing with only such a short distance between them.
Still, Xie Lian stubbornly wanted to continue the narrative in his head, and to lose his shyness in front of the king, so he forced himself to keep eye contact with him for a little longer, every time he looked back at him.
The king also really didn't seem to mind humouring him, and gave him encouraging looks in the beginning, which turned to appreciative looks around the middle part, and Xie Lian decided that now would be a perfect time to tease His Majesty a little more, and therefore started using his hips a bit, the way Miss Fang had taught him.
The next time he looked at the king, his eyes seemed to have darkened, and so in turn, Xie Lian gave him a look through half lidded eyes, just before the music ended, and then he turned around completely, his back facing the king.
He hadn't actually planned for this last move, but the look the king had given him in turn had almost turned Xie Lian's insides to mush, and he didn't want the king to see him blush after he performed for him like this. It would ruin the entire dance!
Again, the king was silent for a few moments after his performance, and again, the king called him to come over and sit, so again, Xie Lian went to kneel beside his leg.
"Tell me, gege, what do you think of your new dance instructor?", he eventually asked languidly.
"He seems to be better suited for me to understand his instructions", Xie Lian answered.
"I agree, you seem much more… comfortable today. Perhaps less nervous?"
"That's because I only have Your Majesty judging my dancing today", Xie Lian teased him again, this time even going so far as to put his chin on top of the king's knee. He didn't know what had driven him to do this either, if maybe he'd inhaled something funny by accident, but dancing had indeed become something fun for him, and he couldn't help but feel a bit happy, maybe even giddy in this moment.
The king stiffened in surprise for a short moment, before he happily laughed out loud, and rested one of his hands on Xie Lian's head.
"I know this lowly one's useless assessment isn't worth much, gege, but you could have at least left me some face and pretended to have a slightly higher opinion of me", he chuckled, and seemed honestly amused by Xie Lian's unfortunate choice of words.
Xie Lian felt a bit flustered at such a reaction, but since the king took it in good humour, he didn't want to disrupt the comfortable mood that had settled between them, so he kicked his embarrassment, and tried to keep playing along.
"But I have a very high opinion of Your Majesty!", he argued, which in itself, proved the opposite. Xie Lian was very aware of that fact.
The king 'pfft'-ed, and gently tugged at the veil covering Xie Lian's face.
"With how little you fear me, you can just as well stop calling me 'Your Majesty' altogether, it would be less rude", the king frowned.
Xie Lian grinned.
"And what should I call Your Majesty, if not that?"
The king hummed, and thought for some time, while absentmindedly playing with loose strands of Xie Lian's hair. He tried to ignore how nice it felt.
"How about you call me San Lang instead?", the king eventually decided, taking Xie Lian entirely by surprise.
"San Lang?", he asked, just to make sure he was really allowed to call him that.
"Gege?", the king grinned mischievously.
Xie Lian had half a mind to pinch the king's calf in retaliation, but decided against it, thinking this could be the thing that went too far.
"You're so mischievous, San Lang", he said instead, to which the king poked his tongue out at him.
Xie Lian couldn't help himself. It was such a ridiculous reaction, what else could he do but break out laughing?
After he calmed himself down, he caught the king looking at him with something soft in his eye, but he didn't have the time to take a proper look, because a big yawn forced his eyes to shut, and when he could open them again, that softness had disappeared from the king's expression.
"You're tired", the king commented.
"Just a little", Xie Lian admitted sheepishly. "Not enough to ask San Lang for permission to leave."
The king's eye twinkled at hearing that.
"Oh? What's this? This mean, mean omega suddenly turned into a bit of a charmer?"
Xie Lian nodded earnestly.
"The better this omega gets treated by his San Lang, the more he tries to be a good servant."
The king sighed.
"Ah, I understand. I got myself a little extortioner", he said in a slightly pouty voice and continued to look at Xie Lian with a somewhat calculating gaze. It took Xie Lian a moment longer to notice the underlying mirth in his eye, but once he saw it, he was immediately reassured that the king was still playing around with him.
Xie Lian was about to say something, but San Lang was faster.
"I can't say I regret it", he smirked, and Xie Lian blushed.
"San Lang…", he whined, complaint heavy in his voice at being deliberately driven into a flustered state.
Upon hearing him, San Lang's face turned somewhat soft again, and him playing with Xie Lian's hair turned into him gently combing through it with his fingers. He was quiet for what felt like a rather long time before he eventually spoke again.
"Say, gege, how do you like living in my palace so far?", the king asked somewhat carefully.
Xie Lian smiled.
"If I may speak honestly, I expected so much worse. But Your Majesty is reasonable and kind, and I have been treated well by everyone, nobody has tried to kill me yet and I get food and water everyday, as well as a place to sleep. I even get paid", he said, still disbelieving, but the proof that Shi QingXuan hadn't lied to him was in his money pouch.
"But, perhaps most important of all, Your Majesty has given me a new… a new purpose in life if you will, something new that I actually enjoy, even though I never imagined I would. But may I ask… why have I been assigned as a dancer?"
The king stopped playing with his hair.
"There were several reasons. But first and foremost, the harem and dancer's quarters are the most heavily guarded in the whole palace, apart from my own of course. I wanted to place you somewhere safe, and since the harem wasn't an option, it had to be the dancers. Another reason was because this way, I could make sure to check on you from time to time, whenever you performed at banquets, and gauge if you were doing okay here. However… who would have thought that gege is such a talented and seductive dancer that I can't even wait until the New Year's Festival to see you again. I think gege has bewitched me. Undo your magic", the king ordered playfully.
"San Lang overestimates me. I can't use magic, and I can't bewitch anyone", Xie Lian sighed, deciding to keep the mood light, and chew on the revelations later.
"Hmm, in that case I must just really like you", San Lang concluded. Xie Lian didn't quite know what to say to that. Though luckily the king didn't give him the chance to reply before he continued.
"But I've kept you for too long today, gege. You should go back and rest", he said, though Xie Lian knew an indirect order when he heard one.
The king took his hand off of Xie Lian's head, and instead held it out for Xie Lian to use it to help himself get up, which he gladly did. After all, the king's hands were warm, big, and strong. Who wouldn't like to hold those hands?
"Good night, San Lang", Xie Lian said, and hurried out of the room to the sound of the king snickering.
When Xie Lian walked into the guoshi's chambers the next day, the face that greeted him was decidedly not amused.
"What have I told you yesterday?", Mei NianQing said in lieu of a greeting.
"A lot of good advice", Xie Lian replied, because he wasn't sure what exactly the man had found out about what had happened yesterday, and he wasn't about to reveal himself.
"I told you that you are there to be easy on the eyes, nothing more, nothing less. So why have you been flirting with His Majesty?"
Xie Lian blushed. He wanted to argue that he hadn't been flirting with the king, but thinking back on it now, he couldn't actually say it without lying. So he didn't say anything at all.
"You also said I should obey whatever His Majesty says. Should I have ignored him when he talked to me?"
"Of course not. But you could've answered him in a much more neutral manner!"
"But then the performance would have been ruined", Xie Lian tried again.
However, since it was a bit strange for the Guoshi to linger on such a non-issue, a completely different notion occurred to him, and he thought that maybe he was trying to warn him?
"Is there something about His Majesty that I should know?"
Mei NianQing gave him a long look.
"You haven't been around His Majesty a lot so far, so you may be forgiven for your naïveté. His Majesty is, as I previously mentioned, whimsical. On his good days he may be playful and even appear kind. But don't be mistaken. He is as ruthless as he is brilliant. He can be cruel and cold hearted and some of his enemies have been known to rather kill themselves than to face his fury. He is not forgiving of missteps and he demands absolute obedience of his commands. Do you know what happened to the guard, whose kid happened to bully that child he is so protective of?"
Xie Lian swallowed, and shook his head.
"He had the child and his father come to the Pavilion of Truth and forced the child to confess, in detail. Afterwards, he slashed the father for every scratch the little girl received, only much deeper, well, at least in the non vital places. He… did make sure that the guard was scared for his life during the punishment, however the king kept him alive, which, if you ask me, is a greater punishment than death. After all, the guard has been expelled in disgrace, the whole family has been kicked out of the palace, and with the father severely disabled, the family will have to rely on the mother to earn money. Such humiliation is too hard to bear. Their lives are all positively ruined now, just because some children quarrelled.
"The rest of the guards responsible for securing the throne room have all been demoted. Apparently the king had all of them investigated by Senior General Pei, who discovered dirt on all of them. I'm not sure if I believe that, but it has effectively put everyone straight back in line. Either way, what I mean to say with this is that you should be very careful around him. He might investigate you as well. And ruin your life if you ever do something he doesn't like."
Xie Lian felt somewhat conflicted about those news. He couldn't pretend to not be happy that there had been consequences for the main bully, but even Xie Lian had to admit that the punishment had been a tad bit harsh. Granted, that child would most likely not bully anyone again after witnessing the direct consequences his father had to shoulder because of his behaviour, but since Banyue's injuries hadn't actually been life threatening, Xie Lian didn't think that traumatising the kid was the right way to go about it.
But if Xie Lian remembered correctly, the king had called the guard a security hazard, and untrustworthy, so he figured that was the bigger reason for such a punishment. Though he still disagreed with the final decision, and would always prefer a quick death rather than torture, he could understand where the king was coming from.
Overall, he could understand the sentiment, but he had to admit that it was indeed quite ruthless.
However, Xie Lian still didn't feel like he knew enough of the whole situation to judge the king's actions, so he decided to keep the guoshi's warning in mind, but he wouldn't change his behaviour around the king for now.
After all, Xie Lian had been rather rude to him yesterday, and the king had just joked along with him, and even told him to call him San Lang of all things. Obviously he knew that he was not to call him that outside of the king's entertainment room, but the fact that he even allowed that much was indeed quite interesting.
Xie Lian thought to himself that, really, other's opinions were rather unreliable, and he should try to get a proper picture of the king's personality himself, if he got the chance.