Episode Forty

  Qing yuan looked up where Delun was standing but he wasn't there anymore. It's true what Kai was saying, Qing yuan had sense that something was off with him. And after he brought Kai back to his room, he took off to the palace and alerted his father about the situation. And from them on, the Prospector's concil have been looking into Delun's disappearance and reappearance. They had since sent a letter to the Honshoo Mountains Sect leader, and asking if they knew anything about Hu Delun's appearance at Cultivation school. The leader had sent them back a letter earlier in the morning saying that one of their most trusted advisers by the name of Zong Mo, told them that he saw Delun sneaking back to his house and when he got a hold of him. He told him that he doesn't want to let anyone in the sect know that he is back, and he is just here to collect his invitation to the Winter Sect kingdom so he can get access into the cultivation school. Qing yuan still wasn't convinced, and so werent the Prospector's concil, so they decided to keep a close eye on Delun. And now, Qing yuan have to keep an even close eye on Kai just to ensure that Delun doesn't get in contact with him again.

 Rain suddenly started to pour down on them, and Qing yuan appeared in front of Kai's room with a snap of his fingers.

   "Kai, we are at your room. It's time to go inside." Qing yuan said to Kai who was still clinging on to him.

   "No, I don't want to go in. I am still scared, and cold. C-can I please s-stay with you? I would feel more safer." Kai who decided to act spoil, because of the warmth coming from Qing yuan. Mutter, as he nuzzle his face into Qing yuan's chest.

Qing yuan look down at Kai, small smile grace his lips, and couldn't help but run his hand down Kai's back in a gentle and comforting manner.

   "Ok fine, but just only for one night." His smile got bigger, when he felt Kai nodding his head vigorously.

      Qing yuan had just arrived to his room, and is now trying to pry a clinging Wang Lei off of him. "Come on Kai, you need to let me go." Shui laugh silently because he found Kai's behavior cute. But as he continue to try and try, telling Kai to let go but he wouldn't. He started to become annoyed, and started pushing Kai away with a lot more force.

    "Wang Lei!" He shouted, using Kai's birth name. "Stop this nonsense at once, and let go of me!" Kai shakily let go of him, and stepped a few feet away. Making sure to not make any eye contact with Qing yuan.

    'He never uses that name, he always calls me Kai. I must have really pushed my luck and now he probably wants to kick me out in the rain.' Kai thought, as he looked through the closed window at the rain pouring outside. 'I must make things right with him, and quickly.' Kai panicked. "Qing yuan, I didn't mean to act spoiled, I was just loving your atten-still shaken up by my encounter with Hu Delun. That I found comfort in your arms." Kai awkwardly scratched the back of his head. When Qing yuan didn't say anything, Kai got down on his knees and started to beg. "Qing yuan, please don't kick me out in the rain!" He hugged Qing Yuan's waist as he begged. Making Qing yuan chuckle, but became serious again when Kai looked up at him. "Qing yuan!" Kai whined, and Shui couldn't help the laugh this time. "Why are you laughing?" Kai pouted, as he pulled away from Shui and got up.

  "I am not going to kick you out in the rain, I just wanted you to let go so I can get you some water to have a hot bath." Qing yuan explained to him.

   "Oh." Kai still pouted while scratching his head. A habit of his that Qing yuan found really cute.

 "You stay here, and I will get your bath ready."

An hour later, Qing yuan came back to his room. His clothes dripped with water from being out in the rain searching for some small red chilli peppers that the kitchen had run out of. He had gone to the kitchen to prepare something warm for Kai, and expected him to be finished with his bath. Qing yuan walked in the other room that is used as a bathroom, and sure enough, Kai was inside the bathtub made of timber and bronze. Sound asleep, as his body soaks in the warm water. Qing yuan stepped further into the bathroom, ogling at Kai's naked body. At least the part that he could see that wasn't submerged under water, which he was so tempted to move away with his water manipulation so he could see what Kai was hiding beneath the warm liquid. Qing yuan got lost in his imagination for a bit, thinking about how Kai would look if he should stand up in the bathtub right now. How the water would run down his body, and how Qing yuan's fingers itched to trace those water droplets. Feeling Kai's warm skin underneath his fingertips. And then he would lean in and smell the fresh fragrance herbs that he is bathing with, and then he would lean even closer and hover his mouth over Kai's- 'No, bad Qing yuan.' He scolds himself, and clears his throat to get Kai's attention. 

   "Ahem!" He cleared his throat and looked away, his cheeks sporting blushes when Kai jumped up and the water splashed around and exposed his chest and his now forming abs.

A blush too formed on Kai's cheeks, when he looked down and saw that his upper half was exposed to Qing yuan. Even though it wasn't his bottom half, he still felt shy and embarrassed. The embarrassment is because of how his body looks, with his flat front and thin body. Even though he has been training, his body wasn't as built as the other disciples. His shyness was because of his feelings for Qing yuan, and the naughty things he sometimes thought about him and Qing yuan doing. Kai can feel his body getting more warmer than it already is, and he can tell that it isn't from the warm water he is in. 

   "D-did I fall asleep?" Kai hurriedly asked before he further embarrassed himself by having a raise in his lower groan. Imagine him sitting there and suddenly Qing yuan sees something poking out of the water saying here I am. Just humiliating. And furthermore, he doesn't know if Qing yuan feels the same way about him. 

*Cough, cough.* "Yes you did, and I think you should get out now before your body turns into a raisin." Qing yuan replied, quickly walking away. Still embarrassed by the scene he just saw. But more so, embarrassed by himself and the lewd thoughts that keep running through his mind.

He should think those thoughts about Kai, especially since he was still engaged to Li Jen, even though she ran away with her lover. He had mentioned it to Kai, but he went out with Li Jie after he tracked her by using the jade she gave him and made a tracking spell. They found her on the outskirts of a small town called Mudan, because of all the Peony flowers lining the meadows above and on the outskirts of the town. She has settled in a neat little house with a fertile  farmyard, and is doing well with her lover Lee Cheng. She is also two months pregnant. She has changed so much that no one can recognize her. She dyed her hair a light ginger colour, and her eye colour has changed to green. She even asked Qing yuan to remove her cultivation core from her, which Li Jie objected to. Saying that he is taking her home, telling her that their parents are worried sick about her. And also telling her how she almost got Kai killed. Li Jen burst out in tears, and hugged her stomach, seeking a bit of comfort. She muttered Kai's name, saying how sorry she was. Lee Cheng had walked up to comfort her, but Li Jie beat him to it. Wrapping his arms around his sister and giving Lee Cheng a death stare, which made the young man whimper back in fear.

She had cried to her heart's content, with her brother whispering comforting words in her ears. And Lee Cheng reminded her not to stress too much in order to hurt the baby. She had finally calmed down, when Li Jie told her about Kai's new discovery and how he is doing well at Cultivation school.

   "I have always known that he is special." She had said. She turned to Qing yuan, and held his hand in hers. Apologizing to him about breaking their engagement, but she had to follow her heart. She had also told him that she wasn't meant for him, and one day he would find the right person. In the end, she had to ask Qing yuan again to take her Mage powers, which he did. She had instructed him to pass it on to Kai when he needed it the most. She wanted nothing to do with the cultivation world, her new forming family was her main priority. And for her parents, she gave Li Jie a little to give to them. And for Kai, she wants him to visit her one day so he can meet her first born. Qing yuan had promised her that he would take Kai to see her, and that he would put up a protection ward so no evil could enter her home.

Kai came out and sat down across from Qing yuan. He is now fully dressed, and more warm and less stressed than before. He looks on as Qing yuan lights some scented candles, stating that the smells will help him relax.

  "How are you feeling now?" Qing yuan asked after lighting the last candle.

Kai sighs and looks down while playing with his fingers. The bath had been settling, and he didn't feel as cold as he felt an hour ago. But the rain pouring outside, did make him miss home. And his mother's famous fish and lotus soup. "I am quite fine now, but the rain is making me homesick." 

   "How so?" Qing yuan asked, pouring himself and Kai tea.

    "When the rain falls, I usually get a cold because I always get caught in. So my mother would make me fish and lotus soup to make me feel better. Now that it's pouring like this, i-" Kai stops talking as he swallows the lump that is forming in his throat.

   "It reminds you of home and your mother." Qing yuan finished for him, and Kai nodded.

Qing yuan shuffled around beside him, and put two pots on the table. Making Kai a bit confused.

   "When I was younger, my mother would make me rice porridge whenever I was feeling down. She would come find me at a secret hiding place and spoon fed me the porridge, and after she would kiss me and tell me that I am the most important to her. That I will be the best, but be even more great when I find that special someone." He stopped talking just to look at Kai, who noticed and started to blush. "One day mother came down with hay fever, and I wanted her to feel better. So I decided to make her some rice porridge like what she made for me when I am under the weather or when I need to pick me up. "Little six year old me didn't know how much water to add, and poured a little over the rice. Instead of staying a thick liquid, the water dried out and the rice was steamed instead. So you know what I did?" Qing yuan laughed as he remembered the memory.

   "What did you do?" Kai couldn't hold back his curiosity. But most of all, he enjoys seeing the smile on Qing yuan's face as he tells his story.

  "As a child, I was quick witted. And I usually come up with creative ways of doing things. So I remembered when I went hunting with my father and older brother-"

   "You have an older brother?" Kai asked Qing yuan in the middle of his storytelling.

   "Yes." Qing yuan simply replied with.

   "So, how come you are the one next in line for the throne and your father's seat at the head of the Prospector's council when he resigned?"

Qing yuan sighs deeply. "A story in another story. He is the illegitimate son of my father. He is my father's concubine's son." Qing yuan muttered, sounding not too pleased with his father's actions.

    "B-but he is a Prospector, head of the council to be exact." Kai said, his voice raising an octave from the shocking news.

   "He only got the seat as the head of the council because he was the one that defeated Fong Wen. But when a man lusts or craves someone's body, whether woman or man, they do things. But my father had loved Huang Shuo(The name of his older brother) mother, she was his first love. But she was not of nobility, she didn't have an inch of Cultivation in her. And my father, a young childe. He fell for the girl that wasn't of his standard, and they had a child. Of course the child wouldn't be heir to the throne or anything. So he met my mother after, who was a young female Prospector, and highly skilled in her Cultivation. Anyway, enough about my family and back to the first story."

   Kai nodded and Shui continued. "I remembered that my father and senior brother had caught some chickens and had them cleaned. I quickly took one of the chicken and quickly gathered herbs and seasonings and started to prepare the chicken. I saw some tumeric and red chilli powder, and I scattered them all over the chicken. When it was all done, I brought it to my mother. She was so surprised when she saw me, and what I had in my hands. I explained to her that I wanted to make her rice porridge, but I messed up. She kissed me on the forehead, letting me know that it was ok. And I have done a good job of preparing the meal. I remembered cringing as she took the first bite of food, but was even more surprised and relieved when she said it was delicious. She was a Prospector, so she would lie. Even if it is to spare my feelings, I wanted to know. So I tasted it. And sure enough, it was almost the best chicken I have tasted. My mother's roasted chicken is the best. And from that day on, anytime my mother is not well or she is having a bad day. I would make her that dish. And that is why, I made you that same dish as well." He took the lids from the pots and started to share some of the food out in a bowl and hand it to Kai along with some chopsticks.

    Kai looked down at the yellowish red chicken on top of the white rice. Watching as the rich gravy soaks inside the rice.

   "I can't make fish and lotus soup like your mother, so I made you something that I know how to cook and that means a lot to me. So please enjoy and I hope that it will make you feel better." Qing yuan nervously said. 

  Kai looked up at him with a smile. This is the first time he has ever seen the young Prospector prince nervous, and it made him feel warm and fuzzy that he was the one that made him show that emotion. Kai took up the chopsticks and picked up a piece of the chicken and took a bite. His taste buds came alive with all the flavours that come together well. He took another bite, and another. Not finding the time to compliment Qing yuan, but Qing yuan didn't need any compliments. Just Kai enjoying the food was enough.

   "Is there any more left?" Kai asks, after finishing. His mouth had a bit of chicken gravy at the corner.

   "No, I didn't think you would eat like you have just got out of prison." Qing yuan answered, before reaching over and wiping away the gravy with his thumb. He gently stroked the corner of Kai's lips, enjoying how soft they felt and it was just the corner. Imagine feeling them full on.

By now, Kai looked like a tomato. And he also enjoys the padding and stroking of his fingers.

They stare into each other's eyes, and it feels like they are the only ones in the world. Sparks of feelings started to fly, and they started to lean in. But a crack of thunder made them back away. 

   "Ahem, s-so your mother." Kai cleared his throat, hoping it would help with the tense stiffness in the room. 

    "What about her?" Qing yuan asked, his cheeks pink.

   "S-she- wasn't lying when she said the food was delicious."

    "Thank you." Qing yuan said.

   "I have never seen your mother before, it is always you and your father."

Qing yuan swallowed loudly, his mother was sore. And even the story just now reminded him of her. "She died when I was eight." 

   "Oh, wow. I am sorry." Kai softly said. "H-how did she die if you don't mind me asking.

   "She was killed by Fong Yue, Fong Wen's wife." Qing yuan answered, and Kai saw when he quickly wiped the tears from his eyes.

   "So she took revenge. An eye for an eye, and a wife for a husband. I am sorry Qing yuan, and sorry for your mother." Kai placed his hand over Qing Yuan that was on the table.

   "It's ok, my mother is in a better place right now. While Fong Yue is rotting in prison. Let's not talk about this anymore." He took out a flute from inside his rube and started playing a sweet Melody.

   "I never knew you played the flute." Kai slowly rocked to the tune.

   "There are a lot of things that you don't know about me, Wang Lei, and I want to show you them one by one." Qing yuan stops playing the flute and stares deep into Kai's eyes. 

   "Qing yuan, I don't think you are too serious. You are Huang Qing yuan, prince of The Winter Sect kingdom." Kai uttered, as he stared back into Qing yuan's eyes. 

   "And you are Wang Lei, but to me. You will forever be Kai, and one of the few people who get the privilege to call me Shui." Qing yuan put the flute down on the table, and gently took one of Kai's hands in his. He never breaks their eye contact, as he leans in closer and closer to Kai's face. "I want to always be by your side, and I never want to see you unhappy. I want you to come find comfort in me, and let me be the one to see all the innermost parts of you. I want to be the one you put your trust in, and the one to make you feel things that you never felt before." 

Kai's heart thudded rapidly in his chest, as butterflies did magic in his stomach. Is this a confession, is Qing yuan confessing his love to him? And as Qing yuan's lips hover over his, he anticipation grew stronger. But their time in their little fantasy world was short lived, because the door to the room suddenly barged open. And a soaking wet Huang Ling walked in, making them jump apart.

   "Did I interrupted something?" He smirks, and wink at w blushing Kai while Qing yuan looks annoyed. "Dear cousin, you should have told me that you were going to bring a guest over so I could have made myself scarce."

   "Shameless donkey." Qing yuan muttered, but Ling heard it anyway and started to laugh. "Kai, you can take my bed. I will sleep here."

    "But-" Kai stopped talking, when he saw Qing yuan closed his eyes, and a light blue wolf aura surrounded him.

   "You should do as he said, his spirit animal is out. His spirit animal is out, it will keep him comfortable throughout the night." Ling told Kai, as he shamelessly stood in front of him changing his clothes.

Kai quickly nodded, and ran to Qing yuan's bed. He whispered a goodnight in his mind, hoping Qing yuan could hear. Before laying down, thinking about what just happened. And what would have happened if Huang Ling didn't enter the room.