He An and Qi Xiu had an awkward air around them.
This morning, He An accidentally walked into Qi Xiu's room while the latter was in the middle of changing and the two stood there in silence before He An stepped out.
Qi Xiu was left inside speechless.
How come this person always liked to come into his room at the weirdest times, never announcing his presence? He did this during the night as well, when he would come to teach Qi Xiu to read and write.
"Is there something Your Majesty needs?" He said as he opened the door. He An looked at him.
"Come with me." He answered.
He An led Qi Xiu to the lotus flower pond, where there was a table full of food waiting for them. Although there were no servants around them, he could see that they were in the distance watching the two.
"Why did Your Majesty bring me here...?" Qi Xiu's voice was soft.
"Ah, I was a bit lonely so I wanted someone to eat with me." He An replied.
...
Couldn't you have had one of your servants eat with you then?
Qi Xiu lowered his head and said nothing but there was a small part of him that was happy.
He An: [Six, use the ticket now.]
Six: [Coming right up, host! ^u^]
As He An sat down to pick at a piece of meat, he could feel the ticket burn away from inside his robe.
In the next second, a mysterious man dressed in black came out from the water and jumped towards the two of them, aiming a large and sharp dagger at Qi Xiu.
"Die, cursed prince!" He shouted.
He An was fast to react and quickly shielded Qi Xiu. Suyin could be heard screaming from afar as she rushed to the Emperor's side.
The dagger stabbed him in the back and the man hurried to stab Qi Xiu next but several guards surrounded the three of them before he could do so.
While Qi Xiu remained in a shocked state, they quickly subdued the mysterious assassin and tied him up. The servants watching rushed to treat the Emperor. Suyin in particular looked like she was going to faint by the sight of how badly he was bleeding.
"Your Majesty, should we behead him?" Pan Fengge, his personal guard, asked.
"No, put him into a cell and make sure you get information out of him. It doesn't matter what methods you use." He An replied.
Pan Fengge bowed and ordered the others to drag the man away.
The mysterious stranger wasn't obedient though. Despite his situation, the man had a poisonous tongue. He continued to curse Qi Xiu with viscous words as he was taken away forcefully.
"Your bloodline ends with you! You should just die quickly!" He scowled and glared at Qi Xiu.
He An was angered and pulled the dazed Qi Xiu into his arms, covering the cub's ears with his hands. He gently consoled him as they were both led back into his chambers to treat his injury.
*
After the doctor was finished with the procedure, he advised He An to not move around too much in case the wound reopened. The dagger had stabbed very deep into the flesh and created a large and ugly wound across his back.
"Your Majesty, you should also stay with the concubine until he calms down. He seems to have some sort of trauma." The old doctor whispered to him as he left.
He An focused his attention on the cub who was still shivering. Even though the temperature was warm, he was still shaking so much.
"Is the concubine cold?" Suyin was worried as she tried to get more blankets.
"It's okay, Qi Xiu." He An coaxed. "You're safe now. The man who tried attacking you has been caught and is being interrogated."
Qi Xiu finally relaxed but then he thought of how He An had once again taken an injury that was meant to be for him. He cautiously peeked at He An's back and his face paled.
"Your back..." His voice trembled. "I'm sorry, if it wasn't for me you wouldn't have- you wouldn't have been hurt."
"It doesn't hurt as bad as it looks. I'm alright." He an assured him as he purposely angled himself in a way so that his cub wouldn't see the wound. "The doctor said it would heal, didn't he?"
To prove his point, he tried stretching.
"Your Majesty, he also said not to move around too much! Your wound might open again." Suyin gently pushed the Emperor back onto the bed and scolded him like an older sister.
Qi Xiu's face turned even paler after hearing her words.
"...Fine, fine. Suyin, bring Qi Xiu something warm." He An shooed his nagging maid away and watched her go.
Six: [Host, why don't you ask him who that man is?]
"Qi Xiu, who was that person? He seemed to know you." He An complied with the system's request and asked. He saw how Qi Xiu nervously fumbled with his clothing and asked again, "Do you know him?"
"No, but he knows me." Qi Xiu answered truthfully.
"Do you have anything you want to ask him then?" He An inquired, curious. He thought Qi Xiu would say yes. That man could probably help the cub discover who he is and return to the Southern Empire.
However, instead of doing what He An expected, Qi Xiu firmly refused. He An was a bit taken back by his response. Normally, wouldn't you say yes in these situations?
Qi Xiu on the other hand was actually very interested, but he felt an uncomfortable feeling when thinking about relying too much on He An. If he somehow allowed He An to help him on this matter, he was scared his heart couldn't be controlled anymore.
He felt himself waver when this person had injured himself again for him. If He An did anything else, he would certainly...
No.
He would just go visit the assassin alone later and deal with it himself.
My fingers are dying! I’m too lazy to write the serious things! Agh, I wanna write cute moments where all they do is hug and cuddle but the plot must occur first (´༎ຶོρ༎ຶོ`) Wuwuwu