The Sorcerer is Freed

"Fox spirits never work alone. They are always in a contract with a high-rank sorcerer." Uncle WeiJie said after the guards told him of the fox spirit taking some of YaYun's life force and charming him to abandon all his duties. "For the country of Jin to send such a creature over, they must be planning something."

"A sorcerer?" The guards exchanged confused looks. What did this have anything to do with other sorcerers?

"Dragon gods have gone extinct for a reason. Your parents never taught you?"

The guards shook their heads in unison.

"Dragon hearts can be made into the elixir of immortality. Their existence died along with my sister. The sorcerers have until now thought YaYun to be my son, a degenerate like me. After that-" Uncle WeiJie let out a long, suffering sigh. "That bastard sorcerer killed my sister, he took the last dragon heart with him. But they must have suspected YaYun to be a dragon god, to send a fox spirit over to us."

Uncle WeiJie rubbed at his temples tiredly.

"Fox spirits can scent out all zodiac animals. They can also harvest their life force and charm them. They are powerful creatures, but work solely under sorcerers. ChangNing is right. You must steal those books and go to XueYa. Only XueYa can help with this issue."

"You have your flute, uncle WeiJie," JingYi said. "Can't you control spirits with it?"

"That flute is a dragon god heirloom. It works only on the zodiac and regular animals. Spirits aren't as easily influenced. Besides, I suspect, Jin country is working with sorcerers."

When the guards stayed silent, uncle WeiJie smiled at them. "You don't trust XueYa? He hasn't been affiliated with the sorcerer community for a while now."

"It's not that we don't want to trust him, uncle WeiJie," ChangNing hurried to say. "But it has been years. People change, and we don't know what he will do after helping YaYun out."

"He hasn't changed, not on the inside. Whatever he does, he will never hurt YaYun." The guards still looked doubting, and uncle WeiJie chuckled. "Don't worry, XueYa won't steal the throne from YaYun, he hates sitting around doing nothing."

That was the least of the guards' worries, but they nodded. It was a risk worth taking to save YaYun.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

XueYa couldn't contain his smile as the guards stepped into the Crescent Moon Hall to release him.

The white snake had really done it. Got him out of here. And for a while now, XueYa was worried he had teased LiangLin too much and was left to rot away in this stuffy basement. Still, XueYa would have hoped it was the snake himself who came to release him, but he wouldn't complain. As long as he was free, he could proceed with the plans he had come up with during the idle time hanging around here.

The ropes around his hands loosened and XueYa's numb body slumped forward and into Yu Zhong's strong arms. The ox had agreed to release XueYa after KaiJun had pointed out that ignoring a suspected threat towards the emperor's life was a crime that got the entire family lineage executed.

There wouldn't be a disgrace to the Yu family, since there wouldn't be a Yu family to talk about after that.

"Can you stand?" Yu Zhong said as XueYa drooped over his arms like a dead flower.

"Let's hang you up for weeks and then I'll ask you that question."

"We're sorry, XueYa," Wei KaiJun said as he wrapped a blanket around XueYa's emaciated frame. "But we couldn't release you without YaYun's orders."

"Ugh, whatever," XueYa groaned as blood slowly circulated towards his numb limbs, the prickling pain coursing through his body, like blades were cutting into his skin. "I need a bath, food, and LiangLin to warm my bed."

"You, my friend, have a death wish," JingYi laughed as Yu Zhong carried XueYa on his back out of the basement. "That snake is feisty."

"Even in this state, this guy can be horny," KaiJun shook his head, an amused smile on his lips.

"Shameless! LiangLin is your brother's betrothed… to be." ChangNing pressed, giving the stink eye to the other guards as a warning.

The white snakes had told them to keep quiet about QingYu's existence to prevent XueYa from doing anything wicked on the already suffering green snake. Stealing LiangLin's snake was bad enough.

"What a terrible brother!" KaiJun chuckled as he kept the door open for Yu Zhong. "Even if YaYun won't kill you, I bet that snake will."

"I will take my chances." XueYa sighed as he felt the sunrays caress his cheeks. It had been a while that he got to breathe fresh air and feel the wind brush over his skin. "Where are you taking me?"

"The Peony Pavilion."

XueYa quieted down. That was the place where his father had built his mother a small resting house, their little getaway love's nest. He no longer could return to the Plum Blossom Hall, not when that fox spirit had been assigned there.

"The white snakes stay in White Lotus Hall?" XueYa asked nonchalantly, but the guards were sharp enough to know that he was planning something.

"XueYa, you aren't trying to court your brother's lover, are you?" JingYi asked.

YaYun hadn't gotten further than holding hands with QingYu, but everyone knew the snake was off-limits. Although the one that had caught XueYa's eye was LiangLin, XueYa still thought the snake was meant for YaYun. He wasn't that shameless, was he?

"Are they married?" XueYa said, looking at them with a sly smile.

"… no."

"Have they kissed? Shared a bed? Confessed their undying love to each other? Well?"

"No…"

KaiJun chuckled at XueYa's persistence, shaking his head.

"Then LiangLin is still available for me to win over. I don't see a problem with it. It is his choice in the end which one of us he wants."

The guards merely shook their heads but said no more.

XueYa closed his eyes, resting for the time being. He knew YaYun had found his mate, but zodiac mates didn't always become a pair. Besides, LiangLin wasn't YaYun's type, anyway. Too feisty and impulsive, YaYun might get a heart attack with such a lover. Baby YaYun needed someone gentle to care for, a delicate flower to worship and dote on.

A feisty little firecracker like LiangLin… now that white snake was someone XueYa could deal with. But before that, XueYa had a little fox to handle.

"What about the books?"

"We will go look for them once we get you to the Pavilion," Yu Zhong said, his voice rumbling deep in his chest.

"We will feed you well, let you bathe and dress you up… Then leave you to sleep on that cold bed all by yourself."

"Damn you, KaiJun!" XueYa didn't let their teasing get to him. Once he set his sight on something he wanted, he would get it. A smile bloomed on XueYa's lips. He might not be the emperor and have all the riches in the world, but he could make a good lover. LiangLin just didn't realise that – yet.