The journey up the hill

The party had assembled pretty quickly under the guidance of the captain commander Yuhan. The most difficult work had been to get detective Song away from his bed and then to the working site.

Once that piece of work was done, they started making progress almost instantly. Things were arranged, planned by Fu Hua because Xiao Lan made too many errors and then covers were woven.

That day Prince Xiao Lan walked off into seclusion without any guard of his usual guards or other retainers by his side. The news spread like fire catching onto the dry wood and by the next hour, everyone knew his rooms had been visited by Lu Lian before his seclusion.

"Great. Another rumour I will have to look to crush later on" Xiao Lan complained to himself but it was heard loud and clear by the other three in his company. They just got a glare in return which did not allow them to comment any further.

But not everyone got the memo. Detective Song could not help but tease the other.

"Ah, you really should. Such rumours could really hurt the reputation of someone like Lady Lu who is already married" Xiao Lan despaired at his luck. Since detective Song had to be involved, he naturally had to be told the truth behind Xiao Lan's curse.

The other had been in disbelief at once but then a certain understanding had flashed in his eyes before he had reverted back to his teasing manner as if nothing had happened.

"What are you talking about? Who said anything about her reputation? This is not about it" Xiao Lan could not help the frown that managed to seep into his voice. What did Lu Lian's reputation have to do with anything?

It was about his own reputation and morals. Xiao Lan had already loved it once and lost it, he did not want to have another one anytime soon. However, everyone had this weird fixation over him and Lu Lian.

His brother did, his friends, his guards even Fu Hua had held it once upon a time. Only his mother had never added to that bad and he was thankful for that. She had been his only solace in those times he had wanted her blessing.

Xiao Lan took a look to see Fu Hua's reaction. The other looked as if he did not even care at all when he looked outside the carriage window. The other had not contributed to their conversation at all.

"It's cute how you deflect your answer. Hey, Fu Hua, what do you say? Won't Lu Lian look cute standing next to Xiao Lan in his original body?" Detective Song lightly nudged Fu Hua with his elbow in a friendly gesture but it must have hit something painful for the other to flinch.

"They have always looked cute together, a perfect match even. Can I go back to scenery gazing now?" The voice was flat and without emotions, totally unlike Fu Hua. Normally, Fu Hua would have started to complain this far into the journey.

The reason could have ranged from anywhere from being hungry to sensing danger. This quiet and withdrawn self of the other was a new experience for the other three. But they understood the reason behind this distance.

There were too many cracks between their relationships for it to be held stable.

"Awkward. So, does anyone know anything about the Xi temple? What should we be aware of?" detective Son asked, trying to fill the tense air with conversations. He just wanted to change the atmosphere to something more relaxing.

"Xi temple is not the real name of that place but a nickname given to them after the family took over. Traditionally it was called the temple of Fu and had been headed by a holy priestess of Fu ever since its establishment" that was all Fu Hua shared, his voice still detached and his gaze still out.

Xiao Lan was sure the other knew much more than this but was not willing to share. It was clear he still felt uncomfortable with the whole journey and was only complying because Xiao Lan was forcing the other to do so in the first place.

"That's it? Really? Can you not tell us something that would actually help us out?" Detective Song complained. He did not like it when the others withhold information and this was another tactic he often used on friendly foes.

He would annoy them till they gave in to his demands.

"The current head is the youngest son of the Xi family called Xi Su. He took over a few years back and would also be the one to receive us today" the one to contribute was the captain commander Yuhan.

It was not surprising that he had been the one to answer since he had been in charge of the communication between the Xi temple and the royal palace. Besides, he was the only one who was actually from this area and knew this place well.

He was also the designated guide for their journey this time.

"We will be arriving in a few hours now. We will stay in the inn I have already booked and head to the temple in the morning" the commander added once everyone had absorbed his previous words.

"Wait! We are not staying with the main family? Or in the temple?" the detective asked, his voice going louder at each work. It was a wonder he still had his voice intact.

"We could have but someone here suggested otherwise" Commander Yuhan looked at Fu Hua when he spoke, the meaning clear. Fu Hua had been the one to make this suggestion but he had not really given any reason to do so.

Fu Hua had never led them astray before in any mission so Commander Yuhan was willing to comply despite the betrayal of the other, he still felt like he could trust his judgement on the issue.

"Want to share with the call Fu Hua? I'm sure we all would like an explanation from you" Fu Hua shook his head in a negative manner which caused the temper to spike in Xiao Lan. Can the other not comply once in his life?

"Not my place to say. You will come to know it soon enough anyway" the other sounded confident which caused a little of the anger to fade away. Then Xiao Lan remembered that the other had always been like this - secretive and planning.

So he allowed the other to do as he wished for now. He would corner him later to get the answers out of him.

Xi district was not any different from the ones they had passed this far. The same streets, the same type of clothing. There was nothing that screamed that this was a special place.

Nothing except the big looming temple right on the far side of the village. The temple was situated on top of a tall hill and looked over the whole place.

"We have arrived. I will ask the servants to unload our carriage" Commander Yuhan left the scene before Xiao Lan could make any suggestion. He had wanted to get Fu Hua to do this deed but the other looked lost in his thoughts and Xiao Lan could not ask.

Instead, all he could do was to look at the other and think back to everything that had happened this far.

"Are you falling for him Xiao Lan? You should not look too long or you will fall once again" the quietest of the voices whispered to Xiao Lan but when he turned toward detective Song, he was not looking at Xiao Lan.

Instead, he seemed to be staring outside at Commander Yuhan who was running around in an almost panic, small snickers of laughter leaving his mind. Had Xiao Lan imagined that whisper then?

"Come inside. They have the place preparers" Xiao Lan shook his head to clear his thoughts. Now was not the time to be thinking about those things. He had a mission to complete right now.