Mother-in-Law’s Advice

In the nine heavens, Qiu Ling had stopped complaining to Bai Fen and was taking a walk with her, trying to get some good advice on how to proceed with making Jing He fall in love with him again.

Bai Fen listened to the whole story and couldn't help but sigh at the end. "You didn't really do that, did you?"

Qiu Ling lifted his brows. Which part was she talking about?

Seeing his completely oblivious expression, Bai Fen sighed again. "I really don't know what to do with you. You're afraid Jing He might fall in love with a mortal child so you arrange for one of the dragon children to go down? Aren't you afraid this will backfire?" Her son-in-law still didn't seem to understand. "A mortal child and a dragon. If it was you who would you choose?"

Qiu Ling blinked innocently. "What are you saying, mother-in-law? Of course, it's neither of them. I have Jing He."

"You!" She slapped his shoulder but Qiu Ling only grinned. "Qiu Ling, I'm serious here. If you're afraid of a mortal child stealing your beloved you should be wary of a dragon child even more so!"

"He wouldn't dare try something with Jing He."

"But that's not what this is about. The question is: Who will Jing He choose? And that has nothing to do with anyone daring anything."

"No? I remember you telling me something else the last time."

Bai Fen shook her head. "That was then, this is now. Jing He isn't the same person now. You can't expect everything to be the same."

"Then what should I do? Mortal life or not, I don't want to lose him!"

"I know, I know." She patted his arm and thought about it. There wasn't much Qiu Ling could do. "You're right that a good relationship with his mother is necessary. I'm just afraid that you might have overdone it a bit. She'll probably be wary of you after you acted so jealously."

"Isn't that normal? I'm in love with him."

Bai Fen shook her head. "You're in love with Jing He, not that Jing Yi. That's exactly what she has noticed. She didn't ask you those questions out of nowhere. I guess she did have a favorable opinion of you at first but now …"

"Then what do you think I should do?"

"Talk to her. Tell her your honest feelings as you did with me back then. Tell her about Jing He and what this reincarnation means to you. And for heaven's sake, Qiu Ling, please don't try to drive off the people around him anymore. It's nice that he can have some friends in this mortal life of his. It's what a child should do. So don't take that from him. Reign your jealousy in."

"It's easier said than done. I don't want him to fall in love with anybody else. And he wouldn't fall in love with me just because his mother likes me, would he?"

"Of course not."

"Then how do I make him fall in love with me?" Qiu Ling grabbed her sleeve and held on tight. "I can deal with his mother but he …"

Bai Fen plucked his hands off her dress. "What do you expect? He's a child and you're a grown-up man. If he actually fell in love with you I'd ask myself if something was wrong with his head. At his age, he should fall in love with a similarly aged boy." Bai Fen halted and looked up at him strangely. "That's right. You turned into an old man to gain his trust and sent some dragon boy down to seduce that mortal child. Why didn't you …" She frowned. "You could have just turned into a child yourself. Wouldn't Jing He fall in love with you then? Why are you even asking me about these things? It's so simple!"

Bai Fen waited for an answer but didn't get even one word. No, even worse, her son-in-law had tensed and averted his gaze, looking over the flowers in the garden as if he had any interest in them.

"What's the matter?"

Qiu Ling smiled self-deprecatingly. Turn into a child to woo his love? He'd rather die than show Jing He even a glimpse of that part of his life! "Jing He … How was he as a child?"

Bai Fen frowned at his diversion but didn't ask any further. Whatever her son-in-law was thinking about right now he'd tell her when he was ready. She patted his arm and also looked over the flowers. "He wasn't that much different from how he is now. Very quiet, a bit reclusive. He was quite clingy, though, and more curious than now. I don't know when he lost that trait." She sighed. That cute son of hers … How had he grown up so suddenly? "It feels like it hasn't been that long since I took him here for the first time."

Qiu Ling smiled. "That must've been nice."

"Mn! It was. He was laughing the whole day. Now … I can't remember when I saw him laughing the last time."

"In the mortal world."

Bai Fen looked up at Qiu Ling. "You're still hung up over that? He's a child now. Who knows if he won't turn out the same way there like he did here?"

"His father isn't as bad there."

"You! That's still my husband you're talking about!"

Qiu Ling turned around and smirked. "I wonder what made you marry him, though. You're not the type to go after power."

"Well, he was quite handsome back then …"

Qiu Ling's brows lifted. "Oh?"

"Mn …" Bai Fen thought back to those days before her marriage and smiled. Rong Su always seemed stern in front of other people but he had a completely different side to him. Speaking of which … She turned around and sized up Qiu Ling. Her son-in-law tensed under her stare.

"I apologize!"

Bai Fen tilted her head. "What for?"

Qiu Ling's gaze darted around. "Whatever it is I did wrong. You know you're the second most important person in my life, mother-in-law!" Qiu Ling gripped her sleeve once again.

Bai Fen sighed. Yes, they really resembled each other. Surprisingly, her son had fallen for exactly the same type of man as she had back then: A handsome sweet-talker that seemed serious on the outside but was secretly fawning over their beloved on the inside.

She wasn't sure if her son managed to see that side of the dragon king, though. He probably still thought of him as that infallible, powerful sovereign that could solve every problem with a snap of his fingers.

Mn, love really made blind. When her son found out one day … it'd probably be too late to return him. Not that that man would let Jing He just walk away. He'd probably chain them together before that could happen.

Bai Fen shook her head and patted Qiu Ling's shoulder. "It's nothing. I just thought … I don't mind giving my son to you. So work hard, young man. You should probably return to the mortal realm."

"Mn. I want to see him again." Qiu Ling's gaze turned gentle. Yes, he really, really wanted to see him again. Him, the one carrying his soul. Not just the body staying here in the nine heavens. Though that was the one he had fallen in love with, it was just a depressing sight as long as his soul wasn't there.

Qiu Ling smiled. "Then, I'll better go, mother-in-law. It's been quite some time in the mortal realm. I hope he's doing good and hasn't run into —"

"Your Majesty!" Before Qiu Ling could finish a heavenly guard ran over and knelt down in front of Bai Fen.

"Rise. What happened?"

"His Majesty, the heavenly emperor, asks for your attendance in the high hall. It's about His Highness, the crown prince."

Bai Fen and Qiu Ling exchanged a glance. Why did it seem like something had happened?

Qiu Ling gulped. I couldn't have jinxed it just now, could I?