Trembling Buttercup — I

Li Xinyuan jerked awake from the shock of his sudden presence and hurried to distance himself from the Crown Prince, fair cheeks aflame.

"It's not what you are thinking," he clarified, trying to regain his bearing. Liu Mingyun looked at him and nodded in support, saying nothing.

Hu Lijing squinted at them, a small ball of flame swirled in his finger as he walked inside. Then, with a blank look on his face, he replied. "Sure, Master." He glanced at Liu Mingyun then at Li Xinyuan, his gaze almost accusatory. "Whatever you and His Highness say."

Li Xinyuan blushed even harder, desperately fighting the urge to cover his face and let out a groan. This looked so wrong! It wasn't as Hu Lijing was thinking!

Really! He was not a creep who would prey on a newly — by his i.e. modern standards — minted adult. No!

Li Xinyuan shuddered in horror at the mental imagery, internally waving his hands to disperse the cursed sight.

However, to Hu Lijing he had nothing to say in his defence. Really. Their position, not to mention the state of their clothes and worse, Li Xinyuan's bitten lip, didn't help their case. Not at all.

"Then," after a beat of silence, with laughter suppressed in his voice, Liu Mingyun spoke, shooting a sidelong glance at Li Xinyuan as he turned around. "This Prince shall take his leave, Specter of Blood Moon, however, must take a respite."

Li Xinyuan answered his words with a glare that lacked any heat as he shuffled out the bed, standing up to bid the Crown Prince a farewell.

"Thank you for visiting this lowly one, Your Highness. This one will try his best to follow Your Highness' words." He muttered, plastering a smile on his pallid face as he cupped his in front of himself and bowed.

Liu Mingyun sent him a meaningful look and nodded before silently beating a hasty retreat. Simply put, one second he was standing inside the tent and the next, he was gone.

Freaking sly little shit. Li Xinyuan cursed him in his mind and then slowly turned to look at Hu Lijing with a very bland look on his face.

A similar expression greeted him as the amber-haired man crossed his eyes, looking much like a disappointed mother who'd caught her child in the act.

"Are you feeling well now, Master?" Asked the man, in a very toneless voice.

Li Xinyuan pursed his lips, regarding him with a stoic look as he shuffled on his feet and replied, tersely. "Yes."

"..."

Hu Lijing's silence spoke volumes, no words might have left his lips, but the undercurrents of the silent look was deafening.

"Whatever you are thinking," Li Xinyuan said, sternly. "None of it is true."

"Truly?" Hu Lijing raised a sceptical eyebrow and looked at his master up and down. "Your current less than impeccable state seems to have a lot to say, Master." He drawled, crossing his arms over his chest.

Li Xinyuan whirled to him, irritation getting the best of him as blood rushed to his ears at the implication.

"I said nothing happened." He asserted, keeping his voice even. Hu Lijing hummed, appearing less than convinced.

"Master, may I say something?" Li Xinyuan paused at the question, a book on medicine opened on his lap in front of of the oil lamp as he looked at the amber-haired man.

"What is it?"

"You are fifteen."

Li Xinyuan's fingers fiddling with the pages clenched, causing a tear in the book. The veins on his neck pulsed as he took a deep, calming breath.

In a cold voice, the surgeon began. "Hu Lijing." The amber-haired man shifted in his place.

"Yes, Master."

"Get out of here, right now." Li Xinyuan commanded, golden eyes glowing menacingly in the dim lit tent, promising retribution, the surgeon's lips parted as he added. "For your own good, Lijing. Listen to me."

Hu Lijing raised an eyebrow, idly taking a step towards the door, he raised his hands in front of himself in a disarming gesture.

"Yes, yes, definitely, Master." He nodded, inching closer to the door as he watched Li Xinyuan's beautiful wavy hair fly from the force of his Qi.

The Qi seemed to materialise into sharp projectiles as the amber-haired man turned tail and rushed out. "Have a good night, Master!" He chuckled.

Behind him, the projectiles landed right where he stood a second prior, leaving behind a cloud of dust, forcing Li Xinyuan to cover his nose with his wide sleeves. After coughing a little, Li Xinyuan huffed to himself and went back to reading the book while nibbling on the flower cakes.

When the cloud of dust cleared after a long while, what was left on the floor was a giant crater dented on it.

…

The rest of the days in the Northwestern Frontier continued normally, well, at least as normally as a place plunged in bloody days of war could be.

The hubbub of fallen and wounded soldiers didn't cease. It lessened as both the enemies and the nation's soldiers grew weary of the long drawn out war.

The number of wounded soldiers decreased but their flow didn't cease. The doctors in the camp still worked as much as they could, as much as their bodies allowed them, at least.

As days dragged on, biting cold of the snow-capped mountain ranges set in, the ration declined in comparison to the soldiers. Unfortunately, the situation only took a turn for the worst when the provisions and fodder for the steads sent by the Ministry of Revenue delayed further.

Liu Mingyun's frustration was evident as his lips tugged in a harsh frown, crimson eyes glaring menacingly as he growled around like a caged predator.

"Why are the provisions being delayed so much?" He questioned in a dangerously low voice, his aura was frosty as the pressure in his tent dropped until it was hard to breath for most of the people present.

"Your, Your Highness," General Hong bit his tongue as he spoke up, finding himself subjected to the chilling glare of the Crown Prince. "The war at the Southern Frontier has apparently reached its most critical point. Thus, the Council of Ministers have chosen to focus on it."

When Liu Mingyun's face darkened, all the generals lowered their heads, afraid of making a single sound. "The Heavenly Dragon is testing This Prince, I surmise." He whispered in a low voice.

No one spoke a word.

"Even so," he laughed, the sound of it was guttural. "How can This Prince leave our people to starve?"

For a second, Li Xinyuan's face flashed in his mind, with a shake of his head, the Crown Prince dismissed the stray thought and turned to look at the generals sitting around the large table.

"Generals," he addressed them, eyes flickering from one head to another. "Gather the soldiers who are able to fight and hold their ground." He paused, crimson eyes grazing over them like a tense beast ready to pounce. "If the Ministry refuses to send the resources, then so be it, we shall hunt for our own food."

A solemn and tense silence fell over them. After a while, one voice rose after the other, all in unanimous agreement to his decision.

"Yes, Your Highness!"

General Hong took a deep breath, head bowed as he pursed his lips, feeling oddly emotional. The Crown Prince had not yet given up on them, nor on the war.

Liu Mingyun glanced at them, hands folded behind his back. At this point, it was no longer a war of just strength, but also endurance.

As long as one side held on longer, victory was a foregone conclusion.

When the men left the room to carry out the order one after another, Liu Mingyun remained alone at the end.

With a heavy sigh latched on his lips the Crown Prince raised his head to look at the ceiling with half-lidded eyes.

"Imperial Father, if you want to test This Prince. He shall show you why he is worthy of taking that throne," Liu Mingyun closed his eyes, back tense. "One way or another, he shall prove it to you." He whispered to himself.