Jinde gave a laugh. "That's true. I'm indeed very lucky. Twice, even." He looked out the window and sighed. "I don't remember much of my family but … I'm still thankful my mother brought me to the palace back then. Otherwise, I might never have met Chun Yin."
Xin Lan forced himself to smile but the hand that Jinde wasn't holding onto clenched into a fist. If he could, he would really love to change time so those two would never meet. Maybe then … He also sighed. Never mind. Hadn't the God of Love said that Leng Jin Yu was part of a pair destined to be in the High Heavens? This other part was obviously Jinde so even if he had somehow managed to prevent them to meet back then, he still would have lost to that person.
"Master is truly very lucky. Now, all you need to do is get rid of Jin Ling."
Jinde tsked. "How can you say it like that?" He sat down next to Xin Lan and sighed once again. "It's true though. Right now, the fear that Jin Ling might find out is what is making me worried. Even though I should enjoy my life with Jin Yu, I just can't calm down. I feel like … something is going to go wrong soon."
Xin Lan hesitated and finally patted that pair of hands Jinde had folded in his lap. "Even if something goes wrong, I'll be there to help you set it right."
"Mn, I know. You're always there if I need you. But … you should truly think about your future. Even though you haven't met the person you want to spend your life with yet, it won't be like that forever. So … you should take better care of yourself and open your eyes wide when you go out. Maybe that person isn't that far away."
Xin Lan nodded. "Yes, maybe you're right. Maybe that person is very close."
"It's good that you know. Now, you should lie down for a while. It'll make your wound heal sooner."
"The fallen god —"
"He can wait a few hours longer." Jinde cupped Xin Lan's cheeks and smiled. "I know you want to do this as fast as possible because you think that the sooner Qiu Ling gets to know where the Son of Heaven is, he'll help me. But I've already waited for so long. Some more hours won't hurt. Don't force yourself."
Xin Lan kept quiet. Just looking at those golden eyes … Even if he had to go up against a fallen god, so what? As long as it could bring him happiness … He wouldn't mind throwing his life away for this person.
"Aiya, stop looking at me like this. Didn't you say you found a clue already?"
"It's faint though. Your husband was trapped in a secret realm before returning to the Yun Zou Sect that time. Qiu Ling and I went to find the person able to open it. This time when I tried to find out more about that fallen god to find the place where he stays I saw him carrying a severed head in his arms. The face … looked very similar to the person we found back then."
"So it was like that." Jinde got up and paced up and down in front of Xin Lan. "What a coincidence."
"Your meaning is …?"
"Qiu Ling took Jin Yu to see exactly that person."
Xin Lan got up. "Then I'll follow them. It is best to ask that person right now and —"
"Xin Lan." Jinde turned to him and gently pushed him back down. "You're still hurt. Take some time. This is the mortal world. A few more hours won't make much of a difference."
"But …"
Jinde shook his head. "You lie down and sleep." He moved to help Xin Lan lie down but he evaded him. "What?"
"That …" Xin Lan glanced at his Master, then at the bed. Even if he did what he wanted … "Isn't this your bed?"
"Mn. What about it? Just lie down already. You're not helping if you move around so much."
"But …"
Jinde tsked and finally grabbed onto his uninjured shoulder. "Do as you're told." He pushed Xin Lan back and this time, the troublesome person finally listened.
He lay down comfortably and watched Jinde put his things back into his spatial ring. Ah, his Master … he really knew how to handle him, didn't he? Just a few words and he would do whatever his Master wanted.
Jinde put the last vial into his spatial ring and went over to the bedside, sitting down beside Xin Lan. "Even if you don't want to leave after this is over, you should still take better care of yourself. Running here and there and getting injured … that's not good for you."
"After this is done … I'll find a way to cure your soul."
"I'm sure you'd like to do that. Why don't you be like Qiu Ling once and just blackmail someone into doing it for you? I'm sure that troublesome child would love to throw himself into such a task if you gave him a good enough reason."
"Isn't he your chosen successor? Why would you make things difficult for him?"
"Ah, I'm not making things difficult for him. I'm just … giving him something to do. The crown prince still needs to finish his trial anyway. It's better if Qiu Ling doesn't interfere too much. So it wouldn't be too bad to find a reason for him to do something else."
"Mn. I'll think of something."
"Do so. After you've recovered." Jinde smiled and patted his arm. "I'll leave you alone. Sleep for a while. After that … you can do what you want."
"Mn." Xin Lan watched him leave and closed his eyes. Well, if his Master insisted … then naturally, that was what he would do. Mn, resting for a while wasn't too bad, actually. He could gain back some strength and then, he'd go and find out more. If he couldn't be the most important person in his Master's life, he wanted to be the most useful at least.