Hua Lin Yu stared at Xin Lan, left speechless for a moment. Every now and then, Xin Lan would get so charming it was unbearable. Well, that was probably thanks to leading a long life. Xin Lan just knew how to interact with people. Who knew how many others he had already charmed?
Thinking of that, Hua Lin Yu couldn't help but remember the way Xin Lan had talked to Jinde before. He had been so blatantly flirty that it was hard not to wonder what exactly the story behind that was.
He hesitated for a moment but finally couldn't help but try and ask a bit. "Well, for me, it would only make sense to stay here for as long as my Master stays. So probably at most a few days. But you … you seem to know the couple a bit better. At least Jinde. So maybe you'd like to stay here for a bit longer?" He tried not to show anything but his expression actually looked a little tense.
Xin Lan looked at him, wrapping the strand of his hair further around his fingers, and gave a low hum. "I do know him quite well. I don't think he really wants to see me right now though. He has just gotten married again. I guess, he'd want to spend the time with his husband and not be bothered by other men."
"Ah." Hua Lin Yun nodded slowly and then kept quiet. He couldn't help but still wonder about it though. He really wanted to know what was going on. But he also didn't know if he should ask.
Xin Lan slightly narrowed his eyes, intrigued by Hua Lin Yu's expression. He couldn't help but feel that his Master's idea might have worked after all. He wasn't quite sure yet why but it seemed that Hua Lin Yu was indeed slowly warming up to him again. Well, he couldn't rush that though. He needed for him to come back out of his shell on his own. Otherwise, it would just feel forced again.
Having that thought, Xin Lan stayed silent and just watched Hua Lin Yu squirm. To be honest, deep down, it actually felt quite good seeing this. Being rejected after he was finally ready to actually get married to him had hurt. He couldn't deny that. Now that Hua Lin Yu seemed to start to regret it a little, he felt a bit vindicated. It would good if he could regret it a little more and then they could make up emotionally. In any case, while he had time, he also didn't know how long it would take until his patience ran thin. So he was very much in favor of this.
Hua Lin Yu finally couldn't take it anymore and turned back to Xin Lan, looking up at him with what he hoped to be a neutral expression. "Say, what about you and Jinde? How do you know each other?"
Xin Lan raised his brows imperceptibly. How they knew each other? That was what he wanted to know? He needed a moment but it finally dawned on him: Back when Hua Lin Yu had met Jinde for the first time, he had still been a small child. He hadn't thought about any complicated things and had just been happy to be close to him because he was this kind of bright person that could attract anyone.
But now, he was an adult. A young one maybe but still an adult. He understood this kind of thing to a certain degree at least. So seeing Jinde and how the two of them had acted with each other, he had probably gotten a good idea that there might be something more to this. After all, Jinde's beauty was obvious. Which man wouldn't be attracted? And he had even praised this very beauty today in front of Hua Lin Yu.
His little lover was probably feeling a bit unhappy. Hadn't that also been the case in the dragon realm at the beginning before he made clear that he already had a fiance?
Come to think of it, maybe Hua Lin Yu had felt a little too secure in their relationship. He had already promised to marry him when he was still young. And after he had grown up, Xin Lan had still gone and promised him again. They had waited because of what Hua Lin Yu's family had said, not because they needed this time. And then, after the initial confusion in the dragon realm, he had made sure that nobody else approached him any longer.
With that, maybe Hua Lin Yu had felt that there was nothing worth fighting for. Maybe he had become a bit bored because there was nobody being his rival. Maybe it would be good to remind him every now and then that he was actually somebody that was very much desired, especially in his own race. And maybe it also wouldn't be bad to remind him that just like a human, he was able to change his mind.
If there was an opportunity, he could fall in love with somebody else, be together with somebody else, and give up that spot that had originally been reserved for Hua Lin Yu. Even though he didn't really intend to do that it couldn't be bad to just let him realize that while he currently had his whole heart, things could also change in a heartbeat and that maybe it would be better if he thought things through sooner rather than later.
Thinking of all that, Xin Lan happily obliged to answer Hua Lin Yu's question. "Ah, we met quite a long time ago actually. You know that he was the previous dragon king, right?"
Hua Lin Yu looked at him with wide eyes. He … Well, he felt like he had somewhat known but hadn't been really that aware. "So you had to do with him because of that?"
Xin Lan shook his head though. "Not at first, no. I just wanted to give you a timeline. When we met, he had just acceded to the throne."
"That must've been a long time ago then if he isn't even the king anymore. So, how did you meet?"
For once, there was actually a faint smile on Xin Lan's lips. "Well, he saved my life."