Lei walked over to Yu Min. "You planned all of this?" Lei asked as she got to him.
"So, the girls did rat me out," Yu Min stated, "I did. I thought maybe you wanted a small welcome back party."
"Well, I'm thankful that you planned a welcome back party for me and that you got Professor's approval for doing it," Lei mentioned.
"Well, Wenran did that. I just got it all set up," Yu Min said.
Lei smiled as she looked at him. "You came up with it, so." Lei walked closer to him, got on her tippy-toes, and kissed Yu Min's cheek, before she headed back.
Yu Min froze for a second. "Lei Feng!!" he exclaimed as he was red.
Lei heard and giggled. Once she got back to the classroom, she would hear arguing. Lei would see who was arguing.
As she got closer, she would see Wenran and Lao Mao bickering at each other.
"Lao Mao, you bumped into me and expect me to apologize?" Wenran stated in a furious tone.
"Uh, you bumped into me," Lao Mao replied.
Lei could feel the heat coming from Wenran.
"I don't want to get mad. Lei just came back from her leave. But if you don't say sorry then I won't show mercy," she mentioned.
"Oh no. What are you going to do about it? You're a weak little girl," Lao Mao said as he smiled.
"Oh, you asked for it," Wenran said as she slapped him across the face, leaving a mark where she slapped him.
Everyone around them started laughing.
Lao Mao held his cheek, "wow, I didn't know that you hit so hard for a little girl."
"Lao Mao, you must have a dea-" Wenran said as she saw her father walk out of his classroom.
Professor Shiqi Juan walked out of his classroom and saw the commotion and then saw who was in the middle. He let out a small chuckle as he walked over. "Lao Mao, I'm shocked that no one told you not to mess with Wenran," he stated as he got over to them.
Lao Mao looked at Wenran before looking at Professor Shiqi Juan, "Professor, I wanted to see if what people had said were true."
"Of course, they're true, idiot," Wenran chimed in.
"Wenran, that's enough. Everyone go back to class!" Professor Shiqi Juan said. "Except for Lao Mao."
Everyone nodded and headed to class. Lao Mao stayed put.
"Now, what started this," Professor Shiqi Juan asked.
"Lao Mao bumped into me and hasn't apologized to me yet," Wenran said.
"Lao Mao, apologize to her right now," Professor Shiqi Juan demanded.
Lao Mao looked at Wenran, "I'm sorry for bumping into you and making you mad."
"It's fine, I guess," Wenran replied.
"Good, now you two get to class," Professor Shiqi Juan said.
They both nodded and headed to class.
Lei, Shen, and Tao were shocked about what just happened.
Professor Shiqi Juan saw that they were still here, "you three get to class."
They nodded and headed to class.
After class, the four girls head to the dining hall area to take a break and have a snack break. They sat down as they got there. Lao Mao saw them, but just stayed where he was.
Yu Min walked over to them, sat down with them. "So, I heard that Lao Mao got the wrath of Wenran?"
Wenran nodded as she read her book and ate the snacks.
"It was funny," Lei mentioned.
"I bet it was. Also, Lei, after college gets out, I need to talk to you about something," Yu Min stated.
"Ok," Lei said as she ate some of the snacks.
After a while, college got out. Lei, Tao, Shen, and Wenran said bye to each other as Lei waited for Yu Min.
As she waited for Yu Min, she would think about what she did before she headed to class. Lei would go red, just the thought of it.
Yu Min would walk up behind her and scare her.
Lei screams and punches him, "Yu Min, really?"
Yu Min would hold his arm where Lei punched him, "yes and I'm sorry."
"It's fine. What is it you want to talk about?" Lei asked as she probably already knows what he wants to talk about.
"Earlier today, before you headed to class. What was that about?"
Lei goes red, "well, you see it was a thank you for planning a welcome back party for me."
"Nothing else?"
"N-No," she stuttered. Her stuttering gives it a way that it was something else as well.
"Lei, you're stuttering and red. So, the kiss is something else besides a 'thank you,'" Yu Min stated.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Yu Min," she said as she started to walk away.
Yu Min grabbed her, pulled her in, and kissed her. Lei's eyes widened, but slowly closed as she kissed back. They kiss for a minute before pulling away.
Lei was bright red, so was Yu Min, but not red as Lei was.
They stayed in awkward silence before Lei ran home without saying anything.
Yu Min watched her leave. He was smiling, knowing that they have the same feelings about each other. Yu Min headed back to his mansion.
Once she got back to her mansion and to her room, she flops on her bed and screams into her pillow. She couldn't believe what just happened.
The servants walking past her room were confused but also understood what happened to her. They giggle and chuckle after they get away from her room.
"Lei Feng, get a hold of yourself," Lei stopped screaming and slapped herself. "I can't let anyone know about what happened. I should probably go over to Yu Min's mansion to ask him not to tell anyone about what happened between them," Lei rambled as she sat up, got up, and went to change into her normal clothes. She got changed and headed to Yu Min's mansion.
As she was headed there, Lei saw that she was being followed. So, she tried to lose them. Lei would just walk around the plaza area, bobbing and weaving through the people. As she did it, she would put on a coat. Lei would look back to see if she had lost them and as far as she's aware, she had. She continued her way to Yu Min's.
Lei got to Yu Min and would knock.
Jiang was passing by the gate as Lei knocked so she opened the gate to see who was there. "Lei? What are you doing here?"
"I need to see Yu Min," Lei said.
"Ok. He should be in his room or the training area," Jiang stated as she smiled.
"Ok, thanks Auntie," Lei smiled as she walked in and went to find Yu Min. She walked to Yu Min's room first.
When she got to his room, she would hear something coming from his room. Lei got closer to hear what it was. When she got close, she heard Yu Min's and Dai Hui's voices. She decided to eavesdrop.
It seemed like they were talking about the mission and how Lei was attacked by Kai and some of the army of the people that Lei's after.
"Dai, we need to keep an eye out for Kai, but we also need to keep an eye on Lei," Yu Min stated.
"No duh. I've been keeping an eye out for him and the people. I've also been trying to watch to make sure Lei is fine when she leaves the kingdom," Dai Hui said.
"Ok. How's your part doing?"
"It's going well. My men are ready for whenever you guys need them," Dai Hui said.
"Good. We might need them soon," Yu Min stated.
Lei was confused. 'Are they talking about the mission?' Lei thought to herself.
"Ok. Just give the word"
"Alright. Since we have that done, is there anything?" Yu Min asked.
"I don't think so," Dai Hui replied.
"Then if there's nothing yet, then you can leave."
Dai Hui nodded and started to leave.
Lei's eyes widened as she tried to figure out where to go. She figured out what she was going to do. Lei went to a tree nearby and waited for Dai Hui to leave so that it wouldn't seem like she had been eavesdropping. Dai Hui left and so Lei started walking towards Yu Min's room.
She would knock on his door as she called out his name. "YU MIN!"
Yu Min would go to the door and open it, smiling. "What is it now, Lei?"
"I have a request for what happened at the gates of the college," Lei stated.
"Ok. I might be able to take the request. What is said request?"
Lei walked in and said, "the request is not to tell anyone about it or us."
Yu Min closed the door, walked over to her, and looked at her, confused like. "Why?"
"Because, because I know Dai Hui and Bai Chun would try to break us up. The girls wouldn't stop teasing us, more me than you," she looked at him with a serious face, but would have a pink hue to her face.
"Ok. I won't tell anyone. Are we also going to keep it from the parents?"
Lei would think about it for a moment before she spoke, "yes. But not because they would be against us, but because they would make it a big thing."
Yu Min nodded as he understood. "I understand."
"You better or else," she threatened him.
"What will you do?" Yu Min questioned as he walked closer to her.
Lei would start backing up and respond, "I'll-I'll-I…uhh."
Yu Min would still be getting closer to her, "you'll what?" He was smirking.
Lei would back up into a desk, making her lend back as her hands were keeping her from falling. She was bright red. "I'll hurt you!" she exclaimed.
Yu Min would "slam" his hands on the desk, blocking Lei from getting away from him. He was still smirking. "So, you would hurt me if I told anyone?"
She would gulp and nod. "Yes."
"Are you sure you would do that?" He asked as he leaned forward.
Lei hesitated and then nodded. At the moment, Lei was red.
Yu Min chuckled and kissed her. She kissed back, relaxing her arms as they were starting to hurt. Lei had started to fall back, but Yu Min caught her before she could get hurt. They kept kissing until Yu Min's personal servant knocked on the door telling him that dinner was ready and that Lady Lei could dine with them.
They stopped kissing and Yu Min would call out, "Ok! We'll be right there!"
Lei chuckled as she fixed her hanfu.
"Ok. I'll tell Master and Mistress that you two will be there soon," Xue said as he left.
"That was a close call," Yu Min stated as he chuckled.
"Yeah. It was," Lei looked at him, "we should head there, before they think of anything."
Yu Min nodded as he took her hand and walked to the dining room area.
They got to the dining hall and walked in. Lei smiled at the servants. The servants smiled back at her.
Jiang saw them and smiled. "Hello my lovebirds."
"Auntie!" Lei exclaimed as she went red.
Yu Min and Jiang chuckled.
"Come sit," Qin was smiling.
Lei and Yu Min nodded as they went and sat down at the table. Lei sat next to Jiang and Yu Min. Yu Min sat next to his father and Lei.
"So, how long have you two been together?" Jiang asked Lei.
Lei's eyes widened. "Uhhhh…Well, today?"
"You two just got together today?" Jiang said.
"Yes," Lei replied.
"Mother, really?" Yu Min asked.
"Yes, Yu Min. It's been obvious that you two liked each other for a long time," Jiang stated.
"Really? Has it been that obvious?" Lei asked, quietly.
Qin and Jiang chuckled. "It's been really obvious. We're just shocked that you two didn't notice sooner," Qin said.
"Oh-oh," Lei mumbled.
"I guess that shows us that Lei and I were clueless about our feelings together." Yu Min chuckled.
"I guess you're right about that son," Qin said.
As they were talking, the maid brought in the food. They got to eat as they talked and laughed.
After a while, they had finished eating and Yu Min was walking Lei home.
"Hey Yu Min?" Lei asked, curious about what they are. She wants to make sure that they are of the same mindset.
"Yes?"
"What are we? I mean I just want to make sure that we're thinking the same thing," Lei asked as she stopped and looked up at him.
"What do you want us to be?" Yu Min replied.
"I want us to be boyfriend and girlfriend," Lei said, quietly.
Yu Min heard and smiled. "Then, we're boyfriend and girlfriend."
Lei smiled as she's glad that they were of the same mindset.
They started walking again and got back to Lei's mansion. Yu Min would walk her to the gate.
"Yu Min, you don't have to walk me to the gate of my mansion," Lei stated, smiling.
"You're right and I don't have to, but I want to," he mentioned as he smiled.
"Really?"
"Yes, because I love being with you. Plus, walking gives me more time with you until the next day," he stated as he looked at her as if it was the last time that they would be able to see each other.
Lei would fall for how he responded, but would also see right through it, "you say that as if it was the last time we'll see each other."
"I'm only stating the truth."
"Sure, you are," Lei giggled as she kissed his cheek before heading into her mansion after she waved bye.
"I am," he smiled, "night!" With that, he headed back to his mansion.
Meanwhile with Kai and his boss.
"I'm so sorry, boss. Lei knows that I'm a part of your group," Kai said as he was kneeling in front of her.
"Kai, why should I forgive you when you gave out your position and gave her a big lead?" she asked as she was cleaning her sword.
"I was hoping that she would fall for the trap, and I would've kidnapped her and brought her to you," he stated.
The boss looked at him and gave him the death stare. "Boys, lock him up and write a letter for his parents saying that he's gone on a trip with a few of his classmates and won't be back for a month or so."
Three boys nodded as they dragged him to the cells.
It's now morning. Lei was up and getting ready for college. She was grabbing a reddish-pinkish apple as she headed to college.
As Lei was about to the college, Yu Min saw her and went to walk with her. He grabbed her hand.
Lei jumped a bit as she looked at who it was. She smiled. "Morning, Yu Min."
"Morning, m'love," he smiled back, "how did you sleep last night?"
"I slept pretty well," she said as she didn't want to tell him that she had a weird dream. "How did you sleep last night?"
"I slept amazing," he smiled.
They talked and held hands as they walked to the college. Once they got to the college, Lei let go of Yu Min's hand and walked in first.
Yu Min was quite offended by that, but he understood. He walked in and headed to his friends.
Lei got to her classroom and went to set down her bag. She set down her bag and headed to find her friends.
While Lei goes to find her friends, Yu Min gets to his friend group. Lao Mao was "fighting" Kang Fang, like normal. The other one, He Zhihao, was done with the two. Zhihao noticed Yu Min and waved at him.
"Lao Mao and Kang Fang, really?" Yu Min questioned.
Lao Mao gets punched in the face by Kang Fang and gets knocked down.
"Yu Min, Lao Mao starts the fights," Kang Fang stated as he helped Lao Mao up.
"I know. Also, who dared Lao Mao to make Wenran angry?" he asked.
"It wasn't one of us. It was that Kai boy. Lao Mao didn't want to, but Kai is blackmailing him," He Zhihao chimed in.
"What could Kai possibly blackmail Lao Mao with?" Yu Min looked at them.
"I don't know, but Lao Mao won't say what it is," Kang Fang stated.
Yu Min looked at Lao Mao.
Lao Mao looked away. "I'm not saying what it is that he knows."
"Lao Mao, you do know that you can turn him in for blackmailing you, right?"
Lao Mao knew, of course, but he also knew if he turned him in, he would hurt his love. All he could do was nod.
Yu Min had a feeling he knew what he was being blackmailed with. "Boys, we need to keep an eye on the girls and Kai."
They all nodded.
A while later, it was noon. The girls and the boys were eating lunch, except for Lei. She felt uneasy. Lei felt it because she hadn't seen Kai or any of his goons and also because the school is going by smoothly and it never goes by smoothly. It doesn't show that Lei felt uneasy.
"Hey, I'm going to go back to the class to work on something that I've been working on," Lei said as she got up and went to head to the classroom, "and I don't want anyone to come with me. I don't want to get distracted." She headed to the classroom before anyone could reply.
Everyone looked at each other and then watched her leave.
Lei got to the classroom and went to her seat to think why she hadn't seen Kai or any of his goons. Also, to think what that was today would make the school day go by smoothly. "Why has today gone by so smoothly? But most importantly where is Kai and his goons?" She rambled to herself. "It couldn't because everyone knows something that I don't, could it?" Lei went off on a little rant to herself until it was time for class to begin.
Professor Shiqi Juan walked in and saw that Lei was in the classroom, rambling to herself. "Lei?" He called out, not wanting to scare her.
Lei jumped slightly and then looked. She saw Professor Shiqi Juan and stood up and bowed. "Sorry, Professor. I wanted to work on the mission a bit more by myself. I also wanted to write down what I've found or figured out," she stated.
"It's fine. How is your mission going?" He asked.
"Good. I've gotten a lot of clues and hints," she mentioned.
"That's good," Professor smiled as he went to his table in the front of the room, "Lei, you can sit down."
She nodded as she sat down.
The other three walked in and went to their seats.
Class started as the others sat down.
A while later. College was over and the girls went to the gate to wait for the boys as they were going to go and hang out at the restaurant for a bit. Lei would be somewhere else. Her friends would notice but didn't say anything to her.
The boys would get there. Right away, Yu Min noticed that Lei was somewhere else. He would look at the girls.
The girls would shrug.
"Everyone is here. Let's get going!" Shen exclaimed as she started walking.
Everyone nodded and followed, except for Lei and Yu Min.
Yu Min waited for the group to get a head before he spoke. "Love?"
Lei came back to reality as she jumped. She saw Yu Min. "Yes?"
"Are you ok?" He asked as he walked over to her.
"Yeah-yeah, I'm fine," she answered as she put on a fake smile so she could reassure him.
Yu Min saw right through her. "Lei, if anything is bothering you, you can tell me."
"I know," she said, "let's catch up with the group." And with that said, she started walking.
Yu Min was worried about her. He nodded and walked with her.
They got caught up with the group, which didn't notice that they weren't with them. The group was talking about their day. Before Yu Min and Lei had caught up to them, they were talking about how Lei had been off the entire day.
The group got to the restaurant and went to a room. They got to the room, walked in, and sat down.
Yu Min sat next to Lei and He Zhihao. Lei next to Tao. Tao next to Kang Fang. Kang Fang next to Shen. Shen next to Lao Mao. Lao next to Wenran. Wenran next to He Zhihao and Lao Mao.
They ordered after talking about what they wanted.
"Hey Lei?" Shen looked at Lei.
"Yes, my bandit?" Lei replied.
"Are you ok? You've been acting strange today," she mentioned.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I just have more than I can take," she replied.
They all look at her with worry and sadness.
"Don't worry. I'm fine, plus Prince Zhen told me that my parents are coming home sometime next week," Lei said as she smiled.
"That's amazing that your parents are coming home from battles," everyone chimed in.
"Yeah," she answered as she kept smiling.
Everyone smiled.
"So, has anyone found out anything?" Lei asked even though she knew that she couldn't talk about the mission or any school or work-related things.
Everyone looked at her, Yu Min sighed before he spoke. "Lei, let's not talk about the mission or anything related to it."
Lei nodded.
"Let's talk about something else like what's been going on besides school, work, and the mission," He Zhihao chimed in.
"Ok." Lei said as everyone started talking about what was going on in their lives.
After a while, they got their food, ate, and after they finished eating, they left. The three boys and the three girls left all together. Yu Min and Lei left together as well. They headed to their spot in the kingdom.
They got to their spot and right as they got there, Lei went to her spot and was already smiling.
Yu Min had noticed and was smiling as well. He had missed seeing her smile, since he knew she was faking the smiles earlier. "Lei, I'm glad that you're smiling," Yu Min mentioned as he walked over to her.
Lei kept smiling and looked at him. "How can I not smile? This spot is the most beautiful view in the kingdom."
Yu Min chuckled. "You're right about that, but the most beautiful person here is you."
Lei looked at him and blushed. "Really? That was terrible."
"No, it wasn't. You just aren't ready for the compliments from me," Yu Min stated as he got to her and wrapped his arms around her, kind of like a hug from behind.
"True," she smiled as she melted in his arms.
Yu Min smiled back with his arms still wrapped around her waist. He wanted to ask her what was going on earlier, but he didn't want to ruin the mood.
They just stood at the spot, looking up at the sky. Lei was starting to fall asleep in Yu Min's arms. Yu Min noticed and smiled. He let her fall asleep in his arms, and to which she did. Yu Min picked her up and carried her back to her mansion.
Yu Min carried Lei back to her mansion and to her room. He put her to bed and left after he gave her a goodnight kiss on the forehead.
The next day. It was a day off of college. Lei decided to go and train with the other guards so that she could see if there was anything new with them.
Lei would get to the guard station, and everyone ran over to her and hugged her.
"Lei, you're back and healed," all of them said.
"Yeah," she smiled and hugged back, "is there anything I should know about?"
Everyone, but one shook their head no.
"Ok, go and continue whatever you were doing before I got here," Lei said.
They nodded and went back to whatever they were doing, except for the one who didn't shake their head.
"Lei, I have something to show you," he said.
"What is it? Did you find something out with the bodies from when I was attacked that one day?" she asked.
He nodded, "follow me." With that said, he walked to the biopsy building.
Lei followed.
They would get to the biopsy building. Fu Xia would open the door for Lei. Lei walked in and towards the room. Fu Xia followed her.
Fu Xia got to her and removed a sheet from one of the bodies of the people who attacked Lei. "This one is who you fought with. From what I had gathered of what killed him, it was a poison tablet that would instantly kill someone if bitten."
Lei walked over and examined the body as she listened to Fu Xia. "So, if they got caught, they would bite the tablet and basically kill themselves with it." Lei looked up at him.
He nodded as he went to grab two pairs of gloves. He grabbed them and gave one pair to Lei and put on the other pair. "If you could put on the gloves and feel his skin."
Lei took the pair of gloves and started to feel his skin. "It's hard, but also squishy," she stated as she noticed a tattoo on his neck, "hey Fu Xia?"
"Yes, Lei?" He replied.
"Are there tattoos on the others?"
Fu Xia tried to remember if he did see any tattoos on the others. "I don't believe so, why?"
"There's a tattoo of a duckweed on his neck," Lei stated as she walked over to the others to check to see if they have a duckweed tattoo on their necks and they did.
Fu Xia went to see the tattoo that was on the person's neck. "I guess I didn't see it when I was examining the bodies. I'm sorry, Lei."
"It's fine. I guess it will be easier to spot them now that we know that they have a duckweed tattoo on their necks. That also means we will need to check every guard and knight to see if they have the same tattoo as they do," Lei mentioned.
"Ok. Want to do it now or?" Fu Xia asked as he covered the bodies with the sheets.
"Yes, and while you're at it ask them questions about why they have a tattoo on their neck."
Fu Xia nodded, "ok. Will do." And with that said, he left.
Lei stayed to see if they had missed anything. She finds something in one of the pockets. She puts it up and examines it. It was a note from the boss of the group. Lei opens it and reads it. The note read:
"You and your men need to follow Kai's orders and if you or any of your men get caught by Lei or the guards, bite the poison tablet. We can't let anyone get caught and tell them what we're after.
Boss"
"So, it was planned by the boss of the group," Lei rambles as she would continue to see if there was anything else on the others. There wasn't. "I guess I should take this and see if the professor knows the handwriting," she rambles again as she goes to leave.
Lei heads to Juan's mansion to see if Professor Shiqi knows the handwriting. She would get the mansion and knock on the gate.
One of the servants opened the door, "Miss Feng, what are you doing here?"
"I came to see Professor Shiqi. I have something to show and ask him," Lei stated.
"Ok, well Master Shiqi is a bit busy right now, but I could tell him that you are here to see him once he's less busy," he replied.
"Oh. Ok. It's fine. If he's busy then I don't want to bother him," Lei mentioned.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, plus I can go and ask someone else," she said as she smiled.
"Ok. Do you want me to tell him that you were here to see him?"
"Sure, but also tell him that I went to someone else for help," Lei said.
"Ok. I will do that," he stated.
"Ok. Thank you. I will get going then. Bye," she said as she left.
"Bye," he waved as he closed the gate and headed back.
As Lei was walking, she realized that the servant was acting weird. "Why was the servant acting weirdly?" she mumbled to herself. Lei looked back to see if the guards were acting differently or looked different, but they were the same. Lei decided to jump over the wall to see if there was anything suspicious going on. To her surprise, everything is normal. She decided to walk around and would walk to Wenran's room. Once she got there, Wenran would quickly grab her and pull her into her room.
Wenran would put her finger to her lips, indicating to be quiet.
Lei nodded. She would mouth, "What's going on? Who's here?"
"I don't know who's here, but they're saying that my dad is a part of the group of people," Wenran mouthed back.
"What? Does he have a duckweed tattoo on his neck?"
Wenran shook her head. "They found a letter or a paper from the leader of the group in my dad's office."
"That can't be right. Also, who gave them the order to look through offical's homes?"
"You did, Lei," Wenran said.
"No, I didn't. I told Fu Xia to check the guards and knights for a duckweed tattoo on their neck. Not to search the officials," Lei stated. Lei didn't say anything like that or signed anything saying that.
"Well, you did. There's proof that you gave them the order and permission."
"No-no," Lei stuttered as she couldn't believe that someone would do something like this, "I need to go and see who it is."
"Lei, that's not safe nor is it a good idea," Wenran stated.
"I have to see who I'm up against when I go and tell the emperor about this," Lei replied back.
"Fine. If you're going, then I'm coming with you," Wenran mentioned.
"No, it's too dangerous and I don't want you to get hurt," Lei stated as she put her hands on her shoulders, looking serious.