Wang Li Xun, the Crown Prince, goes out hunting for the Celestial Flower to save his mother from a terminal illness. When he nearly dies from the attack of a mythical beast, he is saved by a mysterious boy who lives in the mountains.
To repay his ki...
"Eat," Li Xun ordered. "How is it that you have grown skinnier? I didn't bring you to the palace to be starved. And I heard about your excellent sword-fighting skills, but the sword master mentioned that your stamina isn't as good as the rest. Is the training putting a toll on you?"
"I'm fine, Your Highness," he reassured him, grateful for his concern. "I can endure the hardship."
He picked up his chopsticks, lifted the bottom part of his mask slightly and shoved the food into his mouth. As Li Xun watched him eat with vigour, he picked the vegetables and meat with his chopsticks and placed them into his bowl.
"Anyway," he carried on, "you should head to the library when you're free. I do believe that there are a lot of books you might be interested in."
Heat crawled up Long'Er's neck in embarrassment, up to the tip of his ears. He squirmed nervously in his seat, knowing that he was caught in his act. "My apologies, Your Highness. I didn't mean to be distracted during my duty."
A small smile tugged at Li Xun's lips. "You don't have to apologise. The desire to obtain knowledge is not a crime."
They continued eating. It wasn't often he could have the opportunity to share a meal with his friend and, he realised, that it definitely made his food taste more delicious.
"What do you say we head over to the library after this? I can show you the place," he suggested. After all, he didn't have any urgent paperwork to complete. Taking a few hours for a short break didn't seem to pose much of a problem.
Long'Er was hesitant, but his eyes betrayed him with a glow of interest.
"If you insist."
Li Xun chuckled at his response. As the boy resumed eating, he observed him with a curious grin.
"Where did you learn to read anyway?"
As much as he was aware of, education was only readily provided for the rich as schools were few in numbers. Villagers living in the rural areas would find it incredibly difficult to obtain such an opportunity. It was a problem he would address once he was made Emperor in the future, when he would wield more power over the ministers whom he knew were all strongly against this idea.
"My mother taught me," Long'Er replied. "She taught me everything that I needed to know."
"Sounds like an extremely intelligent woman. She must be so proud of you. Will I have a chance to meet her in the future?"
He froze in the midst of drinking from a bowl of watercress soup, looking at Li Xun with cautious eyes . "I'm afraid that would be rather difficult."
But being the nosy person he was, he probed further. "Why would that be?"
"It's...complicated."
Li Xun frowned. "What about your father?"
He had only begun asking, but Long'Er was quick enough to silent him. When he least expected it, a piece of rolled egg was shoved into his mouth to keep him busy, forcing him to drop the conversation.
Forced to chew his food, Li Xun shook his head at Long'Er disapprovingly.
As always, he was being his secretive self.
What exactly was he trying to hide?
"I'll let you go this once," Li Xun mumbled and swallowed hard. "But not the next time."
"Hm? What was that?"
Long'Er swatted the air with his hand, pretending to search for something. "Strange, I swear I heard a bee buzzing in my ears." Turning towards him, he spoke enthusiastically. "Your Highness, the fried fish is really good. Have more of this." He placed pieces of meat and vegetables into his bowl — a way of diverting the conversation from himself.
Whatever that he was trying to hide, Li Xun was determined to unravel his secrets.
Long'Er was a puzzle, one that he was going to solve.
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