"What? Someone would break such a loving couple apart?!"

Seeing that someone was finally willing to pity him, Qiu Ling jumped at the opportunity to talk about his problems. "Yes, yes!" He nodded with a grieving expression and sat down again. "It’s awful! Everything was going well: I had finally wooed him after many years and we were even preparing to marry. But then that damned old man sent him down to the mortal realm!" Qiu Ling grit his teeth.

"Which old man?"

"The Heavenly Emperor!"

"What?!" Hong Bao straightened up. "How come it’s him again?"

Qiu Ling lifted his brows. "Again? What are you talking about?"

Hong Bao slipped to the seat next to him. "It’s like this: There’s this man I like and —"

"It couldn’t be Jing He?!" Qiu Ling tensed and fixed a vicious glare on her. "You won’t get him! Jing He is mine! I won’t let you take him away!"

"Of course not! Who wants the crown prince? The one I’m —"

"I want him! Who wouldn’t want him? He’s so beautiful, inside and out … Ah, Jing He …" Qiu Ling stared off into space until Hong Bao slapped his arm.

"Heh, I’m still talking to you!"

"Hm?" Qiu Ling turned around. "So, you fell in love with the old man? But he’s already married?"

"How is Shun Tao married?!"

"Shun Tao?" Qiu Ling tilted his head. "Who are you talking about? Weren’t we talking about the Heavenly Emperor?"

"Who is talking about the Heavenly Emperor?" Hong Bao scrunched up her face. "I’m talking about Shun Tao, the Fate’s Scribe."

"The Fate’s Scribe …" Qiu Ling tilted his head in the other direction but couldn’t remember who that was supposed to be.

"You don’t know him? But he’s such an important person!"

The two of them stared at each other. "So … what about the Heavenly Emperor then?"

"He wants to kill him!"

"That bastard!"

"Indeed!"

"Why that?"

"I also don’t understand. But it has something to do with the crown prince’s trial too." Hong Bao’s shoulders drooped.

She had been so sure that this man was the crown prince! But now it had turned out that she hadn’t found the crown prince but his lover instead! How could she be so unlucky?! Would she really have to go to the imperial palace and search for him there?

"Mn, his trial …" Qiu Ling sighed. "I hope he finishes it soon. I don’t want to wait any longer."

Hong Bao turned around to him and grabbed his hands. "Great!"

"What?" Qiu Ling took his hands back. "I’m with Jing He. I won’t consider you regardless of how you approach me."

"Who wants to approach you? I already told you: My one true love is Shun Tao! Why would I even try approaching you?"

"I’m handsome."

"I don’t care about that!"

"You should. Being handsome is an extremely important asset to a man."

Hong Bao pursed her lips. "Shun Tao is extremely handsome too."

"He can’t be that handsome. I’ve never even heard of him." Qiu Ling lifted his brows and looked around. Why was Qiang Wei still not back? He felt like continuing to drink.

Hong Bao harrumphed but didn’t try to argue. This guy had fallen in love with the crown prince. His taste was bad. Though, all of this might not be exactly as she thought. That Heavenly Emperor might be playing a bigger role than the crown prince himself.

"Listen to me!" She grabbed Qiu Ling’s sleeve and pulled at the black fabric.

The dragon king looked at her fingers accusingly.

That should be Jing He’s hand. He should have grabbed him like that and told him with tears in his eyes: 'Qiu Ling, my love, please don’t leave me for even one second. Even if I can’t remember anything while being in the mortal realm, you have to follow me and make sure I’ll fall in love with you all over again!'

Ah, he would sweep him up into his arms, smile casually and grab his chin. 'Don’t you worry, my dear, I won’t let you out of my sight! Wherever you go, I’ll follow along. Don’t you know that you are the most precious to me?'

And then Jing He would smile and circle his neck with his arms, tiptoeing and pecking his lips. And then he would hug him closer, deepening their kiss and —

His arm was rudely shaken and he was pulled out of his thoughts.

Qiu Ling grimaced. "What?"

"I said you should listen to me! Don’t you want to get your lover back as soon as possible?"

Miffed, Qiu Ling turned to the side, pulling his arm away. He had just gotten to the good part … "Of course."

"Then how about I help you? You see that Heavenly Emperor wants to break us up! He said he’d kill Shun Tao if he can’t help the crown prince. But you yourself also said it would be better he goes back home soon and that he didn’t want to come here in the first place."

Qiu Ling raised his brows. He started to like what that little goddess was saying. "What are you getting at?"

"We should do something! Your lover doesn’t want to take this trial and you don’t want him to take it. Shun Tao has to suffer because of that Heavenly Emperor and I want your lover to go back so nothing will happen to Shun Tao!"

"Your point is?"

"We should help your lover to end this trial!"