Shen An De was lost in his own thoughts for a while before he pulled himself out of it. He couldn’t make sure of any of those conjectures but he still wanted to know what was up in general. After all, even though he couldn’t contend with the dragon king in terms of strength, he didn’t believe that his intelligence couldn’t keep up either. As long as he gathered enough information, they would be far less vulnerable in the future.

Thinking of that, Shen An De smiled, picked up some food, and put it into his wife’s bowl. For now, he’d just leave breaking the ice to Hong Bao. She was chatty enough that even that Longjun shouldn’t have an opportunity to interfere. And after that, he could make use of the atmosphere to slowly wriggle some more information out of them.

Shen An De’s plan seemed to work quite well. It didn’t take long until Hong Bao stopped eating and examined Jing Yi instead, making him a little flustered.

"Mn … Miss Hong, is something the matter?"

"You can call me Hong Bao!" She sidled closer and smiled. "After all, I’m helping you with organizing your wedding. So we’ll be spending a lot of time together from now on! It’s better to be on close terms for that, right?"

Jing Yi smiled. That was also what he wanted. There wasn’t much that he could ask while the Grandmaster was sitting right next to them but when they were alone it wouldn’t be a problem anymore. He should make use of this opportunity.

Qiu Ling wasn’t thrilled though. "What are you talking about?" he snapped at her. "Jing’er is going to spend his time with me." To make sure his point came across, he snaked an arm around Jing Yi’s waist once more and pulled him over.

Jing Yi lost his balance and tumbled against Qiu Ling’s chest. While his fiance smiled contentedly he blushed. Could this get any more embarrassing for him?! He bit his lower lip and stared up at him. "Long Jun!"

Shen An De slightly raised a brow. Was this him being formal in front of other people or … his mind churned. Most demons might be evil by nature but that didn’t mean that the dragons weren’t crafty, especially one as old as the dragon king that had reigned longer than the demon king or the Heavenly Emperor of the gods. The things he had told him before … he only believed half of it which was why he was trying to make sure.

The one thing that he could believe easily was that the Son of Heaven might indeed have descended to the mortal realm. But the specifics of that situation were still much too vague and he wouldn’t trust any answer the dragon king might give when asked. No matter how easy-going that guy seemed, he definitely had his own goals in mind.

For now, there was nothing that Shen An De could be certain of. There were only several questions. Maybe the Son of Heaven didn’t know about his fiance’s identity if his memories had really been sealed for the time being. But then why would he call him by his official title? Was he aware after all? Then how much did he know? Could he remember who he himself was right now?

While the Grandmaster of the Hei Dian Sect was worrying by himself, Qiu Ling continued to act shamelessly. "Mn. My love, I’m here!" He smiled sweetly and gently helped Jing Yi up, making him unable to scold him. Not that Jing Yi would have wanted to do so in front of the Grandmaster.

Jing Yi wanted to slip back to his own seat but Qiu Ling didn’t let go of him, clearly not intending to sit separately. Jing Yi froze. It was inappropriate to sit like this when they had been formally invited to someone who had a higher status in the sect. But it would be just as inappropriate if he started to quarrel with Qiu Ling in front of that person.

Shen An De looked over, smiled lightly, and grabbed a bowl of fruits, extending it toward his wife. "Have one."

Hong Ai smiled sweetly. "Thank you, my dear." Obviously, she also had no problem with what was happening on the other side of the table.

Hong Bao extended her hand. "Me, too, brother-in-law! Me too!"

Shen An De sighed and handed the bowl over. Hong Bao took one of the fruits and reached for another when Shen An De cleared his throat.

"Xiao Bao, shouldn’t you offer them to our guests? There’s only five, after all."

Hong Bao hesitated. Honestly, she was a glutton and she knew it but these were the people whose wedding she was planning. She should really offer them the last fruits. With a slightly miffed expression, Hong Bao turned around and held the bowl in front of Jing Yi.

Seeing that nobody cared for Qiu Ling’s antics Jing Yi had calmed down. He shook his head. "It’s alright. Just take them yourself."

Hong Bao’s expression brightened but once again her brother-in-law thwarted her plans.

"Just take them. It’s not like I’m not feeding her daily. Moreover, she has already attained a higher realm than you. She actually doesn’t need to eat anymore."

"Oh." Jing Yi hesitated. It would be impolite not to take one when the Grandmaster put it like that but it also wouldn’t feel right to take one when Hong Bao obviously wanted them while he didn’t care for them that much.

Qiu Ling took the decision upon himself. He reached over and picked one of the fruits up before scrutinizing it. He also took a look at Shen An De to make sure that demon hadn’t any other plans. Who knew if this thing was poisoned?

He carefully took a bite. Chewing it, he couldn’t find anything peculiar about it. Mn, it seemed this guy wasn’t as bad as he had thought. The fruits were actually alright. With a smile, he offered the rest of the fruit up to Jing Yi. "Have a bite, my love."

Jing Yi looked at the fruit in Qiu Ling’s hands. This … wasn’t too good, was it? But Qiu Ling’s expression was too eager to not give in. Jing Yi smiled and took the fruit. Next to him, Hong Bao perked up and happily gobbled down the rest of the fruits. Shen An De watched attentively as Jing Yi bit down. He really was interested in seeing what would happen next.