Qiu Ling slumped back onto his chair. He remembered that damn day his other mother-in-law had denied him entry very well. Normally, he was a very sensible dragon but on that day, he lost all reasoning. He had thought his beloved was with another man and his imagination had supplied him with all kinds of things the two of them might be doing.

Just imagining how some other man gazed heatedly at his beloved and even dared to touch him! Such impudence! At that point in time, he hadn’t even held Jing He’s hand yet! Well, at least not with Jing He’s consent. He had grabbed his hands once or twice when he was too excited to control his emotions.

Anyway, on that day, his mother-in-law had also claimed that he was imagining things and that nothing was happening but he hadn’t wanted to hear that. He wanted to see his beloved so he could make sure nothing was going on. He just wanted to make sure.

In the end, he made such a commotion that the guards and the Heavenly Emperor himself hurried over. And finally, that door opened to reveal two men. Qiu Ling leaped in front of Jing He and conveniently pushed that other man to the side.

Not caring about Jing He’s parents behind him or the guards that were eying him suspiciously, he clasped his hands and smiled. "Jing He, my dear, I was yearning to see you." His voice turned gentler all on its own.

The anger he felt before, the fear of losing the one whose heart he was just obtaining … Oh? Had there been something like that? Just look at him! Jing He’s clothes were without wrinkles, every hair on his head in its place. Though he still felt miffed that his beloved had spent time alone with another man, he already knew his worst imaginations hadn’t come true. He only felt warm and fuzzy inside, happy to see his beloved again.

"Long … Longjun." Jing He had looked a little uncomfortable though.

They had just been at the point where Qiu Ling’s courting showed effect: Jing He had let his guard down around him, quietly being in his company or holding a conversation. He’d smile every now and then and he didn’t shy away anymore when Qiu Ling came close.

But they weren’t at the point where they could be called a couple. This was still Qiu Ling courting the Son of Heaven, hardly seeing the first results. Jing He had barely started calling him by his name then instead of his title. And in front of all those people, he reverted back to his old way.

He tried to take his hands back with that greeting and move out of Qiu Ling’s reach. But would the dragon king let him have his way so easily? Of course not! When Jing He moved, he moved too, following him until he once again stood before him with next to no space separating them. And of course, he held onto Jing He’s hands.

Seeing that, the guards had enough. This was their beloved crown prince who was being pressured here! In their eyes, this was a scene of a beast tyrannizing a gentleman, who was too kind to fight back. How dare that filthy snake touch their Son of Heaven!

The tips of a dozen spears pointed at Qiu Ling’s neck. He didn’t care though. Instead, he pulled Jing He’s hands closer and leaned forward. With their difference in height Jing He had to look up. Their close proximity contributed to turning this into … a slightly more ambiguous sight.

Some of the guards turned red seeing this and the Heavenly Emperor hollered at Qiu Ling. "What do you think you are doing with our son, Longjun? Get your hands off him right now! Is the crown prince of the Nine Heavens someone you can touch so easily?!"

Unfortunately, his roars didn’t yield any result and yes, obviously the crown prince was someone he could touch that easily. What could they do? Fight with him? He was still the king of the dragon race! It would lead to an all-out war if he came to harm in their realm! Especially if nothing had happened to the crown prince.

Qiu Ling knew that, of course, so he didn’t bother heeding any of these warnings. He just lowered his voice and started caressing Jing He’s hands. "You know, I sent Fu Min over with a message for you but he couldn’t find you. So I thought … Why shouldn’t I come over myself? I hope you don’t mind. The truth is, I just couldn’t wait to see you again. You know, your smile is haunting me. Last night —"

Someone grabbed his wrist and forced his hands off of his beloved before he could tell the rest of the story. With a crabby mood, Qiu Ling turned around. Upon seeing the man that stood in front of him, it got even worse.

It was him. That was the guy Fu Min had seen his beloved with. That was the man that had come together with Jing He. Alright! He wanted to challenge him? It was his pleasure! Please provoke me, so I have a valid reason to rip you apart! The killing intent radiating off of him let Jing He next to him shudder but he was unable to retract it.

There was one thing about falling in love with a dragon one should never forget: They were faithful but jealous people. Extremely jealous people. If a dragon found their partner cheating on them, it might happen that they killed them. But with a probability nearing certainty they would fight with the one they had been cheated on with until either of them died.

Even though he was sure nothing had happened between Jing He and that man, Qiu Ling was prepared for such a fight. That guy certainly wouldn’t have come near his beloved if he didn’t have some intentions toward him. But this would end here. He wouldn’t give him any chance. Jing He was his. Nobody else could have him.

The man smiled wryly. "Longjun. Care to tell me what you are trying to do to my nephew?"

"Hah?" Qiu Ling blinked, not understanding anything.

The man snorted. "I’m afraid we haven’t had the pleasure of meeting yet," he said, even though he could remember a dozen occasions where they had seen each other. "I am the God of War, Qiang Yan, the Heavenly Empress’ brother and Jing He’s uncle."

"Oh. I … I didn’t want to do anything. I just came by to say hello. I … actually, I have something really important to do now." He gave a strained smile, turned around and fled.

The important thing he had to do? Of course, it was giving that damned Fu Min a good beating! How dare he report strange things back to him?! He had made a fool out of himself in front of his beloved!