The rain persisted through the morning. Yushi’s sleep was rather restless, unable to keep Xueye off his mind. Yushi felt drained yet wired at the same time. He was rather slow to rise. The dark clouds made it difficult to discern the time.

Yushi stepped out of the room to be greeted by a warm scent of fragrant rice and a hint of ginger. He wandered into the main living space to see Xueye sitting at the table looking over some of the paperwork they had brought back from his office. His hair was still in the braid and over his shoulders was the robe Yushi had let him borrow. The sight set something inside him all a flutter.

“Oh, good morning, Shujing,” Xueye peered over his thin rimmed, half round reading glasses at Yushi with a delighted smile.

“Is it still morning?” Yushi sighed with faint amusement as he glanced outside to the gloomy rain again.

“It is hard to tell but I think so,” Xueye shrugged as he also looked outside. “I just made a little congee if you are hungry.”

“I thought you said you couldn’t cook,” Yushi felt his heart racing at this domestic side of Xueye.

“It’s more that I don’t have the time, not that I can’t,” Xueye giggled softly. “I’m not the best at it but congee is simple enough. Don’t expect anything too fancy, but it should still be warm. I figured since you slept in, and with what the doctor mentioned, something a little more simple to eat might be nice.”

“Thank you, Xueye,” Yushi smiled softly. It was endearing that Xueye wanted to take care of him without knowing all the specifics. A part of him craved to see this side of Xueye more often. As quickly as he wanted to ensure Xueye’s safety, he was desperately hoping that they could spend more time together like this.

Yushi settled at the table near Xueye, after serving up a bowl of congee for himself. Even though Xueye claimed it was nothing special, he found it quite wonderful. It was warm and comforting, ginger, sesame, scallions and a touch of soy were subtly mixing to just the perfect balance of a delightfully soft savory flavor.

“I think you underestimate yourself,” Yushi smiled. “This is quite good.”

“You think so?” Xueye smiled warmly. “I’m glad you find it palatable.”

“It’s more than just palatable, my dear,” Yushi chuckled. “I could eat this quite often.”

“Then I guess I’ll have to make it for you should you request it,” Xueye traced the edge of one of the papers on the table with a shy smile.

“And If I said I wanted it every day?” Yushi leaned in closer to Xueye to take in that faintly flustered expression.

“I would find the time… Just for you…” Xueye glanced away to hide his flushed cheeks but Yushi didn’t miss the reddened tips of Xueye’s ears.

“I’m honored,” Yushi gently brushed some of Xueye’s white hair behind his ear to get a better look of those peachy cheeks that looked tempting enough to bite. Oh, how the dragon inside him wished to indulge in a taste. Yushi had to fight to suppress that urge, not wanting to scare him off. “I won’t demand that of you as tempting as it may be. You have a lot more to worry about.” Yushi tapped the table near where the paperwork was scattered. “I’ll be grateful enough to have a taste every once in a while,” his voice was rich and deep with almost a pleasant rumble to it.

Xueye’s heart was pounding louder than the rain outside, he genuinely hoped Yushi couldn’t hear it. “Must you tease me first thing?”

“You make it all too easy,” Yushi smirked, leaning on the table resting his head in his hand.

Xueye whimpered in a pout. The sound stirred something in Yushi. It brought back that searing desire he experienced the night before. He had a deep seated hunger to devour more of those delightful noises.

Yushi closed his eyes, trying to regain control of his thoughts. This wasn’t the time, when he knew Xueye would be looking for any opportunity to repay him. He wasn’t about to let his baser instincts take advantage and ruin any semblance of trust he’s built with Xueye.

“Shujing? Are you alright?” Xueye’s voice was filled with concern. When Yushi opened his eyes, he saw such worry in those lavender eyes.

“I’ll be fine,” Yushi smiled gently. “This rainfall is just affecting me a bit differently than I expected, this time around.”

“Well, yesterday you insisted I take a day of rest, perhaps we both should. Not like I can take any of these out in this weather without ruining them,” Xueye gestured to the documents on the table. “No need to push yourself on my account.”

“If that’s what it takes to get you to take a break,” Yushi chuckled as he leaned back. “I think a day in wouldn’t be a bad idea.” He hadn’t recalled the last time he took a full day to himself, no documents to sign, no tasks to approve, no emergencies, no people he didn’t want to see, just a day to relax and spend time with those he cared for. Even so, he suspected it wouldn’t be very restful for him. He hoped whenever Riluo arrived, he’d be able to aid in a solution, be it through the aid of Dr. Jingji or the knowledge and foresight of Shizhe.

Xueye stood up and grabbed both their bowls and started moving towards the kitchen, “I’ll take care of this. Why don’t you rest a bit longer?”

“What kind of host would I be if you both cook and clean for me,” Yushi was touched by the sweet gesture, filling him with warmth. He rose and wrapped his arms around the young man from behins to take the bowls from him. He was delighted at how much smaller Xueye was. Yushi was a hair’s breadth away from embracing the young man. He couldn’t help but linger at the temptation to give in, especially seeing how red Xueye was getting at the close proximity.

“S-Shujing…” Xueye voiced with a shaky breath. He shifted his grip ever so slightly to brush over Yushi’s hands. “You’ve done plenty for me. I-I just want to do something for you.”

Xueye’s touch was like lighting in Yushi’s veins. Yushi couldn’t deny how badly he wanted to pin the young man to the counter and taste those plush lips. Subconsciously he started leaning his head closer. Starving, amber eyes stared at those tempting lips.

Xueye’s heart was banging in his chest. His mind was blank as he stared up at Yushi over his shoulder. He was afraid to move, getting dizzy all the sudden from the blood rushing to his head and the surrounding warmth that was slowly increasing the more Yushi leaned in.

A loud knock disrupted Yushi from his trance and made Xueye jump a little. Yushi grumbled, deeply annoyed at the timing. In Xueye’s stunned state Yushi managed to sweep the bowls away from the young man and set them on the counter before marching over to the door.

Yushi flung the door open to see, Riluo drenched and looking just as annoyed as he felt. Yushi sighed and stepped aside to let him in.

“Sorry to disturb you, sir,” Riluo picked up on the seething irritation at first glance. He figured it was likely given the rainfall but he was hoping with Xueye around it wouldn’t be nearly as strong since Yushi enjoyed the young man’s company. Yushi still seemed to reign it in a lot faster than normal.

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“It’s fine,” Yushi waved it off and went to grab a towel for Riluo.

Riluo noticed Xueye leaning against the counter in a daze, face bright red. He fully understood Yushi’s irritation was likely from his interruption of something between them. When Yushi returned Riluo flashed an apologetic smile as Yushi handed the towel over. Yushi shook his head as if to say, “Don’t worry about it.”

“I would have been here earlier, but I ran into similar complications to yesterday,” Riluo huffed as he started drying his hair. He thought it would be easier to lose his tail in the rain but it wasn’t. He had to ditch his umbrella at some point to make it easier on himself.

“It’s fine, I only got up recently.” Yushi was feeling the irritation slowly returning, picking up what Riluo was implying. As much as he wanted to march down to the palace and throw them out of his country, he was unfortunately in no state to handle state business. They made it a point to put off official business whenever it rained so Yushi didn’t ruin relations with his mood swings. “I have a request for you but would you like to speak with Xueye first?”

“Certainly,” Riluo nodded, seeing Xueye seemed to recover from whatever it was he interrupted. Riluo bowed towards the young man. “I apologize for my quick departure yesterday, I didn’t wish to disturb your rest, Young Master. You can call me Luoshi,” Riluo thought it best to utilize his own pseudonym to keep suspicion off Yushi’s identity.

“Oh, that’s alright, I appreciate your consideration.” Xueye smiled warmly. “You can just call me Xueye, no need to be so formal. Shujing mentioned you were a close friend of his.”

“Yes, we’ve known each other since childhood,” Riluo had a faint nostalgic smile. “Stories for another time, perhaps. Shujing informed me of your situation. I have a few questions I’d like to ask to help move the investigation along, if you don’t mind.”

“Ask away,” Xueye said as he sat back at the table. The other two joined him.

“In the questioning of your attackers the name Jianhong came up. Do you happen to know who that is?” Riluo asked calmly.

“Jianhong…” Xueye thought about the myriad of contacts and connections, past and current. While it sounded familiar he couldn’t quite place a face to the name. “It does ring a bell but I also can’t quite place it. I’m usually pretty good with names but also I have a lot of contacts, my father even more so. Perhaps, it’s one of his. That might be why I’m not entirely familiar. Next time I’m in the office I can look into the files to see if we have the name on the books somewhere. I’d ask my father but unlikely I’d get a straight answer if he did or not.”

“Don’t concern yourself about it too much,” Riluo understood Yushi’s concern for Xueye remaining idle. “I still have plenty of ways to look into it. Now, I know this next one might not be a simple answer either but, is there anyone you can think of more recently that would have a vendetta against you or your company?”

“That’s quite a list,” Xueye sighed. He reached over and grabbed a blank sheet of paper and started writing. “There’s plenty of deals that don’t go through or get canceled often enough. I’ll give you the ones I know of personally, but I don’t doubt my father has rubbed someone the wrong way as well. He plays the magnanimous businessman but he can only hide his vindictive personality so much.”

“I’ll see what I can find,” Riluo was starting to think the theory that Lord Meigui was most likely involved whether it be directly or not was yet to be determined. “One last one…” Riluo hesitated to bring it up. “There’s nothing pointing towards this, but I’m curious about your opinion. Is there any way your father orchestrated something like this?”

Xueye’s brush froze, as a dark shadow darkened those lavender eyes. He set down the brush and sighed, “You know… I wouldn’t put it past him. I often wonder what the limit would be to have him act out against me for challenging his outrageous standards. Maybe he did realize the details behind this investment Shujing and I have been working on. Normally I wouldn’t think that would be the limit but I’ve never understood him anyways.”

Suddenly there was a loud crack of wood splintering as it reverberated through the table. Xueye and Riluo looked to Yushi who seemed just as surprised as they were to see that he’d gripped the edge so hard the wood cracked and splintered under his grip. Yushi stared at his hand blankly, snapped out of the anger towards Lord Meigui by the sheer strength he’d just subconsciously exuded.

“Are you alright, Shujing?” Xueye’s brows knit in worry.

“Not a scratch,” Yushi turned his palm towards them both to see. He smiled brightly but he was more surprised that not a single splinter pierced his skin. “The table not so much.”

Riluo was rather concerned about how quickly Yushi’s mood swings were flipping. It was different from usual. Often when Yushi shifted into a more negative mood during rainy days he would rarely come out of it for hours, yet here he was smiling sweetly as if Riluo didn’t just sense an extreme killing intent for a moment.

“I apologize for the interruption, please continue,” Yushi rose from the table with the intent to clean up, needing to focus on something else before he bolted out the door.

“Well that’s all the questions I have for the time being,” Riluo let out a sigh. Yushi was the other reason he was hesitant to ask the question, but the reaction was more extreme than he expected. He could only hope his desire to protect Xueye kept him bound to remain with the young man during the storm. Last thing they needed was for him to run off and lash out against Lord Meigui or pursue Jianhong in a fit of rage. Riluo figured he should likely leave sooner rather than later so as to not poke the dragon any further.

“Alright, I hope this helps,” Xueye resumed writing. “You know where to find me if you have more.”

“Indeed,” Riluo nodded. He glanced over to see Yushi lost in thought as he was cleaning their dishes from earlier. “Xueye, do me a favor and take care of him today. The rain affects him pretty harshly sometimes,” Riluo whispered, even though he figured Yushi might still hear him unless he was truly distracted.

“I noticed,” Xueye smiled softly. “Don’t you worry, I intend to.”

“Thank you,” Riluo returned a gentle smile. He rose from the table and closed some of the distance between him and Yushi. Riluo noticed Yushi was leaning against the counter pinching his brow. Riluo could tell he really needed the rest this time. “I’ll get out of here soon enough. You wanted to discuss something first, sir?”

“Yes, follow me to the study,” Yushi waved for Riluo to follow him.

Once in the study Yushi closed the door before moving to sit at the desk. He was starting to look a little worse for wear after letting himself relax a moment.

“Are you in need of the doctor’s remedy again?” Riluo was getting more concerned.

“Possibly…” Yushi groaned. “Things are a bit… different this time. I was hoping either the doctor or Shizhe could help, maybe?”

“What’s wrong?” Riluo’s brows knit.

“I…” Yushi tensed up, trying to find the right words. “Shit, how do I put this without sounding strange.”

“Sir, nothing about your condition isn’t strange,” Riluo sighed. “You know I won’t divulge more than necessary to anyone. Just tell me or else we can’t help you.”

“Fine…” Yushi paused for a moment, listening to ensure Xueye wasn’t near. He heard the faint shuffling of papers, making it apparent he hadn’t left the table just yet. “I…” Yushi grumbled a faint flush dusting his cheeks, “I find myself overwhelmed with a lustful desire for Xueye.”

“Are you sure it’s a result of the weather?” Riluo was trying to stifle a laugh.

“I won’t deny there’s been a growing affection,” Yushi whined. “The last few days made that clear to me. This desire, it’s more instinctual and carnal. I’m struggling to maintain control. It feels like the dragon is clawing to be set free, to devour him.”

“I’m only teasing. I know your self control is far better than that. I understand your concern,” Riluo huffed, mulling over the information. He realized that was likely the cause of the moment he interrupted with his arrival. Yushi’s temper seemed extremely volatile as well, even if he was quick to calm in Xueye’s presence. “You’re worried you’ll hurt him, right?”

“Very,” Yushi confirmed, a desperate look of worry in his eyes.

“Understood,” Riluo nodded. “I’ll be swift with a visit to Dr.Jingji and return with whatever remedy he prescribes. When I return to the palace I’ll see if Lady Guangming has any information that might have been overlooked. If there’s anything that can be of help I’ll be sure to send a trusted and swift messenger.”

“Thank you,” Yushi looked a little relieved.

“Was there anything else you wished to discuss, before I go?” Riluo figured he wouldn’t linger when he returned so it would be best to get everything out of the way now.

“That was it,” Yushi sighed. “Probably best to save the more important matters for clearer skies.”

“Don’t worry, we have it handled for now, sir,” Riluo bowed. “Focus on getting rest. It’s not often you get the chance.”

“Seems a lot of that advice going around lately,” Yushi chuckled weakly. “One I’ll be sure to listen to for today…”