Guard Dog

chapter 16*

"come here !"

Xingchen stumbles back in the dark alley behind the palace. "What are you doing here ?" He glares at Zemin.

Zemin grins "Missing you. You haven't met me since morning. Don't you miss me ?"

"I am busy. Let me go."

"Kiss me first !" Zemin pouts in front of Xingchen.

"The f .." Xingchen looks around "his highness is waiting for me. I need to go."

"Kiss me , I will let you go."

Xingchen smiles thinly. He never knew his pretending game would backfire at him like this. One fine morning Zemin started this kissing culture, now everyday is like this.

He leans closer and kissed Zemin on the cheeks "now , let me go !"

Zemin pouts harder. He leans his head on Xingchen's neck and breaths there "when will you kiss me properly in the lips ?"

Xingchen controls the goosebumps crawling under his skin. "Never !" He whispers.

Xingchen feels Zemin's butterfly kisses on his neck. He closes his eyes.

"Don't say it like that..don't you know the saying. They say that once in a day the goddess of wisdom, sits on our tongue.. whatever we say at that time, becomes the truth. What if goddess of wisdom is in your tongue right now ?"

"Still I would say never !"

Xingchen opens his tear stained eyes in the dark prison cell. He didn't realise when he fell asleep.

"Had a dream ?"

Xingchen looks at Yang Xi "Not dream .. just remembered something. How long did I sleep ?"

Yang Xi shrugs "I don't know. I heard consort Yuzu's voice from outside. He was searching for Meimei."

Xingchen looks at the small girl sleeping at one corner of the cell "How is she doing ?"

"Better than before, I guess. With time the pain numbs."

"Did you hear anything about Zemin ? How is he ?"

"Not dead yet, most probably. Otherwise Le gui would've given a visit."

Xingchen leans on the wall "can't we do anything? You are here for so long ? You never tried to escape ?"

Yang xi chuckles "There is not even a whole to peak outside and you are talking about escape ?"

Meimei opens her tired eyes slowly "I know... a route."

Xingchen sits straight with a jerk "you know a route ?"

"Yeah ... When my master was.. prisoned ... I used to visit him...from that route."

Yang Xi chuckles again "She has gone mad. Consort Yuzu was never prisoned."

Xingchen looks at Meimei with a frown. Yang Xi is right. Consort Yuzu was never prisoned. Not in this life. But....

"What is the route?"

"There is .. a tunnel ... that leads to garden but ... The tunnel is ... not connected to ...this cell."

Yang Xi tilts his head "then which cell ?" He asked it like a challenge.

"The fourth cell from south-east corner of the prison." Xingchen states instead of Meimei.

Meimei nods thinly "that .. one."

"Wait..there is indeed a tunnel ?"

"Is there any way we can go to that cell , Yang Xi ?"