Oh My, How Extra!

Little Angels in the Snow (2): A Sad Little Snowman (2)

Back in the clearing, one big beauty and one handsome little guy sat next to each other, staring at the pond. It had only started to snow this morning and the temperatures still weren't low enough for it to have frozen over yet. At this moment, they could even see a few fish swimming around.

Jinde finally turned to look at the little one sitting next to him and raised his golden brows. "So, why did you run away today?" Honestly, Qiu Ling suddenly appearing next to him had already become a habit. It was odd considering that this child was barely over ten years old, so he had only just entered that stage when the growth of dragon children started to slow down. Wasn't that supposed to be the age when they were the most clingy? So why was he running to his side instead of trying to be a leg ornament for his father?

Qiu Ling looked up at him and pouted. "It's boring."

"Oh." Jinde tried to think of what his advisers were currently up to. It seemed like ... they should be discussing measures to counter the recent attacks the demon race had been launching? Well, that sure seemed like it'd be uninteresting for a child. It was just ... "Is it more interesting to stay with me?" It didn't seem like it. His usual days ... they consisted of taking care of his herb garden, tinkering with the potions in his study, or having to deal with government affairs. Life like that ... could only be called boring as well.

Qiu Ling nodded though. In his mind, staying with Jinde was naturally better. If he could, he would have clung to him all the time and not gone home at all. He just ... didn't like it at home very much.

Jinde watched the child who was now staring at him instead of the fishes and felt a bit of a headache. "What's better about it? I also talk about the same things your dad does a lot." After all, even though things had turned out like that, they still needed to work together.

He had started to rely less on Chun Yin these years and further the relationship with his other advisers more but ... there were only so many of them and it couldn't be denied that Chun Yin still understood him best ... unless it came to romance. When it came to that, it seemed like the only person who could see into his heart was Xin Lan but it was embarrassing to talk to him about that so, in the end, all of that had to be borne by him alone.

Jinde sighed and tried not to think of it. He didn't want to deal with Chun Yin but his child was innocent. Even though Qiu Ling had chosen the absolute worst person to cling to, he also couldn't push him away. Don't even mention the fact that he liked children in general, this was the child of the man he loved and he looked so much like Chun Yin when they had been young. It was difficult not to instantly have good feelings for him.

In fact, looking at this face ... Jinde finally reached out and rubbed the fuzzy head. The black hair had already been blown into a mess by the wind anyway so it didn't matter if he messed it up a little more. "How about going home to your mom instead?"

Qiu Ling resolutely shook his head and reached out to grab Jinde's wrist while staring at him with pursed lips. He definitely wouldn't let go!

Jinde huffed in amusement. "Really not?" To be honest ... ah, he was quite happy. That woman had stolen his man but look at this! Her son actually preferred him. That was justice well served! Did she regret making a move on Chun Yin now?

He pressed his lips together, trying not to think about it. No matter how much he disliked her, those three were still a family. He himself knew best how it felt for your family to disintegrate in front of your eyes. How could he wish that on Qiu Ling? No, the child deserved for his parents to be together and to have a good relationship. He deserved them to take care of him well and for him to be happy with all of them together. Every child did.

Jinde sighed to himself and ruffled Qiu Ling's hair again. "What's so bad about spending time with your mother? Even if your father's job is boring, surely, you can do something more fun with her." Frankly, he felt that that woman should be quite free. Hadn't she newly settled in the capital city when she got with Chun Yin? She didn't seem to have any kind of job so ... all that time could be spent with her son. Surely, that should be quite interesting to him?