A Royal Engagement

Bait

(DAYU)

"I don't like this," Lao shook his head as he disagrees at the plan.

"I'm in," Chong said. Lao look at him. "Are you serious? Qing is deliberately putting your Consort in harm and you are in? Are you all insane?"

Qing and I winced at the loudness of Lao's tone. He is scaring every doctors and staffs in the hospital. Forget about the King and the Prince. The Prince's Aide is the scary one. He is the one who is always scowling and frowning and the cold one. He won't even smile in relief when the doctors said I am fully cleared of poison.

And now, Lao is scowling and frowning again as he disagrees with Qing's plans.

The plan to use me as a bait so we can catch Shunu.

"She's in the air. Her and that blasted painting," Lao ran his hand in his head. He looked rumpled from his stay here in the hospital and his famous patience is missing. Lao is gettingg undone and we are not helping with his stress level.

"That is why we need to find Shunu. And the only way to do that is use Dayu as a bait," Qing said.

"Is there no other way?" Lao asked the three of us. "Aside from putting my Consort in harm's way? Really Qing?!"

"What other way? Please tell me? An all out search? A manhunt? An appeal to the public? Airing out everything in the open? Let the public knew that someone is trying to kill their Prince and Consort. That the whole monarch is under threat? What about my father? What will be our excuse to him? One more incident like this and I may as well kiss Dayu goodbye, Lao. My own father is threatening me. Fail to protect Dayu one more time and you don't deserve him so let him go or I will take him somewhere you will never go and you will not see him again. Now that we know who is behind those attacks on us, we just need to catch Shunu and all of this will be over..."

My eyes widened at what he said, "Your father said all that?"

"No," Qing shook his head. "But it was all implied. Your parents are coming home soon. How will I face them if the threat in your life is still not stabilized?"

I winced when he mentioned my parents. I think I am the one that should be ashamed to my parents because I keep on forgetting about them as I go through all these things with Qing.

My mother will have an apoplectic reaction when she learned that someone is out there gunning for me. While my father will take me away himself. Forget about the King, my father can hide me in places where Qing will never be able to see me.

I know, they may have decided to let me go once because of my debt on the mafia but my parents are good people. They just got tired of cleaning my mess and protecting me from my own stupidity. In the end, I think my parents realized that their overwhelming love for me is not helping me at all. Instead it gives me confidence to screw my life up more. Trusting that they will be there to clean my mess.

I was an immature brat, giving my parents too much worry and grief.

And now I am letting Qing use me as a bait to catch his ex that wants me dead. No, I am not just letting him. I am encouraging Qing to use me.

What does that say about me? That I am a wonderful and supportive lover but I sucked at being an only son to my parents. Putting myself on harm's way after all the care my parent's showered on me.