Oh. My. Fate?! (BL, Volume #1)

47 There Is Nothing Going on Between Us!

Shun Tao watched another gap open in crown prince Jing He's scroll of fate. He didn't even sigh anymore. After experiencing it multiple times, he couldn't muster the energy for that.

"At least, this time I managed to injure one of them. Mn, I should work with that." He ground the ink and picked up his brush, his thoughts circling around this special fate.

Separating the family to let something happen seemed to be the right approach. Even if he couldn't do something to Zhong Jing Yi directly, this would still influence him. And the loss of a loved one was a trial too. If he at least managed to make him pass this one trial, then he could go and report to the Heavenly Emperor without having to worry about his head. He could even leave the rest of the investigation to the Court of Justice or maybe the God of War's palace. Wouldn't that be the perfect outcome?

With that in mind, he started to write: The Zhongs reach the capital and move in with the main family there. Mister Zhong who doesn't want to inconvenience them too much throws himself into work, disregarding his injury. His state of health slowly worsens but Mister Zhong doesn't dare confess to his wife. When she finally notices that something is wrong it is already too late to help him.

Shun Tao put the brush down and nodded. He couldn't include too many details or it might go awry because of one of them. But such a broad situation should be able to come true. As long as Zhong Jing Yi didn't notice anything nobody should be able to save Mister Zhong in time.

As for the person pulling the strings behind all this ... Shun Tao furled the scroll of fate and put it back into his sleeve. It hadn't been a day since Hong Bao went to investigate again but maybe he was lucky and she had made progress? He stood up and left the scribe's palace for the courtyard where the young gods lived.

At that moment, Hong Bao still sat with Leng Jin Yu and pouted because of Shun Tao's lack of attention. While she munched on the last cookie with a depressed expression Leng Jin Yu spotted the Fate's Scribe walking past the entrance of the courtyard and then going back again. If this person didn't want something ...

He motioned outside. "It seems he actually heard what you said. He's here already."

"Hah? What?" Hong Bao turned around. Her face lit up as soon as she saw Shun Tao. "I'll go then!" Without deigning to look at Leng Jin Yu again, Hong Bao leaped to her feet and rushed out. "Fate's scribe!" She smiled broadly but only got a slight movement of Shun Tao's lips as a response. Her good mood deflated. "Did you come to see me?" She didn't hold hope any longer. He really didn't seem interested.

"Mn. I wanted to ask ... those two people, have you found out anything?"

Hong Bao stared at him unblinking. He came over because of that? Just how urgently did he need someone in his scribe's palace? "That ..." She looked back at the courtyard and was met with the sight of Leng Jin Yu who quietly sat at the table and waited. What had he said? She should observe Shun Tao to see if she could figure out his preferences? That couldn't be so difficult!

She turned back to Shun Tao and smiled again. "As I said it's a little difficult to find out without alarming them —"

"So you don't know anything." He hung his head, igniting Hong Bao's guilty conscience.

Ah, she should have told him the whole truth before! But no, that wouldn't do either. Then she couldn't have spent time with him. She had to cheer him up though. "Ah, no no no! That's not it!"

Shun Tao came back to life. He lifted his head and looked expectantly at her. Hong Bao gulped. If she didn't know he was asking about the mission, she might misunderstand this.

"Well, I asked someone for help. I hope that's alright?"

"Someone?" Shun Tao broke out into a cold sweat. She couldn't have said something to someone who shouldn't know of this, right? What if the culprit knew that he was trying to catch him?

"He's called Leng Jin Yu! He's also in the court—"

Shun Tao's eyes widened.

Hong Bao waved her hands defensively. "Don't worry! He's not interested in the scribe's palace at all. He wants to go to the palace of the God of War."

Shun Tao didn't calm down at all. On the contrary, his thoughts raced. If that Leng Jin Yu managed to get into the God of War's palace, he might speak to him about this issue. And with how the God of War was, he would catch onto the fact that something was wrong fast. After all, he had already seen Shun Tao at the courtyard and if he found out now that Shun Tao had someone observe whom the young gods inside were observing in the mortal realm ... Even worse, the God of War was close to the Heavenly Emperor. Wouldn't he immediately go and tell him about this?

Oh, no. He was finished!

Shun Tao turned to the courtyard but came face-to-face with the wall instead. Somehow, he felt like smashing his head against it. Shun Tao bent forward.

"Ah! Shun Tao!" Hong Bao gripped his shoulders, turned him around to her again and hugged him. "There is nothing going on between Leng Jin Yu and me!"

Shun Tao furrowed his brow. Hah? When had he asked about that?

Hong Bao grew anxious at his lack of response. "Really!"

Shun Tao sighed and straightened up. "Hong Bao ... Seriously, what did you tell him?"

"Ah?" Hong Bao who had wandered somewhere completely unrelated with her thoughts didn't understand what Shun Tao was talking about.

"Leng Jin Yu. What did you tell him about the assignment I gave you?"

"Uh ... Just that I need to observe some of the gods there for the Fate's Scribe."

"Did he talk with anybody about that?"

She shook her head. Shun Tao really didn't care that she had spent time with Leng Jin Yu. So was it true? He didn't like women? She pursed her lips at the thought but Shun Tao was once again too preoccupied with his own worries to notice anything strange.

Shun Tao gave a sigh of relief. "Good. Don't tell him anything else! The less he knows the better!"

"Why that? Leng Jin Yu really helped me ..." Hong Bao pursed her lips. In fact, she had wanted to ask Shun tao if he could help Leng Jin Yu with getting into the God of War's palace but now that Shun Tao was behaving like this, she didn't dare to utter this thought.

"It's better if he doesn't know." Shun Tao didn't offer any other explanation. Even in regard to Hong Bao, it was better if she knew less. It would be for the best if only he himself and the culprit behind this whole mess knew what had happened. "So ... What did you find out? Wait. Come with me." Shun Tao gripped her wrist and pulled her toward the scribe's palace.

"Ah, Fate's Scribe ..." Hong Bao wanted to utter an excuse to bring him to see Leng Jin Yu but Shun Tao didn't seem to hear and just pulled her further.

In the courtyard, Leng Jin Yu stood up with the empty casket in his hand and walked to the entrance of the courtyard. He looked at the disappearing figures of Shun Tao and Hong Bao, deep in thought.

"Wasn't that the Fate's Scribe, Shun Tao, just now?"

Leng Jin Yu turned around. Behind him stood none other than Qiang Yan, the God of War, whose palace was Leng Jin Yu's goal and he seemed quite puzzled by what he had seen just now.