Jing He’s thoughts couldn’t help but wander when they arrived at this point. Qiu Ling … how long had it been since they last saw each other? It didn’t seem to be that long, considering that Qiu Ling had surprised him that evening and stayed with him for as long as he could.

In this regard, he probably couldn’t complain. It was already much better than the previous three weeks. And yet, he missed him. There was no way to express just how much he longed for him. Right now, the desire to see him was even stronger than usual.

Jing He put down the cup, lit up a light, and got to his feet. Walking over to the shelf, he pulled out one of the scrolls that lay there. Unfurling it, it showed a garden, the plants half-hiding the silhouette of a couple in their midst. It could be innocent or maybe it was a secret rendezvous, it was impossible to say. No matter what, these two were at least together. Unlike them who could only think of each other.

Jing He lowered the scroll with a sigh but he couldn’t bring himself to put it down. He wanted to see him. He wanted to rush into Qiu Ling’s arms, to feel his strong arms around his waist, and hear his gentle voice in his ears. He wanted to make sure that nothing had changed between them, that they would still get married in the future, and spend the rest of their lives with each other.

Turning around, Jing He stared at the door to the garden that Qiu Ling usually used to enter and leave his palace. Today, the one who had stood there had been Tian and even though he had left hours ago, Qiu Ling still hadn’t come by.

Why was that?

He quietly walked over there, staring at the door from up close as if this could make Qiu Ling come by and open it from the other side. Of course, he knew that this wouldn’t have any effect. It wasn’t like he could transmit his thoughts to Qiu Ling. In fact, he had no way to contact him. Well, he could send a servant or one of the guards over to the dragon realm but … this was only possible in theory. Actually, it was impossible as well because there were his father’s people around who kept a close eye on him.

Jing He’s brows furrowed. He turned away from the door and hesitantly stepped back into the study, still holding the scroll with the painting. He wanted to see him more than anything. To be honest, he wasn’t even sure how to get through the rest of the night if he couldn’t. It made him wonder how he had managed to make it through the past few weeks when his father had had somebody keep an eye on him and he couldn’t see Qiu Ling at all.

At that time, he had also missed him and thought of him regularly but it had never been like it was right now: To the point where all his thoughts circled around him, where his heart squeezed in pain because of his intense longing, and where he could not calm down no matter what and wished to sneak out of his palace and go to the dragon realm even if it was just for a glance.

Jing He pressed the scroll up against his chest and took a deep breath before he slowly exhaled. Maybe it was because they had seen each other again the day before. Maybe in those three weeks, he had slowly gotten used to it and the continuous missing became only a dull pain deep inside. Now, he had been given a short night of sweetness, making the renewed separation more difficult to bear.

He wandered back to his bedroom with the scroll still in hand and sat down on the edge of the bed. Even if he couldn’t see him, he at least wanted to hear his voice. Qiu Ling always knew what to say to reassure him. Even if the situation was unfavorable to them, he certainly wouldn’t easily give up. Even if he could not see a solution for the moment, he would retain a positive outlook and remind him that they had time. Even if it was hard to bear, he would promise him to keep trying and help him to imagine all those things they could have and do in the future, greatly putting his heart and mind at ease. Right now, he really needed that.

He hung his head and unfurled the scroll again but in the dim bedroom, he couldn’t make out any of the details. The couple made of ink that had managed to meet in the garden was erased by the darkness around. The two of them … would they be the same? Would they, too, fail to have their meeting because of the circumstances?

Jing He brushed over the scroll with his fingertips, hoping to feel what he couldn’t see in the dark but … it was without use. The painted couple remained obscured and Qiu Ling remained missing from his side. He simply couldn’t change it.

Sighing faintly, he put the scroll to the side and lay back down, looking up at the closed window beside him. He would give everything to have it open silently and for his lover to secretly come to him. At this moment, no matter what was asked of him, he would do so for Qiu Ling.

Jing He hummed faintly and bit his lip, trying not to think of it. It wasn’t like it would help. He was alone right now and Qiu Ling wasn’t here. He had no way to contact him either. He could only imagine his presence and wait for him to come by. As for when that would be … he could only hope that it would be the next morning because, truly, he didn’t know if he could survive another day without seeing him.