Xiang Yong kept quiet for a moment and then put the other items back while clearing his throat. “So … my suggestion would be for you to read this first. After that, we could talk about anything else you want to know about either His Majesty or the time back then. I believe this would be a good basis to … well, both get to know more about each other’s people and the reasons for the current predicament of our relationship.”

Zheng Yin inclined his head. “I believe that would be a good way to start.” Anyway, they hadn’t really known where else to begin and the dragon king was essential to this whole matter. Understanding him and his relationship with his people better would indeed help a lot. “Then I should return now.”

Xiang Yong gave a hum and motioned to the other side of the room. “I’ll accompany you back.”

The two of them quietly walked through the treasury, soon reaching the door, and then continued toward the library.

Xiang Yong hesitated for a moment but finally spoke up again. “You don’t have to hurry with this matter. I know you are doing your own research and I don’t want to impact that. Forming a better relationship will take time so there is no need to rush. On the contrary, I believe that taking our time with this will have better results as it allows us to go further in-depth.”

Zheng Yin smiled faintly. “I don’t disagree with this. Still, this book is basically a relic of the dragon race. I am honored to be allowed to take it with me and read it but I feel that it should return to its original place as soon as possible. When it comes to our conversations later on, I do agree that we should take more time though. Often enough, after thinking about something a little more, new perspectives will open up so some things indeed shouldn’t be rushed.”

Xiang Yong looked at him and couldn’t help but smile. “You would get along well with An Bai. You have that same scholarly air about you. It almost makes me regret not having suggested to wait longer until he returns.”

Zheng Yin laughed faintly. “Thank you. Adviser An Bai is well-known even among our spirit beast tribe so being compared to him is a huge compliment. I am satisfied though. Being similar is good and maybe Adviser An Bai would have some additional insights as to how to go about this that neither of us would think of but … when it comes to relationships, I believe that sometimes, fate makes the right decisions for us. Since Adviser An Bai is currently busy with other matters, then this should be left for us. I am sure it’ll be good for something.”

Yes, he truly didn’t mind it. He admired An Bai very much even though there was only a little bit of overlap between this adviser’s research and his own area of expertise. But that didn’t mean that he necessarily wanted to work with him. On the contrary, he felt very comfortable tackling this project with Xiang Yong.

He couldn’t say for sure what it was. Maybe it was just that this man seemed more approachable. So far, the two of them had only met a handful of times but each time, Xiang Yong had taken his views and feelings into consideration, carefully approaching what he figured might be a sore topic but not completely ignoring the elephant in the room either. He wasn’t sure if a scholar like An Bai could do it. So, if nothing else, then he simply liked how this man went about things.

Of course, there was a second layer to this: An Bai was a household name among the three immortal races and the spirit beasts were naturally aware of his achievements as well. Wherever he went, he would be admired. It … was a bit reminiscent of a certain other dragon he knew and if there was one thing he currently didn’t want to be reminded of, then it was that person.

With Xiang Yong, he didn’t have this worry. There was no doubt that this man was highly valued in the dragon realm as well but it was different. He was viewed as one of the dragon king’s advisers and would be mentioned in the same breath as others might. Maybe he had a slightly more prominent position compared to the others but it wasn’t like everyone would immediately know who he was and what he had done with his life if they heard the name Xiang Yong. It was just different and he liked that.

And, well, even just in terms of looks, he preferred working with Xiang Yong. He had seen An Bai in the past and that white hair was a little too reminiscent of the silvery-white strands of Xin Lan. Of course, their eye color didn’t match and they had a completely different atmosphere about them but … he couldn’t help it.

It was probably shallow to think like this and abandon opportunities just because of such reasons but the short-lived relationship with Xin Lan had truly hurt him. He had known it wouldn’t work out. That was why he originally had little interest in even trying but when Xin Lan persisted just a little, he had also softened his stance and soon, he had fallen for that man.

It was his own weakness that led to this and he knew that he himself had to get over it. He couldn’t let it influence his life too much and had to continue going forward. He just couldn’t accept any other outcome. But even so … even so, he was still grateful for every little reprieve. Whenever he didn’t think of that person and their past together or the way Xin Lan had completely ignored him when they met and instead eyed that fallen god, he was relieved. He just couldn’t deal with it right now. So yes, he was happy to have Xiang Yong as his partner for this project because he reminded him less of that person.