Surprisingly enough, Ye Yang was not the only person tortured by the very important question of what robe to put on. No, at this moment, Jing He was asking himself the same question.

In the past few days, his mother, his uncle, and Qiu Ling had shown him all of the preparations, allowing him to finally put down the heart that seemed to be suspended in mid-air, always giving him the feeling that something would go wrong and it would come crashing down. Even though it seemed unbelievable, the three of them — with help from the dragon realm and a few people on the side of the Nine Heavens who were privy to what was going on — had indeed managed to prepare everything that could be prepared for his wedding to Qiu Ling. All that was left were the rituals that would have to be carried out over the next few days. And this part was precisely what made Jing He so worried right now.

Qiu Ling had told him on the day of his return that he’d like him to meet Jinde. He had even received a gift from the other person ahead of time so overall, the situation could be considered good. It was just … Jinde was extremely important to Qiu Ling. He was even closer to him than he was to his actual father. If he didn’t manage to gain this person’s approval … what would happen?

Jing He twisted his hands, not sure what to do. He was certain that Qiu Ling wouldn’t simply leave him. After everything that had happened between them, he didn’t doubt this any longer. But he knew from his own experience how difficult it was to balance the expectations of both your lover and your family.

He didn’t want to put Qiu Ling in that situation so he had to gain Jinde’s approval. For that, he needed to leave a good first impression. The right choice of clothing and jewelry, the right words, all of it had to be the perfect fit. He couldn’t leave anything up to luck.

Qiu Ling who hadn’t left Jing He’s side even once since his lover’s return watched quietly as Jing He once again went through the row of robes with his brows tightly furrowed. He would have loved to help him but … he had already told him twice that Jinde wouldn’t care about this but it couldn’t calm Jing He down. He had been frantic since he had told him about the meeting.

Every now and then, Qiu Ling wondered if maybe he shouldn’t have mentioned it at all and just let Jinde step into the door after he arrived, surprising Jing He. Of course, his beloved would panic at that moment but he believed that with Jinde’s personality, he’d be able to make things turn pleasant in a short time, sparing his beloved all this heartache. Unfortunately, when handing over the jewelry box, he hadn’t thought of this. He had simply confessed the full truth.

Jing He was holding two robes, one of them plain white with no adornments, very much like the one he had put on the day he left for his trial. The other one was blue with faint embroidery.

Seeing the latter, Qiu Ling got to his feet and walked over, taking it out of his hand and brushing over the thin fabric with his fingertips. “I’d take this one.”

Jing He turned around and looked up, his brows still tightly furrowed. “Really? Not the white one? I’m not sure …”

Qiu Ling simply gave a hum, wrapped an arm around Jing He’s waist, and pulled him into his arms. “It’s the one you wore when we met. Seeing you in it, I fell in love at first sight. So if nothing else, just take it as a good-luck charm.” He turned his head and kissed Jing He’s temple, smiling faintly. “I know it won’t change a thing if I say it again but you have no reason to be worried.

“Jinde isn’t unreasonable.” Well, he could be but his unreasonableness was very different from that of Jing He’s father. If he was in a mood, he’d go and bother his husband, wanting to be coaxed with sweet words and deeds. “The most you have to worry about … is probably his teasing you. He likes doing that.” Anyway, he himself had often been at the receiving end of it.

Jing He nodded but just as Qiu Ling had expected, he couldn’t calm down. Too much seemed to rely on this one encounter. “What if he doesn’t like me though?”

Qiu Ling raised his brows. He saw no reason for that to happen but … “Well, if that were to happen, it wouldn’t matter, would it? You’re still the one I love and in the dragon realm, one’s elders don’t ask for anything else. Jinde should be that way even more so due to everything he has experienced. So no matter what, that won’t stand between us. Not to mention … he is about to have a child with his husband. How much energy do you think he’ll spare for us?”

Jing He nodded again, trying to tell himself that Qiu Ling was right and everything would go well. It was just … very difficult to believe in that in his heart.

Qiu Ling looked at his expression and could roughly guess what was going through his mind. Well, even though the big decision had finally been made, this worrisome part of this personality of his couldn’t be changed easily. He wouldn’t suddenly gain self-confidence through some kind of miracle just because he met Tian or saw a vision in the Spring of Fate. No, that needed time and slow cultivation of those feelings.

The years of being weighed down by the curse and the unfair situation during his trial, as well as his father’s overbearing love … all of that needed to be unraveled bit by bit, and a new perception of himself and the world had to form. It would take years to do so but thankfully, they’d have a lot of time. After their wedding, he would take on that task and help him overcome this hurdle. As his husband, that was what he should do. As the one who loved him more than anything else in life, it was what he wanted to do as well. His Jing He … he should shine like the brightest star in the night sky, not dimmed by all those doubts holding him back.