Rian could already guess what Ren Xiyang wanted—another greenhouse—but the gold was meant to be a surprise gift.
“King Augustus shows no sign of sending us any gold,” Rian said instead.
“I’m not sure I’m expecting any from him,” Ren Xiyang said. “If he did, it would be stolen from his people.”
“Do you mind if I propose a contract variation?”
“Sure. I’ll sign whatever you want.”
Rian smiled lightly, hiding his deeper thoughts. He then changed the topic from gold to farming.
They chatted about the farming Ren Xiyang had done today, and how new agricultural knowledge could be spread through Rian’s farming-related initiative.
Ren Xiyang was the one who yawned first, and Rian followed uncontrollably.
“We should say goodbye,” Ren Xiyang said.
“Indeed…” Rian said. “Let’s talk again tomorrow night, same time.”
“Hm.”
Rian lingered, gazing at Ren Xiyang’s face in his small mirror.
His chest felt tight, but also warm. The feeling of love was uncomfortable, yet also comforting.
Now that they had established their relationship, Rian felt as though his longing had worsened. He wished they could do everything as a duo. But he also knew that was inefficient.
Ren Xiyang yawned again. “Well, night.”
“Night.” Rian blew a kiss right before the connection ended, grinning at the brief shock on Ren Xiyang’s face.
Rian put his special communication mirror into its secret spot and climbed into bed.
He rolled onto his belly and buried his face in his pillow.
Why hadn’t he kissed Ren Xiyang three times before he left?
Rian gave a huge dramatic sigh into the pillow to release his feelings, before turning over onto his back.
He couldn’t understand why people would date without marriage. Why? If you liked someone as much as he liked Ren Xiyang, wouldn’t you want to marry them?
But if Ren Xiyang wanted to be ‘dated’ first, Rian would give him courtship.
And he noticed how shy Ren Xiyang had been lately. Who knew that something like romance would get him blushing? He was endearing, and it gave Rian another thing to like about Ren Xiyang.
Ren Xiyang left the call with Rian, briefly stunned by the shoujo-prince-esque blown kiss.
He shouldn’t be surprised. It was entirely in Rian’s personality.
No, more importantly, Rian was thinking about their wedding already. And that had many implications.
Rian wanted to be together with him for a long, long time.
Rian quite possibly loved him.
And Rian quite possibly liked him for a long time.
Was Ren Xiyang ready to spend the rest of his life with Rian? Did Ren Xiyang love him back? And when exactly did Rian start liking him?
Ren Xiyang couldn’t think of any past event that hinted at Rian having feelings. From the very first day they met, Rian had been friendly. After they shared their secrets, they had become closer. There were many little events, get-togethers, and chats over the last few years, with each shared experience deepening their bond.
And he couldn’t tell his feeling was love. What did ‘love’ feel like? How was it different from a ‘romantic like’?
But the idea of staying around with Rian for the rest of his life didn’t sound bad. Rian was his closest friend, his closest person.
Ren Xiyang closed his eyes in bed, feeling a slight ache in his chest. He had to admit to himself—after spending so much time around Rian, he missed him. He hadn’t realised how reassuring it was to be able to reach out magically and know that Rian was close by.
The next day, Ren Xiyang went around the Rosewood fief with some of his key staff members to inspect the progress of various projects.
The people flocked if they could, watching respectfully as he cast magic. Most of the time, it was surveillance magic, such as checking to make sure there were no problems with the new construction. From the outside, it looked like nothing was happening.
But whenever something visible happened, like when he lifted the glass pane into place for the builders, or when he magically levelled the new road, the crowd would breathe out a “Woaaaah.”
When Ren Xiyang returned home for the evening, he found that Rian had left him a message on his communication mirror:
Dear Earl Rosewood,
It is with my greatest displeasure that I have to cancel our dearly anticipated meeting tonight. I expect to have a late meeting regarding that contract. Please go to bed early and enjoy your beauty sleep, knowing that I am still awake and working hard for you.
Yours sincerely,
Crown Prince Rian.
Ren Xiyang replied: Ok.
It gave him more time to think about their relationship, and how it would work going forward.
After a day of work, Ren Xiyang had realised that he wasn’t philosophical enough to explore the definition of love. He didn’t know the necessary and sufficient conditions of being in love, so he couldn’t conclude whether he loved Rian.
But he could focus on the practicalities. He could figure out what he wanted to do, what he was willing to do, what he wasn’t willing to do, and what he won’t do.
With all of this in mind, Ren Xiyang drafted an agenda for their next meeting.
Rian saw Ren Xiyang’s reply. His lips twitched with amusement. He was nostalgic for the early days when Ren Xiyang replied to him with full sentences.
His meeting was with King Edric, Queen Mira, and Duke Mauveine.
They wanted to know his plans, after all. Given that they were busy during the day, they had to meet at night.
They gathered in Queen Mira’s study room. Rian brought his report for the day and a copy of the original contract with King Augustus.
“Imperial Mother, here is what I did today,” Rian said, handing over his report. “I didn’t include this evening’s meeting summary, aside from a short mention, as you will also know what happened.”
Queen Mira took the report and put it away.
“Now, explain,” King Edric said.
Rian straightened, his expression serious. “Imperial Father, Imperial Mother, Duke Mauveine, I’ve requested to meet today to discuss the contract that Earl Rosewood and I had signed with King Augustus. King Augustus broke the terms and incurred a large fine, which he has not paid. As according to the contract, his magical ability has now been restricted. Leaving it like this is unreasonable, so I would like to propose a reasonable contract variation.”
While it sounded nice to do nothing and let King Augustus remain magicless, they diplomatically needed to show some concern—unless they wanted to give the impression that they were enemies and/or if they wanted to declare war.
The fact that King Augustus hadn’t paid yet, and also hadn’t been able to break the contract after nearly a month, was already a clear message to all neighbouring foreign powers.
King Augustus was a sore loser, overly arrogant, and cheap.
Crown Prince Rian’s contracts were not to be taken lightly.
“What kind of contract variation were you thinking of?” Queen Mira asked, her eyes sharp.
“We could return the contract fees to its original draft values,” Rian said.
King Edric snorted.
“If you lower it to a symbolic fee, then people will have thoughts,” Queen Mira said gently.
It would suggest that they thought King Augustus was extremely poor. Or that they were poor and needed some money.
“Then what do you suggest, Imperial Mother?” Rian asked.
“The fines should not be decreased. They should either remain the same or be waived and replaced by a condition of similar weighting,” Queen Mira said.
“A repayment system could be suitable,” Duke Mauveine suggested. “There is precedent, with how Earl Rosewood requested Baron Cordovan to pay his awarded compensation across ten years, with some proportion directly spent on the Cordovan fief.”
“However, Baron Cordovan is willing to pay,” King Edric said. “Augustus is not.”
Rian leaned back and let the other adults in the room discuss among themselves.
They suggested multiple different ideas and acknowledged that King Augustus was unlikely to accept the contract variation. However, they could send a message to others by offering a contract variation.
It took them a while to agree on a suitable swap for the gold fine, and much longer to hammer out the wording for the contract variation and for the letter to accompany it.
They didn’t ask Rian for his input, but he didn’t mind. The point of the duel had already been achieved, with new undercurrents stirring in Angio and King Augustus’s reputation heavily damaged. By providing his Imperial Parents and Duke Mauveine with the power over the contract variation, they would feel useful and relevant.
His mind wandered instead. What was Ren Xiyang doing now? Was he asleep yet? It was a little idealistic, but he hoped he was thinking about him too, and looked forward to their next meeting.
The next day, Ren Xiyang and his staff went to the edge of the Rosewood forest. Starting reforestation early was important, before things got worst and ecological restoration became harder and much more expensive.
The local foresters came out to meet him. They were hired part-time to prepare reports, make plans, and plant. Over a year ago, they gave a (verbal) report about the historical ranges of the forests, passed down through their village’s oral history. This was crosschecked by internal Rosewood staff using the sparse historical maps they had.
Last year, the foresters had given him a report on the best plants to plant and the best locations to plant. Ren Xiyang approved a trial, and now he was inspecting the one-year progress.
“My lord, welcome to the Rosewood forest!” the foresters greeted. “Over here, you can see the planting locations. The plants that my Lord has used magic upon have grown vigorously. Otherwise, the planted tree seeds are now sturdy samplings. The short bushes and wildflowers have grown well, attracting birds and bees…”
“My lord, we identified twenty species of birds and ten species of small mammals that stopped by in the new planting area…”
“My lord, over here, we have our tree nursery, allowing us to have a head-start into the second phase of the project…”
After the foresters eagerly showed him all their progress and explained their second-year plan, Ren Xiyang gave his preliminary approval. Their plan will be sent to the Rosewood Council for final approval.
Then, he and his staff went to the nearby villages to meet with their village leaders, and to meet with their fire management teams—while the Rosewood fief climate was not particularly dry, there was always the risk of fire.
Ren Xiyang had suspected that the kinds of trees they had in the forest weren’t prone to burning, and it was proven true through testing. But if they started burning, it was very hard to stop them.
So fire risk needed to be managed.
Similar to the team of foresters, these fire managers—sometimes village leaders, sometimes other members in the settlement—were paid on a part-time basis. They had to report on historical records and think of fire management strategies.
After a day of walking around, Ren Xiyang returned to the Rosewood manor in the evening.
At night, before bed, his communication mirror linked up with Rian’s.
“Xiyang!” Rian’s blue eyes were bright.
“Hi. I’ve prepared an agenda,” Ren Xiyang said immediately. He had things to get through, they could chat after.
“Then please, go ahead.”
“Let me first ask some clarifying questions. Do you agree that we are dating?”
“Yes, of course!”
“Are we boyfriends or partners?”
Rian’s eyes gaze deepened as a smile floated upon his lips. “Dear Xiyang, we’re paramours, beaus, lovers.”
Heat crept up Ren Xiyang’s neck. He looked away and studiously wrote down the words. “Right, next, our romantic relationship is to remain secret for now, correct?”
“I’m working hard to make sure we can go public eventually,” Rian said, hand over his heart.
“Do you want to let select people know before we go public?”
Rian put on a pensive expression. “Florence.”
Ren Xiyang blinked.
Rian put on a stern (pouty) expression. “We should tell Florence, so that she knows that I’ve taken you.”
Ren Xiyang suddenly understood. “Right. Sure.” He had a good feeling about telling Florence. She was really smart, perceptive, and tactful. “Well, tell me if you want any help with whatever it is you’re doing regarding going public.”
“Just be yourself,” Rian said with a twinkle in his eye.
“…Okay, next up is the Imperial Magical Academy—”
“Oh, don’t worry about that! I’ve had my people complete your registration at the academy already.”
Ren Xiyang’s eyes snapped up from his agenda list. “What?”
“I’ll make sure we get suites right next to each other.”
“Hm, let’s not date anymore, until after you finish at the Academy. Puppy love is not conducive to academics,” Ren Xiyang said blandly.
“What we have is not puppy love,” Rian said in an aggrieved tone. “The experience of attending the Imperial Magical Academy is important. It helps build experiences, connections, and a common history with other nobility and mages of our age cohort.”
Ren Xiyang made a face. He knew enough people already.
“—While you know many young noble mages, you don’t know nearly as many young non-noble mages who also attend the Academy. They will come from across the kingdom, and this is a good opportunity to meet them. The backgrounds and skills of such mages are unique and important for our association of future leaders.”
Ren Xiyang pressed his lips together. Rian was right.
“I could organise your access to a greenhouse or two. While you’re not a plant mage, an exception can certainly be made. There is an extensive library there, which can help inform our product research. And finally, you don’t need to attend the classes. Unless you intended to enter the Imperial University, you simply need to learn enough to pass through the Academy years. I’m confident you’ll easily pass.”
Ren Xiyang’s lips quirked. Rian had really thought about this—he knew him too well. He sighed. “Okay, I’ll go then.”
Thank you to lilbabydino, Arro, 09A, mahan734 for the support~!
I feel like I haven’t written [established] romance for ages, and I’ve never had someone as orderly in life as Ren Xiyang haha…
Quick homework question!
Q: Who do you think knows the other person better?
A: Rian knows Ren Xiyang better.
B: Ren Xiyang knows Rian better.
C: They both think they know each other well but they would be shocked if they could hear the other’s thoughts!
D: I have a different answer down in the comments—
Rian could already guess what Ren Xiyang wanted—another greenhouse—but the gold was meant to be a surprise gift.
“King Augustus shows no sign of sending us any gold,” Rian said instead.
“I’m not sure I’m expecting any from him,” Ren Xiyang said. “If he did, it would be stolen from his people.”
“Do you mind if I propose a contract variation?”
“Sure. I’ll sign whatever you want.”
Rian smiled lightly, hiding his deeper thoughts. He then changed the topic from gold to farming.
They chatted about the farming Ren Xiyang had done today, and how new agricultural knowledge could be spread through Rian’s farming-related initiative.
Ren Xiyang was the one who yawned first, and Rian followed uncontrollably.
“We should say goodbye,” Ren Xiyang said.
“Indeed…” Rian said. “Let’s talk again tomorrow night, same time.”
“Hm.”
Rian lingered, gazing at Ren Xiyang’s face in his small mirror.
His chest felt tight, but also warm. The feeling of love was uncomfortable, yet also comforting.
Now that they had established their relationship, Rian felt as though his longing had worsened. He wished they could do everything as a duo. But he also knew that was inefficient.
Ren Xiyang yawned again. “Well, night.”
“Night.” Rian blew a kiss right before the connection ended, grinning at the brief shock on Ren Xiyang’s face.
Rian put his special communication mirror into its secret spot and climbed into bed.
He rolled onto his belly and buried his face in his pillow.
Why hadn’t he kissed Ren Xiyang three times before he left?
Rian gave a huge dramatic sigh into the pillow to release his feelings, before turning over onto his back.
He couldn’t understand why people would date without marriage. Why? If you liked someone as much as he liked Ren Xiyang, wouldn’t you want to marry them?
But if Ren Xiyang wanted to be ‘dated’ first, Rian would give him courtship.
And he noticed how shy Ren Xiyang had been lately. Who knew that something like romance would get him blushing? He was endearing, and it gave Rian another thing to like about Ren Xiyang.
Ren Xiyang left the call with Rian, briefly stunned by the shoujo-prince-esque blown kiss.
He shouldn’t be surprised. It was entirely in Rian’s personality.
No, more importantly, Rian was thinking about their wedding already. And that had many implications.
Rian wanted to be together with him for a long, long time.
Rian quite possibly loved him.
And Rian quite possibly liked him for a long time.
Was Ren Xiyang ready to spend the rest of his life with Rian? Did Ren Xiyang love him back? And when exactly did Rian start liking him?
Ren Xiyang couldn’t think of any past event that hinted at Rian having feelings. From the very first day they met, Rian had been friendly. After they shared their secrets, they had become closer. There were many little events, get-togethers, and chats over the last few years, with each shared experience deepening their bond.
And he couldn’t tell his feeling was love. What did ‘love’ feel like? How was it different from a ‘romantic like’?
But the idea of staying around with Rian for the rest of his life didn’t sound bad. Rian was his closest friend, his closest person.
Ren Xiyang closed his eyes in bed, feeling a slight ache in his chest. He had to admit to himself—after spending so much time around Rian, he missed him. He hadn’t realised how reassuring it was to be able to reach out magically and know that Rian was close by.
The next day, Ren Xiyang went around the Rosewood fief with some of his key staff members to inspect the progress of various projects.
The people flocked if they could, watching respectfully as he cast magic. Most of the time, it was surveillance magic, such as checking to make sure there were no problems with the new construction. From the outside, it looked like nothing was happening.
But whenever something visible happened, like when he lifted the glass pane into place for the builders, or when he magically levelled the new road, the crowd would breathe out a “Woaaaah.”
When Ren Xiyang returned home for the evening, he found that Rian had left him a message on his communication mirror:
Dear Earl Rosewood,
It is with my greatest displeasure that I have to cancel our dearly anticipated meeting tonight. I expect to have a late meeting regarding that contract. Please go to bed early and enjoy your beauty sleep, knowing that I am still awake and working hard for you.
Yours sincerely,
Crown Prince Rian.
Ren Xiyang replied: Ok.
It gave him more time to think about their relationship, and how it would work going forward.
After a day of work, Ren Xiyang had realised that he wasn’t philosophical enough to explore the definition of love. He didn’t know the necessary and sufficient conditions of being in love, so he couldn’t conclude whether he loved Rian.
But he could focus on the practicalities. He could figure out what he wanted to do, what he was willing to do, what he wasn’t willing to do, and what he won’t do.
With all of this in mind, Ren Xiyang drafted an agenda for their next meeting.
Rian saw Ren Xiyang’s reply. His lips twitched with amusement. He was nostalgic for the early days when Ren Xiyang replied to him with full sentences.
His meeting was with King Edric, Queen Mira, and Duke Mauveine.
They wanted to know his plans, after all. Given that they were busy during the day, they had to meet at night.
They gathered in Queen Mira’s study room. Rian brought his report for the day and a copy of the original contract with King Augustus.
“Imperial Mother, here is what I did today,” Rian said, handing over his report. “I didn’t include this evening’s meeting summary, aside from a short mention, as you will also know what happened.”
Queen Mira took the report and put it away.
“Now, explain,” King Edric said.
Rian straightened, his expression serious. “Imperial Father, Imperial Mother, Duke Mauveine, I’ve requested to meet today to discuss the contract that Earl Rosewood and I had signed with King Augustus. King Augustus broke the terms and incurred a large fine, which he has not paid. As according to the contract, his magical ability has now been restricted. Leaving it like this is unreasonable, so I would like to propose a reasonable contract variation.”
While it sounded nice to do nothing and let King Augustus remain magicless, they diplomatically needed to show some concern—unless they wanted to give the impression that they were enemies and/or if they wanted to declare war.
The fact that King Augustus hadn’t paid yet, and also hadn’t been able to break the contract after nearly a month, was already a clear message to all neighbouring foreign powers.
King Augustus was a sore loser, overly arrogant, and cheap.
Crown Prince Rian’s contracts were not to be taken lightly.
“What kind of contract variation were you thinking of?” Queen Mira asked, her eyes sharp.
“We could return the contract fees to its original draft values,” Rian said.
King Edric snorted.
“If you lower it to a symbolic fee, then people will have thoughts,” Queen Mira said gently.
It would suggest that they thought King Augustus was extremely poor. Or that they were poor and needed some money.
“Then what do you suggest, Imperial Mother?” Rian asked.
“The fines should not be decreased. They should either remain the same or be waived and replaced by a condition of similar weighting,” Queen Mira said.
“A repayment system could be suitable,” Duke Mauveine suggested. “There is precedent, with how Earl Rosewood requested Baron Cordovan to pay his awarded compensation across ten years, with some proportion directly spent on the Cordovan fief.”
“However, Baron Cordovan is willing to pay,” King Edric said. “Augustus is not.”
Rian leaned back and let the other adults in the room discuss among themselves.
They suggested multiple different ideas and acknowledged that King Augustus was unlikely to accept the contract variation. However, they could send a message to others by offering a contract variation.
It took them a while to agree on a suitable swap for the gold fine, and much longer to hammer out the wording for the contract variation and for the letter to accompany it.
They didn’t ask Rian for his input, but he didn’t mind. The point of the duel had already been achieved, with new undercurrents stirring in Angio and King Augustus’s reputation heavily damaged. By providing his Imperial Parents and Duke Mauveine with the power over the contract variation, they would feel useful and relevant.
His mind wandered instead. What was Ren Xiyang doing now? Was he asleep yet? It was a little idealistic, but he hoped he was thinking about him too, and looked forward to their next meeting.
The next day, Ren Xiyang and his staff went to the edge of the Rosewood forest. Starting reforestation early was important, before things got worst and ecological restoration became harder and much more expensive.
The local foresters came out to meet him. They were hired part-time to prepare reports, make plans, and plant. Over a year ago, they gave a (verbal) report about the historical ranges of the forests, passed down through their village’s oral history. This was crosschecked by internal Rosewood staff using the sparse historical maps they had.
Last year, the foresters had given him a report on the best plants to plant and the best locations to plant. Ren Xiyang approved a trial, and now he was inspecting the one-year progress.
“My lord, welcome to the Rosewood forest!” the foresters greeted. “Over here, you can see the planting locations. The plants that my Lord has used magic upon have grown vigorously. Otherwise, the planted tree seeds are now sturdy samplings. The short bushes and wildflowers have grown well, attracting birds and bees…”
“My lord, we identified twenty species of birds and ten species of small mammals that stopped by in the new planting area…”
“My lord, over here, we have our tree nursery, allowing us to have a head-start into the second phase of the project…”
After the foresters eagerly showed him all their progress and explained their second-year plan, Ren Xiyang gave his preliminary approval. Their plan will be sent to the Rosewood Council for final approval.
Then, he and his staff went to the nearby villages to meet with their village leaders, and to meet with their fire management teams—while the Rosewood fief climate was not particularly dry, there was always the risk of fire.
Ren Xiyang had suspected that the kinds of trees they had in the forest weren’t prone to burning, and it was proven true through testing. But if they started burning, it was very hard to stop them.
So fire risk needed to be managed.
Similar to the team of foresters, these fire managers—sometimes village leaders, sometimes other members in the settlement—were paid on a part-time basis. They had to report on historical records and think of fire management strategies.
After a day of walking around, Ren Xiyang returned to the Rosewood manor in the evening.
At night, before bed, his communication mirror linked up with Rian’s.
“Xiyang!” Rian’s blue eyes were bright.
“Hi. I’ve prepared an agenda,” Ren Xiyang said immediately. He had things to get through, they could chat after.
“Then please, go ahead.”
“Let me first ask some clarifying questions. Do you agree that we are dating?”
“Yes, of course!”
“Are we boyfriends or partners?”
Rian’s eyes gaze deepened as a smile floated upon his lips. “Dear Xiyang, we’re paramours, beaus, lovers.”
Heat crept up Ren Xiyang’s neck. He looked away and studiously wrote down the words. “Right, next, our romantic relationship is to remain secret for now, correct?”
“I’m working hard to make sure we can go public eventually,” Rian said, hand over his heart.
“Do you want to let select people know before we go public?”
Rian put on a pensive expression. “Florence.”
Ren Xiyang blinked.
Rian put on a stern (pouty) expression. “We should tell Florence, so that she knows that I’ve taken you.”
Ren Xiyang suddenly understood. “Right. Sure.” He had a good feeling about telling Florence. She was really smart, perceptive, and tactful. “Well, tell me if you want any help with whatever it is you’re doing regarding going public.”
“Just be yourself,” Rian said with a twinkle in his eye.
“…Okay, next up is the Imperial Magical Academy—”
“Oh, don’t worry about that! I’ve had my people complete your registration at the academy already.”
Ren Xiyang’s eyes snapped up from his agenda list. “What?”
“I’ll make sure we get suites right next to each other.”
“Hm, let’s not date anymore, until after you finish at the Academy. Puppy love is not conducive to academics,” Ren Xiyang said blandly.
“What we have is not puppy love,” Rian said in an aggrieved tone. “The experience of attending the Imperial Magical Academy is important. It helps build experiences, connections, and a common history with other nobility and mages of our age cohort.”
Ren Xiyang made a face. He knew enough people already.
“—While you know many young noble mages, you don’t know nearly as many young non-noble mages who also attend the Academy. They will come from across the kingdom, and this is a good opportunity to meet them. The backgrounds and skills of such mages are unique and important for our association of future leaders.”
Ren Xiyang pressed his lips together. Rian was right.
“I could organise your access to a greenhouse or two. While you’re not a plant mage, an exception can certainly be made. There is an extensive library there, which can help inform our product research. And finally, you don’t need to attend the classes. Unless you intended to enter the Imperial University, you simply need to learn enough to pass through the Academy years. I’m confident you’ll easily pass.”
Ren Xiyang’s lips quirked. Rian had really thought about this—he knew him too well. He sighed. “Okay, I’ll go then.”
Thank you to lilbabydino, Arro, 09A, mahan734 for the support~!
I feel like I haven’t written [established] romance for ages, and I’ve never had someone as orderly in life as Ren Xiyang haha…
Quick homework question!
Q: Who do you think knows the other person better?
A: Rian knows Ren Xiyang better.
B: Ren Xiyang knows Rian better.
C: They both think they know each other well but they would be shocked if they could hear the other’s thoughts!
D: I have a different answer down in the comments—
