As his body grew up day by day, his fivesenses had gradually gotten stronger, and he no longer needed Bai Huo to holdhim all the time. Five meters, ten meters, as long as Bai Huo was within hisrange of perception, the little cub could sleep soundly.
Bai Huo shifted his gaze away from the sofaand to the person sitting opposite him. Zhou Chong Wen was looking at him witha faint smile.
”You look like you’ve been doing fine.”Zhou Chong Wen usually had a gentle expression, but when he looked at Bai Huo,his eyes were especially deep. “When you left, I was worried that you wouldn’tbe able to adapt. Now it seems that I was overthinking.”
”At that time, I wasn’t very sensible. Igave Shige a lot of trouble.” Bai Huo was sitting with his back straight,none of his usual sloppiness could be seen. He looked like a student calledbefore the principal.
Zhou Chong Wen smiled and shook his head, thenhe took a sip of his tea.
”Someone from the association said thatyou’re going to be the new patriarch?” Bai Huo asked.
”Where did you hear that?”
”From Ding Ping,” Bai Huo loweredhis head. “The old patriarch…”
”He’s sick.” Zhou Chong Wen sighed,“Scale rot.”
Bai Huo shuddered.
Scale rot was one of the dragon race’s mostpainful terminal diseases. Adult dragons over the age of 300 had a higher riskof contracting it. The disease didn’t kill immediately, instead, the dragon’sscales would gradually harden and fall off, and the disease was incurable. Eventually,the dragon loses their source of protection and dies painfully.
Thinking of that old man’s kind hands, BaiHuo’s heart couldn’t settle down for a long time.
”He can probably still hold on for twentymore years,” Zhou Chong Wen saw his abnormal expression and consoled him.“Are you going to see him? He misses you.”
Bai Huo stared blankly, after a long time, he shookhis head, his expression sad: “I won’t.”
Zhou Chong Wen didn’t push him, he looked at BaiHuo with a complicated expression.
The two men quietly drank tea for a while, thenBai Huo asked: “Why did you want to see me?”
”The old patriarch sent me to Xi City tohandle some matters involving the succession. I remembered that you’ve been livinghere for a long time and came to see how you were doing.” Zhou Chong Wen seemedto unintentionally scrutinize Bai Huo’s face. “When you live in the sameplace for a long time it gets easier to expose your identity, do you have any plansto move?”
Bai Huo stroked the teacup with his thumb.“I’ll think about it in a few more years. I have to wait for my child to geta little bigger.”
”Child…” Zhou Chong Wen looked atthe little dragon sound asleep on the sofa, there was some concern in his eyes.“Can you do it alone?”
”I can,” Speaking of the little dragon, BaiHuo’s expression lightened a little, the corner of his mouth risingunconsciously. “He’s very obedient. He eats whatever I give him, and doeswhatever I ask him to do. He doesn’t need much maintenance.”
Seeing Zhou Chong Wen’s silence, Bai Huo earnestlysaid: “Shige, you don’t have to worry about me. I’ve already let go of the past.Humans are not as unbearable as the clan members like to say. I’ve lived amongthem for a long time, I’m happy here.”
”How could I not worry…” Zhou ChongWen let out a long sigh and glanced at Bai Huo’s wrist, suddenly reaching outfor it.
Bai Huo subconsciously pulled back, but Zhou ChongWen was very strong. He tightly gripped Bai Huo’s wrist with one hand andpushed up his sleeves with the other, seeing the still unhealed chain scars andbite marks, he exposed a slightly helpless expression.
”Why do you always get hurt?” Zhou ChongWen’s tone had a trace of blame. He covered the wrist with his palm, and beforeBai Huo could protest, the wounds had already been absorbed by the transferencespell.
”Shige, you didn’t have to…” BaiHuo anxiously said.
But ZhouChong Wen interrupted him: “Since you’re calling me Shige, just accept my kindness–wait, there’s a wound on your shoulder?”
”Don’t…” Seeing Zhou Chong Wen aboutto get up, Bai Huo sternly refused, saying in shame, “It’s a lost scale.”
Zhou Chong Wen frowned, and Bai Huo hurriedlyexplained: “It’s not a big deal, the wound has already closed, it doesn’thurt anymore. I just have to wait a few months for the scale to grow back.”
This was the truth, wound transferal couldonly shift injuries, but it couldn’t do anything against diseases and damagedscales. Wound transferal would be no help for a missing scale.
”You…” Zhou Chong Wen wasn’t extremelyhandsome, but he could beat any opponent in temperament. He had anindescribable calmness and elegance. When he looked at someone and sighedhelplessly, he’d make that person feel a special type of intimacy.
When he was a child, Bai Huo was ostracized bythe other dragons because of his abnormal color. Everyone looked at him like hewas some kind of alien. Only Zhou Chong Wen treated him like a little brother.He would always protect him and play with him, although Zhou Chong Wen was alsonot well-liked at that time.
Perhaps because of their similar circumstances,the two had formed a deep friendship. Afterwards, Bai Huo left the dragons tolive among the humans, and Zhou Chong Wen stayed in the dragon clan, the two werethen separated. After many years passed, that soft-spoken and clumsy Zhou ChongWen had been reborn. He didn’t amount to nothing like everyone said he would, instead,he’d taken over the highest position, becoming the dragon race’s patriarch. Asfor the hardships he’d had to face to get this far, Zhou Chong Wen didn’t sayit, but Bai Huo knew that it couldn’t have been easy.
”Right, this is for you.” Zhou ChongWen took off the blood-red giant pearl bracelet from his wrist and put it on BaiHuo’s wrist. “Take off the heated iron. Although you use your scales to dampenthe heat, it takes a long time to work, and your body will eventually bedamaged. The effect of these blood pearls is no worse than the heated iron, theycan also suppress the mania during estrus.”
Bai Huo was usually shameless, but after Zhou ChongWen unexpectedly brought up this subject, even he felt a little embarrassed, hisface reddening.
”Are you going to treat your Shige asan outsider,” Zhou Chong Wen was amused, his expression calm. “Igot married soon after you left. I don’t need this anymore.”
Bai Huo was astonished: “Shige got married?When? To who?”
Zhou Chong Wen didn’t answer, he put down histeacup and said indifferently: “If there’s an opportunity later, you’ll knowwhen you see them.”
Bai Huo felt that Zhou Chong Wen’s reactionwas a bit strange, but if his Shige didn’t want to say it, he naturally wouldn’tpush it, he lowered his head to accept the blood pearls.
Although dragons were civilized, ancientspiritual beasts, they were still animals. Soon after reaching adulthood,dragons would greet their first estrus. After this, they would greet it again everyfive to ten years, the time varying from person to person. A dragon’s estrus wasvery primitive. If they couldn’t vent in a timely manner, their eyes wouldredden, and they would get very irritable, if it got serious, they could evenlose their senses and injure their mates.
In order to prevent such incidents, dragon cubsneed to be educated about this aspect from a young age and given properguidance. Meanwhile, the parents wouldn’t stay idle. When the children werestill young, they would secretly pick out a suitable mate for their children. Justwaiting for them to become adults and fly to court the mate with theirbeautiful scales.
To not have a mate was almost a kind ofpunishment for a dragon, whether mental or physical.
In this peaceful era, the dragons hold a sacrificial ceremony every two years, which was equivalent to a graduation party for humans. It served three functions: the first was to honor any dragons who had made outstanding contributions to the community, and condemn the dragons that had violated the law; the second was a coming of age ceremony where young dragons had their first independent flight; and the third was to encourage friendship between young dragons who were about to become adults, helping their mate selection.
From this, it was obvious that from ancienttimes to the present, whether human or beast, no one could escape the fate ofbeing pressured to get married. How tragic.
”Ding Ping said that you don’t want to letthe child be fostered by the association?” Zhou Chong Wen interrupted BaiHuo’s wandering thoughts.
”Huh?” Bai Huo snapped out of it, thenhis face hardened. “He’s too young, and he’s imprinted on me a little. I can’tgive him to the association.”
This type of imprinting should only last abouta month. Zhou Chong Wen looked at the obviously almost three months old littledragon, but he didn’t expose it, merely saying: “He was born in a bad era,I fear that his future will be a little rough.”
Bai Huo nodded; his expression somewhat gloomy.Forget about the fact that the little dragon’s growth environment was poor,selecting a mate in the future would be the biggest obstacle. In this era,there were hardly any new dragons being born, it was almost a certain fact thatthe little guy won’t be able to find a wife in the future.
Did he have to live like his dad, who couldonly rely on magical artifacts to suppress himself? It was a miserable existence.It was precisely because of this bitterness that Bai Huo refused to let the littledragon repeat his choices.
”I’ll think of a way for him.” Zhou ChongWen spoke in a timely manner. “You should also think about your child.Although Ding Ping doesn’t have much diplomacy, it’s not all for theassociation’s benefit.”
Hearing this, Bai Huo understood why Zhou ChongWen visited at this time, and his heart sank a bit.
Zhou Chong Wen saw the change in his eyes andsighed: “Bai Huo, I know what you’re thinking, you’re always so stubborn.”
”Shige is overthinking it,” Bai Huosmiled. “I know that you’re trying to do what’s best for me.”
”It’s good that you understand. Theassociation is different now. The things we experienced when we were children won’thappen again. If you give the child to us, he won’t be mistreated.” Zhou ChongWen glanced down at his watch. “You should think it over. The child will eventuallyneed education. Human education isn’t suitable for dragons, it’s too easy forthem to expose their identity.”
”Is Shige leaving already?” Bai Huoasked.
”Yeah, there’s still things to be donebefore dawn.” Zhou Chong Wen stood up and looked at Bai Huo’s nearly flawlessface illuminated by the lamp light, his tone changing into one of an earnest elderbrother, “Don’t worry, the decision is all yours. With me here, no one canforce you to do anything. Although the old patriarch has stepped down, I feelthe same way as him.”
Bai Huo hesitated for a bit, then nodded.
Zhou Chong Wen walked to the sofa and stuffeda fist-sized night pearl into the little dragon’s arms. He smiled and rubbed hissmall horns, then he got up and said his goodbyes to Bai Huo: “I didn’t bringanything valuable with me when I came out, I’ll give him a proper gift nexttime. I’ll be going now.”
”Have a safe trip, Shige.” Bai Huo senthim off.
After seeing Zhou Chong Wen out, Bai Huo’sheart was a little uneasy.
The little dragon was still asleep, sensinghis close presence, he instinctively rolled into his arms, the glowing green nightpearl thrown aside.
”Hah…” Bai Huo stroked the littledragon’s hair, sighing aloud after a few minutes.
What a worrisome boy.
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T/N:
Are you going to treat your Shige as an outsider:跟你师哥见什么外 – notsure about this translation
What a worrisome boy: Someone who causes others to feel worry
That’s it for VOL 1, I hope you guys likedit. It was a lot of work; each chapter took about 6-8 hours to translate, andit’s as accurate as I’ll ever get it, seeing as I don’t know Chinese lol. I’lltake a few days break then get started on VOL 2. The second volume isabsolutely amazing(imo). I was at the edge of my seat, I laughed, I cried, Istayed up all night reading it. It’s the whole reason I decided to translate astory that’s on hiatus. Yes, hiatus. If you’ve somehow missed all thewarnings, this story, as of writing this, hasn’t been updated in almost a year.If the thought of that makes you want to cry, then please don’t cry at mecause I warned you.