Actually, I Belong to the Eighth Prince

Zhang Lanhe had never liked hunting.

It reminded him of long ago, when he lived in the mountains and tracked prey, free and unfettered. Now he was trapped in the Great Xia Dynasty, unable to leave.

This prisoner-like existence nearly drove him mad.

Where on earth had the thing he wanted to recover been hidden? For every day he failed to find it, he remained unable to free himself.

For once, he had hunted down something that truly satisfied him. His dull, tedious life here finally had a little excitement.

Zhang Lanhe saw the mark he had left, and his emerald-green eyes grew entranced. He longed to turn into a white snake and coil around his prey, leaving him no escape until he died in his embrace.

But if he died, there would be no more scenes this lively and interesting.

With his clothes slashed open by the sword, Xie Huizhou stood dumbfounded in the wind. The snake marking at his waist trailed downward, eerily beautiful and vivid.

The tense, thrilling atmosphere of their fight suddenly turned sensual.

Xie Huizhou fell silent at the sight of himself.

Once he got back, he would get them a new batch of better-quality Shadow Guard uniforms. These tore apart with one light slash. The quality was atrocious.

"My clothes are ruined. I just bought these, and I've only worn them once."

Xie Huizhou thought to himself that, since the Imperial Preceptor loved stripping people so much, he would draw that trait into his character later and stun everyone to death with the outrageous scenes!

"It's been over a month since we last parted. You certainly know how to hide, little fox."

Having hunted down his real prey at the hunting grounds, Zhang Lanhe was in an exceptionally good mood. All the offensive things Xie Huizhou had said earlier vanished from his mind, and he looked him over good-naturedly.

"How exactly did you manage to keep me from finding any trace of you? You're the first person who's done that in all this time."

Zhang Lanhe liked keeping everything under his control. When someone escaped it, he could not resist getting to the bottom of it.

Xie Huizhou wore an unremarkable Shadow Guard outfit. His face looked unnatural, making it obvious that he was disguised. He did not want to encounter Zhang Lanhe with his real face.

Zhang Lanhe's hands were very strong. Xie Huizhou stepped back several paces, putting distance between them. "We barely know each other. People should keep their distance."

Do you still remember that you're an Imperial Preceptor with a cleanliness obsession?

Xie Huizhou felt a little uneasy.

The bad news was that the snake marking had exposed him to Zhang Lanhe; the good news was that he was disguised. He had been exposed, but not completely.

Don't panic. The more urgent the situation, the calmer I need to be.

At his command, Xie Huizhou's elusive Shadow Guards could still whisk him away.

Nothing to fear. I can play a little longer.

"We barely know each other? We've already bared everything to each other, and you still carry something I left on your body. Yet all you have to say is that we barely know each other." Zhang Lanhe exposed his lie and continued probing. "Are you really a Shadow Guard? Your hands don't look like they belong to someone who does dirty, exhausting work. They're more like a pampered young master's."

Shadow Guards always handled dirty, exhausting work. Constant exposure to wind and rain left their skin rough year-round, and hands this attractive were rare among them.

Zhang Lanhe felt that Xie Huizhou was hiding other secrets beneath his Shadow Guard guise.

He was lying.

What a cautious fox, always finding ways to evade his probing.

Xie Huizhou played dumb. "What are you talking about? I don't understand. I drew this on myself. Plenty of Shadow Guards I've met have one."

There was no way Zhang Lanhe would fail to recognize the mark he had left. No one else in the world could make it.

After all, he was the only white snake in Capital City-or rather, he was the only demon he had ever seen in his life.

He did not think there could be anyone else.

"Surely you don't think I can't recognize what I left on your body?" Zhang Lanhe narrowed his serpentine eyes slightly. "If you've lost your memory, we can reenact everything that happened that night right here. Perhaps that will help you remember. While we're at it, you can give some proper thought to whether I really have a private ailment."

Xie Huizhou: "..."

He had run his mouth, and now the person he had wronged had come to settle the score.

"Why cling to someone you've only met once, Imperial Preceptor? Are you some young maiden demanding that I take responsibility?" Xie Huizhou simply admitted it, unable to understand the Imperial Preceptor's inexplicable fixation. "I said the wrong thing that day. Will an apology do? I had no choice."

The Imperial Preceptor had never even seen his face, yet he was this fixated. It was very strange.

Zhang Lanhe said, "You're my fated one. Come back with me, and I'll explain exactly what that means."

Having read all sorts of novels, Xie Huizhou was nearly bowled over. "Lord Imperial Preceptor, I belong to the Eighth Prince. I must keep myself pure for him!"

Chosen one, fated one-didn't those all mean a romantic partner?

Xie Huizhou was not ready to date the villain.

Especially one who might kill him.

Xie Huizhou immediately brought up the Eighth Prince, making him bear the wrath of the vindictive Zhang Lanhe.

Shadow Guards really did sometimes have affairs with the masters they served while living on the edge of a blade. Zhang Lanhe's face turned green.

What was so good about the Eighth Prince, a shortsighted man who merely blustered? Why should someone who belonged to him go over to the Eighth Prince?

"Have you forgotten who you belong to?" Zhang Lanhe sounded as though he had heard the greatest joke in the world. "You belong to me, yet you're thinking about another man."

Fine. Very good.

The Eighth Prince was already on his death list.

Anyone who dared covet someone who belonged to him could only die by the blade.

His hands were already stained with many lives.

"If you're so capable, go to the Eighth Prince and try to take me. The Eighth Highness and I are deeply in love. He wouldn't hand me over even if it killed him." Whenever Xie Huizhou could not decide what to do, he made trouble for the Eighth Prince, pretending to be devoted to him until death. "You can try it yourself, Imperial Preceptor, and see whether he really refuses."

He really wanted to know what expression the Eighth Prince would make afterward, when the Imperial Preceptor came demanding someone he could not produce.

A new source of amusement had appeared.

Having finally found him after so much difficulty, Zhang Lanhe naturally would not let him escape easily. "I won't allow you to leave. You're coming back to the National Preceptor's Residence with me."

His chosen one was his weakness. He could not rest easy unless he kept him under his watchful eye.

He was so cunning that, if he escaped, there would be another wait.

"Lord Imperial Preceptor, I'm not your private property." Unconcerned, Xie Huizhou laughed twice, brazenly. "You can't keep me here. It's about time for my plan, too, so I'm done playing with you. Goodbye."

Xie Huizhou signaled for the Shadow Guards to act. They suddenly appeared, threw down smoke bombs, and carried him away.

At the same time, Xie Huizhou's plan to screw over the Eighth Prince succeeded, and he laughed even louder. "Let's never meet again, Imperial Preceptor. My colleagues have come for me. If you need anything, go to the Eighth Prince!"

Zhang Lanhe's face darkened. Just as he summoned his spies and prepared to give chase with them, chaos broke out in the hunting grounds.

A band of masked death sworn fighters suddenly entered the hunting grounds and began pursuing and killing everyone.

The sudden upheaval in the hunting grounds thwarted Zhang Lanhe's pursuit.

No one could have imagined there would be so many masked assassins in the hunting grounds. The Eighth Prince had not sent this many people either, and everything descended into chaos.

"Assassins! There are assassins!"