With great effort, Zhan forced himself to steady his breathing. Eyes squeezed shut, he turned the doorknob and stepped inside.
Just like the night before, the room was dim, lit only by a soft glow. A calming scent drifted through the quiet air mixed with the coolness of the AC, wrapping the space in serenity.
Zhan exhaled slowly, his gaze moving around the room. There was no sign of anyone present, though every instinct in him told him that King Yibo was here.
He continued forward cautiously, like someone sneaking in without permission, taking each step lightly.
"Bring me a cup tea."
Zhan froze instantly, his heart slamming hard against his ribs. He spun around quickly to confirm....King Yibo was seated in a lavish chair, legs crossed, leaning back with an effortless elegance. His eyes were half-closed, as though resting. He was dressed only in a bathrobe and soft slippers, clearly fresh from a bath.
Flustered, Zhan whipped back around, shutting his eyes tightly in embarrassment.
A full minute passed before Zhan slowly moved, walking with measured steps toward the small center table where the teapot sat.
Zhan muttered curses silently at the King while preparing the tea, adding more honey than necessary just to prolong the task. With a twisted smile, he picked up the steaming cup and walked toward King Yibo.
His eyes remained lowered, unable to meet the King's gaze. As he leaned in to set the cup on the table, King Yibo extended his hand, signaling for Zhan to pass it directly. Zhan obeyed wordlessly, still staring at the floor.
"Thanks," King Yibo murmured, bringing the cup to his lips.
Immediately he paused....the sweetness was overwhelming. Just as Zhan turned to leave, King Yibo gently caught his wrist.
Zhan's body locked, eyes squeezing shut even tighter.
In an instant, King Yibo pulled him down, and Zhan found himself sitting awkwardly and stiffly on the King's lap. He jolted in shock, attempting to stand, but Yibo's arm held him firmly in place.
(What is wrong with this man?) Zhan screamed inside his head, fighting the urge to cry.
"This is how tea is prepared now?"
His voice was quiet, deep, brushing directly against Zhan's ear. The warmth of it sent shivers through him.
Zhan couldn't speak....he only squirmed, trying to get up, but King Yibo didn't allow it. Instead, he slid his hand firmly around Zhan's waist, pulling him closer, pressing Zhan's back against his chest.
With his other hand, Yibo guided the cup toward Zhan's lips.
"Haaah," King Yibo exhaled sharply....no hint of humor in his tone.
"I... I didn't say I wanted tea," Zhan stammered weakly.
"No?"
Yibo raised an eyebrow, his voice holding a quiet challenge. His hand slid slowly upward to Zhan's chest, his face tucked into the curve of Zhan's shoulder as he inhaled his scent deeply.
Panicking inside, Zhan grabbed his hand firmly, voice trembling, "I-I'll drink it. Just… calm down."
For the first time, King Yibo smiled....a small, rare curve of his lips. Without a word, he lifted the cup again to Zhan's mouth. The sweetness hit instantly, and Zhan squeezed his eyes shut; he could barely tolerate sugary things. Three swallows in, he turned his head aside to escape.
Yibo reached his buds again, Zhan panicked, gripping his wrist like someone about to cry.
"I'll drink it, really."
Yibo said nothing, simply held the cup to Zhan's lips until he finished it completely.
"I'm done," Zhan murmured pitifully, trying once more to pull away.
But King Yibo still wouldn't release him. Instead, he set the empty cup aside and pressed his hand gently to Zhan's waist... exactly where the bruise still ached.
Zhan jerked violently, pain shooting through him. Before he could react, Yibo repositioned him firmly in his lap again and press the waist. The pain radiating through Zhan's body made his muscles tremble, and without realizing it, Zhan clung tightly to King Yibo....legs curling around him, arms looped around his neck, face buried against the King's bare chest beneath the robe.
"Are you trying to break me?"
King Yibo spoke in a low, husky voice, as if holding back something heavy inside him.
Zhan pushed his lips forward slightly, pressing his face closer against the side of Yibo's neck. The warm brush of his breath completely shattered Yibo's control, his entire body tightening involuntarily. But as always, he held himself together.
Still, he asked again, voice strained and rough,
"Did you meditate?"
"Mm,"
Zhan replied, sounding breathless.
"Will you do mine with me?"
Yibo asked again, still speaking from deep in his throat, trying to adjust Zhan's face resting on his shoulder.
Zhan had no choice but to nod, his body trembling lightly, enough for Yibo to feel it. Pity and laughter both tugged at Yibo, and in his mind he muttered, Stubborn coward.
Outwardly, he stood up in one swift motion, lifting Zhan in his arms. Zhan buried his face in Yibo's chest, and he felt like screaming from embarrassment.
Yibo carried him all the way to the bathroom and set him down in front of the tap, turning the water on from behind him.
He watched Zhan closely as they came out, noticing the slight limp in his steps. Clearly the fall earlier still hurt him. Yibo said nothing, and Zhan refused to meet his eyes.
"I'll be right back," Yibo murmured, brushing past him and heading into his private room. Zhan followed him with his eyes until he disappeared, then let out a deep sigh before sitting at the table near the soft bed.
Yibo returned shortly, now dressed in ash-colored pajamas, smelling faintly of something clean and warm. He spread a soft carpet for them himself.
"How many minutes?"
He asked, turning slightly, his tired eyes on Zhan.
Zhan's face tightened. Without looking at him, he said flatly,
"I want to see my family."
"And me?"
King Yibo asked, gaze still locked on him.
Zhan puffed his cheeks in annoyance and muttered,
"What else do you even want in this world?"
(Well, YOU, Yibo thought.)
On the surface, he only smiled slightly and moved closer. With two fingers under Zhan's chin, he lifted his face gently.
Zhan's eyes fluttered shut.
"I want you," Yibo said softly. "You're what I need most right now."
Zhan's eyes flew open in shock.
Yibo continued, smiling wider,
"I want you to give me children who look just like you."
Zhan's lips trembled as he looked away, whispering,
"Please, don't say things like that."
"Why,"
Yibo replied, smoothing his expression and adjusting his posture.
Zhan straightened too, stomping his feet in irritation. If he wasn't afraid Yibo might repeat last night's activities, he would have run away already.
They meditated for twenty minutes, leaving Zhan calmer, even with a few tears he didn't understand.
When they finished and Zhan moved to stand, Yibo grabbed him and pulled him back down. Zhan froze as Yibo lifted his foot into his hand, supporting the heel and massaging gently.
Zhan gasped.
"What?"
Yibo asked, narrowing his eyes at him.
"It hurts…" Zhan whispered, close to tears.
Yibo said nothing, only continued massaging with quiet focus. After two minutes, he stood. Zhan tried to rise too, but suddenly he was lifted and set on the bed. Yibo sat beside him, took a heat ointment from the drawer, and rubbed it gently onto his foot.
Zhan watched him silently, breath unsteady as the pain eased.
When their eyes met, Zhan looked away quickly and murmured,
"Thanks."
Yibo didn't respond. He stood, and a moment later returned with his laptop and a cup of tea.
He placed the laptop on the table, turned the screen toward Zhan, and sat with poised confidence, crossing one leg over the other and sipping his tea slowly. His half-lidded eyes drifted to Zhan, the look alone stealing Zhan's balance.
Zhan tried not to stare, but from the corner of his eyes he watched him....Yibo pretending not to notice.
"Last born!"
A gentle voice....one Zhan would recognize even in deep sleep. His chest dropped like a stone.
He jerked around, hearing his name again.
Their eyes met...Zhan and Mah's. Babiy stood to her right, Huan to her left.
Zhan shot to his feet, trembling.
He glanced at Yibo, who sat calmly sipping his tea as if nothing were happening.
Zhan looked back at the laptop. It was Mah. And Huan. And Babiy, whom he'd believed he would never see again. And behind them, his grandfa and Wei Po.
Zhan fell to his knees in front of the laptop and burst into uncontrollable tears.
"Please....tell me this is real? I'm not dreaming, right? It's not a trick or some recorded video?"
"It's live, lil brother. A video call.... this is real."
Huan said, smiling wide.
Zhan froze, stunned.
He turned again to Yibo....who was watching him now with a slow, wicked smile...before winking and looking away.
Zhan dropped to his knees on the soft carpet as if all strength had been pulled from his body.
Even though no one understood why he fell like that, they all burst into laughter.
Grandfa said gently,
"You stubborn boy, still refusing to believe even now?"
Zhan broke into another wave of tears, crying as if Grandfa had stabbed a needle right into his heart.
Staring fixedly into the laptop screen, he sobbed,
"Grandfa… Babiy… Wei Po… Mah… Huan… So you're all alive?
You were alive, far away from me this whole time?
You were alive while I cried every day and every night with no one to wipe my tears?
Why? Why did they tell me you were gone? That you were killed, and even showed me...."
A heart-shattering sob tore out of him again.
King Yibo shut his eyes, pressing them tightly together.
He could feel Zhan's cries deep inside his chest, something rising sharply through him from his skull down to his toes.
Afraid he would break, he stood abruptly.
To anyone watching, he seemed composed....calm, controlled, dignified. But only he knew the storm inside him. The pain he had buried for years, hidden so deeply no one could ever read it on his face.
He walked to the glass wall, tall and rigid against the window that looked over the palace grounds lit brightly beneath the night sky.
Security guards patrolled everywhere, each armed, after the last incident involving Zhan intensified the protection of the palace.
Meanwhile, Zhan's words shattered Babiy and the others. Tears streamed down the faces of Mah and Wei Po.
Grandfa only smiled softly, watching the grandchild he adored.
Babiy stared at Zhan with emotional intensity, filled with aching affection. His Zhan was brave...but also fragile.
A wild bunny with the heart of a frightened child.
Babiy finally smiled and gently cut through the crying.
"That's enough now, yes? It's over. Everything has passed, Zhan. Forgive us...we never left you because we wanted to.
Every move we made, we carried you with us. Fate separated us, not choice.
But you're safe now. My precious last born."
Zhan wiped his tears, nodding repeatedly.
He never argued. Never challenged. He wasn't raised to talk over his elders.
He wiped the remaining tears from his eyes and looked up again.
This time he smiled...soft and bright...relieved to see they were all healthy and glowing.
He greeted each of them respectfully, and they responded with warmth and affection.
They too saw how much he had changed....how much hardship had sharpened and strengthened him.
He looked even more handsome than before, glowing in a way only suffering could carve.
In a trembling voice, Zhan whispered,
"But Grandfa… they told me all of you were killed."
Grandfa chuckled quietly with the calm wisdom he always carried.
"Yes, Zhan. All part of protecting our fate. Some people wished to control destiny, so we had to disappear, and we endured silently. Everyone believed we were gone.
A certain person saved us and helped us survive....but even now, we don't know who he is."
Zhan quickly turned his gaze toward King Yibo, who was still standing by the window.
Then he looked back again at Grandfa and the others.
"So you still don't know who it is? For real? Then how is it that I'm talking to you through this video call?"
This time Babiy answered him.
"Up until now...aside from Barrister Aas....we have no idea who arranged our escape to South Africa. We were simply told we would speak with you today. We even began to suspect you were behind it."
Zhan's eyes widened in shock, and again he glanced toward King Yibo, who still stood there silently.
"Not at all, Babiy. It wasn't me. I was told that all of you were gone. That's why I have lived every single day drowning in grief and pain."
They all exchanged confused looks.
Then Grandfa, always the one with insight, asked,
"Alright then....who connected us with you right now?"
Zhan opened his mouth to answer, but his eyes shifted again to the window.
Fortunately, at that moment, King Yibo finally turned around and fixed him with a sharp, warning stare.
He shook his head slightly, pressing two fingers to his lips in a silent signal to keep quiet.
Zhan swallowed hard and turned back to Babiy.
He shook his head slowly and said quietly,
"Someone helped… someone unknown. He brought me the laptop here secretly as well.
Even inside this palace, I still haven't figured out who he truly is."
They nodded, satisfied with the explanation.
But Grandfa only smiled and let things be.
Zhan continued asking questions, and they answered him one after another.
Nearly two hours passed before King Yibo signaled subtly that it was time to end the call.
Reluctantly, Zhan said goodbye... and from their expressions, it was clear they were just as unwilling to end the call too.
Zhan couldn't stop smiling afterwards, and it made it impossible for King Yibo to look away from him.
That smile twisted everything inside him, disrupting all logic and balance.
Trying to escape the feeling, Yibo stood, biting his lower lip and squeezing his eyes shut.
But suddenly...before he could take a step...Zhan wrapped his arms around him from behind.
King Yibo froze completely.
His heartbeat, breath, and every muscle in his body locked in place.
Zhan was overwhelmed with joy, unable to contain it, needing someone to share the happiness with. In that moment he wasn't seeing the King of Beiping...he was seeing him as Huan, his brother, his family.
Zhan pressed his head against the broad back of King Yibo, hugging him tightly around the waist and laughing softly through the last traces of tears.
In a trembling whisper he murmured,
"Thank you… thank you, Yibo.
The way you made me happy today....I don't even know what to say. May joy return to you many times greater.
May your life be filled with peace and every burden you carry lighten.
May every dream in your heart come true before you even speak them aloud.
And may every tear you ever feel rise in your eyes be wiped away before it falls…"
King Yibo's body began to tremble, his breath tearing in and out in frantic bursts. Zhan had shaken loose every hidden wound he had buried inside him for years.
Slowly, King Yibo removed his hands from his abdomen, trying to steady himself. He pulled Zhan closer until he stood directly in front of him. Before Zhan could speak or even lift his head to look at him, King Yibo wrapped both arms around him tightly....so tightly that Zhan disappeared entirely against his chest, swallowed by his height and strength.
Zhan let out a small startled cry when the embrace tightened even more, giving King Yibo a light punch on the back in protest. But King Yibo did not move; he only released another strangled breath, refusing to let go. When the pressure became almost unbearable, Zhan wriggled weakly, trying to push free.
But King Yibo held on as if letting go would break him in half. With a desperate, spoiled whine, on the edge of tears, Zhan gasped:
"Hey....Yibo… hubbbbby!!"
(Damn this boy) King Yibo muttered, whatever control he had left slipping as the echo of that drawn-out "hubbbbby" crashed through him. The dizziness swept through his head so violently he nearly collapsed....so he quickly lifted Zhan off the floor.
Zhan clutched him tightly, heart pounding, terrified by the way King Yibo's body trembled....so unlike the powerful king he thought he knew.
"I'm sorry," King Yibo whispered as he lowered them both onto the bed. He pulled Zhan closer and pressed their lips firmly together.
The way King Yibo kissed him was overwhelming....mind-shattering, breath-stealing....nothing like the cold, disciplined leader the world saw. His eyes were squeezed shut; the only language he understood was the desperate need to show Zhan everything he felt.
He didn't stop until he was certain he had poured out every ounce of emotion. Zhan's lips burned and tingled from the intensity, trembling beneath the assault.
When King Yibo finally released him, Zhan did not pull away....he stared at him with wide eyes, filled with panic and confusion. His breath was tangled and broken from fear and shock.
"Please, Yibo… hubby… please…" Zhan begged, voice shaking.
"I can't control it anymore," King Yibo whispered hoarsely, a tone Zhan had never heard from him....raw, cracked, painfully human.
Zhan heartbeat slammed like thunder in his chest. He drew back slightly, running a hand through his hair.
"You're the King....show some fairness. I'm not ready for this."
King Yibo's eyes darkened.
"To me, you're everything, the King. I am your servant from now on....I belong to you. You're the only secret I have, Xiao Zhan." King Yibo said.
Horrified, Zhan jerked backward, shaking his head rapidly, eyes wide. No moment in his life had ever frightened him this deeply....not until now.
A slow smile, dangerous and breathtaking, curved across King Yibo's lips. Without breaking eye contact, he slid his hand down the zipper of his shirt and pulled it open, pulling the fabric off completely.
Zhan screamed, trembling violently, and dove face-first into the pillow, curling into himself in a ball of sheer panic....
Zhanxianyibo💚❤️💛