Author Note: Hello again, everyone! Enjoy this next chapter :)

Beta: JeanGirlMY

- Chapter Start -

Over the next month, Xiao XingChen, Song ZiChen and A-Qing continued traveling, giving help where needed and enjoying the sights when not. When they had enough money, they stayed in a room at an inn and enjoyed hot baths and good meals. A-Qing had the bed to herself while the two men slept on mats on the floor or sat cross legged against the wall. When money was scarce, they sheltered in abandoned temples or caves.

A-Qing was happy. Neither Daozhang said anything about going their own way and leaving her behind.

One afternoon, they were sitting in their room at an inn, having tea while taking turns to wash off the dust of travel. A-Qing couldn't help smiling at how Song ZiChen's gaze kept straying to the painted screen in the corner behind which Xiao XingChen was taking his bath.

"Thank you, A-Qing," Song ZiChen said when she handed him a cup of tea. His usual thanks was a nod so she raised a questioning eyebrow at him.

"I am grateful you kept XingChen company over the past half year."

"Eight months actually," A-Qing said in a smug tone.

"So you pretended to be blind for at least that long?" Song ZiChen enquired.

"Shh!" She hissed at once.

"ZiChen," Xiao XingChen's mildly disapproving yet fond voice floated out from behind the screen.

"Oh! He knows? You told him?" A-Qing squawked.

Soft laugher sounded, accompanied by the splashing of water. Xiao XingChen soon emerged from behind the screen, wearing fresh inner clothes with a towel around his shoulders to catch the water from his hair.

A-Qing didn't blink an eye, having grown used to seeing him like that. Without a word, Song ZiChen urged him to sit down and began toweling dry his hair for him.

"ZiChen never told me," Xiao XingChen said as he sipped a cup of hot tea. "I suspected not long after I met you."

A-Qing mumbled an apology and stewed in offended silence as the two Daozhang had a good chuckle at her expense. To be fair, Song ZiChen merely smiled, but that was the equivalent of a hearty laugh for him.

By the time he finished combing Xiao XingChen's hair and braided it, A-Qing's pout had vanished. She was happy they had reunited and were able to night hunt together once more. The first time she saw them in action was like poetry come to life. Their monikers fitted so well - Xiao XingChen's "bright moon and gentle breeze" complementing Song ZiChen's "distant snow and cold frost". They fought like they had one mind, anticipating each other's moves and protecting each other's backs without exchanging a single word.

She was also happy that Song ZiChen's stern demeanour meant no merchant would dare cheat them of groceries anymore. Walking around with them made her feel safe, like she had two older brothers... who were deeply in love with each other. In front of her, they limited their affection to smiles and small touches on the arm or shoulder. When they were sure she had fallen asleep, she heard them stealing kisses and exchanging words of love.

The only fly in the ointment was that they were still determined to find Xue Yang and bring him to justice for his many crimes. A-Qing would bite her lip each time she heard them whispering and planning when they thought she was asleep.

- o -

Another month passed. The trio reached another town and booked a room at one of the larger inns there.

A-Qing hadn't had the opportunity to chat with Xue Yang ever since her two Daozhang reunited. Still, she managed to catch a glimpse of him in all the places they visited. She knew it wasn't due to her observation skills, but because he wanted her to know he was abiding by his promise to keep an eye on them.

Each time she caught sight of him, she would wonder how he was doing. It couldn't be bad. He was wearing brand new robes and looked like he was eating enough.

That afternoon, she left the inn to explore the town and to get dinner for her and the two Daozhang. Xiao XingChen had given her enough money with a little extra for sweets.

Two hours later, the sun disappeared as dark clouds rolled in, signaling an oncoming thunderstorm. As passers by hurried past A-Qing, intent on reaching their destination before it rained, she dithered for a bit before deciding that it was easier to order their dinner from the inn and have it sent to their room instead of risking getting herself drenched. She retraced her footsteps and was almost at the inn when it started raining. She ran the last twenty feet, making it inside just in time.

After taking a moment to catch her breath, she flagged down a staff and ordered noodles and dumplings to be delivered to their room in an hour's time. Then she went upstairs where their room was the furthest one from the stairs. To her surprise, the door was locked.

Had her two Daozhang gone out as well?

Were they caught in the rain?

Frowning to herself, A-Qing paced up and down the corridor. She could hear the sound of pouring rain and thunder from outside whenever someone entered the inn. There was a flash of lightning, echoed by a small flicker of light in the otherwise darkened corridor. Then she realised it had come from the outer wall of their room.

Kneeling down, she found a small hole in the wood paneling and peeped inside. She could only see a corner of the low table where they had their meals, a section of the patterned screen in the corner and the bottom half of the bed.

How strange. She couldn't see her two Daozhang, but both their outer robes - white and black - were lying on the table. Then movement on the bed caught her eyes and she saw two pairs of legs clad in inner trousers with the feet bare.

Oh.

Oh!

No wonder they had locked the door. All of a sudden, she realised just how blind she has been. Her two Daozhang were in love. Of course they would want to share and celebrate that love in private.

A-Qing couldn't tell who was lying on top of who, but they were very occupied, judging from the rhythmic creaking of the bed and the panting of each other's names just barely audible above the heavy downpour.

"ZiChen."

"XingChen."

"I'm... close..."

"Me too..."

A-Qing was rooted on the spot, eyes wide and mouth open, too taken aback to realise she was spying on them. Then the door downstairs opened again, letting in a burst of voices and laughter as if several people had rushed inside.

A-Qing shot to her feet at once, face pulsing with heat. She hurried to the other end of the corridor and took several deep breaths to compose herself, even fanning her hot face with her hands. Then she made her way downstairs. It was quite crowded now due to the people wanting to escape the rain so she stood in a corner and waited.

Ten minutes later, she walked up to their room again, singing and making just enough noise to announce her arrival.

It was Song ZiChen who opened the door. He must have unlocked it earlier. He was fully dressed, hair neat as ever, but a tiny smile lurked around his lips. Xiao XingChen was also fully dressed and seated at the table with teacup in hand. There was a rosy glow to his cheeks and he was smiling.

The bed looked suspiciously well made.

"A-Qing, I hope you didn't get caught in the rain," Xiao XingChen said.

"I'm fine, but why did you two leave the window wide open? It's raining!"

She quickly went over to close it.

"Didn't you two see the rain coming in?" She asked, trying not to laugh at Xiao XingChen's growing blush and Song ZiChen's discomfited look.

"So you were downstairs all this while?" Song ZiChen asked, abruptly changing the subject.

A-Qing took pity on them and agreed, saying she had entertained herself looking at all the drowned rats entering the inn.

- o -

After lunch the next day, she announced she wanted to explore the town again and would be back after three hours or so. At the door, she paused to look over her shoulder at them.

"Now, don't waste this golden opportunity I'm giving you," she said with a cheeky grin and closed the door on Song ZiChen's wide eyes and Xiao XingChen's bright blush.

- o -

A-Qing wasn't surprised when Xue Yang appeared beside her.

"How've you been?" She asked quietly, snatching a quick look at him.

"Alright," he said. "I've been doing some odd jobs here and there."

They sat down in a tiny teashop in an out of the way alley. She wouldn't have picked such a place, but she felt safe with Xue Yang sitting opposite her. How ironic that she felt safe with him...

"Are you sure you can spare the time?" He drawled. "Won't your two bodyguards come looking for you?"

"They're too preoccupied with each other," she said without thinking. Then she froze.

To her relief, Xue Yang just rolled his eyes.

"In other words, they can finally enjoy each other without their younger sister underfoot?" he asked with a smile that showed his teeth.

She shrugged and didn't reply. The waiter brought over the tea and lotus paste buns they had ordered. A-Qing took one and let Xue Yang have the rest, wondering how to broach the subject with him.

"So, what did you want to tell me?" He asked after their meal. "Let me guess - tall, dark and brooding Daozhang wants my head."

A-Qing nodded.

"What're you going to do?" She asked, more worried than she let on.

"Give myself up?" He suggested with another mirthless smile.

A-Qing froze at once, eyes widening.

"Just kidding," he said and grinned when she glared at him.

"I was thinking..." she began and trailed off.

"Spit it out."

"We could make it seem like you died eight months ago," she said in a rush. She had thought about it. "After all, in our original timeline, you survived because Xiao XingChen healed you. And in this one, old Wang did. But if he hadn't..."

Trailing off again, she stared at his hand with the missing pinky. He slid his hand off the table and into his lap.

"I'd have to be in disguise for the rest of my life," he finished for her.

"It's better than being dead."

"True. And I haven't gone by my birth name since I came back."

"Oh? What name have you ben using?"

"Xue ChengMei. My courtesy name."

"Xue ChengMei," she repeated and grinned. "Great! Then I'll call you A-Mei!"

"Don't you dare!" He glared at her.

"Oh, I dare... A-Mei." Snickering at his scowl, she picked up the teapot and topped up their tea. She never thought that teasing Xue Yang could actually be... fun!

- Chapter End -

A/N: Thank you for reading! Please leave a review if you enjoyed it :)