Page 46 of Two Thousand Blades

“To lose the heart of anything is the same as losing everything,” Ming Yu calmly announced as she entered the room carrying a tray with a steaming teapot with several cups. Mei Lian followed a couple of steps behind with another tray with more tea.

Ming Yu slipped into the empty spot on the other side of Kai and smiled warmly at him. “Would you like some tea, Great Dragon Master?”

“I would love some, please, but it’s Kai. That is all.”

Xiang leaned in from Kai’s other side, his chin almost resting on his shoulder. “That’s Su Ming Yu. The jiejie I told you about.”

One corner of Kai’s mouth lifted. “The jiejie who cooks such wonderful food that you missed while you were stuck with me.”

Xiang huffed. “It wasn’t that. But you couldn’t cook, and I don’t know how to cook anything as good as my shijie.”

Ming Yu laughed softly as she poured a cup of tea and placed it in front of Kai. She also poured a second and gave it to Xiang. “You only love me for my cooking.”

“No!” Xiang cried as he reached for the cup. “I love Jiejie because she always has warm hugs for me and tells the best stories. You know all the old fairy tales and myths.”

“Smooth talkers,” Ming Yu murmured as she finished filling cups and passing them around.

Since they’d reached a break, Xiang took the chance to finish introductions for Kai, which was more or less pure chaos, thanks to the recent additions of Rei and Moon. Their clan was bigger and stronger now, but Xiang could see that positive influence both men had on their mates. Yichen was still coming out of his gloomy shell, following his time with the fae thanks to Rei. Meanwhile, Chen was grinning a little easier because of Moon’s nonstop antics.

“Forgive me for being so blunt,” Chen began, and Xiang winced. This would not be good. “But are you following the command of Queen Belladonna because you hope to find an opportunity to steal your property back?”

“He’s not—” Xiang shouted and jumped to his feet, but Kai grabbed his hand and pulled him to his seat.

“His question is fair,” Kai stated as he squeezed Xiang’s hand. And like that, the flurry of rage in his chest fizzled out. Chen’s question might be fair, but that brief look and squeeze were not fair. He wanted to be angry and shout at Chen. Shouting at Chen was fun. If he did it enough, Chen would snap and shout in return.

Xiang pouted while Kai returned his attention to the rest of the gathering.

“Not quite. There is an old legend that unfortunately holds a rather large nugget of truth. If you possess the heart of a dragon’s hoard, you hold the power to command that dragon to do whatever you wish.”

“Oh fuck,” Moon whispered.

Yeah, Xiang felt the same way.

“Mother can command you to do whatever she wishes?” Rei asked. The elf shook his head. “No. No, this can’t continue. The damage she wrought across the human realm. The deaths of even my people. And now she has a dragon at her command?” Rei jumped to his feet, his fists trembling at his sides. “I can’t sit here another moment longer, waiting to see what fresh disaster she creates. I know I can sneak into the castle.”

“Stop!” Yichen shouted as he grabbed Rei’s arms, holding him in place. “You’re not throwing your life away like that.”

Rei opened his mouth to argue, but it was Xiao Dan who cut him off. “Rei, you are not responsible for the actions of all your people. You’re not even responsible for the actions of your mother. The only one you are responsible for is yourself.” Shixiong paused and calmly took a sip of his tea. “Furthermore, you are now a member of the Zhang clan. As your shixiong, I will not allow you to throw your life away over some misplaced guilt.”

The elf wilted in front of Xiang’s eyes, and he collapsed on the sofa. Yichen clung to his mate, whispering reassuring words in his ear, but not before he threw a grateful look in Xiao Dan’s direction.

“It’s more complicated than that,” Kai added with a fragile smile. “She can’t simply pick up the sword and summon me. She needs to have a great deal of magical power at her fingertips. From what I’ve seen, it takes at least several weeks to for her to draw enough power together to summon me.”

“That night in the forest by the river?” Chen inquired.

Kai turned his attention to Chen. “That was only the second time since the door opened that she’d called me successfully to do her biding. Even then, the orders have to be simple.”

“That’s why she’s been able to call you only one other time since you accidentally took me instead of Yichen,” Xiang added, looking up a Kai. “She’s been completely out of magical juice. It took three weeks for her to summon Kai again.”

“I wonder if that’s why the king seemed so sick the last two times I faced him,” Rei murmured. “He appeared as if someone had sucked him dry. Shriveled like a raisin.”

Yichen grunted. “Makes sense. She probably pulled his magic energy to gather the power she needed to command a dragon.”

“But now he’s dead, and she has to carry the burden alone. Unless,” Chen paused, his lips twisting into a frown. “Unless she finds someone else to use as her battery.”

Rei shook his head. “Doubtful. The royal family is the most powerful. My half brother Trin is an obvious target, but he doesn’t carry the blood of both the king and queen. He wouldn’t have the same royal power as my father. He would need to ascend formally to the Dawn Throne first.”

“That means her only other target for a power source is you,” Junjie stated, staring straight at Rei.

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