Chapter 280 - Relaying Minds

Lei Xing glanced at the Emperor's expectant face and started to feel a bit foolish. It was not like she had an actual explanation or anything concrete. She was not even sure about it, so she awkwardly said, "You're not allowed to laugh..."

The Emperor knit his brows and lightly snorted. Whenever she told him not to laugh, it was always because she was about to say something ridiculous. So whenever he heard her start with that warning, he automatically felt the urge to laugh. But this situation was obviously very serious, so he tampered down the urge and seriously responded, "I won't...Go ahead."

Lei Xing nodded, frowned, and then tentatively said, "Ummm...well...I think...I saw it in a dream...?" 

"A dream?...What kind of dream?" The Emperor inquired with a frown of his own.

Seeing him taking her seriously, Lei Xing felt reassured with her crazy theory and explained, "Well...I didn't actually, like see them directly...I just saw their reflection or what I think is their reflection in a pond...could have been a drawing on the ground too I guess..."

The Emperor raised a confused eyebrow and Lei Xing quickly explained, "Well you see, in the dream, it was night time...and rather than just the moon reflecting in the water or what I think was water, there were those four, reflecting...I think it looked similar I think...It kind of a lucid dream, where I was watching the scenery unfold before me like a movie -..."

"Mov-?"

"It means a play..." Lei Xing offhandedly clarified and continued, "...Anyway, so I saw them in the water and thought they were intriguing so I took a bit of note of it. I didn't see the actual sky though because I - well, we were under a roofed walkway apparently following these two kids who were arguing about - I don't really remember. The weird thing was - actually I guess it's not weird if she has my name, after all, it is my dream...Anyway, I saw them there, I think...As for what it means I have no clue..." Lei Xing finished scratching her head with a frown again. 

{...Therefore, pointless information...Oy, Doc...I'm going to need you to come out of your drunk hole now (≖_≖ )...}

The Emperor blinked at her, "Two children...a boy and a girl?

"En."

"And one had your name..." The Emperor said with a frown. 

Lei Xing let out a little awkward laugh, "I know it's ridiculous...I could also be wrong...Anyway, it just occurred to me as I looked up at the moon just now... I'll ask that qua- Doctor Lou later. It's not useful at all for now so let's just forget it -"

"Was it in a temple...with peach blossoms?" The Emperor continued to inquire. It was an absurd thought but as soon as she mentioned two children and her name, he remembered his own odd, intriguing dream of the past. And as Lei Xing just advised he should trust his instincts and so he here was following his instincts and asking these questions.

Lei Xing knit her brows and looked at him skeptically, "I guess, temple...palace? I can't be sure. Anyway, how ha-" 

"Was this the night we spent at that Doctor's place?" The Emperor cut in again with a deepening frown. 

Lei Xing blinked and knit her brows, "How did you -Did he give me something weird to drink that night?!" Lei Xing loudly exclaimed, shocking the servants who were keeping their distance awake. Lei Xing glanced at them and they promptly lowered their heads and went back to ignoring the couple. Lei Xing grabbed the Emperor'sarm and lowered her voice, "How did you know? He told you about it, didn't he?"

{...That sneaky old man (≖_≖ )...}

Even though Lei Xing did not tell Doctor Lou about the dream, he could have always seen into her head, dream, or at this point, whatever he wanted. She truly did not know the extent of his powers right now.

Frankly, Lei Xing never thought anything about the dream as she woke up to face a day of chaos with the Empress dowager and Chen You's rubbish. Then the issue with the birth control and the Emperor. that sent her into a self-inflicted depression for days. She truly did not have the time or energy to ponder over a dream at that time.

Rather than answering her inquiry, the Emperor asked, "Were the children discussing bracelets?" 

Lei Xing blinked at him in surprise again, "Yeah...I think. Tell me, how did you - Wait, did you see into my head?" She suddenly asked, remembering another possibility.

{...I mean there was that thing with the stupid painting and...that other one too...so maybe? O_O)...}

"See into your head?" The Emperor asked with a raised eyebrow, "What do y-"

"Nevermind." Lei Xing swiftly interjected, reining in her crazy, "Just tell me how you know." She said with a frown.

The Emperor knit his brows, "Well...I think I had the same dream that night..."

"Really?" Lei Xing went, completely taken aback.

The Emperor nodded and Lei Xing knit her brows in thought and then said, "It has to be that quack again...Has to be..."

{...Definitely him -_-)'...}

The Emperor thought back and then answered her question, "Well...I can't be sure if he gave you anything before I arrived...As for me, I did drink with him but that was after our bath -"

"Bath?" Lei Xing asked with wide eyes, "You had a bath with the old man?"

{...Ohhhh O_O)...}

The Emperor frowned, "Of course not. I meant you and me."

"Oh hoho~ My mistake." Lei Xing said snickering. She had already been imagining the awkward scene of the Emperor and Doctor Lou giggling and splashing water on each other in the hot springs. 

The Emperor narrowed his eyes at her, he could imagine the nonsense going on her head, "I woke up in the middle of the night, from that dream to find you burning up. I went to get the doctor and he said it was because there was still some of the toxins left in your system so instructed me to put you in the hot springs for a while to sweat it out..."

"...Obviously there were no maids so naturally, I had to take care of you myself and naturally, I had to sit in there with you to ensure sure you didn't drown...Didn't you wonder why you were dressed in the morning?" The Emperor asked with a raised eyebrow and a little smirk.

Lei Xing blinked at him and promptly looked away as her cheeks began to redden, "W-well...it was a busy morning...I naturally couldn't be bothered...about clothes so..."

The Emperor snorted as he wrapped his arms around her and hugged before she could fly away. He pat her head and whispered, "You can't seriously still be so shy after all this time?"

"I'm not shy...just a bit surpr - taken unawares..." Lei Xing said with a disgruntled pout.

"Ah, taken unawares...I see..."The Emperor said with a chuckle as he released her.

Lei Xing sent him a glare and then said, "Back to the IMPORTANT topic...s-so you had the same dream?" She said, quickly changing the topic before the Emperor could gain more laughs at her expense. 

The Emperor knit his brows in thought and responded, "Well, it sounds like it was the same...But I don't remember seeing those celestial bodies in it though, but then again, my mind might have been focused on other matters...such as those bracelets..." The Emperor said with a sigh.

"...I don't know if you remember, but apparently the bracelets were meant to alert the other when one was in danger...I was thinking about how nice it would be to have them, that way I would know to go save you whenever you're in trouble...I was really worried that night and today -... I thought I would lose you..." He quietly said as he hugged her again.

The Emperor sighed and he remembered in the dream, the bracelet was a parting gift of sorts, he could truly understand the heart of the boy who had gotten this gift to ease his heart as he had to leave her behind.

{...Perhaps if we had something like that, I'd feel much better letting you go...}

The Emperor sighed. 

Lei Xing also sighed and hugged him back, unsure what to say. She could not say she would never leave him as no one could tell what tomorrow will bring. If a situation ever came that made it so her presence here would hurt or destroy him, she would rather leave...She would never be able to live with herself otherwise. 

"I was worried too..." She finally managed to say. 

The Emperor released her and held her cheek, "Xing er', I honestly don't care much about how all this happened -"

"You really don't care? Even when there's obviously-" 

"Something more between us?" The Emperor finished with a smirk.

Lei Xing knit her brows and nodded, "Aren't you curious? This isn't the only instance of these shared visions? Should I call them visions?"

Lei Xing knit her brows and hesitated for a moment but then proceeded, "You know, I just asked if you saw into my head...It wasn't a random question. It's because I think I've seen into your head before. You know that dragon and phoenix painting you gifted me, you said it was from a dream but I have a memory of that view long before I ever set eyes on it, I even described it to others during the selection period...You drew it exactly how I imagined it."

"...Also, remember that poem I wrote during the contest, you thought I was paying homage to the other painting you showed me but I really wasn't. I had never set eyes on that painting before nor had I ever heard of any of your battles at that time, much less hearing about how you were ambushed in your first war...I - I just had those images in my head...And now there's this dream and all this that happened today...It's obviously not normal, it's very strange...How can you not be curious about all this?"

The Emperor was not at all surprised by her string of revelations just now. After all, he had already had his own string of oddities pertaining to her. This just made her reaction in his study that day make more sense. The Emperor sighed, "I am curious but...stranger things have happened." Such as him seeing a future vision of his mother strangling Lei Xing. 

{...Should I tell her about that?... It would probably just make her more worried...}

The Emperor sighed again, "I have long learned that not all things should be questioned and not all questions will be answered..."

Lei Xing pursed her lips, "But -"

"What should matter is how it worked out. This was in our favor, we should be grateful..." The Emperor calmly said.

Lei Xing pouted, "I guess but...I'm sure that quack knows what's happening..." 

"I'm sure he does..." The Emperor responded hugging her and stroking her hair.

Lei Xing hugged him back, "He probably won't tell us though..."

"He probably won't..." The Emperor acknowledged.

"I don't like being played with..." Lei Xing irritatedly said

"Neither do I." The Emperor calmly responded.

"I don't feel very grateful right now." Lei Xing said with a disgruntled pout.

"I do..." The Emperor said with a light chuckle, closing his eyes and resting his cheek on top of her head. He was curious but for him but Doctor Lou's warning about the repercussions of uncovering the Voice's identity still resonated in his head. So for him, there were much more important things than satisfying curiosity.