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Except when he and Li Xiang were in competition.
Then it was all raging fire.
Several times, he’d witnessed Jun-Jun nearly taking Xiang’s head off with a staff.
“I saw a fox this morning,” Jun-Jun volunteered. He gave the orange tabby another scratch behind the ear before shoving to his feet. He dusted off the seat of his jeans with his hands as he turned to face Chen. “It was just prior to dawn. Everything was gray and misty, so I can’t be sure, but I swear I saw a flash of thick orange fox tail as it darted between those trees.”
Chen’s heart stuttered, and he stared in the direction Jun-Jun pointed, as if he were expecting to see the fox in question. “Do you think it’s him?”
“There’s nothing but the wall in that direction, and I don’t think a regular fox could scale it.”
Chen grunted, forcing his eyes away from the trees, but he couldn’t remove the frown from his lips.
“Should we tell him?” Jun-Jun inquired.
“No. Don’t bother. I didn’t think he would follow, but it appears he has. After all this time, I’m sure Da-ge knows he’s here. And if he doesn’t, it won’t be long before he discovers his presence.”
Damn huli jing.4
It didn’t matter. So long as the wild fox spirit didn’t interfere with their mission, what did he care about his presence? Da-ge was more than capable of handling him. It was too much to hope that he might be helpful. Such a thing from a huli jing was asking for trouble and they had all they could handle.
“Da-ge wants us to gather so Xiang can report on his recent reconnaissance,” Chen announced, drawing them to his reason for seeking Jun-Jun in the first place.
“Mn. We’re running out of time. We need to be ready.”
He strolled down the corridor to the center of their home and the grand meeting room, his younger brother following. It was a lovely space with its soothing hidden lighting that caressed the area in a soft, yellow glow that caressed the warm wood.
Zhang Xiao Dan sat in the chair at the head of the room, his hands folded in his lap. To the left and right of the chair were long, cushioned sofas wrapped in pristine white cloth. Directly on his left sat Su Ming Yu, sipping a cup of tea. She wore a fuzzy pale-blue sweater and a long white skirt. Her dark-brown hair stretched along her back in a thick, tidy braid. When she lowered her cup, she flashed both Chen and Junjie a dainty smile.
“It’s white spring wind,” she said and Chen could only shake his head. She knew he would ask what tea she was drinking. It was one of his favorites.
“Did you choose that because of my early-evening annoyance?”
“Pfft. Whatever. You wake up annoyed,” Xiang muttered under his breath. He stretched beside Su Ming Yu on the sofa, tossing a ball into the air just above his head and catching it.
She set her cup on the table in front of her and ruffled Xiang’s short hair with one hand. “And you go out of your way to put him in a foul mood.”
Xiang tipped his chin up and grinned at her, his expression full of mischief. “Have a heart, Shijie!5 He’s so easy to annoy. Chen!” But the ball was already rocketing toward Chen’s head before he said his name.
Chen’s reflexes were just as fast. He caught the ball, stopping it from smashing into his nose. With the same lightning speed, he threw the ball to Xiang, hitting the infuriating vampire in the stomach.
Wild cackles followed Li Xiang’s pained oof as he half curled up and rocked back and forth on the cushions.
Chen rolled his eyes and settled next to Jun-Jun on the right sofa, putting as much space between himself and the lunatic as possible.
“Where’s Meimei?” Junjie inquired.
“I’m here! I’m here!” The words sounded as if they were almost lost to a yawn. A young woman wearing giant fuzzy panda slippers padded in. White rabbits in bow ties covered her cotton pajama pants and T-shirt. Her black hair was cut in an asymmetrical bob, the front barely touching her jaw. Not that anyone could tell, since it was a tangled rat’s nest from sleep.
“How late were you up?” Ming Yu demanded.
“Almost noon, but I swear it was all for research. I was sending Xiang-ge places to check out during his reconnaissance.” As she spoke, Xiang sat up and moved closer to Ming Yu, allowing Mei Lian to flop next to him. She pasted a sweet smile on her face and directed it at Ming Yu and then Xiao Dan. “Xiang-ge said I was helpful.”
Chen snorted. Mei Lian was also a K-drama addict, known to stay awake all day binging countless hours of TV rather than resting. Both Xiang and Mei Lian turned their heads toward him and stuck their tongues out in unison.
