*Luo Xiao Zhao POV*

Suddenly Xiao Zhao heard something whip past him and saw a glint of metal. It cut the rope that connected the horse to the wagon. He fell backwards and the wagon slid to a stop just inches from the edge.

His heart was beating very fast and he looked down to realize he was still holding the other end of the rope. He forced himself to release the rope and take a deep breath. He slowly sat up and glanced at Han Jun.

Han Jun had closed his eyes tightly and clutched his chest tightly with his right hand. His other hand was touching his back where he fell against the wood. "Ow!" He groaned. "That hurt!"

Xiao Zhao looked at Han Jun's face and felt a pang of guilt. Maybe I shouldn't have grabbed the reins away from Han Jun. Wait, why do I feel bad for him? He's the one that almost killed me!

Despite this, Xiao Zhao reached his hand out and patted Han Jun on the shoulder and said, "Hey, you alright?"

"Do I LOOK alright?" Han Jun groaned.

Xiao Zhao looked him up and down and replied, "Yes."

"Uggg..." was all Han Jun said.

"Here let me help you down," Xiao Zhao said as he took Han Jun's one arm and grabbed his waist for support. He carefully descended the carriage. Once they had descended, a man wearing armor quickly approached them.

"Greetings, Third Prince. I am General Li. Forgive me for coming late," he bowed to show his respect.

"T-T-Third Prince?!" Xiao Zhao stuttered in shock. He unwittingly let go of Han Jun who crumpled to the ground.

Han Jun groaned.

Xiao Zhao stepped away from Han Jun and pointed to the figure on the ground. "H-He's Third Prince?!"

Li Qing stepped out from the crowd and crossed his arms, sword in his right hand. "He is the Third Prince," he confirmed.

Xiao Zhao guffawed. He had heard stories about the princes. The first one was a general and had control of the army, the second was always sick but was very calculated, and the third loved to draw, write, and study and was a simpleton. He had heard what would happen to people who dared hurt the princes: death. Now that Han Jun, no, Third Prince he should say, almost died because of him, he'd be lucky to escape unscathed. He glanced at the crumpled figure on the ground. If he died...

Xiao Zhao immediately dropped to his knees and kowtowed. " Forgive me Third Prince! I didn't mean to hurt you! I deserve to die! Please show me your mercy! I am but your servant! Don't stoop to my—"

He felt a hand on his head and he looked up. It was the Third Prince's hand. Past Han Jun's hand, Xiao Zhao saw his face. His mouth had a tingle of blood on it. He hadn't noticed it before now. "Xiao Zh-Zhao..." Han Jun smiled. He closed his eyes and his hand dropped to his side.

What happened afterwards Xiao Zhao could only distinctly remember. Someone yelled, "Third Prince fainted! Third Prince fainted!" After which Han Jun was then whisked away by guards.

General Li turned to Li Qing and Xiao Zhao and said, " You two, come with us." He turned away and was about to walk away.

"Wait, why?" Xiao Zhao asked.

General Li turned to face them. "You two were with him. Now that he has been hurt, you two must be responsible."

"But-"

General Li glared at Xiao Zhao which made him immediately shut up. They marched the remaining way to Jing Du. Xiao Zhao and Li Qing walked side by side. They had been walking for a while when Xiao Zhao started to feel slightly dizzy. With each step he took, he felt the world spin more and more. Oh no. Before he could think any more, he dropped to the ground, gasping. Pain shot through his body as he started to involuntarily shake. The shaking started with his hands first and then slowly spread to the rest of his body. He felt his head pound so hard and he brought his shaking hands to his ears, covering them. The pain all over and the pounding of his head made it unbearable. He rolled on the ground desperately. The pain became more intense and he felt himself going mad. The world spun faster and faster and then mercifully, darkness.

*Quan Mo Ran POV*

Mo Ran glanced at the cold stone floor beneath him and then at the wooden bars that surrounded him. His eyes then wandered to the figure in pain on the straw mattress. They were in prison.

Though the general had remained polite outside the city, he had become immediately hostile as soon as they had entered the city. Once they had stepped foot into the city, the general had ordered the guards to drag the prisoners to jail where they would await their punishment. Despite Xiao Zhao having fainted, they showed no mercy and threw them in prison because the were 'partially responsible for putting Third Prince in danger.'

Thankfully, instead of shoving them in a crowded prison, the guards gave them a cell of their own.

Mo Ran's eyes strayed back to the figure on the mattress. Xiao Zhao's face was pale and his seizures had subsided. At the present, he lay on straw mattress without moving. His body had relaxed and he was in an unconscious state.

He hadd just turned away when he heard a soft moan, "So...hot...I'm....so... hot!"

He turned around and saw Xiao Zhao tearing at his collar as he tried to get it free. Xiao Zhao was flailing around wildly as he tore at his collar. "Hot...Hot..." he murmured.

Mo Ran took a step forward and was about to help, but then he stopped. Why should I care about this man who I barely know? I shouldn't have agreed to travel with this prince or this man.

He had just turned away when his sister's face came into his mind. She was staring at him with innocent eyes. In his mind, they had just walked past a beggar boy who was alarmingly thin. The beggar called to them as they passed by, "Please spare a coin for me. I am so hungry!" Mo Ran didn't even glance at him but continued to walk. Rui Ming suddenly grabbed his arm and said, "Ge Ge, let's give him a coin." Mo Ran stared at her hard. He looked at her grimy face and tethered clothing. Her hair was full of dirt and the shoes on her feet had multiple holes in them.

He looked at her angrily. "Rui Ming, we can barely survive ourselves! We need all the money we can get!"

"Ge Ge! We have enough to survive today. We even have extra! Let's give him the extra coin. He needs it more than us!"

"No! We don't know when we will get more money! We NEED to keep this!" He turned away angrily and ripped his arm away from her.

"Ge Ge! I'm ashamed to call you my Ge Ge!"

Mo Ran whirled around, angry. "What?!" He exploded.

"Our parents taught us better! As the former son of the emperor, how can you be so cold toward your people? How can you not care a single bit about how they are doing?"

"Enough!" Mo Ran yelled.

A sudden shocked expression crossed Rui Ming's face. Tears pooled in her eyes and tears started to flow down her cheeks. She turned her back to him. Mo Ran felt guilty. He could not bear her tears. "Hey," he said gently as he approached her. "I'm sorry for being harsh. I didn't mean to blow up on you." He gently turned her around to face him and he said, "You're right. I should care about others more. Here." He put a small coin in her hand. "Give this to the boy."

She wiped away her tears and smiled. "I knew you wouldn't make the wrong choice." She skipped to the beggar boy and bent down. "Here's a coin." The boy looked up at her and smiled.

Mo Ran glanced at Xiao Zhao on the bed. He was still grabbing at his collar. He sighed. Striding over to Xiao Zhao, he tore Xiao Zhao's hands away from the collar and reached for the collar around Xiao Zhao's neck. He suddenly touched a cold object. Curious, he took the object out from under Xiao Zhao's clothing and it glinted in the dim light. It was a curved piece of yellow glass that had petals crythansymum petals in them. Mo Ran immediately knew what it was.

He was still recovering from his shock when Xiao Zhao grabbed the glass from Mo Ran's hands and held it close to his chest. "Mine..." mumbled Xiao Zhao.

As Mo Ran looked at Xiao Zhao, his mind raced. Should I kill him? If I kill him, then my mission will be accomplished and I can leave. But what if he knows where all the other pieces are? Then maybe I can have the upper hand. Yi Fu is definitely not going keep his end of the deal. If I kill him though...I can pretend I didn't find the other pieces. But how would I escape? Ahh, I know, he's already slowly dying. I'm sure if I make him drink a bit more poison, they will never notice. That's it.

Mo Ran took out a small purple vile and opened it. He was about to tip the liquid into Xiao Zhao's mouth when he heard Rui Ming's voice. Why don't you do some honest business for once? Mo Ran pulled his arm away. I have killed many people because it was my mission. This is no different. He has to die. But...he's just as old as you are. All the other people you've killed have been a lot older. Age doesn't matter! You need to kill him. Why don't you do some honest business? Honest business? I told her I would only kill those bad officials. Xiao Zhao isn't a corrupt official. No, but he could block your way! He must die! Why don't you do something honest...Mo Ran shook his head and slipped the vile back into his clothing. I'll wait to see what you are up to. I can always kill you later. During his thoughts, Xiao Zhao had calmed down but now, he started to thrash more wildly than ever. Indeed, he shook the mattress so hard that Mo Ran was afraid it might break.

Pain was wrought all over Xiao Zhao's face and beads of sweat started to form on his forehead. His lips started to tremble. "NO! NO! DON'T LEAVE!" Xiao Zhao cried in desperation.

Mo Ran turned away. It was none of his business. How could you be so cold toward your people? How can you not care about them a single bit? Rui Ming's voice echoed in his mind. "I don't know if he is a Jing. He might not be my people," Mo Ran mumbled but he knew what Rui Ming would say. She would put her hands on her hips and say, "No, but we are all people. We all deserve to be cared for and helped." Mo Ran sighed. I'll do this on your behalf, Rui Ming, or at least I will try.

He walked over to Xiao Zhao and towered over him. Mo Ran then gently brought his hands to his chest, palms upward. He then flipped his hands downward so that his palms would be facing the ground. He brought his hands down slowly. Reaching out his right hand, he held it over Xiao Zhao who was still thrashing around. A blue light emitted from his hand and streamed over Xiao Zhao's head. Slowly, Xiao Zhao started to calm down and his body started to settle down. Mo Ran walked across the cell and settled on the floor.

It was a couple hours later when Xiao Zhao opened his eyes and slowly sat up. He looked at his hands and moved his arms around in a circle. "Wow! I feel great! Like the time Han Jun healed me! I didn't know you could heal too, Li Qing." Xiao Zhao said as he turned to Mo Ran.

"What do you mean, like the last time Han Jun healed you?" Mo Ran asked.

"Oh, last time, something similar happened. I was shaking terribly and then he started to sing. In not time, I felt as good as new!"

"Oh," Mo Ran nodded.

"Is there a problem?"

"No. Nothing," Mo Ran shook his head but his mind wandered. What? Only the descendants of the Jing emperor can heal. Could it be that there are still remnants of my family still alive?

***************************************************************

* Shi Han Jun POV*

Shi Han Jun woke to find himself staring at a ceiling. He turned to lay on his side and saw light reflect off the stone floor. He turned on his back and slowly sat up.

"Mian Feng! Mian Feng!" Han Jun called.

"Ayyy!" A voice called. It drew nearer and soon, a tall man appeared before Han Jun. He wore all black and leather straps were tied around his legs and wrists. He had a thick piece of cloth across his waist with different weapons tucked between it. The man had at least a dozen daggers on his waist and Han Jun could tell he practiced martial arts. At present, he made the tip of his fingers touch and brought them in front of his chest with a loud smack. "Your Highness, Chen is at your disposal." He bowed his head and bent down.

"Who are you?" Han Jun asked.

"Your Highness, Chen's name is Si Ming Tu and I was sent to take care of you," the man replied.

"Where's Wei Mian Feng?"

There was a quizzical look on Si Ming Tu's face. "Who is Mian Feng?"

"Mian Feng is—" Han Jun suddenly stopped as events came flooding back to his memory.

"Oh...never mind," Han Jun said as he quickly tried to hide his uncertainty. Han Jun cleared his throat. "Where am I?"

"Your Highness, you are in First Prince's mansion," Si Ming Tu replied.

"His mansion?"

"Yes."

"I didn't know Shi Jing Chun had a mansion in Jing Du," Han Jun said surprised.

"Your Highness, you might not have been aware, but a few days before you came, we received a letter from the capital stating that First Prince will be given the title Lord Jing Chun and will take control of the city because of his merits in quelling the rebellions in Jing Du. He would also be awarded a mansion."

Han Jun nodded. "Oh, I see."

There came a knock at the door.

"Come in," Han Jun called. Realizing Si Ming Tu was still present, Han Jun ordered, "You may leave."

"Yes, Your Highness," Si Ming Tu replied as he bowed one last time before he exited.

As Si Ming Tu exited, he passed by another man. Si Ming Tu stopped and quickly bent to show respect, "First Prince."

First Prince nearly glanced at him and nodded. Si Ming Tu continued on his way.

"Ge Ge!" Han Jun cried happily.

The man wore a metal helmet with a small red cloth sticking out from it. He had a brest plate covered in bronze with its pieces overlapping each other. He carried a sheath on his hip and his legs were also covered in metal.

"Xiao Di!" First Prince smiled as he walked to Han Jun's bed side.

"I heard you were ambushed. Are you alright?"

"Ge Ge, I'm fine! Good thing you sent General Li when you did, or else I would've died."

Jing Chun clapped Han Jun on the shoulder. "That's what brothers do: Watch out for each other."

"I'm so glad to have a brother like you! Oh, by the way, congratulations on becoming the governor of the city!"

"Hahaha," Jing Chun's voice boomed. "Thanks brother. It took a lot of work to get to where I am today."

"I bet. It must be tiring putting down all those rebellions."

Jing Chun grinned. "It was. But it was worth it."

The conversation lapsed into silence and Han Jun suddenly remembered his friends.

"Oh, by the way, I came with a couple of friends. Where are they now? Are they taken care of?"

"Oh. Don't worry, they are being taken care of."

"Well? Where are they?"

"Prison."

Han Jun's eyebrows shot up, "WHAT?!"