Little Purple

In the cold water, Jin Tao was closing his eyes, he struggled because he didn't know how to swim. He flapped the water and ended up sinking even more. It was the beginning of winter and the water was colder than usual.

He thought. "I am done for!"

He tried to open his eyes and took a peek of the view underwater. There was barely anything but darkness. Only a portion of the moonlight got to the bottom of the pond and helped him see his surrounding.

Suddenly, Jin Tao opened his mouth and put both of his hands in front of it.

He saw a familiar figure, trapped between the plant stems. Unfortunately, couldn't see his body clearly because the moon hid between the clouds again.

The cowardly prince was too shocked to move around and about again, he kept still and the water naturally made his body goes up again.

He reached the surface, there was a plant branch hanging near him so he grabbed it and positioned himself, breathing deeply.

He coughed a few times before he saw his personal servant looked like he lost his soul. Jin Tao was his responsibility and he couldn't let him get hurt.

"Your Highness, what would u do if something happened to you ah!" He cried. Jin Tao resurfaced fast, Hu Zi just took off her outer clothes, ready to save him.

Jin Tao was feeling guilty but there's something even more urgent to discuss. "Royal Mother, I saw him!" He said to the empress who just arrived.

"You saw Lan'er?" The empress eyes widened.

Jin Tao coughed again a few times before he shivered and said. "He is drowned and trapped underwater. Quick! We need to find a way to save him!"

Hu Zi frowned wondering how the prince got drowned, did he slipped like Hu Xiang Yi and got into the bottom of the lake?

"There are many plants leaves, stems, and roots underwater. It's dangerous to save him without a plan at hand. Someone, quickly call the guards!"

"No need." Hu Zi's eyes glinted. "We can't waste any more time."

She said as she threw her hair decoration and jumped into the water.

"Third Miss of Hu!" The empress's eyes widened.

Fa Sui stopped her from getting near the pond, afraid that she would slip and fall too. "Our Third Miss is used to training underneath the waterfall in the middle of winter. The cold pond water is nothing to her."

He was right. Hu Zi easily swam to the bottom of the lake. The moon came back and helped her see the surrounding.

She looked around until she saw a dark shadow, thinking that it might be the one she was looking for, she swam to that shadow and saw a figure of a boy, trapped between the plants' strong stems.

The boy was beautiful.

His face was pale and his short hair moved with the wave. The moonlight shone upon his figure, he was closing his eyes and Hu Zi could see the long black eyelashes made a contrast with his pale skin.


However, what amazed Hu Zi the most wasn't his beauty. It was the thing that surrounded him.

Hidden by the mud and stems, there was a glittering thin light blue lining around him, protecting him.

Hu Zi frowned, she kept swimming closer. She wondered if her eyes were playing on her, maybe it was an illusion created by the tricky moonlight or the shifty pond wave. She doesn't know.

What she knew was that light blue line made the shape of a dragon. A water dragon.

Hu Zi gulped. If it wasn't an illusion then… "The water element?" She asked in her heart. "Why is the water protecting him? Is he a water element master?"

But Jin Lan had never gone to a water element academy. There was no news of him being an element master except Terra's baseless claim years ago.

Hu Zi felt like the dragon-shaped water was looking at her, calling her to come closer and save him. She did just so.

When she arrived right in front of him, she looked at his pale face and touched his neck to trace his neck and find the pulse she was looking for. He was cold but alive. Maybe he survived because the water helped him.

She immediately got rid of the stems that trapped his body, quickly took his body closer to her, and swam to the surface.

While she was swimming up, she realized that his wrists were chained and that made his body heavier. "He didn't end up here because of an accident!" She frowned.

Up in the surface, just beside the paved road. Ten broke into cold sweat, simply bewildered by the scenery in front of him

To the left, he saw Zhi Shao Yao hugging Hu Xiang Yi while crying. To the right, he saw Lu Wei hugging Jin Tao while crying. "I want to do that too..." Ten suddenly said something weird.

"It seems that I missed a lot of action." Tora came and spoke to Ten in the tribe's language. "What happened here?"

"..." Ten opened his arm wide and looked at his older cousin with big and glittering eyes.

Tora broke a cold sweat. "What do you want?"

"Tora, hug me and cry." He said with a flat tone of voice.

"Huh?" Tora made a dubious look and raised a brow. His cousin's behaviors suddenly changed. "What happened? Did the cold weather finally got you, Ten?"

"Xiao Yi, don't do that again! What will I do if something happened to you ah?" Zhi Shao Yao cried.

Jin Tao who was beside them sneezed. The cold water and cold weather made him trembled furiously.

"Come on, Your Highness…" Lu Wei cried heavily while trying to persuade his master to go inside. Jin Tao refused, he wanted to see whether his cousin was alright or not.

He looked at the demon who was crying her eyeballs out, he rolled his eyes. "The one who fell to the pond was me, not him. I am not asking you to care for me, but don't you see that you are being overly protective toward him? Look, your fierce hug almost choke him to death!"

Zhi Shao Yao abruptly looked to the side, her stubborn and prideful eyes met looked at Jin Tao. "First of all, Your Highness…" Zhi Shao Yao raised her brows and made a challenging face. "I am grateful that you saved my cousin. Second of all, I am not a demon. Third of all, do you want to taste the cold water once more?"

"No thank you." The corner of Jin Tao's mouth twitched. He wouldn't want to fell to the pond twice

"Oh, I insist—" Zhi Shao Yao was about to get up and teach Jin Tao a lesson when suddenly Hu Zi reached the surface.

"Third Miss of Hu, Lan'er!" The empress ran toward them, but she was stopped by a big and strong hand. The Emperor held her arm and prevent her from going near the pond.

"If you slip and fell with those heavy clothes, it will be hard to get you to the shore." He simply said. "You two, both of you are doctors, right? Do give us a hand until the imperial doctors reach this place."

He said to Fa Sui and Tora who were on the side. Fa Sui gave a slight nod while Tora sighed.

"Stop sighing." Ten elbowed him. "Act like a professional doctor once in a while will you."

Tora clicked his tongue. "If it's not because of that granny—"

"She is the Queen of our tribe and also your grandmother." Ten raised an eyebrow. He saw the chains on Jin Lan's wrist, he clicked his tongue. "She is the only one who can handle Terra's rage when we report this. Be a good grandchild and do your duty."

"Sometimes, your mature side is just annoying and unbearable, Ten." Tora sighed, he walked to check Jin Lan's body.

"Heh." Ten smiled. He saw Zhi Shao Yao ran toward Hu Zi, her white chubby cheek kinda interest him, he wondered whether they were what the people in this empire called steamed buns. "How interesting," Tora who looked back and saw Ten's glittering eyes immediately figured that his cousin must have thought of something weird again.

"Aunt Zi, your hand is bleeding!" Zhi Shao Yao worriedly called.

Hu Zi was sitting on the shore, she didn't realize her hand was full of red until her niece said so. She looked at it. "I must have got it when I get rid of the stems."

Hu Zi looked at the boy who was laying near her, even though his complexion was very pale, he still looked very beautiful, almost like a doll. Fa Sui sat beside him and first checked his pulse from his wrist. When he did that, Hu Zi could clearly see the dragon tattoo, she gulped. Her eyes went darker and darker until a voice called her.

"Third Miss of Hu, wear these clothes first, let's go inside." The empress offered. SHe kneeled and draped the clothes around Hu Zi's small body

"Your Highness, I…" Hu Zi looked up to the beautiful woman who had a very nice flower smell on her. "I accept your offer."

"En?" The empress thought that Hu Zi was talking about the clothes she gave her. Since she already draped them over, she nodded with a smile.

Hu Zi simply smiled back, knowing that the empress might not realize what she was talking about, she leaned in to whisper it to her. "I will marry him, that prince."