Chapter 353 - Arrangement

Huo Ling, having raised well in the palace, is only a little shorter than Yi Bing. Yi Bing, although has some muscles, but not to the point they are exaggerated. Also, since no one has since Huo Ling for a long time, except to the people he interacted with the past years, they won't notice 'Huo Ling's change tonight, unless they are someone close to Huo Ling, or one with discerning eyes and knows Huo Ling. 

The former's example is the royal family, and Hao Baiyun. Meanwhile, the latter's example is Gu Xingfeng. Unless any of them would expose 'Huo Ling's identity, which definitely they won't do, then 'Huo Ling' can do his task peacefully tonight and act like the original one, while having the original one in his arms act as his female companion. 

Though this sounds ridiculous, but this isn't more ridiculous than what happened a few weeks ago, when Huo Ling asked Yi Bing to be his lover. Hold on. That isn't right… it's more like 'begged'. A prince throwing away his pride and begged a commoner, his bodyguard, to be his lover… in romantic cliché novels, this would be a sweet romance between the male lead and the female lead. 

But, Huo Ling and Yi Bing aren't acting in a script. This is the reality.. And since this is the reality, there are no pink bubbles to set the romantic atmosphere, nor any background music or relevant people to act as the audience who will egg on the male and female leads to be together.

There is only an unfortunate and in an unrequited love prince whose life is in danger being target by a shady organization after he unknowingly received the organization's highly confidential documents; a handsome, purely Chinese but with organic blue-eyes bodyguard whom the prince is in love with, but only considers the prince as his assignment – being as a shady MI6 agent and as a grim reaper; and the audience is the silently hiding MI6 agents who are highly on alert, and at the same time, eating melon seeds as they watched a scene that was pulled out from high school novels and prime time television drama. 

So, the scene doesn't look dreamy and sweet because there are no filters added. The prince doesn't look sweet, but actually pathetic. The bodyguard doesn't look excited nor happy, because he is apathetic. Their roles also are reversed. The prince who is begging, although acting the male lead role, but he is obviously the female lead here. Meanwhile, the bodyguard who is being begged at is the actual male lead. 

The MI6 agents who witnessed this scene wished they could have been blind, or that they can blind themselves. The royalties' private affairs shouldn't be seen by unrelated people. But, they are witnessing it live now. 

Forcing someone of lower status than you to be your lover… oh, boy. They wouldn't want to see even a royalty's shameful moment, much less his most desperate moment like now. Is it too late for them to leave now? But, they also can't leave because of their task to watch over Huo Ling. So, they are stuck between a rock and a hard place. 

A prince being rejected… how cruel. They'd rather prefer seeing Huo Ling stealing some things than seeing him being rejected. A man being rejected is very shameful. How much more for a prince – someone who has a royal status? 

Yi Bing neither agreed nor refused Huo Ling. But, just looking at his face, it is a blatant rejection. He just didn't verbally reject Huo Ling to give Huo Ling a face. How can Huo Ling not know of this fact? Thus, holding back his tears, he smiled – a smile full of pain. Then, wordlessly, he returned to the safe house. 

Days that will be following, if it was the usual, would be Huo Ling nursing his wounded heart. But, Huo Ling's current situation isn't usual. He didn't have time to nurse the wound in his heart, because if he would remain in a heartbroken state, then he would no longer have his heart, or that his heart would stop beating (dead). 

Lu Si, after calling Yi Bing, thought Yi Bing followed his instruction to woo or soothe Huo Ling's heart. But, Yi Bing didn't. However, when he came to see Huo Ling, he didn't notice something unusual. Yi Bing is a taciturn person. Huo Ling also wouldn't let his pride down again. The MI6 agents, meanwhile, didn't speak and just kept their mouth shut. 

And so, Lu Si didn't find out about Yi Bing's rejection to Huo Ling. Thus, the plan he presented to Huo Ling and Yi Bing for Huo Ling's birthday is to make the two's relationship be better. Not only will Huo Ling will be disguised as someone while someone will disguise as him, but Yi Bing will be escorting Huo Ling to increase their affection to each other. 

But, although homosexuality is accepted by the society, but they can't let Huo Ling be paired with a man. And Yi Bing was the only one that can disguise as Huo Ling after he showed to them his perfect copying of Huo Ling's mannerisms and behavior, as well as temperament. 

If Huo Ling will act as a male escort, then, even if they would make him wear someone else's face, then there's no point of him being in a disguise. If Yi Bing will be found out when he is acting as 'Huo Ling', then the assassins' will definitely point their guns to 'Huo Ling's male escort next since Huo Ling is a male. Even if they'd found out it was a different man that is 'Huo Ling's male escort and not Huo Ling, but it's better to kill and mistake than to not kill and regret later because you actually didn't do a mistake. 

Thus, he proposed for Huo Ling to disguise as a woman. Who would think that a man would disguise as a woman, only after he thought of it for a long time and realize? Fortunately, Huo Ling's body isn't that well-built. He is slender, and only after a few dressing up, no one would think he is a man. Huo Ling, now feeling more depressed than when his life was being threatened, agreed to Lu Si's arrangement. 

Thus, that's what seen in the birthday feast of Huo Ling in the royal palace. No one noticed that 'Huo Ling' is not Huo Ling, and that 'Huo Ling's 'female' companion is the real Huo Ling. Only the royal family knows, Lu Si, Maxwell, as well as Hao Baiyun – Huo Ling's only friend, who figured out the truth later, and his male companion Gu Xingfeng – who has a discerning eye. 

Huo Ling has never appeared in public before, aside from some important events involving the royal family like the king's ascension, and the appointment of the Crown Prince. Thus, no one knows what Huo Ling exactly look like today, since those said events have happened for more than a decade. Aside from the royal family and Huo Ling's friends, the only people who know what Huo Ling looks like are his preschool students, their parents, as well as his colleagues at work. 

And also, the assassins who found him. But, these assassins were already killed, and some whom the MI6 that have captured committed suicide. The assassins whom Kong Chuan sent to China only knows Huo Ling's location after they tracked him and followed him. They were as clueless as Kong Chuan, not until those previous groups of assassins have sent Huo Ling's pictures to them. For Kong Chuan, though, he is busy and has left the work of capturing their target to his people so he didn't bother finding out what Huo Ling looks like, since he is very confident of them. 

Only during the day of the birthday banquet did Kong Chuan, whose plan have been thwarted for many times, finally snap and, fortunately for him, saw after Huo Ling's face after it was accidentally broadcast by a fame-seeking TV station did everyone see Huo Ling's face. 

Huo Ling became an open target then. 

…

Huo Ling turned to Jason and Maxwell and looked at them, not hiding the concern in his eyes. 

Jason understood his meaning. "Maxwell and I will follow after father and uncle and Justin." He said. "It's you we should worry about." He told him. "Are you sure you won't follow us?" he asked. He looked downcast. 

Huo Ling, who can't speak, pulled Yi Bing's hand and wrote on Yi Bing's palm. Although this is the royal palace, but the walls have ears. Aside from the head butler, all the servants don't know that Huo Ling has turned female tonight, his birthday. Thus, they can't be careless even just for a second. 

Yi Bing waited for Huo Ling to finish 'writing' on his palm. For some people, they would only see Huo Ling and Yi Bing flirting, with Huo Ling acting coquettish towards Yi Bing.