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"General."
A sharp voice roused Jing Yuan from the pleasant doze he'd slipped into. The general, who had been leaning back in his leather chair with his eyes half-lidded, blinked slowly. He shifted with a yawn.
"Mmhm? Sorry."
Fu Xuan sighed in frustration, continuing on with her speech. The Master Diviner's voice droned on about budget allocations for the Artisanship Commission and the need for a more rigorous screening process for new recruits.
He loved these meetings about as much as he loved stepping on his son's building blocks in the middle of the night. Which is to say, not at all.
But they were necessary. And Jing Yuan, despite what many thought, was nothing if not dutiful.
His mind began to wander again, to the small, bright-eyed boy currently napping in the adjoining room. Yanqing had begged to come with him to work today, and Jing Yuan had relented, as he always did. He'd set the boy up on an armchair in his private office with a stack of picture books and a promise of ice cream later if he was good.
The thought of Yanqing brought a soft smile to Jing Yuan's face. His son. His beautiful, brilliant boy. The light of his life. The one thing in this vast universe that made perfect sense.
The sudden creak of a door opening broke through Fu Xuan's recitation. All heads turned toward the sound.
There, framed in the doorway, stood Yanqing.
He had tears in the corners of his eyes, and a bloody scrape on his knee.
To an adult, it'd be more of a slight annoyance, but to the five-year-old, it might as well have been a life-threatening injury.
Jing Yuan was out of his chair before anyone could even register the movement.
Fu Xuan's words died on her lips as she watched the usually composed general rush to the child, bending down and scooping the boy up in his arms.
"Oh, sweetheart," Jing Yuan murmured, cradling Yanqing close and rocking him back and forth. "What happened?"
Yanqing sniffled, burying his face in the general's shoulder. "I was playing, and—and I fell. It hurts, Daddy."
Everyone in the room went still.
Daddy?
The General of the Luofu had a son?
Jing Yuan either didn't notice their shock or simply didn't care. His entire focus was on the weeping boy.
"Shh, shh, it's okay," he soothed. "Let's see."
He carefully set Yanqing on the polished surface of the conference table, ignoring the papers and data pads scattered there. The boy flinched as Jing Yuan's fingers gently prodded the area around the scrape.
"It's just a little scratch, my love. We'll get it cleaned up, and it'll be good as new in no time." He wiped the tears from Yanqing's cheeks with the pad of his thumb. "You were so brave to walk all the way here by yourself."
Yanqing sniffled again, his small chest hitching. "Really?"
"Really," Jing Yuan affirmed with a smile. "The bravest."
Feixiao found herself grabbing the medkit for her friend, passing it to him. He caught it without even looking her way, much to Yanqing's astonishment.
"How did you do that?" he gasped. For a moment, his tears were forgotten.
Jing Yuan chuckled. "I have good reflexes."
"Wow. That was so cool, Daddy," Yanqing breathed.
"It was pretty impressive, huh?" He took out an antiseptic wipe. "Alright, brave boy, I'm going to clean this up. It'll sting, so I need you to hold real still. Can you do that for me?"
Yanqing hesitated.
"I know you're scared. But it won't be long, sweetheart." He took his son's small hand in his own and gave him a little squeeze. "Can you show Daddy how brave you are?"
With a nod, Yanqing braced himself.
Jing Yuan quickly cleaned the wound, murmuring words of comfort as Yanqing winced.
"I know, I know," he cooed. "Almost done. He applied a small bandage with cartoon stars on it, smoothing it down gently. He kissed the bandage. "And there. Daddy kissed it all better."
Yanqing wrapped his arms around his father's neck. "Thank you, Daddy."
"You're very welcome, sweetheart."
Yukong cleared her throat. "Ah, General... you never told us you have a son."
"Hmm? Oh, right. This is Yanqing," Jing Yuan said absently as he held the boy in his lap, rubbing his back reassuringly. "He's almost six now. Say hello." Yanqing buried his face in his father's shirt, suddenly shy. Jing Yuan ruffled his hair fondly. "Aww, he's just being shy now. Aren't you, baby?"
"Hi," Yanqing mumbled.
"It's nice to meet you," Yukong said gently.
"I can't believe I have a nephew and didn't even know!" Feixiao grumbled, shooting the general a mock-irritated look.
"Well, now you do," Jing Yuan said mildly.
"Daddy?" Yanqing looked up at him. "I'm sorry I interrupted your meeting."
"Don't worry about that," Jing Yuan said, kissing the top of his head. "You are far more important than any meeting. Besides," he added, eyeing the pile of data pads, "it was getting a little boring."
Fu Xuan huffed in indignation, but her expression softened when she looked at the little boy.
"He takes after you, General," she commented with a small smile.
"He does," Jing Yuan agreed, his chest swelling with pride.
"Are you mad at me?" Yanqing whispered, still worried.
"Oh, my love, never," Jing Yuan said firmly. "Not ever. You're never in trouble for coming to me when you're hurt or scared, okay? That's the most important rule. Always come to me."
"Okay," Yanqing said, relaxing against him.
Jing Yuan adjusted his hold, settling the boy more comfortably against his chest. He looked at the others, a silent apology in his eyes.
"Right. Where were we?" he asked, as if nothing had happened.
The meeting continued on. Yanqing stayed quiet, and even listened, pretending to know what Fu Xuan was talking about. Jing Yuan was more focused on being amused by his son's concentration than concentrating himself.
When the meeting finally concluded, the other generals and diviners filed out, shooting the pair curious glances.
Yukong lingered, a thoughtful expression on her face. "He's a wonderful child, Jing Yuan. You're a good father."
Jing Yuan smiled down at his son. "It's easy when it's him. I'm sorry I didn't tell anyone about him. I just wanted him to be safe. The less people know, the safer he is." With his position as general, Jing Yuan had made a lot of enemies over the years. He'd do anything to protect Yanqing, even if it meant keeping him a secret.
"We won't tell a soul," Yukong promised.
Jing Yuan smiled. "Thank you, my friend."
She smiled back, patting his arm. "See you tomorrow, Jing Yuan. Enjoy the rest of your day with Yanqing."
"We will."
She took her leave.
"Let's go, darling boy," Jing Yuan said, rising from his chair and shifting his hold on Yanqing. "I think I promised someone ice cream."