In the last days I had to think a lot about the legend according to which my mother should be an elf. Could I really be half elf? If that were the case, and I'm not saying that I believe it, then my brother would also have to be half human and half elf. But he looks quite normal and not like an elf.

Assuming I believe this legend, how do I find out if someone is an elf or half elf? I won't have to ask my mother. And what are elves, anyway? When Zhan was at the public library for two hours, I searched for it on the Internet and found so much different information that I was only more confused afterwards.

There was information about the pretty magic elves and then about hideously ugly elves. And of course all kinds of theories about this subject. Some said elves were good creatures, others said elves were dangerous and mean creatures.

When Zhan came home and found me sitting in front of the computer, he asked me, "If you want, we can start researching about elves right now."

I had been so startled because I hadn't even realized he had come home that I almost knocked a glass off my desk. "Oh man, do you have to sneak up on me like that?" I asked him, startled.

"Honey, I even called out to you when I got to the apartment."

"Really? I'm sorry, I was so engrossed in reading that I didn't notice."

"Yeah, I just noticed that too. So, do you want to start investigating already?"

"I would like to. But right now, other things are more important. The wedding party this weekend. Your training to get your license as a private detective. We've also just started working again and the work is piling up. Plus, more people need to be hired. And I want to have a normal married life with you, at least for now."

"Okay. I'll go with you on that. Just let me know when you're ready to follow up on this elf thing."

"You know ZhanZhan, I can't even imagine that such a thing as elves should exist."

"I'm sure you thought the same thing about vampires and werewolves."

"Yes, of course. But you know, not even Grandpa Xiao has ever heard of the existence of these creatures. And he's old and has been all over the world, too."

"You have to remember, though, that he never looked for elves in the process. How about we just ask your mother about it?"

"Hahaha, yeah right. Like she's going to tell us anything."

"We could at least try."

"No, we couldn't. She wouldn't tell us anything."

"Maybe she would."

"ZhanZhan, if my mom was an elf and knew that too, then maybe she would have told us about it at some point or? I mean after all, my brother and I could be half elf. Then it would have been up to her to enlighten us."

"I know what you're getting at. But maybe..."

"If she were an elf and knew that, I'm sure she would have said something. We'd better eat, I'm starving."

"All right. What are you hungry for?"

"For wolf!"

"That's not on the menu."

"It is, for me."

"Oh really?"

"Sure. After all, I married my wolf to always have free access to the buffet."

"Oh wow. You married me as just so you could always have your food close to you?"

"Sure I did. Why else would I have done that?"

"Mhhh, well I don't know. For love?" He joined in the fun, grinning.

"Love doesn't make you full ZhanZhan." I could barely stifle my laughter.

"Well, that's silly now. Because I just allowed another vampire to drink from my blood earlier, and now there's not enough for you."

"And who is this other vampire supposed to be?"

"Well, he's a little bit smaller than me. Totally cute. Has a little bit of an angel when he turns. He smells like roses. And oh yeah, he said he likes me."

"Hey, I said I love you!"

"Oh yeah right." Replied Zhan. We both laughed and kissed. Then we went to the kitchen together and cooked and ate together.

I like my life the way it is right now and I don't want it to change yet. We are a normal couple doing normal things. At least for a while I want it to stay like this. And therefore the research on the legend can and must wait. I'd rather spend my time with my husband the way I do now, than go on another long search for answers, which will only leave us with more questions.

After dinner, we went to sleep. We still had to rest a little, because we had a night shift ahead of us for one of our new cases. It is about a doctor who came to see us and asked for our help. Because he believes his 24 years younger wife has a lover who always comes to her when the doctor is on night duty at the hospital.

I still don't like these cases about marriage fraud. But with them we earn the most money. Of course, we earn from other cases as well. But husbands and wives who hire us to shadow their loved ones are our biggest and strongest source of income.

So we lay in wait that night, watching the house and the driveway. But no one came there. Nevertheless, we noticed that in the bedroom of the woman, almost the whole night the light was on. Unfortunately, the bedroom is on the 2 floor and there are motion detectors everywhere on the property, so we could not enter it and try to see through the window.

Also, since no one left until the doctor came home in the morning, we assume if she has a lover, he must live in the house. So we captured the doctor in the morning and told him what was or wasn't during the night. He stared in front of him for a moment and said that he had an employee who lived in the house, but couldn't imagine him having anything with his wife because he obviously wasn't into women.

Under the pretext that we were young doctors from out of town and needed a place to stay for the night, he took us into his house and introduced us to his wife and employee. But neither to Zhan, nor to me, did the employee seem even remotely gay. Instead, we saw him almost undressing the woman of the house with his looks.

So we spent the day in the doctor's house. First sleeping and later we sat with the doctor in his office where he pretended to teach us something. Then when the doctor left for work in the evening, Zhan and I pretended to go to bed.

It was only an hour before we heard footsteps in the house approaching the woman's bedroom. We snuck out of the room and saw the clerk knocking on the woman's bedroom door. He had a cup on a tray and told her he had her nightcap. She looked around briefly and let the clerk into her room, where he stayed for more than 4 hours.

We then found a way to take pictures through the bedroom window. With a selfie stick and my cell phone from our balcony! And it was as the doctor suspected, his wife has a lover. And it is the one Zhan and I suspected!

In the morning we told the doctor about it and also showed him the pictures I took. He then threw his employee and his wife out of the house. She begged and swore that such a thing would never happen again, but the doctor stood firm. He took away her credit cards, packed two suitcases with her belongings and threw her out.

For Zhan and me, that was the moment when we started to go home. We didn't have much time left, because the wedding party was supposed to take place that day. So we just took a shower at home, got dressed up and then drove to the family farm.

Already the driveway to the farm had been festively decorated. And the closer we got to the house, the more colorful it became. Garlands here and there, pictures of Zhan and me and my brother and Cheng. Balloons and flowers. And there were torches all along the path at a distance of 2 meters until you got to the house.

The house was decorated inside and out. A big bonfire was prepared and even a gazebo was set up where there were two wedding cakes.

Zhan's parents and grandpa greeted us first. They hugged us and took us all around to show us what all they had prepared. Then Zhan's sister Yanli, her husband and the twins arrived. Shortly after, it got really crowded. After an hour, all the guests were there, except for my brother and Cheng, and my father and stepmother.

The shooting for my brother's new series had taken longer. That's why they were an hour late. But after they finally arrived, things could finally start.

In a ceremony performed by Zhan's parents, we received the family's blessing for our marriage. It seemed a little bit like they were marrying us to each other. They were very emotional about it, so I even had tears when I saw my in-laws with tears in their eyes.

One by one the guests came to us and handed us small cards with wishes for us and our marriage. They congratulated us and I even got a red rose from each of them.

Yanli wrapped her arms around me and whispered, "Welcome to our big family. I love you. And I wish that you two will be the godparents of my yet unborn baby." She told me her secret first! She is expecting her second child! I was really moved by it. And even more so because she wants Zhan and me to be the baby's godparents. That means a lot to me and shows how much she trusts us.

After we cut our wedding cakes, the celebration began. A few relatives sat down and played music with guitars, violins and flutes. And after we opened the dance, everyone came up to us and pinned banknotes to our clothes. I didn't know this tradition yet. But I liked it very much Hehehe.

The celebration was already in full swing when I suddenly felt my mother's presence! I looked in the direction of the driveway and saw her walking towards the house together with my little half-brother. I looked confusedly first at Zhan and then at my brother. "I invited them." He said.

"Why?" I asked him.

"Because she is our mother and so she can prove that she really cares about us." Explained my brother to me.

"But couldn't you have asked me?" I asked angrily. But my brother didn't answer anymore, because my mother was already too close and I guess he didn't want her to overhear what he was saying.

My father stood next to me and my stepmother looked at me questioningly. Zhan stood in front of me and said harshly to my mother, "If you're just here to cause stress, you can leave right now."

My mother shook her head and replied, "No, I came to congratulate my sons and meet my sons-in-law. Besides, I have a gift for my sons."

I stepped to Zhan's side and looked my mother straight in the eyes. She bowed to me and said, "I'm sorry Yibo. I should have done this much earlier."

Not knowing what to say, I just stood there staring at her. My little brother came running up to me after first greeting my big brother and hugged me. He was overjoyed to see me and had given me a card that he had made himself.

My in-laws then joined us and said, "Now we really are a big family!" They smiled, took my little brother with them, and left Zhan and me to talk to my mother alone.

My mother then handed me her gift. It was wrapped in plain paper. I unwrapped it and then suddenly held in my hands a very old book with a Strange Sign, a circle with a six-pointed star in the center. And before I could even open it, my mother said, "Now that you are no longer human, you shall have this book. And it shall help you."

Since I never told my mother that I had become a vampire, I was confused. "How do you know I'm not human anymore?"

"Because I can sense things like that. I can't tell you more about it here and now. This book will help you with that, though. I'm sorry. I always thought I would be able to protect you and your brother from the truth by staying away from you. But now that you have become what the legend always told about, I can no longer hide the truth. Yibo, you must be careful. Your life could be in danger!" She explained to me.

Zhan and I stared at her, wondering... What the hell is going on?