Chapter 14:

"What changed your mind?" Baekhyun asked Kai as they were all gathered together for a send-off party, which was also not much of a party since they were basically just sitting together in Baekhyun's family's living room.

"Lu Han-hyung," Kai shrugged, as if that answer was enough.

"Hyung? What happened to your adamant refusal?"

Kai chortled. "It got dissolved greatly by the guy himself. You're right; he's better than I thought he was."

"How'd you find out?"

"He dragged me out without Yoona. At least he's real."

"Real?"

"You know, he didn't just put up a face in front of Yoona. I have my reservations about his personality behind the scenes, but Yoona..."

"She really likes him, doesn't she?" Baekhyun filled.

Kai sighed. "Yes, she does, and I don't want to be a jerk."

"Don't worry," Baekhyun assured him. "I'll do everything I can to make sure she's safe."

~°~

The Ims met the Emperor that evening, and as much as Yoona's parents were disgruntled by the proposition of their daughter jumping into a marriage with the crown prince of China, they didn't really refuse. They had seen how much of a gentleman Lu Han was, how much he cared for her, and they saw how much the two were interested in each other.

None of them were able to say for sure if it was really love, but surely, they saw that it was neither shallow infatuation nor lust, definitely not lust.

Lu Han was pleased that they had agreed, but part of him feared. Yoona's parents would not have to meet the demanding side of his father if that was the side that he so chooses to showcase, but he did not know what lay in store for his beloved.

Yes, beloved. For he had realized, there was no other word he could really use to describe what he felt for Yoona. He was unsure if it really was, but then love was one emotion, or at least it was portrayed as such, that could not be easily described to people. There was no language in the world that could completely convey love, but the language of love itself. And though he had yet to completely understand its words, he could already understand its actions.

Discussions were made on the topic of the wedding. It was decided that they would be affianced officially six months from that day. Whether the count was exact or an estimate, no one really knew for sure. But most of it would be based on Yoona. In those six months prior to their official engagement, she would have to learn the ethics of court and conduct, and she would need to polish her spoken Chinese. It would be good to learn other Chinese languages, but since she was not even Chinese  nor could she speak it past basic conversational level, then Mandarin would have to suffice for the time being. In these aspects, she would have to show herself good enough before they could be officially announced as a couple. It was, after all, quite shameful if the future empress could not connect to her people. What use was that sort of a ruler?

The Emperor walked away from that meeting with a smile, while the Ims walked away with conflicting emotions. They had been promised that Yoona would be well taken care of, and that she could continue her education there should she wish it. There were a lot of things that she could do, things she could learn that she would never be able to if she stayed, but was that kind of future worth it?

They had relented, that was it. From here on out, there was no turning back. They had agreed, and backing out would be deemed bad faith. Yoona would have to deal on her own, after all this was her decision. To love Lu Han, that is.

~°~

"Are you...okay, Kai?" Yoona asked when they were in her room together. He had volunteered to help her pack, and the atmosphere was quite forlorn.

"I'll live," he replied with a smile. "As long as you're happy, okay?"

"Thank you."

"Just don't forget to come and visit us every now and then! I'll really miss you, Sis. No joke about it."

"I know. I'll miss you, too," she replied, giving him a hug.

~°~

There's no going back, Lu Han thought to himself, immersing himself in his thoughts, blatanly refusing the sweet freedom offered by sleep. The moment she steps on that plane, there's no going back. What have I done?

"There's no point in beating yourself up, Prince Lu Han," Victoria's voice called softly as a gentle hand laid itself on his shoulder.

"But I've done something serious," he whispered uncertainly. "I've done something unforgivable."

"Nothing is unforgivable, least of all love," she said. "It's not wrong to love, Lu Han. It's not wrong to make friends and to make sacrifices. It just hurts sometimes, but it is never wrong to truly care for someone other than yourself. It just proves... That you are really a person.

"To be unable to do things of that sort demonstrate the cruelty that is in us, but to be able to do those things demonstrates what are the redeeming qualities of man. There are so many things that show our cruelty, so very many, that sometimes, I am lead to believe that we have mistaken the meanings of the words 'inhumane' and 'humane', and mistaken what it is to be human. But the human heart isn't completely evil. Sometimes, it is just mistaken. And when it realizes that it was, if it belongs to a person worthy to be called a person, it does its best to mend things.

"Lu Han, neither you nor I know what Heaven has in store for us. We do not know how things are to be, and we can only do our best with what we know as 'now', because that is all we have. We all make mistakes, but what makes a good man a good man is what he does with those mistakes.

"If you do wrong, will you not do everything to make ammends?" Victoria asked.

Lu Han nodded as tears began to drop from his eyes.

Victoria wrapped her arms around him in a sisterly hug. "Then you are already a man worthy of all that has been given you and more. Love does not choose who is worthy and who is not, little one. And true love is always sacrificial."

~°~

The things that we truly desire are, are they not also the things that we dream of? They are the things of our hearts, the things that dictate, consciously or otherwise, the way we think, act and live. Desires and dreams, though they may be connected to such a point that they are almost inseparable, are two different things. One is not the other.

Yoona stepped onto the plane with her heart thumping wildly in her chest.

Inadequate, that's what she felt. She felt like her promises to her dear brother were worthless. Yes, he had consented that it was now alright with him that she would go. Nonetheless, she felt lacking because in the end, she had chosen herself, Lu Han, over her brother who had always been by her side, supporting her, strengthening her by depending on her. She had just pulled that blanket of security they had from under them. But more than that, she felt that she was not worthy enough to be Lu Han's fiancée. He was, after all, a prince. He stood in a place very far away from hers, though he had made her feel like she was the most important person in his world.

Her thoughts gradually became heavier and heavier as she sat down and waited for their plane to take off. Everything was already set: she was to transfer to a university in Beijing near the palace to finish her undergraduate degree should she wish to, her visa for her initial lengthy stay was already underway, and her citizenship was already being processed. Soon, she would be of both Korean and Chinese citizenship. Soon, she would also be known as Lady Xi.

Stepping on that plane, nothing was ever going to be the same again. It already wasn't.

A warm hand wrapped itself around hers. Her head snapped up and turned to the source and she saw Baekhyun looking at her with concerned eyes..

"Don't worry, Noona--er, Jiejie," Baekhyun said with a gentle smile. He wasn't certain if she would appreciate being called noona or jiejie, as she wasn't normally addressed as such. But things were changing quickly, and they both knew that. Where once there was comfortable informality between them, now, they had to be quite formal lest someone mistake their relationship for something more. "I'll be here for you."

"Thanks, Baekhyun," she replied gratefully.

No other words or questions. Baekhyun understood that now, what Yoona needed was not the question of whether she was alright or not, but the complete assurance that even if things were changing quite quickly to the point that they can no longer be recognized, some things are eternal. Real friends will always be friends, no matter what.

Tao kept his gaze trained on the two Koreans. Their friendliness did not bother him; he knew they were friends. But their friendliness struck a few chords in his heart. Why did it seem like they had a similar relationship to him and Lu Han?

Prior to that moment, back when Tao first met Yoona on his own, he had already instilled in his heart that he would share the task of making Yoona happy. As a friend, as a brother figure... Whatever it was, he had thought that he would go for it and do it for her. Now, that promise to himself appeared again; this time, he truly wanted it to be true. Because there was simply something about her that reminded him of his relationship to Lu Han. Possibly, it was the vulnerability, the feeling of being thrown into the lion's den. But he didn't know that, because he could no longer really remember.

~°~

Baekhyun was now officially Tao's student. It was a little odd, their mentor-student relationship, as the mentor was younger than the student. And, the two, upon initial contact, were quite awkward with each other. Tao was the deadly yet sometimes bashful character whereas Baekhyun was simply a little on the quiet side.

Lu Han was there, as was Kris and Lay, and so too, Yoona, when it was announced. The two shared an awkward handshake, and the other boys burts into loud guffaws at the awkwardness. Lu Han patted both boys on the shoulder comfortingly, saying that they'd be able to create a more comfortable working relationship.

Tao was determined to be a good mentor, since he believes that passing on the knowledge well was a duty he had, a responsibility held to him by his previous mentors.

~°~

"So, what do you think, Yoona?" Lu Han asked. He had taken it upon himself to tour Yoona around his home.

"It's daunting," she replied honestly. "This place has to be bigger than my university!"

"Well, the Forbidden City is a city, after all. Universities are hardly ever large enough to constitute what is known as the land area needed for a city."

"But isn't this too much?" she asked. She had not only been referring to the sheer vastness of the place she was to call 'home', but also to the effectiveness of the staff that worked for the palace, Kris included.

"It is, but it would be a waste to throw away everything that the ancestors have built. It's daunting, I know, but it's not all that bad. I, for one, think what they've done to the place is amazing, considering they preserved the beauty of the old buildings and added the touch of modernity," he mused.

"Touch of modernity?"

"I forget, you've yet to see where you will stay!" he exclaimed. "I'm sorry. Would you like to see now? I believe they're just about finished with getting it ready for you."

"Sure," she replied.

Lu Han weaved his fingers through hers and led her through the city-like palace. There were simply so many houses, so many random buildings, that she could not tell if she could find her way back.

As they walked, Yoona noted that there were no street lights, none at all, and she asked Lu Han about it.

"Hardly anyone leaves their houses at night; anyone who is truly working hard would be far too tired for such activities," he replied with a sheepish laugh. "But if you're wondering about getting around, we normally hang lamps outside our doors. And we carry lamps around with us. Those with candles!"

"Isn't that a bit old fashioned?" she inquired.

"Yes, but it's a lot less costly than flashlights or lighting street lamps everynight. The wax can always be re-melted and remade into new candles," he replied.

He brought her to this cozy wooden house, decorated as all the others, and welcomed her. The inside was decorated quite sparsely, likely to accomodate whatever she wanted to do with it, but it was beautiful. It was quite traditional inside and out, save for the touches of modernity here and there such as the bathroom (with indoor plumbing), the lights and the airconditioner, all camoufladged so as not to stand out horribly among the pleasantries of the interior.

"How?" she asked, referring to the way the modern accessories were concealed.

"I frankly have no idea either. I just know that the architects and designers do their job really well, don't you think? It doesn't look too tacky," he joked.

And it was true. Had it been done by a less well-trained hand, it would've looked tacky and just short of ugly.

"Your world amuses me," she commented.

"My world?" Lu Han asked with an amused tone. "Pray, tell me what brings about such a reaction."

He peered at her, searching her gaze calmly. Still, he could not believe that she was here with him, experiencing his world for herself as he had experienced hers.

"Prince Lu Han," Victoria's voice called as two pairs of feet shuffled into the house. "I'm afraid you're not allowed into Ms. Yoona's house without supervision."

"What is this, Victoria?" Lu Han shot back, using the nickname that she was fondly called for becoming Master Chen Long sole female disciple. His training was notoriously rigorous, so much so that few had the honour of bearing the title of 'Master Chen Long's student'.

"This," she replied entering the room with a playful expression. "is the Emperor's task for us. You are not to be left alone with Ms. Yoona, he does not trust you enough."

She never really said why, but Yoona saw Lu Han's ears turn red and pieced it together for herself. He placed a hand over his heart and exclaimed, "I would never do such a thing!"

"Well, Prince Lu Han, it is for your own good. Best not be presented with the temptation itself! It is far more difficult to resist the temptation than not have faced temptation at all," Hangeng bemused. "Ms. Yoona is a beauty; it is not difficult to see the temptation she presents, even for a man like you."

"You and your evil little minds!" Lu Han shot back jokingly.

The two guards laughed at his amusing expression, and his embarrassment. Though Yoona got the gist of the first comment, Hangeng had stated his in Chinese, to protect Yoona from embarassment.

"Yes, yes, all is well that ends well," Victoria mused. "Now, it's true; Prince Lu Han, it is best if you do not stay here with Yoona unsupervised. Also, it is under the Emperor's orders that we are here."

"As Tao will be quite busy training with Baekhyun, Master Jay will be assigned to you for most of the time, unless you would prefer Henry?" Hangeng asked.

"Why not you?" Lu Han asked.

"I, along with Victoria, am assigned to Ms. Yoona. The Emperor wishes she be supervised as well; some are not in favour of her presence as much as others," he replied, knowing that he knows already what he means.

"I hope no problems will arise," he replied. "Both you and Song Qian?"

"Yes," Victoria replied. "Ms. Yoona and I have met, and I do believe I speak Korean well enough to be understood?"

"Yes, and you do speak Korean well," Yoona replied, taking the opportunity to become part of the conversation.

"What of Hangeng?"

"He speaks better than young Henry, whose accent is quite heavy," Victoria replied. "Unlike Kris. But Kris cannot be pulled away from you; he is your lifeline."

"He is not; he is my pillar of support!" Lu Han countered.

"Is that not roughly the same? Kris is vital to you and your operations. He cannot be separated from you. Ms. Yoona cannot be put together with you all the time; she has etiquette classes to attend to," Victoria replied.

"Do you think I will  be able to attend university as well?" she quipped.

"I do believe so, but I believe it must be after you have grasped the common tongue well enough," Victoria replied with an apologetic smile. "A lot of subjects, majors especially, are taught in Mandarin here in Beijing, and the Emperor hopes that you will attend Peking University?"

"I will?" she asked, shocked. Peking University is one of the premier educational institutions of China.

"He hopes," Victoria reiterated. "But you may choose otherwise."

"No, I-"

"Yoona, love, I implore you to choose whatever you wish," Lu Han stated. "My father has his thoughts, you have yours. You need not follow his wishes."

"But Lu Han, won't it be best?" she asked.

"Do it only if you wish, do not let him dictate. Peking University is not the only university in all of China," he replied. Something about the way he spoke told Yoona that he was warning her of something, and the looks on both Hangeng's and Victoria's faces supported this assumption.

"Alright," she relented. "Let's see what university is best."

"Anyway, so Master Jay shall take Tao's place more often than not. Master Li Lianjie and Master Chen Long have taken it upon themselves to aid Ms. Yoona in learning court conduct and etiquette. Victoria and I shall be her tutors in language as well as her guards for the mean time," Hangeng summarized.

"Guards?" Yoona asked.

"You are now an unofficial member of the royal family, Ms. Yoona. Though it pains me to say, not all men have good thoughts. You are Prince Lu Han's fiancée. That is nothing light," Hangeng said. "Well, unofficial. Since you are yet to be officially affianced."

Seeing her confounded expression, Lu Han chuckled softly and explained, "It's for your safety, Yoona. And Victoria and Hangeng don't feel much like guards, they're more like friends and tutors. Think of them as such?"

She nodded sheepishly, slightly abashed that she did not understand.

"It's alright," Lu Han assured her. "Sometimes, there is something wrong with the way Hangeng speaks Korean. I do not know why, though."

“I’m not entirely sure why, either,” Hangeng replied amiably.

~°~

"Why... do you look like a zombie?" Sehun aked. They were in their classroom, waiting for the teacher to arrive; Kai was slumped over his desk, looking completely exhausted.

"Sleepy," he groaned.

Sehun slumped down in front of him, and flicked his forehead.

"What was that for?!" Kai roared, rubbing his sore forehead.

"That was for being stubborn," Sehun shrugged lazily.

"Sehun," Kai whined. "I was having a perfectly lazy morning."

"Dude, that was not lazy. You've been moping about for the past week!"

"No I haven't," he replied defensively.

"Okay, fine. The past three days. Happy?"

Kai sighed.

"Just tell me," Sehun urged. "It's Noona, isn't it? I bet you miss her sorely."

"A huge chunk of the pie got stolen by the cat," he admitted.

"You don't have a cat."

Kai gave Sehun a deadpanned look. "Your point?"

"Geeze, stop being so hissy," he replied. "You're worse than my cousin."

Kai huffed and sank back down on his desk, refusing to meet Sehun's gaze. The latter whined and wheedled until he gave in.

"Fine, okay? I miss Yoona. I really, really miss her. It's hard not to, you know? She and I walk to school together every morning and she tends to go over my homework for me at night. Besides, now I help Mom with dinner."

"And...?"

"Yoona's the better cook," he replied.

Sehun chuckled. "I doubt you burn toast intentionally."

"If only it was that simple."

~°~

After roughly a week of intensive language training combined with her innate drive to learn things, Yoona became capable of carrying a decent conversation in Mandarin. Lu Han was ecstatic, Victoria and Hangeng were simply beaming with pride.

"You've become quite fluent, Ms. Yoona," the Emperor commented as they had dinner one day. It was not a grand affair, just the three of them as Lu Han did not wish her to meet his other siblings yet. Jealousy is a very strong poison.

"Please, just call me Yoona," she asked. "And thank you, Sire. I am happy that you are pleased with the improvement; I intentionally put much effort into it."

"Very well, then, Yoona," he replied with a chuckle. "If I shall call you Yoona, I implore you to call me Dad."

"So soon?" Yoona blurted. Her hand shot up to when she realized what she had said as a blush crept up her face from the embarrassment. She was usually more capable of controlling her words.

He laughed heartily. "Why not? I do believe it will take more time to get used to it than to actually use it."

She nodded shyly, not sure how to react further. Gaining his acceptance was easier than she thought.

~°~

Baekhyun dragged his feet towards the dorm he was staying in. He was completely exhausted. Tao had dragged him out the whole day--again--to see what he could do, squeezing out every last drop of energy and ability he had, and in the end, only to say, "Oh, you are good. We'll start the day after tomorrow. Get some rest, okay?"

As he trudged home, a hand laid itself on his shoulder, and a warm greeting flitted into his ears.

"Aze?"

"The one and only," he replied with a smile. "You need help?"

"Nah, I can manage, I'm just tired. What are you doing here?" he asked.

"We just got here," he replied. "A visit to the palace since it's open to foreigners anyway. I'm with my family by the way. What are you doing here and why do you look so exhausted?"

"I've been here the whole week," he replied. "Training my off."

Aze raised a brow.

"I got a different offer."

"You're really something, Baekhyun," he replied with a chuckle. "So you're here already? They're giving you full scholarship until college?"

"I think, and free apprenticeship as well," he remarked jokingly.

"You don't say?" he asked, interested.

"Yeah. Wanna come in? I'm staying here with Master Tao-"

"The host?"

"He's a master. He's a kid, but he's already a teacher."

"Wow. Is he nice?"

"He's easy to get along with, provided you're disciplined enough. Awkward every now and then, but he's really good."

"Why wouldn't he? I hear he was named a royal guard at age 13. He must've been really good."

"Royal guard? As in those guys that protect the Emperor?"

"He's assigned to the prince, I think, but yeah. You're lucky, Baekhyun. You've got a prodigy for a teacher."

"Yeah, well, prodigy or not, it all boils down to how well he can teach, right?"

"Eh," Aze shrugged. "Well, I better get going. Hey, Baekhyun, it's nice to see you again. See ya 'round!"

"Yeah, you too," he replied.

"I gotta go, bye!" Aze said before going off to find his family.

"Bye," he replied as his friend scurried off.

"Who was that?" Tao asked, carrying two small boxes, one on top of the other, as he walked towards Baekhyun. "I thought you were inside."

"I was... going in," Baekhyun responded. He must've taken more time talking to Aze than he thought. "That was a friend, he was also a contestant. He passed the competition, but he's here on a vacation."

"He's fast. I wonder if Master Jay would like him as an apprentice..." Tao mused. He looked busy calculating things in his brain. Just as quickly as his attention was caught by Aze, he dropped it and focused on Baekhyun. "Ah, let's go. Time for dinner."

"...Dinner?"

"Yes. That meal that you eat at night, after the day's activities. You do eat night-time meals in Korea, don't you?" he asked.

"Yes, of course. It's just that I thought we already ate dinner."

"That? You consider that dinner? A few carrots would hardly suffice to replenish your energy, Baekhyun! Are you vying for Miss Universe or something?" Tao asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

"But the past few days..."

"We were doing cleansings, Baekhyun," he replied with a laugh. "You know, eat only healthy veggies and drink only water--purify the body. Do gentle exercises such as Tai Chi and reflection--calm the mind and the spirit. But today, we had rigorous exercises, you have to eat. Come, let's have dinner. Victoria prepared them for us. She's a wonderful cook, you know. She would've made an excellent chef had she not become a royal guard."

Tao motioned for Baekhyun to follow him into the house. He laid out the table, and set out the food.

"Next time, I'll show you where everything is," Tao promised as they sat down, cross-legged on the floor. Their food was set in front of them, one bento per person. "It's not good to be very dependent. I know it takes a little getting used to, calling these individual houses as rooms, but I promise, you'll get used to it. The houses are labelled well enough not to get lost, right?"

Baekhyun nodded. Tao motioned for him to begin eating. After a few bites from both of them, he began to dictate their itinerary for the next few days.

"Good. Tomorrow, I'm going to go with Lu Han. Victoria and Hangeng will be supervising Ms. Yoona in her private classes and you are free to do what you want to do to get rested and recharged. The day after tomorrow, we begin training. You're already at an impressive level, Baekhyun, so there's really no need to rush. We're going to pick up where you left off.

"The day after that, which is a Monday, we'll head over to the Academy. Would you prefer to study in modules with a teacher or to really go to school?" Tao asked.

"What's the difference?" he asked.

"Studying in modules entails more time to practice and better pacing for both Wu Shu and academics. You go through things at your own pace, then you take a test to prove that you've mastered the module enough and you can go to the next. It goes on until you've finished the module for high school then you take the exams for college. Then going to the Academy itself... Well, it's more like the school you went to in Korea except they teach in Chinese languages. I'd advise you to take the modules if you're not confident with your Mandarin," Tao advised kindly. "At least if you don't understand the concepts, we can go over them together and if I can't, we'll get the others. Preferrably Kris, since he's pretty much fluent like any native speaker."

"I see," he replied.

"So? Which one?"

"May I go for the modules?" he asked.

"Of course," Tao assured him. "I actually think it's best; that's how I got my high school diploma. Lu Han and Kris as well."

"Okay."

"Don't be so frightened. It's not scary around here. No one's going to eat you alive; but you have to tread carefully with the Masters, especially Master Chen Long, Master Li Lianjie and Master Jay Chou."

"Aren't you a master as well?" he asked.

"In a way, yes. But those people are Wu Shu Da Ren, big names. They're the ones who have both the skill and experience. Me? I'm just a teacher by rank--Shi Fu, Mentor. But I'm technically not old enough, not even to be called Lao Shi, so I'm just xuege, senior learner. But then again, I'm younger than you, so that wouldn't make sense, which is why you call me just Tao," Tao said, ending with a beaming smile.

"Are you...sure?"

"Sure I'm sure," Tao responded. "Why can't we be friends? No one ever said mentor-student relationships had to be strict. Now, eat up. Victoria's coming over and she's going to throw a fit if you don't finish this up."