“Princess, you need to wake up now!”
I was half awake, but still refusing to get up. I rolled on the other side and held tighter on my blanket. I was trying to ignore reality.
“Yin Xue, please, it is very late already. You even overslept breakfast.” I heard Jongdae’s begging voice. I opened my eyes a little so I could see him.
There was concern on his face, on his pretty face. I was losing myself again.
I had a rough night. I remember having some weird dream about Yi Fan’s fiancée which disturbed me emotionally.
I sat up suddenly, feeling extremely troubled again. Jongdae was staring at me totally baffled.
“Jongdae! … Yi Fan’s fiancée… is she… what is with her?” I tried to phrase a normal sentence but failed miserably.
“She is down in her room, I guess. But I’m not sure though… I’m sorry, is there any problem?”
I just groaned displeased. Then I shoved my blanket aside and stepped on my feet.
“Are there any plans for today?”  I asked and took a look in the mirror. That was scary.
“Minseok wants to see you.”
I sighed as I remembered. Then I looked at Jongdae.
“What are you doing today?” I asked him and he gave me a strange expression again.
“I-I do… well, I guess I have to do my daily duties. And in the afternoon I need to take care of the garden a little.” He stuttered.
“The garden?” I raised an eyebrow. “But that does not belong to your duties as far as I know.”
“Yes, but since Qiao is very ill the other gardeners are struggling to manage it all. So I’m helping out.”
I observed him for a while. It was remarkable how Jongdae was always working so hard. He never seemed to be tired or annoyed. I don’t think I could be like that. But I was a spoiled princess who has never done any work before besides homework.
“Can I join you?”
He was perplexed for a moment and then he said: “Join … me?”
I laughed a little about the look he gave me.
“I’m not saying that I want to work in the garden, I just want to go outside and maybe talk a little. I think I’ll need that”
I noticed a little smile on his lips that vanished just the next moment.
“You don’t need to ask, Yin Xue. That would be a pleasure for me.” He lowered his gaze.
I smiled a little. I found him so silly sometimes.

I closed the book.
“Minseok, I’m hungry.”
Our eyes met and a smirk appeared on his lips. “I could guess that, since you overslept breakfast.”
 I sighed. We’ve been studying literature for about two hours now, but it was difficult for me to concentrate.
“Is there anything troubling you, Princess?” He asked me with a very smooth voice and eyes full of concern. I smiled at him a little.
“No, I’m fine… It’s nothing.”
Minseok was quiet for a moment while he was examining my face.
And then he said: “I know you better than that.”
I was holding back my next answer and suddenly he seemed to notice something behind me and became completely distracted. His eyes widened for just a moment but then they became very tender. I noticed a smile but one of a different kind then his usual sultry one.
I turned and noticed my brother Han.
“Uhm… Did I disturb you?” He asked very considerate.
I shook my head. “No, I guess, we just wanted to finish.”
I looked at Minseok again and he returned my gaze.  His expression was lost. I hadn’t seen him being that way very often. He just nodded a little.
“Minseok, do you have time?”  Han asked. He was the only one besides the Korean servants and me who was calling him by his Korean name.
“Uh, yes, of course, Han.” And Han was also the only one out of the family who Minseok referred to only by his first name.
I stood up.
“Well, I’ll better go now.”

“It’s pretty here in the late summer.” Jongdae said who was walking next to me.
I was observing the blooming garden and enjoying the comfortable weather. “It is. But I always liked spring better.”
“I know.” Jongdae smiled a little and seemed to be in his thoughts for a moment.
Then we stopped at the rosebushes so he could take care of them and I was watching him.
“The only thing that bothers me about this time of the year is that it is followed by autumn. And it is depressing me already.” Jongdae didn’t answer right away and I added: “I know this is silly.”
“It’s not. I know how bad you feel in autumn and winter. “
I looked up to the sky. It was a clear blue. I didn’t see a single cloud.
“I feel like dying a little when it comes to winter. It’s getting dark and cold outside and then it’s crawling inside me.”
Jongdae laughed. I hadn’t heard that very often and I was looking at him curiously. He looked at me, too and his lips were curled up in a smile. “You’re just like a flower.”
I watched him slightly confused for a moment and then suddenly I smiled. I didn’t know if I found that just funny or actually sweet.
I lowered my gaze. “Yeah… and spring awakes me again. I like that comparison.”
“I thought it fits you.”
I looked at him again but he escaped my gaze. We were silent for a while then.
“Jongdae, what do you do when you don’t work?” I asked him somewhere along the way. He waited with his answer.
“Uhm… I sleep a little.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You reply as if you would be punished if you say that you do anything else but work.”
He chuckled but still seemed to refuse to answer.
“I ask you as friend. I know so little about you even though I know you for so long.”
Jongdae didn’t look at me but then sighed and said: “I sing sometimes.”
“Like in private?”
“Yes.”
I looked at him with a blank expression. “Why do you never sing when you work?”
“Because work is work.”
“It’s not like its forbidden or something and isn’t singing like really relaxing?”
“I don’t really understand your objections, Yin Xue.” Jongdae said and laughed a little.
“I just never heard you singing.” I muttered and watched him. He seemed to have finished more or less. Now we were just strolling through the garden.
“Would you sing for me?”
Jongdae was speechless in surprise. He just stared at me. Why did I always confuse him so much? Almost every time when we were talking it ended up in Jongdae giving me baffled looks.
I gave him the same strange look.
“You want me to sing for you?” He repeated my wish in a slow voice.
“Yes, that would be nice.” I said and gave him a little smile. I noticed how he started to feel uneasy.
“Would it anger you if we would do it another time?”
I observed him for a moment.
“No, that is fine. I would sing with you then if you’ll feel embarrassed. But I warn you I don’t sing very well.” I tried to comfort him and gave him a smile.
“I’m sure you have a beautiful voice.”
I shook my head still smiling. “I am not perfect, Jongdae. I can’t have everything.”

My father was chatting a little with Yi Fan and Yi Xing at the dinner table. From time to time I was speaking with Han. Mei Lin wasn’t present. Today I haven’t seen her at lunch either. Her father had already left this morning as far as I knew.
On the one hand I was relieved because I couldn’t stand her at all but on the other hand I found that strange. But I tried to not waste my time thinking about her.
When I finished I decided to take a bath. My brothers made fun of me sometimes because I was bathing literally every day, sometimes even twice. But I was really a neat freak.  
But today I spent a lot of time outside and was already tired so I wanted to relax a little bit and go to sleep early.
On my way upstairs I asked a servant to fill the bathtub with water for me.
Then I went to my room and started to remove my makeup. When I was finished I opened my hair because I wanted to wash it today. I grabbed clothes to change and some other things and stepped out of my room.
To get to the bathroom I had to pass the guest rooms. Mei Lin’s presence made me sick even if I only had to pass her room. But suddenly I stopped right in front of her door.
“You have to show proper behavior. I’m convinced that Mr. Yang will find a solution soon.” I heard Hai Su saying.
“No, he will not! This is crazy! It was crazy from the very beginning! How is this even going to work?” The other person seemed to be very upset. It was definitely Mei Lin’s voice but she sounded even deeper than before now.
Their discussion was getting heated up and the door was cracked open so I could follow their conversation.
“Are you questioning Mr. Yang? You know you shouldn’t do that!”
“Shut up, Hai Su! God, you’re just as crazy as him! Why didn’t he put you in Mei Lin’s dress in the first place? That would have made sense at least”
“It would not. You’re highly educated and charismatic and you both had a strong friendship! We already had this discussion. You know that I’m nothing good for. I would be caught just the second day.”
A moment of silence was following.
“There is someone in the hallway.” Mei Lin whispered.
I let out a gasp and started to run. I don’t know why the hell I was running, but I didn’t want to be caught. But it seemed they didn’t wanted to be caught either and now I was convinced that something was going on there.
I left the corridor and finally arrived at the bathroom. I locked myself in immediately and rest my back at the door. My heart was still pounding against my chest and my breathing was irregular.
What did just happen? What were they talking about?
Why didn’t he put you in Mei Lin’s dress in the first place?
What does that even mean?