Feiyan

“What a pain.” Feiyan muttered as she stormed from the marriage tent with a huff. There was no way she’d ever put on Mongolian clothing! Despite her resolve however, a few steps on the camp grounds told Feiyan why Mongolian women preferred to dress differently from her own people. The ground wasn’t smooth in the least bit, and Feiyan’s silk shoes proved to be little defense against the rocks and bumps in the dirt. A few steps away from the tent, her foot caught against the edge of her skirts, and Feiyan yelped as she found herself toppling forward.

“Woah there!” A male voice cried, and Feiyan suddenly found herself caught in a pair of muscular arms. She blinked in confusion, frozen for a moment, until the male voice spoke again.

“Are you okay, Sister-in-law?” The voice asked. Feiyan looked up into a pair of sparkling brown eyes, and she slowly became aware of how she was nearly sprawled across the broad shoulders of the young man who had caught her mid-fall. She cleared and hopped away, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment.

“Yes, I’m alright.” She replied, ducking her head for a moment before peeking up at the man in front of her. His hair was a richer ebony than Yixing’s, and it lay free in long braids falling down his back. His features were sharp and focused, like a sculpture shaped carefully out of marble. His rich brown eyes sparkled with his amused smile, but Feiyan could feel something else lay behind its beauty. There was strength and power behind those eyes, like a hawk circling the skies and looking down from above. She felt that no little detail could ever escape from the man’s gaze. At the same time, the whole package was ridiculously enticing to look at.

“Sister-in-law?” The man queried curiously, and Feiyan looked away as she realized she had been staring.

“Excuse me.” She mumbled, her cheeks flushing again as she fumbled for something to cover up her breach of decorum, “I...don’t think I’ve seen you before. Are you Yixing’s brother?” The man nodded and bowed.

“I am Yilong, Yixing’s eldest brother.” He replied, “It is an honor to meet you at last, Sister-in-law. I wanted to greet you last night, but you were otherwise occupied with the marriage rites.” Feiyan shook her head and smiled.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Brother-in-law.” She said with a curtsey. Yilong grinned.

“Please call me Yilong.” He said, “We are going to be family after all, so there’s no need to act like strangers.” Yilong looked at her dirt smudged skirt and chuckled.

“Is there somewhere you need to go? It seems like you aren’t very used to traveling over unpaved ground yet.”

“I just wanted to explore.” Feiyan replied, “I was barely able to see anything before the wedding.” Yilong held out a hand to her.

“May I have the honor of being your guide?” He asked pleasantly, “I’ll make sure you don’t fall this time.” Feiyan giggled.

“I trust that you won’t, Yilong.” She said as she reached out to take his outstretched hand. Before their fingers touched however, someone yanked Feiyan back, and she looked up in surprise into Yixing’s glowering face.

“Hello brother.” He said smoothly, a hint of displeasure underlying his voice, “It seems like you have officially met my wife.” Yilong returned the smile, neatly folding his arms behind his back.

“Indeed I have.” He replied, “She is a very lovely woman. In fact, I was about to take her around the camp.” Yixing’s eyes narrowed.

“I don’t think that will be necessary.” He said, yanking Feiyan closer to him, “I can look after my own woman.”

“Don’t talk about me like an object!” Feiyan protested, but Yixing promptly ignored her. Yilong tiled his head slightly as he looked at Feiyan.

“She doesn’t look very comfortable like that though, brother.” He said, “You should let her do as she wants.” Yixing smirked.

“When you get married brother, you can let your wife do as she wants.” He replied, “But until then, I will deal with my wife as I see fit.” Feiyan swallowed hard as she looked from one brother to the other. The air was nearly crackling with the tension between them. Just what was going on?

“What lively conversation so early in the morning.” A deep voice interrupted the tense conversation before Yilong could reply, and the trio looked up to see the Khan approach.

“Father.” The brothers bowed respectfully, and Feiyan quickly ducked into a curtsey.

“I was just offering to show Princess Feiyan around.” Yilong replied, “But it seems like I’ve evoked Yixing’s jealousy.”

“I was not jealous!” Yixing protested hotly, looking sharply at his brother. The Khan laughed.

“It is alright to be jealous, Yixing.” He said with a smile, “I’m glad that you like her so much.” Yixing huffed and grumbled something under his breath. The Khan looked over at Feiyan and his smile faded slightly.

“Princess, why aren’t you wearing the clothes I had picked out for you?” He asked, “Are they not to your liking?” Feiyan froze, her brain rushing to find an answer that wouldn’t insult the Khan. She turned her head slightly to look at Yixing, who pointedly kept his eyes away.

He didn’t tell me the Khan personally ordered the clothes chosen!

Feiyan cleared as she quickly ran through the knowledge of Mongols she had.

“Of course not, Great Khan.” She replied with a little smile, “The clothes were beautiful. But you see, it has not been very long since I left the home I grew up in, so it will take some time for me to get accustomed to living here. At the spur of a moment, I cannot possibly change everything including my way of dress. I feel that by maintaining my Ming style of dress, I can still keep some of my home with me.” Her words were greeted with silence, and Feiyan gulped as she waited for an angry order for her to be punished for insolence. Instead, laughter reached her ears a moment later, and she peeked up cautiously to see that the sound was coming from the Khan. The Khan smiled as he looked at Yixing.

“Yixing, it seems like I was not wrong to choose Princess Feiyan as your wife.” He said, “She holds values that are completely in line with our people. You must treat her well, do you understand?” Yixing took a deep breath and plastered on a smile before answering.

“Of course, Father.” He replied, “I will cherish her well.” If the Khan hadn’t been standing in front of her, Feiyan would have scoffed at his words. Cherish? If only the Khan had heard what he had said to her in the marriage tent just a few minutes earlier. The Khan continued on his way, and Yixing grabbed Feiyan by the arm.

“Come with me.” He hissed. Before Feiyan could make a word of protest, he dragged her away from Yilong and back into their tent.

“Stay away from Yilong.” Yixing snapped as soon as his furious glare sent the servants scurrying out. Feiyan lifted her chin defiantly.

“Why should I do that?” She replied, “I don’t know what’s going on between you two, but I could care less as long as he treats me well.”

“I don’t care who you’re friends with here.” Yixing hissed, “But Yilong is out of the question.” Feiyan huffed and turned away.

“Don’t drag me into your sibling rivalry.” She said firmly, “I’m not interested.”

“You don’t have a choice if you get too close to him!” Yixing growled, yanking her around by the shoulder. Feiyan yelped as his hand clamped onto where she had cut herself the night before, and Yixing drew back immediately. He cleared his throat, looking slightly apologetic for a moment before continuing.

“I’ll say it again.” He said, “You can be friends with the entire empire, for all I care. But Yilong is completely out of the question.”

“And if I insist?” Feiyan asked coolly. A slight flicker of emotion leapt through Yixing’s eyes, but a cold stillness replaced it a few moments later.

“If you insist,” He replied, “Then you’ll just have to suffer the consequences.”

______________________________________________________________________________

Yixing

“It’s not like you, to argue with Yilong in the open.” Yixing looked up from his horse’s nose to see Yifan lounging in the stable entrance.

“He got too close.” Yixing replied simply.

“To Princess Feiyan.” Yifan replied, “You don’t even like her. Why are you acting like he stepped on your tail?” Yixing bit his lip and didn’t respond. Yifan sighed and walked over to Yixing.

“Is it still because of that?” He asked as he slid Yixing’s hand off the horse, “It’s been years, Yixing. Even now, when Yilong gets remotely close to something related to you, all your defenses go up.” Yixing sighed and turned to look at his brother.

“Just because time has passed doesn’t mean I have to forget.” He replied, “Time doesn’t heal all wounds, brother.”

“We never did find proof it was Yilong’s doing.” Yifan reminded him.

“I’ll find it one day.” Yixing said firmly, “One day, I’ll tear him down once and for all.

“You still haven’t answered my question.” Yifan added, “Why are you getting defensive because of Feiyan? If you don’t like her, Yilong wouldn’t use her to plot against your place as Crown Prince.”

“Because the last time I thought it wouldn’t happen, it did.” Yixing replied with a deep sigh, “Since then, I’ve learned that it never hurts to be overly cautious. Even if I don’t like the princess, that won’t stop Yilong from using her against me. That’s just the way he is.” Yifan sighed and patted Yixing on the shoulder.

“Just don’t overdo it.” He reminded his younger brother, “She’s still an important political player.” Yixing sighed again and nodded.

“I know.” He replied, “But she just gets on my nerves all the time! If I say one thing, she has to argue for the opposite.” Yifan chuckled.

“Patience, brother. Princess Feiyan isn’t the typical docile woman.” He said, “She’s been the Emperor’s favorite daughter since birth, groomed and trained to be the perfect princess. Now all of a sudden, she’s been married off against her will to a foreign country. It’s only natural that she feels the need to resist everything.”

“It doesn’t mean I have to like her.” Yixing muttered with a pout.

“I’m not saying you have to like her.” Yifan replied, “But at least act the part when Father is looking. It’s even more important that you do so when the Miao delegation comes to visit next month.” Yixing groaned.

“I almost forgot about that…” He grumbled, “Father wanted me to personally oversee the preparations.” Yifan patted Yixing on the arm one more time before heading out of the stable.

“Put on a good show brother,” He said as he left, “Every pair of eyes will be watching to see the Crown Prince’s ability to host visiting royalty. The last thing we need is a complete mess. That includes acting properly with Feiyan while they’re here.” Yixing rolled his eyes.

“I’m not making any promises!” He called as Yifan left. Yixing huffed and picked up a brush to resume his horse.  Feiyan’s stubborn face wafted up in front of his eyes, and Yixing groaned as he shook his head furiously to clear the image.

I can’t believe it’s only day one.