Yixing

Zhang Yixing woke up to the sound of a loud crash followed by a terrified scream.

“Yixing!” His heart leapt into his throat at the sound of the familiar voice. Adrenaline flooded through his veins as he leapt to his feet, all sleep and exhaustion clearing from his head in an instant.

Princess!

Yixing grabbed his sword and ran out of the room, only to stop short outside the door at the sight that greeted him. Masked assailants had taken over the princess’s palace, and although the soldiers on duty were fighting valiantly, it was clear that they were at a disadvantage.

“Yixing!” Princess Feiyan’s voice cried out from inside her rooms again, and Yixing rushed into to find her pressed against the edge of her bed by another masked assailant. The unknown man raised a knife into the air, and Yixing rushed forward to stop him. He grabbed the man by the shoulder and yanked him away from Princess Feiyan and threw him away from them both.

“Yixing!” Princess Feiyan cried, her eyes wide with fright. Yixing quickly pulled her to her feet and placed himself protectively in front of her.

“You came!” She gasped. Yixing smiled briefly at her before watching the assailant pick himself off the ground.

“Of course.” He replied, “I said I will always hear your voice, didn’t I?” The masked assailant lunged at them again, and Yixing quickly pulled his sword from its scabbard to parry the blow. As the two exchanged blows, Yixing could not help but feel a sense of deja vu. Each offensive attack, each movement as his own blows were blocked, it all felt so familiar, as if he had fought this man before. But how could that be? The only way to explain it would be if he knew this man. Either that was the case or...acting on a whim, Yixing seized the opening left as the man swiveled away from him. Yixing turned quickly on his heel and his sword forward, the tip of his blade catching neatly on the assailant’s mask. He flicked his wrist quickly and tore the mask off with his sword. A grim expression settled on Yixing’s face as he laid his gaze on the assailant’s face illuminated in the moonlight.

“Prince Galdan.” He greeted, “I knew you would come.” Prince Galdan, or whoever he was supposed to be, smirked.

“You can only blame yourself for bringing this onto your precious princess.” He growled, “If you had simply stayed out of matters, she could have lived for a few more days.” Yixing snarled, his grip tightening on his sword.

“No, I should have never let you approach her in the first place.” He growled, “And now, I will make up for that by taking your life with my own hands.” Prince Galdan smirked again and threw open his arms. In response, multiple assailants leapt down from the rafters, and the room doors opened to reveal more. Without even trying to fight them, Yixing knew he was outnumbered, and the soldiers outside were likely either dead or too busy fighting to come help him.

“Yixing…” Princess Feiyan tugged on his sleeve, and Yixing sighed deeply as he knew what she wanted. Long ago, Emperor Kangxi had built a back door escape route for his favorite daughter, and Feiyan and Yixing had agreed since they were children that should they find themselves attacked and outnumbered, the best choice would be to flee through the escape route. Although Yixing hated to admit it, now was certainly one of those times. If he had to keep an eye on his master and fight multiple assassins, it was essentially a hopeless task. He took a few steps back and squeezed Princess Feiyan’s hand reassuringly.

“I won’t let anything happen to you.” He promised. The assailants leapt towards them, and Yixing quickly reached into his waistband and threw a smoke bomb towards the attackers, grateful that Yifan had figured out the new technology last year. The assailants stumbled back as smoke filled the room, obscuring everyone’s vision. Yixing tightened his grip on Princess Feiyan’s hand and turned to flee towards the escape route with her. As they ran, Yixing felt something hit his shoulder, which caused him to stumble from the sudden flash of pain, but he couldn’t let himself stop, and so ignored it.

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Feiyan

Feiyan’s heart pounded in her chest as she ran with Yixing closely beside her. The small rocks on the path nudged painfully against the bottom of her bare feet as she ran, but sheer terror kept Feiyan going. Stopping was simply not an option.

“Yixing, where are we going?” She asked.

“Mentality Hall!” Yixing replied, “In a situation like this, the emperor is the one who can best protect you!” Before Feiyan could reply, she skidded to a stop as another group of masked men leapt onto the path in front of her. Yixing grabbed her quickly and pressed her protectively against his side as they found themselves surrounded. Yixing cursed under his breath.

“All of the men in the royal delegation must have been Ming rebels.” He growled. His voice seemed to catch slightly, and Feiyan turned her head as she caught a glimpse of red out of the corner of her eye.

“You’re hurt!” She exclaimed as she saw a dagger had been stabbed into Yixing’s shoulder at some point in the fight earlier.

“It’s alright.” He assured her, “The adrenaline is keeping me from feeling it right now.”

“But-!” Feiyan began, but Yixing was already moving as the men attacked.

“No time for buts, My Lady!” He declared. Feiyan could only close her eyes as Yixing spun in sharp precise moments to keep the assassins away, all while managing to keep a hand securely on her wrist. Pretty soon, they were off running again, the assassins following in close pursuit. As they crossed another hallway, Feiyan was surprised as Yixing pulled open a connecting door and shoved her through it while staying on the other side himself.

“Yixing, what are you doing?” She asked.

“Keep running along this path, My Lady.” Yixing replied, “It is a shortcut that will take you straight to Mentality Hall before long.”

“What about you?” Feiyan cried in protest. Yixing smiled grimly.

“I will hold the assassins back until you bring reinforcements.” He replied before shutting the door and locking it behind him.

“Yixing, I can’t leave without you!” Feiyan cried, her fists pounding on the door, “Yixing, open the door!” The sound of fighting began anew outside the door, and tears filled Feiyan’s eyes as Yixing called out to her.

“My Lady, just go!” He yelled, “If you don’t, we’ll both die here!” Despite her protests, Feiyan knew Yixing was right. The only way to get out of this mess was to find her father as soon as possible.

“Stay alive!” She ordered before turning and running headlong along the path.

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Yixing had been right about the shortcut, and before long, the majestic walls of Mentality Hall rose into Feiyan’s vision. The guards tried to stop Feiyan as she ran forward, but she quickly ducked around them and burst into Emperor Kangxi’s innermost chambers. He was sitting at his desk with Wen Zhiyu by his side, and they both turned to look at Feiyan in surprise as she burst in completely out of breath. Feiyan knew she had to be a sight to behold; her hair was completely undone and messy from the  wind, and she was wearing nothing, not even shoes, save for a dirt smeared white nightgown.

“Rongxian?” Emperor Kangxi rose to his feet and hurried to her side, “What are you doing here at this time of night? What happened to you?” Tears rushed down Feiyan’s cheeks as she grabbed her father’s hands and sank to her knees.

“Papa, please send soldiers to save Yixing!” She cried, “I was attacked in the middle or the night by assassins and he stayed behind to hold them back!” The emperor stared at her incredulously.

“What did you just say?” He exclaimed. Feiyan shook her head and tugged on the emperor’s hands desperately.

“Please Papa, he’s going to die!” She wailed in a panic. Every second her father spent not moving, every second she wasted using words to explain the situation increased the chance that Yixing would be severely injured, or worse, be killed. The thought of him being dead...Feiyan did not even dare to think about what that would be like. The emperor gazed at her panicked expression for one more second before nodding.

“Men!” He called, “There are assassins in the palace! Come with me at once!”

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The sounds of fighting could still be heard from where Feiyan had left Yixing, which gave her some relief to think that he was still alive and fighting. The soldiers were able to force open the locked door, and they quickly spilled into the hallway where the fight was ongoing. More assassins, likely the ones from Feiyan’s bedroom, had joined the fight, black clothed men seeming to be everywhere. While the emperor tried to keep Feiyan from seeing anything, she couldn’t help but peer around her father from where they stood a safe distance away. Her eyes roamed among the fighting men, searching for only one person.

Where is Yixing?

After a few moments, Feiyan spotted a familiar figure clothed in dark blue. Yixing spun and twirled quickly as he parried attacks from all angles. A look Feiyan had never seen in his eyes before seemed to have replaced the warm smiles she was used to. The one on her bodyguard’s face now was cold and fierce, and it was clear there was only one goal in his mind: kill the assassins. His long hair blew freely from where it had been cut from his topknot, and as the first rays of morning sunlight fell upon him, Feiyan could not help but think that in that moment, he seemed more like one of the Mongol princes she had read about in history books than a Qing imperial guard. Then, he was gone from her vision among the mass of fighting men. Feiyan did not see Yixing again until the assassins all lay dead or defeated a little while later. As the fight subsided, Feiyan spotted Yixing near the middle of the group, and she gasped as he turned to look at her. It was clear that the dagger was now the least of his worries. A long cut ran across his chest, and it looked like there was barely a part of him that had not been hit or cut at least once. Still, Yixing smiled as he saw her, his gaze softening as their eyes met. Then, he was falling, and Feiyan ran forward as he slumped to his knees.

“Yixing!” Tears rushed down her face, her hands trembling as she cupped her hands over his face. His cheeks were cold and clammy, his lips pale as he seemed to be having trouble breathing.

“My Lady, are you alright?” Yixing asked weakly. A sob escaped Feiyan’s throat as she slapped him lightly on the shoulder, causing him to wince in pain.

“You idiot!” She cried, “Why are you still worrying about me at a time like this?” Yixing smiled faintly and reached out to catch a tear escaping from her eye.

“Do not cry, My Lady.” He said softly, “I...will be alright…” Yixing’s eyes closed, and Feiyan cried out in panic as he slumped forward into her arms.

“Yixing!”

_________________________________________________________________________

Yixing

“Fengmian…” Yixing could hear the sound of a woman’s voice calling out to him through the clouds that had settled over his consciousness, the voice kind and warm. Who was that? Princess Feiyan? No, it did not sound like her. And who was Fengmian? That was not his name.

“My son…” the voice spoke again, confusing Yixing. Who could it be? He tried to call out to the voice, but he felt so weak he couldn’t even muster the strength to move his lips.

“My son...it is time to wake up now…” the voice spoke again, and this time, Yixing heard another voice call out to him.

“Zhang Yixing!” It was her...it was her voice!

“Zhang Yixing, come back to me!”

My Lady…

________________________________________________________________________

“Zhang Yixing, I’ll never forgive you if you die like this!” The familiar voice was still speaking as Yixing’s mind slowly swam towards consciousness.

“You are all the best physicians in the entire kingdom!” The voice demanded, “Why isn’t he awake yet? If you cannot heal him, what use is there in keeping all of you around? Voices that likely belonged to the physicians from the Royal Physician’s Bureau murmured amongst themselves, too hushed for Yixing to make out the words. Yixing experimentally took a tiny breath, and upon finding that it did not hurt very much, he opened his mouth to speak.

“My Lady…” His voice came out as a hoarse croak that was barely audible, but he heard the soft rush of slippered feet against the wooden floor and a few moments later, a soft hand was pressed against his arm.

“Yixing! Yixing, are you awake?” Princess Feiyan asked hopefully. Yixing opened his eyes slowly and smiled weakly as the princess’s face slowly came into his view as his vision focused.

“My Lady.” He said softly. Princess Feiyan laughed in relief as he spoke.

“You’re really awake!” She exclaimed. After the royal physicians finished examining Yixing one more time, the princess and her bodyguard were finally left alone in the room together. Yixing pushed himself carefully into a sitting position and gazed at his master for a long moment.

“My Lady, were you crying?” He asked, taking note of her red rimmed eyes. Princess Feiyan’s eyes widened and she quickly turned away in embarrassment.

“Of course not!” She huffed, “I am not that weak!” When Yixing did not respond, she peeked back around her shoulder at him, and he raised an eyebrow knowingly. Taking in his expression, she bit her lip and nodded reluctantly.

“You were unconscious for three days.” She said softly, “I was afraid you would never wake up again!” Yixing sighed and smiled faintly at the princess.

“My Lady, I promised you I would follow you to the ends of the earth.” He said, “How could I do that if I died so soon?” Princess Feiyan huffed again, and when she spoke Yixing could hear a slight wavering to her voice.

“If you had died, I would have gone to the underworld and dragged you back myself!” She declared, “You’re not allowed to leave me so soon!” Yixing laughed softly before wincing in pain from the movement.

“My Lady, I swear I will not die early.” He promised. Princess Feiyan turned back to look at him, her eyes glistening with tears.

“No, Zhang Yixing.” She declared, “You must breathe at least one more breath than I do. You are not allowed to die before I do. And from now on, you are not allowed to get hurt, even when you’re protecting me.” Yixing frowned briefly.

“My Lady, the first I can do, but the second is rather difficult…” He protested. Princess Feiyan pouted and leaned in closer to him.

“You can at least try!” She insisted, holding out her pinky, “Yixing, you have five seconds to decide! One...two…” Yixing gazed at his master and laughed softly. There really was no way he could refuse when she had such an earnest expression on her face. Before she finished counting down five seconds, he reached out and linked his pinky with hers.

“I promise, My Lady.” He said, “I will try not to get injured in the future.” Princess Feiyan grinned and sat back, satisfied.

“But My Lady, you are a princess.” Yixing said softly, “You should not cry over a servant.” Princess Feiyan huffed and crossed her arms.

“You are not just a servant!” She replied shortly, “You are my bodyguard, the boy I grew up with! You are more than a servant, Zhang Yixing. And besides, it is my fault that you were injured like this!”

“Oh? Then what am I, if I am not a servant?” Yixing asked, curious. Princess Feiyan’s gaze was gentle as she looked at him.

“You are my man.” She replied, “From the first day you came to my side, that is what you were, and that will never change. So don’t ever leave me, Zhang Yixing.” Yixing’s eyes widened slightly, and he turned away as his heart began to pound in his chest.

What’s wrong with me? It’s not the first time she has said that.

“You should really be careful with how you phrase things, My Lady.” He said as he cleared his throat and looked back at her. Princess Feiyan looked at him in confusion, but another voice spoke up before she could respond.

“Well, it seems like you’re feeling much better.” Yixing turned to see a young man step into the room. The newcomer was lithe and handsome, his light golden robe glittering lightly in the morning sun. It was the Crown Prince, Luhan. Ever since childhood, only two members of the royal family treated Yixing like an equal even though he was an orphan and only an imperial guard. One was Princess Feiyan, and the other was Crown Prince Luhan. Close in age and an excellent fighter, Crown Prince Luhan had spent many hours sparring with Yixing as a child, creating a bond that spanned across their social ranks.

“Your Highness!” He exclaimed. Yixing attempted to move to greet the Crown Prince, but was promptly pushed right back into place by both royal siblings.

“Please do not move.” Crown Prince Luhan said gently, “If you make your injuries worse, I do not know what my sister will do this time.”

“Royal Brother!” Princess Feiyan protested. Crown Prince Luhan laughed and gently patted his sister’s hands.

“Little Sister, you have been by his side this whole time.” He said, “You should go and get some rest, now that he is awake.” Princess Feiyan hesitated, her gaze sliding over to Yixing. Yixing nodded in agreement and gave her a reassuring smile.

“I’ll be right here when you are well rested, My Lady.” He said. Princess Feiyan bit her lip and rose from her seat.

“I will be back later.” She said, “Brother, don’t let him get out of bed.” Crown Prince Luhan laughed and waved the young princess off.

“Go on now, Royal Sister.” He replied. As the princess left the room, the crown prince turned back to Yixing.

“She really is attached to you.” He commented, “I have never seen her treat anyone like this before.” Yixing raised an eyebrow in confusion.

“What do you mean?” He asked. Crown Prince Luhan chuckled.

“Well, for starters, she was by your side for the entire three days while you were unconscious.” He said, “She also begged our Royal Father for the best physicians in the entire palace to treat you, and would not budge until he agreed. And finally…”  He raised an eyebrow.

“I have never seen my sister cry so much over a man before.” He said. Yixing sighed and shook his head. It was just like his master to act that way.

“I am grateful to Her Highness for favoring me so much.” He said with a wry smile. Crown Prince Luhan chuckled and patted him on the knee.

“If you are grateful, then hurry and get better so she won’t worry anymore.” He replied, “And don’t get hurt like this in the future. You may be her bodyguard, but I won’t lightly forgive people who make my sister cry.” Yixing nodded and bowed his head.

“I will follow your order, Your Highness.” He replied. Crown Prince Luhan nodded and rose to his feet.

“I will let you get some rest now.” He said. Yixing bowed his head briefly in response.

“Goodbye, Your Highness.” He replied. As the prince left, Yixing could not help but think back to the crown prince’s words.

“I have never seen her cry so much over a man before.”

“You are my man!”

Why was he getting so hung up over it? The prince hadn’t said anything beyond that, and the princess hadn’t been saying anything out of the ordinary for her. Yixing shook his head and settled back against his pillows, closing his eyes.

Stop thinking about it.

As soon as that thought left his mind however, it was quickly replaced by something else.

Fengmian…

Who is Fengmian?