Chapter 38

Strange Night

"Meiyin!" Liufei waved at Meiyin as soon as she saw Meiyin exited the carriage. Yueyin has somewhat settled into her new home and finally send an invite for her sister to visit. Once Liufei heard the news, she immediately ran to the gate where Meiyin will be escorted from to wait for her arrival. Upon seeing the princess personally receiving Meiyin's arrival, some of the servants that had planned to pick on her by order of Xiaoming decided to not act.

Meiyin wanted to wave back at Liufei but then remembered her sister's words for her to act properly on the letter invite that she had sent. Meiyin bow respectfully to Liufei, "Greetings, Your Highness."

Liufei scowl and quickly eases Meiyin from her bow, "Don't ever do that again. I've told you that there's no need for formalities between us."

Meiyin opened and was about to explain but then Liufei cut her off, "Don't listen to Yueyin either. Weren't you the one that told me she worries too much? You can be yourself when you're with me."

Meiyin smile and nodded, "Thank you, Princess."

Liufei takes a good look at Meiyin and was also in awe of her beauty as she was of Yueyin's. Seems the Zhang truly have some good genes and Liufei is happy of her decision to matchmake her brothers with the Zhang sisters. Though the betrothal came to be in ways none of them had hope but it doesn't mean Liufei can't help their relationship improves. "Come, I'll show you around then take you to Yueyin's place," Liufei grab onto Meiyin's hand and drag her along.

Liufei proceeded to show Meiyin most of her favorite places in the inner palace. Along the way, Meiyin noticed how some of the servants were giving her odd looks. She didn't question much about it and only factored it to being the stranger that's being drag around by the princess. Liufei excitedly takes Meiyin to the imperial garden last, towards her favorite tree.

"This is the oldest tree in the imperial garden and my favorite hiding spot," Liufei told Meiyin.

Meiyin made an unimpressed face, "You're telling me you know how to climb trees, Princess?"

Liufei laughs, "You're a noble lady and you know how to wield a sword. Why can't a princess like myself know how to climb trees?" She reaches out and touch the tree's trunk, "I've been climbing this tree since I was a child."

"I had a tree that I often climbed when I was a child too, but after my mother passed, my father got fed up with my boyish behaviors and chopped the tree down," Meiyin smile sadly at the fond memory.

Liufei noticed her sadness and reach out to held her hand comfortingly, "You must have been sad losing that tree."

Meiyin shook her head and let out a laugh, "I was sad and cried over it a lot but my sister cheered me up by painting a portrait of that tree from her memory and secretly stick it onto my father's back. She told me that if I misses the tree, I can look at the portrait and think of father as the tree's replacement. So, that whole day, whenever I got the chance, I climbed my way onto my father's back. He wasn't happy at first but eventually gave up and gave me a piggy back ride throughout the residence."

Liufei join Meiyin in laughing at the happy memory, "Yueyin is amazing. To hit two birds with one stone, she simply used a tree's portrait and was able to cheered up both you and your father after your mother's passing."

Meiyin nodded, "Madame Lin told me that she found my sister crying alone in my mother's room that day while I was bugging my father. My sister… she might seem strong on the outside but she's that sort of person… so…"

Liufei smile, knowing what Meiyin wants to say, "Don't worry. That day didn't I already promised that I will protect our friendship? Also, we'll be family soon. As friends or as families, I'll do my best to protect you both."

Meiyin dived in and hug Liufei tightly in thanks. The two girls laugh and talk happily until Meiyin finally noticed the peach tree next to Liufei's favorite tree. "Why is there a peach tree here? Seems kind of out of place."

Liufei laugh and walk over to it, "This one was planted by me and my second brother. We used to love eating peaches and enjoying the sunset from our favorite tree. Sometimes my second brother sneaks out of his lessons to accompany me and since he sneaked out, we thought that we had to hide the evidence which was the seed of the peaches. So, we buried it there and somehow one seed managed to sprout and it is now this impressive peach tree you're seeing."

"Sounds like the royal palace isn't such a bad and restricting place if you guys had such fun."

"It's not the same as before…"

Meiyin looks up, spotted a ripe peach, and shouted out, "Liufei! Look!"

Upon hearing that Meiyin had finally willingly call her by her name made Liufei extremely happy. She happily looks to where Meiyin is pointing and saw the ripe peach hiding among its leaves. The two girls gave each other meaningful looks before pulling up the skirt of their dresses, kick off their shoes and climb the peach tree. Liufei's maids tried to advice them against it but since they're used to Liufei's antics, they let it go rather quickly.

The two of them race their way up the tree with Meiyin promising not to use her martial arts skill to be fair. They made a bet that the first person to pluck the peach will gain a favor from the loser. They happily climb and surprisingly, Liufei reached the peach first. Excited at being the winner, Liufei quickly reach out to grab the peach, which was a little far from her reach. Meiyin was situated at a lower branch waiting for Liufei to grab her victory before climbing back down. However, as soon as Liufei managed to grab onto the peach, her foot slip and she fell from the branch that she was standing on. Surprised, Meiyin acted quickly and tried to catch her but wasn't able to reach. She lost her balance in her attempt and ended up also falling from her own branch.

Meiyin could have used her martial arts to land safely but she was too occupied with Liufei's safety to think straight. Before Meiyin could act, two figures flew in and catches both of them securely in their arms and landed safely on the ground.

Yixing was on his way back to his own palace after returning from a mission when he passes by the imperial garden and heard Liufei's voice. Since he hasn’t seen her before leaving for his mission, he decided to go see her before going back to his own place. He hadn't expected to see her falling from the tree as soon as he round the corner. He quickly uses his martial arts and catches her in time. Yixing was expecting her to happily thank him and welcome him home, but instead she's pouting angrily at him.

Liufei jump out of Yixing's arms after giving him the unhappy pout. She hit his chest lightly and angrily question him in a hush voice why he didn't catch Meiyin instead, "She's your fiancé isn't she? You idiot Xing ge, it was the perfect chance too!"

Yixing raised an amused eyebrow at his sister, not quite understanding what she meant by the perfect chance. "Would you rather I had let my personal guard catches you instead?"

"Yes!"

Yixing tilted his head in confusion, "But why would I let some other boys catch my sister?"

Liufei facepalm herself, feeling so hopeless with her brother. Looks like her matchmaking days will be rough.

While the two sibling bickers, Meiyin was staring up into Tao's eyes as he held her tightly in his arms. "Tao dage?" she finally managed to break out of her daze and uttered.

He smiles at her before letting her down gently, "Are you alright?"

Meiyin nodded and thank him. Before she could ask how did he come into the palace, Liufei suddenly jump in between the two of them causing Tao to back away a couple of steps. Liufei gave Tao a wary glare before bringing up her hand to show Meiyin the peach that she got earlier, "Meiyin! I won!"

Liufei then drags Meiyin over to where Yixing was standing, "Did you see how fast and skilled my third brother was? He's also a very caring and gentle person."

Meiyin's eyes hadn't left Tao for a second, still too surprised to see him inside the palace. She had known that his new job was for the son of a wealthy noble but didn't expect for him to appear beside the third royal prince. Liufei was becoming more uneasy with the way Meiyin and her third brother's personal guard was staring at each other. She quickly acted to turn everyone's attention towards her again. She used her body to block off Meiyin's line of vision, "Meiyin, do you remember my third brother? I've introduced you two at the flower viewing event. Have you two had a chance to meet after that?"

At Liufei's question, everyone went back to the current situation at hand. Tao quickly bow and greeted Liufei. Meiyin also bow to greet Yixing, "Greetings, Your Highness."

Liufei nudges her brother and motion for him to reach out to ease Meiyin from her bow. Yixing sigh internally, thinking that perhaps it's better to let his sister know that his betrothal is fake. He did still reach out to ease Meiyin from her bow out of respect for his laoshi, "Please be at ease, Second Young Miss Zhang."

Meiyin raise her head and look up at Yixing to thank him. He smiles at her, "You truly are as the rumors said."

"Rumors?"

Yixing nodded, "A beauty like a burning flame."

Meiyin looks away, embarrassed. Liufei smile proudly at her brother. Tao look quite unhappy with the situation.

Liufei's maids finally decided to interrupt them and helped Liufei and Meiyin put their shoes back on. Feeling awkward, Meiyin reminded Liufei that Yueyin is still waiting for them, and she excused herself and Liufei from Yixing and Tao in a hurry before running away.

---

After Meiyin and Liufei left them, Yixing and Tao continue to head back to Yixing's palace. On the way back, Yixing keeps glancing at Tao until Tao had enough and decided to speak up, "If you're curious, just ask."

"Was she the reason you were looking for me several times after Zhang Weimin's passing and the betrothal announcement?"

Tao nodded but didn't say more so Yixing continue with his questions, "You and the Second Young Miss Zhang are… acquaintances?"

Tao nodded but then shook his head immediately after. Yixing sigh and look around to make sure that no one was around before speaking, "Don't tell this to anyone but… my engagement with Zhang Meiyin is not real. It is simply a cover for her protection. So, you do not need to be wary of how I will react in regards to your relationship with her. I just want to apologize for not meeting with you when you were looking for me back then. Second Young Miss Zhang's father was my laoshi since I was much younger. Out of all my laoshi, he was the closest one to me and his passing caused me more pain than I could handle at the time. I wasn't in the right state of mind and hadn't been considerate of your urgent matters."

Yixing was going to continue and ask if Tao still needed him to help with something but by the relief look on Tao's face, Yixing can tell it's no longer needed and was glad he told Tao about the fake engagement. "So, she hasn’t told you?"

Tao nodded, "We haven't had a chance to meet since her father's funeral. She's still in mourning so she hasn’t come to train… Meiyin is my sect's junior sister…"

"Are the two of you…"

Tao blushed and quickly denied, "No… no. We're… we're not like that!"

Yixing laugh at Tao's shyness then gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, "Her betrothal is only temporary. If you are her fated final destination, both my Royal Father and I will give the two of you our blessings. For now, allow me to share in the responsibility of protecting her as a fake finance and as an older brother. It is the least I could do for Zhang laoshi."

---

Yueyin and Ruyi was busy setting up the table for their lunch with Meiyin and Liufei, when Xiaobai comes running in to inform them that Liufei and Meiyin has arrived. They rush out to the gate to welcome them. As soon as Meiyin saw her sister, she dived for her and the two of them hug each other tightly.

The three of them enjoyed a nice lunch together. While waiting for the dessert and refreshments to be served, Meiyin excused herself and headed for the restroom. On her way back, Meiyin saw Ruyi and Xiaobai being suspicious near the kitchen quarters. She decided to sneak closer to listen in to their conversation.

"Ruyi, what should we do now? They refused to give us our weekly share of food supplies again! We put out most of everything we have for today's lunch already… if we keep going like this, how will we all survive?"

Ruyi place a finger on her lips, motioning for Xiaobai to lower her voice. "Be careful, we cannot let the Princess and the Second Young Miss heard of this. Our Lady is already aware of the decrease in supplies, she'll discuss with us later so just act normal for now or stay out of the guests' sight alright?"

"Lady Zhang is still refusing to tell the Princess? Her Highness can help us solve this situation much quicker!"

Ruyi shakes her head, "She doesn't want to trouble or be dependent on the Princess all the time. Trust her. She'll find a way to solve this."

Xiaobai bites her lips nervously, "How will she solve this when the whole inner palace is against us right now…"

Ruyi hush her again and comfort her as the two of them head back to the servant’s quarters. Meiyin's eyes widen at what she had just learned. It has only been a little more than a month since Yueyin moved here, yet it seems she has been facing difficulties since day one. Meiyin clenches her fist tightly and seething in anger as she makes her way back to the dinning room. She wanted to lash out and she wanted to grab Yueyin's hand and drag her sister out of this palace right this second. However, as soon as she enters the room and saw Yueyin's smile directed at her, all of Meiyin's anger deflated. Her sister is trying so hard to conceal her own suffering and act cheerful in front of her right now. Meiyin didn't have the heart to start trouble for her. She sits down in her seat dejectedly, causing both Yueyin and Liufei to worry.

"What's wrong?" Yueyin asks her sister.

Meiyin forced a smile and shakes her head, "It's nothing. I was just thinking that in a little bit we'll have to part again… so I am a bit sad."

"Didn't Royal Father grant you special permission to come and go? Just come here everyday then!" Liufei says in a cheerful tone, hoping to cheer Meiyin up.

"Don't give her ideas," Yueyin reprimanded Liufei. She pulls Meiyin into a hug and pats her back gently, "Don't be so sad, it's not like we won't meet again. We can schedule a monthly visit if you like. We can also write letters to each other."

Meiyin nodded and hug her sister tightly, not really willing to let go.

---

"Minseok, Run! Quickly! Run Away!"

"Minseok… Minseok…"

"Minseok… run… Minseok…"

Minseok jolted awake from his sleep. He wipes the sweat off his forehead and then rubs his face tiredly. It's that same dream again. Since young, every now and then he would have this recurring dream of a woman calling his name and telling him to run away. He could never make out the woman's face in his dream. She never tells him why he must run away either. He has always wake up from that dream feeling anxious, sad and desperate. He doesn't know if those feelings are his own or of the woman in his dream.

The earliest memory of his was waking up from a fever and staring up at the face of Kyungsoo. Aside from Kyungsoo's mother, the queen of Japan, Minseok have not interacted with any other woman till he was old enough to be send on missions. At one point, Minseok had thought perhaps the woman in his dreams was Kyungsoo's mother. However, the queen of Japan hadn't exactly been kind nor friendly towards Minseok, even in her last moments on her deathbed. Minseok had lived his whole life serving Kyungsoo as his secret sword and shield. He had done many dirty jobs in Kyungsoo's stead per both Kyungsoo's order and the queen's order. He always did his best, yet she never seems to be satisfied with him. Minseok didn't really care though, ever since he allowed himself to become numb to the feeling of killing someone, he has also blocked out most of his other emotions and feelings.

The first time Minseok killed someone, Kyungsoo had been there to watch. Minseok had cowered away from the sword, but Kyungsoo forces his hands and made him choose between killing and being kill. Minseok no longer felt the guilt he had felt back then but he still remembered how he suffered from nightmares for months after his first kill. He soon got over it after being forced to continuously kill people by his master though. Back then, Minseok doesn't quite understand what Kyungsoo saw in him or why the boy had been adamant about keeping him by his side even when the queen and everyone else was against it. Now, he thinks he understand that Kyungsoo had saw his useful potential as a killer.

Kyungsoo had played a big part in making him who he is today. Since young Kyungsoo had beautifully broken down his self esteemed, guilt, fear, and a lot of other things that makes Minseok who he was. Did he hate Kyungsoo for it? He would be lying if he said he hadn't, but one little incident made him gave up all his hatred. It was during a sword training session with his master and Kyungsoo had been there to watch. His master had accidentally hurt him during their spar and before anyone could react, Kyungsoo had rush over to Minseok's side. Once he saw Minseok's blood, he had gotten so angry that he picked up Minseok's sword and slash the master in the same spot Minseok was hurt. That time, Minseok saw something in Kyungsoo that he had never saw before, and had never saw again. His child mind still unconsciously clings on to it though, that familiar yet far off feeling of being protected and care for. From then on, he did his best to survive all the gruesome training and rid himself of all the useless emotions so that he could become useful to Kyungsoo.

Minseok got off from his bed, pull on some warm clothing and strap some daggers to his waist and his shoes before stepping out of his room. He hadn't expected to see Jun standing outside his door, looking concerned.

"Are you alright?... I heard noises and thought you might have had a bad dream," Jun questions in genuine concern.

Minseok glare at him coldly. "Mind your own business," he said before walking out of the house for fresh air.

Jun look sadly at Minseok's disappearing back and think back to his dead son who would have been the same age as Minseok if he was still alive. Jun knows that as an assassin, he shouldn't be having all these unnecessary feelings, but he just couldn't help it.

---

Minseok wander the night street. Enjoying the cool night air on his skin. If they were still at the cottage near the woods in that border town, he would have wander into the forest till morning. However, since they've settled in a small house in the capital city, Minseok hadn't had a chance to wander out at night unless on a mission. He was being cautious in case anyone catches onto them, but tonight was different. That dream coupling with old memories coming back caused him to feel the extreme need to wander out.

He doesn't think much about where he's going. He just let his legs carry him wherever it wants. Before he knew it, he was in a different part of the city. His body is now feeling the cold of the night. He looks around the area and saw a night stall selling warm soup and alcohol. He was about to make his way there when someone bump into him. Minseok tsk at himself for letting his guards down. His senses must have been dulled since they haven't had a mission lately. He didn't reach out to steady the person, but instead back up quickly away from the person that bump into him. He half expects the person to fall face flat once they lose the support of his body, but to his surprised, the person only sways a bit but caught herself. The person stood straight up, drew his sword and pointed it at Minseok.

Minseok found himself staring at a familiar sword. He had always had a good memory, especially with excellent and rare weapons. He definitely remembered this sword, though he doesn’t know the face of its wielder as her face was veiled back then. However, he can easily recall the face of the wielder's sister. His eyes travel from the blade of the sword to the extended arm then to the face of the wielder. This time, she's not wearing her face veil so he can clearly see a little resemblance between the two sisters. Her eyes do not seem too focus and she's swaying more than a normal person. Without needing to get close, Minseok can tell that she's clearly drunk.

"Who are you?! What do you want with me?!" she demanded, pointing her sword dangerously at him.

Minseok didn't answer, he only stares back at her. She squinted her eyes trying to get a focus look at him. When she still couldn't make out his face features, she pulls back her sword and got close to him to have a better look. "Ah! You're that guy! That… that guy that needed help but was mean," she let out a laugh when she recognized him.

He ignores her and try to walk past her, but suddenly she reaches out and grab onto his coat. Surprised, he whips around to push her away but she suddenly drops to the floor. He heard a sighing sound and look down towards it to see her squatting on the floor, hand still holding onto his coat.

"The ground is really unstable…" she muttered then look up at Minseok, "Hey, let's drink together."

Minseok stare in disbelief at this brazen girl. Does she not remember he wanted to kill her and her sister last time? Is there something wrong with these two sisters' brain? Why is she still grabbing onto his coat?

He tries to yank his coat out of her hand but she just would not let go. He could have just killed her but they're currently out in the street, though there's not many people around but there are still witnesses. He starts thinking of ways he could do to kill her like leading her to a dark alley and finish her off.

Before he could even finish his thoughts, she suddenly stood up and drag him over to the night stall. She ordered some alcohol and then proceed to drag him over to one of the tables and sit down. Minseok is still standing there staring at her, not quite sure why he's letting this girl drag him around.

The stall owner placed some wine jars on their table and then retreat back to the soup pot. She pours out two cups of wine and then handed one to him, "Just sit down already. Since you're just wandering the night street anyway, why don't you drink with me instead?"

He became alert, not sure how she knew that he was just wandering. "How did you know? Have you been following me?" his hand is near his daggers, getting ready to strike her down.

She raised an eyebrow at his alertness, "Relax, why would I be following you for? Aside from wandering due to not being able to sleep, what else can people do on the street this late at night?" She chugs down another wine cup before tilting her head up and giving him a questioning look.

Minseok let out a sigh and sit down. He was just out here to get some fresh cool air and wasn't really in a killing mood. Since she is no longer suspicious, having a few cups of wine to warm up doesn't hurt. He'll just have to treat her like she's nonexistent or a stranger and enjoy the rest of his night. Minseok often pride himself in the art of ignoring and blocking out people, thanks to the many practices he had with Jongdae. However, about half an hour later, he couldn't block out this girl's chatters anymore. He did his best to ignore her at first but then she wouldn't stop talking to him and eventually when she has had too much alcohol, she started crying about her life. She cried about how she suddenly lost her father, how the house feels so empty and depressing to be home, how she knows that her sister is being bullied in the new home but hides it from her and it frustrates her that there isn't anything she can do about it without possibly causing trouble for her sister. She also talked about how she worries about her senior brother's lie to his mom and how awkward it was for her that he is her fake fiancé’s personal guard.

Minseok doesn't quite know why he's still sitting here listening to her rambling. Maybe because the wine is quite good, maybe he was a little curious to know how that brave girl who helped him is doing, maybe because the things she talks about, though doesn't make too much sense in her drunken state, sounds so normal and different to the life he's living. Thinking back to his encounter with her sister, Minseok find this girl just as interesting as her sister was. He was not comfortable with how her sister seem to think she's able to see through him. However, he kind of like how this one completely disregards who he is or what he is and just pour out her worries and thoughts to him. Could be due to the amount of alcohol she has had so she does not care to distinguish who is who and just wanted someone to listen.

She has downed five bottles of wine already and is clearly eyeing his bottle. He has been in this kingdom for a while now and have yet to see any girl with as much alcohol tolerance as this girl. There are also not many girls from proper families that would walk around equip with martial arts skill and a sword. She's certainly strange.

Seeing that she was about to order more wine, Minseok grabs his own bottle and handed it to her. "There's still half in the bottle. If you drink any more than that you'll pass out drunk here," Minseok said.

She happily accepted the wine from him, "No worries. I can drink at least ten more bottles!"

Worry? Why would he be worrying for this stranger he only met twice? Nonsense. He gave her an annoyed glare to let her know as much. She laughs at his expression then pour some wine into his cup.

"Hey, how about you?" she asks. He didn't reply and kept silence. She didn't give up, "You look like a guy with lots of troubles too. How about letting it out? I've shared mine, isn't it fair you share yours?"

He gave her another annoyed look. He didn't remember asking her to share her troubles. However, he didn't resist the strange urge to express things for the first time. He doesn't know what's wrong with himself tonight. He gave in sooner than he had thought, "I… I don't know what I'm doing anymore."

The two fell into silence again as she observes him swirling the wine in his cup. "Go on," she prompted after a while, "I won't judge. What are the chances we'll ever meet again?" she takes a sip of her wine cup, "What could possibly go wrong with spilling some things to a stranger you might never meet again in life?"

Normally, Minseok would have given her many answers for that question. Normally, he would have left from the start instead of sitting down to drink wine with her. Normally, that is what he would have done, but tonight was just strangely different. "I'm somehow… lonely. Kind of like an empty shell without a purpose in life aside from carrying out orders from someone else."

"Why do you have to make yourself live so miserably like that?" he heard her question and moved his sight from the wine cup to her. She was resting her head on her arm, leaning heavily on the table, clearly too drunk to keep herself upright. "Your life is your own, why can't you live it how you want it?" she asks, eyes barely able to stay open.

Seems she's a sleepy drunk type, and most likely won't remember anything once she wakes. "I guess my problem is I don't know how I want to live it," he told her.

Silence. Then after a few minutes, she let out a sigh before pushing herself up off the chair, "That's…" she gave his shoulder a pat, "That's something only you can figure out yourself. Like me, I guess… I have to figure out my own things myself. It was nice being able to let it out though, hope you felt better too. Thanks uh… I don't know your name, but thanks anyways. You're a good stranger."

She placed some money on the table then grab her sword and walk away, stumbling left and right, not quite being able to walk straight after all that alcohol. A minute later and he found himself following behind her to make sure she made it home safe. Minseok doesn't know what in the world is wrong with him tonight.

Author's Notes:

Thank you so much mi_nam92 for my sixth upvote! Welcome new subs!

I don't actually know how big or tall a peach tree can be… I just use peach trees because I love anything peach flavors so I used it in the story. So just imagine it being a very tall and big tree? Lol, it's not as big as Liufei's favorite tree though… and no, I still have not determine what type of tree is Liufei's favorite tree. Might just leave that up to your imagination.

Here’s some more depth into Minseok 😊 Enjoy!

It’s flu season, take good care everyone.