Chapter 3

Despite her brother telling her that life would be wonderful for her, Feiyan did not think so. Instead of relaxing days in the gardens drinking tea and learning about the finer things in life, she had been forced to rise early when one of the maids in her brother's residence came hurrying inside to wake her, followed by a rather stern looking Yixing. In contrast to the gentle image he presented, she was sure he was secretly pleased to be torturing her.

As soon as she was dressed, Yixing had dragged her all the way to the Inner Palace. There he began to list off everything that needed to be done and her role in getting them all completed. Feiyan wanted to strangle him but she refrained because he is the King's adviser afterall. Yixing briefed her through the background information that the men had decided on for her - she is to be the future Empress once she marries the Wolf King, his own rank brought up to Emperor. For now, she is the Imperial Consort and holds authority over the ladies of the court, and her duties as such were to maintain the work within the Inner Palace.

As the lady of her own house, she was already accustomed to allocating work to the servants, so as soon as Yixing had left, she introduced herself to the servants who had gathered as the new lady of the palace. She didn't want to create a bad first impression and immediately set about getting to know the servants, giving them general jobs and assessing their abilities before giving them jobs that suited them. But she did wonder how this qualified as training. She’d assumed that she be under rigorous tutelage on her behaviours, manners, and appearance.

Indeed, the servants all began to warm up to her, especially when she helped them out for any jobs that required more than one person. Feiyan's company was enjoyed by all of them and they would bring her tea and snacks when they noticed her beginning to tire. They insisted that she sit in one of the many pavilions situated around the palace to rest. So she let them take care of her and watched as they worked.

"You seem to be adapting well," a voice said to the left of her. Feiyan almost dropped her tea cup at the voice. She turned to see that it was the Crown Prince. From what she had heard, the Wolf King was actually younger than the Crown Prince but because of their mother's difference in rankings, the order of succession had changed. She took a long look at the Crown Prince while he smiled pleasantly at her, wondering why on Earth he was talking to her.

"Am I really that handsome?" he asked, raising an eyebrow when he noticed her staring.

Feiyan stuttered and shook her head, "N-no, your highness." She returned to sipping from her tea cup just to avoid looking any longer at him. It wasn't that she was drawn to him or anything of that sort but rather, she was confounded by the friendly manner of the Prince. Yes, she had seen him with the Wolf King the day before but not long enough to know him well, and here he was drinking tea with her as if they had been friends since they were children.

"Xiumin!" the Prince called out suddenly, causing Feiyan to look up hopefully. She had lots to tell him about her morning. 

Her brother was carrying a few scrolls under his arm and looked like he was busy but he came over to the pavilion nonetheless when the Prince had called out to him. "Your highness," he greeted with a bow, "and Lady Fei," he said with a wink. She laughed, the sound hearty and warm, as she stood and hugged her brother who returned it with his one free arm.

"What are you two doing here?" Xiumin inquired, taking a seat when the Prince waved him over. "I'm afraid I can't stay for long. Only for a cup of tea," he said apologetically, placing the scrolls delicately on the table.

Feiyan took that as a cue to pour out two cups of tea for the men. She waved one of the servants over who happened to pass by to bring over an extra plate of cut fruit. 

"How are you faring with the lifestyle here?" the Prince asked. He took a sip from his cup, watching her over the rim.

"Very well, your highness," she answered, wanting desperately to just talk to her brother instead. She felt awkward around the nobility and he was only second to the King in rank. If he asked her anything more, she might just run for it.

"Please, just call me Luhan. You siblings are the exact same, always so polite and well-mannered," Luhan laughed, "Call me by my name when we're alone. It's kind of suffocating when I'm addressed as 'Your highness' all the time. Especially by wrinkly, old ministers." He shuddered and closed his eyes as if trying to erase the very thought of it.

Feiyan didn't know what to do and looked to her brother with wide, pleading eyes, hoping that the Crown Prince would leave already. Xiumin nodded though the corner of his lips did pull up slightly as he cleared his throat. "We should get going. I'm sure Fei has a lot of work to do, as do I. Let's go, your highness," he said, totally ignoring the Prince's earlier friendly request.

The Crown Prince's expression changed slightly before he stood with her brother, returned to smiling and said goodbye. She wasn't sure what had passed across his face but she hoped it was nothing. She stood too and went back to checking on the servants; she could speak with her brother later that night when they share their evening meal.

***

Yifan wondered briefly how the girl was doing and hoped Yixing was not too harsh on her. Except