The sun kisses the waters of the Houhai Lake, its fiery rays illuminating the blue currents before it flees from the moon's shine. I trudge through the streets of Chang'an, admiring the scenic view. It is nearly unimaginable that such a beautiful sight would mask the squalor which it belonged to.

For the only place where one can see the sunset is here in the Hutong district, the epitome of poverty and decay. Even merchants dare not step in Hutong. This place is not only dangerous but looked on with eyes of pity by outsiders as well.

I have been living here for 5 years and I am still not used to the cries that haunt the air, the shambles of huts, the ading stench of death and baiju, intertwined in one repulsive odor.

    Perhaps it is because I spent my childhood as a member of the aristocracy. Wealth surrounded me, servants catering to my every need. My mother, my father, and I were a happy family. But I did not know that behind the smiling faces of our family’s acquaintances lurked bloodthirsty vultures, eager to rip everything that our family had from us.

So when my father passed away from a febrile disease when I was 12, our family was left without a male head. The perfect opportunity for the vultures to swoop in and rip me and my mother to pieces.

    So here I am, 17 years old and rid of every trace of innocence I previously possessed. I have found my way around the streets of Hutong, shielded from my father’s old enemies by the anathema of this district. My new home is my hiding place, a shelter from possibly encountering anyone from my past. It will be too painful to see their disparaging, contemptful glares, to hear their pointed questions. How entertaining it must be to see the spoiled brat whose father was so loved by the Emperor reduced to a beggar on the streets!

    But no matter. Now, I must focus on my destination: the marketplace. I have not eaten a day; there should be something I can bargain for at a booth. If worse comes to worse, I can snatch an unattended piece of food from a cart. It would not be the first time.

I just have to stay alive.