章 9: The princess
Ling had been absolutely right, for early the next morning, we received the visit of the third prince and his entourage.
“Shen Mu!” The prince shouted as soon as he spotted me coming out of the house.
“Good morning Prince Heng Li” I bowed to him, but he ignored it and instead came to hug me. I blinked in surprise, but then felt him trying to crush me. Certainly, the exercises I had taught him over the years had helped his constitution.
“Good morning, your highness” my parents chorused from my side, and the boy finally let me go, inclining his head briefly.
“Aunt, Uncle Shen, it’s good to see you too.” He looked back at me and then to someone behind me. His mouth went slack.
“Go-good morning, your highness,” My sister stuttered.
‘So that’s how it is?’
I gazed critically at Heng and Zhi, and after a moment hit the back of the Prince’s head to snap him out of his daze. “Stop drooling over my sister”
Everyone around us was scandalized, all but the prince, who grimaced and sent me a reproachful look. He composed himself after a moment and offered my sister a gallant bow “Good morning Shen Zhi, it is truly a pleasure to see you again.”
I scoffed, rolling my eyes. “Are you two finished doing lovey-dovey eyes at each other?”
Both flushed deep crimson and I chuckled.
Unfortunately, our fun was intruded on when a man grabbed me by the ear and began screaming in my face.
“How dare you touch the prince! I’ll-”
“Mo Chen!” The prince glared at him indignantly “release him this instant!”
“Bu-but prince, he-”
The man known as Mo Chen sent a venomous glare at me, while I simply stared at him with a raised eyebrow. Even his pinching of my ear didn’t hurt much.
“Mo Chen!” the Prince glared daggers at him “you’re embarrassing me!”
Only then did the man release my ear and kowtowed to the prince. “Forgive this subject, my prince!”
“Forgive you!?” the prince bellowed, glaring at the kneeling man. “Captain” he called the captain of his guard, who came forward “take this man away. 100 flogs and I do not want to see him in the palace ever again.”
“As your majesty wishes.” Two guards came forward and dragged the now sniveling man away.
Still embarrassed, the Prince placed an arm over my shoulders. “Hear me, everyone!”
Everyone in the mansion but me bowed to the prince and heard his words in rapt attention.
“I hereby declare that this Shen Mu is my esteemed older brother. Anyone who disrespects him disrespects the imperial family. Do I make myself clear?” I stared at him as if he were crazy, but nobody noticed.
“Yes, your highness!” Everyone bowed formally, and I could see my mother holding in her tears, while my father was failing to hide a smile.
The prince asked everyone to raise their heads and we went on with our day normally. Well, as normal as it could with everyone bowing to me as if I was a prince. Eventually, we went out to see the city. Heng Li and I were accompanied by my sister, her maid, and a dozen guards.
I looked at the people around us and how they craned their necks to look at us and I suddenly felt tired.
My sister was ecstatic, walking alongside us, holding my arm in hers. But the way she was eyeing the prince, I knew she would have preferred to cling to him.
‘Dear sister, you’re so transparent’
We walked and talked amiably until we reached the site where the Flower Festival would take place in a couple of weeks. There was little to see, but a few plum trees that were beginning to blossom.
“I’m sure this place will look amazing by the time of the festival” Zhi said, admiring the row upon row of trees. There were many imperial servants moving around, carrying potted plants, or maintaining the place in a perfect state for when the time came for the imperial family to exit, the palace would be ready for the festival.
“Are you going to participate in the competition too, your majesty?”
Normally, the Spring Competition would be held for the commoners, but this year, the emperor had wanted to create a special division for the nobles to take part. I had heard that the second prince would be participating in Go.
“I think it could be interesting, but I doubt I’ll participate in anything your ge-ge tries too.”
I snorted but, truth be told, I was relieved. The imperial family was believed and supposed to be the best at everything…. If someone not from the family were to best them… it would not only be bad for the princes, but for the emperor himself.
Besides, I had the feeling that the Emperor had created this new division for my sake. It might seem conceited, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that he was trying to make me famous.
“Ge-ge, what divisions did you want to participate in?” my innocent sister looked up at me, and I smiled at her
“I was going to the martial arts, archery, sword fighting and mathematics, calligraphy and maybe Go.” Both stared at me as if I had grown another head.
Then Heng Li laughed “only those? Why not go for the lot already?”
I gave him a blank stare “I don’t like hunting and can’t paint to save my life. And don’t you think that music and dancing are more suited for women?”
“There is also poetry.” My sister pointed out “I still remember the cute haiku you wrote for mother on her birthday.”
Heng raised an eyebrow at me, and I shrugged my shoulders “Mother likes poetry, but my rhymes felt too forced for my liking. I don’t think creating poems suits me.” Truth be told, I had written my share of poems, but most were made with modern metrics in mind, and they were mostly unsuited for the era.
‘Roses are red, violets are blue… I’d give my kingdom for a plate of fruity loops’ Nope; they weren’t ready for such majestic rhyme.
“Is there anything you can’t do?” Li asked half jokingly.
“Paint.” I dead-panned and continued walking.
We ended up eating in a restaurant named Ying Yi that catered exclusively to nobles. Everyone bowed to the prince when we entered, but were led to a private room where we were served the best food I had ever tasted.
We were drinking tea when somebody clapped outside the door.
I raised an eyebrow at Heng Li who shrugged.
“Who is it?” I called
The captain in charge of the prince’s security answered. “My lord, Princess Meiling would like to speak with the prince.”
I raised an eyebrow at the boy, who slapped his face. “It seems it’s unavoidable” he grimaced, and ordered the guard to let her pass.
The door opened and in came an incredibly beautiful girl, not a day older than my sister with pale skin and deep brown eyes. “This princess greets third brother Heng Li.”
Behind her, a maid kowtowed.
Both ladies stepped into the room, closing the door behind them.
Heng Li’s face was apathetic, the same he had shown me the first time we met at the palace.
A tense silence spread in the room, while both royals stared at each other.
Finally, the boy sighed.
“Meiling, meet Shen Mu and his mei-mei Shen Zhi Ruo.”
With a winning smile, the princess directed her gaze at me and stared. I gave her a polite bow, while my sister offered her a more profound one.
“These subjects are pleasing to make your acquaintance, milady” My sister spoke for the both of us since I hadn’t.
Meanwhile, the girl continued staring at me, at which I raised an eyebrow and quickly gazed at the prince, who was trying hard not to laugh.
“To what do we owe the pleasure of your presence today, milady?” I finally asked. The girl blushed and looked away.
‘Dafuq…?’
The tension in the room could have been cut with a knife.
Both my sister and her maid were staring at the back of my head trying to swallow their laughter, while the Prince simply sighed and looked elsewhere uncomfortably. The princess’ maid was shaking her head despondently, and the princess was looking at everything but myself.
Not knowing what to do, I reached for the cup in front of me, only to find it empty. I was about to ask the maid for a refill when a small frail hand entered my line of sight.
“Allow me” The princess said, taking the cup from my hand and serving me as if she was in charge.
I looked at the prince with a confused frown, to which he only shrugged.
When she finished serving me tea, I took the cup and nodded my thanks.
“To what do we owe the honor-”
“How was your trip?” the princess interrupted me, finally looking up from the floor.
I tilted my head and she elaborated.
“Your trip to the Capital. I heard from Heng-ge that you live near the northern frontier.”
I frowned and took a sip from the tea, feeling my throat parched from the pressure in the room. I shrugged “not too bad.”
“Ge-ge!” Scandalized, my sister intervened. “To answer the princess, we were attacked by bandits on the way, but my brother dealt with them.”
The eyebrows of both royals rose to their respective hairlines. “Bandits?” They asked in unison and my sister nodded, shuddering at the memory.
To comfort her, I placed my hand over her head. “I would be a bad ge-ge if I let my mei-mei get hurt by bad men.” She smiled at me and continued the tale. I hadn’t known until then, but she had witnessed everything from inside the carriage.
When she finished, both royals were looking at me in awe while I tried to make the earth swallow me whole.
Unfortunately, I did not have such luck.
“Weren’t you scared?” the princess finally asked, to which I shook my head.
“I was angry.”
“Why?”
I raised an eyebrow. “Highwaymen were threatening my family, one of their arrows nearly hit mei-mei. Also, my mother is four months pregnant, scares like that could cause a miscarriage.” The princess paled (which was almost unnoticeable, given her already pale complexion).
Heng slammed a fist in the table, cursing under his breath.
Suddenly, I felt my hand being grabbed and, when I turned, discovered the princess was holding it with both her hands and looking at me with adoring eyes. “Your family is lucky to be able to count on such a strong warrior as yourself.”
“Err-”
I heard the prince chuckled and my sister giggled behind me.
I smiled awkwardly “I- I see.” I looked toward Heng Li, silently asking him to save me, at which he simply laughed harder.
My eyes roamed the room for a way to escape until they came to a stop at the window. Outside, the sun was already setting. I would have to take Zhi home before long.
I looked awkwardly at the princess and patted her hands before turning to the prince. “Heng Li, it is time we leave. I must bring mei-mei home before the sun sets.”
At my mention of the time, the princess seemingly came out of her stupor, and put some distance between us, blushing furiously.
The establishment refused my attempt to pay, saying that it was an honor to serve the imperial family, to which I mentally shrugged and thanked them for the food.
Heng and I led the two girls back to our home, while they talked among themselves in the back.
“Sorry about that” the prince apologized in a whisper. He elaborated when he saw my raised eyebrow “Meiling has been asking me to introduce her to you since a few years back. She is the Second mother’s only daughter.
“She caught us training one morning and has been all over your case since then.” His smile was teasing “It seems you have fans even within the palace.”
I sighed and resigned to my fate. It seems I would be famous no matter what I do to prevent it.
I left Zhi at home with my parents and then accompanied both royals on their way to the palace.
Meiling’s happily walking between Heng Li and I. She often gazed at me or tried making small talk, almost ignoring her older brother. If it wasn’t for his smile, I would have thought him to be mad at being kept out of the conversation. I bid them farewell at the entrance of the palace, promising to come visiting soon.
When I finally arrived home, I felt completely drained, a feeling that only worsened when I caught on the way my mother was staring at me over dinner.
Zhi was looking smug, which meant that she had told everything to our parents.
“A princess, huh?” Ling said, her tone tense after I had retired to my room. Despite my misgivings, she had insisted on helping me change clothes for bed.
I groaned “not you too.”
She remained silent, but I could tell by her posture just how affected she was. Not knowing what else to do, I placed my hand on her head as I did with my sister.
“There, there.”
Surprise, embarrassment and shock were written all over her face, but I paid them no attention, instead continued petting her.
“Frowning so much is going to lay waste to your beautiful face”. Shock turned to embarrassment, and she stared at my feet. I sighed, taking off my outer garment, which was promptly followed by my shirt “I seem to gain fame wherever I go, even if it isn’t my intention. And now I even have a fan in the Capital.” I groaned. “Say, could you massage my back?” I turned to her bare-chested and saw her eyes turn as wide as saucers.
I saw her gulp and nod. Ling asked me to lay face-down on the bed and I complied.
Her hands were rough but skilled, and I fell asleep right away.
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