by Fynn Chen
“Jinglie, Wanwan, prepare yourselves, we are about to leave for the capital of Jing’Yuan,” her father Khan spoke with gravity in his tone.
Wanwan’s eyes widened at the sudden notice but it was Jinglie who had popped the question.
“Great Khan, are we heading for the palace in the Pei country?”
The occupants of the room turned their attention to the prince and nodded with thin smiles on their faces. Wanwan pouted, immediately making conjectures about this trip in her mind. She looked over each and every one of her siblings’ faces, all of them wearing the same uneasy expression and that validated her own thoughts.
The Peis have intended use for them.
**
The night after the trip to Jing’Yuan was announced, Princess Yanyan had a private audience with Scholar Miying in Miying’s yurt. As usual, Miying was dressed in her plain robe without her furs on because the fire in her yurt still burnt brilliantly.
After ensuring that they would not be disturbed, Miying had her arms snaked unreservedly around Yanyan’s waist bringing their bodies close to one another as they laid in bed. Yanyan was almost tempted to steal a kiss from Miying’s lips.
It was only a few days ago that they had enjoyed each other’s presence in this manner, but it still made Yanyan’s heart flutter whenever Miying caressed her face or when Miying placed a kiss on her cheeks.
They were nearly interrupted by a servant who was concerned that the candle lights and the fire in Miying’s tent had not been put out for the night. Fortunately, Miying had reacted quickly enough and dismissed the servant with her usual excuse of having to read certain letters sent by foreign emissaries. A half-truth.
Miying had gotten up from the bed they laid in, boiled some water to make tea for themselves in the yurt before seating herself at her desk cluttered with several documents in various foreign languages. It always amazes Yanyan as she had witnessed how Miying could pick up all these languages so quickly when they had studied them together. It was as if Miying was destined for a role in Bo’er that was far greater than what their female ancestors had achieved. Even father Khan had valued Miying’s inputs greatly because of her intelligent and quick mind.
It made her think about her younger sister who was just as intelligent as well and worries seeped into Yanyan’s heart once more. Sitting herself before Miying, Yanyan observed the scholar quietly as she did her work. A deep crease settled in between Miying’s brows as she read and reread the letter that was sent from the palace of Pei. Yanyan did not like that look, as if it were etched permanently upon Miying’s young and beautiful face. It made her look years beyond her age.
“You sounded especially serious when you spoke to my father just now,” Yanyan said as she stole a lock of Miying’s hair and twirled it around her finger.
Miying let out a short chuckle at Yanyan’s playful antics before all seriousness returned to her face as she seized Yanyan by her wrist.
“This situation is suspicious, and I am afraid that the Pei court is plotting things against us. With the current imbalance between our power and theirs, we would definitely have to give in to whatever demands they might have.”
Enlightened about the gravity of the situation and sharing the scholar’s worries, Yanyan asked curiously, “any idea what they might be plotting?”
Miying’s expression darkened and silence settled between them like a giant rock. Compared to the expression Miying wore earlier with the crease between her brows, Yanyan detested the expression Miying currently donned even more. It terrified her greatly and there was a good reason for it.
Miying finally spoke, “marriage. That is what the Pei court is good at. Tradition has it that to achieve greater peace between two nations, princes or princesses from the steppes would form a marriage alliance with the Pei royalties.”
Yanyan went rigid as realisation dawned upon her and her expression fell immediately.
“M-Marriage? No! I don’t want to get married! I won’t leave you!”
With extreme caution, Miying calmed the Bo’er princess and held her close to her chest.
“Hush, Yanyan. It is just my speculation. I too hope they would not propose something like that. I won’t want you to leave either.”
Even with Miying’s tight hold on her, Yanyan found herself more distraught than ever at the thought that was now lodged in her mind. Being married off to a foreign land was something so unthinkable and yet something that Yanyan should have foreseen. If this were to happen then she would forever be separated from Miying. She simply could not stand the thought of this.
As if to distract her mind, which had succeeded, Miying had changed the topic.
“I am even more worried about Princess Wanwan. Yanyan, no matter what, you must reign your younger sister in while we are at the palace. Your sister has a very strong character and that might be her own undoing.”
Shoving the worries she had for herself temporarily to the back of her mind, Yanyan understood what Miying meant.
“I will keep a really close lookout on her,” Yanyan promised.
Miying took both of Yanyan’s hands which had become cold and warmed them up in her own.
“And I will keep a close lookout for you,” Miying said with such gentleness in her voice it made Yanyan’s heart ache.
Miying had not expressed openly but Yanyan knew that Miying must have such thoughts long before she had vocalised it tonight. It made Yanyan foolish to think that they might have a chance of growing old together. Now it all seemed like a distant dream.
“Regardless of what happens, know that I will forever have you on my mind and in my heart. Yanyan, I will not give up on pursuing you in this lifetime and would go to the far corners of the earth, or resort to whatever means necessary to have you by my side,” Miying spoke with such conviction that Yanyan could almost believe in them.
Deep in Yanyan’s mind however, there were serious doubts. No matter how bright Miying might be, she was still a female. In this era they lived in, she would have absolutely no way to control her own fate, much less Yanyan’s. Yanyan nearly felt like tearing at that thought but she willed them away and forced herself to place trust in Miying’s words.
**
Yexuan had let her attention slip for a moment and accidentally pricked her finger, almost ruining the embroidery with her blood. That tiny mishap caught the immediate attention of her maids and Yexuan sighed, knowing that they would be overly alarmed once again.
“I’m fine… it’s a small injury,” the princess assured before they began fussing excessively over her.
She looked at her embroidery of a vase of dandelions with disdain. If not for the visit that was about to happen, she would gladly have forsaken the needle and picked the books to accompany her for the day instead.
One of her maids had stolen a glance at the young princess’s work and gave a small smile. “Princess Yexuan’s work is exquisite as always, I am sure the young princess of the great plains would love your gift.”
Yexuan was not so sure about that. Do wildling princesses have a fondness for such feminine things? Whatever it was, the young princess could not think of a better gift and did not want to put in so much effort into it either. At least, her father emperor was pleased when he had heard that she was preparing a gift for the impending meeting. Yet, she wished that her father would not misread her action as enthusiasm in meeting the Bo’er princess. It was merely a gesture of respect, something which her mother had taught her. At that thought, the young princess felt a sudden tightness in her chest and clutched it.
“Princess Yexuan! Are you feeling unwell?” The maid asked in a terrified voice and summoned for the imperial physician immediately.
As the physician was examining her, Yexuan could faintly hear the sounds of the young princes playing in her courtyard and she sighed. She recognised who her visitors were, Prince Zhongtai and Prince Zhongxiu. They were two of her favourite royal siblings and often came to visit her despite all the going-on
in the imperial harem.
Prince Zhongtai and Prince Zhongxiu, along with their eldest brother, Prince Zhongxian, were borne by the Empress. In other words, they were of greater nobility than Yexuan in this palace. However, because Yexuan was fostered by the Empress for a length of time, the three princes had become familiar with her and grown closer to Yexuan.
Timely it was, Prince Zhongtai had poked his head into Yexuan’s quarters.
“Is Yexuan sick again?” Prince Zhongtai asked, his voice sounding disappointed.
“Yexuan is sick? Then she won’t be inviting us in for fragrant Osmanthus tea and lotus cakes?” Prince Zhongxiu added.
The imperial physician harrumphed at being interrupted during the course of his diagnosis. The maid scolded herself for being so careless and leaving the door loose for the princes to enter before quickly excusing herself to attend to the young princes.
“It’s fine,” Yexuan told her maid when she returned with a beaten look. The young princes must have decided to stay and there was no way the maid could refuse them. “Physician, may I invite the princes into my room for play after we are done?”
Giving the princess a kind look, the old physician nodded.
“Most definitely my princess, but you must not leave your quarters at any time. The weather is too harsh for your body.”
Promising the physician that she would heed his advice, the princess was allowed to come into contact with the two young princes.
Prince Zhongtai was one year older than Prince Zhongxiu and two years older than Yexuan. Despite so, Prince Zhongtai sometimes behaved like the youngest of them all with his recklessness and his theatrical behaviours. Zhongtai often took special care in his appearance which included wearing the most eye-catching robes and having his hair done in styles that were even more elaborate than most princesses. Today, he wore a crimson robe with plum blossom stitching, complimenting his lightly tanned skin. Atop his head, his hair was bound up with a crown adorned with various gleaming red stones inlaid within it.
Prince Zhongxiu, on the other hand, was the mildest prince amongst the Empress’s three sons and perhaps even amongst their father Emperor’s princes. He had largely effeminate-looking features which includes a pair of large, round, sparkling eyes and thick rosy-red lips. Yexuan was usually described as having very pale skin but Zhongxiu could rival her in paleness and they often preferred clothing of similar style. There was a passing remark that Zhongxiu and Yexuan could almost pass off as twins. This day, Zhongxiu was dressed in a simple robe of white with embroidery of clouds along the hems of his clothing. His hair was done in a ponytail, fastened by a plain silver silk ribbon.
The two princes smiled brightly as they waited for Yexuan to get off from bed and join them by the tea table.
“Please keep all these a secret from mother Empress and the rest,” Prince Zhongxiu implored sincerely of the maid and the physician and was met with understanding nods.
Once they did, the two princes bounded happily into the princess’s room.
“We caught crickets,” Prince Zhongtai said proudly, rattling the bamboo container which must have contained the poor insect.
“Do you want to watch them fight?” Prince Zhongxiu added in anticipation, holding up his own bamboo container.
Yexuan was not really fond of the idea but decided to entertain the princes since they came to visit anyway. With excitement, they prodded their insects with straw sticks to arouse it before transferring both their crickets to a slightly larger fighting container.
To her surprise, Yexuan was enjoying the insect fight more than she had expected. The sounds of her royal brothers cheering their insects on had lifted her spirits and filled the room with liveliness.
“Yexuan is smiling!” Prince Zhongtai said cheerily, and Prince Zhongxiu nodded with a brilliant smile.
Times like these, Yexuan was glad that at least there were still people in the royal family besides her father emperor who genuinely loved her. Zhongtai’s cricket lost repeatedly and after a while, it started to avoid contacting Zhongxiu’s cricket altogether. With an annoyed groan, Zhongtai eventually accepted defeat and thus the cricket tournament between the two princes had come to an end. Soon after, they began to talk idly about other happenings in the palace.
“Anyway, Yexuan, have you heard? The Great Khan of Bo’er is visiting our palace. I heard that he is the greatest warrior of all time. All of the tribes from the great plains fear and respect him, even the Jing army were forced to retreat under his command.”
Yexuan nodded, she was familiar with the stories about the great plains. Yet, her mood was still slightly dampened at the idea of the visit. Her father Emperor had intended for her to join in the dinner affair to welcome the entourage from Bo’er. It was an invitation that was not extended to all princes and princesses. As far as she knew, only the Empress and the three princes borne by the Empress would be attending.
It had also been a long while since Yexuan made any appearance at official events. News of her possible attendance must already have spread across the various courts in the palace and she felt her head spinning at the thought of inviting unnecessary attention to herself once again. Her only source of consolation was that Zhongtai and Zhongxiu would be present at the dinner as well.
“Our brother Zhongxian is not too happy about the arrangement,” Prince Zhongtai continued.
Inclining her head slightly to her right in confusion, the princess asked, “why is that so?”
“I heard that it is because father plans to pick a bride for him,” Zhongtai said with a conspicuous grin.
Yexuan’s eyes widened in surprise. “The young wildling princess? But isn’t she just ten?”
Prince Zhongtai tutted and wagged a finger before the princess. “Of course not. Our father Emperor intends to wed our brother with the elder princess of Bo’er, Princess Zhenyan, she is fourteen, a year younger than our brother. I heard that she is a great beauty.”
“But she is still a Bo’er, and even their women are fierce,” Prince Zhongxiu said in a small voice.
Prince Zhongtai nodded. “That is true… I think the Bo’er females and princesses of the great plains join in war campaigns as well? Especially with Khun’in Khan’s growing reign. The Great Khan loves his late wife and daughters so much that he almost made the women in his tribes equal to their males.”
“Yexuan, you must not want to be a Bo’er. It is too scary for a female,” Prince Zhongtai supplemented with a shudder.
Contrary to Prince Zhongtai’s comments, Yexuan became very much interested in learning more about the Bo’ers and wanted to know how it feels to be one upon learning these information. However, having been brought up in a palace as such, the princess had learned to keep her opinions to herself and instead agreed with her royal brothers with an amiable smile.
“Yexuan makes pretty embroideries, plays the zither well and learns the books quickly, I would very much prefer Yexuan to be here too,” Prince Zhongxiu picked up the Princess’s embroidery and marvelled over them as he spoke. “Is this for the young wildling princess?”
Yexuan nodded, she had almost forgotten about her handiwork of the dandelions. “It is.”
“It is so exquisite, but I wonder if the wildling princess of the great plains might prefer an embroidery of a hawk instead?”
Yexuan’s brow creased as she pondered over that suggestion and realised how foolish it was of her to not think of it first. However, she knew it was too late, the meeting was to be held in two days’ time and she must rest herself to be fit enough to attend the great gathering. Dandelions it shall be. It should not concern her too greatly if the wildling princess is fond of this artwork or not, it was merely a token of good gesture.
**
The two princes left the princess’s quarters with their bellies filled with delicious cakes and thirst quenched with fine tea. They loved visiting Princess Yexuan even though their mother Empress had advised them against acquainting themselves too closely with
her. The princes did not really understand why but judging from how the other princes and princesses were also avoiding Princess Yexuan’s quarters, they thought their mother’s advices for them must have made sense.
Yet, the two princes could not help but feel their heart pinched whenever they thought of the princess’s loneliness. Yexuan lived in a quarter in the outer rung of the palace where it was much more tranquil. Even though it was also abundant with pavilions, had a beautiful pond filled with lilies, and several willow trees, there were no other princess or princes’ quarters surrounding her and therefore Yexuan rarely received any visitors.
Which was why, being the adventurous princes they were, they had instead gotten closer to Princess Yexuan. In time, they found her to be so much more pleasant than their other pretentious royal siblings. Princess Yexuan was usually quiet but when she spoke, there was depth in her words and when she took to the paper, there was beauty in the poetry she crafts. Uncountable times, whenever Zhongtai and Zhongxiu required help in besting the other princes during their literature sparring, they would turn to Yexuan for assistance. Each time, Yexuan would always do her best to compose a poem or two of novelty to help them.
Also, Yexuan’s genius at the zither held an otherworldly emotion, sometimes of overflowing joy but most of the times of untold sorrows. The princes were always captivated by Yexuan’s talents and loved to seek her out. In return, the princes would share with her about the latest palace affairs and to share gossips.
It was a great pity that Princess Yexuan was always of ill health and could not go out with them to play in the courtyards or race with their swift horses. The princes remembered that they had taken a few horse-riding lessons with Yexuan and she was not too bad of a rider herself.
“Zhongtai, why isn’t Yexuan recovering yet?”
Being a year younger than Zhongtai, Zhongxiu always looked to his brothers to seek certain answers which he could not figure out. Unlike Zhongtai who took a more casual attitude towards Yexuan’s illness, Zhongxiu was often saddened by the thought of it. After all, he saw Yexuan as his blood sister back when they were both under the care of their mother Empress.
