Reborn To Live Without You (and other stories)

Tale of a False Phoenix

Author's note; And now for something completely unexpected...

Some claim that the birth of a true dragon or a true Phoenix is heralded by signs within the Heavens, such as stars streaking across the sky, flocks of cranes circling the child's birthplace, the skies giving blessed rain to a land upon the brink of drought.

On the day the Crown Prince was born, it was said that all of the flowers in the Empress' courtyard bloomed at once. Such a pretty tale, but who but Eunuchs and maidservants were able to see it? Still, the Emperor believed it and went so far as to title the babe upon his one hundred day celebration. Many officials and nobles attended the celebration, with more and more extravagant gifts to give face to the Emperor and Empress and show their support to the little prince.

Whilst in his cups, my father went to visit my mother in her courtyard and it was on this day that I was conceived. Perhaps unsurprisingly, my mother took this as a favourable sign.

"Your highness," I kowtowed to my master, offering complete submission and throwing away dignity at his feet.

The man's thin lips curved at their corners, his icy appearance did not warm from this slight smile, instead, the air felt some ten times colder. Despite this, he was a handsome man, with sharp Phoenix feather eyes, a square jawline and white scholarly skin with a hint of wheat. His dark eyes were like frozen black diamonds and seemed to bore into one's soul, but I could tell that my grovelling pleased him. Only when others bowed before him, gifting them their bodies to be stepped upon, to be broken or pampered at his whims was he content. Fortunately, this was not a lesson that I learned the hard way.

"Rise, the Prince finally has a use for you," his smirk deepened, his eyes trailing over my body. I had to suppress the shudder that rippled inside of me. My master had never taken pleasure in viewing my body, had never even taken pleasure in my body. He despised the very sight of me, leading to my suffering at the hands of his other concubines and servants in my past life. Only, in that life, I managed to pull of a scheme leading to my bearing his only son and heir. He'd had no choice but to recognise me over his beloved wife!

But rebirth was like taking a small butterfly and displacing it from where it was meant to be to ten thousand miles away. The ripples in time had slowly circled outward until the future became unrecognisable. Still, I was not completely dismayed by this fact. After all, although I had reached the ultimate desire of any ambitious woman, I had barely warmed that gracious seat before it was ripped away from me.

"Gifting you would make him wary of you, thus this Prince must have you introduce yourself to him in an entirely different way," my 'husband' and master continued as if I was a commodity to do with as he pleased and sadly this was completely true. No matter how I hated this fact, I could only bow my head and obey him.

A woman or male gher was expected to obey her father, her husband and her son in this life and should not have intelligence or will of her own. Teaching a girl or gher child the etiquettes and arts was just another manner of displaying them, ultimately they would set aside these talents, if they were fortunate enough, to run their homes and raise their children. And if they were not, then they were really no better than one of those women selling their talents within the brothel, just that they sold them to just one man and the pay was his humble blessings that may or may not take fruit.

The man's wife could at least have some say in running the inner courtyard, the Emperor disdained those officials who pampered the Concubine to suppress the wife. But a Concubine only could live a good life if her background was strong, if her paternal family was strong. For then, even if the wife would insist on obeisance, she would not abuse her authority too much and invite the wrath of her husband and the concubine's family. But if the background was weak or there was no family...