Severing Time & Space

The Preliminaries

"Ming Han. Juishi Feng. I see you two have become good friends," Father greeted them.

Ming Han grinned as he slapped Juishi Feng on the back. "Of course, we are! My son is marrying his daughter, after all. You seem jealous. Gya ha ha! Don't worry. If you let Wu Meiying wed my son, we'll be this close too!"

"I'll pass."

While it seemed almost like the words had been thrown out callously, Wu Jian knew enough now to understand that Ming Han was a lot more cunning than he let on. He easily dropped the subject of marriage and instead engaged the other two clan leaders in talk of the tournament.

Ming Shen stepped up to Wu Jian, Wu Meiying, and Hou Jingshu while the clan heads were talking. Standing on either side of him were two people. One of them was Juishi Meirin, the beautiful daughter of Juishi Feng. The other was a boy on the cusp of adulthood, with long hair tied into a ponytail, sword-like eyebrows, and sharp features. He was taller than everyone else, and his hanfu was decorated with a sword on the left breast. He also had a sword strapped to his waist.

That's Juishi Son. He's the heir of the Juishi Clan, if I'm not mistaken. Juishi Meirin's older brother.

"I hope you're ready to lose again this year," Ming Shen said with a vicious smile.

"Hey, Jian. If I win, will you give me a kiss?" asked Wu Meiying.

"I'd give you a kiss even if you lost," Wu Jian said.

"Will you two please stop talking about kissing?!" Hou Jingshu snapped with an embarrassed blush.

"Hey! Stop ignoring me!" Ming Shen shouted, his face red.

"Huh? Oh. Ming Shen. I'm sorry. We were so busy trying to ignore the sounds of a barking dog that we didn't hear you," Wu Jian said with a smile so cheerful it could only be sarcastic.

A vein throbbed on Ming Shen's forehead, bright and red, but he quashed his anger with a deep breath, then put his condescending smile back on.

"That you would dare to insult me like this is a credit to your arrogance, but don't forget who won the tournament last year. I'll be sure to put you in your place again this year. Perhaps then Wu Meiying and Hou Jingshu will see that I am a much better match for them."

"That's not going to happen," Wu Meiying declared.

Hou Jingshu nodded. "Even if you won, I would never marry you."

Ming Shen drew his lips into a thin line. Wu Jian didn't pay him much attention, but instead focused on Juishi Meirin, who glared at Wu Meiying with clear hatred in her eyes. His attention shifted back to Ming Shen when the boy took a step forward, but he was stopped by Juishi Son.

"Do not bother sullying your honor by arguing with them. Prove your strength in the tournament instead," he said.

Ming Shen sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "You're right. I have no need to degrade myself like this." He glanced at Wu Jian, then scoffed. "See you in the tournament."

The three turned as one and walked away. Hou Jingshu glared at them as they did. So did Wu Meiying, but Hou Jingshu's glare was particularly loathsome, like she was staring at a couple of cockroaches.

"I truly hate that boy. Just how anyone can be so condescending is beyond me," she exclaimed.

"He has always been like that, to the best of my knowledge. Try not to let it bother you," Wu Jian said.

The clan leaders finished talking and everyone moved toward the viewing booths. This arena featured four special viewing booths, one for each clan, which were located above the stands where all the common folks sat. As they made it onto a veranda that overlooked the arena floor, Wu Jian glanced at the viewing booth meant for the Zhou Clan.