of mist and power

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE,

  "YOU'VE DONE WELL for yourself."

  A meeting with her uncles was inevitable. She knew she could not escape this, and had prepared herself from the very beginning. She would not be scared of them. What was there to be scared of?

  She looked at Uncle Fang, the fake smile she'd mastered over the years plastered on her face, an unbreakable mask. "Thank you, Uncle."

  "Far better than I thought you could."

  "Well, people tend to underestimate me. I tend to underestimate myself sometimes, really. It's nothing to be ashamed of."

  Uncle Fang's face darkened momentarily, before he regained his composure, a brow raised. "You didn't come here with the intent of a friendly reunion."

  Blankness on her face, Myrina replied, picking up the cup of tea beside her, "I'm not quite sure what you mean. I am not here for a reunion, of course not, I am here on tour with the Crown Prince."

  "With another goal too, I think."

  Myrina blinked innocently.

  Uncle Qiu was the first to lose his patience. "You are trying to kick us out of our own house, girl!" Uncle Fang shot his half-brother a warning glance, but it was already too late. Uncle Qiu had been let off the leash, and there was no easy way to hold him back. "You get the Crown Prince and that Countess here, trying to scare us! Intimidate us! Where is your loyalty to your family? Your filial piety?"

  Myrina did not immediately respond. She sat at the head of the room, looking down upon her uncles, who were sitting perpendicular to her. She took a sip out of the cup, before putting it back down and covering it with the porcelain lid. "You speak of many severe accusations, Uncle Qiu. I am offended you think so poorly of me, but then again, you've never been quite fond of me, have you? I never understood why."

  Uncle Fang cut in. "Your second uncle does not mean what he just said, Zimi. He is simply panicking, that is all. We are all panicking. What will we do, if you have us forcibly removed from the estate?"

  Myrina feigned shock, her hand flying to her chest. "Uncles, what do you think of me? When have I ever said that I would have any of you removed from the estate? You've made such a home for yourselves here that I don't even know how to begin fitting back in. I am meant to be the owner of the estate, yet you are a thousand times more familiar with these lands than I am."

  It was clear she was lying, and the barbed sentiments in her sentences were obvious to all. But still, Uncle Fang played along. "But Zimi. It is what the Crown Prince and the Countess of Zi Yan are suggesting. That you wish to reclaim the estate as your own, and remove us all from the property."

  "Uncle, you use the wrong words. I do not need to reclaim it," Myrina said with a light laugh, tilting her head. "It has always been mine." But the smile on her face didn't reach her eyes. For a moment Myrina felt powerful. Was this what Irina felt like, battling those old politicians from day to day? Perhaps it was. And Myrina could understand it now. It did feel good, to be the one with all the cards.

  "Of course. But I refer to the dealing of the details regarding the properties, handling of our coffers, and more."

  "All of which are my duties. I am the Countess of Li Han, Uncle Fang, not the little girl from years ago anymore. By the Princess's side I have learnt many skills, all of which would aid me in being able to take care of the land given to me by my father and his father and all those before them. Believe me, Uncle, I will not let you down."

  "That is not what we are talking about, little niece," Uncle Xu finally said, when it was clear neither Fang nor Qiu knew how to respond. "You know what we are referring to. If you remove us, what will we do? Will you cut us off financially? None of us have any children who would perform well in the court. And we are so used to this that we will not be able to adjust to working like a commoner."