Emperor And I ✔️

Beloved And I

Chapter 28

Wei Li Lian
Princess Le-anne
Lady Queens Manor

Walking into the lady queens manor after being away for so long felt nostalgic to Le-anne. She removed the coat that covered her head to conceal her identity and hung it on the hallway hooks.

The few lady queens that passed her respectfully ushered their greetings, but Le-anne could tell that deep inside they hoped that she was not back to stay for in their hearts, she was 'sen-shang[1] from hell'.

"Wei Li Lian?" Mistress Han froze when she opened the sleeping room door.

"Here in flesh," Le-anne giggled and hurried over to the dressing table where Mistress Han had sat for her evening makeup routine.

"Oh I have missed you." Mistress Han rose up and they hugged neck to neck. "You are still alive and well." She held up Le-anne and looked her over, a tear sparing on her pale cheeks. Her eyes held love and deep adoration like one a mother carries for her own child.

"My lady!" The door opened further and in ran Ai who squealed uncontrollably. "My lady is here." Ai threw herself on Le-anne and embosomed her so dearly.

"Young Miss Ai." The princess bundled up her little maid-in-waiting. For a moment she thought she would lose it and cry with them. "Mistress Han has been treating you well, look at you getting bigger than your mistress," Le-anne teased her as she patted her little head. Ai laughed loudly and twirled herself around proudly.

So glad to reunite and be able to catch up, they all broke into conversation as Le-anne shared about palace life while Ai and Mistress Han updated her on what had happened while she was away. Apparently Ai had been learning on how to dance recently and Mistress Han had found a suitor who was madly pursuing her, though the heartbreaking part was that he was one who she couldn't have as he was a noble man while she was just a lowly ranked courtesan.

"Right, we must talk about the reason I called you here," Mistress Han waved her hand and Ai obediently reacted to this by going to the wooden closet and pulling out a sizeable box which she placed on Le-anne's hands.

"This came for you, my lady." Ai smiled and winked.

Mistress Han began to explain, "A merchant who resided at this manor for a couple of days told me that he searched for a woman named Elora from the Borderlands, for he was told she came here."

"When Mistress Han told me this in passing, I assumed that it was you he looked for because I remember when I started serving you, your preferred being addressed as Elora." Ai explained further.

Elora was the name Le-anne got from her mother. She looked down at the box nervously, did this mean her mother had sent the box for her? Examining the exquisite bronze gold colored box closely, she ran her hand over the smooth surface. But again her mother was not the only dearest person that knew her as Elora.

She couldn't help but tremble as she lifted the lid off. It could be just anything that lay inside, there to add or steal from her life. She was sure it was not her mother when the scent of lavender washed her over.

Lavender could only be linked to someone else...

Her long lost savior.

She held her chest in incredulity. He had been searching for her... He had been looking for her and had found her. Her savior, her supposed to be lover and husband.

"Where is he?" She stood up and looked around, "Where is the man who gave you this?" Blood was pumping tracklessly, adrenaline overdosing her. For so long she had wondered if they would meet again, for so long she had waited and hoped that he would be the prince in shining armor to come and save her.