Back in the capital, a dark cloud hung over the Han manor as Old Madam Sun and Minister Han ruminated upon what they had been told about the trip to Ryoko Temple. The entire family was gathered in the old madam's sitting hall, exchanging anxious glances with one another as they waited for the head of the family to respond to the situation. Meisi was particularly jittery, clutching on to her mother, Concubine Wan, for comfort and security.
After a long, suffocating silence, Minister Han picked up his porcelain teacup and flung it at Meisi. The cup shattered as it struck the floor in front of her feet.
"You utter disgrace!" Minister Han railed. His face had turned an ugly shade of purplish-red, nostrils flaring in anger. "You were sent to Ryoko to seek blessings for the family, and what did you do instead? How dare you climb into the prince's bed!"
Meisi shrieked, curling up on her chair. Her entire body was shaking with fear. She turned to her mother, pleading for help.
"My Lord, please, it isn't Meisi's fault! She was set up! The poor child is a victim in all this," Concubine Wan cried. Tears streamed down her delicately made-up face as she hugged her daughter close. "You must seek justice for Meisi, or else... or else her future is ruined!"
"How did you end up in Zi-ning's room!" Minister Han bellowed. "Don't think I don't know what's going on inside that little head of yours. Did you think that you could become a princess this way? I should have you sent to a nunnery right now!"
Meisi blanched. She immediately ran forward, throwing herself at her father's legs. "Father, you must help me. I can't go a nunnery! The prince will take me, won't he? If he does, then everything will be solved. If I become the princess of Hua, that'll be a good outcome for our family."
The old madam shook her head, sighing in disappointment. "Meisi, do you really think that the prince of Hua will marry you as his crown princess? Even if he accepts you, your position in his harem will not be high," she scolded. "How could you be so foolish?"
"But why?" Concubine Wan exclaimed. "Meisi is the daughter of a Minister. Even if the prince doesn't make her the crown princess, surely she can still be a high-ranking consort!"
Lady Min scoffed, regarding the other woman scornfully. "Like mother like daughter. Now we know where Meisi gets her impractical ideas from," she said.
"How is that impractical, Meisi is as good as any other young lady from the noble families, she deserves—"
"Enough!" the minister shouted, glaring at the bickering women. "It's not up to any of you to decide what the prince should do. If he accepts you, then you should count your blessings regardless of what position you are given. If he doesn't then you can pack your things and get ready to spend the rest of your life at Hushan Nunnery!" He waved his hand and his steward quickly furnished a new cup of tea. The minister swallowed everything in a single gulp. "If it was Zi-ning then things might have been better. At least we know that the Hua prince is interested in her, and he might have been willing to give her a good position in his harem," he muttered. "Speaking of which, is there still no news about her whereabouts?"
Other than Meisi's debacle, the entourage had returned home bearing unfortunate news—that they had encountered mountain bandits along the journey home and been separated from Zi-ning. Lady Min had been grossly apologetic the moment she returned home, weeping about how she should have done a better job in looking after Zi-ning and keeping her safe.
"No, My Lord," Lady Min replied. "The guards we sent to search for her have not returned with any news."
"How could such an awful thing have happened!" Old Madam Sun exclaimed, beating her palm against the armrest of her mahogany chair.
Beside her mother, Meiyan kept her head bowed, struggling to keep the smile off her face.
Out of everyone present, only Lady Min and Meiyan knew the truth about what happened on the journey home—because they engineered it. Unfortunately things hadn't gone to plan at the temple, with Meisi replacing Zi-ning as the subject of Consort Song's ploy. However, they had always had a back-up. Lady Min had made arrangements through her older brother, who worked in the Ministry of Defence, to hire a group of professional assassins to go attack Zi-ning's carriage along the route from Ryoko Temple back to the capital. Even if by some miracle, Zi-ning survived to return home, her reputation would be sullied beyond repair. No young lady could possibly be untainted after being attacked by a group of mountain bandits. She would be completely and utterly ruined.
Finally, they would be rid of Han Zi-ning—this thorn in their sides.
A knock came at the door, and one of the Minister's guards marched in, bowing respectfully to the minister and the old matriarch.
"What is it? Have you found Zi-ning?" Minister Han asked irritably.
"My Lord, we only found the young mistress's carriage along the Ryonan mountain path. The carriage was badly damaged and the horses had been cut loose. There were also several dead mountain bandits at the scene, but we did not find any signs of the young miss or her servants. It's possible that they..." The guard's voice trailed off, as he looked hesitantly towards the minister.
"They fell off the cliff?" Concubine Wan exclaimed, finishing the man's sentence on his behalf.
"We can't be sure. Our men are still combing the area," the guard replied, although the look on his face confirmed what Concubine Wan had said. If they could not find Zi-ning anywhere in the vicinity, that could only mean that she had either fallen to her death, or she had been captured by the bandits. Neither outcome was a favourable one.
Minister Han closed his eyes, releasing a loud sigh. "What have I done to deserve this... Why have the gods done this to me?" he muttered.
Just when Zi-ning's stars had started to look up, such a misfortune had befallen, rendering her useless to his political goals.
"Ah, my darling grandchild," the old madam cried. In a fit of agitation, she collapsed against the back of her chair, passing out entirely.
"Mother!"
Chaos ensued as the minister and the attendants rushed to usher the old lady back to her sleeping quarters. The physician was summoned, and following a flurry of activity, the sitting hall emptied itself of most of its occupants. With both their mothers having gone to wait on the elderly matriarch, only Meiyan and Meisi remained behind.
"You know something, don't you?" Meisi said, eyeing Meiyan suspiciously.
"Excuse me?"
"The bandit attack. When it happened, you didn't look the least bit fearful. Why's that? Was it because you knew it was going to happen?"
Meiyan pursed her lips together, annoyed that Meisi was being unusually astute for once. "I don't know what you're talking about. If I were you, I'd spend less time on baseless speculations and worry about my own future—or lack thereof," she said with a sneer. Swinging her sleeves, she sashayed out of the room and back towards her own quarters.
The trip to Ryoko had been exceptionally fruitful after all. From today onwards, she would be the only young lady in the household worthy of notice, and she would finally get everything she rightfully deserved.
#
Zi-ning awoke to the fragrance of tea eggs. She sat up groggily, reaching up to rub her sore temples, only to find her forehead wrapped in bandage. She blinked a few times to clear her vision, then took a look at her surroundings.
Where am I?
The room she was in was small but tastefully decorated, furnished mostly with bamboo furniture. Watercolour paintings hung from the walls, and a dainty bonsai sat on a small table by the circular window. A cheery humming was drifting in from outside.
She took some time to gather her senses, piecing together the messy fragments of her memory.
She vividly remembered their harrowing escape from the bandit attack, and how she could have lost Ahri—and possibly her own life—had the Shadow Lord not showed up in the nick of time. She had tried to salvage the situation by initiating a rockslide, but had also come close to being struck by a falling boulder. Du Zhenghuan had pushed her out of the way, and then they had fallen over the edge of the cliff...
The frightening sensation of drowning in a relentless rush of water returned to her.
Thankfully, there had been a river in the valley, and that was where they had fallen. Otherwise, they would have likely have died from the impact.
But that was where her memories ended. The next thing she knew, she was waking up here.
"Du Zhenghuan..." Where was he? Had he been rescued too?
Zi-ning slowly picked herself off the bed. She had bandages around her head and her left ankle, but other than that, she seemed relatively unscathed. She inched her way towards the door, warily stepping across the threshold.
She gasped. In front of her, the glistening river shimmered, and upon the opposite bank lay a forest of cherry blossoms so beautiful that it made her wonder if she had died and gone to heaven after all.
"Ah, you're awake!"
The remark came from an elderly man with a full head of snowy white hair, and a wispy beard to match. He was out in the front yard, drying herbs on rattan sieves.
Zi-ning nodded. "Where is this place? Were you the one who rescued me, Elder?" she asked.
"You're lucky that I found you. If you had stewed in the river any longer, you would have died from the cold!" he replied with a wiry chuckle. "The waters of Longjiang may seem inviting, but it's a trap, I'm telling you!"
"Thank you for saving my life," Zi-ning said, bowing deeply to convey her gratitude. "What of my companion? Did he..." She lifted her head, noting that the valley they were in seemed to be covered by a thick fog. Beyond that, she could not make out the edge of the cliff from which they had fallen from.
"Ah? That brat?" The old man clucked his tongue, scowling in displeasure.
"A brat would not be gathering firewood for you."
Zi-ning spun to the left, her eyes lighting up when she saw who it was.
Zhenghuan was walking towards them, carrying a bundle of wood in his arms. He was still wearing his mask, but had traded in his usual clothes for a plain set of grey robes, presumably belonging to the old man. It made him look strangely comical, and entirely unlike the fearsome general that he was.
"Gathering firewood is a paltry price to pay for the debt you owe me!" the old man barked. "If I hadn't given you my huanhun dan, you would be collecting firewood for the God of Hell instead!"
Zi-ning startled.
Huanhun dan? The pill that can return a soul?