Everyone stopped and turned to look at Chue Yi who then continued, "Prime Minister of Law, I apologize beforehand because what I'm about to do may be out of respect, but you do not have permission to enter this palace. If you want an audience with her highness, you must get permission directly from My Lord, Mua Kong."
Although the man of authority wasn't home, the Prime Minister of Law never thought it would be so difficult to force the people at that estate. They were thick-skinned. They dared to stand up against him as if they didn't know who he was and his position. The Prime Minister's face was almost as red as a tomato. Fuming, he shouted, while pointing his finger at Chue Yi, "You... You dare-"
Chue Yi interrupted as he unrolled the scroll to hold it up in front of the Prime Minister. "I am just following the order from My Lord. This is his royal command order with a royal seal. Feel free to look at it, word by word."
The Prime Minister muttered in shock while he stumbled a few steps backward, "Unbelievable, truly unbelievable... how could the Prince go to this extent for a mere woman he picked off from the street?"
He did not care if Mua Kong wanted to keep Hli Ja, but he wanted his daughter to be the lawful wife who held some power and authority. He would be satisfied if Mua Kong kept Hli Ja as a mistress but he never thought Mua Kong would go to such an extent to protect Hli Ja. He had to find a way to relay this matter to the king, without the king knowing that he tried barging into the prince palace.
After the Prime Minister left, Chue Yi quickly went back to his room to add this matter to the letter he would be sending to his Lord.
*
Several months went by. Hli Ja had only been communicating with Mua Kong via letters. She tried to find things to do to keep her mind occupied. She even made Chue Yi spar with her as Mua Kong had taught her how to fight so she could defend herself. She did not want her skills to be rusty and made sure she spent some time each day to practice.
One day, Chue Yi came to find her. It looked like he had run all the way as he was panting and was out of breath with a letter in his hand. "Your Highness, My Lord will be coming back in two weeks."
Hli Ja was in the middle of assorting flowers into the vase, but those words made her heart so happy. She quickly put the flowers vase down on the table, and bit the corner of her lips, and exclaimed, "Ah... This is so sudden. What should I do?"
After some time of watching Hli Ja walking around frantically, Chue Yi asked, "Are you ok, Your Highness?"
Hli Ja looked at Chue Yi. "Ah... I need to go to the fabric store and buy some fabrics. I want to make some new clothes to welcome your lord."
After some thoughts, Chue Yi asked, "Can you tell me what kind of fabrics you want. I can summon someone to get it?"
"Well, the problem is, I don't know what I really want. I would have to see the fabrics myself. Accompany me," Hli Ja ordered.
Well, that made sense. Chue Yi's mind quickly weighed the risks and benefits of taking her outside. But he didn't feel that going to the fabric shop for a short period would have any risks.
That afternoon, Chue Yi, a male guard, and a female maid accompanied Hli Ja to the market strip.
The market strip was a busy and lively place, bustling with people, shops after shops, stalls after stalls. The fabric store had large selections and varieties, well known to be frequently visited by wealthy people.
When they arrived in front of the store, the guard went to open the door, and the maid helped assist Hli Ja down from the carriage. The maid followed Hli Ja into the store while Chue Yi, and the guard stood outside by the carriage.
Not long after, another carriage arrived in front of the fabric store. The person who got down from the carriage was Pa Chee, the Law Prime Minister's daughter whom Prince Mua Kong had declined marriage to.
Pa Chee noticed Chue Yi and a guard standing next to a carriage. She guessed that they were there to accompany Hli Ja as Mua Kong was not home. She walked right past Chue Yi, sneered at Chue Yi and the guard, and made her way into the store with her two maids.
Inside the store, Pa Chee surveyed for Hli Ja whom she had never met. She was just going to rely on her deduction skill to narrow down who Hli Ja was. She had heard from her father that Prince Mua Kong had picked the woman off from the street… a woman of no origin so she eyed for someone who reeked of a commoner.
After surveying the room a few times, the only person who caught her attention was a woman who looked like an angel descended from heaven and radiated an aura of a royal princess no matter at what distance and angle she observed from. Pa Chee couldn't help but kept gazing at Hli Ja, and at one point was mesmerized by her behaviors and beauty.
Pa Chee thought to herself. 'How could I have not seen a royal that looked like her before? Has that woman attended any events in the palace? Who was her father? Could she be another competitor?' As Pa Chee was lost in her thoughts, she saw that woman handing a few fabrics to the maid and gave the maid some instructions.
The maid paid for the fabrics and took it out. Pa Chee followed behind the maid and stood by the entrance to see where the maid was headed to. It was then that she saw the maid going up to the carriage, and give a few bags of fabrics to Chue Yi to put away.
Pa Chee clenched her fists and glared at the woman who took her man away as jealousy took over her.