Within the red majestic courtyard, the nonstop hustle and bustle from various palace maid had went on from before the first crow. In preparation for the upcoming spring banquet; there were pavilions to be cleaned, lanterns to be hung, various decors to be placed and replaced, even the garden need to be trimmed.. to put it simply there were just too many things to be done!
Despite the busy bustle, the biggest room was left undisturbed.. its mistress slumbering still. Inside, the interior had been charmingly furnished to reflect its youthful owner. Various curiosity from all over the land, unique antiques, rare books and things of comforts graced the room. Just behind the book case was a cozy makeshift study room and at its heart stood a table. It was sprawling with various brushes, unfinished calligraphy and paintings. The penmanship on the rice paper was elegant, with masterful decisive strokes but the bottom half was left undone. Instead, it had been covered by a bowl of edible seeds, a pile of empty husks and a pot of blossom tea.
Beside the table, a luxurious yet comfortable chaise had been strategically placed. Each of its sides had been decorated with wind chimes of varying sizes. Sunlight peeked in from the window behind it.
Supposedly, this spot had been specially commissioned by the ancient emperor himself.. to provide comfortable sunlight for writing yet still remains as a spot for a rest. The designer struggled for many moons until he came up with a brilliant mechanism on the window. A multi layered stained glass, a rare oddity in Xia and was specially brought in just for this project, and they each could be manipulated with a hidden mechanism. The sunlight would create interesting shadow play and each time they would change depending on how the layer interacted with the light.
As the filtered sun gently streamed down the study, the figure laying down on the chaise was aroused. Her long and beautiful eyelashes fluttered gently, glimmering playfully under the sunlight.
The favoured and Eldest princess of emperor Xia, Princess Qing Yun, slowly rose from the chaise. She had just awakened from her daily nap. Her feminine features was delicate just like her empress mother but underneath it you could see a mix of youthful arrogance, stubborn temper and mischievous smile that was obvious in all of her siblings. A definite signature of the Xia bloodline. Perhaps once older, she will be a renowned beauty.
Qing yun wordlessly tugged the tassels on the side, sending the chimes into a symphonic orchestra. Two palace maid that had been guarding her door entered and waited for her command.
"It is almost time for me to visit Emperor Father. Tidy up my hair and prepare the newly made spring robe." Her clear voice rung. The two lady bowed and complied. Soon enough a stream of palace maids entered the chamber with various chests. Some filled with precious ornaments whilst others were filled with the latest spring fashion.
Out of the seven newly made robe, she chose the one with cloud patterns, a reminiscent of her name. After changing into it, the maids brushed her hair and tied it into a pair of cute buns. She then chose a golden hairpin with a hanging ornamental birds to finish it.
"Princess you look beautiful!" Huiying, one of her palace maid praised.
"Just like a blossoming spring flowers!" HuiQing exclaimed as she straightened the ornaments. The rest of the maids nodded and excitedly chattered in agreement.
Satisfied, Qing yun twirled infront of the full length bronze mirror. It was an expensive rarity that her brother, the second prince, had gifted to her for her 10th birthday.
"Should we prepare the carriage, princess?" Hui Ying asked.
Qing yun thought for a beat. "No, the weather is wonderful. I shall walk there."
The maids bowed their heads and complied. In an instant, a procession of maids, guards and eunuchs accompanied the youthful princess and made their way through the imperial garden. Though the sun was not harsh, they definitely could not let her pearly skin to be sullied by the harsh sunlight.. else Xia emperor might take their head away. So, a young eunuch had been tasked to shade her with an oiled paper umbrella. His tiny legs scampered about, to keep up with the pace of the group.
The imperial garden was huge, a mix of wild untamed nature, various plants, landscaping marvel, architecture and the recent addition of waterscape. If one is not familiar, they would quickly lost their way. But, this was her home, every leaf and blade of grass was familiar to her.
After crossing multiple uniquely shaped bridges, she saw a heroic figure resting in one of the floating gazebo above the lotus lake.
"Brother!" Qing yun shouted as she took off, abandoning the loyal procession behind her. Stunned, it took them a while to try to catch up with the princess. The pitiful young eunuch scampered behind her, in his head various visions of him losing his head flashed by, as he desperately tried to shade her against the light.
She dashed into the embrace of her favourite sibling. Long gone was the feminine figure earlier, replaced by the youthful visage, her true boisterous nature unrevealed in all of its glory.
"Princess! That is just.. improper!" Her attendants panted as they struggled to catch up with her. Despite their breathlessness, they somehow could still find the breath to chide her.
Qing yun pouted as the handsome teen by her side roared in laughter. This year, Xia Tianxi had just turned 18 and Xia Qing yun is turning 15 in summer, just a season away. The distance between the two gender had to be maintained.. even between siblings. After all, they were already of age and hint for marriage proposal had long been flooding into the emperor courtroom. Especially ever since Xia Tianxi had won the capital martial art competition last year and had even managed to snag the post for deputy general.. the proposals had gone through the imperial roofs. Secretly, the image of emperor father being buried by the annoying proposals always tickled the both of them silly.
Growing up, He had always been the main influence on her, often playing together.. and pulling pranks on whoever they could lay their hands on.
Despite the constant nagging from both of the emperor and the empress, Xia Tianxi carefree nature often led him to secretly leave the palace for months. Travelling incognito, living with the peasants or riding with wild nomads in the north or simply in search for curious adventure and promises of rarities. So, his influence could often be regarded as unfavourable.
Qing yun rebelliously tightened her hug. She had not seen him in a while and she missed him. In reply, He effortlessly placed Qing yun into a princess carry. A background noise of protest and criticism from the maids could be heard.
"Aaa... My little cloud is all grown up. Soon, this general could no longer carry you! Even now, My poor hand aches from all this weight." Tian xi said teasingly. His eyes sparkled with adoration.
"Don't be annoying, brother! This little cloud is as light as feather!" Qing yun smacked his tanned muscular arm whilst smiling. "Now, general, this princess order you to carry me into the Sky Hall!"
"Understood, my honourable princess!" Tian xi replied and he took off, running. The incessant helpless pleading of Qing yun palace maids quickly faded far into the distance.
Tian xi steps became lighter the further he ran, slowly showing off the masterful control of his qinggong by stepping into the air and then jumping from roof to roof, courtyard to courtyard, scaring off various palace attendants and alerting many guards along the way with their wicked laughters.
"Brother! It's been a while since I am this happy!" Qing yun breathlessly muttered. It was hard to catch her breath when Tian xi was moving this fast.
"Really? Then this general have to make you laugh even harder!" Tian xi skillfully moved his robust body, changed his stance and jumped even higher.. Qing yun spotted her courtyard and excitedly pointed it out while laughing. Tian xi continued to step upon the air as if they were walking on stairs of clouds. Their lungs were burning from laughing continuously, and it started to hurt from the breathlessness.
"..Brother, it hurts...."
Silhouetted against the sun, Tian xi nimbly continued to go higher.. and higher.. and higher.. till they could looked down upon the vast imperial palace. The setting sun blooms red against his skin.
"Brother stop.. I'm scared!" Qing yun had been excited but now she was starting to feel fear from the height, her voice had became mere whispers.
Slowly the palace became specks of dust in the faraway earth, they were surrounded by sea of cloud and the majestic red of the sun now wholly wrapping them like a fiery fire of heaven. Both of their laughters had long ceased, the oxygen in their lungs had been spent.
"...hurt.."
Yet, Tian xi never stopped. The glow of the sun seemed to never stop growing.. it got even brighter the further they went up. Qing yun could only limply held on to him as her whole mind stopped functioning from the lack of oxygen. The redness had became painful but the redness was all she could witness.
..hurts...
It hurts...
It burns..
....Pain.. All I can feel is pain.
Why is this so painful.. I...hate pain..
Hate.. Hate.. HATE!
I hate you T..i.. NO, I curse you ...
Until this bitter resentment fade away.. I will never...
Aaaaaaaaaa... IT HURTS.. ITS BURNING..IM BURNING.
Save me.. save me.. father emperor.. mother.. brother.. Save this princess...anyone!!
Aaa..a...
"...a..." The youth deliriously moaned as its voice parched and cracked, it's consciousness faded in and out.. the fever rose and fell. Nightmare seemed to haunt the feverish dream.
Xiao yu, full of bruises, carefully wiped the youth's body with cold water. The youth's skin had long turned crimson, smouldered by the cycle of fever. After wiping the excess moisture off, he fed the youth some herbal soup. He did it by putting the soup into a small teapot and tilting it drip by drip into the youth's mouth. It was not the nourishing chicken soup but at least this should be equally helpful!
Fortunately, amidst all of the panic and chaos created by heaven's wrath, he had managed to hide some herbs into the hidden pouch of his robe. Surely, the Jade emperor had been angered when the those scoundrels that inhabit the palace kitchen were beating him up.
Xiao yu had almost dropped the herbal soup when he first returned into the room. The bed had been covered in blood and the room filled with foul smell of iron and rust. He then struggled with all the might his little bruised body could muster, and carried the youth into his own bed before busily fussing over the youth like a tiny mother hen.
After ensuring that there was no external injury and checking that the pot had been emptied, Xiao yu tucked the youth with blanket and left the room. He sat down on the wooden corridor, exhausted. Unconsciously, tears started to bubble on the corner of his eyes. The salt content in them stinged his bruised face, leaving him with a scowl.
"...words to master Yan. Hold on just a little longer!! I am sure all will be fine.. soon this will all be just like a fleeting bad dream." He muttered under his breath. As Xiao Yu looked up, the gloomy sky still had not let up.