"Is that a glass boat? It's so pretty and sparkly!" The voice came from above her, the villa built nearby the pier had a balcony. There a young girl with watermelon pink irises eyed her boat with awe. Decorating the girl's hair was a garland of pink peonies carved from rose quartz. Her aura was flowery and refreshing just like a heroine from cheesy shoujo mangas and anime.
Seeing her attire, Cui Ruiling felt relieved, although there were some traditional elements to the clothes, it was also pretty modern looking.
Standing next to the girl were girls dressed similarly in baby blue and lilac purple.
The girl dressed in light blue had a jade hydrangea hairpin in her hair. The other, a lilac hairpin made from opal.
The girls were all beautiful and for a moment it reminded Cui Ruiling of her LoveLIES days, she was only one of the seven divas from a clique of mean girls, that the heroine of the drama vowed to surpass, she wasn't even the lead of the show but thanks to everyone's good looks and talent in singing and dancing the show became super popular. Every time she recalled these memories she felt her chess puffing with pride and her back straightening to look regal.
[That's right, go on and keep on envying me. Ufufu...]
Ruiling caught herself. It was unknown to her parents but every time pretty girls coveted something she had, she found herself slipping back into the role of Su Suran. To begin with, the character was similar to hers, a poor child who polished her talents and overtime became rich and famous. The humiliation she had suffered from in the beginning to the end where she became popular than the kids who snickered behind her back.
[That's right. Look at me. Keep looking. People like you will never know what it's like to work hard in your life]~ Such extreme thoughts would flit through her mind.
"Who's that girl?"
Sitting with her back straight like that made her exude the aura of a noble, shifting the girl's attention from the boat to its inhabitant.
"What the hell? Did Shu abduct a princess from a foreign nation somewhere?"
"She's all tied up with her dowry so that must be the case."
They're wrong. It was her parents doing. Her Father when learning the news didn't want his daughter to be underestimated when appearing before her husband.
"She should have many treasures so her husband will know she's a treasure." So he had said.
So he packed a bunch of jewels, educational books, and stuff she might need just in case the new world was lacking in technological advancements. Her Mother after seeing him do this quickly realized that Ruiling would need lots of clothes and accessories too.
They had gone so overboard that they even thought of adding on an extra boat but Ruiling stopped them. So in the end, her father saw to it that her boat was big enough to hold lots of luggage and at the same time flaunt her riches and elegance.
She couldn't help feeling grateful towards them and sad at the same time. She needed to live a life her parents would be proud of... though they weren't here she didn't even know where to start. She needed information about this world before she could decide how she would live.
Distracted by her thoughts, she almost didn't notice a pair of servants dressed in brown robes with purple aprons tied around their waists. They reeled in the rope, tied to the dock. A flood of manservants emerged shortly thereafter and lifted her glass boat up, propping it up onto their shoulders.
Confused and flustered, Cui Ruiling sat still with pursed lips. Did that guy send them?
To anyone watching, it would very much seem like the glass boat was her palanquin. They carried her down a stone path, and into a town. Many heads turned as the proceeded down the road.
"I heard one of the Princes of Chu clan abducted a princess bride from a foreign country."
"Ehhh? They better not bring trouble to our Yuan city! The Prince of Mu Country was already angered by them! Yuan City doesn't need any more enemies!"
"Hmmm, I'm not so sure, look at the uniforms those aren't the servants of the Chu faction! The first prince's servants all wear gold, the second, silver, and the third bronze. Those uniforms are brown, not bronze." One of the more knowledgeable citizens finally joined in on the conversation.
Hearing this, Cui Ruiling became alarmed.
"Excuse me! Were you not sent by Sir Kang?" Cui Ruiling risked leaning over to ask one of the manservants, but they did not say a word. The longer Cui Ruiling stared at them, the more quickly she began to notice their abnormal features.
For instance, their eyes. Normal human pupils were circular but theirs were skinny like a snake's. Cui Ruiling felt her blood becoming cold.
Were humanoid animals common in this world? None of the citizens seemed to be freaking out as they watched them all passed through.
"Excuse me!"
None of the servants spoke. They continued in silence, Ruiling pursed her lips, and resigned herself to waiting. The snake servants carried her out of town, they crossed bridges that led into another town and another. Until finally, they arrived before a large expansion of saltwater.
"A gift from the Lord to his descendant." One of the snake servants that had been leading the way finally turned around to face her and bowed.
"The Lord has asked that you consider it your wedding gift so that you will not be inconvenienced."
She wondered what they would say but it made no sense.
A question sign hung over her head, she shot them a questioning look as they gingerly pushed her boat off into the water. They all bowed as she drifted out into the sea.
She thought they would bring her to someone not push her off to sea.
The sounds of horse hooves shifted the servant's attention to behind them.
"Hold it right there!" All of a sudden, Sir Kang appeared on a horse with soldiers following. He hopped off and proceeded to shove the snake servants that attempted to block him as he chased after her into the water. The servants that got knocked over swam away abnormally fast. Ruiling could have sworn she saw the lower halves of their robes making a slithering motion, propelling them away from Sir Kang and his men.
"St-stop!" Ruiling shouted out. They didn't technically do anything to harm her. "Hey!" She leaned forward only for her boat to wobble. As she drifted farther and farther away it would become harder to hear her. The speed the current was carrying at her was abnormal. Soon the land disappeared from sight and all she could see was water all around her.
GoooonG!
The whole earth shook, Holding onto the rails of that boat for dear life as it shook and spun, she lowered her head and squeezed her eyes shut as her boat was suddenly launched into the air.