When the young emperor's edict was read in front of the second princess Qing Lou, she felt helpless. She had thought that the young emperor has accepted her. That he had agreed of her father's arrangement to marry to her. It turns out that the emperor does not also want to be with her, just like her family. No wonder the man did not even visits to check her in these past days.
Qing Lou has started to feel some affection towards the emperor as he provided the lady the comfort she always longed for. Now she felt very disheartened. She realized that she felt like she is riding in a series of emotional roller coaster. She was fist gifted to the neighboring empire by her family and she did not complain. Then, she sensed some warmness and love on her new place. Then just as she started to develop her feelings to the new man, she is suddenly being offered to another man again! Nobody wants to keep her! She is treated like an unimportant object being passed from one owner to another!
The second princess had endured too much! A wave of insecurity started to wrap around her heart. Self-doubt is an ugly feeling. The feeling is like something is pulling her towards the darkest place in the world. A world that is darker than the underworld for even Hades is capable of providing light in his dark world.
The lady cried secretly in her room and made sure that no one can see her tears. Not even the servants. After the tears have dried up, she inhaled a couple of times to relax her composure. The princess secretly prayed that whoever will get married to her will want to be with her forever. She has not loses her hope yet despite the bitter experiences she have. She is tired of being passed down or simply tired of her life but she keeps praying that the right man will get her. There must be someone out there that will want to have her... that would want to keep her company forever. She heard that her wedding to the third brother of the emperor will be on the next two weeks but she know nothing about the man. She sighed deeply to release her frustrations.
The princess decided to take a stroll and see the flowers in her place. She stared at the scenery where petals are being flown by the air. Her life is like the petals in the garden; where the air carries them, it shall follow. As she looked at the scenery, an arm sneaked in her shoulder. She is startled and turns her head to see who the person is. To her surprise in a very unfamiliar place she lives, a familiar face greeted her. Her eyes widened and the pain she felt in her heart was somehow quickly vanished.
"Brother Lan!" she called the man's name. Her voice was laced with no amount nervousness or shyness at all. This only shows how familiar she felt with the person in front of her.
"You seems sad to be married to this man." He Lan teased her.
"I... you... I..." she suddenly stuttered badly. Her face is full of disbelief. He is from He Empire? The lady asked in her mind.
"What now, huh? You actually want to be with my brother than me. Well, even if you don't like me you cannot disobey the order from his majesty. His edict has been announced." He Lan said while gently laughing. The man obviously enjoyed teasing her.
"I did not know you are from the He Empire or the third brother of the emperor! You did not tell me!" the lady hurriedly said in defense. She saw He Lan's face pouting at her, like a kid that is not given favor by his parents. This man is really childish. The lady laughs and holds his hands.
"Brother Lan is the best! Of course I want to be married with Brother Lan." she consoled the man. She saw that he gave her a smile.
"Are you sure?" the man asked while looking at her suspiciously.
"Yes, yes.. I am sure." the lady responded enthusiastically. It seems like she had forgotten all the burden in her heart.
"That better be! I even force my brother to be married to you." He Lan proudly said his lies to her without battling his eyes. The lady giggled. The man brushed his own hair before glancing at the flowers in the garden.
For the first time since she arrived in the He Empire, the lady felt secured even if the place is away from her home. No, it would be accurate to say that it is the first time in her life to feel like she is home. A place where she truly belongs. They did not speak anymore. The lady did not expect that she will be married to the only man who had been good to her in the Qing Empire. They just stayed in there, enjoying the scenery of the flowers dancing in front of them.
***
Meanwhile, in the Qing Empire the emperor furiously crumpled the letter he just received from their spy in the He Empire. It was sent to him from his spies with urgency. The letter contained the news of the second princess wedding in the next two weeks. What made him furious was that her daughter will not be marrying the emperor of the He Empire!
His plan has been ruined by the edict! And he could not do anything about it. He had gifted the second princess therefore she already belongs to the He Empire. Since the emperor of He Empire issued an edict, logically the people that belong to his empire must follow his order. The Qing Emperor was so angry that even his subordinates are scared to say anything to him. They just wondered what kind of bad news he just read in the letter.
***
He Empire, Imperial Court
The young emperor is having another meeting with his ministers. The ministers naturally have already known about his edict. Some ministers expressed their good opinion for the emperor's decision. The other ministers expressed their fears that the Qing Empire might have something to ridicule their emperor, while the few of them keep their opinion to themselves. After hearing what the ministers have said, the young emperor dismissed them. As they dispersed the court, his bodyguard added a tea in his teacup silently. He drinks the whole tea in one sip.
"I received an invitation from a distant empire. The new emperor there is close to me when I was sent away to study in foreign lands. We were both in the same class so we build a great bond of friendship." the emperor told his bodyguard. The two of them were the only people left inside the imperial court. The lady did not say anything but she attentively listens to him as he continues telling her about the invitation.
"After He Lan's wedding, the two of us will embark towards the Ru Empire. Have you been there?" the emperor asked her when he remembered that this girl has spent her life wandering like his brother.
"I have acquainted with the kingdom in the past. Your shadows will not join us?" the lady asked.
"All shadows will be left here. They have to protect He Lan as he will temporarily manage the kingdom when I'm away." he answered as he gestured to the lady to pour him more tea. The lady shakes her head.
"No more tea, you have enough. It will cause your stomach to ache if you'll drink more." the lady calmly explained. How controlling she is! The emperor puts his teacup back to the table and looked at her with amusement in his eyes.
"The journey to the Ru Empire is long. It will take more than a week to arrive in their capital. We will stay for two weeks there before we head back here. He Lan will have to manage the empire for a whole month. It's enough for him to familiarize how to govern an empire. When we get back, let's deal with the Qing Empire." the emperor told the lady while still staring at her serene face.
"How do you plan on dealing them?" the lady asked the emperor curiously.
"The most direct way. Complete annihilation." the emperor declared. His tone is strangely cold and foreign to her.
"That is the easiest way to get rid of an enemy. You don't want them to suffer in torture?" the lady inquired seemingly undisturbed from the emperor's change of tone.
"I still have to acknowledge the fact that it is because of their schemes that created a circumstance to make our paths crossed. I wouldn't know your existence without them. " the emperor responded. His words meant that if the Qing Empire did not want to make trouble to his kingdom, they will probably not meet.
"Though this method is the easiest and direct way to eliminate your enemies, it is also cruel to include the innocents. Are you sure about completely annihilating them, your majesty?" she asked one more time. The emperor laughs at her question and looked at her with seriousness in his eyes.
"Everyone who sits in the throne is cruel. Otherwise, they wouldn't survive inside the palace. You must remember that." he said to the lady. The lady pondered for a little bit before nodding her head in realization.