"Jingyuan mei-mei!"
As Wang Jingyuan appeared in the corridor of the crown prince's manor, Yan Qiuyun waved her over excitedly. "I have not seen you in a while. What have you been up to?"
"Well…" Wang Jingyuan did not know if it was a good idea to tell the Crown Princess about her involvement with Xiao Moxian. Perhaps not. "I caught a cold and was sick for a while. But now I'm all better."
"I'm glad to hear that. It was getting quite boring without you." Yan Qiuyun hefted her spear in her hand. "Do you want to do a couple of practice rounds? I really need to exercise these muscles."
The courtyard was soon filled with metallic clangs and ringing as sword and spear clashed again and again. Because the point was to practice, both young women were running through their respective forms instead of fighting to win in the shortest amount of time. Just as they were nearing the end of their round, a voice cut through the noise:
