The carriage indeed belonged to the soldiers ordered by the prince to come get me because they wore green robes and had a wolf sigil attached to their uniforms. There were two men - both sitting on the front of the carriage holding the horse's handle while searching for me, even though they had no idea of what I looked like.
"Mistress, mistress..." Chyou called out to me. "Wait"
"Come on Chyou"
"Who are they mistress?"
"They are soldiers belonging to the crowned prince. I think you should know by now Chyou, I am to be married by the crowned prince" I said to Chyou and as I expected she was shocked and confused.
I led the way and she followed behind I could tell she had a lot of questions but I wasn't in the proper position to answer any of them.
"Who's approaching?" asked one of the soldiers.
I held my head high "It is I, the sole and rightful heir to Tong'an Dynasty. Prince Yae Lin, the crowned prince is expecting me"
The soldiers got down from the carriage and bowed before me quickly, then they opened the carriage and helped me inside. Chyou got in too and quickly we started the journey to Leilani.
The whole journey was to be as discreet as possible - along the way the soldiers told us about the whole plan as manifested by the prince. We were to use the Sand Gate which stretched farther away to the desert rather than the King's Gate at the south-eastern corner of the city or the Warrior Gate located to the due west where the King's army reside because it would have alarmed too much attention and ruined the mission.
Yishen waited for me that whole night and the morning afterwards which stretched farther to the afternoon and the sun shone bright. The route to the desert was hot and humid - I sighed woefully and looked at Chyou who was as tired as I was but somehow she managed a smile. Inside the carriage there was a basket filled with breads and cookies which were delicious and tasty - there were also ten canteens filled with water. The prince knew about the distress we would face along the way hence he somehow tried to make it less painful - although it wasn't.
Chyou wasn't wrong when she once told me that the journey to Leilani would take two days on a horse and somehow I found myself trapped again in the desert for another night. We made a stop in the middle of the desert where I could see nothing beyond the horizon - my eyes were filled with dust and the desert really did a number on me.
"We shall make camp under the starts tonight Your Highness and leave immediately at first light"
"All right"
"If you need anything Your Highness, don't hesitate to ask us"
"I will" I replied charmingly and the soldiers walked a bit far from us where they stretched mats and sat on them making jokes and telling each other stories.
Chyou made us a bed - it wasn't really a bed but somehow just a collection of smooth mats attached together and formed a bed like.
"Come to sleep mistress" she said.
I smiled and joined her, I didn't expect the mats to be so comfy "This is... comfortable" I gasped.
"I didn't expect them to be like this either"
I slept with my eyes glued to the stars which were on top of us, just that particular night they came in numbers and shone even brighter than other days. I asked myself what was the reason for them to align in that matter, or was I just overthinking and everyone was all right. Except it wasn't - poor Lee I thought, he must be going crazy looking for me.
I kept wondering would things have changed if I said goodbye to him, if I stayed with him and actually gave our love a chance. If I gave us another chance to salvation and redemption would things have turned out different - did I rush to take myself to a man I haven't even seen and whom I didn't know whilst at the same time forsaken the man I truly knew and went through hell together, I asked myself but there were no vivid answers. Lee was my rock, my soldier and my means of survival and the feeling of being departed from him felt like a piece of my life was taken away.
As I gazed upon the starts the memories of our moments together came crumbling down on me every time I closed my eyes. Guilty took over my soul and I even had thoughts of going back, the fear of the unknown to where I was going had me doubting my own decisions. A year dropped from my left eye, and then another on my left eyes - when I closed my eyes again this time they fall down between my cheeks and I couldn't control them.
"Mistress? Are you all right?"
"Yes I am fine Chyou, go back to sleep"
"But mistress... you are crying!"
I quickly wiped the tears "No I am not, go to sleep"
"Mistress..."
"Go back to sleep Chyou" I said and Chyou turned her back on me but I could feel that she had lots of questions about me, about where we were going but I didn't have the strength to answer any of them.
The smooth breeze of the night desert was so chilly one could never believe that it was the same desert that was very hot during the day it nearly ripped off our garments. I was lulled back to sleep with the amazing smooth ballad that one of the soldiers played on his saxophone - he was so talented and he owned that instrument like he was born to do that. He played all night...
Came sunrise I woke up feeling exhausted but somehow with hope when the soldiers said we would reach the Sand gate in short while. Chyou tried to make me eat anything but I wasn't hungry however I only drunk water from the canteen to keep myself steady. I was excited about Leilani and on the way Chyou told me her experience when she actually lived in the city.
Of all the markets bigger than ones in Karta to brothels, taverns, gardens and mostly sunshine. Oh sunshine - how I craved for a place which was sunny all throughout the seasons for a girl who came from a place which was deep cold, I was ought to be excited even for simple thing as summer.
"The castle mistress, it's huge and unreal. Some said the huge rocks which built it were carried by giants from the land of the white people" said Chyou.
"White people?"
"Yes Mistress..."
"I've never heard of white people" I chuckled softly at Chyou stories which were full of myths and legends.
"There are white people mistress"
"Chyou... that's a myth. However I can't wait to see it"
"I never thought a day would come that I, Chyou will enter the castle of the great King Yushen. They say the King breathes fire and eats wild rice and chicken"
"Wild rice?"
"Yes Mistress, they say that's where he gets his power. When he went to the battle against the wall of the unknown, he forgot to take his wild rice that's why he was struck down"
"Oh Chyou..." I said and chuckled for even though she was a bit older than me still Chyou's heart and mind was that of a young girl.
Prince Yishen was right to request the passage through the sand gates for there was no one - not even a single soul and we approached the gates of the city without colliding into anyone. The soldiers showed their badges and a sign which showed that they belonged to the King's inner circle, and without a check up we entered inside the city and moved along - I peeped outside to see the beauty of Leilani but there was none, yet.
But still my heart throbbed just at the thought that I had finally made it to Leilani after what felt like an impossible journey, right then and there I knew I made Yae Lin proud for she was finally a step closer to defeating Qianlong and take over her kingdom. Prince Yishen promised that he would help me take over the kingdom, although I wasn't in no rush. I wasn't going to rush my soon to be husband to fight in wars whilst we had the rest of our lives to get closer and find a hidden intimacy between us.
I almost asked Chyou how the prince looked like but I figured she never saw him, of course no one saw him because he was all mine. As the carriage rode slowly we started to get closer to the streets of Leilani and from a far we encountered it's citizens. My heart skipped a bit, finally I was in the land that I would rule soon as their Queen.