Han Bingwen ruled the Han dynasty for nine years.
"Nine years long due the marriage age," quipped the Empress Dowager, shaking her head ruefully.
They were in the Dining Hall, the Empress Dowager at the head chair and her son at her right. The table was entirely empty besides them. The hall was exquisitely decorated, like most of the palace, and above them was a beautiful chandelier. It was beautiful but cold.
Han Bingwen poured some more tea for his mother. This was not the first time she mentioned about his marriage and he doubted it would be the last.
The Empress Dowager nodded at him before taking a careful sip from her cup. She smacked her lips as she did so.
The ruler of Han dynasty watched her with disinterest. That lip smack always meant that she had something important to say and the best thing to do right now was to remain silent.
"A-Jun," she spoke, her voice low but demanding attention. "I have a girl in mind."
It took him a moment or two to fully register the words.
"What?!" exclaimed the King. "Surely you are not serious, mother?"
The Empress Dowager raised a delicate brow as if to say 'when have I ever not been serious'. This now incensed the King.
Raising from his chair, he resisted the urge to point his finger at her for fear of what she could do. Instead he placed his hands roughly on the table and spoke as calm and authoritative as possible.
"I do not wish to marry anyone." The 'else' was implied but not said. It would do no good to reveal his secret right now. Or ever. "I believe I have said so before, mother."
His mother bristled at the tone. Bingwen was a nice and calm child; that was why he was made King. But he did get riled up about the prospect of marriage.
Frowning at her unruly child, she tried again, "For eight years you have been refusing my requests." The King scoffed at the word 'requests'. Nothing about the insistent pushing and demands screamed requests.
"Now it is the ninth year. I wish that you would think more about this. The townsfolk would talk if their King still has not married, even after this auspicious year."
The Empress Dowager would often mention that. Auspicious year. Every ninth year was auspicious, every ninth hour was auspicious, every ninth person was auspicious. Everything with nine or related to nine was auspicious. But when asked why, she would only titter behind her fan mysteriously.
Han Bingwen had long since given up trying to understand his mother. But he knew that once she mentioned the word 'auspicious', he could not say no.
"Good boy," she smiled when she saw his head bowed low in reluctant acceptance.
He winced after hearing her words, bracing for the final blow.
"Lucky you, I already have your manservant pack your clothes. You are to spend three nights with the girl of my choice." Saying this, the Empress Dowager hid her smirk with Fan #250 as she watched her son's face full of horror.
***
Wei Piying was a beautiful woman.
Long, silky hair, loosely held up with an ornament of pure gold and azure that showed a status of royalty, cascaded down to her waist. Her face was neatly and carefully made up with powder and red lipstick that matched with her dark pink clothes.
Unfortunately that was where all her good points ended.
As soon as he reached the mansion's gates, the woman came running towards him and took his arm. Clinging on to it, she pouted.
"Gege, why were you late? You made your consort wait for so-o long."
Han Bingwen tried to shrug her hand off, but to no avail. What did she mean by 'consort'? This was just a trial and she was not even being courted yet. Not that she will be anytime soon. And why call him so familiarly? Even though his mother knew her, they were complete strangers.
He gave her a stiff smile. "I apologize to my lateness."
"Humphh." The spoilt girl finally removed herself from his elbow to cross her hands over her chest. Her pout grew even bigger. Did she think it made her look cute? She was truly living among delusions. After all, no one was cuter than A-Ming.
A-Ming...she truly was a gem. The rarest and most exquisite of gems that no gem could even come close to. And this woman thought that she was the best. Han Bingwen wanted to humph out loud himself.
Wei Piying clearly did not hear his thoughts, for she once again grasped his arm and pulled him towards her chambers. Wait, her chambers?!
"Where are you taking me?" He asked, as calm as he could be as a man in this type of situation. "Did Noble Wei not say that I will have my own chamber?"
The King hoped that by bringing up her father, the spoilt girl would recede to her chambers and leave him behind. Of course that did not happen.
"Don't be silly," chided the wench. "Father obviously knows that newlyweds share a bed together." Seeing his look of incredulity, she amended. "We are not married yet of course, but we are similar to newlyweds. It is a pity we cannot consummate yet." At this she batted her eyelashes.
Han Bingwen shuddered internally. Did the vixen really think she looked like a goddess?
Outwardly, however, he lied politely, "A pity indeed," before, with great hesitation, following her to her bedroom. It did no good to argue with a person who lived in fantasies that will never come true, so the only thing he could do was to tolerate her whims. He could always make an excuse about why the marriage failed to work.
Little did he know that all his lifelong patience would run out just because of one very annoying and very clingy and very delusional vixen.
***
"I cannot believe you woke Lady Jia by hanging by her window! What did you think you were? A Fei Nián [1]?"
Han Bingwen hung his head low, all while hiding a smile. His A-Ming was always so cute when she scolded him. The only reason why he was not saying so to her was to save her thin face. But then again, her blush when he teased her was also cute.
"-and why were you even by her window in the middle of the night?"
The King sobered at her question. His mind went back to a shichen ago when he was preparing to go to bed.
He had been forced to go to Wei Piying's chambers but thankfully the king sized bed left room between them. At least it would have had the vixen not come closer and bring his hands around her waist.
"How do you like it? Is my waist not lithe?" Purred the she-demon. Bingwen had bitten back his grimace.
It had taken ultimately slightly more than an incense stick of time for her to fall asleep. The King had carefully moved her hand from where it was grasping his chest, and had gotten out of the bed. It took him some maneuvering, but he managed to swing down the mansion.
A-Ming stared at him when he finished recounting the event. She had been frowning since the beginning of the tale and now it was a huge scowl. Han Bingwen nearly shivered from the heat.
"That vixen! How dare she?" But then her fiery demeanor diminished. "Are you- why did you not say that the Empress Dowager was forcing you? Did you not trust me?"
"Of course not, baobei!" Exclaimed the King. How could he have messed up so much that his dear A-Ming thought that he did not trust her? "I just- I just thought that I could handle things by myself."
Tentatively, he glanced up from where he was bowing his head. He expected A-Ming to look angry or worse, sad, but she seemed exasperated.
"Sometimes I wonder how you are a King."
"I wish I were not one," he sighed. This was a thought he often had and it had increased after his mother forced him to be together with the vixen. He never mentioned it to anyone because how could they understand. They would more than likely think him ungrateful and greedy.
"Bring your bags."
"What?" He asked, uncomprehending.
A-Ming ignored him, choosing instead to pull out all the dresses she owned, some odd foods and snacks, and some of her favored jewelry, and placed them inside a bag she produced. Then, she took her coin pouch and placed it at her waist.
"We are going." She said. Han Bingwen nearly smiled at her assertiveness. But what did she mean by-
"To the palace?" He asked, dubiously. It was not as if his mother would allow a courtesan to enter the abode.
"No. We are going to run away."
End of the Runaway King arc
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[1] A Fei Nián is a fictional demon (made by me) which is a cross between a fairy and a flying squirrel. It looks like a fairy but has the wings of a flying squirrel.
Another bit of information:
The name Shi 石 means "stone" and Ming 明 means "clear.
Question:
Have you ever run away from home? Why did you do that?