POV: LIE XIE- LORD OF THE CRANNIES
LOCATION: THE CRANNIES
TIME: EARLY MORNING AFTER THE FEAST
After the feast at the palace and Ming's disrespectful entrance , you can not help yelling in horror as Ming and Su Min shows you the bloody banner of the men they killed.
"Song?" You cry as you stare at the black clear ink at the banner
"You killed Hanfu Song's men?"
Great! Just fucking great!! As if the man needed any more reason to hate me or the freaking generals needed any more reason to want me dead
"I take it you both are not on good terms?"
Shang asks
"From what I know, that will be putting it mildly." Lady Su replies
"But if they are not friendly with each other then why were his men so cocky when they were here?"
I turn to Ming with suppressed fury.
"Is that really what you should be asking right now?"
"Apologies my prince." She says with a slight bow
"We need to consider what to tell Hanfu Song and possibly He Jin when they come for their dead men and the women they were chasing ." You explain
"Of course there is still the option of whether we should even tell them or not"
Your last words made your advisors to look at each other.
"You plan to hide the dead bodies from them?" Su Min cries
"Then how do plan to explain the 23 women in the crannies?"
"Easy." Ming replies
"We hide the women as well."
"And what if he insists on searching?" Su Min quries
"He would ask to search the personal property of the prince?" Shang counters in a tone dripping with sarcasm
"I do not think so"
Su Min turns to you.
"You are not really considering this are you?"
"Well you have to admit that they sound quite convincing." You reply slowly
"My prince, do you know what it means if you lie to Hanfu Song and he discovers the truth later on?" She asks you
"It would mean that you not only stole from him but also dishonored him by lieing to his face."
"Then what else should I do?" You yell
"Show him the dead bodies so that he can have the reason he needs to bring an army here?"
"You can appeal to the emperor." She suggests
"Surely he would not let his son be attacked by his general."
"My father would not be able to protect me Su Min." You reply darkly
"Especially since it was here the event happened"
"So should I then dispose of the bodies?" You hear a ting of resignation in her voice.
"No." You reply firmly
"Prepare the body for burial and wait for my order."
"Yes my prince." She then bows and leaves.
"I will go tell Xu Chu to ready the men." Shang says as he stands up
"We will be needing them in case our ..... 'guests' are not in a good mood."
He then bows to you and leaves
"Is there something you wish to tell me?" You ask Su Min who was the only one left.
"Should I apologize?" She asks casually
"For getting us all involved into all this trouble simply because I was not about to take an insult from an entitled brat."
Even though she tries to make light of the issue you can see the depth of seriousness in her eyes.
"Manager Ming, what is the use of working directly under the second prince of the entire china if you can not bury any fool who dares to insult you?" You reply with a gentle smile
This statement makes surprise to flash across her face but she expertly hides it.
"So you are not upset by the trouble I got you into?"
Your voice turns dark
"I do not tolerate disrespect to my dignity Ming." You say in a voice that could melt roses
"And since you are working for me neither should you. Do you understand?"
Her lips curved slightly and she Kow-tows
"Yes my prince."
"Good." You answer
"Now get me some of those women who fled here. I want to know who they are and why they are here."
She bows to you and leaves
As soon as she leaves, the dragon on the back of your hand begins to itch and you take out the red letter to read
Gotten yourself in trouble again professor? Well I must say that I did not expect you to be able to last two days without causing it. However what I certainly did not expect from you is the rather cowardly way you are choosing to handle this matter.
Is this how the future emperor of the Han dynasty will behave towards those whom he sees as his enemies? Will he be a man who will shine best on plush couches in times of peace or a man who will shine with steel and force when the sky itself turns red?
Is he a man who people will learn to use and ignore or a man whom they will learn to fear and obey?
MISSION: Give me an answer
REWARD: Book of subordinates and brand new subordinates.
As always if you fail this mission professor, I will make sure that you die a painful death and I will personally see to it that you suffer far much more in the afterlife.
Remember professor,in the winter, words are winds because you can not eat them nor burn them to keep warm. The years ahead will not be peaceful and only the man with a strong heart in his chest and a strong army at his back will survive and thrive. Become a lion now so that you can become a dragon later on.
You wanted to save the Han dynasty did you not? Well this is your first step.
GOOD LUCK PROFESSOR
You take a deep breath after reading the letter as the seriousness of the situation comes bouncing back to you like a tidal wave. You know what Liu Su wants you to do but some part of you hesitates as you know full well what the consequences of angering He Jin or Hanfun Song could be.
Is it really worth sacrificing the lives of people in the crannies just to gain fame as a lion?
Dose the bloodshed really need to start now?
Should she not at .....
CLAP CLAP
You turn to the entrance of your tent.
"Enter." You command
A beautiful but roughly dressed woman whom you assume to be in her early or middle thirties, walks in to you with supreme confidence.
"You sent for me my lord?" She says in a voice as smooth as fresh wine.
"Sit down." You order and she complies with practiced elegance
"What is your name?"
"My name is Yin Bosi my lord." She replies elegantly
"Though most people call me madame Yin"
"Madame?" You ask with raised eyebrows
"Are you and your girls geji by any means?"
"You are correct my lord."
"Then why come here?"
"We were in need of a new place to offer our services"
"With twenty men chasing you?"
"Let us just say our last employer and us did not part on very good terms."
From all your research into Chinese history one thing you know for certain is that in ancient china geji was the euphemism for courtesan and this time apart from the elegance in her voice, you also notice the causality that she seems to overly emphasize. This quickly tells you that not only is she not telling you everything but also that this issues of her former employer is not up for discussion.
Why is that? You wonder
"Were you women owned by him?" You harzad a guess
Her facial expression quickly changes from the elegant smile into something that is completely cold and lifeless.
"We are geji young lord." She repeats in a voice that could freeze an ocean
"We are desired by all yet owned by none."
"And yet you were pursued by men who wished to drag you back to their master as though you some mere property?" You counter
"How did that come about?"
She keeps quiet for some time and you clearly see that she is reluctant to talk.
"You know I once heard that after the emperor and He Jin, Hanfu Song is the third most powerful man in the army. Are you aware of this?" You slyly ask and she nods
"Excellent. Now do you know the amount of power a man like that possess? (She does not reply) Tell me madame Yin,why under the heavens should I take you in and risk angering such a man?"
She lets out a long breath and when she looks at you again the elegance in her eyes becomes replaced by a resignation and a hint of desperation.
"We had a red contract with him to serve his pleasure for two years." She says sadly
"And? Did you not complete the contract?"
"We completed it all right" She replies warily
"But the general wanted to extend it and when we did not agree, he decided to show us what happens to people who disrespect him."
"What did he do?" You ask casually
She simply pokes her head out of the tent and yells.
"Bring her in!"
In response two women dressed in similar clothing gently drags in a young girl who can not be older than twenty. The look in your eyes can only be described as dead and the paleness of her face and body tells you that there was not much life left in her. Out of curiosity, you examine her skin and her breath and you find that life is clinging on to her by a very delicate thread. This scene makes something stirr deep within your heart but you quickly force it back down.
"He did this?" You manage to ask casually
She nods
"I have no right nor privilege to ask you to fight our battles for us young lord." She says with sincerity
"However I can promise you on the honor of the daughters of the red lotus that should you choose to be of aid to us, we will make sure to repay with equal measure and will serve in any and all capacity you wish us to. After all (the two women joined in) THE RED LOTUS NEVER LIE, THE RED LOTUS ALWAYS SEES.
You watch the women's retreating back as your shrewd mind begins to calculate how best to utilize the female manpower you had just received when suddenly the door opens and Shang walks in.
"Apologies for disturbing you my prince but....."
"He is here isn't he?" You interrupt
Shang slowly nods his head
"How big an army did he bring?"
"Anything from destruction to annihilation"
"And all the men are ready?"
"Every single one is armed and in formation."
"Perfect." Your voice swiftly turns dark
"Follow me Shang. Lt us give a soldier something to fear."
You want fear you accursed bitch, I will give you FEAR.