Novel The Great Game - The Young Master (Ch.308) [finished]

Strep throat, but I was shivering from a fever before that.

 

Well, the cure for any illness is of course sleep. Just rest and you gonna be fine and dandy in no time.

 

Thank you to Tuan Do for your generous patronage!

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“It appears that you are not the better man.”
--Colonel William Tavington, 'The Patriot' (2000)

Chapter 206 - Mother and son

Prince Chu Feng’s handsome face was twisted in a visage of fury as he stomped towards his palace. His servants kept their eyes low and their backs bowed, hoping to turn invisible as he walked past.


The ordinary folk of Chu knew that their prince was formidable and inspiring from the tales of his martial exploits, but those who serve him knew that he was impetuous and cruel. Neither his palace servants nor military subordinates would dare to give contrary opinion to the prince. They can only keep their complaints to themselves, who are they when compared to the Prince of Chu? After all, he might even be their next monarch.


Yet, there was a strange wind in the air. Rumours were abuzz about how the wastrel Prince Chu Xiong was actually rising in the mornings and going to bed early. And shockingly, unaccompanied and whilst sober! The so-called ‘Deflowering Prince’, notorious for his fondness of women, flashy clothes and copious amounts of alcohol; was so moved by the King of Chu’s illness that he had repented and turned a new leaf!


In contrast, stories begin surfacing about the methods Chu Feng had won his military merits. He had ignored the cautious advice of his officers and berated them for perceived cowardice. He was generous after a victory by rewarding them with feasts and gifts, but did not give awards or promotions because he wanted the glory to be attributed to himself only.


Or so the stories go.


Chu Feng knew it was all a big pile of steaming horse manure, but simple stories like these spread like wildfire and the common folk delight in such tales. It was the equivalent of modern celebrity gossip and tabloid news. Ordinary people loved stories of filial piety and penitence, and so Chu Xiong was elevated. Vicious tongues enjoyed knocking down lofty characters, thus Chu Feng was the exalted man of the Chu kingdom.


This was why Chu Feng currently had all the emotions of a smouldering volcano. The way the people looked at him had changed. There were more fear than respect. Ordinarily it would not have bothered him much, perhaps Chu Feng might have even enjoyed it.


It was the fact that he knew it was brought around by his brother’s machinations that annoyed him. No, that was not accurate. He was truly irked, because he knew for sure that his sissy brother could not have possibly orchestrated such character assassination by himself.


No, it must be his fault. That damnable Huang Ming, the smooth-talker from Wu.


Prince Chu Feng did not believe in ‘stories’. How could that dandy looking scholar possibly defeat the fearsome Ran Wei on the battlefield? It was surely the work of Wu propaganda so salvage some face after that disastrous war.


The prince was such in a funk that he failed to notice that there was someone else in his residence.


“Wipe that scowl off your face, my son. You are scaring the help,” a woman drawled.


“Mother!” the prince exclaimed and hastily made his obeisance.


Concubine Yang was in her thirties, but her flawless skin, willow waist and bountiful chest made her appear to be still in her mid-twenties. Her sensual beauty was the reason for the King of Chu’s favour. She was the first of his concubines, just one step below the Queen of Chu.


Just one step, but to Concubine Yang it was like the difference between heaven in hell. She risked her life numerous times to get where she was, and managed to raise her son safely. Now the only thing left to do is to secure her son on the throne.


“What is befouling your thoughts so? Is it about your brother?” she asked.


“The lies are getting intolerable, mother! He has done nothing in his entire life, and just because he is drinking and whoring less, he is now suddenly the paragon of virtue!” Chu Feng vented.


Concubine Yang slammed the table. “Mind your tongue!” she said angrily. “You are a prince, act like one! How many times have I told you that you need to cultivate a calm, civilized image? I let you indulge in your military adventures to gain fame, but you continue to neglect the domestic side of things!”


“A man should know riding, shooting and swords. I want to lead tens of thousands of men into battle, not to spend my youth buried in dusty scrolls,” the prince scoffed.


“If you continue to behave like this, you would be lucky to have your guards to follow you, let alone your dream of leading ten thousand men!” Concubine Yang berated, her beauteous face now red with fury.


Stunned by her anger, the prince could only hang his head contritely.


Concubine Yang deliberately let the uncomfortable silence stew for a few minutes.


“Pour me some tea,” she sniffed.


Chu Feng all but leapt to do so. The sight of her son’s thick and powerful fingers gently lifting the exquisite teapot to fill her cup pleased her: it was akin to seeing a powerful animal like a leopard being domesticated to obey one’s orders.


The tea was already cold by this point, but Concubine Yang smiled faintly in bliss. The effect was immediate, the slumped shoulders of Chu Feng rose slightly with relief.


“I do not begrudge you of your manly dreams, but you must be able to rule before you can command,” Concubine Yang sighed. “You neglected my advice, and thereby allowed your waste of a brother to crept in.”


“What? Has royal father said anything?” Chu Feng asked in alarm.


Concubine Yang’s luscious lips curled in a sneer. “You spend your days in the barracks, drilling and duelling to show off your martial skills for god knows what reason. You do not even know that lately the queen have been visiting him more often lately, and I find my own opportunities becoming fewer.”


“Has things devolved so? Should I seek an audience with my royal father?”


Concubine Yang brushed off his concerns with a flick of her wrist.


“It is too late for that now. Your brother was quicker than you in this step, to do so now is to invite cynicism.”


“Then… what should we do?” Chu Feng asked, his brows knitted with worry.


“Get in touch with your Wei friends. We may need their help sooner than expected,” Concubine Yang said grimly.


Chu Feng’s eyes widened, half in trepidation, half in anticipation.


“You mean…”


She held up a hand to forestall him. “The queen and Chu Xiong are making up lies to get their way, that does not mean we cannot do the same.”


“I see,” Chu Feng replied, his initial exhilaration now deflated. ‘More tricks… why not just take what we want?’ he thought miserably.


As if reading her son’s mind, Concubine Yang then said, “Make sure your friends come absolutely prepared to do what is necessary if needed.”


She continued in a grim tone:


“You will be king, even if we have to take the throne by force.”

Filled with ambition,
Willing to risk perdition.​

 

RIP: Kenny Chan, Anthony Bourdain, John 'Totalbiscuit' Bain.

---

“I used to be an adventurer like you, but then I took an arrow in the knee.”
--The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Chapter 207 - Man and woman

“This is a war bow, not a hunting bow,” General Yin said sternly.


He was standing a few steps away from a tense Princess Wu Liying. She was dressed in a manly fashion, her long hair tied in a pony tail. In her hands was a war bow almost dwarfed her frame, with an arrow loosely nocked.


“If I am going to learn something, then I should learn everything about it,” the princess replied confidently. She was not daunted by the bow, after all she was already somewhat proficient in archery. Though the war bow was much bigger and heavier, it did not seem all that different than the hunting bows that she had used in the past.


“Where did you even get this?” the general wondered aloud, his eyes looking accusingly at the princess’s minders and bodyguards. They kept their eyes low and avoided meeting the general’s look.


Princess Wu Liying herself blithely ignored the question. “What should I do first?” she asked instead.


“Breathe,” General Yin Yanzhao murmured.


“Shouldn’t I raise the bow and aim first?” the princess demanded.


General Yin grinned, a touch of mischief that shed years off his weary eyes.


“Sure,” he said. “Aim at the middle target board. Take your time. Do not worry about hitting the target, focus on getting the feel of the draw. Wait for my order before release.”


Princess Wu Liying’s pretty forehead creased. She was sure the general was pulling a prank on her, but nevertheless she obliged him.


“Nock,” the general said softly.


The princess straightened her shoulders and raised her war bow. Determined not to lose face, she confirmed that her fingers were holding the arrow and bow-string correctly. Satisfied at her preparations, she glanced back at the general and nodded.


“Draw,” the general ordered next.


Wu Liying took a deep breath, exhaled and pulled the arrow and bowstring back. Her eyes squinted towards the target boards in the distance, and adjusted her aim accordingly towards the middle one.


Then she waited.


And waited.


And waited.


It felt like forever as her taut muscles felt the opposing force from the flexing bow. The animal sinew bowstring was seemingly biting through the glove into her hand. Her fingers began to tremble from the effort, and the ache soon travelled up her wrist into her arm, past her elbow and magnified the pressure she was feeling on her shoulder. Every slight shiver from her finger tips caused a grating and stabbing sensation in her body.


Try as she might, her bow arm shook from the strain. Tears began to squeeze from her eyes. It was not just due to physical hurt, but also the shame of her weakness being displayed so openly.


“Loose!”


The command came almost too late for her. The tears stung her eyes and the pain made her threw aside all her previous determination. She opened her fingers and the arrow shot out, the twang of the bowstring echoing the relief that she felt as the immense pressure disappeared from her shoulder.


By this point she did not even care where the arrow had landed. Nor did she hear the shriek of panic from the side.


From the first order to the arrow’s release, only half a minute had passed. Yet the princess was already perspiring heavily, the sweat mingling with the tears on her face. The last remnants of her pride and dignity prevented her from wiping it away.


It also prevented her from looking at the sad arrow that had landed precariously near one of her maids. It was nowhere near the target board.


“Harder than you think?” the general asked. “Most archers can only hold their stance for a few seconds, which is why they are constantly drilled to aim and let loose as quickly as possible.”


“You did it on purpose,” the princess said, her puffy eyes glaring accusingly at him. Only by leaning into her war bow like a walking stick kept her upright on her swaying legs.


He smiled, an admittance of his guilt. “It was to demonstrate the difference in power required for war. You are experienced in hunting animals, but killing a fellow man is a different beast all together. An animal has claws, fangs and a thick hide, but men have steel weapons, shields and armour.”


General Yin reached out and held the princess’s shaky hands. The observers around them drew a deep breath as he gently opened her stiff fingers and prised the war bow away from her shaky hands.


The princess’s flushed expression turned redder, but she did not pull away. She allowed the contact to last as long as it did, and resisted the temptation to rub her fingers when he finally took the bow away.


“This is not a weapon you can use with just sheer willpower. You need years and years of harsh physical training to use this,” he said. He then splayed his hand near her face, so that she could see the lines and thick callous on his palm.


She did not recoil from the close-up but instead she took in every line, crease, scar, bump and vein of the weathered appendage.


“See this? This is the price one would need to pay,” he said.


But the princess was distracted. He had positioned his open hand so that she could look through between his fingers and see his face.


“Now, do you really want hands like these?” he asked softly.


Startled out of her trance, the princess hastily looked away.


The general interpreted it to be the negative, thus he said, “You can carry on practising archery for hunting, but not with this.”


Unable to meet his gaze, the princess could only nod and keep her head low.


“Good,” the general laughed. “If the king finds so much as a blister on you, there would be a hell to pay. I would not want to be one responsible for ruining your marriage prospects!”


“What marriage prospects? Hmphh!” Princess Wu Liying scowled in annoyance.


“But I have heard that the king had approached Huang Ming with such an offer,” the general teased.


“Nonsense!” the princess sputtered. “Nothing of the sort, it’s all rumours and pure slander!”


“Oh? Are you that unwilling? But Huang Ming is a young man with a boundless future. He is after all your Grand Tutor, and now entrusted with a great responsibility in Chu.”


“Some tutor!” the princess snorted. “Other than some letters about nonsensical, philosophical topics, he has yet to teach me anything useful.”


Then, as if realizing what she had said, she hastily added, “I had asked him for advice on how to change the education system in our kingdom, but all he gave me were boring and pedantic ideas.”


The princess blushed, wondering if she sounded like a maiden being caught out.


“A-anyways, he is already engaged. Hm, enough about that rascal! This princess will retire now,” she said with some shred of royal dignity. Without waiting for the general’s reply, the princess flipped her ponytail as she turned away.


Her maids and bodyguards quickly sprang into action to fuss about her as they left the training grounds, leaving the general chuckling bemusedly.


Once he was alone, the good-natured look gave way to a cold and calculating expression.


“Such youth,” he said cynically.


He snapped his fingers, and a figure clad in black suddenly appeared from the shadows.


“Monitor the princess. I want to know what are in Huang Ming’s letters,” he said.


“Understood!”


“Mm. Any other news?” the general asked.


“Huang Ming is supporting Prince Chu Xiong against Prince Chu Feng. Huang Lang is expecting a child soon. General Zhao Tong is drilling and training his troops relentlessly: they often march for days at end.”


General Yin smiled at the notable exception in the summary.


“Still no sign of Zhao Sunli?” he asked conversationally.


His subordinate was glad for his entirely black clothes, for it hid the sweat that was rapidly gathering on his back.


“At last sighting, she was still in General Zhao Tong’s camp, but General Zhao continuously ignored our messengers for her,” he answered.


General Yin exhaled derisively. “Keep doing it, for appearances sake. It gives us the excuse to spy on his troops. What about General Huang Zheng?”


“There have been increased traffic of caravans to and from Tigertrap Fort lately, it seems General Huang Zheng is stockpiling supplies,” the subordinate reported.


Yin Yanzhao frowned. “What sort of supplies?”


“Materials for making arrows, mostly wood and glue. Dried foodstuffs and wine for the troops, fodder for the horses, and other construction materials. Nothing unusual, though the quantities do seem larger than usual. We have yet to get any of our agents into the fort itself.”


“He is in command of our border’s front. Maybe he was wary after what had happened to Huang Ming in Beihai. Rightfully so,” the general mused. “And what of Huang Ke?”


“It seems that he is currently being punished for some infraction. Maybe it is because he had brought his wife to the fort.”


“The Great General indeed, not even relaxing the military rules for his own son,” Yin Yanzhao commended sarcastically. “In what way is Huang Ke being punished? Is his pay being docked?”


He could see his minion’s hesitation.


“Well?” Yin Yanzhao demanded.


“He is on latrine duty, sir.”


“What?”


“He’s gathering shit everyday.”

The spider nimbly weaves,
But some things, it is unable to perceive.​

 

What a week. First, my nephews caught HMFD and needed to be hospitalized. Then my computer died and I had to spend my free time taking it apart to find the culprit (a bad secondary SSD). Ugh.

----

“You two are such a disappointing pair! I prayed so hard for you both.”
--Sister Mary Stigmata, ‘The Blues Brothers’

Chapter 208 - Teacher and student

Uncharacteristically, Prince Chu Xiong was awake long before the crack of the dawn.


“Get the carriage ready!” he commanded after a hastily washing his face with cold water.


“Your highness is not going to wait for the mentor?” one of his maids asked.


“No, we are going to him this morning,” the prince said.


His attendants were surprised but not overly shocked: for many days now their young prince had woken earlier and earlier to eagerly await the arrival of Tutor Huang Ming for his lessons.


At first the prince was as reluctant as any child in his first day of school, but Huang Ming’s straightforward talk and sense of humour soon won him over. He was not like the doddering old men who would drone on and on quoting the ancient sages. Instead he would use funny anecdotes and sharp criticism to emphasize his teachings.


“Shouldn’t you be teaching the classics?” the prince had asked.


“I want you to think for yourself, not to be a paragon of virtue,” Huang Ming said. Then he added sarcastically: “Besides, it’s too late for you, Mr ‘Deflowering Prince’.”


The prince flushed. Since the time he had accepted that he would be struggling for the throne, the prince had indeed reined in his worldly desires. As if stung by the reminder of his sordid past, he willingly accepted Huang Ming’s demands, including the physical exercises he had him do.


One day, Huang Ming had turned up with a sack of rice on his shoulders.


“Here. Lift this every day,” he said as he set the heavy sack on the ground.


The prince stared at it in disbelief. He was already stunned that the seemingly dandy-looking Huang Ming could have carried it with ease, but for the prince who had not lifted anything heavier than a bottle of wine it seemed like a Herculean task.


“And I mean the whole sack at once. Not by scooping out the rice handfuls at a time,” Huang Ming added as an afterthought.


“Whatever for?” the prince balked, peeved that the thought of cheating did not even occur to the him. To the prince, even the cheat sounded tedious. The fact that Huang Ming had thought of such of it only showed how twisted he was.


“You lack the strength to even truss a chicken. Look at you, you look like more like a blooming young maiden of marrying age, instead of a rising prince of the kingdom,” Huang Ming said while gesturing at the prince from head to toe.


“If you have a fetish for muscle, you should have joined with my brother,” Chu Xiong seethed.


Huang Ming waved off the discontent emanating from the prince.


“Give it a try,” he urged.


The scrawny prince first tried to pull up the sack of rice, but he truly lacked the strength to do so. Forget about hauling it up, he could not even push or tug the sack from its spot on the ground.


Frustrated, he gave it a kick but only barely made a dent in the bag.


“I don’t see the point of this,” he complained.


“You sit in the palace, eat, drink and sleep. It is about time you learn the effort needed for others to provide such necessities to you,” Huang Ming intoned gravely. “Have you ever spared a thought where the food on your table comes from? What if you were in a situation where you had to survive on your own, can you even pull a bow and hunt?”


“Then you should teach me the bow and arrow, not to lift this,” the prince said.


“Do you even have the strength to pull a bow?” Huang Ming asked skeptically.


The prince boiled at the veiled insult, but he dared not contradict him in case he was really asked to demonstrate it. Thus he accepted the challenge, and began to train his body as well after the morning lectures.


One might think then that his eagerness today was to show the results of his training. However, the prince was in a rush for a different, more urgent reason.


“What are you doing here so early?” Huang Ming asked when the prince unceremoniously barged into his residence and interrupted his breakfast.


Exasperated, the prince joined him at the table, eyeing at the strange dishes warily.


“My brother has submitted a memorial for a visit to the Bright Filial Piety Temple to pray for our royal father’s health,” he said as he resisted the rumblings of his own stomach. He had rushed over without eating his own breakfast.


Huang Ming picked up a dainty steamed piece of shrimp wrapped in thin paper made of flour with his chopsticks and ate it.


“This is no time to be eating!” the prince exclaimed.


“When else would I eat breakfast if not in the mornings?” Huang Ming asked seriously. “So he is following your lead to act like a son in grief, why so worried?”


“He is not going alone, he wants me to go with him.”


Huang Ming continued to eat, this time a small dumping filled with ground pork and scallions.


“Then go. You two can compete at who can cry louder and pray harder at the temple,” he said as he munched on it.


The prince was so agitated that he did not mind the breach of etiquette.


“What if he tries to harm me there? You must come with me,” he said.


“I don’t want to go to a temple to be preached at,” Huang Ming said half-heartedly,


“Can you please take this seriously? This is obviously a trap set up by my brother!”


Huang Ming’s chopsticks rose to pick up another morsel.


“Stop eating!” Prince Chu Xiong cried out and slapped the table angrily.


“Hey, don’t disrespect my food. I made these with my own hands,” Huang Ming admonished.


Despite himself, Chu Xiong was astonished. “What? You cooked this?” he demanded, staring at the delicate breakfast spread.


“I got sick of your kingdom’s cuisine,” Huang Ming said blandly. I just wanted to do something different for a change of pace. There was something cathartic about cooking familiar food from his childhood.


“Help yourself,” he offered.


The prince was tempted, but then shook himself to avoid being steered away from his concern.


“Do not change the subject! I want you to come with me to the temple,” he repeated with a glare.


“Fine, fine, I’ll protect you from being assaulted by bald-headed monks at the temple.”


Chu Xiong’s eyes goggled. “Haven’t you heard of the famous Bright Filial Piety Temple?” he asked incredulously.


“Should I?” Huang Ming replied, vaguely having an inkling.


“There are no monks there,” the prince informed him. “The temple is famous for its beautiful nuns. They have sworn to a life of asceticism, and have joined the temple to avoid contact with their secular pasts.”


“Ah,” Huang Ming vocalized. No wonder I felt I have heard of it before, must be the original’s perverted dream to visit it.


He smiled.


“Well, that should be interesting.”

A visit to the temple,
But things are not so simple.​

 

“Help me, Mr. Spade. I need help so badly.”
--Brigid O'Shaughnessy, ‘The Maltese Falcon’

Chapter 209 - Typical

On what was decided to be a auspicious day, the two royal princes Chu Feng and Chu Xiong set out together to the Bright Filial Piety Temple. The two brothers were coldly civil to each other during the journey, only exchanging the barest of words during meal times when they were in the public eye. At all other times, the two rode separately, each surrounded by their respective retinue of guards and attendants.


Chu Feng wanted nothing more than to wrap his thick fingers around the scrawny neck of his brother and snap it off like a twig, but he was mindful of the warnings given by his mother. Besides, he was still recovering from his recent exertions.


“Do not take any outward action against Chu Xiong,” Concubine Yang had told him.


“Why not? Is this not the reason you had him come along in this trip?”


“All eyes will be on you. Should anything untoward happen to him, the world will blame you for it,” Concubine Yang explained. Her eyes then narrowed. “If that strategist of his, whatisname…”


“Huang Ming,” her son supplied.


“Yes, if that Huang Ming is as they say, he could very well engineer an incident and pin it on you.”


“So why should we be passive? We should act! If Chu Xiong is dead, all the better. I will be the only choice for a heir and father would not have a choice,” the prince scoffed.


Concubine Yang resisted the urge to slap her son. “The very point of this trip is for you to build a pious reputation. Who would dare to serve you if you have murdered your own brother? You will drive away talented people from helping you in the future.”


Chu Feng sneered. “They are just shabby scholars who bury their noses in books all day. Throw enough rewards at them and they will come running.”


“Do you want to surround yourself with sycophants and flatterers who would destroy your inheritance thereafter?” Concubine Yang asked exasperatedly. “You disdain the scholars and sages, but they will be the ones helping you govern the country after you have taken the throne. Just look at your father: he is ill but the country is still going strong because of the good officials and bureaucrats that he had amassed. The very same sort of people that you will need!”


“I understand,” Prince Chu Feng grumbled. “But then what do you expect me to do? Is this really going to be just a trip to pray?”


“Of course not. This is our chance to harm your brother.”


“But you just said-”


“I do not mean to harm him physically,” Concubine Yang sighed, wishing that her son had spent more time training his brain instead of his biceps. “You two are heading to a sanctuary filled with nuns, and your brother is a renowned womanizer before his sudden change of disposition.”


Chu Feng’s thick brows knitted together. “You want me to cause a scandal for him?” he asked slowly.


Concubine Yang smiled faintly. ‘You’re not entirely helpless after all,’ she thought without malice.


“I have already made the arrangements,” she said.


“You have?” Chu Feng asked. It did not occur to him to even ask how his mother who was a royal concubine confined to the palace could have done so.


“Yes, I have hired a cunning seductress to work a honey trap. That Huang Ming may have reined in your brother’s lasciviousness, but he cannot watch over him all the time.”


“Would we not still be blamed anyway?”


“One would be damned for falling for such a trap, not the ones who have engineered it.”


“What should I do?” the prince asked his mother.


“Find some ways to split them apart. You only need to occupy one of them, the agent I hired will work her wiles on the other,” she said.


Her son frowned. “Either one? What is the point of seducing Huang Ming when the one we want to harm is Chu Xiong?”


“The best scenario is for your brother to disgrace himself while in the temple. But should that prove impossible, then the agent will try to put a wedge between Chu Xiong and Huang Ming. She will cause them to be fight over her and cause a rift between them.”


“Who is this agent?” Chu Feng asked, his own interest piqued.


“You will know when you see her. She is from the far north and thus have little obvious ties that can lead back to us.”


Concubine Yang then gave her son a warning glare. “This honey trap is meant to ensnare your brother, so don’t you let your lust get the better of you. For all we know, they might be planning to do the same to you! Do not let yourself be in any situation where you are without your guards. Be patient and do not give them any excuse!”


To be on the safer side, Concubine Yang even arranged for some of her maids to thoroughly wrung out her son before the trip. That was the source of Chu Feng’s haggardness during the trip.


“What do you think is wrong with him?” Chu Xiong asked, his chin jutting towards his brother who was riding unsteadily on his horse ahead of them.


“Looks like a severe drain of protein to me,” Huang Ming remarked with a grin.


“What does that even mean…” Chu Xiong complained, again peeved by the strange words that Huang Ming used every now and then.


“Don’t let his current weak self fool you, assuredly there is mischief afoot,” Huang Ming said pedantically.


“Oh, really?” the prince said sarcastically.


“Don’t be so dense,” Huang Ming said, deliberately treating the prince’s sarcastic remark to be a truthful question to annoy him. “We are only heading to a famous temple full of beautiful nuns. If I know my typical tv drama plots, we’re going to encounter a city-toppling beauty hoping to lure you into a trap and drag your reputation into the mud; causing people to say that you couldn’t control your lust while in a holy place.”


“There’s that word again! What the hell is a ‘teevee’?” the prince demanded.


Before Huang Ming could say anything, the procession column came to a shuddering halt.


Prince Chu Xiong frowned. He bade for one of the guards in the front to report back.


“What is happening? Why are we stopping?”


The guard visibly swallowed his saliva.


“Your highness, there is a lady ahead seeking our protection.”


“And here it comes,” Huang Ming murmured.

A damsel distressed,
Beauty she possessed,
And a plan to deceive,
Their friendship to cleave.​

 

Just started reading this...
I did NOT Know what I was going in for, and certainly did not expect such a hidden gem, but here I am, reading this.
Currently at chapter 74, I can only say that much with words.

It's just perfect >.<

 

Thank you for your kind words. There may be some rough road ahead, hopefully you won't be too disappointed.

 

Chapter 179:
Their breathes -> Their breaths

A small typo I noticed ^^

This is the sentence:
They were wrapped in a thick blanket, their breathes visible due to the cold.

_________________________________

Chapter 181:

Small mistake 1:

This is the sentence:
“A Fortress circumvented ceases to be an obstacle. A Fortress destroyed ceases to a threat. Know the difference.”

You forgot "be"

It should be like this:
“A Fortress circumvented ceases to be an obstacle. A Fortress destroyed ceases to be a threat. Know the difference.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Small mistake 2:

Much -> Many

This is the sentence:
“They have much more men than us.

_________________________________

Chapter 184:

Dunno if this is a mistake or not... I think it is, but... well, you look at it:

This is the sentence:
“They have been hard at work ever since the siege, you should not understand them.”

Understand -> Underestimate

Like this:
“They have been hard at work ever since the siege, you should not underestimate them.”

 

Thank you. I'll work on them once I'm in front of my desktop again this weekend.

 

Rough. No time to edit

---

“If I don’t go to hell, who would go to hell?”
--Buddha

Chapter 210 - Enter the trap

Prince Chu Feng who had been stewing in his impatience could help but feel his spirits rise when his soldiers reported the incident. He had anticipated the event, but his mother had not told him when or how exactly it would happen so as to provoke a authentic reaction. Thus the prince was genuinely annoyed when the marching procession column came to a shuddering halt.


“What is going on?” he gruffly asked.


“There is a pitiable lady kneeling by the roadside seeking relief,” the soldier said with his brows lined with concern.


Prince Chu Feng frowned, his personal troops were a disciplined lot and it was almost unheard of for them to show their emotions in front of him.


‘She must be very good,’ Chu Feng thought to himself, his mother’s repeated warnings pushed to the back of his mind. He only knew that the honey trap was going to be done by a woman in black.


The prince made a show of looking up at the skies and winced at the blazing hot sun. “We might as well stop for a rest while we listen to what she has to say,” he announced. “Set up a temporary camp and send word to Prince Chu Xiong, this should be up his alley,” he added with a sneer.


The soldier showed no signs of doubt, even though the day’s journey had barely begun several hours ago. In fact, Chu Feng thought he could see the spring in his subordinate’s step as he rushed to obey.


He cannot help but feel intrigued when the camp was quickly assembled. Was it his imagination or was this time the royal tent was build up faster than usual?


In any event, the preparations were done quickly and before long, he was inside the large tent, with his royal brother in attendance. He suppressed his annoyance when Chu Xiong arrived together with Huang Ming.


“You have looked unwell lately dear brother. You must be feeling poorly indeed to have called for a rest so quickly today,” Chu Xiong said with a smirk.


“Thank you for your concern, dear brother,” Chu Feng said with barely concealed anger. “But this is not about me. Rather, this should be something you’d be more interested in.”


“Oh?” Chu Xiong drawled as he took his seat beside his brother, while Huang Ming quietly stood behind.


“Indeed. You surely know more about women in distress than I do,” Chu Feng said sarcastically.


“You would do well to do the same, instead of being preoccupied with your soldiers all the time. The people will talk, you know,” Chu Xiong replied with ease. Huang Ming turned his head away to hide his smile, but Chu Feng saw the gesture and immediately felt the blood rushing to his head.


Fortunately his outburst was interrupted by the arrival of the lady of the hour, and whatever anger he had suddenly evaporated when he laid his eyes on her.


Indeed, all those in the royal tent, from the stoic guards to the closest maids and servants on duty could not help but felt drawn to the newcomer who knelt before the royal brothers.


She was a willowly, ethereal woman: her reddened eyes, thin lips, pale face stained with streaks of dust and dried tears; her disordered, long raven hair gave the impression of a harrowing beauty. The frayed, black dress of a mourner that she was wearing gave answer to the source of the troubles that haunted her.


Like the rest present, Prince Chu Feng himself was struck speechless at the woman’s appearance. All thoughts of the honey trap and his mother’s admonishments flew away from his mind.


His mouth dropped open, ready to ask a question or to offer help when he suddenly heard a sharp intake of breath nearby. Startled back into awareness, Chu Feng managed to tear his eyes away from the woman and glanced towards the source of the sound, and saw that both his brother Chu Xiong and his cohort Huang Ming were both struck dumb, their eyes glued at the woman.


The sight of his nemeses in such state gave him a wake up call. They were cocky and flippant only a few minutes ago, yet now they were staring at the woman with their tongues tied. Chu Feng felt a sense of satisfaction seeing that the honey trap had worked.


Even so, Chu Feng felt it was such a waste for a woman of such beauty to be involved in such a plot. He could only steel his heart and hardened his eyes to glare at the woman.


“Who are you?” he asked brusquely, his rough voice shattering the stunned silence in the tent.


She kept her eyes lowered, her already pale face turning even more ashen as she trembled in fear.


“Speak up, woman!” Chu Feng demanded.


The woman was seemingly frightened by his temper. She bit her lips, not daring to lift her watery eyes from the ground.


“Brother, can you not be more gentle? Obviously the lady is in some distress,” Chu Xiong chided.


“Then you handle this, I have no patience for this,” Chu Feng snorted, inwardly happy that his brother had taken the bait. And yet, he could not help but feel peeved that the bait was something so tempting. Thus the best way to resolve this contradiction was for him to quickly wash his hands off it.


“We will reluctantly accept this grave responsibility,” Chu Xiong said airily.


Chu Feng glowered as his brother stood up and went over to the woman. The sense of envy within him amplified as he watched Chu Xiong gently lift the woman’s chin.


Chu Xiong drew a deep breath after he had wiped away the disfigurements away from her face with his sleeve, for it revealed a complexion of clear jade, a true beauty that could ruin a kingdom.


“What is your name and how did you come to be here?” Chu Xiong asked softly.


“This handmaid is the sole survivor of the Ying family,” the woman answered.


“The Ying family?” Chu Feng interjected from his seat. “I know of them, they are of a retired minor official’s family of some repute in these parts.”


He was of course lying, it was just a prepared scenario that he had memorized.


“What do you mean by being the last survivor?” Chu Xiong asked.


“A gang of bandits raided our home and slaughtered every one. I was away visiting my relatives, that is how I was unharmed,” the woman managed to answer before collapsing into sobs.


Chu Feng himself was nearly moved when he saw the stricken woman, but he managed to gather his wits around him.


“Bandits? How dare they! I shall take this chance to wipe them out!” he growled.


One of his confidants raised an objection. “Your highness, what of your journey to the temple?”


“My brother can surely take charge a leisurely trip,” he answered with contempt. “Besides, we will need to scour the path ahead in case the bandits are in our way.”


“You do that, brother, we can handle this,” Chu Xiong said while keeping his eyes on the quietly sobbing woman.


Chu Feng hmphed and stomped out of the tent, the feeling of irritation festering in his heart. It took all of his willpower not to cast a last look at the woman.


“What should I do now?” she wept.


At this point Huang Ming stepped forward. “It so happens that we are on the way to the Bright Filial Piety Temple. You can seek some solace there before deciding your next course.”


The woman’s tears stopped flowing as she gave Huang Ming a grateful look.


Chu Xiong frowned when Huang Ming took the words out of his mouth.


“Yes, the temple is full of womenfolk that can help you,” he hastened to add, not wanting to lose out to his mentor.


“Your highness, perhaps we should continue with the journey as soon as possible. I will make the necessary arrangements to accommodate this woman,” Huang Ming suggested.


“Nonsense,” Chu Xiong objected immediately. “She came to us for help, it is only right that we give her our undivided attention,” he said, emphasizing his royal speech.


“But-”


“Enough, we have decided,” Chu Xiong interrupted Huang Ming’s protest. He motioned to his personal maids. “See to it that she is taken care of!” he ordered.


The fragile woman managed to stammer her thanks before she was whisked away.


Now the royal tent only had Huang Ming and Chu Xiong.


“Well, if that was a trap, I’m not too sure about avoiding it,” Chu Xiong tried to joke.


“It is of course a trap. Your brother is obviously moved by her but is trying his best to restrain himself.”


“Can’t blame him,” Chu Xiong muttered. “What do we do with her?”


Huang Ming smiled. “Your highness, she is such a big temptation. Why not give her to me?”

So troublesome,
But I’ll jump.​

 

New job confirmed. New keyboard. And congratulations to France.

---

“What's a nice place like you doing in a girl like this?”
--Wade Wilson, ‘Deadpool’

Chapter 211 - Caught up

Chu Xiong gawked at Huang Ming in disbelief.


“You talked so much about being wary of evil plots, and yet you’re ‘volunteering’ to deal with this heavenly beauty that has fallen into our laps?” he demanded with not a little dissatisfaction in his tone.


“She’s obviously here to drive a wedge between us, and we should use the opportunity to lull your brother into complacency. It is a very difficult task but I have no choice but to sacrifice myself to personally handle this grave matter,” Huang Ming said seriously.


Prince Chu Xiong rolled his eyes. “How very noble of you.”


“What man is a man who does not make the world better?” Huang Ming quoted a film from Earth.


It was a profound statement but it felt like snake oil to the prince.


“You’re making the world better alright. Better for you,” he said sarcastically.


“Besides, she’s too much of a woman for you,” Huang Ming added, causing the younger man to flush.


“I can handle her,” he said stiffly.


“Yes yes, lord ‘Deflowering Prince’ and all that,” Huang Ming replied dismissively. “But remember why you’re going to the temple.”


“Then what should we do while you’re gladly entering this trap?” the prince asked.


Huang Ming gestured at him with both palms. “Everyone saw you ordering for her to be placed under your protection. Go take a nap. I will publicly take her away to my own quarters and thereby inciting rumours of discord between us. When it is reported to you, throw a tantrum but stop short of retrieving her back. I’m sure it would not be too difficult for you to do that.”


Prince Chu Xiong snorted but did not voice his opposition.


As scripted, Huang Ming very publicly and loudly marched into the tent prepared for the woman which was very near to the prince’s own. He pulled the frail-looking woman away to his own quarters, saying that she was a security risk that needed to be interrogated by him personally.


The woman could only fearfully obey and did not resist. Those who saw the incident later reported that she was as pale as a sheet of paper as she entered Huang Ming’s tent, where she remained for the better part of an hour. One could only imagine what trials awaited her.


How would they know that once in the tent, Huang Ming and the frail-looking woman were locked in fierce ‘personal combat’. The moment they had privacy, the woman shed her weakly mien and hugged Huang Ming passionately.


“My dear lady, are you trying to ravish me?” he said with mock alarm, his arms raised in shock.


The woman went as far as raising one delicious thigh to wrap around him while seductively licking her lips.


“Don’t worry, this lord will treat you well,” she whispered hotly in his ear.


Huang Ming smiled quietly and allowed her to push him down on to the bed.


“Calm down, let’s drink some tea and have a bun,” he murmured.


“I’d rather have your bun,” the woman responded aggressively, and put words into action by grabbing one of his cheeks.


“Business before pleasure,” Huang Ming admonished gently.


“This is business,” the woman insisted. “Didn’t you bring me here to make a show, that I’m coming in between you and your prince?”


“Always glad to see someone pick things up so quickly,” Huang Ming sighed with praise.


The woman chuckled and loosened her fervent grip. She shifted slightly and now lay on him languidly, tracing lazy circles on his chest as she propped herself on one elbow.


“So you’re only attracted to my brain?” she asked with an arched brow.


“You don’t look half-bad, and you did leave a mark on me,” Huang Ming recalled, earning one of her best smiles.


By now all traces of the weepy, fragile woman who had trembled before the Chu princes mere hours ago had vanished. Instead, a brilliant and vivacious woman was in her place. The hairstyling and cosmetics were different, but to Huang Ming she was still the Qiong Ying that he knew.


“Fancy meeting you here. How are things back home?” Huang Ming asked.


“Your eldest brother and sister-in-law are driving me insane, I had to leave,” she answered.


“I thought you women like such sugary romantic moments,” Huang Ming teased.


“Not as a bystander! And they are just too much,” she shuddered. “I have some letters, including one from General Huang.”


“From my father?”


“Well, as far as I know,” Qiong Ying joked.


Huang Ming laughed. “I’ll read them later, but tell me your news.”


Qiong Ying nodded, a solemn look now on her face. She narrated how General Yin Yanzhao was now the right-hand of the King of Wu. At the general’s suggestion, the king and his daughter Princess Wu Liying were touring the country to show off his majesty and assure the populace after the previous military setbacks.


At every stop, the royal duo listened to the pleas of the common folk and gave relief to those seeking redresses; righting the wrongs and punishing the corrupt. The prestige and respected earned by the royal duo was considerable. And at their side at all times was the famous General Yin Yanzhao, pillar of the kingdom.


“For all intents and purposes, the general appears to be the greatest and most capable servant of Wu,” she finished.


“I see.”


Qiong Ying frowned. “Is that all you have to say?”


“For the moment.”


“You are taking this too lightly. Knowing what we know of the general, surely he has insidious objectives in mind,” she warned.


“And knowing what I know of the king, the general is being encouraged to do so,” Huang Ming said.


“What?”


“The king is not completely ignorant. But he only has the one daughter, and there are precious few candidates to be his son-in-law,” Huang Ming explained.


It took Qiong Ying a few seconds to process it. “You mean… he is allowing General Yin to get closer to the princess? On purpose?”


“What would you do if you no male heirs to inherit, and the one talent propping your kingdom happens to be single?” Huang Ming asked rhetorically.


“But he is so shady,” Qiong Ying exclaimed. “He deliberately made the north weak and left it wide open for a Jin incursion.”


“Maybe the king hopes that the general would be more ‘careful’ if he actually stand to inherit it. In all honesty, the general is someone cunning and brave, worthy enough for his precious daughter.”


“Oh? What about you?” Qiong Ying asked slyly.


“I already have my hands full with you,” Huang Ming replied. And just like what Qiong Ying had said and done previously, he cupped his hands on her full and sweet buttocks.


Qiong Ying smirked. “Business before pleasure,” she threw his words back at him and pinched him.


Huang Ming sighed dramatically and allowed his hands to be peeled away.


“Any other news?”


“Liu Yuchun is working on your designs and it seems to be going well. Your father is very impressed, but your second brother is not enjoying gathering the, ah, ingredients required.”


“Hey, someone has to do the dirty job,” Huang Ming grinned.


Qiong Ying smiled mischievously. “Speaking of dirty jobs…”

Reunited,
Delighted.​

 

“She lived boundlessly, as generous as she could be cruel, prepared to give her life at any moment for a worthy cause, but rarely sparing a thought for the many casualties that fell in her wake.”
--Clare Mulley, The Spy Who Loved: The Secrets and Lives of Christine Granville

Chapter 212 - Truth to one, lies to another

“Yes, about dirty jobs. Sorry, I need you to put on drama together with Prince Chu Xiong,” Huang Ming said apologetically.


“Easy,” Qiong Ying replied, to which Huang Ming tightened his hug around her thin waist. “Are you worried?” she asked with an arched eyebrow, feeling his surge of concern.


“Nobody likes seeing his woman being used,” he said with a straight face.


She gently flicked his nose. “Says the one who came up with the idea.”


“Still, doesn’t mean I have to like it. So don’t go overboard, alright?” he replied with with all seriousness.


There were times when Qiong Ying could not tell whether Huang Ming was being solemn, sarcastic or frivolous, but at this moment she knew that his concern was genuine. She felt the heat from his embrace eliciting warmth within her, and she found herself snuggling closer to him.


“Did I make you fall for me all over again?” he teased.


“You just have to ruin the moment, don’t you?” she sighed.


“Do you want me to be as romantic as my brother? Because I can,” Huang Ming said semi-threateningly.


“Stop it,” Qiong Ying warned.


Huang Ming grinned. “Are you tired? Because you have been running through my mind all day,” he said sappily, knowing it was her weak point.


She shuddered and burrowed her nose into his chest to hide her reddening face.


“You should say such things to Sunli,” she said gruffly, her voice muffled by his clothes.


Huang Ming felt the wind out of his sails when his weak point was brought up.


“And how is she? I sent her letters but she never wrote back.”


Qiong Ying smirked. “Her letter is with me,” she said triumphantly.


“What?”


“We have met up several times.”


“What?” Huang Ming repeated.


“It is not as if our lives revolve around you, you know,” she pouted.


“Really. Besides me, what other things you two have in common?” Huang Ming asked skeptically.


“Don’t change the subject,” she said. “She’s doing well, and her father is very favourable about the marriage still. Your weapon designs are making an impression on him, you should be proud.”


Huang Ming had the sneaky feeling that she wasn’t telling him everything.


“And what about you?”


“Where else would I find a husband that gives me so much freedom? And handsome, wealthy and famous to boot?” she replied. “Don’t sell yourself short.”


“We’ll talk about this another time,” Huang Ming promised as he released his hug. “We have more important things to do.”


“Mmm.”


A few hours later, Qiong Ying, Huang Ming and Prince Chu Xiong acted out a drama for the entire caravan column to see. As planned, the prince woke up from his nap and then indignantly marched into Huang Ming’s tent to ‘rescue’ the glass-like woman.


“Sire, I have yet to finish my investigation,” Huang Ming protested.


“It looked more like an interrogation to us!” the prince shot back. “We do not see the point of you harassing this poor woman, so cease your persecution at once!”


The royal then ordered his maids to take in the mourning woman once more back to his side of the camp. With a swish of his sleeves, the prince turned away and left. Huang Ming completed the scene by narrowing his eyes at the prince’s back. The only thing missing was a dramatic, tense musical note in the background.


All these were reported to Prince Chu Feng who received the news with glee. He had used the excuse that he was going out to hunt the bandits that had harmed the woman’s family so as to be absent while the drama unfolded, thereby avoiding being implicated. For several days he trailed on the royal procession by keeping to the hilly, forested terrain, to keep up the alibi.


Still, there was a sour feeling within his heart as he recalled the woman’s wounded and delicate beauty. It was akin of knowing the dangers of too much delicious wine, yet still tempted by its aromatic fragrance. Or, like a child who was forced to give up something to a younger sibling.


Perhaps that was why he led his men to rejoin the royal procession sooner than he had planned. Within the deep recesses of his heart, there was unwillingness for his brother, or Huang Ming for that matter to devour the delectable bait.


He returned just as the procession was making camp, a day out from their destination. One could already see the towering pagodas of the Bright Filial Piety Temple in the distance. He and his men were suitably dusty and bloody: they ruthlessly dismembered some wild game so as to reinforce their alibi.


Nothing illustrated Prince Chu Feng’s indecisive nature than this particular incident. He was striding purposefully towards the royal quarters before he belated remembered his mother’s warnings. His steps began to slow, and he hesitated in seeking his brother as an excuse to glimpse at the beauty once more.


As he approached, he could hear the sounds of a feast, perhaps his brother was indulging himself before entering the temple proper. Chu Feng sneered at his brother’s lack of discipline.


Then, as if making up his mind at the last moment, he changed direction to head back to his personal tent.


His bodyguards who were following him in a military march nearly collided into each other at his sudden swerve. The prince obviously did not know or care about the near calamity that he had caused his men. The grizzled veterans could only roll their eyes at their prince.


Before Chu Feng could congratulate himself for having the presence of mind to remember his mother’s words, the melancholic sounds of a zither filled the air. The sounds of merriment from his brother’s tent died away.


Chu Feng was never one for the arts, having spent his years with military matters. But there was something about the music that caused him to come to a halt. It was not just him; even his veteran guards were affected. They stood still, their eyes raised as they drank in the sombre music.


The sorrowful tune was rudely interrupted, the playing suddenly stopped on a jarring note. Chu Feng could not help but turn back to look at his brother’s camp.


For a moment, there was silence.


Then the flaps of the tent burst open, and a tearful, beautiful figure ran out. Who else could it be, but the woman that had haunted his thoughts so recently?


Like a startled dear, the woman seized up when she saw him. She had escaped from Prince Chu Xiong’s tent, only to cross the paths of Prince Chu Feng right after.


“Are you well, lady?” Chu Feng asked hoarsely.


The woman could only nod her head miserably, but her shaking shoulders said otherwise.


‘Maybe it’s time we should have a chat and find out her plans to deal with my brother and Huang Ming,’ he thought to himself. His mother had told him to let the woman accomplish her mission herself; all he needed to do was to stay away and watch her drive a wedge between the two targets.


One look at her and all such thoughts were now the furthest reaches of his mind.

Bait and switch,
By a tempting witch.​

 

Unedited due to hectic new job's schedule, mea culpa.

---

“Annie, are you ok?”
--‘Smooth Criminal’, Michael Jackson

Chapter 213 - Typical, recycled plot

Prince Chu Feng swallowed and suddenly found his throat was dry. The woman before him was giving off a soft glow, an almost ethereal aura radiating pureness and vulnerability. He almost lurched forward to sweep her into his manly, powerful arms; to protect her from all manner of dangers.


It was not just him, even his usually stoic and proud veterans were affected.


Before he could really understood what had happened, he had brought the woman back into his personal tent, dismissing his attendants along the way.


When he finally shook aside his stupor, he realized that he was alone with the enormously desirable woman. He could only look at her stupidly as she slowly walked closer to him, his eyes transfixed at her every move.


A delicate rose gently towards his face, causing her sleeve to slide down and reveal flawless alabaster skin.


“Bwuh…” he mumbled intelligently as her fingers came up to his eye level. Then those enticing fingers curled inwards to rub against each other.


Instantly a sharp, spicy smell hit his nostrils. It was as if someone had suddenly shoved pounded bird’s eye chilli into his nose. Almost immediately, his eyes watered from the sensation. The violent pain jarred him back into awareness. The prince staggered back as the mist that clouded his mind dispelled.


“What did you do!?” he exclaimed in shock.


“Apologies, your highness. It was the remedy to my perfume arts,” the woman replied serenely.


“What?” the prince gasped, instinctively clapping a hand over his nose and mouth. His eyes widened as the woman seemingly come into focus.


The woman chuckled, dropping the façade of fragility to reveal sultry confidence.


“Do not worry, the effects only serve to dull the senses for a short time. It cannot be used as a means of controlling someone.”


“Who are you?” the prince demanded warily.


“A professional,” the woman answered with an assured smile. From within her sleeve she retrieved a small fan, unfurling it with a snap of her wrist.


It was such a stark contrast to the mourning beauty that he had seen previously that Prince Chu Feng did a double-take, looking at her up and down as she fanned herself. Thoroughly disorientated and not a little intimidated by her, the prince kept a wary distance.


‘No wonder mother is so confident of success, this woman is just like her,’ he thought.


Behind her fan, Qiong Ying exhaled in satisfaction. She had not lied to him: the perfume she had used was not a long-term solution to her mission. Else she would have used it liberally to addle the prince’s mind and turn him into a puppet. It was commonly used in her Lichun Brothel to make the clients more pliant to her girls and to damp their otherwise rowdy tendencies. Prolonged exposure however would build immunity, and so she had to educate the young ladies in her care to use all their wiles to tame the men that they would encounter before the effectiveness of their perfume wore off.


Putting that aside, she was pleased how her spy network had accurately prepared her for this.


‘Definitely a mama’s boy,’ she thought as she eyed the prince.


She had discussed with Huang Ming, and he had vaguely said with that infuriating smile of his: “The best strategy is to let your opponent know your next move. Even better is to let your opponent know your next two moves.”


And so they decided that Qiong Ying make obvious her fake identity to the prince, so as to draw him near to work ‘together’ against Chu Xiong.


“Once you have demonstrated your skill to him, it would be easier for you to convince him to follow your plans and thereby entrap him,” Huang Ming had said.


“You mean, reveal a bit of skin with him around and then call for help, so that he is labelled as a perverted beast?” she had asked.


“What, that old, stale plot line so often used by novels for women?” Huang Ming scoffed. “No, this drama deserves a better class of criminal.”


“So I’m a criminal now?” she said with narrowed eyes.


“Of course,” he had answered without skipping a beat. “You are a criminal… a smooth criminal who had stolen my heart,” he said with a wink.


She rolled her eyes and visibly shuddered.‘Men are simple creatures,’ she had complained silently.


“Who are you really?” Prince Chu Feng asked again.


“Concubine Yang hired me via intermediaries to solve your little problem,” she said, hiding her smirk behind the fan.


“I do not have a ‘little’ problem!” the prince fired back testily, annoyed by her choice of words.


‘Simple creatures,’ she repeated mentally. “I meant regarding Prince Chu Xiong.”


“Why don’t you use that perfume of yours on him?” the prince grumbled. “It should be a simple matter of causing him to fall into your embrace, then you can scream for help and let his shame be seen by the world.”


Qiong Ying snapped her fan shut. “Do you think this is some sort of novel read by women? How often have such plots been used and recycled by storytellers?” she said waspishly, channelling an impression of Huang Ming at the prince.


“Then, what?” Prince Chu Feng scowled, unused by the lack of respect she was showing him.


It intrigued him.


“It is difficult,” she replied. “It has only been a few days, but that Huang Ming is constantly on his guard. It is impossible for me to catch Prince Chu Xiong by himself.”


“Mother did say I was to help you by splitting them up,” Chu Feng mused, conveniently forgetting that he was not supposed to approach the woman in the first place.


“But things are moving along as planned,” Qiong Ying said. “Thanks to Huang Ming’s constant presence, Prince Chu Xiong is now irritated and can’t wait to be away from Huang Ming. You saw the little drama outside their camp earlier?”


“Yes,” Chu Feng admitted. “Was it you who had played the zither?”


Qiong Ying nodded. “The prince held a feast to comfort me, but then Huang Ming brought up questions about my background. The prince tried to change the subject by asking if I had any musical talents, and I took the opportunity to play a mournful tune and thus provoked an argument between them.”


“Then your job is already halfway done!” Chu Feng said in admiration.


“But it is not done,” she huffed, giving the impression of a peeved professional. “That Huang Ming is constantly suspicious of me, and he will not let up. By my estimates, he is set in his mind that I’m out to harm them. Which of course, is correct.”


She then narrowed her eyes at the prince. “You should have returned earlier and made some contrived reason or another to invite him or your brother away so as to split them up. What took you so long?”


“I thought it would look too suspicious,” Chu Feng said defensively, unconsciously ceding dominance to her. “What should we do then? Tomorrow we will reach the temple.”


“No matter, I have a helper in place,” Qiong Ying said. “They surely would not expect a two-pronged attempt.”


Chu Feng was astonished. His mother had not told him anything of the sort, he was only aware of the one agent who was now before him. A conspirator in the inviolate Bright Filial Piety Temple?


“You have someone in the temple itself? How is that even possible?”


Qiong Ying snapped her fan open once more.


“Don’t worry,” she smiled, “We are smooth criminals.”

Guest and host exchanged roles,
A twist in the plot of old.​

 

I made some false starts, I wanted to try a new style (not shown here) but I kept reverting to the usual.

-----

“Are you mocking me!?”
--Wrymrest Agent, ‘Hearthstone’

Chapter 214 - Provoked for nothing

The royal procession column halted at the foot of the hill where the Bright Filial Piety Temple sat upon. The martial bearing of the soldiers and the gaudy clothings of the female servants looked out of place against the serene backdrop.


There were no allowances for the carriages or horses to climb up, there was only a very long and wide stone staircase that rose in a straight path up the hill. Along the way were equally spaced free-standing ornamental gateways made of massive wooden columns and beams painted in red and black, reminding Huang Ming of Earth’s Japanese torii gates.


At the very top of the hill and past all the gateways was the main pagoda of the temple, flanked by smaller towers at its four corners. Seeing the Japanese-like gateways ending in a Chinese-style tiered towers was surreal to Huang Ming.


Huang Ming and Chu Xiong could not help but pause to drink in the grand sight. They were stunned… or daunted, for the steps were numerous and steep indeed.


“Afraid?” Chu Feng asked snidely, confident that he was physically more fit than his brother. He had never seen Chu Xiong lift anything heavier than a wine cup, and thus was completely contemptuous.


“I am of course inferior to you in terms of muscles, brother,” Chu Xiong drawled.


Chu Feng snorted, but before he could make a further insult, his eyes were drawn towards Qiong Ying. The woman was looking every inch the stricken beauty and not the confident temptress that had appeared in his tent the day before. She stood a fair distance from the princes, her eyes looking up at the temple steps with trepidation.


“Get the lady a sedan chair,” Chu Feng ordered, eager to get ahead of his brother. It worked, for it caused Chu Xiong to frown. But Huang Ming nodded in approval.


Chu Feng was taken aback by his reaction. Then he saw a flash of irritation on Qiong Ying’s face, and he blanched. He had acted without thinking again: he had pre-emptively ended a possible argument between Huang Ming and Chu Xiong.


Miffed, he instead turned to needle at his brother again. “Shall I call for a sedan chair for you?” Chu Feng offered insultingly.


Chu Xiong narrowed his eyes at the barb.


There were a few maids who were going up with the princes, as it would be inconvenient for other men to linger in a temple for women. A few of the soldiers had already stripped to their waists, preparing themselves to carry the chairs and their female passengers up the stairs.


“We don’t want you to collapse halfway, after all. You should have spent more time moving your lazy bones,” Chu Feng continued with a sardonic sneer.


“Prince Chu Xiong, we should each take one,” Huang Ming said blandly.


“What?” Chu Feng exclaimed at Huang Ming’s willingness to humiliate himself.


“We are not as fit as you, Prince Chu Feng. I am sure you can reach the top on your own quickly, and I do not wish to cause you to wait for us,” Huang Ming explained.


Chu Xiong smiled. “Indeed, brother. Your strength is known to all, I am sure you can get there in under an hour,” he said loudly for the benefit of those nearby.


How was Chu Feng going to deny it without losing face?


“Of course!” he said through clenched teeth. He turned away, one hand moving to remove his cloak.


“You are going to be a source of inspiration to us all, Prince Chu Feng! To climb up such heights while in full armour!” Huang Ming announced.


Chu Feng stiffened, but still unable to find the words to refuse. He glared furiously at Huang Ming, only to be further infuriated when the dandy scholar and his brother were completely ignoring him to chit-chat with the ladies who were his fellow sedan-riders. They were not at all ashamed to be the only men using the sedan chairs, as if it was completely natural to use such convenience.


Chu Feng looked at them incredulously.


“You may begin, dear brother. No need to slow down yourself on our account,” Chu Xiong said.


Thoroughly incensed but lacking the mental faculty to extricate himself, Chu Feng could only stomp up the stairs. His men hastened to follow their enraged prince.


“The prince is full of fire and passion,” Huang Ming remarked airily. “There is no point in forcing ourselves to match his peerless pace.”


“True, true,” Chu Xiong sighed as he got on his own sedan.


“Since that is so, let’s us be leisurely and not stress our carriers. Since we have come all this way, we should enjoy the view,” Huang Ming suggested.


“What a sound suggestion!” Chu Xiong nodded in agreement.


Behind them among the women, Qiong Ying turned her face away to hide her smile.


And so they took their own sweet time going up the stairs. Their original excuse of not wanting Chu Feng to wait for them was completely thrown out of the window as they made numerous stops along the way to take in the majestic view, exchanging pleasantries with each other and with the women around them. Even their sedan carriers did not feel overly burdened as there were opportunities for them to rest.


Thus it took them nearly two hours to ascend the stairs. When they reached the top, they saw a smouldering Prince Chu Feng waiting for them. He was sitting on rock with his hands on his knees, his eyes glowering at them.


He had indeed pushed himself to reach within the hour. In the end he still had to wait for them to arrive. At first he was glad to have the time to wipe off his sweat and catch his breath, but the moment alone allowed him to think back on how he had been swindled. He had exerted himself… and for what? There was no bet involved, no reward promised. His brother took the easy way ostensibly to catch up to him and yet still arrived later at a leisurely pace.


“Did you really make it in one hour?” Chu Xiong asked in great astonishment. “Even though we used the sedans, it was not easy!”


“Of course I did!” Chu Feng shot back. “Ask them!” he swept an indignant arm at his men who had kept pace with him. They hastened to nod their heads in affirmation.


“Well done, Prince Chu Feng! Come, I clap for you!” Huang Ming said with his eyes wide open and slowly clapped his hands while shaking his head in exaggerated appreciation.


Chu Xiong followed his lead and clapped as well. The rest of the entourage dared not to contradict the prince and followed suit. Besides, they were praising Prince Chu Feng, surely that was the right thing to do. And so they clapped.


Then from behind Chu Feng, his men too joined in the clapping. He slowly turned to face them, his eyes wide and round in disbelief.


His incinerating glare caused his men to froze in mid-clapping.


Just when Chu Feng was about to blow his top, an austere voice interrupted the farce.


“Why are you all clapping in these hallowed grounds?”

Climbed the temple to be an example,
His only reward: wet with sweat.​

 

Delayed, was at the seaside for a cargo discharging. Meanwhile, here's a camel that I saw there.

 

“Somewhere out there is a lady who I think will never be a nun.”
--The Baroness, ‘Sound of Music’

Chapter 215 - Praise and comfort

All eyes turned to see a stern-looking middle-aged woman dressed in the black robes of a higher-ranked nun, her hair covered by a white headscarf. She was accompanied by group of giggling younger nuns, some of whom could not help but steal glances at the princes and blush.


“Apologies, we were merely congratulating Prince Chu Feng on his great strength and speed in climbing the stairs,” Huang Ming said with a bow.


“The stairs of this temple are not meant for such trivial, meaningless pursuits,” the stern woman said in the manner of an admonishing matron. To Huang Ming, the only thing missing from her outfit was a pair of glasses and for her to push it up to cause sunlight to glint off it.


“You must be Master Zheng Yen,” Prince Chu Xiong greeted, to which the nun nodded stiffly.


“While you are here, I must ask you to refrain from such spectacle that would displease the harmony of the gods here,” she said, her lips drawn in a severe line.


“Forgive us, we did not know any better,” Huang Ming said with a smile.


There was something about Huang Ming’s expression that caused Master Zheng Yen to hesitate.


“Are you a believer?” she asked.


Huang Ming shook his head.


How was she to know that Huang Ming was indifferent to her beliefs? Religion in this world was a mixture of Earth’s beliefs. There were similar concepts from Buddhism, Taoism, Shinto, aboriginal culture and others that were familiar to Huang Ming. A cycle of life, death and repeat meant he was contemptuous of those who thought they knew what gods were.


Master Zheng Yen had seen those who had dismissed the truth and usefulness of prayers, but the cynicism in Huang Ming’s eyes unsettled her.


“It seems that we will have plenty to discuss,” she said to him and turned away before he could reply.


‘What? Why me? But I didn’t do anything!’ Huang Ming gaped. The last thing he wanted was to be bogged down in a philosophical goblygook debate.


Once the luggage had been discharge, the soldiers went back down the mountain. The only males left were the Princes Chu Feng and Chu Xiong as well as Huang Ming. With them were a small number of female attendants to cook and clean. Of course, Qiong Ying was there as well.


The younger nuns led them a hall near the central pagoda where they were given rooms. The furnishings were not luxurious, but still befitting of a temple of such stature and prestige. Naturally the three men were housed separately from their female retinue.


“Beautiful place,” Huang Ming remarked. “What exactly does one do here to pass the time?”


The nuns smiled. “There are plenty of chores to do, but we mostly pray and meditate. And exercises!”


“Do you not have any free time at all?” Chu Xiong asked, genuinely curious.


They giggled. “Of course! Most of us are skilled with our hands.”


“I would very much to see,” he said, his eyes jumping suggestively. The young nuns blushed and giggled in maidenly fashion; evidently they had only recently taken their monastic vows. Their modest robes could not hide their fresh faces and nubile bodies.


Off to the side, his brother Chu Feng snorted at his flirting. Secretly, he was wondering which of the comely lass was Qiong Ying’s confederate. He stole several looks at her, but she made no indication that she saw him.


Chu Feng would not admit it but he was also envious of Chu Xiong’s ease in chatting up women. Being immersed in the military arts his entire life, he had absolutely no idea on how to deal with the opposite sex normally. To see his brother talking freely and causing them to laugh was alien to him: Chu Feng only needed to speak an order and the women carefully selected by his mother would strip and jump into his bed.


“These are your quarters, sirs. It is a little earlier than usual, but we have prepared a light lunch. Please come to the main hall after this,” the nuns said and left.


For some reason, the area assigned to the men were dominated by carven idols of fierce looking and muscular deities that wielded terrifying blunt weapons.


“Is it me or are they trying to send us a message?” Huang Ming murmured as he gazed at their wrathful faces.


“This place gives me the creeps,” Chu Xiong admitted, not daring to look at the statues too closely.


“They are only statues,” Huang Ming scoffed. “There are other things you should be worried about.”


“My brother would be too exhausted to try anything today, no thanks to that prank,” the prince replied smugly.


Huang Ming chuckled. “Are you sure he actually wants the throne? He seems a few cards of a deck to covet it. Maybe it is Concubine Yang’s wishes rather than his own.”


“I didn’t wish for the throne,” Chu Xiong reminded him. “Yet here I am, in a monastery because I needed to make a good impression.”


Then his face twisted in a nasty grin. “Speaking of good impressions,” he said conversationally, “Seems like you made good one for Master Zheng Yen to invite you personally.”


“Maybe she wants to pick on my brain… an organ of yours that you should work on,” Huang Ming said.


Chu Xiong’s eyes narrowed. “It is a wonder that you lived this long. If you were born in Chu, someone would have cut your tongue off for your insolence.”


“Hey, I depend on my tongue for a living. And what makes you think nobody has tried? Enough joking, lets go.”


They rejoined the rest in the main hall where Qiong Ying and Chu Feng were already waiting, sitting at separately tables, both ringed by the nuns. There was a gaggle of younger girls around Prince Chu Feng, while the older nuns were with Qiong Ying.


One group was fawning over the majestic prince, while the other had glistening tears on their cheeks as they consoled the grieving woman.


“Poor lass, you have gone through a lot. Come, eat something,” one older sister placed a warm bowl before Qiong Ying.


‘She must be spinning quite a tale to put them to tears,’ Huang Ming mentally smirked.


“If it wasn’t for the princes, I would not be here,” Qiong Ying murmured with a bowed head, her eyes staring at the bowl of gruel before her.


All turned their admiring eyes towards Prince Chu Feng.


“Did your highness really climb up the stairs within an hour?” a girl asked, her eyes wide and round.


“It is simple matter,” the prince replied gruffly, yet one could see his ears turning red, unused as he was by these women who had abandoned the secular world and thus did not treat him like royalty.


“Bandits!” an older sister hissed. “They surely are bold to be active in this area, we must thank you for dispersing them.”


Prince Chu Feng turned redder for he did nothing of the sort. He only made a show of riding into the forests and spent a few days hunting wild game to provide Qiong Ying some time to work on his brother.


“Bandits? Where!?” a loud female voice bellowed.

Bragged about a deed not done,
There comes a loud-mouthed nun.​

 

Motivation downnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn.

---

“Pride can be a good thing, but pride carried too far is foolishness.”
--Cheetara, ‘Thundercats’

Chapter 216 - Beatdown

They turned to see a group of martial-looking warrior nuns. Each woman was dressed in short-sleeves and long pants for ease of movement, as well as carrying long staves bound with iron bands.


At their head was a towering woman with a shock of unruly red hair and a large scar across one cheek. Other reminders of injuries and wounds criss-crossed her muscular arms and exposed ankles, her pants being too short for her stature.


Chu Feng, Chu Xiong and Huang Meng could not help but stare at her, a powerfully built woman who would probably seem more at home at a forge or abattoir rather than a monastery. Huang Ming was especially affected: it was as if he was looking at a female version of his brother Huang Ke.


‘This is a woman?’ they thought as they watched this slab of muscle striding over towards them.


“Sister Bian Qing!” the younger nuns chorused excitedly. Their admiration for her was obvious and it was not difficult to see why: even among the other female nuns, she stood out like an angry, sore thumb.


“What’s this about bandits?” she demanded as she frowned at the unfamiliar men gaping at her.


“Oh, there was a bandit attack that struck this miss’s family,” one of the nuns helpfully said, gesturing towards Qiong Ying.


It was as if a bomb went off in Bian Qing’s head when she saw her. Like Chu Feng, she was struck by the delicate aura of a wounded deer around Qiong Ying.


She lurched forward, and the men obediently parted way before her.


“What, what, what happened?” she repeated dumbly as she stepped closer and closer.


Qiong Ying turned her head away and quietly sobbed, causing Bian Qing to be flustered.


“Sister Bian Qing, you’re scaring her!” the younger nuns scolded.


Bian Qing actually backed off. “I didn’t do nothing!”


An older nun shooed her away. “She’s the only survivor of a bandit attack. Go away; your face is scary.”


A look of immense dismay flashed on Bian Qing’s face. For a moment Huang Ming thought she was going to collapse dramatically onto her knees and fade into a shade of grey.


But instead she stayed on her feet and clenched her two fists.


“Where are those bandits!” she howled. “I’ll kill them all!”


“They have already been dealt with,” someone answered her.


“What?” Bian Qing asked with the wind taken out of her sails.


“Prince Chu Feng here had cleared them out after rescuing her,” the nun said cheerfully.


Bian Qing whirled towards the prince, her teeth clenched; like a beast who had its prey snatched away.


She glared at Chu Feng, her eyes travelled up and down the prince as if she was inspecting an insect.


“You?” she demanded disbelievingly.


“What do you want?” Chu Feng managed to squeak.


Bian Qing whirled back to the nuns. “This scrawny guy?” she blurted, jerking a non-too respectful finger at the prince.


“Do not be rude to the prince!” a senior nun warned.


“I don’t believe it!” Bian Qing exclaimed. “Maybe those bandits were his men in the first place!”


“Nonsense!” the senior nun thundered.


“I have patrolled the forests and hills diligently and I have not seen any bandits at all!” Bian Qing insisted.


The senior nun resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “Why would the prince of the realm do such a thing?” she asked patiently.


“Well, look at her!” Bian Qing gesticulated with both her hands towards Qiong Ying, as if she was a priceless vase.


“How dare you!” Prince Chu Feng shouted, using his outrage to mask his growing unease. How was it that this uncultured gorilla woman was unmasking his alibi so openly?


“What, want to fight?” Bian Qing sneered.


“Bian Qing, have you forgotten what happened last time?” the senior nun sighed.


“That was different, I had to show the guest instructor what I’ve got,” Bian Qing insisted. “I got my ass handed to me last time by Big Sister, but there’s no way I’m going to lose to some ponce prince!”


“Who are you calling a ponce!” Chu Feng shouted back.


“Oho, so you do want to fight!” Bian Qing said with relish. “Clear a circle!” she bellowed. The nuns hastily obeyed before the senior nun could intervene. She sighed and bowed apologetically.


“My apologies, your highness. Bian Qing is… headstrong and unrestrained,” she said. “We try and try to teach her the scriptures and for her to cultivate patience, but to no avail.”


‘So she’s a muscle-brained idiot…’ Huang Ming summarized mentally.


“Then let me drill some lessons into her thick skull!” Chu Feng seethed.


‘...and here’s the other muscle-brained idiot,’ Huang Ming completed his thought.


“Bring it!” Bian Qing challenged and beckoned to her martial sisters and they tossed several iron-ringed staves into the makeshift fighting circle.


Bian Qing nonchalantly kicked one to the prince’s feet. “I hope you know how to use one, prince,” she said as she twirled her staff easily with one hand.


“I’ll teach you,” Chu Feng growled as he bent to pick it up. Then his face changed, for it was much heavier than he had expected. It was a simple staff, but the myriad of iron bands around the wooden shaft had added substantial weight to it.


“Anything wrong, ponce?” Bian Qing jeered.


“How dare you!” the prince shouted as he felt the blood pulsing in his temple. Already tired from his forced climb up the mountain stairs, he willed himself to keep his hands steady as he held the staff.


Yet, when he saw the woman spinning her staff with hardly a breath out of place, the prince could not help but feel intimidated.


“Don’t worry, I’ll go easy on ya,” Bian Qing said, inwardly smirking. How was the prince to know that the staff in his hands was the heaviest one available that was only used for physical training by carrying pails of water across one’s back? The one in her hands was half its weight.


“Enough words!” Chu Feng shouted indignantly. ‘What the hell is this woman-’



He did not finish formulating his complaint, for Bian Qing really rushed towards him at full speed. She swung her staff in a full swing, and it took all of Chu Feng’s reflexes to block it. Staff met staff with a tremendous thud, and Chu Feng was very nearly knocked off his feet by the sheer power of the swing. The prince could feel the jarring blow rattling his very bones.


His eyes widened with disbelief, but he had no time but to block again when Bian Qing immediately followed up with another blow from the opposite direction. Once more the prince barely blocked the ferocious, wind-cutting swing, once more the prince was staggered.


“Say, isn’t this bad?” the nuns whispered to each other.


Huang Ming discreetly elbowed Chu Xiong who picked up on the cue. The prince laughed, his voice like the refreshing flow of a river.


“Do not worry, my royal brother Chu Feng is someone who enjoys the martial arts. He is someone who pursues strength and not someone who is petty after a loss. In fact, he often cherishes the victor of his duels as a friend,” Chu Xiong lied.


Chu Feng heard his words and very nearly spat blood with indignation, but he could barely cope with the storm of blows that was raining down on him.


Huang Ming flapped his fan open.


“One might say, Prince Chu Feng enjoys being beaten,” he summarized.


This was all too much for Chu Feng, he actually turned his head to shout a retort. But to be distracted during combat was a cardinal sin, and Bian Qing suddenly switched from a swing to a thrust. The blunt staff point slipped through Chu Feng’s guard and struck his sternum.


The prince flew back from the impact and tumbled onto the ground in a cloud of dust.

Down on his luck,
Baited, and thunderstruck.​

 

“Weak mind, weak body.”
--Aleksandra ‘Zarya’ Zaryanova, Overwatch

Chapter 217 - Angering one to death

There was stunned silence as the dust settled. Then Prince Chu Feng coughed mightily and it ignited a commotion. His maids and some of the concerned nuns rushed to check on him.


“Haha, weak!” Bian Qing chortled as she flexed her biceps triumphantly.


“You lummox! Do you know who that is? That is Prince Chu Feng!” one of the senior nuns exclaimed angrily.


Bian Qing whistled without a care. “A prince? All I see was a defeated man who talked too much about killing non-existent bandits.”


“Be quiet! This is the second time in recent days that you have caused such big trouble! He is the prince of the realm, do you know what you just did? The king might censure our temple because of you!”


The giant woman shrugged. “So what? We’ll just move to another mountain.”


“His father is the king. Of the country!” the senior nun emphasized.


“Then we can go to another country,” Bian Qing said flippantly.


The senior drew a deep breath and stood to her full height like some sort avenging angel, though she was still dwarfed by Bian Qing.


“Looks you need another sermon from Master Zheng Yen. Someone, take her and report to the master so that she might repent and reflect on what she has done again!”


Bian Qing had a look of dismay, but she did not resist as the much smaller and younger nuns tugged on her meaty hands. It was a comical sight to have the childish nuns nagging the brutish woman as they left together.


“Don’t forget to tell the instructor that I won!” she called out and her martial sisters laughed, much to the exasperation of the senior nun.


“Prince Chu Xiong, I hope you can say a word or two to explain the matter later,” the senior nun beseeched.


Chu Xiong continued to fan himself and smiled. “Of course, of course. This was just sparring, I am sure royal father would understand.”


The nun bowed with gratitude. Privately she was slightly puzzled by the lack of urgency, didn’t he just see his own brother getting beaten down?


“Prince Chu Feng had been too proud lately, this would serve as a humbling experience. Rest assured, the king himself might be pleased at the prince being taken down a peg or two and to learn some humility. That is one point of this visit,” Huang Ming murmured.


“I see,” the nun nodded with relief.


“You should write a report about how he was brought down to earth, I am sure the king would enjoy reading it,” Huang Ming added.


“I will do that, thank you!” the nun said gratefully and left.


Chu Xiong chuckled. “Did you arrange for this beating too?” he asked.


Huang Ming only smiled, and Chu Xiong’s admiration for him grew larger. Just how far was this man seeing to have prepared something like this well in advance?


He did not know that Huang Ming knew nothing about Bian Qing or the impromptu duel. Huang Ming smiled to hide his own ignorance of the matter and to mystify Prince Chu Xiong. What harm was there to let the prince be in awe of him?


“You should go check on your brother,” he said instead. “Go play the concerned relative for once. And remember to wipe that grin off your face first.”


Chu Xiong nodded and went over to the prone Chu Feng.


While everyone else was preoccupied with treating the stricken prince, Qiong Ying discreetly stood beside Huang Ming. Together they watched as Chu Feng was fussed on by the nuns.


“Sending him to check up on the prince? You would be the death of Chu Feng,” she said.


“Oh, we don’t want that. It’s enough if he got some broken bones and wounded pride,” Huang Ming replied.


“How would you do it if I hadn’t arrange this?” she asked curiously.


“You arranged this?” he asked in return as he kept his face straight.


“Indirectly, yes,” Qiong Ying said.


“You’re one dangerous lady,” Huang Ming said admiringly.


“Nowhere as dangerous as that Bian Qing,” she admitted. “She is beyond my expectations.”


“But you said you arranged this,” Huang Ming pointed out.


“Indirectly,” she reminded him.


He frowned, but before he could ask for more information, Prince Chu Feng had burst into a tantrum while the nuns were nursing him on the ground.


“Go away! All of you, get out of my sight!” he roared, causing the nuns to back off in fright.


“Now now, brother,” Chu Xiong said placatingly. “Don’t give them a hard time, they are worried after that beating you suffered.”


“You-!” Chu Feng shouted, but whatever invective he was preparing was interrupted by a hacking cough that yielded speckles of blood.


“Your highness, please allow us to help,” one of the nuns said.


“Please~?” a younger one pleaded with hands clasped together, her eyes round and teary.


How could any one resist?


“Raaaargh!” the prince growled and slammed a fist into the ground with futile frustration.


“You’d better do as they say, brother. Or do you want that giant woman to come back and knock you out first?” Chu Xiong asked, barely able to hide his mirth.


Helpless, Chu Feng allowed himself to be helped up by his maids and the nuns. As he shuffled away, he glared at his brother.


“This isn’t over,” he hissed.


“I’ll be sure to tell Miss Bian Qing that you want a rematch,” Chu Xiong said lightly.


It took all of Chu Feng’s pain and the fact that he was surrounded by the innocent nuns that he did not break into a paroxysm of curses there and then. Instead he allowed himself to be shepherded away as his brother watched on, fanning himself.


“That prince’s behaviour is oh-so-familiar,” Qiong Ying commented as she watched the scene.


“Mmm, he’s someone I’m raising,” Huang Ming said. “He has a bright future ahead of him.”


“With you as his mentor, what could go wrong?” Qiong Ying rolled her pretty green eyes.


“Speaking of which, how did you arrange for this to happen?”


“Indirectly,” Qiong Ying repeated once more. “Someone else handled the details, I only provided the general timing. In fact, you know the person quite well indeed,” she said as she turned to give him a mischievous smile.


“Who? I hate surprises,” Huang Ming muttered.


“Instructor!” one of the martial nuns called out. They clasped their hands and bowed reverently to someone who was climbing up the top of the stairs.


Huang Ming turned to see a tanned, short-haired woman, her lithe body rippled with agility and strength. She was carrying a spear which had its sharp business end wrapped in a leather bag to hide its lethal potential, as befitting one entering a temple.


Who else could it be but the War Goddess Zhao Sunli?


“Surprise,” Qiong Ying said smugly.

All three together,
Birds of a feather.​

 

Apologies for the delay. mmm national day weekend...

“When in doubt, don't.”
--Benjamin Franklin

Chapter 218 - Cleared

Zhao Sunli had climbed up the stairs with some trepidation in her heart.


From a distance, she could hear the commotion from the temple, and she easily deduced what was happening. Qiong Ying had already written to her to make some arrangements and Sunli knew that she would be arriving today as planned.


Sunli had done her part in the drama that was unfolding at the temple: she had gone to the temple and infiltrated as a wandering warrior. There she had bested their strongest fighter, Bian Qing. In return for their hospitality, Sunli offered to train some of them to protect themselves from wild animals and the occasional hoodlums that would bother the nuns whenever they went down the mountain.


She was prepared and knew what to expect, yet there was slight hesitation in every step she took, for she knew that Qiong Ying was not alone. Huang Ming was also at the mountain.


She gripped her spear tighter.


It had been some time.


What sort of face would he show her when they meet?


She was uncertain of herself, and so she put on an impassive face and steeled herself as she climbed up the stairs. By the time she reached, the commotion was already over. She arrived just in time to see a hunched over Prince Chu Feng being ushered into the temple by worried young nuns.


Huang Ming was standing beside Qiong Ying. It was like seeing something out of a novel: as if Sunli could see the backs of two celestial beings standing side by side, the sun highlighting the outlines of their bodies with a majestic temple as the backdrop, framed by the soaring mountains and drifting clouds.


Her heart seized at the sight: What I am doing here?


Then Qiong Ying said something and Huang Ming turned around.


His eyes widened when he saw her … and he smiled with genuine surprise.


Whatever self-doubt she had before vanished.


“You’re here!” he said brightly.


‘Ah, I like him.’



It wasn’t that she was enamoured by a pretty face (though it’s quite pretty…), but the sincerity in his eyes assuaged the worries that had clouded her mind.


She allowed herself to smile slightly, and she could see he was slightly dazed by it. Sunli could feel a wave of pleasure sweeping over her body; she enjoyed knowing that she had that effect on him.


“I am here,” she said simply.


They gazed at each other’s eyes, allowing the moment to linger.


“Ahem,” Qiong Ying coughed discreetly. “There is nobody else here now, but we should still be wary.”


“Mmm,” Huang Ming nodded.


---


“So, that Bian Qing is yours?” Huang Ming asked later in one of the tea rooms provided by the temple.


“No, she really is a nun here,” Sunli said. She calmly sipped her tea even as Huang Ming and Qiong Ying stared at her incredulously.


“Really?” Qiong Ying asked.


“Really,” Sunli repeated. “Apparently she ran away from her home and the temple took her in a few years ago. Not sure if they regretted their decision.”


“I can imagine,” Huang Ming said lightly.


“Yes. She’s quite boisterous, and when I first arrived she immediately challenged me to a spar.”


“Oh? What happened?” Huang Ming asked.


“Naturally, I kicked her ass,” Sunli replied with a straight face. It made Huang Ming smile, and Sunli had to hide her own pleasure by taking another sip of her tea.


“Well, this was not what I expected, but I guess it worked out in the end,” Qiong Ying commented.


Huang Ming arched an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”


“I had thought Sunli would be the one knocking down the prince,” she admitted.


“The thought had crossed my mind, but I did not expect to see someone like Bian Qing here. Once I proved myself as guest instructor, she was very eager to learn, and she learned quickly. It was inevitable that she would find someone to test her new skills.”


“That is a blessing,” Huang Ming smirked. “We can honestly say that we have nothing to do with Prince Chu Feng being beaten up by a nun.”


“Well, that is fine too,” Qiong Ying laughed. “I am afraid if Sunli was the one who dished out the beating, the prince would be smitten by her. Beautiful, strong female figure and such,” she said airily.


Huang Ming grimaced, and Sunli saw the irritation on his face.


Somehow, she was glad to see his reaction.


“Fall in love with someone who beat the crap out of him? This is not some romance novel,” he disagreed.


‘But that’s what happened to me,’ Sunli thought, and then she quickly banished it away before her cheeks could redden.


“Oh, don’t be too sure,” Qiong Ying said mischievously. “Men are quite simple, really. The prince looks like someone who has been under the thumb of his mother all his life, and so he would find someone who is as powerful as she is in his mind to be quite desirable.”


“Are you suggesting that I resemble his mother?” Sunli asked flatly as she narrowed her eyes.


Qiong Ying shrank back to hide playfully behind Huang Ming.


“I was only joking!” she grinned.


“I am laughing. This is my laughing face,” Sunli said expressionlessly.


Huang Ming smiled. “Where did you pick up a sense of humour?”


‘From you,’ Sunli thought. But instead, she said, “I always had one. But enough of this. What do we do next?”


“I think we can push Prince Chu Feng to the brink, with Bian Qing’s help,” Qiong Ying said with a wink.

The prince was given a beating,
'twas a bitter pill to swallow,
But in another meeting,
There was more plotting to follow.​