Chapter 60: The future Queen of East Lands

Yi Tai comes and puts kettle down setting up teacups on the table.

"Do you want one?" She asked. Hong Liu nodded in answer.

As Hong Liu sipped on her tea in deep thought, Bai Changxi comes storming in and kicked the door startling everyone.

"Careful Xi-Xi! Do you want to break my hut?" Ren said.

"That old...He said no for the marriage!" Changxi exclaimed ignoring him.

"What?" Three of them said at the same time.

"I can't believe it, he refuses to the marriage!"

Marriage? Hong Liu thought then it hit her, of course, the Crown Prince and her aunt were discussing marriage a few days ago. He refuses it but how could that be

"Crown Prince refuses to the marriage?" Hong Liu asked shocked.

"What?" Yi Tai followed after her.

Bai Changxi realizes how she sounded.

"No! It's not Xian Yu, he went to report his parents and the Heavenly Emperor to talk about our marriage and that...Heavenly Emperor said no! He refuses to give his blessings!" Bai Changxi sat pouring herself tea, huffing.

"Oh," Hong Liu sigh in relief but then shook her head what he is thinking that is still a problem, how could he say no?

"But Why?" Yi Tai asked.

"He said, that Green Forest and Nine heavens are not compatible, there is too much difference in the culture he didn't see this union lasting longer,"

"In what grounds he is saying that?" Hong Liu wonders. Last time he didn't want to let Little Li go and now there is a chance, he himself suggested a marriage the time she went there?

"I will go and..." Hong Liu stands up frowning. Yi Tai and Ren both grabbed her hand, pulling her down making her sit.

"No!" both exclaimed.

"You have already strain yourself enough and this time let the elder handle it," Bai Changxi said after calming down. Hong Liu sat back pouting.

Heavenly Lord Tan He just was stepping down from the Court tower with his twenty-one attendants following him in the evening, He stepped down to the last step when he noticed that First Lord was strolling down to the same path, he looks leisure with his fishing rod on one shoulder and a wooden bucket in his other hand. Their eyes met, Dong Hai gave a curt nod in greeting and stop in front of him as Heavenly Lord nodded as well.

"End of the court today?" Dong Hai raised his eyebrow in mild interest.

"Yes, the current matter with northern-west dessert has been put to rest," Heavenly Lord smile, saying this he looks tired.

"Good," Dong Hai nodded.

"You seem to be coming from fishing," He looks at Dong Hai relax posture wistfully, with no attended behind.

Dong Hai nodded looking down at the bucket with no fish and then looking back at the Heavenly Lord.

"I sometimes envious you," Heavenly lord stated.

"Ho?"

"You are aloof and away from worldly affairs, I can't even remember when the last time I did something as simple as fishing," He gave a sad smile.

"Well, your days of retirement doesn't seem to be that far away, Tan He," Dong Hai said off handly.

"I am afraid I don't understand, my lord,"

"Why? I heard Everything is fine between the Crown Prince and Green Forest Queen Bai Changxi, Now you have the future heavenly emperor and empress. After a few thousand years, You can retire freely, you must be looking forward to spending some time with your great grand son as well?" Dong Hai lips stretched on one side.

That made Heavenly Emperor pause and think.

"Besides, a marriage alliance between Green forest and Nine Heavens, it seems you are as good as having all the three realms under you," Dong Hai stated.

Heavenly Emperor nodded in agreement caught up by the idea.

"It seems so," He agreed.

"You must be tired, I leave you to retire for the evening," Dong Hai walked away.

"He agreed?!" Hong Liu looks at her future uncle-in-law Xian Yu and aunt Bai Changxi with them Hua Shen, Ming Zhu and Huan Ling come as well with good news in the peach blossom forest next morning.

"Yes, as speak the marriage contract of between Crown Prince Xian Yu and Queen of Green Forest Bai Changxi is been drawn all the elderly people had gathered in heavenly court " Second Prince Huang Ling announced waving his fan.

"You are also elderly why you are not there," Hua Shen quipped to Huang Ling

"I am not that old by the way, three realms are seeing this day because of me and my partner in crime, Princess Bai Hong Liu," Huang Ling pointed his fan in appreciation to Hong Liu.

"Don't you dare? If she stayed in your shadow any longer, you will corrupt her," Hua Shen pulled Hong Liu to her side protectively from Yi Tai's side.

"Come now we know each other longer than you know each other, isn't it Bai Hong Liu?"

"Well, call me Xiao Liu from now on..."

Huan Ling beamed at her acceptance.

"Grandfather Ling," Hong Liu bowed to him slyly and everybody burst into laughter seeing Huang Ling shocked face.

"But I wonder What made Heavenly emperor change his mind?" Ren asked curiously after everybody laughter died down.

"Don't know," Changxi rolled her eyes.

It seems everything seems to fall into place, Hong Liu thought smiling.

Bai Family was gathered in Bai Changxi cocoon after Green Forest Emperor Bai Lei and Bai Yu come back from the nine heavens after negotiating the Marriage contract, everything was laid down to Bai Changxi, the rituals and expectation, and her getting ready for the final day of the wedding was enough to stretch this wedding for few good hundred years but it was the wedding of the future Heavenly Emperor and Empress it was only expected.

"Now since it is done, I have another more important question purpose now Bai Changxi is going to get married and will have her own responsibilities as Crown Princess," Bai Lei started, everybody waited for him to complete.

"She won't be able to stay the queen of east land of green forest, who will succeed the thrown of east lands?"

Bai Lei rule all the five regions of the Green Forest while he is one point of control his five children, four sons and one daughter rule each region, Bai Changxi being the queen of East Lands, it would have been fine if she is married to someone who held no particular power but now she will be the Crown Princess leaving the thrown of East Lands vacant.

"Well, this is easy, Xiao Liu," Bai Changxi said.

Hong Liu spat on her tea, she was just listing to the discussion of her aunt's wedding all her hard work paid off finally but this...how this conversation turns on her.

"Me? How can I?" She looks at her aunt, she knew one day it will happen but not this soon. She just had reached her full adult life.

"Why can't you?" Bai Changxi asked.

"That's right she can't, she is too young and still childish maybe the third brother should take the responsibility," Bai Yu said.

"I can't my region is Northern east I already have to handle the unruly Demon Clan," The said Third Brother Bai Lim, the king of the Northern East Lands said.

"This region faces the same problem. How do you except a mere child to do take care of that?" Bai Yu argued.

"I am sure the Demon is easy to handle than slaying an ancient red beast," Bai De said pulled Hong Liu in encouraging side hug and gave beamed at her. He was king of the southern lands after Bai Changxi, Hong Liu was close to him, her fourth uncle. Hong Liu can't help but beamed back at her uncle feeling a little rise on her pride.

"There is nothing she can't do," Bai De said.

"You just give her too much credit," Bai Yu said.

"And you gave her too little," Bai Changxi throw at him.

"What do you think Xiao Liu? I, Xi-Xi and I am sure Ren will agree two we will all agree" Bai De asked.

"Grandfather?" Hong Liu looks at Bai Lei little unsure because he said nothing so far and Bai Lei smile.

"You have time, your aunt's wedding date is yet to be finalised. You will be ready when the time comes, I believe in you," He said.

Hong Liu nodded, beaming excitedly at the new chapter of her life, She will be the queen of East Lands.

Time moves, even if you want it or not but the heart has its way to stay where it was or where it felt the happiest, making it the most miserable as the time passes. Hong Liu gets focused on becoming capable of the thrown that was being given to her by heritage but she also wants to make sure that when she became queen everybody knows that she deserves it. Changxi and Bai De trained her in further into warfare, politics, economics she gets to know her subjects more the ways of the green forest, a command life lived here. Getting involved with a command people was easy she played on the streets of these cities, politics and diplomacy were not her strongest suits but Bai De made sure she goes to banquets throw by other regions and realms to get to know their neighbours and enemies well. She excelled in weapon forging further, it was her favourite. Buddist sutras made her sleep but her new interest was medicine, seeing that she still strain herself easily because of her impending retribution. Ren thought it was better she learns the art of medicine, it became her favourite subject soon. She grows and learns to be herself again, her heartbreak got buried in snow somewhere in corner of her heart frozen but there and surface now and then.

Sixty years passed, little Li was now a toddler that does nothing but give her aunt a headache with flying this here from there, most the time when she is free she would take of him and little by little she detached herself from Dong Hai. She put away the pottery wheel giving up making the perfect lily teacup first but it never truly goes away just like the broken piece of a lily teacup from him she still had or the bells around her waist that her heart still refuses to pit away but she learns to smile when she passing the lotuses on the pearl lake. On those sad days, she would just go to the village and fly kites with children their laughter will drown her sadness. Bear Yaun children always love when she unfolded her wings.

"Hong Liu Jie Jie, they are so red!" Xiao Zhou, Bear Yaun's exclaimed.

'Little Red,'

Sometimes those distraction doesn't work either then she flies to her favourite hill and fall asleep under the stars, seeing stars was always like meeting an old friend that no matter how far they are and how less communication they have. They always make her smile.

And it was one of those days, in the middle of the night she was returning from the hill, she felt strain again and the head was pounding, a dizzy spell was over and she chooses to land as she saw the Peach Forest approaching.

I have to go to Ren's, she thought unable to keep herself airborne she walked, soon it became hard to keep her feet straight and her nose started to bleed, she kneeled down as cold sweat break from her brow she coughed and it made her chest ache she coughed again and blood come from her mouth, it was worse than anytime she felt this. She falls to the ground surrounded by peach blossom as her nose bleed, her eyes droop unable to keep them open anymore.

'Maybe its time' She thought as everything went blank and the copper bells around her waist disappeared.