Chapter 2

The trip was shorter than they thought. They only rested twice and got to their destination two days earlier. The fields were full of lilies and Lian couldn't stop herself from wanting to go through them.

They tied their horses to a try before they walked through the flowers. They giggled and laid down next to each other. "The air is so much more better than at home" she whispered to Yue Li as she closed her eyes.

"I told you mei-mei will like it" Yue Li replied to her. They slowly got up and went back to their horses. Before they could reach them, they heard a groan.

"Did you hear that?" Wei Lian asked her cousin who nodded to reply that she did. They both slowly walked towards where the sound is coming from. They slowly approached it and saw a person. A man at that.

His face was covered with flowers as he held his side. His whole body was in a pool of blood. "Oh my gods" Li exclaimed, covering her mouth in shock. Wei Lian quickly came out of her daze and went down on her knees next and teared her shirt sleeve.

She tied where the wound was and looked to Yue Li. "Quickly, help me carry him to the horse" she said. Li nodded and went to help her cousin. They carried the man towards the horse and got him up.

Wei Lian quickly got onto the horse and followed her cousin towards the town. They got to the manor where Yue Li and her family lived. They guards saw them and saw the unknown man with them.

"Somebody please get a physician" Wei Lian said as she was helped by one of the guards. One of the maid servants went out to get the physician while another helped with the unknown guest. They put him in one of the guest rooms and got some hot water.

The physician soon came and Wei Lian and Yue Li both left the room. They went to the main hall and saw Li's parents.

They both bowed. "Greetings Maternal Aunt and Uncle" "Greetings Mother and Father" they both said.

"Li my child, my dear niece. Welcome both of you. I heard on the way you both have encountered something unpleasant" Madam Lu said as she walked towards the two girls.

"Yes, we encountered a man who had gotten injured. If it werent for Lian mei-mei's quick thinking, I think this man would have not made it" Li replied with a short smile.

"Indeed you have my fathers brain Wei Lian. Welcome to our humble home" Lord Lu said as he smiled at his niece. She bowed again before giving them a bright smile.

They were both guided by maid servants who took them to bath. Wei Lian sat in the brown wooden bath as sighed. She looked at her pale fingers as the water trickled down them. She suddenly started to miss her mother.

She sat there while closing her eyes and opened them again. She slowly got out the bath and dried herself before putting on rose oil. She wore another white robe and left the room. She walked towards where the man that she had found was.

The physician was already out of the room and was about to call when he saw Wei Lian walking towards him. "Greetings, the man that you had brought has suffered a wound to his right side. The cause was a knife. I have given him herbs to stop the pain. I have also bandaged him and left some bandages in there. Make sure to change his bandages ever 3 hours. His medicine is there so please make sure he takes them" he said to her before bowing and leaving.

She checked on the man and told the maids to call her if there was any progress. For some reason she felt attached to this man but she didnt know why. She then left and got a maidservant to guide her to the dining hall.

Wei Lian's uncle, Lu Yusheng was an official of the 4th ranking. He didn't have a say in many matters but was still kept due to his wisdom. His father at first did not approve of the idea but slowly accepted it. His wife, Hou Zhao hui was the daughter of a wealthy merchant. They fell in love and got married, having two children of their own. Lu Yusheng did not believe in having more than one wife so he never had consorts or concubines after his wife.

She walked in and saw everyone was there, even her elder cousin Zhiqiang was there as well. She bowed and greeted everyone before sitting next to Yue Li.

"Since you are back, let us get down to business. Someone has asked for your hand in marriage" Master Lu said to her daughter. "And who might that be?" She asked her father.

"The young scholar Zi Zixin" he said to her. Yue Li nodded and looked at her mother who was squeezing her hand. "We thought he was a good match for you. It is your call if you want to or not" Madam Lu said to her daughter.

"Mei-Mei, do get married quickly. Im afraid your beauty might wither as you will be turning 16 soon" Zhiqiang said to his younger sister.

"Will Zhiqiang ge-ge promise to protect me if he does something wrong to me?" Yue Li said in a teasing baby voice. "Mei-mei knows ge-ge will always protect you" he said as he smiled at her.

Wei Lian smiled and nodded as Yue Li looked at her. "Alright then. Accept the proposal" she said to her father.

Her mother clapped happily as she called the maids to bring sweets for the occasion.

"So you are getting married" Wei Lian said to her cousin. "Yes it seems so. I didnt expect it to be this quick" she said to her cousin as she sat on the bed.

She smiled and touched Yue Li's hair. "Well believe it" she said smiling softly. Yue Li nodded before a knock was heard on the door.

"Come in" Yue Li said as the door opened and revealed a maid she bowed and looked at Wei Lian.

"My lady, the gentleman that you have brought had slightly moved his fingers and groaned something" the maid said.

"Well let me go check on the patient. Hopefully he can tell us more about him so we can get him home" Wei Lian said to Yue Li. "You get some sleep. You must be more tired then me" she added as Yue Li kissed her forehead before she left the room.