Yang Biya

Black hair that sat lifelessly on top of flat heads. Tanned skin with horrible complexion. Dirty rags, that were considered as clothes, sat unfashionably on people's bodies. People that obviously hadn't showered in a week, were all gawking at the never-before-seen young female.

The stranger wore the same clothes as many women in the bustling street, yet somehow, she appeared completely different. Her top was tied diagonally rather than in a straight line. Her collar was nonexistent, revealing white sculpted collarbones, and her skirt was obviously too short for her. Lastly, her straw shoes were being held in her hands rather than being worn.

But what was even more shocking to the commoner crowd, was the young girl's noble-like aura. Walking with an unbelievably straight posture, a domineering aura surrounded her. Her pale skin showed no blemishes, and her palms bore no blisters or calluses. Her long dark brown hair was tied up in a never-before-seen fashion, and despite it's unbrushed appearance, it looked elegant and refined.

The normally loud and bustling street was quiet as they stared shockingly at the girl. She obviously didn't belong in this area, as she stuck out like a sore thumb.

"Young Miss," a merchant broke the silence. "Please come have a look at our shop." He pleaded. After seeing the young restaurant owner approaching the girl, the place resumed its usual atmosphere. And sooner rather than later, hundreds of people surrounded Wang Sinjeong.

Countless shouts were thrown at the clueless Sinjeong. She had no choice but to be dragged around by the crowd that was eagerly surrounding her. Showing a polite smile to everyone who spoke to her, she tried to find a way to leave.

More and more people began to surround her, making her unable to leave. A frown creased on her face as her patience was running low. Finally, she could take it no longer. As a greedy merchant went to reach for her hand to bring her to her store, Sinjeong hurriedly went onto all fours and began to crawl through the thick circular crowd.

The female merchant had coincidentally blocked the majority of the crowd's sight, enabling her escape. Ignoring the small pain from people stepping on her, she managed to make her way out of the circle after a few minutes.

"Hmph." Sinjeong harrumphed as she stood up and dusted herself off. She turned to glare at the merciless crowd and an even bigger frown appeared on her face. 'You should all be imprisoned for touching me!'

After threatening the merchants in her mind, she turned around to leave. But an outstanding red blocked her view. The armor she had familiarized herself with the entire day before was suddenly before her. Thirty soldiers stood before her, curiously staring at the crowd in the center of the street, which she just so happened to be standing in front of. To make matters worse, the annoying boy she had tied up was standing at the front of the crowd glaring at her!

Her jaw dropped at her unluckiness and she quickly ran back into the mosh pit. The soldiers didn't fail to notice someone running from them and they quickly followed suit into the crazy crowd.

Seeing that pushing her way into the crowd wasn't working, Sinjeong quickly dropped onto all fours once more and crawled as quickly as humanely possible. Thanks to her experience in the mosh pit, she managed to reach the other side faster than her pursuers.

Standing up immediately as she was thrown out of the crowd, she ran towards a side alley. She knew that the soldiers would have an advantage over her. The most pressing one being their numbers, and their knowledge of the city layout. Using the little amount of strength she had left, she ran as fast as she could. Making many turns into alleys, she managed to reach an exit to the city before being caught.

Multiple city guards lay suit at the gate, making it impossible for her to just run through. The walls were too high up and too smooth for her to climb over. There were already too many soldiers in the city for her to hide forever, and she was sure they'd call reinforcements. She only had one option. A gamble that may cost her life.

Twenty feet in front of her, a line of fourteen girls spread out. They all wore clothes that were even worse than that of the commoners in the market place, with bodies that showed obvious traits of malnutrition. Yet the ignorant princess who had rarely left her courtyard in the palace, failed to notice this important aspect. In her eyes, everyone who wasn't wearing clothes made from the finest quality of silk, were all the same.

With the rushed footsteps of multiple men behind her, Wang Sinjeong had no more time to think. She blindly ran into the line and was pushed into a carriage with three other girls. The door closed before she had even opened her eyes, and before she knew it, she was riding outside of the city walls.

Quickly she looked in the small window frame and managed to see the soldiers behind her. As they continued away from the city, the thirty soldiers, and Tao Xiaobo, grew smaller and smaller.

"Who are you?"

The sudden voice made Sinjeong turn around immediately. Only then did she realize there were others in the carriage.

"I've never seen you before." The girl next to her stated. She had a small face and big brown eyes.

"Me neither." Another girl spoke.

"We're scaring her." The girl closest to the door spoke. Her black hair was tied tightly in a high ponytail, revealing a pretty round face. In the carriage she was undoubtedly the best looking, before the addition of Wang Sinjeong.

"I'm Ye Quingge." The big eyed girl said with an enchanting smile.

'What are they trying to say?' Wang Sinjeong asked herself. Her eyes transitioned into slits, desperately trying to gage if they were going to harm her or not. Her fingers quickly curled around the dangerous hair piece in her hair.

"I don't think she can understand us." The one by the door said contemplatively. After a moment of hesitation she pointed to herself and spoke slowly. "My name is Shao Xiulan. Shao Xiulan. Sh-ao, Xiu-lan."

Ye Quingge and the other girl, Xia Hualing, were quiet as they watched the strange process. They had never seen someone introduce themselves in such a slow way. Yet they watched in awe as the stranger seemed to understand.

"Oh!" Wang Sinjeong exclaimed before relaxing and showing a polite smile. "I'm," in a second's worth of time she had came up with a name. A sudden memory came to her, a vivid memory of her brother's lessons she had spied in on, where he learned the basics of the Mandarin language. The teacher's name was the only name she knew. 'Please understand why I'm copying your identity!' "called Yang Biya."

"Yang Biya?" The other girls repeated simultaneously. Wang Sinjeong, or now Yang Biya, nodded happily after they seemed to understand her.

The three girls watched as Yang Biya smiled happily after they figured out her name. They couldn't believe their eyes. Although the smile was not exaggerated in any way, and was more likely suppressed, it was a genuinely beautiful smile. As her eyes creased into the shapes of half moons, she transformed into a great piece of art.

"It's nice to meet you." Shao Xiulan said with a pleasant smile. "Yang Biya."