Chapter 5: The Royal Court

The caravan had left their final stop earlier that morning and Xiang had spent most of the journey preparing herself for the court. 

By the time they arrived at the capital city of Shen, where the royal courts were located, Lei thought that Xiang looked like a completely different person. The carriages soon arrived at the front gates where a line of carriages and people waited to enter. The carriages simply bypassed the line and when they reached the front the gate doors simply let them in once they recognised captain Xue. Once in the city Lei saw its true scale. Wherever he looked he saw crowds of people. He thought that it would take some time to reach the courts because of the crowds but when people saw the carriages with the royal crest emblazoned on the side they quickly moved out of the way. This meant that the journey to the royal courts was quite quick. 

Soon the carriages turned a corner and saw a massive citadel with massive walls surrounding it. The carriages entered these walls and made the journey through the walls to the citadel. Once they reached the entrance a footman rolled out a carpet to Xiang and Lei's carriage. Once again captain Xue opened the door and whispered, "Lei, let princess Xiang climb out first and then climb out." Xiang climbed out of the carriage and walked along the carpet and entered the citadel. Lei followed once he saw her enter the citadel. As he entered he saw Xiang embracing a man and a woman. He saw that the man was wearing a crown. "This must be the king." Suddenly Captain Xue's voice came from behind him, "Lei, go kneel before him and introduce yourself and tell him you are the arcane cultivator from the Jin kingdom." Lei walked towards the king and knelt, then he said, "Greetings your majesty, I am Lei Kun and I am the arcane cultivator from the Jin kingdom." The king looked at Lei with an appraising glint in his eyes and then said, "Rise Mr Kun. There will be a ball welcoming my daughter home. I expect you to be there. After the ball I would like to talk to you." Then he beckoned to one of his servants and said, "Chu, take Mr Kun here to the esteemed guest quarters." The servant walked towards and swept into a bow, "Master Kun please follow me to your quarters. Your bags will be brought up shortly." Lei followed the man through a bewildering maze of hallways and stairwells. Finally they stopped in front of a huge set of double doors. The servant pushed them open and led Lei into the massive suite. Lei looked around the massive living room that greeted him and stared at the intricate artworks and paintings. Chu followed Lei as he explored the guest quarters. Finally as he reached the living room again Chu bowed and said, "I trust that everything is acceptable and, if you allow it, I will take my leave." Lei nodded and said, "Thanks for all your help." Chu swept out of the room and closed the door behind him. Lei sat on one of the numerous couches in the living room as he waited for his bags and hoped that he had something to wear that was good enough for a royal ball. 

Lei looked at himself in the mirror and hoped that he wasn't underdressed. As he was looking at himself he heard a knock at the door to which he shouted, "Come in!" Chu walked in and said, "Master Kun, I am here to guide you to the ball. If you are ready we can leave immediately or I can wait outside until you are ready." Lei looked at himself in the mirror once again before sighing, "This is the best I'm going to look. So let's just get this over with." Chu bowed and gestured for Lei to follow him. Lei followed Chu through the maze of hallways and stairways once again. "Chu, will you be able to guide me back to my room once the ball is over? I'm afraid I won't find my way back. This place is like a maze." Chun gave a small laugh and answered with, "Of course master Kun. I will be waiting at the main entrance. Find me once you have finished speaking with the king and I will guide you back." Lei sighed in relief and said, "Thank you Chu. I was sure I would get lost." Chu just nodded his head. After a few more turns they finally at a pair of massive wooden doors adorned with carvings of dragons and warriors. "Are you ready?" Chu asked. Lei took a deep breath and nodded. Chu swung the massive set of doors open and suddenly Lei was assaulted by a barrage of voices and colour. He looked out at the nobles before him and realised that he was extremely underdressed. He took another deep breath and entered the hall.