Chapter 6

strangers and friends alike

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Lianhua sat on the cobblestone bridge, soaking wet. She coughed and spluttered, attempting to rid herself of any water that got into her lungs. The stranger who had graciously pulled her out of the water, was knelt beside her, unbuttoning his outer coat.

"Miss, I'm going to put this around your shoulders." He said. Lianhua coughed. "I don't think that's necessary." She managed to speak between gulps of air. The stranger looked concerned. "But you might catch a cold."

"It's fine, I'll dry off, but thank you." 

She crawled the edge of the bridge and wringed her hair out of any excess water, twisting and carding the strands of hair to rid any water. 

The stranger watched her with mild concern in their eyes as Lianhua carded her fingers through her hair and she coughed more. 

"Are you okay now?" The stranger asked. Lianhua nodded. "Yes. Thank you." She stood up and billowed her skirts outwards to try and dry them off, flapping the skirt's outermost layer, pinched between her thumb and forefinger. 

After a few minutes of patting herself down and wringing out her hair, Lianhua turned to the kind stranger in yellow who had pulled her up and out of the water.

"Thank you good sir for your kindness. I appreciate it."

She smiled. The stranger did his coat back up and brushed himself down.

"Please miss, do not think much of it. I saw you fall backwards and rushed to help."

Lianhua pursed her lips together in thought, her eyes raking over the gentleman - he was quite tall and youthful, pale face and wearing a long tunic coat of turmeric-yellow and black boots. He had a belt sash around his waist and a black futou wrapped around his head and tied at the back.

"Nonetheless, I wish to know the name of the man who "fished" me out of the koi pond."

The gentleman's cheeks turned pink - probably because of her pun - and cleared his throat. "My name is Hak, and yours?"

Lianhua bowed. " Lianhua. Bai Lianhua." She responded politely. Hak's eyes widened. "Bai? I see, well if we're giving out family names, then mine would be Lao."

"Lao? I don't think I've heard that name come up in my studies…" Lianhua pondered aloud. 

"Studies?" Hak repeated, curious and a little confused. Lianhua was about to answer when she heard someone cry out.

"My lady?!" That same worried cry made Lianhua snap out of her thoughts and she saw Yingtao rush up to her and hug her - before recoiling back.

"Oh goodness you're soaked! What happened?"

"I took an impromptu dip in the pond." Lianhua joked. Yingtao sighed in relief. "As long as you're okay." she patted Lianhua's shoulder. She noticed that there was a man standing near them with an awkward look on his face and Yingtao's eyes popped open.

"Oh, pardon me, I wasn't aware that there was anyone else around."

Lianhua brushed off her skirts to distract herself as the air simmered.

The man chuckled awkwardly. "Apologies if I startled you miss. If there's not much else I shall take my leave." he bowed to the both of them and left, walking back the way he had come when Lianhua had toppled into the water. Yingtao watched the man leave and raised an eyebrow.

"Do you know him?" 

"Me? Know him? No. First time seeing him."

"Then what was he doing here then? Did you two strike up a conversation or something?"

"He rescued me from the pond when I fell in. He said his name was Lao Hak." Lianhua answered. Yingtao scrunched her nose up in thought, the gears turning in her head when her face brightened up - like a lightbulb going off in her head. 

"Oh. Lao Hak. I know him."

Yingtao replied. This made Lianhua arch an eyebrow. "Huh? You do? How?"

"He's a commanding officer in the Imperial Army. I can't say for certain which sector he is stationed to or which general he serves, but he is an upstanding well mannered citizen. Some of the ladies of the Inner court like him a lot and talk about whether they would be able to meet him in person."

Lianhua hummed. "A military officer? In the Inner court? Strange. I assumed the Inner court allowed only eunuchs, women and the Imperial family inside? Didn't expect a military officer."

They made their way back to the dorms whilst chatting. Yingtao nodded her head. "Whilst that's true, he could be here to report to the Imperial family - such as the Emperor. Although, word about the court states that a commanding officer of high rank in a turmeric-yellow coat had been wandering around and caught the attention of a few groups of ladies-in-waiting and they all started swooning over him. It's understandable, the women of the Inner court don't usually get to see handsome men around frequently since eunuchs are the only other type of men that's allowed and eunuchs lose their "manliness" after getting a castration. It's also to prevent unwanted pregnancies in women and to protect the concubines."

"Castrations? That's the method they use to prevent unwanted pregnancies?" Lianhua asked. Yingtao nodded. "Yep. All men that work in the Inner Court have to be castrated."

"That's the option they go for? What about a vasectomy?"

"I didn't think that's an option. Castrations are either a free-will option or a punishment. Sure, having a man with his manhood intact but without sperm running the Inner court may sound nice, but venerable diseases can be passed on. It's better for the inhabitants, especially the women, if a man working in the Inner court didn't have his manhood. Less chance of sexual attacks or even unwanted pregnancies."

"Whatever the case, I hope we don't have to bump into that military officer. His business is not ours." Liahua spoke as they walked further back to the dorms.

A few days after the chance encounter she had in the gardens, Lianhua was attending classes for the Embroidery test. The concubine trainees had all gathered at the main pavilion that was being used as a classroom and the trainee concubines were all gathered and seated for the lesson.

Madam Feng, as usual, was in the teacher in charge and she was going through a textbook about the history of Feiyu's most famous embroidery:

The Founders' Triad.

According to the textbook, the Founders' Triad was a piece of embroidered cloth that famously used gold, silver and deep red thread and a sharp needle. The cloth itself was the thinnest price of cloth used and it would take over 5 hours to fully embroider the whole cloth due to the cloth's delicate texture. The needle had to be sharp enough to pierce through the cloth, yet blunt enough as to not rip the cloth during the embroidery. The pattern itself looked relatively simple but the colours had to blend together seamlessly to create an illusion of unity between the three founders' respective colours.

- The gold thread represented the earth and the hard earned wealth given to the people.

- The silver thread represented the light of the moon and stars that gave people hope.

- The red thread represented the blood of those who laboured long and hard to secure prosperity and peace for the country.

The Triad featured a great long - a majestic creature of wisdom and strength with golden antler-like horns and an earthy-brown mane. The scales of the long are said to glow in a gold, earthy-brown and dark obsidian light. Within the embroidery, the long circles the top half of the cloth. On the bottom half is a silver, violet and midnight-blue peacock, its tail feathers containing hundreds of small eyes that are said to see all from the silver orb high above the land. The tail feathers circle around the bottom half of the cloth and the tip of the longest feather meets the snout of the long. In the middle is a red, one-eyed fox curled around an umbrella - the ghostly protector of the people that shields those it deems worthy. The umbrella is one of the most recognised symbol of the one-eyed fox ghost that helped to nourish the barren and dry land with its blood rain.

The history of the Founders' Triad fascinated many of the students, including Lianhua and she paid a lot of attention to the lecture, not wanting to miss a single detail. She picked up her ink brush and with swift and elegant strokes she wrote down the important information.

As she wrote, she could feel an intense glare directed at her, boring into her skull. She turned her head and saw Sui glaring daggers at her, a vein threatening to pop in her forehead. She was gritting her teeth and her cheeks looked flushed.

'That…doesn't look very noble lady-like. What is her deal?'

Lianhua turned her attention back to her parchment of paper and continued to note down the lecture, only for something to knock against the side of her head. She looked down and saw a scrunched up ball of what looked to be paper on the floor by her knee.

Lianhua looked up to see where that ball of paper came from, but didn't see who had thrown it.

'Nevermind.'

However, Madam Feng had caught sight of the projectile.

"Lady Sui, I do hope you are paying attention. Just because you're of noble blood, doesn't mean you can throw things at other students." 

Sui sat straight and narrow, smiling awkwardly. "I-I wasn't trying to be a distraction…." 

'Oh, so it was Sui who had thrown that paper ball. Good to know.'

Madam Feng arched a slender eyebrow at the young woman. "Please conduct yourself in a much better manner. I'm trying to help you succeed in the Trials. Do remember your place young lady."

The others laughed quietly before hushing themselves immediately. Steam rolled off of Sui's body, embarrassment and heated fury searing her bones.

Lianhua ignored her and continued her note taking. Sui's silent meltdown was none of her business.

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Madam Feng dismissed the class and many dispersed into the open air, young ladies making their way to wherever they wished, now free from the room.

Lianhua stayed behind to take the last few notes with her ink brush and she heard Sui storm out, spitting unladylike profanities about whatever made her mad.

Madam Feng noticed Lianhua still sitting at her low-lying desk and was quite surprised.

"You're still here?" She asked. Lianhua looked up from her paper and saw the quizzical gaze of the Matron directed at her. Her cheeks flamed pink.

"My apologies. I was hoping to finish my notes in a quieter place. But if you need me to leave, I'll leave."

Madam Feng shook her head.

"No. I do not mind. As a matter of fact, such diligence does not go unnoticed. I hope you continue your studies in the same manner."

Madam Feng left the pavilion with her assistants in tow, and Lianhua blinked in surprise, uncertain. It seemed that the Matron was okay with her studying here.

Lianhua had finished up and after packing away her belongings, she rushed out of the pavilion and raced back to her dorm, not paying much attention to what other people thought or saw of her as she ran through the courtyard.

As she ran through the mingling crowds, she awkwardly crashed into a tall wall of soft fabrics. Looking back, she saw the person she had bumped into and called put a hasty apology 

"I'm so sorry, I'm in a bit of a rush. Are you hurt?"

Her voice, soft and empathetic, drew the person's attention and Lianhua saw thick strands of brilliant brown hair cascading down their back and robes of midnight and ocean blue. The person looked a little startled to see her and only stared, silent. Their eyes were a lovely shade of brownish-grey, tinged with pink. The person in front of Lianhua looked a bit lost, their eyes darting up and down, taking Lianhua's appearance. 

Not a single word was spoken between them.

Silence remained.

The young man in front of her lifted a hand, as if to reach out to her, his mouth parting and he inhaled, but nothing came out of his mouth.

"Uh….sorry." Lianhua mumbled and turned around to speed off, her footsteps echoing on the cobbletones. 

The young nobleman who had previously not said a word suddenly broke out of the trance and started running, hoping to catch up with the young women he had made eye contact with.

"Wait!" he called out, willing his legs to propel him forward but the young woman was too far away for him to catch up to and he slowed down to a halt, grumbling.

"I can't believe I did that. Idiot!" he cursed himself. He scuffed the sole of his boot on the cobblestones childishly, scolding himself for his idiocy and lack of communication. He felt the air shimmer around him and he tensed up, sensing the change in atmosphere immediately. He knew who that was.

And he wished to speak with him about his stupid move just then.

"Obsidian Moon. Come forth." The nobleman quietly muttered under his breath in defeat.

A wisp of energy pulsated beside the brown-haired nobleman and in a swirl of silver and midnight stars, Obsidian Moon had materialised out of thin air.

"Young prince….what is on your mind?" 

The spirit; Obsidian Moon, in his midnight and lavender robes, was standing next to the nobleman, a willowy eyebrow raised as the spirit lurched his eyes in the noble's direction. The nobleman sighed indignantly.

"I'm not entirely sure. I'm a little lost for words."

There was a pulse of energy that punctured the air around him and a flash of red blurred into existence - morphing into the crimson robed man. He trained his only good eye onto the nobleman standing with his shoulders slumped forward and smirked.

"Someone didn't get to talk to their new crush. Again." the spirit chuckled, and his comment caused the nobleman to blush fiercely.

"What? No!! It's not that. And where did you appear from?" He protested. The ghost in crimson-red laughed. 

"Obsidian Moon was kind enough to send a telepathic link telling me that you were in a mood."

The nobleman pouted, puffing his cheeks out in annoyance. "Don't tease me." He mumbled. 

"We're not teasing you. We're simply curious."

"Oh? You saw her?" Obsidian Moon asked, with curiosity laced in his usual honeyed voice. The young nobleman sighed in defeat again. "Yes….somewhat. She even spoke to me but I was unable to say anything. I just…."

"Just what?" Crimson Rain asked, curious. The young nobleman huffed.

"I just stared back at her and didn't say a word. I looked so stupid."

The two ghosts chuckled, with Obsidian Moon nudging the young man gently.

"There's no need to be upset. We all make mistakes. Look on the bright side, you finally got to see her up close. Was she as pretty as she was when you saw her from afar?"

The young man blushed. "Yes. She was. She was ethereal. Such a lovely, soothing voice. She was quite apologetic about bumping into me."

"We're on the right path then. Perhaps we should work on your communication skills?" 

Crimson Rain ghost offered. The young man knew what this meant.

"Oh no not again." He groaned.

"It's part of your education. You have to do it, Yue."

The young nobleman groaned as he wandered away with the two ghosts flanking him, not exactly looking forward to yet another etiquette lesson. 

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Lianhua hurried through the gates of the smaller courtyard that housed some of the concubine holdings and dormitories and she finally arrived, a little out of breath. She saw Yingtao sweeping the front entryway, with a slender broom, humming to herself as she swept.

Yingtao heard the light thump of footsteps and spotted Lianhua, before breaking into a wonderful smile her eyes gleaming.

"Hey, you're back my lady. How was the embroidery class?"

Lianhua swallowed and sucked in a few breaths to speak.

"It was fine."

Yingtao raised an eyebrow with scepticism. "Are you sure? Nothing eventful happened?"

Lianhua shrugged casually."The only "eventful thing" that happened during that class was Yuan Sui getting caught and told off by Madam Feng for throwing a scrunched up paper ball at me."

Yingtao tried to suppress a giggle by puffing her cheeks out and snorting. "Really? Serves her right for misbehaving."

"And she tried to play it off by saying "she wasn't trying to be a distraction," but Madam Feng was not having it. You should have seen her afterwards, she stormed out swearing unfavourable profanities and looking very red in the face." Lianhua recounted. This made Yingtao laugh.

"Oh goodness, such a lively personality. Shame I wasn't there to witness it myself."

"Perhaps some other time." Lianhua suggested. She decided to go inside for a quick rest and to read some more of the Embroidery textbook.

Then she remembered her agreement. "Oh, Yingtao, when you have finished your chores list, come back inside and we'll work on another pattern over tea."

Yingtao nodded and bowed. "Of course my lady. What tea shall it be this afternoon?"

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