Chapter Five

Xio-Rui's pov

I have never been one for spending unnecessary money on things just because they are the in thing at that time. Sure I have bought the latest gadgets that are useful for my day to day life but for the life of me I can't fathom spending over five million on a pair of sapphire earrings. I mean sure they are pretty to look at but as I watch the women practically drool over them I have to wonder if I am far from what they deem a normal woman to be. Jewellery is not something that I want to spend millions on. Even my mother seems hypnotised by them. If it wasn't for the fact this auction was raising money for the children's hospital then I wouldn't of even been here. 

"Do you like them baby?" I feel an arm wrap around my waist as Beichen;s cologne fills my senses. I don't know if it is because I have been around him the past four days but the scent is somewhat comforting. Like it gives me a sense of familiarity. 

"God no. Jewellery and me don't go together"

"Is there anything here that you like?" I look to him sceptically for a moment before looking at the auction items on display. Towards the end of the row is something that makes me smile. It is a pendant that Master Yen made, I am remember the day perfectly as he was showing me how to make the intricate designs on the rare white and red jade pendent. 

"It is crazy that amongst all these jewels they have a priceless rare piece and have marked it way lower than its value." 

"What do you mean?"

I nod for Beichen to follow me, which he seems to instantly do. For a moment I forget that he is my enemy as I trace a finger over the pattern on the jade. 

"This pattern is designed by Master Yen, it is said that only he and his successor are the ones that can carve into this jade. To most people it looks like a defect jade but in reality it is so much more." I look up to the auctioneer who is stood close by and signal for him to come over. The man is in his late sixties with temple clothes on just like Master Yen used to wear. When he sees me he stares and then looks down to the jade. Without saying a word he picks it up and holds it out to me like he is offering it as a gift. 

"This rightfully belongs to you. It has been here for seven years and everyone has always over looked it. Master Yen knew you would come here eventually Pandora."

When he says the name that I am known by in the temple I crease me eyebrows, not sure how he knows that. I take the jade pendent from him and he smiles happily at me. 

"Master Yen asked me to relay a message to you if ever we should meet. I am afraid it is in Latin but he said that you would understand." 

He hands me a piece of paper, the parchment not any parchment you can get on the street. He used his own personal stash that was unique to him and the temple. It was his way of letting us know whether it was him sending the note or not. He may have lived in the mountains but he was well aware of people being able to forge things in this day and age so he went to extreme lengths to protect not only himself but us as well. 

I slowly open the note and see his usual handwriting that I had grown accustomed to reading growing up. Every thing I read was written by him, his lessons being the times that I learned more about myself than I ever thought was possible. At the Chen residence I always felt like a failure but with him I felt like I was the most unique and talented person he had ever met. 

 Pandora, ne memineris omnia ut prius videtur. Agnoscite proximos vestros. 

(Pandora, remember not everything is as it first seems. Be aware of those closest to you.)

As I read over his words I clutch the pendent close to my hand, the master feeling closer to me now than i have felt in a long time. Leaving the temple for as long as we do always feels alien to me and when ever I return for short periods of time I find myself close to committing fully and staying there for the rest of my life. 

"Thank you for this. Can i make a donation to the charity your fundraising for? I wouldn't feel right leaving here with the pendent without doing so"

"of course I would be honoured."

I take out my phone and get the app up to make a payment to them. When I put in the amount and scan it, the auctioneer looks at me shocked. 

"That is far too much"

"Just make sure that the children get all the medication they need" I smile softly at him and he bows politely before walking over to some guy in a navy suit. I feel someone take my hand and I remember that Beichen was there the entire time, I wait for the questions to start but he smiles softly at me, before taking my hand and leading me to the front row where my parents are sitting. The two stiffen at the presence of Beichen before they put on fake smiles. My father has a look of disdain on his ageing face as he sees our hands entwined, the look somewhat catching me by surprise. He was the type of man that I called a yes man, always willing to do what ever it took to climb up to the top. It is why his business is failing miserably or should I say was until Beichen and Roujin married. Looking through my fathers statements it was obvious how much of a bride price he got. His account went from his last few hundred thousand to five billion in less than twenty four hours. If ever any one tells you not everything has a price they are lying. Clearly my sisters virtue had a hefty price tag and one my father seemed all to happy to make sure he got, Even if it meant getting my sister nearly killed. 

"Roujin you look positively beautiful tonight. I like this new look on you" I look to the gentleman sitting next to my father. His balding hair and protruding beer belly along with the sleazy smile that is sitting upon his lips, telling me exactly what type of guy he truly is. The greasy kind that treated women like they were cattle and probably was no stranger to the seedier places that China has to offer. 

Beichen seems to sense my unease as he pulls me closer to him, his warmth comforting and engulfing my body. Part of me wondering if I am starting to get that Stockholm syndrome that you read about. The only problem being that one I am not a hostage and two I have a mission to complete, Beichen is my enemy. 

As we take our seats however, Master Yens note plays over and over in my mind. What does he mean by those closest to me? I look to my parents wondering if they are somehow in on whatever happened to Roujin. I mean sure they were the ones who had let her marry Beichen knowing he had a volatile reputation but what I can't work out is why two parents who are supposed to love their children unconditionally would marry their favourite child off to someone who made the devil look like a saint. I couldn't imagine doing that to my own flesh and blood.

What if we aren't there own flesh and blood? Would that be the perfect excuse and the lack of care they have for their own children or would it be clutching at straws. 

I take out my phone and quickly send a text to Ayan, there is no doubt in my mind that Roujin and I are sisters because apart from our eye colour and personalities we look identical. It is the reason I have worn contacts in public because my eye colour would give away who I was instantly. 

"Are you okay?"

I look to Beichen not sure what to say. My mind is swimming with a thousand possibilities right now and being in close proximity to those that could very well be hiding something from both me and Roujin, is like being prey in a lions den. 

"I have something I need to take care of"

I quickly stand and walk out of the auction room, ignoring the stares off people as I pass by. I walk out to the lobby and quickly message the youngest of us, Lu-fang asking him to meet me at the entrance in two minutes. Lu-Fang is the newest member of our little group and he is a medical genius. He is that angelic looking type that never says much but is always listening. He had an upbringing that would make even the most strong willed people break, the abuse he suffered at the hands of his step father nothing short of satanic. When we found him close to death doors there was something in his sixteen year old face that reminded me of him. The look of not feeling like you are good enough and the look of wanting to survive. Over the past four years we had grown a close bond much like the ones I had with the others but me and Lu-fang had that sibling/best friend kind of relationship and we both have the same king of survival mode. 

In all honesty the five of them are more like family to me than my own parents and Roujin. There aren't many people I would trust with my life but with them I know that they have my back as much as I have theirs. The best way to describe us all is like six misfits who fit perfectly well together. 

Walking out into the crisp night air, I feel my head start to pound, something that i have dealt with for as long as I can remember and no matter what Lu-Fang does to help nothing seems to work. Not that he isn't good at what he does, because he is a miracle worker, it is just that whatever is going on with my head seems to be as perplexing as the feeling that I am missing something important. 

"Xixi you okay?" At the sound of Lu-Fangs voice I shake my head a little hoping to ease the impending headache that seems to be adamant that it is going to attack. I look to Lu-fang putting on a fake smile as i look into his doe brown eyes, his cherry red hair falling in a messy but yet somehow neat fashion over his face. Min-su and I swear that there is no hair style or quirky fashion trend that he couldn't pull off. He is like the hot nerd that you read about in those saucy novels. 

"Hey Lulu I am okay. Are the others at the house?"

"Yeah, Ayan and Ajax are having some arm wrestling competition whilst Min-su and Zion are basically being all lovey dovey." I can't help but chuckle picturing the scene, Ajax is the hacker of the group, he was shunned a lot growing up because of the fact he was half Chinese and half Korean. To me the whole thing sounds barbaric but his so called family believed that he was tainted and kicked him out when he had turned eighteen. He was also one of Ayan's best friends so when Ayan asked if he could join us I agreed. 

"Are you sure you are okay? You have that constipated look on your face that you get when your thinking of things."

I playfully punch his arm and chuckle as he winces, the two of us walking towards the blacked out Range Rover to get out of the cold night air. Once inside I show him the note from Master Yen along with the pendent. 

"The auctioneer gave it to me. Apparently Master Yen had told him that I would eventually come and that he would know it was me. What I don't get though is what he means by those closest to you?"

"Does he think its one of us?"

"No. I think he may be on about my parents. There is something that has been bugging me this entire time, why would my parents let Roujin marry someone like Beichen unless they were getting something out of it or"

"They are not your real parents" He looks at me as the light bulb in his head goes off. The fact that he also came to that conclusion is oddly satisfying, like it is some validation that i am not completely losing my marbles. 

He hands me back the pendent and note before he starts the car and we set off for the house we all share out on the outskirts of the city. It is far away enough that we don't get disturbed but close enough that we can get back and forth easily. 

"Your theory would actually make sense. When I was treating Roujin I noticed some odd things that didn't match with her medical records and what your parents told you. The marks she sustained were from blunt force trauma but your parents stated that she was punched by Beichen. Plus the marks on her arms are nail marks, more specifically square nail marks." 

I think for a moment trying to recall the passed few days and if Beichen had long nails. I don't know any man that has their nails long, well unless they were transgender or a drag artist, usually it is only women that have square tip nails when they go to get a manicure. 

"So you don't think it was Beichen who attacked her?"

"Either that or someone else was with him more specifically a female."

"Luna?"

Lu-fang shrugs as I sit back in the chair trying to make sense of it all. If Luna was there she would hold it over Beichen, blackmailing him to get what ever she wanted. And what she wants most is him. Which leads me to think why hasn't she if she was there or is there something much bigger at play.