13

Zhao Liangjie

Cousin Jiayi was getting married.

I chuckled softly as the realization dawned on me bit by bit, piece by piece in a steady flow.

The little girl with the hair as wild as a horse's mane and the tongued sharper than any sword Abba had ever yielded...the girl wasn't so little anymore. And now, she was getting married.

To the Emperor's nephew.

Emperor.

It was a regularity for me to get scolded for not addressing that man properly; the words blessed or great Wansui had never left my lips, simply the Emperor.

No man ever deserved that great of a title, not even the Caliphs my father told me so much of times before. And much less the man who let my parent's murderer go free. That blasted rich man had killed my own mother in the public street for Adila to see.

He had killed my father without mercy...for Adila to see.

He had been the cause of my aunt, Jiayi's mother's death; even though they thought that she had died from childbirth.

Jiayi's mother had died because she had starved herself to death after her brother's death, too week to support the labor of her malnourished son.

That man, that Lord Hua...he had gotten away with ripping my family apart by its very seams. And he had gotten away with it, simply because he was the dearest friend of the Emperor's son.

He was only punished because of my father's death, a death that simply couldn't be ignored...unlike my mother's.

Blessed Wansui...they would need to carve my beating heart out of my chest before those words would ever leave my mouth.

I couldn't believe that Jiayi was marrying that man's nephew.

Adila caught my attention, and I wondered if the same obvious rage she was displaying was because of the marriage, or because of something else. She had refused to stand beside me on the bride's side of the hall, preferring to stand out there like a common bodyguard.

I knew she resented me, there was no point in denying it.

Elder sister Adila resented me, and I couldn't find it in me to blame her for it.

Resigning myself, I looked away, instantly frowning when I felt that all too familiar gaze scrutinizing me.

That 'Princess' Li Mei-Xiang, needed to leave me alone.

Li Mei

He was glaring at me. What had I possibly done wrong to him for him to stare at me with such...hatred?

I couldn't tear my gaze away, no matter how much the logical side of me shouted that it would be best to look away, best to forget the man I was caught staring at.

Curiosity got me best.

Was he not happy that his cousin...no, his sister was getting married? The entire wedding had found him glowering and frowning at the procession. I had only seen him smile once before he discovered my gaze and stared at me like a curse...

Like an enemy.

And not only him, but his sister as well...did they not know what happiness was?

Did I?

"The bride and the groom will enter their chambers!" The announcement was the anchor that pulled my attention from Liangjie, and I beamed as both Brother Xiao...and Elder Sister Jiayi were led to where their chambers for the wedding night would be.

My brother had finally gotten married, and to a woman I knew was worth being a Li.

A woman who would be able to handle the weight of being a Li...I hoped.

Yang Yuhuan

"That's it? There's no more to the story? How could he just die like this...it wasn't even an honorable death!"

All I could do was nod sadly at her exclamation.

Akbaru Alinejad had died without the honor such a great general deserved. Storming into the manor of the man who had killed his wife, he had been impaled through the stomach and slashed across the chest by his own sword.

And his daughter had witnessed it all, sneaking into the manor behind her father and well-hidden amidst all the chaos that he had ensued.

Both her mother and father died before her eyes.

The story still sent shivers down my spine.

"Yes, that's how he died. No battle, not defending the country or the blessed Wansui, not even in betrayal or a coup." I swallowed down to soothe my drying throat. "He died alone, in rage...and wanting to die."

Guanmei frowned deeply, her forehead creasing as her brows drew together in frustration. "Life is meaningless then...isn't it?"

Huan Fei stared at the maid perplexed. "What do you mean?"

I already knew what Guanmei meant, so I spoke up instead.

"Such a legend of a man dies in dishonor, leaving nothing but his broken children to carry on his name. Everything he has ever done becomes a whisper in history, his life becomes a mystery, not even used as a children's tale...if one lives his whole life with such honor and yet is not remembered, if one lives his entire life to become a speck of dust in the wind...then what is the meaning of life at all?"

The girls stared at me in awe, Huan Fei only huffed. "And how exactly did you get such a silver tongue."

The image of Jiayi immediately entered my mind. In fact, those words I had just spoken had been spoken before...by her, actually.

"If one man dies in the disgrace and at the mercy of his own sword, and if his legend dies with his last breath...what then was life for him?"

That day had been her wedding day, had it not?

I smiled at the thought of my friend. "Someone rubbed off on me."

Li Xiao

To finally have her close to me...how she would feel against me, without boundaries. To finally claim her as my wife, as my own. Her in my arms, sharing the bliss I wanted to feel with her to the stars and back again. The girl I wanted finally being mine.

That would all be in my dreams tonight. There was no way of consummating our marriage when I was too sure that she still felt some reluctance to be my wife.

Much less share my bed.

I groaned, the sting of wine still ringing in my head as I stumbled slightly towards the wedding chambers.

She would be inside, eyes red with unshed tears as her mind roared with regret for that day.

Or maybe, maybe the beggar girl I had come to know would resurface, maybe she would be there waiting with some sharp remark or witty riddle to distract me.

Either way, I highly doubted that either the demure, shy Jiayi or the beggar disguised, sharp-tongued one would readily let me share the covers with her this night.

But when the doors flew open clumsily from my drunken force, I found her sitting there on the bed quietly, a surprised expression on her face and nothing more.

I frowned, forcing my clouded mind to have at least a moment of soberness as I pointed a finger at the floor. "I will sleep on the floor...you can take the bed."

Jiayi should have been happy with that, ecstatic even, but instead her lips parted slightly.

I stared at them longer then I should have. "But Huixia, it tonight not our..."

"Wedding night?" I huffed a bit at that. "Yes, yes it is...what? Do you want to consummate it right now?"

Oddly enough, strange satisfaction coming over me when her tan shaded skin turned a dark red and she stared down at her hands.

I smirked at that, turning around to close the doors before letting out a sigh. I was too drunk for this. "Jiayi,"

"Shi Huixia."

I grimaced. Huixia, the night of our marriage and she still called me by a title of general as if we were complete strangers to each other.

We weren't not strangers...were we? Maybe that was the reason why she was so reluctant to open to me, to trust me. I wasn't drunk enough to be oblivious to that fact as I opened the door. "Enjoy your rest...goodnight."

Tang Zhen-Ting

It was near midnight already, I could not remember when last time had flown by so quickly. Silently I saluted my uncle and cousin, frowning when they stared at me curiously. "Is there something troubling you Uncle?"

"Adila...why don't you return to Medina with us? Is living a life as an orphaned outcast so great here in the T'ang Empire?"

I stiffened, glancing up to stare at my Arab uncle's eyes as he waited for my response. I did not understand at first why they had come here, it was not as though they had ever cared for the family my aunt had married into.

They still did not...they had come here for me. "What do you mean Uncle?"

"Your brother seems to have settled into the life of a Han and forgotten his Arab blood...but there is still that fire in your eyes that no Asseniya has. You are your father's daughter, and while I never truly understood why Akbaru decided to stay here, you can return with us. In Medina, we will treat you as our own...not just some outcast."

Would I ever dare to leave China, to go to the land of the Umayyad's which I had only heard of in Father's stories? Uncle was right, being there under Uncle Zhao's care only reminded me of how much of an outcast I was, and yet there were many reasons for me to stay; brother, Jiayi....brother, Jiayi....

And nothing else.

But they were enough.

I gave them a small smile. "Shukran...but I will stay here with Hassan. He is still my brother and I will not leave him behind."

My uncle, General Fahhad Abbyu Alinejad of the Umayyad Empire, simply frowned. "Don't base your decision on that of your brothers...think of your welfare first. You have seen how your mother's people live and are not happy, I can see that Adila...now it is time to live with your Abba's people."

I opened my mouth to reject his proposal again, but was immediately interrupted.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

Li Wuji

I couldn't find myself hearing any more of it...and why, I didn't know.

Out of the small amount of words I had learned in Arabic from members of Uncle's court and passing merchants or embassy officials, I knew enough to understand that Zhen-Ting, no, that Adila was wavering between leaving to go to the west or staying in T'ang.

I wouldn't let her go.

It wasn't my right to interrupt, in fact, it wasn't my place to care at all as whether or not she stayed or left. Wouldn't it be better for her and her father's family?

The general and his son seemed frustrated at my appearance while Adila simply stared at me with the same guarded expression I had gotten used to. Ignoring it, I saluted the Arab general. "Thank you for coming to my...cousin's wedding, though I am sure it was more for your niece than anything else."

"It is, now if you'll excuse us, we must finish speaking a matter with Ad-no, I mean, with Zhen-Ting."

My hand shot out and grabbed her wrist before she could even take a step. "I must be an inconvenience then, there is something urgent about the wedding that Adila needs to attend to."

The hostility in my voice surprised me, and I didn't realize how tightly I had held onto her until she began to twist her hand for my grip to loosen.

The general grimaced, stealing a glance at Adila as he did. "Then we will not keep her for too long, simply a few words must be said and we will leave."

My jaw ticked. "I would beg of you to wait then so that she may return and you will have all the time to speak with her, but this matter can not wait."

The other boy standing there, who I assumed was the general's son, spoke up. "Would it be more important than matters of family?" My frustration was nearing its, actually, it probably already reached that level. "What I need her for is a family issue as a matter of fact, so I will need to steal her from you briefly.

Her cousin huffed "How would an outsider like you know what we mean by family...get away, we need to speak to my cousin."

Arabs weren't all that rude...were they?

The sword I had firmly grasped onto to unsheathed slightly, the metal of the blade glinting slightly to catch their and my attention.

I hadn't realized I was holding it...but since I was-.

Adila pressed a hand against my chest, and glancing down at her, I read the warning in her eyes as she shook her head slightly and pushed where her hand was pressed. I watched as she turned to look at her uncle, speaking to him in Arabic and telling him that she had to leave.

Then she dragged me away from the scene without allowing me so much as a backwards glance.

Zhao Jiayi

The door closed behind him before I even had a chance to speak.

I angered him...not even a full day had risen as his wife and I had already angered him. It seemed to be the only thing I did when I was around him.

I exhaled slowly and stared around the room silently. Tonight was our wedding night, and I had spent my entire day preparing myself for now, for giving myself to him. The married ladies from Luoyang had visited simply to give me advice for that moment, they had refused to speak of anything else for fear that I was soon to be the wife of a Li.

I was now Li Xiao's wife, and the niece-in-law of the blessed Emperor himself.

I knew for sure that I was not ready for the responsibility that it would have me bear.

Tang Zhen-Ting

"What was that about?!"

I stared wide-eyed at Li Wuji as he seethed to himself. It dawned on me yet again that if I had not pulled him away, there would have been swords clashed.

He spun to glare at me, and for a moment, I found myself faltering backwards in fear...I feared no one. "Were you planning on leaving with them?" His question confused me. "Leaving? With whom?" Wuji lost his temper, a fist slamming down onto the table beside him as he cursed beneath his breath. "Don't play that way with me Adila....we were never the ones to play games with each other. Were you planning on leaving with them?"

My lips parted and I frowned, taken aback. He was angry because of that? "If you understood what the conversation was about, you would have also understood that I had said no." Wuji scoffed. "You hesitated, with every time he insisted to you, you continued to hesitate. If he had asked again, would it have been a yes?"

Brother Liangjie was right, these people of the Li family seemed to want to manage our very lives when they had no right to. "And what would it be to you if I did so General? It would be my decision to leave with my family."

I nearly backed away when he dauntingly approached me, had it not been for him reaching out and grasping my wrist as he had done before. Wuji continued to move forward, not stopping until he nearly pressed against me, causing my breath to hitch. "And what about your family here?" Then he paused. "Oh, wait...you have no family right? At least, you choose not to have any."

I sneered at the mocking in his voice. "Neither do you if I remember correctly."

"It makes us have a lot of things in common." My mood had already darkened, it seemed to be pitch black now. "Are you drunk again? You're as cutting as you were back then again." His eyes glinted dangerously and he smirked, that same dark and sarcastic smirk he had sported those many nights ago. "Am I?"

"Shi...and if you are, then I'll take my leave again." I was ready to pull myself from his grip when he yanked again, bringing me roughly against his chest, snaking a hand around my waist to keep me still and gripping my wrist tighter to prevent me from striking him. "Let's make a deal Adila....I like to keep my promises, so why don't we make good on the one I made back then?"

"Who knows, I might just help you get out of here."

I raised a brow at him. "And how exactly would you do that? You just stopped me from getting away did you not?" He hissed at me. "So you were planning on going with them."

What would be the point in telling him that I was not? Why did I even need to tell him that? My lack of response seemed to give him an answer of his own, and I found myself gasping as he leaned forward and brushed his lips against the shell of my ear.

"Marry me..."

-

Yeah, so, that just happened. Um...

Thoughts?

Hehe, don't forget to vote comment, and most of all, enjoy!

I'm graduating soon! Crossing high school off of my list is the best thing that's happened to me so far, I'm done with that hole.

Well, anyways, till the next chapter!