Northern Qi fell on the twentieth day of midsummer, on the eve of the little princess Ye Fuyi's fourteenth birthday.
In a single night, her homeland was thrown into turmoil, and its government collapsed.
That night, amid a forest of flashing blades, the little princess saw her hostage brother clad in iron armor, cutting down enemy soldiers. Stumbling forward, she clung to his leg, like duckweed finally finding a root. Her soft, tearful voice cried, "Brother..."
Her brother smiled gently, just as he always had, and took her hand to help her up. Then he helped her reclaim royal power and gave her shelter.
She was grateful to her brother, and remembered her parents' instructions: grow up well, and live a peaceful, secure life.
She waited and waited until she finally turned fifteen and came of age. Blushing, she told her brother she wanted to choose the Imperial Preceptor as her husband.
Shangguan Heng agreed with a smile, without a moment's hesitation.
But she never dreamed that, that very night, a bloody severed finger would be delivered by a palace attendant to her bedroom.
In the palace, ferocious dragons coiled along the imperial thrones on either side, while the lamplight grew dim.
Below them, the Imperial Preceptor knelt without rising, his limbs broken.
Shangguan Heng sat on the dais and pointed to one side with his jade-like hand. His voice was calm. "Sister, didn't you tell me you liked him? Would you still marry him like this?"
Ye Fuyi looked at the man before her, his features sharp and cold, and shook her head, holding back her tears.
It seemed she had never truly known her hostage brother.
·
Once the pampered Crown Prince of Eastern Wu, Shangguan Heng became a hostage in Northern Qi, where he was bullied and humiliated. Born rebellious, cold-blooded, and sinister, he was also patient, composed, and exceptionally skilled at hiding his true nature.
To gain power, he wore the mask of a saint and lay in wait in a foreign land for fifteen years, navigating open and hidden attacks and endless schemes until he was twenty.
On the little princess's fourteenth birthday, Northern Qi's palace was filled with celebration, and its defenses were lax. That night, his agents were everywhere. Shangguan Heng maneuvered his army and stormed the palace gates.
Amid the pounding of hooves, he seized the little princess of Northern Qi, intending to force her to reveal the whereabouts of the imperial seal.
But when he lifted Ye Fuyi up, he never expected to read a trace of trust in those dark, shining eyes, full of unease.
How ridiculous.
Later, he spared her life, and paid for it with half of his own.
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The heroine's name is Fuyi, a homophone for Fuyi, a plant mentioned in the Book of Songs. Her nickname is Caicai, from the line, "Gather, gather the Fuyi, let us go and pick it."
It doesn't mean anything in particular. I just think it sounds nice =3=
Theme: Live well.
