Chapter 15

The grimness of the night had been manifested in the darkness of the starless sky. The strong gust of the wind had seemingly intensified despite the receding leaves on the forest trees.

Yan Mei Ling snuggled deeper into the cotton cloth she had draped herself into. She felt the chill biting into her sensitive skin like sharp needles. She sat near the crackling fire, silently watching the other men who were talking to each other.

Winter had not came yet but the coldness that was creeping into her did not only form a melancholic ice around her body but to her restless heart as well.

She thought at first that she could stand being away from her from the ones that she loved but she was mistaken. The homesickness that endlessly plagued her was utter torture.

How is her father? How is Lei Shuang? What about Yeng and the villagers, have they had been faring well? Have she made the right decision of joining the imperial army?

She could not stop but ask herself with those questions several times as the feeling of loneliness continuously tugged at her. She felt like a small pebble on the beach thrown into the waves of uncertainty.

"The Hsien clan ought to die!" Someone exclaimed angrily as he added another wood to the dwindling fire.

"Certainly, they are the harbingers of evil," another one agreed. "Why, Lord Hsien Mao Dong resembled the Tiangou himself and his armies are the móguǐ; they ought to rot in deepest chasm of Di Yu!"

"They do not have any mercy. Unluckily, the Si Xiong had seemed to be with them for they had captured several villages."

"They are all wicked móguǐ!"

Yan Mei Ling just stayed where she was. She diverted her loneliness by listening to the men who were cursing and damning the Hsien clan. Although she longed for companionship, she felt utterly out of place among the imperial army soldiers.

"Hey, boy!" Someone called Yan Mei Ling's attention.

"Yes?" Yan Mei Ling answered timidly.

"How is it that you are silent there? Won't you join us?"

"We heard that you are the ninja boy. Is that true?" another chimed in.

"We heard your family died along with the people in your village."

'Insufferable men! Why can't they just leave me be.'

"I do not wish to talk," Yan Mei Ling answered rigidly and she stood to walk away from the nosy men.

"Oh, boy, does it hurt?" Someone mocked. "Isn't what we, adults, are talking too much for you? Our apologies, we have failed to forget that you are a still a boy. Poor baby."

The other men in the camp started laughing at Yan Mei Ling. As she listened to their jeering laughs, she remembered the people who had doubted her ability as a warrior. Each insulting word they threw at her had only served to make her strive to win each fight. She had disproven their doubts until the championship.

She curbed her fists together in anger. The ropes of her patience were straining to break.

Kick them! Make them eat their words! You are the ninja boy - they would not dare!

Before she lose her temper and gave in to the urge of wiping the arrogant jeers of the nosy men in the camp, Jinzhou Lu Wang Wei rushed and said, "Cease your nonsense chattering, men. You proclaimed yourself adults but then you are behaving like toddlers. You would have set yourselves as good examples to our young charge but then you started prattling like senseless hens. Now, shall I answer your unanswered question? This boy you are teasing is indeed the ninja boy; and all of you, very well, know how skillful a fighter he is."

The men in the camp looked nonplussed upon hearing Jinzhou Lu Wang Wei's words. They stared at Yan Mei Ling with fascination and a hint of wariness.

"You, Tang Lao Fang," Jinzhou Lu Wang Wei motioned to Yan Mei Ling. "Go back to your tent."

"I intend to," Yan Mei Ling answered stiffly, feeling a little affronted when the Jinzhou told the soldiers that she was the Ninja boy. Even if pretending to be the Ninja boy was one of the best things she had done, she did not relish the attention that she received from being him.

She could never claim the credit due to the fictitious warrior. Ninja boy was nothing but a lie. A big sham of a character!

"Good," Jinzhou Lu Wang Wei said. "Because if you don't, you will eventually draw fire. Save it for the war."

Yan Mei Ling was confused with the jinzhou's words. She absentmindedly watched him walked to his tent.

Could that he sensed her anger or her desire to throttle the men who dared mock her?

°°°°°°°

The Hsien herald nervously walked to the carpeted hall of the spacious Hsien palace.

The place was enormous. The walls were lavished with beautiful mosaics and tapestries obtained through trading with the Dashi.

There were also several decorative weapons attached to the wall. Large beautiful vases were aplenty - both made of fine porcelain and clay, the latter obtained through bartering with the Malayu, Mai and other farther Islands in the Southern seas.

He stopped in front of the great wonderfully-crafted sturdy wooden doors guarded by well armored soldiers. It was the chamber of the Harem of Lord Hsien Mao Dong.

The guards recognized and greeted him politely. They immediately opened the heavy and huge doors for him.

"Thank you," the Hsien herald said gratefully. One of the guards accompanied him inside the harem.

The moment he stepped inside, the sheer beauty of the chamber never failed to sweep him off his feet.

Plants were aplenty, making the room looked like an oasis of heaven. Silk curtains were hanging aesthetically, giving it a majestic flair. The walls were extravagantly decorated and the sound of beautiful music wafted through the air like the heavenly voices of the angels.

He looked around and could see some of Lord Hsien Mao Dong's women talking and enjoying themselves with the mouthwatering food served by female servants on platter. Some women were reading poetry at the other side as the room had plenty of scrolls containing literary masterpieces as Lord Hsien Mao Dong himself enjoyed reading.

The Harem's chamber might had a suggestion of exuberant flair, however, it was not hard to spot the sadness underneath the thick make-up of some of the beautiful women in the Harem. Most of the women inside were forced to become Lord Hsien Mao Dong's concubines after their lands were conquered. They were carefully selected - the daughters and unmarried women of the nobility automatically became part of the harem. As for the most beautiful maidens of the captured villages, the ones not born in nobility, were chosen as well. Refusing was never an option for these women because they would only end up being beaten, raped and then put to death.

They further walked into the room until they reached in front of an elegant four-postered canopied bed covered in opaque silk curtains. Beside the bed were female musicians playing strings and flutes for the enjoyment of Lord Hsien Mao Dong. At the side of the humongous bed, a maidservant stood straight beside a table full of scrumptious food and wine.

Despite the music being played, the mingled moans of Lord Hsien Mao Dong and his concubine was clearly audible.

Being a eunuch just like the guards who were assigned to guard the royal harem, the amorous acts of his lord never failed to make the herald blush furiously.

The guard who accompanied the herald gently walked to the maidservant and said, "Tell Lord Hsien Mao Dong that his herald has arrived."

The maidservant nodded and slightly opened the curtain of the four-posted bed. She whispered something and a moment later, stepped away from the bed to get the elegant red robe embossed with gold that was hung nearby.

Lord Hsien Mao Dong stepped out from the bed naked and the maidservant immediately assisted him in dressing up.

"It is a surprise to see you, Fa Peizhu. Are you here to tell me exactly what I want to hear?" Lord Hsien Mao Dong said with an enthusiastic smile after donning himself in his fabulous robe.

Despite his old age, Lord Hsien Mao Dong looked healthy and utterly formidable. He was a very skilled fighter and a brilliant strategist. Those were the reasons why he conquered several places not only limited to Chixian Shenzhou but also to what went beyond its borders.

The herald, Fa Peizhu, swallowed the lump in his throat in nervousness and said, "The news that I bring is quite delicate and it can only be said in your presence."

Lord Hsien Mao Dong jovial countenance suddenly became grim. He immediately motioned the female musicians to stop and leave along with the maidservant and the concubine he had sexual intercourse with. He walked to the table and poured himself a cup of wine.

"What is it that you want to tell me that it requires only my attention?" Lord Hsien Mao Dong demanded in a very intimidating voice.

Fa Peizhu could feel himself getting cold with fear but he tried his best to compose himself. "My lord, Unit Commander Yan Bao Rong and his men have suppressed your army at the Northern border"

Lord Hsien Mao Dong's eyes narrowed contemptuously and, then he angrily threw his golden cup to the floor, spilling its contents on the carpeted floor. "Bastard! Jiangjun Sui Xhiaolun was indeed a foolish weakling. Why, I should have personally mutilated his body and fed it to the dogs!"

The herald's head remained bowed though the tremor that ran to his body was unmistakeable due to his master's wrath.

"Have you brought news about Tang Jiao Quon whereabouts?"

The herald swallowed his throat and, answered as calmly as he could, "Tang Jiao Quon, according to the rumors, is dead."

"Rumors?!" Lord Hsien Mao Dong shouted with wrath, his voice resounding angrily within the walls of the harem. "Why, incompetent bastard, you better not tell me rumors. For if I find out that Tang Jiao Quon is still alive, I will severe both of your heads from your bodies and put them on display at the gates of my palace. Do you understand?"

"Yes, my lord," the herald's voice stammered with fear.

"Good," Lord Hsien Mao Dong said with satisfaction. He paced briskly on the floor and asked, "Now, what about his Imperial Majesty's decision to marry his daughter to me?"

"His Imperial Majesty remained hardheaded and refused to succumb to your amiable request, my lord."

"He is indeed trying my patience. Well, I will let him suffer." Lord Hsien muttered darkly, clenching his other fist. "Send Jiangjun Han Li to me immediately!"

"As you wish, my lord," the herald nervously answered and immediately took his leave when Lord Hsien Mao Dong flicked his wrist dismissively indicating that the he should go.

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AUTHOR's Note:

Please don't forget to leave a vote or comment if you enjoy the story.

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NOTE:

Di Yu - hell

Jiangjun means general, 3rd in line in ancient Chinese military hierarchy

móguǐ - devil

Dashi - Arabs

Malayu - Malaysia

Mai - the Chinese term for the group of Islands located in the South (Philippines)