“Drink it!” Wang Lin glared at her son.

“But mom, I don’t wanna!” Zen cried.

“Wang Zen!” she said, her look growing more intense.

Zen looked at the cup of black, steaming liquid before him. “Fine!” he said, picking up the cup and downing it as quickly as possible while grimacing. Zen stuck his tongue out and made as if he would puke.

“You better not throw up that medicine, Wang Zen, or you will be licking the throw up from the floor.”

Zen grimaced as he felt the medicine settle in his belly.

“Good,” she beamed happily.

“How long am I suppose to drink this?” Zen said, looking at the empty cup.

“Until the Wood Elementalist comes next week to fix your broken diantian.”

“I don’t see the use of me drinking this stuff until then,” Zen said. It had been a week of him drinking all sorts of concoctions and medicines reported to help him but all they ever did was leave him with a bitter taste in his mouth and sometimes an upset stomach. But he could still feel the his ki slowly trickling out from his diantian, being held back by Miss Hong’s weakening seal.

“Well the healers said it would help, now go rest.”

“Yes, Mother.” Zen bowed and headed to his room.

Wang Zen lied on his bed, looking up at the ceiling.

“Oh, Shibi, I. AM. BORED!” he said. “I have been cooped up in here for the past week.”

“Sorry,” Shibi said.

“You mind doing me a favour, Buddy?”

“Anything, Zen.”

“Thanks, I need to you to deliver a message for me…”

Zen was able to climb out of the window of his room down to the floor. He snuck around, making sure to avoid his mother, grandfather and worst of all Ding Wu. These were his jailers, the rest of the guards did not seem to know or care that he was forbidden to leave the house.

It was easy for him to convince the gate guards to let him out. He went to an old alleyway.

“Man, why do I always have to wait for everyone.” Zheng said as Zen and Shibi entered the alleyway.

“Sorry,” Zen sheepishly said, “I needed to sneak out of the house.”

Yin Zheng tilted his head in confusion, “Grounded?”

“Kind of, at least until I’m fully healed.” Zen said.

“Whatever hurt you must have been pretty serious.”

Zen shrugged. “So I’m told. I don’t remember.”

“Does Shibi remember?” Zheng said with a sly smirk.

“Hmm… that’s a good question, you were there, right Shibi?” Zen said.

Shibi nodded. “Shibi sees all!”

“Then you’ll tell us some time. Maybe when we’re all here.” Zheng said. “I’m always the first one here, always the one waiting.”

“There’s someone else coming?” Zen said.

“I’m here!”

Zen turned around when he heard the high pitched voice. Zen’s eyes widened. “Jun Nee!”

“Hello, Wang Zen!” Jun Nee said, bowing. “I’m sorry that I’m late. Sorry! Sorry!” she bowed to them both.

“Its great to see you again!” Zen bowed back.

“Really?” Yin Zhen said, walking beside Zen and putting his arm around his shoulder. “Jun Nee seems to think you’ve been avoiding her.”

“W-What?” Zen said.

“Yin Zheng!” Jun Nee said.

“Why would you think that?” Zen said to Jun Nee.

“Oh nothing, just that last time you were here you left in a hurry.” Jun Nee said. “You didn’t even try to see me or my brother.”

“Sorry about that,” Zen said. “A lot was happening whenever I came home.”

“Oh, I brought us all some food.” Jun Nee said. “My brother sells food at the Yellow Market.”

“Wow,” Zen looked at the steaming buns that Jun Nee held in her hands.

The three sat and ate and spoke about each others lives. Zen found out that Jun Nee was living in relative peace. Her brother had started a small business selling street food. Zheng seemed to have an exciting life at his academy. He was currently in a study break and would return after some time.

Zen smiled as he listened to his friend’s stories. It was nice, sitting here with them and recounting the past while being at ease in the present. He even forgot about his broken diantian.

After the last dumpling was consumed by Shibi, the group decided to walk Jun Nee back to her stall in the Yellow Market.

“I’m serious, Jun Nee.” Zen said, “You already have a pretty useful ki technique. If you become my and Zheng’s student, you would be a force to reckon with.”

“No offence to… both of your power but I think I will decline.” She said. “I have no desire to be a warrior and when will I even get the time to train with all my other chores?”

“You’ll find time.” Zen said.

“Yin Zheng, please talk to Zen’er.”

Zheng shrugged, “I think he is right.”

“Uh?” she said in surprise.

“Zen and I have been to different academies, we’re probably the best tutors you have access to.” He said. “And I understand you don’t want to be a warrior, neither do I. But I thin we understand that we live in a world that will demand you become one.”

“Honestly,” she said, “I don’t think I could ever be like you or Zen. To this day, Zen is the most fearless and persistent boy I have ever met.”

“Well… that’s the kindest way someone has described me as annoying.” Zen joked.

“No,” Jun Nee said seriously, “You are. You stood up against a Water Elementalist for me, a commoner you barely knew. You risked your life for me and brought me out of a dangerous situation. The fact that you, I and Chu Jiahai survived was down to pure luck but even then, without you, that luck would have amounted to nothing.”

“Thanks,” Zen said, trying his hardest not to sound too emotional.

“And you, Yin Zheng, you are probably the smartest and most practical person I know. The way you can understand complex things and break them down so that even an idiot like me can understand, that is amazing.”

When they entered the Yellow Market there was a ruckus. There were guards taking some of the product that the merchants were selling. There was a lot of noise and commotion.

“What’s going on?” Zheng said.

“I don’t know.” Jun Nee said. “Look, my brother!” she ran to her brother.

Zen, Zheng and Shibi followed after her.

Jun Nee’s brother was trying to get a soldier to unhand his basket of dumplings.

“Please sir, don’t take this away!” he said to the guard. “If you do, I will not be able to feed my family.”

“You should have thought about that before you broke the law!” the man said.

“But I…!”

“Brother!” Jun Nee said as they arrived at his side.

“I don’t know!” Jun Nin said, clearly distraught. “These people just came in and…”

“CRIMINALS!”

The commotion died down as everyone turned their attention to the source of the high pitched screeching voice. The girl stood in the middle of the market, on a raised platform so that she stood head and shoulders above everyone else.

“You were warned that the Yellow Market would be under the Li Family! You were warned that this territory would be under our normal rules. Meaning all those who do not pay a toll to sell theoir product here, would be considered criminals and all their goods will be taken.”

“Zheng clenched his fists. “The Li Family. They are some of the worst people walking on Earth.”

“I suggest you cooperate with the guards. All that you have, we will take and we will leave you with your life.” She said.

“That’s just mean,” Zen said.

“Not mean, evil.” Zheng said. “She is literally taking these people’s livelihoods.”

“Now, shut up…” the woman continued before a party sailed across the air and splattered on her face. At first she stood in place, to shocked to do or say anything, then she began trembling in rage. “Who would dare?” her voice grew even higher pitched, forcing some of those around her to wince at it.

She looked around with wide and angry eyes until her glare fell on the little boy who had thrown the pastry.

“Do you know who I am, you commoner trash?” she said. “I am the heir to the Li family fortune and I am going to be the cause of your death! Men, murder hhhhiiiiim!”

The guards gave chase. The boy weaved around them, doing his best to stay out their grasp. He ran past Zen and the gang, the guard who was confiscating Jun Nin’s basket, dropped it, spilling the dumplings on the road as he gave chase.

The man slipped on the dumplings and fell.

The guards were coming up fast. Zen kicked the table in front of him, sending it tumbling into the chasing guards who tripped and fell. The guards glared at him.

“You would dare stand in front of my men?” The woman said, marching towards Zen. “Do you know who they are?”

Zen internally cursed at himself. He had done it on instinct, not on purpose. Even though he did not want to see a young boy die, he still was in no shape to face down trouble.

“I’m sorry, it was an accident, I…”

The woman moved fast, kicking Zen in the gut and sending him crashing into tables.

“What are you doing?” she said to the guards, “Murder that boy!”

The men scrambled to their feet and chased after the boy who had vanished in the market.

The woman turned to Zen, summoning a shimmering sword with a red hilt from her high-grade storage stone as she did. “Now, you feel the wrath on Li Yue!” she spat, her nails growing long and deadly with ki as she stalked closer to Zen.