A week had passed and so far there had been no sign of any suitors coming. That was a relief in and of itself.

Shiyao had been given her own living quarters, not too far from where the queen lived. Kingfisher Residence was much bigger than what she was used to in Ranhara. She never really had her own staff before, people working solely for her and the irony wasn't lost on her that she now had three people whose only jobs were to serve her when she had absolutely nothing going on.

Ina arranged and delivered all of her meals and clothing, any cosmetic items she wanted, took care of her laundry and so on. Jae was the messenger between Kingfisher Residence and anyone that Shiyao wanted to interact with, he also acted as an advisor but she wasn't in any position to need one. Still, he was helpful in explaining to her how things really worked around the Guorun Palace. Yixing, her personal guard, was the quiet type. Polite when spoken to and took his job extremely seriously. There was no joking around with him and though he would participate in conversation with Shiyao, eveyone else was iced out. He was a handsome and serious man and Shiyao was glad to have him on her side.

"Your servant kneels before you, Your Highness! Lunch is served and Master Chen is here to see you. He wishes to have an audience with you."

Shiyao blinked as Ina's voice floated over from the other side.

Lunch.

She wasn't hungry, but it was bad manners to turn guests away who hadn't offended you, she had learned.

She took in a deep breath, held it for ten seconds and slowly exhaled, pushing herself up off the large seat by the sliding French doors in her bedroom where she had been napping in the sun. She fixed the dress that Ina had helped her into, other servants in the residence helping her with her hair, styling it prettily and advising her to wear light pastel colours because that's how a proper young woman ought to dress. She refused to let them touch her eye makeup.

Without a word, she opened her bedroom door, startling Ina whom she motioned for to stand up.

"Ina," she began, getting the attention of her bright eyed, chirpy attendant. "How long do I have to entertain this Master Chen for?"

"Until he finishes tea after lunch."

Great. Was she supposed to entertain all of her suitors to this extent?

"I'd best go to greet him." she started, stopping abruptly and turning back to Ina. "How do I greet him?"

"He will greet you." she smiled, "You outrank him."

"Okay."

Shiyao strode forward, holding her dress slightly in order to avoid tripping and as she appeared around the corner with the sunlight illuminating her from behind, Master Chen bowed deeply.

"Your loyal servant bows before you."

Servant?

Shiyao looked to Ina, who shrugged.

"Please, Master Chen," she said, unsure what to add so that he would stand normally and so the only thing she could think to say was. "be... upright."

The man before her righted himself, his lower lip tucked under his upper one, nostrils flared and eyebrows pushed upwards as he clasped his hands in front of himself.

"Have I misspoken?" she asked, perhaps a little too directly, for the poor man replied very quickly:

"Not at all, Your Highness!"

"Please." she smiled slightly, stepping aside to allow the man to step through into the house.

They took seats around the opulent square marble table in the reception room overlooking the garden, Shiyao calling for tea to be prepared as Master Chen seemed unable to settle completely.

"Are you okay?" she asked, noticing how he was fidgeting with his robes.

The men wore similarly long robes as the women, but the colours were much more subdued, the materials heavier and the sleeves shorter.

"Indeed, I am." he assured her with a warm smile.

This man couldn't be more than thirty years old, she supposed. It was a little harder to tell when the men in Revenet all kept such long hair, even though it was tied up. Master Chen's skin looked smooth and he had a decent bone structure with no outstanding features; overall a passable man.

Too passable.

"May I ask what business you have?" she continued, moving slightly as dishes were set down on the smooth white table.

"Ah! I am the Minister for Magical Affairs in Revenet, Your Highness."

A politician?

Shiyao politely smiled at him, sipping on hot lemon water as he eyed the sweet smelling pork that had just arrived.

"I have heard that your magical ability is rather lacking, and I was hoping to introduce you to a teacher who could guide you in your studies."

Lacking?

Sure, that was true by Revenet standards but who the hell was this guy to say it so bluntly?

"Perhaps you need a teacher to help you guide you in your interpersonal skills, Minister Chen."

"Oh my, have I offended you?" he replied with no hint of regret whatsoever. "I apologise."

"You do? Then you may leave."

Shiyao didn't notice Ina behind Master Chen, frantically crossing her arms and silently willing her to stop lest she get them in trouble. She didn't notice Jae's equally shocked expression as he turned and scooted away for he feared he might die laughing if he stayed.

"I beg your pardon?!" Master Chen spluttered. "Why, I've only just gotten here."

"Yet you've said quite enough." she replied, standing up and politely gesturing towards the door.

"How dare you not entertain me!" he huffed indignantly. "I knew you were ignorant but I didn't know you had absolutely no sense whatsoever!"

"Minister Chen, I will say it again one more time; you may leave."

"You uncultured swine!" he roared, face now red with rage, ass still in the dining chair. "Why, I will tell the other Ministers about this."

"This is how you talk to members of the Royal Family?" Shiyao asked, voice low and even but with a dark and threatening edge. "Wait until Queen Yun hears about how a mere civil servant came by unannounced to Stolen Princess Shiyao's residence, imposed upon her, insulted her for not knowing the ins and outs of the Palace and Revenet culture even though she has only been aware of the truth for less than a week, threatened to spread malicious criticism about her and was too dense to know when to show deference, and let's see how well that goes down."

The man was speechless.

He had not expected her to stand up for herself and it scared him a little when her dark expression suddenly changed into a sweet smile.

"Get out."

"You-"

"Minister Chen." a deep voice floated into the room, the sound of heavy boots following. "Her Highness has spoken clearly. Allow me to see you out."

"Are you for real? I-"

A very strong hand gripping his upper arm was enough to make him still entirely. With what looked like no effort whatsoever, Yixing hoisted the Minister to his feet and swiftly threw him out of the house.

Shiyao sighed quietly after the Minister was removed from view while Ina, Jae and Yixing returned to the open reception area. An awkward silence fell between the four, but it didn't take long for Jae to cover his face with his sleeve, his shoulders moving uncontrollably up and down as he didn't dare make a sound, laughter only leaving him as Ina swatted his arm, scowling as she turned to Shiyao.

"Your Highness, you ought to apologise tomorrow. Minister Chen was only trying to be helpful."

"In all seriousness," Jae began, "Your Highness, Ina is right. You ought to make amends with him before he turns sour for good."

What were they so afraid of?

"Why?" she asked bluntly. "What's so special about him?"

"His family is powerful, they have many ministers and representatives within the palace. All he has to do is say the word and people on his payroll here in the palace will make your life hellish."

Shiyao thought it over. There was nothing in the Ranharan Palace that she couldn't handle, it was her god damn fucking job to put civil servants in their place whenever they got out of line and she sure as hell - now she had an even higher position than before - was not going to be bothered by this.

She had absolutely nothing to lose.

"No, shan't." she replied dryly, stalking back to the table as her servants sighed in exasperation.