Portrait of General Tong…I’m sure there’s one of official Xia somewhere I’ll add that later.

 Updated map of FYJT

Lin Dan is in Navy blue. 

Winter scenery stretched across the land, unfortunately for Feng Ming the group travelled along the major highways of Rou Yan hence all that was in sight were barren mountains and the sporadic rice fields. Even as a tourist the sight became dull and repet.i.tive.

Three days had pa.s.sed since they set off, Feng Ming had been cooped alone inside his personal carriage and he was at edge of losing his mind, being surrounded by four walls wasn’t doing much for his sanity.

Sticking his head out the window, he spotted General Tong who appeared awe-inspiring as he rode alongside the motocade, spurring his well train horse back and forth as he inspected and oversaw the party.

“General Tong!” Feng Ming shouted from his perch.

His loyal servant immediately urged his horse towards the Prince’s carriage to subserviently answer his call.

“What is Your Highness’s orders?”

“How many days till we arrive?”

“Not long my Prince, within five to six days we will be out of Ruo Yan’s territory and crossing the boundary of Fan Jia. Eleven more days, we shall reach Fan Jia’s capital city.”

Feng Ming lamented his disappointment, “It’s going to take that long?”

“The pace and progress we have made so far is extremely good, although Fan Jia and Xi Rei appear close in terms of proximity. In comparison, travelling to the remote country of Lin Dan takes up to three full months!”

Feng Ming grumbled, and diverted his attention to General Tong’s magnificent steed. A mischievous smile stretched across his lips.

“General Tong, your horse…”

“His Royal Highness, I am under King Rong’s strict orders. Our journey is exposed to danger, to prevent any incidences under no condition is the Crowned Prince permitted to ride a horse. I, Tong Jian Min absolutely will no dare to disobey King Rong’s command.”

The general’s grave tone squashed any hope in Feng Ming, the Prince resigned dejected with his head down casted as he returned to the prison like sanctuary of his carriage.

If I’d known earlier I wouldn’t have agreed to this trip, 

I will either get beaten to death by Fan Jia’s third Princess or if I am lucky bore myself to death before I get there.

It was quite the struggle to occupy his brain till nightfall, when evening finally set in the travelers stopped at a clearing, pitching up tents to spend the night.

Feng Ming was in a hurry to leave his cell, jumping out of his carriage and seeking the warmth of his tent.

Chiu Lan and the two other maids followed behind, and busied themselves with helping Feng Ming prepare his bedding.

Whilst amidst in her duties, Chiu Xing suddenly let slip, “I wonder how Lie Er is doing?”

Chiu Yue giggled and replied, “What’s this? Is this why you’ve been peeking out of the window every day? Did you want to catch a glimpse of him?”

Chiu Lan contributed to the friendly banter aimed at Chiu Xing, “Don’t blame her, it’s Lie Er’s fault for being born to be so attractive.”

“Bah!” Chiu Xing spat, her reddened face betraying her as she retaliated, “Who says that he is attractive? I certainly didn’t! When it comes to appearances, our Prince is winning in that department!”

The said Prince was slowly taking off the clothing items he could manage, starting with the m.u.f.fler around his neck, hearing his servants ridiculing one another made him laugh. With a straight face he contributed asking Chiu Xing, “If you want to see Lie Er so badly, perhaps I shall summon him here.”

Chiu Lan clapped gleefully, “That’s great. I shall inform him that he has been summoned by the Prince.”

Within minutes, the maid was back bringing the young man to the small group. Lie Er had already changed into a servant’s attire. He presented himself in front of Feng Ming and made his respects before enquiring, “What do you desire your Highness?”

“Nothing in particular, I just wanted to see how you are going, it’s been several days are you getting accustomed to this environment?” As he spoke Feng Ming studied the youth in front of him, the longer he looked the more he felt that something was out of place.

Chiu Yue also gasped, scurrying over to take a closer inspection before clicking her tongue, “Why do you look so thin?” she was genuinely concerned.

Chiu Lan concurred with the remark, “When I first saw him, I thought he looked much thinner than when he joined us. His eyes are hollowed with dark bags and his eyes are red. When I asked him about it, he refused to give me an answer.”

Hearing his maid’s comments, Feng Ming frowned, “Are you unwell, why didn’t you say anything?”

Lie Er kept still and did not say a word.

Chiu Xing approached her master and leaned towards his ear to whisper, “Prince should ask whether he is being bullied by the other chamberlains.”

Feng Ming wasn’t familiar with matters concerning the pecking order of attendants, he asked with much suspicion, “Is there someone here that has been bullying you? Who is it?”

Lie Er offered the Prince a forced smile, shaking his head in denial, “I am from Ruo Yan as well as being a male slave it is only right that they bully someone like I.”

“b.a.s.t.a.r.ds!” Feng Ming leaped onto his feet and stomped around infuriated “I will teach them a lesson!”

 Although Chiu Lan was tender in years, she was amazingly wise. She quickly s.n.a.t.c.hed Feng Ming’s sleeve and advised him otherwise.

“Prince, these attendants that serve you are all gifts from n.o.ble families of Xi Rei, if you impose punishment on these individuals, the n.o.bles are likely to find out and be offended. Additionally, there is another resolve to the problem. If Prince permits Lie Er to sit in another carriage wouldn’t it be better?”

“That’s right. We still have to travel quite a distance so it would be inappropriate to punish anyone anyway. I’ll deal with them when we return to Xi Rei.”

He glanced over at Lie Er, pausing to think before asking, “Well, where is Lie Er going to take a seat?”

“How about he joins the carriage the three of you girls are sharing?” He suggested.

“We are all maids, and he is a boy! How can sharing a carriage with us be proper?” Chiu Lan laughed making her opposing point clear.

“Then we shall have Lie Er sit in a carriage by himself.” Feng Ming proposed.  

“That’s even worst, if he was issued his own carriage when the other servants see him they will be burning with envy, it will only lead to more bullying!”

Feng Ming was out of ideas, knitting his brows in thought, his eyes lit up with a plan “If he shares my carriage with me, then I won’t be bored senseless!”

This solution was the best, and the three women did not object.

Lie Er didn’t oppose, with a wry smile he looked at his Master.

Feng Ming felt the hairs down his back stand, it was better if Lie Er didn’t show him that smile, that smile reminded Feng Ming of their night together. His mind sending signals, reminding him that the boy was still a male slave. If they shared a carriage…Feng Ming may have to stay on guard, fighting off any attempts by the younger boy to seduce him.

The Prince cursed himself, however, he had already agreed to such an arrangement and he wasn’t the type of person to go back on his words. The more he stressed about it, it became apparent that perhaps it would be better to organise Lie Er’s personal s.p.a.ce as early as tomorrow for his own sake.  

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Surprisingly once Lie Er joined him in his carriage, the youth remained obedient and sincere, occupying the corner of the confined s.p.a.ce with a book in hand which held his attention.

Feng Ming had originally feared for the worst, and stayed on edge ready to guard against any flirtatious onslaughts from his servant. Instead he found himself slightly ashamed for thinking Lie Er was going to attack him. As the younger man remained harmless for the first half of the day they spent together, Feng Ming could truly gauge the heart of this gentleman with his own measure.

Determined that he wasn’t going to be torn to shreds by a s.e.xual beast, he finally worked up the courage to prompt Lie Er to have a chat with him.

“Lie Er, what is interesting in Ruo Yan? I want to hear about the fun parts in the country.”

The younger man glanced up from his book and looked at the Prince, he placed his book aside, “Fun places? Is the Prince asking about beautiful scenery?”

Lie Er was very familiar with Ruo Yan, so it was effortless as he enlightened his master with numerous stories. Not only did he inform the Prince about the specialities of his country but he even demonstrated a vast knowledge of the other eleven countries, telling the Prince about scenic wonders and interesting facts.

The Prince was gobsmacked and exclaimed, “Lie Er, you are really something! You know so much about everything!”

Lie Er’s facial expression changed with the praise, a smile beaming on his face “I like to read, my previous owner had a large collection of books and I was allowed to read. Sadly, all these fun places I’ve talked about, I’ve never been to.”

Being accompanied by Lie Er eased the boredom, Feng Ming was amused enjoying the boy’s company as well as being able to learn more about the world around him.

In this way, another five days breezed past, and the party from Xi Rei had made their way out of Ruo Yan.

By morning, the group arrived at the borderline of Fan Jia. Fan Jia was earlier informed that Xi Rei’s Crown Prince was personally acting as an amba.s.sador. At the borderline, they were only greeted by a minor official who offered a few words, hastily instructing the party how to reach the capital, Le Xi before waving them off.

The cold treatment was a complete contrast to the kind hospitality that welcomed the Prince in Ruo Yan.

Chiu Lan jeered discontented, “Such a lowly official, doesn’t he know that this is the Crown Prince and his consort!”

She snorted.

“He is not aware of his position in terms of hierarchy.”

Even in the dead of winter, Official Xia had had his fan opened and in action.

“Little maid is too naïve, Fan Jia King’s son in law died in Xi Rei, we approach their borders and are lucky that they did not greet us with knives and bows.”

Feng Ming listened and his face paled.

General Tong chortled, “Dear Prince there’s no need to panic, King Rong has already corresponded with Fan Jia, If Fan Jia was unwilling to repair our relations.h.i.+p; our King would not have sent you to here as an amba.s.sador.”

With those words of rea.s.surance, Feng Ming felt a bit of peace.

That evening, the group pitched tents to rest within the borderline region.

The Prince’s three maids and male chamberlain helped him prepare for bed, and when they finished tucking him in they too retreated for a good night’s rest.

In the middle of the night a sudden rapping woke Feng Ming from his slumber, he called out into the darkness, “Who is it?”

“Your Highness, it is me. It’s late at night but I cannot seem to rest. I wanted to have a talk with Your Highness.”

Feng Ming sat up, and leaned against the backboard of his bed before reaching for a jacket and draping it over his shoulders.

“Ah, Official Xia, Please enter.”

“I apologize for disturbing your rest my Prince,” Official Xia pushed the door open and made his entry. He walked and grabbed a tall backed chair and moved it closer to the Prince’s bed and sat down.

“The reason why I have come at this hour is to discuss that servant from Ruo Yan.”

“Lie Er?”

“Yes.”

Feng Ming c.o.c.ked and eyebrow, “What’s wrong with Lie Er?”

“He is a suspicious character. The boy joined us without a real reason or cause. Recently the Prince has become dangerously close with this stranger. A true citizen of Ruo Yan normally loves his country and would refuse to leave his homeland willingly. Not only that, he hasn’t tried to escape. He has not demonstrated any regret or emotions of leaving his country.  I had even ordered the other chamberlains to bully him and he bared it all with clenched teeth. Not even voicing against his mistreatment.  It is likely this is all a ploy to trick the Prince to allow him to share the same carriage.

This is what I have managed to deduce from his actions so far, we must beware as he is a calculating person, and certainly not as simple as he portrays himself.”

“Do you mean…”

“In Xia’s opinion, he is likely a spy that Ruo Yan has pinned onto the Prince.” The skinny old man’s eyes narrowed, coldly adding “The King of Ruo Yan had a male consort called Fu Er, who apparently died of an illness less than half a month ago. I stumbled across portraits of his lover, and I was shocked to see that Lie Er is a spitting resemblance of the late Fu Er. How could there be such an uncanny coincidence? There is something fishy.”

Feng Ming s.h.i.+vered.

“If Lie Er was a spy sent by Ruo Yan’s King, why would they want to tail my activities? Does he plan to do something to me?”

Official Xia grinned, shaking his head.

“Prince should not over think matters, in the short term he should not bring you any harm. There are various countries at war or on the verge of war. Hence spies are a common ent.i.ty, there are dispersed throughout the countries like stars in the sky. Where would you find influential people of a country without spies amongst them? Lie Er is such a person, he might have a worth later on so he may live for the time being. However, he will not have access to cla.s.sified material. If a war breaks out with Ruo Yan we can use him in negotiations. Such beautiful people are a rarity. If the Prince wishes to bed him, do as you like.”

The old man’s laughter was somewhat different than usual and it took a while for the Prince to work out what the man meant. When it registered, Feng Ming immediately blushed, waving his hands at the absurd suggestion.

“No, I won’t be doing that!”

Official Xia continued to chat to him before heading back to bed.

As the door closed shut behind him, the Prince was left with his thoughts, spending the rest of the night with Rong Tian on his mind.

If the Regent King was by his side at this very moment, even if there was a hundred spies around him he wouldn’t be afraid.

He reached out into the cold, feeling around for his unparalleled sword, grabbing it and bringing the cold metal into his embrace.

Dawn was a few hours away before he slipped into sleep.