When Yuelan woke up the next morning her arm was sore and bruised from where her captors had held on tight. She grimaced and got out of bed with a sigh. At least there wasn’t anywhere she had to go that day. And the requirements for modesty in Longuo were so different from back home that nobody would ever see or touch the bruise except herself and her maids. A moment later, Willow and Laurel came into the room, likely having heard her movements.

“I’d like to wear something with slightly thicker fabric for the sleeves,” Yuelan told her maids. “I don’t want anyone to notice the bruise on my arm and start asking questions.”

“Of course, Miss,” Willow agreed immediately. She moved over to start selecting clothes for Yuelan from the wardrobe. “Also, Camphor asked me to remind you that she was taking today off and Chung Soo asked me to inform you that Her Highness the first princess will be coming today to visit and His Highness the third prince wishes to come with her if you are willing to allow him to.”

Yuelan was silent as she thought over the request. “Laurel, go and tell Chung Soo that I will see the third prince,” she sighed. “Willow can help me dress while you do that and then she can get breakfast while you fix my hair.”

Laurel saluted Yuelan and headed out of the courtyard to find the steward.

Willow finished selecting a few items and set them on the dividing screen while Yuelan moved behind it. “Miss should try to take it easy today,” the maid advised. “Perhaps Miss would like to read some of the books that Lord Long brought from the library last time?”

Yuelan nodded. “That sounds good,” she agreed as she started taking her white night dress off and let Willow help her put on the clean garments. The clothes Willow had selected had opaque sleeves that went to Yuelan’s knuckles and the skirt of the gown touched the ground and had a short train at the back. The gown was pale green and the short-sleeved coat that went over it was a soft lavender and fell to the tops of Yuelan’s thighs. The only embroidery was a simple pattern along the edge of the sleeves, the hem of the coat, and the sash that held everything closed.

Almost the same moment as Yuelan had finished dressing with Willow’s assistance, Laurel returned from speaking with Chung Soo. Yuelan sat at the dressing table and closed her eyes as Laurel selected a single, silver hairpin with flowered engravings to do Yuelan’s hair with. She left half of Yuelan’s hair down, letting it flow down her back, and pinned the other half up in a simple knot.

Laurel carefully applied make-up to Yuelan’s face, hiding the paleness of Yuelan’s cheeks, and Willow arrived with breakfast just as she finished.

“Thank you,” Yuelan said softly as she stood and made her way to the table in the room to sit down and eat. She picked up a pair of silver chopsticks and began to eat the rice, lotus root, and smoked fish. Once she finished she stood and smiled at the two maids. “Let’s go to the gazebo,” she decided. “I can read comfortably there and meet with their highnesses in the same place when they arrive.”

The two maids nodded and Willow took up the position next to Yuelan to give her support in case she was still feeling lingering effects of the drug.

***

When Liling and Guangfeng arrived that afternoon they followed Chung Soo to the gazebo to find Yuelan curled up on a padded bench with a book in her hands. Liling looked over at her brother and smiled a bit when she saw the look on his face. The third prince seemed content to just watch Yuelan enjoying her book.

Chung Soo cleared his throat, causing Yuelan to look up from the book. She took a piece of silk ribbon and set it between the pages before handing the book to Laurel to hold. “Liling, it’s good to see you,” Yuelan said in a cheerful voice before looking over at Guangfeng. Her smile stiffened, but remained on her face. “Prince Guangfeng, thank you for rescuing me yesterday.” Her tone was very formal.

Guangfeng was about to open his mouth to speak, but Liling cut him off before he could utter a sound. “Lan-lan, are you alright?” the princess asked anxiously. She hurried forward and picked up Yuelan’s right hand.

Yuelan smiled back. “I’m alright,” she promised. “Just some bruising is all. It’ll go away in a few days.”

Liling let out a sigh of relief and hugged Yuelan. “I’m so glad. Thank you so much for protecting me.”

“It’s what friends should do,” Yuelan replied, returning the princess’ hug. She tried to stand up, but couldn’t with the princess leaning on her as she was.

Liling sat down next to Yuelan. “When I woke up back in the palace I had no idea what happened. I was so anxious! But one of the maids told me that my brother had rescued you before anything happened.”

Yuelan smiled and reached over to gently squeeze Liling’s hand. She turned her eyes to Guangfeng and her smile disappeared. “You had something you wanted to speak with me about?” she asked.

Guangfeng waved a hand and the servant who had followed him approached, holding out a box. “I brought you a gift,” he explained, offering the box to Yuelan, who waved for Willow to take it for her. “And I wanted to apologize...and explain to you what was going on when you saw me yesterday.”

Yuelan leaned back against the cushion on the back of the seat of the gazebo and silently watched Guangfeng, her jade eyes giving no hint that she might be willing to accept his apology.

Guangfeng sighed. “My mother died when I was seven. She had been sick for years, but the doctors couldn’t figure out the cause. I believe she was poisoned and am sure of the culprit, but have no evidence and therefore can’t do anything about it. Mother was the empress, and normally that would make me the crown prince, but unfortunately after her death my father promoted the mother of the first prince to empress, making him eligible for the seat as well.”

He paused, took a breath, and was about to continue when he saw Yuelan wave her hand toward a chair at the table inside the gazebo. He sat down in the indicated chair before continuing. “My mother left me with a warning before she died. She said that I couldn’t show my talents or I would be in danger. From then on, I started acting out. I did things to make others believe I was useless. As a child it was mostly mischief, but when I got older and realized I would need to fight for the throne I started to throw those parties. I’d invite all the dandy children of the influential families, sometimes on their own and sometimes with the ones who would be able to take over and increase their family’s influence. By doing that, everyone assumed I was just continuing to be a useless prince, but I was able to start connecting with heirs like Young General Chang. Sometimes I could also gain the support of their fathers, or at least keep them neutral. The parties also let me plant spies in some of the other families. I’ve had a few maids leave the palace to become concubines for men who aren’t on my side already.” He stopped speaking and looked over at Yuelan, his expression earnest. “Flirting with women is just something to keep up appearances. It doesn’t mean anything and the women I flirt with are carefully chosen. They know it’s a ruse and are willing to help me act the part.”

Yuelan continued to listen through Guangfeng’s story, though she maintained her frown as she did so. “So?” she asked. “It has nothing to do with me.”

“It does,” Guangfeng disagrees. “I owe you an apology. I wasn’t overly serious in my efforts to court you. I thought I could convince you with what I want to do for my father’s empire once I have the authority to do it. I also showed you something you hated by not changing what I was doing. If I am going to earn the throne then I need to earn your trust and respect as well as prove that I can keep those who are important to me safe no matter what threat is presented to me. I’ve decided to stop hiding. I won’t be throwing those parties anymore--or at least, not in the same way. And I won’t flirt with other women either, even if it’s only an act.”

Yuelan’s eyes narrowed. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to believe Guangfeng or not and took everything he told her with a grain of salt. “Alright...prove it,” she replied calmly. “I’ll forgive you then.”

Guangfeng nodded. “There is...one more thing. I’ve assigned one of my personal hidden guards to watch over you. His name is Shadow. It’s his job to keep you safe and unharmed so that what happened yesterday won’t happen again.”