Yuelan didn’t know how long she’d been trapped in the dark, dank room. She hadn’t been given anything to eat since she’d been brought in, only water. Her hunger had reached the point her stomach was sending stabbing pains and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could hold on. The ropes were off her hands and feet, but the trap door locked from the outside and Yuelan hadn’t been able to find anything she could use to try and unlock it.

The first prince knew the ropes were undone, but he didn’t seem to care at all about Yuelan escaping. He’d come a couple of times since the first time, each time to try and get her to change her mind about choosing Guangfeng. Yuelan had continued to refuse. The last time he’d come he’d brought food and promised to give it to her if she agreed, but even though Yuelan was starving she had still refused. If he was willing to do something like this to someone who would potentially bear his children then she didn’t even want to think about what he’d be like as a ruler with no one above him.

Wood scraping against stone sounded above as the trap door opened and Yuelan opened her eyes to look up and watch as two figures came down the ladder and she squinted her eyes against the light. She’d managed to figure out what the other stone was. Time to act.

Yuelan concentrated hard. Just as the two figures reached the bottom of the ladder they collapsed into the water. Lepidolite. That was the second stone on the necklace. It could put people to sleep. She had to remember to thank Laurel for that later and ask where she’d gotten the necklace.

With the first prince and the scarred man now sleeping, Yuelan climbed up the ladder. She shivered and wondered if she had a fever. Probably, since she’d been sitting in dirty water for an unknown length of time. Not to mention what was in that water. They hadn’t given her a chamber pot.

As soon as Yuelan had gotten to the top of the ladder she thought hard. Cinnabar allowed for shapeshifting. She couldn’t hold the shape for long, but she could at least get away. It was dark, so Yuelan chose the shape of an owl. Taking on the shape and holding it was a struggle, but she managed to fly away.

***

Guangfeng had gotten a clue on the location of the scarred man and was walking swiftly down an alley. Shade and Shadow were both with him and he heard them cry out in surprise before something landed on top of him and he fell on the ground. Whatever it was, it was wet and smelled terrible. It was also...crying?

“G-guangfeng…”

The trembling voice made all of the prince’s muscles tense at once. He carefully moved himself out from under the thing on his back and his eyes widened when he recognized Yuelan’s face. She was filthy. Her hair and clothes were a mess. The cleanest part of her was where the tears were sliding down. The sight made Guangfeng’s heart squeeze.

“It’s alright now. I’ll take you home.” With Shade and Shadow’s help, Guangfeng stood. He removed his outer robe and wrapped it securely around the shivering girl before picking her up into his arms. “Shadow, inform Lord Long. Shade, find Yun Cai. Tell them we found Miss Long.”

The two hidden guards disappeared as soon as the prince finished speaking.

Yuelan’s arms trembled as she tried to wrap them around Guangfeng’s neck and he gently helped her so she could hold on to him while he headed toward the house he’d met with Yun Cai. She would need a doctor, but first he had to get her safely home.

“How did you get away?” Guangfeng asked, holding her closer.

Yuelan whimpered and hid her face in his shoulder. “The necklace I'm wearing has two stones I needed to escape. One let me put them to sleep and the other helped me turn into an owl. I had to change shape a few times to find you.”

The idea seemed amazing to Guangfeng. Changing shape? That could be very useful for gathering information. And putting people to sleep could help with surprise attacks in a war. No, that wasn’t important now.

The two hidden guards arrived with Long He and Yun Cai. The dragon stared at Yuelan for a moment, then reached out and took her from Guangfeng. “Thank you, Your Highness.”

“All I did was break her fall, Lord Long. Yuelan saved herself with magic.” Guangfeng didn’t want to let go of her, but he let the dragon take her anyway and turned to give instructions.

“Shade, get Doctor Wei and take him to Crystal Moon Residence,” Guangfeng ordered.

The guard nodded and disappeared yet again.

***

When they arrived at Yuelan’s residence, the doctor was already waiting for them. He didn’t say a word and followed Long He, who was carrying Yuelan, Guangfeng, and Yun Cai to Yuelan’s courtyard.

Doctor Wei silently observed Yuelan with only his eyes and when they reached her courtyard he barred Yun Cai and Guangfeng from entering. He himself stayed with Long He while Camphor and Willow bathed their mistress and dressed her in clean clothes. Once his patient had been settled, the doctor stepped forward to check her pulse and asked a few simple questions about how she was feeling. The last question was: “When was your last meal?”

Yuelan hesitated. The questions before had all been answered with a nod or a shake of her head. This was the first one she had to actually speak for. “I...I don’t know,” she answered honestly. Her voice sounded weak and hoarse. “I wasn’t given anything to eat.”

Guangfeng and Camphor tensed beside her, but the doctor didn’t look surprised.

“Have someone make a bowl of congee,” Doctor Wei instructed Camphor. “Help her drink it slowly or it will cause problems with her stomach. She should also take a hot bath to help her warm up.”

“Anything else?” Guangfei had come into the room, unable to wait any longer to see how Yuelan was doing.

“Other than being starved for a few days and getting too cold there isn’t anything wrong with Miss Long,” the doctor explained. “She needs to be warmed up, eat some food, and get some rest is all. If she rests properly today she should be alright to leave tomorrow with the rest of the group following Her Highness the second princess to Zhongshu.”

Guangfeng let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Doctor Wei.” He passed a pouch of money over to the doctor then looked over at Camphor. “Take good care of her. We’ll deal with the problem of Laurel’s betrayal after we return from Zhongshu.”

Yuelan waited until the doctor had left the room before saying quietly, “So it was Laurel. I remember hearing her apologize just before I fell unconscious. I think she put the necklace on me too. When I woke up I was in that room where you found me.”

“She’s being kept in the prison in my palace,” Guangfeng told her. “The decision on what to do about her will be yours, since she’s your servant, but it was too dangerous to leave her here. I don’t want someone getting to her to silence her before we have the chance to question her.”

There was silence for almost a minute before Yuelan finally spoke again. “Thank you, Guangfeng.”

The third prince gave her a gentle smile. “It was what I should do. I’m just glad you weren’t hurt. Why don’t you have Camphor and a couple of other maids take you back to your courtyard so you can rest? I can see myself out.”

Yuelan nodded and let Camphor help her up. A couple of other maids had already been sent over by Chung Soo and they moved over to assist as well.