I never thought that I would find myself stuck in this situation. 

I hoped that I would eventually wake up from this abominable nightmare, but something beautiful as such would never happen. My good old days of happiness and freedom were over.

Want to know what happened?

 In the end, I had no choice but to pay a visit to the palace AGAIN! Never thought I would be forced to make such a pungent decision in my life, but as one says--life goes on. Guess you'll have to move on from your misfortune...

So yeah, here I was, wandering to and fro in the king's grand banquet while keeping my head bent so low so that nobody would ever notice me. My poor neck was aching a lot but I kept cursing under my breath to keep my mind concentrated on hiding. Occasionally, Shi Lian would question me about my neck. "Young master, what's wrong with your neck? Are you sick? Why do you keep bending your head?"

I shouldn't have brought her here. She kept following me like my tail and kept ranting me with all these stupid questions. 

I needed a personal attendant and she happened to be the most sensible. So this left me with no choice but to drag her along. Now I was regretting my decision.  Plus I had the feeling that this was gonna be a long boring night.

.             .            .

Time passed by and it was finally the time for the grand feast. I was ushered to the banquet hall by a royal guard. As the representative of the Lan family and as the son of the general, I was supposed to dine with the king and the officials.  This was the most dreaded part of the night that I was trying so hard to avoid. The idea of being anywhere near the emperor was my harrowing nightmare. Maybe if I only laid my eyes on the food throughout the whole night, he wouldn't notice me. 

My idea was so infirm but it was the best plan I could execute.

So the soldier directed me to a majestic throne hall where the banquet was being held. A  golden carpet blanketed the floor beneath my feet. Silver and gold hues reflected from every corner of the hall. But the hall had no roof above it, thus giving all the guests the chance to enjoy the beautiful night sky glamorized by the moon and the resplendent stars. It was a view of euphoric beauty to behold.

I couldn't enjoy the divine view anymore as my eyes were stinging because of the blinding light reflected from the jewelled throne.  

As expected, emperor Meilin sat on this daunting jewelled throne, staring like a hawk at the guests that entered. He was dressed in a black hanfu that had the design of a majestic silver dragon sewn onto its silk surface. The light of the moon made the silver design shine even more. It stole a lot of attention and sighs from the curious guests.

 The emperor's hair wasn't tied so it ran loose over his shoulders like a dark river. A small silver hairpin crafted in the shape of a dragon head was pinned near his left ear. 

He looked regal and seductive. Two elements mixed together to echo the image of a cold emperor.

The most surprising change was, beside Meilin sat an elegant woman adorned in several colorful silks, making her resemble a peacock. She was radiant and her porcelain skin sparkled underneath the ghostly light. This woman was a true beauty.

 She eyed Meilin lustfully and batted her eyelashes as she tried to earn his glance her way. Maybe she was the soon-to-be empress. The chosen one...his betrothed.

So, I guess he was playing with me after all. How dare he even think of using me when he had a woman by his side! Maybe it was his nature to play with women or maybe he mistook me for his future queen when he was drunk. I knew I was supposed to be relieved but something tightened inside my chest making it difficult for me to breathe. I didn't know why I was feeling this way or why I was acting strange.

I didn't have time to ponder over my thoughts because I could feel a pair of sharp eyes staring at me from the distance. 

 It was the emperor! His charcoal black eyes were staring at me with satisfaction and secrecy.

 The next thing you know, his lips curved into a smile and he looked at me in a tempted manner.

This sudden perilous attention made my heart hammer against my chest with loud beats. Maybe he was just smiling at me and I was only overthinking without having any logic. But that hedonistic look on his face made my perceptions run wild.

I kept my eyes on the ground and followed the soldier as he led me to my seat. 

I took a high seat on my reserved table just below the emperor. Each guest sat down at high and low steps in accordance to their statuses.  

Shi Lian stood behind me with a lionhearted demeanor. With her around, I wasn't alone in this feral place and for once, I could finally distract myself by enjoying the splendor around me.

The moon was full and luminous. Its enchanting light bathed the banquet hall in a beautiful white glow. 

The aesthetic music played by the music players made the moment more passionate for which I was thankful.

Right when I was thinking of how beautiful the guqin music was, a minister's riotous voice rose into the night air, thus destroying the little peace I discovered. His voice was so loud that it echoed through the whole banquet.

                                                                         "Before we start the banquet tonight, I have a request for a special guest. It's an invitation actually. Our general's son, Ziyi, is present in our midst today. He's a new face to all of us, but I've heard of him as a young talented scholar. He passed the imperial exam at such a young age and he excels in the subjects of art and music. He's very talented in playing the jade flute. His flute music is very popular among the people and he is well known in all of Akinli.  

So, this invitation is for him to come forward and entertain us with a performance so that we may witness his paradisiac talent. Your majesty, will you grant us this request and give him permission to perform?" the old minister gave a sinister smile and bowed in front of the clueless emperor.

Who was this weirdo? He messed up everything! I bet he had some evil plan playing in his rotten brain.

Oh geez this was bad this was really really bad. And how in the world did he know about my history when I tried so hard to keep a low profile! 

"I'm doomed," I whispered pitifully and sulked in my seat.

"Of course! You have my permission. He may perform," Meilin looked over at me. An attractive yet threatening smile spread over his sadistic face.

The beautiful lady sitting beside him noticed the sudden change of expression and gave me a threatening glance. 

She seemed to be jealous but there was nothing to be jealous about. She was his woman and he was just playing with me, trying to turn me into some joke.

"Young master, you have to accept his majesty's command and perform. Go up there now or else we'll be in trouble. Please master Ziyi please," Shi Lian was begging me to stand up and turn myself in. I myself was growing really furious. I had to show these people what I had so that they will never mess with me again. 

It was my time to teach them a lesson, so I mustered up my courage and forced my turbulent heart to release my anger through music.  

Standing up from the seat with a lot of composure, I walked towards the center of the hall. 

 

A music player dashed through the crowd of guests and handed me a jade flute. 

Thanking him with an earnest smile, I quickly took hold of the flute, brought it closer to my lips, and closed my eyes.

I took slow deep breaths and blew into the flute, my fingers running through the flute holes in a rhythmic pattern.

I could feel myself blending into the music more and more so I let myself sway into its tempo. Being too drunk in the music, I let my body dance to the pattern of the rhythm while I  played the flute.

Time passed by and the music grew stronger and stronger. I felt a warm light shining from within me as if something beautiful was spreading inside my body. I felt myself dazzling with a golden tinge while my body felt so warm. It was as if I was shining on the world like a burning orb of light whose flames kept flaring each second. This heat flowing through my veins and heart meant that something inside me was evolving. This wasn't just my flute music...instead, it was something far more cryptic. 

Realizing the sudden change in my body, I took the flute away from my lips and opened my eyes. As I opened my eyes, all I could see was a blinding light that was glowing around me from all directions. It wasn't just a light--it looked as if strings or chains of light were revolving around me with a rich golden luster. Even my fingers and the jade flute were covered in small golden sparks. 

Another inconceivable thing was the moon had turned red. It looked like a crimson hellish entity and it wasn't white and wane anymore. Its scarlet light covered the darkness in a bloody shadow and the night was drenched in its carmine shade. 

Maybe I had gone mad because I couldn't find any sort of explanation that could  describe what was happening to me.  I didn't have the ability to comprehend the meaning behind these psychic events either. It was all so crazy and so sickening. Even the guests of the banquet were silent as they observed me motionlessly with horrified faces. What was wrong with me!? I wanted to disappear so bad because I was afraid and I was helpless.

"The red moon and its breathtaking red light,

Hmm you keep surprising me Ziyi," a familiar voice rose from behind me. I turned around to find the noxious emperor standing only a few inches away from me, with the golden chains of light making him look so majestic. 

 He was dangerously close to me that I could see the red moonlight swallowing both of our shadows into one. Even the chains of light were revolving around us like their main aim was to bind us together.

 Before I could dodge this noxious man and run away from all the terrifying trauma I was experiencing, he cupped my cheek with one hand, the cool energy spreading as his thumb caressed my lips lightly.

"What are you?" he murmured while he pressed his mouth against mine and started kissing me.

With that one forbidden kiss, an unknown calmness took over my entire body.