I wondered what my family thought about me becoming the empress. A servant had been sent to me that morning and informed me that Meilin had ordered someone to go to my village and tell everyone in it that I was his bride. My family was given gifts and I couldn’t help but imagine the looks on their faces when they found out I was to be the wife of the Dragon, the most feared man in the empire.

“My lady,” a woman said as she entered the room, bowing down.

I sat upright from my position on the couch and stared at her for a moment before smiling softly. I still wasn’t accustomed to people bowing down at me, and when I had told the servants to stop, they ignored my requests and did so anyway. “Yes?” I asked.

She was carrying a plain red box in her hands and as she spoke, she pulled it open. “His Majesty has sent you a gift.”

I hesitantly walked forward and gasped when I saw six silver hairpins nestled in the box. They were simple and beautiful, with crystals and jewels attached to them. “They’re beautiful,” I breathed.

“Do you wish for me to style them into your hair?”

“Yes, please,” I said with a smile.

The servant came over and undid my hair, brushing the long strands before pulling it together and weaving the pins in. When she was done, I turned to the mirror and tilted my head to look at my black hair, my eyes bright as I admired her work. I had never worn such finery before, and even though it was quite simple compared to what other women wore, I adored it.

“Thank you very much,” I said.

“He also sent this note,” she said as she produced a thick white card with dark, neat lettering.

I stared at the paper in my hand and gave her an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, but I can’t read.”

She blinked in surprise and wrung her hands together. “I’m sorry, My Lady, but I also cannot read.” She glanced over her shoulder. “Perhaps we can call a soldier or someone who can?”

After a moment of hesitation, I agreed to that and waited while she fetched a soldier. After a few more moments, an older man stood before us with my note in his hand. He bowed to me before reading the note out loud, “To my dearest little rabbit, a gift for you.”

“That’s it?” I asked with a soft blush, not sure why his words had my heart racing.

“Yes, My Lady,” he said.

“Thank you,” I said as I took the note back. “Please tell the emperor that . . . that I love the gift.”

When they both left, I touched the hairpins and smiled at the small gift. Granted, he probably didn’t choose them himself and just ordered someone to send some, but at least he remembered his promise to send me them. Perhaps Meilin wasn’t that bad; my dinner with him had proven he wasn’t as cruel as I had initially thought.

Although I spent a lot of time boringly cooped up in my room, it was only last night when I realized I was allowed to walk around the palace and venture through the gardens if I wanted to. Precisely doing so, I smiled softly at whoever bowed to me on the way there. I still wasn’t accustomed to the behavior people had around me, the woman who apparently had the Dragon’s favor, since I was chosen as wife instead of concubine.

“My Lady, you’re looking as beautiful as always,” a maidservant murmured when I entered the garden I had seen yesterday. I smiled at her and said my thanks, glancing around the greenery around me, the small pond, and the stone pathway.

Walking along the pathway, I smiled at the sky and the flowers around me. I had been born in a small, rural village with greenery and animals, so the sight of trees and flowers were welcoming to me. I missed home and wanted to see my family, but I couldn’t bring up the request to Meilin, who didn’t seem that concerned with me. In fact, from what I learned from dinner two days ago, Meilin didn’t think much about family since he didn’t have one. There was no way he would understand my feelings and see that I missed my family.

“Katsu, come back here!” a familiar voice called out.

Up ahead, a boy sprang forth from a couple of bushes, his black hair messy and his smile wide. He must’ve been four or five years old. He had leaves sticking out of his messy black hair and he was dressed in black and red attire that looked military-like. He was adorable and running my way.

“Whoa, hold up, Katsu!” Jia called out as she ran down the path.

Katsu, the little boy, almost ran into me but stopped a few feet short. He stared up at me with wide brown eyes before looking over his shoulder at Jia.

“Lady Jia, he stopped running,” another boy called out, trailing behind her. He had his dark hair pulled back and was dressed in military attire as well.

Katsu stepped away from me and stared at me curiously, his head cocked to the side as he looked at me. I smiled gently at him and watched as Jia reached us.

“Katsu, you’re faster than I thought you were!” Jia said as she knelt down and put her hands on his shoulders. He beamed from ear to ear, proud at being called fast. She brushed off the leaves from his hair and shoulders, clicking her tongue. “Always getting dirty, aren’t you? What would your father say if he saw you like this?”

The little boy’s smile grew wider and he puffed out his chest. “He would say I’m the fastest.”

Jia smiled gently and ruffled his hair. “Yes, he probably would.” Raising her eyes to meet mine, she grinned widely. “Daiyu, I was going to come to you today.”

The other boy, who looked to be fourteen, jogged over to where we were. “Lady Jia, he’s all messy and dirty again,” he said as he shook his head at the little boy. When he looked at me, it took him a moment to realize who I was. “Oh, you must be Lady Daiyu, the emperor’s wife.”

“Not yet,” I said, my smile faltering.

Jia rose to her feet and kept her hands on Katsu’s shoulders, her smile bright. “Daiyu, this here is Katsu, my son. Say hello, Katsu.”

Katsu smiled shyly and hugged Jia’s leg. “H-Hello.”

“Hello,” I said with a gentle smile. He was a cute little thing, but one thing that piqued my interest was he was Jia’s son. Jia had told me she had gotten married to Fang about three years ago, so was this a child from a different marriage? Or had Fang and Jia not waited until marriage?

“My name is Yat-sen,” the other boy said. He was handsome and had somewhat long hair that he kept tied behind his head, though it was much shorter than Meilin’s. It did, however, look like it was styled similarly after Meilin’s. But while Meilin had a fringe and choppy hair up front, and a tiny cropped part on the side, this boy’s lacked the long hair that Meilin tied at the back of his head.

“Nice to meet you,” I greeted.

“The pleasure is all mine, Lady Daiyu,” he said with a bow.

“Do you know who he is?” Jia asked expectantly.

I furrowed my brows together and stared at the boy for a moment before shaking my head. “I’m sorry, but I don’t recall—”

“He’s the son of the late emperor,” Jia said.