"Your Highness, Yong-soo has arrived. He wishes to greet you my lady." A servant girl announced to her mistress.
"I'll be right there. Tell him I'm just fixing my hair." Mei told Miyako, her servant. Mei stood up from her bed and walked to her mirror stand. She gazed at her reflection and noticed how plain she looked. She smiled at her reflection and went out the door.
The young man named Yong-soo was telling the inhabitants of the palace a story about his adventures when Mei arrived. As soon as he caught sights of the lovely maiden, he stopped talking and could only gaze at her youthful face. In fact, Yong-soo even planned to marry this girl. She was the daughter of the Emperor of China and was a perfect bride for the warrior who longed for renown and honour among his countrymen.
Yong-soo bowed at once and said, "Mei, how lovely you are now. I wish the women in my country could be as lovely as you are. I brought you a token of my goodwill. " He fished a lovely diadem out of his pocket and held it out for Mei to take. The diadem was a thick gold crown with several precious stones inlaid on its outer layer of gold. Yong-soo stared at Mei expectantly. "What do you think of it? I want you to wear it. Your nobility will show." He said with a smile.
Mei reluctantly took the diadem from his hand and placed it on her head. She turned around so that everyone could see how she looked. She took a mirror and stared at her reflection. The diadem was beautiful, she knew that but there was one thing she would rather wear: the flower crown Kiku had given her the night before.
"It's so lovely Yong-soo but you shouldn't have lavished such an expensive gift on me when you could've used the money for something more beneficial to others. You could use give the money to the poor people in your village. I appreciate the gift Yong-soo, I really do. It is just that I don't need money or any other material thing. What I really want is love, that's it. But I will keep this gift as a sign of our friendship." Mei told him as gently as she could, not wanting to hurt his feelings.
"If that is what you want Mei." Yong-soo said coolly. He moved closer to Mei and smiled at her. "Mei, I would be honoured if you would accompany later this evening for a stroll around city. Would that be alright with you?" Yong-soo asked her, staring at her expectantly.
Mei was about to accept his offer when she remembered that she had a meeting with Kiku that night. "Yong-soo, could it be this afternoon instead? As much as I enjoy the evening breeze, I feel safer when I travel by daylight." Mei answered with a timid smile.
"Very well then, I will make sure that you are safe. I must go now Mei." Yong-soo , bowing slightly and left the courtyard. With a sigh, Mei plopped herself on a hammock and thought of Kiku that afternoon.