"…and we need to buy this hairpin!" Mei grabbed a butterfly hairpin and handed to Yao, who could barely hold it with the pink and white hanfu he had in both of his hands.
"Aiyah. But Mei-Mei, we already bought you a flower hairpin." Yao gestured to the plum blossom flower hairpin he was holding in one of his hands.
"But Gege…there are girls from all over the country coming to Beijing. And some of them have many pretty things. I can't show up looking shabby." And to coax her brother into buying her the hairpin, she put on her best puppy-dog eyes and batted her eyelashes. Normally, Yao would fall for her adorable look and give her want she wanted but since he was letting Mei go to the Qixi Festival, he drew the line at the hairpin.
"Alright… but if you want the hairpin, you can't go to the festival." Yao said mischievously.
"Gege, you're a jerk." Mei complained but she put the hairpin back anyway.
"Alright I think we have enou-"A loud drumbeat interrupted what Yao was going to say and loud, thundering hooves came into earshot. A man with a long, pointed beard and robes riding on a white horse came into view along with two other men.
"Gege! Look it's the courtier!" Mei tugged at Yao's sleeve.
The courtier stopped at the market center and began yelling about the visiting princes. While Yao was shifting the hanfu onto his shoulder, Mei listened intently. Soon murmurs of surprise erupted as the courtier left.
"Gege! Did you hear what he said?!
"Hm?"Yao looked over at his sister.
"That man said that the princes coming over won't show themselves! No one will know who they are!" Mei looked around anxiously "How will I know who's the prince?!"
"Aiyah Mei-Mei. You'll be fine." Yao rolled his eyes. Honestly, Mei-Mei could be a pain sometimes!
"Gege! I need to buy more things!" Mei ran over to a stand and began picking out accessories for her outfit.
Few Hours Later….
Yao slumped onto his bed. Although Mei had been terribly unreasonable and wanted to buy almost everything at each stand she saw, he managed to convince her to only buy the hanfu he was carrying, two plum blossom hairpins, and a jade ornament for her hanfu. Mei wanted new shoes, but Yao finally stamped his foot down and said she could wear her old shoes since no one would look at her feet which were hidden beneath the hanfu. Eventually, Mei was satisfied with the clothes and agreed to go home.
"Maybe I shouldn't have spoiled her so much…" Yao covered his face in his hands and sighed. He loved his sister but she was a handful at times. He couldn't help but chuckle and think about how his parents would react if they saw their daughter acting like this. But his amusement only lasted for a brief second. Yao knew he shouldn't cry but the ache of losing his parents was too hard to handle and it stuck to him for years. As he wiped the tears streaming down his cheeks, he began thinking of how his sister will do at the festival. Mei was strong girl, he knew since he taught her martial arts at a young age, but he couldn't help but worry about her choice of a husband.
What if she chose a criminal and was taken away? What if she chose a rebel and ran away with him? Yao threw a blanket over his head and fell asleep, worries and headaches lulling him to sleep.
At the Imperial Palace….
Prince Ivan sighed and leaned on one hand. Looking around in his room, he barely paid attention to the details of the room. "It was too dark to see anything anyway" he thought.
He shifted on the bed, trying to make himself comfortable but the bed was too hard and the fact his head ached from the journey from his kingdom in Russia didn't help at all. He and another prince, Leon of England, had come to China in search of bride so the countries can have stronger ties, but honestly, how could a marriage between two complete strangers help relations between their countries? It was all a waste of time. But he couldn't disobey his father, who was practically terrifying. Plus, this was his chance to avoid marrying his younger sister, Natalia. He was absolutely terrified of her since she always had an obsession over him said that they should marry. Luckily their father didn't like that idea and married her off to a prince in a neighboring land. But Ivan wished his father didn't like the idea of him marrying a foreign woman…or marrying at all. He didn't care for marriages or other things like that. It's not that he hated anything romantic, but he hated being told what to do and it involves when he should marry. In his opinion, he was too young to marry. At age eighteen, he should be hanging out with his friends, if he had any.
His father would always say that he shouldn't have friends since anyone of them would betray him at any chance they got. Although Ivan didn't believe his father, he never had luck making friends. Was it because of his rank? Is he intimidating? He had to admit, he was incredibly tall for a man his age but height really doesn't matter, right?
"V-Vanya? A-Are you okay" A familiar voice rang in Ivan's ears.
"Ah, Katyusha." Ivan sat up on his bed as his older sister walked up to him "What are you doing at this hour?"
"I-I thought you were ill because you wouldn't eat when the Emperor invited us to dinner." Katyusha clutched her hands with worry.
"Sister I'm fine, you don't need to worry over me. But I appreciate your concern. Spasibo." Ivan smiled at his sister. Although Katyusha was supposed to be with her husband now, she wanted to accompany her brother so he would have a safe journey into this strange land. He was grateful for that.
"W-Well, if you want anything my room is right next to yours."
"Spasibo sister." Ivan laid back onto his bed as the door closed shut and looked over to the sunflower he brought from his land.
Although it was odd for a man to adore a flower so lovingly, he couldn't help but smile when the little flower appeared in his eyes. It brought warmth to his cold home. He longed for a sunflower field and he knew he would someday have it. Ivan rolled over and smiled himself to sleep, dreaming of a sunflower field that made the sunshine dull.