A/N: I recently got my braces taken off, and got a 'pre finisher' added on. Now I'm in a lot of pain and spitting a lot, so why not write another chapter!


Chapter 7: Li Mei Zhen: Novice versus Bandit

Wu Hu was a small city aligned with the Yang Tze River, it was east of Tai Ping and had a population of less than 1000. Yet Wu Hu's recreational activities and ceremonies were just as amazing as any of the bigger cities. The Lu family had come to Wu Hu on a trip, for business and for a chance for Lu Kang's nephew Lu Yi to obtain experience working in the city.

Seventeen year old Lu Yi sat around the table with his cousin Lu Qi, they were frantically trying to calm Lady Lu who was screaming and shouting in their rented mansion. "I can't believe! That rowdy bandit has struck Wu Hu! He took my money! Your father is going to kill me!"

"Calm down Niang." Lu Qi scratched his chin, "Do you remember how the bandit looked?"

"It was all too fast! If I knew I wouldn't have been sitting here for so long!" Lady Lu, a woman in her late forties was frail and as fragile as the older generation. She was sitting on the wooden stool, arching her back so that her chin was on the table. Then just like a little child she began to throw tantrums and whine once again. Suddenly her whining was over come by an even greater whining sound when Lu Qi's elder sister Lu Ai Tze ran in.

"What's the problem cousin?" Rushing into join her sulking mother was nineteen year old Lu Ai Tze, the only daughter of Lu Kang and Lady Lu. Wearing her light pink and purple silk dress, she threw her arms in front of her before sitting down.

"My jade!"

"Your jade? The one I gave you?" Lu Yi freaked out and asked. Lu Yi was an orphan ever since the day he was born, he never knew much about his parents. Only the fact that after they smuggled Lu Yi over to Lu Kang. They were sentenced to death by the Eunuchs of Han for treason.

"I'm so sorry cousin!" Ai Tze placed her two hands together and added a small puppy dog pout. The jade she was talking about had a great deal of importance to Lu Yi. It was an item Yi always carried with him, even when he was born. That was because it was a gift from his mother, a small dragon and phoenix jade. Even though it was small and scratched, the jade material was worth a lot of money.

"Ai er, did you get it stolen from that rowdy bandit too?" her mother began to wail like mad once again. Ai Tze gave her mother a confused stare but she tried to keep a look of innocence.

"Oh-oh!" she suddenly cried, "Yes! I'm so sorry cousin. That rowdy bandit stole it from me. Oh mother!" she threw her hands in the air, "What an unlucky day for the Lu woman! Father will kill us if this happens!"

"Don't even mention your father Ai er," Lady Lu screamed, "He'll divorce me for sure if he finds out what I lost."

"Niang, Jie. Please, we'll get your stuff back." Lu Qi scratched his forehead, "I can't go now though. I have to meet Father." He suddenly paused and looked over to the novice Lu Yi, "Lu Yi! You can do it! You're here for training anyways, show father who you truly are by catching that rowdy bandit!"

Lu Yi returned a horrid stare, his mouth widening into a simple 'o' fashion. He had never been alone for any city work during his past few years of training. For a young man he knew he was no match to the young generals who had made a name for themselves across the land. Like the young Ma Chao, the son of Ma Teng and Ling Tong the son of Ling Cao.

"Why, why do I have to go?" he stuttered, backing up from his relatives that were inching closer towards him. Lu Yi was a bit of a coward you could say, he was afraid of disgracing his family and always tried to repair the image people had about his parents.

"Because if we weren't here for training for YOU Yi, niang and jie would have never gotten their stuff stolen!"

"That's right! Nephew! If you don't get my stuff back, I'll tell your uncle!" Lady Lu suddenly appeared on the right side of the scattered boy. "You're under my roof after all!"

"Yeah Yi Yi," Ai Tze added another cute pout, "If it wasn't for you I wouldn't of lost your mothers jade."

"But you stole the jade! When I was in the bathroom!" Lu Yi pointed out to the young maiden, Ai Tze turned the colour of her dress and sat down. Ever since Ai Tze was little, she had been prying on her little cousins jade. Often as a child he would try to scam him into giving it to her but was always out smarted by him in surprise.

"You have no say Yi." Lu Qi dragged his cousin by his arm towards the front door, handing him his two practice swords he shoved him outside the mansion doors. "Father and I will return by nightfall. Catch the banditbythen!" he whispered, slamming the door quickly.

Lu Yi stood there stumped, like an idiot he was standing in front of a giant mansion door with a pair of swords in his hand. "I'm not even trained with these yet." He muttered.

Xx

Hours passed and Lu Yi still wandered around the streets aimlessly. He had no idea how he could catch this rowdy bandit that was wanted in three cities. Lu Yi imagined a big tough warrior with muscles that bulged out of his shirt, which was the reason why no one could identify him. They were too scared. He shuttered at the thoughts of the meeting the rowdy bandit and turned into the near empty alleyways of Wu Hu.

Being a small town, many of these homes had alleyways connecting to one neighborhood or another. It was considered convenient for errands and delivering needs. Arriving at one of the dead ends of the confusing alleyways, Lu Yi sighed helplessly before smashing his head lightly on the bright red pole. It would be useless to return home now, the whole family would blame him for something he could not do.

"Move it!" he suddenly heard a rough voice cry, when a flying figure jumped over the wall he was standing beside. Lu Yi watched a slender figure run past him, in the strangers hand was a small pouch.

"Help! The rowdy bandit has attacked Wu Hu!" he heard people scream from the other side, his face brightened out into a big grin. Lu Yi made sure his hat was on tight before he ran after the trails of the rowdy bandit. Luckily for him, the rowdy bandit was low on energy that particular day and when he noticed someone chasing after him. The bandit tried to shake him off by jumping over barrels and walls.

"Damn he runs fast." Mei Zhen thought while she continued to run down the slick roads of this new city. It was her second day in Wu Hu and she made it no mistake to quickly resume her normal business. Sadly all the money she saved from Tai Ping was given to an orphanage which denied her access to actual food. Clutching onto her stomach, she could feel a pain reaching from all sides. "Damn it I should have eaten." She mumbled and cocked her head a bit back just to see the young man still after her tail.

Seeing the only way of escape was to jump over the giant wall of the alleyway, Mei Zhen planned her every move. She would jump on the baskets that were laid out there as a support beam, and throw the money back at the man. Then with her free hands, she would use them as an aid to leap over the rest of the wall. Just as she placed her foot on the basket to prepare for her adventure she felt the arms of the man reach over her chest and hold tightly towards the neck collar.

With a great yank, Lu Yi pulled the bandit back and swung him in front of him. He opened his eyes in triumph when they suddenly were filled with eyes of horror. In front of him as he still held onto the bandit's shirt collar, he saw something he shouldn't really see. The silky undergarments of…a female figure.

"You…you can let go now!" Mei Zhen screamed, flushing with embarrassment. The grip was quickly released as she held her loose clothing in front of her chest area. "What you caught me now, you happy?" she snapped wildly at the still confused boy in front of her.

"I um, uh. You're a girl?" was the first thing that came out of his mouth. "The legendary rowdy bandit is a girl?"

"What's wrong with a girl?" Mei Zhen replied to the rude stranger in front of her, "It took you quite a while to catch me, if I had eaten something. You would have never laid a finger on me."

"Wait, I don't care." He suddenly changed his tone of voice, "Give me all the stuff you stole from my aunt and cousin today!"

"Um hello? I'm a bandit, I steal for a living. How would I know what I stole from your aunt and cousin?" Lu Yi shook his head and began to explain the physical features of his two beloved relatives.

"Oh that old looking woman? She didn't have much." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a velvet red pouch, waving it in front of Lu Yi's face she chuckled. "You can't have it though, I stole it. It's mine."

"I'll arrest you!" he stuttered back, making her laugh once again.

"I'll give you all the stuff I stole today. On two conditions." Lu Yi was about to refuse, after all if he caught the rowdy bandit and get everything back he would get twice the praise and honour. "Nuh uh." Mei Zhen gave an evil smirk, "You sexually harassed me."

"I what!"

"You touched me, you know you shouldn't. That'll go bad against you, after all. There is no proof I'm the bandit when I'm a girl." She waved the velvet pouch in his face again. "Two conditions. One you help me find some people, two you let me free."

"Only if you leave the town." This way, he could tell his family the bandit ran off after a long, restless battle between the two.

"If number one is finished, I will leave town."

"Deal." Lu Yi turned around sticking out his hand for the items. Mei Zhen placed her hand in her blouse and pulled out all her 'findings' for the day. When she was done, Lu Yi screamed. "Don't be kidding me, please give me back my jade!" Jade? He got a weird reply, confused he started to explain how his cousin had claimed to have gotten the jade stolen.

"I only steal money so I don't know what happened to your jade, but while you help me find some people. I'll help you find that jade."

Xx

"If you're looking for people, this is the best place to try." Lu Yi explained to his new 'friend'. They were in front of a large red and blue building, "A rule in Wu Hu is that almost everything needs to be registered. From new born babies, marriages, divorces, deaths and land purchases." Pushing the iron gates opened, Lu Yi began to call out for the administrator that took care of the area. Within minutes, a man holding onto stacks of scrolls and documents stumbled in.

"How can I help you two? Are you interested in purchasing land? Are you registering for a wedding? Perhaps had a little bundle of joy? Or have you both lost a close relative or friend?" He read proudly off a piece of paper that was clearly stuck onto the wall behind them. Mei Zhen tried to keep her giggles quiet, leaving Lu Yi in an odd situation.

"No, we're not actually. This…" he paused, the bandit had fixed her clothing early and was clearly a boy, but he was afraid if he called her a boy she would be offended. "Person wants to ask you something."

"Right, I want to know if recently these years. If a family under Li purchased any homes?"

"Li? Sir, there are thousands of families with that last name. Yet, I'm pretty sure that no Li's have ended up here yet. I personally do all land purchases, closest to a Li was a Lai for me."

"Oh." She replied, slumping her shoulders forward a little. Lu Yi noticed her odd posture, but chose not to speak any of it while he followed her outside the building. "Oh well." She took a small breath and turned around to face her tour guide when they reached a deserted street, "Guess my business here is done."

"What? You haven't even found my jade yet!"

"Don't get so angry." She smiled, "I know I should have told you earlier but I saw your cousin or someone similar walk into a pawn shop today. Try there." She winked, "Bye."

"Hey! Wait!" he called out forcing her to a stop, "What's your name anyways? I don't want to refer to rowdy bandit you know."

"I'm not that silly, I do all my work under cover. As the rowdy bandit." She flashed her tongue towards the boy in a taunt before starting a sprint forward.

"My name is Lu Yi!" he screamed after her, "Lu Yi Bo Yan! And next time I see you, you better not be stealing!"


A/N: If you're confused at whom Lu Yi is, he's our dear hero Lu Xun. It was fairly common for generals to change their name when they entered the army. Lu Yi was Lu Xun's original name before he joined Sun Quan. This is the only time I'll be using Lu Yi in the story, because next time we see him he'll be Lu Xun of Wu! Also Lu Kangas inhis uncle, not the last ruler of Wu. (if anyone gets confused too. Stupid names!)

Also I apologize if it seemed confusing at the Mei Zhen/Lu Yi meeting. The uses of 'he/she' must have been confusing. Cause it was confusing for me…a bit. Anyways, thanks for reading as usual!

Niang- Mother
Jie- Older sister

Adamantina - Haha Liu Bei is just too trusting, he doesn't believe any random person (or hand maid at that fact) would just run up and kill him. For the peony part, I stole it off a magazine (Martha Stewart I think) I was reading back in school. I was going to write the Chinese term they used for it, but I forgot it and accidentally used 'shoyu' (soya sauce). So I just got rid of it all together. Ehe.

Vina – Yay, a new reader. Hope you're enjoying this.

Cenasgirl456 – Woo another new reader. WWE fan eh, I just recently started watching again cause I have more time in the summer. Glad you liked Only Time, and hope you'll enjoy this one as much as you enjoyedmy other fic.Yeah, Zi Qi had a rough life. Hopefully everything is going to lift for her a bit. :)