My weekend plans got completely spoiled, so I had been vegging it out in front of my computer watching Japanese doramas and totally not writing. Hehe...HAPPY CANADA DAY...for those who care. Thanks for the kind support! Enjoy this shorter chapter!
Chapter 11: Wake Up Call
Things were pretty much routine and back to normal for the next two days after the incident at Scholar's Garden. Yue Ting had spent most of her days following Ling Tong around and he had spent the two days being intrigued by Zhen Yi. Everything was as if the moments at the Peach Gardens never existed and Yue Ting could not have been more upset. Ling Tong's cold expressions, bored replies and the way he looked away whenever she called for him were hurtful and confusing. The way he turned his attention to Zhen Yi made her heart ache. What exactly was their relationship for that one special day? Did his actions only make her tingle and not the other way around? And why did he choose her? Was she just a substitute for Zhen Yi because he had all that male testosterone preventing him from being civil? Yue Ting had no clue about her own female mind, there was no way she could decipher the males.
At first Yue Ting considered it a good thing, without having Ling Tong pester her, she could have gathered all the necessary information and get out of Wu. But the more time she spent with Ling Tong and watched how he treated Zhen Yi, the more distracted she was. She was frustrated and angry and she had no way to vent it. Let it go on anymore, and she was going to pop.
But she did have a way to release some of her anger through her new strange, but kind friend Lu Xun. After their encounter in Scholar's Garden, which only Yue Ting knew the truth of; the two of them had bonded in a friendly way. She felt that Lu Xun was a bright young man and that the castle completely underrated him. There was potential in him and with potential came a chance for him being a threat in the future to her Uncle. As much as she liked Lu Xun as a friend, the job of the Phoenix never stopped.
The longer she stayed in Wu, the longer she missed Xia Kou and everyone in it. She had never felt lonelier in her life, even when she spent months away chasing down corrupt officials and the likes. Even then she could write letters to her Aunt and Uncle, or rush back to the castle for a game of checkers with Ping. Now they were so far away and anything she wrote was monitored. She was trapped and needed someone to take her away from Ling Tong, from everything, even for a little bit.
With the warmth of her blankets wrapped around her, Yue Ting turned for a more comfortable position before slipping away into her dream land. Her mind was almost in the deepest part of her slumber when her ears picked up a strange tapping noise. Choosing to ignore the tapping, it slowly evolved into a knocking and an eventual palm slamming on her door. "OPEN UP!" the stranger yelled. One of Yue Ting's eyes shot open and she scanned her room quickly. The sun was barely shining through her windows and she could swear it was not dawn yet. The palm slamming continued. "I'll break in!" She had time to gather her thoughts and finally recognized the voice.
"Hold your hat." She mumbled and swung her feet over the bed first while still lying down. Slowly and very slowly she rolled the rest of her body onto the tip of the bed and swung her arm down to the floor, searching for her shoes. Finding them, she slid the pair to her feet and put them on. Yawning she sat up, grabbed her robe and headed to the door.
"Hurry up!" the stranger started the pounding again. "It's cold!" Yue Ting sashayed around her room, avoiding tables and chairs while navigating through the darkness. Finally she put her two hands on one of the many identical wall frames and started to count down until she found the heavy wooden locks that barred the door shut. "Hurry up!" Yue Ting felt the vibration of the door and knew it was the right now.
"What do you want!?" she yelled, opening the door a bit so only her head would stick out.
"Took you long enough, couldn't swim up to the top Shrimp?" Yue Ting gritted her teeth and with a fling of her hands, she threw the rest of the door open and stomped towards the round table in the middle of her room.
Gan Ning watched her sit down on the stool with a flop and cross her arms across her chest. He grinned and sat across from her, setting his bag on the ground and helping himself to a cup of tea. "Your hairs a mess by the way." He smiled. Yue Ting put both of her hands on her head in panic, clawing through her hair with her fingers like a comb.
"Well, it's still morning."
"Half the castle is up already." He grinned.
"Well Ling Tong had something to do today, so I thought I'd sleep in today."
"Liar." Her eyes darted at his. "Lu Xun told me that you sleep in every day."
"That rascal." Yue Ting muttered under her breath, "Oh yeah?" She looked over to Gan Ning and smirked, "Where have you been the past week?" She noticed his face go white.
"Y'know, manly, Wu stuff." He stared at his teacup, "Confidential Wu stuff. I am a general." Yue Ting waited for him to take another sip of tea before saying.
"Li-ar" she stressed the syllables as long as possible. She watched him choke on the water. "Lu Xun told me that you went up north…"
"That is true!" he cut in, hopping to end the conversation as soon as possible. "To do manly things!"
"To accompany Xiao Qiao to a temple." They both said at the same time. Gan Ning slumped his shoulders forward in defeat. "SO IT IS TRUE?" Yue Ting found herself giggling.
"Da Qiao told Xiao Qiao of this temple in the Northern hills, the monks there are supposedly very holy." He took another sip of tea, "It's tradition for a wife of a general or a Lord to go pray and receive luck for our upcoming battle."
"And…"
"What and?"
"I know there's more." Gan Ning sighed.
"There is a priest there that supposedly blesses fertility after a few days of praying." And donations, Yue Ting smiled.
"So tell me how big, bad, manly pirate Gan Ning got sent up there?"
"Xiao Qiao asked Zhou Yu about it and he said only if there was someone to protect her. As luck would have it, I walked by and Xiao Qiao asked. I didn't want to say no directly to her because I didn't want to see her cry, so I set up a stupid bet and she won." Yue Ting remembered her first day at Wu where Xiao Qiao had mentioned it.
"What was the bet?" Gan Ning's face lost colour again.
"It was stupid."
"What was it?"
"Forgot."
"I know what it is." She teased.
"That boy, I am going to kill Lu Xun." Gan Ning snarled, "You say it, and I won't tell you what I'm here for." Yue Ting thought for a second and shrugged.
"What are you here for?"
"I heard that you didn't have any plans today, so I was going to be nice and take you on my boat." Yue Ting's eyes grew wide. She had heard stores about Gan Ning's great boat and skills as a captain. Plus there was nothing cooler than going on a trip with an ex-pirate. "Are you interested?" he asked.
"OF COURSE!" she stood up from her stool, "When do we go?"
"I hope you're not going in that." He eyed her pajamas, Yue Ting tightened her robe and blushed.
"I also invited Lu Xun and you can bring Zhen Yi."
"Okay!"
"I'll be at the castle docks in half an hour, don't be late or I'm leaving without you." He drained the rest of his tea cup and got up. Gan Ning picked up the bag he left on the ground and put it on the table. "Oh, gifts for you. Xiao Qiao insisted when our route 'accidentally' passed through the shopping district." He waved his hand and left.
Yue Ting looked at the bag and opened it up. There was a beautiful green and yellow silk dress folded inside and on top there was a folded paper triangle. Yue Ting picked up the triangle and felt her heart warm. It was a good luck or protection charm that was obtained after intensive and sincere praying at a shrine or temple. She had receive many from her aunt before her travels but this was the first time she had received one from someone she didn't know very well. The people of Wu were very strange to her, yet their kindness and the way they look after each other was admirable. Gan Ning was the perfect example. He was rough and rugged yet he would do anything to protect his fellow people. Lu Xun had told her the real bet and Yue Ting understood why he was embarrassed to share it because no matter what happened, Xiao Qiao would had won the bet. It was just a better way for Gan Ning to express that he wanted to go without damaging his reputation.
Yue Ting sat back on the stool and sighed. Everyone in Wu just kept surprising her and she wished she wasn't so touched by them.
This is the 2nd chapter title I've taken from a song title. I am getting lazy.
