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It had been three days since Mulan had moved into Chi Fu's house, and never had she felt more alone in her life. She went to the stable during her study breaks to talk to Khan, but there was only so much she could say to the horse before she realized he would never respond in the way she would have liked. So, she surrounded herself with the five scrolls Chi Fu lent her, and she studied to ignore Chi Fu. She managed to learn so much in those past few days, and the words of Confucius opened up to her a whole new perspective on life and people,but it was only a matter of time before she was called to eat dinner with the master of the house, and that was when she remembered her situation.

Chi Fu had acted around her as he would a leper. He was disgusted with the mere mention of her, and to have her in his house was unjust and intolerable, and if it weren't for the Princess's request he would have enjoyed seeing her homeless. At the beginning, he forced himself to make tutoring sessions with her. He talked quickly while she took notes on some parchment, and every so often she would ask him to refrain from talking so that she could catch up with him. That was when he would watch her, at first with absolute disdain, but then he would notice the way hair fell in her eyes and how she'd try to tuck it behind her ear while still taking notes, or he would notice the way she wrote on the parchment. Such moments were brief at best, but by the third day since her moving in, he regarded her as something other than his antithesis, and he began to think of her more and more as a single woman.

Mulan was unable to sense any change in Chi Fu's demeanor, because he still treated her as a loathesome burden and unwelcome houseguest. It did make her uneasy, however, when they would dine with each other. Neither attempted to make hostile or unhostile conversation, so most of their moments eating were in absolute silence. But, instead of simply avoiding her, which Mulan would have tolerated, Chi Fu freely stared at her as she ate, as if he were studying her, and at this point she would have traded living with Chi Fu for all of Wenli's insults. His presence would still remind her of his rescuing her, and she wondered if he thought the same thing when he looked at her.

After Wenli became engaged, her friends from throughout the city came to visit-- not only to congratulate her, but also to see for themselves how insipid Weihong really was. Weihong was very gregarious, mostly over nonsensical topics from which he would often stray, but he would somehow end up talking about one of three things: his many estates throughout China, the history of the Chu family, and the number of horses he had. When inquired as to what type of horses they were, he admitted that he did not know the exact breed, but he was assured that they were the fastest and strongest horses in all of China; and blinded by his extravagant nature, all who visited Wenli and Weihong left the palace with an overall good impression of Weihong, and they would tell Yin-Ling that she could only hope for such a prosperous match as Wenli's. Yin-Ling was, for the most part, left out of the wedding conversation, so she was feeling very discarded and alone and even more jealous of her sister than before.

She invited Mulan over and Mulan was all too eager to accept the invitation-- anything to get her out of Chi Fu's house. Mulan rode Khan to the palace, and they met at the tree where Wenli had proposed to Shang. Yin-Ling started off by stating how much she missed Mulan's company, and then she complained to Mulan about how her sister was receiving all the undeserved attention. Mulan only made succint responses, hoping to convey some concern without having to pay any more attention to Yin-Ling than she had to. Yin-Ling continued talking until she was interrupted by a maid who was relaying a message to her to see her mother. Yin-Ling left with her maid, and Mulan was left alone with Khan.

Mulan was not ready to return to Chi Fu's house, nor was she ready to return to her studies, so she decided to ride Khan around the palace grounds. It had been a long time since she had been able to take Khan out of the stables, and Khan was so excited to be used by Mulan again that he would have taken Mulan to the heavens and back if his owner so desired.

They had made one round on the palace grounds when they ran into Shang riding his own horse. Before Mulan could turn Khan around, Shang caught sight of her and navigated his horse to get him next to her.

"What are you doing here?" Shang asked.

"I came here to escape studying," Mulan plainly answered. "and you?"

"Mingwei wanted to visit Wenli and congratulate her, and she asked me to come along," Shang responded.

Mulan's next question would have been why he was not offering his congratulations with her, until she considered that he believed his presence would have upset Wenli. "So, I heard you're staying at Chi Fu's house now," Shang said. Mulan's reluctant nod answered his question, and he continued, "I could find you another place to stay, if you want."

"That's not necessary," Mulan said obligingly. "Chi Fu tutors me during the day anyway, so it is more convenient for the both of us."

"Oh, that's good then," Shang answered disappointedly. He did not understand Mulan-- he told her that he would be there for her, but she hadn't asked him yet for help. He knew Mulan had to be miserable living with Chi Fu, and he very plainly offered her a way out. What cut to Shang the worst was not that she didn't impose on him, but she imposed on Chi Fu. She was saved by Chi Fu, she was being tutored by Chi Fu, and now she was living with Chi Fu. Although she had little say in what happened up to now, he wanted to be the one to save her, and not Chi Fu. He wanted to be the one to help her out, but it was Chi Fu each time who came to her rescue. Mulan may not have wanted it, but she did not refuse Chi Fu as she did Shang.

"How are your studies going?" Shang asked, hoping to get off the topic of the annoying advisor.

"It's going well," Mulan replied sarcastically. "Reading Confucius' words puts so many things into perspective for me, and Chi Fu is such an expert at the Classics that he is able to explain to me the more abstract ideas. I think that if I don't pass this test, at least I'd have had the opportunity of reading it and getting to know Chi Fu."

Shang looked at her incredulously, and he would have laughed if Mulan had not kept a somber face and made him think that she was being sincere. Mulan then smiled and laughed, and Shang let out a chuckle. "At the rate you two are going, you'll be married by New Year," Shang said jokingly.

Mulan rolled her eyes and smirked. "I can only hope," she sighed.

Shang's laughter died as he introduced a more serious topic. "So are you considering marriage then?"

"With Chi Fu?" Mulan asked, hoping he was still joking.

"No," he responded all too quickly. "With anyone who happens to ask."

"Why would you think I wouldn't consider marriage?" Mulan asked, trying to evade the question mainly because the person asking was the only person who would induce such considerations. "Just because I join the army and am studying for a position in the Emperor's consul, I can't consider marriage?"

"I was just wondering."

Mulan considered the question. "If someone came along, and if we fell in love with each other, and if he proposed, then I would accept."

Shang gave a sigh of relief, though he didn't realize until right then that he didn't want Mulan married. He knew Mulan would not settle into marriage for anything other than love. He also knew that Mulan had better sense than to fall in love with just anybody, and it would take a different sort of man to fall in love with Mulan because of her unorthadox manner. But, he didn't know why he wouldn't want Mulan to fall in love. "Someone will come along," Shang said encouragingly.

"You think so?" Mulan looked him straight in the eyes. "I know what you're thinking: 'what man would be crazy enough to fall for someone like me?'"

"No," Shang replied. "I am thinking that no man will ever be worthy of you."

Mulan was so surprised at his candidness that she turned away, and she blushed at the compliment, but she still shook her head as if saying that he couldn't be more wrong. "You seem to think that I'm worth more than I really am. I may be different, but I'm nothing special."

Mulan's eyes met his again, and her smile faded when she met Shang's reproving gaze, as if he were scolding her for even thinking she was anything less than what he held her to be. But, he soon broke eye contact with her, and he turned in the direction of the palace. Once Mulan turned her head to see what he was looking at, she saw Yin-Ling and another girl walking together, and they were heading toward Shang and her.

"Shang!" the girl yelled out. As she began running to Shang, Shang got off his horse to receive her. She looked at Mulan curiously as Mulan got off Khan. "Who is this?"

Shang introduced the two of them. Mingwei's face lit up at the recognition of Mulan's name, and she was quick in giving Mulan praises. "You were the one on the roof of the palace, fighting off Shan Yu! I was there, I saw you, and you used that fan so skillfully. And, you are so pretty! Isn't she pretty Shang? I don't understand how you can be so small and pretty, yet you were mistaken for some warrior. I would have understood if you were taller or uglier that Shang and all the others could think you were a man, but they were way off!"

Mulan gave a wary smile to humor Mingwei. "It takes more than looks to be a warrior."

"Of course," Mingwei answered. "I'm sure it takes strength and smarts and dedication and all those other things, but those things aren't so easily seen. But I would never consider you a warrior. You look very delicate and feminine. Warriors are neither of the two."

Mulan would have taken the compliment as intended, but she was just called delicate and feminine-- two words she would have never used to describe herself.

"So," Mingwei said, turning to Shang, "you should have seen Wenli and Chu Weihong. He is"--she paused, trying to find the right words to describe him--"nice, but he is a bit dull if you ask me. But, he is very rich. He has a house here in the city, and he said that once the Emperor comes back so that Weihong can appropriately ask for Wenli, then he'll throw a big party in his house."

"The Emperor is not coming back for a few weeks," Shang said.

"Also," Mingwei said, "Chu Weihong told me that he wanted a portrait of Wenli painted as a gift to her, so I told him that your cousin Yuri painted portraits. So, Weihong wants to see Yuri as soon as possible! And, I was thinking, if Yuri does well enough, the Emperor could appoint Yuri as his official painter."

"That's good," Shang replied. "I'll tell Yuri."

"Mulan, Yin-Ling, you both should meet Shang's cousin Yuri. He is very funny, and he is so handsome," Mingwei said.

"Shang," Yin-Ling said, playfully chastising him, "I didn't know you had a cousin!"

"Mulan, you have such a beautiful horse," Mingwei said as she reaching out her hand to pet Khan. "Were you two riding your horses? You always said you were going to teach me to ride, Shang, but you never did."

"It's not hard," Shang said.

"Mulan, I wanted to show you something Weihong gave me," Yin-Ling said. "It's back inside the palace."

Although she wanted to watch Shang and Mingwei more, she followed Yin-Ling back in the direction of the palace. But, Mingwei was quick to run after Mulan. "I was wondering," Mingwei began, "since you'll be staying here a little while longer and all, could I ride on Khan for just a little while?"

Mulan was not ready to let Mingwei ride Khan, but she was not quick enough to say "no," because Mingwei took Mulan's silence as her consent. "Thank you, Mulan," Mingwei said cheerfully.

Mulan knew that Khan interacted well with strangers, but she hoped just this once that he would act up as Mingwei climbed up on him. Shang helped Mingwei up on Khan, and they began riding off together. It seemed to Mulan that neither Shang nor Khan gave her a second thought as they rode off with the girl that should have been her.

Mulan followed Yin-Ling back to the palace, and once they arrived in her bedroom, Yin-Ling showed her a silk robe with cranes embroidered on it. Mulan was unimpressed, but she still acted as if she had never seen anything more beautiful. "Weihong gave it to me just now," Yin-Ling said. "He is the most generous man I've ever known!"

Mulan smiled at the thought of just earlier Yin-Ling could not stop talking about how feeble-minded he was. Mulan was not willing to hear Yin-Ling talk even more about Weihong, whether it would be good or bad. She couldn't get her mind off Shang and Mingwei as a couple. She was exactly as Mulan had pictured her to be-- the perfectly made girl who would become some trophy wife. But, she never would have pictured Shang to be a man who would settle for a trophy wife. "I should really get going now," Mulan told Yin-Ling. "I have to get back to studying."

After Mulan said goodbye to Yin-Ling, she went back outside, but Shang, Mingwei, and her horse were nowhere to be seen. Mulan sat down at the base of a tree, and she could think of nothing else but how inconsiderate Mingwei was to have hijacked her horse for her own amusement. After waiting for a long time with no sight of them, sleep overcame her, and when Shang and Mingwei found her, just before the sun began to set, she was still napping under the tree.

Mingwei woke her up, and she was profuse in her apologies, but Mulan was too tired to listen to any of it. Mulan looked for an explanation from Shang, but he remained silent. They all rode out of the palace together, and Mingwei was the first to be dropped off.

Once Mingwei was out of earshot, Shang told Mulan, "We wanted to return your horse to you earlier, but Yin-Ling told us you had gone home, so we went to Chi Fu's house. Then the maid told us you hadn't returned, so we came back and searched the grounds for you."

"A simple apology will do," Mulan said expectingly.

"What do I have to apologize for?"

"I sat there waiting while the sun was still high," Mulan said. "Now it's setting!"

Shang remained unapologetic for whatever she thought he had done wrong. "I'm sorry you had to wait that long, but you were the one who let Mingwei use your horse."

Mulan sat in furied silence as they rode together. Shang waited a few minutes before speaking to her again, hoping her anger would have subsided. "So, what do you think of her?"

"Other than how inconsiderate she is for taking my horse from me?" Mulan seethed. "I wasted hours that could have been spent studying."

Shang took his eyes off the road ahead and stared back at Mulan. "First, you let her ride the horse. Second, she apologized when she returned it. Third-- you told me yourself you didn't want to study!"

His eyes were blazing, and he was angry that Mulan would blame Mingwei for everything, but Mulan's anger was greater than his-- not because she had wasted her afternoon under a tree, but because he would take Mingwei's side over hers. "I didn't let her ride the horse-- she jumped on Khan before I could say 'no!'" Mulan fumed. "Why would I let a complete stranger ride my horse?!"

Shang shifted his eyes downward as he realized that he never heard Mulan give consent. "Sorry."

Even though she had defeated Shang in that one argument, she was not ready to back down until he would see her for what she was. "Why are you marrying her?" Mulan asked. "She is careless, and she does not consider the consequences of her actions until it's too late."

Shang looked back at Mulan, hurt and incensed that she would question his judgement. "I love her," Shang replied, "and you just met her. You can't judge her only on the horse incident."

"I had judged her even before that," Mulan said defiantly. "She said I wasn't a warrior and that I am delicate and feminine."

Shang rolled his eyes and sighed in exasperation. "Mulan, you are the only woman in China that would prefer to be called a warrior."

"I fought just as hard as you and all the other soldiers, and her compliments are about my looks."

"We have something in common then," Shang said, trying to make light of the situation.

Mulan did not appreciate his joke, and she felt relief as she saw Chi Fu's house a few yards away. "You can love her," Mulan said, "but I don't have to like her."

"Mulan, please reconsider," Shang said pleadingly. "Both of you are important to me, and I want you two to get along. And, I want to know I have your approval in my choice of a bride."

They had reached Chi Fu's estate, and Shang began to head out in the direction of his own home when Mulan called out to him: "It shouldn't matter what I think of her. Besides, you already know what I think of your choice."

Even though his horse continued trotting down the street, her words were stuck in his head, and they affected him so much that he hardly paid attention to what was going on around him. He only regained his sense of surroundings when his horse stopped, and he found himself at his cousin's house. Whether he had subconsciously led his horse, or if the horse had understood its master so well that it knew where to take him, Shang would not have wanted to be anywhere else.