Oh my god! could it be that I updated twice within two weeks? =)
Get ready for it...
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"I'm not going to give you more until you tell me what's wrong," Yuri said, holding up a flask away from Shang.
"Some suitor of the princess wants to pay you a commission," Shang said, averting Yuri by changing the subject. "He wants you to paint a portrait of the princess. So we should celebrate," and with saying celebrate, he picked up his empty cup in expectation of its soon being full.
Yuri's eyes lit up, and he knew immediately what opportunities this opened him to. He put down the flask away from Shang's reach, and he began asking more questions, like "how rich is he," "does he know the worth of a portrait," and "is the princess pretty." Shang answered each question truthfully, and with each question answered, Yuri became more and more excited. "Do not even think of fooling around with the princess," Shang said.
"Shang, you know me," Yuri said.
"I do," Shang said. "Exactly why I am warning you now. Didn't you have a pregnancy scare with the last girl you painted?"
"Isn't it funny how you can look back at serious situations and now laugh at them?" Yuri said.
"You wouldn't be laughing if she had your child."
"I see what's going on," Yuri said. "Mingwei refuses to be with you before marriage, and you have to spoil everyone else's fun. Is that why you're so annoyed?"
Shang averted his eyes to his empty cup. "The reason you came here is to get it off your chest," Yuri said, "so you might as well tell me now."
"Do you think Mingwei is superficial?" Shang asked.
"You didn't know? I thought you knew," said Yuri, looking at him completely surprised. "What makes you realize this now?"
"Fa Mulan disapproves of our marriage," Shang said.
"What does Fa Mulan have to do with anything?" Yuri asked.
"I value her opinion," Shang replied.
Yuri's facial expression matched his piqued interest. "Of course! After all, why else would her comment affect you this much? You don't have feelings for her, do you?"
"She is my friend," Shang answered. "One of my few friends here, and I trust her with my life." Shang refused to talk anymore about Mulan, although Yuri remained unconvinced that Shang felt of her as just a friend.
Mulan woke up early the next morning and went straight to Chi Fu's library. She figured she could study as much as she could before Chi Fu could lecture her about not studying yesterday. But, when Chi Fu walked in through the library doors, he had something else in mind.
He wanted to visit Princess Wenli and Chu Weihong, and although Mulan would have thought her world a happier place without them, Chi Fu coerced her into going. They rode to the palace in his sedan in complete silence (other than for Chi Fu's requests: "don't embarrass me" and "please try not speaking"). Mulan only sat silently, because if she had learned one thing to do while living Chi Fu, it was to bear his obnoxiousness without getting upset.
Once they arrived and were announced to Wenli and Chu Weihong, they met with Chi Fu and Mulan in the sitting room. Chu Weihong did most of the talking, and Wenli's demeanor indicated to Mulan that she had heard Chu Weihong talk like this many times before with other visitors.
"My land in the province is 10 acres large, and I have plenty of servants-- around 50 or so," Chu Weihong proudly stated. "I also have some land in the South, and I have some property here as well. I usually visit both of those places twice a year for about two months."
"Then who lives in them for the rest of the year?" Mulan asked, intrigued that a person could own more than one house. Wenli gave Mulan a supercilious look, offended by Mulan's apparently ignorant question. Chi Fu shot a scornful sideglance at her because she had broken one of his two earlier requests.
"No one," Chu Weihong said. "The servants stay there and maintain the area."
Mulan decided to follow Chi Fu's rules the rest of the time, and she sat in silent disgust over Weihong's description of his ostentatious lifestyle. But soon enough, Yin-Ling and her mother were announced at the sitting room, and they brought their own subjects to talk about.
First the Empress talked about her dog, who was feeling a bit under the weather. Mulan offered some advice that the Empress, although impressed and grateful for Mulan's help, had no intention of remembering. And a while after Mulan stopped paying attention to what anyone around her was saying, her ears picked up one bit of information that caused her to mentally reenter the conversation.
"I received a letter from him earlier this morning," the Empress said, "and he said he'll be coming back tomorrow with his gaurd, but his father will be detained with the other festivities in that province."
"I'll be happy to see him back," Yin-Ling said, although she hadn't missed him at all while he was gone. "How about you, Mulan? Have you missed him as well?"
Everyone turned their heads in Mulan's direction, waiting for her answer. Mulan shyly laughed, and answered, "Not as much as you have, I'm sure."
"He had taken a liking to you before he left," the Empress said. "A mother knows these things."
"Now we have to wait and see how long it takes until he moves on to the next girl," Chi Fu remarked out of jealousy.
The Empress responded, without taking a defensive tone, "I think Mulan is the type of girl my son could fall in love with. She is very beautiful, intelligent, and genteel."
"Mama, genteel?" Wenli facetiously scoffed. "She fought a Hun leader on our roof a few months ago."
"You must have practiced fighting on roofs in order to keep your balance," Chu Weihong said to Mulan. Everyone but Mulan laughed as if he said something clever (and for his sake, they all were hoping that he was not as pointless as his comment).
Then, a servant came to the door, and he announced Li Shang and his cousin. Both men entered the room and bowed to the Empress and the princesses before they stated the reason for their visit. Wenli did her best to seem unruffled by Shang's presence, since this was the first time she had seen him since she became engaged to Chu Weihong. She even built the thought up in her mind that she had rejected Shang's offer of marriage, and that Chu Weihong was an infinitely better man than Li Shang would ever be. This helped her in keeping her composure with Shang, but she was still curious about Shang's foreign-looking cousin.
Yuri talked with Chu Weihong and everyone fell into silence, astounded that a Yuri, who had blonde hair, was speaking without the trace of an accent. To the princesses, Yuri's exotic Russian features were extremely attractive. Yin-Ling had fallen in love with him the moment he walked in the room. Wenli, being engaged and more mature in nature, sat up proudly and drew her fan close to her face, concealing her nose and mouth from view. From her vantage point she watched as her fiancé handled business. Weihong was very eager to have the portrait painted, and Yuri was just as eager to paint it. When the discussion came around to how much Weihong would spend, Yuri first quoted an extraordinarily high fee. His plan was to slowly go down so that Weihong would appreciate the price once Yuri gave him a discount, although he would still be overcharged. Weihong however, being naïve in any and every issue concerning money, agreed to Yuri's asking price. Mulan's eyes widened in disbelief, Shang raised an eyebrow, and Chi Fu went to Weihong's side. "Perhaps you are being a bit hasty," Chi Fu nervously said. "That is a bit expensive, don't you think?"
"I am rich," Weihong said, offended. "I can afford it."
Yuri laughed, but he was inwardly seething that someone as insipid as Weihong would have so much money. "Because I like you," he said, "I will give you a discount."
Weihong smiled at the bargain he just received. "That's great!" he exclaimed. "How soon can you get started?"
"I can start tomorrow, if that isn't any inconvenience," Yuri replied. "I would need some money now to get supplies, but you don't have to pay me all of it right now."
"Okay, I'll get you some money," Weihong said. "I'll be right back."
He walked away to the hallway and disappeared once he turned the corner. Yuri turned to the two girls seated next to each other. "So, which of you will I have the pleasure of staring at for the next couple of weeks?"
Wenli smiled and nodded her head as she looked up at Yuri. "How long exactly does this process take, and what will I be doing?"
Yuri kneeled down to the princess's level. "Depending on how detailed your husband wants it and how willing you are to stay still, it could last a month and a half at the least."
Wenli quickly corrected him. "He is not my husband," she said. "Not yet."
"Oh, of course," Yuri said, smiling. He continued: "and, you ought to choose an outfit of yours that you want to wear in the portrait. Perhaps something red."
"Why red?" Wenli asked.
"Because I like red," Yuri responded.
Neither Shang nor Chi Fu were comfortable with the tone of the conversation in front of them. Yuri was being too forward with the engaged Wenli, especially with her betrothed in the other room, and Wenli looked as if she enjoyed it. Yuri, who was never one to give his attentions to just one girl, turned to Yin-Ling. Yin-Ling's heart went aflutter as he headed her way. "And what is your name?" Yuri asked.
"Yin-Ling," she responded.
Yuri took her hand and pressed the back of it to his lips. "It is a pleasure to meet you." Yin-Ling let out a giggle, which made Wenli glare at her sister. She was, for the first time in her life, jealous of Yin-Ling. Yuri should be paying attention to her after all, since she would be painted in the portrait. Before she could call out for Yuri again, Weihong reentered the room with a small sack of money in his hand.
"I think this amount should be able to pay for your supplies," Weihong said. Yuri accepted the sack and the deal was set.
Mulan sat back and watched in shock at the manner in which these people conducted themselves. Yuri then looked at Mulan, and he knew immediately from Shang's descriptions who she was. "So, you must be the Fa Mulan," he said suavely. "It is a pleasure and honor to meet you."
Mulan, who knew better than to swoon over his regard for her, reciprocated the pleasure in meeting a relative of Li Shang's.
Shang, who had been sitting in silence the entire time, suddenly felt it necessary to go. He made his excuses to everyone and left. But, before exiting the door, he gave one last look at Mulan before taking off.
Yuri stayed, and he was the center of attention. He talked about his father and mother, and he talked about painting. Then conversation turned to Shang's premature departure and how much Yin-Ling missed his presence, despite the fact that he had contributed nothing to their discussion that morning.
"My cousin had received some words last night from someone he considered a friend," Yuri said, talking to everyone though directing his words at Mulan. "These words hurt him worse than any injury he could have sustained at battle, and now he is filled with doubt about a decision he made." Everyone else wanted Yuri to reveal more, but he made his excuses to leave-- he had to buy the painting supplies before the market closed.
Yin-Ling said to them after he left, "Isn't he just handsome! I have never seen golden hair before. And his eyes! Did you see his eyes? They were as blue as the sky."
"Publicly fawning over someone is very unbecoming," Wenli nonchalantly expressed. "And he's poor, and he's practically a foreigner."
"But, he was born and raised in China," Yin-Ling replied. "And he is a Li."
"But he'll never be Chinese because he just isn't," Chi Fu irately stated. He hated being with the princesses when they discussed the attractiveness of young men. Being a mature, successful bachelor himself, he was wondering why he hasn't seen girls acting that way about him. Maybe he was not quite so rich as Weihong or as handsome as Shang, but he considered himself a very worthy find for any woman. And now, to hear of a poor foreigner being admired by a princess nonetheless made him especially angry.
"He has such a tragic upbringing," the Empress said, nonplussed by her daughters' discussion. "But still, he holds such promise of being a fine young man. I always find people like that very inspiring."
Chi Fu and Mulan left soon afterwards, and as soon as they arrived back at Chi Fu's house, she went straight to the library to return to studying. But, Yuri's words and his scrutinizing gaze were still fresh on her mind. Those words were directed at her, but what did he mean by them? Would Shang actually call off an engagement to a beautiful aristocrat's daughter whom he had been courting for a long time now? Mulan shook off her thoughts, and she delved into Confucius.
She spent the next two days in the library, ready to go crazy if she didn't have any human interaction. The maids would pop in every so often to announce meals, and Chi Fu would pop in also to check up on her, but she was pretty much on her own. Then, three days after she and Chi Fu went to the palace, an invitiation came to her from Yin-Ling to visit.
Mulan arrived in time to join Wenli, Weihong, Yin-Ling, and Yuri on their walk. Ever since Yuri's initial visit, Yuri would be seen everyday with a paintbrush in hand, trying to paint Wenli's portrait. Yin-Ling would almost always be at his side, simply watching him, and Weihong would be at Wenli's side watching her. Yin-Ling tried talking to Yuri at first, although he wanted silence so that he could focus more. Wenli, who found it tedious to stay seated long periods of time, would constantly get up and ask to take a walk. So, the four of them would take walks together around the palace. Every time, Yuri was his charming self, paying compliments to the princesses whenever possible. Yin-Ling was all blushes and giggles each time and Wenli was composed throughout. However, Wenli felt vexed by having her sister and fiance tagging along all the time. Yin-Ling also felt frustrated with her sister for taking up most of Yuri's time, and even though she didn't want to believe it, she sometimes felt like Yuri preferred Wenli over her.
"Mulan," Ying-Ling said, greeting her with a hug, "Can you believe it? It has been so long since we have seen each other! I missed you so much."
Mulan was disappointed that she didn't see Jian-Sheng, and after inquiring the health of Yin-Ling and Wenli, she asked about him. "He and his guard are always going out partying really late," Wenli said. "They're even planning a big party here."
"Yes, you have to come, Mulan!" Yin-Ling exclaimed. "It will be the best party. None of those boring old people are coming. It will be a bunch of people our age."
But despite Yin-Ling's encouragement to attend, Mulan steadfastly refused. Yin-Ling and Weihong were disappointed, Wenli didn't care, and Yuri found another reason to dislike her.
They continued walking until they reached the front gate of the palace. Wenli then told everyone how she wanted to sneak out of the palace, and even though Mulan, Yin-Ling, and Weihong were not interested, Yuri said he would join her. So, without waiting for further objection from the three of them, Yuri and Wenli went through the gates and went out into the city.
It was then that Yin-Ling faced the fact that Yuri had been pursuing Wenli all that time, and she had been deluding herself. "I hate Wenli! I hate her! I hate her!" she hysterically cried as she ran back into the palace.
Mulan was left to console Chu Weihong, and she did not find it hard to convince Weihong that Wenli would return to the palace, still wanting to marry him. Then, Mulan headed back into the palace to try consoling Yin-Ling when she ran into Jian-Sheng. They exchanged surprise in seeing each other again, and they began catching up.
"That coastal province was fun for the first few days, but it became boring really quick," Jian-Sheng told her. "I asked my father if I could return early, and he said it was fine, so Ling and I returned two days ago."
"Ling?" Mulan repeated, and she wondered if they knew the same girl-crazy Ling.
"Yes, he said he knew you from the army," Jian-Sheng said. "We're planning to have a party here in a week. You should come-- get away from studying."
"Thank you," Mulan replied, "but Chi Fu insists I study."
"Too bad," Jian-Sheng said. "You know, there's one more thing I wanted to tell you: Shang called off the engagement with Mingwei. You look a little pale, Mulan. Are you okay?"
She told him that she was fine, but everything indicated that she had felt worse from the news. "I thought it would make you feel better since Shang is free now."
"You're not joking?" Mulan asked, half-hoping that Jian-Sheng was.
"Shang told me night before last that he was still mourning his father and was not ready to commit to anything," Jian-Sheng said.
Just then, Mingwei emerged from the palace doors. The look she gave Jian-Sheng made Mulan wonder if they were hiding something, and Mingwei then suspiciously turned to Mulan. "What are you doing here?"
Mulan did not know whether to respond to her question or to tell her sorry for being the main cause of her split with Shang, but Jian-Sheng covered for her. "I was just telling her about the province I went to."
Mingwei nodded, then she turned to Jian-Sheng. "I'm going back to the room."
Mulan could hardly believe that this was the same Mingwei from a few days ago who could not stop talking, and she knew the only reason she seemed so despondent was from her broken engagement. "Wait," Mulan said, fitting the situation into context. "Why is Mingwei here?"
"Mulan," Jian-Sheng said in a low-key voice. "I'm helping out Mingwei, because she's very distressed. Please don't tell anyone you saw her here. I don't want people coming to any lewd conclusions about her and me."
Mulan agreed to keep the secret, but she was not sure if she could believe Jian-Sheng's explanation. Jian-Sheng, after swearing her to secrecy, told her that he had to return to Mingwei. He and Mulan parted ways, and Mulan began heading to Yin-Ling's bedroom again. She had made it halfway down the hall when she encountered Bing, the maid who had shown her around the palace on the first day, and Bing was very excited to see Mulan again.
"I heard you were staying with that horrible man Chi Fu and that you're studying all the time now (you poor thing, here have an apple to eat). I saw that you ran into the Emperor's son. Such a dispicable young man. He ran up so many gambling debts when he was away with his father, and he also got himself in trouble with some of the locals' daughters, and now he is getting himself involved with that other girl. And, that girl (her name is Ming-something, I don't quite remember-- oh yes, Mingwei, that's right) was engaged to General Li's son. Unbelievable. My husband told me he wants to take me to the opera for my birthday (they have all sorts of stories about love and lovers backstabbing each other), but I told him that I don't need to because I work here! And now, that dispicible young man wants all of us to clean up and prepare for a party next week. The Empress is so inattentive of her children that she knows about the party and does not care. But, if the Emperor were here, they would all be in trouble. And that foreign boy that paints the princess' portrait-- there is nothing going on right now between them, but I say give it time. He has a reputation, and the princess seems to detest Chu Weihong so much that she will turn to the foreigner. And now, the younger princess is heartbroken that--- oh, you know? Ah, cheer her up then. She is absolutely heartbroken. You'll know her room when the sobbing gets louder."
Mulan found the room without any problem because she followed Bing's directions, and she let herself in. Yin-Ling was sprawled out on the bed, crying so loudly, and when she saw Mulan there, she immediately ran to her. "She is horrible! She ruined my life!" Mulan could make out in between the sobs. Mulan stayed by Yin-Ling's side until she went to sleep. When she came into the hallway, she saw Wenli just coming in without Yuri beside her. Wenli avoided Mulan as she walked down the hallway, and she went straight to her room.
Mulan made her way back to the Chi Fu's estate, socially consumed with the Imperial family and their misdeeds. She hoped she would never have to enter the palace again and face any one of them. Bing may have found it entertaining, but Mulan was weary over the thought of all the lies they were living, and she promised herself to stay confined in the library and to study until the time came to take the exam.